High-resolution electron microscopy of montmorillonite and montmorillonite/epoxy nanocomposites

With the use of high-resolution transmission electron microscopy the structure and morphology of montmorillonite (MMT), a material of current interest for use in polymer nanocomposites, was characterized. Using both imaging theory and experiment, the procedures needed to generate lattice images from MMT were established. These procedures involve careful control of the microscope's objective lens defocus to maximize contrast from features of a certain size, as well as limiting the total dose of electrons received by the sample. Direct images of the MMT lattice were obtained from neat Na+ MMT, organically modified MMT, and organically modified MMT/epoxy nanocomposites. The degree of crystallinity and turbostratic disorder were characterized using electron diffraction and high-resolution electron microscopy (HREM). Also, the extent of the MMT sheets to bend when processed into an epoxy matrix was directly visualized. A minimum radius of curvature tolerable for a single MMT sheet during bending deformation was estimated to be 15 nm, and from this value a critical failure strain of 0.033 was calculated. HREM can be used to improve the understanding of the structure of polymer nanocomposites at the nanometer-length scale.     

The Radical Anion,Dianion and Electron Transport Properties of Tetraiodotetraazapentacene

Tetraiodotetraazapentacene I₄TAP , the last missing derivative in the series of halogenated silylated tetraazapentacenes, was synthesized via condensation chemistry from a TIPS-ethynylated diaminobenzothiadiazol in three steps. Single and double reduction furnished its air-stable monoanion and relatively air-stable dianion, both of which were characterized by crystallography. All three species are structurally and spectroscopically compared to non-halogenated TAP and Br₄TAP . I₄TAP is an n-channel material in thin-film transistors with average electron mobilities exceeding 1 cm² (Vs)⁻¹.     

Is the madison convention really convenient at low energies?: The reaction 6Li(d)4He at 400 keV

It is shown that s-wave induced reactions with polarized particles can be described much more conveniently in new coordinates. Even with higher partial waves, cross sections can be fitted with less parameters than in conventional expansions.     

Calcium signals can freely cross the nuclear envelope in hippocampal neurons: somatic calcium increases generate nuclear calcium transients

Background  

In hippocampal neurons, nuclear calcium signaling is important for learning- and neuronal survival-associated gene expression. However, it is unknown whether calcium signals generated by neuronal activity at the cell membrane and propagated to the soma can unrestrictedly cross the nuclear envelope to invade the nucleus. The nuclear envelope, which allows ion transit via the nuclear pore complex, may represent a barrier for calcium and has been suggested to insulate the nucleus from activity-induced cytoplasmic calcium transients in some cell types.