High-fidelity Recognition of Organotrifluoroborate Anions (R−BF3−) as Designer Guest Molecules

The recognition of boron compounds is well developed as boronic acids but untapped as organotrifluoroborate anions (R−BF₃⁻). We are exploring the development of these and other designer anions as anion-recognition motifs by considering them as substituted versions of the parent inorganic ion. To this end, we demonstrate strong and reliable binding of organic trifluoroborates, R−BF₃⁻, by cyanostar macrocycles that are size-complementary to the inorganic BF₄⁻ progenitors. We find that recognition is modulated by the substituent's sterics and that the affinities are retained using the common K⁺ salts of R−BF₃⁻ anions.     

Graphene Saturable Absorber Mirror for Mode-Locked Orange Pulse Laser

Journal of Russian Laser Research - We demonstrate a passively-mode-locked Pr3+: LuLiF4 laser operated at the 604 nm orange wave-length, using monolayer graphene as a saturable absorber. The...     

Investigation of Thermal Gradient Mechanical Fatigue Test Methods for Nickel-based Superalloys

Experimental Mechanics - Temperature gradients significantly affect the material fatigue process. A reliable and robust test procedure is needed for quantifying the effects of temperature gradients...     

Reduced Density Matrix and Quantum Correlation in Two-Qubit Quantum Rabi Model

International Journal of Theoretical Physics - In this work, we give an analytical derivation of the reduced density matrix between two qubits in a cavity field, which is described by the quantum...     

Multiplication Factor for Subcritical Multiplying System and the Efficiency of Source Neutrons

Physics of Atomic Nuclei - In this paper, the analysis of the relation between the multiplication factor of neutrons of the multiplying system measured in critical experiments and the system...     

Continuous Newton-like Inertial Dynamics for Monotone Inclusions

Set-Valued and Variational Analysis - In a Hilbert framework ℌ, we study the convergence properties of a Newton-like inertial dynamical system governed by a general maximally monotone...     

Investigation of Relationships between Grain Structure and Inhomogeneous Deformation by Means of Laboratory-Based Multimodal X-Ray Tomography: Strain Accuracy Analysis

Experimental Mechanics - The internal strain distribution developing during plastic deformation is important for understanding the mechanical properties of polycrystalline materials. Such...     

Nonlinear Optical Properties of Novel Metallophthalocyanines

Journal of Applied Spectroscopy - Detailed measurements of nonlinear optical properties and optical limiting for four phthalocyanine (Pc) derivatives (PcCo, PcCu, PcMn, and PcSi) are reported. The...     

One-pot,one-step,and selective terpolymerization of ethylene oxide,propylene oxide,and COS to copoly(thioether)s with tunable thermal properties

Facile construction of sulfur-rich polymers using readily available raw chemicals is an area aggressively pursued but challenging. Herein we use common feedstocks of ethylene oxide (EO), propylene oxide (PO), and carbonyl sulfide (COS) to synthesize copoly(thioether)s which are traditionally produced from unpleasant and difficult to store episulfides. In this protocol, the EO/COS coupling selectively generates a pure poly(ethylene sulfide) (PES) with melting temperature (T_m) values up to 172°C and high yields up to 98%. The EO/PO/COS terpolymerization leads to the incorporation of soft poly(propylene sulfide) (PPS) and hard PES segments together, affording a random PES-co-PPS copoly(thioether) with the complete consumption of EO and PO. Additionally, by simply varying the EO/PO feeding ratio, the obtained copoly(thioether)s possess tunable thermal properties, T_m values in the range of 76–144°C, and excellent solubility. These copolymerizations are conducted in one-pot/one-step at industrially favored reaction temperatures of 100–120°C using catalysts of common organic bases, suggesting a facile and practical manner. Especially, the copoly(thioether) exhibits high refractive indices up to 1.68 owing to its high sulfur content, suggesting a broad application prospect in optical materials.