Characterization of biosensors based on membranes containing a conducting polymer

A new type of biosensor based on the coupling of an enzyme to an ion-selective membrane containing a conducting polymer is evaluated. The results obtained with the enzyme field- effect transistor (ENFET) and the ion-selective electrode (ISE) for the determination of creatinine and urea are compared. The presence of the conducting polymer significantly lowers the detection limit for creatinine by one decade to 10^?7 and 10^?4 M for the ENFET and ISE, respectively. The determination of urea in urine and serum with the ENFET was carried out, and the results correlated well with those obtained by spectrophotometry.     

Nonlinear saturation of tearing mode islands

New, rigorous results for the tearing island saturation problem are presented. These results are valid for the realistic case where the magnetic island structure is non-symmetric about the reconnection surface and the electron temperature, on which the electrical resistivity depends, is evolved self-consistently with the island growth.     

Charge symmetry breaking in np-->dpi(0)

The forward-backward asymmetry in np-->dpi(0), which must be zero in the center-of-mass system if charge symmetry is respected, has been measured to be [17.2+/-8.0(stat)+/-5.5(syst)]x10(-4), at an incident neutron energy of 279.5 MeV. This observable is compared to recent chiral effective field theory calculations, with implications regarding the du quark mass difference.     

Measurement of the resonant d(mu)t molecular formation rate in solid HD

Measurements of muon-catalyzed dt fusion ( d(mu)t-->4He + n + mu(-)) in solid HD have been performed. The theory describing the energy dependent resonant molecular formation rate for the reaction (mu)t + HD-->[(d(mu)t)pee](*) is compared to experimental results in a pure solid HD target. Constraints on the rates are inferred through the use of a Monte Carlo model developed specifically for the experiment. From the time-of-flight analysis of fusion events in 16 and 37 microg x cm(-2) targets, an average formation rate consistent with 0.897+/-(0.046)(stat)+/-(0.166)(syst) times the theoretical prediction was obtained.     

Phase mixing and island saturation in Hamiltonian reconnection

The nonlinear evolution of a Hamiltonian magnetic field line reconnection in a two-dimensional fluid plasma leads to a macroscopic equilibrium with a finite-size island and fine-scale spatial structures. The latter arise from the phase mixing of the Lagrangian invariant fields. This equilibrium is the analog of the Bernstein-Greene-Kruskal equilibrium solution for electrostatic Langmuir waves.     

Simulation and transport phenomena of a ternary two-phase flow

A chemical flood model for a three-component (petroleum, water, injected chemical) two-phase (aqueous, oleic) system is presented. It is ruled by a system of nonlinear partial differential equations: the continuity equation for the transport of each of its components and Darcy's equation for the two-phase flow. The transport mechanisms considered are ultralow interfacial tension, capillary pressure, dispersion, adsorption, and partition of the components between the fluid phases (including solubilization and swelling).The mathematical model is numerically solved in the one-dimensional case by finite differences using an explicit and direct iterative procedure for the discretization of the conservation equations. Numerical results are compared with Yortsos and Fokas' exact solution for the linear waterflood case including capillary pressure effects and with Larson's model for surfactant flooding. The effects of the above-mentioned transport mechanisms on concentration profiles and on oil recovery are also analyzed.     

Time-of-flight studies of emission of μt from frozen hydrogen films

In recent TRIUMF experiments, a μ^- beam is stopped in a solid hydrogen film with a small fraction of T₂. The Ramsauer-Townsend (RT) mechanism allows μt to escape into vacuum with a few eV of energy. To study the emission process, an imaging system was used to determine the position of muon decays. Experimental histograms are in good agreement with a Monte Carlo simulation. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Resonant formation measurements of dt\mu via time of flight

Solid hydrogen in the form of an inhomogeneous layered target offers several experimental advantages when compared with liquid or gas. Beams of non-thermalized muonic hydrogen atoms allow us to explore resonant molecular ion formation processes near eV kinetic energies. Isotopically specific layers make it possible to separate competing and confusing interactions and to employ the time of flight for comparison with predictions based on theoretical energy dependences. Unambiguous charged fusion product detection simplifies absolute intensity measurements. The systematic uncertainties encountered in resonant molecular ion formation measurements, using solid hydrogen target layers, are being investigated with simulations which use the many calculated energy-dependent rates and cross-sections which are now available. The importance of the rates for processes such as muon transfer and elastic scattering are discussed, and results of some recent analyses are presented. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

X-ray photoelectron spectra of Pd(II) and Pt(II) complexes with 1,3-thiazolidine-2-thione. A quantum mechanics study on the free ligand

Metal complexes of general formula M(ttz)2X2 (with M= Pd(II) or Pt(II); X = Cl or Br; ttz = 1,3-thiazolidine-2-thione) have been synthetized as crystalline compounds and studied by means of X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS). The chemical shift of core level signals showed that ttz is bonded to the metal through the thioketonic sulphur atom and that electronic charge redistribution in the ligand takes place after complexation. No metal-nitrogen bonds are present. This is consistent with the results of all the quantum mechanical models according to which hydrogen is bound to nitrogen, even in the hydrogen bonded complex, making the latter rather unavailable to coordination