Theoretical evidence for a reentrant phase diagram in ortho-para mixtures of solid H2 at high pressure

We develop a multiorder parameter mean-field formalism for systems of coupled quantum rotors. The scheme is developed to account for systems where ortho-para distinction is valid. We apply our formalism to solid H2 and D2. We find an anomalous reentrant orientational phase transition for both systems at thermal equilibrium. The correlation functions of the order parameter indicate short-range order at low temperatures. As the temperature is increased the correlation increases along the phase boundary. We also find that even extremely small odd-J concentrations (1%) can trigger short-range orientational ordering.     

Excitons and plasmons in wide gaps: Solid rare gases

We develop a model macroscopic response function that describes the electronic response in wide gap insulators. The parameters entering the model, which consists of two coupled oscillators, are fixed by electrostatics. Application is made to both valence and core transitions in solid rare gases. We obtain exciton and plasmon energies in agreement with the available experimental data.     

Berry-phase calculation of magnetic screening and rotational g factor in molecules and solids

The orbital magnetic moment due to rotation or pseudorotation in a molecule or a solid and the corresponding rotational g factor are formulated using the Berry-phase technique and standard density functional plane wave methods. Among the simplest molecules, H+2, H2, C2H2, CH4, and CF4, with known rotational g factors, are used as test cases with excellent results. Alternative, faster localized orbital calculations including the magnetic coupling through heuristic Peierls phase factors are also tested and found to be viable, though less accurate. Application to pseudorotations is exemplified in benzene. It is proposed that these methods will be suited for application to pseudorotations in solids.     

Surface states and negative electron affinity in polyethylene

First-principles calculations are used to investigate the electronic properties of the surfaces of polyethylene. The calculations support the experimental evidence of a negative electron affinity, with calculated values of -0.17 eV and -0.10 eV for surfaces with chains perpendicular and parallel to the surface normal, respectively. Both surfaces exhibit a surface state with binding energy -1.2 +/- 0.5 eV with respect to the bulk polyethylene conduction band minimum. Implications of these findings on spectroscopy, as well as on the transport and aging properties of polyethylene for high-voltage applications, are discussed.     

Multi-molecule reaction of serum albumin can occur through thiol-yne coupling

The free-radical hydrothiolation of alkynes (thiol-yne coupling, TYC) unites two thiol fragments across the carbon-carbon triple bond to give a dithioether derivative with exclusive 1,2-addition; this reaction can be used for modification of peptides and proteins allowing glycoconjugation and fluorescent labeling. These results have implications not only as a flexible strategy for attaching two modifications at a single site in proteins but also for unanticipated side-reactions of reagents (such as cycloalkynes) used in other protein coupling reactions.     

Construction dʼopérades ensemblistes à partir de monoïdes

We study a functorial construction from the category of monoids to the category of set-operads and we give some combinatorial examples of applications.     

Atomic spin-sensitive dissipation on magnetic surfaces

We identify the mechanism of energy dissipation relevant to spin-sensitive nanomechanics including the recently introduced magnetic exchange force microscopy, where oscillating magnetic tips approach surface atomic spins. The tip-surface exchange couples spin and atom coordinates, leading to a spin-phonon problem with Caldeira-Leggett-type dissipation. In the overdamped regime, that can lead to a hysteretic flip of the local spin with a large spin-dependent dissipation, even down to the very low experimental tip oscillation frequencies, describing recent observations for Fe tips on NiO. A phase transition to an underdamped regime with dramatic drop of magnetic tip dissipation should in principle be possible by tuning tip-surface distance.     

Synthesis and spectral studies on NiS<Subscript>4</Subscript>, NiS<Subscript>2</Subscript>PN,NiS<Subscript>2</Subscript>P<Subscript>2</Subscript> chromophores: Single-crystal X-ray structure of [Ni(dbpdtc)<Subscript>2</Subscript>] (dbpdtc = benzyl(4-(benzylamino)phenyl)dithiocarbamate)

Three complexes of a dithiocarbamate ligand (dbpdtc = benzyl(4-(benzylamino)phenyl)dithiocarbamate), namely [Ni(dbpdtc)₂] (1), [Ni(dbpdtc)(NCS)(PPh₃)] (2) and [Ni(dbpdtc)(PPh₃)₂]ClO₄ (3) have been prepared. The complexes were characterized by IR, electronic spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry. A single-crystal X-ray structural analysis was carried out for complex 1 and showed that the nickel is in a distorted square planar environment with a NiS₄ chromophore. For the two mixed ligand complexes, the thioureide ν _C–N values were shifted to higher wavenumbers compared to [Ni(dbpdtc)₂], suggesting increased strength of the thioureide bond due to the presence of the π-accepting phosphine. Electronic spectral studies suggest square planar geometries for the complexes. Cyclic voltammetry showed easier reduction of nickel(II) to nickel(I) in the mixed ligand complexes compared to [Ni(dbpdtc)₂].     

A Click-Chemistry Linked 2′3′-cGAMP Analogue

2′3′-cGAMP is an uncanonical cyclic dinucleotide where one A and one G base are connected via a 3′-5′ and a unique 2′-5′ linkage. The molecule is produced by the cyclase cGAS in response to cytosolic DNA binding. cGAMP activates STING and hence one of the most powerful pathways of innate immunity. cGAMP analogues with uncharged linkages that feature better cellular penetrability are currently highly desired. Here, the synthesis of a cGAMP analogue with one amide and one triazole linkage is reported. The molecule is best prepared via a first Cu^I-catalyzed click reaction, which establishes the triazole, while the cyclization is achieved by macrolactamization.     

Raman tensor calculation for magnesium phthalocyanine

We present ab-initio density functional (DFT) calculations of the vibrational spectra of neutral magnesium phthalocyanine (MgPc) molecule and of its Raman scattering intensities.