Improving charge transport in poly(3‐hexylthiophene) transistors via blending with an alkyl‐substituted phenylene–thiophene–thiophene–phenylene molecule

A prototypical semiconducting bicomponent system consisting of a conjugated polymer, that is, poly(3‐hexylthiophene) (P3HT), blended with a small thiophene containing conjugated molecule, that is, an alkyl‐substituted bisphenyl‐bithiophene [phenylene–thiophene–thiophene–phenylene (PTTP)], has been used as an electroactive active layer in field‐effect transistors (FETs). The self‐assembly of this bicomponent system at surfaces has been studied at different length scales, from the nanoscale to the macroscale, and compared with the behavior of monocomponent films of PTTP and P3HT. The correlation between morphology and electric properties of the semiconducting material is explored by fabricating prototypes of FETs varying the relative concentrations of the two‐component blend. The maximum charge carrier mobility value, achieved with a few percent of PTTP component, is not simply due to a uniform dispersion of the molecules in the polymer matrix, but rather to the generation of very long percolation paths, whose composition and electrical properties can be tuned with the PTTP concentration. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys, 2012     

Thermal properties of fats extracted from powdered baby formulas

The aim of this research was to analyse composition, fatty acids distribution and oxidative stability of fats extracted from four samples of baby formulas. The fats were oxidized in a differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) under polythermal (dynamic) conditions and at normal pressure. The DSC experiments were carried out in an oxygen flow atmosphere using different, linearly programmed, heating rates in the range of 4?C12.5?°C/min. The extrapolated onset temperatures were determined using DSC exotherms and used for the assessment of the thermal oxidative stabilities of the samples. Activation energies (E _a), pre-exponential factors (Z) and reaction rate constants (k) for oil oxidation under DSC conditions were calculated using the Ozawa?CFlynn?CWall method and the Arrhenius equation. The melting characteristics of the studied fats were obtained. The fats extracted from the agglomerated samples with higher onset temperatures were more stable than the fats extracted from the initial samples of baby formulas.     

On certain arithmetic functions involving the greatest common divisor

The paper deals with asymptotics for a class of arithmetic functions which describe the value distribution of the greatest-common-divisor function. Typically, they are generated by a Dirichlet series whose analytic behavior is determined by the factor ζ²(s)ζ(2s − 1). Furthermore, multivariate generalizations are considered.     

Smart dampers control in a Remoissenet–Peyrard substrate potential

A model of spring-block on a moving plate with a nonlinear periodic substrate potential whose shape can be varied continuously as a function of a shape parameter is investigated. The dynamical study of the system for different values of the shape parameter involves the analysis of phase space, the construction of bifurcation diagrams, and the computation of the largest Lyapunov exponent. A smart damper associated with drag coefficient is proposed to reduce stick-slip and chaotic motions. The domain of validity of the control method is derived.     

Study of benznidazole–cyclodextrin inclusion complexes, cytotoxicity and trypanocidal activity

The current chemotherapy for Chagas disease is still based on benznidazole, which has low solubility, but complexation with cyclodextrins provides a way of increasing the solubility. The objective of this work was to characterize the inclusion complexes formed between benznidazole (BNZ) and randomly 2-methyled-β-cyclodextrin (RM-β-CD) in aqueous solution and study cytotoxicity and trypanocidal. BNZ:RM-β-CD solution complex systems were prepared and characterized using the phase solubility diagram, nuclear magnetic resonance and a photostability assays, also to investigate the in vitro trypanocidal activity with epimastigote forms of Trypanossoma cruzi and the study of cytotoxicity against mammal cells. The phase-solubility diagram displayed an A _L-type feature, providing evidence of the formation of soluble inclusion complexes. The continuous variation method showed the existence of a complex with 1:1 stoichiometry. Toxicity assays demonstrated that inclusion complexes were able to reduce the toxic effects caused by benznidazole alone and that this did not interfere with the trypanocidal activity of the benznidazole. The use of inclusion complexes benznidazole:cyclodextrin is thus a promising alternative for the development of a safe and stable liquid formulation and a new option for the treatment of Chagas disease.     

Synthesis and Photochromic Properties of Configurationally Varied Azobenzene Glycosides

Spatial orientation of carbohydrates is a meaningful parameter in carbohydrate recognition processes. To vary orientation of sugars with temporal and spatial resolution, photosensitive glycoconjugates with favorable photochromic properties appear to be opportune. Here, a series of azobenzene glycosides were synthesized, employing glycoside synthesis and Mills reaction, to allow “switching” of carbohydrate orientation by reversible E/Z isomerization of the azobenzene N=N double bond. Their photochromic properties were tested and effects of azobenzene substitution as well as the effect of anomeric configuration and the orientation of the sugars 2-hydroxy group were evaluated.     

A new look at XRD patterns of archaeological ceramic bodies

In this paper, the general rules of phase transformations in calcareous clay bodies during firing were used to estimate the equivalent firing temperature (EFT) of seventeenth century polychrome Persian haft rang tiles based on their X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns. The novelty of this work is, however, that it handles the XRD patterns of archaeological clay bodies with principal component analysis (PCA) in order to have a new look at their firing and thermal behaviour. Statistically handling the XRD patterns, different clusters were discriminated in the clay bodies whose mineralogical composition showed various proportions of amorphous and quartz contents. The results showed interesting trends in the different clusters in terms of the EFT, quartz content and the density of the bodies. The present work uses PCA to have a new look at XRD patterns of archaeological clay bodies and, moreover, to interpret the PCA results in order to estimate the EFT of a large number of archaeological clay bodies.