Extended Open-Chain Polyenides as Versatile Delocalized Anion Ligands for Metal Chain Clusters

Although small cyclic- and open-chain unsaturated hydrocarbon anions such as cyclopentadienide and open-chain pentadienide are used as the strongly electron-donating auxiliary ligands for metal complexes, more extended π-conjugated unsaturated hydrocarbon anions have rarely been used in coordination chemistry, despite their potential ability to serve as the multiply bridging π-ligands for metal clusters. This work reports isolation of metal chain clusters bearing the multi-dentate, open-chain extended unsaturated hydrocarbon anion ligands. The extended open-chain π-conjugated polyenyl ligands could effectively stabilize oxidized palladium chains, including an unprecedented [Pd₄]⁴⁺ chain.     

Selection of meaningless steady noise for masking of speech

This paper focuses on masking speech with meaningless steady noise as a way of realizing a comfortable sound environment. As a basis for research, meaningless steady noise at minimum sound pressure levels for masking of male or female meaningful speech is considered, based on psychological experiments using a method of adjustment. From the results, band-limited pink noise can be selected as the most effective noise for masking of speech. In the case of speech with a lower sound pressure level, the sound pressure level of the meaningless steady noise needs to be a little higher.     

A note on conservation laws for a multiclass service queueing system with setup times

This paper derives a conservation law for mean waiting times in a single-server multi-class service queueing system (M ^X/G/1 type queue) with setup times which may be dependent on multiple customer classes and its arrival batch size by using the work decomposition property in the queueing system with vacations.     

Laser spectroscopy of trapped 7Be and 10Be at a prototype slow RI-beam facility of RIKEN

A next-generation slow radioactive nuclear ion beam facility (SLOWRI) which provides slow, high-purity and small emittance ion beams of all elements is being build as one of the principal facilities at the RIKEN RI-beam factory (RIBF). High energy radioactive ion beams from the projectile fragment separator BigRIPS are thermalized in a large gas catcher cell. The thermalized ions in the gas cell are guided and extracted to a vacuum environment by a combination of dc electric fields and inhomogeneous rf fields (rf carpet ion guide). From there the slow ion beam is delivered via a mass separator and a switchyard to various devices: such as an ion trap, a collinear fast beam apparatus, and a multi-reflection time of flight mass spectrometer. In the R&D works at the present RIKEN facility, an overall efficiency of 5% for a 100A MeV ⁸Li ion beam from the present projectile fragment separator RIPS was achieved and the dependence of the efficiency on the ion beam intensity was investigated. Recently our first spectroscopy experiment at the prototype SLOWI was performed on Be isotopes. Energetic ions of ¹⁰Be and ⁷Be from the RIPS were trapped and laser cooled in a linear rf trap and the specific mass shifts of these isotopes were measured for the first time.     

High-quality hydroxyapatite coating on biocompatible materials by laser-assisted laser ablation method

A new method for high-quality hydroxyapatite (HAp) coating is developed, the laser-assisted laser ablation method. In this method, two lasers are used. One is used for ablation of a HAp target. The other, the assist laser, is used to irradiate a Ti substrate surface. The effects of the assist laser irradiation are to anneal the HAp coating and to improve its adhesive strength to the Ti substrate. The quality of the HAp coating depends on the delay time of the assist-laser irradiation. HAp coatings obtained at a delay time of 10 microseconds or more are more amorphous. It was confirmed that the amorphous part of a coating dissolves in simulated body fluid, while the crystalline part does not. The value of the Ca/P ratio in a coating obtained at a delay time of a few microseconds is close to the stoichiometric value. PACS 81.16.Mk     

Bis(pentafluorophenyl) disulfide as a hydrogen abstractor and an electron acceptor from the resulting radical intermediate

The pentafluorobenzenethiyl radical is an efficient hydrogen abstractor from an activated methylene or methine group and bis(pentafluorophenyl) disulfide is an efficient electron acceptor from the resulting radical intermediate. Thus benzyl-OTBS ether was easily converted into the corresponding pinacol, and 2-phenyl-1,3-dioxanes are converted into the monobenzoates of diols.     

Permeability,permselectivity, and penetrant‐induced plasticization in fluorinated polyimides studied by positron lifetime measurements

The ortho‐positronium (o‐Ps) lifetime τ₃ and its intensity I₃ in various fluorinated polyimides were determined by the positron annihilation technique and were studied with the spin–lattice relaxation time T₁ and the propylene permeability, solubility, diffusivity, and permselectivity for propylene/propane in them. τ₃, I₃, and the distribution of τ₃ changed when the bulky moieties in the polyimides were changed. The polyimides, having both large τ₃ and I₃ values, exhibited a short T₁ and a high permeability with a low permselectivity. The propylene permeability and diffusivity were exponentially correlated with the product of I₃ and the average free‐volume hole size estimated from τ₃. In highly plasticized states induced by the sorption of propylene, the permeability increased with the propylene pressure in excellent agreement with the change in the free‐volume hole properties probed by o‐Ps. The large and broad distribution of the free‐volume holes and increased local chain mobility for the 2,2‐bis(3,4‐decarboxyphenyl) hexafluoropropane dianhydride‐based polyimides are thought to be important physical properties for promoting penetrant‐induced plasticization. These results suggest that o‐Ps is a powerful probe of not only the free‐volume holes but also the corresponding permeation mechanism and penetrant‐induced plasticization phenomenon. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 41: 308–318, 2003     

Structure induced by irradiation of femtosecond laser pulse in dyed polymeric materials

We investigated the structures induced by an irradiation of a near‐infrared (NIR) femtosecond laser pulse in dye‐doped polymeric materials {poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), thermoplastic epoxy resin (Epoxy), and a block copolymer of methyl methacrylate and ethyl acrylate‐butyl acrylate [p(MMA/EA‐BA) block copolymer]}. Dyes used were classified into two types—type 1 with absorption at 400 nm and type 2 with no absorption at 400 nm. The 400‐nm wavelength corresponds to the two‐photon absorption region by the irradiated NIR laser pulse at 800 nm. Type 1 dye‐doped PMMA and p(MMA/EA‐BA) block copolymer showed a peculiar dye additive effect for the structures induced by the line irradiation of a NIR femtosecond laser pulse. On the contrary, dye‐doped Epoxy did not exhibit a dye additive effect. The different results among PMMA, p(MMA/EA‐BA) block copolymer, and Epoxy matrix polymers are supposed to be related to the difference of electron‐acceptor properties. The mechanism of this type 1 dye‐additive‐effect phenomenon for PMMA and p(MMA/EA‐BA) block copolymer is discussed on the basis of two‐photon absorption of type 1 dye at 400 nm by the irradiation of a femtosecond laser pulse with 800 nm wavelength and the dissipation of the absorbed energy to the polymer matrix among various transition processes. Dyes with a low‐fluorescence quantum yield favored the formation of thicker grating structures. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 40: 2800–2806, 2002     

Effect of nitriding on grain oriented silicon steel bearing aluminum (the second study)

All kinds of high-permeability GO are manufactured using AlN as the main inhibitor. From a purely metallurgical viewpoint, three types of inhibitor preparation for high-permeability GO have been shown. They include a complete solution without nitriding, a complete precipitation with nitriding and a partial precipitation with nitriding. In this study, another possibility, i.e., a complete solution method with nitriding, was investigated to avoid the extra high-temperature slab reheating and to examine the effect of nitriding on GO bearing Al. This method can also provide the sharp Goss texture, and nitriding is shown to be very useful for changing the inhibitor intensity, depending on the primary grain size.