Dielectric Constant Epsilon Research Articles

Sintering conditions of cordierite for microwave/millimeterwave dielectrics

With the advent of ubiquitous age, the high-quality, dielectric materials have been required for the applications of wireless communications available to millimeterwave as well as microwave frequencies such as ultra-high speed local area network (LAN), electronic toll collection (ETS), and car anticollision systems on the intelligent transport system (ITS), and so on. Cordierite (Mg(2)Al(4)Si(5)O(18)), which is one of the silicates, is a good candidate for microwave/ millimeterwave dielectrics due to low dielectric constant epsilon(r) and low loss. This study is focused on optimization of the sintering condition of cordierite. A single phase of cordierite could be obtained from the powders calcined from 1355 degrees C to 1375 degrees C for 3 hours, and the samples sintered from 1375 degrees C to 1440 degrees C for 2 hours. The highest relative density of 98.7% was obtained for the samples sintered at 1440 degrees C for 2 hours. The dielectric constant and the quality factor of cordierite depend on the sintering temperatures. The density also was improved to 2.51 g/cm(3) by a slower heating and cooling rate of 3 degrees C/minute. The microwave dielectric properties are as follows: epsilon(r) = 6.14, Q . f = 59682 GHz, and tau(f) = -26.1 ppm/ degrees C.

Piezoelectric properties of (K,Na)NbO 3 thin films deposited on (001)SrRuO 3/Pt/MgO substrates

(K(x),Na(1-x))NbO(3) (KNN) thin films were deposited on (001)SrRuO(3)/(001)Pt/(001)MgO substrates by RF-magnetron sputtering, and their piezoelectric properties were investigated. The x-ray diffraction measurements indicated that the KNN thin films were epitaxially grown with the c-axis orientation in the perovskite tetragonal system. The lattice constant of the c-axis increased with increasing concentrations of potassium. The KNN thin films showed typical ferroelectric behavior; the relative dielectric constant epsilon(r) was 270 to approximately 320. The piezoelectric properties were measured from the tip displacement of the KNN/MgO unimorph cantilevers; the transverse piezoelectric coefficient epsilon*(31) (= d(31)/s(E)(11)) of KNN (x = 0) thin films was calculated to be -0.9 C/m(2). On the other hand, doping of potassium caused an increase in the piezoelectric properties, and the KNN (x = 0.16) films showed a relatively large transverse piezoelectricity of epsilon*(31) = -2.4 C/m(2).

Estimation of zeta potential of electroosmotic flow in a microchannel using a reduced-order model

A reduced-order model is derived for electroosmotic flow in a microchannel of nonuniform cross section using the Karhunen-Loève Galerkin (KLG) procedure. The resulting reduced-order model is shown to predict electroosmotic flows accurately with minimal consumption of computer time for a wide range of zeta potential zeta and dielectric constant epsilon. Using the reduced-order model, a practical method is devised to estimate zeta from the velocity measurements of the electroosmotic flow in the microchannel. The proposed method is found to estimate zeta with reasonable accuracy even with noisy velocity measurements.

The dielectric virial expansion and the models of dipolar hard-sphere fluid

The virial expansion technique to determine the dielectric constant epsilon of dipolar hard-sphere fluid is developed. It is shown that the formalism allows to bring into agreement the results of Debye's, Onsager's, and Langevin's to the problem. The third virial coefficient of epsilon is considered as a series over dipolar parameter lambda=m(2)d(3)kT. The terms up to O(lambda(11)) are calculated analytically providing a correct description of the third virial coefficient for small and intermediate values of lambda (0<or=lambda<or=4). The results of the dielectric virial series are compared with the Monte Carlo data for epsilon found by Matyushov and Ladanyi [J. Chem. Phys. 110, 994 (1999)]. The theory is in agreement with simulations only at small values of lambda<or=2. At higher polarities, the virial series diverges. Realization of the renormalization procedure permits to enlarge the range of applicability of the virial series. In this way, the new expression for the dielectric constant as a function of two dipolar parameters, lambda and y=4 pi nm(2)9kT, has been found explicitly. The expression gives a perfect upper bound of the dielectric constant and is more reliable for determination of epsilon than the previously known ones.

Structure and Dynamics in Self-Organized C60 Fullerenes

This manuscript on 'structure and dynamics in self-organized C60 fullerenes' has three sections dealing with: (A) pristine C60 aggregate structure and geometry in solvents of varying dielectric constant. Here, using positronium (Ps) as a fundamental probe which maps changes in the local electron density of the microenvironment, the onset concentration for stable C60 aggregate formation and its phase behavior is deduced from the specific interactions of the Ps atom with the surrounding. (B) A novel methanofullerene dyad, based on a hydrophobic (acceptor C60 moiety)-hydrophilic (bridge with benzene and ester functionalities)-hydrophobic (donor didodecyloxybenzene) network is chosen for investigation of characteristic self-assembly it undergoes leading to supramolecular aggregates. The pi-electronic amphiphile, necessitating a critical dielectric constant epsilon > or = 30 in binary THF-water mixtures, dictated the formation of bilayer vesicles as precursors for spherical fractal aggregates upon complete dyad extraction into a more polar water phase. (C) While the molecular orientation is dependent on the packing density, the ordering of the molecular arrangement, indispensable for self-assembly depends on the balance between the structures demanded by inter-molecular and molecule-substrate interactions. The molecular orientation in a monolayer affects the orientation in a multilayer, formed on the monolayer, suggesting the possibility of the latter to act as a template for controlling the structure of the three dimensionally grown self-assembled molecular aggregation. A systematic study on the electronic structure and orientation associated with C60 functionalized aminothiol self-assembled monolayers on Au(111) surface is presented using surface sensitive Ultra-Violet Photoelectron Spectroscopy (UPS) and C-K edge Near-Edge X-ray Absorption Fine Structure (NEXAFS) spectroscopy. The results revealed drastic modifications to d-band structure of Au(111) and the electronic structure was found sensitive towards the S-Au interface and the C60 end functional moiety with formation of localized sigma-(S-Au) and sigma(N-C) bonds, respectively. Upon binding C60 to the amine-terminated alkanethiol SAM, a drastically reduced HOMO-LUMO gap of 2.7 eV as compared to a large electronic gap of approximately 8 eV in alkanethiols enables the SAM to be a potential electron transport medium.

Simulation studies of ionic liquids: Orientational correlations and static dielectric properties

The ionic liquids BMIM+I-, BMIM+BF4-, and BMIM+PF6- were simulated by means of the molecular dynamics method over a time period of more than 100 ns. Besides the common structural analysis, e.g., radial distribution functions and three dimensional occupancy plots, a more sophisticated orientational analysis was performed. The angular correlation functions g(00)110(r) and g(00)101(r) are the first distance dependent coefficients of the pairwise orientational distribution function g(rij,Omega1,Omega2,Omega12). These functions help to interpret the three dimensional plot and reveal interesting insights into the local structure of the analyzed ionic liquids. Furthermore, the collective network of ionic liquids can be characterized by the Kirkwood factor Gkappa(r) [J. Chem. Phys. 7, 911 (1939)]. The short-range behavior (r<10 A) of this factor may be suitable to predict the water miscibility of the ionic liquid. The long-range limit of Gkinfinity is below 1 which demonstrates the strongly coupled nature of the ionic liquid networks. In addition, this factor relates the orientational structure and the dielectric properties of the ionic liquids. The static dielectric constant epsilon(omega=0) for the simulated system is 8.9-9.5. Since in ionic liquids the very same molecule contributes to the total dipole moment as well as carries a net charge, a small, but significant contribution of the cross term between the total dipole moment and the electric current to epsilon(omega=0) is observed.

Improved electronic structure and optical properties of sp-hybridized semiconductors using LDA+U SIC

We propose the local density approximation (LDA) plus an on-site Coulomb self-interaction-like correction (SIC) potential for describing sp-hybridized bonds in semiconductors and insulators. We motivate the present LDA+U SIC scheme by comparing the exact exchange (EXX) hole with the LDA exchange hole. The LDA+U SIC method yields good band-gap energies Eg and dielectric constants epsilon(omega ~ 0) of Si, Ge, GaAs, and ZnSe. We also show that LDA consistently underestimates the gamma-point effective electron m c and light-hole m lh masses, and the underlying reason for this is a too strong light-hole-electron coupling within LDA. The advantages of the LDA+U SIC approach are a computational time of the same order as the ordinary LDA, the orbital dependent LDA+U SIC exchange-correlation interaction is asymmetric analogously to the EXX potential, and the method can be used for materials and compounds involving localized d- and f-orbitals.

Effect of organic cosolvent on kinetic resolution of tert-leucine by penicillin G acylase from Kluyvera citrophila

Penicillin G acylase (PGA) from Kluyvera citrophila immobilized on Amberzyml was used for enantioselective hydrolysis of N-phenylacetylated-DL-tert-leucine (N-Phac-DL-Tle) to produce L-tert-leucine (L-Tle). The effects of various organic cosolvents on hydrolysis of N-Phac-DL-Tle have been investigated in aqueous-cosolvent medium. It was founded that the rate of PGA-catalyzed reaction was significantly affected by the presence of 2% (v/v) organic cosolvent concentration. The initial rate fell with increasing logP of the cosolvent, but for logP values less than -0.24 the rate was faster than in purely aqueous medium. Additionally, the relative rate increases with the increase of dielectric constant (epsilon) of organic cosolvents. The yields of L-Tle in all aqueous-cosolvent systems were above 95% with the enantiomeric excess (ee) of >99%.

How Polar Are Ionic Liquids? Determination of the Static Dielectric Constant of an Imidazolium-based Ionic Liquid by Microwave Dielectric Spectroscopy

In a pilot study of the dielectric constant of room-temperature ionic liquids, we use dielectric spectroscopy in the megahertz/gigahertz regime to determine the complex dielectric function of five 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium salts, from which the static dielectric constant epsilon is obtained by zero-frequency extrapolation. The results classify the salts as moderately polar solvents. The observed epsilon-values at 298.15 K fall between 15.2 and 8.8, and epsilon decreases with increasing chain length of the alkyl residue of the cation. The anion sequence is trifluoromethylsulfonate > tetrafluoroborate approximately tetrafluorophosphate. The results indicate markedly lower polarities than found by spectroscopy with polarity-sensitive solvatochromic dyes.

Dielectric Control of Counterion-Induced Single-Chain Folding Transition of DNA

In the presence of condensing agents, single chains of giant double-stranded DNA undergo a first-order phase transition between an elongated coil state and a folded compact state. To connect this like-charged attraction phenomenon to counterion condensation, we performed a series of single-chain experiments on aqueous solutions of DNA, where we varied the extent of counterion condensation by varying the relative dielectric constant epsilon(r) from 80 to 170. Single-chain observations of changes in the conformation of giant DNA were performed by transmission electron microscopy and fluorescence microscopy, with tetravalent spermine (SPM(4+)) as a condensing agent. At a fixed dielectric constant, single DNA chains fold into a compact state upon the addition of spermine, whereas at a constant spermine concentration single DNA chains unfold with an increase in epsilon(r). In both cases, the transition is largely discrete at the level of single chains. We found that the critical concentration of spermine necessary to induce the single-chain folding transition increases exponentially as the dielectric constant increases, corresponding to 87-88% of the DNA charge neutralized at the onset of the transition. We also observed that the toroidal morphology of compact DNA partially unfolds when epsilon(r) is increased.

Resonant add-drop filter based on a photonic quasicrystal

We present a numerical study of optical properties of an octagonal quasi-periodic lattice of dielectric rods. We report on a complete photonic bandgap in TM polarization up to extremely low dielectric constants of rods. The first photonic bandgap remains open down to dielectric constant as small as epsilon = 1.6 (n = 1.26). The properties of an optical microcavity and waveguides are examined for the system of rods with dielectric constant epsilon = 5.0 (n = 2.24) in order to design an add-drop filter. Proposed add-drop filter is numerically characterized and further optimized for efficient operation. The two-dimensional finite difference time domain method was exploited for numerical calculations. We provide a numerical evidence of effective add-drop filter based on low index material, thus opening further opportunities for application of low refractive index materials in photonic bandgap optics.

Synthesis and characterization of some PLNZT ceramics

Powder of sodium doped polycrystalline samples of PLZT with composition Pb-0.98(La1-x/3Nax)(0.02)(Zr-0.53 Ti-0.47)(0.9950) .O-3 (PLNZT) with x = 0.5 was systematically prepared using spray drying technique. Rhombohedral phase of PLNZT compound has been confirmed after being calcined at 800 degreesC. IDTA-TGA and XRD studies were used to characterize the compound synthesized. SEM was used for micro-structural evaluation. The dielectric constant (epsilon) and loss tangent (tan delta) of the compound were studied at different temperatures at 10 kHz frequency, which suggests that the compound undergoes a ferro-electric phase transition of diffuse type. (C) 2004 Kluwer Academic Publishers.

Prediction of membrane protein structures by replica-exchange Monte Carlo simulations: case of two helices.

We test our prediction method of membrane protein structures with glycophorin A transmembrane dimer and analyze the predicted structures in detail. Our method consists of two parts. In the first part, we obtain the amino-acid sequences of the transmembrane helix regions from one of existing WWW servers and use them as an input for the second part of our method. In the second part, we perform a replica-exchange Monte Carlo simulation of these transmembrane helices with some constraints that indirectly represent surrounding lipid and water effects and identify the predicted structure as the global-minimum-energy state. The structure obtained in the case for the dielectric constant epsilon=1.0 is very close to that from the nuclear magnetic resonance experiments, while that for epsilon=4.0 is more packed than the native one. Our results imply that the helix-helix interaction is the main driving force for the native structure formation and that the stability of the native structure is determined by the balance of the electrostatic term, van der Waals term, and torsion term, and the contribution of electrostatic energy is indeed important for correct predictions. The inclusion of atomistic details of side chains is essential for estimating this balance accurately because helices are tightly packed.

Factors governing the kinetic competition of nitrogen and sulfur ligands in cisplatin binding to biological targets.

The kinetic competition of sulfur and nitrogen nucleophiles L in the substitution reactions of cisplatin derivatives, cis-[Pt(II)(NH(3))(2)(X)(OH(2))](n)(+) + L --> cis-[Pt(II)(NH(3))(2)(X)(L)](m)(+) + H(2)O (X = Cl(-), H(2)O), has been studied using density functional theory and continuum dielectric calculations. The calculations reveal an intrinsic kinetic preference of platinum(II) for nitrogen over sulfur ligands. However, biologically relevant substituents can mask this preference for nitrogen nucleophiles. Investigation of the activation free energies of the substitution reactions in dependence of the dielectric constant epsilon demonstrates the microenvironment to be crucial in the binding of cisplatin to its intracellular targets. The fused aromatic heterocycle of guanine stabilizes the transition state for platination at a smaller epsilon more efficiently than do the functional groups of amino acid residues. The results of this work suggest a relatively facile platination of guanine-N7 sites of DNA in regions of low epsilon, particularly in the proximity of histone cores.

The Decamethylferrocene(+/0) Electrode Reaction in Organic Solvents at Variable Pressure and Temperature

Half-wave potentials E(1/2) relative to a Ag/Ag(+) electrode, mean diffusion coefficients D, and standard electrode reaction rate constants k(el) are reported for the decamethylferrocene(+/0) couple (DmFc(+/0)) in nine organic solvents at variable pressure and (for five solvents) temperature. Limited data on the ferrocene(+/0) (Fc(+/0)) and Fe(phen)(3)(3+/2+) electrode reactions are included for comparison. Although E(1/2) for DmFc(+/0) correlates only loosely with the reciprocal of the solvent dielectric constant epsilon at ambient pressure, its pressure dependence expressed as the volume of reaction Delta V(cell) is a linear function of Phi = (1/epsilon)( partial differential ln epsilon/ partial differential P)(T) (the Drude-Nernst relation). Interpretation of the temperature dependence data is made difficult by enthalpy-entropy compensation. Measurements of D for solutions containing 0.5 mol L(-1) tetrabutylammonium perchlorate (TBAP) at 25 degrees C and ambient pressure are inversely proportional to the viscosities eta of the pure solvents as expected from the Stokes-Einstein relation, despite the fact that increasing [TBAP] results in increased eta. The activation volume Delta V(diff)(++) for diffusion of DmFc(+/0) ranges from 7 to 17 cm(3) mol(-1) and generally increases with increasing eta and thus with increasing [TBAP]. The activation volumes Delta V(el)(++) for the electrode reactions of DmFc(+/0) and Fc(+/0) are all positive, equaling the corresponding Delta V(diff)(++) values within the experimental uncertainty and contrast sharply with the negative Delta V(ex)(++) values characteristic of the corresponding self-exchange reactions in homogeneous solution. These facts, together with the thermal activation parameters, point to solvent dynamical control of the electrode (but not the homogeneous self-exchange) reactions. The apparent radii of the electroactive species according to the Drude-Nernst and Stokes-Einstein relations cannot be satisfactorily related to their crystallographic radii and are better regarded as adjustable parameters with limited physical significance.

Exchange interaction effects on the optical properties of LuMnO3.

We have measured the optical conductivity of single crystal LuMnO3 from 10 to 45000 cm(-1) at temperatures between 4 and 300 K. A symmetry allowed on-site Mn d-d transition near 1.7 eV is observed to blueshift ( approximately 0.1 eV) in the antiferromagnetic state due to Mn-Mn superexchange interactions. Similar anomalies are observed in the temperature dependence of the TO phonon frequencies which arise from spin-phonon interaction. We find that the known anomaly in the temperature dependence of the quasistatic dielectric constant epsilon(0) below T(N) approximately 90 K is overwhelmingly dominated by the phonon contributions.

Performance of hybrid methods for large-scale unconstrained optimization as applied to models of proteins.

Energy minimization plays an important role in structure determination and analysis of proteins, peptides, and other organic molecules; therefore, development of efficient minimization algorithms is important. Recently, Morales and Nocedal developed hybrid methods for large-scale unconstrained optimization that interlace iterations of the limited-memory BFGS method (L-BFGS) and the Hessian-free Newton method (Computat Opt Appl 2002, 21, 143-154). We test the performance of this approach as compared to those of the L-BFGS algorithm of Liu and Nocedal and the truncated Newton (TN) with automatic preconditioner of Nash, as applied to the protein bovine pancreatic trypsin inhibitor (BPTI) and a loop of the protein ribonuclease A. These systems are described by the all-atom AMBER force field with a dielectric constant epsilon = 1 and a distance-dependent dielectric function epsilon = 2r, where r is the distance between two atoms. It is shown that for the optimal parameters the hybrid approach is typically two times more efficient in terms of CPU time and function/gradient calculations than the two other methods. The advantage of the hybrid approach increases as the electrostatic interactions become stronger, that is, in going from epsilon = 2r to epsilon = 1, which leads to a more rugged and probably more nonlinear potential energy surface. However, no general rule that defines the optimal parameters has been found and their determination requires a relatively large number of trial-and-error calculations for each problem.

Development of a dielectric equivalent gel for better impedance matching for human skin.

It would be useful to develop a tissue equivalent gel to improve the uniformity of the electromagnetic field in the human body, and for making a tissue equivalent dielectric human phantom. In this study, solid type, water based gelatin-honey gels were developed which have the electrical characteristics of skin tissue. It was demonstrated that a stable and homogeneous gel, with a relative dielectric constant epsilon ' chosen from desired ranges found in skin, can be made for 200-400 MHz.

Dopant-dependent reflectivity and refractive index of microcrystalline HxWO3 and LixWO3 bronze thin films.

Reflectivity spectra of HxWO3 and LiWO3 thin films were measured over the photon energy range from 0.4 to 4.2 eV. It was found that microcrystalline tungsten bronzes have reflectances of 8%-30% over the dopant concentration range x (0 < or = x < or = 0.25). Values for the real part of refractive index n were also determined from the refined reflectivity data. The optical data are interpreted by use of a modified Drude-Zener model together with a single-oscillator model to differentiate between bound and free electronic states. The values of high-frequency dielectric constant epsilon(hf) of MxWO3 (M = H+, Li+) bronzes were determined from the refractive-index data for estimation of the effective electronic masses involved in optical and polaronic transitions. A single-oscillator model showed that oscillator energy Ea and dispersion energy Ed increased and decreased, respectively, with increasing x values, opposite what occurs in crystalline tungsten bronzes. These findings support the fact that Bloch electrons are almost absent; instead, the polaronic species (W5+ and W4+) are assumed to control the reflectivity modifications (or variations in the refractive index) that are associated with the microcrystalline tungsten bronzes.

On the competition of the purine bases, functionalities of peptide side chains, and protecting agents for the coordination sites of dicationic cisplatin derivatives.

The Pt-L bond energies of simple triammineplatinum(II) complexes, [Pt(NH(3))(3)L](2+), with oxygen-, nitrogen-, and sulfur-containing donor ligands L have been predicted and rationalized using density functional theory. The ligands L have been chosen as models for functionalities of peptide side chains, for sulfur-containing protecting agents, and for adenine and guanine sites of the DNA as the ultimate target of platinum anticancer drugs. Calculation of the Pt-L bond energy in [Pt(NH(3))(3)L](2+) reveals that the soft metal center of triammineplatinum(II) prefers N ligands over S ligands. This remarkable result has been discussed in light of several interpretations of the hard and soft acids and bases principle. The concept of orbital-symmetry-based energy decomposition has been employed for the determination of the contributions from sigma and pi orbital interactions, electrostatics, and intramolecular hydrogen bonding to the Pt-L bond energy. The calculations show that considerable differences in the bond energies of the triammineplatinum(II) complexes with N-heterocycles such as 1-methylimidazole, 9-methyladenine, and 9-methylguanine arise from electrostatics rather than from orbital interactions. Surprisingly, the net stabilization by hydrogen bonding between the (Pt)N-H group and the oxygen of 9-methylguanine is as weak as the intramolecular hydrogen bond in the aqua complex [Pt(NH(3))(3)(H(2)O)](2+), challenging the common hypothesis that DNA-active anticancer drugs require carrier ligands with N-H functionalities because of their hydrogen-bonding ability. The influence of a polarizable environment on the stability of the complexes has been investigated systematically with the dependence of the dielectric constant epsilon. With increasing epsilon, the complexes with S-containing ligands are more strongly stabilized than the complexes of the N-containing heterocycles. At epsilon = 78.4, the dielectric constant of water, 9-methylguanine remains the only purine derivative investigated which is competitive to neutral sulfur ligands. These findings are particularly important for a rationalization of the results from recent experimental studies on the competition of biological donor ligands L for coordination with the metal center of [Pt(dien)L](2+) (dien = 1,5-diamino 3-azapentane).