Optical reflectance of blue bronze crystals near the Peierls transition

We report on the reflectance of blue bronze crystals in the visible frequency range as a function of temperature. The observed large oscillations in the reflectance at all wavelengths at temperatures near the Peierls transition are interpreted as interference effects stemming from a surface layer. It is found that the surface layer, which appears to be tied to fluctuations, can be as much as 1.6 microns thick.     

Rotational state dependence of ion-polar molecule reactions at very low temperature

The adiabatic rotational state method is used to investigate the rotational state dependence of the rate coefficients for ion-polar molecule reactions in the very low temperature regime characteristic of interstellar molecular clouds. Results obtained for the systems H ₃ ⁺ +HCl and H ₃ ⁺ +HCN indicate that all the methods based on the adiabatic separation of the rotational and radial motion of the collision complex — adiabatic capture centrifugal sudden approximation (ACCSA), statistical adiabatic channel model, classical adiabatic invariance method — agree very satisfactorily in the low temperature limit. Discrepancies observed between some of the published data would appear to arise from numerical inaccuracies rather than from any defect of the theory.     

Synthesis of reduced complex oxides of molybdenum by fused salt electrolysis

Fused salt electrolysis has been used to prepare a number of reduced oxides of molybdenum with lanthanum, neodymium, and yttrium in single crystal or oriented polycrystalline form. The average valence of molybdenum in the various compounds ranged from 5.67 to 3.50. Previously unreported compounds include La₅Mo₄O₁₆ (triclinica = 5.64 Å,b = 20.7 0Å,c = 5.64 Å, α = 86.55°, β = 90.0°, γ = 93.45°); La₂Mo₂O₇ (orthorhombic,a = 12.19 Å,b = 6.05 Å,c = 3.87 Å); LaMo₂O₅ (hexagonal,a = 8.378 Å,c = 19.26 Å). In addition, single crystal specimens have been prepared of Y₂MoO₅,Ln₅Mo₃O₁₆(Ln =La, Nd) and metal atom cluster compounds of theA₂Mo₃O₈ type (A = Mg, Co, Ni, Zn).     

Level statistics for asymmetric-top rotors in strong electric fields

Spectral fluctuations of energy levels of an asymmetric-top rotor in strong electric fields are studied. Transition from a Wigner distribution for low excitation levels to a Poisson distribution for high excitation levels is found in an analysis of the nearest neighbour spacing distribution. Spectral rigidity j₃ undergoes an analogous type of transition. Consequences on the underlying classical motion are discussed.     

Macrocycle-Derived Functional Xanthenes and Progress Towards Concurrent Detection of Glucose and Fructose

The detection of saccharides in biological media is of great current importance for the monitoring of disease states. We have previously reported that solutions of boronic acid-functionalized macrocycles form acyclic oligomeric materials in situ. The oligomers contain fluorescent xanthene moieties. Current efforts are aimed at modulating the spectroscopic responses of these materials for the analysis of specific sugars. We describe conditions whereby the xanthene boronic acids exhibit high colorimetric fructose selectivity. In contrast, at physiological levels selective glucose monitoring can be achieved via fluorescence. Additionally, we describe a method which exhibits promise for detecting both glucose and fructose at dual wavelengths in the UV-Vis region. Mechanistic rationale for each of these findings is presented.     

Studies on high-temperature amination reactions of aromatic chlorides using discrete Palladium-N-Heterocyclic Carbene (NHC) complexes and in situ palladium/imidazolium salt protocols

The palladium catalysed coupling of aryl chlorides and amines can be readily achieved with short reaction times when carried out at high temperatures under thermal or microwave conditions. These coupling protocols are successful using two co-ordinate palladium-N-heterocyclic carbene complexes, or imidazolium salt protocols.     

Visual sensing of saccharides promoted by resorcinol condensation products

[structure: see text] Heating aqueous DMSO solutions of five saccharides in the presence of 1-3 reveals that each receptor promotes solution colors characteristic for each sugar. New compound 3 allows the direct correlation of sugar concentration with visible region absorbance and/or fluorescence intensities.     

EPR Studies of Tl0.5Pb0.5Sr1.6Ba0.4CaCu2?xRuxO7?δ Superconductor

Bulk superconducting samples of type Tl_0.5Pb_0.5Sr_1.6Ba_0.4CaCu_2−x Ru _x O_7−δ, (Tl, Pb)/Sr-1212, with 0.0 ≤ x ≤ 0.525 were prepared by the conventional one-step solid-state reaction technique. The prepared samples were investigated using X-ray powder diffraction, electrical resistivity and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) measurements. Enhancement of the phase formation, superconducting transition temperature T _c and hole carriers concentration P was observed up to x = 0.075. For x > 0.075, a reverse trend was observed. EPR spectra were measured at different temperatures (120–290 K) for all prepared samples. The number of spins N participating in the resonance and the paramagnetic susceptibility χ were calculated as a function of both Ru-content and temperature. N and χ increased as the Ru-content increased. A linear relationship between logN and 1/T was established, from which the activation energy E _a was calculated as a function of the Ru-content. The temperature dependence of χ was fitted according to Curie–Weiss type of magnetic behavior. Curie constant C, Curie temperature θ, the effective magnetic moment μ and the electronic specific heat γ were estimated as a function of the Ru-content.     

Effect of IR laser radiation on the structure and optical properties of PC-PBT/Pd polymer nanocomposite films

ABSTRACT

Bayfol (PC-PBT blend ?lm) is a class of polymeric solid-state nuclear track detector which has a lot of applications in several radiation detection ?elds. It is a bisphenol-A polycarbonate PC blended with polybutylene terephthalate PBT. Bayfol/Palladium (PC-PBT/Pd) nanocomposite films have been deposited using the molding technique. It is worth mentioning that this report is almost the first one dealing with the topic of the changes of physical properties of Bayfol/Pd nanocomposite due to laser exposure. Samples from PC-PBT/Pd (5?wt%) nanocomposite were exposed to IR-pulsed laser of 5-W power, capable of producing 2000 pulses per second with pulse duration of 200?ns at 904?nm. The laser fluences were in the range 2–25?J/cm². The resultant modi?cations in the exposed nanocomposite samples have been studied as a function of fluence using different characterization techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), UV spectroscopy and color difference studies. The results indicate the proper dispersion of Pd nanoparticles in the PC-PBT matrix that causes a strong intermolecular interaction between Pd and PC-PBT, resulted in an increase in refractive index and the amorphous phase. Also, it is found that the laser exposure reduces the optical energy gap that could be attributed to the increase in structural disorder of the exposed PC-PBT/Pd nanocomposites due to crosslinking. Further, the color intensity ΔE, which is the color difference between the exposed samples and the non-exposed one, was increased with increasing the laser fluence, convoyed by a significant increase in the green and yellow color components.