Invisible charginos and neutralinos from gauge boson fusion: a way to explore anomaly mediation

We point out that vector boson fusion at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) can lead to useful signals for charginos and neutralinos in supersymmetric scenarios where these particles are almost invisible. The proposed signals are just two forward jets with missing transverse energy. It is shown that, in this way, one can put by far the strongest constraint on the parameter space of a theory with anomaly mediated supersymmetry breaking at the LHC. In addition, scenarios where the lightest neutralinos and charginos are Higgsino-like can give signals of the above type.     

Flow-driven voltage generation in carbon nanotubes

The flow of various liquids and gases over single-walled carbon nanotube bundles induces an electrical signal (voltage/current) in the sample along the direction of the flow. The electrical response generated by the flow of liquids is found to be logarithmic in the flow speed over a wide range. In contrast, voltage generated by the flow of gas is quadratically dependent on the gas flow velocity. It was found that the underlying physics for the generation of electrical signals by liquids and gases are different. For the liquid, the Coulombic interaction between the ions in the liquid and the charge carriers in the nanotube plays a key role while electrical signal generation due to gas flow is due to an interplay of Bernoulli’s principle and Seebeck effect. Unlike the liquid case which is specific to the nanotubes, the gas flow effect can be seen for a variety of solids ranging from single and multi-walled carbon nanotubes, graphite and doped semiconductors.     

Gold-magnetite nanocomposite materials formed via sonochemical methods

Treatment of preformed magnetite nanoparticles with ultrasound in aqueous media with dissolved tetrachloroauric acid resulted in the formation of gold–magnetite nanocomposite materials. These materials maintained the morphology of the original magnetite particles. The loading of gold particles could be controlled by adjusting experimental parameters, including the addition of small amounts of solvent modifiers such as methanol, diethylene glycol, and oleic acid. The nanocomposite materials were magnetic and exhibited optical properties similar to pure gold nanoparticles.     

Recent Advancements in Ln‐Ion‐Based Upconverting Nanomaterials and Their Biological Applications

Upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) convert low‐energy infrared (IR) or near‐infrared (NIR) photons into high‐energy emission radiation ranging from ultraviolet to visible through a photon upconversion process. In comparison to conventional fluorophores, such as organic dyes or semiconductor quantum dots, lanthanide‐ion‐doped UCNPs exhibit high photostability, no photoblinking, no photobleaching, low cytotoxicity, sharp emission lines, and long luminescent lifetimes. Additionally, the use of IR or NIR for excitation in such UCNPs reduces the autofluorescence background and enables deeper penetration into biological samples due to reduced light scattering with negligible damage to the samples. Because of these attributes, UCNPs have found numerous potential applications in biological and medicinal fields as novel fluorescent materials. Different upconversion mechanisms commonly observed in UCNPs, various methods that are used in their synthesis, and surface modification processes are discussed. Recent applications of Ln‐UCNPs in the biological and medicinal fields, including in vivo and in vitro biological imaging, multimodal imaging, photodynamic therapy, drug delivery, and antibacterial activity, are also presented.     

Coverage of generalized confidence intervals

Generalized confidence intervals provide confidence intervals for complicated parametric functions in many common practical problems. They do not have exact frequentist coverage in general, but often provide coverage close to the nominal value and have the correct asymptotic coverage. However, in many applications generalized confidence intervals do not have satisfactory finite sample performance. We derive expansions of coverage probabilities of one-sided generalized confidence intervals and use the expansions to explain the nonuniform performance of the generalized intervals. We then show how to use these expansions to obtain improved coverage by suitable calibration. The benefits of the proposed modification are illustrated via several examples.     

Portfolio Optimization in a Semi-Markov Modulated Market

We address a portfolio optimization problem in a semi-Markov modulated market. We study both the terminal expected utility optimization on finite time horizon and the risk-sensitive portfolio optimization on finite and infinite time horizon. We obtain optimal portfolios in relevant cases. A numerical procedure is also developed to compute the optimal expected terminal utility for finite horizon problem. This work was supported in part by a DST project: SR/S4/MS: 379/06; also supported in part by a grant from UGC via DSA-SAP Phase IV, and in part by a CSIR Fellowship.     

Synthesis of the necine bases (±)-macronecine and (±)-supinidine via an aza-ene reaction and allylsilane induced ring closure

An aza-ene reaction has been used for the first time for the synthesis of two 5-membered lactam-hydrazides, each with a built-in allylsilane terminator for further elaboration. One of the lactam-hydrazides was transformed via an allylsilane-hydrazonium ion ring closure to a fused tetrahydropyrazole which may be considered as a mono-nitrogen analog of the biologically significant necine bases. A density functional theoretical study (B3LYP/6-21G*) was undertaken to provide insight into the factors that favor a synclinal transition structure of the hydrazonium ion intermediate leading to the tetrahydropyrazole. This stereocontrolled synthesis served as a model for the multi-step conversion of the other lactam-hydrazide, the substituted 2-pyrrolidinone, to necine bases (±)-supinidine and (±)-macronecine. An allylsilane-aldehyde ring closure formed the key step in the synthesis of these natural products.     

Enhanced Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production by Hybrid Streptavidin-Diiron Catalysts

Hybrid protein–organometallic catalysts are being explored for selective catalysis of a number of reactions, because they utilize the complementary strengths of proteins and of organometallic complex. Herein, we present an artificial hydrogenase, StrepH2, built by incorporating a biotinylated [Fe–Fe] hydrogenase organometallic mimic within streptavidin. This strategy takes advantage of the remarkable strength and specificity of biotin-streptavidin recognition, which drives quantitative incorporation of the biotinylated diironhexacarbonyl center into streptavidin, as confirmed by UV/Vis spectroscopy and X-ray crystallography. FTIR spectra of StrepH2 show characteristic peaks at shift values indicative of interactions between the catalyst and the protein scaffold. StrepH2 catalyzes proton reduction to hydrogen in aqueous media during photo- and electrocatalysis. Under photocatalytic conditions, the protein-embedded catalyst shows enhanced efficiency and prolonged activity compared to the isolated catalyst. Transient absorption spectroscopy data suggest a mechanism for the observed increase in activity underpinned by an observed longer lifetime for the catalytic species Fe^IFe⁰ when incorporated within streptavidin compared to the biotinylated catalyst in solution.