Self-assembly of a linear mesoscale tetramer with electrical connectivity

Capillary interaction-based self-assembly of block-shaped mesoscale components into an electrically interconnected 1-D tetramer is reported. Low melting point solder droplets, selectively patterned on the faces of the blocks, were employed to drive the sequential alignment, registration, linking and electrical interconnection of each block. The solder patterns were designed so that successful assembly would only occur when the solder patterns on one block face were correctly aligned with those on the face of an adjacent block. For assembly, the blocks were agitated in a flask containing KBr solution. At 60 °C the solder was molten, and collisions between blocks enabled the solder menisci to easily interact. To minimize interfacial free energy, the menisci coalesced and quickly drove the interacting blocks to form a stable, registered and aligned assembly. When agitation was terminated and the solution cooled, the self-aligned, linear tetrameric arrangement of blocks was permanently captured by solder solidification, a process that provided good mechanical bonding and electrical interconnection between each block. PACS 81.16.Dn; 68.03.Cd; 85.40.-e     

The critical probability for random Voronoi percolation in the plane is 1/2

We study percolation in the following random environment: let Z be a Poisson process of constant intensity on ℝ², and form the Voronoi tessellation of ℝ² with respect to Z. Colour each Voronoi cell black with probability p, independently of the other cells. We show that the critical probability is 1/2. More precisely, if p>1/2 then the union of the black cells contains an infinite component with probability 1, while if p<1/2 then the distribution of the size of the component of black cells containing a given point decays exponentially. These results are analogous to Kesten's results for bond percolation in ℤ². The result corresponding to Harris' Theorem for bond percolation in ℤ² is known: Zvavitch noted that one of the many proofs of this result can easily be adapted to the random Voronoi setting. For Kesten's results, none of the existing proofs seems to adapt. The methods used here also give a new and very simple proof of Kesten's Theorem for ℤ²; we hope they will be applicable in other contexts as well. Research supported in part by NSF grant ITR 0225610 and DARPA grant F33615-01-C-1900 Research partially undertaken during a visit to the Forschungsinstitut für Mathematik, ETH Zürich, Switzerland     

Study of migration of active components of phosphorescent oxygen sensors for food packaging applications

A study of migration of the active components of oxygen sensors into food is presented. Six types of sensors, based on different oxygen sensitive dyes (two metalloporphyrins and one ruthenium dye), polymers (polystyrene and polysulfone) and support materials, were exposed to a number of standard ‘food simulants’ recommended by FDA/EU guidelines and then assayed for migration or sensor components and changes in oxygen calibration. Both metalloporphyrin sensor dyes leached only in olive oil and in 95% ethanol (used as a positive control), at maximum levels of 19.22 μg/dm² for PtOEPK and 113.96 μg/dm² for PtTFPP. The RuDPP dye showed maximum leaching in 95% ethanol (25.19 μg/dm²) while also migrating in an acidic aqueous simulant. Planar supports such as polyester tended to enhance the stability of the sensor. Migration of the styrene monomer from the polystyrene encapsulation medium was concluded to be low enough to be insignificant. Migration of sensor components was shown to correlate with the changes in sensor response to oxygen. Based on these results, sensor combinations were ranked on the basis of their resistance to leaching and their general stability, safety and suitability for use on a large scale in packaged foods and related food applications was proven.     

Friedel-Crafts acylation reactions in copolymers of methyl methacrylate and styrene and in mixtures of the homopolymers

In the presence of SnCl₄ in 1,2-dichloroethane solution, copolymers of styrene and methyl methacrylate undergo a Friedel-Crafts acylation reaction between the ester groups and the ortho position of adjacent styrene units to form a partial ladder polymer. This has been confirmed by infrared and ultraviolet spectral analysis and by observing the influence of substituted styrenes on the rate of the reaction. A similar reaction can be induced to occur between polystyrene and poly(methyl methacrylate). Thermal analysis measurements demonstrate that the degradation properties of copolymers of styrene and methyl methacrylate are profoundly changed by this treatment.     

Synthesis and antiviral evaluation of some novel [1,2,4]triazolo[4,3-β][1,2,4]triazole nucleoside analogs

Ribosylation of 3-amino-5H-[1,2,4]triazolo[4,3-b][1,2,4]triazole ( 1 ) with l-O-acetyl-2,3,5-tri-O-benzoyl-D-ribofuranose and stannic chloride resulted in the following protected nucleoside analogs: 3-amino-1-(2,3,5-tri-O-benzoyl-β-D-ribofuranosyl)[1,2,4]triazolo[4,3-β][1,2,4]triazole ( 4 ), 3-amino-1-(2,3,5-tri-O-benzoyl-α-D-ribofuranosyl)[1,2,4]triazolo[4,3-β][1,2,4]triazole ( 5 ), 3-amino-1-(2,3,5-tri-O-benzoyl-β-D-ribofuranosyl)[1,2,4]triazolo[4,3-β][1,2,4]triazole ( 5 ), and 3-(2,3,5-tri-O-benzoyl-β-D-ribofuranosyl) amino-5H-[1,2,4]triazolo[4,3-b]-[1,2,4]triazole ( 7 ). Compounds 4–6 were deprotected to 3-amino-1-β-D-ribofuranosyl[1,2,4]triazolo[4,3-b][1,2,4]-triazole ( 3 ), 3-amino-1-α-D-ribofuranosyl[1,2,4]triazolo[4,5-b][1,2,4]triazole ( 8 ), and 3-imino-2H-2-β-D-ribo-furanosyl[1,2,4]triazolo[4,3-b][1,2,4]triazole ( 9 ), while 7 could not be deprotected without decomposition. Compounds 1, 4, 6, 7 , and 9 were screened and found to have no antiviral activity.     

Six-Membered Nitrogen Heterocycles from Xylaramide and Ribaramide

Abstract

N,N'-Diacetyl-tri-O-acetylxylaramide (8) and N,N'-diacetyl-tri-O-acetylribaramide (20) were directly converted to the nitrogen heterocycle 6-acetamido-2,6-diacetyloxy-aza-1,4-cyclohexadlen-3-one (9) with sodium acetate in acetic anhydride. Treatment of tri-O-acetylxylaramide (7) or tri-O-acetylribaramide (19) with the same solvent-base combination gave the highly crystalline 2,3,5,6-tetraacetyloxypyridlne (30) as the principal product. Mechanistic considerations for the formation of these nitrogen heterocycles are presented.     

Functional integration of microdevices by field assisted manipulation and trapping

A novel programmable force field method is presented which enables controlled electric field assisted transport and localization of microdevices at silicon chip substrates. Electrically addressable chips bearing n×n arrays of receptor electrode sites are developed and field directed assembly methods are optimized for on-chip transport, trapping and integration of sub-100 m discrete GaAs-based optoelectronic devices. Tweezer-less field assisted manipulation and trapping of discrete 50 m diameter 670 nm emitting GaAs-based light emitting diodes is achieved. Following assembly in this manner, the LED devices are permanently integrated by solder reflow bonding to the receptor sites enabling direct device electrical characterization and successful demonstration of light emission. PACS 81.16Dn; 81.05.Hd; 42.82.Fv; 42.82.Gw