Structure and properties of potassium titanyl phosphate single crystals with 7 and 11 at. % Nb

This study is a continuation of research into the atomic structure and physical properties of niobium-doped potassium titanyl phosphate crystals, KTiOPO₄ (KTP: Nb). Crystals containing 7 and 11 at. % of niobium were grown and studied. With an increase in niobium content, the number of vacancies and additional potassium positions in the structure also increase. This fact accounts for an increase in both the intensities of relaxation peaks and the conductivity of KTP: Nb crystals.     

Three-dimensional structure of Saccharomyces cerevisiae inorganic pyrophosphatase complexed with cobalt and phosphate ions

Crystals of Saccharomyces cerevisiae inorganic pyrophosphatase suitable for X-ray diffraction study were grown by cocrystallization of the enzyme with cobalt chloride and imidodiphosphate. Saccharomyces cerevisiae is a metal-dependent enzyme which catalyzes hydrolysis of inorganic pyrophosphate to orthophosphate. The three-dimensional structure of this enzyme was solved by the molecular-replacement method and refined at 1.8 Å resolution to an R factor of 19.5%. Cobalt and phosphate ions were revealed in the active centers of both identical subunits (A and B) of the pyrophosphatase molecule. In subunit B, a water molecule was found between two cobalt ions. It is believed that this water molecule acts as an attacking nucleophile in the enzymatic cleavage of the pyrophosphate bond. It was demonstrated that cobalt ions and a phosphate group occupy only part of the potential binding sites (two chemically identical and crystallographically independent subunits have different binding sites). The arrangement of ligands and the structure of the nucleophile-binding site are discussed in relation to the mechanism of action of the enzyme and the nature of the metal activator.     

Vector coupled-wave method for analyzing diffraction by multilayer gratings

In the framework of the matrix formulation of the coupled plane wave approach, a method is proposed for increasing the stability of the numerical analysis of vector electromagnetic fields in periodic structures, including dielectric and metallic anisotropic layers and relief boundaries.     

Calculation of the vibrational spectra of copper crystals with vacancies

The local vibrational spectra of copper crystals containing vacancies are calculated using the pair atomic potential derived in the framework of the resonance pseudopotential theory. The calculations are performed by a recursive method with due regard for the symmetry of the defect region. The frequencies of the vacancy-induced resonance vibrations of different symmetries are determined.     

The action of an electron beam on dust structures in a plasma

The action of an electron beam on ordered dust structures in glow and low-pressure RF discharges was studied experimentally. The electron beam produces destruction and dynamic displacement of the dust structure. In the center of a dust structure, an electron beam with a low electron energy (tens of eV) at currents up to 1 mA caused structural disordering and “melting” in the region of its action but did not excite external crystal regions. Local action of an electron beam with a high electron energy (25 keV) and a beam current above 10 mA caused deformation of the whole dust structure and shifted it in the horizontal direction so that it was carried away from the RF discharge zone. The effect of dust structure displacements can be used to locally remove particles from a plasma.     

Dynamic interaction of plasma flow with the hot boundary layer of a geomagnetic trap

The study of the interaction between collisionless plasma flow and stagnant plasma revealed the presence of an outer boundary layer at the border of a geomagnetic trap, where the super-Alfvén subsonic laminar flow changes over to the dynamic regime characterized by the formation of accelerated magnetosonic jets and decelerated Alfvén flows with characteristic relaxation times of 10–20 min. The nonlinear interaction of fluctuations in the initial flow with the waves reflected from an obstacle explains the observed flow chaotization. The Cherenkov resonance of the magnetosonic jet with the fluctuation beats between the boundary layer and the incoming flow is the possible mechanism of its formation. In the flow reference system, the incoming particles are accelerated by the electric fields at the border of boundary layer that arise self-consistently as a result of the preceding wave-particle interactions; the inertial drift of the incoming ions in a transverse electric field increasing toward the border explains quantitatively the observed ion acceleration. The magnetosonic jets may carry away downstream up to a half of the unperturbed flow momentum, and their dynamic pressure is an order of magnitude higher than the magnetic pressure at the obstacle border. The appearance of nonequilibrium jets and the boundary-layer fluctuations are synchronized by the magnetosonic oscillations of the incoming flow at frequencies of 1–2 mHz.     

Synthesis of N-Vinyloxyalkyl Imines

Russian Journal of Organic Chemistry -