The three-component mixture showing the V-shaped switching in a rubbing cell is investigated using a temperature gradient cell (TGC) where the epitaxial method of alignment, but without an alignment layer, is used. The molecular alignment and the switching characteristics in a TGC are compared with the rubbing sandwich and the open cells. The uniform or the twisted state is observed in the TGC,...

Scanning-tunneling spectroscopy at 5 K was used to investigate the electrostatic potential profile on the Si(111)-square root of 3 x square root of 3 Ag surface at subnanometer spatial resolution. The potential was measured from an energy-level shift of electronic states on the surface. The potential images obtained reveal that the potential drops around the steps and Ag adsorbates, upon which ...

The effects of strontium (Sr2+; 7-50 mM) on five different cloned rat K channels (Kv1.1, Kv1.5, Kv1.6, Kv2.1, and Kv3.4), expressed in oocytes of Xenopus laevis, were investigated with a two-electrode voltage clamp technique. The main effect was a shift of the Gk(V) curve along the potential axis, different in size for the different channels. Kv1.1 was shifted most and Kv3.4 least, 21 and 8 mV,...

Micrometer-sized particles adhered to a surface can be released when exposed to plasma. In an experiment with a glass surface coated with lunar-simulant dust, it was found that particle release requires exposure to both plasma and an electron beam. The dust release rate diminishes almost exponentially in time, which is consistent with a random process. As proposed here, charges of particles adh...

Titanium and fluoride-containing hydroxyl apatite were synthesized through precipitation method following by a hydrothermal stage at 100oC for 6 hours. XRD analysis of the sample scalcinedat650oC for 1 hour revealed that all samples have pure apatite structure. The existence of Fluoride substitution in apatite structure was confirmed by FTIR(Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy) analysis. Su...

Coulomb repulsion due to the surface charge on semi-conductor nanorods works against the dipole-dipole attraction that tends to direct the nanorods to self-assemble; the nature of this self-assembly for CdSe nanorods can be thus altered by pyridine washing, which charges the rods surface--thereby allowing the Coulomb repulsion to tailor the alignment.

Changes of the electrical charges across the surface cell membrane are absolutely necessary to maintain cellular homeostasis in physiological as well as in pathological conditions. The opening of ion channels alter the charge distribution across the surface membrane as they allow the diffusion of ions such as K+, Ca++, Cl.

Much progress has been achieved on quantitative assessment of electrostatic interactions on the all-atom level by molecular mechanics and dynamics, as well as on the macroscopic level by models of continuum solvation. Bridging of the two representations-an area of active research-is necessary for studying integrated functions of large systems of biological importance. Following perspectives of ...

A bright blue fluorescent graphene oxide that originates from passivation of surface reactive sites by amide formation and ring-opening amination of epoxide has been prepared. The surface polarity and charges of the fluorescent graphene oxide can synchronously be tuned by varying the used alkylamines.

The pairwise descreening approximation provides a rapid computational algorithm for the evaluation of solute shape effects on electrostatic contributions to solvation energies. In this article we show that solvation models based on this algorithm are useful for predicting free energies of solvation across a wide range of solute functionalities, and we present six new general parametrizations of...