[en] The structures of modified Ti(OPrⁱ)₄ with chelating ligands (L) such as ethylacetoacetate (Etac), acetylacetone (Acac) and methylacetoacetate (Mtac) were identified by using IR, ¹H NMR and ¹³C NMR spectroscopies, and the octahedral structure was confirmed after modification. The pre-edge peaks of XANES spectra of modified metal alkoxides also denoted the mixture of five-fold and six-fold structures. The EXAFS fitting results showed the local structure around Ti atom after alkoxide modification. The hydrolysis-condensation rates of modified Ti alkoxide with organic additives were investigated by ¹H NMR spectroscopy. The Ti(OPrⁱ)₄ modified by Acac was less reactive toward hydrolysis-condensation reaction than those modified by the other alkoxides, which can be attributed to the stable ligand structure between Ti(OPrⁱ)₄ and Acac. The small particle size of modified Ti(OPrⁱ)₄ sol was obtained when Acac was employed

[en] Considerable attention has been paid to ferroic systems in pursuit of advanced applications in past decades. Most recently, the emergence and development of multiferroics, which exhibit the coexistence of different ferroic natures, has offered a new route to create functionalities in the system. In this manuscript, we step from domain engineering to explore a roadmap for discovering intriguing phenomena and multifunctionalities driven by periodic domain patters. As-grown periodic domains, offering exotic order parameters, periodic local perturbations and the capability of tailoring local spin, charge, orbital and lattice degrees of freedom, are introduced as modeling templates for fundamental studies and novel applications. We discuss related significant findings on ferroic domain, nanoscopic domain walls, and conjunct heterostructures based on the well-organized domain patterns, and end with future prospects and challenges in the field

[en] An in situ environmental transmission electron microscopy study of the nucleation and growth of oxide islands during the early-stage oxidation of (001) Cu_1-xAu_x alloys (x≤38 at. %) was undertaken in order to investigate the effects of alloying on oxide island nucleation behavior and growth kinetics. The kinetic data reveal that Au enhances the nucleation density of oxide islands and suppresses their growth rate. Our results provide insight into reasons for the decreased passivation properties of Cu when alloyed with Au

[en] The ultraviolet optical transition of the isomeric state in "2"2"9Th has attracted much attention recently due to its potential application to building an atomic/nuclear clock with ultra-high precision. However, the lowest nuclear excitation energy and the lifetime of the first excited state of "2"2"9Th were not measured directly and precisely until now, and how to precisely determine this isomer state of the "2"2"9Th is an urgent requirement. Here an experimental approach of using a technique similar to that of dielectronic recombination to measure the transition energy of the isomer state of "2"2"9Th at heavy ion storage rings is described. It is expected that the resonant transition can be found and determined with a precision better than several milli-eV. (paper)

[en] Aim: To assess the value of contrast-enhanced grey-scale transrectal ultrasound (CETRUS) in predicting the nature of peripheral zone hypoechoic lesions of the prostate. Materials and Methods: Ninety-one patients with peripheral zone hypoechoic lesions on ultrasound were evaluated with CETRUS followed by lesion-specific and sextant transrectal ultrasound-guided biopsies. The enhancement patterns of the lesions were observed and graded subjectively using adjacent peripheral zone tissue as the reference. Time to enhancement (AT), time to peak intensity (TTP) and peak intensity (PI) were quantified within each nodule. Ultrasound findings were correlated with biopsy findings. Results: Transrectal ultrasound-guided biopsy of the hypoechoic lesions revealed prostate cancer in 44 patients and benign prostatic diseases in 47. The intensity of enhancement within the lesions were graded as no enhancement, increased, equal, or decreased compared with adjacent peripheral zone tissue in two, 30, five and seven in the prostate cancer group and 14, 15, four and 14 in the benign group, respectively. The difference was statistically significant (p < 0.05). The peak enhancement intensity was found to be the most optimal discriminatory parameter (area under curve AUC 0.70; 95% CI: 0.58, 0.82). Conclusion: Malignant hypoechoic nodules in the peripheral zone of the prostate are more likely to enhance early and more intensely on CETRUS. A non-enhanced hypoechoic peripheral zone lesion was more likely to be benign

[en] The integration of synthetic, experimental and theoretical tools into a self-consistent data analysis methodology allowed us to develop unique new levels of detail in nanoparticle characterization. We describe our methods using an example of Au13 monolayer-protected clusters (MPCs), synthesized by ligand exchange methods. The combination of atom counting methods of scanning transmission electron microscopy and Au L3-edge EXAFS allowed us to characterize these clusters as icosahedral, with surface strain reduced from 5% (as in ideal, regular icosahedra) to 3%, due to the interaction with ligands. Charge transfer from Au to the thiol and phosphine ligands was evidenced by S and P K-edge XANES. A comparison of total energies of bare clusters of different geometries was performed by equivalent crystal theory calculations

[en] Recent results and progress of mass measurements of proton-rich nuclei using isochronous mass spectrometry (IMS) are reported. The nuclei under investigation were produced via fragmentation of relativistic energy heavy ions of ⁷⁸Kr and ⁵⁸Ni. After in-flight separation by the fragment separator RIBLL-2, the nuclei were injected and stored in the experimental storage ring CSRe, and their masses were determined from measurements of the revolution times. The impact of these measurements on the stellar nucleosynthesis in the rp-process is discussed.

[en] The cooler storage ring (CSR) project was launched in 2000 at the Institute of Modern Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou. In 2007, the installation was completed and the commissioning of CSRs gained great success, a new highly precise generation of collision experiments will become accessible even for the heaviest ion species. A commissioning RR experiment was performed at the electron cooler with Ar¹⁸⁺ ions, the results are reported. And the further development of the experiments at cooler will be discussed.

[en] Testing runs of experiments were performed at the Cooler Storage Ring in Lanzhou. The recombination of bare argon ions and electron was observed at the electron. The masses of radioactive nuclei produced by projectile fragmentation were measured in isochronous mode. An overview of the most recent experiments will be presented.

[en] An electron beam energy detuning system has been installed to the electron cooler device at the cooler storage ring in Lanzhou. The system is tested by using 7 MeV/u C⁶⁺ beam. The detuning system is feasible for future dielectronic recombination experiments.