Study of radical methyl methacrylate-methacrylic acid copolymerization in isopropyl alcohol by dynamic laser scattering and C-NMR spectroscopy

The copolymerization of methyl methacrylate and methacrylic acid in isopropyl alcohol is studied by kinetic, dynamic laser scattering and ¹³C-NMR methods. Correlations are established between the dependence of the copolymerization rate, the apparent average molecular weight, the diffusion coefficients and the configurational triad composition on the monomer feed. These correlations and the fact that both copolymerization constants are smaller than unity (r_MMA = 0.63 ± 0.03; r_MA = 0.25 ± 0.05) are in good agreement with the assumption that a comonomer complex takes part in the propagation reaction. A new Markov chain method for the estimation of the configurational triad mole fraction which accounts for the complex participation in a macromolecule formation is developed. Qualitative criteria for evidence the participation of the comonomer complex in copolymerization are proposed using experimental and terminal model calculated mole fractions of the compositional triads and diads.     

Selective photoconductivity induced in PbTe(Ga) by a local phonon mode

Selective photoconductivity at frequency ω=155 cm⁻ was discovered in PbTe(Ga) narrow-gap semiconductors at liquid-nitrogen temperatures. The corresponding energy is much lower than all characteristic energies of the electronic spectrum of the semiconductor. The effect is attributed to optical excitation of a local vibrational mode of an impurity center leading to delocalization of the electrons. Pis’ma Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 63, No. 5, 342–346 (10 March 1996)     

GIPKh catalysts

In the Russian Scientific Center Applied Chemistry catalysts have been developed for the gas-phase fluorination of organics, including chlorine-containing substances, hydrogenation and reductive amination of organic substances, decomposition of liquid substances to gases, complete oxidation and reduction, suitable for environment at protection.     

Integration of the equations of planar and flexural vibrations of anisotropic plates in special functions of generalized complex variables

On the basis of the method of successive approximations in formal series we construct systems of particular solutions of the equations of planar and flexural harmonic vibrations of thin rectilinear anisotropic plates with a plane of symmetry of elastic properties parallel to the faces. The solutions constructed are classified as special sk-functions of generalized complex variables. Translated fromTeoreticheskaya i Prikladnaya Mekhanika No. 24, 1993, pp. 54–61.     

Replica Symmetry Breaking in an Axial Model of Quadrupolar Glass

We investigate the replica symmetry breaking (RSB) in a neighborhood of the instability point of the replica-symmetric solution in the axial quadrupolar glass model. We show that the solution with the first-stage RSB is stable against the subsequent RSB. Although there is no reflection symmetry, the first-stage RSB solution continuously bifurcates from the replica-symmetric one. This implies that our model does not belong to either of the two classes into which spin glasses are usually divided.     

Forecasting call frequency at a financial services call centre

A forecasting model is developed for the number of daily applications for loans at a financial services telephone call centre. The purpose of the forecasts and the associated prediction intervals is to provide effective staffing policies within the call centre. The model building process is constrained by the availability of only 2 years and 7 months of data. The distinctive feature of the data is that demand is driven in the main by advertising. The analysis given focuses on applications stimulated by press advertising. Unlike previous analyses of broadly similar data, where ARIMA models were used, a model with a dynamic level, multiplicative calendar effects and a multiplicative advertising response is developed and shown to be effective.     

Surface grating formation and erasing on a-Se films

Surface relief formation at holographic recording on amorphous selenium films was demonstrated and investigated. The presence of this optical phase modulation component is essential for ensuring significant, stable and erasable optical recording in a-Se films at 290–320 K temperatures, where conventional photodarkening was known as insignificant and unstable. Photocrystallization can only be observed in super-exposed a-Se films at the given experimental conditions of hologram recording. Erasing behavior of surface relief gratings under heat treatment was also investigated in order to reveal further details of the mechanism. Photoinduced structural transformations within the amorphous phase, connected to local ordering under the condition of light-induced fluidity, are proposed as an explanation for the relief formation and erasing. The observed reversible optical recording process may be useful for the various optoelectronic applications of photoconductive a-Se layers. Received: 12 June 2000 / Accepted: 6 June 2001 / Published online: 30 August 2001