Ionic behavior, Na+ mobility and infrared spectroscopy in Na7Cr4(P2O7)4PO4 material

The title compound, heptasodium tetrachromium(III) tetrakis(diphosphate) orthophosphate, was synthesized by solid state reaction. Its structure is isotypic with that of Na7M4(P2O7)4PO4 (M = In, Al) compounds and is made up from a three-dimensional [(CrP2O7)4PO4]7- framework with channels running along [001]. The Na+ cations are located in the voids of the framework. This compound has been investigated by X-ray diffraction and infrared (IR) spectroscopy. The conductivity measurements of the compound were carried out from 515 to 795 Kelvin using the frequency response analyzer with 0.05V amplitude signal over the range of 13MHz-5Hz. The conductivity of the sample at 574K is 0.45 10-6 S.cm-1. The activation energy Ea=0.73eV shows that Na7Cr4(P2O7)4PO4 is a medium ionic conductors. The monovalent cations conduction pathways in the crystal bulks are simulated by means of the bond valence model (BVS)

Re-thinking Secularism in Post-Independence Tunisia

The victory of a Tunisian Islamist party in the elections of October 2011 seems a paradox for a country long considered the most secular in the Arab world and raises questions about the nature and limited reach of secularist policies imposed by the state since independence. Drawing on a definition of secularism as a process of defining, managing, and intervening in religious life by the state, this paper identifies how under Habib Bourguiba and Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali the state sought to subordinate religion and to claim the sole right to interpret Islam for the public in an effort to win the monopoly over religious symbolism and, with it, political control. Both Bourguiba and Ben Ali relied on Islamic references for legitimacy, though this recourse to religion evolved to face changing contexts, and both sought to define Islam on their own terms. Bourguiba sought to place himself personally at the summit of power, while under Ben Ali the regime forged an authoritarian consensus of security, unity, and ‘tolerance’. In both cases the state politicised Islam but failed to maintain a monopoly over religious symbolism, facing repeated religious challenges to its political authority

H.E. M.Habib Bourguiba President of The Republic of Tunisia “Unity amid diversity"

Speech by H.E. M.Habib Bourguiba, President of The Republic of Tunisia on “Unity amid diversity”