An attempt to prepare and characterize a soil reference material for Cr(VI) and Cr(III)

Reference materials for the speciation and quantification of chromium in contaminated soils were prepared by impregnating diatomaceous earth with BaCrO₄ and Cr₂O₃. The chronium concentrations of these materials were confirmed to be 200 mg/kg both by atomic absorption spectrometry and by instrumental neutron activation analysis, but monthly assays over two calendar quarters of the reference material impregnated with BaCrO₄ revealed the hexavalent chromium was not stable in this matrix.     

Mono‐ and Bis(pyrrolo)tetrathiafulvalene Derivatives Tethered to C60: Synthesis,Photophysical Studies,and Self‐Assembled Monolayers

A series of mono‐ (MPTTF) and bis(pyrrolo)tetrathiafulvalene (BPTTF) derivatives tethered to one or two C₆₀ moieties was synthesized and characterized. The synthetic strategy for these dumbbell‐shaped compounds was based on a 1,3‐dipolar cycloaddition reaction between aldehyde‐functionalized MPTTF/BPTTF derivatives, two different tailor‐made amino acids, and C₆₀. Electronic communication between the MPTTF/BPTTF units and the C₆₀ moieties was studied by a variety of techniques including cyclic voltammetry and absorption spectroscopy. These solution‐based studies indicated no observable electronic communication between the MPTTF/BPTTF units and the C₆₀ moieties. In addition, femtosecond and nanosecond transient absorption spectroscopy revealed, rather surprisingly, that no charge transfer from the MPTTF/BPTTF units to the C₆₀ moieties takes place on excitation of the fullerene moiety. Finally, it was shown that the MPTTF–C₆₀ and C₆₀–BPTTF‐C₆₀ dyad and triad molecules formed self‐assembled monolayers on a Au(111) surface by anchoring to C₆₀.     

Sequential generation of entangled multiqubit states

We consider the deterministic generation of entangled multiqubit states by the sequential coupling of an ancillary system to initially uncorrelated qubits. We characterize all achievable states in terms of classes of matrix-product states and give a recipe for the generation on demand of any multiqubit state. The proposed methods are suitable for any sequential generation scheme, though we focus on streams of single-photon time-bin qubits emitted by an atom coupled to an optical cavity. We show, in particular, how to generate familiar quantum information states such as W, Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger, and cluster states within such a framework.     

Conditional large Fock state preparation and field state reconstruction in cavity QED

We propose a scheme for producing large Fock states in cavity QED via the implementation of a highly selective atom-field interaction. It is based on Raman excitation of a three-level atom by a classical field and a quantized field mode. Selectivity appears when one tunes to resonance a specific transition inside a chosen atom-field subspace, while other transitions remain dispersive, as a consequence of the field dependent electronic energy shifts. We show that this scheme can be also employed for reconstructing, in a new and efficient way, the Wigner function of the cavity field state.     

Observation of zero current density in the core of jet discharges with lower hybrid heating and current drive

Simultaneous current ramping and application of lower hybrid heating and current drive (LHCD) have produced a region with zero current density within measurement errors in the core ( r/a< or =0.2) of JET tokamak optimized shear discharges. The reduction of core current density is consistent with a simple physical explanation and numerical simulations of radial current diffusion including the effects of LHCD. However, the core current density is clamped at zero, indicating the existence of a physical mechanism which prevents it from becoming negative.     

Density functional theory and RRKM calculations of decompositions of the metastable E‐2,4‐pentadienal molecular ions

The potential energy profiles for the fragmentations that lead to [C₅H₅O]⁺ and [C₄H₆]^+? ions from the molecular ions [C₅H₆O]^+? of E‐2,4‐pentadienal were obtained from calculations at the UB3LYP/6‐311G + + (3df,3pd)//UB3LYP/6‐31G(d,p) level of theory. Kinetic barriers and harmonic frequencies obtained by the density functional method were then employed in Rice–Ramsperger–Kassel–Marcus calculations of individual rate coefficients for a large number of reaction steps. The pre‐equilibrium and rate‐controlling step approximations were applied to different regions of the complex potential energy surface, allowing the overall rate of decomposition to be calculated and discriminated between three rival pathways: C? H bond cleavage, decarbonylation and cyclization. These processes should have to compete for an equilibrated mixture of four conformers of the E‐2,4‐pentadienal ions. The direct dissociation, however, can only become important in the high‐energy regime. In contrast, loss of CO and cyclization are observable processes in the metastable kinetic window. The former involves a slow 1,2‐hydrogen shift from the carbonyl group that is immediately followed by the formation of an ion‐neutral complex which, in turn, decomposes rapidly to the s‐trans‐1,3‐butadiene ion [C₄H₆]^+?. The predominating metastable channel is the second one, that is, a multi‐step ring closure which starts with a rate‐limiting cis—trans isomerization. This process yields a mixture of interconverting pyran ions that dissociates to the pyrylium ions [C₅H₅O]⁺. These results can be used to rationalize the CID mass spectrum of E‐2,4‐pentadienal in a low‐energy regime. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Quantum simulation of the Klein paradox with trapped ions

We report on quantum simulations of relativistic scattering dynamics using trapped ions. The simulated state of a scattering particle is encoded in both the electronic and vibrational state of an ion, representing the discrete and continuous components of relativistic wave functions. Multiple laser fields and an auxiliary ion simulate the dynamics generated by the Dirac equation in the presence of a scattering potential. Measurement and reconstruction of the particle wave packet enables a frame-by-frame visualization of the scattering processes. By precisely engineering a range of external potentials we are able to simulate text book relativistic scattering experiments and study Klein tunneling in an analogue quantum simulator. We describe extensions to solve problems that are beyond current classical computing capabilities.     

Quantum simulation of quantum field theories in trapped ions

We propose the quantum simulation of fermion and antifermion field modes interacting via a bosonic field mode, and present a possible implementation with two trapped ions. This quantum platform allows for the scalable add up of bosonic and fermionic modes, and represents an avenue towards quantum simulations of quantum field theories in perturbative and nonperturbative regimes.