Cation distribution and magnetization of BaFe12-2xCoxSnxO19 (x=0.9,1.28) single crystals

The distribution of Sn4+ cations within the five crystallographic sites of the magnetoplumbite (M) ‐like compound BaFe12−2xCoxSnxO19 has been analyzed using single‐crystal x‐ray‐diffraction data. The species Fe3+ and Co2+ cannot be distinguished using x rays because of their very similar atomic numbers; however, the calculation of the apparent valencies for the different sites allows an insight into the Co2+ cation segregation. The use of previous data from neutron powder diffraction allows a precise picture of the cation distribution, which indicates a pronounced site selectivity for both Sn4+ and Co2+ cations. The Sn4+ cations prefer the 4f2 sites and to a much lower extent the 12k sites, while they do not enter the octahedral 2a sites at all. Co2+ cations are distributed among tetrahedral and octahedral sites displaying a clear preference for the tetrahedral 4f1 sites. Magnetic measurements indicate that the compound still exhibits uniaxial anisotropy with the easy direction parallel to the c axis. Nevertheless, the magnetic structure shows a considerable degree of noncolinearity. A strong reduction of the magnetic anisotropy regarding that of the undoped compound is also detected

Adsorptive stripping voltammetry of hen-egg-white-lysozyme via adsorption-desorption at an array of liquid-liquid microinterfaces

Electrochemical adsorption and voltammetry of hen-egg-white-lysozyme (HEWL) was studied at an array of microinterfaces between two immiscible electrolyte solutions (µITIES). Adsorption of the protein was achieved at an optimal applied potential of 0.95 V, after which it was desorbed by a voltammetric scan to lower potentials. The voltammetric peak recorded during the desorption scan was dependent on the adsorption time and on the aqueous phase concentration of HEWL. The slow approach to saturation or equilibrium indicated that protein reorganization at the interface was the rate-determining step and not diffusion to the interface. For higher concentrations and longer adsorption times, a HEWL multilayer surface coverage of 550 pmol cm-2 was formed, on the basis of the assumption that a single monolayer corresponded to a surface coverage of 13 pmol cm-2. Implementation of adsorption followed by voltammetric detection as an adsorptive stripping voltammetric approach to HEWL detection demonstrated a linear dynamic range of 0.05-1 µM and a limit of detection of 0.03 µM, for 5 min preconcentration in unstirred solution; this is a more than 10-fold improvement over previous HEWL detection methods at the ITIES. These results provide the basis for a new analytical approach for label-free protein detection based on adsorptive stripping voltammetry