2,188 research outputs found
Statistics of low-energy levels of a one-dimensional weakly localized Frenkel exciton: A numerical study
Numerical study of the one-dimensional Frenkel Hamiltonian with on-site
randomness is carried out. We focus on the statistics of the energy levels near
the lower exciton band edge, i. e. those determining optical response. We found
that the distribution of the energy spacing between the states that are well
localized at the same segment is characterized by non-zero mean, i.e. these
states undergo repulsion. This repulsion results in a local discrete energy
structure of a localized Frenkel exciton. On the contrary, the energy spacing
distribution for weakly overlapping local ground states (the states with no
nodes within their localization segments) that are localized at different
segments has zero mean and shows almost no repulsion. The typical width of the
latter distribution is of the same order as the typical spacing in the local
discrete energy structure, so that this local structure is hidden; it does not
reveal itself neither in the density of states nor in the linear absorption
spectra. However, this structure affects the two-exciton transitions involving
the states of the same segment and can be observed by the pump-probe
spectroscopy. We analyze also the disorder degree scaling of the first and
second momenta of the distributions.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figure
AR TutorialKit: an Augmented Reality Toolkit to Create Tutorials
Augmented Reality (AR) is a widely used technology in fields such as medicine, engineering, and architecture, and is also prevalent in social media platforms like Snapchat, Instagram, and TikTok. In recent years, the availability of AR applications and improvements in hardware have made it affordable for educational training in various disciplines. However, limited options are available for the general construction of AR tutorials in the literature. Most solutions are specific for particular contexts, such as medical procedures or industry-specific tasks. This paper proposes an AR toolkit that enables novice programmers to create tutorials without topic restrictions. Our aim is to keep improving TutorialKit in such a way that it can be used flexibly and effectively in a variety of different contexts, enabling it to meet the diverse needs and requirements of users
Intrinsic optical bistability of thin films of linear molecular aggregates: The one-exciton approximation
We perform a theoretical study of the nonlinear optical response of an
ultrathin film consisting of oriented linear aggregates. A single aggregate is
described by a Frenkel exciton Hamiltonian with uncorrelated on-site disorder.
The exciton wave functions and energies are found exactly by numerically
diagonalizing the Hamiltonian. The principal restriction we impose is that only
the optical transitions between the ground state and optically dominant states
of the one-exciton manifold are considered, whereas transitions to other
states, including those of higher exciton manifolds, are neglected. The optical
dynamics of the system is treated within the framework of truncated optical
Maxwell-Bloch equations in which the electric polarization is calculated by
using a joint distribution of the transition frequency and the transition
dipole moment of the optically dominant states. This function contains all the
statistical information about these two quantities that govern the optical
response, and is obtained numerically by sampling many disorder realizations.
We derive a steady-state equation that establishes a relationship between the
output and input intensities of the electric field and show that within a
certain range of the parameter space this equation exhibits a three-valued
solution for the output field. A time-domain analysis is employed to
investigate the stability of different branches of the three-valued solutions
and to get insight into switching times. We discuss the possibility to
experimentally verify the bistable behavior.Comment: 13 two-column pages, 8 figures, accepted to the Journal of Chemical
Physic
Evaluation of Fused Pyrrolothiazole Systems as Correctors of Mutant CFTR Protein
Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a genetic disease caused by mutations that impair the function of the CFTR chloride channel. The most frequent mutation, F508del, causes misfolding and premature degradation of CFTR protein. This defect can be overcome with pharmacological agents named "correctors". So far, at least three different classes of correctors have been identified based on the additive/synergistic effects that are obtained when compounds of different classes are combined together. The development of class 2 correctors has lagged behind that of compounds belonging to the other classes. It was shown that the efficacy of the prototypical class 2 corrector, the bithiazole corr-4a, could be improved by generating conformationally-locked bithiazoles. In the present study, we investigated the effect of tricyclic pyrrolothiazoles as analogues of constrained bithiazoles. Thirty-five compounds were tested using the functional assay based on the halide-sensitive yellow fluorescent protein (HS-YFP) that measured CFTR activity. One compound, having a six atom carbocyle central ring in the tricyclic pyrrolothiazole system and bearing a pivalamide group at the thiazole moiety and a 5-chloro-2-methoxyphenyl carboxamide at the pyrrole ring, significantly increased F508del-CFTR activity. This compound could lead to the synthesis of a novel class of CFTR correctors
Electrically conductive and high temperature resistant superhydrophobic composite films from colloidal graphite
Electrically conductive and self-cleaning superhydrophobic films (water contact angles >160°, droplet roll off angles <5°) were fabricated by simply solution casting sub-micron polytetrafluoroethylene (Teflon) particle dispersed alcohol-based colloidal graphite solutions. The process is very suitable for forming conductive superhydrophobic coatings on glasses, metals, ceramics and high performance polymers such as polyimide (Kapton®). The solutions were deposited on microscope glass slides and Kapton® films by drop casting. After solvent evaporation under ambient conditions, the coatings were annealed to melt Teflon. Upon melting, Teflon particles fused into one another forming a hydrophobic polymer matrix. The degree of superhydrophobicity and the surface morphology of the coatings together with their electrical conductivity were studied in detail by varying Teflon-to-graphite weight fractions. A number of applications can be envisioned for these coatings such as electrode materials for energy conversion devices, high performance electromagnetic shielding materials, flexible electronic components and heat exchanger surfaces, to name a few
GPCR Inhibition in Treating Lymphoma
G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are important classes of cell surface receptors involved in multiple physiological functions. Aberrant expression, upregulation, and mutation of GPCR signaling pathways are frequent in many types of cancers, promoting hyperproliferation, angiogenesis, and metastasis. Recent studies showed that alterations of GPCRs are involved in different lymphoma types. Herein, we review the synthetic strategies to obtain GPCR inhibitors, focusing on CXCR4 inhibitors which represent most of the GPCR inhibitors available in the market or under preclinical investigations for these diseases
Recurrence of the oxazole motif in tubulin colchicine site inhibitors with anti-tumor activity
Because of its wide spectrum of targets and biological activities, the oxazole ring is a valuable heterocyclic scaffold in the design of new therapeutic agents with anticancer, antiviral, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, neuroprotective, antidiabetic and antidepressant properties. The presence of two heteroatoms, oxygen and nitrogen, offers possible interactions (hydrogen, hydrophobic, van der Waals or dipoles bonds) with a broad range of receptors and enzymes. Furthermore, the oxazole core conjugates low cytotoxicity with improved compound solubility and is well suited to structural modifications such as substitution with different groups and condensation to aromatic, heteroaromatic or non-aromatic rings, offering diversity when introduced into scaffolds. These features make it a very attractive nucleus in medicinal chemistry. Herein we present a diverse array of oxazole derivatives with potential therapeutic use in multiple tumor models. The emphasis has been addressed to compounds with anti-tubulin activity reported in literature in the last decade, describing their structural features, efficiency and future perspectives
Синдром «профессионального выгорания» у специалистов по социальной работе
В статті досліджується сутність та основні ознаки синдрому «професійного вигорання» у соціальних працівників.In the article the nature and main signs of «the professional burnout» syndrome of the social workers have been explored.В статье исследуется сущность и основные признаки синдрома «профессионального выгорания» у социальных работников
Defining Configurable Virtual Reality Templates for End Users
This paper proposes a solution for supporting end users in configuring Virtual Reality environments by exploiting reusable templates created by experts. We identify the roles participating in the environment development and the means for delegating part of the behaviour definition to the end users. We focus in particular on enabling end users to define the environment behaviour. The solution exploits a taxonomy defining common virtual objects having high-level actions for specifying event-condition-Action rules readable as natural language sentences. End users exploit such actions to define the environment behaviour. We report on a proof-of-concept implementation of the proposed approach, on its validation through two different case studies (virtual shop and museum), and on evaluating the approach with expert users
- …