Excitation migration among inhomogeneously broadened levels of Eu3+ ions

Excitation migration between ⁵D₀ states of Eu³⁺ ions in Ca(PO₃)₂ glass is studied by using the technique of the selective excitation of the inhomogeneously broadened ⁵D₀ levels. In time-resolved emission spectra for ⁵D₀→⁷F₁ transition after the pulse excitation due to ⁷F₀→⁵D₀ transition by the use of a tunable dye laser at 77°K, a subpeak is observed to appear and to grow in intensity with increasing delay time, besides the main peak excited directly by the excitation light. The observed facts are explained by considering the phonon-assisted energy transfer between ⁵D₀ states involving an acoustic phonon. From the analysis of the results, the probability of the excitation migration due to the phonon-assisted process is estimated to be ≌ 10 A ms^-1. From the theoretical consideration, the rate of the linewidth change and the probability of the excitation migration due to the resonant transfer process are obtained. These results indicate that the phonon-assisted process is more dominant than the resonant process for the excitation migration in the system studied.     

Calculation of collisional and radiative transition probabilities between excited argon levels

Average radiative transition probabilities for argon atoms have been calculated for transitions between 24 levels in two groups characterized by the atomic core terms ²P_1/2 and ²P_3/2 by using the method of Bates and Damgaard. The results are compared with data in the NBS tables (Wiese et al.) and with those of Katsonis and Drawin. We find satisfactory agreement for the order of magnitude, even for transitions between lower lying levels. Parameters, which appear in Drawin's semiempirical cross-section expressions for electronic excitation of optically allowed and parity-forbidden transitions, are determined with the multipole expansion method proposed by Sobel'man for transitions between the specified levels. Most of these are easily obtained, but the method must be improved for transitions between levels having the same azimuthal quantum number because the summation over the constituent terms does not converge.     

Water content distribution in a polymer electrolyte membrane for advanced fuel cell system with liquid water supply

To better understand the operation of a new fuel cell design, we used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to measure the water content distribution in a polymer electrolyte membrane under fuel cell operation with and without a supply of liquid water. The supply of liquid water to the membrane improved the cell performance by increasing the water content in the membrane and thus reducing the electrical resistance of the membrane. The study also showed that MRI is a promising method to investigate the distribution of water in the membrane of a fuel cell under operating conditions.     

Inelastic neutron scattering study of low energy excitations in polymer thin films

We report inelastic neutron scattering measurements on polystyrene thin films in a glassy state in the meV region. We found in elastic scattering that the mean square displacement decreased with film thickness, and hence the corresponding force constant f increased. In inelastic and quasielastic scattering, we observed the so-called boson peak at around 1.5 meV and the picosecond fast process for the first time in thin films, both of which decreased in intensity with film thickness. These results were discussed in terms of the potential hardening due to the confinement of polymer chains and/or the interfacial dead layer.     

Interfaces of correlated electron systems: proposed mechanism for colossal electroresistance

Mott's metal-insulator transition at an interface due to band bending is studied by the density matrix renormalization group approach. We show that the result can be recovered by a simple modification of the conventional Poisson's equation approach used in semiconductor heterojunctions. A novel mechanism of colossal electroresistance is proposed, which incorporates the hysteretic behavior of the transition in higher dimensions.     

Skeletal reorganization of enynes into 1-vinylcycloalkenes in ionic liquids

The skeletal reorganization of enynes catalyzed by transition metal chlorides, such as PtCl(2), [RuCl(2)(CO)(3)](2), [RhCl(CO)(2)](2), and AuCl(3), in ionic liquids proceeds under milder conditions (at lower reaction temperatures and for shorter reaction times) than those needed for ordinary solvents. The products produced by the skeletal reorganization of enynes were easily removed from the catalyst by a simple extraction with Et(2)O or distillation. The PtCl(2) can be reused up to five times.     

The first bowl-shaped stable neutral radical with a corannulene system: synthesis and characterization of the electronic structure

[structure: see text] A bowl-shaped neutral radical with a corannulene system has been designed and synthesized for the first time as a stable solid in air. An unequivocal characterization of the electronic properties of the radical shows that an appreciable amount of spin delocalization extends onto the corannulene unit's curved surface.