Investigation of multicomponent fluoride optical materials in the UV spectral region: I. Single crystals of Ca1−x R xF2+x (R = Sc, Y, La, Yb, Lu) solid solutions

Crystalline materials that are transparent in the vacuum UV spectral region and currently used have been reviewed. Transmission of crystals of solid solutions with the fluorite structure Ca_1?x R _xF_2+x (R = Sc, Y, La, Yb, Lu) in the UV and vacuum UV spectral regions has been investigated. It is shown that application of different methods of purification of fluorides from some impurities can significantly improve the optical quality of fluoride multicomponent crystals in the short-wavelength spectral region.     

Vascular morphology by three-dimensional magnetic resonance imaging

A three-dimensional examination of blood vessels is provided using MR data from seven cases. The vascular surfaces are constructed with an algorithm that automatically follows the selected artery or vein and generates a projected three-dimensional gradient shaded image. Fast 3DFT pulse sequences were optimized to enhance the time-of-flight contrast of the intravascular region. By increasing the surface threshold value in a three-dimensional head study, the flesh of a patient's face was peeled away to demonstrate the superfacial temporal artery. Gated cardiac images show the great vessels and cardiac chambers. A three-dimensional view of the aorta shows an irregular surface in the vicinity of an adrenal tumor. 3D MR exams provide a non-invasive technique for assessing vascular morphology in a clinical setting.     

Mathematical modelling of the oxidation of nickel titanium alloys

A one-dimensional bulk reaction model for the oxidation of nickeltitanium is formulated, with preferential oxidation of titaniumbeing included. The modelling is directed at the better understandingof the dominant mechanisms involved in the oxidation processand their significance for the biocompatibility of the alloy.Two different regimes for the relative diffusivities of oxygenand the metals are investigated. By assuming fast bulk reactions,different asymptotic structures emerge in different parameterregimes and the resulting models take the form of moving boundaryproblems. Different profiles of nickel concentration are obtained:in particular a nickel-rich layer (observed in practice) ispresent below the oxide/metal interface for the case when oxygenand the metals diffuse at comparable rates.     

Anionic iron(II) alkoxides as initiators for the controlled ring‐opening polymerization of lactide

Hetero‐bimetallic Fe(II) alkoxide/aryloxides were evaluated as initiators for the ring‐opening polymerization of rac‐lactide. [(THF)NaFe(O^tBu)₃]₂ ( 1 ) and [(THF)₄Na₂Fe(2,6‐diisopropylphenolate)₄] ( 2 ) (THF = tetrahydrofuran) both polymerized lactide efficiently at room temperature, with complex 1 affording better control over the molecular weight parameters of the resultant polymer. At conversions below 70%, a linear increase in molecular weight with conversion was observed, indicative of a well‐controlled polymerization process. Complex 2 is the first example of a dianionic Fe(II) alkoxide and has been structurally characterized to reveal a distorted square planar FeO₄ array in which both Na counterions bridge two aryloxide ligands and are further complexed by two THF ligands. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 41: 3798–3803, 2003     

Förster energy transfer from poly(arylene–ethynylene)s to an erbium–porphyrin complex

We study the infrared emission at 1.54 μm of an organolanthanide complex, Er(III)-tetraphenylporphyrin [Er(TPP)acac], both as a result of direct optical excitation and via energy transfer from host π-conjugate polymers of type poly(arylene–ethynylene) [PAE]. In the first case, the emission of the neat complex is characterized in inert transparent materials and a value of the quantum yield at 1.54 μm φ_IR=4×10⁻⁴ is measured. Then, fluorescence resonance transfer is investigated in blends of Er(TPP)acac with PAEs by monitoring the quenching of the polymer fluorescence along with the enhancement of both the visible emission of the ligand and the near-infrared band of Er³⁺. These different procedures allow a detailed analysis of the transfer efficiency within a specific implementation of the Förster model for polymeric donors. The experimental values of the critical radius R₀, ranging from 1.3 to 2.5 nm for the different blends, are in good agreement with theory for a wide interval of the physical and spectroscopic parameters. This suggests that other mechanisms for excitation transfer do not play a significant role in these materials.     

Charge transport properties in carbon black/polymer composites

The charge transport properties of polymer matrix–carbon black composites are investigated in this study. Direct current conductivity is examined with varying parameters: the temperature and the conductive filler content. Conductivity data are analyzed by means of percolation theory, and both percolation threshold and critical exponent are determined at each of the examined temperatures. The temperature dependence of conductivity and the agreement of experimental results with the variable range hopping model reveal hopping conduction as the predominant transport mechanism, below and in the vicinity of the critical concentration of carbon black particles. At higher concentrations, the contribution of hopping transport to the overall conductivity is reduced and a balance between hopping and conduction via geometrical contact occurs. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 45: 2535–2545, 2007     

Volumetric and infrared measurements on amorphous ice structure

We have simultaneously used adsorption isotherm volumetry and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy in order to take the investigations on amorphous ice structure a step further, especially concerning porosity and annealing-induced modifications. We have studied surface reorganization during annealing and found that the number of surface sites decreases before crystallization, their relative ratios being different for amorphous and crystalline ice. We also present results confirming that ice can have a large specific surface area and nevertheless be non-microporous.