Modification of magnetic anisotropy in metallic glasses using high-energy ion beam irradiation

Heavy ion irradiation in the electronic stopping power region induces macroscopic dimensional change in metallic glasses and introduces magnetic anisotropy in some magnetic materials. The present work is on the irradiation study of ferromagnetic metallic glasses, where both dimensional change and modification of magnetic anisotropy are expected. Magnetic anisotropy was measured using Mössbauer spectroscopy of virgin and irradiated Fe₄₀Ni₄₀B₂₀ and Fe₄₀Ni₃₈Mo₄B₁₈ metallic glass ribbons. 90 MeV ¹²⁷I beam was used for the irradiations. Irradiation doses were 5×10¹³ and 7.5×10¹³ ions/cm². The relative intensity ratios D ₂₃ of the second and third lines of the Mössbauer spectra were measured to determine the magnetic anisotropy. The virgin samples of both the materials display in-plane magnetic anisotropy, i.e., the spins are oriented parallel to the ribbon plane. Irradiation is found to cause reduction in magnetic anisotropy. Near-complete randomization of magnetic moments is observed at high irradiation doses. Correlation is found between the residual stresses introduced by ion irradiation and the change in magnetic anisotropy.     

Application of the photoionization detector for the determination of ethanol in aqueous solutions and human breath

A determination of ethanol is described, which is based on a purging system in conjunction with a photoionization detector. With that system a fast and reliable determination of ethanol in aqueous solutions is possible. The system has been used for the analysis of wine. The 3delta-detection limit has been 0.005% ethanol, the relative standard deviation 4.8 to 6.0% and the time constant of the entire analytical system 20 s. The photoionization detector has been also applied to the analysis of artificial and genuine human breath. A comparison with gas-chromatography and non-dispersive IR-detection has been proven the reliability of results.     

Application of the photoionization detector for the determination of ethanol in aqueous solutions and human breath

A determination of ethanol is described, which is based on a purging system in conjunction with a photoionization detector. With that system a fast and reliable determination of ethanol in aqueous solutions is possible. The system has been used for the analysis of wine. The 3-detection limit has been 0.005% ethanol, the relative standard deviation 4.8 to 6.0% and the time constant of the entire analytical system 20 s. The photoionization detector has been also applied to the analysis of artificial and genuine human breath. A comparison with gas-chromatography and non-dispersive IR-detection has been proven the reliability of results.     

Unified treatment of fermions and bosons

Dirac's matrices can be interpreted as an 8-rank covariant antisymmetric tensor field on an 11-dimensional manifold (space-time ×S ⁷) enforcing a linkage between the Lorentz transformation and rotations ofS ⁷, conferring spinorial properties on any quantity having an index in the inner spaceS ⁷.     

Simple test system for single molecule recognition force microscopy

We have established an easy-to-use test system for detecting receptor-ligand interactions on the single molecule level using atomic force microscopy (AFM). For this, avidin-biotin, probably the best characterized receptor-ligand pair, was chosen. AFM sensors were prepared containing tethered biotin molecules at sufficiently low surface concentrations appropriate for single molecule studies. A biotin tether, consisting of a 6 nm poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) chain and a functional succinimide group at the other end, was newly synthesized and covalently coupled to amine-functionalized AFM tips. In particular, PEG₈₀₀ diamine was glutarylated, the mono-adduct NH₂-PEG-COOH was isolated by ion exchange chromatography and reacted with biotin succinimidylester to give biotin-PEG-COOH which was then activated as N-hydroxysuccinimide (NHS) ester to give the biotin-PEG-NHS conjugate which was coupled to the aminofunctionalized AFM tip. The motional freedom provided by PEG allows for free rotation of the biotin molecule on the AFM sensor and for specific binding to avidin which had been adsorbed to mica surfaces via electrostatic interactions. Specific avidin-biotin recognition events were discriminated from nonspecific tip-mica adhesion by their typical unbinding force (∼40 pN at 1.4 nN/s loading rate), unbinding length (<13 nm), the characteristic nonlinear force-distance relation of the PEG linker, and by specific block with excess of free d-biotin. The convenience of the test system allowed to evaluate, and compare, different methods and conditions of tip aminofunctionalization with respect to specific binding and nonspecific adhesion. It is concluded that this system is well suited as calibration or start-up kit for single molecule recognition force microscopy.     

Heterogeneous thermochemical decomposition of a semi-transparent particle under high-flux irradiation: uniform versus non-uniform irradiation

The effects of a semi-transparent reacting particle irradiation are analysed using a transient combined heat transfer model. Direct uniform irradiation is found to be favourable for particle heating and decomposition, decreasing the total reaction time by a factor of 3.3 as compared to that for non-uniform irradiation. In both cases heat transfer from the surface to the reaction zone is the process limiting mechanism.     

Calix[4]pyrrolato Aluminates: The Effect of Ligand Modification on the Reactivity of Square-Planar Aluminum Anions

Structural constraint represents an attractive tool to modify p-block element properties without the need for unusual oxidation or valence states. The recently reported methyl-calix[4]pyrrolato aluminate established the effect of forcing a tetrahedral aluminum anion into a square-planar coordination mode. However, the generality of this structural motif and any consequence of ligand modification remained open. Herein, a systematic ligand screening was launched, and the class of square-planar aluminum anions was extended by two derivatives that differ in the meso-substitution at the calix[4]pyrrolato ligand. Strikingly, this modification provoked opposing trends in the preference for a Lewis acidic binding mode with σ-donors versus the aluminum-ligand cooperative binding mode with carbonyls. Insights into the origin of these counterintuitive experimental observations were provided by computation and bond analysis. Importantly, this rationale might allow to exploit mode-selective binding for catalytic rate control.     

Carbon monoxide isotope enrichment and separation by pressure swing adsorption

Simulations of three different 3-bed 3-step pressure swing adsorption (PSA) cycles were carried out to study the enrichment and recovery of ¹⁴CO from an isotopic mixture of ¹⁴CO, ¹³CO and ¹²CO using NaX zeolite. Each PSA cycle included feed pressurization/feed (FP/P), heavy reflux (HR) and countercurrent depressurization (CnD) steps; they differed only in the way the CnD step was carried out: PSA Cycle I was carried out under total reflux (i.e., with no ¹⁴CO heavy product production); PSA Cycle II was carried out with discontinuous ¹⁴CO heavy product production; and PSA Cycle III was carried out with continuous ¹⁴CO heavy product production. The effects of the CnD step valve coefficient (c _v ), heavy reflux ratio (R _R ), and cycle time (t _cyc ) on the PSA process performance were determined in terms of the ¹⁴CO enrichment, ¹⁴CO recovery and CO feed throughput. The results showed that there was essentially no limit to the extent of the ¹⁴CO enrichment, despite the inherently low ¹⁴CO/¹²CO (1.05) and ¹⁴CO/¹³CO (1.12) separation factors for these isotopes on NaX zeolite. Under total reflux an optimum c _v was found for the CnD step and ¹⁴CO enrichments as high as 152 were obtained. Using the optimum c _v under finite reflux, a ¹⁴CO enrichment approaching 20 and a ¹⁴CO recovery approaching 100 % were easily achieved with discontinuous (PSA Cycle II) or continuous (PSA Cycle III) ¹⁴CO heavy product production. There was essentially no difference in the performance of PSA Cycles II and III, a counterintuitive result. The ¹⁴CO enrichment and the ¹⁴CO recovery both increased with decreasing CO feed throughputs and higher R _R , which were always very close to unity.