Controlled polymerization and self-assembly of halogen-bridged diruthenium complexes in organic media and their dielectrophoretic alignment

Lipophilic paddlewheel biruthenium complexes [Ru(2)(μ-O(2)CR)(3)X](n) (O(2)CR = 3,4,5-tridodecyloxybenzoate, X = Cl, I) self-assemble in organic media to form halogen-bridged coordination polymers. The polymerization is accompanied by spectral changes in π(RuO,Ru(2)) → π*(Ru(2)) and π(axial ligand) → π*(Ru(2)) absorption bands. These polymeric complexes form lyotropic liquid crystals in n-decane at concentrations above ~100 unit mM. The bridging halogen axial ligands (X = Cl or I) exert significant influences on their electronic structures and self-assembling characteristics: the chloride-bridged polymers give hexagonally aligned ordered columnar structure (columnar hexagonal phase, Col(h)), whereas the iodide-bridged polymers form less ordered columnar nematic (Col(n)) phase, as revealed by small-angle X-ray diffraction measurements. Chloro-bridged coordination polymers dispersed in n-decane are thermally intact even at the elevated temperature of 70 °C. In contrast, iodo-bridged polymers show reversible dissociation and reassembly phenomena depending on temperature. These halogen-bridged coordination polymers show unidirectional alignment upon applying alternating current (ac) electric field as investigated by crossed polarizing optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The unidirectionally oriented columns of chloro-bridged polymers are accumulated upon repetitive application of the ac voltage, whereas iodo-bridged coordination polymers show faster and reversible alignment changes in response to turning on-and-off the electric field. The controlled self-assembly of electronically conjugated linear complexes provide a potential platform to design electric field-responsive nanomaterials.     

Time reversal and the neutron

We have measured the triple correlation $D\langle\vec J_n\rangle/J_n\cdot (\vec\beta_e\times\hat p_\nu)$ with a polarized cold-neutron beam (Mumm et al., Phys Rev Lett 107:102301, 2011; Chupp et al., Phys Rev C 86:035505, 2012). A non-zero value of D can arise due to parity-even-time-reversal-odd interactions that imply CP violation. Final-state effects also contribute to D at the level of 10^???5 and can be calculated with precision of 1 % or better. The D coefficient is uniquely sensitive to the imaginary part of the ratio of axial-vector and vector beta-decay amplitudes as well as to scalar and tensor interactions that could arise due to beyond-Standard-Model physics. Over 300 million proton-electron coincidence events were used in a blind analysis with the result D?=?[???0.94±1.89 (stat)±0.97(sys)]×10^???4. Assuming only vector and axial vector interactions in beta decay, our result can be interpreted as a measure of the phase of the axial-vector coupling relative to the vector coupling, $\phi_{\rm AV}= 180.012^\circ \pm 0.028^\circ$ . This result also improves constrains on certain non-VA interactions.     

Electromagnetic interaction in theory with Lorentz invariant CPT violation

An attempt is made to incorporate the electromagnetic interaction in a Lorentz invariant but CPT violating non-local model with particle–antiparticle mass splitting, which is regarded as a modified QED. The gauge invariance is maintained by the Schwinger non-integrable phase factor but the electromagnetic interaction breaks C, CP and CPT symmetries. Implications of the present CPT breaking scheme on the electromagnetic transitions and particle–antiparticle pair creation are discussed. The CPT violation such as the one suggested in this Letter may open a new path to the analysis of baryon asymmetry since some of the Sakharov constraints are expected to be modified.     

Reversible conversion of nanoparticles of metallic silver and silver oxide in ultrathin TiO2 films: a chemical transformation in nano-space

The in-situ interconversion of silver and silver oxide nanoparticles was achieved in ultrathin TiO2 films using hydrogen and oxygen plasmas as dry redox reagents. Absorption spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy showed that the chemical transformation gave rise to narrowing of size distributions of both silver and silver oxide nanoparticles upon repeated interconversion.     

Na adsorption on the Si111-(7 x 7) surface: from two-dimensional gas to nanocluster array

We have systematically investigated Na adsorption on the Si(111)-(7 x 7) surface at room temperature using scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). Below the critical coverage of 0.08 monolayer, we find intriguing contrast modulation instead of localized Na adsorbates, coupled with streaky noise in the STM images, which is accompanied by monotonic work function drop. Above the critical coverage, Na clusters emerge and form a self-assembled array. Combined with first-principles theoretical simulations, we conclude that the Na atoms on the (7 x 7) surface are, while strongly bound ( approximately 2.2 eV) to the surface, highly mobile in "basins" around the Si rest atoms, forming a two-dimensional gas phase at the initial coverage, and that the cluster at the higher coverage consists of six Na atoms together with three Si adatoms.     

Nanofilm allotrope and phase transformation of ultrathin Bi film on Si(111)-7x7

Our scanning tunneling microscopy and electron diffraction experiments revealed that a new two-dimensional allotrope of Bi forms on the Si(111)-7x7 surface. This pseudocubic [012]-oriented allotrope is stable up to four atomic layers at room temperature. Above this critical thickness, the entire volume of the film starts to transform into a bulk single-crystal (001) phase, as the bulk contribution in the cohesion becomes dominant. Based on ab initio calculations, we propose that the new allotrope consists of black phosphorus-like puckered layers stabilized by saturating all the p(z) dangling bonds in the film.     

Measurement of the beta-nu correlation using magneto-optically trapped 21Na

The beta-neutrino correlation coefficient, a(betanu), in 21Na is inferred from detecting the beta(+) and low-energy recoil daughter nucleus. 21Na is produced at the 88-Inch Cyclotron at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and 800 000 atoms are maintained in a magneto-optical trap. From the measured time of flight of recoil ions in the presence of a drift electric field, we find a(betanu)=0.5243+/-0.0091. There may be a dependence on the trapped atom population. This and other systematic uncertainties are discussed.     

Nanocopying of individual DNA strands and formation of the corresponding surface pattern of titania nanotube

Titania nanotube was prepared by nanocopying of the individual DNA double strand as template. DNA was first spread on a solid substrate, and its molecular surface was coated with an ultrathin titania layer by 3 cycles of the surface sol-gel process. Fluorescence microscopic images before and after titania coating of the DNA/YOYO-1 complex were essentially identical, showing that the titania coating did not change the chemical properties of the complex. Titania coating effectively prohibited chemical degradation of titania-coated DNA with DNase I and physically separated the DNA strand from the surrounding environment with an ultrathin titania barrier. The morphology of the DNA strand was preserved, as confirmed by microscopic and spectroscopic observations. The presence of the hollow (tubular) structure was confirmed by a silver staining experiment coupled with scanning transmission electron microscopy-energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (STEM-EDX) analysis. The present finding shows the effectiveness of nanocopying of the individual DNA strand.     

Epitaxial C60 thin films on Bi(0 0 0 1)

We have used the Bi(0 0 0 1)/Si(1 1 1) template to grow highly ordered C₆₀ epitaxial thin films and analyzed them using scanning tunneling microscopy and low-energy electron microscopy. The in situ low-energy electron microscope investigations show that the initial nucleation of the C₆₀ islands on the surface takes place at surface defects, such as domain boundaries and multiple steps. The in-plane lattice parameters of this C₆₀ film turns out to be the same as that of the bulk fcc(1 1 1) C₆₀. The line-on-line epitaxial structure is realized in spite of a weak interaction between the C₆₀ molecules and Bi(0 0 0 1) surface, while scanning tunneling spectroscopy indicates that there is a negligible charge transfer between the molecules and the surface.