Low-temperature specific heat of crystalline and amorphous Eu2(MoO4)3

The specific heat C _total of crystalline and amorphous Eu₂(MoO₄)₃ is measured in the temperature interval 4.5–30 K. The amorphous state is obtained by applying pressure ∼7 GPa at room temperature. It is found that the specific heat of the crystal at T⩽7.5 K is described by a cubic function of temperature, while the specific heat of the amorphous sample has a strongly non-Debye character in the entire experimental temperature interval. The curve of C _total for amorphous europium molybdate is analyzed in a model of soft atomic potentials, and it is shown that it agrees well with universal low-temperature anomalies of the specific heat of classical glasses obtained by quenching from the liquid. Pis’ma Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 68, No. 8, 623–627 (25 October 1998)     

Fractal character of effective Hall properties of a three-dimensional disordered composite

The dependencies of the effective Hall properties on a scale, obtained by means of an iterative averaging method, manifest their fractal character. The influence of an intensity of the Hall effect on the fractal character of the Hall properties was considered. Scale ranges and dimensional characteristics of the effective Hall properties behavior were calculated and discussed.     

Multiple recurrence and nilsequences

Aiming at a simultaneous extension of Khintchine(X,X,m,T)(X,\mathcal{X},\mu,T) and a set A ? XA\in\mathcal{X} of positive measure, the set of integers n such that A T^2nA T^knA)(A)^k+1-\mu(A{\cap} T^{n}A{\cap} T^{2n}A{\cap} \ldots{\cap} T^{kn}A)>\mu(A)^{k+1}-\epsilon is syndetic. The size of this set, surprisingly enough, depends on the length (k+1) of the arithmetic progression under consideration. In an ergodic system, for k=2 and k=3, this set is syndetic, while for kòf(x)f(Tⁿx)f(T²ⁿx)? f(T^knx)  dm(x)\int{f(x)f(T^{n}x)f(T^{2n}x){\ldots} f(T^{kn}x) \,d\mu(x)} , where k and n are positive integers and f is a bounded measurable function. We also derive combinatorial consequences of these results, for example showing that for a set of integers E with upper Banach density d^*(E)>0 and for all {n ? \mathbbZ\colon d^*(E?(E+n)?(E+2n)?(E+3n)) > d^*(E)⁴-e}\big\{n\in\mathbb{Z}{\colon} d^*\big(E\cap(E+n)\cap(E+2n)\cap(E+3n)\big) > d^*(E)^4-\epsilon\big\}     

Light Modulates Electric Phenomena in Hornet Cuticle¶

In the cuticle of live social hornets, such as Vespa orientalis (Hymenoptera, Vespinae), endogenous electric effects are encountered, i.e. voltages of 100–200 mV under illumination and currents amounting to several microamperes on its subjection to darkness—clearly a process of charging and discharging. Of the various wavelengths of sunlight, UV was found to be the most contributory to the active cuticular voltage generation. Throughout the warm season of the yearthe–the active period in colonies of social hornets and wasps—colony members exit from the dark nest during the daytime and fly to the field under the hot sun for various foraging purposes, ultimately returning to the nest. Thus, each hornet, be it queen, worker or drone, probably undergoes daily cyclical process of electric charge and discharge in the exterior part of their integument, cuticle, which lasts up to 30–40 min. Such photoelectric phenomenon was detected in both live, ether‐anaesthetized hornets and dead hornets, albeit in the latter the electric values recorded were lower. The present study addresses the possible impact of the phenomenon on vespan daily life and also compares it with a parallel occurrence in electric fish.     

Synthesis and molecular structure of new acyclic analogues of nucleotides with a 1,2-alkadienic skeleton

Reaction of 1-chloro-4-(diethoxyphosphonyl)alka-2,3-dienes 14,15 with purine and pyrimidine heterocyclic bases in the presence of cesium carbonate afforded new acyclic analogues of nucleotides containing a 1,2-alkadienic skeleton 18-23. Dealkylation of 18-23 furnished phosphonic acids 2a-f. In contrast, alkylation reaction with 1-chloro-4-(diethoxyphosphonyl)octa-2,3-diene 16 led to Z- and E-1,3-alkadienic phosphonates 25a,b and 26a,b. A similar reaction with 1-chloro-4-(diethoxyphosphonyl)-2-methylbuta-2,3-diene 17 led to the elimination of hydrochloride and formation of 4-(diethylphosphonyl)-2-methylbut-1-en-3-yne 24. Molecular structures of new acyclic nucleotides 18 and 2f are determined by X-ray crystallographic analysis.     

Electron-cluster interactions

Beam depletion spectroscopy has been used to measure absolute total inelastic electron-sodium cluster collision cross sections in the energy range fromE0.1 toE6 eV. The investigation focused on the closed shell clusters Na₈, Na₂₀, and Na₄₀. The measured cross sections show an increase for the lowest collision energies where electron attachment is the primary scattering channel. The electron attachment cross section can be understood in terms of Langevin scattering, connecting this measurement with the polarizability of the cluster. For energies above the dissociation energy the measured electron-cluster cross section is energy independent, thus defining an electron-cluster interaction range. This interaction range increases with the cluster size.