Numerical study of QCD phase diagram at high temperature and density by a histogram method

We study the QCD phase structure at high temperature and density adopting a histogram method. Because the quark determinant is complex at finite density, the Monte-Carlo method cannot be applied directly. We use a reweighting method and try to solve the problems which arise in the reweighting method, i.e. the sign problem and the overlap problem. We discuss the chemical potential dependence of the probability distribution function in the heavy quark mass region and examine the applicability of the approach in the light quark region.     

Efficient Synthesis of Cyclic Block Copolymers by Rotaxane Protocol by Linear/Cyclic Topology Transformation

High‐yielding synthesis of cyclic block copolymer (CBC) using the rotaxane protocol by linear‐cyclic polymer topology transformation was first demonstrated. Initial complexation of OH‐terminated sec‐ammonium salt and a crown ether was followed by the successive living ring‐opening polymerizations of two lactones to a linear block copolymer having a rotaxane structure by the final capping of the propagation end. CBC was obtained in a high yield by an exploitation of the mechanical linkage through the translational movement of the rotaxane component to transform polymer structure from linear to cyclic. Furthermore, the change of the polymer topology was translated into a macroscopic change in crystallinity of the block copolymer.     

Effects of Bis(aromatic) Pendants on Recognition of Nucleobase Thymine by Zn2+ -1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane (Zn2+ -cyclen)

We have previously shown that the nucleobase thymine binding to Zn²⁺ -cyclen (cyclen=1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane) complex became stronger by appending acridine, naphthalene, or quinoline rings to the cyclen. Amongst these, the pendant bis((1-naphthyl)methyl) or bis((4-quinolyl)methyl) groups yielded the most effective thymine-recognizing Zn²⁺ -cyclen complexes [J. Am. Chem. Soc., 121 (1999) 5426]. The present study was undertaken to find causes of the bis(aromatic) ring effect by X-ray crystal structure analysis and NMR studies. The crystal structure of the Zn²⁺ -bis((1-naphthyl)methyl)-cyclen complex with a deprotonated 1-methylthymine (1-MeT) failed to show the anticipated evidence for the double ~ - ~ stacking interactions between the two naphthalenes and the Zn 2+ -bound 1-MeT m (1-MeT m =N(3')-deprotonated 1-MeT). Crystal data: formula C₃₆ H₄₇ N₇ O₇ Zn, M r =755.19, monoclinic, space group P2₁/ c (No. 14), a =15.438(2) Å, b =14.093(3) Å, c =16.726(2) Å, g =90.53(1) V =3638.7(8) Å 3 Z =4, R =0.035, R _w =0.049. However, the ¹H NMR studies of Zn²⁼ -bis((4-quinolyl)methyl)-cyclen with 1-MeT in varying H₂O/CH₃ CN solution showed increasing upfield shifts of Me(5') and H(6') of the Zn²⁺ -bound 1-MeT in more aqueous media, indicating that the double intercalation with the two quinolines became more significant in more protic environments. We conclude that the double ~ - ~ stacking effect accounts for the enhanced recognition of thymine base by the appended bis((1-naphthyl)methyl) or bis((4-quinolinyl)methyl) groups.     

SPE HG-AAS method for the determination of inorganic arsenic in rice—results from method validation studies and a survey on rice products

The present paper describes the development, validation and application of a method for inorganic arsenic (iAs) determination in rice samples. The separation of iAs from organoarsenic compounds was done by off-line solid-phase extraction (SPE) followed by hydride generation atomic absorption spectrometry (HG-AAS) detection. This approach was earlier developed for seafood samples (Rasmussen et al., Anal Bioanal Chem 403:2825–2834, 2012) and has in the present work been tailored for rice products and further optimised for a higher sample throughput and a lower detection limit. Water bath heating (90 °C, 60 min) of samples with dilute HNO₃ and H₂O₂ solubilised and oxidised all iAs to arsenate (As^V). Loading of buffered sample extracts (pH 6?±?1) followed by selective elution of arsenate from a strong anion exchange SPE cartridge enabled the selective iAs quantification by HG-AAS, measuring total arsenic (As) in the SPE eluate. The in-house validation gave mean recoveries of 101–106 % for spiked rice samples and in two reference samples. The limit of detection was 0.02 mg kg^?1, and repeatability and intra-laboratory reproducibility were less than 6 and 9 %, respectively. The SPE HG-AAS method produced similar results compared to parallel high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) analysis. The SPE separation step was tested collaboratively, where the laboratories (N?=?10) used either HG-AAS or ICP-MS for iAs determination in a wholemeal rice powder. The trial gave satisfactory results (HorRat value of 1.6) and did not reveal significant difference (t test, p?>?0.05) between HG-AAS and ICP-MS quantification. The iAs concentration in 36 rice samples purchased on the Danish retail market varied (0.03–0.60 mg kg^?1), with the highest concentration found in a red rice sample.      

Simultaneous determination of testosterone, cortisol, and dehydroepiandrosterone in saliva by stable isotope dilution on-line in-tube solid-phase microextraction coupled with liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry

We have developed a simple and sensitive method for the simultaneous determination of testosterone (TES), cortisol (CRT), and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) in saliva by automated online in-tube solid-phase microextraction (SPME) coupled with liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) using a Discovery HS F5 column. The optimum in-tube SPME conditions were 25 draw/eject cycles of 40 μL of sample at a flow rate of 200 μL/min using a Supel-Q PLOT capillary column as an extraction device. The extracted compounds were easily desorbed from the capillary by passage of the mobile phase, and no carryover was observed. The in-tube SPME LC–MS/MS method showed good linearity with correlation coefficients r?≥?0.9998 for TES, CRT, and DHEA using their respective stable isotope-labeled internal standards. The intra-day and inter-day precisions (relative standard deviations) were below 4.9 and 8.5 % (n?=?5), respectively. This method was successfully utilized to analyze TES, CRT, and DHEA in saliva samples without any other pretreatment or interference peaks, and the quantification limits (S/N?=?10) of TES, CRT and DHEA were about 0.01, 0.03 and 0.29 ng/mL saliva, respectively. The recoveries of these compounds spiked into saliva samples were each above 94 %. This method was applied to analyze changes in salivary TES, CRT, and DHEA levels resulting from stress and fatigue load.     

Analysis of the quantum numbers J(PC) of the X(3872) particle

We present an analysis of angular distributions and correlations of the X(3872) particle in the exclusive decay mode X(3872)-->J/psipi+ pi- with J/psi-->mu+ mu-. We use 780 pb-1 of data from pp[over ] collisions at sqrt[s]=1.96 TeV collected with the CDF II detector at the Fermilab Tevatron. We derive constraints on spin, parity, and charge conjugation parity of the X(3872) particle by comparing measured angular distributions of the decay products with predictions for different J(PC) hypotheses. The assignments J(PC)=1++ and 2-+ are the only ones consistent with the data.