Possibility of the chemical interaction of zinc and tin with silicon and its dioxide

Zinc and tin silicides, the existence of which was not previously established, are synthesized. The synthesis is performed via chemical reactions of a new type involving silicon oxide. The thermodynamic calculation that shows the efficiency of the application of the proposed reactions to obtain silicon from SiO₂ is presented. A brief look is taken at the internal mechanism of the reactions.     

Peculiarities in the work of laser gravitational antennas in the infra-low frequency range

We study the methodology of measuring quasistatic perturbations of geophysical nature in laser gravitational-wave interferometers. We calculate the transfer function of such an instrument in the destructive interference mode (the “dark spot” mode) taking into account the natural asymmetry of the optical Fabry-Perot cavity lengths in its arms. Formulas have been obtained for estimating the output signal power modulation at the frequency of photon circulation in the arms due to geophysical perturbations. The estimates are compared with the results of observations at the LIGO interferometer.     

Polyclonal antibodies from blood and cerebrospinal fluid of patients with multiple sclerosis effectively hydrolyze DNA and RNA

It is known that in the blood of patients with some autoimmune diseases catalytically active antibodies hydrolyzing proteins, DNA, and RNA may be detected. In the present work homogeneous preparations of IgG antibodies (Ab) possessing high affinity for nucleic acids (NA) were obtained for the first time from blood and cerebrospinal fluid of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). The fraction of IgG Ab as well as its Fab fragments and isolated light chains of both kappa- and lambda-types were shown to catalyze effectively the hydrolysis of DNA and RNA. It is shown by different methods that the capability for nucleic acid hydrolysis is an intrinsic property of the polyclonal Ab. NA-hydrolyzing Ab were detected in the blood of 69 of 72 and in the cerebrospinal fluid of 5 of 5 examined MS patients, while they were not detected in the blood of any of 50 healthy donors examined. Comparison of relative rates of RNA hydrolysis and of the substrate specificity in hydrolysis of various model RNAs--cCMP, poly(U), poly(A), and poly(C)--revealed pronounced differences of MS antibodies from ribonucleases of human blood, ribonuclease A, and all earlier described abzymes. The abzymes are usually characterized by relatively low specific activities in comparison with that of normal enzymes catalyzing analogous reactions. Ab from the blood of MS patients are the first example of autoabzymes whose specific activity in RNA hydrolysis is comparable or even higher than that of pancreatic ribonuclease A--one of the most active RNA-hydrolyzing enzymes.     

Absorption and magnetic circular dichroism spectra of nonequilibrium states of hemoproteins. III. Complexes of peroxidase

Absorption and magnetic curcular dichroism spectra of nonequilibrium states of peroxidase and its complexes with F-, N3-, CN- produced by reduction of oxidased forms of proteins by thermalysed electrons at 77 degrees K were studied. Mixtures of high spin and low spin ferroforms were found in nonequilibrium states of peroxidase and complexes with F- and N3-, the content of the high spin ferroform increasing as follows: N3- complex less than peroxidase less than fluorine complex. Only low spin ferroforms was found after low temperature reduction of the cyanide complex. The existence of the low spin ferroform in equilibrium states of peroxidase and its complex with F- was explained by location of iron near the porphyrine plane. In the case of azide and cyanide complexes the existence of the low spin form is due to the presence of these ligands in heme iron's coordination sphere. The temperature relaxation of all nonequilibrium forms was investigated and a possible mechanism of the process is proposed.     

A study of the effect of oxygen on the intensity of erbium photoluminescence in amorphous SiO<Subscript>x</Subscript>:(H,Er) films formed by DC magnetron sputtering

The effect of oxygen on the intensity of erbium photoluminescence at λ=1.54 μm in amorphous a-SiO_x:H(Er) films formed by dc magnetron sputtering was studied. The oxygen content in the gaseous phase ranged from 0.1 to 12 mol %, with other parameters of deposition remaining constant. Analysis of an a-Si:(H, Er, O) system showed that the range of homogeneity of amorphous a-SiO_x:H(Er) is retrograde (T=const). The range of homogeneity can be conventionally divided into two portions, each of which should contain either of two differently charged [Er-O] ⁿ⁻ and [Er-O-Si-O] ^m− clusters (m>n). This inference is confirmed experimentally: in the range of oxygen concentrations amounting to 5.5–8 mol % in the plasma, unusual associative processes take place probably directly above the growing film surface; these processes are caused by the appearance of [Er-O-Si-O] ^m− clusters in the plasma and at the surface. It is these processes that account for the intensification of erbium photoluminescence as the oxygen content increases above 5.5 mol %. __________ Translated from Fizika i Tekhnika Poluprovodnikov, Vol. 37, No. 7, 2003, pp. 853–859. Original Russian Text Copyright ? 2003 by Undalov, Terukov, Gusev, Kudoyarova.