Phase dependent structural and electronic properties of lanthanum orthophosphate (LaPO4).

We study the phase-dependent structural and electronic properties of bulk LaPO4, using density functional theory (DFT). The applicability of conventional semi-local and hybrid functionals in predicting structural and electronic properties of monoclinic and hexagonal LaPO4 is evaluated by comparing results to available experimental data. The monoclinic LaPO4 was found to be more stable than the hexagonal phase in ambient conditions with a small energy difference, suggesting a possibility of a phase transition.

Förster Resonance Energy Transfer between Core/Shell Quantum Dots and Bacteriorhodopsin.

An energy transfer relationship between core-shell CdSe/ZnS quantum dots (QDs) and the optical protein bacteriorhodopsin (bR) is shown, demonstrating a distance-dependent energy transfer with 88.2% and 51.1% of the QD energy being transferred to the bR monomer at separation distances of 3.

Vacuum Squeezing of Solids: Macroscopic Quantum States Driven by Light Pulses.

Femtosecond laser pulses and coherent two-phonon Raman scattering were used to excite KTaO3 into a squeezed state, nearly periodic in time, in which the variance of the atomic displacements dips below the standard quantum limit for half of a cycle. This nonclassical state involves a continuum of transverse acoustic modes that leads to oscillations in the refractive index associated with the frequency of a van Hove singularity in the phonon density of states.

The effect of a variable dielectric coefficient and finite ion size on Poisson-Boltzmann calculations of DNA-electrolyte systems.

The results of variable dielectric coefficient Poisson-Boltzmann calculations of the counter-ion concentration in the vicinity of an all-atom model of the B-form of DNA are presented with an emphasis on the importance of spatial variations in the dielectric properties of the solvent, particularly at the macro-ion-solvent interface. Calculations of the distribution of hard-sphere electrolyte ions of various dimensions are reported. The presence of a dielectric boundary significantly increases the magnitude of the electrostatic potential with a concomitant increase in the accumulation of small counter-ions in the groove regions of DNA.

The conformation of a large RNA fragment from the E.coli ribosomal 16S-RNA. An X-ray and neutron small-angle scattering study.

A large 12S RNA fragment which constitutes the 5' two-thirds of 16S-RNA from the E. coli 30S subunit has been investigated by small-angle X-ray and neutron scattering. The results indicate that in reconstitution buffer the 12S-RNA fragment has a molecular weight of 270,000 +/- 20,000 and a radius of gyration of 7.