Nickel-catalyzed indium(I)-mediated double addition of aldehydes to 1,3-dienes

In the presence of InI, Ni(acac)2 and PPh3, several 1,3-dienes were reacted with two molecules of aldehyde to give the corresponding 1,4- and 1,6-diols. The regioselectivity of the 1,4-/1,6-diol was efficiently regulated by the addition of water; the 1,6-diol was obtained selectively in dry THF, whereas the 1,4-diol was obtained predominantly in DMI containing a small amount of water.     

A steep one-step [HS-HS] to [LS-LS] spin transition in a 4,4'-bipyridine linked one-dimensional coordination polymer constructed from a pyrazolato bridged Fe(II) dimer

The variable temperature magnetic susceptibility, X-ray crystallography, and M?ssbauer and Raman spectra of a new dinuclear complex-based one-dimensional coordination polymer [[Fe(II)2(NCS)2(mu-bpypz)2](micro-4,4'-bpy)].MeOH demonstrated a steep one-step [HS-HS] to [LS-LS] spin transition.     

Effect of pressure on the vibrational structure of insensitive energetic material 5-nitro-2,4-dihydro-1,2,4-triazole-3-one

The Raman spectra of alpha form 5-nitro-2,4-dihydro-1,2,4-triazole-3-one (alpha-NTO, space group P) were measured in a high-pressure vessel diamond anvil cell (DAC). The pressure was increased to 27.6 GPa. In general, Raman bands show a blue shift because of the nature of the molecule packing as a high-pressure effect, but some particular bands exhibited a red shift, disappearance, split, or slight shifting in our experiments. Those red-shifting bands concerning hydrogen bonds, i.e., carbonyl and amino groups, are likely to work as a stabilizer against stimuli to the molecule or crystal. This stabilizing nature might characterize the insensitivity of NTO. Molecular dynamic (MD) calculations were performed to reveal the high-pressure effect of the alpha-NTO crystal. The coordinates of individual atoms in the crystal structure were obtained using X-ray diffraction analysis. The pressure dependence of the power spectra of the correlation functions of the C=O bond length in NTO was calculated. A unique high-pressure effect of the alpha-NTO crystal was found on the power spectra. The peak frequency in the power spectrum of the C=O stretching vibration exhibited a red shift with an increase in pressure to 10.0 GPa, while the peak intensity considerably decreased under the same pressure process, because this bond length increased with an increase in pressure to 10.0 GPa. At a pressure of >20.0 GPa, a blue shift appeared. These results of the MD calculations are in good agreement with our experimental data.     

Development of ultra-short pulse VUV laser system for nanoscale processing

We have developed intense vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) radiation sources for advanced material processing, such as photochemical surface reactions and precise processing on a nanometer scale. We have constructed a new VUV laser system to generate sub-picosecond pulses at the wavelength of 126 nm. A seed VUV pulse was generated in Xe as the 7th harmonic of a 882-nm Ti:sapphire laser. The optimum conversion was achieved at the pressure of 1.2 Torr. The seed pulse will be amplified by the Ar₂^*\mathrm{Ar}_{2}^{*} media generated by an optical-field-induced ionization Ar plasma produced by the Ti:sapphire laser. We have obtained a gain coefficient of g=0.16 cm⁻¹. Our developing system will provide VUV ultra-short pulses with sub-μJ energy at a repetition rate of 1 kHz.     

Bounding the distance among longest paths in a connected graph

It is easy to see that in a connected graph any $2$ longest paths have a vertex in common. For $k\ge 7$, Skupień in 1966 obtained a connected graph in which some $k$ longest paths have no common vertex, but every $k?1$ longest paths have a common vertex. It is not known whether every $3$ longest paths in a connected graph have a common vertex and similarly for 4, 5, and $6$ longest path. Fujita et al. in 2015 give an upper bound on distance among $3$ longest paths in a connected graph. In this paper we give a similar upper bound on distance between $4$ longest paths and also for $k$ longest paths, in general.     

Fast enclosure for all eigenvalues in generalized eigenvalue problems

A fast method for enclosing all eigenvalues in generalized eigenvalue problems Ax=λBx is proposed. Firstly a theorem for enclosing all eigenvalues, which is applicable even if A is not Hermitian and/or B is not Hermitian positive definite, is presented. Next a theorem for accelerating the enclosure is presented. The proposed method is established based on these theorems. Numerical examples show the performance and property of the proposed method. As an application of the proposed method, an efficient method for enclosing all eigenvalues in polynomial eigenvalue problems is also sketched.     

Current-driven resonant excitation of magnetic vortices

A magnetic vortex core in a ferromagnetic circular nanodot has a resonance frequency originating from the confinement of the vortex core. By the micromagnetic simulation including the spin-transfer torque, we show that the vortex core can be resonantly excited by an ac (spin-polarized) current through the dot and that the resonance frequency can be tuned by the dot shape. The resistance measurement under the ac current successfully detects the resonance at the frequency consistent with the simulation.     

The development of children's understanding of mathematical patterns through mathematical activities

In this paper we report how children (aged 8) developed their mathematical understanding through number tasks based on the Fibonacci sequence (Bamboo numbers) used in the context of a Substantial Learning Environment (SLE), which is designed to be mathematically rich, have a clear purpose and give opportunities to utilise mathematical thinking. The flexible nature of the SLEs makes it possible for teachers and children to explore various mathematical patterns. To capture children's activities when working within SLEs, we make particular reference to Pegg and Tall's work in 2005, and consider a theoretical framework based on the SOLO taxonomy (Biggs and Collis 1982) and the developmental process of understanding mathematical concepts. It was found that the key progression to be made through learning using our Bamboo number-based SLEs is from Multi-structural to Relational levels. It was also suggested that it is difficult for many children to understand the structural aspects of number patterns.     

Photo-reversible Valence Tautomerism in a Co Compound

Photo-illumination effects have been measured for the compound [Co III-LS (tmpda)(3,6-DBSQ)(3,6-DBCat)]. When the aforementioned compound was illuminated at 5 K, the magnetization value increased from w eff = 1.87 to 2.03 w B . The absorption spectra after illumination show that the absorption band at around 730 nm, which is characteristic of the [Co II-HS (tmpda)(3,6-DBSQ) 2 ] state, increased in intensity and that the charge transfer band from 3,6-DBCat to 3,6-DBSQ at 2500 nm was reduced in intensity. IR spectra show that the C-O stretching peak at 1279 cm m 1 is decreased in intensity. These results confirm that a photo-induced intra-molecular electron transfer, [Co III-LS (tmpda)(3,6-DBSQ)(3,6-DBCat)] to; [Co II-HS (tmpda)(3,6-DBSQ) 2 ], was induced. The lifetime of the metastable state at 5 K was 15 min. Furthermore, it was found that reverse valence tautomerism can be induced by exciting the Co II-HS to 3,6-DBSQ charge transfer band in metastable [Co II-HS (tmpda)(3,6-DBSQ) 2 ].     

Local structural analysis of In-doped Bi2Se3 topological insulator using X-ray fluorescence holography

We performed X-ray fluorescence holography measurements on an In-doped Bi₂Se₃ topological insulator and obtained an in-plane atomic image in the vicinity of In. We found that atomic images at the positions of the first nearest neighbors (NNs) are very weak whereas those at the positions of the second and the third NNs are relatively strong. On the basis of the fact that In is half of the atomic number of Bi, we attributed the origin of this feature to the clustering of the In atoms in the Bi plane. We calculated the intensity of the atomic images and confirmed that the formation of In cluster results in a decrease by 30% in the first NN atomic image intensity. However, the decrease in the magnitude is not enough to explain the experimental results, suggesting another contribution such as the lattice distortions. The effect of the lattice distortion on the atomic image intensity is discussed on the basis of the simulation including the positional fluctuation of In atoms.