Calculating vibrational mode contributions to sound absorption in excitable gas mixtures by decomposing multi-relaxation absorption spectroscopy

Sound relaxational absorption spectroscopy of excitable gas mixtures is potentially applied for gas composition detection. The relaxation of vibrational modes of gas molecules determines the sound relaxational absorption. However, to our knowledge, the contribution of each vibrational mode available in gas mixtures to sound multi-relaxation absorption has not been calculated in existing literature. In this paper, based on the decoupled expression of the effective isochoric molar heat for a gas mixture, a sound multi-relaxation absorption spectrum is decomposed into the sum of single-relaxation spectra. From this decomposable characteristic, the contribution of each vibrational mode available in the gaseous medium to the multi-relaxation absorption is obtained at room temperature. For various gas compositions including carbon dioxide, methane, nitrogen etc., the calculated contributions of vibrational modes are verified by the comparison with experiment data. We prove the following views with quantifiable outcomes that the primary molecular relaxation process associated with the lowest mode plays the major role in acoustic relaxational absorption of gas mixtures; the mode with lower vibrational frequency provides higher contribution to the primary relaxation process. This work could provide a deeper insight into the relationship between the sound relaxational absorption spectroscopy and gas molecules.     

对苯二甲酸-双(4-甲氧基苯酯)及其衍生物的结构与光谱

在密度泛函理论B3LYP/6-31 G*水平上计算研究了对苯二甲酸-双(4-甲氧基苯酯)及其OH和F腰接取代化合物的几何结构与红外振动光谱和电子光谱性质。研究发现这类化合物的酯基碳氧原子与苯环形成不同的离域大π键,空间位阻效应和共轭效应使三个苯环位于不同平面上,二面角在53°～59°范围。含时密度泛函理论计算第一激发态的电子垂直跃迁能,表明最大吸收光谱全部源于分子中HOMO→LUMO的π→π*跃迁,对应的最大吸收波长数值位于370～384nm之间,属于紫外区。腰接基对这类化合物的几何结构影响不大,仅由于空间位阻效应,使苯环(1)和苯环(2)之间的二面角增大3°～4°,但对其所在苯环的变形及其氢的振动有一定影响。同时,腰接羟基使HOMO→LUMO的能隙略有减小,最大吸收波长略有增大。腰接氟时因弱的共轭效应使得HOMO→LUMO的能隙减小0.1209eV,导致最大吸收波长红移14nm。     

高能e+e－湮没强子多重数的质量关系

利用一个描述强子质量谱成功的夸克模型确定出得到的强子多重数普适质量关系〈n〉=aexp(–bm)中的参数b,发现对于介子、重子是一个普适的常数.利用这个质量公式给出计算各种粒子多重数的表达式,进而以高能e⁺e^－湮没为例计算出各种粒子多重数与实验以及其他模型做了比较,表明这个没有任何假定的质量关系同样能够解释实验.     

The Sigmoidal Transfer Function and the Gain-Threshold Exponential Dependence for Neurons from Statistical Mechanics Treatment

Analogy is used to treat the system of non-interacting integrate-and-fire neurons as an ideal Fermi gas. It allows to obtain the nonlinear gain curve in the form of sigmoid in agreement with biological findings. As the by-product the gain-threshold mechanism in neurons is presented. Surprisingly enough, this is in agreement with new biological findings, too. Besides, the application of this mechanism to the dynamics of neurons leads to the non-monotone transfer function.     

Algebraic methods in quantum mechanics: from molecules to polymers

We present a brief review of algebraic techniques developed and applied in molecular spectroscopy in the last five years. We also outline perspectives for new applications of the Lie algebraic method in the first decade of the new century. Received 21 November 2001     

Noncontact atomic force microscopy: Bond imaging and beyond

It was a long-cherished dream for chemists to take a direct look at chemical bonding, a fundamental component of chemistry. This dream was finally accomplished by the state-of-the-art noncontact atomic force microscopy (NC-AFM) equipped with qPlus force sensors and carbon monoxide (CO) functionalized tips. The resolved interconnectivity between atoms and molecules in NC-AFM frequency shift images is interpreted as chemical bonding, providing essential knowledge of the bond length, bond angle and even bond order. The featured contrast of different chemical bonds can serve as fingerprints for further interpretation of chemical structures toward unknown species synthesized on surfaces. This breakthrough enriches characterization tools for surface science and brings our understanding of on-surface reactions to a new level. Beyond bond imaging, the application of NC-AFM has been extended to quantifying interatomic interactions, identifying three-dimensional nanostructures, manipulating molecules and reactions, as well as determining molecular electronic characteristics. Moreover, some recent efforts address the improvement of the usability and versatility of the bond-resolved NC-AFM technique, including high-resolution molecular investigation on bulk insulators, application-specific tip modification, stable bond imaging above liquid helium temperature and autonomous experimentation implemented by artificial intelligence.     

Investigation on thermal conductivity of graphene/Si heterostructure with different defect ratios and sizes

The thermal conductivity (TC) of graphene/Si heterostructures with different defect ratios and sizes was investigated using the molecular dynamics method. As the defect ratio of heterostructure increased, the TC decreased first sharply and then slowly under a high temperature stage. The TC of heterostructure also showed a significant size effect. This phenomenon was explained by phonon dispersion and flip competition. The phonon density of states for the graphene heterostructure with different defect ratios and sizes was obtained to understand the thermal transport mechanism. Analysis showed that with the increase in the defect ratio and when the flexural modes of the heterostructure became weak, the longitudinal and transverse modes gradually dominated the phonon transport. This phenomenon can be explained that the Si atom vibration was harder in the vertical plane than that of graphene. The vibration mode hindered the heat carrier of graphene and affected heat transport to the heterostructure.     

Molecular dynamic study of temperature dependence of mechanical properties and plastic inception of CoCrCuFeNi high-entropy alloy

Molecular dynamics simulations are performed to study mechanical characteristics and homogeneous plastic inception of CoCrCuFeNi high-entropy alloy at various temperatures under uniaxial tension. It is found that the elastic modulus and ultimate tensile strength increase with temperature decreasing. A notable softening effect is observed at the elastic deformation stage caused by the decrease of the interatomic force gradient. Extrinsic stacking faults and deformation twins are extensively observed, which are formed via intrinsic stacking faults overlap.     

Computational study of the formation of aluminum-graphene nanocrystallites

The molecular dynamics method is used to study the formation of the Al/graphene nanocomposite in the structural grains of different size under the action of internal stresses. The behavior of graphene sheets inside an individual structural grain as well as in the process of two Al grains containing graphene are joined is investigated. The motion of graphene films, starting from the middle of the aluminum matrix, ends with their location at the crystallite boundaries. Graphene moves in the Al matrix along closely packed planes. In this case, graphene sheets acquire curvature. An intergrowth of graphene sheets is also observed. A contact between two Al-C nanocrystallites through a graphene interlayer is created. The self-diffusion coefficients of atoms and the partial potential energies increased with decreasing nanocrystallite size. The angular distribution of the nearest geometric neighbors and the distribution of distances to the nearest neighbors are determined using the construction of Voronoi polyhedra.     

New insights on the role of ROS in the mechanisms of sonoporation-mediated gene delivery

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are hypothesized to play a role in the sonoporation mechanisms. Nevertheless, the acoustical phenomenon behind the ROS production as well as the exact mechanisms of ROS action involved in the increased cell membrane permeability are still not fully understood. Therefore, we investigated the key processes occurring at the molecular level in and around microbubbles subjected to ultrasound using computational chemistry methods. To confirm the molecular simulation predictions, we measured the ROS production by exposing SonoVue® microbubbles (MBs) to ultrasound using biological assays. To investigate the role of ROS in cell membrane permeabilization, cells were subjected to ultrasound in presence of MBs and plasmid encoding reporter gene, and the transfection level was assessed using flow cytometry. The molecular simulations showed that under sonoporation conditions, ROS can form inside the MBs. These radicals could easily diffuse through the MB shell toward the surrounding aqueous phase and participate in the permeabilization of nearby cell membranes. Experimental data confirmed that MBs favor spontaneous formation of a host of free radicals where HO was the main ROS species after US exposure. The presence of ROS scavengers/inhibitors during the sonoporation process decreased both the production of ROS and the subsequent transfection level without significant loss of cell viability. In conclusion, the exposure of MBs to ultrasound might be the origin of chemical effects, which play a role in the cell membrane permeabilization and in the in vitro gene delivery when generated in its proximity.