Diode laser spectroscopic measurement of line shape of (ν1+3ν3) band transitions of acetylene

A near-infrared diode laser spectrometer is set up to study the absorption line shape of acetylene in the 782 nm region. The second-derivative spectra recorded by source modulation technique have enhanced sensitivity. Careful choice of operating current and diode temperature leads to distortion-free line shape for six rotational components of the (ν₁+3ν₃) overtone-combination mode of acetylene. Self- and nitrogen-broadening coefficients and line-strength parameters have been extracted by fitting the observed line shape with Voigt profiles. There is no evidence of the effect of velocity changing collisions on the line shape in this near-infrared band. Received: 6 July 1998 / Revised version: 2 November 1998 / Published online: 10 March 1999     

Complex dynamics of a particle in an oscillating potential field

In this paper, Mg-doped ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized by the facile sol–gel method. The crystalline structure, characteristic absorption bands and morphology of the obtained Mg-doped ZnO nanoparticles were studied by XRD, FTIR and TEM. The thermal degradation behaviour of the samples was investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetry (TG). The effect of Mg concentrations and annealing temperatures on the antibacterial properties of the obtained nanoparticles was investigated in detail. The results indicated that doping Mg ions into ZnO lattice could enhance its antibacterial activity. Antibacterial assay demonstrated that Mg-doped ZnO with 7% Mg content annealed at 400 ^°C had the strongest antibacterial activity against Listeria monocytogenes (98.7%). This study indicated that the inhibition rate of ZnO nanoparticles increased with the formation of granular structure and the decrease of ZnO size due to the doping of Mg ions into the ZnO lattice.     

Exploring a hidden fermionic dark sector

In this paper, we present a generalized unified method for finding multiwave solutions of the time-fractional (2+1)-dimensional Nizhnik–Novikov–Veselov equations. The fractional derivatives are described in the modified Riemann–Liouville sense. The fractional complex transform has been suggested to convert fractional-order differential equations with modified Riemann–Liouville derivatives into integer-order differential equations, and the reduced equations can be solved by symbolic computation. Multiauxiliary equations have been introduced in this method to obtain not only multisoliton solutions but also multiperiodic or multielliptic solutions. It is shown that the considered method is very effective and convenient for solving wide classes of nonlinear partial differential equations of fractional order.     

Effect of iron doping concentration on magnetic properties of ZnO nanoparticles

The ZnO:Fe nanoparticles of mean size 3-10 nm were synthesized at room temperature by simple co-precipitation method. The crystallite structure, morphology and size estimation were performed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). The wurtzite structure of ZnO gradually degrades with the increasing Fe doping concentration. The magnetic behavior of the nanoparticles of ZnO with varying Fe doping concentration was investigated using a vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). Initially these nanoparticles showed strong ferromagnetic behavior, however at higher doping percentage of Fe, the ferromagnetic behavior was suppressed and paramagnetic nature was observed. The enhanced antiferromagnetic interaction between neighboring Fe-Fe ions suppressed the ferromagnetism at higher doping concentrations of Fe. Room-temperature Mössbauer spectroscopy investigation showed Fe³⁺ nature of the iron atom in ZnO matrix.     

SUGRA hybrid inflation with shift symmetry

We propose a solution to the η  -problem in supergravity (SUGRA) hybrid inflation using a Nambu–Goldstone-like shift symmetry within a new class of models. The flatness of the tree-level inflaton potential is ensured by shift symmetry invariance of the Kähler potential, while a small symmetry breaking term in the superpotential gives rise to a slope of the potential at loop-level. In the proposed class of inflation models, potentially dangerous couplings between the inflaton and the moduli sector are avoided. We also discuss under which conditions the predicted spectral index can be in agreement with the best-fit-value of the latest WMAP observation ns∼0.96$n_{\mathrm{s}}\sim 0.96$, corresponding to a hilltop-type inflaton potential at loop-level.     

Chaotic inflation in supergravity with Heisenberg symmetry

We propose the introduction of a Heisenberg symmetry of the Kähler potential to solve the problems with chaotic inflation in supergravity, as a viable alternative to the use of shift symmetry. The slope of the inflaton potential emerges from a small Heisenberg symmetry breaking term in the superpotential. The modulus field of the Heisenberg symmetry is stabilized and made heavy with the help of the large vacuum energy density during inflation. The observable predictions are indistinguishable from those of typical chaotic inflation models, however the form of the inflationary superpotential considered here may be interpreted in terms of sneutrino inflation arising from certain classes of string theory.     

Quantum interference effect on spontaneous emission spectrum in a doubly driven M-type atom

An M-type atomic system with two closely spaced upper levels interacting with the same modes of the vacuum radiation field exhibits the interference effect between the spontaneous decay channels. The phenomenon of this decay-interference along with the dynamically induced quantum interference created in the system by two coherent fields can change significantly the spontaneous emission spectrum. Our results highlight large enhancement of ultranarrow spectral components within the spontaneous emission line shape in various conditions. We have shown the occurrence of two contradistinctive phenomena: compression of two spectral lines towards their mid-position and the spreading of two lines away from each other under different dynamic conditions. The phenomenon of suppression of spectral line and the quenching of spontaneous emission have also been focused.     

Preparation of Chitosan Based Scaffolds Using Supercritical Carbon Dioxide

A novel chitosan-formaldehyde porous derivative (scaffolds) was prepared by reaction of 85% deacetylated chitosan with 37% aq. formaldehyde using supercritical carbon dioxide (sc. CO₂). Prior to reaction, the chitosan hydrogel was prepared in 1% aq. acetic acid (AcOH) and formaldehyde. The prepared hydrogel was subjected to solvent exchange. The identity of the Schiff base was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The chitosan-derivative was evaluated by thermal analysis, scanning electron microscopy, and porosimetry analysis. Overall, the sc. CO₂ assisted chitosan derivative opens new perspectives as biomedical material.     

Syntheses,structures and electrochemistry of manganese(III) complexes derived from N,N′-o-phenylenebis(3-ethoxysalicylaldimine): Efficient catalyst for styrene epoxidation

Syntheses, characterizations, electrochemistry and catalytic properties for styrene epoxidation of three manganese(III) compounds [Mn^IIIL¹(H₂O)(MeOH)](ClO₄) (1) [Mn^IIIL¹(N₃)(H₂O)]·dmf (2) [Mn^IIIL¹(Cl)(H₂O)] (3) derived from the Schiff base compartmental ligand N,N′-o-phenylenebis(3-ethoxysalicylaldimine) (H₂L¹) are reported. The three compounds are characterized by elemental analyses, IR, mass and UV–Vis spectra and conductance values. Single crystal X-ray structures of 1 and 2 have been determined. The structures of 1 and 2 show that these are mononuclear compounds having a salen type structure. In both structures, a dinuclear species is formed by bifurcated hydrogen bonding involving coordinated water molecule. The coordination of chloride in 3 is shown by conductance measurements. The compounds have also been characterized by UV–Vis and mass spectroscopic studies. Cyclic voltammetric and square wave voltammetric studies of the three compounds reveal that these undergo Mn(III)/Mn(II) reduction reversibly with the order of the ease of reduction as 3 > 2 > 1. This order has been explained proposing the composition of active species in solution. Catalytic properties for epoxidation of styrene by all the three complexes using PhIO and NaOCl as oxidant have been studied. The order of both the styrene conversion and styrene epoxidation using the three title compounds is 3 > 1 > 2. Again, it has been observed that more efficient conversion and epoxidation take place when PhIO is used as oxidant.     

Control of laser induced molecular fragmentation of n-propyl benzene using chirped femtosecond laser pulses

We present the effect of chirping a femtosecond laser pulse on the fragmentation of n-propyl benzene. An enhancement of an order of magnitude for the relative yields of and in the case of negatively chirped pulses and in the case of positively chirped pulses with respect to the transform-limited pulse indicates that in some fragmentation channel, coherence of the laser field plays an important role. For the relative yield of all other heavier fragment ions, resulting from the interaction of the intense laser field with the molecule, there is no such enhancement effect with the sign of chirp, within experimental errors. The importance of the laser phase is further reinforced through a direct comparison of the fragmentation results with the second harmonic of the chirped laser pulse with identical bandwidth.