Pairing and phase separation in a polarized Fermi gas

We report the observation of pairing in a gas of atomic fermions with unequal numbers of two components. Beyond a critical polarization, the gas separates into a phase that is consistent with a superfluid paired core surrounded by a shell of normal unpaired fermions. The critical polarization diminishes with decreasing attractive interaction. For near-zero polarization, we measured the parameter beta = -0.54 +/- 0.05, describing the universal energy of a strongly interacting paired Fermi gas, and found good agreement with recent theory. These results are relevant to predictions of exotic new phases of quark matter and of strongly magnetized superconductors.     

Macroscopic separation of dense fluid phase and liquid phase of phosphorus

Structural transformation between a dense molecular fluid and a polymeric liquid of phosphorus that occurred at about 1 gigapascal and 1000 degrees C was investigated by in situ x-ray radiography. When the low-pressure fluid was compressed, dark and round objects appeared in the radiograph. X-ray diffraction measurements confirmed that these objects were the highpressure liquid. The drops grew and eventually filled the sample space. Decompressing caused the reverse process. The macroscopic phase separation supported the existence of a first-order phase transition between two stable disordered phases besides the liquid-gas transition. X-ray absorption measurements revealed that the change in density at the transition corresponds to about 40% of the density of the high-pressure liquid.     

Toroidal dipolar response in a metamaterial

Toroidal multipoles are fundamental electromagnetic excitations different from those associated with the familiar charge and magnetic multipoles. They have been held responsible for parity violation in nuclear and particle physics, but direct evidence of their existence in classical electrodynamics has remained elusive. We report on the observation of a resonant electromagnetic response in an artificially engineered medium, or metamaterial, that cannot be attributed to magnetic or charge multipoles and can only be explained by the existence of a toroidal dipole. Our direct experimental evidence of the toroidal response brings attention to the often ignored electromagnetic interactions involving toroidal multipoles, which could be present in naturally occurring systems, especially at the macromolecule level, where toroidal symmetry is ubiquitous.     

析相微萃取-分光光度法测定茶叶中痕量锌

采用1-(2-吡啶偶氮)-2-萘酚(PAN)为螫合剂,四氯化碳为萃取剂,乙醇为助溶剂,建立了析相微萃取-分光光度法测定茶叶中痕量锌的分析方法,并对影响络合反应和相分离的各种条件进行了优化.优化后的条件为:当水相体积为43.5 mL时,萃取剂四氯化碳为3.0 mL,助溶剂乙醇为3.5 mL,萃取时间为15 min.锌的质量浓度在0.20～8 μg/mL范围内与吸光度呈线性关系,相关系数为0.99973,方法的检出限为0.027 μg/mL,对锌的质量浓度为1.0 μg/mL的样品溶液进行7次平行测定,相对标准偏差为1.73％.该方法用于茶叶中锌的测定,回收率为91.7％～ 105.6％.     

A phase separation model for the nanopatterning of diatom biosilica

Diatoms are encased in an intricately patterned wall that consists of amorphous silica. Species-specific fabrication of this ornate biomineral enables taxonomists to identify thousands of diatom species. The molecular mechanisms that control this nanofabrication and generate the diversity of patterns is not well understood. A simple model is described, in which repeated phase separation events during wall biogenesis are assumed to produce self-similar silica patterns in smaller and smaller scales. On the basis of this single assumption, the apparently complex patterns found in the valves of the diatom genus Coscinodiscus can be predicted. Microscopic analysis of valves in statu nascendi from three different Coscinodiscus species supports the conclusions derived from the model.     

Comment on "Pairing and phase separation in a polarized Fermi gas"

Partridge et al. (Reports, 27 January 2006, p. 503) reported pairing and phase separation in a polarized Fermi gas. We argue that it is not possible to distinguish the superfluid from the normal regimes in the presented data, or to discern which clouds were phase-separated. Some of the reported conclusions are inconsistent with recent experiments.     

Angular momentum conservation in dipolar energy transfer

Conservation of angular momentum is a familiar tenet in science but has seldom been invoked to understand (or predict) chemical processes. We have developed a general formalism based on Wigner's original ideas concerning angular momentum conservation to interpret the photo-induced reactivity of two molecular donor-acceptor assemblies with physical properties synthetically tailored to facilitate intramolecular energy transfer. Steady-state and time-resolved spectroscopic data establishing excited-state energy transfer from a rhenium(I)-based charge-transfer state to a chromium(III) acceptor can be fully accounted for by F?rster theory, whereas the corresponding cobalt(III) adduct does not undergo an analogous reaction despite having a larger cross-section for dipolar coupling. Because this pronounced difference in reactivity is easily explained within the context of the angular momentum conservation model, this relatively simple construct may provide a means for systematizing a broad range of chemical reactions.     

新型直链淀粉手性固定相拆分戊唑醇对映体

采用新型直链淀粉-三(5-氯-2-甲基苯基氨基甲酸酯)涂敷型手性固定相在反相色谱条件下拆分戊唑醇对映体,评价了流动相组成(甲醇/水,乙腈/水)及柱温(5～45℃)对对映体分离的影响。结果表明：以甲醇/水为流动相时,在甲醇含量100%至40%范围内,戊唑醇对映体均无分离趋势;而用乙腈/水为流动相时,在乙腈含量100%至40%范围内,戊唑醇对映体均可实现基线分离;在5～45℃,V(乙腈)∶V(水)=1∶1,对映体的保留因子(k)与分离因子(α)随温度升高而降低,分离度(RS)却先升后降,基于线性Van't Hoff曲线的热力学参数证明戊唑醇对映体的分离受焓驱动。     

Electrorheological fluids

Suspensions of polarizable particles in nonpolarizable solvents form fibrillated structures in strong electric fields. The resulting increase in viscosity of these "electrorheological" fluids can couple electrical to hydraulic components in a servomechanism. The physical properties of these fluids are unusual owing to the long-range, anisotropic nature of the interparticle forces. Immediately after the electric field is applied, elongated chains or columns of particles form parallel to the field. This structure then coarsens as a result of thermal forces between the columns. In shear flows, fluids show yielding behavior at low stresses followed by shear-thinning behavior at higher stresses.     

Homogeneous catalysis in supercritical fluids

Supercritical fluids (SCFs), compounds heated and pressurized beyond the critical point, have many unusual properties. Homogeneous molecular catalysts, which have far greater control over selectivity than heterogeneous solid catalysts, are now being tested in SCFs, and early results show that high rates, improved selectivity, and elimination of masstransfer problems can be achieved. As industry moves away from toxic or environmentally damaging solvents, supercritical carbon dioxide may be an ideal replacement medium for nonpolar or weakly polar chemical processes. More than simply substitutes for nonpolar solvents, SCFs can radically change the observed chemistry. Supercritical carbon dioxide is also an excellent medium for its own fixation, as demonstrated by studies of its hydrogenation.     

Application of the elution centrifuge to separation of polynucleotides with the use of polymer phase systems

A flow-through centrifuge without rotating seals enables the use of polymer phase systems for chromatographic separation of macromolecules. The capability of the technique is demonstrated on partition of polynucleotides.     

Labyrinthine pattern formation in magnetic fluids

A quasi two-dimensional drop of a magnetic fluid (ferrofluid) in a magnetic field is one example of the many systems, including amphiphilic monolayers, thin magnetic films, and type I superconductors, that form labyrinthine patterns. The formation of the ferrofluid labyrinth was examined both experimentally and theoretically. Labyrinth formation was found to be sensitively dependent on initial conditions, indicative of a space of configurations having a vast number of local energy minima. Certain geometric characteristics of the labyrinths suggest that these multiple minima have nearly equivalent energies. Kinetic effects on pattern selection were found in studies of fingering in the presence of timedependent magnetic fields. The dynamics of this pattern formation was studied within a simple model that yields shape evolutions in qualitative agreement with experiment.     

Viscosity of fluids in subduction zones

The viscosities of aqueous fluids with 10 to 80 weight percent dissolved silicates have been measured at 600 degrees to 950 degrees C and 1.0 to 2.0 gigapascals by in situ observation of falling spheres in the diamond anvil cell. The viscosities at 800 degrees C range from 10(-4) to 10(0.5) pascal seconds. The combination of low viscosities with a favorable wetting angle makes silicate-rich fluid an efficient agent for material transport at low-volume fractions. Our results therefore suggest that there may be a direct relationship between the position of the volcanic front and the onset of complete miscibility between water and silicate melt in the subducting slab.     

Existence of an orientational electric dipolar response in c60 single crystals

The dielectric constant in and conductivity sigma of undoped C(60) single crystals have been measured as a function of temperature, 10 K < T < 330 K, and frequency, 0.2 kilohertz < f < 100 kilohertz. On cooling below the first-order structural phase transition at 260 K, a Debye-like relaxational contribution to the dielectric response is observed, which requires the presence of permanent electric dipoles. The relaxation rate is thermally activated with a broad distribution of energies centered at 270 millielectron volts. The existence of a dipole moment in C(60) is unexpected, because it is precluded by symmetry for the pure ordered cubic phase. These data suggest that the high degree of frozen-in orientational disorder of the C(60) molecules is responsible for the existence of electric dipolar activity.     

犊牛卵泡液多肽信息分析

[目的]了解成年牛和犊牛卵泡液中多肽的信息表达差异,为完善犊牛卵泡液基础研究及犊牛卵母细胞体外培养体系奠定基础.[方法]采用基质辅助激光解吸附电离飞行时间质谱技术（MALDI-TOF-MS）对超排成年牛和超排犊牛卵泡液中的肽段进行分析,根据多肽的信号峰信息,通过MASCOT数据库进行蛋白检索.[结果]从成功构建的成年牛与犊牛卵泡液质谱多肽信号峰模型图谱可知,超排犊牛卵泡液多肽表达图谱中有60～80个信号峰,而超排成年牛的有30～40个信号峰;其中成年牛卵泡液有两个特有信号峰,质荷比为1218.58和1509.77 m/z,犊牛有1个特有信号峰,质荷比为953.54 m/z.利用MASCOT数据库对获得的卵泡液多肽信息进行蛋白检索,发现成年牛卵泡液中有18种蛋白,犊牛卵泡液中有11种蛋白.[结论]犊牛卵泡液中蛋白多肽信息峰数量多于成年牛,但卵泡液中总蛋白数量少于成年牛,这种差异可能是导致犊牛卵母细胞发育能力低于成年牛的重要原因之一.     

Chromatography with supercritical fluids

In supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC) the mobile phase is neither a gas nor a liquid, but is a supercritical fluid. As a result of the unique properties of supercritical fluids, SFC is rapidly becoming a prominent separation technique for the analysis of reactive, thermally labile, and nonvolatile compounds. This article reviews the history, instrumentation, and practice of the technique. Particular emphasis is placed on the different programming methods that allow elution to be selectively controlled in ways that are unique to SFC.