Sensing Element of a Benzopurpurin 4B-Based Optical Sensor for Determining the Acidity of Etch Solutions

Deposition conditions are studied, and a Langmuir–Blodgett film (LBF) based on the benzopurpurin 4B indicator immobilized in the polyamide acid salt matrix is obtained. The protolytic properties of the indicator are studied in water, micelles of cationic and nonionic surfactants, and LBFs. It is shown that, in going from water to the cited micelles and LBFs, pK _ind is shifted to the acidic region by 3.25, 1.18, and 2.30 pH units, respectively. The possibility of using the produced LBF as the sensing element of an optical sensor for the determination of the acidity of solutions in the pH range 1–0 is demonstrated. The LBF is applied to the determination of the acidity of solutions in etch baths. The response time in the operating range is 10–20 s; the standard deviation is no more than 4%.     

Chemical investigation of the polysaccharides of the leaves ofPlantago major L.

Summary 1. A polysaccharide has been isolated from the leaves ofPlantage major L. and its monosaccharide composition has been studied.2. It has been established that the polysaccharide investigated contains D-galacturonic acid, D-galactose, D-glucose, D-xylose, L-rhamnose, L-arabinose, a partially methylated galactose, and two unidentified monosaccharides.3. The high content of galacturonic residues (68%) in the polysaccharide enables it to be classified as a pectin.Khimiya Prirodnykh Soedinenii, Vol. 1, No. 5, pp. 297–302, 1965     

Bending of DNA by asymmetric charge neutralization: all-atom energy simulations

DNA dodecamers of the alternating d(CG).d(CG) sequence with six phosphate groups either charge-neutralized or substituted by neutral methylphosphonates across the major or minor groove have been subjected to energy minimization to determine the conformational effect of the asymmetric elimination of phosphate charge. We report bending angles, directions of bending, and detailed structural characteristics such as groove widths and local base-pair parameters. Our principal results are that charge neutralization on one face of the DNA induces significant bending toward the neutralized face, in agreement with theoretical predictions on a simplified model and experimental data on a similar base-pair sequence, and that the DNA conformation averaged over all stereospecific methylphosphonate substitutions is nearly the same as the conformation produced by charge neutralization of the phosphates. Individual isomers, however, cover a wide range of structures, with the magnitude and direction of overall bending sensitive to the precise stereochemical pattern of neutralization. Our simulation does not explicitly contain counterions, and the results therefore suggest that counterions can influence DNA structure by neutralizing the phosphate charge. These data provide new hints into the molecular mechanisms which underlie the deformations of DNA structure induced by the binding of positively charged proteins and other tightly associated cationic species.     

Subalgebras of finite codimension

We consider a commutative algebra A over a field K whose algebraic closure is a finite extension of K, and describe the subalgebras of A that are of finite codimension. We solve a similar problem for the closed subalgebras of Banach algebras.Translated from Matematicheskie Zametki,Vol. 6, No. 3, pp. 321–328, September, 1969.     

Quantum Computation in a Ising Spin Chain Taking into Account Second Neighbor Couplings

We consider the realization of a quantum computer in a chain of nuclear spins coupled by an Ising interaction. Quantum algorithms can be performed with the help of appropriate radio-frequency pulses. In addition to the standard nearest-neighbor Ising coupling, we also allow for a second neighbor coupling. It is shown, how to apply the 2π k method in this more general setting, where the additional coupling eventually allows to save a few pulses. We illustrate our results with two numerical simulations: the Shor prime factorization of the number 4 and the teleportation of a qubit along a chain of 3 qubits. In both cases, the optimal Rabi frequency (to suppress non-resonant effects) depends primarily on the strength of the second neighbor interaction.     

Investigation of the decay η′ → 3 π 0 with the GAMS-4π spectrometer

An experiment performed with the GAMS-4π spectrometer resulted in observing 235 ± 45 events of the decay η′ → 3π ⁰. The respective charge-exchange reaction at a momentum of 32.5 GeV/c was used as a source of η′ mesons. The decay branching ratio was found to be Br(η′ → 3π ⁰) = (1.8 ± 0.4) × 10^?3. The slope parameter of the square of the respective matrix element in the linear approximation proved to be β = ?0.59 ± 0.18.     

Low loss optical channel waveguides for the infrared range using niobium based hybrid sol-gel material

In this work, we report the fabrication of single-mode Nb₂O₅ based hybrid sol-gel channel waveguides. Nb₂O₅ based hybrid sol-gel material has been deposited by spin-coating on silicon substrate and channel waveguides have been fabricated by a UV direct laser writing process. Optical guided modes have been observed to confirm single-mode conditions and optical propagation loss measurements have been performed using the cut-back technique. Optical propagation losses were measured to be 0.8 dB/cm and 2.4 dB/cm at 1.31 μm and 1.55 μm respectively. These experimental results demonstrate low loss optical waveguiding within the infrared range and are very promising in view of material choice for the development of integrated optical devices for telecommunication.