Antibacterial Au nanostructured surfaces.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Songmei; Zuber, Flavia; Brugger, Juergen; Maniura-Weber, Katharina; Ren, Qun

2016-02-07

We present here a technological platform for engineering Au nanotopographies by templated electrodeposition on antibacterial surfaces. Three different types of nanostructures were fabricated: nanopillars, nanorings and nanonuggets. The nanopillars are the basic structures and are 50 nm in diameter and 100 nm in height. Particular arrangement of the nanopillars in various geometries formed nanorings and nanonuggets. Flat surfaces, rough substrate surfaces, and various nanostructured surfaces were compared for their abilities to attach and kill bacterial cells. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, a Gram-positive bacterial strain responsible for many infections in health care system, was used as the model bacterial strain. It was found that all the Au nanostructures, regardless their shapes, exhibited similar excellent antibacterial properties. A comparison of live cells attached to nanotopographic surfaces showed that the number of live S. aureus cells was flat and rough reference surfaces. Our micro/nanofabrication process is a scalable approach based on cost-efficient self-organization and provides potential for further developing functional surfaces to study the behavior of microbes on nanoscale topographies.

Radiation-Engineered Functionalized Nanogels as Platform for Biomedical Nanocarriers and Bio-Hybrid, Hierarchically Assembled Nanostructures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dispenza, C.; Sabatino, M.-A.; Alessi, S.; Spadaro, G.

2011-01-01

Radiation technologies can be considered as choice methodologies for the creation of new functional materials at the nanoscale, the challenge being now the integration of these and other novel nanomaterials into new materials and products. The possibility of generating nanoscalar PVP-based hydrogels particles, with reactive functional groups for subsequent bioconjugation, using industrial type accelerators has been demonstrated. These functional nanoparticles are under evaluation as nanocarriers for targeted release of drugs, but can also be considered as useful building blocks for the assembly of nanostructured materials with controlled architecture. In particular, molecular recognition strategies can be developed to tailor the structural and functional properties of the composite by attaching complementary sequences of molecules from biological source (peptides or oligonucleotides) that will tie nanoparticles together. Under the present CRP, biodegradable nanoparticles will be developed using xyloglucan, a relatively inexpensive polysaccharide as base material, in alternative to PVP. Chemical modification of xyloglucan will be attempted with the purpose of generating radiation cleavable crosslinked micro/nanoparticles. These micro/nanoparticles will incorporate stabilizers (antioxidants, such as quercetin) or pro-degrading agents (enzymes) and will be either dispersed into a biodegradable film forming polymer or self-assembled to form a supramolecular networked film or scaffold. For the purpose, suitable surface modification will be pursued either to promote compatibilisation with the matrix polymer or to efficiently drive the self-assembly process. UV or quantum beam irradiation will be investigated as trigger for the release of the entrapped actives from micro/nanoparticles. (author)

Radiation-Engineered Functionalized Nanogels as Platform for Biomedical Nanocarriers and Bio-Hybrid, Hierarchically Assembled Nanostructures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dispenza, C.; Sabatino, M. -A.; Alessi, S.; Spadaro, G.

2011-07-01

Radiation technologies can be considered as choice methodologies for the creation of new functional materials at the nanoscale, the challenge being now the integration of these and other novel nanomaterials into new materials and products. The possibility of generating nanoscalar PVP-based hydrogels particles, with reactive functional groups for subsequent bioconjugation, using industrial type accelerators has been demonstrated. These functional nanoparticles are under evaluation as nanocarriers for targeted release of drugs, but can also be considered as useful building blocks for the assembly of nanostructured materials with controlled architecture. In particular, molecular recognition strategies can be developed to tailor the structural and functional properties of the composite by attaching complementary sequences of molecules from biological source (peptides or oligonucleotides) that will tie nanoparticles together. Under the present CRP, biodegradable nanoparticles will be developed using xyloglucan, a relatively inexpensive polysaccharide as base material, in alternative to PVP. Chemical modification of xyloglucan will be attempted with the purpose of generating radiation cleavable crosslinked micro/nanoparticles. These micro/nanoparticles will incorporate stabilizers (antioxidants, such as quercetin) or pro-degrading agents (enzymes) and will be either dispersed into a biodegradable film forming polymer or self-assembled to form a supramolecular networked film or scaffold. For the purpose, suitable surface modification will be pursued either to promote compatibilisation with the matrix polymer or to efficiently drive the self-assembly process. UV or quantum beam irradiation will be investigated as trigger for the release of the entrapped actives from micro/nanoparticles. (author)

Optical function of bionic nanostructure of ZnO

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Xu, C X [Advanced Photonics Center, School of Electronic Science and Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096 (China); Zhu, G P [Advanced Photonics Center, School of Electronic Science and Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096 (China); Liu, Y J [School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Nanyang Avenue, 639798 (Singapore); Sun, X W [Advanced Photonics Center, School of Electronic Science and Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096 (China); Li, X [Advanced Photonics Center, School of Electronic Science and Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096 (China); Liu, J P [Advanced Photonics Center, School of Electronic Science and Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096 (China); Cui, Y P [Advanced Photonics Center, School of Electronic Science and Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096 (China)

2007-10-15

A novel bionic network nanostructure of zinc oxide (ZnO), which is similar to the microstructure of a butterfly wing, was first fabricated by a vapor-phase transport method using zinc powder as a source. These bionic nanostructures are composed of three ordered multi-aperture gratings. Similar to the optical effect of butterfly wings, the diffraction patterns of the bionic network of ZnO were observed. The mechanism of the optical function was discussed based on the physical model of multi-aperture diffraction.

Optical function of bionic nanostructure of ZnO

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xu, C X; Zhu, G P; Liu, Y J; Sun, X W; Li, X; Liu, J P; Cui, Y P

2007-01-01

A novel bionic network nanostructure of zinc oxide (ZnO), which is similar to the microstructure of a butterfly wing, was first fabricated by a vapor-phase transport method using zinc powder as a source. These bionic nanostructures are composed of three ordered multi-aperture gratings. Similar to the optical effect of butterfly wings, the diffraction patterns of the bionic network of ZnO were observed. The mechanism of the optical function was discussed based on the physical model of multi-aperture diffraction

First-principle study of nanostructures of functionalized graphene

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

We present first-principle calculations of 2D nanostructures of graphene functionalized with hydrogen and fluorine, respectively, in chair conformation. The partial density of states, band structure, binding energy and transverse displacement of C atoms due to functionalization (buckling) have been calculated within the ...

Covalent functionalization of metal oxide and carbon nanostructures with polyoctasilsesquioxane (POSS) and their incorporation in polymer composites

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gomathi, A.; Gopalakrishnan, K.; Rao, C.N.R.

2010-01-01

Polyoctasilsesquioxane (POSS) has been employed to covalently functionalize nanostructures of TiO 2 , ZnO and Fe 2 O 3 as well as carbon nanotubes, nanodiamond and graphene to enable their dispersion in polar solvents. Covalent functionalization of these nanostructures with POSS has been established by electron microscopy, EDAX analysis and infrared spectroscopy. On heating the POSS-functionalized nanostructures, silica-coated nanostructures are obtained. POSS-functionalized nanoparticles of TiO 2 , Fe 2 O 3 and graphite were utilized to prepare polymer-nanostructure composites based on PVA and nylon-6,6.

TOPICAL REVIEW: Vicinal surfaces for functional nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Tegenkamp, Christoph

2009-01-01

Vicinal surfaces are currently the focus of research. The regular arrangements of atomic steps on a mesoscopic scale reveal the possibility to functionalize these surfaces for technical applications, e.g. nanowires, catalysts, etc. The steps of the vicinal surface are well-defined defect structures of atomic size for nucleation of low-dimensional nanostructures. The concentration and therefore the coupling between the nanostructures can be tuned over a wide range by simply changing the inclination angle of the substrate. However, the coupling of these nano-objects to the substrate is just as important in controlling their electronic or chemical properties and making a functionality useable. On the basis of stepped insulating films, these aspects are fulfilled and will be considered in the first part of this review. Recent results for the epitaxial growth of wide bandgap insulating films (CaF2, MgO, NaCl, BaSrO) on metallic and semiconducting vicinal substrates (Si(100), Ge(100), Ag(100)) will be presented. The change of the electronic structure, the adsorption behavior as well as the kinetics and energetics of color centers in the presence of steps is discussed. The successful bridging of the gap between the atomic and mesoscopic world, i.e. the functionalization of vicinal surfaces by nanostructures, is demonstrated in the second part by metal adsorption on semiconducting surfaces. For (sub)monolayer coverage these systems have in common that the surface states do not hybridize with the support, i.e. the semiconducting surfaces are insulating. Here I will focus on the latest results of macroscopic transport measurements on Pb quantum wires grown on vicinal Si(111) showing indeed a one-dimensional transport behavior.

Evaluation of the functionality of biodegradable polymeric platforms for drug delivery systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gioti, M., E-mail: mgiot@physics.auth.gr; Karagkiozaki, V.; Basgiouraki, A.; Karagiannidis, P.G.; Logothetidis, S.

2013-09-15

We present the development of a drug-loaded triple-layer platform consisting of thin film biodegradable polymers, in a properly designed form for the desired gradual degradation. Poly(DL-lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA (65:35), PLGA (75:25)) and polycaprolactone (PCL) were grown by spin coating technique, to synthesize the platforms with the order PCL/PLGA (75:25)/PLGA (65:35) that determine their degradation rates. The outer PLGA (65:35) layer was loaded with dipyridamole, an antiplatelet drug. Spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE) in the Vis-far UV range was used to determine the nanostructure, as well as the content of the incorporated drug in the as-grown platforms. In situ and real-time SE measurements were carried out using a liquid cell for the dynamic evaluation of the fibrinogen and albumin protein adsorption processes. Atomic force microscopy studies justified the SE results concerning the nanopores formation in the polymeric platforms, and the dominant adsorption mechanisms of the proteins, which were defined by the drug incorporation in the platforms.

Self-assembly strategies for the synthesis of functional nanostructured materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Perego, M.; Seguini, G.

2016-01-01

Self-assembly is the autonomous organization of components into patterns or structures without human intervention. This is the approach followed by nature to generate living cells and represents one of the practical strategies to fabricate ensembles of nanostructures. In static self-assembly the formation of ordered structures could require energy but once formed the structures are stable. The introduction of additional regular features in the environment could be used to template the self-assembly guiding the organization of the components and determining the final structure they form. In this regard self-assembly of block copolymers represents a potent platform for fundamental studies at the nanoscale and for application-driven investigation as a tool to fabricate functional nanostructured materials. Block copolymers can hierarchically assemble into chemically distinct domains with size and periodicity on the order of 10 nm or below, offering a potentially inexpensive route to generate large-area nanostructured materials. The final structure characteristics of these materials are dictated by the properties of the elementary block copolymers, like chain length, volume fraction or degree of block incompatibility. Modern synthetic chemistry offers the possibility to design these macromolecules with very specific length scales and geometries, directly embodying in the block copolymers the code that drives their self- assembling process. The understanding of the kinetics and thermodynamics of the block copolymer selfassembly process in the bulk phase as well as in thin films represents a fundamental prerequisite toward the exploitation of these materials. Incorporating block copolymer into device fabrication procedures or directly into devices, as active elements, will lead to the development of a new generation of devices fabricated using the fundamental law of nature to our advantage in order to minimize cost and power consumption in the fabrication process

Self-assembly strategies for the synthesis of functional nanostructured materials

Science.gov (United States)

Perego, M.; Seguini, G.

2016-06-01

Self-assembly is the autonomous organization of components into patterns or structures without human intervention. This is the approach followed by nature to generate living cells and represents one of the practical strategies to fabricate ensembles of nanostructures. In static self-assembly the formation of ordered structures could require energy but once formed the structures are stable. The introduction of additional regular features in the environment could be used to template the self-assembly guiding the organization of the components and determining the final structure they form. In this regard self-assembly of block copolymers represents a potent platform for fundamental studies at the nanoscale and for application-driven investigation as a tool to fabricate functional nanostructured materials. Block copolymers can hierarchically assemble into chemically distinct domains with size and periodicity on the order of 10nm or below, offering a potentially inexpensive route to generate large-area nanostructured materials. The final structure characteristics of these materials are dictated by the properties of the elementary block copolymers, like chain length, volume fraction or degree of block incompatibility. Modern synthetic chemistry offers the possibility to design these macromolecules with very specific length scales and geometries, directly embodying in the block copolymers the code that drives their self- assembling process. The understanding of the kinetics and thermodynamics of the block copolymer self-assembly process in the bulk phase as well as in thin films represents a fundamental prerequisite toward the exploitation of these materials. Incorporating block copolymer into device fabrication procedures or directly into devices, as active elements, will lead to the development of a new generation of devices fabricated using the fundamental law of nature to our advantage in order to minimize cost and power consumption in the fabrication process

Fabricating ordered functional nanostructures onto polycrystalline substrates from the bottom-up

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Torres, María; Pardo, Lorena; Ricote, Jesús; Fuentes-Cobas, Luís E.; Rodriguez, Brian J.; Calzada, M. Lourdes

2012-01-01

Microemulsion-mediated synthesis has emerged as a powerful bottom-up procedure for the preparation of ferroelectric nanostructures onto substrates. However, periodical order has yet to be achieved onto polycrystalline Pt-coated Si substrates. Here, we report a new methodology that involves microemulsion-mediated synthesis and the controlled modification of the surface of the substrate by coating it with a template-layer of water-micelles. This layer modifies the surface tension of the substrate and yields a periodic arrangement of ferroelectric crystalline nanostructures. The size of the nanostructures is decreased to the sub-50 nm range and they show a hexagonal order up to the third neighbors, which corresponds to a density of 275 Gb in −2 . The structural analysis of the nanostructures by synchrotron X-ray diffraction confirms that the nanostructures have a PbTiO 3 perovskite structure, with lattice parameters of a = b = 3.890(0) Å and c = 4.056(7) Å. Piezoresponse force microscopy confirmed the ferro-piezoelectric character of the nanostructures. This simple methodology is valid for the self-assembly of other functional oxides onto polycrystalline substrates, enabling their reliable integration into micro/nano devices.

The Functionalization of Nanostructures and Their Potential Applications in Edible Coatings

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ricardo M. González-Reza

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Nowadays, edible coatings incorporated with nanostructures as systems of controlled release of flavors, colorants and/or antioxidants and antimicrobial substances, also used for thermal and environmental protection of active compounds, represent a gap of opportunity to increase the shelf life of food highly perishable, as well as for the development of new products. These functionalized nanostructures have the benefit of incorporating natural substances obtained from the food industry that are rich in polyphenols, dietary fibers, and antimicrobial substances. In addition, the polymers employed on its preparation, such as polysaccharides, solid lipids and proteins that are low cost and developed through sustainable processes, are friendly to the environment. The objective of this review is to present the materials commonly used in the preparation of nanostructures, the main ingredients with which they can be functionalized and used in the preparation of edible coatings, as well as the advances that these structures have represented when used as controlled release systems, increasing the shelf life and promoting the development of new products that meet the characteristics of functionality for fresh foods ready to eat.

Density functional theory for field emission from carbon nano-structures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Li, Zhibing, E-mail: stslzb@mail.sysu.edu.cn

2015-12-15

Electron field emission is understood as a quantum mechanical many-body problem in which an electronic quasi-particle of the emitter is converted into an electron in vacuum. Fundamental concepts of field emission, such as the field enhancement factor, work-function, edge barrier and emission current density, will be investigated, using carbon nanotubes and graphene as examples. A multi-scale algorithm basing on density functional theory is introduced. We will argue that such a first principle approach is necessary and appropriate for field emission of nano-structures, not only for a more accurate quantitative description, but, more importantly, for deeper insight into field emission. - Highlights: • Applications of DFT to electron field emission of nano-structures are reviewed. • Fundamental concepts of field emission are re-visited with emphasis on the many-body effects. • New insights to field emission of nano-structures are obtained by multi-scale DFT calculations. • It is shown that the exchange–correlation effect on the emission barrier is significant. • Spontaneous symmetry breaking in field emission of CNT has been predicted.

Templated electrodeposition of functional nanostructures: nanowires, nanotubes and nanocubes

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Maijenburg, A.W.

2014-01-01

This thesis is entitled “Templated electrodeposition of functional nanostructures: nanowires, nanotubes and nanocubes”. Templated electrodeposition is the synthesis technique that was used throughout this thesis, and it comprises the use of a template with specific shape and dimensions for the

Functionality of novel black silicon based nanostructured surfaces studied by TOF SIMS

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Talian, Ivan; Aranyosiova, M.; Orinak, A.

2010-01-01

A functionality of the novel black silicon based nanostructured surfaces (BS 2) with different metal surface modifications was tested by time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF SIMS). Mainly two surface functions were studied: analytical signal enhancement and analyte pre-ionization e......A functionality of the novel black silicon based nanostructured surfaces (BS 2) with different metal surface modifications was tested by time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF SIMS). Mainly two surface functions were studied: analytical signal enhancement and analyte pre......-ionization effect in SIMS due to nanostructure type and the assistance of the noble metal surface coating (Ag or Au) for secondary ion formation. As a testing analyte a Rhodamine 6G was applied. Bi+ has been used as SIMS primary ions. It was found out that SIMS signal enhancement of the analyte significantly...... depends on Ag layer thickness and measured ion mode (negative, positive). The best SIMS signal enhancement was obtained at BS2 surface coated with 400 nm of Ag layer. SIMS fragmentation schemes were developed for a model analyte deposited onto a silver and gold surface. Significant differences in pre...

Self-assembly and stability of double rosette nanostructures with biological functionalities

NARCIS (Netherlands)

ten Cate, M.G.J.; Omerovic, Merdan; Oshovsky, G.; Crego Calama, Mercedes; Reinhoudt, David

2005-01-01

The syntheses of calix[4]arene dimelamines that are functionalized with alkyl, aminoalkyl, ureido, pyridyl, carbohydrate, amino acid and peptide functionalities, and their self-assembly with barbituric acid or cyanuric acid derivatives into well-defined hydrogen-bonded nanostructures are described.

Nanostructured Gas Sensors for Health Care: An Overview

Science.gov (United States)

Kaushik, Ajeet; Kumar, Rajesh; Jayant, Rahul Dev; Nair, Madhavan

2015-01-01

Nanostructured platforms have been utilized for fabrication of small, sensitive and reliable gas sensing devices owing to high functionality, enhanced charge transport and electro-catalytic property. As a result of globalization, rapid, sensitive and selective detection of gases in environment is essential for health care and security. Nonmaterial such as metal, metal oxides, organic polymers, and organic-inorganic hybrid nanocomposites exhibit interesting optical, electrical, magnetic and molecular properties, and hence are found potential gas sensing materials. Morphological, electrical, and optical properties of such nanostructures can be tailored via controlling the precursor concentration and synthesis conditions resulting to achieve desired sensing. This review presents applications of nano-enabling gas sensors to detect gases for environment monitoring. The recent update, challenges, and future vision for commercial applications of such sensor are also described here. PMID:26491544

Fabrication of ZnO Nanostructures with Self-cleaning Functionality

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kok, K.Y.; Ng, I.K.; Nur Ubaidah Saidin; Bustaman, F.K.A.

2011-01-01

The science of biomimicry has served as a fusion point between nature and technology where one could adopt natures best solution for humans use. Lotus leaf surface, for example, possesses self cleaning capability due to its unique physical and chemical properties. In this work, we aimed to mimic these features on glass surface using ZnO nanostructures to achieve the self-cleaning functionality. A series of ZnO films were electrochemically deposited on indium-doped tin oxide (ITO) conducting glasses from different aqueous electrolytes at systematically varied deposition potentials and electrolyte conditions. The surface morphology, density, orientation and aspect ratio of the ZnO micro/nanostructures obtained were characterized using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. Results from these studies show that lower electrolyte concentrations tend to favor one-dimensional growth of ZnO nanostructures that self-assembled into nano flowers at higher deposition temperatures. This hierarchical micro/nano-structured ZnO-modified surface exhibits super hydrophobicity with water contact angle as high as 170 degree. (author)

Nanostructured porous silicon-mediated drug delivery.

Science.gov (United States)

Martín-Palma, Raúl J; Hernández-Montelongo, Jacobo; Torres-Costa, Vicente; Manso-Silván, Miguel; Muñoz-Noval, Álvaro

2014-08-01

The particular properties of nanostructured porous silicon (nanoPS) make it an attractive material for controlled and localized release of therapeutics within the body, aiming at increased efficacy and reduced risks of potential side effects. Since this is a rapidly evolving field as a consequence of the number of research groups involved, a critical review of the state of the art is necessary. In this work, the most promising and successful applications of nanoPS in the field of drug delivery are reviewed and discussed. Two key issues such as drug loading and release are also analyzed in detail. The development of multifunctional (hybrid) systems, aiming at imparting additional functionalities to the nanoPS particles such as luminescence, magnetic response and/or plasmonic effects (allowing simultaneous tracking and guiding), is also examined. Nanostructured materials based on silicon are promising platforms for pharmaceutical applications given their ability to degrade and low toxicity. However, a very limited number of clinical applications have been demonstrated so far.

Non-covalently functionalized carbon nanostructures for synthesizing carbon-based hybrid nanomaterials.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Haiqing; Song, Sing I; Song, Ga Young; Kim, Il

2014-02-01

Carbon nanostructures (CNSs) such as carbon nanotubes, graphene sheets, and nanodiamonds provide an important type of substrate for constructing a variety of hybrid nanomaterials. However, their intrinsic chemistry-inert surfaces make it indispensable to pre-functionalize them prior to immobilizing additional components onto their surfaces. Currently developed strategies for functionalizing CNSs include covalent and non-covalent approaches. Conventional covalent treatments often damage the structure integrity of carbon surfaces and adversely affect their physical properties. In contrast, the non-covalent approach offers a non-destructive way to modify CNSs with desired functional surfaces, while reserving their intrinsic properties. Thus far, a number of surface modifiers including aromatic compounds, small-molecular surfactants, amphiphilic polymers, and biomacromolecules have been developed to non-covalently functionalize CNS surfaces. Mediated by these surface modifiers, various functional components such as organic species and inorganic nanoparticles were further decorated onto their surfaces, resulting in versatile carbon-based hybrid nanomaterials with broad applications in chemical engineering and biomedical areas. In this review, the recent advances in the generation of such hybrid nanostructures based on non-covalently functionalized CNSs will be reviewed.

Novel biomaterials: plasma-enabled nanostructures and functions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Levchenko, Igor; Ostrikov, Kostya; Keidar, Michael; Cvelbar, Uroš; Mariotti, Davide; Mai-Prochnow, Anne; Fang, Jinghua

2016-01-01

Material processing techniques utilizing low-temperature plasmas as the main process tool feature many unique capabilities for the fabrication of various nanostructured materials. As compared with the neutral-gas based techniques and methods, the plasma-based approaches offer higher levels of energy and flux controllability, often leading to higher quality of the fabricated nanomaterials and sometimes to the synthesis of the hierarchical materials with interesting properties. Among others, nanoscale biomaterials attract significant attention due to their special properties towards the biological materials (proteins, enzymes), living cells and tissues. This review briefly examines various approaches based on the use of low-temperature plasma environments to fabricate nanoscale biomaterials exhibiting high biological activity, biological inertness for drug delivery system, and other features of the biomaterials make them highly attractive. In particular, we briefly discuss the plasma-assisted fabrication of gold and silicon nanoparticles for bio-applications; carbon nanoparticles for bioimaging and cancer therapy; carbon nanotube-based platforms for enzyme production and bacteria growth control, and other applications of low-temperature plasmas in the production of biologically-active materials. (topical review)

Optimization of a nanotechnology based antimicrobial platform for food safety applications using Engineered Water Nanostructures (EWNS)

Science.gov (United States)

Pyrgiotakis, Georgios; Vedantam, Pallavi; Cirenza, Caroline; McDevitt, James; Eleftheriadou, Mary; Leonard, Stephen S.; Demokritou, Philip

2016-02-01

A chemical free, nanotechnology-based, antimicrobial platform using Engineered Water Nanostructures (EWNS) was recently developed. EWNS have high surface charge, are loaded with reactive oxygen species (ROS), and can interact-with, and inactivate an array of microorganisms, including foodborne pathogens. Here, it was demonstrated that their properties during synthesis can be fine tuned and optimized to further enhance their antimicrobial potential. A lab based EWNS platform was developed to enable fine-tuning of EWNS properties by modifying synthesis parameters. Characterization of EWNS properties (charge, size and ROS content) was performed using state-of-the art analytical methods. Further their microbial inactivation potential was evaluated with food related microorganisms such as Escherichia coli, Salmonella enterica, Listeria innocua, Mycobacterium parafortuitum, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae inoculated onto the surface of organic grape tomatoes. The results presented here indicate that EWNS properties can be fine-tuned during synthesis resulting in a multifold increase of the inactivation efficacy. More specifically, the surface charge quadrupled and the ROS content increased. Microbial removal rates were microorganism dependent and ranged between 1.0 to 3.8 logs after 45 mins of exposure to an EWNS aerosol dose of 40,000 #/cm3.

Optimization of a nanotechnology based antimicrobial platform for food safety applications using Engineered Water Nanostructures (EWNS)

Science.gov (United States)

Pyrgiotakis, Georgios; Vedantam, Pallavi; Cirenza, Caroline; McDevitt, James; Eleftheriadou, Mary; Leonard, Stephen S.; Demokritou, Philip

2016-01-01

A chemical free, nanotechnology-based, antimicrobial platform using Engineered Water Nanostructures (EWNS) was recently developed. EWNS have high surface charge, are loaded with reactive oxygen species (ROS), and can interact-with, and inactivate an array of microorganisms, including foodborne pathogens. Here, it was demonstrated that their properties during synthesis can be fine tuned and optimized to further enhance their antimicrobial potential. A lab based EWNS platform was developed to enable fine-tuning of EWNS properties by modifying synthesis parameters. Characterization of EWNS properties (charge, size and ROS content) was performed using state-of-the art analytical methods. Further their microbial inactivation potential was evaluated with food related microorganisms such as Escherichia coli, Salmonella enterica, Listeria innocua, Mycobacterium parafortuitum, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae inoculated onto the surface of organic grape tomatoes. The results presented here indicate that EWNS properties can be fine-tuned during synthesis resulting in a multifold increase of the inactivation efficacy. More specifically, the surface charge quadrupled and the ROS content increased. Microbial removal rates were microorganism dependent and ranged between 1.0 to 3.8 logs after 45 mins of exposure to an EWNS aerosol dose of 40,000 #/cm3. PMID:26875817

Optimization of a nanotechnology based antimicrobial platform for food safety applications using Engineered Water Nanostructures (EWNS).

Science.gov (United States)

Pyrgiotakis, Georgios; Vedantam, Pallavi; Cirenza, Caroline; McDevitt, James; Eleftheriadou, Mary; Leonard, Stephen S; Demokritou, Philip

2016-02-15

A chemical free, nanotechnology-based, antimicrobial platform using Engineered Water Nanostructures (EWNS) was recently developed. EWNS have high surface charge, are loaded with reactive oxygen species (ROS), and can interact-with, and inactivate an array of microorganisms, including foodborne pathogens. Here, it was demonstrated that their properties during synthesis can be fine tuned and optimized to further enhance their antimicrobial potential. A lab based EWNS platform was developed to enable fine-tuning of EWNS properties by modifying synthesis parameters. Characterization of EWNS properties (charge, size and ROS content) was performed using state-of-the art analytical methods. Further their microbial inactivation potential was evaluated with food related microorganisms such as Escherichia coli, Salmonella enterica, Listeria innocua, Mycobacterium parafortuitum, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae inoculated onto the surface of organic grape tomatoes. The results presented here indicate that EWNS properties can be fine-tuned during synthesis resulting in a multifold increase of the inactivation efficacy. More specifically, the surface charge quadrupled and the ROS content increased. Microbial removal rates were microorganism dependent and ranged between 1.0 to 3.8 logs after 45 mins of exposure to an EWNS aerosol dose of 40,000 #/cm(3).

Optical properties of Al nanostructures from time dependent density functional theory

KAUST Repository

Mokkath, Junais Habeeb; Schwingenschlö gl, Udo

2016-01-01

The optical properties of Al nanostructures are investigated by means of time dependent density functional theory, considering chains of varying length and ladders/stripes of varying aspect ratio. The absorption spectra show redshifting

Nanostructured gold microelectrodes for SERS and EIS measurements by incorporating ZnO nanorod growth with electroplating

Science.gov (United States)

Zong, Xianli; Zhu, Rong; Guo, Xiaoliang

2015-01-01

In this paper, a fine gold nanostructure synthesized on selective planar microelectrodes in micro-chip is realized by using an advanced hybrid fabrication approach incorporating growth of nanorods (NRs) with gold electroplating. By this developed nanostructure, integration of in-situ surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) detection with electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurement for label-free, nondestructive, real-time and rapid monitoring on a single cell has been achieved. Moreover, parameters of Au nanostructures such as size of nanoholes/nanogaps can be controllably adjusted in the fabrication. We have demonstrated a SERS enhancement factor of up to ~2.24 × 106 and double-layer impedance decrease ratio of 90% ~ 95% at low frequency range below 200 kHz by using nanostructured microelectrodes. SERS detection and in-situ EIS measurement of a trapped single cell by using planar microelectrodes are realized to demonstrate the compatibility, multi-functions, high-sensitivity and simplicity of the micro-chip system. This dual function platform integrating SERS and EIS is of great significance in biological, biochemical and biomedical applications. PMID:26558325

DNA Nanotechnology as a platform for drug delivery

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sørensen, Rasmus Schøler

During the course of his PhD studies, Rasmus Schøler Sørensen worked on developing DNA-based nanostructures used as a platform for medical transport systems. Nanostructures can be used to make medical treatments more efficient by precisely transporting medicine to the organs and cells that need i...

Immobilization of lipase and keratinase on functionalized SBA-15 nanostructured materials

Science.gov (United States)

Le, Hy G.; Vu, Tuan A.; Tran, Hoa T. K.; Dang, Phuong T.

2013-12-01

SBA-15 nanostructured materials were synthesized via hydrothermal treatment and were functionalized with 3- aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES). The obtained samples were characterized by different techniques such as XRD, BET, TEM, IR and DTA. After functionalization, it showed that these nanostrucrured materials still maintained the hexagonal pore structure of the parent SBA-15. The model enzyms chosen in this study were lipase and keratinase. Lipase was a biocatalyst for hydrolyzation of long chain triglycerides or methyl esters of long chain alcohols and fatty acids; keratinase is a proteolytic enzyme that catalyzes the cleavage of keratin. The functionalized SBA-15 materials were used to immobilize lipase and keratinase, exhibiting higher activity than that of the unfunctionalized pure silica SBA-15 ones. This might be due to the enhancing of surface hydrophobicity upon functionalization. The surface functionalization of the nanostructured silicas with organic groups can favor the interaction between enzyme and the supports and consequently increasing the operational stability of the immobilized enzymes. The loading of lipase on functionalized SBA-15 materials was higher than that of keratinase. This might be rationalized by the difference in size of enzyms.

Detectors based on Pd-doped and PdO-functionalized ZnO nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Postica, V.; Lupan, O.; Ababii, N.; Hoppe, M.; Adelung, R.; Chow, L.; Sontea, V.; Aschehoug, P.; Viana, V.; Pauporté, Th.

2018-02-01

In this work, zinc oxide (ZnO) nanostructured films were grown using a simple synthesis from chemical solutions (SCS) approach from aqueous baths at relatively low temperatures (room temperature (gas response of 2). Up to 200 °C operating temperature the samples are highly selective to H2 gas, with highest response of 12 at 150 °C. This study demonstrates that surface functionalization of n-ZnO nanostructured films with p-type oxides is very important for improvement of gas sensing properties.

Molecular Design of Bioinspired Nanostructures for Biomedical Applications: Synthesis, Self-Assembly and Functional Properties

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Hesheng Victor; Zheng, Xin Ting; Mok, Beverly Yin Leng; Ibrahim, Salwa Ali; Yu, Yong; Tan, Yen Nee

2016-08-01

Biomolecules are the nanoscale building blocks of cells, which play multifaceted roles in the critical biological processes such as biomineralization in a living organism. In these processes, the biological molecules such as protein and nucleic acids use their exclusive biorecognition properties enabled from their unique chemical composition, shape and function to initiate a cascade of cellular events. The exceptional features of these biomolecules, coupled with the recent advancement in nanotechnology, have led to the emergence of a new research field that focuses on the molecular design of bioinspired nanostructures that inherit the extraordinary function of natural biomaterials. These “bioinspired” nanostructures could be formulated by biomimetic approaches through either self-assembling of biomolecules or acting as a biomolecular template/precursor to direct the synthesis of nanocomposite. In either situation, the resulting nanomaterials exhibit phenomenal biocompatibility, superb aqueous solubility and excellent colloidal stability, branding them exceptionally desirable for both in vitro and in vivo biomedical applications. In this review, we will present the recent developments in the preparation of “bioinspired” nanostructures through biomimetic self-assembly and biotemplating synthesis, as well as highlight their functional properties and potential applications in biomedical diagnostics and therapeutic delivery. Lastly, we will conclude this topic with some personal perspective on the challenges and future outlooks of the “bioinspired” nanostructures for nanomedicine.

The interplay between nanostructured carbon-grafted chitosan scaffolds and protein adsorption on the cellular response of osteoblasts: structure-function property relationship.

Science.gov (United States)

Depan, D; Misra, R D K

2013-04-01

The rapid adsorption of proteins occurs during the early stages of biomedical device implantation into physiological systems. In this regard, the adsorption of proteins is a strong function of the nature of a biomedical device, which ultimately governs the biological functions. The objective of this study was to elucidate the interplay between nanostructured carbon-modified (graphene oxide and single-walled carbon nanohorn) chitosan scaffolds and consequent protein adsorption and biological function (osteoblast function). We compare and contrast the footprint of protein adsorption on unmodified chitosan and nanostructured carbon-modified chitosan. A comparative analysis of cell-substrate interactions using an osteoblast cell line (MC3T3-E1) implied that biological functions were significantly enhanced in the presence of nanostructured carbon, compared with unmodified chitosan. The difference in their respective behaviors is related to the degree and topography of protein adsorption on the scaffolds. Furthermore, there was a synergistic effect of nanostructured carbon and protein adsorption in terms of favorably modulating biological functions, including cell attachment, proliferation and viability, with the effect being greater on nanostructured carbon-modified scaffolds. The study also underscores that protein adsorption is favored in nanostructured carbon-modified scaffolds such that bioactivity and biological function are promoted. Copyright © 2012 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Dynamics study of green AuNP formation and their basis for Au-Pt core-shell nanostructure synthesis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Engelbrekt, Christian; Seselj, Nedjeljko; Ulstrup, Jens

The SAMENS method (saccharide - based approach to metallic nanostructure synthesis) is a synthesis platform for metallic nanostructures. The method has been developed since 2008 and can produce nanostructures of various sizes, shapes and compositions. Recently, a new methodology for studying the ...

Towards the Industrial Application of Spark Ablation for Nanostructured Functional Materials

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Pfeiffer, T.V.

2014-01-01

Nanostructuring of functional materials is an essential part in the design of energy related devices – but the industrial tools we have to make these materials are lacking. This dissertation explores the green, flexible, and scalable spark discharge process for the fabrication of complex

Nanostructured magnesium has fewer detrimental effects on osteoblast function

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Weng L

2013-05-01

Full Text Available Lucy Weng, Thomas J Webster School of Engineering and Department of Orthopedics, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA Abstract: Efforts have been made recently to implement nanoscale surface features on magnesium, a biodegradable metal, to increase bone formation. Compared with normal magnesium, nanostructured magnesium has unique characteristics, including increased grain boundary properties, surface to volume ratio, surface roughness, and surface energy, which may influence the initial adsorption of proteins known to promote the function of osteoblasts (bone-forming cells. Previous studies have shown that one way to increase nanosurface roughness on magnesium is to soak the metal in NaOH. However, it has not been determined if degradation of magnesium is altered by creating nanoscale features on its surface to influence osteoblast density. The aim of the present in vitro study was to determine the influence of degradation of nanostructured magnesium, created by soaking in NaOH, on osteoblast density. Our results showed a less detrimental effect of magnesium degradation on osteoblast density when magnesium was treated with NaOH to create nanoscale surface features. The detrimental degradation products of magnesium are of significant concern when considering use of magnesium as an orthopedic implant material, and this study identified a surface treatment, ie, soaking in NaOH to create nanoscale features for magnesium that can improve its use in numerous orthopedic applications. Keywords: nanostructured magnesium, degradation, detrimental effects, osteoblasts

Virus-resembling nano-structures for near infrared fluorescence imaging of ovarian cancer HER2 receptors

Science.gov (United States)

Guerrero, Yadir A.; Bahmani, Baharak; Singh, Sheela P.; Vullev, Valentine I.; Kundra, Vikas; Anvari, Bahman

2015-10-01

Ovarian cancer remains the dominant cause of death due to malignancies of the female reproductive system. The capability to identify and remove all tumors during intraoperative procedures may ultimately reduce cancer recurrence, and lead to increased patient survival. The objective of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of an optical nano-structured system for targeted near infrared (NIR) imaging of ovarian cancer cells that over-express the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), an important biomarker associated with ovarian cancer. The nano-structured system is comprised of genome-depleted plant-infecting brome mosaic virus doped with NIR chromophore, indocyanine green, and functionalized at the surface by covalent attachment of monoclonal antibodies against the HER2 receptor. We use absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy, and dynamic light scattering to characterize the physical properties of the constructs. Using fluorescence imaging and flow cytometry, we demonstrate the effectiveness of these nano-structures for targeted NIR imaging of HER2 receptors in vitro. These functionalized nano-materials may provide a platform for NIR imaging of ovarian cancer.

Virus-resembling nano-structures for near infrared fluorescence imaging of ovarian cancer HER2 receptors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guerrero, Yadir A; Bahmani, Baharak; Vullev, Valentine I; Anvari, Bahman; Singh, Sheela P; Kundra, Vikas

2015-01-01

Ovarian cancer remains the dominant cause of death due to malignancies of the female reproductive system. The capability to identify and remove all tumors during intraoperative procedures may ultimately reduce cancer recurrence, and lead to increased patient survival. The objective of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of an optical nano-structured system for targeted near infrared (NIR) imaging of ovarian cancer cells that over-express the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), an important biomarker associated with ovarian cancer. The nano-structured system is comprised of genome-depleted plant-infecting brome mosaic virus doped with NIR chromophore, indocyanine green, and functionalized at the surface by covalent attachment of monoclonal antibodies against the HER2 receptor. We use absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy, and dynamic light scattering to characterize the physical properties of the constructs. Using fluorescence imaging and flow cytometry, we demonstrate the effectiveness of these nano-structures for targeted NIR imaging of HER2 receptors in vitro. These functionalized nano-materials may provide a platform for NIR imaging of ovarian cancer. (paper)

Functional nanostructured materials for stormwater runoff treatment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ko, Dongah

Numerous heavy metal removal practices for stormwater runoff have been studied and applied; however, there is still room for improvement. Among these practices, adsorption has proven to be the most efficient way of removing heavy metals. Commonly used adsorbents have an innate sorption capacity...... in relation to high concentrations of heavy metal ions, but if they are to be used for stormwater runoff, high affinity with rapid sorption kinetics for low concentrations of heavy metals is necessary. Therefore, in this study, new types of functional nanostructured polymer sorbents for effective heavy metal...... removal from stormwater are suggested. First, comparison studies of several existing polymer sorbents were conducted, to find decisive functional groups for removing heavy metals from the solution. To enhance the sorption kinetics and affinity of polymer sorbents in the presence of competing ions, sulphur...

A dual enzyme functionalized nanostructured thulium oxide based interface for biomedical application

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Jay; Roychoudhury, Appan; Srivastava, Manish; Solanki, Pratima R.; Lee, Dong Won; Lee, Seung Hee; Malhotra, B. D.

2013-12-01

nanorods has been electrophoretically deposited (EPD) onto an indium-tin-oxide (ITO) glass substrate. The n-Tm2O3 nanorods are found to provide improved sensing characteristics to the electrode interface in terms of electroactive surface area, diffusion coefficient, charge transfer rate constant and electron transfer kinetics. The structural and morphological studies of n-Tm2O3 nanorods have been carried out by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopic techniques. This interfacial platform has been used for fabrication of a total cholesterol biosensor by immobilizing cholesterol esterase (ChEt) and cholesterol oxidase (ChOx) onto a Tm2O3 nanostructured surface. The results of response studies of the fabricated ChEt-ChOx/n-Tm2O3/ITO bioelectrode show a broad linear range of 8-400 mg dL-1, detection limit of 19.78 mg (dL cm-2)-1, and high sensitivity of 0.9245 μA (mg per dL cm-2)-1 with a response time of 40 s. Further, this bioelectrode has been utilized for estimation of total cholesterol with negligible interference (3%) from analytes present in human serum samples. The utilization of this n-Tm2O3 modified electrode for enzyme-based biosensor analysis offers an efficient strategy and a novel interface for application of the rare earth metal oxide materials in the field of electrochemical sensors and bioelectronic devices. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: XPS spectra of n-Tm2O3, differential pulse voltammograms, magnitude of potential difference as a function of scan rate (10-100 mV s-1), effect of working potential, amount of enzyme used for immobilization, amount of enzyme loading, effect of interferents, response time, effect of temperature, determination of cholesterol in serum samples and photometric enzyme activity studies. See DOI: 10.1039/c3nr05043b

Sensing behavior of acetone vapors on TiO_2 nanostructures — application of density functional theory

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. Nagarajan

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The electronic properties of TiO_2 nanostructure are explored using density functional theory. The adsorption properties of acetone on TiO_2 nanostructure are studied in terms of adsorption energy, average energy gap variation and Mulliken charge transfer. The density of states spectrum and the band structure clearly reveals the adsorption of acetone on TiO_2 nanostructures. The variation in the energy gap and changes in the density of charge are observed upon adsorption of acetone on n-type TiO_2 base material. The results of DOS spectrum reveal that the transfer of electrons takes place between acetone vapor and TiO_2 base material. The findings show that the adsorption property of acetone is more favorable on TiO_2 nanostructure. Suitable adsorption sites of acetone on TiO_2 nanostructure are identified at atomistic level. From the results, it is confirmed that TiO_2 nanostructure can be efficiently utilized as a sensing element for the detection of acetone vapor in a mixed environment.

Functionalization of Planet-Satellite Nanostructures Revealed by Nanoscopic Localization of Distinct Macromolecular Species

KAUST Repository

Rossner, Christian; Roddatis, Vladimir; Lopatin, Sergei; Vana, Philipp

2016-01-01

The development of a straightforward method is reported to form hybrid polymer/gold planet-satellite nanostructures (PlSNs) with functional polymer. Polyacrylate type polymer with benzyl chloride in its backbone as a macromolecular tracer

Copper-free click-chemistry platform to functionalize cisplatin prodrugs.

Science.gov (United States)

Pathak, Rakesh K; McNitt, Christopher D; Popik, Vladimir V; Dhar, Shanta

2014-06-02

The ability to rationally design and construct a platform technology to develop new platinum(IV) [Pt(IV)] prodrugs with functionalities for installation of targeting moieties, delivery systems, fluorescent reporters from a single precursor with the ability to release biologically active cisplatin by using well-defined chemistry is critical for discovering new platinum-based therapeutics. With limited numbers of possibilities considering the sensitivity of Pt(IV) centers, we used a strain-promoted azide-alkyne cycloaddition approach to provide a platform, in which new functionalities can easily be installed on cisplatin prodrugs from a single Pt(IV) precursor. The ability of this platform to be incorporated in nanodelivery vehicle and conjugation to fluorescent reporters were also investigated. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Functionalized nanostructures for enhanced photocatalytic performance under solar light

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Liejin Guo

2014-07-01

Full Text Available Photocatalytic hydrogen production from water has been considered to be one of the most promising solar-to-hydrogen conversion technologies. In the last decade, various functionalized nanostructures were designed to address the primary requirements for an efficient photocatalytic generation of hydrogen by using solar energy: visible-light activity, chemical stability, appropriate band-edge characteristics, and potential for low-cost fabrication. Our aim is to present a short review of our recent attempts that center on the above requirements. We begin with a brief introduction of photocatalysts coupling two or more semiconductors, followed by a further discussion of the heterostructures with improved matching of both band structures and crystal lattices. We then elaborate on the heterostructure design of the targeted materials from macroscopic regulation of compositions and phases, to the more precise control at the nanoscale, i.e., materials with the same compositions but different phases with certain band alignment. We conclude this review with perspectives on nanostructure design that might direct future research of this technology.

Graphene directed architecture of fine engineered nanostructures with electrochemical applications

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hou, Chengyi; Zhang, Minwei; Halder, Arnab

2017-01-01

, and polymers has led to the possibility to create new electroactive and multifunctional nanostructures, which can serve as promising material platforms for electrochemical purposes. However, the precise control and fine-tuning of material structures and properties are still challenging and in demand...... classified nanostructures, including metallic nanostructures, self-assembled organic and supramolecular structures, and fine engineered metal oxides. In these cases, graphene templates either sacrificed during templating synthesis or retained as support for final products. We also discuss remained challenges....... In this review, we aim to highlight some recent efforts devoted to rational design, assembly and fine engineering of electrochemically active nanostructures using graphene or/and its derivatives as soft templates for controlled synthesis and directed growth. We organize the contents according to the chemically...

Molecular dynamics and density functional simulations of tungsten nanostructure formation by helium plasma irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ito, A.M.; Takayama, A.; Oda, Y.

2014-10-01

For the purposes of long-term use of tungsten diverter walls, it is necessary to suppress the surface deterioration due to the helium ash which induces the formations of helium bubbles and tungsten fuzzy nanostructures. In the present paper, the formation mechanisms of helium bubbles and tungsten fuzzy nanostructures were explained by the four-step process which is composed of the penetration process, the diffusion and agglomeration process, the helium bubble growth process and the tungsten fuzzy nanostructure formation process. The first to third step processes of the four-step process were investigated by using binary collision approximation, density functional theory and molecular dynamics, respectively. Furthermore, newly developed molecular dynamics and Monte-Carlo hybrid simulation has successfully reproduced the early formation process of tungsten fuzzy nanostructure. From these simulations, we here suggest the following key mechanisms of the formations of helium bubbles and tungsten fuzzy nanostructures: (1) By comparison between helium, neon, argon and hydrogen, the noble gas atoms can agglomerate limitlessly not only at a vacancy but also at an interstitial site. In particular, at the low incident energy, only helium atoms bring about the nucleation for helium bubble. (2) In the helium bubble growth process, the strain of the tungsten material around a helium atom is released as a dislocation loop, which is regarded as the loop punching phenomenon. (3) In the tungsten nanostructure formation process, the bursting of a helium bubble forms cavity and convexity in the surface. The helium bubbles tend to be grown and to burst at the cavity region, and then the difference of height between the cavity and convexity on the surface are enhanced. Consequently, the tungsten fuzzy nanostructure is formed. (author)

Plasmonic Paper as a Novel Chem/Bio Detection Platform

Science.gov (United States)

Tian, Limei

The time varying electric field of electromagnetic (EM) radiation causes oscillation of conduction electrons of metal nanoparticles. The resonance of such oscillation, termed localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR), falls into the visible spectral region for noble metals such as gold, silver and copper. LSPR of metal nanostructures is sensitive to numerous factors such as composition, size, shape, dielectric properties of surrounding medium, and proximity to other nanostructures (plasmon coupling). The sensitivity of LSPR to the refractive index of surrounding medium renders it an attractive platform for chemical and biological sensing. When the excitation light is in resonance with the plasmon frequency of the metal nanoparticle, it radiates a characteristic dipolar radiation causing a characteristic spatial distribution in which certain areas show higher EM field intensity, which is manifested as electromagnetic field enhancement. Surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) involves dramatic enhancement of the intensity of the Raman scattering from the analyte adsorbed on or in proximity to a nanostructured metal surface exhibiting such strong EM field enhancement. Both LSPR and SERS have been widely investigated for highly sensitive and label-free chemical & biological sensors. Most of the SERS/LSPR sensors demonstrated so far rely on rigid planar substrates (e.g., glass, silicon) owing to the well-established lithographic approaches, which are routinely employed for either fabrication or assembly of plasmonic nanotransducers. In many cases, their rigid nature results in low conformal contact with the sample and hence poor sample collection efficiency. We hypothesized that paper substrates are an excellent alternative to conventional rigid substrates to significantly improve the (multi-)functionality of LSPR/SERS substrates, dramatically simplify the fabrication procedures and lower the cost. The choice of paper substrates for the implementation of SERS

Tuning cell adhesion by direct nanostructuring silicon into cell repulsive/adhesive patterns

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Premnath, Priyatha; Tavangar, Amirhossein; Tan, Bo; Venkatakrishnan, Krishnan

2015-01-01

Developing platforms that allow tuning cell functionality through incorporating physical, chemical, or mechanical cues onto the material surfaces is one of the key challenges in research in the field of biomaterials. In this respect, various approaches have been proposed and numerous structures have been developed on a variety of materials. Most of these approaches, however, demand a multistep process or post-chemical treatment. Therefore, a simple approach would be desirable to develop bio-functionalized platforms for effectively modulating cell adhesion and consequently programming cell functionality without requiring any chemical or biological surface treatment. This study introduces a versatile yet simple laser approach to structure silicon (Si) chips into cytophobic/cytophilic patterns in order to modulate cell adhesion and proliferation. These patterns are fabricated on platforms through direct laser processing of Si substrates, which renders a desired computer-generated configuration into patterns. We investigate the morphology, chemistry, and wettability of the platform surfaces. Subsequently, we study the functionality of the fabricated platforms on modulating cervical cancer cells (HeLa) behaviour. The results from in vitro studies suggest that the nanostructures efficiently repel HeLa cells and drive them to migrate onto untreated sites. The study of the morphology of the cells reveals that cells evade the cytophobic area by bending and changing direction. Additionally, cell patterning, cell directionality, cell channelling, and cell trapping are achieved by developing different platforms with specific patterns. The flexibility and controllability of this approach to effectively structure Si substrates to cell-repulsive and cell-adhesive patterns offer perceptible outlook for developing bio-functionalized platforms for a variety of biomedical devices. Moreover, this approach could pave the way for developing anti-cancer platforms that selectively repel

Tuning cell adhesion by direct nanostructuring silicon into cell repulsive/adhesive patterns

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Premnath, Priyatha, E-mail: priyatha.premnath@ryerson.ca [Micro/Nanofabrication Laboratory, Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Ryerson University, 350 Victoria Street, Toronto, ON, Canada M5B 2K3 (Canada); Tavangar, Amirhossein, E-mail: atavanga@ryerson.ca [Micro/Nanofabrication Laboratory, Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Ryerson University, 350 Victoria Street, Toronto, ON, Canada M5B 2K3 (Canada); Tan, Bo, E-mail: tanbo@ryerson.ca [Nanocharacterization Laboratory, Department of Aerospace Engineering, Ryerson University, 350 Victoria Street, Toronto, ON, Canada M5B 2K3 (Canada); Venkatakrishnan, Krishnan, E-mail: venkat@ryerson.ca [Micro/Nanofabrication Laboratory, Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Ryerson University, 350 Victoria Street, Toronto, ON, Canada M5B 2K3 (Canada)

2015-09-10

Developing platforms that allow tuning cell functionality through incorporating physical, chemical, or mechanical cues onto the material surfaces is one of the key challenges in research in the field of biomaterials. In this respect, various approaches have been proposed and numerous structures have been developed on a variety of materials. Most of these approaches, however, demand a multistep process or post-chemical treatment. Therefore, a simple approach would be desirable to develop bio-functionalized platforms for effectively modulating cell adhesion and consequently programming cell functionality without requiring any chemical or biological surface treatment. This study introduces a versatile yet simple laser approach to structure silicon (Si) chips into cytophobic/cytophilic patterns in order to modulate cell adhesion and proliferation. These patterns are fabricated on platforms through direct laser processing of Si substrates, which renders a desired computer-generated configuration into patterns. We investigate the morphology, chemistry, and wettability of the platform surfaces. Subsequently, we study the functionality of the fabricated platforms on modulating cervical cancer cells (HeLa) behaviour. The results from in vitro studies suggest that the nanostructures efficiently repel HeLa cells and drive them to migrate onto untreated sites. The study of the morphology of the cells reveals that cells evade the cytophobic area by bending and changing direction. Additionally, cell patterning, cell directionality, cell channelling, and cell trapping are achieved by developing different platforms with specific patterns. The flexibility and controllability of this approach to effectively structure Si substrates to cell-repulsive and cell-adhesive patterns offer perceptible outlook for developing bio-functionalized platforms for a variety of biomedical devices. Moreover, this approach could pave the way for developing anti-cancer platforms that selectively repel

Hybrid nanostructures: synthesis, morphology and functional properties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Povolotskaya, A V; Povolotskiy, A V; Manshina, A A

2015-01-01

Hybrid nanostructures representing combinations of different materials and possessing properties that are absent in separate components forming the hybrid are discussed. Particular attention is given to hybrid structures containing plasmonic and magnetic nanoparticles, methods of their synthesis and the relationship between the composition, structure and properties. The functional features of the hybrid nanomaterials of various morphology (with core–shell structures, with encapsulated metal nanoparticles and with metal nanoparticles on the surface) are considered. The unique properties of these hybrid materials are demonstrated, which are of interest for solving problems of catalysis and photocatalysis, detecting impurities in various media, in vivo visualization, bioanalysis, as well as for the design of optical labels and multifunctional diagnostic nanoplatforms. The bibliography includes 182 references

Effects of chemically modified nanostructured PLGA on functioning of lung and breast cancer cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhang L

2013-05-01

Full Text Available Lijuan Zhang,1 Thomas J Webster21Department of Chemistry, 2School of Engineering, Brown University, Providence, RI, USABackground: The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of poly-lactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA nanotopographies with alginate or chitosan protein preadsorption on the functioning of healthy and cancerous lung and breast cells, including adhesion, proliferation, apoptosis, and release of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF, which promotes tumor angiogenesis and secretion.Methods: We used a well established cast-mold technique to create nanoscale surface features on PLGA. Some of the nanomodified PLGA films were then exposed to alginate and chitosan. Surface roughness and the presence of protein was confirmed by atomic force microscopy. Surface energy was quantified by contact angle measurement.Results: Nanostructured PLGA surfaces with 23 nm features decreased synthesis of VEGF in both lung and breast cancer cells compared with conventional PLGA. Preadsorbing alginate further decreased cancer cell function, with nanostructured PLGA preadsorbed with alginate achieving the greatest decrease in synthesis of VEGF in both lung and breast cancer cells. In contrast, compared with nonmodified smooth PLGA, healthy cell functions were either not altered (ie, breast or were enhanced (ie, lung by use of nanostructured features and alginate or chitosan protein preadsorption.Conclusion: Using this technique, we developed surface nanometric roughness and modification of surface chemistry that could selectively decrease breast and lung cancer cell functioning without the need for chemotherapeutics. This technique requires further study in a wide range of anticancer and regenerative medicine applications.Keywords: breast, lung, cancer, nanotechnology, alginate, chitosan

Optical properties of Al nanostructures from time dependent density functional theory

KAUST Repository

Mokkath, Junais Habeeb

2016-04-05

The optical properties of Al nanostructures are investigated by means of time dependent density functional theory, considering chains of varying length and ladders/stripes of varying aspect ratio. The absorption spectra show redshifting for increasing length and aspect ratio. For the chains the absorption is dominated by HOMO → LUMO transitions, whereas ladders and stripes reveal more complex spectra of plasmonic nature above a specific aspect ratio.

On-chip surface modified nanostructured ZnO as functional pH sensors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Qing; Liu, Wenpeng; Sun, Chongling; Zhang, Hao; Pang, Wei; Zhang, Daihua; Duan, Xuexin

2015-01-01

Zinc oxide (ZnO) nanostructures are promising candidates as electronic components for biological and chemical applications. In this study, ZnO ultra-fine nanowire (NW) and nanoflake (NF) hybrid structures have been prepared by Au-assisted chemical vapor deposition (CVD) under ambient pressure. Their surface morphology, lattice structures, and crystal orientation were investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), x-ray diffraction (XRD), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Two types of ZnO nanostructures were successfully integrated as gate electrodes in extended-gate field-effect transistors (EGFETs). Due to the amphoteric properties of ZnO, such devices function as pH sensors. We found that the ultra-fine NWs, which were more than 50 μm in length and less than 100 nm in diameter, performed better in the pH sensing process than NW–NF hybrid structures because of their higher surface-to-volume ratio, considering the Nernst equation and the Gouy–Chapman–Stern model. Furthermore, the surface coating of (3-Aminopropyl)triethoxysilane (APTES) protects ZnO nanostructures in both acidic and alkaline environments, thus enhancing the device stability and extending its pH sensing dynamic range. (paper)

Research in the Laboratory of Supramolecular Chemistry: functional nanostructures, sensors, and catalysts.

Science.gov (United States)

Severin, Kay

2011-01-01

This article summarizes research activities in the Laboratory of Supramolecular Chemistry (LCS) at the EPFL. Three topics will be discussed: a) the construction of functional nanostructures by multicomponent self-assembly processes, b) the development of chemosensors using specific receptors or ensembles of crossreactive sensors, and c) the investigation of novel synthetic procedures with organometallic catalysts.

Functionalized tetrapod-like ZnO nanostructures for plasmid DNA purification, polymerase chain reaction and delivery

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nie Leng; Gao Lizeng; Yan Xiyun; Wang Taihong

2007-01-01

Functionalized tetrapodal ZnO nanostructures are tested in plasmid DNA experiments (1) as a solid-phase adsorbent for plasmid DNA purification (2) as improving reagents in a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and (3) as novel carriers for gene delivery. The amino-modification, the tetrapod-like shape of the nanostructure and its high biocompatibility all contribute to measurements showing promise for applications. A sol-gel method is used for silica coating and amino-modification. Plasmid DNA is purified through reversible conjugations of amino-modified ZnO tetrapods with DNA. Also, as additional reagents, functionalized tetrapods are shown to improve the amount of PCR product. For transfection, ZnO tetrapods provide some protection against deoxyribonuclease cleavage of plasmid DNA and deliver plasmid DNA into cells with little cytotoxicity

Recent Advances in Electrochemical Biosensors Based on Fullerene-C60 Nano-Structured Platforms.

Science.gov (United States)

Pilehvar, Sanaz; De Wael, Karolien

2015-11-23

Nanotechnology is becoming increasingly important in the field of (bio)sensors. The performance and sensitivity of biosensors is greatly improved with the integration of nanomaterials into their construction. Since its first discovery, fullerene-C60 has been the object of extensive research. Its unique and favorable characteristics of easy chemical modification, conductivity, and electrochemical properties has led to its tremendous use in (bio)sensor applications. This paper provides a concise review of advances in fullerene-C60 research and its use as a nanomaterial for the development of biosensors. We examine the research work reported in the literature on the synthesis, functionalization, approaches to nanostructuring electrodes with fullerene, and outline some of the exciting applications in the field of (bio)sensing.

Nanostructured magnesium oxide biosensing platform for cholera detection

Science.gov (United States)

Patel, Manoj K.; Azahar Ali, Md.; Agrawal, Ved V.; Ansari, Z. A.; Ansari, S. G.; Malhotra, B. D.

2013-04-01

We report fabrication of highly crystalline nanostructured magnesium oxide (NanoMgO, size >30 nm) film electrophoretically deposited onto indium-tin-oxide (ITO) glass substrate for Vibrio cholerae detection. The single stranded deoxyribonucleic acid (ssDNA) probe, consisting of 23 bases (O1 gene sequence) immobilized onto NanoMgO/ITO electrode surface, has been characterized using electrochemical, Fourier Transform-Infra Red, and UltraViolet-visible spectroscopic techniques. The hybridization studies of ssDNA/NanoMgO/ITO bioelectrode with fragmented target DNA conducted using differential pulse voltammetry reveal sensitivity as 16.80 nA/ng/cm2, response time of 3 s, linearity as 100-500 ng/μL, and stability of about 120 days.

Density functional theory for field emission from carbon nano-structures.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Zhibing

2015-12-01

Electron field emission is understood as a quantum mechanical many-body problem in which an electronic quasi-particle of the emitter is converted into an electron in vacuum. Fundamental concepts of field emission, such as the field enhancement factor, work-function, edge barrier and emission current density, will be investigated, using carbon nanotubes and graphene as examples. A multi-scale algorithm basing on density functional theory is introduced. We will argue that such a first principle approach is necessary and appropriate for field emission of nano-structures, not only for a more accurate quantitative description, but, more importantly, for deeper insight into field emission. Copyright © 2015 The Author. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effect of polar and non-polar surfaces of ZnO nanostructures on photocatalytic properties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang Jinghai; Wang Jian; Li Xiuyan; Lang Jihui; Liu Fuzhu; Yang Lili; Zhai Hongju; Gao Ming; Zhao Xiaoting

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Large-scale arrayed ZnO nanocrystals including ZnO hexagonal platforms and hamburger-like samples have been successfully fabricated by a simple hydrothermal method. ► ZnO with hexagonal platform-like morphology exhibited higher photocatalytic activity compared with that of the hamburger-like ZnO nanostructures. ► The theories of expose surfaces and oxygen vacancies were utilized to explain the photocatalytic mechanism. - Abstract: Large-scale arrayed ZnO nanocrystals with two different expose surfaces, including ZnO hexagonal nanoplatforms with the major expose plane of (0 0 0 1) and hamburger-like samples with the nonpolar planes of {101 ¯ 0} mainly exposed, were successfully fabricated by a simple hydrothermal method. Mechanisms for compare the photocatalytic activity of two typical ZnO nanostructures were systematic explained as the key point in the paper. Compared with the hamburger-like ZnO nanostructures, the ZnO with hexagonal platform-like morphology exhibited improved ability on the photocatalytic degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) in aqueous solution under UV radiation. The relative higher photocatalytic activity of the ZnO hexagonal nanoplatforms was attributed to the exposed polar surfaces and the content of oxygen vacancy on the nanostructures surface. The Zn-terminated (0 0 0 1) polar face and the surface defects are facile to adsorb O 2− and OH − ions, resulting in a greater production rate of O 2 · − and OH· − , hence promoting the photocatalysis reaction.

Nanostructured magnesium has fewer detrimental effects on osteoblast function

Science.gov (United States)

Weng, Lucy; Webster, Thomas J

2013-01-01

Efforts have been made recently to implement nanoscale surface features on magnesium, a biodegradable metal, to increase bone formation. Compared with normal magnesium, nanostructured magnesium has unique characteristics, including increased grain boundary properties, surface to volume ratio, surface roughness, and surface energy, which may influence the initial adsorption of proteins known to promote the function of osteoblasts (bone-forming cells). Previous studies have shown that one way to increase nanosurface roughness on magnesium is to soak the metal in NaOH. However, it has not been determined if degradation of magnesium is altered by creating nanoscale features on its surface to influence osteoblast density. The aim of the present in vitro study was to determine the influence of degradation of nanostructured magnesium, created by soaking in NaOH, on osteoblast density. Our results showed a less detrimental effect of magnesium degradation on osteoblast density when magnesium was treated with NaOH to create nanoscale surface features. The detrimental degradation products of magnesium are of significant concern when considering use of magnesium as an orthopedic implant material, and this study identified a surface treatment, ie, soaking in NaOH to create nanoscale features for magnesium that can improve its use in numerous orthopedic applications. PMID:23674891

Nanostructured magnesium has fewer detrimental effects on osteoblast function.

Science.gov (United States)

Weng, Lucy; Webster, Thomas J

2013-01-01

Efforts have been made recently to implement nanoscale surface features on magnesium, a biodegradable metal, to increase bone formation. Compared with normal magnesium, nanostructured magnesium has unique characteristics, including increased grain boundary properties, surface to volume ratio, surface roughness, and surface energy, which may influence the initial adsorption of proteins known to promote the function of osteoblasts (bone-forming cells). Previous studies have shown that one way to increase nanosurface roughness on magnesium is to soak the metal in NaOH. However, it has not been determined if degradation of magnesium is altered by creating nanoscale features on its surface to influence osteoblast density. The aim of the present in vitro study was to determine the influence of degradation of nanostructured magnesium, created by soaking in NaOH, on osteoblast density. Our results showed a less detrimental effect of magnesium degradation on osteoblast density when magnesium was treated with NaOH to create nanoscale surface features. The detrimental degradation products of magnesium are of significant concern when considering use of magnesium as an orthopedic implant material, and this study identified a surface treatment, ie, soaking in NaOH to create nanoscale features for magnesium that can improve its use in numerous orthopedic applications.

Epitaxial growth of hybrid nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Tan, Chaoliang; Chen, Junze; Wu, Xue-Jun; Zhang, Hua

2018-02-01

Hybrid nanostructures are a class of materials that are typically composed of two or more different components, in which each component has at least one dimension on the nanoscale. The rational design and controlled synthesis of hybrid nanostructures are of great importance in enabling the fine tuning of their properties and functions. Epitaxial growth is a promising approach to the controlled synthesis of hybrid nanostructures with desired structures, crystal phases, exposed facets and/or interfaces. This Review provides a critical summary of the state of the art in the field of epitaxial growth of hybrid nanostructures. We discuss the historical development, architectures and compositions, epitaxy methods, characterization techniques and advantages of epitaxial hybrid nanostructures. Finally, we provide insight into future research directions in this area, which include the epitaxial growth of hybrid nanostructures from a wider range of materials, the study of the underlying mechanism and determining the role of epitaxial growth in influencing the properties and application performance of hybrid nanostructures.

Functional zinc oxide nanostructures for electronic and energy applications

Science.gov (United States)

Prasad, Abhishek

ZnO has proven to be a multifunctional material with important nanotechnological applications. ZnO nanostructures can be grown in various forms such as nanowires, nanorods, nanobelts, nanocombs etc. In this work, ZnO nanostructures are grown in a double quartz tube configuration thermal Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) system. We focus on functionalized ZnO Nanostructures by controlling their structures and tuning their properties for various applications. The following topics have been investigated: (1) We have fabricated various ZnO nanostructures using a thermal CVD technique. The growth parameters were optimized and studied for different nanostructures. (2) We have studied the application of ZnO nanowires (ZnONWs) for field effect transistors (FETs). Unintentional n-type conductivity was observed in our FETs based on as-grown ZnO NWs. We have then shown for the first time that controlled incorporation of hydrogen into ZnO NWs can introduce p-type characters to the nanowires. We further found that the n-type behaviors remained, leading to the ambipolar behaviors of hydrogen incorporated ZnO NWs. Importantly, the detected p- and n- type behaviors are stable for longer than two years when devices were kept in ambient conditions. All these can be explained by an ab initio model of Zn vacancy-Hydrogen complexes, which can serve as the donor, acceptors, or green photoluminescence quencher, depend on the number of hydrogen atoms involved. (3) Next ZnONWs were tested for electron field emission. We focus on reducing the threshold field (Eth) of field emission from non-aligned ZnO NWs. As encouraged by our results on enhancing the conductivity of ZnO NWs by hydrogen annealing described in Chapter 3, we have studied the effect of hydrogen annealing for improving field emission behavior of our ZnO NWs. We found that optimally annealed ZnO NWs offered much lower threshold electric field and improved emission stability. We also studied field emission from ZnO NWs at moderate

Systematic Investigation of Controlled Nanostructuring of Mn ₁₂ Single-Molecule Magnets Templated by Metal–Organic Frameworks

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Aulakh, Darpandeep [Department of Chemistry; amp, Biomolecular Science, Clarkson University, Potsdam, New York 13699, United States; Xie, Haomiao [Department of Chemistry, Texas A& amp,M University, College Station, Texas 77845, United States; Shen, Zhe [Department of Chemistry, Texas A& amp,M University, College Station, Texas 77845, United States; Harley, Alexander [Department of Chemistry; amp, Biomolecular Science, Clarkson University, Potsdam, New York 13699, United States; Zhang, Xuan [Department of Chemistry, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States; Yakovenko, Andrey A. [X-ray Science Division, Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, Illinois 60439, United States; Dunbar, Kim R. [Department of Chemistry, Texas A& amp,M University, College Station, Texas 77845, United States; Wriedt, Mario [Department of Chemistry; amp, Biomolecular Science, Clarkson University, Potsdam, New York 13699, United States

2017-05-25

This is the first systematic study exploring metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) as platforms for the controlled nanostructuring of molecular magnets. We report the incorporation of seven single-molecule magnets (SMMs) of general composition [Mn12O12(O2CR)16(OH2)4], with R = CF3 (1), (CH3)CCH2 (2), CH2Cl (3), CH2Br (4), CHCl2 (5), CH2But (6), and C6H5 (7), into the hexagonal channel pores of a mesoporous MOF host. The resulting nanostructured composites combine the key SMM properties with the functional properties of the MOF. Synchrotron-based powder diffraction with difference envelope density analysis, physisorption analysis (surface area and pore size distribution), and thermal analyses reveal that the well-ordered hexagonal structure of the host framework is preserved, and magnetic measurements indicate that slow relaxation of the magnetization, characteristic of the corresponding Mn12 derivative guests, occurs inside the MOF pores. Structural host–guest correlations including the bulkiness and polarity of peripheral SMM ligands are discussed as fundamental parameters influencing the global SMM@MOF loading capacities. These results demonstrate that employing MOFs as platforms for the nanostructuration of SMMs is not limited to a particular host–guest system but potentially applicable to a multitude of other molecular magnets. Such fundamental findings will assist in paving the way for the development of novel advanced spintronic devices.

Spatiotemporal Ultrafast-Plasmon Control Based on Response Functions of Nanostructures Measured by Interferometric Cross-Correlation Microscopy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kusaba Miyuki

2013-03-01

Full Text Available We demonstrate an electrical-field cross-correlation imaging technique to obtain a response function of localized plasmon generated by femtosecond laser pulses on gold nanostructures. Based on the measured response functions, we spatiotemporally control the plasmon by shaping the femtosecond excitation laser pulses.

D-Amino acid oxidase bio-functionalized platforms: Toward an enhanced enzymatic bio-activity

Science.gov (United States)

Herrera, Elisa; Valdez Taubas, Javier; Giacomelli, Carla E.

2015-11-01

The purpose of this work is to study the adsorption process and surface bio-activity of His-tagged D-amino acid oxidase (DAAO) from Rhodotorula gracilis (His6-RgDAAO) as the first step for the development of an electrochemical bio-functionalized platform. With such a purpose this work comprises: (a) the His6-RgDAAO bio-activity in solution determined by amperometry, (b) the adsorption mechanism of His6-RgDAAO on bare gold and carboxylated modified substrates in the absence (substrate/COO-) and presence of Ni(II) (substrate/COO- + Ni(II)) determined by reflectometry, and (c) the bio-activity of the His6-RgDAAO bio-functionalized platforms determined by amperometry. Comparing the adsorption behavior and bio-activity of His6-RgDAAO on these different solid substrates allows understanding the contribution of the diverse interactions responsible for the platform performance. His6-RgDAAO enzymatic performance in solution is highly improved when compared to the previously used pig kidney (pk) DAAO. His6-RgDAAO exhibits an amperometrically detectable bio-activity at concentrations as low as those expected on a bio-functional platform; hence, it is a viable bio-recognition element of D-amino acids to be coupled to electrochemical platforms. Moreover, His6-RgDAAO bio-functionalized platforms exhibit a higher surface activity than pkDAAO physically adsorbed on gold. The platform built on Ni(II) modified substrates present enhanced bio-activity because the surface complexes histidine-Ni(II) provide with site-oriented, native-like enzymes. The adsorption mechanism responsible of the excellent performance of the bio-functionalized platform takes place in two steps involving electrostatic and bio-affinity interactions whose prevalence depends on the degree of surface coverage.

Precisely Tailored DNA Nanostructures and their Theranostic Applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Bing; Wang, Lihua; Li, Jiang; Fan, Chunhai

2017-12-01

A critical challenge in nanotechnology is the limited precision and controllability of the structural parameters, which brings about concerns in uniformity, reproducibility and performance. Self-assembled DNA nanostructures, as a newly emerged type of nano-biomaterials, possess low-nanometer precision, excellent programmability and addressability. They can precisely arrange various molecules and materials to form spatially ordered complex, resulting in unambiguous physical or chemical properties. Because of these, DNA nanostructures have shown great promise in numerous biomedical theranostic applications. In this account, we briefly review the history and advances on construction of DNA nanoarchitectures and superstructures with accurate structural parameters. We focus on recent progress in exploiting these DNA nanostructures as platforms for quantitative biosensing, intracellular diagnosis, imaging, and smart drug delivery. We also discuss key challenges in practical applications. © 2017 The Chemical Society of Japan & Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Molecular Motions in Functional Self-Assembled Nanostructures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jean-Marc Saiter

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The construction of “smart” materials able to perform specific functions at the molecular scale through the application of various stimuli is highly attractive but still challenging. The most recent applications indicate that the outstanding flexibility of self-assembled architectures can be employed as a powerful tool for the development of innovative molecular devices, functional surfaces and smart nanomaterials. Structural flexibility of these materials is known to be conferred by weak intermolecular forces involved in self-assembly strategies. However, some fundamental mechanisms responsible for conformational lability remain unexplored. Furthermore, the role played by stronger bonds, such as coordination, ionic and covalent bonding, is sometimes neglected while they can be employed readily to produce mechanically robust but also chemically reversible structures. In this review, recent applications of structural flexibility and molecular motions in self-assembled nanostructures are discussed. Special focus is given to advanced materials exhibiting significant performance changes after an external stimulus is applied, such as light exposure, pH variation, heat treatment or electromagnetic field. The crucial role played by strong intra- and weak intermolecular interactions on structural lability and responsiveness is highlighted.

Reconfigurable Three-Dimensional Gold Nanorod Plasmonic Nanostructures Organized on DNA Origami Tripod.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhan, Pengfei; Dutta, Palash K; Wang, Pengfei; Song, Gang; Dai, Mingjie; Zhao, Shu-Xia; Wang, Zhen-Gang; Yin, Peng; Zhang, Wei; Ding, Baoquan; Ke, Yonggang

2017-02-28

Distinct electromagnetic properties can emerge from the three-dimensional (3D) configuration of a plasmonic nanostructure. Furthermore, the reconfiguration of a dynamic plasmonic nanostructure, driven by physical or chemical stimuli, may generate a tailored plasmonic response. In this work, we constructed a 3D reconfigurable plasmonic nanostructure with controllable, reversible conformational transformation using bottom-up DNA self-assembly. Three gold nanorods (AuNRs) were positioned onto a reconfigurable DNA origami tripod. The internanorod angle and distance were precisely tuned through operating the origami tripod by toehold-mediated strand displacement. The transduction of conformational change manifested into a controlled shift of the plasmonic resonance peak, which was studied by dark-field microscopy, and agrees well with electrodynamic calculations. This new 3D plasmonic nanostructure not only provides a method to study the plasmonic resonance of AuNRs at prescribed 3D conformations but also demonstrates that DNA origami can serve as a general self-assembly platform for constructing various 3D reconfigurable plasmonic nanostructures with customized optical properties.

Nanostructured Polymer Brushes by UV-Assisted Imprint Lithography and Surface-Initiated Polymerization for Biological Functions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Benetti, Edmondo Maria; Acikgoz, C.; Sui, Xiaofeng; Vratzov, Boris; Hempenius, Mark A.; Huskens, Jurriaan; Vancso, Gyula J.

2011-01-01

Functional polymer brush nanostructures are obtained by combining step-and-flash imprint lithography (SFIL) with controlled, surface-initiated polymerization (CSIP). Patterning is achieved at length scales such that the smallest elements have dimensions in the sub-100 nm range. The patterns exhibit

Self-assembled peptide-based nanostructures: Smart nanomaterials toward targeted drug delivery.

Science.gov (United States)

Habibi, Neda; Kamaly, Nazila; Memic, Adnan; Shafiee, Hadi

2016-02-01

Self-assembly of peptides can yield an array of well-defined nanostructures that are highly attractive nanomaterials for many biomedical applications such as drug delivery. Some of the advantages of self-assembled peptide nanostructures over other delivery platforms include their chemical diversity, biocompatibility, high loading capacity for both hydrophobic and hydrophilic drugs, and their ability to target molecular recognition sites. Furthermore, these self-assembled nanostructures could be designed with novel peptide motifs, making them stimuli-responsive and achieving triggered drug delivery at disease sites. The goal of this work is to present a comprehensive review of the most recent studies on self-assembled peptides with a focus on their "smart" activity for formation of targeted and responsive drug-delivery carriers.

Development of nanostructures for application in food technology: evaluation of their in vitro behaviour

Science.gov (United States)

Pinheiro, Ana Cristina Braga

The emerging field of nanotechnology offers new challenges to the food industry either by offering novel tools for the development of strategies to improve food quality and human health, or by the introduction of questions about the behaviour of nanostructures within the human body. Nanotechnology holds a great potential to generate very innovative solutions and to provide food technologists and manufacturers with instruments to meet the evergrowing consumer demands in very diverse aspects related with the foods they eat: safety, quality, health-promotion and novelty. However, the application of nanostructures to foods is hindered by very pertinent problems, which could be summarized in two issues: edibility (only edible materials must be used for their production) and functionality/behaviour once inside the human body, that is raising safety concerns among the consumers, and therefore demands an evaluation (ideally) in vivo, or at least in vitro. In this context, the two main challenges addressed in this thesis were to develop stable nanostructures for food applications and to evaluate their in vitro behaviour. The strategy adopted included the development and characterization of edible nanostructures, incorporation of bioactive compounds and evaluation of their behaviour when subjected to digestion in artificial gastrointestinal (GI) systems. In particular, the research undertaken was based on three different nanostructures: nanofilms composed of kappa-carrageenan and chitosan, curcumin nanoemulsions stabilized by different emulsifiers and multilayer nanocapsules composed of chitosan and fucoidan. The nanostructures developed in this work can be used as platforms for the production of new products with improved characteristics targeted at the most recent consumer trends. This work contributes to the understanding of the behaviour of those nanostructures inside the human body during digestion (e.g. release phenomena involved at the nano-scale and bioavailability

Nanostructure Engineered Chemical Sensors for Hazardous Gas and Vapor Detection

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Jing; Lu, Yijiang

2005-01-01

A nanosensor technology has been developed using nanostructures, such as single walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) and metal oxides nanowires or nanobelts, on a pair of interdigitated electrodes (IDE) processed with a silicon based microfabrication and micromachining technique. The IDE fingers were fabricated using thin film metallization techniques. Both in-situ growth of nanostructure materials and casting of the nanostructure dispersions were used to make chemical sensing devices. These sensors have been exposed to hazardous gases and vapors, such as acetone, benzene, chlorine, and ammonia in the concentration range of ppm to ppb at room temperature. The electronic molecular sensing in our sensor platform can be understood by electron modulation between the nanostructure engineered device and gas molecules. As a result of the electron modulation, the conductance of nanodevice will change. Due to the large surface area, low surface energy barrier and high thermal and mechanical stability, nanostructured chemical sensors potentially can offer higher sensitivity, lower power consumption and better robustness than the state-of-the-art systems, which make them more attractive for defense and space applications. Combined with MEMS technology, light weight and compact size sensors can be made in wafer scale with low cost.

Large-scale, Lithography-free Production of Transparent Nanostructured Surface for Dual-functional Electrochemical and SERS Sensing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sanger, Kuldeep; Durucan, Onur; Wu, Kaiyu

2017-01-01

aspect ratios distributed homogeneously on a 4-inch fused silica wafer. The sensor was made up of three-electrode array, obtained by subsequent e-beam evaporation of Au on nanostructures in selected areas through a shadow mask. The SERS performance was evaluated through surface-averaged enhancement......-reversible behavior with decrease in peak potential separation (∆Ep ~90mV) and higher peak currents (Ipa/Ipc ~1), comparing to planar electrodes (∆Ep ~560mV). The oxidation potential of PAR was also lowered by ~80 mV on nanostructured electrodes. To illustrate dual-functional sensing, quantitative evaluation of PAR...

Recent developments in the nanostructured materials functionalized with ruthenium complexes for targeted drug delivery to tumors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thangavel P

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Prakash Thangavel,1 Buddolla Viswanath,1 Sanghyo Kim1,2 1Department of Bionanotechnology, Gachon University, Bokjeong-Dong, Sujeong-Gu, Seongnam-Si, Gyeonggi-Do, 2Graduate Gachon Medical Research Institute, Gil Medical Center, Incheon, Republic of Korea Abstract: In recent years, the field of metal-based drugs has been dominated by other existing precious metal drugs, and many researchers have focused their attention on the synthesis of various ruthenium (Ru complexes due to their potential medical and pharmaceutical applications. The beneficial properties of Ru, which make it a highly promising therapeutic agent, include its variable oxidation states, low toxicity, high selectivity for diseased cells, ligand exchange properties, and the ability to mimic iron binding to biomolecules. In addition, Ru complexes have favorable adsorption properties, along with excellent photochemical and photophysical properties, which make them promising tools for photodynamic therapy. At present, nanostructured materials functionalized with Ru complexes have become an efficient way to administer Ru-based anticancer drugs for cancer treatment. In this review, the recent developments in the nanostructured materials functionalized with Ru complexes for targeted drug delivery to tumors are discussed. In addition, information on “traditional” (ie, non-nanostructured Ru-based cancer therapies is included in a precise manner. Keywords: metallodrugs, nanotechnology, cancer treatment, cell apoptosis, DNA damage, toxicity

XPS and NRA investigations during the fabrication of gold nanostructured functionalized screen-printed sensors for the detection of metallic pollutants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jasmin, Jean-Philippe [Laboratoire Analyse et Modélisation pour la Biologie et l’Environnement, UMR 8587, CNRS-Université Evry Val d’Essonne-CEA, 1 rue du père Jarlan, 91025 Evry Cedex (France); Miserque, Frédéric [Den-Service de la Corrosion et du Comportement des Matériaux dans leur Environnement (SCCME), CEA, Université Paris-Saclay, F-91191, Gif-sur-Yvette (France); Dumas, Eddy [Institut Lavoisier de Versailles, UMR 8180, CNRS-Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, 78035 Versailles (France); Vickridge, Ian; Ganem, Jean-Jacques [INSP, UMR 7588, CNRS- Université Pierre et Marie Curie, 4 place Jussieu, boîte courrier 840 75252 Paris, Cedex 05 (France); Cannizzo, Caroline, E-mail: caroline.cannizzo@univ-evry.fr [Laboratoire Analyse et Modélisation pour la Biologie et l’Environnement, UMR 8587, CNRS-Université Evry Val d’Essonne-CEA, 1 rue du père Jarlan, 91025 Evry Cedex (France); Chaussé, Annie [Laboratoire Analyse et Modélisation pour la Biologie et l’Environnement, UMR 8587, CNRS-Université Evry Val d’Essonne-CEA, 1 rue du père Jarlan, 91025 Evry Cedex (France)

2017-03-01

Highlights: • Functionalized nanostructured SPEs were made by multi-step diazonium salt chemistry. • Investigation of SPEs surface by XPS and NRA shows monolayer coverage by aminobenzyl groups. • Complete conversion of aminobenzyl groups into diazonium functions was also evidenced. • Covalent grafting of AuNPs onto SPEs lead to an unusual modification of Au-4f core level spectrum. • Ligand and lead signals showed the interest of nanostructurated SPEs for trace metals detection. - Abstract: An all covalent nanostructured lead sensor was built by the successive grafting of gold nanoparticles and carboxylic ligands at the surface of self-adhesive carbon screen-printed electrodes (SPEs). Surface analysis techniques were used in each step in order to investigate the structuration of this sensor. The self-adhesive surfaces were made from the electrochemical grafting of p-phenylenediamine at the surface of the SPEs via diazonium salts chemistry. The quantity of grafted aniline functions, estimated by Nuclear Reaction Analysis (NRA) performed with p-phenylenediamine labelled with {sup 15}N isotope, is in agreement with an almost complete coverage of the electrode surface. The subsequent diazotization of the aniline functions at the surface of the SPEs was performed; X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) allowed us to consider a quantitative conversion of the aniline functions into diazonium moieties. The spontaneous grafting of gold nanoparticles on the as-obtained reactive surfaces ensures the nanostructuration of the material, and XPS studies showed that the covalent bonding of the gold nanoparticles at the surface of the SPEs induces a change both in the Au-4f (gold nanoparticles) and Cl-2p (carbon ink) core level signals. These unusual observations are explained by an interaction between the carbon ink constituting the substrate and the gold nanoparticles. Heavy and toxic metals are considered of major environmental concern because of their non

XPS and NRA investigations during the fabrication of gold nanostructured functionalized screen-printed sensors for the detection of metallic pollutants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jasmin, Jean-Philippe; Miserque, Frédéric; Dumas, Eddy; Vickridge, Ian; Ganem, Jean-Jacques; Cannizzo, Caroline; Chaussé, Annie

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Functionalized nanostructured SPEs were made by multi-step diazonium salt chemistry. • Investigation of SPEs surface by XPS and NRA shows monolayer coverage by aminobenzyl groups. • Complete conversion of aminobenzyl groups into diazonium functions was also evidenced. • Covalent grafting of AuNPs onto SPEs lead to an unusual modification of Au-4f core level spectrum. • Ligand and lead signals showed the interest of nanostructurated SPEs for trace metals detection. - Abstract: An all covalent nanostructured lead sensor was built by the successive grafting of gold nanoparticles and carboxylic ligands at the surface of self-adhesive carbon screen-printed electrodes (SPEs). Surface analysis techniques were used in each step in order to investigate the structuration of this sensor. The self-adhesive surfaces were made from the electrochemical grafting of p-phenylenediamine at the surface of the SPEs via diazonium salts chemistry. The quantity of grafted aniline functions, estimated by Nuclear Reaction Analysis (NRA) performed with p-phenylenediamine labelled with "1"5N isotope, is in agreement with an almost complete coverage of the electrode surface. The subsequent diazotization of the aniline functions at the surface of the SPEs was performed; X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) allowed us to consider a quantitative conversion of the aniline functions into diazonium moieties. The spontaneous grafting of gold nanoparticles on the as-obtained reactive surfaces ensures the nanostructuration of the material, and XPS studies showed that the covalent bonding of the gold nanoparticles at the surface of the SPEs induces a change both in the Au-4f (gold nanoparticles) and Cl-2p (carbon ink) core level signals. These unusual observations are explained by an interaction between the carbon ink constituting the substrate and the gold nanoparticles. Heavy and toxic metals are considered of major environmental concern because of their non

Quantum-corrected transient analysis of plasmonic nanostructures

KAUST Repository

Uysal, Ismail Enes

2017-03-08

A time domain surface integral equation (TD-SIE) solver is developed for quantum-corrected analysis of transient electromagnetic field interactions on plasmonic nanostructures with sub-nanometer gaps. “Quantum correction” introduces an auxiliary tunnel to support the current path that is generated by electrons tunneled between the nanostructures. The permittivity of the auxiliary tunnel and the nanostructures is obtained from density functional theory (DFT) computations. Electromagnetic field interactions on the combined structure (nanostructures plus auxiliary tunnel connecting them) are computed using a TD-SIE solver. Time domain samples of the permittivity and the Green function required by this solver are obtained from their frequency domain samples (generated from DFT computations) using a semi-analytical method. Accuracy and applicability of the resulting quantum-corrected solver scheme are demonstrated via numerical examples.

Synthesis of a novel poly-thiolated magnetic nano-platform for heavy metal adsorption. Role of thiol and carboxyl functions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Odio, Oscar F.; Lartundo-Rojas, Luis; Palacios, Elia Guadalupe; Martínez, Ricardo; Reguera, Edilso

2016-01-01

Graphical abstract: Poly-thiols capping of magnetite nanoparticles for Pb(2+) and Cd(2+) adsorption. Display Omitted - Highlights: • A novel magnetic nano-platform containing free thiol and carboxyl groups is reported. • Thiols are protected by disulfide bridges during magnetite functionalization. • Adsorption of Pb"2"+ and Cd"2"+ onto the nano-platform was studied by XPS measurements. • Metal-sulfur interactions dominate if free thiol groups are present. • Metal-carboxyl interactions dominate if thiol groups are depleted by oxidation. - Abstract: We report a novel strategy for the synthesis of magnetic nano-platforms containing free thiol groups. It first involves the synthesis of a poly(acrylic acid) copolymer containing disulfide bridges between the linear chains through di-ester linkages, followed by the anchoring of this new ligand to magnetite nanoparticles using a ligand exchange reaction. Finally, free −SH groups are obtained by treating the resulting disulfide-functionalized magnetic nano-system with tributyl phosphine as reducing agent. The characterization of the resulting 17 nm nanoparticles (Fe_3O_4@PAA-HEDred) by FTIR and TGA confirms the attachment of the copolymer through iron carboxylates. XRD, TEM and magnetic measurements indicate an increase in the inorganic core diameter and the occurrence of strong magnetic inter-particle interactions during the exchange reaction, although coercitivity and remanence drop to near zero at room temperature. Afterwards, Fe_3O_4@PAA-HEDred nanoparticles were tested as sorbent for Pb"2"+ and Cd"2"+ cations in aqueous media. XPS measurements were performed in order to unravel the role of both carboxyl and thiol functions in the adsorption process. For the sake of comparison, the same study was performed using bare Fe_3O_4 nanoparticles and a nanosystem with disulfide groups (Fe_3O_4@DMSA). The joint analysis of the Pb 4f, Cd 3d, Fe 2p and S 2p high resolution spectra for the nanostructured materials

Synthesis of a novel poly-thiolated magnetic nano-platform for heavy metal adsorption. Role of thiol and carboxyl functions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Odio, Oscar F. [Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de Materiales, Universidad de La Habana, La Habana 10400 (Cuba); Centro de Investigación en Ciencia Aplicada y Tecnología Avanzada-Unidad Legaria, IPN, 11500 México City (Mexico); Lartundo-Rojas, Luis [Centro de Nanociencias y Micro-Nanotecnologías, IPN, 07738 México City (Mexico); Palacios, Elia Guadalupe [Instituto Politécnico Nacional, ESIQIE, UPALM Zacatenco, 07738 México City (Mexico); Martínez, Ricardo [Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de Materiales, Universidad de La Habana, La Habana 10400 (Cuba); Reguera, Edilso, E-mail: edilso.reguera@gmail.com [Centro de Investigación en Ciencia Aplicada y Tecnología Avanzada-Unidad Legaria, IPN, 11500 México City (Mexico)

2016-11-15

Graphical abstract: Poly-thiols capping of magnetite nanoparticles for Pb(2+) and Cd(2+) adsorption. Display Omitted - Highlights: • A novel magnetic nano-platform containing free thiol and carboxyl groups is reported. • Thiols are protected by disulfide bridges during magnetite functionalization. • Adsorption of Pb{sup 2+} and Cd{sup 2+} onto the nano-platform was studied by XPS measurements. • Metal-sulfur interactions dominate if free thiol groups are present. • Metal-carboxyl interactions dominate if thiol groups are depleted by oxidation. - Abstract: We report a novel strategy for the synthesis of magnetic nano-platforms containing free thiol groups. It first involves the synthesis of a poly(acrylic acid) copolymer containing disulfide bridges between the linear chains through di-ester linkages, followed by the anchoring of this new ligand to magnetite nanoparticles using a ligand exchange reaction. Finally, free −SH groups are obtained by treating the resulting disulfide-functionalized magnetic nano-system with tributyl phosphine as reducing agent. The characterization of the resulting 17 nm nanoparticles (Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4}@PAA-HEDred) by FTIR and TGA confirms the attachment of the copolymer through iron carboxylates. XRD, TEM and magnetic measurements indicate an increase in the inorganic core diameter and the occurrence of strong magnetic inter-particle interactions during the exchange reaction, although coercitivity and remanence drop to near zero at room temperature. Afterwards, Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4}@PAA-HEDred nanoparticles were tested as sorbent for Pb{sup 2+} and Cd{sup 2+} cations in aqueous media. XPS measurements were performed in order to unravel the role of both carboxyl and thiol functions in the adsorption process. For the sake of comparison, the same study was performed using bare Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4} nanoparticles and a nanosystem with disulfide groups (Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4}@DMSA). The joint analysis of the Pb 4f, Cd 3d, Fe 2p and S 2p high

DNA origami compliant nanostructures with tunable mechanical properties.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Lifeng; Marras, Alexander E; Su, Hai-Jun; Castro, Carlos E

2014-01-28

DNA origami enables fabrication of precise nanostructures by programming the self-assembly of DNA. While this approach has been used to make a variety of complex 2D and 3D objects, the mechanical functionality of these structures is limited due to their rigid nature. We explore the fabrication of deformable, or compliant, objects to establish a framework for mechanically functional nanostructures. This compliant design approach is used in macroscopic engineering to make devices including sensors, actuators, and robots. We build compliant nanostructures by utilizing the entropic elasticity of single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) to locally bend bundles of double-stranded DNA into bent geometries whose curvature and mechanical properties can be tuned by controlling the length of ssDNA strands. We demonstrate an ability to achieve a wide range of geometries by adjusting a few strands in the nanostructure design. We further developed a mechanical model to predict both geometry and mechanical properties of our compliant nanostructures that agrees well with experiments. Our results provide a basis for the design of mechanically functional DNA origami devices and materials.

Complex Nanostructures by Pulsed Droplet Epitaxy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Noboyuki Koguchi

2011-06-01

Full Text Available What makes three dimensional semiconductor quantum nanostructures so attractive is the possibility to tune their electronic properties by careful design of their size and composition. These parameters set the confinement potential of electrons and holes, thus determining the electronic and optical properties of the nanostructure. An often overlooked parameter, which has an even more relevant effect on the electronic properties of the nanostructure, is shape. Gaining a strong control over the electronic properties via shape tuning is the key to access subtle electronic design possibilities. The Pulsed Dropled Epitaxy is an innovative growth method for the fabrication of quantum nanostructures with highly designable shapes and complex morphologies. With Pulsed Dropled Epitaxy it is possible to combine different nanostructures, namely quantum dots, quantum rings and quantum disks, with tunable sizes and densities, into a single multi-function nanostructure, thus allowing an unprecedented control over electronic properties.

Nanostructural Deformation Analysis of Calcium Silicate Hydrate in Portland Cement Paste by Atomic Pair Distribution Function

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hiroshi Suzuki

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The deformation of nanostructure of calcium silicate hydrate (C-S-H in Portland cement (PC paste under compression was characterized by the atomic pair distribution function (PDF, measured using synchrotron X-ray diffraction. The PDF of the PC paste exhibited a unique deformation behavior for a short-range order below 2.0 nm, close to the size of the C-S-H globule, while the deformation for a long-range order was similar to that of a calcium hydroxide phase measured by Bragg peak shift. The compressive deformation of the C-S-H nanostructure was comprised of three stages with different interactions between globules. This behavior would originate from the granular nature of C-S-H, which deforms with increasing packing density by slipping the interfaces between globules, rearranging the overall C-S-H nanostructure. This new approach will lead to increasing applications of the PDF technique to understand the deformation mechanism of C-S-H in PC-based materials.

Controlling the flow of light with silicon nanostructures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, W

2010-01-01

Silicon is an important material for integrated photonics applications. High refractive index and transparency in the infrared region makes it an ideal platform to implement nanostructures for novel optical devices. We fabricated silicon photonic crystals and experimentally demonstrated negative refraction and self-collimation. We also used heterodyne near-field scanning optical microscope to directly visualize the anomalous wavefronts. When the periodicity is much smaller than wavelength, silicon photonic crystal can be described by the effective medium theory. By engineering effective refractive index with silicon nanorod size, we demonstrated an all-dielectric cloak structure which can hide objects in front of a highly reflecting plane. The work discussed in this review shows the powerful design flexibility and versatility of silicon nanostructures

Ground state energy and wave function of an off-centre donor in spherical core/shell nanostructures: Dielectric mismatch and impurity position effects

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ibral, Asmaa [Equipe d’Optique et Electronique du Solide, Département de Physique, Faculté des Sciences, Université Chouaïb Doukkali, B.P. 20 El Jadida Principale, El Jadida 24000 (Morocco); Laboratoire d’Instrumentation, Mesure et Contrôle, Département de Physique, Université Chouaïb Doukkali, B.P. 20 El Jadida Principale, El Jadida (Morocco); Zouitine, Asmae [Département de Physique, Ecole Nationale Supérieure d’Enseignement Technique, Université Mohammed V Souissi, B.P. 6207 Rabat-Instituts, Rabat (Morocco); Assaid, El Mahdi, E-mail: eassaid@yahoo.fr [Equipe d’Optique et Electronique du Solide, Département de Physique, Faculté des Sciences, Université Chouaïb Doukkali, B.P. 20 El Jadida Principale, El Jadida 24000 (Morocco); Laboratoire d’Instrumentation, Mesure et Contrôle, Département de Physique, Université Chouaïb Doukkali, B.P. 20 El Jadida Principale, El Jadida (Morocco); Feddi, El Mustapha [Département de Physique, Ecole Nationale Supérieure d’Enseignement Technique, Université Mohammed V Souissi, B.P. 6207 Rabat-Instituts, Rabat (Morocco); and others

2014-09-15

Ground state energy and wave function of a hydrogen-like off-centre donor impurity, confined anywhere in a ZnS/CdSe spherical core/shell nanostructure are determined in the framework of the envelope function approximation. Conduction band-edge alignment between core and shell of nanostructure is described by a finite height barrier. Dielectric constant mismatch at the surface where core and shell materials meet is taken into account. Electron effective mass mismatch at the inner surface between core and shell is considered. A trial wave function where coulomb attraction between electron and off-centre ionized donor is used to calculate ground state energy via the Ritz variational principle. The numerical approach developed enables access to the dependence of binding energy, coulomb correlation parameter, spatial extension and radial probability density with respect to core radius, shell radius and impurity position inside ZnS/CdSe core/shell nanostructure.

Ground state energy and wave function of an off-centre donor in spherical core/shell nanostructures: Dielectric mismatch and impurity position effects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ibral, Asmaa; Zouitine, Asmae; Assaid, El Mahdi; Feddi, El Mustapha

2014-01-01

Ground state energy and wave function of a hydrogen-like off-centre donor impurity, confined anywhere in a ZnS/CdSe spherical core/shell nanostructure are determined in the framework of the envelope function approximation. Conduction band-edge alignment between core and shell of nanostructure is described by a finite height barrier. Dielectric constant mismatch at the surface where core and shell materials meet is taken into account. Electron effective mass mismatch at the inner surface between core and shell is considered. A trial wave function where coulomb attraction between electron and off-centre ionized donor is used to calculate ground state energy via the Ritz variational principle. The numerical approach developed enables access to the dependence of binding energy, coulomb correlation parameter, spatial extension and radial probability density with respect to core radius, shell radius and impurity position inside ZnS/CdSe core/shell nanostructure

Superhydrophobic SERS substrates based on silicon hierarchical nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Xuexian; Wen, Jinxiu; Zhou, Jianhua; Zheng, Zebo; An, Di; Wang, Hao; Xie, Weiguang; Zhan, Runze; Xu, Ningsheng; Chen, Jun; She, Juncong; Chen, Huanjun; Deng, Shaozhi

2018-02-01

Silicon nanostructures have been cultivated as promising surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrates in terms of their low-loss optical resonance modes, facile functionalization, and compatibility with today’s state-of-the-art CMOS techniques. However, unlike their plasmonic counterparts, the electromagnetic field enhancements induced by silicon nanostructures are relatively small, which restrict their SERS sensing limit to around 10-7 M. To tackle this problem, we propose here a strategy for improving the SERS performance of silicon nanostructures by constructing silicon hierarchical nanostructures with a superhydrophobic surface. The hierarchical nanostructures are binary structures consisted of silicon nanowires (NWs) grown on micropyramids (MPs). After being modified with perfluorooctyltriethoxysilane (PFOT), the nanostructure surface shows a stable superhydrophobicity with a high contact angle of ˜160°. The substrate can allow for concentrating diluted analyte solutions into a specific area during the evaporation of the liquid droplet, whereby the analytes are aggregated into a small volume and can be easily detected by the silicon nanostructure SERS substrate. The analyte molecules (methylene blue: MB) enriched from an aqueous solution lower than 10-8 M can be readily detected. Such a detection limit is ˜100-fold lower than the conventional SERS substrates made of silicon nanostructures. Additionally, the detection limit can be further improved by functionalizing gold nanoparticles onto silicon hierarchical nanostructures, whereby the superhydrophobic characteristics and plasmonic field enhancements can be combined synergistically to give a detection limit down to ˜10-11 M. A gold nanoparticle-functionalized superhydrophobic substrate was employed to detect the spiked melamine in liquid milk. The results showed that the detection limit can be as low as 10-5 M, highlighting the potential of the proposed superhydrophobic SERS substrate in

Control of Polymer Nanostructure and Functionality via Radiation Grafting

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Palmese, G.R.

2006-01-01

Radiation grafting provides a useful means for controlling polymer structure and performance. Particularly, it is appropriate for combining materials with distinct thermodynamic characteristics chemically at interfaces. Therefore polymeric materials that generally will not mix - i.e hydrophilic and hydrophobic polymers - can be combined efficiently using radiation based methods. This is of particular importance when attempting to form polymer-polymer nanocomposites where the thermodynamic penalty associated with high specific interfacial surface area is very large. Generally, the combination at small scales of such distinct materials is appropriate when specific functionality is desired while maintaining structural performance characteristics. In such cases the hydrophilic polymer lends functional characteristics such as ionic conductivity, self-healing, and actuation, while the hydrophobic polymer component provides structural stability. In this communication a summary of our recent work concerning the use of radiation grafting for the synthesis of nanostructured functional materials is given. Examples to be discussed include toughing of polymeric systems, the synthesis polymeric and inorganic nanotubes, and the design of permeation selective membranes. These examples will be used to demonstrate the effectiveness of radiation grafting techniques for controlling polymer properties and small-scale structure

Icosahedral plant viral nanoparticles - bioinspired synthesis of nanomaterials/nanostructures.

Science.gov (United States)

Narayanan, Kannan Badri; Han, Sung Soo

2017-10-01

Viral nanotechnology utilizes virus nanoparticles (VNPs) and virus-like nanoparticles (VLPs) of plant viruses as highly versatile platforms for materials synthesis and molecular entrapment that can be used in the nanotechnological fields, such as in next-generation nanoelectronics, nanocatalysis, biosensing and optics, and biomedical applications, such as for targeting, therapeutic delivery, and non-invasive in vivo imaging with high specificity and selectivity. In particular, plant virus capsids provide biotemplates for the production of novel nanostructured materials with organic/inorganic moieties incorporated in a very precise and controlled manner. Interestingly, capsid proteins of spherical plant viruses can self-assemble into well-organized icosahedral three-dimensional (3D) nanoscale multivalent architectures with high monodispersity and structural symmetry. Using viral genetic and protein engineering of icosahedral viruses with a variety of sizes, the interior, exterior and the interfaces between coat protein (CP) subunits can be manipulated to fabricate materials with a wide range of desirable properties allowing for biomineralization, encapsulation, infusion, controlled self-assembly, and multivalent ligand display of nanoparticles or molecules for varied applications. In this review, we discuss the various functional nanomaterials/nanostructures developed using the VNPs and VLPs of different icosahedral plant viruses and their nano(bio)technological and nanomedical applications. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Topographically Engineered Large Scale Nanostructures for Plasmonic Biosensing

Science.gov (United States)

Xiao, Bo; Pradhan, Sangram K.; Santiago, Kevin C.; Rutherford, Gugu N.; Pradhan, Aswini K.

2016-04-01

We demonstrate that a nanostructured metal thin film can achieve enhanced transmission efficiency and sharp resonances and use a large-scale and high-throughput nanofabrication technique for the plasmonic structures. The fabrication technique combines the features of nanoimprint and soft lithography to topographically construct metal thin films with nanoscale patterns. Metal nanogratings developed using this method show significantly enhanced optical transmission (up to a one-order-of-magnitude enhancement) and sharp resonances with full width at half maximum (FWHM) of ~15nm in the zero-order transmission using an incoherent white light source. These nanostructures are sensitive to the surrounding environment, and the resonance can shift as the refractive index changes. We derive an analytical method using a spatial Fourier transformation to understand the enhancement phenomenon and the sensing mechanism. The use of real-time monitoring of protein-protein interactions in microfluidic cells integrated with these nanostructures is demonstrated to be effective for biosensing. The perpendicular transmission configuration and large-scale structures provide a feasible platform without sophisticated optical instrumentation to realize label-free surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensing.

Fluorescence studies of Rhodamine 6G functionalized silicon oxide nanostructures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baumgaertel, Thomas; Borczyskowski, Christian von; Graaf, Harald

2010-01-01

Selective anchoring of optically active molecules on nanostructured surfaces is a promising step towards the creation of nanoscale devices with new functionalities. Recently we have demonstrated the electrostatic attachment of charged fluorescent molecules on silicon oxide nanostructures prepared by atomic force microscopy (AFM) nanolithography via local anodic oxidation (LAO) of dodecyl-terminated silicon. In this paper we report on our findings from a more detailed optical investigation of the bound dye Rhodamine 6G. High sensitivity optical wide field microscopy as well as confocal laser microscopy have been used to characterize the Rhodamine fluorescence emission. A highly interesting question concerns the interaction between an emitter close to a silicon surface because mechanisms such as energy transfer and fluorescence quenching will occur which are still not fully understood. Since the oxide thickness can be varied during preparation continuously from 1 to ∼ 5 nm, it is possible to investigate the fluorescence of the bound dye in close proximity to the underlying silicon. Using confocal laser microscopy we were also able to obtain optical spectra from the bound molecules. Together with the results from an analysis of their photochemical bleaching behaviour, we conjecture that some of the Rhodamine 6G molecules on the structure are interacting with the oxide, causing a spectral shift and differences in their photochemical properties.

The Association Between Video Game Play and Cognitive Function: Does Gaming Platform Matter?

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Vivian; Young, Michaelia; Fiocco, Alexandra J

2017-11-01

Despite consumer growth, few studies have evaluated the cognitive effects of gaming using mobile devices. This study examined the association between video game play platform and cognitive performance. Furthermore, the differential effect of video game genre (action versus nonaction) was explored. Sixty undergraduate students completed a video game experience questionnaire, and we divided them into three groups: mobile video game players (MVGPs), console/computer video game players (CVGPs), and nonvideo game players (NVGPs). Participants completed a cognitive battery to assess executive function, and learning and memory. Controlling for sex and ethnicity, analyses showed that frequent video game play is associated with enhanced executive function, but not learning and memory. MVGPs were significantly more accurate on working memory performances than NVGPs. Both MVGPs and CVGPs were similarly associated with enhanced cognitive function, suggesting that platform does not significantly determine the benefits of frequent video game play. Video game platform was found to differentially associate with preference for action video game genre and motivation for gaming. Exploratory analyses show that sex significantly effects frequent video game play, platform and genre preference, and cognitive function. This study represents a novel exploration of the relationship between mobile video game play and cognition and adds support to the cognitive benefits of frequent video game play.

A Novel Sensor for VOCs Using Nanostructured ZnO and MEMS Technologies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

H. J. Pandya

2012-03-01

Full Text Available A sensor for detection of vapors of volatile organic compounds (VOCs incorporating nanostructured zinc oxide film and silicon micromachining is reported. One of the key features of the sensor is the use of nanostructured ZnO material which has been synthesized using a novel low cost process. Considerable reduction in the operating temperature of the sensor has been achieved due to the use of nanostructured ZnO material as compared to a sensor having ZnO thin film as the sensing layer. The sensor is formed on a micromachined silicon platform thereby reducing the heat loss. This resulted in reduction in power consumption. The sensor has been tested for a variety of VOCs such as: ethanol, iso-propyl alcohol and acetone. The maximum sensitivity of sensor was observed for ethanol vapors.

Spectroscopy and Biosensing with Optically Resonant Dielectric Nanostructures

OpenAIRE

Krasnok, Alex; Caldarola, Martin; Bonod, Nicolas; Alú, Andrea

2017-01-01

Resonant dielectric nanoparticles (RDNs) made of materials with large positive dielectric permittivity, such as Si, GaP, GaAs, have become a powerful platform for modern light science, enabling various fascinating applications in nanophotonics and quantum optics. In addition to light localization at the nanoscale, dielectric nanostructures provide electric and magnetic resonant responses throughout the visible and infrared spectrum, low dissipative losses and optical heating, low doping effec...

Bottom-Up Synthesis and Sensor Applications of Biomimetic Nanostructures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Li Wang

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The combination of nanotechnology, biology, and bioengineering greatly improved the developments of nanomaterials with unique functions and properties. Biomolecules as the nanoscale building blocks play very important roles for the final formation of functional nanostructures. Many kinds of novel nanostructures have been created by using the bioinspired self-assembly and subsequent binding with various nanoparticles. In this review, we summarized the studies on the fabrications and sensor applications of biomimetic nanostructures. The strategies for creating different bottom-up nanostructures by using biomolecules like DNA, protein, peptide, and virus, as well as microorganisms like bacteria and plant leaf are introduced. In addition, the potential applications of the synthesized biomimetic nanostructures for colorimetry, fluorescence, surface plasmon resonance, surface-enhanced Raman scattering, electrical resistance, electrochemistry, and quartz crystal microbalance sensors are presented. This review will promote the understanding of relationships between biomolecules/microorganisms and functional nanomaterials in one way, and in another way it will guide the design and synthesis of biomimetic nanomaterials with unique properties in the future.

Novel Silica Nanostructured Platforms with Engineered Surface Functionality and Spherical Morphology for Low-Cost High-Efficiency Carbon Capture

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lai, Cheng-Yu [Delaware State Univ., Dover, DE (United States); Radu, Daniela [Delaware State Univ., Dover, DE (United States); Univ. of Delaware, Newark, DE (United States)

2017-12-29

Carbon capture is an integral part of the CO₂ mitigation efforts, and encompasses, among other measures, the demonstration of effective and inexpensive CO₂ capture technologies. The project demonstrated a novel platform—the amine-functionalized stellate mesoporous silica nanosphere (MSN)—for effective CO₂ absorption. The reported CO₂ absorption data are superior to the performance of other reported silica matrices utilized for carbon capture, featuring an amount of over 4 milimoles CO₂/g sorbent at low temperatures (in the range of 30-45 ºC), selected for simulating the temperature of actual flue gas. The reported platform is highly resilient, showing recyclability and 85 % mass conservation of sorbent upon nine tested cycles. Importantly, the stellate MSNs show high CO₂ selectivity at room temperature, indicating that the presence of nitrogen in flue gas will not impair the CO₂ absorption performance. The results could lead to a simple and inexpensive new technology for CO₂ mitigation which could be implemented as measure of CO₂ mitigation in current fossil-fuel burning plants in the form of solid sorbent.

Direct Electron Transfer of Enzymes in a Biologically Assembled Conductive Nanomesh Enzyme Platform.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Seung-Woo; Lee, Ki-Young; Song, Yong-Won; Choi, Won Kook; Chang, Joonyeon; Yi, Hyunjung

2016-02-24

Nondestructive assembly of a nanostructured enzyme platform is developed in combination of the specific biomolecular attraction and electrostatic coupling for highly efficient direct electron transfer (DET) of enzymes with unprecedented applicability and versatility. The biologically assembled conductive nanomesh enzyme platform enables DET-based flexible integrated biosensors and DET of eight different enzyme with various catalytic activities. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Enzymatic electrodes nanostructured with functionalized carbon nanotubes for biofuel cell applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nazaruk, E.; Bilewicz, R. [University of Warsaw, Faculty of Chemistry, Warsaw (Poland); Sadowska, K.; Biernat, J.F. [Gdansk University of Technology, Chemical Faculty, Gdansk (Poland); Rogalski, J. [Maria Curie Sklodowska University, Department of Biochemistry, Lublin (Poland); Ginalska, G. [Medical University of Lublin, Department of Biochemistry, Lublin (Poland)

2010-10-15

Nanostructured bioelectrodes were designed and assembled into a biofuel cell with no separating membrane. The glassy carbon electrodes were modified with mediator-functionalized carbon nanotubes. Ferrocene (Fc) and 2,2{sup '}-azino-bis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonate) diammonium salt (ABTS) bound chemically to the carbon nanotubes were found useful as mediators of the enzyme catalyzed electrode processes. Glucose oxidase from Aspergillus niger AM-11 and laccase from Cerrena unicolor C-139 were incorporated in a liquid-crystalline matrix-monoolein cubic phase. The carbon nanotubes-nanostructured electrode surface was covered with the cubic phase film containing the enzyme and acted as the catalytic surface for the oxidation of glucose and reduction of oxygen. Thanks to the mediating role of derivatized nanotubes the catalysis was almost ten times more efficient than on the GCE electrodes: catalytic current of glucose oxidation was 1 mA cm{sup -2} and oxygen reduction current exceeded 0.6 mA cm{sup -2}. The open circuit voltage of the biofuel cell was 0.43 V. Application of carbon nanotubes increased the maximum power output of the constructed biofuel cell to 100 {mu}W cm{sup -2} without stirring of the solution which was ca. 100 times more efficient than using the same bioelectrodes without nanotubes on the electrode surface. (orig.)

Ion Transport in Nanostructured Block Copolymer/Ionic Liquid Membranes

OpenAIRE

Hoarfrost, Megan Lane

2012-01-01

Incorporating an ionic liquid into one block copolymer microphase provides a platform for combining the outstanding electrochemical properties of ionic liquids with a number of favorable attributes provided by block copolymers. In particular, block copolymers thermodynamically self-assemble into well-ordered nanostructures, which can be engineered to provide a durable mechanical scaffold and template the ionic liquid into continuous ion-conducting nanochannels. Understanding how the additio...

(Poly)cation-induced protection of conventional and wireframe DNA origami nanostructures.

Science.gov (United States)

Ahmadi, Yasaman; De Llano, Elisa; Barišić, Ivan

2018-04-26

DNA nanostructures hold immense potential to be used for biological and medical applications. However, they are extremely vulnerable towards salt depletion and nucleases, which are common under physiological conditions. In this contribution, we used chitosan and linear polyethyleneimine for coating and long-term stabilization of several three-dimensional DNA origami nanostructures. The impact of the degree of polymerization and the charge density of the polymer together with the N/P charge ratio (ratio of the amines in polycations to the phosphates in DNA) on the stability of encapsulated DNA origami nanostructures in the presence of nucleases and in low-salt media was examined. The polycation shells were compatible with enzyme- and aptamer-based functionalization of the DNA nanostructures. Additionally, we showed that despite being highly vulnerable to salt depletion and nucleolytic digestion, self-assembled DNA nanostructures are stable in cell culture media up to a week. This was contrary to unassembled DNA scaffolds that degraded in one hour, showing that placing DNA strands into a spatially designed configuration crucially affect the structural integrity. The stability of naked DNA nanostructures in cell culture was shown to be mediated by growth media. DNA origami nanostructures kept in growth media were significantly more resistant towards low-salt denaturation, DNase I and serum-mediated digestion than when in a conventional buffer. Moreover, we confirmed that DNA origami nanostructures remain not only structurally intact but also fully functional after exposure to cell media. Agarose gel electrophoresis and negative stain transmission electron microscopy analysis revealed the hybridization of DNA origami nanostructures to their targets in the presence of serum proteins and nucleases. The structural integrity and functionality of DNA nanostructures in physiological fluids validate their use particularly for short-time biological applications in which the

Catalyst-Free Vapor-Phase Method for Direct Integration of Gas Sensing Nanostructures with Polymeric Transducing Platforms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stella Vallejos

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Tungsten oxide nanoneedles (NNs are grown and integrated directly with polymeric transducing platforms for gas sensors via aerosol-assisted chemical vapor deposition (AACVD method. Material analysis shows the feasibility to grow highly crystalline nanomaterials in the form of NNs with aspect ratios between 80 and 200 and with high concentration of oxygen vacancies at the surface, whereas gas testing demonstrates moderate sensing responses to hydrogen at concentrations between 10 ppm and 50 ppm, which are comparable with results for tungsten oxide NNs grown on silicon transducing platforms. This method is demonstrated to be an attractive route to fabricate next generation of gas sensors devices, provided with flexibility and functionality, with great potential in a cost effective production for large-scale applications.

Laser-assisted nanostructuring of Tungsten in liquid environment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Barmina, E.V., E-mail: barminaev@gmail.com [Wave Research Center of A.M. Prokhorov General Physics Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 38, Vavilov Street, 119991 Moscow (Russian Federation); Stratakis, E. [Institute of Electronic Structure and Laser, Foundation for Research and Technology, Hellas (IESL-FORTH), P.O. Box 1527, Heraklion 711 10 (Greece); Materials Science and Technology Department, University of Crete, Heraklion 710 03 (Greece); Barberoglou, M. [Institute of Electronic Structure and Laser, Foundation for Research and Technology, Hellas (IESL-FORTH), P.O. Box 1527, Heraklion 711 10 (Greece); Physics Department, University of Crete, Heraklion 714 09 (Greece); Stolyarov, V.N.; Stolyarov, I.N. [Roentgenprom, 35 Lenin str., Protvino, 1442281 Moscow region (Russian Federation); Fotakis, C. [Institute of Electronic Structure and Laser, Foundation for Research and Technology, Hellas (IESL-FORTH), P.O. Box 1527, Heraklion 711 10 (Greece); Physics Department, University of Crete, Heraklion 714 09 (Greece); Shafeev, G.A. [Wave Research Center of A.M. Prokhorov General Physics Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 38, Vavilov Street, 119991 Moscow (Russian Federation)

2012-05-15

Formation of surface nanostructures on Tungsten target immersed into liquids is experimentally studied under its exposure to femtosecond laser pulses with different durations. In particular, nanotexturing of Tungsten upon its exposure to delayed femtosecond pulses is investigated. Two different types of morphological features are observed, namely periodic ripples and nanostructures. Field emission scanning electron microscopy shows that the density of nanostructures as well as their morphology depends on the time delay between pulses and reaches its maximum at 1 ps delay. Thermionic emission of nano-structured W cathode is investigated. The work function of nanostructured W surface is measured to be 0.3 eV lower than that of the pristine surface.

Interfacing nanostructures to biological cells

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Xing; Bertozzi, Carolyn R.; Zettl, Alexander K.

2012-09-04

Disclosed herein are methods and materials by which nanostructures such as carbon nanotubes, nanorods, etc. are bound to lectins and/or polysaccharides and prepared for administration to cells. Also disclosed are complexes comprising glycosylated nanostructures, which bind selectively to cells expressing glycosylated surface molecules recognized by the lectin. Exemplified is a complex comprising a carbon nanotube functionalized with a lipid-like alkane, linked to a polymer bearing repeated .alpha.-N-acetylgalactosamine sugar groups. This complex is shown to selectively adhere to the surface of living cells, without toxicity. In the exemplified embodiment, adherence is mediated by a multivalent lectin, which binds both to the cells and the .alpha.-N-acetylgalactosamine groups on the nanostructure.

Application and Mechanics Analysis of Multi-Function Construction Platforms in Prefabricated-Concrete Construction

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Meihua; Li, Rongshuai; Zhang, Wenze

2017-11-01

Multi-function construction platforms (MCPs) as an “old construction technology, new application” of the building facade construction equipment, its efforts to reduce labour intensity, improve labour productivity, ensure construction safety, shorten the duration of construction and other aspects of the effect are significant. In this study, the functional analysis of the multi-function construction platforms is carried out in the construction of the assembly building. Based on the general finite element software ANSYS, the static calculation and dynamic characteristics analysis of the MCPs structure are analysed, the simplified finite element model is constructed, and the selection of the unit, the processing and solution of boundary are under discussion and research. The maximum deformation value, the maximum stress value and the structural dynamic characteristic model are obtained. The dangerous parts of the platform structure are analysed, too. Multiple types of MCPs under engineering construction conditions are calculated, so as to put forward the rationalization suggestions for engineering application of the MCPs.

An Antibody-Immobilized Silica Inverse Opal Nanostructure for Label-Free Optical Biosensors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wang Sik Lee

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Three-dimensional SiO2-based inverse opal (SiO2-IO nanostructures were prepared for use as biosensors. SiO2-IO was fabricated by vertical deposition and calcination processes. Antibodies were immobilized on the surface of SiO2-IO using 3-aminopropyl trimethoxysilane (APTMS, a succinimidyl-[(N-maleimidopropionamido-tetraethyleneglycol] ester (NHS-PEG4-maleimide cross-linker, and protein G. The highly accessible surface and porous structure of SiO2-IO were beneficial for capturing influenza viruses on the antibody-immobilized surfaces. Moreover, as the binding leads to the redshift of the reflectance peak, the influenza virus could be detected by simply monitoring the change in the reflectance spectrum without labeling. SiO2-IO showed high sensitivity in the range of 103–105 plaque forming unit (PFU and high specificity to the influenza A (H1N1 virus. Due to its structural and optical properties, SiO2-IO is a promising material for the detection of the influenza virus. Our study provides a generalized sensing platform for biohazards as various sensing strategies can be employed through the surface functionalization of three-dimensional nanostructures.

An Antibody-Immobilized Silica Inverse Opal Nanostructure for Label-Free Optical Biosensors.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Wang Sik; Kang, Taejoon; Kim, Shin-Hyun; Jeong, Jinyoung

2018-01-20

Three-dimensional SiO₂-based inverse opal (SiO₂-IO) nanostructures were prepared for use as biosensors. SiO₂-IO was fabricated by vertical deposition and calcination processes. Antibodies were immobilized on the surface of SiO₂-IO using 3-aminopropyl trimethoxysilane (APTMS), a succinimidyl-[(N-maleimidopropionamido)-tetraethyleneglycol] ester (NHS-PEG₄-maleimide) cross-linker, and protein G. The highly accessible surface and porous structure of SiO₂-IO were beneficial for capturing influenza viruses on the antibody-immobilized surfaces. Moreover, as the binding leads to the redshift of the reflectance peak, the influenza virus could be detected by simply monitoring the change in the reflectance spectrum without labeling. SiO₂-IO showed high sensitivity in the range of 10³-10⁵ plaque forming unit (PFU) and high specificity to the influenza A (H1N1) virus. Due to its structural and optical properties, SiO₂-IO is a promising material for the detection of the influenza virus. Our study provides a generalized sensing platform for biohazards as various sensing strategies can be employed through the surface functionalization of three-dimensional nanostructures.

A highly efficient urea detection using flower-like zinc oxide nanostructures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tak, Manvi; Gupta, Vinay; Tomar, Monika

2015-01-01

A novel matrix based on flower-like zinc oxide nanostructures (ZnONF) has been fabricated using hydrothermal method and exploited successfully for the development of urea biosensor. Urease (Urs) is physically immobilized onto the ZnO nanostructure matrix synthesized over platinized silicon substrate. The surface morphology and crystallographic structure of the as-grown ZnONF have been characterized using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques. The fabricated amperometric biosensor (Urs/ZnONF/Pt/Ti/Si) exhibits a linear sensing response towards urea over the concentration range 1.65 mM to 16.50 mM with an enhanced sensitivity (~ 132 μA/mM/cm 2 ) and a fast response time of 4 s. The relatively low value of Michaelis–Menten constant (K m ) of 0.19 mM confirms the high affinity of the immobilized urease on the nanostructured ZnONF surface towards its analyte (urea). The obtained results demonstrate that flower-like ZnO nanostructures serve as a promising matrix for the realization of efficient amperometric urea biosensor with enhanced response characteristics. - Graphical abstract: The article focuses on the synthesis of flower-like morphology possessing zinc oxide nanostructures and its application towards urea detection with high sensitivity as well as selectivity. - Highlights: • Flower-like ZnO nanostructures based urea biosensor has been fabricated. • Grown ZnO nanostructures offer an advantageous urease immobilization platform owing to its very high surface area. • High sensitivity (~ 132 μA/mM/cm 2 ) and low Michaelis–Menten parameter (K m ) value (~ 0.19 mM) were observed

Functional nanostructured titanium nitride films obtained by sputtering magnetron

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sanchez, O.; Hernandez-Velez, M.; Navas, D.; Auger, M.A.; Baldonedo, J.L.; Sanz, R.; Pirota, K.R.; Vazquez, M.

2006-01-01

Development of new methods in the formation of hollow structures, in particular, nanotubes and nanocages are currently generating a great interest as a consequence of the growing relevance of these nanostructures on many technological fields, ranging from optoelectronics to biotechnology. In this work, we report the formation of titanium nitride (TiN) nanotubes and nanohills via reactive sputtering magnetron processes. Anodic Alumina Membranes (AAM) were used as template substrates to grow the TiN nanostructures. The AAM were obtained through electrochemical anodization processes by using oxalic acid solutions as electrolytes. The nanotubes were produced at temperatures below 100 deg. C, and using a pure titanium (99.995%) sputtering target and nitrogen as reactive gas. The obtained TiN thin films showed surface morphologies adjusted to pore diameter and interpore distance of the substrates, as well as ordered arrays of nanotubes or nanohills depending on the sputtering and template conditions. High Resolution Scanning Electron Microscopy (HRSEM) was used to elucidate both the surface order and morphology of the different grown nanostructures. The crystalline structure of the samples was examined using X-ray Diffraction (XRD) patterns and their qualitative chemical composition by using X-ray Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (XEDS) in a scanning electron microscopy

Development of membranes of PLGA functionalized with antimicrobial agents nanostructured

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Souza, S.G.; Molin, M.L.A.L.; Nogueira, A.L.; Schneider, E. Duek; Pezzin, A.P.T.

2016-01-01

Periodontitis is a disease affecting the tooth supporting tissues, causing loss of bone attachment. One of the possible treatments is through guided tissue regeneration (GTR). Currently, a variety of resorbable membranes are available as alternative to conventional non-resorbable membranes for this application, as the membranes of poly (lactic acid-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA). In this context, this study aimed to produce membranes were biocompatible and nanostructured functionalized with antibacterial agents and evaluate its thermal properties for future application in RTG. For the production of membranes were used as the PLGA polymer matrix. The NpAg were used at concentrations of 5, 7, 8 and 10 ppm and NpZnO were: 10, 50, 100 and 150 ppm. The materials were characterized by TGA and DSC. (author)

Rational geometrical engineering of palladium sulfide multi-arm nanostructures as a superior bi-functional electrocatalyst.

Science.gov (United States)

Nandan, R; Nanda, K K

2017-08-31

Geometrical tunability offers sharp edges and an open-armed structure accompanied with a high electrochemical active surface area to ensure the efficient and effective utilization of materials by exposing the electrochemical active sites for facile accessibility of reactant species. Herein, we report a one-step, single-pot, surfactant-free, electroless, and economic route to synthesize palladium sulfide nanostructures with different geometries at mild temperatures and their catalytic properties towards the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and methanol electro-oxidation (MOR). For ORR, the positive on-set, half wave potentials, smaller Tafel slope, high electrochemical active surface area, large roughness factor, and better cyclic stability of the proposed nanostructures as compared to those of the commercial state-of-the-art Pt-C/PdS catalysts suggest their superiority in an alkaline medium. In addition, high mass activity (J f ∼ 715 mA mg -1 ), in comparison with that of the commercial state-of-the-art Pt-C/PdS catalysts (J f ∼ 138/41 mA mg -1 , respectively), and high J f /J b (1.52) along with the superior operational stability of the multi-arm palladium sulfide nanostructures towards MOR advocates the bi-functional behavior of the catalyst and its potential as a promising Pt-free anode/cathode electrocatalyst in fuel cells.

Patterning protein complexes on DNA nanostructures using a GFP nanobody.

Science.gov (United States)

Sommese, R F; Hariadi, R F; Kim, K; Liu, M; Tyska, M J; Sivaramakrishnan, S

2016-11-01

DNA nanostructures have become an important and powerful tool for studying protein function over the last 5 years. One of the challenges, though, has been the development of universal methods for patterning protein complexes on DNA nanostructures. Herein, we present a new approach for labeling DNA nanostructures by functionalizing them with a GFP nanobody. We demonstrate the ability to precisely control protein attachment via our nanobody linker using two enzymatic model systems, namely adenylyl cyclase activity and myosin motility. Finally, we test the power of this attachment method by patterning unpurified, endogenously expressed Arp2/3 protein complex from cell lysate. By bridging DNA nanostructures with a fluorescent protein ubiquitous throughout cell and developmental biology and protein biochemistry, this approach significantly streamlines the application of DNA nanostructures as a programmable scaffold in biological studies. © 2016 The Protein Society.

Homogeneity of Ge-rich nanostructures as characterized by chemical etching and transmission electron microscopy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bollani, Monica; Chrastina, Daniel; Montuori, Valeria; Vanacore, Giovanni M; Tagliaferri, Alberto; Sordan, Roman; Terziotti, Daniela; Bonera, Emiliano; Spinella, Corrado; Nicotra, Giuseppe

2012-01-01

The extension of SiGe technology towards new electronic and optoelectronic applications on the Si platform requires that Ge-rich nanostructures be obtained in a well-controlled manner. Ge deposition on Si substrates usually creates SiGe nanostructures with relatively low and inhomogeneous Ge content. We have realized SiGe nanostructures with a very high (up to 90%) Ge content. Using substrate patterning, a regular array of nanostructures is obtained. We report that electron microscopy reveals an abrupt change in Ge content of about 20% between the filled pit and the island, which has not been observed in other Ge island systems. Dislocations are mainly found within the filled pit and only rarely in the island. Selective chemical etching and electron energy-loss spectroscopy reveal that the island itself is homogeneous. These Ge-rich islands are possible candidates for electronic applications requiring locally induced stress, and optoelectronic applications which exploit the Ge-like band structure of Ge-rich SiGe. (paper)

Homogeneity of Ge-rich nanostructures as characterized by chemical etching and transmission electron microscopy.

Science.gov (United States)

Bollani, Monica; Chrastina, Daniel; Montuori, Valeria; Terziotti, Daniela; Bonera, Emiliano; Vanacore, Giovanni M; Tagliaferri, Alberto; Sordan, Roman; Spinella, Corrado; Nicotra, Giuseppe

2012-02-03

The extension of SiGe technology towards new electronic and optoelectronic applications on the Si platform requires that Ge-rich nanostructures be obtained in a well-controlled manner. Ge deposition on Si substrates usually creates SiGe nanostructures with relatively low and inhomogeneous Ge content. We have realized SiGe nanostructures with a very high (up to 90%) Ge content. Using substrate patterning, a regular array of nanostructures is obtained. We report that electron microscopy reveals an abrupt change in Ge content of about 20% between the filled pit and the island, which has not been observed in other Ge island systems. Dislocations are mainly found within the filled pit and only rarely in the island. Selective chemical etching and electron energy-loss spectroscopy reveal that the island itself is homogeneous. These Ge-rich islands are possible candidates for electronic applications requiring locally induced stress, and optoelectronic applications which exploit the Ge-like band structure of Ge-rich SiGe.

Infrared hyperbolic metasurface based on nanostructured van der Waals materials

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Peining; Dolado, Irene; Alfaro-Mozaz, Francisco Javier; Casanova, Fèlix; Hueso, Luis E.; Liu, Song; Edgar, James H.; Nikitin, Alexey Y.; Vélez, Saül; Hillenbrand, Rainer

2018-02-01

Metasurfaces with strongly anisotropic optical properties can support deep subwavelength-scale confined electromagnetic waves (polaritons), which promise opportunities for controlling light in photonic and optoelectronic applications. We developed a mid-infrared hyperbolic metasurface by nanostructuring a thin layer of hexagonal boron nitride that supports deep subwavelength-scale phonon polaritons that propagate with in-plane hyperbolic dispersion. By applying an infrared nanoimaging technique, we visualize the concave (anomalous) wavefronts of a diverging polariton beam, which represent a landmark feature of hyperbolic polaritons. The results illustrate how near-field microscopy can be applied to reveal the exotic wavefronts of polaritons in anisotropic materials and demonstrate that nanostructured van der Waals materials can form a highly variable and compact platform for hyperbolic infrared metasurface devices and circuits.

Computer Code for Nanostructure Simulation

Science.gov (United States)

Filikhin, Igor; Vlahovic, Branislav

2009-01-01

Due to their small size, nanostructures can have stress and thermal gradients that are larger than any macroscopic analogue. These gradients can lead to specific regions that are susceptible to failure via processes such as plastic deformation by dislocation emission, chemical debonding, and interfacial alloying. A program has been developed that rigorously simulates and predicts optoelectronic properties of nanostructures of virtually any geometrical complexity and material composition. It can be used in simulations of energy level structure, wave functions, density of states of spatially configured phonon-coupled electrons, excitons in quantum dots, quantum rings, quantum ring complexes, and more. The code can be used to calculate stress distributions and thermal transport properties for a variety of nanostructures and interfaces, transport and scattering at nanoscale interfaces and surfaces under various stress states, and alloy compositional gradients. The code allows users to perform modeling of charge transport processes through quantum-dot (QD) arrays as functions of inter-dot distance, array order versus disorder, QD orientation, shape, size, and chemical composition for applications in photovoltaics and physical properties of QD-based biochemical sensors. The code can be used to study the hot exciton formation/relation dynamics in arrays of QDs of different shapes and sizes at different temperatures. It also can be used to understand the relation among the deposition parameters and inherent stresses, strain deformation, heat flow, and failure of nanostructures.

Dielectric platforms for surface-enhanced spectroscopies (Conference Presentation)

Science.gov (United States)

Maier, Stefan A.

2016-03-01

Plasmonic nanostructures serve as the main backbone of surface enhanced sensing methodologies, yet the associated optical losses lead to localized heating as well as quenching of molecules, complicating their use for enhancement of fluorescent emission. Additionally, conventional plasmonic materials are limited to operation in the visible part of the spectrum. We will elucidate how nanostructures consisting of conventional and polar dielectrics can be employed as a highly promising alternative platform. Dielectric nanostructures can sustain scattering resonances due to both electric and magnetic Mie modes. We have recently predicted high enhanced local electromagnetic field hot spots in dielectric nanoantenna dimers, with the hallmark of spot sizes comparable to those achievable with plasmonic antennas, but with lower optical losses. Here, we will present first experimental evidence for both fluorescence and Raman enhancement in dielectric nanoantennas, including a direct determination of localized heating, and compare to conventional Au dimer antennas. The second part of the talk will focus on the mid-infrared regime of the electromagnetic spectrum, outlining possibilities for surface enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy based on polar and hyperbolic dielectrics.

A highly efficient urea detection using flower-like zinc oxide nanostructures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tak, Manvi; Gupta, Vinay [Department of Physics and Astrophysics, University of Delhi, Delhi 110007 (India); Tomar, Monika, E-mail: monikatomar@gmail.com [Department of Physics, Miranda House, University of Delhi, Delhi 110007 (India)

2015-12-01

A novel matrix based on flower-like zinc oxide nanostructures (ZnONF) has been fabricated using hydrothermal method and exploited successfully for the development of urea biosensor. Urease (Urs) is physically immobilized onto the ZnO nanostructure matrix synthesized over platinized silicon substrate. The surface morphology and crystallographic structure of the as-grown ZnONF have been characterized using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques. The fabricated amperometric biosensor (Urs/ZnONF/Pt/Ti/Si) exhibits a linear sensing response towards urea over the concentration range 1.65 mM to 16.50 mM with an enhanced sensitivity (~ 132 μA/mM/cm{sup 2}) and a fast response time of 4 s. The relatively low value of Michaelis–Menten constant (K{sub m}) of 0.19 mM confirms the high affinity of the immobilized urease on the nanostructured ZnONF surface towards its analyte (urea). The obtained results demonstrate that flower-like ZnO nanostructures serve as a promising matrix for the realization of efficient amperometric urea biosensor with enhanced response characteristics. - Graphical abstract: The article focuses on the synthesis of flower-like morphology possessing zinc oxide nanostructures and its application towards urea detection with high sensitivity as well as selectivity. - Highlights: • Flower-like ZnO nanostructures based urea biosensor has been fabricated. • Grown ZnO nanostructures offer an advantageous urease immobilization platform owing to its very high surface area. • High sensitivity (~ 132 μA/mM/cm{sup 2}) and low Michaelis–Menten parameter (K{sub m}) value (~ 0.19 mM) were observed.

One-Dimensional Hetero-Nanostructures for Rechargeable Batteries.

Science.gov (United States)

Mai, Liqiang; Sheng, Jinzhi; Xu, Lin; Tan, Shuangshuang; Meng, Jiashen

2018-04-17

Rechargeable batteries are regarded as one of the most practical electrochemical energy storage devices that are able to convert and store the electrical energy generated from renewable resources, and they function as the key power sources for electric vehicles and portable electronics. The ultimate goals for electrochemical energy storage devices are high power and energy density, long lifetime, and high safety. To achieve the above goals, researchers have tried to apply various morphologies of nanomaterials as the electrodes to enhance the electrochemical performance. Among them, one-dimensional (1D) materials show unique superiorities, such as cross-linked structures for external stress buffering and large draw ratios for internal stress dispersion. However, a homogeneous single-component electrode material can hardly have the characteristics of high electronic/ionic conductivity and high stability in the electrochemical environment simultaneously. Therefore, designing well-defined functional 1D hetero-nanostructures that combine the advantages and overcome the limitations of different electrochemically active materials is of great significance. This Account summarizes fabrication strategies for 1D hetero-nanostructures, including nucleation and growth, deposition, and melt-casting and electrospinning. Besides, the chemical principles for each strategy are discussed. The nucleation and growth strategy is suitable for growing and constructing 1D hetero-nanostructures of partial transition metal compounds, and the experimental conditions for this strategy are relatively accessible. Deposition is a reliable strategy to synthesize 1D hetero-nanostructures by decorating functional layers on 1D substrate materials, on the condition that the preobtained substrate materials must be stable in the following deposition process. The melt-casting strategy, in which 1D hetero-nanostructures are synthesizes via a melting and molding process, is also widely used. Additionally

LDRD final report on adaptive-responsive nanostructures for sensing applications.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shelnutt, John Allen; van Swol, Frank B.; Wang, Zhongchun; Medforth, Craig J.

2005-11-01

Functional organic nanostructures such as well-formed tubes or fibers that can easily be fabricated into electronic and photonic devices are needed in many applications. Especially desirable from a national security standpoint are nanostructures that have enhanced sensitivity for the detection of chemicals and biological (CB) agents and other environmental stimuli. We recently discovered the first class of highly responsive and adaptive porphyrin-based nanostructures that may satisfy these requirements. These novel porphyrin nanostructures, which are formed by ionic self-assembly of two oppositely charged porphyrins, may function as conductors, semiconductors, or photoconductors, and they have additional properties that make them suitable for device fabrication (e.g., as ultrasensitive colorimetric CB microsensors). Preliminary studies with porphyrin nanotubes have shown that these nanostructures have novel optical and electronic properties, including strong resonant light scattering, quenched fluorescence, and electrical conductivity. In addition, they are photochemically active and capable of light-harvesting and photosynthesis; they may also have nonlinear optical properties. Remarkably, the nanotubes and potentially other porphyrin nanostructure are mechanically responsive and adaptive (e.g., the rigidity of the micrometers-long nanotubes is altered by light, ultrasound, or chemicals) and they self-heal upon removal the environmental stimulus. Given the tremendous degree of structural variation possible in the porphyrin subunits, additional types of nanostructures and greater control over their morphology can be anticipated. Molecular modification also provides a means of controlling their electronic, photonic, and other functional properties. In this work, we have greatly broadened the range of ionic porphyrin nanostructures that can be made, and determined the optical and responsivity properties of the nanotubes and other porphyrin nanostructures. We have

Analytic device including nanostructures

KAUST Repository

Di Fabrizio, Enzo M.; Fratalocchi, Andrea; Totero Gongora, Juan Sebastian; Coluccio, Maria Laura; Candeloro, Patrizio; Cuda, Gianni

2015-01-01

A device for detecting an analyte in a sample comprising: an array including a plurality of pixels, each pixel including a nanochain comprising: a first nanostructure, a second nanostructure, and a third nanostructure, wherein size of the first nanostructure is larger than that of the second nanostructure, and size of the second nanostructure is larger than that of the third nanostructure, and wherein the first nanostructure, the second nanostructure, and the third nanostructure are positioned on a substrate such that when the nanochain is excited by an energy, an optical field between the second nanostructure and the third nanostructure is stronger than an optical field between the first nanostructure and the second nanostructure, wherein the array is configured to receive a sample; and a detector arranged to collect spectral data from a plurality of pixels of the array.

Modulation of fluorescence signals from biomolecules along nanowires due to interaction of light with oriented nanostructures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Frederiksen, Rune Schøneberg; Alarcon-Llado, Esther; Madsen, Morten H.

2015-01-01

High aspect ratio nanostructures have gained increasing interest as highly sensitive platforms for biosensing. Here, well-defined biofunctionalized vertical indium arsenide nanowires are used to map the interaction of light with nanowires depending on their orientation and the excitation waveleng...

Magnetic properties of nickel nanostructures grown in AAO membrane

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oh, S.-L.; Kim, Y.-R.; Malkinski, L.; Vovk, A.; Whittenburg, S.L.; Kim, E.-M.; Jung, J.-S.

2007-01-01

One-dimensional nanostructures can be built by performing chemical or electrochemical reactions in the pores of a suitable host or matrix material. We have developed a method of electrodeposition of nickel nanostructures inside cylindrical pores of the anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) membranes, which provides precise control of the nanostructure height. We were able to fabricate hexagonal arrays of particles in the form of spheres, rods and long wires. Magnetization measurements of these nanostructures as function of field and temperature were carried out using a superconducting quantum-interference device magnetometer. The shape of nickel nanostructures has been investigated by field emission scanning electron microscope. The coercivity of the nickel nanostructures measured with the field perpendicular to the membrane was increasing with increasing aspect ratio of the nanostructures. These experimental values of the coercivity, varying from 200 Oe for the spherical nanodots to 730 Oe for the nanowires, are in a fair agreement with our micromagnetic modeling calculations

Magnetic properties of nickel nanostructures grown in AAO membrane

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oh, S -L [Department of Chemistry, Yonsei University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Y -R [Department of Chemistry, Yonsei University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Malkinski, L [Advanced Material Research Institute, University of New Orleans, New Orleans, LA 70148 (United States); Vovk, A [Advanced Material Research Institute, University of New Orleans, New Orleans, LA 70148 (United States); Whittenburg, S L [Advanced Material Research Institute, University of New Orleans, New Orleans, LA 70148 (United States); Kim, E -M [Korea Basic Science Institute, Kangnung 210-702 (Korea, Republic of); Jung, J -S [Department of Chemistry, Kangnung National University, Kangnung 210-702 (Korea, Republic of)

2007-03-15

One-dimensional nanostructures can be built by performing chemical or electrochemical reactions in the pores of a suitable host or matrix material. We have developed a method of electrodeposition of nickel nanostructures inside cylindrical pores of the anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) membranes, which provides precise control of the nanostructure height. We were able to fabricate hexagonal arrays of particles in the form of spheres, rods and long wires. Magnetization measurements of these nanostructures as function of field and temperature were carried out using a superconducting quantum-interference device magnetometer. The shape of nickel nanostructures has been investigated by field emission scanning electron microscope. The coercivity of the nickel nanostructures measured with the field perpendicular to the membrane was increasing with increasing aspect ratio of the nanostructures. These experimental values of the coercivity, varying from 200 Oe for the spherical nanodots to 730 Oe for the nanowires, are in a fair agreement with our micromagnetic modeling calculations.

Printable nanostructured silicon solar cells for high-performance, large-area flexible photovoltaics.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Sung-Min; Biswas, Roshni; Li, Weigu; Kang, Dongseok; Chan, Lesley; Yoon, Jongseung

2014-10-28

Nanostructured forms of crystalline silicon represent an attractive materials building block for photovoltaics due to their potential benefits to significantly reduce the consumption of active materials, relax the requirement of materials purity for high performance, and hence achieve greatly improved levelized cost of energy. Despite successful demonstrations for their concepts over the past decade, however, the practical application of nanostructured silicon solar cells for large-scale implementation has been hampered by many existing challenges associated with the consumption of the entire wafer or expensive source materials, difficulties to precisely control materials properties and doping characteristics, or restrictions on substrate materials and scalability. Here we present a highly integrable materials platform of nanostructured silicon solar cells that can overcome these limitations. Ultrathin silicon solar microcells integrated with engineered photonic nanostructures are fabricated directly from wafer-based source materials in configurations that can lower the materials cost and can be compatible with deterministic assembly procedures to allow programmable, large-scale distribution, unlimited choices of module substrates, as well as lightweight, mechanically compliant constructions. Systematic studies on optical and electrical properties, photovoltaic performance in experiments, as well as numerical modeling elucidate important design rules for nanoscale photon management with ultrathin, nanostructured silicon solar cells and their interconnected, mechanically flexible modules, where we demonstrate 12.4% solar-to-electric energy conversion efficiency for printed ultrathin (∼ 8 μm) nanostructured silicon solar cells when configured with near-optimal designs of rear-surface nanoposts, antireflection coating, and back-surface reflector.

Engineering of lipid prodrug-based, hyaluronic acid-decorated nanostructured lipid carriers platform for 5-fluorouracil and cisplatin combination gastric cancer therapy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Qu CY

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Chun-Ying Qu,1,* Min Zhou,1,* Ying-wei Chen,2 Mei-mei Chen,3 Feng Shen,1 Lei-Ming Xu11Digestive Endoscopic Diagnosis and Treatment Center, Xinhua Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 2Shanghai Key Laboratory of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 3Digestive Department, Xinhua Hospital, School of medicine, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workPurpose: The first-line chemotherapy treatment protocol for gastric cancer is combination chemotherapy of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU and cisplatin (CDDP. The aim of this study was to engineer prodrug-based nanostructured lipid carriers (NLC platform for codelivery of 5-FU and CDDP to enhance therapy and decrease toxicity.Methods: First, 5-FU-stearic acid lipid conjugate was synthesized by two steps. Second, 5-FU-stearic acid prodrug and CDDP were loaded in NLC. Finally, hyaluronic acid (HA was coated onto NLC surface. Average size, zeta potential, and drug loading capacity of NLC were evaluated. Human gastric cancer cell line BGC823 (BGC823 cells was used for the testing of in vitro cytotoxicity assays. In vivo antitumor activity of NLC was evaluated in mice bearing BGC823 cells model.Results: HA-coated 5-FU-stearic acid prodrug and CDDP-loaded NLC (HA-FU/C-NLC showed a synergistic effect in combination therapy and displayed the greatest antitumor activity than all of the free drugs or uncoated NLC in vitro and in vivo.Conclusion: This work reveals that HA-coated NLC could be used as a novel carrier to codeliver 5-FU and CDDP for gastric cancer therapy. HA-FU/C-NLC could be a promising targeted and combinational therapy in nanomedicine.Keywords: gastric cancer, nanostructured lipid carriers, hyaluronic acid, combination chemotherapy, lipid prodrug

Intelligent Parking Assistant - A Showcase of the MOBiNET Platform Functionalities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mikkelsen, Lars Møller; Toledo, Raphael; Agerholm, Niels

availability, location and pricing schemes. The intelligence of the IPA system consists of automatically fetching parking lot information from the relevant service, automatically registering when the vehicle is stopped, evaluating whether the vehicle is stopped inside a payed parking lot, and automatically......The Intelligent Parking Assistant (IPA) system is developed based on work done in the Danish ITS Platform project. The IPA system includes an Android app that helps the user chose, find and pay for parkings. The app uses information about parking lots fetched from a web service, including live...... initiating the payment for the parking. The IPA app and the back end services, are published via the MOBiNET platform which is a European-wide platform supporting ITS services, and offering functionalities enabling easy migration of services. The migration is enabled by defining a common methodology...

Versatile function of nanostructured-ZnO sensors using photo-assisted method

OpenAIRE

Ching-Ting Lee; Chia-Hsun Chen; Ying-Shuo Chiu

2016-01-01

The vertical ZnO nanorod array was grown as the piezoelectric pressure sensors. By taking advantages of the induced conductivity of the ZnO nanorod array under light illumination, the nanostructured-ZnO pressure sensors exhibited the improved sensitivity of 7.89 μA ⋅ cm2/mN compared to 0.027 μA ⋅ cm2/mN of the ones without light illumination. Moreover, the sensing current of the nanostructured-ZnO pressure sensors depended on the ultraviolet wavelength and power density. Consequently, the sen...

One-step large-scale deposition of salt-free DNA origami nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Linko, Veikko; Shen, Boxuan; Tapio, Kosti; Toppari, J. Jussi; Kostiainen, Mauri A.; Tuukkanen, Sampo

2015-01-01

DNA origami nanostructures have tremendous potential to serve as versatile platforms in self-assembly -based nanofabrication and in highly parallel nanoscale patterning. However, uniform deposition and reliable anchoring of DNA nanostructures often requires specific conditions, such as pre-treatment of the chosen substrate or a fine-tuned salt concentration for the deposition buffer. In addition, currently available deposition techniques are suitable merely for small scales. In this article, we exploit a spray-coating technique in order to resolve the aforementioned issues in the deposition of different 2D and 3D DNA origami nanostructures. We show that purified DNA origamis can be controllably deposited on silicon and glass substrates by the proposed method. The results are verified using either atomic force microscopy or fluorescence microscopy depending on the shape of the DNA origami. DNA origamis are successfully deposited onto untreated substrates with surface coverage of about 4 objects/mm2. Further, the DNA nanostructures maintain their shape even if the salt residues are removed from the DNA origami fabrication buffer after the folding procedure. We believe that the presented one-step spray-coating method will find use in various fields of material sciences, especially in the development of DNA biochips and in the fabrication of metamaterials and plasmonic devices through DNA metallisation. PMID:26492833

Fabrication of bismuth ferrite based hybrid nanostructures: Insight into a catalytic and sensing properties for the detection of biomolecules

Science.gov (United States)

Bharathkumar, S.; Sakar, M.; Balakumar, S.

2018-04-01

We made an attempt to construct a photocatalytic and biosensor platform by using bismuth ferrite (BiFeO3/BFO) particulates and fibers nanostructures towards the degradation of dye and electrochemical sensing of ascorbic acid. The crystal phase and morphology of the BFO nanostructures were confirmed using XRD and FESEM respectively. Further, their photocatalytic activity was tested under sunlight. The BFO fibers showed relatively an enhanced degradation property and an efficient electrochemical sensing property compared to the Particulates.

Hierarchically Nanostructured Materials for Sustainable Environmental Applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zheng eRen

2013-11-01

Full Text Available This article presents a comprehensive overview of the hierarchical nanostructured materials with either geometry or composition complexity in environmental applications. The hierarchical nanostructures offer advantages of high surface area, synergistic interactions and multiple functionalities towards water remediation, environmental gas sensing and monitoring as well as catalytic gas treatment. Recent advances in synthetic strategies for various hierarchical morphologies such as hollow spheres and urchin-shaped architectures have been reviewed. In addition to the chemical synthesis, the physical mechanisms associated with the materials design and device fabrication have been discussed for each specific application. The development and application of hierarchical complex perovskite oxide nanostructures have also been introduced in photocatalytic water remediation, gas sensing and catalytic converter. Hierarchical nanostructures will open up many possibilities for materials design and device fabrication in environmental chemistry and technology.

Mechanical Behavior of Nanostructured Hybrids Based on Poly(Vinyl Alcohol/Bioactive Glass Reinforced with Functionalized Carbon Nanotubes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

H. S. Mansur

2012-01-01

Full Text Available This study reports the synthesis and characterization of novel tridimensional porous hybrids based on PVA combined with bioactive glass and reinforced by chemically functionalized carbon nanotubes (CNT for potential use in bone tissue engineering. The functionalization of CNT was performed by introducing carboxylic groups in multiwall nanotubes. This process aimed at enhancing the affinity of CNTs with the water-soluble PVA polymer derived by the hydrogen bonds formed among alcohol (PVA and carboxylic groups (CNT–COOH. In the sequence, the CNT–COOH (0.25 wt% were used as the nanostructure modifier for the hybrid system based on PVA associated with the bioactive glass (BaG. The mechanical properties of the nanostructured hybrids reinforced with CNT–COOH were evaluated by axial compression tests, and they were compared to reference hybrid. The averaged yield stresses of macroporous hybrids were (2.3 ± 0.9 and (4.4 ± 1.0 MPa for the reference and the CNT reinforced materials, respectively. Moreover, yield strain and Young's modulus were significantly enhanced by about 30% for the CNT–COOH hybrids. Hence, as far as the mechanical properties are concerned, the results have clearly showed the feasibility of utilizing these new hybrids reinforced with functionalized CNT in repairing cancellous bone tissues.

Construction of a new functional platform by grafting poly(4-vinylpyridine) in multi-walled carbon nanotubes for complexing copper ions aiming the amperometric detection of L-cysteine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carvalho Castro e Silva, Cecília de; Breitkreitz, Márcia Cristina; Santhiago, Murilo; Crispilho Corrêa, Cátia; Tatsuo Kubota, Lauro

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Construction of new nanostructured platform based on MWCNTs–PVP to complex copper(II) ions. ► Development of an amperometric sensor for highly selective determination of Cys in food supplement samples. ► Combination of nanocomposite and the copper(II) ions causes a dramatic enhancement in the sensitivity of Cys quantification at low overpotential. - Abstract: This work describes the preparation of an amperometric sensor for electrocatalytical detection of L-cysteine (Cys). The developed sensor is based on a functional platform to complex copper ions on multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) modified with poly-4-vinylpyridine (PVP) through an in situ polymerization. The obtained values for the kinetic constants of heterogeneous electron transfer rate (k s ) and for chemical reaction (k obs ) between Cu 2+ and cysteine were 5.78 s −1 and 6.96 L mol −1 s −1 , respectively. The analytical curve showed a linear response range for detecting L-cysteine in concentrations from 5 to 60 μmol L −1 . The detection and quantification limits obtained were 1.50 and 5.00 μmol L −1 , respectively with a response time of 0.10 s at an applied potential of 150 mV vs SCE.

Magnetic hydroxyapatite: a promising multifunctional platform for nanomedicine application

Science.gov (United States)

Mondal, Sudip; Manivasagan, Panchanathan; Bharathiraja, Subramaniyan; Santha Moorthy, Madhappan; Kim, Hye Hyun; Seo, Hansu; Lee, Kang Dae; Oh, Junghwan

2017-01-01

In this review, specific attention is paid to the development of nanostructured magnetic hydroxyapatite (MHAp) and its potential application in controlled drug/gene delivery, tissue engineering, magnetic hyperthermia treatment, and the development of contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging. Both magnetite and hydroxyapatite materials have excellent prospects in nanomedicine with multifunctional therapeutic approaches. To date, many research articles have focused on biomedical applications of nanomaterials because of which it is very difficult to focus on any particular type of nanomaterial. This study is possibly the first effort to emphasize on the comprehensive assessment of MHAp nanostructures for biomedical applications supported with very recent experimental studies. From basic concepts to the real-life applications, the relevant characteristics of magnetic biomaterials are patented which are briefly discussed. The potential therapeutic and diagnostic ability of MHAp-nanostructured materials make them an ideal platform for future nanomedicine. We hope that this advanced review will provide a better understanding of MHAp and its important features to utilize it as a promising material for multifunctional biomedical applications. PMID:29200851

Magnetic hydroxyapatite: a promising multifunctional platform for nanomedicine application.

Science.gov (United States)

Mondal, Sudip; Manivasagan, Panchanathan; Bharathiraja, Subramaniyan; Santha Moorthy, Madhappan; Kim, Hye Hyun; Seo, Hansu; Lee, Kang Dae; Oh, Junghwan

2017-01-01

In this review, specific attention is paid to the development of nanostructured magnetic hydroxyapatite (MHAp) and its potential application in controlled drug/gene delivery, tissue engineering, magnetic hyperthermia treatment, and the development of contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging. Both magnetite and hydroxyapatite materials have excellent prospects in nanomedicine with multifunctional therapeutic approaches. To date, many research articles have focused on biomedical applications of nanomaterials because of which it is very difficult to focus on any particular type of nanomaterial. This study is possibly the first effort to emphasize on the comprehensive assessment of MHAp nanostructures for biomedical applications supported with very recent experimental studies. From basic concepts to the real-life applications, the relevant characteristics of magnetic biomaterials are patented which are briefly discussed. The potential therapeutic and diagnostic ability of MHAp-nanostructured materials make them an ideal platform for future nanomedicine. We hope that this advanced review will provide a better understanding of MHAp and its important features to utilize it as a promising material for multifunctional biomedical applications.

Carbon Nanostructures for Tagging in Electrochemical Biosensing: A Review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paloma Yáñez-Sedeño

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Growing demand for developing ultrasensitive electrochemical bioassays has led to the design of numerous signal amplification strategies. In this context, carbon-based nanomaterials have been demonstrated to be excellent tags for greatly amplifying the transduction of recognition events and simplifying the protocols used in electrochemical biosensing. This relevant role is due to the carbon-nanomaterials’ large surface area, excellent biological compatibility and ease functionalization and, in some cases, intrinsic electrochemistry. These carbon-based nanomaterials involve well-known carbon nanotubes (CNTs and graphene as well as the more recent use of other carbon nanoforms. This paper briefly discusses the advantages of using carbon nanostructures and their hybrid nanocomposites for amplification through tagging in electrochemical biosensing platforms and provides an updated overview of some selected examples making use of labels involving carbon nanomaterials, acting both as carriers for signal elements and as electrochemical tracers, applied to the electrochemical biosensing of relevant (biomarkers.

Integrated nanotechnology platform for tumor-targeted multimodal imaging and therapeutic cargo release.

Science.gov (United States)

Hosoya, Hitomi; Dobroff, Andrey S; Driessen, Wouter H P; Cristini, Vittorio; Brinker, Lina M; Staquicini, Fernanda I; Cardó-Vila, Marina; D'Angelo, Sara; Ferrara, Fortunato; Proneth, Bettina; Lin, Yu-Shen; Dunphy, Darren R; Dogra, Prashant; Melancon, Marites P; Stafford, R Jason; Miyazono, Kohei; Gelovani, Juri G; Kataoka, Kazunori; Brinker, C Jeffrey; Sidman, Richard L; Arap, Wadih; Pasqualini, Renata

2016-02-16

A major challenge of targeted molecular imaging and drug delivery in cancer is establishing a functional combination of ligand-directed cargo with a triggered release system. Here we develop a hydrogel-based nanotechnology platform that integrates tumor targeting, photon-to-heat conversion, and triggered drug delivery within a single nanostructure to enable multimodal imaging and controlled release of therapeutic cargo. In proof-of-concept experiments, we show a broad range of ligand peptide-based applications with phage particles, heat-sensitive liposomes, or mesoporous silica nanoparticles that self-assemble into a hydrogel for tumor-targeted drug delivery. Because nanoparticles pack densely within the nanocarrier, their surface plasmon resonance shifts to near-infrared, thereby enabling a laser-mediated photothermal mechanism of cargo release. We demonstrate both noninvasive imaging and targeted drug delivery in preclinical mouse models of breast and prostate cancer. Finally, we applied mathematical modeling to predict and confirm tumor targeting and drug delivery. These results are meaningful steps toward the design and initial translation of an enabling nanotechnology platform with potential for broad clinical applications.

Nanostructured diamine-fullerene derivatives: computational density functional theory study and experimental evidence for their formation via gas-phase functionalization.

Science.gov (United States)

Contreras-Torres, Flavio F; Basiuk, Elena V; Basiuk, Vladimir A; Meza-Laguna, Víctor; Gromovoy, Taras Yu

2012-02-16

Nanostructure derivatives of fullerene C(60) are used in emerging applications of composite matrices, including protective and decorative coating, superadsorbent material, thin films, and lightweight high-strength fiber-reinforced materials, etc. In this study, quantum chemical calculations and experimental studies were performed to analyze the derivatives of diamine-fullerene prepared by the gas-phase solvent-free functionalization technique. In particular, the aliphatic 1,8-diamino-octane and the aromatic 1,5-diaminonaphthalene, which are diamines volatile in vacuum, were studied. We addressed two alternative mechanisms of the amination reaction via polyaddition and cross-linking of C(60) with diamines, using the pure GGA BLYP, PW91, and PBE functionals; further validation calculations were performed using the semiempirical dispersion GGA B97-D functional which contains parameters that have been specially adjusted by a more realistic view on dispersion contributions. In addition, we looked for experimental evidence for the covalent functionalization by using laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry, thermogravimetric analysis, and atomic force microscopy.

Pressure effects on nanostructured manganites

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Acha, C.; Garbarino, G.; Leyva, A.G.

2007-01-01

We have measured the pressure sensitivity of magnetic properties on La 5/8-y Pr y Ca 3/8 MnO 3 (y=0.3) nanostructured powders. Samples were synthesized following a microwave assisted denitration process and a final heat treatment at different temperatures to control the grain size of the samples. A span in grain diameters from 40 nm to ∼1000 nm was obtained. Magnetization curves as a function of temperature were measured following different thermomagnetic histories. AC susceptibility as a function of temperature was also measured at different hydrostatic pressures (up to 10 kbar) and for different frequencies. Our results indicate that the nanostructuration plays a role of an internal pressure, producing a structural deformation with similar effects to those obtained under an external hydrostatic pressure

Biomolecule-based nanomaterials and nanostructures.

Science.gov (United States)

Willner, Itamar; Willner, Bilha

2010-10-13

Biomolecule-nanoparticle (or carbon nanotube) hybrid systems provide new materials that combine the unique optical, electronic, or catalytic properties of the nanoelements with the recognition or biocatalytic functions of biomolecules. This article summarizes recent applications of biomolecule-nanoparticle (or carbon nanotubes) hybrid systems for sensing, synthesis of nanostructures, and for the fabrication of nanoscale devices. The use of metallic nanoparticles for the electrical contacting of redox enzymes with electrodes, and as catalytic labels for the development of electrochemical biosensors is discussed. Similarly, biomolecule-quantum dot hybrid systems are implemented for optical biosensing, and for monitoring intracellular metabolic processes. Also, the self-assembly of biomolecule-metal nanoparticle hybrids into nanostructures and functional nanodevices is presented. The future perspectives of the field are addressed by discussing future challenges and highlighting different potential applications.

Functionalization of Planet-Satellite Nanostructures Revealed by Nanoscopic Localization of Distinct Macromolecular Species

KAUST Repository

Rossner, Christian

2016-09-26

The development of a straightforward method is reported to form hybrid polymer/gold planet-satellite nanostructures (PlSNs) with functional polymer. Polyacrylate type polymer with benzyl chloride in its backbone as a macromolecular tracer is synthesized to study its localization within PlSNs by analyzing the elemental distribution of chlorine. The functionalized nanohybrid structures are analyzed by scanning transmission electron microscopy, electron energy loss spectroscopy, and spectrum imaging. The results show that the RAFT (reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer) polymers\\' sulfur containing end groups are colocalized at the gold cores, both within nanohybrids of simple core-shell morphology and within higher order PlSNs, providing microscopic evidence for the affinity of the RAFT group toward gold surfaces. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA., Weinheim.

Fractal like charge transport in polyaniline nanostructures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nath, Chandrani; Kumar, A.

2013-01-01

The structural and electrical properties of camphorsulfonic acid (CSA) doped nanotubes, and hydrochloric acid (HCl) doped nanofibers and nanoparticles of polyaniline have been studied as a function of doping level. The crystallinity increases with doping for all the nanostructures. Electrical transport measurements in the temperature range of 5–300 K show an increase in conductivity with doping for the nanostructures. All the nanostructures exhibit metal to insulator (MIT) transition below 40 K. The metallic behavior is ascribed to the electron–electron interaction effects. In the insulating regime of the nanotubes conduction follows the Mott quasi-1D variable range hopping model, whereas the conduction in the nanofibers and nanoparticles occur by variable range hopping of charge carriers among superlocalized states without and with Coulomb interaction, respectively. The smaller dopant size in case of HCl makes the polymer fractal resulting in superlocalization of electronic wave-functions. The confined morphology of the nanoparticles results in effective Coulomb interaction dominating the intersite hopping

Investigation of Transport Parameters of Graphene-Based Nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Sergeyev, D. M.; Shunkeyev, K. Sh.

2018-03-01

The paper presents results of computer simulation of the main transport parameters of nanostructures obtained through the row-by-row removal of carbon atoms from graphene ribbon. Research into the electrical parameters is carried out within the density functional theory using the non-equilibrium Green functions in the local-density approximation. Virtual NanoLab based on Atomistix ToolKit is used to construct structures and analyze simulation results. Current-voltage characteristics, differential conductivity and transmittance spectra of nanostructures are calculated at different values of bias voltage. It is found that there is a large region of negative differential resistance in current-voltage characteristics of nanostructures caused by resonant tunneling of quasi-particles. Differential (dI/dV) characteristic also has similar changes. The obtained results can be useful for building novel electronic devices in the field of nanoelectronics.

Surface nanostructuring by ion-induced localized plasma expansion in zinc oxide

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

El-Said, A. S., E-mail: elsaid@kfupm.edu.sa, E-mail: a.s.el-said@hzdr.de [Physics Department, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran 31261 (Saudi Arabia); Institute of Ion Beam Physics and Materials Research, Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR), 01328 Dresden (Germany); Physics Department, Faculty of Science, Mansoura University, 35516 Mansoura (Egypt); Moslem, W. M. [Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Port Said University, Port Said 42521 (Egypt); Centre for Theoretical Physics, British University in Egypt (BUE), El-Shorouk City, Cairo (Egypt); Djebli, M. [Theoretical Physics Laboratory, Faculty of Physics USTHB, B.P. 32 Bab Ezzour, 16079 Algiers (Algeria)

2014-06-09

Creation of hillock-like nanostructures on the surface of zinc oxide single crystals by irradiation with slow highly charged ions is reported. At constant kinetic energy, the nanostructures were only observed after irradiation with ions of potential energies above a threshold between 19.1 keV and 23.3 keV. The size of the nanostructures increases as a function of potential energy. A plasma expansion approach is used to explain the nanostructures creation. The calculations showed that the surface nanostructures became taller with the increase of ionic temperature. The influence of charged cluster formation and the relevance of their polarity are discussed.

Surface nanostructuring by ion-induced localized plasma expansion in zinc oxide

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

El-Said, A. S.; Moslem, W. M.; Djebli, M.

2014-01-01

Creation of hillock-like nanostructures on the surface of zinc oxide single crystals by irradiation with slow highly charged ions is reported. At constant kinetic energy, the nanostructures were only observed after irradiation with ions of potential energies above a threshold between 19.1 keV and 23.3 keV. The size of the nanostructures increases as a function of potential energy. A plasma expansion approach is used to explain the nanostructures creation. The calculations showed that the surface nanostructures became taller with the increase of ionic temperature. The influence of charged cluster formation and the relevance of their polarity are discussed.

Patterning Multi-Nanostructured Poly(l-lactic acid) Fibrous Matrices to Manipulate Biomolecule Distribution and Functions.

Science.gov (United States)

Xiao, Wenwu; Li, Qingtao; He, Huimin; Li, Wenxiu; Cao, Xiaodong; Dong, Hua

2018-03-14

Precise manipulation of biomolecule distribution and functions via biomolecule-matrix interaction is very important and challenging for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. As a well-known biomimetic matrix, electrospun fibers often lack the unique spatial complexity compared to their natural counterparts in vivo and thus cannot deliver fully the regulatory cues to biomolecules. In this paper, we report a facile and reliable method to fabricate micro- and nanostructured poly(l-lactic acid) (PLLA) fibrous matrices with spatial complexity by a combination of advanced electrospinning and agarose hydrogel stamp-based micropatterning. Specifically, advanced electrospinning is used to construct multi-nanostructures of fibrous matrices while solvent-loaded agarose hydrogel stamps are used to create microstructures. Compared with other methods, our method shows extreme simplicity and flexibility originated from the mono-/multi-spinneret conversion and limitless micropatterns of agarose hydrogel stamps. Three types of PLLA fibrous matrices including patterned nano-Ag/PLLA hybrid fibers, patterned bicompartment polyethylene terephthalate/PLLA fibers, and patterned hollow PLLA fibers are fabricated and their capability to manipulate biomolecule distribution and functions, that is, bacterial distribution and antibacterial performance, cell patterning and adhesion/spreading behaviors, and protein adsorption and delivery, is demonstrated in detail. The method described in our paper provides a powerful tool to restore spatial complexity in biomimetic matrices and would have promising applications in the field of biomedical engineering.

Primary role of electron work function for evaluation of nanostructured titania implant surface against bacterial infection

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Golda-Cepa, M., E-mail: golda@chemia.uj.edu.pl [Faculty of Chemistry, Jagiellonian University, Ingardena 3, 30-060 Krakow (Poland); Syrek, K. [Faculty of Chemistry, Jagiellonian University, Ingardena 3, 30-060 Krakow (Poland); Brzychczy-Wloch, M. [Department of Bacteriology, Microbial Ecology and Parasitology, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Czysta 18, 31-121 Krakow (Poland); Sulka, G.D. [Faculty of Chemistry, Jagiellonian University, Ingardena 3, 30-060 Krakow (Poland); Kotarba, A., E-mail: kotarba@chemia.uj.edu.pl [Faculty of Chemistry, Jagiellonian University, Ingardena 3, 30-060 Krakow (Poland)

2016-09-01

The electron work function as an essential descriptor for the evaluation of metal implant surfaces against bacterial infection is identified for the first time. Its validity is demonstrated on Staphylococcus aureus adhesion to nanostructured titania surfaces. The established correlation: work function–bacteria adhesion is of general importance since it can be used for direct evaluation of any electrically conductive implant surfaces. - Highlights: • The correlation between work function and bacteria adhesion was discovered. • The discovered correlation is rationalized in terms of electrostatic bacteria–surface repulsion. • The results provide basis for the simple evaluation of implant surfaces against infection.

Primary role of electron work function for evaluation of nanostructured titania implant surface against bacterial infection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Golda-Cepa, M.; Syrek, K.; Brzychczy-Wloch, M.; Sulka, G.D.; Kotarba, A.

2016-01-01

The electron work function as an essential descriptor for the evaluation of metal implant surfaces against bacterial infection is identified for the first time. Its validity is demonstrated on Staphylococcus aureus adhesion to nanostructured titania surfaces. The established correlation: work function–bacteria adhesion is of general importance since it can be used for direct evaluation of any electrically conductive implant surfaces. - Highlights: • The correlation between work function and bacteria adhesion was discovered. • The discovered correlation is rationalized in terms of electrostatic bacteria–surface repulsion. • The results provide basis for the simple evaluation of implant surfaces against infection.

Surface functionalization of nanostructured LaB{sub 6}-coated Poly Trilobal fabric by magnetron sputtering

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wu, Yan, E-mail: wuyanchn@hotmail.com [Mechanical and Electrical Engineering Branch, Jiaxing Nanyang Polytechnic Institute, Jiaxing 314003 (China); Key Laboratory for Liquid-Solid Structural Evolution and Processing of Materials (Ministry of Education), Shandong University, Jinan 250061 (China); Zhang, Lin, E-mail: zhanglin2007@sdu.edu.cn [Key Laboratory for Liquid-Solid Structural Evolution and Processing of Materials (Ministry of Education), Shandong University, Jinan 250061 (China); Min, Guanghui, E-mail: ghmin@sdu.edu.cn [Key Laboratory for Liquid-Solid Structural Evolution and Processing of Materials (Ministry of Education), Shandong University, Jinan 250061 (China); Yu, Huashun; Gao, Binghuan; Liu, Huihui; Xing, Shilong; Pang, Tao [Key Laboratory for Liquid-Solid Structural Evolution and Processing of Materials (Ministry of Education), Shandong University, Jinan 250061 (China)

2016-10-30

Highlights: • Nanostructured LaB{sub 6} films were deposited on flexible textile substrates by dc magnetron sputtering. • The pronounced influence of the working pressure on the morphologies and optical properties of LaB{sub 6} films has been revealed. • The concept of Ultraviolet Protection Factor (UPF) was employed and LaB{sub 6}-coated PET textiles with ultraviolet protection ability were obtained. - Abstract: Nanostructured LaB{sub 6} films were deposited on flexible Poly Trilobal substrates (PET textiles) through direct current magnetron sputtering in order to broaden its applications and realize surface functionalization of polyester fabrics. Characterizations and performances were investigated by employing a scanning electron microscope (SEM), Fourier transformation infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and ultraviolet-visible (UV–vis) spectrophotometer. Ultraviolet Protection Factor (UPF) conducted by the integral conversion was employed to measure the ultraviolet protection ability. As expected, the growth of LaB{sub 6} film depending on the pressure variation enhanced UV-blocking ability (UPF rating at 30.17) and absorption intensity of the textiles.

Modified fractal iron oxide magnetic nanostructure: A novel and high performance platform for redox protein immobilization, direct electrochemistry and bioelectrocatalysis application.

Science.gov (United States)

Bagheri, Hasan; Ranjbari, Elias; Amiri-Aref, Mohaddeseh; Hajian, Ali; Ardakani, Yalda Hosseinzadeh; Amidi, Salimeh

2016-11-15

A novel biosensing platform based on fractal-pattern of iron oxides magnetic nanostructures (FIOMNs) and mixed hemi/ad-micelle of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) was designed for the magnetic immobilization of hemoglobin (Hb) at a screen printed carbon electrode (SPCE). The FIOMNs was successfully synthesized through hydrothermal approach and characterized by atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). In order to provide guidelines for the mixed hemi/ad-micelle formation, zeta-potential isotherms were investigated. The construction steps of the biosensor were evaluated by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, cyclic voltammetry and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Direct electron transfer of Hb incorporated into the biocomposite film was realized with a pair of quasi-reversible redox peak at the formal potential of -0.355V vs. Ag/AgCl attributing to heme Fe(III)/Fe(II) redox couple. The results suggested that synergistic functions regarding to the hyper-branched and multidirectional structure of FIOMNs and the dual interaction ability of mixed hemi/ad-micelle array of SDS molecules not only induce an effective electron transfer between the Hb and the underlying electrode (high heterogeneous electron transfer rate constant of 2.08s(-1)) but also provide powerful and special microenvironment for the adsorption of the redox proteins. Furthermore, the biosensor displayed an excellent performance to the electrocatalytic reduction of H2O2 with a detection limit of 0.48µM and Michaelis-Menten constant (Km) value of 44.2µM. The fabricated biosensor represented the features of sensitivity, disposable design, low sample volume, rapid and simple preparation step, and acceptable anti-interferences, which offer great perspectives for the screen-determination of H2O2 in real samples. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Addressing the instability of DNA nanostructures in tissue culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Hahn, Jaeseung; Wickham, Shelley F J; Shih, William M; Perrault, Steven D

2014-09-23

DNA nanotechnology is an advanced technique that could contribute diagnostic, therapeutic, and biomedical research devices to nanomedicine. Although such devices are often developed and demonstrated using in vitro tissue culture models, these conditions may not be compatible with DNA nanostructure integrity and function. The purpose of this study was to characterize the sensitivity of 3D DNA nanostructures produced via the origami method to the in vitro tissue culture environment and identify solutions to prevent loss of nanostructure integrity. We examined whether the physiological cation concentrations of cell culture medium and the nucleases present in fetal bovine serum (FBS) used as a medium supplement result in denaturation and digestion, respectively. DNA nanostructure denaturation due to cation depletion was design- and time-dependent, with one of four tested designs remaining intact after 24 h at 37 °C. Adjustment of medium by addition of MgSO4 prevented denaturation. Digestion of nanostructures by FBS nucleases in Mg(2+)-adjusted medium did not appear design-dependent and became significant within 24 h and when medium was supplemented with greater than 5% FBS. We estimated that medium supplemented with 10% FBS contains greater than 256 U/L equivalent of DNase I activity in digestion of DNA nanostructures. Heat inactivation at 75 °C and inclusion of actin protein in medium inactivated and inhibited nuclease activity, respectively. We examined the impact of medium adjustments on cell growth, viability, and phenotype. Adjustment of Mg(2+) to 6 mM did not appear to have a detrimental impact on cells. Heat inactivation was found to be incompatible with in vitro tissue culture, whereas inclusion of actin had no observable effect on growth and viability. In two in vitro assays, immune cell activation and nanoparticle endocytosis, we show that using conditions compatible with cell phenotype and nanostructure integrity is critical for obtaining reliable

Platform Constellations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Staykova, Kalina Stefanova; Damsgaard, Jan

2016-01-01

This research paper presents an initial attempt to introduce and explain the emergence of new phenomenon, which we refer to as platform constellations. Functioning as highly modular systems, the platform constellations are collections of highly connected platforms which co-exist in parallel and a......’ acquisition and users’ engagement rates as well as unlock new sources of value creation and diversify revenue streams....

Novel graphene-based nanostructures: physicochemical properties and applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chernozatonskii, L A; Sorokin, P B; Artukh, A A

2014-01-01

The review concerns graphene-based nanostructures including graphene nanoribbons a few nanometres wide, structures functionalized with hydrogen and fluorine atoms as well as pure carbon composites. The physicochemical properties and the chemical engineering methods for their fabrication are considered. Methods for solving problems in modern nanotechnology are discussed. Possible applications of graphene and graphene-based nanostructures in various devices are outlined. The bibliography includes 286 references

Multi-function microfluidic platform for sensor integration.

Science.gov (United States)

Fernandes, Ana C; Semenova, Daria; Panjan, Peter; Sesay, Adama M; Gernaey, Krist V; Krühne, Ulrich

2018-03-06

The limited availability of metabolite-specific sensors for continuous sampling and monitoring is one of the main bottlenecks contributing to failures in bioprocess development. Furthermore, only a limited number of approaches exist to connect currently available measurement systems with high throughput reactor units. This is especially relevant in the biocatalyst screening and characterization stage of process development. In this work, a strategy for sensor integration in microfluidic platforms is demonstrated, to address the need for rapid, cost-effective and high-throughput screening in bioprocesses. This platform is compatible with different sensor formats by enabling their replacement and was built in order to be highly flexible and thus suitable for a wide range of applications. Moreover, this re-usable platform can easily be connected to analytical equipment, such as HPLC, laboratory scale reactors or other microfluidic chips through the use of standardized fittings. In addition, the developed platform includes a two-sensor system interspersed with a mixing channel, which allows the detection of samples that might be outside the first sensor's range of detection, through dilution of the sample solution up to 10 times. In order to highlight the features of the proposed platform, inline monitoring of glucose levels is presented and discussed. Glucose was chosen due to its importance in biotechnology as a relevant substrate. The platform demonstrated continuous measurement of substrate solutions for up to 12 h. Furthermore, the influence of the fluid velocity on substrate diffusion was observed, indicating the need for in-flow calibration to achieve a good quantitative output. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Sulfated glycopeptide nanostructures for multipotent protein activation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Sungsoo S.; Fyrner, Timmy; Chen, Feng; Álvarez, Zaida; Sleep, Eduard; Chun, Danielle S.; Weiner, Joseph A.; Cook, Ralph W.; Freshman, Ryan D.; Schallmo, Michael S.; Katchko, Karina M.; Schneider, Andrew D.; Smith, Justin T.; Yun, Chawon; Singh, Gurmit; Hashmi, Sohaib Z.; McClendon, Mark T.; Yu, Zhilin; Stock, Stuart R.; Hsu, Wellington K.; Hsu, Erin L.; Stupp , Samuel I. (NWU)

2017-06-19

Biological systems have evolved to utilize numerous proteins with capacity to bind polysaccharides for the purpose of optimizing their function. A well-known subset of these proteins with binding domains for the highly diverse sulfated polysaccharides are important growth factors involved in biological development and tissue repair. We report here on supramolecular sulfated glycopeptide nanostructures, which display a trisulfated monosaccharide on their surfaces and bind five critical proteins with different polysaccharide-binding domains. Binding does not disrupt the filamentous shape of the nanostructures or their internal β-sheet backbone, but must involve accessible adaptive configurations to interact with such different proteins. The glycopeptide nanostructures amplified signalling of bone morphogenetic protein 2 significantly more than the natural sulfated polysaccharide heparin, and promoted regeneration of bone in the spine with a protein dose that is 100-fold lower than that required in the animal model. These highly bioactive nanostructures may enable many therapies in the future involving proteins.

Suspended HfO2 photonic crystal slab on III-nitride/Si platform

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Yongjin; Feng, Jiao; Cao, Ziping; Zhu, Hongbo

2014-01-01

We present here the fabrication of suspended hafnium oxide (HfO 2 ) photonic crystal slab on a III-nitride/Si platform. The calculations are performed to model the suspended HfO 2 photonic crystal slab. Aluminum nitride (AlN) film is employed as the sacrificial layer to form air gap. Photonic crystal patterns are defined by electron beam lithography and transferred into HfO 2 film, and suspended HfO 2 photonic crystal slab is achieved on a III-nitride/Si platform through wet-etching of AlN layer in the alkaline solution. The method is promising for the fabrication of suspended HfO 2 nanostructures incorporating into a III-nitride/Si platform, or acting as the template for epitaxial growth of III-nitride materials. (orig.)

Oxygen- and nitrogen-chemisorbed carbon nanostructures for Z-scheme photocatalysis applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Qian Zhao; Pathak, Biswarup; Nisar, Jawad; Ahuja, Rajeev

2012-01-01

Here focusing on the very new experimental finding on carbon nanomaterials for solid-state electron mediator applications in Z-scheme photocatalysis, we have investigated different graphene-based nanostructures chemisorbed by various types and amounts of species such as oxygen (O), nitrogen (N) and hydroxyl (OH) and their electronic structures using density functional theory. The work functions of different nanostructures have also been investigated by us to evaluate their potential applications in Z-scheme photocatalysis for water splitting. The N-, O–N-, and N–N-chemisorbed graphene-based nanostructures (32 carbon atoms supercell, corresponding to lattice parameter of about 1 nm) are found promising to be utilized as electron mediators between reduction level and oxidation level of water splitting. The O- or OH-chemisorbed nanostructures have potential to be used as electron conductors between H 2 -evolving photocatalysts and the reduction level (H + /H 2 ). This systematic study is proposed to understand the properties of graphene-based carbon nanostructures in Z-scheme photocatalysis and guide experimentalists to develop better carbon-based nanomaterials for more efficient Z-scheme photocatalysis applications in the future.

A high efficient nanostructured filter based on functionalized carbon nanotube to reduce the tobacco-specific nitrosamines, NNK

Science.gov (United States)

Yoosefian, Mehdi

2018-03-01

Filtration efficiency of Pd and Ni loaded single-walled carbon nanotubes via the applicability of the adsorption process for the removal NNK, the tobacco-specific nitrosamines, from tobacco smoke were investigated using first-principles calculations. The thermal and mechanical stability of designed nanostructured filter could allow them to compete with typical commercially used. It is expected that the removal efficiency of the proposed nanostructured filter could also provide a promising adsorbent candidate in removing the environmental pollutant. The suggested separation mechanism in this study was discussed with frontier molecular orbital theory, natural bond orbital (NBO) analyses and the density of states in the density functional theory framework. Finally, by the Bader theory of atoms in molecules (AIM), the topological properties of the electron density contributions for intermolecular and intramolecular interactions has been analyzed. Calculations show that the transition metal-loaded SWCNT exhibit strong affinity toward the NNK molecules.

Structure and optical function of amorphous photonic nanostructures from avian feather barbs: a comparative small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) analysis of 230 bird species.

Science.gov (United States)

Saranathan, Vinodkumar; Forster, Jason D; Noh, Heeso; Liew, Seng-Fatt; Mochrie, Simon G J; Cao, Hui; Dufresne, Eric R; Prum, Richard O

2012-10-07

Non-iridescent structural colours of feathers are a diverse and an important part of the phenotype of many birds. These colours are generally produced by three-dimensional, amorphous (or quasi-ordered) spongy β-keratin and air nanostructures found in the medullary cells of feather barbs. Two main classes of three-dimensional barb nanostructures are known, characterized by a tortuous network of air channels or a close packing of spheroidal air cavities. Using synchrotron small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and optical spectrophotometry, we characterized the nanostructure and optical function of 297 distinctly coloured feathers from 230 species belonging to 163 genera in 51 avian families. The SAXS data provided quantitative diagnoses of the channel- and sphere-type nanostructures, and confirmed the presence of a predominant, isotropic length scale of variation in refractive index that produces strong reinforcement of a narrow band of scattered wavelengths. The SAXS structural data identified a new class of rudimentary or weakly nanostructured feathers responsible for slate-grey, and blue-grey structural colours. SAXS structural data provided good predictions of the single-scattering peak of the optical reflectance of the feathers. The SAXS structural measurements of channel- and sphere-type nanostructures are also similar to experimental scattering data from synthetic soft matter systems that self-assemble by phase separation. These results further support the hypothesis that colour-producing protein and air nanostructures in feather barbs are probably self-assembled by arrested phase separation of polymerizing β-keratin from the cytoplasm of medullary cells. Such avian amorphous photonic nanostructures with isotropic optical properties may provide biomimetic inspiration for photonic technology.

Chemical solution route to self-assembled epitaxial oxide nanostructures.

Science.gov (United States)

Obradors, X; Puig, T; Gibert, M; Queraltó, A; Zabaleta, J; Mestres, N

2014-04-07

Self-assembly of oxides as a bottom-up approach to functional nanostructures goes beyond the conventional nanostructure formation based on lithographic techniques. Particularly, chemical solution deposition (CSD) is an ex situ growth approach very promising for high throughput nanofabrication at low cost. Whereas strain engineering as a strategy to define nanostructures with tight control of size, shape and orientation has been widely used in metals and semiconductors, it has been rarely explored in the emergent field of functional complex oxides. Here we will show that thermodynamic modeling can be very useful to understand the principles controlling the growth of oxide nanostructures by CSD, and some attractive kinetic features will also be presented. The methodology of strain engineering is applied in a high degree of detail to form different sorts of nanostructures (nanodots, nanowires) of the oxide CeO2 with fluorite structure which then is used as a model system to identify the principles controlling self-assembly and self-organization in CSD grown oxides. We also present, more briefly, the application of these ideas to other oxides such as manganites or BaZrO3. We will show that the nucleation and growth steps are essentially understood and manipulated while the kinetic phenomena underlying the evolution of the self-organized networks are still less widely explored, even if very appealing effects have been already observed. Overall, our investigation based on a CSD approach has opened a new strategy towards a general use of self-assembly and self-organization which can now be widely spread to many functional oxide materials.

Advanced Magnetic Nanostructures

CERN Document Server

Sellmyer, David

2006-01-01

Advanced Magnetic Nanostructures is devoted to the fabrication, characterization, experimental investigation, theoretical understanding, and utilization of advanced magnetic nanostructures. Focus is on various types of 'bottom-up' and 'top-down' artificial nanostructures, as contrasted to naturally occurring magnetic nanostructures, such as iron-oxide inclusions in magnetic rocks, and to structures such as perfect thin films. Chapter 1 is an introduction into some basic concepts, such as the definitions of basic magnetic quantities. Chapters 2-4 are devoted to the theory of magnetic nanostructures, Chapter 5 deals with the characterization of the structures, and Chapters 6-10 are devoted to specific systems. Applications of advanced magnetic nanostructures are discussed in Chapters11-15 and, finally, the appendix lists and briefly discusses magnetic properties of typical starting materials. Industrial and academic researchers in magnetism and related areas such as nanotechnology, materials science, and theore...

Micro-/nanostructured multicomponent molecular materials: design, assembly, and functionality.

Science.gov (United States)

Yan, Dongpeng

2015-03-23

Molecule-based micro-/nanomaterials have attracted considerable attention because their properties can vary greatly from the corresponding macro-sized bulk systems. Recently, the construction of multicomponent molecular solids based on crystal engineering principles has emerged as a promising alternative way to develop micro-/nanomaterials. Unlike single-component materials, the resulting multicomponent systems offer the advantages of tunable composition, and adjustable molecular arrangement, and intermolecular interactions within their solid states. The study of these materials also supplies insight into how the crystal structure, molecular components, and micro-/nanoscale effects can influence the performance of molecular materials. In this review, we describe recent advances and current directions in the assembly and applications of crystalline multicomponent micro-/nanostructures. Firstly, the design strategies for multicomponent systems based on molecular recognition and crystal engineering principles are introduced. Attention is then focused on the methods of fabrication of low-dimensional multicomponent micro-/nanostructures. Their new applications are also outlined. Finally, we briefly discuss perspectives for the further development of these molecular crystalline micro-/nanomaterials. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Metal oxide nanostructures: preparation, characterization and functional applications as chemical sensors.

Science.gov (United States)

Zappa, Dario; Bertuna, Angela; Comini, Elisabetta; Kaur, Navpreet; Poli, Nicola; Sberveglieri, Veronica; Sberveglieri, Giorgio

2017-01-01

Preparation and characterization of different metal oxide (NiO, WO 3 , ZnO, SnO 2 and Nb 2 O 5 ) nanostructures for chemical sensing are presented. p-Type (NiO) and n-type (WO 3 , SnO 2 , ZnO and Nb 2 O 5 ) metal oxide nanostructures were grown on alumina substrates using evaporation-condensation, thermal oxidation and hydrothermal techniques. Surface morphologies and crystal structures were investigated through scanning electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy. Furthermore, different batches of sensors have been prepared, and their sensing performances towards carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide have been explored. Moreover, metal oxide nanowires have been integrated into an electronic nose and successfully applied to discriminate between drinking and contaminated water.

Using cell structures to develop functional nanomaterials and nanostructures--case studies of actin filaments and microtubules.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Kevin Chia-Wen; Yang, Chung-Yao; Cheng, Chao-Min

2014-04-25

This article is based on the continued development of biologically relevant elements (i.e., actin filaments and microtubules in living cells) as building blocks to create functional nanomaterials and nanostructures that can then be used to manufacture nature-inspired small-scale devices or systems. Here, we summarize current progress in the field and focus specifically on processes characterized by (1) robustness and ease of use, (2) inexpensiveness, and (3) potential expandability to mass production. This article, we believe, will provide scientists and engineers with a more comprehensive understanding of how to mine biological materials and natural design features to construct functional materials and devices.

Electrical Double Layer-Induced Ion Surface Accumulation for Ultrasensitive Refractive Index Sensing with Nanostructured Porous Silicon Interferometers.

Science.gov (United States)

Mariani, Stefano; Strambini, Lucanos Marsilio; Barillaro, Giuseppe

2018-03-23

Herein, we provide the first experimental evidence on the use of electrical double layer (EDL)-induced accumulation of charged ions (using both Na + and K + ions in water as the model) onto a negatively charged nanostructured surface (e.g., thermally growth SiO 2 )-Ion Surface Accumulation, ISA-as a means of improving performance of nanostructured porous silicon (PSi) interferometers for optical refractometric applications. Nanostructured PSi interferometers are very promising optical platforms for refractive index sensing due to PSi huge specific surface (hundreds of m 2 per gram) and low preparation cost (less than $0.01 per 8 in. silicon wafer), though they have shown poor resolution ( R) and detection limit (DL) (on the order of 10 -4 -10 -5 RIU) compared to other plasmonic and photonic platforms ( R and DL on the order of 10 -7 -10 -8 RIU). This can be ascribed to both low sensitivity and high noise floor of PSi interferometers when bulk refractive index variation of the solution infiltrating the nanopores either approaches or is below 10 -4 RIU. Electrical double layer-induced ion surface accumulation (EDL-ISA) on oxidized PSi interferometers allows the interferometer output signal (spectral interferogram) to be impressively amplified at bulk refractive index variation below 10 -4 RIU, increasing, in turn, sensitivity up to 2 orders of magnitude and allowing reliable measurement of refractive index variations to be carried out with both DL and R of 10 -7 RIU. This represents a 250-fold-improvement (at least) with respect to the state-of-the-art literature on PSi refractometers and pushes PSi interferometer performance to that of state-of-the-art ultrasensitive photonics/plasmonics refractive index platforms.

Highly sensitive determination of atropine using cobalt oxide nanostructures: Influence of functional groups on the signal sensitivity

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Soomro, Razium Ali, E-mail: raziumsoomro@gmail.com [Interface Analysis Centre, School of Physics, University of Bristol, Bristol, BS8 1TL (United Kingdom); National Centre of Excellence in Analytical Chemistry, University of Sindh, Jamshoro, 76080 (Pakistan); Nafady, Ayman [Department of Chemistry, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh (Saudi Arabia); Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Sohag University, Sohag (Egypt); Hallam, Keith Richard [Interface Analysis Centre, School of Physics, University of Bristol, Bristol, BS8 1TL (United Kingdom); Jawaid, Sana [National Centre of Excellence in Analytical Chemistry, University of Sindh, Jamshoro, 76080 (Pakistan); Al Enizi, Abdullah [Department of Chemistry, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh (Saudi Arabia); Sherazi, Syed Tufail Hussain; Sirajuddin [National Centre of Excellence in Analytical Chemistry, University of Sindh, Jamshoro, 76080 (Pakistan); Ibupoto, Zafar Hussain [Dr M.A. Kazi Institute of Chemistry, University of Sindh, Jamshoro, 76080 (Pakistan); Willander, Magnus [Department of Science and Technology, Campus Norrkoping, Linkoping University, SE-60174, Norrkoping (Sweden)

2016-12-15

This study describes sensitive determination of atropine using glassy carbon electrodes (GCE) modified with Co{sub 3}O{sub 4} nanostructures. The as-synthesised nanostructures were grown using cysteine (CYS), glutathione (GSH) and histidine (HYS) as effective templates under hydrothermal action. The obtained morphologies revealed interesting structural features, including both cavity-based and flower-shaped structures. The as-synthesised morphologies were noted to actively participate in electro-catalysis of atropine (AT) drug where GSH-assisted structures exhibited the best signal response in terms of current density and over-potential value. The study also discusses the influence of functional groups on the signal sensitivity of atropine electro-oxidation. The functionalisation was carried with the amino acids originally used as effective templates for the growth of Co{sub 3}O{sub 4} nanostructures. The highest increment was obtained when GSH was used as the surface functionalising agent. The GSH-functionalised Co{sub 3}O{sub 4}-modified electrode was utilised for the electro-chemical sensing of AT in a concentration range of 0.01–0.46 μM. The developed sensor exhibited excellent working linearity (R{sup 2} = 0.999) and signal sensitivity up to 0.001 μM of AT. The noted high sensitivity of the sensor is associated with the synergy of superb surface architectures and favourable interaction facilitating the electron transfer kinetics for the electro-catalytic oxidation of AT. Significantly, the developed sensor demonstrated excellent working capability when used for AT detection in human urine samples with strong anti-interference potential against common co-existing species, such as glucose, fructose, cysteine, uric acid, dopamine and ascorbic acid. - Highlights: • Template-assisted growth of Co{sub 3}O{sub 4} nanostructures. • Shape-dependent electro-catalysis of atropine. • Effect of functionalisation of signal sensitivity.

Plasmonics analysis of nanostructures for bioapplications

Science.gov (United States)

Xie, Qian

geometries of different metallic nanostructures are drawn and simulated using finite element-based computational electromagnetics. The power absorption of the nanostructures is plotted as a function of wavelength to identify the LSPR wavelength, i.e. the wavelength of peak absorption. In Matlab, Mie scattering theory is programmed in terms of semi-analytical mathematical equations, which predict the power absorption for specific plasmonic geometries, i.e. nanospheres, nanorods and core-shell particles. These predictions, which are much faster than the Comsol analysis, are validated using corresponding numerical simulations. In chapter four, experiments involving novel magneto-plasmonic Nano platforms are described, and experimental data is presented to illustrate the use of the modeling in analyzing these particles. Simulations are performed to determine the influence on the laser absorption of magnetic nanospheres in proximity to metallic nanorods. These results are compared with experimental data. In the last chapter, experiments using a grating-based SPR sensor are described, and modeling results are also presented. In summary, this thesis discusses the physics of plasmonics, electromagnetic analysis for predicting the absorption spectra of metallic nanoparticles and bio-applications that utilize these effects.

Suspended and localized single nanostructure growth across a nanogap by an electric field

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Chung-Hoon; Schneider, Susan C; Josse, Fabien; Han, Jun Hyun

2011-01-01

Direct growth of a suspended single nanostructure (SSN) at a specific location is presented. The SSN is grown across a metallic nanoscale gap by migration in air at room temperature. The nanogap is fabricated by industrial standard optical lithography and anisotropic wet chemical silicon etching. A DC current bias, 1 nA, is applied across the metallic gap to induce nanoscale migration of Zn or ZnO. The history of the voltage drop across the gap as a function of time clearly indicates the moment when migration begins. The shape of SSNs grown across the nanogap by the migration is asymmetric at each electrode due to the asymmetric electric field distribution within the nanogap. An SSN can be used as the platform for two-terminal active or passive nanoscale electronics in optoelectronics, radio frequency (RF) resonators, and chemical/biological sensors.

XPS and NRA investigations during the fabrication of gold nanostructured functionalized screen-printed sensors for the detection of metallic pollutants

Science.gov (United States)

Jasmin, Jean-Philippe; Miserque, Frédéric; Dumas, Eddy; Vickridge, Ian; Ganem, Jean-Jacques; Cannizzo, Caroline; Chaussé, Annie

2017-03-01

An all covalent nanostructured lead sensor was built by the successive grafting of gold nanoparticles and carboxylic ligands at the surface of self-adhesive carbon screen-printed electrodes (SPEs). Surface analysis techniques were used in each step in order to investigate the structuration of this sensor. The self-adhesive surfaces were made from the electrochemical grafting of p-phenylenediamine at the surface of the SPEs via diazonium salts chemistry. The quantity of grafted aniline functions, estimated by Nuclear Reaction Analysis (NRA) performed with p-phenylenediamine labelled with 15N isotope, is in agreement with an almost complete coverage of the electrode surface. The subsequent diazotization of the aniline functions at the surface of the SPEs was performed; X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) allowed us to consider a quantitative conversion of the aniline functions into diazonium moieties. The spontaneous grafting of gold nanoparticles on the as-obtained reactive surfaces ensures the nanostructuration of the material, and XPS studies showed that the covalent bonding of the gold nanoparticles at the surface of the SPEs induces a change both in the Au-4f (gold nanoparticles) and Cl-2p (carbon ink) core level signals. These unusual observations are explained by an interaction between the carbon ink constituting the substrate and the gold nanoparticles. Heavy and toxic metals are considered of major environmental concern because of their non-biodegradability. In a final step, the grafting of the carboxylic ligands at the surface of the SPEs and an accumulation step in the presence of lead(II) cations allowed us to evidence the interest of nanostructured materials as metallic pollutants sensors.

Nanostructured layers of thermoelectric materials

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Urban, Jeffrey J.; Lynch, Jared; Coates, Nelson; Forster, Jason; Sahu, Ayaskanta; Chabinyc, Michael; Russ, Boris

2018-01-30

This disclosure provides systems, methods, and apparatus related to thermoelectric materials. In one aspect, a method includes providing a plurality of nanostructures. The plurality of nanostructures comprise a thermoelectric material, with each nanostructure of the plurality of nanostructures having first ligands disposed on a surface of the nanostructure. The plurality of nanostructures is mixed with a solution containing second ligands and a ligand exchange process occurs in which the first ligands disposed on the plurality of nanostructures are replaced with the second ligands. The plurality of nanostructures is deposited on a substrate to form a layer. The layer is thermally annealed.

Template-directed formation of functional complex metal-oxide nanostructures by combination of sol-gel processing and spin coating

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choi, Y.C.; Kim, J.; Bu, S.D.

2006-01-01

We report the template-based formation of functional complex metal-oxide nanostructures by a combination of sol-gel processing and spin coating. This method employs the spin-coating of a sol-gel solution into an anodic aluminum oxide membrane (SSAM). Various metal-oxide nanowires and nanotubes with a high aspect-ratio were prepared. The aspect-ratios of the PbO 2 nanowires and Pb(Zr 0.52 Ti 0.48 )O 3 nanowires were about 300 and 400, respectively, and their diameters were about 50 nm. The fabricated PbTiO 3 nanotubes have a relatively constant wall thickness of about 20 nm with an outer diameter of about 60 nm. The deposition time for all of the fabricated metal-oxide nanowires and nanotubes is less than 120 s, which is far shorter than those required in both the sol-gel dipping and sol-gel electrophoretic methods. These results indicate that the SSAM method can be a versatile pathway to prepare functional complex metal-oxide nanowires and nanotubes with a high aspect-ratio. The possible formation process for the one-dimensional nanostructures by SSAM is discussed

Quantification of cellular uptake of DNA nanostructures by qPCR.

Science.gov (United States)

Okholm, Anders Hauge; Nielsen, Jesper Sejrup; Vinther, Mathias; Sørensen, Rasmus Schøler; Schaffert, David; Kjems, Jørgen

2014-05-15

DNA nanostructures facilitating drug delivery are likely soon to be realized. In the past few decades programmed self-assembly of DNA building blocks have successfully been employed to construct sophisticated nanoscale objects. By conjugating functionalities to DNA, other molecules such as peptides, proteins and polymers can be precisely positioned on DNA nanostructures. This exceptional ability to produce modular nanoscale devices with tunable and controlled behavior has initiated an interest in employing DNA nanostructures for drug delivery. However, to obtain this the relationship between cellular interactions and structural and functional features of the DNA delivery device must be thoroughly investigated. Here, we present a rapid and robust method for the precise quantification of the component materials of DNA origami structures capable of entering cells in vitro. The quantification is performed by quantitative polymerase chain reaction, allowing a linear dynamic range of detection of five orders of magnitude. We demonstrate the use of this method for high-throughput screening, which could prove efficient to identify key features of DNA nanostructures enabling cell penetration. The method described here is suitable for quantification of in vitro uptake studies but should easily be extended to quantify DNA nanostructures in blood or tissue samples. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Introducing Platform Interactions Model for Studying Multi-Sided Platforms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Staykova, Kalina; Damsgaard, Jan

2018-01-01

Multi-Sided Platforms (MSPs) function as socio-technical entities that facilitate direct interactions between various affiliated to them constituencies through developing and managing IT architecture. In this paper, we aim to explain the nature of the platform interactions as key characteristic o...

Comprehensive Enhancement of Nanostructured Lithium-Ion Battery Cathode Materials via Conformal Graphene Dispersion.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Kan-Sheng; Xu, Rui; Luu, Norman S; Secor, Ethan B; Hamamoto, Koichi; Li, Qianqian; Kim, Soo; Sangwan, Vinod K; Balla, Itamar; Guiney, Linda M; Seo, Jung-Woo T; Yu, Xiankai; Liu, Weiwei; Wu, Jinsong; Wolverton, Chris; Dravid, Vinayak P; Barnett, Scott A; Lu, Jun; Amine, Khalil; Hersam, Mark C

2017-04-12

Efficient energy storage systems based on lithium-ion batteries represent a critical technology across many sectors including consumer electronics, electrified transportation, and a smart grid accommodating intermittent renewable energy sources. Nanostructured electrode materials present compelling opportunities for high-performance lithium-ion batteries, but inherent problems related to the high surface area to volume ratios at the nanometer-scale have impeded their adoption for commercial applications. Here, we demonstrate a materials and processing platform that realizes high-performance nanostructured lithium manganese oxide (nano-LMO) spinel cathodes with conformal graphene coatings as a conductive additive. The resulting nanostructured composite cathodes concurrently resolve multiple problems that have plagued nanoparticle-based lithium-ion battery electrodes including low packing density, high additive content, and poor cycling stability. Moreover, this strategy enhances the intrinsic advantages of nano-LMO, resulting in extraordinary rate capability and low temperature performance. With 75% capacity retention at a 20C cycling rate at room temperature and nearly full capacity retention at -20 °C, this work advances lithium-ion battery technology into unprecedented regimes of operation.

Shape-Selective Syntheses of Gold and Copper Nanostructures: Insights From Density-Functional Theory and Molecular Dynamics

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Shih-Hsien

Density-functional theory (DFT) and molecular dynamics (MD) were used to resolve the origins of shape-selective syntheses of {111}-faceted Au nanostructures mediated by polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) as well as {100}-faceted Cu nanostructures mediated by hex- adecylamine(HDA) seen in experiment. For the work in PVP on Au surfaces, the hexagonal reconstruction of Au(100) was considered. DFT results indicate that the Au(111) surface covered by the PVP segment, 2-pyrrolidone (2P), has a lower surface energy than the 2P- covered (5 x 1) Au(100)-hex surface, and that PVP may exhibit a binding affinity for Au(111) comparable to or greater than (5 x 1) Au(100)-hex. With MD, it is shown that the PVP-covered Au(111) surface has a lower surface energy than the PVP-covered (5 x 1) Au(100)-hex surface, and that the atactic PVP isosamer chains have a binding affinity for Au(111) comparable to (5 x 1) Au(100)-hex. Also, the (5 x 1) Au(100)-hex surface may have a higher flux of Au atoms than the Au(111) surface. Therefore, the Au(111) surface would be thermodynamically and kinetically favored in PVP-mediated syntheses, leading to {111}-faceted Au nanostructures. For the work in HDA on Cu surfaces, DFT results show that the HDA-covered Cu(100) surface has a slightly higher surface energy than the HDA- covered Cu(111) surface. However, HDA has a significant binding preference on Cu(100) over Cu(111). Therefore, the Cu(100) surface would be kinetically favored in HDA-mediated syn- theses, leading to {100}-faceted Cu nanostructures. Further, a metal-organic many-body (MOMB) force field for HDA-Cu interactions was developed based on the DFT work, and the force field was used to resolve the HDA binding patterns on Cu(100) at molecular level. With MD, it is found that decylamine (DA) may be used as an effective capping agent in the synthesis of {100}-faceted Cu nanostructures since DA as well as HDA are organized on Cu surfaces and have the same binding preference on Cu(100) over Cu(111

Intermatrix Synthesis as a rapid, inexpensive and reproducible methodology for the in situ functionalization of nanostructured surfaces with quantum dots

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bastos-Arrieta, Julio, E-mail: julio.bastos@upc.edu [Department of Chemical Engineering, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Av. Diagonal 647, 08028 Barcelona (Spain); Department of Chemistry, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Barcelona (Spain); Muñoz, Jose, E-mail: josemaria.munoz@uab.cat [Department of Chemistry, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Barcelona (Spain); Stenbock-Fermor, Anja, E-mail: stenbock@dwi.rwth-aachen.de [DWI – Leibniz-Institut für Interaktive Materialien, Aachen 52056 (Germany); Muñoz, Maria, E-mail: Maria.Munoz@uab.cat [Department of Chemistry, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Barcelona (Spain); Muraviev, Dmitri N., E-mail: Dimitri.Muraviev@uab.es [Department of Chemistry, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Barcelona (Spain); Céspedes, Francisco, E-mail: francisco.cespedes@uab.cat [Department of Chemistry, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Barcelona (Spain); Tsarkova, Larisa A., E-mail: tsarkova@dwi.rwth-aachen.de [DWI – Leibniz-Institut für Interaktive Materialien, Aachen 52056 (Germany); Baeza, Mireia, E-mail: MariaDelMar.Baeza@uab.cat [Department of Chemistry, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Barcelona (Spain)

2016-04-15

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • Nanodiamond functionalization with CdS quantum dots. • Approach for carbon nanotube detection in water samples. • Simple functionalization of thin polymeric nanolayers with quantum dots. - Abstract: Intermatrix Synthesis (IMS) technique has proven to be a valid methodology for the in situ incorporation of quantum dots (QDs) in a wide range of nanostructured surfaces for the preparation of advanced hybrid-nanomaterials. In this sense, this communication reports the recent advances in the application of IMS for the synthesis of CdS-QDs with favourable distribution on sulfonated polyetherether ketone (SPEEK) membrane thin films (TFs), multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and nanodiamonds (NDs). The synthetic route takes advantage of the ion exchange functionality of the reactive surfaces for the loading of the QDs precursor and consequent QDs appearance by precipitation. The benefits of such modified nanomaterials were studied using CdS-QDs@MWCNTs hybrid-nanomaterials. CdS-QDs@MWCNTs has been used as conducting filler for the preparation of electrochemical nanocomposite sensors, which present electrocatalytic properties. Finally, the optical properties of the QDs contained on MWCNTs could allow a new procedure for the analytical detection of nanostructured carbon allotropes in water.

Intermatrix Synthesis as a rapid, inexpensive and reproducible methodology for the in situ functionalization of nanostructured surfaces with quantum dots

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bastos-Arrieta, Julio; Muñoz, Jose; Stenbock-Fermor, Anja; Muñoz, Maria; Muraviev, Dmitri N.; Céspedes, Francisco; Tsarkova, Larisa A.; Baeza, Mireia

2016-01-01

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • Nanodiamond functionalization with CdS quantum dots. • Approach for carbon nanotube detection in water samples. • Simple functionalization of thin polymeric nanolayers with quantum dots. - Abstract: Intermatrix Synthesis (IMS) technique has proven to be a valid methodology for the in situ incorporation of quantum dots (QDs) in a wide range of nanostructured surfaces for the preparation of advanced hybrid-nanomaterials. In this sense, this communication reports the recent advances in the application of IMS for the synthesis of CdS-QDs with favourable distribution on sulfonated polyetherether ketone (SPEEK) membrane thin films (TFs), multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and nanodiamonds (NDs). The synthetic route takes advantage of the ion exchange functionality of the reactive surfaces for the loading of the QDs precursor and consequent QDs appearance by precipitation. The benefits of such modified nanomaterials were studied using CdS-QDs@MWCNTs hybrid-nanomaterials. CdS-QDs@MWCNTs has been used as conducting filler for the preparation of electrochemical nanocomposite sensors, which present electrocatalytic properties. Finally, the optical properties of the QDs contained on MWCNTs could allow a new procedure for the analytical detection of nanostructured carbon allotropes in water.

On the Stability of DNA Origami Nanostructures in Low-Magnesium Buffers.

Science.gov (United States)

Kielar, Charlotte; Xin, Yang; Shen, Boxuan; Kostiainen, Mauri A; Grundmeier, Guido; Linko, Veikko; Keller, Adrian

2018-05-25

DNA origami have great potential as functional platforms in various biomedical applications. Many applications, however, are incompatible with the high Mg2+ concentrations commonly believed to be a prerequisite for maintaining DNA origami integrity. Here, we investigate DNA origami stability in low-Mg2+ buffers. DNA origami stability is found to crucially depend on the availability of residual Mg2+ ions for screening electrostatic repulsion. The presence of EDTA and phosphate ions may thus facilitate DNA origami denaturation by displacing Mg2+ ions from the DNA backbone and reducing the strength of the Mg2+-DNA interaction, respectively. Most remarkably, these buffer dependencies are affected by DNA origami superstructure. However, by rationally selecting buffer components and considering superstructure-dependent effects, the structural integrity of a given DNA origami nanostructure can be maintained in conventional buffers even at Mg2+ concentrations in the low-μM range. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

A two-stage model of rough-interface scattering for embedded nano-structures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Karamehmedovic, Mirza; Hansen, P. E.

2016-01-01

We decompose scattering by nanostructures on rough substrates into two surface transfer functions: one heuristic, computed for the bare substrate from experimental BRDF data, and the other sparse and constructed for nanostructures on smooth surfaces. We explore numerically the performance...

Plant-derived nanostructures: types and applications

Science.gov (United States)

Plant-derived nanostructures and nanoparticles (NPs) have functional applications in numerous disciplines such as health care, food and feed, cosmetics, biomedical science, energy science, drug-gene delivery, environmental health, and so on. Consequently, it is imperative for res...

Synthesis of ferroelectric nanostructures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Roervik, Per Martin

2008-12-15

The increasing miniaturization of electric and mechanical components makes the synthesis and assembly of nanoscale structures an important step in modern technology. Functional materials, such as the ferroelectric perovskites, are vital to the integration and utility value of nanotechnology in the future. In the present work, chemical methods to synthesize one-dimensional (1D) nanostructures of ferroelectric perovskites have been studied. To successfully and controllably make 1D nanostructures by chemical methods it is very important to understand the growth mechanism of these nanostructures, in order to design the structures for use in various applications. For the integration of 1D nanostructures into devices it is also very important to be able to make arrays and large-area designed structures from the building blocks that single nanostructures constitute. As functional materials, it is of course also vital to study the properties of the nanostructures. The characterization of properties of single nanostructures is challenging, but essential to the use of such structures. The aim of this work has been to synthesize high quality single-crystalline 1D nanostructures of ferroelectric perovskites with emphasis on PbTiO3 , to make arrays or hierarchical nanostructures of 1D nanostructures on substrates, to understand the growth mechanisms of the 1D nanostructures, and to investigate the ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties of the 1D nanostructures. In Paper I, a molten salt synthesis route, previously reported to yield BaTiO3 , PbTiO3 and Na2Ti6O13 nanorods, was re-examined in order to elucidate the role of volatile chlorides. A precursor mixture containing barium (or lead) and titanium was annealed in the presence of NaCl at 760 degrees Celsius or 820 degrees Celsius. The main products were respectively isometric nanocrystalline BaTiO3 and PbTiO3. Nanorods were also detected, but electron diffraction revealed that the composition of the nanorods was

Erythrocyte-derived nano-probes functionalized with antibodies for targeted near infrared fluorescence imaging of cancer cells

OpenAIRE

Anvari, Bahman; Mac, Jenny T.; Nunez, Vicente; Burns, Joshua M.; Guerrero, Yadir A.

2016-01-01

Constructs derived from mammalian cells are emerging as a new generation of nano-scale platforms for clinical imaging applications. Herein, we report successful engineering of hybrid nano-structures composed of erythrocyte-derived membranes doped with FDA-approved near infrared (NIR) chromophore, indocyanine green (ICG), and surface-functionalized with antibodies to achieve molecular targeting. We demonstrate that these constructs can be used for targeted imaging of cancer cells in vitro. The...

PREFACE: Self-organized nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Rousset, Sylvie; Ortega, Enrique

2006-04-01

In order to fabricate ordered arrays of nanostructures, two different strategies might be considered. The `top-down' approach consists of pushing the limit of lithography techniques down to the nanometre scale. However, beyond 10 nm lithography techniques will inevitably face major intrinsic limitations. An alternative method for elaborating ultimate-size nanostructures is based on the reverse `bottom-up' approach, i.e. building up nanostructures (and eventually assemble them to form functional circuits) from individual atoms or molecules. Scanning probe microscopies, including scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM) invented in 1982, have made it possible to create (and visualize) individual structures atom by atom. However, such individual atomic manipulation is not suitable for industrial applications. Self-assembly or self-organization of nanostructures on solid surfaces is a bottom-up approach that allows one to fabricate and assemble nanostructure arrays in a one-step process. For applications, such as high density magnetic storage, self-assembly appears to be the simplest alternative to lithography for massive, parallel fabrication of nanostructure arrays with regular sizes and spacings. These are also necessary for investigating the physical properties of individual nanostructures by means of averaging techniques, i.e. all those using light or particle beams. The state-of-the-art and the current developments in the field of self-organization and physical properties of assembled nanostructures are reviewed in this issue of Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter. The papers have been selected from among the invited and oral presentations of the recent summer workshop held in Cargese (Corsica, France, 17-23 July 2005). All authors are world-renowned in the field. The workshop has been funded by the Marie Curie Actions: Marie Curie Conferences and Training Courses series named `NanosciencesTech' supported by the VI Framework Programme of the European Community, by

DNA nanostructure-based drug delivery nanosystems in cancer therapy.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Dandan; Wang, Lei; Li, Wei; Xu, Xiaowen; Jiang, Wei

2017-11-25

DNA as a novel biomaterial can be used to fabricate different kinds of DNA nanostructures based on its principle of GC/AT complementary base pairing. Studies have shown that DNA nanostructure is a nice drug carrier to overcome big obstacles existing in cancer therapy such as systemic toxicity and unsatisfied drug efficacy. Thus, different types of DNA nanostructure-based drug delivery nanosystems have been designed in cancer therapy. To improve treating efficacy, they are also developed into more functional drug delivery nanosystems. In recent years, some important progresses have been made. The objective of this review is to make a retrospect and summary about these different kinds of DNA nanostructure-based drug delivery nanosystems and their latest progresses: (1) active targeting; (2) mutidrug co-delivery; (3) construction of stimuli-responsive/intelligent nanosystems. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Large-scale synthesis of Tellurium nanostructures via galvanic displacement of metals

Science.gov (United States)

Kok, Kuan-Ying; Choo, Thye-Foo; Ubaidah Saidin, Nur; Rahman, Che Zuraini Che Ab

2018-01-01

Tellurium (Te) is an attractive semiconductor material for a wide range of applications in various functional devices including, radiation dosimeters, optical storage materials, thermoelectric or piezoelectric generators. In this work, large scale synthesis of tellurium (Te) nanostructures have been successfully carried out in different concentrations of aqueous solutions containing TeO2 and NaOH, by galvanic displacements of Zn and Al which served as the sacrificial materials. Galvanic displacement process is cost-effective and it requires no template or surfactant for the synthesis of nanostructures. By varying the concentrations of TeO2 and NaOH, etching temperatures and etching times, Te nanostructures of various forms of nanostructures were successfully obtained, ranging from one-dimensional needles and rod-like structures to more complex hierarchical structures. Microscopy examinations on the nanostructures obtained have shown that both the diameters and lengths of the Te nanostructures increased with increasing etching temperature and etching time.

Multi-function microfluidic platform for sensor integration

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fernandes, Ana C.; Semenova, Daria; Panjan, Peter

2018-01-01

The limited availability of metabolite-specific sensors for continuous sampling and monitoring is one of the main bottlenecks contributing to failures in bioprocess development. Furthermore, only a limited number of approaches exist to connect currently available measurement systems with high...... throughput reactor units. This is especially relevant in the biocatalyst screening and characterization stage of process development. In this work, a strategy for sensor integration in microfluidic platforms is demonstrated, to address the need for rapid, cost-effective and high-throughput screening...... of the sample solution up to 10 times. In order to highlight the features of the proposed platform, inline monitoring of glucose levels is presented and discussed. Glucose was chosen due to its importance in biotechnology as a relevant substrate. The platform demonstrated continuous measurement of substrate...

Fabrication of nano-structured UO2 fuel pellets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang, Jae Ho; Kang, Ki Won; Rhee, Young Woo; Kim, Dong Joo; Kim, Jong Heon; Kim, Keon Sik; Song, Kun Woo

2007-01-01

Nano-structured materials have received much attention for their possibility for various functional materials. Ceramics with a nano-structured grain have some special properties such as super plasticity and a low sintering temperature. To reduce the fuel cycle costs and the total mass of spent LWR fuels, it is necessary to extend the fuel discharged burn-up. In order to increase the fuel burn-up, it is important to understand the fuel property of a highly irradiated fuel pellet. Especially, research has focused on the formation of a porous and small grained microstructure in the rim area of the fuel, called High Burn-up Structure (HBS). The average grain size of HBS is about 300nm. This paper deals with the feasibility study on the fabrication of nano-structured UO 2 pellets. The nano sized UO 2 particles are prepared by a combined process of a oxidation-reducing and a mechanical milling of UO 2 powder. Nano-structured UO 2 pellets (∼300nm) with a density of ∼93%TD can be obtained by sintering nano-sized UO 2 compacts. The SEM study reveals that the microstructure of the fabricated nano-structure UO 2 pellet is similar to that of HBS. Therefore, this bulk nano-structured UO 2 pellet can be used as a reference pellet for a measurement of the physical properties of HBS

Tip Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy of Rhodamine 6G on nanostructured gold substrate

KAUST Repository

Moretti, Manola

2015-05-01

A new concept based setup for Tip Enhanced Raman Scattering measurement assisted by gold nanostructure is presented, that can provide a platform for gap-mode enhancement of the signal at the single molecule level conjugated with controlled spatial localization of the molecule under investigation and a method to determine the diffraction limit properties of the tip. In essence, this effect is obtained illuminating a gold coated AFM tip which is raster scanned over a nanostructured gold substrate, after chemisorption of a Raman active molecule. We expect that the near-field Raman enhancement would be given by the gap-mode effect of the two facing nano-features. Thanks to the nanostructured substrate, we verify that the resolution of the Raman mapping signal is well below the diffraction limit given by the combination of the optics geometry and the laser wavelength. We show that the gap-mode TERS can generate an estimated field- enhancement (g) of ~20 in localized areas of the sample and we demonstrate the ability to spatially define the molecule position (by Raman mapping) at the tens of nanometers scale. © 2015 Elsevier Ltd.

Tip Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy of Rhodamine 6G on nanostructured gold substrate

KAUST Repository

Moretti, Manola; Das, Gobind; Torre, Bruno; Allione, Marco; Di Fabrizio, Enzo M.

2015-01-01

A new concept based setup for Tip Enhanced Raman Scattering measurement assisted by gold nanostructure is presented, that can provide a platform for gap-mode enhancement of the signal at the single molecule level conjugated with controlled spatial localization of the molecule under investigation and a method to determine the diffraction limit properties of the tip. In essence, this effect is obtained illuminating a gold coated AFM tip which is raster scanned over a nanostructured gold substrate, after chemisorption of a Raman active molecule. We expect that the near-field Raman enhancement would be given by the gap-mode effect of the two facing nano-features. Thanks to the nanostructured substrate, we verify that the resolution of the Raman mapping signal is well below the diffraction limit given by the combination of the optics geometry and the laser wavelength. We show that the gap-mode TERS can generate an estimated field- enhancement (g) of ~20 in localized areas of the sample and we demonstrate the ability to spatially define the molecule position (by Raman mapping) at the tens of nanometers scale. © 2015 Elsevier Ltd.

Nanostructured composite reinforced material

Science.gov (United States)

Seals, Roland D [Oak Ridge, TN; Ripley, Edward B [Knoxville, TN; Ludtka, Gerard M [Oak Ridge, TN

2012-07-31

A family of materials wherein nanostructures and/or nanotubes are incorporated into a multi-component material arrangement, such as a metallic or ceramic alloy or composite/aggregate, producing a new material or metallic/ceramic alloy. The new material has significantly increased strength, up to several thousands of times normal and perhaps substantially more, as well as significantly decreased weight. The new materials may be manufactured into a component where the nanostructure or nanostructure reinforcement is incorporated into the bulk and/or matrix material, or as a coating where the nanostructure or nanostructure reinforcement is incorporated into the coating or surface of a "normal" substrate material. The nanostructures are incorporated into the material structure either randomly or aligned, within grains, or along or across grain boundaries.

Nanostructured membranes and electrodes with sulfonic acid functionalized carbon nanotubes

KAUST Repository

Tripathi, Bijay Prakash; Schieda, Mauricio; Shahi, Vinod Kumar; Nunes, Suzana Pereira

2011-01-01

Herein we report the covalent functionalization of multiwall carbon nanotubes by grafting sulfanilic acid and their dispersion into sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone). The nanocomposites were explored as an option for tuning the proton and electron conductivity, swelling, water and alcohol permeability aiming at nanostructured membranes and electrodes for application in alcohol or hydrogen fuel cells and other electrochemical devices. The nanocomposites were extensively characterized, by studying their physicochemical and electrochemical properties. They were processed as self-supporting films with high mechanical stability, proton conductivity of 4.47 × 10 -2 S cm-1 at 30 °C and 16.8 × 10-2 S cm-1 at 80 °C and 100% humidity level, electron conductivity much higher than for the plain polymer. The methanol permeability could be reduced to 1/20, keeping water permeability at reasonable values. The ratio of bound water also increases with increasing content of sulfonated filler, helping in keeping water in the polymer in conditions of low external humidity level. © 2010 Elsevier B.V.

Nanostructured membranes and electrodes with sulfonic acid functionalized carbon nanotubes

KAUST Repository

Tripathi, Bijay Prakash

2011-02-01

Herein we report the covalent functionalization of multiwall carbon nanotubes by grafting sulfanilic acid and their dispersion into sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone). The nanocomposites were explored as an option for tuning the proton and electron conductivity, swelling, water and alcohol permeability aiming at nanostructured membranes and electrodes for application in alcohol or hydrogen fuel cells and other electrochemical devices. The nanocomposites were extensively characterized, by studying their physicochemical and electrochemical properties. They were processed as self-supporting films with high mechanical stability, proton conductivity of 4.47 × 10 -2 S cm-1 at 30 °C and 16.8 × 10-2 S cm-1 at 80 °C and 100% humidity level, electron conductivity much higher than for the plain polymer. The methanol permeability could be reduced to 1/20, keeping water permeability at reasonable values. The ratio of bound water also increases with increasing content of sulfonated filler, helping in keeping water in the polymer in conditions of low external humidity level. © 2010 Elsevier B.V.

Synthesis and functionalization of gold nanorods for probing plasmonic enhancement mechanisms in organic photovoltaic active layers

Science.gov (United States)

Wadams, Robert Christopher

DNA nanotechnology is one of the most flourishing interdisciplinary research fields. Through the features of programmability and predictability, DNA nanostructures can be designed to self-assemble into a variety of periodic or aperiodic patterns of different shapes and length scales, and more importantly, they can be used as scaffolds for organizing other nanoparticles, proteins and chemical groups. By leveraging these molecules, DNA nanostructures can be used to direct the organization of complex bio-inspired materials that may serve as smart drug delivery systems and in vitro or in vivo bio-molecular computing and diagnostic devices. In this dissertation I describe a systematic study of the thermodynamic properties of complex DNA nanostructures, including 2D and 3D DNA origami, in order to understand their assembly, stability and functionality and inform future design endeavors. It is conceivable that a more thorough understanding of DNA self-assembly can be used to guide the structural design process and optimize the conditions for assembly, manipulation, and functionalization, thus benefiting both upstream design and downstream applications. As a biocompatible nanoscale motif, the successful integration, stabilization and separation of DNA nanostructures from cells/cell lysate suggests its potential to serve as a diagnostic platform at the cellular level. Here, DNA origami was used to capture and identify multiple T cell receptor mRNA species from single cells within a mixed cell population. This demonstrates the potential of DNA nanostructure as an ideal nano scale tool for biological applications.

Structural Diversity of Self-Assembled Iridescent Arthropod Biophotonic Nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Saranathan, Vinod Kumar; Prum, Richard O.

2015-03-01

Many organisms, especially arthropods, produce vivid interference colors using diverse mesoscopic (100-350 nm) integumentary biophotonic nanostructures that are increasingly being investigated for technological applications. Despite a century of interest, we lack precise structural knowledge of many biophotonic nanostructures and mechanisms controlling their development, when such knowledge can open novel biomimetic routes to facilely self-assemble tunable, multi-functional materials. Here, we use synchrotron small angle X-ray scattering and electron microscopy to characterize the photonic nanostructure of 140 iridescent integumentary scales and setae from 127 species of terrestrial arthropods in 85 genera from 5 orders. We report a rich nanostructural diversity, including triply-periodic bicontinuous networks, close-packed spheres, inverse columnar, perforated lamellar, and disordered sponge-like morphologies, commonly observed as stable phases of amphiphilic surfactants, block copolymer, and lyotropic lipid-water systems. Diverse arthropod lineages appear to have independently evolved to utilize the self-assembly of infolding bilayer membranes to develop biophotonic nanostructures that span the phase-space of amphiphilic morphologies, but at optical length scales.

Electrostatic characteristics of nanostructures investigated using electric force microscopy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Qiu, X.H.; Qi, G.C.; Yang, Y.L.; Wang, C.

2008-01-01

Nanosized materials possess many interesting physical and chemical properties that differ significantly from their macroscopic counterparts. Understanding the size- and shape-dependent properties of nanostructures are of great value to rational design of nanomaterials with desired functionality. Electric force microscopy (EFM) and its variations offer unique opportunities to deepen our insights into the electrical characteristics of nanostructures. In this paper, we review recent progress of this versatile technique and its applications in studying the electrical properties of nanosized materials. A variety of important issues in EFM experimentation and theoretical modeling are discussed, with an emphasis on the ongoing efforts to improve the precision in quantitative measurements of charge density and dielectric properties of nanostructures. - Graphical abstract: We review recent progress of electric force microscopy (EFM) and its applications in studying the electrical properties of nanostructures. A variety of important issues in EFM experimentation and theoretical modeling are discussed, with an emphasis on the ongoing efforts to improve the precision in quantitative measurements of charge density and dielectric properties of nanostructures

Disorder in convergent floral nanostructures enhances signalling to bees

Science.gov (United States)

Moyroud, Edwige; Wenzel, Tobias; Middleton, Rox; Rudall, Paula J.; Banks, Hannah; Reed, Alison; Mellers, Greg; Killoran, Patrick; Westwood, M. Murphy; Steiner, Ullrich; Vignolini, Silvia; Glover, Beverley J.

2017-10-01

Diverse forms of nanoscale architecture generate structural colour and perform signalling functions within and between species. Structural colour is the result of the interference of light from approximately regular periodic structures; some structural disorder is, however, inevitable in biological organisms. Is this disorder functional and subject to evolutionary selection, or is it simply an unavoidable outcome of biological developmental processes? Here we show that disordered nanostructures enable flowers to produce visual signals that are salient to bees. These disordered nanostructures (identified in most major lineages of angiosperms) have distinct anatomies but convergent optical properties; they all produce angle-dependent scattered light, predominantly at short wavelengths (ultraviolet and blue). We manufactured artificial flowers with nanoscale structures that possessed tailored levels of disorder in order to investigate how foraging bumblebees respond to this optical effect. We conclude that floral nanostructures have evolved, on multiple independent occasions, an effective degree of relative spatial disorder that generates a photonic signature that is highly salient to insect pollinators.

Laser-induced surface modification of biopolymers – micro/nanostructuring and functionalization

Science.gov (United States)

Stankova, N. E.; Atanasov, P. A.; Nedyalkov, N. N.; Tatchev, Dr; Kolev, K. N.; Valova, E. I.; Armyanov, St. A.; Grochowska, K.; Śliwiński, G.; Fukata, N.; Hirsch, D.; Rauschenbach, B.

2018-03-01

The medical-grade polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) elastomer is a widely used biomaterial in medicine for preparation of high-tech devices because of its remarkable properties. In this paper, we present experimental results on surface modification of PDMS elastomer by using ultraviolet, visible, and near-infrared ns-laser system and investigation of the chemical composition and the morphological structure inside the treated area in dependence on the processing parameters – wavelength, laser fluence and number of pulses. Remarkable chemical transformations and changes of the morphological structure were observed, resulting in the formation of a highly catalytically active surface, which was successfully functionalized via electroless Ni and Pt deposition by a sensitizing-activation free process. The results obtained are very promising in view of applying the methods of laser-induced micro- and nano-structuring and activation of biopolymers’ surface and further electroless metal plating to the preparation of, e.g., multielectrode arrays (MEAs) devices in neural and muscular surface interfacing implantable systems.

A microcontroller platform for the rapid prototyping of functional electrical stimulation-based gait neuroprostheses.

Science.gov (United States)

Luzio de Melo, Paulo; da Silva, Miguel Tavares; Martins, Jorge; Newman, Dava

2015-05-01

Functional electrical stimulation (FES) has been used over the last decades as a method to rehabilitate lost motor functions of individuals with spinal cord injury, multiple sclerosis, and post-stroke hemiparesis. Within this field, researchers in need of developing FES-based control solutions for specific disabilities often have to choose between either the acquisition and integration of high-performance industry-level systems, which are rather expensive and hardly portable, or develop custom-made portable solutions, which despite their lower cost, usually require expert-level electronic skills. Here, a flexible low-cost microcontroller-based platform for rapid prototyping of FES neuroprostheses is presented, designed for reduced execution complexity, development time, and production cost. For this reason, the Arduino open-source microcontroller platform was used, together with off-the-shelf components whenever possible. The developed system enables the rapid deployment of portable FES-based gait neuroprostheses, being flexible enough to allow simple open-loop strategies but also more complex closed-loop solutions. The system is based on a modular architecture that allows the development of optimized solutions depending on the desired FES applications, even though the design and testing of the platform were focused toward drop foot correction. The flexibility of the system was demonstrated using two algorithms targeting drop foot condition within different experimental setups. Successful bench testing of the device in healthy subjects demonstrated these neuroprosthesis platform capabilities to correct drop foot. Copyright © 2015 International Center for Artificial Organs and Transplantation and Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Nanostructured thin films as functional coatings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lazar, Manoj A; Tadvani, Jalil K; Tung, Wing Sze; Lopez, Lorena; Daoud, Walid A, E-mail: Walid.Daoud@sci.monash.edu.au [School of Applied Sciences and Engineering, Monash University, Churchill, VIC 3842 (Australia)

2010-06-15

Nanostructured thin films is one of the highly exploiting research areas particularly in applications such as photovoltaics, photocatalysis and sensor technologies. Highly tuned thin films, in terms of thickness, crystallinity, porosity and optical properties, can be fabricated on different substrates using the sol-gel method, chemical solution deposition (CSD), electrochemical etching, along with other conventional methods such as chemical vapour deposition (CVD) and physical vapour deposition (PVD). The above mentioned properties of these films are usually characterised using surface analysis techniques such as XRD, SEM, TEM, AFM, ellipsometry, electrochemistry, SAXS, reflectance spectroscopy, STM, XPS, SIMS, ESCA, X-ray topography and DOSY-NMR. This article presents a short review of the preparation and characterisation of thin films of nanocrystalline titanium dioxide and modified silicon as well as their application in solar cells, water treatment, water splitting, self cleaning fabrics, sensors, optoelectronic devices and lab on chip systems.

Potentiometric Zinc Ion Sensor Based on Honeycomb-Like NiO Nanostructures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Magnus Willander

2012-11-01

Full Text Available In this study honeycomb-like NiO nanostructures were grown on nickel foam by a simple hydrothermal growth method. The NiO nanostructures were characterized by field emission electron microscopy (FESEM, high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM and X-ray diffraction (XRD techniques. The characterized NiO nanostructures were uniform, dense and polycrystalline in the crystal phase. In addition to this, the NiO nanostructures were used in the development of a zinc ion sensor electrode by functionalization with the highly selective zinc ion ionophore 12-crown-4. The developed zinc ion sensor electrode has shown a good linear potentiometric response for a wide range of zinc ion concentrations, ranging from 0.001 mM to 100 mM, with sensitivity of 36 mV/decade. The detection limit of the present zinc ion sensor was found to be 0.0005 mM and it also displays a fast response time of less than 10 s. The proposed zinc ion sensor electrode has also shown good reproducibility, repeatability, storage stability and selectivity. The zinc ion sensor based on the functionalized NiO nanostructures was also used as indicator electrode in potentiometric titrations and it has demonstrated an acceptable stoichiometric relationship for the determination of zinc ion in unknown samples. The NiO nanostructures-based zinc ion sensor has potential for analysing zinc ion in various industrial, clinical and other real samples.

Potential of AlN nanostructures as hydrogen storage materials.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Qian; Sun, Qiang; Jena, Puru; Kawazoe, Yoshiyuki

2009-03-24

The capability of AlN nanostructures (nanocages, nanocones, nanotubes, and nanowires) to store hydrogen has been studied using gradient-corrected density functional theory. In contrast to bulk AlN, which has the wurtzite structure and four-fold coordination, the Al sites in AlN nanostructures are unsaturated and have two- and three-fold coordination. Each Al atom is capable of binding one H(2) molecule in quasi-molecular form, leading to 4.7 wt % hydrogen, irrespective of the topology of the nanostructures. With the exception of AlN nanotubes, energetics does not support the adsorption of additional hydrogen. The binding energies of hydrogen to these unsaturated metal sites lie in the range of 0.1-0.2 eV/H(2) and are ideal for applications under ambient thermodynamic conditions. Furthermore, these materials do not suffer from the clustering problem that often plagues metal-coated carbon nanostructures.

Nanoparticle "Theranostic" Platforms for Applications in Cancer

Science.gov (United States)

Steiner, Jason Michael

The study and implementation of nanotechnology as applied to biology is making substantial progress toward the expansion of the dialogue between synthetic and biological systems. This dialogue leads to a deeper understanding of the origins, manifestations, and characteristics of biological phenomenon that ultimately will lead to improved methods of diagnosing and treating a variety of pathologies. Perhaps the most prevalent application of this new technology is in the field of cancer research, encompassing an array of diagnostic and therapeutic approaches for in vivo utilization. These approaches include novel ways of enhancing tumor imaging for earlier detection or delivering toxic therapeutics directly to the site of action, sparing the systemic damage that so often accompanies cancer treatment. However, it is the combination of these essential and orthogonal functionalities that is the hallmark of the promise of nanotechnology. Such materials, coined as "theranostics" for their therapeutic and diagnostic capabilities, allow for a new depth of understanding of the behavior of nanoparticles in vivo, and in particular their efficacy as therapeutic treatments. This dissertation discusses the development of platforms and materials that may be employed as theranostic cancer agents from two distinct philosophical approaches---what may be called "traditional" and "non-traditional" nanotechnology. The "non-traditional" approach details the development of a novel DNA nanoparticle platform created through an exponential enrichment process for selected cell targeting. The products compose a novel class of nanoparticles that possess all of the naturally advantageous properties of DNA. The remainder of the dissertation presents a more "traditional" approach to hierarchical nanoparticle construction, discussing synthesis, stabilization and functionalization of theranostic materials of iron oxide and gold and their combination into novel nanostructures for more efficacious in

A Wireless Monitoring Sub-nA Resolution Test Platform for Nanostructure Sensors

Science.gov (United States)

Jang, Chi Woong; Byun, Young Tae; Lee, Taikjin; Woo, Deok Ha; Lee, Seok; Jhon, Young Min

2013-01-01

We have constructed a wireless monitoring test platform with a sub-nA resolution signal amplification/processing circuit (SAPC) and a wireless communication network to test the real-time remote monitoring of the signals from carbon nanotube (CNT) sensors. The operation characteristics of the CNT sensors can also be measured by the ISD-VSD curve with the SAPC. The SAPC signals are transmitted to a personal computer by Bluetooth communication and the signals from the computer are transmitted to smart phones by Wi-Fi communication, in such a way that the signals from the sensors can be remotely monitored through a web browser. Successful remote monitoring of signals from a CNT sensor was achieved with the wireless monitoring test platform for detection of 0.15% methanol vapor with 0.5 nA resolution and 7 Hz sampling rate. PMID:23783735

A Wireless Monitoring Sub-nA Resolution Test Platform for Nanostructure Sensors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Young Min Jhon

2013-06-01

Full Text Available We have constructed a wireless monitoring test platform with a sub-nA resolution signal amplification/processing circuit (SAPC and a wireless communication network to test the real-time remote monitoring of the signals from carbon nanotube (CNT sensors. The operation characteristics of the CNT sensors can also be measured by the ISD-VSD curve with the SAPC. The SAPC signals are transmitted to a personal computer by Bluetooth communication and the signals from the computer are transmitted to smart phones by Wi-Fi communication, in such a way that the signals from the sensors can be remotely monitored through a web browser. Successful remote monitoring of signals from a CNT sensor was achieved with the wireless monitoring test platform for detection of 0.15% methanol vapor with 0.5 nA resolution and 7 Hz sampling rate.

Fabrication of Al2O3 Nano-Structure Functional Film on a Cellulose Insulation Polymer Surface and Its Space Charge Suppression Effect

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jian Hao

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Cellulose insulation polymer (paper/pressboard has been widely used in high voltage direct current (HVDC transformers. One of the most challenging issues in the insulation material used for HVDC equipment is the space charge accumulation. Effective ways to suppress the space charge injection/accumulation in insulation material is currently a popular research topic. In this study, an aluminium oxide functional film was deposited on a cellulose insulation pressboard surface using reactive radio frequency (RF magnetron sputtering. The sputtered thin film was characterized by the scanning electron microscopy/energy dispersive spectrometer (SEM/EDS, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS, and X-ray diffraction (XRD. The influence of the deposited functional film on the dielectric properties and the space charge injection/accumulation behaviour was investigated. A preliminary exploration of the space charge suppression effect is discussed. SEM/EDS, XPS, and XRD results show that the nano-structured Al2O3 film with amorphous phase was successfully fabricated onto the fibre surface. The cellulose insulation pressboard surface sputtered by Al2O3 film has lower permittivity, conductivity, and dissipation factor values in the lower frequency (<103 Hz region. The oil-impregnated sputtered pressboard presents an apparent space-charge suppression effect. Compared with the pressboard sputtered with Al2O3 film for 90 min, the pressboard sputtered with Al2O3 film for 60 min had a better space charge suppression effect. Ultra-small Al2O3 particles (<10 nm grew on the surface of the larger nanoparticles. The nano-structured Al2O3 film sputtered on the fibre surface could act as a functional barrier layer for suppression of the charge injection and accumulation. This study offers a new perspective in favour of the application of insulation pressboard with a nano-structured function surface against space charge injection/accumulation in HVDC equipment.

A hybrid approach to the surface biofunctionalization of nanostructured porous alumina

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Silvan, Miguel Manso; Ruiz, Josefa Predestinacion Garcia [Departamento de Fisica Aplicada y Departamento de Biologia Molecular, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Autonoma de Madrid, Unidad Asociada GMNF (ICMM-CSIC), 28049 Madrid (Spain); Centro de Investigaciones Biomedicas en Red, Bioingenieria Biomateriales y Nanomedicina (CIBERbbn) (Spain); Gonzalez, Ruy Sanz [Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Madrid, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas, 28049 Madrid (Spain); Velez, Manuel Hernandez [Departamento de Fisica Aplicada y Departamento de Biologia Molecular, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Autonoma de Madrid, Unidad Asociada GMNF (ICMM-CSIC), 28049 Madrid (Spain)

2010-02-15

The application of nanostructured porous alumina templates as a solid support in biomedical assays requires a surface biofunctionalization process that has been addressed in this work by an hybrid aminopropyl-triethoxysilane/tetraisopropyl-orthotitanate (APTS/ TIPT) self assembled film. The nanostructured porous alumina templates are activated in a peroxide solution before immersion in the biofunctionalizing APTS/TIPT solution. The biofunctionalization process was followed up by UV-vis spectroscopy, which confirmed the modification of the dielectric structure of the alumina surface. The influence of the biofunctionalization step in an immunological assay was carried out by fluorescence microscopy. Results confirm the gain in activity after the immobilization of an FITC labelled mouse Igg. Specific biological recognition in a bovine serum albumin (BSA)-antiBSA assay is proved afterwards by shifts observed in the reflectance interferograms thus providing a fast biosensing transducer platform. (copyright 2010 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim) (orig.)

Fullerenes and nanostructured plastic solar cells

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Knol, Joop; Hummelen, Jan C.; Kuzmany, H; Fink, J; Mehring, M; Roth, S

1998-01-01

We report on the present on the present status of the plastic solar cell and on the design of fullerene derivatives and pi-conjugated donor molecules that can function as acceptor-donor pairs and (supra-) molecular building blocks in organized, nanostructured interpenetrating networks, forming a

Enhanced Stability of DNA Nanostructures by Incorporation of Unnatural Base Pairs.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Qing; Liu, Guocheng; Wang, Ting; Fu, Jing; Li, Rujiao; Song, Linlin; Wang, Zhen-Gang; Ding, Baoquan; Chen, Fei

2017-11-03

Self-assembled DNA nanostructures hold great promise in the fields of nanofabrication, biosensing and nanomedicine. However, the inherent low stability of the DNA double helices, formed by weak interactions, largely hinders the assembly and functions of DNA nanostructures. In this study, we redesigned and constructed a six-arm DNA junction by incorporation of the unnatural base pairs 5-Me-isoC/isoG and A/2-thioT into the double helices. They not only retained the structural integrity of the DNA nanostructure, but also showed enhanced thermal stability and resistance to T7 Exonuclease digestion. This research may expand the applications of DNA nanostructures in nanofabrication and biomedical fields, and furthermore, the genetic alphabet expansion with unnatural base pairs may enable us to construct more complicated and diversified self-assembled DNA nanostructures. © 2017 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Surface engineering of one-dimensional tin oxide nanostructures for chemical sensors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ma, Yuanyuan; Qu, Yongquan; Zhou, Wei

2013-01-01

Nanostructured materials are promising candidates for chemical sensors due to their fascinating physicochemical properties. Among various candidates, tin oxide (SnO 2 ) has been widely explored in gas sensing elements due to its excellent chemical stability, low cost, ease of fabrication and remarkable reproducibility. We are presenting an overview on recent investigations on 1-dimensional (1D) SnO 2 nanostructures for chemical sensing. In particular, we focus on the performance of devices based on surface engineered SnO 2 nanostructures, and on aspects of morphology, size, and functionality. The synthesis and sensing mechanism of highly selective, sensitive and stable 1D nanostructures for use in chemical sensing are discussed first. This is followed by a discussion of the relationship between the surface properties of the SnO 2 layer and the sensor performance from a thermodynamic point of view. Then, the opportunities and recent progress of chemical sensors fabricated from 1D SnO 2 heterogeneous nanostructures are discussed. Finally, we summarize current challenges in terms of improving the performance of chemical (gas) sensors using such nanostructures and suggest potential applications. (author)

Cross-Platform Technologies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Cristina ENACHE

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Cross-platform - a concept becoming increasingly used in recent years especially in the development of mobile apps, but this consistently over time and in the development of conventional desktop applications. The notion of cross-platform software (multi-platform or platform-independent refers to a software application that can run on more than one operating system or computing architecture. Thus, a cross-platform application can operate independent of software or hardware platform on which it is execute. As a generic definition presents a wide range of meanings for purposes of this paper we individualize this definition as follows: we will reduce the horizon of meaning and we use functionally following definition: a cross-platform application is a software application that can run on more than one operating system (desktop or mobile identical or in a similar way.

Piezoelectric paper fabricated via nanostructured barium titanate functionalization of wood cellulose fibers.

Science.gov (United States)

Mahadeva, Suresha K; Walus, Konrad; Stoeber, Boris

2014-05-28

We have successfully developed hybrid piezoelectric paper through fiber functionalization that involves anchoring nanostructured BaTiO3 into a stable matrix with wood cellulose fibers prior to the process of making paper sheets. This is realized by alternating immersion of wood fibers in a solution of poly(diallyldimethylammonium chloride) PDDA (+), followed by poly(sodium 4-styrenesulfonate) PSS (-), and once again in PDDA (+), resulting in the creation of a positively charged surface on the wood fibers. The treated wood fibers are then immersed in a BaTiO3 suspension, resulting in the attachment of BaTiO3 nanoparticles to the wood fibers due to a strong electrostatic interaction. Zeta potential measurements, X-ray diffraction, and microscopic and spectroscopic analysis imply successful functionalization of wood fibers with BaTiO3 nanoparticles without altering the hydrogen bonding and crystal structure of the wood fibers. The paper has the largest piezoelectric coefficient, d33 = 4.8 ± 0.4 pC N(-1), at the highest nanoparticle loading of 48 wt % BaTiO3. This newly developed piezoelectric hybrid paper is promising as a low-cost substrate to build sensing devices.

Injection moulding antireflective nanostructures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christiansen, Alexander Bruun; Clausen, Jeppe Sandvik; Mortensen, N. Asger

2014-01-01

We present a method for injection moulding antireflective nanostructures on large areas, for high volume production. Nanostructured black silicon masters were fabricated by mask-less reactive ion etching, and electroplated with nickel. The nickel shim was antistiction coated and used in an inject......We present a method for injection moulding antireflective nanostructures on large areas, for high volume production. Nanostructured black silicon masters were fabricated by mask-less reactive ion etching, and electroplated with nickel. The nickel shim was antistiction coated and used...

Injection moulding antireflective nanostructures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christiansen, Alexander Bruun; Clausen, Jeppe Sandvik; Mortensen, N. Asger

We present a method for injection moulding antireflective nanostructures on large areas, for high volume production. Nanostructured black silicon masters were fabricated by mask-less reactive ion etching, and electroplated with nickel. The nickel shim was antistiction coated and used in an inject......We present a method for injection moulding antireflective nanostructures on large areas, for high volume production. Nanostructured black silicon masters were fabricated by mask-less reactive ion etching, and electroplated with nickel. The nickel shim was antistiction coated and used...

Electronic Detection of Lectins Using Carbohydrate Functionalized Nanostructures: Graphene versus Carbon Nanotubes

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Yanan; Vedala, Harindra; Kotchey, Gregg P.; Audfray, Aymeric; Cecioni, Samy; Imberty, Anne; Vidal, Sébastien; Star, Alexander

2012-01-01

Here we investigated the interactions between lectins and carbohydrates using field-effect transistor (FET) devices comprised of chemically converted graphene (CCG) and single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs). Pyrene- and porphyrin-based glycoconjugates were functionalized noncovalently on the surface of CCG-FET and SWNT-FET devices, which were then treated with 2 µM of nonspecific and specific lectins. In particular, three different lectins (PA-IL, PA-IIL and ConA) and three carbohydrate epitopes (galactose, fucose and mannose) were tested. The responses of 36 different devices were compared and rationalized using computer-aided models of carbon nanostructure/glycoconjugate interactions. Glycoconjugates surface coverage in addition to one-dimensional structures of SWNTs resulted in optimal lectin detection. Additionally, lectin titration data of SWNT- and CCG-based biosensors were used to calculate lectin dissociation constants (Kd) and compare them to the values obtained from the isothermal titration microcalorimetry (ITC) technique. PMID:22136380

Supramolecular Self-Assembly of Histidine-Capped-Dialkoxy-Anthracene: A Visible Light Triggered Platform for facile siRNA Delivery

KAUST Repository

Patil, Sachin

2016-06-29

Supramolecular self-assembly of histidine-capped-dialkoxy-anthracene (HDA) results in the formation of light responsive nanostructures.Single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis of HDA shows two types of hydrogen bonding. The first hydrogen bond is established between the imidazole moieties while the second involves the oxygen atom of one amide group and the hydrogen atom of a second amide group. When protonated in acidic aqueous media, HDA successfully complexes siRNA yielding spherical nanostructures. This biocompatible platform controllably delivers siRNA with high efficacy upon visible light irradiation leading up to 90% of gene silencing in live cells.

Microstructure and functional properties of micro- and nanostructure metal composites obtained by diffusion welding and rolling of multilayer packages

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Korzhov, Valery P.; Karpov, Michael I., E-mail: korzhov@issp.ac.ru [Institute of Solid State Physics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Chernogolovka (Russian Federation)

2011-07-01

Multilayered nanostructure composites of Cu/Fe, Cu/Nb, and Cu/(Nb/NbTi) with an ≤10 nm the average thickness of individual layers mechanical and superconducting properties which are implemented immediately after rolling, and micro- and nanostructure composites of Ni/Al, Ti/Ni, and (Cu/Nb)/Cu12Sn functional properties which, in contrast to the first, are manifested after rolling and heat treatment were investigated. Composites of (Cu/Nb)/Cu12Sn in final form were a multilayer tape of superconducting compound Nb{sub 3}Sn. Welding of stacks carried by heat treatment under pressure and rolling mill in a vacuum with heating to 900-950°C and large (∼30%) compression in a single pass. The microstructure was investigated by scanning electron microscopy and X-ray analysis. For superconducting composites critical current density and upper critical magnetic field were measured. Shown that the pinning of superconducting vortices in alloys of NbTi are occurred at interlayer Nb- NbTi boundaries. Change in hardness and strength of multilayer composites under rolling deformation is described by the expression of the Hall-Petch relationship, in which instead of the grain size appeared thick of layers. Key words: multilayered composite, micro- and nanostructure, NbTi alloy, superconducting compound, rolling, heat treatment, the superconducting properties, hardness, strength, superconducting vortices, the Hall-Petch expression.

Self-assembled nanostructures

CERN Document Server

Zhang, Jin Z; Liu, Jun; Chen, Shaowei; Liu, Gang-yu

2003-01-01

Nanostructures refer to materials that have relevant dimensions on the nanometer length scales and reside in the mesoscopic regime between isolated atoms and molecules in bulk matter. These materials have unique physical properties that are distinctly different from bulk materials. Self-Assembled Nanostructures provides systematic coverage of basic nanomaterials science including materials assembly and synthesis, characterization, and application. Suitable for both beginners and experts, it balances the chemistry aspects of nanomaterials with physical principles. It also highlights nanomaterial-based architectures including assembled or self-assembled systems. Filled with in-depth discussion of important applications of nano-architectures as well as potential applications ranging from physical to chemical and biological systems, Self-Assembled Nanostructures is the essential reference or text for scientists involved with nanostructures.

Physics of quantum light emitters in disordered photonic nanostructures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Garcia, P.D.; Lodahl, P.

2017-01-01

Nanophotonics focuses on the control of light and the interaction with matter by the aid of intricate nanostructures. Typically, a photonic nanostructure is carefully designed for a specific application and any imperfections may reduce its performance, i.e., a thorough investigation of the role of unavoidable fabrication imperfections is essential for any application. However, another approach to nanophotonic applications exists where fabrication disorder is used to induce functionalities by enhancing light-matter interaction. Disorder leads to multiple scattering of light, which is the realm of statistical optics where light propagation requires a statistical description. We review here the recent progress on disordered photonic nanostructures and the potential implications for quantum photonics devices. (copyright 2017 by WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Physics of quantum light emitters in disordered photonic nanostructures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Garcia, P.D. [Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2), CSIC and The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Barcelona (Spain); Lodahl, P. [Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen (Denmark)

2017-08-15

Nanophotonics focuses on the control of light and the interaction with matter by the aid of intricate nanostructures. Typically, a photonic nanostructure is carefully designed for a specific application and any imperfections may reduce its performance, i.e., a thorough investigation of the role of unavoidable fabrication imperfections is essential for any application. However, another approach to nanophotonic applications exists where fabrication disorder is used to induce functionalities by enhancing light-matter interaction. Disorder leads to multiple scattering of light, which is the realm of statistical optics where light propagation requires a statistical description. We review here the recent progress on disordered photonic nanostructures and the potential implications for quantum photonics devices. (copyright 2017 by WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

THE NEED FOR FUNCTION PLATFORMS IN ENGINEER TO ORDER INDUSTRIES

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Alblas, Alex; Wortmann, Hans; Bergendahl, MN; Grimheden, M; Leifer, L; Skogstad, P; Cantamessa, M

2009-01-01

Many industries base their innovations on product platforms. Platforms have predefined modularity with standardized interfaces. However, product platforms provide significant challenges to engineering industries that rely heavily on R&D, such as microlithography systems. Developing these systems

Au-Graphene Hybrid Plasmonic Nanostructure Sensor Based on Intensity Shift

Science.gov (United States)

Alharbi, Raed; Irannejad, Mehrdad; Yavuz, Mustafa

2017-01-01

Integrating plasmonic materials, like gold with a two-dimensional material (e.g., graphene) enhances the light-material interaction and, hence, plasmonic properties of the metallic nanostructure. A localized surface plasmon resonance sensor is an effective platform for biomarker detection. They offer a better bulk surface (local) sensitivity than a regular surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensor; however, they suffer from a lower figure of merit compared to that one in a propagating surface plasmon resonance sensors. In this work, a decorated multilayer graphene film with an Au nanostructures was proposed as a liquid sensor. The results showed a significant improvement in the figure of merit compared with other reported localized surface plasmon resonance sensors. The maximum figure of merit and intensity sensitivity of 240 and 55 RIU−1 (refractive index unit) at refractive index change of 0.001 were achieved which indicate the capability of the proposed sensor to detect a small change in concentration of liquids in the ng/mL level which is essential in early-stage cancer disease detection. PMID:28106850

Au-Graphene Hybrid Plasmonic Nanostructure Sensor Based on Intensity Shift

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Raed Alharbi

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Integrating plasmonic materials, like gold with a two-dimensional material (e.g., graphene enhances the light-material interaction and, hence, plasmonic properties of the metallic nanostructure. A localized surface plasmon resonance sensor is an effective platform for biomarker detection. They offer a better bulk surface (local sensitivity than a regular surface plasmon resonance (SPR sensor; however, they suffer from a lower figure of merit compared to that one in a propagating surface plasmon resonance sensors. In this work, a decorated multilayer graphene film with an Au nanostructures was proposed as a liquid sensor. The results showed a significant improvement in the figure of merit compared with other reported localized surface plasmon resonance sensors. The maximum figure of merit and intensity sensitivity of 240 and 55 RIU−1 (refractive index unit at refractive index change of 0.001 were achieved which indicate the capability of the proposed sensor to detect a small change in concentration of liquids in the ng/mL level which is essential in early-stage cancer disease detection.

Size-Induced Switching of Nanowire Growth Direction: a New Approach Toward Kinked Nanostructures

KAUST Repository

Shen, Youde

2016-04-26

Exploring self-assembled nanostructures with controllable architectures has been a central theme in nanoscience and nanotechnology because of the tantalizing perspective of directly integrating such bottom-up nanostructures into functional devices. Here, the growth of kinked single-crystal In2O3 nanostructures consisting of a nanocone base and a nanowire tip with an epitaxial and defect-free transition is demonstrated for the first time. By tailoring the growth conditions, a reliable switching of the growth direction from [111] to [110] or [112] is observed when the Au catalyst nanoparticles at the apexes of the nanocones shrink below ≈100 nm. The natural formation of kinked nanoarchitectures at constant growth pressures is related to the size-dependent free energy that changes for different orientations of the nanowires. The results suggest that the mechanism of forming such kinked nanocone-nanowire nanostructures in well-controlled growth environment may be universal for a wide range of functional materials. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Size-Induced Switching of Nanowire Growth Direction: a New Approach Toward Kinked Nanostructures

KAUST Repository

Shen, Youde; Lebedev, Oleg I.; Turner, Stuart; Van Tendeloo, Gustaaf; Song, Xiaohui; Yu, Xuechao; Wang, Qijie; Chen, Hongyu; Dayeh, Shadi A.; Wu, Tao

2016-01-01

Exploring self-assembled nanostructures with controllable architectures has been a central theme in nanoscience and nanotechnology because of the tantalizing perspective of directly integrating such bottom-up nanostructures into functional devices. Here, the growth of kinked single-crystal In2O3 nanostructures consisting of a nanocone base and a nanowire tip with an epitaxial and defect-free transition is demonstrated for the first time. By tailoring the growth conditions, a reliable switching of the growth direction from [111] to [110] or [112] is observed when the Au catalyst nanoparticles at the apexes of the nanocones shrink below ≈100 nm. The natural formation of kinked nanoarchitectures at constant growth pressures is related to the size-dependent free energy that changes for different orientations of the nanowires. The results suggest that the mechanism of forming such kinked nanocone-nanowire nanostructures in well-controlled growth environment may be universal for a wide range of functional materials. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Massively parallel fabrication of repetitive nanostructures: nanolithography for nanoarrays

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Luttge, Regina

2009-01-01

This topical review provides an overview of nanolithographic techniques for nanoarrays. Using patterning techniques such as lithography, normally we aim for a higher order architecture similarly to functional systems in nature. Inspired by the wealth of complexity in nature, these architectures are translated into technical devices, for example, found in integrated circuitry or other systems in which structural elements work as discrete building blocks in microdevices. Ordered artificial nanostructures (arrays of pillars, holes and wires) have shown particular properties and bring about the opportunity to modify and tune the device operation. Moreover, these nanostructures deliver new applications, for example, the nanoscale control of spin direction within a nanomagnet. Subsequently, we can look for applications where this unique property of the smallest manufactured element is repetitively used such as, for example with respect to spin, in nanopatterned magnetic media for data storage. These nanostructures are generally called nanoarrays. Most of these applications require massively parallel produced nanopatterns which can be directly realized by laser interference (areas up to 4 cm 2 are easily achieved with a Lloyd's mirror set-up). In this topical review we will further highlight the application of laser interference as a tool for nanofabrication, its limitations and ultimate advantages towards a variety of devices including nanostructuring for photonic crystal devices, high resolution patterned media and surface modifications of medical implants. The unique properties of nanostructured surfaces have also found applications in biomedical nanoarrays used either for diagnostic or functional assays including catalytic reactions on chip. Bio-inspired templated nanoarrays will be presented in perspective to other massively parallel nanolithography techniques currently discussed in the scientific literature. (topical review)

Mechanical, Corrosion and Biological Properties of Room-Temperature Sputtered Aluminum Nitride Films with Dissimilar Nanostructure

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cristina Besleaga

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Aluminum Nitride (AlN has been long time being regarded as highly interesting material for developing sensing applications (including biosensors and implantable sensors. AlN, due to its appealing electronic properties, is envisaged lately to serve as a multi-functional biosensing platform. Although generally exploited for its intrinsic piezoelectricity, its surface morphology and mechanical performance (elastic modulus, hardness, wear, scratch and tensile resistance to delamination, adherence to the substrate, corrosion resistance and cytocompatibility are also essential features for high performance sustainable biosensor devices. However, information about AlN suitability for such applications is rather scarce or at best scattered and incomplete. Here, we aim to deliver a comprehensive evaluation of the morpho-structural, compositional, mechanical, electrochemical and biological properties of reactive radio-frequency magnetron sputtered AlN nanostructured thin films with various degrees of c-axis texturing, deposited at a low temperature (~50 °C on Si (100 substrates. The inter-conditionality elicited between the base pressure level attained in the reactor chamber and crystalline quality of AlN films is highlighted. The potential suitability of nanostructured AlN (in form of thin films for the realization of various type of sensors (with emphasis on bio-sensors is thoroughly probed, thus unveiling its advantages and limitations, as well as suggesting paths to safely exploit the remarkable prospects of this type of materials.

Mechanical, Corrosion and Biological Properties of Room-Temperature Sputtered Aluminum Nitride Films with Dissimilar Nanostructure.

Science.gov (United States)

Besleaga, Cristina; Dumitru, Viorel; Trinca, Liliana Marinela; Popa, Adrian-Claudiu; Negrila, Constantin-Catalin; Kołodziejczyk, Łukasz; Luculescu, Catalin-Romeo; Ionescu, Gabriela-Cristina; Ripeanu, Razvan-George; Vladescu, Alina; Stan, George E

2017-11-17

Aluminum Nitride (AlN) has been long time being regarded as highly interesting material for developing sensing applications (including biosensors and implantable sensors). AlN, due to its appealing electronic properties, is envisaged lately to serve as a multi-functional biosensing platform. Although generally exploited for its intrinsic piezoelectricity, its surface morphology and mechanical performance (elastic modulus, hardness, wear, scratch and tensile resistance to delamination, adherence to the substrate), corrosion resistance and cytocompatibility are also essential features for high performance sustainable biosensor devices. However, information about AlN suitability for such applications is rather scarce or at best scattered and incomplete. Here, we aim to deliver a comprehensive evaluation of the morpho-structural, compositional, mechanical, electrochemical and biological properties of reactive radio-frequency magnetron sputtered AlN nanostructured thin films with various degrees of c -axis texturing, deposited at a low temperature (~50 °C) on Si (100) substrates. The inter-conditionality elicited between the base pressure level attained in the reactor chamber and crystalline quality of AlN films is highlighted. The potential suitability of nanostructured AlN (in form of thin films) for the realization of various type of sensors (with emphasis on bio-sensors) is thoroughly probed, thus unveiling its advantages and limitations, as well as suggesting paths to safely exploit the remarkable prospects of this type of materials.

Imprinted ZnO nanostructure-based electrochemical sensing of calcitonin: A clinical marker for medullary thyroid carcinoma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Patra, Santanu; Roy, Ekta; Madhuri, Rashmi; Sharma, Prashant K.

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Molecular imprinting-based sensor for medullary thyroid carcinoma marker was developed. • ZnO nanostructure was used as a platform for synthesis of imprinted polymer. • Imprinted polymer was prepared by ARGET–ATRP method. • A novel and biocompatible tyrosine amino acid derivative was used as monomer. • Linear working range is found from 9.99 ng L −1 to 7.919 mg L −1 with LOD 3.09 ng L −1 . - Abstract: The present work describes an exciting method for the selective and sensitive determination of calcitonin in human blood serum samples. Adopting the surface molecular imprinting technique, a calcitonin-imprinted polymer was prepared on the surface of the zinc oxide nanostructure. Firstly, a biocompatible tyrosine derivative as a monomer was grafted onto the surface of zinc oxide nanostructure followed by their polymerization on vinyl functionalized electrode surface by activator regenerated by electron transfer–atom transfer radical polymerization (ARGET–ATRP) technique. Such sensor can predict the small change in the concentration of calcitonin in the human body and it may also consider to be as cost-effective, renewable, disposable, and reliable for clinical studies having no such cross-reactivity and matrix effect from real samples. The morphologies and properties of the proposed sensor were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, cyclic voltammetry, difference pulse voltammetry and chronocoulometry. The linear working range was found to be 9.99 ng L −1 to 7.919 mg L −1 and the detection limit as low as 3.09 ± 0.01 ng L −1 (standard deviation for three replicate measurements) (S/N = 3)

Nanostructure-Enabled and Macromolecule-Grafted Surfaces for Biomedical Applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Madeline Small

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Advances in nanotechnology and nanomaterials have enabled the development of functional biomaterials with surface properties that reduce the rate of the device rejection in injectable and implantable biomaterials. In addition, the surface of biomaterials can be functionalized with macromolecules for stimuli-responsive purposes to improve the efficacy and effectiveness in drug release applications. Furthermore, macromolecule-grafted surfaces exhibit a hierarchical nanostructure that mimics nanotextured surfaces for the promotion of cellular responses in tissue engineering. Owing to these unique properties, this review focuses on the grafting of macromolecules on the surfaces of various biomaterials (e.g., films, fibers, hydrogels, and etc. to create nanostructure-enabled and macromolecule-grafted surfaces for biomedical applications, such as thrombosis prevention and wound healing. The macromolecule-modified surfaces can be treated as a functional device that either passively inhibits adverse effects from injectable and implantable devices or actively delivers biological agents that are locally based on proper stimulation. In this review, several methods are discussed to enable the surface of biomaterials to be used for further grafting of macromolecules. In addition, we review surface-modified films (coatings and fibers with respect to several biomedical applications. Our review provides a scientific update on the current achievements and future trends of nanostructure-enabled and macromolecule-grafted surfaces in biomedical applications.

Tailored nanostructured platforms for boosting transcorneal permeation: Box-Behnken statistical optimization, comprehensive in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo characterization.

Science.gov (United States)

Elsayed, Ibrahim; Sayed, Sinar

2017-01-01

Ocular drug delivery systems suffer from rapid drainage, intractable corneal permeation and short dosing intervals. Transcorneal drug permeation could increase the drug availability and efficiency in the aqueous humor. The aim of this study was to develop and optimize nanostructured formulations to provide accurate doses, long contact time and enhanced drug permeation. Nanovesicles were designed based on Box-Behnken model and prepared using the thin film hydration technique. The formed nanodispersions were evaluated by measuring the particle size, polydispersity index, zeta potential, entrapment efficiency and gelation temperature. The obtained desirability values were utilized to develop an optimized nanostructured in situ gel and insert. The optimized formulations were imaged by transmission and scanning electron microscopes. In addition, rheological characters, in vitro drug diffusion, ex vivo and in vivo permeation and safety of the optimized formulation were investigated. The optimized insert formulation was found to have a relatively lower viscosity, higher diffusion, ex vivo and in vivo permeation, when compared to the optimized in situ gel. So, the lyophilized nanostructured insert could be considered as a promising carrier and transporter for drugs across the cornea with high biocompatibility and effectiveness.

Tailored nanostructured platforms for boosting transcorneal permeation: Box–Behnken statistical optimization, comprehensive in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo characterization

Science.gov (United States)

Elsayed, Ibrahim; Sayed, Sinar

2017-01-01

Ocular drug delivery systems suffer from rapid drainage, intractable corneal permeation and short dosing intervals. Transcorneal drug permeation could increase the drug availability and efficiency in the aqueous humor. The aim of this study was to develop and optimize nanostructured formulations to provide accurate doses, long contact time and enhanced drug permeation. Nanovesicles were designed based on Box–Behnken model and prepared using the thin film hydration technique. The formed nanodispersions were evaluated by measuring the particle size, polydispersity index, zeta potential, entrapment efficiency and gelation temperature. The obtained desirability values were utilized to develop an optimized nanostructured in situ gel and insert. The optimized formulations were imaged by transmission and scanning electron microscopes. In addition, rheological characters, in vitro drug diffusion, ex vivo and in vivo permeation and safety of the optimized formulation were investigated. The optimized insert formulation was found to have a relatively lower viscosity, higher diffusion, ex vivo and in vivo permeation, when compared to the optimized in situ gel. So, the lyophilized nanostructured insert could be considered as a promising carrier and transporter for drugs across the cornea with high biocompatibility and effectiveness. PMID:29133980

In-vitro nanodiagnostic platform through nanoparticles and DNA-RNA nanotechnology.

Science.gov (United States)

Chan, Ki; Ng, Tzi Bun

2015-04-01

Nanocomposites containing nanoparticles or nanostructured domains exhibit an even higher degree of material complexity that leads to an extremely high variability of nanostructured materials. This review introduces analytical concepts and techniques for nanomaterials and derives recommendations for a qualified selection of characterization techniques for specific types of samples, and focuses the characterization of nanoparticles and their agglomerates or aggregates. In addition, DNA nanotechnology and the more recent newcomer RNA nanotechnology have achieved almost an advanced status among nanotechnology researchers¸ therefore, the core features, potential, and significant challenges of DNA nanotechnology are also highlighted as a new discipline. Moreover, nanobiochips made by nanomaterials are rapidly emerging as a new paradigm in the area of large-scale biochemical analysis. The use of nanoscale components enables higher precision in diagnostics while considerably reducing the cost of the platform that leads this review to explore the use of nanoparticles, nanomaterials, and other bionanotechnologies for its application to nanodiagnostics in-vitro.

Carbon nanotubes-functionalized urchin-like In2S3 nanostructure for sensitive and selective electrochemical sensing of dopamine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang, Z.; Huang, X.; Li, J.; Zhang, Y.; Yu, S.; Xu, Q.; Hu, X.

2012-01-01

Urchin-like In 2 S 3 nanostructures were functionalized with multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and deposited on a glassy carbon electrode (GCE) to obtain a new kind of sensor for dopamine (DA). The new electrode was characterized using scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, cyclic voltammetry and differential pulse voltammetry. It is found that the current response toward DA is significantly enhanced compared to that of a bare GCE or a GCE modified with MWCNTs. The peak separation between DA and ascorbic acid (AA) is up to 225 mV. The new electrode also has improved selectivity for DA over AA compared to the bare electrode. The new DA sensor has a wide linear range (0.5-300 μM), high sensitivity (594.9 μA mM -1 cm -2 ) and low detection limit (0.1 μM). CNTs wrapped on urchin-like nanostructures remarkable improve its electrocatalytic activity and thus provide a promising strategy to develop excellent composite materials for electrochemical sensing. (author)

Nanostructured materials with plasmonic nanobiosensors for early cancer detection: A past and future prospect.

Science.gov (United States)

Sugumaran, Sathish; Jamlos, Mohd Faizal; Ahmad, Mohd Noor; Bellan, Chandar Shekar; Schreurs, Dominique

2018-02-15

Early cancer detection and treatment is an emerging and fascinating field of plasmonic nanobiosensor research. It paves to enrich a life without affecting living cells leading to a possible survival of the patient. This review describes a past and future prospect of an integrated research field on nanostructured metamaterials, microwave transmission, surface plasmonic resonance, nanoantennas, and their manifested versatile properties with nano-biosensors towards early cancer detection to preserve human health. Interestingly, (i) microwave transmission shows more advantages than other electromagnetic radiation in reacting with biological tissues, (ii) nanostructured metamaterial (Au) with special properties like size and shape can stimulate plasmonic effects, (iii) plasmonic based nanobiosensors are to explore the efficacy for early cancer tumour detection or single molecular detection and (iv) nanoantenna wireless communication by using microwave inverse scattering nanomesh (MISN) technique instead of conventional techniques can be adopted to characterize the microwave scattered signals from the biomarkers. It reveals that the nanostructured material with plasmonic nanobiosensor paves a fascinating platform towards early detection of cancer tumour and is anticipated to be exploited as a magnificent field in the future. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Reactor casts light on nanostructures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Garvey, C.

2002-01-01

Chris Garvey explains how the replacement research reactor will help scientists to design better materials by understanding how macromolecules behave. Australia is making a substantial financial commitment to providing scientists with facilities to scatter neutrons. Neutron scattering is one of the core areas of science in which the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) invests its resources. His particular interest is to find out the way nature uses macromolecules, and how the shape and interaction of macromolecules with other molecules change their function. Biologists call aggregates of macromolecules, 'nanostructures'. Neutron probes are used at ANSTO for studying nanostructures, and in particular the organisation of the protein that is used to transport oxygen in the blood. Small angle neutron scattering was also allowed to understand at microscopic level, how humidity changes the mechanical properties of fibres

A Series of Radiation Processed Nanostructural Chitosan Derivatives for Biomedicine, Agriculture, and Bioplastics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pasanphan, W.; Rattanawongwiboon, T.; Huajaikaew, E.; Kongkaoroptham, P.; Guven, O.; Suwanmala, P.; Hemvichian, K.

2014-01-01

The work includes a series of biopolymeric chitosan (CS) nanostructures prepared by irradiation techniques. The radiation processed nanostructural CS were designed, synthesized, and characterized to address a progress in radiation technology for developing value-added natural products for advanced biomedical, agricultural and bioplastic applications. The idea to create CS nanoparticles (CSNPs) using radiation was initiated from simple radiation- induced non-chemical modification to advance radiation-induced functionalization of CSNPs. The already-existing CS nanostructures are water-soluble CSNPs as a green antioxidant and reducing agent, amphiphilic core-shell CS nanocarrier as anticancer delivery system, CS nanogel for fungicide and fertilizer controlled-release, and CS nanofiller for biodegradable PLA blends. Irradiation techniques, chemical structures, nanostructural morphologies including performance of nanostructural CS derivatives in appropriate utilizations were demonstrated. The developing idea would be an alternative approach for nanoscaled-controlled synthesis of the natural polymers.

Nanoscience with liquid crystals from self-organized nanostructures to applications

CERN Document Server

Li, Quan

2014-01-01

This book focuses on the exciting topic of nanoscience with liquid crystals: from self-organized nanostructures to applications. The elegant self-organized liquid crystalline nanostructures, the synergetic characteristics of liquid crystals and nanoparticles, liquid crystalline nanomaterials, synthesis of nanomaterials using liquid crystals as templates, nanoconfinement and nanoparticles of liquid crystals are covered and discussed, and the prospect of fabricating functional materials is highlighted. Contributions, collecting the scattered literature of the field from leading and active player

DOE-EFRC Center on Nanostructuring for Efficient Energy Conversion (CNEEC)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Prinz, Friedrich B. [Stanford Univ., CA (United States). Mechanical Engineering. Materials Science and Engineering; Bent, Stacey F. [Stanford Univ., CA (United States). Chemical Engineering

2015-10-22

CNEEC’s mission has been to understand how nanostructuring of materials can enhance efficiency for solar energy conversion to produce hydrogen fuel and to solve fundamental cross-cutting problems. The overarching hypothesis underlying CNEEC research was that controlling, synthesizing and modifying materials at the nanometer scale increases the efficiency of energy conversion and storage devices and systems. In this pursuit, we emphasized the development of functional nanostructures that are based primarily on earth abundant and inexpensive materials.

Anticancer Applications of Nanostructured Silica-Based Materials Functionalized with Titanocene Derivatives: Induction of Cell Death Mechanism through TNFR1 Modulation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Santiago Gómez-Ruiz

2018-01-01

Full Text Available A series of cytotoxic titanocene derivatives have been immobilized onto nanostructured silica-based materials using two different synthetic routes, namely, (i a simple grafting protocol via protonolysis of the Ti–Cl bond; and (ii a tethering method by elimination of ethanol using triethoxysilyl moieties of thiolato ligands attached to titanium. The resulting nanostructured systems have been characterized by different techniques such as XRD, XRF, DR-UV, BET, SEM, and TEM, observing the incorporation of the titanocene derivatives onto the nanostructured silica and slight changes in the textural features of the materials after functionalization with the metallodrugs. A complete biological study has been carried out using the synthesized materials exhibiting moderate cytotoxicity in vitro against three human hepatic carcinoma (HepG2, SK-Hep-1, Hep3B and three human colon carcinomas (DLD-1, HT-29, COLO320 and very low cytotoxicity against normal cell lines. In addition, the cells’ metabolic activity was modified by a 24-h exposure in a dose-dependent manner. Despite not having a significant effect on TNFα or the proinflammatory interleukin 1α secretion, the materials strongly modulated tumor necrosis factor (TNF signaling, even at sub-cytotoxic concentrations. This is achieved mainly by upregulation of the TNFR1 receptor production, something which has not previously been observed for these systems.

Three-Dimensional ZnO Hierarchical Nanostructures: Solution Phase Synthesis and Applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiaoliang Wang

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Zinc oxide (ZnO nanostructures have been studied extensively in the past 20 years due to their novel electronic, photonic, mechanical and electrochemical properties. Recently, more attention has been paid to assemble nanoscale building blocks into three-dimensional (3D complex hierarchical structures, which not only inherit the excellent properties of the single building blocks but also provide potential applications in the bottom-up fabrication of functional devices. This review article focuses on 3D ZnO hierarchical nanostructures, and summarizes major advances in the solution phase synthesis, applications in environment, and electrical/electrochemical devices. We present the principles and growth mechanisms of ZnO nanostructures via different solution methods, with an emphasis on rational control of the morphology and assembly. We then discuss the applications of 3D ZnO hierarchical nanostructures in photocatalysis, field emission, electrochemical sensor, and lithium ion batteries. Throughout the discussion, the relationship between the device performance and the microstructures of 3D ZnO hierarchical nanostructures will be highlighted. This review concludes with a personal perspective on the current challenges and future research.

Product Platform Replacements

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sköld, Martin; Karlsson, Christer

2012-01-01

. To shed light on this unexplored and growing managerial concern, the purpose of this explorative study is to identify operational challenges to management when product platforms are replaced. Design/methodology/approach – The study uses a longitudinal field-study approach. Two companies, Gamma and Omega...... replacement was chosen in each company. Findings – The study shows that platform replacements primarily challenge managers' existing knowledge about platform architectures. A distinction can be made between “width” and “height” in platform replacements, and it is crucial that managers observe this in order...... to challenge their existing knowledge about platform architectures. Issues on technologies, architectures, components and processes as well as on segments, applications and functions are identified. Practical implications – Practical implications are summarized and discussed in relation to a framework...

Isolate, functionalize, and release: the ISOFURE platform for the functionalization of nanoparticles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chirra, Hariharasudhan D.; Spencer, David; Hilt, J. Zach

2012-01-01

Polymer-coated inorganic nanoparticles are widely studied as carrier systems for various biomedical applications. For their translation into clinical applications, it is critical that they remain in a stable, non-agglomerated state and are also produced at a high yield with ease. Herein, we introduce a novel methodology called the isolate-functionalize-release (ISOFURE) strategy to synthesize stable hydrogel-coated nanoparticles in the absence of a stabilizing reagent. As a model platform, we isolated and functionalized gold nanoparticles (GNPs) in a degradable poly(beta amino ester) (PBAE) hydrogel composite. Isolation was done either by adding GNPs to the PBAE hydrogel precursor solution or via in situ precipitation of GNPs inside the pre-synthesized PBAE hydrogel. Atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) was used as the model reaction to grow a temperature responsive poly(ethylene glycol) 600 dimethacrylate crosslinked poly(N-isopropyl acrylamide) hydrogel shell over the GNP core. Release of the temperature responsive hydrogel-coated GNPs was done by degrading the PBAE ISOFURE matrix in water. Characterization of the various nanoparticles using UV–Vis spectroscopy confirmed in situ precipitation of GNPs as well as ATRP over the GNPs. Light scattering confirmed the presence of temperature sensitive hydrogel shell over the GNP surface. Aging studies showed that the ISOFURE method based crosslinked hydrogel-coated GNPs showed higher stability and yield than that of the solution-based functionalized GNPs. The use of ISOFURE strategy shows promise as a simple tool for enhanced functionalization and stabilization over various nanocarriers under flexible experimental conditions.

The role of nanocrystalline titania coating on nanostructured austenitic stainless steel in enhancing osteoblasts functions for regeneration of tissue

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shah, J.S.; Venkatsurya, P.K.C.; Thein-Han, W.W. [Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering Research Laboratory, Center for Structural and Functional Materials, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, P.O. Box 44130, Lafayette, LA 70504 (United States); Misra, R.D.K., E-mail: dmisra@louisiana.edu [Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering Research Laboratory, Center for Structural and Functional Materials, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, P.O. Box 44130, Lafayette, LA 70504 (United States); Pesacreta, T.C. [Department of Biology, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, P.O. Box 42451, Lafayette, LA 70504 (United States); Somani, M.C.; Karjalainen, L.P. [Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 4200, 90014 Oulu (Finland)

2011-03-12

In the context of osseointegration of metallic implants, while nanostructuring the surface favorably modulates cellular response, the disinfective attributes required during the healing process are not available. Thus, in the present study, we demonstrate that nanocrystalline titania provides cumulative benefit of enhancing osteoblasts functions to promote the efficacy of metal implants together with the disinfective attributes. To this end, the primary objective here is to examine the select functions of bone forming cells (osteoblasts) on electrocrystallized nanonodular titania-coated nanograined/ultrafine grained (NG/UFG) austenitic stainless steel. The accompanying objective is to study the disinfective/antimicrobial activity. To the best of our understanding this is the first study of nanophase titania on a non-titanium substrate. The osteoblasts functions were investigated in terms of cell attachment, proliferation, and quantitative analysis of proteins, actin and vinculin. In comparison to the bare NG/UFG substrate, the nanophase titania-coated substrate exhibited higher degree of cell attachment and proliferation which are regulated via cellular and molecular interactions with proteins, actin and vinculin. The enhanced functions of osteoblasts suggest that nanophase titania adsorbs extracellular matrix proteins, fibronectin and vitronectin from serum enhancing protein, with subsequent binding of integrins and osteoblasts precursor to titania. The antimicrobial attributes assessed in terms of degradation of methyl orange and effectiveness in killing E. coli supports the viewpoint that large surface area of titania would be instrumental in reducing the detrimental effect of biologically reactive oxygen species produced by macrophages in the vicinity of the metal bone/implant interface. In summary, the study provides some new insights concerning nanostructuring of metallic substrates with specific physical and surface properties for medical devices with

Nanostructured materials for hydrogen storage

Science.gov (United States)

Williamson, Andrew J.; Reboredo, Fernando A.

2007-12-04

A system for hydrogen storage comprising a porous nano-structured material with hydrogen absorbed on the surfaces of the porous nano-structured material. The system of hydrogen storage comprises absorbing hydrogen on the surfaces of a porous nano-structured semiconductor material.

Shape control in wafer-based aperiodic 3D nanostructures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jeong, Hyeon-Ho; Mark, Andrew G; Gibbs, John G; Fischer, Peer; Reindl, Thomas; Waizmann, Ulrike; Weis, Jürgen

2014-01-01

Controlled local fabrication of three-dimensional (3D) nanostructures is important to explore and enhance the function of single nanodevices, but is experimentally challenging. We present a scheme based on e-beam lithography (EBL) written seeds, and glancing angle deposition (GLAD) grown structures to create nanoscale objects with defined shapes but in aperiodic arrangements. By using a continuous sacrificial corral surrounding the features of interest we grow isolated 3D nanostructures that have complex cross-sections and sidewall morphology that are surrounded by zones of clean substrate. (papers)

In vitro selection of shape-changing DNA nanostructures capable of binding-induced cargo release.

Science.gov (United States)

Oh, Seung Soo; Plakos, Kory; Xiao, Yi; Eisenstein, Michael; Soh, H Tom

2013-11-26

Many biological systems employ allosteric regulatory mechanisms, which offer a powerful means of directly linking a specific binding event to a wide spectrum of molecular functionalities. There is considerable interest in generating synthetic allosteric regulators that can perform useful molecular functions for applications in diagnostics, imaging and targeted therapies, but generating such molecules through either rational design or directed evolution has proven exceptionally challenging. To address this need, we present an in vitro selection strategy for generating conformation-switching DNA nanostructures that selectively release a small-molecule payload in response to binding of a specific trigger molecule. As an exemplar, we have generated a DNA nanostructure that hybridizes with a separate 'cargo strand' containing an abasic site. This abasic site stably sequesters a fluorescent cargo molecule in an inactive state until the DNA nanostructure encounters an ATP trigger molecule. This ATP trigger causes the nanostructure to release the cargo strand, thereby liberating the fluorescent payload and generating a detectable fluorescent readout. Our DNA nanostructure is highly sensitive, with an EC50 of 30 μM, and highly specific, releasing its payload in response to ATP but not to other chemically similar nucleotide triphosphates. We believe that this selection approach could be generalized to generate synthetic nanostructures capable of selective and controlled release of other small-molecule cargos in response to a variety of triggers, for both research and clinical applications.

Self-organized synthesis of silver dendritic nanostructures via an electroless metal deposition method

Science.gov (United States)

Qiu, T.; Wu, X. L.; Mei, Y. F.; Chu, P. K.; Siu, G. G.

2005-09-01

Unique silver dendritic nanostructures, with stems, branches, and leaves, were synthesized with self-organization via a simple electroless metal deposition method in a conventional autoclave containing aqueous HF and AgNO3 solution. Their growth mechanisms are discussed in detail on the basis of a self-assembled localized microscopic electrochemical cell model. A process of diffusion-limited aggregation is suggested for the formation of the silver dendritic nanostructures. This nanostructured material is of great potential to be building blocks for assembling mini-functional devices of the next generation.

Xanthine oxidase functionalized Ta2O5 nanostructures as a novel scaffold for highly sensitive SPR based fiber optic xanthine sensor.

Science.gov (United States)

Kant, Ravi; Tabassum, Rana; Gupta, Banshi D

2018-01-15

Fabrication and characterization of a surface plasmon resonance based fiber optic xanthine sensor using entrapment of xanthine oxidase (XO) enzyme in several nanostructures of tantalum (v) oxide (Ta 2 O 5 ) have been reported. Chemical route was adopted for synthesizing Ta 2 O 5 nanoparticles, nanorods, nanotubes and nanowires while Ta 2 O 5 nanofibers were prepared by electrospinning technique. The synthesized Ta 2 O 5 nanostructures were characterized by photoluminescence, scanning electron microscopy, UV-Visible spectra and X-ray diffraction pattern. The probes were fabricated by coating an unclad core of the fiber with silver layer followed by the deposition of XO entrapped Ta 2 O 5 nanostructures. The crux of sensing mechanism relies on the modification of dielectric function of sensing layer upon exposure to xanthine solution of diverse concentrations, reflected in terms of shift in resonance wavelength. The sensing probe coated with XO entrapped Ta 2 O 5 nanofibers has been turned out to possess maximum sensitivity amongst the synthesized nanostructures. The probe was optimized in terms of pH of the sample and the concentration of XO entrapped in Ta 2 O 5 nanofibers. The optimized sensing probe possesses a remarkably good sensitivity of 26.2nm/µM in addition to linear range from 0 to 3µM with an invincible LOD value of 0.0127µM together with a response time of 1min. Furthermore, probe selectivity with real sample analysis ensure the usage of the sensor for practical scenario. The results reported open a novel perspective towards a sensitive, rapid, reliable and selective detection of xanthine. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Intermatrix Synthesis as a rapid, inexpensive and reproducible methodology for the in situ functionalization of nanostructured surfaces with quantum dots

Science.gov (United States)

Bastos-Arrieta, Julio; Muñoz, Jose; Stenbock-Fermor, Anja; Muñoz, Maria; Muraviev, Dmitri N.; Céspedes, Francisco; Tsarkova, Larisa A.; Baeza, Mireia

2016-04-01

Intermatrix Synthesis (IMS) technique has proven to be a valid methodology for the in situ incorporation of quantum dots (QDs) in a wide range of nanostructured surfaces for the preparation of advanced hybrid-nanomaterials. In this sense, this communication reports the recent advances in the application of IMS for the synthesis of CdS-QDs with favourable distribution on sulfonated polyetherether ketone (SPEEK) membrane thin films (TFs), multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and nanodiamonds (NDs). The synthetic route takes advantage of the ion exchange functionality of the reactive surfaces for the loading of the QDs precursor and consequent QDs appearance by precipitation. The benefits of such modified nanomaterials were studied using CdS-QDs@MWCNTs hybrid-nanomaterials. CdS-QDs@MWCNTs has been used as conducting filler for the preparation of electrochemical nanocomposite sensors, which present electrocatalytic properties. Finally, the optical properties of the QDs contained on MWCNTs could allow a new procedure for the analytical detection of nanostructured carbon allotropes in water.

Nanostructured metal foams: synthesis and applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Luther, Erik P [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Tappan, Bryce [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Mueller, Alex [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Mihaila, Bogdan [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Volz, Heather [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Cardenas, Andreas [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Papin, Pallas [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Veauthier, Jackie [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Stan, Marius [Los Alamos National Laboratory

2009-01-01

Fabrication of monolithic metallic nanoporous materials is difficult using conventional methodology. Here they report a relatively simple method of synthesizing monolithic, ultralow density, nanostructured metal foams utilizing self-propagating combustion synthesis of novel metal complexes containing high nitrogen energetic ligands. Nanostructured metal foams are formed in a post flame-front dynamic assembly with densities as low as 0.011 g/cc and surface areas as high as 270 m{sup 2}/g. They have produced metal foams via this method of titanium, iron, cobalt, nickel, zirconium, copper, palladium, silver, hafnium, platinum and gold. Microstructural features vary as a function of composition and process parameters. Applications for the metal foams are discussed including hydrogen absorption in palladium foams. A model for the sorption kinetics of hydrogen in the foams is presented.

Nanostructured Materials for Magnetoelectronics

CERN Document Server

Mikailzade, Faik

2013-01-01

This book provides an up-to-date review of nanometer-scale magnetism and focuses on the investigation of the basic properties of magnetic nanostructures. It describes a wide range of physical aspects together with theoretical and experimental methods. A broad overview of the latest developments in this emerging and fascinating field of nanostructured materials is given with emphasis on the practical understanding and operation of submicron devices based on nanostructured magnetic materials.

Ultrasensitive, highly selective, and real-time detection of protein using functionalized CNTs as MIP platform for FOSPR-based biosensor

Science.gov (United States)

Pathak, Anisha; Parveen, Shama; Gupta, Banshi D.

2017-09-01

A facile approach is presented for the detection of bovine serum albumin (BSA), based on fiber optic surface plasmon resonance (FOSPR) combined with molecular imprinting (MI). The probe is fabricated by exploiting the plasmonic property of silver thin film and vinyl-functionalised carbon nanotube-based MIP platform. BSA template molecules are imprinted on the MIP layer coated over multi-walled carbon nanotubes to ensure high specificity of the probe in the interfering environments. In addition, FOSPR endorses the sensor capability of real-time and remote sensing along with very high sensitivity due to the use of nanostructured MI platform. The response of the probe is considered in terms of the absorbance spectrum recorded for various concentrations of BSA. The sensor shows a wide dynamic range of 0-350 ng l-1 with a considerably linear response up to 100 ng l-1 in the peak absorbance wavelength with BSA concentration. A highest sensitivity of 0.862 nm per ng l-1 is achieved for the lowest concentration of BSA and it decreases with the increase in BSA concentration. The performance of the present sensor is compared with those reported in the literature in terms of the limit of detection. It is found that the probe possesses a lowest LOD of 0.386 ng l-1 in addition to other advantages such as real-time online monitoring, high sensitivity, high specificity, and remote sensing.

Functionalization of single-walled carbon nanotubes with protein by click chemistry as sensing platform for sensitized electrochemical immunoassay

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Qi Honglan; Ling Chen; Huang Ru; Qiu Xiaoying; Shangguan Li; Gao Qiang; Zhang Chengxiao

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Single-walled carbon nanotubes were functionalized with protein by click chemistry. ► The SWNTs conjugated with protein showed excellent dispersion in water and kept good bioacitvity. ► A competitive electrochemical immunoassay for the determination of anti-IgG was developed with high sensitivity and good stability. - Abstract: The application of the Cu(I)-catalyzed [3 + 2] Huisgen cycloaddition to the functionalization of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) with the protein and the use of the artificial SWNTs as a sensing platform for sensitive immunoassay were reported. Covalent functionalization of azide decorated SWNTs with alkyne modified protein was firstly accomplished by the Cu(I)-catalyzed [3 + 2] Huisgen cycloaddition. FT-IR spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron micrograph were used to characterize the protein-functionalized SWNTs. It was found that the SWNTs conjugated with the proteins showed excellent dispersion in water and kept good bioacitivity when immunoglobulin (IgG) and horseradish peroxidase (HRP) were chosen as model proteins. As a proof-of-concept, IgG-functionalized SWNTs were immobilized onto the surface of a glassy carbon electrode by simple casting method as immunosensing platform and a sensitive competitive electrochemical immunoassay was developed for the determination of anti-immunoglobulin (anti-IgG) using HRP as enzyme label. The fabrication of the immunosensor were characterized by cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy with the redox probe [Fe(CN) 6 ] 3−/4− . The SWNTs as immobilization platform showed better sensitizing effect, a detection limit of 30 pg mL −1 (S/N = 3) was obtained for anti-IgG. The proposed strategy provided a stable immobilization method and sensitized recognition platform for analytes. This work demonstrated that the click coupling of SWNTs with protein was an effective

Quasi-monodimensional polyaniline nanostructures for enhanced molecularly imprinted polymer-based sensing.

Science.gov (United States)

Berti, Francesca; Todros, Silvia; Lakshmi, Dhana; Whitcombe, Michael J; Chianella, Iva; Ferroni, Matteo; Piletsky, Sergey A; Turner, Anthony P F; Marrazza, Giovanna

2010-10-15

Recent advances in nanotechnology have allowed significant progress in utilising cutting-edge techniques associated with nanomaterials and nano-fabrication to expand the scope and capability of biosensors to a new level of novelty and functionality. The aim of this work was the development and characterisation of conductive polyaniline (PANI) nanostructures for applications in electrochemical biosensing. We explore a simple, inexpensive and fast route to grow PANI nanotubes, arranged in an ordered structure directly on an electrode surface, by electrochemical polymerisation using alumina nanoporous membranes as a 'nano-mould'. The deposited nanostructures have been characterised electrochemically and morphologically prior to grafting with a molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) receptor in order to create a model sensor for catechol detection. In this way, PANI nanostructures resulted in a conductive nanowire system which allowed direct electrical connection between the electrode and the synthetic receptor (MIP). To our knowledge, this is the first example of integration between molecularly imprinted polymers and PANI nanostructured electrodes. The advantages of using nanostructures in this particular biosensing application have been evaluated by comparing the analytical performance of the sensor with an analogous non-nanostructured MIP-sensor for catechol detection that was previously developed. A significantly lower limit of detection for catechol has been obtained (29 nM, one order of magnitude), thus demonstrating that the nanostructures are capable of improving the analytical performance of the sensor. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Synthesis of vertically aligned metal oxide nanostructures

KAUST Repository

Roqan, Iman S.

2016-03-03

Metal oxide nanostructure and methods of making metal oxide nanostructures are provided. The metal oxide nanostructures can be 1 -dimensional nanostructures such as nanowires, nanofibers, or nanotubes. The metal oxide nanostructures can be doped or undoped metal oxides. The metal oxide nanostructures can be deposited onto a variety of substrates. The deposition can be performed without high pressures and without the need for seed catalysts on the substrate. The deposition can be performed by laser ablation of a target including a metal oxide and, optionally, a dopant. In some embodiments zinc oxide nanostructures are deposited onto a substrate by pulsed laser deposition of a zinc oxide target using an excimer laser emitting UV radiation. The zinc oxide nanostructure can be doped with a rare earth metal such as gadolinium. The metal oxide nanostructures can be used in many devices including light-emitting diodes and solar cells.

Plasmons in N-doped graphene nanostructures tuned by Au/Ag films: a time-dependent density functional theory study.

Science.gov (United States)

Shu, Xiaoqin; Cheng, Xinlu; Zhang, Hong

2018-04-18

The energy resonance point of the prominent peak of the absorption spectrum of nitrogen-doped graphene is in the ultraviolet region. This limits its application as a co-catalyst in renewable hydrogen evolution through photocatalytic water splitting in the visible light region. It is well known that noble metal films show active absorption in the visible region due to the existence of the unique feature known as surface plasmon resonance. Here we report tunable plasmons in nitrogen-doped graphene nanostructures using noble metal (Au/Ag) films. The energy resonance point of the prominent peak of the composite nanostructure is altered by changing the separation space of two-layered nanostructures. We found the strength of the absorption spectrum of the composite nanostructure is much stronger than the isolated N-doped graphene monolayer. When the separation space is decreased, the prominent peak of the absorption spectrum is red-shifted to the visible light region. Moreover, currents of several microamperes exist above the surface of the N-doped graphene and Au film composite nanostructure. In addition, the field enhancement exceeds 1000 when an impulse excitation polarized in the armchair-edge direction (X-axis) when the separation space is decreased to 3 Å and is close to 100 when an impulse excitation polarized in the zigzag-edge direction (Y-axis). The N-doped graphene and noble metal film composite nanostructure is a good candidate material as a co-catalyst in renewable hydrogen production by photocatalytic water splitting in the visible light region.

Dendrite-like Co3O4 nanostructure and its applications in sensors, supercapacitors and catalysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Pang, Huan; Gao, Feng; Chen, Qun; Liu, Rongmei; Lu, Qingyi

2012-05-21

Dendrite-like Co(3)O(4) nanostructure, made up of many nanorods with diameters of 15-20 nm and lengths of 2-3 μm, has been successfully prepared by calcining the corresponding nanostructured Co-8-hydroxyquinoline coordination precursor in air. The Co(3)O(4) nanostructure was evaluated as an electrochemical sensor for H(2)O(2) detection and the results reveal that it has good linear dependence and high sensitivity to H(2)O(2) concentration changes. As an electrode material of a supercapacitor, it was found that the nanostructured Co(3)O(4) electrode exhibits high specific capacitance and long cycle life. The Co(3)O(4) nanostructure also has good catalytic properties and is steadily active for CO oxidation, giving 100% CO conversion at low temperatures. The multifunctional Co(3)O(4) nanostructure would be a promising functional nanomaterial applied in multi industrialized fields.

Urban search mobile platform modeling in hindered access conditions

Science.gov (United States)

Barankova, I. I.; Mikhailova, U. V.; Kalugina, O. B.; Barankov, V. V.

2018-05-01

The article explores the control system simulation and the design of the experimental model of the rescue robot mobile platform. The functional interface, a structural functional diagram of the mobile platform control unit, and a functional control scheme for the mobile platform of secure robot were modeled. The task of design a mobile platform for urban searching in hindered access conditions is realized through the use of a mechanical basis with a chassis and crawler drive, a warning device, human heat sensors and a microcontroller based on Arduino platforms.

A modular open platform for systematic functional studies under physiological conditions

Science.gov (United States)

Mulholland, Christopher B.; Smets, Martha; Schmidtmann, Elisabeth; Leidescher, Susanne; Markaki, Yolanda; Hofweber, Mario; Qin, Weihua; Manzo, Massimiliano; Kremmer, Elisabeth; Thanisch, Katharina; Bauer, Christina; Rombaut, Pascaline; Herzog, Franz; Leonhardt, Heinrich; Bultmann, Sebastian

2015-01-01

Any profound comprehension of gene function requires detailed information about the subcellular localization, molecular interactions and spatio-temporal dynamics of gene products. We developed a multifunctional integrase (MIN) tag for rapid and versatile genome engineering that serves not only as a genetic entry site for the Bxb1 integrase but also as a novel epitope tag for standardized detection and precipitation. For the systematic study of epigenetic factors, including Dnmt1, Dnmt3a, Dnmt3b, Tet1, Tet2, Tet3 and Uhrf1, we generated MIN-tagged embryonic stem cell lines and created a toolbox of prefabricated modules that can be integrated via Bxb1-mediated recombination. We used these functional modules to study protein interactions and their spatio-temporal dynamics as well as gene expression and specific mutations during cellular differentiation and in response to external stimuli. Our genome engineering strategy provides a versatile open platform for efficient generation of multiple isogenic cell lines to study gene function under physiological conditions. PMID:26007658

Functional Carbon Quantum Dots: A Versatile Platform for Chemosensing and Biosensing.

Science.gov (United States)

Feng, Hui; Qian, Zhaosheng

2018-05-01

Carbon quantum dot has emerged as a new promising fluorescent nanomaterial due to its excellent optical properties, outstanding biocompatibility and accessible fabrication methods, and has shown huge application perspective in a variety of areas, especially in chemosensing and biosensing applications. In this personal account, we give a brief overview of carbon quantum dots from its origin and preparation methods, present some advance on fluorescence origin of carbon quantum dots, and focus on development of chemosensors and biosensors based on functional carbon quantum dots. Comprehensive advances on functional carbon quantum dots as a versatile platform for sensing from our group are included and summarized as well as some typical examples from the other groups. The biosensing applications of functional carbon quantum dots are highlighted from selective assays of enzyme activity to fluorescent identification of cancer cells and bacteria. © 2018 The Chemical Society of Japan & Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

One-step electrochemical composite polymerization of polypyrrole integrated with functionalized graphene/carbon nanotubes nanostructured composite film for electrochemical capacitors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ding Bing; Lu Xiangjun; Yuan Changzhou; Yang Sudong; Han Yongqin; Zhang Xiaogang; Che Qian

2012-01-01

Graphical abstract: A novel one-step electrochemical co-deposition strategy was first proposed to prepare unique polypyrrole/reduced graphene oxide/carbon nanotubes (PPy/F-RGO/CNTs) ternary composites, where F-RGO, CNTs, and PPy were electrodeposited simultaneously to construct a three-dimensional (3-D) highly porous film electrode. Highlights: ► Isolated, water-soluble graphene was obtained through benzenesulfonic functionalization. ► PPy/F-RGO/CNTs ternary composite film was prepared via one-step electrochemical co-deposition route. ► PPy/F-RGO/CNTs film shows 3-D highly porous nanostructure and high electrical conductivity. ► PPy/F-RGO/CNTs film exhibits high capacitance, good high-rate performance with a remarkable cycling stability. - Abstract: A novel one-step electrochemical composite polymerization strategy was first proposed to prepare unique polypyrrole/reduced graphene oxide/carbon nanotubes (PPy/F-RGO/CNTs) ternary composites, where F-RGO, CNTs, and PPy were electrodeposited simultaneously to construct a three-dimensional (3-D) highly porous film electrode. Such ternary composite film electrode exhibits a high specific capacitance of 300 F g −1 at 1 A g −1 as well as a remarkable cycling stability at high rates, which is related to its unique nanostructure and high electrical conductivity. F-RGO and CNTs act as an electron-transporting backbone of a 3-D porous nanostructure, leaving adequate working space for facile electrolyte penetration and better faradaic utilization of the electro-active PPy. Furthermore, the straightforward approach proposed here can be readily extended to prepare other composite film electrodes with good electrochemical performance for energy storage.

Mesoporous magnetic secondary nanostructures as versatile adsorbent for efficient scavenging of heavy metals

Science.gov (United States)

Bhattacharya, Kakoli; Parasar, Devaborniny; Mondal, Bholanath; Deb, Pritam

2015-01-01

Porous magnetic secondary nanostructures exhibit high surface area because of the presence of plentiful interparticle spaces or pores. Mesoporous Fe3O4 secondary nanostructures (MFSNs) have been studied here as versatile adsorbent for heavy metal scavenging. The porosity combined with magnetic functionality of the secondary nanostructures has facilitated efficient heavy metal (As, Cu and Cd) remediation from water solution within a short period of contact time. It is because of the larger surface area of MFSNs due to the porous network in addition to primary nanostructures which provides abundant adsorption sites facilitating high adsorption of the heavy metal ions. The brilliance of adsorption property of MFSNs has been realized through comprehensive adsorption studies and detailed kinetics. Due to their larger dimension, MFSNs help in overcoming the Brownian motion which facilitates easy separation of the metal ion sorbed secondary nanostructures and also do not get drained out during filtration, thus providing pure water. PMID:26602613

Deliberate Design of TiO2 Nanostructures towards Superior Photovoltaic Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Ziqi; Liao, Ting; Sheng, Liyuan; Kou, Liangzhi; Kim, Jung Ho; Dou, Shi Xue

2016-08-01

TiO2 nanostructures are being sought after as flexibly utilizable building blocks for the fabrication of the mesoporous thin-film photoelectrodes that are the heart of the third-generation photovoltaic devices, such as dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), quantum-dot-sensitized solar cells (QDSSCs), and the recently promoted perovskite-type solar cells. Here, we report deliberate tailoring of TiO2 nanostructures for superior photovoltaic cells. Morphology engineering of TiO2 nanostructures is realized by designing synthetic protocols in which the precursor hydrolysis, crystal growth, and oligomer self-organization are precisely controlled. TiO2 nanostructures in forms varying from isolated nanocubes, nanorods, and cross-linked nanorods to complex hierarchical structures and shape-defined mesoporous micro-/nanostructures were successfully synthesized. The photoanodes made from the shape-defined mesoporous TiO2 microspheres and nanospindles presented superior performances, owing to the well-defined overall shapes and the inner ordered nanochannels, which allow not only a high amount of dye uptake, but also improved visible-light absorption. This study provides a new way to seek an optimal synthetic protocol to meet the required functionality of the nanomaterials. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Nanostructured Conjugated Polymers for Energy-Related Applications beyond Solar Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Xie, Jian; Zhao, Cui-E; Lin, Zong-Qiong; Gu, Pei-Yang; Zhang, Qichun

2016-05-20

To meet the ever-increasing requirements for the next generation of sustainable and versatile energy-related devices, conjugated polymers, which have potential advantages over small molecules and inorganic materials, are among the most promising types of green candidates. The properties of conjugated polymers can be tuned through modification of the structure and incorporation of different functional moieties. In addition, superior performances can be achieved as a result of the advantages of nanostructures, such as their large surface areas and the shortened pathways for charge transfer. Therefore, nanostructured conjugated polymers with different properties can be obtained to be applied in different energy-related organic devices. This review focuses on the application and performance of the recently reported nanostructured conjugated polymers for high-performance devices, including rechargeable lithium batteries, microbial fuel cells (MFCs), thermoelectric generators, and photocatalytic systems. The design strategies, reaction mechanisms, advantages, and limitations of nanostructured conjugated polymers are further discussed in each section. Finally, possible routes to improve the performances of the current systems are also included in the conclusion. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Conductive transition metal oxide nanostructured electrochromic material and optical switching devices constructed thereof

Science.gov (United States)

Mattox, Tracy M.; Koo, Bonil; Garcia, Guillermo; Milliron, Delia J.; Trizio, Luca De; Dahlman, Clayton

2017-10-10

An electrochromic device includes a nanostructured transition metal oxide bronze layer that includes one or more transition metal oxide and one or more dopant, a solid state electrolyte, and a counter electrode. The nanostructured transition metal oxide bronze selectively modulates transmittance of near-infrared (NIR) spectrum and visible spectrum radiation as a function of an applied voltage to the device.

Selective Oxidations using Nanostructured Heterogeneous Catalysts

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mielby, Jerrik Jørgen

and because they produce H2O as the only by-product. Chapter 1 gives a short introduction to basic concepts in heterogeneous catalysis and green chemistry. Furthermore, the chapter gives an overview of the most important strategies to synthesise functional nanostructured materials and highlights how detailed......The aim of this thesis is to investigate and develop new efficient methods to oxidise alcohols and amines using heterogeneous catalysts and either O2 or H2O2 as oxidants. From an economic and environmental point of view, these oxidants are ideal, because they are cheap and readily available...... understanding of size, shape and structure can help in the development of new and more efficient heterogeneous catalysts. The chapter is not intended to give a complete survey, but rather to introduce some of the recent developments in the synthesis of nanostructured heterogeneous catalysts. Finally...

From small aromatic molecules to functional nanostructured carbon by pulsed laser-induced photochemical stitching

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. R. Gokhale

2012-06-01

Full Text Available A novel route employing UV laser pulses (KrF Excimer, 248 nm to cleave small aromatic molecules and stitch the generated free radicals into functional nanostructured forms of carbon is introduced. The process differs distinctly from any strategies wherein the aromatic rings are broken in the primary process. It is demonstrated that this pulsed laser-induced photochemical stitching (PLPS process when applied to routine laboratory solvents (or toxic chemical wastes when discarded Chlorobenzene and o-Dichlorobenzene yields Carbon Nanospheres (CNSs comprising of graphene-like sheets assembled in onion-like configurations. This room temperature process implemented under normal laboratory conditions is versatile and clearly applicable to the whole family of haloaromatic compounds without and with additions of precursors or other nanomaterials. We further bring out its applicability for synthesis of metal-oxide based carbon nanocomposites.

Fabrication of ferroelectric polymer nanostructures on flexible substrates by soft-mold reverse nanoimprint lithography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Song, Jingfeng; Lu, Haidong; Gruverman, Alexei; Ducharme, Stephen; Li, Shumin; Tan, Li

2016-01-01

Conventional nanoimprint lithography with expensive rigid molds is used to pattern ferroelectric polymer nanostructures on hard substrate for use in, e.g., organic electronics. The main innovation here is the use of inexpensive soft polycarbonate molds derived from recordable DVDs and reverse nanoimprint lithography at low pressure, which is compatible with flexible substrates. This approach was implemented to produce regular stripe arrays with a spacing of 700 nm from vinylidene fluoride co trifluoroethylene ferroelectric copolymer on flexible polyethylene terephthalate substrates. The nanostructures have very stable and switchable piezoelectric response and good crystallinity, and are highly promising for use in organic electronics enhanced or complemented by the unique properties of the ferroelectric polymer, such as bistable polarization, piezoelectric response, pyroelectric response, or electrocaloric function. The soft-mold reverse nanoimprint lithography also leaves little or no residual layer, affording good isolation of the nanostructures. This approach reduces the cost and facilitates large-area, high-throughput production of isolated functional polymer nanostructures on flexible substrates for the increasing application of ferroelectric polymers in flexible electronics. (paper)

Fabrication of ferroelectric polymer nanostructures on flexible substrates by soft-mold reverse nanoimprint lithography.

Science.gov (United States)

Song, Jingfeng; Lu, Haidong; Li, Shumin; Tan, Li; Gruverman, Alexei; Ducharme, Stephen

2016-01-08

Conventional nanoimprint lithography with expensive rigid molds is used to pattern ferroelectric polymer nanostructures on hard substrate for use in, e.g., organic electronics. The main innovation here is the use of inexpensive soft polycarbonate molds derived from recordable DVDs and reverse nanoimprint lithography at low pressure, which is compatible with flexible substrates. This approach was implemented to produce regular stripe arrays with a spacing of 700 nm from vinylidene fluoride co trifluoroethylene ferroelectric copolymer on flexible polyethylene terephthalate substrates. The nanostructures have very stable and switchable piezoelectric response and good crystallinity, and are highly promising for use in organic electronics enhanced or complemented by the unique properties of the ferroelectric polymer, such as bistable polarization, piezoelectric response, pyroelectric response, or electrocaloric function. The soft-mold reverse nanoimprint lithography also leaves little or no residual layer, affording good isolation of the nanostructures. This approach reduces the cost and facilitates large-area, high-throughput production of isolated functional polymer nanostructures on flexible substrates for the increasing application of ferroelectric polymers in flexible electronics.

A comprehensive platform for highly multiplexed mammalian functional genetic screens

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cheung-Ong Kahlin

2011-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Genome-wide screening in human and mouse cells using RNA interference and open reading frame over-expression libraries is rapidly becoming a viable experimental approach for many research labs. There are a variety of gene expression modulation libraries commercially available, however, detailed and validated protocols as well as the reagents necessary for deconvolving genome-scale gene screens using these libraries are lacking. As a solution, we designed a comprehensive platform for highly multiplexed functional genetic screens in human, mouse and yeast cells using popular, commercially available gene modulation libraries. The Gene Modulation Array Platform (GMAP is a single microarray-based detection solution for deconvolution of loss and gain-of-function pooled screens. Results Experiments with specially constructed lentiviral-based plasmid pools containing ~78,000 shRNAs demonstrated that the GMAP is capable of deconvolving genome-wide shRNA "dropout" screens. Further experiments with a larger, ~90,000 shRNA pool demonstrate that equivalent results are obtained from plasmid pools and from genomic DNA derived from lentivirus infected cells. Parallel testing of large shRNA pools using GMAP and next-generation sequencing methods revealed that the two methods provide valid and complementary approaches to deconvolution of genome-wide shRNA screens. Additional experiments demonstrated that GMAP is equivalent to similar microarray-based products when used for deconvolution of open reading frame over-expression screens. Conclusion Herein, we demonstrate four major applications for the GMAP resource, including deconvolution of pooled RNAi screens in cells with at least 90,000 distinct shRNAs. We also provide detailed methodologies for pooled shRNA screen readout using GMAP and compare next-generation sequencing to GMAP (i.e. microarray based deconvolution methods.

Enhanced Absorption in Organic Thin-Films from Imprinted Concave Nanostructures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Goszczak, Arkadiusz Jaroslaw; Rubahn, Horst-Günter; Madsen, Morten

2017-01-01

In this work, a rapid, replicable method for imprinting concave nanostructures to be used as functional light-trapping nanostructures in organic thin-films is presented. Porous anodic alumina templates were fabricated both by anodization of thick Al foils and by anodization of submicrometer thin Al...... patterns and used for imprinting of spin coated photoresist on glass substrates. We have investigated semi-periodic and aperiodic imprinted large concave patterns fabricated from rigid masters after anodization of Al in H3PO4. We show that metal covered imprinted concaves show enhancement in absorption...

Towards atomically precise manipulation of 2D nanostructures in the electron microscope

Science.gov (United States)

Susi, Toma; Kepaptsoglou, Demie; Lin, Yung-Chang; Ramasse, Quentin M.; Meyer, Jannik C.; Suenaga, Kazu; Kotakoski, Jani

2017-12-01

Despite decades of research, the ultimate goal of nanotechnology—top-down manipulation of individual atoms—has been directly achieved with only one technique: scanning probe microscopy. In this review, we demonstrate that scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) is emerging as an alternative method for the direct assembly of nanostructures, with possible applications in plasmonics, quantum technologies, and materials science. Atomically precise manipulation with STEM relies on recent advances in instrumentation that have enabled non-destructive atomic-resolution imaging at lower electron energies. While momentum transfer from highly energetic electrons often leads to atom ejection, interesting dynamics can be induced when the transferable kinetic energies are comparable to bond strengths in the material. Operating in this regime, very recent experiments have revealed the potential for single-atom manipulation using the Ångström-sized electron beam. To truly enable control, however, it is vital to understand the relevant atomic-scale phenomena through accurate dynamical simulations. Although excellent agreement between experiment and theory for the specific case of atomic displacements from graphene has been recently achieved using density functional theory molecular dynamics, in many other cases quantitative accuracy remains a challenge. We provide a comprehensive reanalysis of available experimental data on beam-driven dynamics in light of the state-of-the-art in simulations, and identify important targets for improvement. Overall, the modern electron microscope has great potential to become an atom-scale fabrication platform, especially for covalently bonded 2D nanostructures. We review the developments that have made this possible, argue that graphene is an ideal starting material, and assess the main challenges moving forward.

Composite materials formed with anchored nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Seals, Roland D; Menchhofer, Paul A; Howe, Jane Y; Wang, Wei

2015-03-10

A method of forming nano-structure composite materials that have a binder material and a nanostructure fiber material is described. A precursor material may be formed using a mixture of at least one metal powder and anchored nanostructure materials. The metal powder mixture may be (a) Ni powder and (b) NiAl powder. The anchored nanostructure materials may comprise (i) NiAl powder as a support material and (ii) carbon nanotubes attached to nanoparticles adjacent to a surface of the support material. The process of forming nano-structure composite materials typically involves sintering the mixture under vacuum in a die. When Ni and NiAl are used in the metal powder mixture Ni.sub.3Al may form as the binder material after sintering. The mixture is sintered until it consolidates to form the nano-structure composite material.

Semiconductors and semimetals nanostructured systems

CERN Document Server

Willardson, Robert K; Beer, Albert C; Reed, Mark A

1992-01-01

This is the first available volume to consolidate prominent topics in the emerging field of nanostructured systems. Recent technological advancements have led to a new era of nanostructure physics, allowing for the fabrication of nanostructures whose behavior is dominated by quantum interference effects. This new capability has enthused the experimentalist and theorist alike. Innumerable possibilities have now opened up for physical exploration and device technology on the nanoscale. This book, with contributions from five pioneering researchers, will allow the expert and novice alike to explore a fascinating new field.Provides a state-of-the-art review of quantum-scale artificially nanostructured electronic systemsIncludes contributions by world-known experts in the fieldOpens the field to the non-expert with a concise introductionFeatures discussions of:Low-dimensional condensed matter physicsProperties of nanostructured, ultrasmall electronic systemsMesoscopic physics and quantum transportPhysics of 2D ele...

Theory of hyperbolic stratified nanostructures for surface-enhanced Raman scattering

Science.gov (United States)

Wong, Herman M. K.; Dezfouli, Mohsen Kamandar; Axelrod, Simon; Hughes, Stephen; Helmy, Amr S.

2017-11-01

We theoretically investigate the enhancement of surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) using hyperbolic stratified nanostructures and compare to metal nanoresonators. The photon Green function of each nanostructure within its environment is first obtained from a semianalytical modal theory, which is used in a quantum optics formalism of the molecule-nanostructure interaction to model the SERS spectrum. An intuitive methodology is presented for calculating the single-molecule enhancement factor (SMEF), which is also able to predict known experimental SERS enhancement factors of a gold nanodimer. We elucidate the important figures-of-merit of the enhancement and explore these for different designs. We find that the use of hyperbolic stratified materials can enhance the photonic local density of states (LDOS) by close to two times in comparison to pure metal nanostructures, when both designed to work at the same operating wavelengths. However, the increased LDOS is accompanied by higher electric field concentration within the lossy hyperbolic material, which leads to increased quenching that serves to reduce the overall detected SERS enhancement in the far field. For nanoresonators with resonant localized surface plasmon wavelengths in the near-infrared, the SMEF for the hyperbolic stratified nanostructure is approximately one order of magnitude lower than the pure metal counterpart. Conversely, we show that by detecting the Raman signal using a near-field probe, hyperbolic materials can provide an improvement in SERS enhancement compared to using pure metal nanostructures when the probe is sufficiently close (<50 nm ) to the Raman active molecule at the plasmonic hotspot.

Nanostructures from nanoparticles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mendes, Paula M; Chen Yu; Palmer, Richard E; Nikitin, Kirill; Fitzmaurice, Donald; Preece, Jon A

2003-01-01

This paper reviews recent experimental approaches to the development of surface nanostructures from nanoparticles. The formation of nanowires by electron beam writing in films of gold nanoparticles passivated with a specially designed class of ligand molecules (dialkyl sulfides) is presented, together with illustrations of practical nanostructures. Potential applications of this methodology are discussed. Another alternative to the controlled fabrication of arrays of nanoparticles, based on nanocrystals which contain molecular recognition elements in the ligand shell, is also surveyed. These particles aggregate in the presence of specifically designed molecular dications which act as a molecular binder. Finally, recent work on the formation of nanoscale surface architectures using x-ray patterning of self-assembled monolayers is introduced. Current and potential future applications of these surface nanostructures are discussed

Nanostructured Mineral Coatings Stabilize Proteins for Therapeutic Delivery.

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Xiaohua; Biedrzycki, Adam H; Khalil, Andrew S; Hess, Dalton; Umhoefer, Jennifer M; Markel, Mark D; Murphy, William L

2017-09-01

Proteins tend to lose their biological activity due to their fragile structural conformation during formulation, storage, and delivery. Thus, the inability to stabilize proteins in controlled-release systems represents a major obstacle in drug delivery. Here, a bone mineral inspired protein stabilization strategy is presented, which uses nanostructured mineral coatings on medical devices. Proteins bound within the nanostructured coatings demonstrate enhanced stability against extreme external stressors, including organic solvents, proteases, and ethylene oxide gas sterilization. The protein stabilization effect is attributed to the maintenance of protein conformational structure, which is closely related to the nanoscale feature sizes of the mineral coatings. Basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) released from a nanostructured mineral coating maintains its biological activity for weeks during release, while it maintains activity for less than 7 d during release from commonly used polymeric microspheres. Delivery of the growth factors bFGF and vascular endothelial growth factor using a mineral coated surgical suture significantly improves functional Achilles tendon healing in a rabbit model, resulting in increased vascularization, more mature collagen fiber organization, and a two fold improvement in mechanical properties. The findings of this study demonstrate that biomimetic interactions between proteins and nanostructured minerals provide a new, broadly applicable mechanism to stabilize proteins in the context of drug delivery and regenerative medicine. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Fabrication of conductive metallized nanostructures from self-assembled amphiphilic triblock copolymer templates: Nanospheres, nanowires, nanorings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhu Jintao; Jiang Wei

2007-01-01

Various metallized nanostructures (such as rings, wires with controllable lengths, spheres) have been successfully fabricated by coating metallic nanolayers onto soft nanotemplates through simple electroless methods. In particular, bimetallic nanostructures have been obtained by using simple methods. The multiple functional polymeric nanostructures were obtained through the self-assembly of polystyrene/poly(4-vinyl pyridine) triblock copolymer (P4VP-b-PS-b-P4VP) in selective media by changing the common solvent properties. By combining field emission scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) characterization, it was confirmed that polymer/metal and bimetallic (Au at Ag) core-shell nanostructures could be achieved by chemical metal deposition method

Synthesis of Gold Nanoparticle-Embedded Silver Cubic Mesh Nanostructures Using AgCl Nanocubes for Plasmonic Photocatalysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Joo, Jang Ho; Kim, Byung-Ho; Lee, Jae-Seung

2017-11-01

A novel room-temperature aqueous synthesis for gold nanoparticle-embedded silver cubic mesh nanostructures using AgCl templates via a template-assisted coreduction method is developed. The cubic AgCl templates are coreduced in the presence of AuCl 4 - and Ag + , resulting in the reduction of AuCl 4 - into gold nanoparticles on the outer region of AgCl templates, followed by the reduction of AgCl and Ag + into silver cubic mesh nanostructures. Removal of the template clearly demonstrates the delicately designed silver mesh nanostructures embedded with gold nanoparticles. The synthetic mechanism, structural properties, and surface functionalization are spectroscopically investigated. The plasmonic photocatalysis of the cubic mesh nanostructures for the degradation of organic pollutants and removal of highly toxic metal ions is investigated; the photocatalytic activity of the cubic mesh nanostructures is superior to those of conventional TiO 2 catalysts and they are catalytically functional even in natural water, owing to their high surface area and excellent chemical stability. The synthetic development presented in this study can be exploited for the highly elaborate, yet, facile design of nanomaterials with outstanding properties. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Investigations of inorganic and hybrid inorganic-organic nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Kam, Kinson Chihang

This thesis focuses on the exploratory synthesis and characterization of inorganic and hybrid inorganic-organic nanomaterials. In particular, nanostructures of semiconducting nitrides and oxides, and hybrid systems of nanowire-polymer composites and framework materials, are investigated. These materials are characterized by a variety of techniques for structure, composition, morphology, surface area, optical properties, and electrical properties. In the study of inorganic nanomaterials, gallium nitride (GaN), indium oxide (In2O3), and vanadium dioxide (VO2) nanostructures were synthesized using different strategies and their physical properties were examined. GaN nanostructures were obtained from various synthetic routes. Solid-state ammonolysis of metastable gamma-Ga2O 3 nanoparticles was found to be particularly successful; they achieved high surface areas and photoluminescent study showed a blue shift in emission as a result of surface and size defects. Similarly, In2O3 nanostructures were obtained by carbon-assisted solid-state syntheses. The sub-oxidic species, which are generated via a self-catalyzed vapor-liquid-solid mechanism, resulted in 1D nanostructures including nanowires, nanotrees, and nanobouquets upon oxidation. On the other hand, hydrothermal methods were used to obtain VO2 nanorods. After post-thermal treatment, infrared spectroscopy demonstrated that these nanorods exhibit a thermochromic transition with temperature that is higher by ˜10°C compared to the parent material. The thermochromic behavior indicated a semiconductor-to-metal transition associated with a structural transformation from monoclinic to rutile. The hybrid systems, on the other hand, enabled their properties to be tunable. In nanowire-polymer composites, zinc oxide (ZnO) and silver (Ag) nanowires were synthesized and incorporated into polyaniline (PANI) and polypyrrole (PPy) via in-situ and ex-situ polymerization method. The electrical properties of these composites are

Synergistically Enhanced Performance of Ultrathin Nanostructured Silicon Solar Cells Embedded in Plasmonically Assisted, Multispectral Luminescent Waveguides

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Sung-Min; Dhar, Purnim; Chen, Huandong; Montenegro, Angelo; Liaw, Lauren; Kang, Dongseok; Gai, Boju; Benderskii, Alexander V.; Yoon, Jongseung

2017-04-12

Ultrathin silicon solar cells fabricated by anisotropic wet chemical etching of single-crystalline wafer materials represent an attractive materials platform that could provide many advantages for realizing high-performance, low-cost photovoltaics. However, their intrinsically limited photovoltaic performance arising from insufficient absorption of low-energy photons demands careful design of light management to maximize the efficiency and preserve the cost-effectiveness of solar cells. Herein we present an integrated flexible solar module of ultrathin, nanostructured silicon solar cells capable of simultaneously exploiting spectral upconversion and downshifting in conjunction with multispectral luminescent waveguides and a nanostructured plasmonic reflector to compensate for their weak optical absorption and enhance their performance. The 8 μm-thick silicon solar cells incorporating a hexagonally periodic nanostructured surface relief are surface-embedded in layered multispectral luminescent media containing organic dyes and NaYF4:Yb3+,Er3+ nanocrystals as downshifting and upconverting luminophores, respectively, via printing-enabled deterministic materials assembly. The ultrathin nanostructured silicon microcells in the composite luminescent waveguide exhibit strongly augmented photocurrent (~40.1 mA/cm2) and energy conversion efficiency (~12.8%) than devices with only a single type of luminescent species, owing to the synergistic contributions from optical downshifting, plasmonically enhanced upconversion, and waveguided photon flux for optical concentration, where the short-circuit current density increased by ~13.6 mA/cm2 compared with microcells in a nonluminescent medium on a plain silver reflector under a confined illumination.

Surface functionalized Cu{sub 2}Zn{sub 1-x}Cd{sub x}SnS{sub 4} quinternary alloyed nanostructure for DNA sensing

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ibraheam, A.S.; Voon, C.H.; Foo, K.L.; Azizah, N. [University Malaysia Perlis, Institute of Nano Electronic Engineering, Kangar, Perlis (Malaysia); Al-Douri, Y. [University of Sidi-Bel-Abbes, Physics Department, Faculty of Science, Sidi Bel-Abbes (Algeria); Gopinath, S.C.B. [University Malaysia Perlis, Institute of Nano Electronic Engineering, Kangar, Perlis (Malaysia); Universiti Malaysia Perlis, School of Bioprocess Engineering, Arau, Perlis (Malaysia); Ameri, M. [Universite Djilali Liabes de Sidi Bel-Abbes, Laboratoire Physico-Chimie des Materiaux Avances (LPCMA), Sidi Bel-Abbes (Algeria); Ibrahim, Sattar S. [University of Anbar, Chemisty Department, College of Science, Al Rumadi (Iraq)

2017-03-15

A sensing plate of extended Cu{sub 2}Zn{sub 1-x}Cd{sub x}SnS{sub 4} quinternary alloy nanostructures, fabricated on an oxidized silicon substrate by the sol-gel method, is reported in this paper. The fabricated device was characterized and analyzed via field emission-scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and photoluminescence (PL). The XRD peaks shifted towards the lower angle side alongside increasing concentration of cadmium. The average diameter of the Cu{sub 2}Zn{sub 1-x}Cd{sub x}SnS{sub 4} quinternary alloy nanostructures falls between 21.55 and 43.12 nm, while the shift of the PL bandgap was from 1.81 eV (x = 0) to 1.72 eV (x = 1). The resulting Cu{sub 2}Zn{sub 1-x}Cd{sub x}SnS{sub 4} quinternary alloy nanostructures components were functionalized with oligonucleotides probe DNA molecules and interacted with the target, exhibiting good sensing capabilities due to its large surface-to-volume ratio. The fabrication, immobilization, and hybridization processes were analyzed via representative current-voltage (I-V) plots. Its electrical profile shows that the device is capable to distinguish biomolecules. Its high performance was evident from the linear relationship between the probe DNA from cervical cancer and the target DNA, showing its applicability for medical applications. (orig.)

Nanostructured Polypyrrole-Based Ammonia and Volatile Organic Compound Sensors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Milena Šetka

2017-03-01

Full Text Available The aim of this review is to summarize the recent progress in the fabrication of efficient nanostructured polymer-based sensors with special focus on polypyrrole. The correlation between physico-chemical parameters, mainly morphology of various polypyrrole nanostructures, and their sensitivity towards selected gas and volatile organic compounds (VOC is provided. The different approaches of polypyrrole modification with other functional materials are also discussed. With respect to possible sensors application in medicine, namely in the diagnosis of diseases via the detection of volatile biomarkers from human breath, the sensor interaction with humidity is described as well. The major attention is paid to analytes such as ammonia and various alcohols.

Fabrication of Nanostructured Polymer Surfaces and Characterization of their Wetting Properties

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, Nis Korsgaard

. • Simulations of wetting transitions. • Clean room fabrication of functional surfaces, and production of micro- and nanostructured mold inserts. • Injection molding of micro- and nanostructured polymer parts on a commercial injection molding machine. • Co-invented a patented technique for microstructuring steel...... molds able to produce superhydrophobic polymer parts. The patented microstructuring technique generates microstructures similar to those found on the leaf of the lotus flower, without the overlaying nanostructure. Despite the lack of hierarchical structures, the microstructured surface shows excellent...... structures and the irregular structures produced by the patented microstructuring technique. The second study bridges the gap between silicon structures produced by planar processes in the clean room and the smooth multi-height structures often found in nature. Finally i have demonstrated a novel type...

Natural nanostructure and superlattice nanodomains in AgSbTe{sub 2}

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Carlton, Christopher E.; De Armas, Ricardo; Shao-Horn, Yang, E-mail: delaireoa@ornl.gov, E-mail: shaohorn@mit.edu [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139 (United States); Ma, Jie [Quantum Condensed Matter Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831 (United States); May, Andrew F.; Delaire, Olivier, E-mail: delaireoa@ornl.gov, E-mail: shaohorn@mit.edu [Materials Science and Technology Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831 (United States)

2014-04-14

AgSbTe{sub 2} has long been of interest for thermoelectric applications because of its favorable electronic properties and its low lattice thermal conductivity of ∼0.7 W/mK. In this work, we report new findings from a high-resolution transmission electron microscopy study revealing two nanostructures in single crystal Ag{sub 1−x}Sb{sub 1+x}Sb{sub 2+x} (with x = 0, 0.1, 0.2); (i) a rippled natural nanostructure with a period of ∼2.5–5 nm and (ii) superlattice ordered nanodomains consistent with cation ordering predicted in previous density functional theory studies. These nanostructures, combined with point-defects, probably serve as sources of scattering for phonons, thereby yielding a low lattice thermal conductivity over a wide temperature range.

Synthesis and characterization of CdTe nanostructures grown by RF magnetron sputtering method

Science.gov (United States)

Akbarnejad, Elaheh; Ghoranneviss, Mahmood; Hantehzadeh, Mohammad Reza

2017-08-01

In this paper, we synthesize Cadmium Telluride nanostructures by radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering system on soda lime glass at various thicknesses. The effect of CdTe nanostructures thickness on crystalline, optical and morphological properties has been studied by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), UV-VIS-NIR spectrophotometry, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM), respectively. The XRD parameters of CdTe nanostructures such as microstrain, dislocation density, and crystal size have been examined. From XRD analysis, it could be assumed that increasing deposition time caused the formation of the wurtzite hexagonal structure of the sputtered films. Optical properties of the grown nanostructures as a function of film thickness have been observed. All the films indicate more than 60% transmission over a wide range of wavelengths. The optical band gap values of the films have obtained in the range of 1.62-1.45 eV. The results indicate that an RF sputtering method succeeded in depositing of CdTe nanostructures with high purity and controllable physical properties, which is appropriate for photovoltaic and nuclear detector applications.

Nano-structured polymer composites and process for preparing same

Science.gov (United States)

Hillmyer, Marc; Chen, Liang

2013-04-16

A process for preparing a polymer composite that includes reacting (a) a multi-functional monomer and (b) a block copolymer comprising (i) a first block and (ii) a second block that includes a functional group capable of reacting with the multi-functional monomer, to form a crosslinked, nano-structured, bi-continuous composite. The composite includes a continuous matrix phase and a second continuous phase comprising the first block of the block copolymer.

Nanostructured Surfaces for Drug Delivery and Anti-Fibrosis

Science.gov (United States)

Kam, Kimberly Renee

Effective and cost-efficient healthcare is at the forefront of public discussion; on both personal and policy levels, technologies that improve therapeutic efficacy without the use of painful hypodermic needle injections or the use of harsh chemicals would prove beneficial to patients. Nanostructured surfaces as structure-mediated permeability enhancers introduce a potentially revolutionary approach to the field of drug delivery. Parental administration routes have been the mainstay technologies for delivering biologics because these therapeutics are too large to permeate epithelial barriers. However, there is a significant patient dislike for hypodermic needles resulting in reduced patient compliance and poor therapeutic results. We present an alternative strategy to harness the body's naturally occurring biological processes and transport mechanisms to enhance the drug transport of biologics across the epithelium. Our strategy offers a paradigm shift from traditional biochemical drug delivery vehicles by using nanotopography to loosen the epithelial barrier. Herein, we demonstrate that nanotopographical cues can be used to enable biologics > 66 kDa to be transported across epithelial monolayers by increasing paracellular transport. When placed in contact with epithelial cells, nanostructured films significantly increase the transport of albumin, IgG, and a model therapeutic, etanercept. Our work highlights the potential to use drug delivery systems which incorporate nanotopographical cues to increase the transport of biologics across epithelial tissue. Furthermore, we describe current advancements in nano- and microfabrication for applications in anti-fibrosis and wound healing. Influencing cellular responses to biomaterials is crucial in the field of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. Since cells are surrounded by extracellular matrix features that are on the nanoscale, identifying nanostructures for imparting desirable cellular function could greatly

Mechanical Properties of Nanostructured Materials Determined Through Molecular Modeling Techniques

Science.gov (United States)

Clancy, Thomas C.; Gates, Thomas S.

2005-01-01

The potential for gains in material properties over conventional materials has motivated an effort to develop novel nanostructured materials for aerospace applications. These novel materials typically consist of a polymer matrix reinforced with particles on the nanometer length scale. In this study, molecular modeling is used to construct fully atomistic models of a carbon nanotube embedded in an epoxy polymer matrix. Functionalization of the nanotube which consists of the introduction of direct chemical bonding between the polymer matrix and the nanotube, hence providing a load transfer mechanism, is systematically varied. The relative effectiveness of functionalization in a nanostructured material may depend on a variety of factors related to the details of the chemical bonding and the polymer structure at the nanotube-polymer interface. The objective of this modeling is to determine what influence the details of functionalization of the carbon nanotube with the polymer matrix has on the resulting mechanical properties. By considering a range of degree of functionalization, the structure-property relationships of these materials is examined and mechanical properties of these models are calculated using standard techniques.

Understanding Platform-Based Digital Currencies

OpenAIRE

Ben Fung; Hanna Halaburda

2014-01-01

Given technological advances and the widespread use of the Internet, various digital currencies have emerged. In most cases, Internet platforms such as Facebook and Amazon restrict the functionality of their digital currencies to enhance the business model and maximize their profits. While platform-based digital currencies could increase the efficiency of retail payments, they could also raise some important policy issues if they were to become widely used outside of the platform. Thus, it is...

CO gas sensing of CuO nanostructures, synthesized by an assisted solvothermal wet chemical route

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aslani, Alireza; Oroojpour, Vahid

2011-01-01

CuO nanostructures with different morphologies and sizes were grown in a controlled manner using a simple low-temperature hydrothermal technique. By controlling the pH of reaction mixture, spherical nanoparticles and cloudlike CuO structures were synthesized at 100-150 o C with excellent efficiency. These CuO nanostructures have been tested for CO gas monitoring by depositing them as thick films on an interdigitated alumina substrate and evaluated the surface resistance of the deposited layer as a function of operating temperature and CO concentrations. The gas sensitivity tests have demonstrated that the CuO nanostructures, especially cloudlike morphology, exhibit high sensitivity to CO proving their applicability in gas sensors. The role of the nanostructure on the sensing properties of CuO is also discussed.

Chiral Plasmonic Nanostructures Fabricated by Circularly Polarized Light.

Science.gov (United States)

Saito, Koichiro; Tatsuma, Tetsu

2018-05-09

The chirality of materials results in a wide variety of advanced technologies including image display, data storage, light management including negative refraction, and enantioselective catalysis and sensing. Here, we introduce chirality to plasmonic nanostructures by using circularly polarized light as the sole chiral source for the first time. Gold nanocuboids as precursors on a semiconductor were irradiated with circularly polarized light to localize electric fields at specific corners of the cuboids depending on the handedness of light and deposited dielectric moieties as electron oscillation boosters by the localized electric field. Thus, plasmonic nanostructures with high chirality were developed. The present bottom-up method would allow the large-scale and cost-effective fabrication of chiral materials and further applications to functional materials and devices.

Angle resolved characterization of nanostructured and conventionally textured silicon solar cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Davidsen, Rasmus Schmidt; Ormstrup, Jeppe; Ommen, Martin Lind

2015-01-01

current, open circuit voltage, fill factor (FF) and power conversion efficiency are each measured as function of the relative incident angle between the solar cell and the light source. The relative incident angle is varied from 0° to 90° in steps of 10° in orthogonal axes, such that each solar cell......We report angle resolved characterization of nanostructured and conventionally textured silicon solar cells. The nanostructured solar cells are realized through a single step, mask-less, scalable reactive ion etching (RIE) texturing of the surface. Photovoltaic properties including short circuit...

25th anniversary article: hybrid nanostructures based on two-dimensional nanomaterials.

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Xiao; Tan, Chaoliang; Yin, Zongyou; Zhang, Hua

2014-04-09

Two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterials, such as graphene and transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), receive a lot of attention, because of their intriguing properties and wide applications in catalysis, energy-storage devices, electronics, optoelectronics, and so on. To further enhance the performance of their application, these 2D nanomaterials are hybridized with other functional nanostructures. In this review, the latest studies of 2D nanomaterial-based hybrid nanostructures are discussed, focusing on their preparation methods, properties, and applications. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Is there a shift to 'active nanostructures'?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Subramanian, Vrishali; Youtie, Jan; Porter, Alan L.; Shapira, Philip

2010-01-01

It has been suggested that an important transition in the long-run trajectory of nanotechnology development is a shift from passive to active nanostructures. Such a shift could present different or increased societal impacts and require new approaches for risk assessment. An active nanostructure 'changes or evolves its state during its operation,' according to the National Science Foundation's (2006) Active Nanostructures and Nanosystems grant solicitation. Active nanostructure examples include nanoelectromechanical systems (NEMS), nanomachines, self-healing materials, targeted drugs and chemicals, energy storage devices, and sensors. This article considers two questions: (a) Is there a 'shift' to active nanostructures? (b) How can we characterize the prototypical areas into which active nanostructures may emerge? We build upon the NSF definition of active nanostructures to develop a research publication search strategy, with a particular intent to distinguish between passive and active nanotechnologies. We perform bibliometric analyses and describe the main publication trends from 1995 to 2008. We then describe the prototypes of research that emerge based on reading the abstracts and review papers encountered in our search. Preliminary results suggest that there is a sharp rise in active nanostructures publications in 2006, and this rise is maintained in 2007 and through to early 2008. We present a typology that can be used to describe the kind of active nanostructures that may be commercialized and regulated in the future.

Is there a shift to "active nanostructures"?

Science.gov (United States)

Subramanian, Vrishali; Youtie, Jan; Porter, Alan L.; Shapira, Philip

2010-01-01

It has been suggested that an important transition in the long-run trajectory of nanotechnology development is a shift from passive to active nanostructures. Such a shift could present different or increased societal impacts and require new approaches for risk assessment. An active nanostructure "changes or evolves its state during its operation," according to the National Science Foundation's (2006) Active Nanostructures and Nanosystems grant solicitation. Active nanostructure examples include nanoelectromechanical systems (NEMS), nanomachines, self-healing materials, targeted drugs and chemicals, energy storage devices, and sensors. This article considers two questions: (a) Is there a "shift" to active nanostructures? (b) How can we characterize the prototypical areas into which active nanostructures may emerge? We build upon the NSF definition of active nanostructures to develop a research publication search strategy, with a particular intent to distinguish between passive and active nanotechnologies. We perform bibliometric analyses and describe the main publication trends from 1995 to 2008. We then describe the prototypes of research that emerge based on reading the abstracts and review papers encountered in our search. Preliminary results suggest that there is a sharp rise in active nanostructures publications in 2006, and this rise is maintained in 2007 and through to early 2008. We present a typology that can be used to describe the kind of active nanostructures that may be commercialized and regulated in the future.

Silicon-embedded copper nanostructure network for high energy storage

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Tianyue

2016-03-15

Provided herein are nanostructure networks having high energy storage, electrochemically active electrode materials including nanostructure networks having high energy storage, as well as electrodes and batteries including the nanostructure networks having high energy storage. According to various implementations, the nanostructure networks have high energy density as well as long cycle life. In some implementations, the nanostructure networks include a conductive network embedded with electrochemically active material. In some implementations, silicon is used as the electrochemically active material. The conductive network may be a metal network such as a copper nanostructure network. Methods of manufacturing the nanostructure networks and electrodes are provided. In some implementations, metal nanostructures can be synthesized in a solution that contains silicon powder to make a composite network structure that contains both. The metal nanostructure growth can nucleate in solution and on silicon nanostructure surfaces.

Silicon-embedded copper nanostructure network for high energy storage

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yu, Tianyue

2018-01-23

Provided herein are nanostructure networks having high energy storage, electrochemically active electrode materials including nanostructure networks having high energy storage, as well as electrodes and batteries including the nanostructure networks having high energy storage. According to various implementations, the nanostructure networks have high energy density as well as long cycle life. In some implementations, the nanostructure networks include a conductive network embedded with electrochemically active material. In some implementations, silicon is used as the electrochemically active material. The conductive network may be a metal network such as a copper nanostructure network. Methods of manufacturing the nanostructure networks and electrodes are provided. In some implementations, metal nanostructures can be synthesized in a solution that contains silicon powder to make a composite network structure that contains both. The metal nanostructure growth can nucleate in solution and on silicon nanostructure surfaces.

Plasmonic nanostructures for surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, Ruiqian

In the last three decades, a large number of different plasmonic nanostructures have attracted much attention due to their unique optical properties. Those plasmonic nanostructures include nanoparticles, nanoholes and metal nanovoids. They have been widely utilized in optical devices and sensors. When the plasmonic nanostructures interact with the electromagnetic wave and their surface plasmon frequency match with the light frequency, the electrons in plasmonic nanostructures will resonate with the same oscillation as incident light. In this case, the plasmonic nanostructures can absorb light and enhance the light scattering. Therefore, the plasmonic nanostructures can be used as substrate for surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy to enhance the Raman signal. Using plasmonic nanostructures can significantly enhance Raman scattering of molecules with very low concentrations. In this thesis, two different plasmonic nanostructures Ag dendrites and Au/Ag core-shell nanoparticles are investigated. Simple methods were used to produce these two plasmonic nanostructures. Then, their applications in surface enhanced Raman scattering have been explored. Ag dendrites were produced by galvanic replacement reaction, which was conducted using Ag nitrate aqueous solution and copper metal. Metal copper layer was deposited at the bottom side of anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) membrane. Silver wires formed inside AAO channels connected Ag nitrate on the top of AAO membrane and copper layer at the bottom side of AAO. Silver dendrites were formed on the top side of AAO. The second plasmonic nanostructure is Au/Ag core-shell nanoparticles. They were fabricated by electroless plating (galvanic replacement) reaction in a silver plating solution. First, electrochemically evolved hydrogen bubbles were used as template through electroless deposition to produce hollow Au nanoparticles. Then, the Au nanoparticles were coated with Cu shells in a Cu plating solution. In the following step, a Ag

Nanostructured gold microelectrodes for extracellular recording

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brueggemann, Dorothea; Wolfrum, Bernhard; Maybeck, Vanessa; Offenhaeusser, Andreas [CNI Center of Nanoelectronic Systems for Information Technology and Institute of Bio- and Nanosystems 2, Forschungszentrum Juelich (Germany)

2010-07-01

Electrophysiological activity of electrogenic cells is currently recorded with planar bioelectronic interfaces such as microelectrode arrays (MEAs). In this work, a novel concept of biocompatible nanostructured gold MEAs for extracellular signal recording is presented. MEAs were fabricated using clean room technologies, e.g. photolithography and metallization. Subsequently, they were modified with gold nanopillars of approximately 300 to 400 nm in height and 60 nm width. The nanostructuring process was carried out with a template-assisted approach using nanoporous aluminium oxide. Impedance spectroscopy of the resulting nanostructures showed higher capacitances compared to planar gold. This confirmed the expected increase of the surface area via nanostructuring. We used the nanostructured microelectrodes to record extracellular potentials from heart muscle cells (HL1), which were plated onto the chips. Good coupling between the HL1 cells and the nanostructured electrodes was observed. The resulting signal-to-noise ratio of nanopillar-MEAs was increased by a factor of 2 compared to planar MEAs. In future applications this nanopillar concept can be adopted for distinct interface materials and coupling to cellular and molecular sensing components.

Decreased Fibroblast and Increased Osteoblast Functions on Ionic Plasma Deposited Nanostructured Ti Coatings

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Storey Dan

2007-01-01

Full Text Available AbstractBioactive coatings are in high demand to control cellular functions for numerous medical devices. The objective of this in vitro study was to characterize for the first time fibroblast (fibrous scar tissue forming cells adhesion and proliferation on an important polymeric biomaterial (silicone coated with titanium using a novel ionic plasma deposition (IPD process. Fibroblasts are one of the first anchorage-dependent cells to arrive at an implant surface during the wound healing process. Persistent excessive functions of fibroblasts have been linked to detrimental fibrous tissue formation which may cause implant failure. The IPD process creates a surface-engineered nanostructure (with features usually below 100 nm by first using a vacuum to remove all contaminants, then guiding charged metallic ions or plasma to the surface of a medical device at ambient temperature. Results demonstrated that compared to currently used titanium and uncoated silicone, silicone coated with titanium using IPD significantly decreased fibroblast adhesion and proliferation. Results also showed competitively increased osteoblast (bone-forming cells over fibroblast adhesion on silicone coated with titanium; in contrast, osteoblast adhesion was not competitively increased over fibroblast adhesion on uncoated silicone or titanium controls. In this manner, this study strongly suggests that IPD should be further studied for biomaterial applications in which fibrous tissue encapsulation is undesirable (such as for orthopedic implants, cardiovascular components, etc..

Nanofilter platform based on functionalized carbon nanotubes for adsorption and elimination of Acrolein, a toxicant in cigarette smoke

Science.gov (United States)

Yoosefian, Mehdi; Pakpour, Atef; Etminan, Nazanin

2018-06-01

This paper discusses the use of carboxylated single-walled carbon nanotube as a general nanofilter platform for the removal of acrolein carcinogen from cigarette smoke. The analyses carried out in the detailed study of the electronic and structural effects of the adsorption of acrolein onto COOH loaded on single-walled carbon nanotube under the density functional theory framework. The results of Bader theory of atoms in molecules, natural bond orbital, molecular potential electron surface and density of state confirm the potential application of the suggested nanofilter platform.

Rational Design of Semiconductor Nanostructures for Functional Subcellular Interfaces.

Science.gov (United States)

Parameswaran, Ramya; Tian, Bozhi

2018-05-15

One of the fundamental questions guiding research in the biological sciences is how cellular systems process complex physical and environmental cues and communicate with each other across multiple length scales. Importantly, aberrant signal processing in these systems can lead to diseases that can have devastating impacts on human lives. Biophysical studies in the past several decades have demonstrated that cells can respond to not only biochemical cues but also mechanical and electrical ones. Thus, the development of new materials that can both sense and modulate all of these pathways is necessary. Semiconducting nanostructures are an emerging class of discovery platforms and tools that can push the limits of our ability to modulate and sense biological behaviors for both fundamental research and clinical applications. These materials are of particular interest for interfacing with cellular systems due to their matched dimension with subcellular components (e.g., cytoskeletal filaments), and easily tunable properties in the electrical, optical and mechanical regimes. Rational design via traditional or new approaches, such as nanocasting and mesoscale chemical lithography, can allow us to control micro- and nanoscale features in nanowires to achieve new biointerfaces. Both processes endogenous to the target cell and properties of the material surface dictate the character of these interfaces. In this Account, we focus on (1) approaches for the rational design of semiconducting nanowires that exhibit unique structures for biointerfaces, (2) recent fundamental discoveries that yield robust biointerfaces at the subcellular level, (3) intracellular electrical and mechanical sensing, and (4) modulation of cellular behaviors through material topography and remote physical stimuli. In the first section, we discuss new approaches for the synthetic control of micro- and nanoscale features of these materials. In the second section, we focus on achieving biointerfaces with

Femtosecond upconverted photocurrent spectroscopy of InAs quantum nanostructures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yamada, Yasuhiro [Institute for Chemical Research, Kyoto University, Uji, Kyoto 611-0011 (Japan); Tex, David M.; Kanemitsu, Yoshihiko, E-mail: kanemitu@scl.kyoto-u.ac.jp [Institute for Chemical Research, Kyoto University, Uji, Kyoto 611-0011 (Japan); Japan Science and Technology Agency, CREST, Kyoto University, Uji, Kyoto 611-0011 (Japan); Kamiya, Itaru [Toyota Technological Institute, Nagoya, Aichi 468-8511 (Japan)

2015-07-06

The carrier upconversion dynamics in InAs quantum nanostructures are studied for intermediate-band solar-cell applications via ultrafast photoluminescence and photocurrent (PC) spectroscopy based on femtosecond excitation correlation (FEC) techniques. Strong upconverted PC-FEC signals are observed under resonant excitation of quantum well islands (QWIs), which are a few monolayer-thick InAs quantum nanostructures. The PC-FEC signal typically decays within a few hundred picoseconds at room temperature, which corresponds to the carrier lifetime in QWIs. The photoexcited electron and hole lifetimes in InAs QWIs are evaluated as functions of temperature and laser fluence. Our results provide solid evidence for electron–hole–hole Auger process, dominating the carrier upconversion in InAs QWIs at room temperature.

Synthesis and applications of MOF-derived porous nanostructures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Min Hui Yap

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Metal organic frameworks (MOFs represent a class of porous material which is formed by strong bonds between metal ions and organic linkers. By careful selection of constituents, MOFs can exhibit very high surface area, large pore volume, and excellent chemical stability. Research on synthesis, structures and properties of various MOFs has shown that they are promising materials for many applications, such as energy storage, gas storage, heterogeneous catalysis and sensing. Apart from direct use, MOFs have also been used as support substrates for nanomaterials or as sacrificial templates/precursors for preparation of various functional nanostructures. In this review, we aim to present the most recent development of MOFs as precursors for the preparation of various nanostructures and their potential applications in energy-related devices and processes. Specifically, this present survey intends to push the boundaries and covers the literatures from the year 2013 to early 2017, on supercapacitors, lithium ion batteries, electrocatalysts, photocatalyst, gas sensing, water treatment, solar cells, and carbon dioxide capture. Finally, an outlook in terms of future challenges and potential prospects towards industrial applications are also discussed. Keywords: Metal organic frameworks, Porous nanostructures, Supercapacitors, Lithium ion batteries, Heterogeneous catalyst

Computer simulation of radiation-induced nanostructure formation in amorphous materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, K.-D.; Perez-Bergquist, Alejandro; Wang, Lumin

2009-01-01

In this study, 3D simulations based on a theoretical model were developed to investigate radiation-induced nanostructure formation in amorphous materials. Model variables include vacancy production and recombination rates, ion sputtering effects, and redeposition of sputtered atoms. In addition, a phase field model was developed to predict vacancy diffusion as a function of free energies of mixing and interfacial energies. The distribution profile of the vacancy production rate along the depth of an irradiated matrix was considered as a near Gaussian approximation according to Monte-Carlo TRIM code calculations. Dynamic processes responsible for nanostructure evolution were simulated by updating the vacancy concentration profile over time. Simulated morphologies include cellular nanoholes, nanowalls, nanovoids, and nanofibers, with the resultant morphology dependant upon the incident ion species and ion fluence. These simulated morphologies are consistent with experimental observations achieved under comparable experimental conditions. Our model provides a distinct numerical approach to accurately predicting morphological results for ion-irradiation-induced nanostructures.

LPG ammonia and nitrogen dioxide gas sensing properties of nanostructured polypyrrole thin film

Science.gov (United States)

Bagul, Sagar B.; Upadhye, Deepak S.; Sharma, Ramphal

2016-05-01

Nanostructured Polypyrrole thin film was synthesized by easy and economic chemical oxidative polymerization technique on glass at room temperature. The prepared thin film of Polypyrrole was characterized by optical absorbance study by UV-visible spectroscopy and electrical study by I-V measurement system. The optical absorbance spectrum of Polypyrrole shows two fundamental peaks in region of 420 and 890 nm, which confirms the formation of Polypyrrole on glass substrate. The I-V graph of nanostructured Polypyrrole represents the Ohmic nature. Furthermore, the thin film of Polypyrrole was investigated by Scanning electron microscopy for surface morphology study. The SEM micrograph represents spherical nanostructured morphology of Polypyrrole on glass substrate. In order to investigate gas sensing properties, 100 ppm of LPG, Ammonia and Nitrogen Dioxide were injected in the gas chamber and magnitude of resistance has been recorded as a function of time in second. It was observed that nanostructured Polypyrrole thin film shows good sensing behavior at room temperature.

LPG ammonia and nitrogen dioxide gas sensing properties of nanostructured polypyrrole thin film

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bagul, Sagar B., E-mail: nano.sbbagul@gmail.com; Upadhye, Deepak S.; Sharma, Ramphal, E-mail: rps.phy@gmail.com [Thin Film and Nanotechnology Laboratory, Department of Nanotechnology, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University, Aurangabad (India)

2016-05-06

Nanostructured Polypyrrole thin film was synthesized by easy and economic chemical oxidative polymerization technique on glass at room temperature. The prepared thin film of Polypyrrole was characterized by optical absorbance study by UV-visible spectroscopy and electrical study by I-V measurement system. The optical absorbance spectrum of Polypyrrole shows two fundamental peaks in region of 420 and 890 nm, which confirms the formation of Polypyrrole on glass substrate. The I-V graph of nanostructured Polypyrrole represents the Ohmic nature. Furthermore, the thin film of Polypyrrole was investigated by Scanning electron microscopy for surface morphology study. The SEM micrograph represents spherical nanostructured morphology of Polypyrrole on glass substrate. In order to investigate gas sensing properties, 100 ppm of LPG, Ammonia and Nitrogen Dioxide were injected in the gas chamber and magnitude of resistance has been recorded as a function of time in second. It was observed that nanostructured Polypyrrole thin film shows good sensing behavior at room temperature.

Synthesis and Plasmonic Understanding of Core/Satellite and Core Shell Nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Ruan, Qifeng

Localized surface plasmon resonance, which stems from the collective oscillations of conduction-band electrons, endows Au nanocrystals with unique optical properties. Au nanocrystals possess extremely large scattering/absorption cross-sections and enhanced local electromagnetic field, both of which are synthetically tunable. Moreover, when Au nanocrystals are closely placed or hybridized with semiconductors, the coupling and interaction between the individual components bring about more fascinating phenomena and promising applications, including plasmon-enhanced spectroscopies, solar energy harvesting, and cancer therapy. The continuous development in the field of plasmonics calls for further advancements in the preparation of high-quality plasmonic nanocrystals, the facile construction of hybrid plasmonic nanostructures with desired functionalities, as well as deeper understanding and efficient utilization of the interaction between plasmonic nanocrystals and semiconductor components. In this thesis, I developed a seed-mediated growth method for producing size-controlled Au nanospheres with high monodispersity and assembled Au nanospheres of different sizes into core/satellite nanostructures for enhancing Raman signals. For investigating the interactions between Au nanocrystals and semiconductors, I first prepared (Au core) (TiO2 shell) nanostructures, and then studied their synthetically controlled plasmonic properties and light-harvesting applications. Au nanocrystals with spherical shapes are desirable in plasmon-coupled systems owing to their high geometrical symmetry, which facilitates the analysis of electrodynamic responses in a classical electromagnetic framework and the investigation of quantum tunneling and nonlocal effects. I prepared remarkably uniform Au nanospheres with diameters ranging from 20 nm to 220 nm using a simple seed-mediated growth method associated with mild oxidation. Core/satellite nanostructures were assembled out of differently sized

Smart Aging Platform for Evaluating Cognitive Functions in Aging: A Comparison with the MoCA in a Normal Population

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sara Bottiroli

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Background: Smart Aging is a Serious games (SGs platform in a 3D virtual environment in which users perform a set of screening tests that address various cognitive skills. The tests are structured as 5 tasks of activities of daily life in a familiar environment. The main goal of the present study is to compare a cognitive evaluation made with Smart Aging with those of a classic standardized screening test, the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA.Methods: One thousand one-hundred thirty-one healthy adults aged between 50 and 80 (M = 64.3 ± 8.3 were enrolled in the study. They received a cognitive evaluation with the MoCA and the Smart Aging platform. Participants were grouped according to their MoCA global and specific cognitive domain (i.e., memory, executive functions, working memory, visual spatial elaboration, language, and orientation scores and we explored differences among these groups in the Smart Aging indices.Results: One thousand eighty-six older adults (M = 64.0 ± 8.0 successfully completed the study and were stratified according to their MoCA score: Group 1 with MoCA < 27 (n = 360; Group 2 with 27 ≥ MoCA < 29 (n = 453; and Group 3 with MoCA ≥ 29 (n = 273. MoCA groups significantly differed in most of the Smart Aging indices considered, in particular as concerns accuracy (ps < 0.001 and time (ps < 0.001 for completing most of the platform tasks. Group 1 was outperformed by the other two Groups and was slower than them in these tasks, which were those supposed to assess memory and executive functions. In addition, significant differences across groups also emerged when considering the single cognitive domains of the MoCA and the corresponding performances in each Smart Aging task. In particular, this platform seems to be a good proxy for assessing memory, executive functions, working memory, and visual spatial processes.Conclusion: These findings demonstrate the validity of Smart Aging for assessing cognitive functions in normal

Mechanical design of DNA nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Castro, Carlos E.; Su, Hai-Jun; Marras, Alexander E.; Zhou, Lifeng; Johnson, Joshua

2015-03-01

Structural DNA nanotechnology is a rapidly emerging field that has demonstrated great potential for applications such as single molecule sensing, drug delivery, and templating molecular components. As the applications of DNA nanotechnology expand, a consideration of their mechanical behavior is becoming essential to understand how these structures will respond to physical interactions. This review considers three major avenues of recent progress in this area: (1) measuring and designing mechanical properties of DNA nanostructures, (2) designing complex nanostructures based on imposed mechanical stresses, and (3) designing and controlling structurally dynamic nanostructures. This work has laid the foundation for mechanically active nanomachines that can generate, transmit, and respond to physical cues in molecular systems.Structural DNA nanotechnology is a rapidly emerging field that has demonstrated great potential for applications such as single molecule sensing, drug delivery, and templating molecular components. As the applications of DNA nanotechnology expand, a consideration of their mechanical behavior is becoming essential to understand how these structures will respond to physical interactions. This review considers three major avenues of recent progress in this area: (1) measuring and designing mechanical properties of DNA nanostructures, (2) designing complex nanostructures based on imposed mechanical stresses, and (3) designing and controlling structurally dynamic nanostructures. This work has laid the foundation for mechanically active nanomachines that can generate, transmit, and respond to physical cues in molecular systems. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/c4nr07153k

Shape-specific nanostructured protein mimics from de novo designed chimeric peptides.

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, Linhai; Yang, Su; Lund, Reidar; Dong, He

2018-01-30

Natural proteins self-assemble into highly-ordered nanoscaled architectures to perform specific functions. The intricate functions of proteins have provided great impetus for researchers to develop strategies for designing and engineering synthetic nanostructures as protein mimics. Compared to the success in engineering fibrous protein mimetics, the design of discrete globular protein-like nanostructures has been challenging mainly due to the lack of precise control over geometric packing and intermolecular interactions among synthetic building blocks. In this contribution, we report an effective strategy to construct shape-specific nanostructures based on the self-assembly of chimeric peptides consisting of a coiled coil dimer and a collagen triple helix folding motif. Under salt-free conditions, we showed spontaneous self-assembly of the chimeric peptides into monodisperse, trigonal bipyramidal-like nanoparticles with precise control over the stoichiometry of two folding motifs and the geometrical arrangements relative to one another. Three coiled coil dimers are interdigitated on the equatorial plane while the two collagen triple helices are located in the axial position, perpendicular to the coiled coil plane. A detailed molecular model was proposed and further validated by small angle X-ray scattering experiments and molecular dynamics (MD) simulation. The results from this study indicated that the molecular folding of each motif within the chimeric peptides and their geometric packing played important roles in the formation of discrete protein-like nanoparticles. The peptide design and self-assembly mechanism may open up new routes for the construction of highly organized, discrete self-assembling protein-like nanostructures with greater levels of control over assembly accuracy.

Lifetime of Nano-Structured Black Silicon for Photovoltaic Applications

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Plakhotnyuk, Maksym; Davidsen, Rasmus Schmidt; Schmidt, Michael Stenbæk

2016-01-01

In this work, we present recent results of lifetime optimization for nano-structured black silicon and its photovoltaic applications. Black silicon nano-structures provide significant reduction of silicon surface reflection due to highly corrugated nanostructures with excellent light trapping pro......, respectively. This is promising for use of black silicon RIE nano-structuring in a solar cell process flow......In this work, we present recent results of lifetime optimization for nano-structured black silicon and its photovoltaic applications. Black silicon nano-structures provide significant reduction of silicon surface reflection due to highly corrugated nanostructures with excellent light trapping...

Chemical Sensors Based on Metal Oxide Nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Hunter, Gary W.; Xu, Jennifer C.; Evans, Laura J.; VanderWal, Randy L.; Berger, Gordon M.; Kulis, Mike J.; Liu, Chung-Chiun

2006-01-01

This paper is an overview of sensor development based on metal oxide nanostructures. While nanostructures such as nanorods show significan t potential as enabling materials for chemical sensors, a number of s ignificant technical challenges remain. The major issues addressed in this work revolve around the ability to make workable sensors. This paper discusses efforts to address three technical barriers related t o the application of nanostructures into sensor systems: 1) Improving contact of the nanostructured materials with electrodes in a microse nsor structure; 2) Controling nanostructure crystallinity to allow co ntrol of the detection mechanism; and 3) Widening the range of gases that can be detected by using different nanostructured materials. It is concluded that while this work demonstrates useful tools for furt her development, these are just the beginning steps towards realizati on of repeatable, controlled sensor systems using oxide based nanostr uctures.

An enhanced computational platform for investigating the roles of regulatory RNA and for identifying functional RNA motifs

OpenAIRE

Chang, Tzu-Hao; Huang, Hsi-Yuan; Hsu, Justin Bo-Kai; Weng, Shun-Long; Horng, Jorng-Tzong; Huang, Hsien-Da

2013-01-01

Background Functional RNA molecules participate in numerous biological processes, ranging from gene regulation to protein synthesis. Analysis of functional RNA motifs and elements in RNA sequences can obtain useful information for deciphering RNA regulatory mechanisms. Our previous work, RegRNA, is widely used in the identification of regulatory motifs, and this work extends it by incorporating more comprehensive and updated data sources and analytical approaches into a new platform. Methods ...

Fabrication of nanowires and nanostructures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mátéfi-Tempfli, Stefan; Mátéfi-Tempfli, M.; Piraux, L.

2009-01-01

We report on different approaches that we have adopted and developed for the fabrication of nanowires and nanostructures. Methods based on template synthesis and on self organization seem to be the most promising for the fabrication of nanomaterials and nanostructures due to their easiness and low...... cost. The development of a supported nanoporous alumina template and the possibility of using this template to combine electrochemical synthesis with lithographic methods open new ways for the fabrication of complex nanostructures. The numerous advantages of the supported template and its compatibility...

Paramagnetic decoration of DNA origami nanostructures by Eu³⁺ coordination.

Science.gov (United States)

Opherden, Lars; Oertel, Jana; Barkleit, Astrid; Fahmy, Karim; Keller, Adrian

2014-07-15

The folding of DNA into arbitrary two- and three-dimensional shapes, called DNA origami, represents a powerful tool for the synthesis of functional nanostructures. Here, we present the first approach toward the paramagnetic functionalization of DNA origami nanostructures by utilizing postassembly coordination with Eu(3+) ions. In contrast to the usual formation of toroidal dsDNA condensates in the presence of trivalent cations, planar as well as rod-like DNA origami maintain their shape and monomeric state even under high loading with the trivalent lanthanide. Europium coordination was demonstrated by the change in Eu(3+) luminescence upon binding to the two DNA origami. Their natural circular dichroism in the Mg(2+)- and Eu(3+)-bound state was found to be very similar to that of genomic DNA, evidencing little influence of the DNA origami superstructure on the local chirality of the stacked base pairs. In contrast, the magnetic circular dichroism of the Mg(2+)-bound DNA origami deviates from that of genomic DNA. Furthermore, the lanthanide affects the magnetic properties of DNA in a superstructure-dependent fashion, indicative of the existence of superstructure-specific geometry of Eu(3+) binding sites in the DNA origami that are not formed in genomic DNA. This simple approach lays the foundation for the generation of magneto-responsive DNA origami nanostructures. Such systems do not require covalent modifications and can be used for the magnetic manipulation of DNA nanostructures or for the paramagnetic alignment of molecules in NMR spectroscopy.

Shape evolution of nanostructures by thermal and ion beam processing. Modeling and atomistic simulations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Roentzsch, L.

2007-07-01

Single-crystalline nanostructures often exhibit gradients of surface (and/or interface) curvature that emerge from fabrication and growth processes or from thermal fluctuations. Thus, the system-inherent capillary force can initiate morphological transformations during further processing steps or during operation at elevated temperature. Therefore and because of the ongoing miniaturization of functional structures which causes a general rise in surface-to-volume ratios, solid-state capillary phenomena will become increasingly important: On the one hand diffusion-mediated capillary processes can be of practical use in view of non-conventional nanostructure fabrication methods based on self-organization mechanisms, on the other hand they can destroy the integrity of nanostructures which can go along with the failure of functionality. Additionally, capillarity-induced shape transformations are effected and can thereby be controlled by applied fields and forces (guided or driven evolution). With these prospects and challenges at hand, formation and shape transformation of single-crystalline nanostructures due to the system-inherent capillary force in combination with external fields or forces are investigated in the frame of this dissertation by means of atomistic computer simulations. For the exploration (search, description, and prediction) of reaction pathways of nanostructure shape transformations, kinetic Monte Carlo (KMC) simulations are the method of choice. Since the employed KMC code is founded on a cellular automaton principle, the spatio-temporal development of lattice-based N-particle systems (N up to several million) can be followed for time spans of several orders of magnitude, while considering local phenomena due to atomic-scale effects like diffusion, nucleation, dissociation, or ballistic displacements. In this work, the main emphasis is put on nanostructures which have a cylindrical geometry, for example, nanowires (NWs), nanorods, nanotubes etc

Shape evolution of nanostructures by thermal and ion beam processing. Modeling and atomistic simulations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roentzsch, L.

2007-01-01

Single-crystalline nanostructures often exhibit gradients of surface (and/or interface) curvature that emerge from fabrication and growth processes or from thermal fluctuations. Thus, the system-inherent capillary force can initiate morphological transformations during further processing steps or during operation at elevated temperature. Therefore and because of the ongoing miniaturization of functional structures which causes a general rise in surface-to-volume ratios, solid-state capillary phenomena will become increasingly important: On the one hand diffusion-mediated capillary processes can be of practical use in view of non-conventional nanostructure fabrication methods based on self-organization mechanisms, on the other hand they can destroy the integrity of nanostructures which can go along with the failure of functionality. Additionally, capillarity-induced shape transformations are effected and can thereby be controlled by applied fields and forces (guided or driven evolution). With these prospects and challenges at hand, formation and shape transformation of single-crystalline nanostructures due to the system-inherent capillary force in combination with external fields or forces are investigated in the frame of this dissertation by means of atomistic computer simulations. For the exploration (search, description, and prediction) of reaction pathways of nanostructure shape transformations, kinetic Monte Carlo (KMC) simulations are the method of choice. Since the employed KMC code is founded on a cellular automaton principle, the spatio-temporal development of lattice-based N-particle systems (N up to several million) can be followed for time spans of several orders of magnitude, while considering local phenomena due to atomic-scale effects like diffusion, nucleation, dissociation, or ballistic displacements. In this work, the main emphasis is put on nanostructures which have a cylindrical geometry, for example, nanowires (NWs), nanorods, nanotubes etc

Rigid multipodal platforms for metal surfaces

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michal Valášek

2016-03-01

Full Text Available In this review the recent progress in molecular platforms that form rigid and well-defined contact to a metal surface are discussed. Most of the presented examples have at least three anchoring units in order to control the spatial arrangement of the protruding molecular subunit. Another interesting feature is the lateral orientation of these foot structures which, depending on the particular application, is equally important as the spatial arrangement of the molecules. The numerous approaches towards assembling and organizing functional molecules into specific architectures on metal substrates are reviewed here. Particular attention is paid to variations of both, the core structures and the anchoring groups. Furthermore, the analytical methods enabling the investigation of individual molecules as well as monomolecular layers of ordered platform structures are summarized. The presented multipodal platforms bearing several anchoring groups form considerably more stable molecule–metal contacts than corresponding monopodal analogues and exhibit an enlarged separation of the functional molecules due to the increased footprint, as well as restrict tilting of the functional termini with respect to the metal surface. These platforms are thus ideally suited to tune important properties of the molecule–metal interface. On a single-molecule level, several of these platforms enable the control over the arrangement of the protruding rod-type molecular structures (e.g., molecular wires, switches, rotors, sensors with respect to the surface of the substrate.

Quantum optics with semiconductor nanostructures

CERN Document Server

Jahnke, Frank

2012-01-01

A guide to the theory, application and potential of semiconductor nanostructures in the exploration of quantum optics. It offers an overview of resonance fluorescence emission.$bAn understanding of the interaction between light and matter on a quantum level is of fundamental interest and has many applications in optical technologies. The quantum nature of the interaction has recently attracted great attention for applications of semiconductor nanostructures in quantum information processing. Quantum optics with semiconductor nanostructures is a key guide to the theory, experimental realisation, and future potential of semiconductor nanostructures in the exploration of quantum optics. Part one provides a comprehensive overview of single quantum dot systems, beginning with a look at resonance fluorescence emission. Quantum optics with single quantum dots in photonic crystal and micro cavities are explored in detail, before part two goes on to review nanolasers with quantum dot emitters. Light-matter interaction...

A Versatile Route for the Synthesis of Nickel Oxide Nanostructures Without Organics at Low Temperature

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shah MA

2008-01-01

Full Text Available AbstractNickel oxide nanoparticles and nanoflowers have been synthesized by a soft reaction of nickel powder and water without organics at 100 °C. The mechanism for the formation of nanostructures is briefly described in accordance with decomposition of metal with water giving out hydrogen. The structure, morphology, and the crystalline phase of resulting nanostructures have been characterized by various techniques. Compared with other methods, the present method is simple, fast, economical, template-free, and without organics. In addition, the approach is nontoxic without producing hazardous waste and could be expanded to provide a general and convenient strategy for the synthesis of nanostructures to other functional nanomaterials.

Recrystallization kinetics of nanostructured copper processed by dynamic plastic deformation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lin, Fengxiang; Zhang, Yubin; Pantleon, Wolfgang

2012-01-01

The recrystallization kinetics of nanostructured copper samples processed by dynamic plastic deformation was investigated by electron backscatter diffraction. It was found that the evolution of the recrystallized volume fraction as a function of annealing time has a very low slope (n=0.37) when...

Whole-body isometric force/torque measurements for functional assessment in neuro-rehabilitation: platform design, development and verification

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cavallo Giuseppe

2009-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background One of the main scientific and technological challenges of rehabilitation bioengineering is the development of innovative methodologies, based on the use of appropriate technological devices, for an objective assessment of patients undergoing a rehabilitation treatment. Such tools should be as fast and cheap to use as clinical scales, which are currently the daily instruments most widely used in the routine clinical practice. Methods A human-centered approach was used in the design and development of a mechanical structure equipped with eight force/torque sensors that record quantitative data during the initiation of a predefined set of Activities of Daily Living (ADL tasks, in isometric conditions. Results Preliminary results validated the appropriateness, acceptability and functionality of the proposed platform, that has become now a tool used for clinical research in three clinical centres. Conclusion This paper presented the design and development of an innovative platform for whole-body force and torque measurements on human subjects. The platform has been designed to perform accurate quantitative measurements in isometric conditions with the specific aim to address the needs for functional assessment tests of patients undergoing a rehabilitation treatment as a consequence of a stroke. The versatility of the system also enlightens several other interesting possible areas of application for therapy in neurorehabilitation, for research in basic neuroscience, and more.

Nanostructure Diffraction Gratings for Integrated Spectroscopy and Sensing

Science.gov (United States)

Guo, Junpeng (Inventor)

2016-01-01

The present disclosure pertains to metal or dielectric nanostructures of the subwavelength scale within the grating lines of optical diffraction gratings. The nanostructures have surface plasmon resonances or non-plasmon optical resonances. A linear photodetector array is used to capture the resonance spectra from one of the diffraction orders. The combined nanostructure super-grating and photodetector array eliminates the use of external optical spectrometers for measuring surface plasmon or optical resonance frequency shift caused by the presence of chemical and biological agents. The nanostructure super-gratings can be used for building integrated surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) spectrometers. The nanostructures within the diffraction grating lines enhance Raman scattering signal light while the diffraction grating pattern of the nanostructures diffracts Raman scattering light to different directions of propagation according to their wavelengths. Therefore, the nanostructure super-gratings allows for the use of a photodetector array to capture the surface enhanced Raman scattering spectra.

DNA origami/gold nanorod hybrid nanostructures for the circumvention of drug resistance.

Science.gov (United States)

Song, Linlin; Jiang, Qiao; Liu, Jianbing; Li, Na; Liu, Qing; Dai, Luru; Gao, Yuan; Liu, Weili; Liu, Dongsheng; Ding, Baoquan

2017-06-14

We herein demonstrate that DNA origami can work as a multifunctional platform integrating a chemotherapeutic drug (doxorubicin), gold nanorods and a tumour-specific aptamer MUC-1, to realize the effective circumvention of drug resistance. Doxorubicin (DOX) was loaded efficiently onto DNA origami through base pair intercalation and surface-modified gold nanorods (AuNRs) were assembled onto the DNA origami through DNA hybridization. Due to the active targeting effect of the assembled aptamers, the multifunctional nanostructures achieved increased cellular internalization of DOX and AuNRs. Upon near-infrared (NIR) laser irradiation, the P-glycoprotein (multidrug resistance pump) expression of multidrug resistant MCF-7 (MCF-7/ADR) cells was down-regulated, achieving the synergistically chemotherapeutic (DOX) and photothermal (AuNRs) effects.

Dual Functional Core-Shell Fluorescent Ag2S@Carbon Nanostructure for Selective Assay of E. coli O157:H7 and Bactericidal Treatment.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Ning; Wei, Xing; Zheng, An-Qi; Yang, Ting; Chen, Ming-Li; Wang, Jian-Hua

2017-03-24

A dual functional fluorescent core-shell Ag 2 S@Carbon nanostructure is prepared by a hydrothermally assisted multi-amino synthesis approach with folic acid (FA), polyethylenimine (PEI), and mannoses (Mans) as carbon and nitrogen sources (FA-PEI-Mans-Ag 2 S nanocomposite shortly as Ag 2 S@C). The nanostructure exhibits strong fluorescent emission at λ ex /λ em = 340/450 nm with a quantum yield of 12.57 ± 0.52%. Ag 2 S@C is bound to E. coli O157:H7 via strong interaction with the Mans moiety in Ag 2 S@C with FimH proteins on the fimbriae tip in E. coli O157:H7. Fluorescence emission from Ag 2 S@C/E. coli conjugate is closely related to the content of E. coli O157:H7. Thus, a novel procedure for fluorescence assay of E. coli O157:H7 is developed, offering a detection limit of 330 cfu mL -1 . Meanwhile, the Ag 2 S@C nanostructure exhibits excellent antibacterial performance against E. coli O157:H7. A 99.9% sterilization rate can be readily achieved for E. coli O157:H7 at a concentration of 10 6 -10 7 cfu mL -1 with 3.3 or 10 μg mL -1 of Ag 2 S@C with an interaction time of 5 or 0.5 min, respectively.

Photoemission electron microscopy of localized surface plasmons in silver nanostructures at telecommunication wavelengths

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mårsell, Erik; Larsen, Esben W.; Arnold, Cord L.; Xu, Hongxing; Mauritsson, Johan; Mikkelsen, Anders, E-mail: anders.mikkelsen@sljus.lu.se [Department of Physics, Lund University, P.O. Box 118, 22 100 Lund (Sweden)

2015-02-28

We image the field enhancement at Ag nanostructures using femtosecond laser pulses with a center wavelength of 1.55 μm. Imaging is based on non-linear photoemission observed in a photoemission electron microscope (PEEM). The images are directly compared to ultra violet PEEM and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) imaging of the same structures. Further, we have carried out atomic scale scanning tunneling microscopy on the same type of Ag nanostructures and on the Au substrate. Measuring the photoelectron spectrum from individual Ag particles shows a larger contribution from higher order photoemission processes above the work function threshold than would be predicted by a fully perturbative model, consistent with recent results using shorter wavelengths. Investigating a wide selection of both Ag nanoparticles and nanowires, field enhancement is observed from 30% of the Ag nanoparticles and from none of the nanowires. No laser-induced damage is observed of the nanostructures neither during the PEEM experiments nor in subsequent SEM analysis. By direct comparison of SEM and PEEM images of the same nanostructures, we can conclude that the field enhancement is independent of the average nanostructure size and shape. Instead, we propose that the variations in observed field enhancement could originate from the wedge interface between the substrate and particles electrically connected to the substrate.

Nanodiamond-based nanostructures for coupling nitrogen-vacancy centres to metal nanoparticles and semiconductor quantum dots.

Science.gov (United States)

Gong, Jianxiao; Steinsultz, Nat; Ouyang, Min

2016-06-08

The ability to control the interaction between nitrogen-vacancy centres in diamond and photonic and/or broadband plasmonic nanostructures is crucial for the development of solid-state quantum devices with optimum performance. However, existing methods typically employ top-down fabrication, which restrict scalable and feasible manipulation of nitrogen-vacancy centres. Here, we develop a general bottom-up approach to fabricate an emerging class of freestanding nanodiamond-based hybrid nanostructures with external functional units of either plasmonic nanoparticles or excitonic quantum dots. Precise control of the structural parameters (including size, composition, coverage and spacing of the external functional units) is achieved, representing a pre-requisite for exploring the underlying physics. Fine tuning of the emission characteristics through structural regulation is demonstrated by performing single-particle optical studies. This study opens a rich toolbox to tailor properties of quantum emitters, which can facilitate design guidelines for devices based on nitrogen-vacancy centres that use these freestanding hybrid nanostructures as building blocks.

Commercial Implementation of Model-Based Manufacturing of Nanostructured Metals

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lowe, Terry C. [Los Alamos National Laboratory

2012-07-24

Computational modeling is an essential tool for commercial production of nanostructured metals. Strength is limited by imperfections at the high strength levels that are achievable in nanostructured metals. Processing to achieve homogeneity at the micro- and nano-scales is critical. Manufacturing of nanostructured metals is intrinsically a multi-scale problem. Manufacturing of nanostructured metal products requires computer control, monitoring and modeling. Large scale manufacturing of bulk nanostructured metals by Severe Plastic Deformation is a multi-scale problem. Computational modeling at all scales is essential. Multiple scales of modeling must be integrated to predict and control nanostructural, microstructural, macrostructural product characteristics and production processes.

Engineering Nano-Structured Multiferroic Thin Films

Science.gov (United States)

Cheung, Pui Lam

Multiferroics exhibit remarkable tunabilities in their ferromagnetic, ferroelectric and magnetoelectric properties that provide the potential in enabling the control of magnetizations by electric field for the next generation non-volatile memories, antennas and motors. In recent research and developments in integrating single-phase ferroelectric and ferromagnetic materials, multiferroic composite demonstrated a promising magnetoelectric (ME) coupling for future applications. Atomic layer deposition (ALD) technique, on the other hand, allows fabrications of complex multiferroic nanostructures to investigate interfacial coupling between the two materials. In this work, radical-enhanced ALD of cobalt ferrite (CFO) and thermal ALD of lead zirconate titanate (PZT) were combined in fabricating complex multiferroic architectures in investigating the effect of nanostructuring and magnetic shape anisotropy on improving ME coupling. In particular, 1D CFO nanotubes and nanowires; 0D-3D CFO/PZT mesoporous composite; and 1D-1D CFO/PZT core-shell nanowire composite were studied. The potential implementation of nanostructured multiferroic composites into functioning devices was assessed by quantifying the converse ME coupling coefficient. The synthesis of 1D CFO nanostructures was realized by ALD of CFO in anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) membranes. This work provided a simple and inexpensive route to create parallel and high aspect ratio ( 55) magnetic nanostructures. The change in magnetic easy axis of (partially filled) CFO nanotubes from perpendicular to parallel in (fully-filled) nanowires indicated the significance of the geometric factor in controlling magnetizations and ME coupling. The 0D-3D CFO/PZT mesoporous composite demonstrated the optimizations of the strain transfer could be achieved by precise thickness control. 100 nm of mesoporous PZT was synthesized on Pt/TiOx/SiO2/Si using amphiphilic diblock copolymers as a porous ferroelectric template (10 nm pore diameter) for

User-Friendly End Station at the ALS for Nanostructure Characterization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

F. J. Himpsel; P. Alivisatos; T. Callcott; J. Carlisle; J. D. Denlinger; D. E. Eastman; D. Ederer; Z. Hussain; L.J. Terminello; T. Van Buuren; R. S. Williams

2006-01-01

This is a construction project for an end station at the ALS, which is optimized for measuring NEXAFS of nanostructures with fluorescence detection. Compared to the usual electron yield detection, fluorescence is able to probe buried structures and is sensitive to dilute species, such as nanostructures supported on a substrate. Since the quantum yield for fluorescence is 10 -4 -10 -5 times smaller than for electrons in the soft x-ray regime, such an end station requires bright undulator beamlines at the ALS. In order to optimize the setup for a wide range of applications, two end stations were built: (1) A simple, mobile chamber with efficient photon detection (>10 4 times the solid angle collection of fluorescence spectrographs) and a built-in magnet for MCD measurements at EPU beamlines (Fig. 1 left). It allows rapid mapping the electronic states of nanostructures (nanocrystals, nanowires, tailored magnetic materials, buried interfaces, biologically-functionalized surfaces). It was used with BL 8.0 (linear polarized undulator) and BL 4.0 (variable polarization). (2) A sophisticated, stationary end station operating at Beamline 8.0 (Fig. 1 right). It contains an array of surface characterization instruments and a micro-focus capability for scanning across graded samples (wedges for thickness variation, stoichiometry gradients, and general variations of the sample preparation conditions for optimizing nanostructures)

Glutathione-assisted synthesis of star-shaped zinc oxide nanostructures and their photoluminescence behavior

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kavita; Singh, Karamjit; Kumar, Sunil; Bhatti, H.S.

2014-01-01

Star-shaped ZnO nanostructures have been synthesized by facile chemical co-precipitation method in the presence of glutathione. Glutathione, a reducing agent, shape modifier and an entirely benign antioxidant; acts as a capping agent in the present study. The powder X-ray diffraction patterns indicate that the novel star-shaped ZnO nanostructures exhibit hexagonal structure. Fourier transform infra-red spectroscopic studies confirmed the anchoring of glutathione on ZnO nanocrystals. Transmission electron microscopy and field emission scanning electron microscopy revealed the star and cube-shaped shaped morphology of the glutathione modified nanocrystals. Optical characterization of synthesized nanocrystals has been done by UV–vis absorption spectroscopy and steady state photoluminescence spectroscopy. Recorded Photoluminescence spectra confirm the multi-chromatic photoluminescence behavior of the synthesized nanostructures. - Highlights: • Morphology has been investigated as a function of capping agent concentration. • Comparison between capped and uncapped ZnO nanoparticles has been examined. • Diffraction scans show the crystalline wurtzite structure of synthesized product. • Recorded PL spectra show the multichromatic behavior of synthesized nanostructures

Inorganic nanostructure-organic polymer heterostructures useful for thermoelectric devices

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

See, Kevin C.; Urban, Jeffrey J.; Segalman, Rachel A.; Coates, Nelson E.; Yee, Shannon K.

2017-11-28

The present invention provides for an inorganic nanostructure-organic polymer heterostructure, useful as a thermoelectric composite material, comprising (a) an inorganic nanostructure, and (b) an electrically conductive organic polymer disposed on the inorganic nanostructure. Both the inorganic nanostructure and the electrically conductive organic polymer are solution-processable.

Design, fabrication, and characterization of metallic nanostructures for surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy and plasmonic applications

Science.gov (United States)

Hao, Qingzhen

Metal/dielectric nanostructures have the ability to sustain coherent electron oscillations known as surface plasmons. Due to their capability of localizing and guiding light in sub-wavelength metal nanostructures beyond diffraction limits, surface plasmon-based photonics, or “plasmonics” has opened new physical phenomena and lead to novel applications in metamaterials, optoelectronics, surface enhanced spectroscopy and biological sensing. This dissertation centers on design, fabrication, characterization of metallic nanostructures and their applications in surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) and actively tunable plasmonics. Metal-dielectric nanostructures are the building blocks for photonic metamaterials. One valuable design guideline for metamaterials is the Babinet’s principle, which governs the optical properties of complementary nanostructures. However, most complementary metamaterials are designed for the far infrared region or beyond, where the optical absorption of metal is small. We have developed a novel dual fabrication method, capable of simultaneously producing optically thin complementary structures. From experimental measurements and theoretical simulations, we showed that Babinet’s principle qualitatively holds in the visible region for the optically thin complements. The complementary structure is also a good platform to study subtle differences between nanoparticles and nanoholes in SERS (a surface sensitive technique, which can enhance the conventional Raman cross-section by 106˜108 fold, thus very useful for highly sensitive biochemical sensing). Through experimental measurement and theoretical analysis, we showed that the SERS enhancement spectrum (plot of SERS enhancement versus excitation wavelengths), dominated by local near-field, for nanoholes closely follows their far-field optical transmission spectrum. However, the enhancement spectrum for nanoparticles red-shifts significantly from their far-field optical extinction

Construction of Zn2GeO4/Graphene Nanostructures with Dually-Protected Functional Nanoframes for Enhanced Lithium-Storage Performances

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ding, Caihua; Zhao, Yongjie; Yan, Dong; Su, Dezhi; Zhao, Yuzhen; Zhou, Heping; Li, Jingbo; Jin, Haibo

2017-01-01

Application products moving from small-sized devices to large-scale energy storage systems have pushed the development of lithium-ion batteries towards high-energy densities, high-power densities, and long cycle life. Germanium-based anode materials with high theoretical capacities are expected as promising anode candidates to fulfill those requirements, but suffer from the huge volume expansion upon lithiation, leading to serious material pulverization and capacity fading. Herein, a convenient and cost-effective strategy was conceived focusing on construction of dually-protected Zn 2 GeO 4 /graphene composites. The rationally designed composite was composed of hollowed Zn 2 GeO 4 nanostructures and flexible graphene layers, which acted as two functional nanoframes to synergistically alleviate the volume change during lithiation/delithiation. As a result, the Zn 2 GeO 4 /graphene composite exhibited high specific capacities, excellent cycling stability and desirable rate capability. Specifically, the Zn 2 GeO 4 /graphene composite electrode delivered specific capacity of 702 mA h g −1 at 300 mA g −1 after 600 cycles with capacity retention of 85%. In addition, a high reversible capacity of 600 mA h g −1 was retained over 1000 cycles at a high current density of 800 mA g −1 . Those achieved-results suggested that rational design of electrode nanostructures offers an effective insight for obtaining high-performance batteries.

Windows Azure Platform

CERN Document Server

Redkar, Tejaswi

2010-01-01

The Azure Services Platform is a brand-new cloud-computing technology from Microsoft. It is composed of four core components-Windows Azure, .NET Services, SQL Services, and Live Services-each with a unique role in the functioning of your cloud service. It is the goal of this book to show you how to use these components, both separately and together, to build flawless cloud services. At its heart Windows Azure Platform is a down-to-earth, code-centric book. This book aims to show you precisely how the components are employed and to demonstrate the techniques and best practices you need to know

Atomically flat single-crystalline gold nanostructures for plasmonic nanocircuitry

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Huang, J S; Geisler, P; Bruening, C; Kern, J; Prangsma, J C; Wu, X; Feichtner, Thorsten; Ziegler, J; Weinmann, P; Kamp, M; Forchel, A; Hecht, B [Wilhelm-Conrad-Roentgen-Center for Complex Material Systems, University of Wuerzburg (Germany); Biagioni, P [CNISM, Dipartimento di Fisica, Politecnico di Milano (Italy)

2011-07-01

Deep subwavelength integration of high-definition plasmonic nano-structures is of key importance for the development of future optical nanocircuitry. So far the experimental realization of proposed extended plasmonic networks remains challenging, mainly due to the multi-crystallinity of commonly used thermally evaporated gold layers. Resulting structural imperfections in individual circuit elements drastically reduce the yield of functional integrated nanocircuits. Here we demonstrate the use of very large but thin chemically grown single-crystalline gold flakes. After immobilization on any arbitrary surface, they serve as an ideal basis for focused-ion beam milling. We present high-definition ultra-smooth gold nanostructures with reproducible nanosized features over micrometer lengthscales. By comparing multi- and single-crystalline optical antennas we prove that the latter have superior optical properties which are in good agreement with numerical simulations.

Synthesis of Three-dimensional Polymer Nanostructures via Chemical Vapor Deposition

Science.gov (United States)

Cheng, Kenneth

overall shape of the nanofibers could be controlled by the internal ordering of the LC template, as exemplified by the assembly of helical nanofibers using cholesteric LC as the template. PPX nanofibers could be applied to a broad range of materials, such as curved surface, metal meshes and microparticles. We successfully created nanofibers with different surface functionalities and utilized them to capture molecules of interest. We also demonstrated the synthesis of twisted nanofibers using chiral-substituted precursors. The direction and the degree of twisting of nanofibers could be controlled by the handedness and the enantiomeric excess of the chiral precursor. Finally, we showed that the LC-templated CVD method could be extended to fabricating nanofibers made of other CVD-based polymer systems, such as poly(lutidine) and poly(p-phenylene vinylene). Our work opens a new platform for designing functional polymer nanostructures with programmable geometry, alignment and chemistry. The polymer nanostructures can be attractive for applications ranging from sensors, affinity filtration, and catalytic supports.

Design of whey protein nanostructures for incorporation and release of nutraceutical compounds in food.

Science.gov (United States)

Ramos, Oscar L; Pereira, Ricardo N; Martins, Artur; Rodrigues, Rui; Fuciños, Clara; Teixeira, José A; Pastrana, Lorenzo; Malcata, F Xavier; Vicente, António A

2017-05-03

Whey proteins are widely used as nutritional and functional ingredients in formulated foods because they are relatively inexpensive, generally recognized as safe (GRAS) ingredient, and possess important biological, physical, and chemical functionalities. Denaturation and aggregation behavior of these proteins is of particular relevance toward manufacture of novel nanostructures with a number of potential uses. When these processes are properly engineered and controlled, whey proteins may be formed into nanohydrogels, nanofibrils, or nanotubes and be used as carrier of bioactive compounds. This review intends to discuss the latest understandings of nanoscale phenomena of whey protein denaturation and aggregation that may contribute for the design of protein nanostructures. Whey protein aggregation and gelation pathways under different processing and environmental conditions such as microwave heating, high voltage, and moderate electrical fields, high pressure, temperature, pH, and ionic strength were critically assessed. Moreover, several potential applications of nanohydrogels, nanofibrils, and nanotubes for controlled release of nutraceutical compounds (e.g. probiotics, vitamins, antioxidants, and peptides) were also included. Controlling the size of protein networks at nanoscale through application of different processing and environmental conditions can open perspectives for development of nanostructures with new or improved functionalities for incorporation and release of nutraceuticals in food matrices.

Glutathione regulation-based dual-functional upconversion sensing-platform for acetylcholinesterase activity and cadmium ions.

Science.gov (United States)

Fang, Aijin; Chen, Hongyu; Li, Haitao; Liu, Meiling; Zhang, Youyu; Yao, Shouzhuo

2017-01-15

A dual-functional platform for the sensing of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity and cadmium ions (Cd 2+ ) was developed based on the fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) between NaYF 4 :Yb,Er upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) and gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) via glutathione regulation. The detection mechanism is based on the fact that AuNPs can quench the fluorescence of UCNPs. AChE catalyzes the hydrolysis of acetylthiocholine (ATC) into thiocholine which reacts with AuNPs by S-Au conjunction and results the aggregation of AuNPs and change in fluorescence of UCNPs. Therefore, the AChE activity can be detected through the changes of the color of solution and fluorescence recovery of UCNPs. However, the presence of glutathione (GSH) can protect AuNPs from aggregation and enlarge the inter-particle distance between AuNPs and UCNPs. When Cd 2+ is added into the stable mixture of AuNPs, GSH and AChE/ATC, Cd 2+ could interact with GSH to form a spherical shaped (GSH) 4 Cd complex, which decreases the free GSH on the surface of AuNPs to weaken the stability of AuNPs and lead to the easily aggregation of them in the system. The aggregated-AuNPs are released from the surface of UCNPs, which results in the fluorescence of UCNPs gradually recovered. Under the optimized conditions, the detection limits of AChE activity and Cd 2+ are estimated to be 0.015mU/mL and 0.2µM, respectively. The small molecules regulated dual-functional platform based on UCNPs/AuNPs is a simple, label-free method and can be applied for the turn-on fluorescence detection of AChE activity in human serum and Cd 2+ in real water samples. The present work demonstrates a general strategy for the design of small molecules regulated multifunctional platform and will be expanded for different areas in the future. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Metal nanostructures: from clusters to nanocatalysis and sensors

Science.gov (United States)

Smirnov, B. M.

2017-12-01

The properties of metal clusters and nanostructures composed of them are reviewed. Various existing methods for the generation of intense beams of metal clusters and their subsequent conversion into nanostructures are compared. Processes of the flow of a buffer gas with active molecules through a nanostructure are analyzed as a basis of using nanostructures for catalytic applications. The propagation of an electric signal through a nanostructure is studied by analogy with a macroscopic metal. An analysis is given of how a nanostructure changes its resistance as active molecules attach to its surface and are converted into negative ions. These negative ions induce the formation of positively charged vacancies inside the metal conductor and attract the vacancies to together change the resistance of the metal nanostructure. The physical basis is considered for using metal clusters and nanostructures composed of them to create new materials in the form of a porous metal film on the surface of an object. The fundamentals of nanocatalysis are reviewed. Semiconductor conductometric sensors consisting of bound nanoscale grains or fibers acting as a conductor are compared with metal sensors conducting via a percolation cluster, a fractal fiber, or a bunch of interwoven nanofibers formed in superfluid helium. It is shown that sensors on the basis of metal nanostructures are characterized by a higher sensitivity than semiconductor ones, but are not selective. Measurements using metal sensors involve two stages, one of which measures to high precision the attachment rate of active molecules to the sensor conductor, and in the other one the surface of metal nanostructures is cleaned from the attached molecules using a gas discharge plasma (in particular, capillary discharge) with a subsequent chromatography analysis for products of cleaning.

Metal nanostructures for non-enzymatic glucose sensing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tee, Si Yin; Teng, Choon Peng; Ye, Enyi

2017-01-01

This review covers the recent development of metal nanostructures in electrochemical non-enzymatic glucose sensing. It highlights a variety of nanostructured materials including noble metals, other transition metals, bimetallic systems, and their hybrid with carbon-based nanomaterials. Particularly, attention is devoted to numerous approaches that have been implemented for improving the sensors performance by tailoring size, shape, composition, effective surface area, adsorption capability and electron-transfer properties. The correlation of the metal nanostructures to the glucose sensing performance is addressed with respect to the linear concentration range, sensitivity and detection limit. In overall, this review provides important clues from the recent scientific achievements of glucose sensor nanomaterials which will be essentially useful in designing better and more effective electrocatalysts for future electrochemical sensing industry. - Highlights: • Overview of recent development of metal nanostructures in electrochemical non-enzymatic glucose sensing. • Special attention is focussed on noble metals, other transition metals, bimetallic systems, and their hybrid with carbon-based nanomaterials. • Merits and limitations of various metal nanostructures in electrochemical non-enzymatic glucose sensing. • Strategies to improve the glucose sensing performance of metal nanostructures as electrocatalysts.

Design and experiment of pneumatic EPB test platform

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jianshi GONG

2017-02-01

Full Text Available In order to verify the accuracy and reliability of the function and control strategy of the pneumatic electronic parking brake(EPB system, a test platform of the pneumatic EPB system is designed. The working principle of the air pressure type EPB test platform is introduced, the composition of the platform is confirmed, including air press storage module, braking module, man-machine interaction module, signal imitation module, data collection module, and fault diagnosis module, and the function of rapid charging and discharging of the pneumatic EPB system is carried out. The results show that, compared with manual control valve, the air pressure EPB braking process is more sensitive, and the test platform can meet the test requirements of the pneumatic electronic brake system.

Optical switching systems using nanostructures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Stubkjær, Kristian

2004-01-01

High capacity multiservice optical networks require compact and efficient switches. The potential benefits of optical switch elements based on nanostructured material are reviewed considering various material systems.......High capacity multiservice optical networks require compact and efficient switches. The potential benefits of optical switch elements based on nanostructured material are reviewed considering various material systems....

Reactor and method for production of nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Sunkara, Mahendra Kumar; Kim, Jeong H.; Kumar, Vivekanand

2017-04-25

A reactor and method for production of nanostructures, including metal oxide nanowires or nanoparticles, are provided. The reactor includes a regulated metal powder delivery system in communication with a dielectric tube; a plasma-forming gas inlet, whereby a plasma-forming gas is delivered substantially longitudinally into the dielectric tube; a sheath gas inlet, whereby a sheath gas is delivered into the dielectric tube; and a microwave energy generator coupled to the dielectric tube, whereby microwave energy is delivered into a plasma-forming gas. The method for producing nanostructures includes providing a reactor to form nanostructures and collecting the formed nanostructures, optionally from a filter located downstream of the dielectric tube.

Nanostructured Colloidal Particles by Confined Self-Assembly of Block Copolymers in Evaporative Droplets

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Minsoo P. Kim

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Block copolymers (BCPs can create various morphology by self-assembly in bulk or film. Recently, using BCPs in confined geometries such as thin film (one-dimension, cylindrical template (two-dimension, or emulsion droplet (three-dimension, nanostructured BCP particles have been prepared, in which unique nanostructures of the BCP are formed via solvent annealing process and can be controlled depending on molecular weight ratio and interaction parameter of the BCPs, and droplet size. Moreover, by tuning interfacial property of the BCP particles, anisotropic particles with unique nanostructures have been prepared. Furthermore, for practical application such as drug delivery system, sensor, self-healing, metamaterial, and optoelectronic device, functional nanoparticles can be incorporated inside BCP particles. In this article, we summarize recent progress on the production of structured BCP particles and composite particles with metallic nanoparticles.

Assembly of barcode-like nucleic acid nanostructures.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Pengfei; Tian, Cheng; Li, Xiang; Mao, Chengde

2014-10-15

Barcode-like (BC) nanopatterns from programmed self-assembly of nucleic acids (DNA and RNA) are reported. BC nanostructures are generated by the introduction of open spaces at selected sites to an otherwise closely packed, plain, rectangle nucleic acid nanostructure. This strategy is applied to nanostructures assembled from both origami approach and single stranded tile approach. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Quantum Nanostructures by Droplet Epitaxy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Somsak Panyakeow

2009-02-01

Full Text Available Droplet epitaxy is an alternative growth technique for several quantum nanostructures. Indium droplets are distributed randomly on GaAs substrates at low temperatures (120-350'C. Under background pressure of group V elements, Arsenic and Phosphorous, InAs and InP nanostructures are created. Quantum rings with isotropic shape are obtained at low temperature range. When the growth thickness is increased, quantum rings are transformed to quantum dot rings. At high temperature range, anisotropic strain gives rise to quantum rings with square holes and non-uniform ring stripe. Regrowth of quantum dots on these anisotropic quantum rings, Quadra-Quantum Dots (QQDs could be realized. Potential applications of these quantum nanostructures are also discussed.

Multi-periodic nanostructures for photon control

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kluge, Christian; Adam, Jost; Barié, Nicole

2014-01-01

We propose multi-periodic nanostructures yielded by superposition of multiple binary gratings for wide control over photon emission in thin-film devices. We present wavelength- and angle-resolved photoluminescence measurements of multi-periodically nanostructured organic light-emitting layers...

Nanostructuring steel for injection molding tools

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Al-Azawi, A; Smistrup, K; Kristensen, A

2014-01-01

The production of nanostructured plastic items by injection molding with ridges down to 400 nm in width, which is the smallest line width replicated from nanostructured steel shims, is presented. Here we detail a micro-fabrication method where electron beam lithography, nano-imprint lithography and ion beam etching are combined to nanostructure the planar surface of a steel wafer. Injection molded plastic parts with enhanced surface properties, like anti-reflective, superhydrophobic and structural colors can be achieved by micro- and nanostructuring the surface of the steel molds. We investigate the minimum line width that can be realized by our fabrication method and the influence of etching angle on the structure profile during the ion beam etching process. Trenches down to 400 nm in width have been successfully fabricated into a 316 type electro-polished steel wafer. Afterward a plastic replica has been produced by injection molding with good structure transfer fidelity. Thus we have demonstrated that by utilizing well-established fabrication techniques, nanostructured steel shims that are used in injection molding, a technique that allows low cost mass fabrication of plastic items, are produced. (paper)

Manganese Nanostructures and Magnetism

Science.gov (United States)

Simov, Kirie Rangelov

The primary goal of this study is to incorporate adatoms with large magnetic moment, such as Mn, into two technologically significant group IV semiconductor (SC) matrices, e.g. Si and Ge. For the first time in the world, we experimentally demonstrate Mn doping by embedding nanostructured thin layers, i.e. delta-doping. The growth is observed by in-situ scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), which combines topographic and electronic information in a single image. We investigate the initial stages of Mn monolayer growth on a Si(100)(2x1) surface reconstruction, develop methods for classification of nanostructure types for a range of surface defect concentrations (1.0 to 18.2%), and subsequently encapsulate the thin Mn layer in a SC matrix. These experiments are instrumental in generating a surface processing diagram for self-assembly of monoatomic Mn-wires. The role of surface vacancies has also been studied by kinetic Monte Carlo modeling and the experimental observations are compared with the simulation results, leading to the conclusion that Si(100)(2x1) vacancies serve as nucleation centers in the Mn-Si system. Oxide formation, which happens readily in air, is detrimental to ferromagnetism and lessens the magnetic properties of the nanostructures. Therefore, the protective SC cap, composed of either Si or Ge, serves a dual purpose: it is both the embedding matrix for the Mn nanostructured thin film and a protective agent for oxidation. STM observations of partially deposited caps ensure that the nanostructures remain intact during growth. Lastly, the relationship between magnetism and nanostructure types is established by an in-depth study using x-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD). This sensitive method detects signals even at coverages less than one atomic layer of Mn. XMCD is capable of discerning which chemical compounds contribute to the magnetic moment of the system, and provides a ratio between the orbital and spin contributions. Depending on the amount

Transient analysis of plasmonic nanostructures using an MOT-PMCHWT solver

KAUST Repository

Uysal, Ismail Enes

2015-10-26

A marching on in time (MOT) scheme for solving the Poggio-Miller-Chan-Harrington-Wu-Tsai (PMCHWT) surface integral equation on plasmonic nanostructures is described. The proposed scheme calls for temporal convolutions of the permittivity and Green function of the plasmonic medium with the temporal basis function. Time domain samples of the permittivity and the Green function required by these convolutions are computed using a fast relaxed vector fitting (FRVF) algorithm. Numerical results demonstrate the accuracy and applicability of the proposed MOT-PMCHWT solver.

Ru nanostructure fabrication using an anodic aluminum oxide nanotemplate and highly conformal Ru atomic layer deposition

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Woo-Hee; Park, Sang-Joon; Son, Jong-Yeog; Kim, Hyungjun [Department of Material Science and Engineering, POSTECH Pohang University of Science and Technology, San 31, Hyoja-Dong, Nam-Gu, Pohang 790-784 (Korea, Republic of)

2008-01-30

We fabricated metallic nanostructures directly on Si substrates through a hybrid nanoprocess combining atomic layer deposition (ALD) and a self-assembled anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) nanotemplate. ALD Ru films with Ru(DMPD)(EtCp) as a precursor and O{sub 2} as a reactant exhibited high purity and low resistivity with negligible nucleation delay and low roughness. These good growth characteristics resulted in the excellent conformality for nanometer-scale vias and trenches. Additionally, AAO nanotemplates were fabricated directly on Si and Ti/Si substrates through a multiple anodization process. AAO nanotemplates with various hole sizes (30-100 nm) and aspect ratios (2:1-20:1) were fabricated by controlling the anodizing process parameters. The barrier layers between AAO nanotemplates and Si substrates were completely removed by reactive ion etching (RIE) using BCl{sub 3} plasma. By combining the ALD Ru and the AAO nanotemplate, Ru nanostructures with controllable sizes and shapes were prepared on Si and Ti/Si substrates. The Ru nanowire array devices as a platform for sensor devices exhibited befitting properties of good ohmic contact and high surface/volume ratio.

Nanostructuring steel for injection molding tools

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Al-Azawi, A.; Smistrup, Kristian; Kristensen, Anders

2014-01-01

The production of nanostructured plastic items by injection molding with ridges down to 400 nm in width, which is the smallest line width replicated from nanostructured steel shims, is presented. Here we detail a micro-fabrication method where electron beam lithography, nano-imprint lithography...... and ion beam etching are combined to nanostructure the planar surface of a steel wafer. Injection molded plastic parts with enhanced surface properties, like anti-reflective, superhydrophobic and structural colors can be achieved by micro-and nanostructuring the surface of the steel molds. We investigate...... the minimum line width that can be realized by our fabrication method and the influence of etching angle on the structure profile during the ion beam etching process. Trenches down to 400 nm in width have been successfully fabricated into a 316 type electro-polished steel wafer. Afterward a plastic replica...

Probing the effects of the ester functional group, alkyl side chain length and anions on the bulk nanostructure of ionic liquids: a computational study.

Science.gov (United States)

Fakhraee, Mostafa; Gholami, Mohammad Reza

2016-04-14

The effects of ester addition on nanostructural properties of biodegradable ILs composed of 1-alkoxycarbonyl-3-alkyl-imidazolium cations ([C1COOCnC1im](+), n = 1, 2, 4) combined with [Br](-), [NO3](-), [BF4](-), [PF6](-), [TfO](-), and [Tf2N](-) were explored by using the molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and quantum theory of atoms in molecules (QTAIM) analysis at 400 K. Various thermodynamic properties of these ILs were extensively computed in our earlier work (Ind. Eng. Chem. Res., 2015, 54, 11678-11700). Nano-scale segregation analysis demonstrates the formation of a small spherical island-like hydrocarbon within the continuous ionic domain for ILs with short alkyl side chain ([C1COOC1C1im]), and a sponge-like nanostructure for the compound with long alkyl side chain ([C1COOC4C1im]). Ester-functionalized ILs with ethyl side chain ([C1COOC2C1im]) are the turning point between two different morphologies. Non-polar channels were observed for [C1COOC4C1im] ILs composed of smaller anions such as [Br] and [NO3], whereas clustering organization was found for the other anions. Formation of the spherical micelle-like nanostructure was seen for lengthened cations. Finally, the incorporation of an ester group into the alkyl side chain of the cation leads to stronger segregation between charged and uncharged networks, which consequently increased the possibility of self-assembly and micelle formation.

Ceramic nanostructures and methods of fabrication

Science.gov (United States)

Ripley, Edward B [Knoxville, TN; Seals, Roland D [Oak Ridge, TN; Morrell, Jonathan S [Knoxville, TN

2009-11-24

Structures and methods for the fabrication of ceramic nanostructures. Structures include metal particles, preferably comprising copper, disposed on a ceramic substrate. The structures are heated, preferably in the presence of microwaves, to a temperature that softens the metal particles and preferably forms a pool of molten ceramic under the softened metal particle. A nano-generator is created wherein ceramic material diffuses through the molten particle and forms ceramic nanostructures on a polar site of the metal particle. The nanostructures may comprise silica, alumina, titania, or compounds or mixtures thereof.

Advances in optoplasmonic sensors – combining optical nano/microcavities and photonic crystals with plasmonic nanostructures and nanoparticles

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xavier Jolly

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Nanophotonic device building blocks, such as optical nano/microcavities and plasmonic nanostructures, lie at the forefront of sensing and spectrometry of trace biological and chemical substances. A new class of nanophotonic architecture has emerged by combining optically resonant dielectric nano/microcavities with plasmonically resonant metal nanostructures to enable detection at the nanoscale with extraordinary sensitivity. Initial demonstrations include single-molecule detection and even single-ion sensing. The coupled photonic-plasmonic resonator system promises a leap forward in the nanoscale analysis of physical, chemical, and biological entities. These optoplasmonic sensor structures could be the centrepiece of miniaturised analytical laboratories, on a chip, with detection capabilities that are beyond the current state of the art. In this paper, we review this burgeoning field of optoplasmonic biosensors. We first focus on the state of the art in nanoplasmonic sensor structures, high quality factor optical microcavities, and photonic crystals separately before proceeding to an outline of the most recent advances in hybrid sensor systems. We discuss the physics of this modality in brief and each of its underlying parts, then the prospects as well as challenges when integrating dielectric nano/microcavities with metal nanostructures. In Section 5, we hint to possible future applications of optoplasmonic sensing platforms which offer many degrees of freedom towards biomedical diagnostics at the level of single molecules.

Silicon-germanium (Sige) nanostructures production, properties and applications in electronics

CERN Document Server

Usami, N

2011-01-01

Nanostructured silicon-germanium (SiGe) provides the prospect of novel and enhanced electronic device performance. This book reviews the materials science and technology of SiGe nanostructures, including crystal growth, fabrication of nanostructures, material properties and applications in electronics.$bNanostructured silicon-germanium (SiGe) opens up the prospects of novel and enhanced electronic device performance, especially for semiconductor devices. Silicon-germanium (SiGe) nanostructures reviews the materials science of nanostructures and their properties and applications in different electronic devices. The introductory part one covers the structural properties of SiGe nanostructures, with a further chapter discussing electronic band structures of SiGe alloys. Part two concentrates on the formation of SiGe nanostructures, with chapters on different methods of crystal growth such as molecular beam epitaxy and chemical vapour deposition. This part also includes chapters covering strain engineering and mo...

Relationships among surface processing at the nanometer scale, nanostructure and optical properties of thin oxide films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Losurdo, Maria

2004-05-01

Spectroscopic ellipsometry is used to study the optical properties of nanostructured semiconductor oxide thin films. Various examples of models for the dielectric function, based on Lorentzian oscillators combined with the Drude model, are given based on the band structure of the analyzed oxide. With this approach, the optical properties of thin films are determined independent of the dielectric functions of the corresponding bulk materials, and correlation between the optical properties and nanostructure of thin films is investigated. In particular, in order to discuss the dependence of optical constants on grain size, CeO{sub 2} nanostructured films are considered and parameterized by two-Lorentzian oscillators or two-Tauc-Lorentz model depending on the nanostructure and oxygen deficiency. The correlation among anisotropy, crystalline fraction and optical properties parameterized by a four-Lorentz oscillator model is discussed for nanocrystalline V{sub 2}O{sub 5} thin films. Indium tin oxide thin films are discussed as an example of the presence of graded optical properties related to interfacial reactivity activated by processing conditions. Finally, the example of ZnO shows the potential of ellipsometry in discerning crystal and epitaxial film polarity through the analysis of spectra and the detection of surface reactivity of the two polar faces, i.e. Zn-polarity and O-polarity.

Facile synthesis of microporous SiO2/triangular Ag composite nanostructures for photocatalysis

Science.gov (United States)

Sirohi, Sidhharth; Singh, Anandpreet; Dagar, Chakit; Saini, Gajender; Pani, Balaram; Nain, Ratyakshi

2017-11-01

In this article, we present a novel fabrication of microporous SiO2/triangular Ag nanoparticles for dye (methylene blue) adsorption and plasmon-mediated degradation. Microporous SiO2 nanoparticles with pore size aminopropyl) trimethoxysilane) to introduce amine groups. Amine-functionalized microporous silica was used for adsorption of triangular silver (Ag) nanoparticles. The synthesized microporous SiO2 nanostructures were investigated for adsorption of different dyes including methylene blue, congo red, direct green 26 and curcumin crystalline. Amine-functionalized microporous SiO2/triangular Ag nanostructures were used for plasmon-mediated photocatalysis of methylene blue. The experimental results revealed that the large surface area of microporous silica facilitated adsorption of dye. Triangular Ag nanoparticles, due to their better charge carrier generation and enhanced surface plasmon resonance, further enhanced the photocatalysis performance.

ALICE Connex : Mobile Volunteer Computing and Edutainment Platform

CERN Document Server

Chalumporn, Gantaphon

2016-01-01

Mobile devices are very powerful and trend to be developed. They have functions that are used in everyday life. One of their main tasks is to be an entertainment devices or gaming platform. A lot of technologies are now accepted and adopted to improve the potential of education. Edutainment is a combination of entertainment and education media together to make use of both benefits. In this work, we introduce a design of edutainment platform which is a part of mobile volunteer computing and edutainment platform called ‘ALICE Connex’ for ALICE at CERN. The edutainment platform focuses to deliver enjoyment and education, while promotes ALICE and Volunteer Computing platform to general public. The design in this work describes the functionality to build an effective edutainment with real-time multiplayer interaction on round-based gameplay, while integrates seamless edutainment with basic particle physic content though game mechanism and items design. For the assessment method we will observe the enjoyment o...

Designing Nanostructures for Phonon Transport via Bayesian Optimization

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shenghong Ju

2017-05-01

Full Text Available We demonstrate optimization of thermal conductance across nanostructures by developing a method combining atomistic Green’s function and Bayesian optimization. With an aim to minimize and maximize the interfacial thermal conductance (ITC across Si-Si and Si-Ge interfaces by means of the Si/Ge composite interfacial structure, the method identifies the optimal structures from calculations of only a few percent of the entire candidates (over 60 000 structures. The obtained optimal interfacial structures are nonintuitive and impacting: the minimum ITC structure is an aperiodic superlattice that realizes 50% reduction from the best periodic superlattice. The physical mechanism of the minimum ITC can be understood in terms of the crossover of the two effects on phonon transport: as the layer thickness in the superlattice increases, the impact of Fabry-Pérot interference increases, and the rate of reflection at the layer interfaces decreases. An aperiodic superlattice with spatial variation in the layer thickness has a degree of freedom to realize optimal balance between the above two competing mechanisms. Furthermore, the spatial variation enables weakening the impact of constructive phonon interference relative to that of destructive interference. The present work shows the effectiveness and advantage of material informatics in designing nanostructures to control heat conduction, which can be extended to other nanostructures and properties.

Growth and characterization of two-dimensional nanostructures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Herrera Sancho, Oscar Andrey

2008-01-01

Two dimensional nanostructures of palladium, nickel, silver and gadolinium were grown by means of physical evaporation in atmospheres of high vacuum and ultra high vacuum. The qualitative characterization, in situ, of the nanostructures was carried out with techniques of surface analysis: Auger electron spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The model for the quantification of contaminants in the nanostructures, was proposed by Seah and Shirley, and was made using the spectra XPS measured in situ in the atmospheres of vacuum. For the two-dimensional nanostructures of gadolinium of thicknesses 8 Å, 16 Å, 24 Å, 32 Å, 36 Å, 44 Å, 50 Å, 61 Å, 77 Å, 81 Å, 92 Å and 101 Å, were obtained optical spectra of transmission measured in situ. An band of absorption centered at approximately 2,40 eV is obtained by an increase in the dynamic conductivity from the optical constants, i.e. refractive index and extinction coefficient, of the nanostructure of gadolinium. In addition, the optical constants for the gadolinium nanostructures have presented a maximum of 80 Å of thickness and then it was continued a decreasing tendency toward the values that were reported in the literature for bulk of gadolinium. (author) [es

Quantum theory of plasmons in nanostructures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Winther, Kirsten Trøstrup

ripples in a pond where the water represents a sea of free electrons. Plasmons on metal surfaces and in nanostructured materials, such as metal nanoparticles and atomically thin two-dimensional materials, have several technological applications due to their ability to confine light on nanoscale......, also van der Waals heterostructures (vdWh), which are stacks of different twodimensional materials, are considered. A new multi-scale approach for calculating the dielectric-function of vdWh, which extends ab initio accuracy to the description of hundreds of atomic layers, is presented. Also, one...

Metallic Nanostructures Based on DNA Nanoshapes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Boxuan Shen

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Metallic nanostructures have inspired extensive research over several decades, particularly within the field of nanoelectronics and increasingly in plasmonics. Due to the limitations of conventional lithography methods, the development of bottom-up fabricated metallic nanostructures has become more and more in demand. The remarkable development of DNA-based nanostructures has provided many successful methods and realizations for these needs, such as chemical DNA metallization via seeding or ionization, as well as DNA-guided lithography and casting of metallic nanoparticles by DNA molds. These methods offer high resolution, versatility and throughput and could enable the fabrication of arbitrarily-shaped structures with a 10-nm feature size, thus bringing novel applications into view. In this review, we cover the evolution of DNA-based metallic nanostructures, starting from the metallized double-stranded DNA for electronics and progress to sophisticated plasmonic structures based on DNA origami objects.

Optical Biosensors Based on Semiconductor Nanostructures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Raúl J. Martín-Palma

2009-06-01

Full Text Available The increasing availability of semiconductor-based nanostructures with novel and unique properties has sparked widespread interest in their use in the field of biosensing. The precise control over the size, shape and composition of these nanostructures leads to the accurate control of their physico-chemical properties and overall behavior. Furthermore, modifications can be made to the nanostructures to better suit their integration with biological systems, leading to such interesting properties as enhanced aqueous solubility, biocompatibility or bio-recognition. In the present work, the most significant applications of semiconductor nanostructures in the field of optical biosensing will be reviewed. In particular, the use of quantum dots as fluorescent bioprobes, which is the most widely used application, will be discussed. In addition, the use of some other nanometric structures in the field of biosensing, including porous semiconductors and photonic crystals, will be presented.

First-principles insights on electron transport in V{sub 2}O{sub 5} nanostructures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Srivastava, Anurag [Advanced Materials Research Group, Computational Nanoscience and Technology Laboratory, Atal Bihari Vajpayee-Indian Institute of Information Technology and Management, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh 474015 (India); Chandiramouli, R., E-mail: rcmoulii@gmail.com [School of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Shanmugha Arts Science Technology and Research Academy (SASTRA) University, Tirumalaisamudram, Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu 613 401 (India)

2015-11-15

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • Band structure and electron transport in V{sub 2}O{sub 5} nanostructure are investigated using density functional theory. • V{sub 2}O{sub 5} nanostructure exhibits semiconducting behavior. • The electron density is observed to be more in oxygen sites than in vanadium sites. • The electron transport in V{sub 2}O{sub 5} molecular device can be tuned with the applied bias voltage. - Abstract: The present report is on the electron transport properties of V{sub 2}O{sub 5} nanostructures, investigated using density functional theory. As the band structure of V{sub 2}O{sub 5} exhibits semiconducting nature, the V{sub 2}O{sub 5} nanostructures are designed as molecular device and the transport properties are studied. The density of electrons is found to be more in the oxygen sites than in vanadium sites. The device density of states shows that the density of electrons in the energy intervals depends on the applied bias voltage. The transmission spectrum gives the insight on the transport property of V{sub 2}O{sub 5} molecular device. The bias voltage drives the electrons across V{sub 2}O{sub 5} scattering region, where the transmission along V{sub 2}O{sub 5} molecular device mainly depends on the bias voltage. The findings of the present work give insights to fine-tune the transport property of V{sub 2}O{sub 5} molecular device upon varying the bias voltage.

Investigations on diamond nanostructuring of different morphologies by the reactive-ion etching process and their potential applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Kunuku, Srinivasu; Sankaran, Kamatchi Jothiramalingam; Tsai, Cheng-Yen; Chang, Wen-Hao; Tai, Nyan-Hwa; Leou, Keh-Chyang; Lin, I-Nan

2013-08-14

We report the systematic studies on the fabrication of aligned, uniform, and highly dense diamond nanostructures from diamond films of various granular structures. Self-assembled Au nanodots are used as a mask in the self-biased reactive-ion etching (RIE) process, using an O2/CF4 process plasma. The morphology of diamond nanostructures is a close function of the initial phase composition of diamond. Cone-shaped and tip-shaped diamond nanostructures result for microcrystalline diamond (MCD) and nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) films, whereas pillarlike and grasslike diamond nanostructures are obtained for Ar-plasma-based and N2-plasma-based ultrananocrystalline diamond (UNCD) films, respectively. While the nitrogen-incorporated UNCD (N-UNCD) nanograss shows the most-superior electron-field-emission properties, the NCD nanotips exhibit the best photoluminescence properties, viz, different applications need different morphology of diamond nanostructures to optimize the respective characteristics. The optimum diamond nanostructure can be achieved by proper choice of granular structure of the initial diamond film. The etching mechanism is explained by in situ observation of optical emission spectrum of RIE plasma. The preferential etching of sp(2)-bonded carbon contained in the diamond films is the prime factor, which forms the unique diamond nanostructures from each type of diamond films. However, the excited oxygen atoms (O*) are the main etching species of diamond film.

Nanotechnologies. Properties and applications of nanostructured materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rempel, A A

2007-01-01

The review summarises the main methods for the preparation of nanostructured metals, alloys, semiconductors and ceramics. The formation mechanisms of nanostructures based on two different principles, viz. the assembly principle (bottom-up) and the disintegration principle (top-down), are analysed. Isolated nanoparticles, nanopowders and compact nanomaterials produced by these methods possess different properties. The scope of application of various classes of nanostructured materials is considered and the topicality of the development of nanoindustry is emphasised.

Cryogenic transmission electron microscopy nanostructural study of shed microparticles.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Liron Issman

Full Text Available Microparticles (MPs are sub-micron membrane vesicles (100-1000 nm shed from normal and pathologic cells due to stimulation or apoptosis. MPs can be found in the peripheral blood circulation of healthy individuals, whereas elevated concentrations are found in pregnancy and in a variety of diseases. Also, MPs participate in physiological processes, e.g., coagulation, inflammation, and angiogenesis. Since their clinical properties are important, we have developed a new methodology based on nano-imaging that provides significant new data on MPs nanostructure, their composition and function. We are among the first to characterize by direct-imaging cryogenic transmitting electron microscopy (cryo-TEM the near-to-native nanostructure of MP systems isolated from different cell types and stimulation procedures. We found that there are no major differences between the MP systems we have studied, as most particles were spherical, with diameters from 200 to 400 nm. However, each MP population is very heterogeneous, showing diverse morphologies. We investigated by cryo-TEM the effects of standard techniques used to isolate and store MPs, and found that either high-g centrifugation of MPs for isolation purposes, or slow freezing to -80 °C for storage introduce morphological artifacts, which can influence MP nanostructure, and thus affect the efficiency of these particles as future diagnostic tools.

Characterization of ion beam induced nanostructures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ghatak, J.; Satpati, B.; Umananda, M.; Kabiraj, D.; Som, T.; Dev, B.N.; Akimoto, K.; Ito, K.; Emoto, T.; Satyam, P.V.

2006-01-01

Tailoring of nanostructures with energetic ion beams has become an active area of research leading to the fundamental understanding of ion-solid interactions at nanoscale regime and with possible applications in the near future. Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS), high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and asymmetric X-ray Bragg-rocking curve experimental methods have been used to characterize ion-induced effects in nanostructures. The possibility of surface and sub-surface/interface alloying at nano-scale regime, ion-beam induced embedding, crater formation, sputtering yield variations for systems with isolated nanoislands, semi-continuous and continuous films of noble metals (Au, Ag) deposited on single crystalline silicon will be reviewed. MeV-ion induced changes in specified Au-nanoislands on silicon substrate are tracked as a function of ion fluence using ex situ TEM. Strain induced in the bulk silicon substrate surface due to 1.5 MeV Au 2+ and C 2+ ion beam irradiation is determined by using HRTEM and asymmetric Bragg X-ray rocking curve methods. Preliminary results on 1.5 MeV Au 2+ ion-induced effects in nanoislands of Co deposited on silicon substrate will be discussed

Functionalization of graphene oxide nanostructures improves photoluminescence and facilitates their use as optical probes in preclinical imaging

Science.gov (United States)

Prabhakar, Neeraj; Näreoja, Tuomas; von Haartman, Eva; Şen Karaman, Didem; Burikov, Sergey A.; Dolenko, Tatiana A.; Deguchi, Takahiro; Mamaeva, Veronika; Hänninen, Pekka E.; Vlasov, Igor I.; Shenderova, Olga A.; Rosenholm, Jessica M.

2015-06-01

Recently reported photoluminescent nanographene oxides (nGOs), i.e. nanographene oxidised with a sulfuric/nitric acid mixture (SNOx method), have tuneable photoluminescence and are scalable, simple and fast to produce optical probes. This material belongs to the vast class of photoluminescent carbon nanostructures, including carbon dots, nanodiamonds (NDs), graphene quantum dots (GQDs), all of which demonstrate a variety of properties that are attractive for biomedical imaging such as low toxicity and stable photoluminescence. In this study, the nGOs were organically surface-modified with poly(ethylene glycol)-poly(ethylene imine) (PEG-PEI) copolymers tagged with folic acid as the affinity ligand for cancer cells expressing folate receptors. The functionalization enhanced both the cellular uptake and quantum efficiency of the photoluminescence as compared to non-modified nGOs. The nGOs exhibited an excitation dependent photoluminescence that facilitated their detection with a wide range of microscope configurations. The functionalized nGOs were non-toxic, they were retained in the stained cell population over a period of 8 days and they were distributed equally between daughter cells. We have evaluated their applicability in in vitro and in vivo (chicken embryo CAM) models to visualize and track migratory cancer cells. The good biocompatibility and easy detection of the functionalized nGOs suggest that they could address the limitations faced with quantum dots and organic fluorophores in long-term in vivo biomedical imaging.Recently reported photoluminescent nanographene oxides (nGOs), i.e. nanographene oxidised with a sulfuric/nitric acid mixture (SNOx method), have tuneable photoluminescence and are scalable, simple and fast to produce optical probes. This material belongs to the vast class of photoluminescent carbon nanostructures, including carbon dots, nanodiamonds (NDs), graphene quantum dots (GQDs), all of which demonstrate a variety of properties that are

Electrochemical Fabrication of Nanostructures on Porous Silicon for Biochemical Sensing Platforms.

Science.gov (United States)

Ko, Euna; Hwang, Joonki; Kim, Ji Hye; Lee, Joo Heon; Lee, Sung Hwan; Tran, Van-Khue; Chung, Woo Sung; Park, Chan Ho; Choo, Jaebum; Seong, Gi Hun

2016-01-01

We present a method for the electrochemical patterning of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) or silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) on porous silicon, and explore their applications in: (1) the quantitative analysis of hydroxylamine as a chemical sensing electrode and (2) as a highly sensitive surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) substrate for Rhodamine 6G. For hydroxylamine detection, AuNPs-porous silicon can enhance the electrochemical oxidation of hydroxylamine. The current changed linearly for concentrations ranging from 100 μM to 1.32 mM (R(2) = 0.995), and the detection limit was determined to be as low as 55 μM. When used as SERS substrates, these materials also showed that nanoparticles decorated on porous silicon substrates have more SERS hot spots than those decorated on crystalline silicon substrates, resulting in a larger SERS signal. Moreover, AgNPs-porous silicon provided five-times higher signal compared to AuNPs-porous silicon. From these results, we expect that nanoparticles decorated on porous silicon substrates can be used in various types of biochemical sensing platforms.

Metal oxide nanosensors using polymeric membranes, enzymes and antibody receptors as ion and molecular recognition elements.

Science.gov (United States)

Willander, Magnus; Khun, Kimleang; Ibupoto, Zafar Hussain

2014-05-16

The concept of recognition and biofunctionality has attracted increasing interest in the fields of chemistry and material sciences. Advances in the field of nanotechnology for the synthesis of desired metal oxide nanostructures have provided a solid platform for the integration of nanoelectronic devices. These nanoelectronics-based devices have the ability to recognize molecular species of living organisms, and they have created the possibility for advanced chemical sensing functionalities with low limits of detection in the nanomolar range. In this review, various metal oxides, such as ZnO-, CuO-, and NiO-based nanosensors, are described using different methods (receptors) of functionalization for molecular and ion recognition. These functionalized metal oxide surfaces with a specific receptor involve either a complex formation between the receptor and the analyte or an electrostatic interaction during the chemical sensing of analytes. Metal oxide nanostructures are considered revolutionary nanomaterials that have a specific surface for the immobilization of biomolecules with much needed orientation, good conformation and enhanced biological activity which further improve the sensing properties of nanosensors. Metal oxide nanostructures are associated with certain unique optical, electrical and molecular characteristics in addition to unique functionalities and surface charge features which shows attractive platforms for interfacing biorecognition elements with effective transducing properties for signal amplification. There is a great opportunity in the near future for metal oxide nanostructure-based miniaturization and the development of engineering sensor devices.

Formation of different gold nanostructures by silk nanofibrils

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fang, Guangqiang; Yang, Yuhong; Yao, Jinrong; Shao, Zhengzhong; Chen, Xin

2016-01-01

Metal nanostructures that have unique size- and shape-dependent electronic, optical and chemical properties gain more and more attention in modern science and technology. In this article, we show the possibility that we are able to obtain different gold nanostructures simply with the help of silk nanofibrils. We demonstrate that only by varying the pH of the reaction solution, we get gold nanoparticles, nano-icosahedrons, nanocubes, and even microplates. Particularly, we develop a practical method for the preparation of gold microplates in acid condition in the presence of silk nanofibrils, which is impossible by using other forms of silk protein. We attribute the role of silk nanofibrils in the formation of gold nanostructure to their reduction ability from several specific amino acid residues, and the suitable structural anisotropic features to sustain the crystal growth after the reduction process. Although the main purpose of this article is to demonstrate that silk nanofibrils are able to mediate the formation of different gold nanostructure, we show the potential applications of these resulting gold nanostructures, such as surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) and photothermal transformation effect, as same as those produced by other methods. In conclusion, we present in this communication a facile and green synthesis route to prepare various gold nanostructures with silk nanofibrils by simply varying pH in the reaction system, which has remarkable advantages in future biomedical applications. - Highlights: • Different Au nanostructures can be obtained by a facile and green protein reduction method. • Silk nanofibrils serve as both reductant and template in the formation of Au nanostructures. • Different Au nanostructures can be obtained simply by regulating the pH in the medium. • Large Au microplates can be obtained with a cheap, abundant, sustainable silk protein. • Silk/Au hybrid nanocomposites show potential application in SERS and

Formation of different gold nanostructures by silk nanofibrils

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fang, Guangqiang [State Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering of Polymers, Collaborative Innovation Center of Polymers and Polymer Composite Materials, Department of Macromolecular Science, Laboratory of Advanced Materials, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200433 (China); Yang, Yuhong [Research Centre for Analysis and Measurement, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433 (China); Yao, Jinrong; Shao, Zhengzhong [State Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering of Polymers, Collaborative Innovation Center of Polymers and Polymer Composite Materials, Department of Macromolecular Science, Laboratory of Advanced Materials, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200433 (China); Chen, Xin, E-mail: chenx@fudan.edu.cn [State Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering of Polymers, Collaborative Innovation Center of Polymers and Polymer Composite Materials, Department of Macromolecular Science, Laboratory of Advanced Materials, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200433 (China)

2016-07-01

Metal nanostructures that have unique size- and shape-dependent electronic, optical and chemical properties gain more and more attention in modern science and technology. In this article, we show the possibility that we are able to obtain different gold nanostructures simply with the help of silk nanofibrils. We demonstrate that only by varying the pH of the reaction solution, we get gold nanoparticles, nano-icosahedrons, nanocubes, and even microplates. Particularly, we develop a practical method for the preparation of gold microplates in acid condition in the presence of silk nanofibrils, which is impossible by using other forms of silk protein. We attribute the role of silk nanofibrils in the formation of gold nanostructure to their reduction ability from several specific amino acid residues, and the suitable structural anisotropic features to sustain the crystal growth after the reduction process. Although the main purpose of this article is to demonstrate that silk nanofibrils are able to mediate the formation of different gold nanostructure, we show the potential applications of these resulting gold nanostructures, such as surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) and photothermal transformation effect, as same as those produced by other methods. In conclusion, we present in this communication a facile and green synthesis route to prepare various gold nanostructures with silk nanofibrils by simply varying pH in the reaction system, which has remarkable advantages in future biomedical applications. - Highlights: • Different Au nanostructures can be obtained by a facile and green protein reduction method. • Silk nanofibrils serve as both reductant and template in the formation of Au nanostructures. • Different Au nanostructures can be obtained simply by regulating the pH in the medium. • Large Au microplates can be obtained with a cheap, abundant, sustainable silk protein. • Silk/Au hybrid nanocomposites show potential application in SERS and

Metal films with imprinted nanostructures by template stripping

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Eriksen, René Lynge; Pors, Anders; Dreier, Jes

We present a novel template stripping procedure for fabricating metal films with imprinted nanostructures. The basic idea is to deposit a gold film onto a nano-structured substrate and subsequently strip the film from the substrate surface thereby revealing imprinted nanostructures in the film...... result is a thin gold film with imprinted nano-cavities....

Nanostructured layer-by-layer films containing phaeophytin-b: Electrochemical characterization for sensing purposes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nunes Pauli, Gisele Elias; Araruna, Felipe B.; Eiras, Carla; Leite, José Roberto S.A.; Chaves, Otemberg Souza; Filho, Severino Gonçalves Brito; Vanderlei de Souza, Maria de Fátima; Chavero, Lucas Natálio; Sartorelli, Maria Luisa

2015-01-01

This paper reports the study and characterization of a new platform for practical applications, where the use of phaeophytin-b (phaeo-b), a compound derived from chlorophyll, was characterized and investigated for sensing purposes. Modified electrodes with nanostructured phaeo-b films were fabricated via the layer-by-layer (LbL) technique, where phaeo-b was assembled with cashew gum, a polysaccharide, or with poly(allylamine) hydrochloride (PAH). The multilayer formation was investigated with UV–Vis spectroscopy by monitoring the absorption band associated to phaeo-b at approximately 410 nm, where distinct molecular interactions between the materials were verified. The morphology of the films was analyzed by atomic force microscopy (AFM). The electrochemical properties through redox behavior of phaeo-b were studied with cyclic voltammetry. The produced films were applied as sensors for hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) detection. In terms of sensing, the cashew/phaeo-b film exhibited the most promising result, with a fast response and broad linear range upon the addition of H 2 O 2 . This approach provides a simple and inexpensive method for development of a nonenzymatic electrochemical sensor for H 2 O 2 . - Highlights: • Potential applications of phaeophytin-b • Low-cost method to produce sensitive nanostructured films • Electrochemical sensor based on phaeophytin-b and cashew gum

Prospects of target nanostructuring for laser proton acceleration

Science.gov (United States)

Lübcke, Andrea; Andreev, Alexander A.; Höhm, Sandra; Grunwald, Ruediger; Ehrentraut, Lutz; Schnürer, Matthias

2017-03-01

In laser-based proton acceleration, nanostructured targets hold the promise to allow for significantly boosted proton energies due to strong increase of laser absorption. We used laser-induced periodic surface structures generated in-situ as a very fast and economic way to produce nanostructured targets capable of high-repetition rate applications. Both in experiment and theory, we investigate the impact of nanostructuring on the proton spectrum for different laser-plasma conditions. Our experimental data show that the nanostructures lead to a significant enhancement of absorption over the entire range of laser plasma conditions investigated. At conditions that do not allow for efficient laser absorption by plane targets, i.e. too steep plasma gradients, nanostructuring is found to significantly enhance the proton cutoff energy and conversion efficiency. In contrast, if the plasma gradient is optimized for laser absorption of the plane target, the nanostructure-induced absorption increase is not reflected in higher cutoff energies. Both, simulation and experiment point towards the energy transfer from the laser to the hot electrons as bottleneck.

Thermal failure of nanostructured thermal barrier coatings with cold sprayed nanostructured NiCrAlY bond coat

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang, Q.; Li, Y.; Zhang, S.L.; Wang, X.R.; Yang, G.J.; Li, C.X.; Li, C.J. [Xi' an Jiaotong Univ., Xi' an (China)

2008-07-01

Nanostructured YSZ is expected to exhibit a high strain tolerability due to its low Young's modulus and consequently high durability. In this study, a porous YSZ as the thermal barrier coating was deposited by plasma spraying using an agglomerated nanostructured YSZ powder on a Ni-based superalloy Inconel 738 substrate with a cold-sprayed nanostructured NiCrAlY as the bond coat. The heat treatment in Ar atmosphere was applied to the cold-sprayed bond coat before deposition of YSZ. The isothermal oxidation and thermal cycling tests were applied to examine failure modes of plasma-sprayed nanostructured YSZ. The results showed that YSZ coating was deposited by partially melted YSZ particles. The nonmelted fraction of spray particles retains the porous nanostructure of the starting powder into the deposit. YSZ coating exhibits a bimodal microstructure consisting of nanosized particles retained from the powder and micro-columnar grains formed through the solidification of the melted fraction in spray particles. The oxidation of the bond coat occurs during the heat treatment in Ar atmosphere. The uniform oxide at the interface between the bond coat and YSZ can be formed during isothermal test. The cracks were observed at the interface between TGO/BC or TGO/YSZ after thermal cyclic test. However, the failure of TBCs mainly occurred through spalling of YSZ within YSZ coating. The failure characteristics of plasma-sprayed nanostructured YSZ are discussed based on the coating microstructure and formation of TGO on the bond coat surface. (orig.)

Chemical modifications and reactions in DNA nanostructures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gothelf, Kurt Vesterager

2017-01-01

such as hydrocarbons or steroids have been introduced to change the surface properties of DNA origami structures, either to protect the DNA nanostructure or to dock it into membranes and other hydrophobic surfaces. DNA nanostructures have also been used to control covalent chemical reactions. This article provides......DNA nanotechnology has the power to form self-assembled and well-defined nanostructures, such as DNA origami, where the relative positions of each atom are known with subnanometer precision. Our ability to synthesize oligonucleotides with chemical modifications in almost any desired position...... provides rich opportunity to incorporate molecules, biomolecules, and a variety of nanomaterials in specific positions on DNA nanostructures. Several standard modifications for oligonucleotides are available commercially, such as dyes, biotin, and chemical handles, and such modified oligonucleotides can...

Graphene-Plasmonic Hybrid Platform for Label-Free SERS Biomedical Detection

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Pu

Surface Enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS) has attracted explosive interest for the wealth of vibrational information it provides with minimal invasive effects to target analyte. Nanotechnology, especially in the form of noble metal nanoparticles exhibit unique electromagnetic and chemical characteristics that are explored to realize ultra-sensitive SERS detection in chemical and biological analysis. Graphene, atom-thick carbon monolayer, exhibits superior chemical stability and bio-compatibility. A combination of SERS-active metal nanostructures and graphene will create various synergies in SERS. The main objective of this research was to exploit the applications of the graphene-Au tip hybrid platform in SERS. The hybrid platform consists of a periodic Au nano-pyramid substrate to provide reproducible plasmonic enhancement, and the superimposed monolayer graphene sheet, serving as "built-in" Raman marker. Extensive theoretical and experimental studies were conducted to determine the potentials of the hybrid platform as SERS substrate. Results from both Finite-Domain Time-Domain (FDTD) numerical simulation and Raman scattering of graphene suggested that the hybrid platform boosted a high density of hotspots yielding 1000 times SERS enhancement of graphene bands. Ultra-high sensitivity of the hybrid platform was demonstrated by bio-molecules including dye, protein and neurotransmitters. Dopamine and serotonin can be detected and distinguished at 10-9 M concentration in the presence of human body fluid. Single molecule detection was obtained using a bi-analyte technique. Graphene supported a vibration mode dependent SERS chemical enhancement of ˜10 to the analyte. Quantitative evaluation of hotspots was presented using spatially resolved Raman mapping of graphene SERS enhancement. Graphene plays a crucial role in quantifying SERS hotspots and paves the path for defining SERS EF that could be universally applied to various SERS systems. A reproducible and statistically

Metal chalcogenide nanostructures for renewable energy applications

CERN Document Server

Qurashi, Ahsanulhaq

2014-01-01

This first ever reference book that focuses on metal chalcogenide semiconductor nanostructures for renewable energy applications encapsulates the state-of-the-art in multidisciplinary research on the metal chalcogenide semiconductor nanostructures (nanocrystals, nanoparticles, nanorods, nanowires,  nanobelts, nanoflowers, nanoribbons and more).  The properties and synthesis of a class of nanomaterials is essential to renewable energy manufacturing and this book focuses on the synthesis of metal chalcogendie nanostructures, their growth mechanism, optical, electrical, and other important prop

Controlled adsorption of cytochrome c to nanostructured gold surfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gomes, Inês; Feio, Maria J.; Santos, Nuno C.; Eaton, Peter; Serro, Ana Paula; Saramago, Benilde; Pereira, Eulália; Franco, Ricardo

2012-01-01

Controlled electrostatic physisorption of horse heart cytochrome c (Cyt c) onto nanostructured gold surfaces was investigated using Quartz-Crystal Microbalance measurements in planar gold surfaces with or without functionalization using a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) of the alkanethiol mercaptoundecanoic acid (MUA). MUA is a useful functionalization ligand for gold surfaces, shedding adsorbed biomolecules from the excessive electron density of the metal. A parallel analysis was conducted in the corresponding curved surfaces of 15 nm gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), using zeta-potential and UV– visible spectroscopy. Atomic Force Microscopy of both types of functionalized gold surfaces with a MUA SAM, allowed for visualization of Cyt c deposits on the nanostructured gold surface. The amount of Cyt c adsorbed onto the gold surface could be controlled by the solution pH. For the assays conducted at pH 4.5, when MUA SAM- functionalized planar gold surfaces are positive or neutral, and Cyt c has a positive net charge, only 13 % of the planar gold surface area was coated with protein. In contrast, at pH 7.4, when MUA SAM-functionalized planar gold surfaces and Cyt c have opposite charges, a protein coverage of 28 % could be observed implying an adsorption process strongly governed by electrostatic forces. Cyt c adsorption on planar and curved gold surfaces are found to be greatly favored by the presence of a MUA-capping layer. In particular, on the AuNPs, the binding constant is three times larger than the binding constant obtained for the original citrate-capped AuNPs.

Controlled adsorption of cytochrome c to nanostructured gold surfaces

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gomes, Ines [Faculdade de Ciencias e Tecnologia, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, REQUIMTE, Departamento de Quimica (Portugal); Feio, Maria J. [Faculdade de Ciencias da Universidade do Porto, REQUIMTE, Departamento de Quimica e Bioquimica (Portugal); Santos, Nuno C. [Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de Lisboa, Instituto de Medicina Molecular (Portugal); Eaton, Peter [Faculdade de Ciencias da Universidade do Porto, REQUIMTE, Departamento de Quimica e Bioquimica (Portugal); Serro, Ana Paula; Saramago, Benilde [Centro de Quimica Estrutural, Instituto Superior Tecnico (Portugal); Pereira, Eulalia [Faculdade de Ciencias da Universidade do Porto, REQUIMTE, Departamento de Quimica e Bioquimica (Portugal); Franco, Ricardo, E-mail: ricardo.franco@fct.unl.pt [Faculdade de Ciencias e Tecnologia, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, REQUIMTE, Departamento de Quimica (Portugal)

2012-12-15

Controlled electrostatic physisorption of horse heart cytochrome c (Cyt c) onto nanostructured gold surfaces was investigated using Quartz-Crystal Microbalance measurements in planar gold surfaces with or without functionalization using a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) of the alkanethiol mercaptoundecanoic acid (MUA). MUA is a useful functionalization ligand for gold surfaces, shedding adsorbed biomolecules from the excessive electron density of the metal. A parallel analysis was conducted in the corresponding curved surfaces of 15 nm gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), using zeta-potential and UV- visible spectroscopy. Atomic Force Microscopy of both types of functionalized gold surfaces with a MUA SAM, allowed for visualization of Cyt c deposits on the nanostructured gold surface. The amount of Cyt c adsorbed onto the gold surface could be controlled by the solution pH. For the assays conducted at pH 4.5, when MUA SAM- functionalized planar gold surfaces are positive or neutral, and Cyt c has a positive net charge, only 13 % of the planar gold surface area was coated with protein. In contrast, at pH 7.4, when MUA SAM-functionalized planar gold surfaces and Cyt c have opposite charges, a protein coverage of 28 % could be observed implying an adsorption process strongly governed by electrostatic forces. Cyt c adsorption on planar and curved gold surfaces are found to be greatly favored by the presence of a MUA-capping layer. In particular, on the AuNPs, the binding constant is three times larger than the binding constant obtained for the original citrate-capped AuNPs.

Complementor embeddedness in platform ecosystems : The case of google apps

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Angeren, van J.; Blijleven, V.B; Jansen, S.; Brinkkemper, S.

2013-01-01

Platforms and their marketplaces with complementarities are prominent in the software industry. As the proprietary platform itself exhibits elementary or generic functionality, platform owners depend on a complementor ecosystem populated by third-parties. At present, little is known about mechanisms

The unique rht-MOF platform, ideal for pinpointing the functionalization and CO 2 adsorption relationship

KAUST Repository

Luebke, Ryan

2012-01-01

The uniqueness of the rht-MOF platform, based on the singular (3,24)-connected net, allows for the facile design and synthesis of functionalized materials for desired applications. Here we designed a nitrogen-rich trefoil hexacarboxylate (trigonal tri-isophthalate) ligand, which serves to act as the trigonal molecular building block while concurrently coding the formation of the targeted truncated cuboctahedral supermolecular building block (in situ), and enhancing the CO 2 uptake in the resultant rht-MOF. © 2012 The Royal Society of Chemistry.

Sulfur-Hz(CHx)y(z = 0,1) functionalized metal oxide nanostructure decorated interfaces: Evidence of Lewis base and Brönsted acid sites – Influence on chemical sensing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Laminack, William; Baker, Caitlin; Gole, James

2015-01-01

Nanostructure metal oxide decorated n-type extrinsic porous silicon (PS) semiconductor interfaces are modified through in-situ interaction with acidic ethane and butane thiols (EtSH, BuSH) and basic diethyl sulfide (Et 2 S). Highly sensitive conductometric sensor evaluations and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy demonstrate the effect of sulfur group functionalization modifying the acidity of the metal oxides and their interaction with NH 3 . SEM micrographs demonstrate that the sulfur treated particles are less than 30 nm in size. EDAX studies confirm the chemical composition of the modified nanoparticles and suggest the surface interaction of the sulfides and thiols. The acidic thiols can form Brönsted acidic sites enhancing the acidity of the metal oxides, thus broadening the initial metal oxide acidity range. The sulfides interact to lower the Lewis acidity of nanostructured metal oxide sites. Conductometric response matrices with NH 3 at room temperature, corresponding to the thiol and sulfide treated nanostructures of the metal oxides TiO 2 , SnO x , Ni x O, Cu x O, and Au x O (x >> 1) are evaluated for a dominant electron transduction process forming the basis for reversible chemical sensing in the absence of chemical bond formation. Treatment with the acidic thiols enhances the metal center acidity. It is suggested that the thiols can interact to increase the Brönsted acidity of the doped metal oxide surface if they maintain SH bonds. This process may account for the shift in Lewis acidity as the Brönsted acid sites counter the decrease in Lewis acidity resulting from the interaction of S-(CH x ) y groups. In contrast, treatment with basic Et 2 S decreases the Lewis acidity of the metal oxide sites, enhancing the basicity of the decorated interface. XPS measurements indicate a change in binding energy (BE) of the metal and oxygen centers. The observed changes in conductometric response do not represent a simple increase in surface acidity or basicity but

Annealing induced structural evolution and electrochromic properties of nanostructured tungsten oxide films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wu, Ching-Lin [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan, ROC (China); Lin, Chung-Kwei [School of Dental Technology, Taipei Medical University, Taipei City 110, Taiwan, ROC (China); Wang, Chun-Kai [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan, ROC (China); Wang, Sheng-Chang [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Southern Taiwan University, Tainan 710, Taiwan, ROC (China); Huang, Jow-Lay, E-mail: JLH888@mail.ncku.edu.tw [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan, ROC (China); Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, National University of Kaohsiung, Kaohsiung 81148, Taiwan, ROC (China); Research Center for Energy Technology and Strategy, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan, ROC (China)

2013-12-31

The effect of microstructure on the optical and electrochemical properties of nanostructured tungsten oxide films was evaluated as a function of annealing temperature. The films using block copolymer as the template were prepared from peroxotungstic acid (PTA) by spin-coating onto the substrate and post-annealed at 250–400 °C to form tungsten oxide films with nanostructure. The microstructure of the films was measured by X-ray diffraction and surface electron microscopy. The films annealed at temperatures below 300 °C are characterized by amorphous or nanocrystalline structures with a pore size of less than 10 nm. The evaluated annealing temperature caused a triclinic crystalline structure and microcracks. Cyclic voltammetry measurements were performed in a LiClO{sub 4}-propylene carbonate electrolyte. The results showed that the ion inserted capacity were maximized for films annealed at 300 °C and decreased with the increasing of annealing temperature. The electrochromic properties of the nanostructured tungsten oxide films were evaluated simultaneously by potentiostat and UV–vis spectroscopy. The films annealed at 300 °C exhibit high transmission modulation (∆T ∼ 40%) at λ = 633 nm and good kinetic properties. As a result, the correlation between the microstructure and kinetic properties was established, and the electrochromic properties have been demonstrated. - Highlights: • Surfactant-assisted WO{sub 3} films have been prepared by sol–gel method. • Nanostructure of porous WO{sub 3} film is retained after crystallization. • Kinetic properties of WO{sub 3} can be improved by nanostructure and crystallinity.

Anion Exchange in II-VI Semiconducting Nanostructures via Atomic Templating.

Science.gov (United States)

Agarwal, Rahul; Krook, Nadia M; Ren, Ming-Liang; Tan, Liang Z; Liu, Wenjing; Rappe, Andrew M; Agarwal, Ritesh

2018-03-14

Controlled chemical transformation of nanostructures is a promising technique to obtain precisely designed novel materials, which are difficult to synthesize otherwise. We report high-temperature vapor-phase anion-exchange reactions to chemically transform II-VI semiconductor nanostructures (100-300 nm length scale) while retaining the single crystallinity, crystal structure, morphology, and even defect distribution of the parent material via atomic templating. The concept of atomic templating is employed to obtain kinetically controlled, thermodynamically metastable structural phases such as zincblende CdSe and CdS from zincblende CdTe upon complete chemical replacement of Te with Se or S. The underlying transformation mechanisms are explained through first-principles density functional theory calculations. Atomic templating is a unique path to independently tune materials' phase and composition at the nanoscale, allowing the synthesis of novel materials.

Temperature-feedback direct laser reshaping of silicon nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Aouassa, M.; Mitsai, E.; Syubaev, S.; Pavlov, D.; Zhizhchenko, A.; Jadli, I.; Hassayoun, L.; Zograf, G.; Makarov, S.; Kuchmizhak, A.

2017-12-01

Direct laser reshaping of nanostructures is a cost-effective and fast approach to create or tune various designs for nanophotonics. However, the narrow range of required laser parameters along with the lack of in-situ temperature control during the nanostructure reshaping process limits its reproducibility and performance. Here, we present an approach for direct laser nanostructure reshaping with simultaneous temperature control. We employ thermally sensitive Raman spectroscopy during local laser melting of silicon pillar arrays prepared by self-assembly microsphere lithography. Our approach allows establishing the reshaping threshold of an individual nanostructure, resulting in clean laser processing without overheating of the surrounding area.

Facile Growth of Multi-twined Au Nanostructures

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

like nanostructures undergo spontaneous transformation into multi-twined nanostructures within 24 h. These nanocrystalline ... reactions,1 and a color indicating reagent for the sensing of biomolecules.2 ... Two-compartment, three electrode ...

Paper based electronics platform

KAUST Repository

Nassar, Joanna Mohammad; Sevilla, Galo Andres Torres; Hussain, Muhammad Mustafa

2017-01-01

A flexible and non-functionalized low cost paper-based electronic system platform fabricated from common paper, such as paper based sensors, and methods of producing paper based sensors, and methods of sensing using the paper based sensors

[Porting Radiotherapy Software of Varian to Cloud Platform].

Science.gov (United States)

Zou, Lian; Zhang, Weisha; Liu, Xiangxiang; Xie, Zhao; Xie, Yaoqin

2017-09-30

To develop a low-cost private cloud platform of radiotherapy software. First, a private cloud platform which was based on OpenStack and the virtual GPU hardware was builded. Then on the private cloud platform, all the Varian radiotherapy software modules were installed to the virtual machine, and the corresponding function configuration was completed. Finally the software on the cloud was able to be accessed by virtual desktop client. The function test results of the cloud workstation show that a cloud workstation is equivalent to an isolated physical workstation, and any clients on the LAN can use the cloud workstation smoothly. The cloud platform transplantation in this study is economical and practical. The project not only improves the utilization rates of radiotherapy software, but also makes it possible that the cloud computing technology can expand its applications to the field of radiation oncology.

Nanostructural studies on monoelaidin-water systems at low temperatures.

Science.gov (United States)

Kulkarni, Chandrashekhar V

2011-10-04

In recent years, lipid based nanostructures have increasingly been used as model membranes to study various complex biological processes. For better understanding of such phenomena, it is essential to gain as much information as possible for model lipid structures under physiological conditions. In this paper, we focus on one of such lipids--monoelaidin (ME)--for its polymorphic nanostructures under varying conditions of temperature and water content. In the recent contribution (Soft Matter, 2010, 6, 3191), we have reported the phase diagram of ME above 30 °C and compared with the phase behavior of other lipids including monoolein (MO), monovaccenin (MV), and monolinolein (ML). Remarkable phase behavior of ME, stabilizing three bicontinuous cubic phases, motivates its study at low temperatures. Current studies concentrate on the low-temperature (ME and subsequent reconstruction of its phase diagram over the entire temperature-water composition space (temperature, 0-76 °C; and water content, 0-70%). The polymorphs found for the monoelaidin-water system include three bicontinuous cubic phases, i.e., Ia3d, Pn3m, and Im3m, and lamellar phases which exhibit two crystalline (L(c1) and L(c0)), two gel (L(β) and L(β*)), and a fluid lamellar (L(α)) states. The fluid isotropic phase (L(2)) was observed only for lower hydrations (<20%), whereas hexagonal phase (H(2)) was not found under studied conditions. Nanostructural parameters of these phases as a function of temperature and water content are presented together with some molecular level calculations. This study might be crucial for perception of the lyotropic phase behavior as well as for designing nanostructural assemblies for potential applications. © 2011 American Chemical Society

Nanostructures for Organic Solar Cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Goszczak, Arkadiusz Jarosław

2016-01-01

The experimental work in this thesis is focused on the fabrication of nanostructures that can be implemented in organic solar cell (OSC) architecture for enhancement of the device performance. Solar devices made from organic material are gaining increased attention, compared to their inorganic...... counterparts, due to the promising advantages, such as transparency, flexibility, ease of processing etc. But their efficiencies cannot be compared to the inorganic ones. Boosting the efficiency of OSCs by nanopatterning has thus been puzzling many researchers within the past years. Therefore various methods...... have been proposed to be used for developing efficient nanostructures for OSC devices such as, plasmonic structures, nanowires (NWs), gratings, nanorods etc. The nanostructuring methods applied though, do not offer the possibility of a cheap, rapid, reproducible and scalable fabrication. It is the aim...

Nanostructures for protein drug delivery.

Science.gov (United States)

Pachioni-Vasconcelos, Juliana de Almeida; Lopes, André Moreni; Apolinário, Alexsandra Conceição; Valenzuela-Oses, Johanna Karina; Costa, Juliana Souza Ribeiro; Nascimento, Laura de Oliveira; Pessoa, Adalberto; Barbosa, Leandro Ramos Souza; Rangel-Yagui, Carlota de Oliveira

2016-02-01

Use of nanoscale devices as carriers for drugs and imaging agents has been extensively investigated and successful examples can already be found in therapy. In parallel, recombinant DNA technology together with molecular biology has opened up numerous possibilities for the large-scale production of many proteins of pharmaceutical interest, reflecting in the exponentially growing number of drugs of biotechnological origin. When we consider protein drugs, however, there are specific criteria to take into account to select adequate nanostructured systems as drug carriers. In this review, we highlight the main features, advantages, drawbacks and recent developments of nanostructures for protein encapsulation, such as nanoemulsions, liposomes, polymersomes, single-protein nanocapsules and hydrogel nanoparticles. We also discuss the importance of nanoparticle stabilization, as well as future opportunities and challenges in nanostructures for protein drug delivery.

Synthesis and integration of one-dimensional nanostructures for chemical gas sensing applications

Science.gov (United States)

Parthangal, Prahalad Madhavan

The need for improved measurement technology for the detection and monitoring of gases has increased tremendously for maintenance of domestic and industrial health and safety, environmental surveys, national security, food-processing, medical diagnostics and various other industrial applications. Among the several varieties of gas sensors available in the market, solid-state sensors are the most popular owing to their excellent sensitivity, ruggedness, versatility and low cost. Semiconducting metal oxides such as tin oxide (SnO2), zinc oxide (ZnO), and tungsten oxide (WO3) are routinely employed as active materials in these sensors. Since their performance is directly linked to the exposed surface area of the sensing material, one-dimensional nanostructures possessing very high surface to volume ratios are attractive candidates for designing the next generation of sensors. Such nano-sensors also enable miniaturization thereby reducing power consumption. The key to achieve success in one-dimensional nanotechnologies lies in assembly. While synthesis techniques and capabilities continue to expand rapidly, progress in controlled assembly has been sluggish due to numerous technical challenges. In this doctoral thesis work, synthesis and characterization of various one-dimensional nanostructures including nanotubes of SnO2, and nanowires of WO3 and ZnO, as well as their direct integration into miniature sensor platforms called microhotplates have been demonstrated. The key highlights of this research include devising elegant strategies for growing metal oxide nanotubes using carbon nanotubes as templates, substantially reducing process temperatures to enable growth of WO3 nanowires on microhotplates, and successfully fabricating a ZnO nanowire array based sensor using a hybrid nanowire-nanoparticle assembly approach. In every process, the gas-sensing properties of one-dimensional nanostructures were observed to be far superior in comparison with thin films of the same

Silk fibroin nanostructured materials for biomedical applications

Science.gov (United States)

Mitropoulos, Alexander N.

Nanostructured biopolymers have proven to be promising to develop novel biomedical applications where forming structures at the nanoscale normally occurs by self-assembly. However, synthesizing these structures can also occur by inducing materials to transition into other forms by adding chemical cross-linkers, changing pH, or changing ionic composition. Understanding the generation of nanostructures in fluid environments, such as liquid organic solvents or supercritical fluids, has not been thoroughly examined, particularly those that are based on protein-based block-copolymers. Here, we examine the transformation of reconstituted silk fibroin, which has emerged as a promising biopolymer due to its biocompatibility, biodegradability, and ease of functionalization, into submicron spheres and gel networks which offer applications in tissue engineering and advanced sensors. Two types of gel networks, hydrogels and aerogels, have small pores and large surface areas that are defined by their structure. We design and analyze silk nanoparticle formation using a microfluidic device while offering an application for drug delivery. Additionally, we provide a model and characterize hydrogel formation from micelles to nanoparticles, while investigating cellular response to the hydrogel in an in vitro cell culture model. Lastly, we provide a second model of nanofiber formation during near-critical and supercritical drying and characterize the silk fibroin properties at different drying pressures which, when acting as a stabilizing matrix, shows to improve the activity of entrapped enzymes dried at different pressures. This work has created new nanostructured silk fibroin forms to benefit biomedical applications that could be applied to other fibrous proteins.

Controllable synthesis and defect-dependent photoluminescence properties of In2O3 nanostructures prepared by PVD

Science.gov (United States)

Jin, Changqing; Wei, Yongxing; Peterson, George; Zhu, Kexin; Jian, Zengyun

2017-05-01

In2O3 nanostructures were successfully synthesized via physical vapor deposition (PVD). It was found that the morphology of nanostuctures could be controlled by manipulation of the synthesis temperature, growth time, use of a Au-catalyst, selection of substrate material, and vapor pressure. A higher synthesis temperature is more favorable for the formation of 1D nanostructures. An increased growth time increased the width and length of the 1D nanostructures. Through the use of a Au-catalyst coated Si (1 0 0) substrate, we were able to preferentially synthesize (1 0 0) In2O3 nanostructures, even at lower growth temperatures. This research shows that a Au-catalyst is necessary for the formation of one-dimensional (1D) In2O3 nanostructures. Three dimensional (3D) octahedral nanoparticles are resultant from a Au-free Si (1 0 0) substrate. Al2O3 (1 0 0) substrates were found to be energetically favorable for the synthesis of nanofilms, not 1D nanostructures, regardless of the presence of Au-catalyst. The photoluminescence curves indicate that the defect related luminescence is not a function of morphology, but rather the ratio of the partial vapor pressures of the constituent elements (In and O), which were controlled by the growth pressure.

An overview on cellulose-based material in tailoring bio-hybrid nanostructured photocatalysts for water treatment and renewable energy applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Mohamed, Mohamad Azuwa; Abd Mutalib, Muhazri; Mohd Hir, Zul Adlan; M Zain, M F; Mohamad, Abu Bakar; Jeffery Minggu, Lorna; Awang, Nor Asikin; W Salleh, W N

2017-10-01

A combination between the nanostructured photocatalyst and cellulose-based materials promotes a new functionality of cellulose towards the development of new bio-hybrid materials for various applications especially in water treatment and renewable energy. The excellent compatibility and association between nanostructured photocatalyst and cellulose-based materials was induced by bio-combability and high hydrophilicity of the cellulose components. The electron rich hydroxyl group of celluloses helps to promote superior interaction with photocatalyst. The formation of bio-hybrid nanostructured are attaining huge interest nowadays due to the synergistic properties of individual cellulose-based material and photocatalyst nanoparticles. Therefore, in this review we introduce some cellulose-based material and discusses its compatibility with nanostructured photocatalyst in terms of physical and chemical properties. In addition, we gather information and evidence on the fabrication techniques of cellulose-based hybrid nanostructured photocatalyst and its recent application in the field of water treatment and renewable energy. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Nanostructured piezoelectric energy harvesters

CERN Document Server

Briscoe, Joe

2014-01-01

This book covers a range of devices that use piezoelectricity to convert mechanical deformation into electrical energy and relates their output capabilities to a range of potential applications. Starting with a description of the fundamental principles and properties of piezo- and ferroelectric materials, where applications of bulk materials are well established, the book shows how nanostructures of these materials are being developed for energy harvesting applications. The authors show how a nanostructured device can be produced, and put in context some of the approaches that are being invest

Nanotechnology and health safety--toxicity and risk assessments of nanostructured materials on human health.

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Surya; Nalwa, Hari Singh

2007-09-01

The field of nanotechnology has recently emerged as the most commercially viable technology of this century because of its wide-ranging applications in our daily lives. Man-made nanostructured materials such as fullerenes, nanoparticles, nanopowders, nanotubes, nanowires, nanorods, nanofibers, quantum dots, dendrimers, nanoclusters, nanocrystals, and nanocomposites are globally produced in large quantities due to their wide potential applications, e.g., in skincare and consumer products, healthcare, electronics, photonics, biotechnology, engineering products, pharmaceuticals, drug delivery, and agriculture. Human exposure to these nanostructured materials is inevitable, as they can enter the body through the lungs or other organs via food, drink, and medicine and affect different organs and tissues such as the brain, liver, kidney, heart, colon, spleen, bone, blood, etc., and may cause cytotoxic effects, e.g., deformation and inhibition of cell growth leading to various diseases in humans and animals. Since a very wide variety of nanostructured materials exits, their interactions with biological systems and toxicity largely depend upon their properties, such as size, concentration, solubility, chemical and biological properties, and stability. The toxicity of nanostructured materials could be reduced by chemical approaches such by surface treatment, functionalization, and composite formation. This review summarizes the sources of various nanostructured materials and their human exposure, biocompatibility in relation to potential toxicological effects, risk assessment, and safety evaluation on human and animal health as well as on the environment.

Construction of a fluorescent nanostructured chitosan-hydroxyapatite scaffold by nanocrystallon induced biomimetic mineralization and its cell biocompatibility.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Guancong; Zheng, Lin; Zhao, Hongshi; Miao, Junying; Sun, Chunhui; Liu, Hong; Huang, Zhen; Yu, Xiaoqiang; Wang, Jiyang; Tao, Xutang

2011-05-01

Biomaterial surfaces and their nanostructures can significantly influence cell growth and viability. Thus, manipulating surface characteristics of scaffolds can be a potential strategy to control cell functions for stem cell tissue engineering. In this study, in order to construct a hydroxyapatite (HAp) coated genipin-chitosan conjugation scaffold (HGCCS) with a well-defined HAp nanostructured surface, we have developed a simple and controllable approach that allows construction of a two-level, three-dimensional (3D) networked structure to provide sufficient calcium source and achieve desired mechanical function and mass transport (permeability and diffusion) properties. Using a nontoxic cross-linker (genipin) and a nanocrystallon induced biomimetic mineralization method, we first assembled a layer of HAp network-like nanostructure on a 3D porous chitosan-based framework. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) analysis confirm that the continuous network-like nanostructure on the channel surface of the HGCCS is composed of crystalline HAp. Compressive testing demonstrated that the strength of the HGCCS is apparently enhanced because of the strong cross-linking of genipin and the resulting reinforcement of the HAp nanonetwork. The fluorescence properties of genipin-chitosan conjugation for convenient monitoring of the 3D porous scaffold biodegradability and cell localization in the scaffold was specifically explored using confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM). Furthermore, through scanning electron microscope (SEM) observation and immunofluorescence measurements of F-actin, we found that the HAp network-like nanostructure on the surface of the HGCCS can influence the morphology and integrin-mediated cytoskeleton organization of rat bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs). Based on cell proliferation assays, rat BMSCs tend to have higher viability on HGCCS in vitro. The results of this study suggest that

Multiscale Study of Barium Titanate Nanostructures and Nanocomposites

Science.gov (United States)

Louis, Lydie

Advancements in integrated nanoelectronics will continue to require the use of unique materials or systems of materials with diverse functionalities in increasingly confined spaces. Hence, research on finite-dimensional systems strive to unearth and expand the knowledge of fundamental physical properties in certain key materials which exhibit numerous concurrent and exploitable functions. Correspondingly, ferroelectric nanostructures, which particularly display a plethora of complex phenomena, prevalent in countless fields of research, are noteworthy candidates. Presently, however, the assimilation of zero-(0D) and one-dimensional (1D) ferroelectric into micro- or nano-electronics has been lagging, in part due to a lack of applied and fundamental studies but also due to the paucity of synthetic strategies yielding high quality monocrystalline structures. In this work, the problematics of size reduction, which affects many aspects of electronic devices, was addressed. Furthermore, the depolarizing effects associated with finite thickness in ferroelectric nanostructures was investigated in connection with other crucial boundary conditions. The work reported in this dissertation concerned isolated 0D and 1D BaTiO3 nanocrystals and nanocomposites composed of periodic arrays of BaTiO 3 nanowires embedded in a matrix formed by another ferroelectric material. A systematic investigation was conducted for those three types of nanostructures from a quantum mechanical and atomistic perspective using both direct-first-principles and first-principles-derived methods. Using first-principles-based calculations, the structural phase sequences in 0D (cubic-to-tetragonal-to-monoclinic-to-rhombohedral) and 1D (cubic-to-tetragonal-to-orthorhombic-to-monoclinic) BaTiO3 nanoparticles revealed differences from that of the bulk and thin film systems. The monoclinic symmetry found in the 0D compounds, and as for the ground-state of 1D systems, were also affected by size effects and tuned

Development of a gold-nanostructured surface for amperometric genosensors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zanardi, Chiara, E-mail: chiara.zanardi@unimore.it [Universita di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Dipartimento di Chimica (Italy); Baldoli, Clara, E-mail: clara.baldoli@istm.cnr.it [Istituto di Scienze e Tecnologie Molecolari del CNR (Italy); Licandro, Emanuela [Universita degli Studi di Milano, Dipartimento di Chimica Organica ed Industriale (Italy); Terzi, Fabio; Seeber, Renato [Universita di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Dipartimento di Chimica (Italy)

2012-10-15

A gold-nanostructured surface has been obtained by stable deposition of chemically synthesized gold nanoparticles (2.1-5.5 nm size range) on a gold substrate through a dithiol linker. The method proposed for the obtainment of the nanostructure is suitable for the further stable anchoring of a peptide nucleic acid oligomer through four amine groups of lysine terminal residues, leading to fairly reproducible systems. The geometric area of the nanostructured surface is compared with those of a smooth and of an electrochemically generated nanostructured surface by depositing a probe bearing an electrochemically active ferrocene residue. Despite the area of the two nanostructures being quite similar, the response toward a 2 nM target oligonucleotide sequence is particularly high when using the surface built up by nanoparticle deposition. This aspect indicates that morphologic details of the nanostructure play a key role in conditioning the performances of the genosensors.

Development of a gold-nanostructured surface for amperometric genosensors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zanardi, Chiara; Baldoli, Clara; Licandro, Emanuela; Terzi, Fabio; Seeber, Renato

2012-01-01

A gold-nanostructured surface has been obtained by stable deposition of chemically synthesized gold nanoparticles (2.1–5.5 nm size range) on a gold substrate through a dithiol linker. The method proposed for the obtainment of the nanostructure is suitable for the further stable anchoring of a peptide nucleic acid oligomer through four amine groups of lysine terminal residues, leading to fairly reproducible systems. The geometric area of the nanostructured surface is compared with those of a smooth and of an electrochemically generated nanostructured surface by depositing a probe bearing an electrochemically active ferrocene residue. Despite the area of the two nanostructures being quite similar, the response toward a 2 nM target oligonucleotide sequence is particularly high when using the surface built up by nanoparticle deposition. This aspect indicates that morphologic details of the nanostructure play a key role in conditioning the performances of the genosensors.

Time-resolved terahertz spectroscopy of semiconductor nanostructures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Porte, Henrik

This thesis describes time-resolved terahertz spectroscopy measurements on various semiconductor nanostructures. The aim is to study the carrier dynamics in these nanostructures on a picosecond timescale. In a typical experiment carriers are excited with a visible or near-infrared pulse and by me......This thesis describes time-resolved terahertz spectroscopy measurements on various semiconductor nanostructures. The aim is to study the carrier dynamics in these nanostructures on a picosecond timescale. In a typical experiment carriers are excited with a visible or near-infrared pulse...... and by measuring the transmission of a terahertz probe pulse, the photoconductivity of the excited sample can be obtained. By changing the relative arrival time at the sample between the pump and the probe pulse, the photoconductivity dynamics can be studied on a picosecond timescale. The rst studied semiconductor...

The nanostructure problem

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Billinge, S.

2010-01-01

Diffraction techniques are making progress in tackling the difficult problem of solving the structures of nanoparticles and nanoscale materials. The great gift of x-ray crystallography has made us almost complacent in our ability to locate the three-dimensional coordinates of atoms in a crystal with a precision of around 10 -4 nm. However, the powerful methods of crystallography break down for structures in which order only extends over a few nanometers. In fact, as we near the one hundred year mark since the birth of crystallography, we face a resilient frontier in condensed matter physics: our inability to routinely and robustly determine the structure of complex nanostructured and amorphous materials. Knowing the structure and arrangement of atoms in a solid is so fundamental to understanding its properties that the topic routinely occupies the early chapters of every solid-state physics textbook. Yet what has become clear with the emergence of nanotechnology is that diffraction data alone may not be enough to uniquely solve the structure of nanomaterials. As part of a growing effort to incorporate the results of other techniques to constrain x-ray refinements - a method called 'complex modeling' which is a simple but elegant approach for combining information from spectroscopy with diffraction data to solve the structure of several amorphous and nanostructured materials. Crystallography just works, so we rarely question how and why this is so, yet understanding the physics of diffraction can be very helpful as we consider the nanostructure problem. The relationship between the electron density distribution in three dimensions (i.e., the crystal structure) and an x-ray diffraction pattern is well established: the measured intensity distribution in reciprocal space is the square of the Fourier transform of the autocorrelation function of the electron density distribution ρ(r). The fact that we get the autocorrelation function (rather than just the density

Proof-of-Concept Prototyping for Observis Platform

OpenAIRE

Ekimov, Victor

2012-01-01

Observis Oy is a start-up company first appeared in January 2011. The company is building up a measurement platform that is open and easy to connect. It helps measurement device suppliers, system and service providers, and analyzing services to found and combine each other’s products to create more value to the end customers. Observis Oy intends to develop a platform for integration with other services in order to provide management functionality in environmental field of business. Platform i...

Complex Hollow Nanostructures: Synthesis and Energy-Related Applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Le; Hu, Han; Wu, Hao Bin; Lou, Xiong Wen David

2017-04-01

Hollow nanostructures offer promising potential for advanced energy storage and conversion applications. In the past decade, considerable research efforts have been devoted to the design and synthesis of hollow nanostructures with high complexity by manipulating their geometric morphology, chemical composition, and building block and interior architecture to boost their electrochemical performance, fulfilling the increasing global demand for renewable and sustainable energy sources. In this Review, we present a comprehensive overview of the synthesis and energy-related applications of complex hollow nanostructures. After a brief classification, the design and synthesis of complex hollow nanostructures are described in detail, which include hierarchical hollow spheres, hierarchical tubular structures, hollow polyhedra, and multi-shelled hollow structures, as well as their hybrids with nanocarbon materials. Thereafter, we discuss their niche applications as electrode materials for lithium-ion batteries and hybrid supercapacitors, sulfur hosts for lithium-sulfur batteries, and electrocatalysts for oxygen- and hydrogen-involving energy conversion reactions. The potential superiorities of complex hollow nanostructures for these applications are particularly highlighted. Finally, we conclude this Review with urgent challenges and further research directions of complex hollow nanostructures for energy-related applications. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Matrix-assisted energy conversion in nanostructured piezoelectric arrays

Science.gov (United States)

Sirbuly, Donald J.; Wang, Xianying; Wang, Yinmin

2013-01-01

A nanoconverter is capable of directly generating electricity through a nanostructure embedded in a polymer layer experiencing differential thermal expansion in a stress transfer zone. High surface-to-volume ratio semiconductor nanowires or nanotubes (such as ZnO, silicon, carbon, etc.) are grown either aligned or substantially vertically aligned on a substrate. The resulting nanoforest is then embedded with the polymer layer, which transfers stress to the nanostructures in the stress transfer zone, thereby creating a nanostructure voltage output due to the piezoelectric effect acting on the nanostructure. Electrodes attached at both ends of the nanostructures generate output power at densities of .about.20 nW/cm.sup.2 with heating temperatures of .about.65.degree. C. Nanoconverters arrayed in a series parallel arrangement may be constructed in planar, stacked, or rolled arrays to supply power to nano- and micro-devices without use of external batteries.

Structural DNA Nanotechnology: Artificial Nanostructures for Biomedical Research.

Science.gov (United States)

Ke, Yonggang; Castro, Carlos; Choi, Jong Hyun

2018-04-04

Structural DNA nanotechnology utilizes synthetic or biologic DNA as designer molecules for the self-assembly of artificial nanostructures. The field is founded upon the specific interactions between DNA molecules, known as Watson-Crick base pairing. After decades of active pursuit, DNA has demonstrated unprecedented versatility in constructing artificial nanostructures with significant complexity and programmability. The nanostructures could be either static, with well-controlled physicochemical properties, or dynamic, with the ability to reconfigure upon external stimuli. Researchers have devoted considerable effort to exploring the usability of DNA nanostructures in biomedical research. We review the basic design methods for fabricating both static and dynamic DNA nanostructures, along with their biomedical applications in fields such as biosensing, bioimaging, and drug delivery. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Biomedical Engineering Volume 20 is June 4, 2018. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.

Mechanistic Understanding of Tungsten Oxide In-Plane Nanostructure Growth via Sequential Infiltration Synthesis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Jae Jin; Suh, Hyo Seon; Zhou, Chun; Mane, Anil U.; Lee, Byeongdu; Kim, Soojeong; Emery, Jonathan D.; Elam, Jeffrey W.; Nealey, Paul F.; Fenter, Paul; Fister, Timothy T.

2018-02-21

Tungsten oxide (WO3-x) nanostructures with hexagonal in-plane arrangements were fabricated by sequential infiltration synthesis (SIS), using the selective interaction of gas phase precursors with functional groups in one domain of a block copolymer (BCP) self-assembled template. Such structures are highly desirable for various practical applications and as model systems for fundamental studies. The nanostructures were characterized by cross-sectional scanning electron microscopy, grazing-incidence small/wide-angle X-ray scattering (GISAXS/GIWAXS), and X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) measurements at each stage during the SIS process and subsequent thermal treatments, to provide a comprehensive picture of their evolution in morphology, crystallography and electronic structure. In particular, we discuss the critical role of SIS Al2O3 seeds toward modifying the chemical affinity and free volume in a polymer for subsequent infiltration of gas phase precursors. The insights into SIS growth obtained from this study are valuable to the design and fabrication of a wide range of targeted nanostructures.

Invited Article: Autonomous assembly of atomically perfect nanostructures using a scanning tunneling microscope.

Science.gov (United States)

Celotta, Robert J; Balakirsky, Stephen B; Fein, Aaron P; Hess, Frank M; Rutter, Gregory M; Stroscio, Joseph A

2014-12-01

A major goal of nanotechnology is to develop the capability to arrange matter at will by placing individual atoms at desired locations in a predetermined configuration to build a nanostructure with specific properties or function. The scanning tunneling microscope has demonstrated the ability to arrange the basic building blocks of matter, single atoms, in two-dimensional configurations. An array of various nanostructures has been assembled, which display the quantum mechanics of quantum confined geometries. The level of human interaction needed to physically locate the atom and bring it to the desired location limits this atom assembly technology. Here we report the use of autonomous atom assembly via path planning technology; this allows atomically perfect nanostructures to be assembled without the need for human intervention, resulting in precise constructions in shorter times. We demonstrate autonomous assembly by assembling various quantum confinement geometries using atoms and molecules and describe the benefits of this approach.

Invited Article: Autonomous assembly of atomically perfect nanostructures using a scanning tunneling microscope

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Celotta, Robert J., E-mail: robert.celotta@nist.gov, E-mail: joseph.stroscio@nist.gov; Hess, Frank M.; Rutter, Gregory M.; Stroscio, Joseph A., E-mail: robert.celotta@nist.gov, E-mail: joseph.stroscio@nist.gov [Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899 (United States); Balakirsky, Stephen B. [Engineering Laboratory, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899 (United States); Georgia Tech Research Institute, Atlanta, Georgia 30332 (United States); Fein, Aaron P. [Physical Measurement Laboratory, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899 (United States)

2014-12-15

A major goal of nanotechnology is to develop the capability to arrange matter at will by placing individual atoms at desired locations in a predetermined configuration to build a nanostructure with specific properties or function. The scanning tunneling microscope has demonstrated the ability to arrange the basic building blocks of matter, single atoms, in two-dimensional configurations. An array of various nanostructures has been assembled, which display the quantum mechanics of quantum confined geometries. The level of human interaction needed to physically locate the atom and bring it to the desired location limits this atom assembly technology. Here we report the use of autonomous atom assembly via path planning technology; this allows atomically perfect nanostructures to be assembled without the need for human intervention, resulting in precise constructions in shorter times. We demonstrate autonomous assembly by assembling various quantum confinement geometries using atoms and molecules and describe the benefits of this approach.

Invited Article: Autonomous assembly of atomically perfect nanostructures using a scanning tunneling microscope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Celotta, Robert J.; Hess, Frank M.; Rutter, Gregory M.; Stroscio, Joseph A.; Balakirsky, Stephen B.; Fein, Aaron P.

2014-01-01

A major goal of nanotechnology is to develop the capability to arrange matter at will by placing individual atoms at desired locations in a predetermined configuration to build a nanostructure with specific properties or function. The scanning tunneling microscope has demonstrated the ability to arrange the basic building blocks of matter, single atoms, in two-dimensional configurations. An array of various nanostructures has been assembled, which display the quantum mechanics of quantum confined geometries. The level of human interaction needed to physically locate the atom and bring it to the desired location limits this atom assembly technology. Here we report the use of autonomous atom assembly via path planning technology; this allows atomically perfect nanostructures to be assembled without the need for human intervention, resulting in precise constructions in shorter times. We demonstrate autonomous assembly by assembling various quantum confinement geometries using atoms and molecules and describe the benefits of this approach

Metal complex-based templates and nanostructures for magnetic resonance/optical multimodal imaging agents

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Galindo Millan, Jealemy

2012-01-01

In this thesis, new approaches directed towards simple and functional imaging agents (IAs) for magnetic resonance (MR) and fluorescence multimodal imaging are proposed. In Chapter 3, hybrid silver nanostructures (hAgNSs), grown using a polyamino carboxylic acid scaffold, namely

Morphological indicators of growth stages in carbonates platform evolution: comparison between present-day and Miocene platforms of Northern Borneo, Malaysia.

Science.gov (United States)

Pierson, B.; Menier, D.; Ting, K. K.; Chalabi, A.

2012-04-01

Satellite images of present-day reefs and carbonate platforms of the Celebes Sea, east of Sabah, Malaysia, exhibit large-scale features indicative of the recent evolution of the platforms. These include: (1) multiple, sub-parallel reef rims at the windward margin, suggestive of back-stepping of the platform margin; (2) contraction of the platform, possibly as a result of recent sea level fluctuations; (3) colonization of the internal lagoons by polygonal reef structures and (4) fragmentation of the platforms and creation of deep channels separating platforms that used to be part of a single entity. These features are analogue to what has been observed on seismic attribute maps of Miocene carbonate platforms of Sarawak. An analysis of several growth stages of a large Miocene platform, referred to as the Megaplatform, shows that the platform evolves in function of syn-depositional tectonic movements and sea level fluctuations that result in back-stepping of the margin, illustrated by multiple reef rims, contraction of the platform, the development of polygonal structures currently interpreted as karstic in origin and fragmentation of the megaplatform in 3 sub-entities separated by deep channels that precedes the final demise of the whole platform. Comparing similar features on present-day to platforms and Miocene platforms leads to a better understanding of the growth history of Miocene platforms and to a refined predictability of reservoir and non-reservoir facies distribution.

Towards an environment interface standard for agent platforms

OpenAIRE

Behrens, T.M.; Hindriks, K.V.; Dix, J.

2010-01-01

We introduce an interface for connecting agent platforms to environments. This interface provides generic functionality for executing actions and for perceiving changes in an agent’s environment. It also provides support for managing an environment, e.g., for starting, pausing and terminating it. Among the benefits of such an interface are (1) standard functionality is provided by the interface implementation itself, and (2) agent platforms that support the interface can connect to any enviro...

Nanostructuring of Solar Cell Surfaces

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Davidsen, Rasmus Schmidt; Schmidt, Michael Stenbæk

Solar energy is by far the most abundant renewable energy source available, but the levelized cost of solar energy is still not competitive with that of fossil fuels. Therefore there is a need to improve the power conversion effciency of solar cells without adding to the production cost. The main...... objective of this PhD thesis is to develop nanostructured silicon (Si) solar cells with higher power conversion efficiency using only scalable and cost-efficient production methods. The nanostructures, known as 'black silicon', are fabricated by single-step, maskless reactive ion etching and used as front...... texturing of different Si solar cells. Theoretically the nanostructure topology may be described as a graded refractive index in a mean-field approximation between air and Si. The optical properties of the developed black Si were simulated and experimentally measured. Total AM1.5G-weighted average...

Nanostructures-History

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

First page Back Continue Last page Graphics. Nanostructures-History. Inspiration to Nanotechnology-. The Japanese scientist Norio Taniguchi of the Tokyo University of Science was used the term "nano-technology" in a 1974 conference, to describe semiconductor processes such as thin film His definition was, ...

Tunable top-down fabrication and functional surface coating of single-crystal titanium dioxide nanostructures and nanoparticles

Science.gov (United States)

Ha, Seungkyu; Janissen, Richard; Ussembayev, Yera Ye.; van Oene, Maarten M.; Solano, Belen; Dekker, Nynke H.

2016-05-01

Titanium dioxide (TiO2) is a key component of diverse optical and electronic applications that exploit its exceptional material properties. In particular, the use of TiO2 in its single-crystalline phase can offer substantial advantages over its amorphous and polycrystalline phases for existing and yet-to-be-developed applications. However, the implementation of single-crystal TiO2 has been hampered by challenges in its fabrication and subsequent surface functionalization. Here, we introduce a novel top-down approach that allows for batch fabrication of uniform high-aspect-ratio single-crystal TiO2 nanostructures with targeted sidewall profiles. We complement our fabrication approach with a functionalization strategy that achieves dense, uniform, and area-selective coating with a variety of biomolecules. This allows us to fabricate single-crystal rutile TiO2 nanocylinders tethered with individual DNA molecules for use as force- and torque-transducers in an optical torque wrench. These developments provide the means for increased exploitation of the superior material properties of single-crystal TiO2 at the nanoscale.Titanium dioxide (TiO2) is a key component of diverse optical and electronic applications that exploit its exceptional material properties. In particular, the use of TiO2 in its single-crystalline phase can offer substantial advantages over its amorphous and polycrystalline phases for existing and yet-to-be-developed applications. However, the implementation of single-crystal TiO2 has been hampered by challenges in its fabrication and subsequent surface functionalization. Here, we introduce a novel top-down approach that allows for batch fabrication of uniform high-aspect-ratio single-crystal TiO2 nanostructures with targeted sidewall profiles. We complement our fabrication approach with a functionalization strategy that achieves dense, uniform, and area-selective coating with a variety of biomolecules. This allows us to fabricate single-crystal rutile

Computational design of surfaces, nanostructures and optoelectronic materials

Science.gov (United States)

Choudhary, Kamal

Properties of engineering materials are generally influenced by defects such as point defects (vacancies, interstitials, substitutional defects), line defects (dislocations), planar defects (grain boundaries, free surfaces/nanostructures, interfaces, stacking faults) and volume defects (voids). Classical physics based molecular dynamics and quantum physics based density functional theory can be useful in designing materials with controlled defect properties. In this thesis, empirical potential based molecular dynamics was used to study the surface modification of polymers due to energetic polyatomic ion, thermodynamics and mechanics of metal-ceramic interfaces and nanostructures, while density functional theory was used to screen substituents in optoelectronic materials. Firstly, polyatomic ion-beams were deposited on polymer surfaces and the resulting chemical modifications of the surface were examined. In particular, S, SC and SH were deposited on amorphous polystyrene (PS), and C2H, CH3, and C3H5 were deposited on amorphous poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) using molecular dynamics simulations with classical reactive empirical many-body (REBO) potentials. The objective of this work was to elucidate the mechanisms by which the polymer surface modification took place. The results of the work could be used in tailoring the incident energy and/or constituents of ion beam for obtaining a particular chemistry inside the polymer surface. Secondly, a new Al-O-N empirical potential was developed within the charge optimized many body (COMB) formalism. This potential was then used to examine the thermodynamic stability of interfaces and mechanical properties of nanostructures composed of aluminum, its oxide and its nitride. The potentials were tested for these materials based on surface energies, defect energies, bulk phase stability, the mechanical properties of the most stable bulk phase, its phonon properties as well as with a genetic algorithm based evolution theory of

Ab initio density functional calculations of ferromagnetism in low-dimensional nanostructures: From nanowires to nanorods

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Zelený, Martin; Šob, Mojmír; Hafner, J.

2009-01-01

Roč. 79, č. 13 (2009), 134421/1-134421/10 ISSN 1098-0121 R&D Projects: GA AV ČR IAA100100920; GA MŠk OC 147 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z20410507 Keywords : magnetism of nanostructures * nanowires * iron * nickel Subject RIV: BM - Solid Matter Physics ; Magnetism Impact factor: 3.475, year: 2009

Quantum Nanostructures by Droplet Epitaxy

OpenAIRE

Somsak Panyakeow

2009-01-01

Droplet epitaxy is an alternative growth technique for several quantum nanostructures. Indium droplets are distributed randomly on GaAs substrates at low temperatures (120-350'C). Under background pressure of group V elements, Arsenic and Phosphorous, InAs and InP nanostructures are created. Quantum rings with isotropic shape are obtained at low temperature range. When the growth thickness is increased, quantum rings are transformed to quantum dot rings. At high temperature range, anisotropic...

Chemical Sensor Platform for Non-Invasive Monitoring of Activity and Dehydration

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dmitry Solovei

2015-01-01

Full Text Available A non-invasive solution for monitoring of the activity and dehydration of organisms is proposed in the work. For this purpose, a wireless standalone chemical sensor platform using two separate measurement techniques has been developed. The first approach for activity monitoring is based on humidity measurement. Our solution uses new humidity sensor based on a nanostructured TiO2 surface for sweat rate monitoring. The second technique is based on monitoring of potassium concentration in urine. High level of potassium concentration denotes clear occurrence of dehydration. Furthermore, a Wireless Body Area Network (WBAN was developed for this sensor platform to manage data transfer among devices and the internet. The WBAN coordinator controls the sensor devices and collects and stores the measured data. The collected data is particular to individuals and can be shared with physicians, emergency systems or athletes’ coaches. Long-time monitoring of activity and potassium concentration in urine can help maintain the appropriate water intake of elderly people or athletes and to send warning signals in the case of near dehydration. The created sensor system was calibrated and tested in laboratory and real conditions as well. The measurement results are discussed.

A gimbal platform stabilization for topographic applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Michele, Mangiameli, E-mail: michele.mangiameli@dica.unict.it; Giuseppe, Mussumeci [Dept. of Civil Engineering and Architecture, University of Catania, Catania (Italy)

2015-03-10

The aim of this work is the stabilization of a Gimbal platform for optical sensors acquisitions in topographic applications using mobile vehicles. The stabilization of the line of sight (LOS) consists in tracking the command velocity in presence of nonlinear noise due to the external environment. The hardware architecture is characterized by an Ardupilot platform that allows the control of both the mobile device and the Gimbal. Here we developed a new approach to stabilize the Gimbal platform, which is based on neural network. For the control system, we considered a plant that represents the transfer function of the servo system control model for an inertial stabilized Gimbal platform. The transductor used in the feed-back line control is characterized by the Rate Gyro transfer function installed onboard of Ardupilot. For the simulation and investigation of the system performance, we used the Simulink tool of Matlab. Results show that the hardware/software approach is efficient, reliable and cheap for direct photogrammetry, as well as for general purpose applications using mobile vehicles.

A Constitutive Relationship between Fatigue Limit and Microstructure in Nanostructured Bainitic Steels

Science.gov (United States)

Mueller, Inga; Rementeria, Rosalia; Caballero, Francisca G.; Kuntz, Matthias; Sourmail, Thomas; Kerscher, Eberhard

2016-01-01

The recently developed nanobainitic steels show high strength as well as high ductility. Although this combination seems to be promising for fatigue design, fatigue properties of nanostructured bainitic steels are often surprisingly low. To improve the fatigue behavior, an understanding of the correlation between the nanobainitic microstructure and the fatigue limit is fundamental. Therefore, our hypothesis to predict the fatigue limit was that the main function of the microstructure is not necessarily totally avoiding the initiation of a fatigue crack, but the microstructure has to increase the ability to decelerate or to stop a growing fatigue crack. Thus, the key to understanding the fatigue behavior of nanostructured bainite is to understand the role of the microstructural features that could act as barriers for growing fatigue cracks. To prove this hypothesis, we carried out fatigue tests, crack growth experiments, and correlated these results to the size of microstructural features gained from microstructural analysis by light optical microscope and EBSD-measurements. Finally, we were able to identify microstructural features that influence the fatigue crack growth and the fatigue limit of nanostructured bainitic steels. PMID:28773953

Influence of DC arc current on the formation of cobalt-based nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Orpe, P. B.; Balasubramanian, C.; Mukherjee, S.

2017-08-01

The synthesis of cobalt-based magnetic nanostructures using DC arc discharge technique with varying arc current is reported here. The structural, morphological, compositional and magnetic properties of these nanostructures were studied as a function of applied arc current. Various techniques like X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, EDAX and vibrating sample magnetometry were used to carry out this study and the results are reported here. The results clearly indicate that for a given oxygen partial pressure, an arc current of 100 A favours the formation of unreacted cobalt atomic species. Also change in arc current leads to variation in phase, diversity in morphology etc. Other property changes such as thermal changes, mechanical changes etc. are not addressed here. The magnetic characterization further indicates that the anisotropy in shape plays a crucial role in deciding the magnetic properties of the nanostructured materials. We have quantified an interesting result in our experiment, that is, for a given partial pressure, 100 A arc current results in unique variation in structural and magnetic properties as compared to other arc currents.

Nanostructured transparent conducting oxide electrochromic device

Science.gov (United States)

Milliron, Delia; Tangirala, Ravisubhash; Llordes, Anna; Buonsanti, Raffaella; Garcia, Guillermo

2016-05-17

The embodiments described herein provide an electrochromic device. In an exemplary embodiment, the electrochromic device includes (1) a substrate and (2) a film supported by the substrate, where the film includes transparent conducting oxide (TCO) nanostructures. In a further embodiment, the electrochromic device further includes (a) an electrolyte, where the nanostructures are embedded in the electrolyte, resulting in an electrolyte, nanostructure mixture positioned above the substrate and (b) a counter electrode positioned above the mixture. In a further embodiment, the electrochromic device further includes a conductive coating deposited on the substrate between the substrate and the mixture. In a further embodiment, the electrochromic device further includes a second substrate positioned above the mixture.

Electron Microscopy of Nanostructures in Cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Købler, Carsten

with cells is therefore increasingly more relevant from both an engineering and a toxicological viewpoint. My work involves developing and exploring electron microscopy (EM) for imaging nanostructures in cells, for the purpose of understanding nanostructure-cell interactions in terms of their possibilities...... in science and concerns in toxicology. In the present work, EM methods for imaging nanostructure-cell interactions have been explored, and the complex interactions documented and ordered. In particular the usability of the focused ion beam scanning electron microscope (FIB-SEM) was explored. Using EM...... in literature. Furthermore, EM proved valuable as it revealed an unnoticed CNT effect. FIB-SEM helped establish that the effect was linked to eosionophilic crystalline pneumonia (ECP)....

Nanostructured sulfur cathodes

KAUST Repository

Yang, Yuan

2013-01-01

Rechargeable Li/S batteries have attracted significant attention lately due to their high specific energy and low cost. They are promising candidates for applications, including portable electronics, electric vehicles and grid-level energy storage. However, poor cycle life and low power capability are major technical obstacles. Various nanostructured sulfur cathodes have been developed to address these issues, as they provide greater resistance to pulverization, faster reaction kinetics and better trapping of soluble polysulfides. In this review, recent developments on nanostructured sulfur cathodes and mechanisms behind their operation are presented and discussed. Moreover, progress on novel characterization of sulfur cathodes is also summarized, as it has deepened the understanding of sulfur cathodes and will guide further rational design of sulfur electrodes. © 2013 The Royal Society of Chemistry.

Reflectance analysis of porosity gradient in nanostructured silicon layers

Science.gov (United States)

Jurečka, Stanislav; Imamura, Kentaro; Matsumoto, Taketoshi; Kobayashi, Hikaru

2017-12-01

In this work we study optical properties of nanostructured layers formed on silicon surface. Nanostructured layers on Si are formed in order to reach high suppression of the light reflectance. Low spectral reflectance is important for improvement of the conversion efficiency of solar cells and for other optoelectronic applications. Effective method of forming nanostructured layers with ultralow reflectance in a broad interval of wavelengths is in our approach based on metal assisted etching of Si. Si surface immersed in HF and H2O2 solution is etched in contact with the Pt mesh roller and the structure of the mesh is transferred on the etched surface. During this etching procedure the layer density evolves gradually and the spectral reflectance decreases exponentially with the depth in porous layer. We analyzed properties of the layer porosity by incorporating the porosity gradient into construction of the layer spectral reflectance theoretical model. Analyzed layer is splitted into 20 sublayers in our approach. Complex dielectric function in each sublayer is computed by using Bruggeman effective media theory and the theoretical spectral reflectance of modelled multilayer system is computed by using Abeles matrix formalism. Porosity gradient is extracted from the theoretical reflectance model optimized in comparison to the experimental values. Resulting values of the structure porosity development provide important information for optimization of the technological treatment operations.

Synthesis of dumbbell-like Au nanostructure and its light-absorbance study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shen Jianlei; Xu Yan; Li Kun; Song Shiping; Fan Chunhai

2013-01-01

Background: By changing the size or the morphology of Au nanostructure, they can absorb different wavelength light due to the localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR). Because Au nanorods show good ability to transform light into heat (photothermal effect), they have been wildly used to deliver the drugs and release them controllably. However, when applying such nanostructure for in vivo treatments, Au nanorods must have long aspect ratio which often make it hard to prepare heterogeneous nanostructure. Purpose: A new method to synthesize Au nanostructure with uniform size and to achieve long wavelength light absorbance is needed. This work attempts to synthesize such Au nanostructure by using bio-nano techniques. Methods: New nanostructures are prepared by growing Au nanoparticles on the surface of Au nanorods modified with DNA molecules. Results: Dumbbell-Ikea Au nanostructures were prepared firstly. Its maximum absorbance locates at near ultraviolet region, which means that it can be used as a potential tool for the deep-skin photothermal treatment. Moreover, other two kinds of nanostructures, i.e. Au nanorods with Au splinter at two ends and sea urchin-like nanostructures, are also studied. Conclusions: We successfully fabricated novel Au nanostructures which can be used for drug delivery, surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy and catalysis. (authors)

The Physics and Applications of a 3D Plasmonic Nanostructure

Science.gov (United States)

Terranova, Brandon B.

In this work, the dynamics of electromagnetic field interactions with free electrons in a 3D metallic nanostructure is evaluated theoretically. This dissertation starts by reviewing the relevant fundamentals of plasmonics and modern applications of plasmonic systems. Then, motivated by the need to have a simpler way of understanding the surface charge dynamics on complex plasmonic nanostructures, a new plasmon hybridization tree method is introduced. This method provides the plasmonicist with an intuitive way to determine the response of free electrons to incident light in complex nanostructures within the electrostatic regime. Next, a novel 3D plasmonic nanostructure utilizing reflective plasmonic coupling is designed to perform biosensing and plasmonic tweezing applications. By applying analytical and numerical methods, the effectiveness of this nanostructure at performing these applications is determined from the plasmonic response of the nanostructure to an excitation beam of coherent light. During this analysis, it was discovered that under certain conditions, this 3D nanostructure exhibits a plasmonic Fano resonance resulting from the interference of an in-plane dark mode and an out-of-plane bright mode. In evaluating this nanostructure for sensing changes in the local dielectric environment, a figure of merit of 68 is calculated, which is competitive with current localized surface plasmon resonance refractometric sensors. By evaluating the Maxwell stress tensor on a test particle in the vicinity of the nanostructure, it was found that under the right conditions, this plasmonic nanostructure design is capable of imparting forces greater than 10.5 nN on dielectric objects of nanoscale dimensions. The results obtained in these studies provides new routes to the design and engineering of 3D plasmonic nanostructures and Fano resonances in these systems. In addition, the nanostructure presented in this work and the design principles it utilizes have shown

Microwave-Assisted Green Synthesis of Silver Nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

This account summarizes a microwave (MW)-assisted synthetic approach for producing silver nanostructures. The rapid and in-core MW heating has received considerable attention as a promising new method for the one-pot synthesis of metallic nanostructures in solutions. Conceptually...

Spin tunneling and manipulation in nanostructures.

Science.gov (United States)

Sherman, E Ya; Ban, Yue; Gulyaev, L V; Khomitsky, D V

2012-09-01

The results for joint effects of tunneling and spin-orbit coupling on spin dynamics in nanostructures are presented for systems with discrete and continuous spectra. We demonstrate that tunneling plays the crucial role in the spin dynamics and the abilities of spin manipulation by external electric field. This result can be important for design of nanostructures-based spintronics devices.

Extreme wettability of nanostructured glass fabricated by non-lithographic, anisotropic etching

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Eusun; Kim, Seul-Cham; Lee, Heon Ju; Oh, Kyu Hwan; Moon, Myoung-Woon

2015-01-01

Functional glass surfaces with the properties of superhydrophobicity/or superhydrohydrophilicity, anti-condensation or low reflectance require nano- or micro-scale roughness, which is difficult to fabricate directly on glass surfaces. Here, we report a novel non-lithographic method for the fabrication of nanostructures on glass; this method introduces a sacrificial SiO2 layer for anisotropic plasma etching. The first step was to form nanopillars on SiO2 layer-coated glass by using preferential CF4 plasma etching. With continuous plasma etching, the SiO2 pillars become etch-resistant masks on the glass; thus, the glass regions covered by the SiO2 pillars are etched slowly, and the regions with no SiO2 pillars are etched rapidly, resulting in nanopatterned glass. The glass surface that is etched with CF4 plasma becomes superhydrophilic because of its high surface energy, as well as its nano-scale roughness and high aspect ratio. Upon applying a subsequent hydrophobic coating to the nanostructured glass, a superhydrophobic surface was achieved. The light transmission of the glass was relatively unaffected by the nanostructures, whereas the reflectance was significantly reduced by the increase in nanopattern roughness on the glass. PMID:25791414

On-Chip Magnetic Platform for Single-Particle Manipulation with Integrated Electrical Feedback.

Science.gov (United States)

Monticelli, Marco; Torti, Andrea; Cantoni, Matteo; Petti, Daniela; Albisetti, Edoardo; Manzin, Alessandra; Guerriero, Erica; Sordan, Roman; Gervasoni, Giacomo; Carminati, Marco; Ferrari, Giorgio; Sampietro, Marco; Bertacco, Riccardo

2016-02-17

Methods for the manipulation of single magnetic particles have become very interesting, in particular for in vitro biological studies. Most of these studies require an external microscope to provide the operator with feedback for controlling the particle motion, thus preventing the use of magnetic particles in high-throughput experiments. In this paper, a simple and compact system with integrated electrical feedback is presented, implementing in the very same device both the manipulation and detection of the transit of single particles. The proposed platform is based on zig-zag shaped magnetic nanostructures, where transverse magnetic domain walls are pinned at the corners and attract magnetic particles in suspension. By applying suitable external magnetic fields, the domain walls move to the nearest corner, thus causing the step by step displacement of the particles along the nanostructure. The very same structure is also employed for detecting the bead transit. Indeed, the presence of the magnetic particle in suspension over the domain wall affects the depinning field required for its displacement. This characteristic field can be monitored through anisotropic magnetoresistance measurements, thus implementing an integrated electrical feedback of the bead transit. In particular, the individual manipulation and detection of single 1-μm sized beads is demonstrated. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Modes of interaction between nanostructured metal and a conducting mirror as a function of separation and incident polarization

Science.gov (United States)

Bonnie, F.; Arnold, M. D.; Smith, G. B.; Gentle, A. R.

2013-09-01

The optical resonances that occur in nanostructured metal layers are modulated in thin film stacks if the nanostructured layer is separated from a reflecting conducting layer by various thicknesses of thin dielectric. We have measured and modeled the optical response of interacting silver layers, with alumina spacer thickness ranging from a few nm to 50 nm, for s- and p-polarized incident light, and a range of incident angles. Standard thin film models, including standard effective medium models for the nanostructured layer, will break down for spacer thickness below a critical threshold. For example, with polarisation in the film plane and some nano-islands, it may occur at around 10 nm depending on spacer refractive index. Of particular interest here are novel effects observed with the onset of percolation in the nanolayer. Hot spot effects can be modified by nearby mirrors. Other modes to consider include (a) a two-particle mode involving a particle and its mirror image (b) A Fano resonance from hybridisation of localized and de-localised plasmon modes (c) a Babinet's core-(partial) shell particle with metal core-dielectric shell in metal (d) spacing dependent phase modulation (e) the impact of field gradients induced by the mirror at the nano-layer.

Nanostructured submicron block copolymer dots by sacrificial stamping: a potential preconcentration platform for locally resolved sensing, chemistry and cellular interactions

OpenAIRE

Hou, Peilong; Han, Weijia; Philippi, Michael; Schäfer, Helmut; Steinhart, Martin

2018-01-01

Classical contact lithography involves patterning of surfaces by embossing or by transfer of ink. We report direct lithographic transfer of parts of sacrificial stamps onto counterpart surfaces. Using sacrificial stamps consisting of the block copolymer polystyrene-block-poly(2-pyridine) (PS-b-P2VP), we deposited arrays of nanostructured submicron PS-b-P2VP dots with heights of about 100 nm onto silicon wafers and glass slides. The sacrificial PS-b-P2VP stamps were topographically patterned w...

Wearable Device Control Platform Technology for Network Application Development

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Heejung Kim

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Application development platform is the most important environment in IT industry. There are a variety of platforms. Although the native development enables application to optimize, various languages and software development kits need to be acquired according to the device. The coexistence of smart devices and platforms has rendered the native development approach time and cost consuming. Cross-platform development emerged as a response to these issues. These platforms generate applications for multiple devices based on web languages. Nevertheless, development requires additional implementation based on a native language because of the coverage and functions of supported application programming interfaces (APIs. Wearable devices have recently attracted considerable attention. These devices only support Bluetooth-based interdevice communication, thereby making communication and device control impossible beyond a certain range. We propose Network Application Agent (NetApp-Agent in order to overcome issues. NetApp-Agent based on the Cordova is a wearable device control platform for the development of network applications, controls input/output functions of smartphones and wearable/IoT through the Cordova and Native API, and enables device control and information exchange by external users by offering a self-defined API. We confirmed the efficiency of the proposed platform through experiments and a qualitative assessment of its implementation.

Nanostructured thin films of indium oxide nanocrystals confined in alumina matrixes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bouifoulen, A.; Edely, M.; Errien, N.; Kassiba, A.; Outzourhit, A.; Makowska-Janusik, M.; Gautier, N.; Lajaunie, L.; Oueriagli, A.

2011-01-01

Nanocrystals of indium oxide (In 2 O 3 ) with sizes below 10 nm were prepared in alumina matrixes by using a co-pulverization method. The used substrates such as borosilicate glasses or (100) silicon as well as the substrate temperatures during the deposition process were modified and their effects characterized on the structural and physical properties of alumina-In 2 O 3 films. Complementary investigation methods including X-ray diffraction, optical transmittance in the range 250-1100 nm and transmission electron microscopy were used to analyze the nanostructured films. The crystalline order, morphology and optical responses were monitored as function of the deposition parameters and the post-synthesis annealing. The optimal conditions were found and allow realizing suitable nanostructured films with a major crystalline order of cubic phase for the In 2 O 3 nanocrystals. The optical properties of the films were analyzed and the key parameters such as direct and indirect band gaps were evaluated as function of the synthesis conditions and the crystalline quality of the films.