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Search results for: BULK INTERACTIONS
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How water mediates the long-range interactions between remote protein molecules
PublicationThe high crowding of macromolecules in the cytoplasm affects the processes that occur inside a living cell. It can, for example, promote the forming of various loosely connected structures of proteins. It also means that bulk water is, essentially, not present there. The relatively thin layer of solvent that separates macromolecules may be able to participate in the long-range interactions between them and make them respond to...
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Bile salts in digestion and transport of lipids
PublicationBecause of their unusual chemical structure, bile salts (BS) play a fundamental role in intestinal lipid digestion and transport. BS have a planar arrangement of hydrophobic and hydrophilic moieties, which enables the BS molecules to form peculiar self-assembled structures in aqueous solutions. This molecular arrangement also has an influence on specific interactions of BS with lipid molecules and other compounds of ingested food...
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Nongeminate recombination in organic bulk heterojunction solar cells: Contribution of exciton–polaron interaction
PublicationA new model to explain nongeminate recombination in organic bulk heterojunction solar cells is presented. We suggest that the annihilation of excitons on charge carriers at the interface between donor and acceptor phases competes with the bimolecular recombination of Coulombically bound electron–hole pairs. The exciton–polaron interaction gives visible contribution to the reduction of Langevin recombination. An analytical formula,...
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Why the solvation water around proteins is more dense than bulk water
PublicationThe main aim of this work is to propose a rational explanation of commonly observed phenomenon of increasing water density within solvation shell of proteins. We have observed that geometry of the water-water hydrogen bond network within solvation layer differs from the one in bulk water and it is the effect of interactions of water molecules with protein surface. Altered geometry of the network reflects changes in the structure...
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Why the Solvation Water around Proteins Is More Dense than Bulk Water
PublicationThe main aim of this work is to propose a rational explanation of the commonly observed phenomenon of increasing water density within solvation shell of proteins. We have observed that the geometry of the water–water hydrogen bond network within solvation layer differs from the one in bulk water, and it is the result of interactions of water molecules with protein surface. Altered geometry of the network reflects changes in the...
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Crystal structure, chemical bonding, and physical properties of layered AIrSn2 (A = Sr and Ba)
PublicationWe report the experimental and theoretical investigation of structure, chemical bonding interactions, and physical properties of new ternary stannides AIrSn2 (A = Sr and Ba). AIrSn2 (A = Sr and Ba) crystallizes in the orthorhombic Re3B-type structure with the space group Cmcm (No. 64). According to single-crystal X-ray diffraction results, the structure of AIrSn2 (A = Sr and Ba) can be considered as a Zintl-type compound with heterogeneous...
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Water Behavior Near the Lipid Bilayer
PublicationIn this chapter, we focus on the dynamics of water molecules situated in the vicinity of a phospholipid bilayer. Using a molecular dynamics simulation method, we studied interactions between water and the bilayer and tracked trajectories of the water molecules. Based on the hypothesis that molecules trapped inside the bilayer make different motions than the ones which are either attached to the surface or move freely in the water...
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The influence of intermolecular correlations on the infrared spectrum of liquid dimethyl sulfoxide
PublicationDimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) is routinely applied as an excellent, water-miscible solvent and chemical reagent. Some of the most important data concerning its liquid structure were obtained using infrared (IR) spectroscopy. However, the actual extent of intermolecular correlations that connect the isolated monomer spectrum to the IR response of the bulk liquid is poorly studied thus far. Using ab initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) simulations,...
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Structural and dynamic properties of water within the solvation layer around various conformations of the glycine-based polypeptide
PublicationSeveral conformations of the solvated glycine-based polypeptides were investigated using molecular dynamics simulations. Some properties of water in the neighbouring space around these molecules were investigated. It was found, that water forms a well-defined layer - the first solvation shell - around the peptide molecule, and thickness of this layer is independent of the peptide structure, and it equals to approximately 0.28 nm....
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Structural and Dynamic Properties of Water within the Solvation Layer around Various Conformations of the Glycine-based Polypeptide
PublicationSeveral conformations of the solvated glycine-based polypeptides were investigated using molecular dynamics simulations. Some properties of water in the neighboring space around these molecules were investigated. It was found that water forms a well-defined layer—the first solvation shell—around the peptide molecule, and thickness of this layer is independent of the peptide structure and is equal to approximately 0.28 nm. Within...
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RuAl6—An Endohedral Aluminide Superconductor
PublicationSuperconductivity is reported in an endohedral aluminide compound, RuAl6, with Tc = 1.21 K. The normalized heat capacity jump at Tc, ΔC/γTc = 1.58, confirms bulk superconductivity. The Ginzburg–Landau parameter of κ = 9.5 shows that RuAl6 is a type-II superconductor. Electronic structure calculations for RuAl6 are explored in comparison to its structural analogue ReAl6 (Tc = 0.74 K). The stability of the phases is discussed in...
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Intermolecular Interactions of Edaravone in Aqueous Solutions of Ethaline and Glyceline Inferred from Experiments and Quantum Chemistry Computations
PublicationEdaravone, acting as a cerebral protective agent, is administered to treat acute brain infarction. Its poor solubility is addressed here by means of optimizing the composition of the aqueous choline chloride (ChCl)-based eutectic solvents prepared with ethylene glycol (EG) or glycerol (GL) in the three different designed solvents compositions. The slurry method was used for spectroscopic solubility determination in temperatures...
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Anion–water interactions of weakly hydrated anions: molecular dynamics simulations of aqueous NaBF4 and NaPF6
PublicationIn aqueous ionic solutions, both the structure and the dynamics of water are altered dramatically with respect to the pure solvent. The emergence of novel experimental techniques makes these changes accessible to detailed investigations. At the same time, computational studies deliver unique possibilities for the interpretation of the experimental data at the molecular level. Here, using molecular dynamics simulations, we demonstrate...
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Electric Field-Driven Assembly of Sulfonated Polystyrene Microspheres
PublicationA designed assembly of particles at liquid interfaces offers many advantages for development of materials, and can be performed by various means. Electric fields provide a flexible method for structuring particles on drops, utilizing electrohydrodynamic circulation flows, and dielectrophoretic and electrophoretic interactions. In addition to the properties of the applied electric field, the manipulation of particles often depends...
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Molecular level interpretation of excess infrared spectroscopy
PublicationInfrared (IR) spectroscopy is an invaluable tool in studying intermolecular interactions in solvent mixtures. The deviation of the IR spectrum of a mixture from the spectra of its pure components is a sensitive measure of the non-ideality of solutions and the modulation of intermolecular interactions introduced by mutual influence of the components. Excess IR spectroscopy, based on the established notion of excess thermodynamic...
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Pulsed Laser Deposition of Bismuth Vanadate Thin Films—The Effect of Oxygen Pressure on the Morphology, Composition, and Photoelectrochemical Performance
PublicationThin layers of bismuth vanadate were deposited using the pulsed laser deposition technique on commercially available FTO (fluorine-doped tin oxide) substrates. Films were sputtered from a sintered, monoclinic BiVO4 pellet, acting as the target, under various oxygen pressures (from 0.1 to 2 mbar), while the laser beam was perpendicular to the target surface and parallel to the FTO substrate. The oxygen pressure strongly affects...
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The effect of alkyl chain length on synergistic effects in micellization and surface tension reduction in nonionic gemini (S-10) and anionic surfactants mixtures
PublicationMixtures of nonionic gemini surfactant S-10 ( α, α'-[2,4,7,9-tetrametyl-5-decyne-4,7-diyl]bis[ω-hydroxy -polioxyetylene] with anionic SRS (sodium alkylsulfates) and SRSO3 (sodium alkylsulfonates) of different alkyl chain length (from 10 to 14 carbon atoms) were investigated. Surface tension measurements were used to find the cmc values and other adsorption parameters. The Clint, Rubingh’s and Rosen theories were applied for evaluation...
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Evolution of magnetic and transport properties in (Cr1−xMnx)2AlC MAX-phase synthesized by arc melting technique
PublicationHerein we initiate a comeback to the arc melting technique to produce MAX-phase solid solutions. Bulk samples of (Cr1−xMnx)2AlC MAX-phase with X = 0, 0.025, 0.05 and 0.1 were synthesized and studied by means of X-ray diffractometry, scanning electron microscopy in combination with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. Samples were established to be homogeneous with an incorporation of Cr7C3, AlCr2 and Al2O3 secondary phases which...
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On the origin of surfaces-dependent growth of benzoic acid crystal inferred through the droplet evaporation method
PublicationCrystal growth behavior of benzoic acid crystals on different surfaces was examined. The performed experiments documented the existence of very strong influence introduced by polar surfaces as glass, gelatin, and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) on the growth of benzoic acid crystals. These surfaces impose strong orientation effect resulting in a dramatic reduction of number of faces seen with x-ray powder diffractions (XPRD). However,...
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On the origin of surfaces-dependent growth of benzoic acid crystal inferred through the droplet evaporation method
PublicationCrystal growth behavior of benzoic acid crystals on different surfaces was examined. The performed experiments documented the existence of very strong influence introduced by polar surfaces as glass, gelatin, and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) on the growth of benzoic acid crystals. These surfaces impose strong orientation effect resulting in a dramatic reduction of number of faces seen with x-ray powder diffractions (XPRD). However,...
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On the origin of surfaces-dependent growth of benzoic acid crystal inferred through the droplet evaporation method
PublicationCrystal growth behavior of benzoic acid crystals on different surfaces was examined. The performed experiments documented the existence of very strong influence introduced by polar surfaces as glass, gelatin, and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) on the growth of benzoic acid crystals. These surfaces impose strong orientation effect resulting in a dramatic reduction of number of faces seen with x-ray powder diffractions (XPRD). However,...
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Rubrene Thin Films with Viably Enhanced Charge Transport Fabricated by Cryo-Matrix-Assisted Laser Evaporation
PublicationAmong organic semiconductors, rubrene (RB; C42H28) is of rapidly growing interest for the development of organic and hybrid electronics due to exceptionally long spin diffusion length and carrier mobility up to 20 cm2V−1s−1 in single crystals. However, the fabrication of RB thin films resembling properties of the bulk remains challenging, mainly because of the RB molecule’s twisted conformation. This hinders the formation of orthorhombic...
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Properties of water in the region between a tubulin dimer and a single motor head of kinesin
PublicationA kinesin is a molecular motor that can perform movement on a microtubule track in a stepping-like manner. This motion is connected with processes of association and dissociation of kinesin and tubulin. Water is an important participant in these kinds of molecular interactions. This is why we have decided to investigate the dynamical and structural properties of water in the region between the kinesin catalytic domain and the tubulin...
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Review on robust laser light interaction with titania – Patterning, crystallisation and ablation processes
PublicationTitanium dioxide is regarded as a very promising semiconducting material that is widely applied in many everyday-use products, devices, and processes. In general, those applications can be divided into energy or environmental categories, where a high conversion rate, and energy and power density are of particular interest. Therefore, many efforts are being put towards the elaboration of novel production routes, and improving the...
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Hydration of amino acids: FTIR spectra and molecular dynamics studies
PublicationThe hydration of selected amino acids, alanine, glycine, proline, valine, isoleucine and phenylalanine, has been studied in aqueous solutions by means of FTIR spectra of HDO isotopically diluted in H2O. The difference spectra procedure and the chemometric method have been applied to remove the contribution of bulk water and thus to separate the spectra of solute-affected HDO. To support interpretation of obtained spectral results,...
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DMSO hydration redefined: Unraveling the hydrophobic hydration of solutes with a mixed hydrophilic–hydrophobic characteristic
PublicationHydrophobic hydration of solutes with a mixed hydrophilic--hydrophobic characteristics is still poorly understood. This is because both experimental and theoretical methods find it difficult to see the ice-like water structure around the nonpolar solute groups, unlike hydrogen bonds with the hydrophilic groups. In order to unravel this problem, we have investigated DMSO hydration by means of infrared spectroscopy and theoretical...
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On the origin of surface imposed anisotropic growth of salicylic and acetylsalicylic acids crystals during droplet evaporation
PublicationIn this paper droplet evaporative crystallization of salicylic acid (SA) and acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) crystals on different surfaces, such as glass, polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), and paraffin was studied. The obtained crystals were analyzed using powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) technique. In order to better understand the effect of the surface on evaporative crystallization, crystals deposited on glass were scraped off. Moreover,...
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Deciphering the Molecular Mechanism of Substrate-Induced Assembly of Gold Nanocube Arrays toward an Accelerated Electrocatalytic Effect Employing Heterogeneous Diffusion Field Confinement
PublicationThe complex electrocatalytic performance of gold nanocubes (AuNCs) is the focus of this work. The faceted shapes of AuNCs and the individual assembly processes at the electrode surfaces define the heterogeneous conditions for the purpose of electrocatalytic processes. Topographic and electron imaging demonstrated slightly rounded AuNC (average of 38 nm) assemblies with sizes of ≤1 μm, where the dominating patterns are (111) and...
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Superconducting SrSnP with Strong Sn–P Antibonding Interaction: Is the Sn Atom Single or Mixed Valent?
PublicationThe large single crystals of SrSnP were prepared using Sn self-flux method. The superconductivity in the tetragonal SrSnP is observed with the critical temperature of ∼2.3 K. The results of a crystallographic analysis, superconducting characterization, and theoretical assessment of tetragonal SrSnP are presented. The SrSnP crystallizes in the CaGaN structure type with space group P4/nmm (S.G. 129, Pearson symbol tP6) according...
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Physicochemical and Mechanical Performance of Freestanding Boron-Doped Diamond Nanosheets Coated with C:H:N:O Plasma Polymer
PublicationThe physicochemical and mechanical properties of thin and freestanding heavy boron-doped diamond (BDD) nanosheets coated with a thin C:H:N:O plasma polymer were studied. First, diamond nanosheets were grown and doped with boron on a Ta substrate using the microwave plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition technique (MPECVD). Next, the BDD/Ta samples were covered with nylon 6.6 to improve their stability in harsh environments and...
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Structural properties of hydration shell around various conformations of simple polypeptides
PublicationIn this paper we investigate structural properties of water within the solvation shell around the peptide core created by a well-defined conformation of polypeptide chain. The following secondary structures are investigated: linear (straight chain), and three helices PII (polyproline-like), 310, and α. We propose using the two-particle contribution to entropy as a rational measure of the water structural ordering within the solvation...
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Study of Integer Spin S = 1 in the Polar Magnet β-Ni(IO3)2
PublicationPolar magnetic materials exhibiting appreciable asymmetric exchange interactions can potentially host new topological states of matter such as vortex-like spin textures; however, realizations have been mostly limited to half-integer spins due to rare numbers of integer spin systems with broken spatial inversion lattice symmetries. Here, we studied the structure and magnetic properties of the S = 1 integer spin polar magnet β-Ni(IO3)2...
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Buckling analyses of cylindrical metal silos containing bulk solids
PublicationThe paper presents quasi-static 3D buckling analysis results of thin-walled cylindrical metal silos with and without bulk solids. The behaviour of the bulk solid was described with a hypoplastic constitutive model. Non-linear analyses with geometric and material non-linearity were performed with a perfect and an imperfect silo shell. Different initial geometric imperfections were considered. The influence of internally stored bulk...
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Influence of alkali metal cations on the photoactivity of crystalline and exfoliated amorphous WO3 – photointercalation phenomenon
PublicationIn order to investigate the effect of photointercalation on photoelectrochemical properties, two types of WO3-based photoanodes, bulk and exfoliated have been prepared and investigated. An aqueous exfoliation method is introduced for the simple fabrication of amorphous and hydrated WO3 nanomaterial using commercial bulk WO3 precursor. The comparison of obtained material with bulk WO3 was performed using Raman, UV–vis, and XPS as...
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Buckling analyses of metal cylindrical silos containing bulk solids during filling
PublicationThe paper presents 3D results on stability of thin-walled cylindrical metal silos made of isotropic rolled and corrugated plates containing bulk solids. The behavior of bulk solids was described using a hypoplastic constitutive model. Nonlinear finite element (FE) analyses with both geometric and material nonlinearity were performed with a perfect and an imperfect silo shell wherein initial geometric imperfections were taken into...
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Buckling resistance of a metal column in a corrugated sheet silo - experiments and non-linear stability calculations
PublicationThe results of experimental and numerical tests of a single corrugated sheet silo column’s buckling resistance are presented in this study. The experiments were performed in a real silo with and without bulk solid (wheat). A very positive impact of the bulk solid on the column buckling resistance occurred. The experimental results were first compared to the buckling resistance calculated by Eurocode 3 formulae. The comparison revealed that...
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Bulk linearized CMOS differential pair transconductor for continuous-time OTA-C filter design
PublicationIn this paper, the MOS differential pair driven simultaneously from gates and bulk terminals is described. An approximated analytical solution of the voltage to current transfer function has been found for the proposed circuit. Four possible combinations of gate and bulk connections of the input signal are presented. Basing on the configuration giving the best linearity, the operational transconductance amplifier (OTA) has been designed...
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Aggregation of Rhodamine 6G in titanium dioxide nanolayers and bulk xerogels
PublicationNanolayers and bulk xerogels of Rhodamine 6G (Rh6G) in titanium dioxide (Rh6G/TiO2) were prepared using the sol–gel method. The spectroscopic and structural properties of these two types of hybrid matrices were studied as a function of dye concentration. In both cases absorption, fluorescence and time resolved emission spectra show the formation of fluorescent aggregates. The observed stronger changes in characteristics of bulk...
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Unconditionally blue: Curing epoxy with polyethylene glycol (PEG) surface-functionalized Zn Fe3-O4 magnetic nanoparticles
PublicationNanoparticles govern early (chemical-controlled) and late (diffusion-controlled) stages of epoxy crosslinking, respectively. Surface functionalization of nanoparticles with macromolecules was recognized as an effective route to compensate for inadequate diffusion-controlled crosslinking. However, the effect of bulk composition amended with cations having catalytic effect towards epoxy ring opening has remained hitherto undescribed....
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Bulk-Surface Modification of Nanoparticles for Developing Highly-Crosslinked Polymer Nanocomposites
PublicationSurface modification of nanoparticles with functional molecules has become a routine method to compensate for diffusion-controlled crosslinking of thermoset polymer composites at late stages of crosslinking, while bulk modification has not carefully been discussed. In this work, a highly-crosslinked model polymer nanocomposite based on epoxy and surface-bulk functionalized magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) was developed. MNPs were...
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Weak localization competes with the quantum oscillations in a natural electronic superlattice: The case of Na1.5(PO2)4(WO3)20
PublicationWe report an investigation of the combined structural and electronic properties of the bronze Na1.5(PO2)4(WO3)20. Its low-dimensional structure and possible large reconstruction of the Fermi surface due to charge density wave instability make this bulk material a natural superlattice with a reduced number of carriers and Fermi energy. Signatures of multilayered two-dimensional (2D) electron weak localization are consequently reported,...
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Hydration of Oxometallate Ions in Aqueous Solution
PublicationThe strength of hydrogen bonding to and structure of hydrated oxometallate ions in aqueous solution have been studied by double difference infrared (DDIR) spectroscopy and large-angle X-ray scattering (LAXS), respectively. Anions are hydrated by accepting hydrogen bonds from the hydrating water molecules. The oxygen atom of the permanganate and perrhenate ions form weaker and longer hydrogen bonds to water than the hydrogen bonds...
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Study of Photovoltaic Devices with Hybrid Active Layer
PublicationThe aim of this work is to present the influences of composition of the material andmanufacturing technology conditions of the organic photovoltaics devices (OPv) with the organicand hybrid bulk heterojunction on the active layers properties and cells performance. The layers wereproduced by using small molecular compounds: the metal-phthalocyanine (MePc) and perylenederivatives (PTCDA) and the titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles....
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Photoconduction and magnetic field effect on photoconduction in hole-transporting star-burst amine (m-MTDATA) films
PublicationPhotoconduction and magnetic field effect on photoconduction have been investigated as a function of electric field strength, excitation light intensity and wavelength in vacuum evaporated films of m-MTDATA (4,4′,4″-tris(N-(3-methylphenyl)-N-phenylylamino) triphenylamine), the starburst amine commonly used as hole-transporting material in organic light-emitting diodes. The photocurrent is found to be generated by the singlet exciton...
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The influence of thermal conditions on V2O5 nanostructures prepared by sol-gel method
PublicationThis work presents the result of structure investigations ofV 2O5 nanorods grown from thin films and powders prepared by sol-gel method. To examine the best temperature of nanorods crystallization, thin films deposited by spin-coating method on quartz glass or silicon substrates and bulk xerogel powders were annealed at various temperatures ranging from 100∘C to 600∘C. The structure of the samples was characterized by X-ray diffraction...
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New bulk liquid membrane oscillator composed of two coupled oscillators with diffusion-mediated physical coupling
PublicationA new type of bulk liquid membrane system, which represents the first example of a bulk liquid membrane oscillator characterised by the presence of two coupled oscillators, is described. When the benzyldimethyltetradecylammonium chloride surfactant undergoes an oscillatory mass transfer through a nitromethane liquid membrane, a new liquid layer (phase X) appears between the membrane and the acceptor phase. Kinetic analysis provides...
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ELECTRON ATTACHMENT TO HETEROGENEOUS MOLECULAR CLUSTERS
PublicationHeterogeneous clusters are unique model species enabling studies of bulk and surface processes by vacuum restricted methods. This is of particular importance for the reactions of low-energy electrons which have extremely short penetration depth in bulk environments. This contribution overviews our recent experiments with low-energy electrons and clusters prepared by different techniques. First, the deposition of molecules on argon...
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Synthesis and electrochemical characteristics of novel dithiocarbamate polymers
PublicationNovel dithiocarbamate compounds have been obtained by reacting a linear poly(ethylenimine)polymer, MW 50,000, with CS2. The resulting anionic polymers contain, depending on the reaction conditions, up to two sulfur atoms per one nitrogen atom (approx. 40% w/w). The polymers are soluble in dimethylsulfoxide and insoluble in acetonitrile solutions. In both solvents they are electrochemically active, in the latter case as a cast film...
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Additive Effect of Bromides and Chlorides on the Performance of Perovskite Solar Cells Fabricated via Sequential Deposition
PublicationA two-step sequential deposition method has been applied to prepare the solar cells with two types of perovskites Cs0.15FA0.85Pb(I0.95Cl0.05)3 and Cs0.15FA0.85Pb(I0.95Br0.05)3. In order to obtain the perovskite layers, the different sources of bromine and chlorine atoms were used for synthesis. The performance and time stability of chloride-based photocells are worse in comparison to the bromide-based devices. It can be explained...
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Polytypism and superconductivity in the NbS2 system
PublicationWe report on the phase formation and the superconducting properties in the NbS2 system. Specifically, we have performed a series of standardized solid-state syntheses in this system, which allow us to establish a comprehensive synthesis map for the formation of the two polytypes 2H-NbS2 and 3R-NbS2, respectively. We show that the identification of two polytypes by means of X-ray diffraction is not always unambiguous. Our physical...