Exploring covalently bonded diamondoid particles with valence photoelectron spectroscopy

We investigated the valence electronic structure of diamondoid particles in the gas phase, utilizing valence photoelectron spectroscopy. The samples were singly or doubly covalently bonded dimers or trimers of the lower diamondoids. Both the bond type and the combination of bonding partners are shown to affect the overall electronic structure. For singly bonded particles, we observe a small impact of the bond on the electronic structure, whereas for doubly bonded particles, the connecting bond determines the electronic structure of the highest occupied orbitals. In the singly bonded particles a superposition of the bonding partner orbitals determines the overall electronic structure. The experimental findings are supported by density functional theory computations at the M06-2X/cc-pVDZ level of theory.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figure

Comparative study of microleakage in class V restorations

Este estudo teve como objetivo avaliar o comportamento laboratorial de adesivos dentinários, cimentos ionoméricos modificados por resina e resinas compostas modificadas por poliácidos, no selamento das margens gengivais de cavidades de classe V preparadas na junção amelocementária. Quarenta cavidades foram executadas nas faces vestibular e palatina/lingual de 20 terceiros molares humanos extraídos, e restauradas com os seguintes materiais: grupo 1 (G1)- Vitremer (3M); grupo 2 (G2)- Vitremer (3M) e Syntac Sprint/Tetric Ceram (Vivadent); grupo 3 (G3)- Syntac Sprint/Tetric Ceram (Vivadent); grupo 4 (G4)- Prime & Bond 2.1/Variglass (Dentsply). Após termociclagem em corante azul de metileno, os espécimes foram seccionados longitudinalmente e analisados em lupa estereoscópica para avalia- ção do grau de infiltração marginal. Os resultados após teste estatístico de Mann-Whitney revelaram melhor vedamento marginal para o grupo 1, quando comparado com o grupo 4 (p = 0,05), mas não foram demonstradas diferenças significantes entre os demais grupos. Nas condições desse experimento, o material Vitremer ofereceu melhor vedamento marginal que o sistema Prime & Bond 2.1/Variglass.The aim of this study was to analyze the laboratorial performance of dentin-bonding agents, glass ionomer cements and compomers, regarding the sealing of the gingival margins of class V cavities, prepared on the cementoenamel junction. Standardized class V cavities (4 x 3 x 2 mm) were prepared on the buccal and lingual/palatal surfaces of 20 extracted human third molars. Forty cavities were restored with different combinations of materials, as follows: group 1 (G1)- Vitremer (3M); group 2 (G2)- Vitremer (3M) and Syntac Sprint/Tetric Ceram (Vivadent); Group 3 (G3)- Syntac Sprint/Tetric Ceram (Vivadent); Group 4 (G4)- Prime & Bond 2.1/Variglass (Dentsply). After thermocycling in methylene blue dye, the specimens were longitudinally sectioned and analyzed with a stereoscopic lens in order to evaluate the leakage on the gingival margin. The obtained data were analyzed with the Mann-Whitney test, and the results revealed significantly better sealing (p = 0.05) in G1, when compared with G4. No significant differences were seen between the other groups. Under the given conditions, Vitremer offered better sealing of the gingival margin than the system Prime & Bond 2.1/Variglass

Bone quality associated with daily intake of coffee: a biochemical, radiographic and histometric study

Caffeine induces loss of calcium and influences the normal development of bone. This study investigated the effects of coffee on bone metabolism in rats by biochemical measurement of calcium, bone densitometry and histometry. Male rats, born of female treated daily with coffee and with coffee intake since born, were anesthetized, subjected to extraction of the upper right incisor, and sacrificed 7, 21 and 42 days after surgery. Blood and urine samples were taken, and their maxilla radiographed and processed to obtain 5-µm-thick semi-serial sections stained with hematoxylin and eosin. The volume and bone quality were estimated using an image-analysis software. The results showed significantly greater amount of calcium in the plasma (9.40 ± 1.73 versus 9.80 ± 2.05 mg%) and urine (1.00 ± 0.50 versus 1.25 ± 0.70 mg/24 h) and significantly less amount in bone (90.0 ± 1.94 versus 86.0 ± 2.12 mg/mg bone), reduced bone mineral density (1.05 ± 0.11 versus 0.65 ± 0.15 mmAL), and lower amount of bone (76.19 ± 1.6 versus 53.41 ± 2.1 %) (ANOVA; p≤0.01) in animals treated with coffee sacrificed after 42 days. It may be concluded that coffee/caffeine intake caused serious adverse effects on calcium metabolism in rats, including increased levels of calcium in the urine and plasma, decreased bone mineral density and lower volume of bone, thus delaying the bone repair process.A cafeína induz perda de cálcio e influencia no desenvolvimento ósseo normal. Este estudo investiga os efeitos do café sobre o metabolismo ósseo em ratos através de avaliações bioquímicas do cálcio, densitometria e histometria óssea. Ratos machos, nascidos de fêmeas tratadas diariamente com café, e com ingestão de café desde o nascimento, foram anestesiados, submetidos à extração do incisivo superior direito e sacrificados 7, 21 e 42 dias após a cirurgia. Amostras de sangue e urina foram colhidas, suas maxilas radiografadas e processadas para se obter cortes semi seriados (5 µm) e corados pela hematoxilina-eosina. Através de um programa de análise de imagens, o volume e a qualidade do osso foram avaliados. Os resultados demonstraram maior quantidade de cálcio no sangue (9,40 ± 1,73 versus 9,80 ± 2,05 mg%) e urina (1,00 ± 0,50 versus 1,25 ± 0,70 mg/24 h) e menor no osso (90,0 ± 1,94 versus 86,0 ± 2,12 mg/mg osso), densidade mineral óssea menor (1,05 ± 0,11 versus 0,65 ± 0,15 mmAL), e menor quantidade de osso (76,19 ± 1,6 versus 53,41 ± 2,1 %) estatisticamente significante (ANOVA p≤0,01) nos animais tratados com café sacrificados após 42 dias. Conclui-se que a ingestão de café/cafeína causou sérios efeitos adversos no metabolismo de cálcio em ratos, incluindo aumento dos níveis de cálcio na urina e no plasma, diminuição da densidade mineral óssea e menor volume de osso atrasando o processo de reparo ósseo

Laser-induced fluorescence of free diamondoid molecules

Dieser Beitrag ist mit Zustimmung des Rechteinhabers aufgrund einer (DFG geförderten) Allianz- bzw. Nationallizenz frei zugänglich.This publication is with permission of the rights owner freely accessible due to an Alliance licence and a national licence (funded by the DFG, German Research Foundation) respectively.We observe the fluorescence of pristine diamondoids in the gas phase, excited using narrow band ultraviolet laser light. The emission spectra show well- defined features, which can be attributed to transitions from the excited electronic state into different vibrational modes of the electronic ground state. We assign the normal modes responsible for the vibrational bands, and determine the geometry of the excited states. Calculations indicate that for large diamondoids, the spectral bands do not result from progressions of single modes, but rather from combination bands composed of a large number of Delta v = 1 transitions. The vibrational modes determining the spectral envelope can mainly be assigned to wagging and twisting modes of the surface atoms. We conclude that our theoretical approach accurately describes the photophysics in diamondoids and possibly other hydrocarbons in general.DFG, FOR 1282, Controlling the electronic structure of semiconductor nanoparticles by doping and hybrid formatio

Size and shape dependent photoluminescence and excited state decay rates of diamondoids

Dieser Beitrag ist mit Zustimmung des Rechteinhabers aufgrund einer (DFG geförderten) Allianz- bzw. Nationallizenz frei zugänglich.This publication is with permission of the rights owner freely accessible due to an Alliance licence and a national licence (funded by the DFG, German Research Foundation) respectively.We present photoluminescence spectra and excited state decay rates of a series of diamondoids, which represent molecular structural analogues to hydrogen-passivated bulk diamond. Specific isomers of the five smallest diamondoids (adamantane–pentamantane) have been brought into the gas phase and irradiated with synchrotron radiation. All investigated compounds show intrinsic photoluminescence in the ultraviolet spectral region. The emission spectra exhibit pronounced vibrational fine structure which is analyzed using quantum chemical calculations. We show that the geometrical relaxation of the first excited state of adamantane, exhibiting Rydberg character, leads to the loss of Td symmetry. The luminescence of adamantane is attributed to a transition from the delocalized first excited state into different vibrational modes of the electronic ground state. Similar geometrical changes of the excited state structure have also been identified in the other investigated diamondoids. The excited state decay rates show a clear dependence on the size of the diamondoid, but are independent of the particle geometry, further indicating a loss of particle symmetry upon electronic excitation.DFG, FOR 1282, Controlling the electronic structure of semiconductor nanoparticles by doping and hybrid formatio

Radiation hardness qualification of PbWO4 scintillation crystals for the CMS Electromagnetic Calorimeter

This is the Pre-print version of the Article. The official published version can be accessed from the link below - Copyright @ 2010 IOPEnsuring the radiation hardness of PbWO4 crystals was one of the main priorities during the construction of the electromagnetic calorimeter of the CMS experiment at CERN. The production on an industrial scale of radiation hard crystals and their certification over a period of several years represented a difficult challenge both for CMS and for the crystal suppliers. The present article reviews the related scientific and technological problems encountered

Intercalibration of the barrel electromagnetic calorimeter of the CMS experiment at start-up

Calibration of the relative response of the individual channels of the barrel electromagnetic calorimeter of the CMS detector was accomplished, before installation, with cosmic ray muons and test beams. One fourth of the calorimeter was exposed to a beam of high energy electrons and the relative calibration of the channels, the intercalibration, was found to be reproducible to a precision of about 0.3%. Additionally, data were collected with cosmic rays for the entire ECAL barrel during the commissioning phase. By comparing the intercalibration constants obtained with the electron beam data with those from the cosmic ray data, it is demonstrated that the latter provide an intercalibration precision of 1.5% over most of the barrel ECAL. The best intercalibration precision is expected to come from the analysis of events collected in situ during the LHC operation. Using data collected with both electrons and pion beams, several aspects of the intercalibration procedures based on electrons or neutral pions were investigated

Performance of the CMS Cathode Strip Chambers with Cosmic Rays

The Cathode Strip Chambers (CSCs) constitute the primary muon tracking device in the CMS endcaps. Their performance has been evaluated using data taken during a cosmic ray run in fall 2008. Measured noise levels are low, with the number of noisy channels well below 1%. Coordinate resolution was measured for all types of chambers, and fall in the range 47 microns to 243 microns. The efficiencies for local charged track triggers, for hit and for segments reconstruction were measured, and are above 99%. The timing resolution per layer is approximately 5 ns