123 research outputs found

    Magnetoresistance, specific heat and magnetocaloric effect of equiatomic rare-earth transition-metal magnesium compounds

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    We present a study of the magnetoresistance, the specific heat and the magnetocaloric effect of equiatomic RETRETMg intermetallics with RE=LaRE = {\rm La}, Eu, Gd, Yb and T=AgT = {\rm Ag}, Au and of GdAuIn. Depending on the composition these compounds are paramagnetic (RE=LaRE = {\rm La}, Yb) or they order either ferro- or antiferromagnetically with transition temperatures ranging from about 13 to 81 K. All of them are metallic, but the resistivity varies over 3 orders of magnitude. The magnetic order causes a strong decrease of the resistivity and around the ordering temperature we find pronounced magnetoresistance effects. The magnetic ordering also leads to well-defined anomalies in the specific heat. An analysis of the entropy change leads to the conclusions that generally the magnetic transition can be described by an ordering of localized S=7/2S=7/2 moments arising from the half-filled 4f74f^7 shells of Eu2+^{2+} or Gd3+^{3+}. However, for GdAgMg we find clear evidence for two phase transitions indicating that the magnetic ordering sets in partially below about 125 K and is completed via an almost first-order transition at 39 K. The magnetocaloric effect is weak for the antiferromagnets and rather pronounced for the ferromagnets for low magnetic fields around the zero-field Curie temperature.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figures include

    Synergistic Catalysis in Heterobimetallic Complexes for Homogeneous Carbon Dioxide Hydrogenation

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    Two heterobimetallic Mo,M’ complexes (M’ = IrIII, RhIII) were synthesized and fully characterized. Their catalytic activity in homogeneous carbon dioxide hydrogenation to formate was studied. A pronounced synergistic effect between the two metals was found, most notably between Mo and Ir, leading to a fourfold increase in activity compared with a binary mixture of the two monometallic counterparts. This synergism can be attributed to spatial proximity of the two metals rather than electronic interactions. To further understand the nature of this interaction, the mechanism of the CO2 hydrogenation to formate by a monometallic IrIII catalyst was studied using computational and spectroscopic methods. The resting state of the reaction was found to be the metal-base adduct, whereas the rate-determining step is the inner-sphere hydride transfer to CO2. Based on these findings, the synergism in the heterobimetallic complex is beneficial in this key step, most likely by further activating the CO2

    Antiferromagnetic ordering in heavy fermion system Ce2Au2Cd

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    La2Au2Cd and Ce2Au2Cd were prepared from the elements by reactions in sealed tantalum tubes in a water-cooled sample chamber of an induction furnace. These intermetallics crystallize with the tetragonal Mo2FeB2 type, space group P4/mbm. While La2Au2Cd is Pauli paramagnetic, Ce2Au2Cd shows Curie-Weiss behaviour above 100 K with an experimental magnetic moment of 2.41(2) muB/Ce atom, indicating trivalent cerium. Antiferromagnetic ordering is detected for Ce2Au2Cd at 5.01(2) K and magnetization measurements reveal a metamagnetic transition at 3 K at a critical field of around 20 kOe with a saturation moment of 1.50(2)muB/Ce atom at 80 kOe. The low-temperature heat capacity properties characterize Ce2Au2Cd as a heavy fermion material with an electronic specific heat coefficient (gamma) = 807(5) mJ/mol K2 as compared to La2Au2Cd with gamma = 6(5) mJ/mol K2.Comment: Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.

    Unintentional high density p-type modulation doping of a GaAs/AlAs core-multi-shell nanowire

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    Achieving significant doping in GaAs/AlAs core/shell nanowires (NWs) is of considerable technological importance but remains a challenge due to the amphoteric behavior of the dopant atoms. Here we show that placing a narrow GaAs quantum well in the AlAs shell effectively getters residual carbon acceptors leading to an \emph{unintentional} p-type doping. Magneto-optical studies of such a GaAs/AlAs core multi-shell NW reveal quantum confined emission. Theoretical calculations of NW electronic structure confirm quantum confinement of carriers at the core/shell interface due to the presence of ionized carbon acceptors in the 1~nm GaAs layer in the shell. Micro-photoluminescence in high magnetic field shows a clear signature of avoided crossings of the n=0n=0 Landau level emission line with the n=2n=2 Landau level TO phonon replica. The coupling is caused by the resonant hole-phonon interaction, which points to a large 2D hole density in the structure.Comment: just published in Nano Letters (http://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/nl500818k

    Birth outcomes in Colorado's undocumented immigrant population

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    BACKGROUND: The birth outcomes of undocumented women have not been systematically studied on a large scale. The growing number of undocumented women giving birth in the United States has important implications for clinical care and public health policy. The objective of this study was to describe birth outcomes of undocumented immigrants in Colorado. METHODS: Retrospective descriptive study of singleton births to 5961 undocumented women using birth certificate data for 1998–1999. RESULTS: Undocumented mothers were younger, less educated, and more likely to be single. They had higher rates of anemia, were less likely to gain enough weight, and less likely to receive early prenatal care. They were much less likely to use alcohol or tobacco. Undocumented women had a lower rate of low birth weight (5.3% v 6.5%, P < .001) or preterm infants (12.9% v 14.5%; p = .001). Undocumented women experienced higher rates of labor complications including excessive bleeding (2.3% v 0.8%, p < .001) and fetal distress (8.7% v 3.6%, p < .001). CONCLUSION: Undocumented women have lower rates of preterm delivery and low birth weight infants, but higher rates of pregnancy related risk factors. Higher prevalence of some risk factors which are amenable to medical intervention reveals the need for improved prenatal care in this group

    The Opdc missense mutation of Pax2 has a milder than loss-of-function phenotype

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    Renal-coloboma syndrome, also known as papillorenal syndrome, is an autosomal dominant human disorder in which optic disc coloboma is associated with kidney abnormalities. Mutations in the paired domain transcription factor PAX2 have been found to be the underlying cause of this disease. Disease severity varies between patients, and in some cases, renal hypoplasia has been found in the absence of any retinal defects. Here we report an N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea-induced mouse mutation, Opdc, which is an isoleucinetothreonine missense mutation, I40T, in the first α-helix of the Pax2 paired domain. The mutant protein binds target DNA sequences less strongly than the wild-type protein and acts poorly to transactivate target promoters in culture. The phenotypic consequence of this mutation on the development of the eye and ear is similar to that reported for null alleles of Pax2. However, in homozygotes, cerebellar development is normal on a genetic background in which loss of Pax2 results in failure of cerebellar formation. Moreover, there is a genetic background effect on the heterozygous phenotype such that on some strain backgrounds, kidney development is unaffected. Opdc is the first hypomorphic mutation reported for Pax2 that differs in phenotype from loss-of-function mutations. These results suggest that PAX2 is a strong candidate gene for cases in which human patients have optic disc coloboma not associated with renal dysplasia

    Enhanced Long-Path Electrical Conduction in ZnO Nanowire Array Devices Grown via Defect-Driven Nucleation

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    Vertical arrays of nanostructures have been widely used as major components in some of the most ground-breaking modern research-based devices, and ZnO nanowires have received particular attention because of their favorable electronic properties. Using a local multiprobe technique to measure the properties of individual ZnO nanowires in vertical arrays, we show for the first time that for metal-catalyzed ZnO nanowire growth the electrical contribution of individual wires to a device is highly dependent on the fate of the catalyst nanoparticle during growth. To overcome the limitations of metal-catalyzed growth, nanowires grown from a defect-driven nucleation process are shown to provide high-quality device structures with excellent long-path electrical conduction
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