Nucleophilic aromatic substitution using Et3SiH/cat. t-Bu-P4 as a system for nucleophile activation

A novel type of deprotonative arylation of nucleophiles was conducted using Et(3)SiH/cat. t-Bu-P4 and the powerful S(N)Ar reactions of aryl fluorides were accomplished using alcohols and malonates as nucleophiles.     

Fluorescent Cyclodextrin/Peptide Hybrids with a Novel Guest‐Responsive Chemosensor in the Peptide Side Chain

Peptides bearing β‐cyclodextrin and 4‐(N,N‐dimethylamino)benzoyl (DMAB) units in the peptide side chains were prepared as chemosensors for molecule detection. The DMAB unit was expected to be included into the cyclodextrin cavity intramolecularly. However, these peptides exhibited no twisted intramolecular charge transfer fluorescence and the normal fluorescence intensity decreased upon the addition of 1‐adamantanol as an exogenous guest, indicating that the DMAB units are shallowly included in the cyclodextrin cavities.     

Preparation of core‐shell polystyrene‐polyimide particles by dispersion polymerization of styrene using poly(amic acid) as a stabilizer

Dispersion polymerization of styrene (S) and vinylbenzyltrimethylammonium chloride (VBA) was conducted in an ethanol‐water medium using an aromatic poly(amic acid) (PAA) as the stabilizer. When equimolar amounts of VBA and the carboxylic acid of PAA were used, monodisperse particles with high PAA content were obtained quantitatively. The imidization of PAA on the particles proceeded with acetic anhydride and N,N‐dimethylaminopyridine to form core‐shell PS‐polyimide particles.     

Electronic structure of dysprosium silicide films grown on a Si(1 1 1) surface

The thickness-dependent electronic structures of Dy silicide films grown on a Si(1 1 1) surface have been investigated by angle-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy. Two (1×1) periodic bands, both of them cross the Fermi level, have been observed in the silicide films formed by Dy coverages of 1.0 monolayer and below, and more than five () periodic bands have been observed in thicker films. Taking the () periodic structure of Dy atoms in the submonolayer silicide film into account, the periodicity of the two metallic bands indicate that they mainly originate from the orbitals of Si atoms, which form a (1×1) structure. Of the () periodic bands observed in thick films, four of them are well explained by the folding of the (1×1) bands into a () periodicity. Regarding the other band, the three () periodic bands would originate from the electronic states related to the inner Si layers that form a () structure, and the one observed in the 3.0 ML film only might originate from the electron located at the interface between bulk Si and the Dy silicide film.     

Transparent poly(bisphenol A carbonate)-based nanocomposites with high refractive index nanoparticles

Transparent organic-inorganic nanocomposites were successfully synthesized from sulfonic acid-modified poly(bisphenol A carbonate) (SPC) and TiO₂ or ZrO₂ nanoparticles. The dispersibility of nanoparticles was significantly improved by both the surface treatment of nanoparticles with phosphoric acid 2-ethylhexyl esters (PAEH) and the introduction of a sulfonic acid moiety into the PC chain. It was found that in some cases, crystallization of the matrix caused a reduction in transparency. Efficient dispersion of nanoparticles and the absence of crystallization resulted in highly transparent nanocomposites with up to 42 wt% TiO₂ and 50 wt% ZrO₂ nanoparticles. The refractive indices of the nanocomposites based on SPC increased with the increasing amount of nanoparticles. Theoretical equation based on Maxwell-Garnett effective medium theory provided reasonably close estimation of the refractive indices to the experimentally observed values. The prepared nanocomposites had lower thermal stability than the host matrix polymers.     

DNA micropatterning on polycrystalline diamond via one-step direct amination

We report a novel method of one-step direct amination on polycrystalline diamond to produce functionalized surfaces for DNA micropatterning by photolithography. Polycrystalline diamond was exposed to UV irradiation in ammonia gas to generate amine groups directly. After patterning, optical microscopy confirmed that micropatterns covered with an Au mask were regular in size and shape. The regions outside the micropatterns were passivated with fluorine termination by C3F8 plasma, and the chemical changes on the two different surfaces--the amine groups inside the patterned regions by one-step direct amination and fluorine termination outside the patterned regions--were characterized by spatially resolved X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The patterned areas terminated with active amine groups were then immobilized with probe DNA via a bifunctional molecule. The sequence specificity was conducted by hybridizing fluorescently labeled target DNA to both complementary and noncomplementary probe DNA attached inside the micropatterns. The fluorescence micropatterns observed by epifluorescence microscopy corresponded to those imaged by optical microscopy. DNA hybridization and denaturation experiments on a DNA-modified diamond show that the diamond surfaces reveal superior stability. The influence of a different amination time on fluorescence intensity was compared. Different terminations as passivated layers were investigated, and as a result, fluorine termination points to the greatest signal-to-noise ratio.     

Structures of 1-(arylseleninyl)naphthalenes: O, G, and Y dependences in 8-G-1-[p-YC6H4Se(O)]C10H6

Structures of 8-G-1-[p-YC6H4Se(O)]C10H6 [1 (G = H), 2 (G = F), 3 (G = Cl), and 4 (G = Br): Y = H, OMe, OCH2Ph, t-Bu, Me, Cl, and NO2] and (1-C10H7)2SeO (5) are investigated by the X-ray crystallographic analysis. Structures of 1 are all A with regard to the naphthyl group (1 (A)), where the Se-C(Ar) and Se-O bonds are perpendicular to and parallel to the naphthyl plane, respectively. Those of 2-4 are also A. Since structures of 8-G-1-(p-YC6H4Se)C10H6 [7 (G = F), 8 (G = Cl), and 9 (G = Br)] are all B, the results exhibit that B of 7-9 change dramatically to A of 2-4 with the introduction of O atoms. The factor to determine the A structures of 1-4 by O is called O dependence. The origin of the O dependence is the nonbonded np(O)- - -pi(Nap) interaction, which results in CT from np(O) to pi(Nap) since O in 1-4 is highly electron rich due to the polar Se+=O- bond and pi(Nap) acts as an acceptor. There are two types of np(O)'s, npy(O) and npz(O), if the directions of the Se-O bond and the p-orbitals of pi(Nap) are taken in the x- and z-axes, respectively. Double but independent np(O)- - -pi(Nap) interactions in 5 lead to 5 (AA). The conformation of the p-YC6H4Se group in 1 changes depending on Y (Y dependence), although the effect is not strong. The Y dependence is explained on the basis of the magnitude of CT of the np(O)-->pi(Ar) type in 1, in addition to the np(O)- - -pi(Nap) interaction. The structure around the Se=O group in 1 is close to that of 5 (AA), if the accepting ability of the p-YC6H4Se group is similar to that of the naphthyl group. A of 2-4 are further stabilized by the np(G)- - -sigma(Se-O) 3c-4e interactions, which are called G dependence. QC calculations performed on the methyl analogues of 1-4 (11-14, respectively) reproduced the observed structures, supported the above discussion, and revealed the energy profiles. The energy-lowering effect of the O dependence would be close to the G dependence of the nonbonded n(Br)- - -sigma(Se-O) 3c-4e interaction in 14 if the steric repulsion between Br and Se is contained in the G dependence. The value is roughly predicted as 20 kJ mol(-1). The structures of 1-5 are well explained by O, G, and Y dependences.