Revealing topology in metals using experimental protocols inspired by K-theory.

Topological metals are conducting materials with gapless band structures and nontrivial edge-localized resonances. Their discovery has proven elusive because traditional topological classification methods require band gaps to define topological robustness. Inspired by recent theoretical developments that leverage techniques from the field of C∗-algebras to identify topological metals, here, we directly observe topological phenomena in gapless acoustic crystals and realize a general experimental technique to demonstrate their topology. Specifically, we not only observe robust boundary-localized states in a topological acoustic metal, but also re-interpret a composite operator-mathematically derived from the K-theory of the problem-as a new Hamiltonian whose physical implementation allows us to directly observe a topological spectral flow and measure the topological invariants. Our observations and experimental protocols may offer insights for discovering topological behaviour across a wide array of artificial and natural materials that lack bulk band gaps.

A polymorphic pentiptycene-containing gold(I) isocyanide complex: solvent- and conformation-dependent supramolecular luminescence.

Four crystalline (pseudo)polymorphs of [Ph-Au-C[triple bond, length as m-dash]N-Phip-OC8H17] (1), where Phip = central phenylene of pentiptycene, reveal that the π-backbone conformation relative to the AuAu bonding axis is important in determining the energy and efficiency of the supramolecular luminescence, which offers mechanistic insights into the luminescence mechanochromism and vapochromism and the solvent-dependent aggregation-induced emission (AIE) of 1.

One-Step Detection of Major Lipid Components in Submicroliter Volumes of Unpurified Liposome and Cell Suspensions.

Liposomes and cells have high lipid contents, which are the main components of the external and internal membranes. Mass spectrometry (MS) is widely used in the analysis of the lipids present in the biological matrixes. However, MS analysis of liposome and cell suspensions is challenging due to the presence of other high-abundance matrix components (e.g., salts, buffers, and growth media) that cause ion suppression. These interfering species would normally be removed by dialysis or centrifugation. Here we propose a simple and fast method to detect major lipid components in cells and cell suspensions by MS while circumventing dialysis and centrifugation. Capillary hydrodynamic chromatography (HDC) has been coupled online with the aid of an electrospray ionization (ESI) interface to an ion-trap mass spectrometer. Complex samples containing bioparticles and a large amount of potential interferences (buffer, inorganic salts, amino acids) were separated hydrodynamically, detected optically (by light absorption/scattering), and immediately transferred to the MS interface. Liposomes and animal cells are disintegrated during electrospray, and the constituent lipids are ionized. The signal-to-noise ratios are ∼10× higher in HDC-ESI-MS than in direct infusion ESI-MS experiments (with or without dilution). This method has been tested on liposomes (containing phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylglycerol) and four types of animal/human cells, i.e., mouse macrophages (RAW 264.7), human breast cancer cells (T47D and Hs578T), and mouse preadipocyte cells (3T3-L1). We suggest that HDC-ESI-MS can be used in quality control analyses of bioparticle suspensions in the fields of biotechnology, molecular biology, drug discovery, and cosmetics.

On-line monitoring of Soxhlet extraction by chromatography and mass spectrometry to reveal temporal extract profiles.

Soxhlet extraction is a popular sample preparation technique used in chemical analysis. It enables liberation of molecules embedded in complex matrices (for example, plant tissues, foodstuffs). In most protocols, samples are analyzed after the extraction process is complete. However, in order to optimize extraction conditions and enable comparisons between different types of extraction, it would be desirable to monitor it in real time. The main development of this work is the design and construction of the interface between Soxhlet extractor and GC-MS as well as ESI-MS system. The temporal extract profiles, obtained in the course of real-time GC-MS monitoring, have been fitted with mathematical functions to analyze extraction kinetics of different analytes. For example, the mass transfer coefficients of pinene, limonene and terpinene in lemon sample, estimated using the first-order kinetic model, are 0.540h(-1), 0.507h(-1) and 0.722h(-1), respectively. On the other hand, the Peleg model provides the following extraction rates of pinene, limonene and terpinene: 0.370nMh(-1), 0.216nMh(-1) and 0.596nMh(-1), respectively. The results suggest that both first-order kinetic and Peleg equations can be used to describe the progress of Soxhlet extraction. On-line monitoring of Soxhlet extraction reveals extractability of various analytes present in natural samples (plant tissue), and can potentially facilitate optimization of the extraction process.