Negative cooperativity upon hydrogen bond-stabilized O2 adsorption in a redox-active metal–organic framework
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Abstract While motile bacteria display rich dynamics in dense colonies, the phoretic nature of artificial micro-swimmers restricts their activity when crowded. Here we introduce a new class of synthetic micro-swimmers that are driven solely by light. By coupling a light absorbing particle to a fluid droplet we produce a colloidal chimera that transforms optical power into propulsive thermo-capillary action. The swimmers’ internal drive allows them to operate for a long duration (days) and remain active when crowded, forming a high density fluid phase. We find that above a critical concentration, swimmers form a long lived crowded state that displays internal dynamics. When passive particles are introduced, the dense swimmer phase can re-arrange to spontaneously corral the passive particles. We derive a geometrical, depletion-like condition for corralling by identifying the role the passive particles play in controlling the effective concentration of the micro-swimmers.
Actinide-ligand bonds with high multiplicities remain poorly understood. Decades ago, an effect known as 6p pushing from below (PFB) was proposed to enhance actinide covalency. A related effect—also poorly understood—is inverse trans influence (ITI). The present computational study of actinide-ligand covalent interactions with high bond multiplicities quantifies the energetic contributions from PFB and identifies a hitherto overlooked fourth bonding interaction for 2nd-row ligands in the studied organometallic systems. The latter are best described by a terminal O/N ligand exhibiting quadruple bonding interactions with the actinide. The 4th interaction may be characterized as a multi-center or charge-shift bond involving the trans ligand. It is shown in this work that the 4th bonding interaction is a manifestation of ITI, assisted by PFB, and provides a long-sought missing piece in the understanding of actinide chemistry.
Abstract We lack the fundamental information needed to understand how DNA damage in the brain is generated and how it is controlled over a lifetime in the absence of replication check points. To address these questions, here, we integrate cell-type and region-specific features of DNA repair activity in the normal brain. The brain has the same repair proteins as other tissues, but normal, canonical repair activity is unequal and is characterized by high base excision repair (BER) and low double strand break repair (DSBR). The natural imbalance creates conditions where single strand breaks (SSBs) can convert to double strand breaks (DSBs) and reversibly switch between states in response to oxidation both in vivo and in vitro. Our data suggest that, in a normal background of repair, SSBs and DSBs are in an equilibrium which is pushed or pulled by metabolic state. Interconversion of SSB to DSBs provides a physiological check point, which would allow the formation of unrepaired DSBs for productive functions, but would also restrict them from exceeding tolerable limits.
Resolving the microscopic pairing mechanism and its experimental identification in unconventional superconductors is among the most vexing problems of contemporary condensed matter physics. We show that Raman spectroscopy provides an avenue towards this aim by probing the structure of the pairing interaction at play in an unconventional superconductor. As we study the spectra of the prototypical Fe-based superconductor Ba 1-x K x Fe 2 As 2 for 0.22 ≤ x ≤ 0.70 in all symmetry channels, Raman spectroscopy allows us to distill the leading s-wave state. In addition, the spectra collected in the B1g symmetry channel reveal the existence of two collective modes which are indicative of the presence of two competing, yet sub-dominant, pairing tendencies of d x 2 -y 2 symmetry type. A comprehensive functional Renormalization Group and random-phase approximation study on this compound confirms the presence of the two sub-leading channels, and consistently matches the experimental doping dependence of the related modes. In conclusion, the consistency between the experimental observations and the theoretical modeling suggests that spin fluctuations play a significant role in superconducting pairing.
Phototrophic communities of photosynthetic algae or cyanobacteria and heterotrophic bacteria or fungi are pervasive throughout the environment. How interactions between members contribute to the resilience and affect the fitness of phototrophic communities is not fully understood. In this work, we integrated metatranscriptomics, metabolomics and phenotyping with computational modelling to reveal condition-dependent secretion and cross-feeding of metabolites in a synthetic community. We discovered that interactions between members are highly dynamic and are driven by the availability of organic and inorganic nutrients. Environmental factors, such as ammonia concentration, influenced community stability by shifting members from collaborating to competing. Moreover, overall fitness was dependent on genotype and streamlined genomes improved growth of the entire community. Our mechanistic framework offers insights into the physiology and metabolic response to environmental and genetic perturbation of these ubiquitous microbial associations.
Here, a two-level system resonantly interacting with an a.c. magnetic or electric field constitutes the physical basis of diverse phenomena and technologies. However, Schrödinger’s equation for this seemingly simple system can be solved exactly only under the rotating-wave approximation, which neglects the counter-rotating field component. When the a.c. field is sufficiently strong, this approximation fails, leading to a resonance-frequency shift known as the Bloch–Siegert shift. Here, we report the vacuum Bloch–Siegert shift, which is induced by the ultra-strong coupling of matter with the counter-rotating component of the vacuum fluctuation field in a cavity. Specifically, an ultra-high-mobility two-dimensional electron gas inside a high-Q terahertz cavity in a quantizing magnetic field revealed ultra-narrow Landau polaritons, which exhibited a vacuum Bloch–Siegert shift up to 40 GHz. This shift, clearly distinguishable from the photon-field self-interaction effect, represents a unique manifestation of a strong-field phenomenon without a strong field.
Superconducting (SC) states that break space-group symmetries of the underlying crystal can exhibit nontrivial spatial modulation of the order parameter. Previously, such states were intimately associated with the breaking of translational symmetry, resulting in the density-wave orders, with wavelengths spanning several unit cells. However, a related basic concept has long been overlooked: when only intra-unit-cell symmetries of the space group are broken, the SC states can show a distinct type of nontrivial modulation preserving long-range lattice translation. Here, in this study, we refer to this new concept as the pair density modulation (PDM) and report the first observation of a PDM state in exfoliated thin flakes of the iron-based superconductor FeTe 0.55 Se 0.45 . Using scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM), we discover robust SC gap modulation with the wavelength corresponding to the lattice periodicity and the amplitude exceeding 30% of the gap average. Notably, we find that the observed modulation originates from the large difference in SC gaps on the two nominally equivalent iron sublattices. The experimental findings, backed up by model calculations, suggest that, in contrast to the density-wave orders, the PDM state is driven by the interplay of sublattice symmetry breaking and a peculiar nematic distortion specific to the thin flakes. Our results establish new frontiers for exploring the intertwined orders in strong-correlated electronic systems and open a new chapter for iron-based superconductors.
Abstract Biomolecular systems are dependent on a complex interplay of forces. Modern force spectroscopy techniques provide means of interrogating these forces, but they are not optimized for studies in constrained environments as they require attachment to micron-scale probes such as beads or cantilevers. Nanomechanical devices are a promising alternative, but this requires versatile designs that can be tuned to respond to a wide range of forces. We investigate the properties of a nanoscale force sensitive DNA origami device which is highly customizable in geometry, functionalization, and mechanical properties. The device, referred to as the NanoDyn, has a binary (open or closed) response to an applied force by undergoing a reversible structural transition. The transition force is tuned with minor alterations of 1 to 3 DNA oligonucleotides and spans tens of picoNewtons (pN). The DNA oligonucleotide design parameters also strongly influence the efficiency of resetting the initial state, with higher stability devices (≳10 pN) resetting more reliably during repeated force-loading cycles. Finally, we show the opening force is tunable in real time by adding a single DNA oligonucleotide. These results establish the potential of the NanoDyn as a versatile force sensor and provide fundamental insights into how design parameters modulate mechanical and dynamic properties.
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The dynamic covalent self-assembly of peptoid-based oligomers bearing n complementary functional groups yields molecular ladders with n covalent rungs.
Here, the production of hydrocarbon fuels from biomass pyrolysis requires the development of effective deoxygenation catalysts, and insight into how the properties of the support influence performance is critical for catalyst design. In this report, nanoparticles of Ni and Rh 2 P were synthesized using solution-phase techniques and dispersed on high surface area supports. The supports included a relatively inert material (C), an acidic reducible metal-oxide (TiO 2 ), an acidic irreducible metal-oxide (Al 2 O 3 ), and a basic irreducible metal-oxide (MgO). The eight active phase/support combinations were investigated for the deoxygenation of guaiacol, a pyrolysis vapor model compound, under ex situ catalytic fast pyrolysis conditions (350 °C, 0.44 MPa H 2 ). Compared to the baseline performance of the C-supported catalysts, Ni/TiO 2 and Rh 2 P/TiO 2 exhibited higher guaiacol conversion and lower O : C ratios for C 5+ products, highlighting the enhanced activity and greater selectivity to deoxygenated products derived from the use of an acidic reducible metal-oxide support. The Al 2 O 3 -supported catalysts also exhibited higher conversion than the C-supported catalysts and promoted alkylation reactions, which improve carbon efficiency and increase the carbon number of the C 5+ products. However, Ni/Al 2 O 3 and Rh 2 P/Al 2 O 3 were less selective towards deoxygenated products than the C-supported catalysts. The MgO-supported catalyst exhibited lower conversion and decreased yield of deoxygenated products compared to the C-supported catalysts. The results reported here suggest that basic metal-oxide supports may inhibit deoxygenation of phenolics under CFP conditions. Contrastingly, support acidity and reducibility were demonstrated to promote conversion and selectivity to deoxygenated products, respectively.
Ligand based storage of H-atoms enables the reversible homolysis of water by a T-shaped Ni complex.
In this work, a series of alternating copolymers consisting of vinyl phenol and n-alkyl maleimide was synthesized via radical copolymerization of a protected styrene derivative with a functional maleimide monomer followed by deprotection. Copolymers carrying long alkyl pendants such as C 12 H 25– or C 18 H 37– chains on the maleimide unit showed a UCST-type thermal response in aromatic solvents, and organogels were specifically formed upon cooling of the fluid solution prepared at higher temperatures. Hydrogen bonding of the phenol units is crucial for gelation, and the gelation temperature and stiffness were tunable by varying the concentration, solvent and polymerization degree. Analyses by 1 H-NMR, linear rheology, WAXD, SANS and cryo-TEM gave the picture of vermicular self-assembled nano-objects formed through segregated and hydrogen-bonded packing by the precisely incorporated two units in an alternating sequence.
The trapping effect of Al-dopants on Li-ions is greatly reduced at high Al-dopants due to the delocalization of polarization interactions and the depopulation of oxygen atoms, which results in a smooth energy landscape and destabilization of Li-ions.
A trapped-valent Ce III/IV –TCNQ complex is assembled through Lewis acid-promoted donor–acceptor potential shifts providing a magnetic and luminescent compound.
The collective action of actively contractile units embedded in elastic biopolymer networks plays a crucial role in regulating the network's macroscopic mechanical response. Here, in this study, we investigate how the macroscopic boundary stress in model elastic fiber networks depends on the number and nature of embedded contractile units, each exerting an isotropic force dipole, as well as on the bending stiffness of fibers. We find that the macroscopic stress increases nonlinearly with the number of dipoles due to mutual stiffening of initially soft, bending-dominated networks. Using effective medium theory, we relate this enhanced contractility to an increase in the effective average network coordination number due to constraints imposed by the force dipoles. By comparing three distinct force dipole models that differ in their local structures, we demonstrate that the specific manner in which an active unit constrains the network strongly influences the onset and nature of the stiffening transition. Our results highlight that not only the quantity but also the local geometry of force-generating units critically determines the macroscopic mechanical behavior. This framework provides a physical basis for understanding how biological systems—such as molecular motors in the cytoskeleton, or adherent cells in the extracellular matrix—can modulate network-scale nonlinear elastic properties through local tuning of active force-generating units.