Electrophilic aromatic substitution by the fluorofullerene C60F18

The FeCl3-catalysed arylation of C60F18 gives tri-substituted compounds C60F15Ar3, where Ar=phenyl, 4-tolyl, 4-methoxyphenyl, 4-phenoxyphenyl, 4-chlorophenyl, 3,4-dichlorophenyl, 2-biphylenyl and 2-fluorenyl, together with some bis- and mono-substituted product. Bis-substitution was achieved with biphenylene and fluoranthene, and mono-substitution with biphenylene (2-position), pyrene (1-position), and naphthalene (1- and 2-positions); the tris-phenyl and tris-biphenylene derivatives are fluorescent. The 2-naphthyl substituent freely rotates at 328 K, whereas rotation of the 1-naphthyl substituent is prevented by interaction of the peri-hydrogen atom with fluorine. The 1-naphthyl derivative eliminates a molecule of HF during EI mass spectrometry, whilst the 2-naphthyl derivative eliminates HF and all fluorenes to give a naphthaleno[60]fullerene. The reaction rate is relatively unaffected by electron supply in the aryl rings, but no product was obtained with benzotrifluoride which defines the lower reactivity limit. The low discrimination between aromatics makes it possible to isolate derivatives having different aryl groups attached to the cage. Reactions occur mainly when the reagent solutions (or solutions in 1,2-dichlorobenzene) are evaporated to dryness. In most FeCl3-catalysed reactions, unreacted C60F18 was recovered, more if the less effective SnCl4 was used as a catalyst; use of AlCl3 resulted in polyarylation and degradation of the C60F18. The structure of C60F17(1-biphenylyl) was confirmed by single-crystal X-ray analysis. Reaction of C60F18 with perylene/FeCl3/o-dichlorobenzene gave red fluorescent "tagliatelli"-like threads (up to 1 cm long) of self-assembled pi-stacked tetrachloroperylene arising from chlorination by FeCl3.     

Electromagnetic realization of orders-of-magnitude tunneling enhancement in a double well system

We report on tunneling enhancement in a periodically perturbed double well system. The double well system was realized by a structure of two optical waveguides. The transfer of light power from one waveguide to the another as induced by the periodic variations of the waveguide geometry was investigated. Our experimental measurements show that, in the presence of periodic perturbation, this transfer of light power can be enhanced by more than 500 times. We use an analogy between electromagnetic wave optics and the quantum wave phenomena to provide an experimental support to the theoretical model of tunneling enhancement of a quantum particle, facilitated by its interaction with auxiliary quantum states.     

Traceability without uncertainty: current situation in the pharmaceutical industry

The current situation in the pharmaceutical industry is discussed, when the traceability of measurement (analytical) results to certified values of pharmacopoeial reference standards is required, without evaluating their uncertainties. It is shown that the evaluation of measurement uncertainty is necessary for understanding the level of confidence of the analytical results and their comparability, particularly during preparation and characterisation of the reference standards.Papers published in this section do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Editors, the Editorial Board and the Publisher. Apart from exceptional circumstances, they are not submitted to the usual referee procedure and go essentially unaltered.     

New indoline spiropyrans with highly stable merocyanine forms

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Boolean delay equations: A simple way of looking at complex systems

Boolean Delay Equations (BDEs) are semi-discrete dynamical models with Boolean-valued variables that evolve in continuous time. Systems of BDEs can be classified into conservative or dissipative, in a manner that parallels the classification of ordinary or partial differential equations. Solutions to certain conservative BDEs exhibit growth of complexity in time; such BDEs can be seen therefore as metaphors for biological evolution or human history. Dissipative BDEs are structurally stable and exhibit multiple equilibria and limit cycles, as well as more complex, fractal solution sets, such as Devil’s staircases and “fractal sunbursts.” All known solutions of dissipative BDEs have stationary variance. BDE systems of this type, both free and forced, have been used as highly idealized models of climate change on interannual, interdecadal and paleoclimatic time scales. BDEs are also being used as flexible, highly efficient models of colliding cascades of loading and failure in earthquake modeling and prediction, as well as in genetics. In this paper we review the theory of systems of BDEs and illustrate their applications to climatic and solid-earth problems. The former have used small systems of BDEs, while the latter have used large hierarchical networks of BDEs. We moreover introduce BDEs with an infinite number of variables distributed in space (“partial BDEs”) and discuss connections with other types of discrete dynamical systems, including cellular automata and Boolean networks. This research-and-review paper concludes with a set of open questions.     

An unusual reaction of cyclopropenylphosphonium bromide with sodium polyphosphides – A novel approach to sodium 3,4,5-triphenyl-1,2-diphosphacyclopentadienide

1,2,3-Triphenylcyclopropenylphosphonium bromide reacts with sodium polyphosphides to give sodium 3,4,5-triphenyl-1,2-diphosphacyclopentadienide in high yield.