A direct synthesis of β-carbolines via a three-step one-pot domino approach with a bifunctional Pd/C/K-10 catalyst

A rapid, microwave-assisted synthesis of β-carbolines via a successive condensation/cyclization/dehydrogenation approach is described. This methodology involves the coupling of various tryptamines with aromatic aldehydes/glyoxals. The product imine undergoes a Pictet-Spengler cyclization followed by a final dehydrogenation to yield β-carbolines in a three-step domino reaction. The use of the bifunctional catalyst Pd/C/K-10 combined with microwave irradiation enabled the synthesis of β-carbolines in short reaction times and in good to excellent yields.     

Screening-Dependent Study of Superconductivity in 3d-Transition Metals Binary Alloys Superconductors

In the present article, we report the screening-dependent study of the superconducting state parameters （SSPs）, viz. electron-phonon coupling strength A, Coulomb pseudopotential μ^＊, transition temperature TC, isotope effect exponent a, and effective interaction strength No V of 3d-band transition metals binary alloys superconductors have been made extensively in the present work using a model potential formalism and employing the pseudo-alloy-atom （PAA） model for the first time. Five local field correction functions proposed by Hartree （H）, Taylor （T）, Ichimaru-Utsumi （IU）, Farid et al. （F） and Sarkar et al. （S） are used in the present investigation to study the screening influence on the aforesaid properties. The present results of the SSPs obtained from H-screening are found in qualitative agreement with the available experimental data wherever exist.     

Transport Properties of Si and Ge Liquid Semiconductor Metals

In the present article, we study the electrical resistivity ρ, the thermoelectric power (TEP) α, thermal conductivity σ, Knight-Shifts and temperature coefficient of the Knight-Shifts of the liquid Si and Ge using the well known model potential for the first time. The structure factor used in the present work is derived from the Percus-Yevick (PY) theory. Various local field correction functions are used to study the screening influence. The present results of resistivity are found in qualitative agreement with available experimental and theoretical whenever exists.     

Positron annihilation spectroscopy in tomorrow's material defect studies

Positron Annihilation Spectroscopy (PAS), sometimes refered to as Positron Annihilation Lifetime Spectroscopy (PALS), are non-destructive techniques commonly used for defects and voids study in materials. It provides a handy tool for in-depth profiling down to few microns, and in determining open volume defects like dislocation, agglomerates, and vacancies at ppm concentration. PAS with the aid of Doppler broadening has certainly opened a new gateway in the spectroscopy of solid state physics, metals, RO systems, and semiconductors. Since it is an antiparticle of the electron it gives better information on the electron density in the material of interest. The lifetime of a positron is a complex function of electron density present at the annihilation site. To add beauty, in principle PAS gives the type and concentration of the defect independently by a single measurement. This article presents PAS based on the most relevant, most iconic, and most recent references.     

Experimental and modeling researches of dust particles in the HL-2A tokamak

The investigation of dust particle characteristics in fusion devices has become more and more imperative.In the HL-2A tokamak,the morphologies and compositions of dust particles are analyzed by using scanning electron microscopy(SEM) and energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy(EDX) with mapping.The results indicate that the sizes of dust particles are in a range from 1 μm to 1 mm.Surprisingly,stainless steel spheres with a diameter of 2.5μm-30 μm are obtained.The production mechanisms of dust particles include flaking,disintegration,agglomeration,and arcing.In addition,dynamic characteristics of the flaking dust particles are observed by a CMOS fast framing camera and simulated by a computer program.Both of the results display that the ion friction force is dominant in the toroidal direction,while the centrifugal force is crucial in the radial direction.Therefore,the visible dust particles are accelerated toriodally by the ion friction force and migrated radially by the centrifugal force.The averaged velocity of the grain is on the order of~100 m/s.These results provide an additional supplement for one of critical plasma-wall interaction(PWI) issues in the framework of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor(ITER) programme.     

Route to chaos for combustion instability in ducted laminar premixed flames

Complex thermoacoustic oscillations are observed experimentally in a simple laboratory combustor that burns lean premixed fuel-air mixture, as a result of nonlinear interaction between the acoustic field and the combustion processes. The application of nonlinear time series analysis, particularly techniques based on phase space reconstruction from acquired pressure data, reveals rich dynamical behavior and the existence of several complex states. A route to chaos for thermoacoustic instability is established experimentally for the first time. We show that, as the location of the heat source is gradually varied, self-excited periodic thermoacoustic oscillations undergo transition to chaos via the Ruelle-Takens scenario.     

Phonon Dispersion in Equiatomic Li-Based Binary Alloys

The computations of the phonon dispersion curves （PDC） of four equiatomic Li-based binary alloys, namely Li0.5Na0.5, Li0.5K0.5, Li0.5Rb0.5 and Li0.5Cs0.5, to second order in the local model potential is discussed in terms of the real-space sum of Born von Karman central force constants. Instead of the concentration average of the force constants of metallic Li, Na, K, Rb and Cs, the pseudo-alloy atom （PAA） is adopted to compute directly the force constants of four equiatomic Li-based binary alloys. The exchange and correlation functions due to Hartree （H） and Ichimaru-Utsumi （IU） are used to investigate the influence of screening effects. The phonon frequencies of four equiatomic Li-based binary alloys in the longitudinal branch are more sensitive to the exchange and correlation effects in comparison with the transverse branches. However, the frequencies in the longitudinal branch are suppressed due to IU-screening function than the frequencies due to static H-screening function.     

Correlation of grain boundary nature with magnetization in RF-sputtered lithium-zinc ferrite thin films

A significant advance in the understanding of grain boundary contribution to magnetization in nanocrystalline ferrite thin films is demonstrated in this paper. RF-sputtered, room-temperature-deposited lithium-zinc ferrite thin films (Li_0.5−x/2Zn_xMn_0.1Fe_2.35−x/2O₄, with x=0.0, 0.16, 0.32 and 0.48) have been thermally annealed ex-situ at 850 °C and the in-plane magnetic measurements have been performed using a vibrating sample magnetometer. The percentage deviation between bulk and film magnetization (δ_M) is observed to decrease with increasing Zn concentration, till x=0.32, and then it increases. Macro-texture measurements using X-ray orientation distribution function and micro-texture measurements using orientation imaging microscopy show reverse trend in the extent of crystallographic texturing and in the computed fraction of low-angle grain boundaries. This study brings out a correlation between low-angle grain boundary concentration and δ_M.     

Investigation of stress relaxation mechanisms for ductility improvement in SS316L

Stress relaxation during plastic deformation has been reported to improve ductility and alter the mechanical properties of metallic materials. The aim of the present study is to investigate the role of various mechanisms responsible for this in stainless steel SS 316L. The fractography of the tested samples is analysed using an image analyser and the void fraction at failure is correlated with the corresponding mechanisms. The parametric studies on stress relaxation at different pre-strain and relaxation time correlate well with the fractography results supporting the proposed mechanisms. TEM investigation of dislocation structures and void characterisation further confirm the role of dislocation annihilation. Moreover, a novel indentation technique combining micro- and nano-indentation techniques is used to verify the role of stress homogenisation mechanism.     

Parallel Correlation Studies of Fluctuations and the Impact of Perturbations in the Magnetic Configuration

The plasma turbulence in the boundary of fusion relevant experiments is known to have a quasi two‐dimensional nature: the scale lengths perpendicular to the magnetic field are in the order of mm to cm, but parallel to the magnetic field, the correlation lengths are in the order of several meters. Recent parallel correlation studies with Langmuir probes at the JET tokamak over very long connection lengths (23 m and 66 m probe tip separation along the magnetic field) showed a correlation of less than 50%, in contrast to the finding of 80–90% correlation in other devices at measurements with smaller probe tip separations. However, it was not clear if this is a genuine physical property of the electrostatic turbulence in the scrape‐off layer or whether perturbations in the magnetic configuration had caused an additional decorrelation by a time‐dependent misalignment of the two probe tips along the connecting field line. In this contribution we analyze the effect of such perturbations in the magnetic configuration on the parallel correlation measurements in a simple model and compare the results with those of the measurements at JET.