Ambipolar transport and magneto-resistance crossover in a Mott insulator, Sr2IrO4.

Electric field effect (EFE) controlled magnetoelectric transport in thin films of undoped and La-doped Sr2IrO4 (SIO) is investigated using ionic liquid gating. The temperature dependent resistance measurements exhibit insulating behavior in chemically and EFE doped samples with the band filling up to 10%. The ambipolar transport across the Mott gap is demonstrated by EFE tuning of the channel resistance and chemical doping. We observe a crossover from high temperature negative to low temperature positive magnetoresistance around ∼80-90 K, irrespective of the filling. This temperature and magnetic field dependent crossover is discussed in the light of conduction mechanisms of SIO, especially variable range hopping (VRH), and its relevance to the insulating ground state of SIO.

Lessons from the confidential enquiry into maternal deaths, Malaysia.

Malaysia has successfully reduced maternal mortality through several efforts which, in the broad sense, include (i) the overall socio-economic development of the country; (ii) strengthened health services; and (iii) specific efforts and initiatives for the reduction of maternal mortality, one of which is the audit of maternal deaths by the confidential enquiry into maternal deaths.

Antioxidant, DNA binding and nuclease activities of heteroleptic copper(II) complexes derived from 2-((2-(piperazin-1-yl)ethylimino)methyl)-4-substituted phenols and diimines.

A series of heteroleptic copper(II) complexes of the type [CuL(1-4)(diimine)](ClO4)2 (1-8) [L(1-4)=2-((2-(piperazin-1-yl)ethylimino)methyl)-4-substituted phenols, and diimine=2,2'-bipyridyl (bpy) or 1,10-phenanthroline (phen)], have been synthesized and characterized by spectroscopic methods. The IR spectra of complexes indicate the presence of uncoordinated perchlorate anions and the electronic spectra revealed the square pyramidal geometry with N4O coordination environment around copper(II) nuclei. Electrochemical studies of the mononuclear complexes evidenced one-electron irreversible reduction wave in the cathodic region. The EPR spectra of complexes with g|| (2.206-2.214) and A|| (154-172×10(-)(4)cm(-)(1)) values support the square-based CuN3O coordination chromophore and the presence of unpaired electron localized in [Formula: see text] ground state. Antioxidant studies against DPPH revealed effective radical scavenging properties of the synthesized complexes. Binding studies suggest that the heteroleptic copper(II) complexes interact with calf thymus DNA (CT-DNA) through minor-groove and electrostatic interaction, and all the complexes display pronounced nuclease activity against supercoiled pBR322 DNA.

An apparatus for simultaneous measurement of electrical conductivity and thermopower of thin films in the temperature range of 300-750 K.

An automated apparatus capable of measuring the electrical conductivity and thermopower of thin films over a temperature range of 300-750 K is reported. A standard dc resistance measurement in van der Pauw geometry was used to evaluate the electrical conductivity, and the thermopower was measured using the differential method. The design of the instrument, the methods used for calibration, and the measurement procedure are described in detail. Given the lack of a standard National Institute of Standards and Technology (Gaithersburg, Md.) sample for high temperature thermopower calibration, the disclosed calibration procedure shall be useful for calibration of new instruments.

A novel polymer nanotube composite for photovoltaic packaging applications.

Packaging of organic photovoltaic (OPV) devices is an important issue which has been rarely addressed in the past. With the recent reports of high efficiency organic photovoltaics (6%), the need to produce materials which can effectively protect the device from degradation due to exposure to oxygen, moisture and radiation is pressing. We report a novel Saran (a co-polymer of vinylidene chloride and acrylonitrile) based polymer nanotube composite, which shows high transparency in the visible region, good barrier properties and thermal stability, for use as an encapsulant for OPV devices. Different loadings of Saran and boron nitride nanotubes were taken and the composites were prepared to optimize the composition of the composite. UV-visible spectroscopy, infra-red spectroscopy and thermal analysis were used to characterize the composite. The barrier properties of the composite were tested on poly(3-hexylthiophene), which is used in high efficiency OPV devices.