Self-induced modulational instability laser revisited: normal dispersion and dark-pulse train generation

We study theoretically and experimentally the so-called self-induced modulational instability laser and show that the passive mode-locking mechanism that is at play in this laser relies on a dissipative four-wave mixing process that leads to generation of a dark-pulse train in the normal-dispersion regime.     

Inclusion of C60 into an adjustable porphyrin dimer generated by dynamic disulfide chemistry

A new, highly flexible porphyrin dimer was isolated in preparative scale from a dynamic disulfide library; this receptor adjusts to fit guests with a wide range of steric requirements and, whilst C60 proved to be an unsuitable template for this library, a new C60-porphyrin complex was isolated and characterised.     

Dynamic synthesis of a macrocycle containing a porphyrin and an electron donor

New macrocycles incorporating a porphyrin and a [small pi] electron-rich aromatic were prepared from a dynamic disulfide library. The outcome could be influenced by use of templates.     

Investigation of the Interactions of Polyvinylpyrrolidone with Mixtures of Anionic and Nonionic Surfactants or Anionic and Zwitterionic Surfactants by Pulsed Field Gradient NMR

The interaction of polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) with an anionic surfactant (sodium dodecyl sulfate, SDS), a nonionic surfactant (pentaethylene glycol monodecyl ether, C(10)E(5)), and a zwitterionic surfactant (lauryl amido propyl betaine, LAPB) has been investigated by means of pulsed gradient spin-echo NMR (FT-PGSE NMR), allowing self-diffusion coefficients to be determined. The results confirm the strong interaction prevailing in the PVP/SDS system, whereas no association has been observed in the PVP/C(10)E(5) and PVP/LAPB systems. Mixing PVP with two surfactants, namely SDS and C(10)E(5) or SDS and LAPB, results in the formation of ternary aggregates between the polymer and the mixed micelles. Copyright 2001 Academic Press.     

Spectral properties of polypyridyl ruthenium complexes intercalated in DNA: theoretical insights into the surrounding effects of [Ru(dppz)(bpy)(2)](2+)

The UV/Visible absorption properties of a polypyridyl ruthenium complex upon intercalation on DNA are studied at the mixed quantum mechanics molecular mechanics level of theory. Vertical excitation transitions are computed by time dependent density functional theory. Particular emphasis is put on the different levels at which the macromolecular environment is treated, and in particular on the analysis of the effect of mechanical, electrostatic and polarizable embedding. We show that with the highest level of theory the experimental absorption wavelengths are reproduced with a difference of only 2 or 3 nm for the low energy bands. The systematic analysis of the individual vertical transitions allows us to get much more insights into the role played by the environment, in particular, in metal to ligand and intra ligand charge transfer transitions that can lead to the production of DNA oxidative lesions exploitable in phototherapy.     

A first low‐resolution difference Fourier map of phosphorus in a membrane protein from near‐edge anomalous diffraction

Crystal diffraction of three membrane proteins (cytochrome bc₁ complex, sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca²⁺ ATPase, ADP‐ATP carrier) and of one nucleoprotein complex (leucyl tRNA synthetase bound to tRNAleu, leuRS:tRNAleu) was tested at wavelengths near the X‐ray K‐absorption edge of phosphorus using a new set‐up for soft X‐ray diffraction at the beamline ID01 of the ESRF. The best result was obtained from crystals of Ca²⁺ ATPase [adenosin‐5′‐(β,γ‐methylene) triphosphate complex] which diffracted out to 7 Å resolution. Data were recorded at a wavelength at which the real resonant scattering factor of phosphorus reaches the extreme value of ?20 electron units. The positions of the four triphosphates of the monoclinic unit cell of the ATPase have been obtained from a difference Fourier synthesis based on a limited set of anomalous diffraction data.