Myc-nick: a cytoplasmic cleavage product of Myc that promotes alpha-tubulin acetylation and cell differentiation.

Science.gov (United States)

Conacci-Sorrell, Maralice; Ngouenet, Celine; Eisenman, Robert N

2010-08-06

The Myc oncoprotein family comprises transcription factors that control multiple cellular functions and are widely involved in oncogenesis. Here we report the identification of Myc-nick, a cytoplasmic form of Myc generated by calpain-dependent proteolysis at lysine 298 of full-length Myc. Myc-nick retains conserved Myc box regions but lacks nuclear localization signals and the bHLHZ domain essential for heterodimerization with Max and DNA binding. Myc-nick induces alpha-tubulin acetylation and altered cell morphology by recruiting histone acetyltransferase GCN5 to microtubules. During muscle differentiation, while the levels of full-length Myc diminish, Myc-nick and acetylated alpha-tubulin levels are increased. Ectopic expression of Myc-nick accelerates myoblast fusion, triggers the expression of myogenic markers, and permits Myc-deficient fibroblasts to transdifferentiate in response to MyoD. We propose that the cleavage of Myc by calpain abrogates the transcriptional inhibition of differentiation by full-length Myc and generates Myc-nick, a driver of cytoplasmic reorganization and differentiation. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Inverter power module with distributed support for direct substrate cooling

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, David Harold [San Pedro, CA; Korich, Mark D [Chino Hills, CA; Ward, Terence G [Redondo Beach, CA; Mann, Brooks S [Redondo Beach, CA

2012-08-21

Systems and/or methods are provided for an inverter power module with distributed support for direct substrate cooling. An inverter module comprises a power electronic substrate. A first support frame is adapted to house the power electronic substrate and has a first region adapted to allow direct cooling of the power electronic substrate. A gasket is interposed between the power electronic substrate and the first support frame. The gasket is configured to provide a seal between the first region and the power electronic substrate. A second support frame is adapted to house the power electronic substrate and joined to the first support frame to form the seal.

Substrate specificity of Micrococcus luteus uv endonuclease and its overlap with DNA photolyase activity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Patrick, M.H.

1975-01-01

The action of an endonuclease from Micrococcus luteus that operates on uv damage in DNA overlaps with that of DNA photolyase from yeast: homo- and heterocyclobutane dipyrimidines in DNA are substrates for both enzymes, but pyrimidine adducts or the spore photoproduct in DNA are not. As expected from this overlap, the action of the two enzymes is mutually interfering: single-strand nicks introduced by the endonuclease effectively preclude photoreactivation; conversely, formation of a photolyase-cyclobutane dipyrimidine complex can prevent nicking by the endonuclease

Rhombic-Shaped Nanostructures and Mechanical Properties of 2D DNA Origami Constructed with Different Crossover/Nick Designs.

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, Zhipeng; Huang, Yunfei; Park, Seongsu; Kawai, Kentaro; Kim, Do-Nyun; Hirai, Yoshikazu; Tsuchiya, Toshiyuki; Yamada, Hirofumi; Tabata, Osamu

2018-01-01

DNA origami methods enable the fabrication of various nanostructures and nanodevices, but their effective use depends on an understanding of their structural and mechanical properties and the effects of basic structural features. Frequency-modulation atomic force microscopy is introduced to directly characterize, in aqueous solution, the crossover regions of sets of 2D DNA origami based on different crossover/nick designs. Rhombic-shaped nanostructures formed under the influence of flexible crossovers placed between DNA helices are observed in DNA origami incorporating crossovers every 3, 4, or 6 DNA turns. The bending rigidity of crossovers is determined to be only one-third of that of the DNA helix, based on interhelical electrostatic forces reported elsewhere, and the measured pitches of the 3-turn crossover design rhombic-shaped nanostructures undergoing negligible bending. To evaluate the robustness of their structural integrity, they are intentionally and simultaneously stressed using force-controlled atomic force microscopy. DNA crossovers are verified to have a stabilizing effect on the structural robustness, while the nicks have an opposite effect. The structural and mechanical properties of DNA origami and the effects of crossovers and nicks revealed in this paper can provide information essential for the design of versatile DNA origami structures that exhibit specified and desirable properties. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

The DNA Repair Repertoire of Mycobacterium smegmatis FenA Includes the Incision of DNA 5' Flaps and the Removal of 5' Adenylylated Products of Aborted Nick Ligation.

Science.gov (United States)

Uson, Maria Loressa; Ghosh, Shreya; Shuman, Stewart

2017-09-01

We characterize Mycobacterium smegmatis FenA as a manganese-dependent 5'-flap endonuclease homologous to the 5'-exonuclease of DNA polymerase I. FenA incises a nicked 5' flap between the first and second nucleotides of the duplex segment to yield a 1-nucleotide gapped DNA, which is then further resected in dinucleotide steps. Initial FenA cleavage at a Y-flap or nick occurs between the first and second nucleotides of the duplex. However, when the template 3' single strand is eliminated to create a 5'-tailed duplex, FenA incision shifts to between the second and third nucleotides. A double-flap substrate with a mobile junction (mimicking limited strand displacement synthesis during gap repair) is preferentially incised as the 1-nucleotide 3'-flap isomer, with the scissile phosphodiester shifted by one nucleotide versus a static double flap. FenA efficiently removes the 5' App(dN) terminus of an aborted nick ligation reaction intermediate, thereby highlighting FenA as an agent of repair of such lesions, which are formed under a variety of circumstances by bacterial NAD + -dependent DNA ligases and especially by mycobacterial DNA ligases D and C. IMPORTANCE Structure-specific DNA endonucleases are implicated in bacterial DNA replication, repair, and recombination, yet there is scant knowledge of the roster and catalytic repertoire of such nucleases in Mycobacteria This study identifies M. smegmatis FenA as a stand-alone endonuclease homologous to the 5'-exonuclease domain of mycobacterial DNA polymerase 1. FenA incises 5' flaps, 5' nicks, and 5' App(dN) intermediates of aborted nick ligation. The isolated N-terminal domain of M. smegmatis Pol1 is also shown to be a flap endonuclease. Copyright © 2017 American Society for Microbiology.

Direct transfer of graphene films for polyurethane substrate

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vilani, C.; Romani, E.C.; Larrudé, D.G. [Departamento de Física, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro, 22451-900 Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil); Barbosa, Gelza M. [Diretoria de Sistemas de Armas da Marinha, Marinha do Brasil, 20010-00 Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil); Freire, F.L., E-mail: lazaro@vdg.fis.puc-rio.br [Departamento de Física, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro, 22451-900 Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil); Centro Brasileiro de Pesquisas Físicas, 22290-180 Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil)

2015-11-30

Highlights: • Graphene was prepared by CVD using copper foils as substrates. • Monolayer, bilayer and multilayer graphene were transferred to PU. • Samples were characterized by Raman and optical spectroscopies. • PU/monolayer graphene has transmittance around 80% in visible range. - Abstract: We have proposed the direct transfer of large-area graphene films grown by chemical vapor deposition to polymeric substrate by evaporating of solvents of polyurethane/tetrahydrofurane solution. The graphene films on polyurethane substrates were characterized by Raman spectroscopy, optical and atomic force microscopies and UV–vis spectroscopy measurements. The Raman spectra revealed that it is possible to transfer in a controlled manner monolayer, bilayer and multilayer graphene films over polyurethane substrate.

Direct transfer of graphene films for polyurethane substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vilani, C.; Romani, E.C.; Larrudé, D.G.; Barbosa, Gelza M.; Freire, F.L.

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Graphene was prepared by CVD using copper foils as substrates. • Monolayer, bilayer and multilayer graphene were transferred to PU. • Samples were characterized by Raman and optical spectroscopies. • PU/monolayer graphene has transmittance around 80% in visible range. - Abstract: We have proposed the direct transfer of large-area graphene films grown by chemical vapor deposition to polymeric substrate by evaporating of solvents of polyurethane/tetrahydrofurane solution. The graphene films on polyurethane substrates were characterized by Raman spectroscopy, optical and atomic force microscopies and UV–vis spectroscopy measurements. The Raman spectra revealed that it is possible to transfer in a controlled manner monolayer, bilayer and multilayer graphene films over polyurethane substrate.

Electrohydrodynamic Direct-Write Orderly Micro/Nanofibrous Structure on Flexible Insulating Substrate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jiang-Yi Zheng

2014-01-01

Full Text Available AC pulse-modulated electrohydrodynamic direct-writing (EDW was utilized to direct-write orderly micro/nanofibrous structure on the flexible insulating polyethylene terephthalate (PET substrate. During the EDW process, AC electrical field induced charges to reciprocate along the jet and decreased the charge repulsive force that applied on charged jet. Thanks to the smaller charge repulsive force, stable straight jet can be built up to direct-write orderly micro/nanofibrous structures on the insulating substrate. The minimum motion velocity required to direct-write straight line fibrous structure on insulating PET substrate was 700 mm/s. Moreover, the influences of AC voltage amplitude, frequency, and duty cycle ratio on the line width of fibrous structures were investigated. This work proposes a novel solution to overcome the inherent charge repulsion emerging on the insulating substrate, and promotes the application of EDW technology on the flexible electronics.

Pangahävitaja Leeson : "Ma kahetsen" / Nick Leeson ; interv. Argo Ideon

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Leeson, Nick

2007-01-01

Briti börsimaakler Nick Leeson, kes pankrotistas Baringsi panga ning hävitas 17 miljardit krooni, selgitab, miks ta ei suutnud oma tegevust lõpetada ka siis kui kahjud olid kasvanud juba hiigelsuureks

Trapping and breaking of in vivo nicked DNA during pulsed-field gel electrophoresis

Science.gov (United States)

Khan, Sharik R.; Kuzminov, Andrei

2013-01-01

Pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) offers a high-resolution approach to quantify chromosomal fragmentation in bacteria, measured as percent of chromosomal DNA entering the gel. The degree of separation in PFG depends upon the size of DNA, as well as various conditions of electrophoresis, such as electric field strength (FS), time of electrophoresis, switch time and buffer composition. Here we describe a new parameter, the structural integrity of the sample DNA itself, that influences its migration through PFGs. We show that sub-chromosomal fragments containing both spontaneous and DNA damage-induced nicks are prone to breakage during PFGE. Such breakage at single strand interruptions results in artefactual decrease in molecular weight of linear DNA making accurate determination of the number of double strand breaks difficult. While breakage of nicked sub-chromosomal fragments is FS-independent, some high molecular weight sub-chromosomal fragments are also trapped within wells under the standard PFGE conditions. This trapping can be minimized by lowering the field strength and increasing the time of electrophoresis. We discuss how breakage of nicked DNA may be mechanistically linked to trapping. Our results suggest how to optimize conditions for PFGE when quantifying chromosomal fragmentation induced by DNA damage. PMID:23770235

Optical characterization of directly deposited graphene on a dielectric substrate

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kaplas, Tommi; Karvonen, Lasse; Ahmadi, Sepehr

2016-01-01

By using scanning multiphoton microscopy we compare the nonlinear optical properties of the directly deposited and transferred to the dielectric substrate graphene. The direct deposition of graphene on oxidized silicon wafer was done by utilizing sacrificial copper catalyst film. We demonstrate...

Improving the efficiency and directivity of THz photoconductive antennas by using a defective photonic crystal substrate

Science.gov (United States)

Rahmati, Ehsan; Ahmadi-Boroujeni, Mehdi

2018-04-01

One of the shortcomings of photoconductive (PC) antennas in terahertz (THz) generation is low effective radiated power in the desirable direction. In this paper, we propose a defective photonic crystal (DPC) substrate consisting of a customized 2D array of air holes drilled into a solid substrate in order to improve the radiation characteristics of THz PC antennas. The effect of the proposed structure on the performance of a conventional THz PC antenna has been examined from several aspects including radiation efficiency, directivity, and field distribution. By comparing the radiation performance of the THz antenna on the proposed DPC substrate to that of the conventional solid substrate, it is shown that the proposed technique can significantly improve the efficiency and directivity of the THz PC antenna over a wide frequency range. It is achieved by reducing the amount of power coupled to the substrate surface waves and limiting the radiation in undesirable directions. In addition, it is found that the sensitivity of directivity to the substrate thickness is considerably decreased and the adverse Fabry-Perot effects of the thick substrate are reduced by the application of the proposed DPC substrate.

Nick Ransford: 'There is a job to do so let's get on with it'.

Science.gov (United States)

Ransford, Nick; Doherty, Ruth

2014-03-01

Nick Ransford is a consultant in special care dentistry at Birmingham Community Healthcare NHS Trust. He has over 25 years' experience working with adults with disabilities and medical conditions across the spectrum.

Large-area nanoimprinting on various substrates by reconfigurable maskless laser direct writing

KAUST Repository

Lee, Daeho

2012-08-10

Laser-assisted, one-step direct nanoimprinting of metal and semiconductor nanoparticles (NPs) was investigated to fabricate submicron structures including mesh, line, nanopillar and nanowire arrays. Master molds were fabricated with high-speed (200mms 1) laser direct writing (LDW) of negative or positive photoresists on Si wafers. The fabrication was completely free of lift-off or reactive ion etching processes. Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) stamps fabricated from master molds replicated nanoscale structures (down to 200nm) with no or negligible residual layers on various substrates. The low temperature and pressure used for nanoimprinting enabled direct nanofabrication on flexible substrates. With the aid of high-speed LDW, wafer scale 4inch direct nanoimprinting was demonstrated. © 2012 IOP Publishing Ltd.

Nick translation detection in situ of cellular DNA strand break induced by radiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maehara, Y.; Anai, H.; Kusumoto, T.; Sakaguchi, Y.; Sugimachi, K.

1989-01-01

DNA strand break in HeLa cells induced by radiation was detected using the in situ nick translation method. The cells were exposed to radiation of 3, 6, 12, 18, and 24 Gy in Lab-Tek tissue culture chamber/slides and were fixed with ethanol/acetic acid on the slide glass. The break sites in DNA were translated artificially in the presence of Escherichia coli DNA polymerase I and [ 3 H]-labeled dTTP. Autoradiographic observation was made of the level of break sites in the DNA. The DNA strand break appeared even with a 3 Gy exposure, increased 8.6 times at 24 Gy compared with the control cells, and this level correlated reciprocally to change in cell viability. This nick translation method provides a rapid in situ assay for determining radiation-induced DNA damage of cultured cells, in a semi-quantitative manner

DNA gyrase with a single catalytic tyrosine can catalyze DNA supercoiling by a nicking-closing mechanism

Science.gov (United States)

Gubaev, Airat; Weidlich, Daniela; Klostermeier, Dagmar

2016-01-01

The topological state of DNA is important for replication, recombination and transcription, and is regulated in vivo by DNA topoisomerases. Gyrase introduces negative supercoils into DNA at the expense of ATP hydrolysis. It is the accepted view that gyrase achieves supercoiling by a strand passage mechanism, in which double-stranded DNA is cleaved, and a second double-stranded segment is passed through the gap, converting a positive DNA node into a negative node. We show here that gyrase with only one catalytic tyrosine that cleaves a single strand of its DNA substrate can catalyze DNA supercoiling without strand passage. We propose an alternative mechanism for DNA supercoiling via nicking and closing of DNA that involves trapping, segregation and relaxation of two positive supercoils. In contrast to DNA supercoiling, ATP-dependent relaxation and decatenation of DNA by gyrase lacking the C-terminal domains require both tyrosines and strand passage. Our results point towards mechanistic plasticity of gyrase and might pave the way for finding novel and specific mechanism-based gyrase inhibitors. PMID:27557712

Perspectives on the ‘lens of risk’ interview series: interview with Nick Pidgeon

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Heyman, B.; Brown, P.

2012-01-01

This article is the first in a series which will appear in 2012 in the special issue series Health Care Through the `Lens of Risk'. It provides a quasi-verbatim transcript of an interview with Nick Pidgeon, one of the main contributors to the social science component of The Royal Society Risk Report

Direct growth of cerium oxide nanorods on diverse substrates for superhydrophobicity and corrosion resistance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cho, Young Jun; Jang, Hanmin; Lee, Kwan-Soo; Kim, Dong Rip

2015-01-01

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • Cerium oxide nanorods were uniformly grown on diverse substrates. • Changes in growth conditions led to morphology evolution of cerium oxide nanostructures. • The grown cerium oxide nanostructures were single or poly crystalline. • Direct growth of cerium oxide nanorods made the diverse substrates superhydrophobic and anti-corrosive without any surface modifiers. - Abstract: Superhydrophobic surfaces with anti-corrosion properties have attracted great interest in many industrial fields, particularly to enhance the thermal performance of offshore applications such as heat exchangers, pipelines, power plants, and platform structures. Nanostructures with hydrophobic materials have been widely utilized to realize superhydrophobicity of surfaces, and cerium oxide has been highlighted due to its good corrosion resistive and intrinsically hydrophobic properties. However, few studies of direct growth of cerium oxide nanostructures on diverse substrates have been reported. Herein we report a facile hydrothermal method to directly grow cerium oxide nanorods on diverse substrates, such as aluminum alloy, stainless steel, titanium, and silicon. Diverse substrates with cerium oxide nanorods exhibited superhydrophobicity with no hydrophobic modifiers on their surfaces, and showed good corrosion resistive properties in corrosive medium. We believe our method could pave the way for realization of scalable and sustainable corrosion resistive superhydrophobic surfaces in many industrial fields

Direct growth of cerium oxide nanorods on diverse substrates for superhydrophobicity and corrosion resistance

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cho, Young Jun; Jang, Hanmin; Lee, Kwan-Soo [School of Mechanical Engineering, Hanyang University, Seoul 133-791 (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Dong Rip, E-mail: dongrip@hanyang.ac.kr [School of Mechanical Engineering, Hanyang University, Seoul 133-791 (Korea, Republic of); Institute of Nano Science and Technology, Hanyang University, Seoul 133-791 (Korea, Republic of)

2015-06-15

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • Cerium oxide nanorods were uniformly grown on diverse substrates. • Changes in growth conditions led to morphology evolution of cerium oxide nanostructures. • The grown cerium oxide nanostructures were single or poly crystalline. • Direct growth of cerium oxide nanorods made the diverse substrates superhydrophobic and anti-corrosive without any surface modifiers. - Abstract: Superhydrophobic surfaces with anti-corrosion properties have attracted great interest in many industrial fields, particularly to enhance the thermal performance of offshore applications such as heat exchangers, pipelines, power plants, and platform structures. Nanostructures with hydrophobic materials have been widely utilized to realize superhydrophobicity of surfaces, and cerium oxide has been highlighted due to its good corrosion resistive and intrinsically hydrophobic properties. However, few studies of direct growth of cerium oxide nanostructures on diverse substrates have been reported. Herein we report a facile hydrothermal method to directly grow cerium oxide nanorods on diverse substrates, such as aluminum alloy, stainless steel, titanium, and silicon. Diverse substrates with cerium oxide nanorods exhibited superhydrophobicity with no hydrophobic modifiers on their surfaces, and showed good corrosion resistive properties in corrosive medium. We believe our method could pave the way for realization of scalable and sustainable corrosion resistive superhydrophobic surfaces in many industrial fields.

Processive nicking activity of T4 endonuclease V on UV-irradiated chromatin

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gruskin, E.A.; Lloyd, R.S.

1986-01-01

T4 endonuclease V initiates the excision repair of pyrimidine dimers in UV-irradiated T4 infected E. coli cells. The pyrimidine dimer specific nicking activity of T4 endonuclease V functions by a processive scanning on UV-irradiated DNA. Previously it has been demonstrated that introduction of endonuclease V into repair-deficient human cells causes a restoration of UV survival in these cells. This demonstrates that endonuclease V is competent to incise mammalian DNA at the site of pyrimidine dimers. In order to assess the ability of endonuclease V to act processively on DNA associated as chromatin, minichromosomes were prepared for use as a substrate. Form I DNA was reconstituted with H3, H4 +/- H1 histones by sequential dialysis steps from 2.0 M NaCl to 50 mM NaCl. Time course reactions were performed with minichromosomes containing 10 and 25 dimers per molecule. In each case the rate of disappearance of form I DNA which was associated as chromatin was decreased relative to that of naked form I DNA. Concurrent with that observation, the rate and extent of appearance of form III DNA was increased with the DNA in minichromosomes relative to naked DNA. This is diagnostic of an enhancement of processivity. The inclusion of H1 in the minichromosomes resulted in a slight additional increase in processivity relative to minichromosomes consisting only of H3 and H4

W. Horsley Gantt, Nick, and the Pavlovian Science at Phipps Clinic.

Science.gov (United States)

Ruiz, Gabriel; Sánchez, Natividad

2016-10-24

William Horsley Gantt is well known as one to the principal proponents of Pavlovian methodology in the U.S. After a long stay at Ivan Petrovich Pavlov's laboratory in Leningrad from 1925 to 1929, Gantt was invited by Adolf Meyer to join the Henry Phipps Psychiatric Clinic, where he founded and directed the Pavlovian Laboratory from 1930 to 1964. Soon after his arrival at Phipps Clinic in 1931, Gantt began a Pavlovian research program that included the investigation of nervous disturbances in dogs and clinical researches with psychiatric patients. In these studies, Gantt combined a physiological method (the conditional reflexes approach), with a psychiatric problem (nervous disorders) in the context of Meyer's psychobiology that established the person or individual as unit of analysis. This fact, concentrating upon a single individual, made Gantt studies with dogs recognizable and interesting to physicians, psychologists, and psychiatrists who also worked on individuals. In this paper, we use archival materials -including correspondence, notebooks, and unpublished autobiographical material- to present a case study, that of William Horsley Gantt and his dog Nick. We will explore the reasons why Gantt' studies on nervous disturbances with this dog captured the interest of psychiatrists and clinical psychologists.

Nicked apomyoglobin: a noncovalent complex of two polypeptide fragments comprising the entire protein chain.

Science.gov (United States)

Musi, Valeria; Spolaore, Barbara; Picotti, Paola; Zambonin, Marcello; De Filippis, Vincenzo; Fontana, Angelo

2004-05-25

Limited proteolysis of the 153-residue chain of horse apomyoglobin (apoMb) by thermolysin results in the selective cleavage of the peptide bond Pro88-Leu89. The N-terminal (residues 1-88) and C-terminal (residues 89-153) fragments of apoMb were isolated to homogeneity and their conformational and association properties investigated in detail. Far-UV circular dichroism (CD) measurements revealed that both fragments in isolation acquire a high content of helical secondary structure, while near-UV CD indicated the absence of tertiary structure. A 1:1 mixture of the fragments leads to a tight noncovalent protein complex (1-88/89-153, nicked apoMb), characterized by secondary and tertiary structures similar to those of intact apoMb. The apoMb complex binds heme in a nativelike manner, as given by CD measurements in the Soret region. Second-derivative absorption spectra in the 250-300 nm region provided evidence that the degree of exposure of Tyr residues in the nicked species is similar to that of the intact protein at neutral pH. Also, the microenvironment of Trp residues, located in positions 7 and 14 of the 153-residue chain of the protein, is similar in both protein species, as given by fluorescence emission data. Moreover, in analogy to intact apoMb, the nicked protein binds the hydrophobic dye 1-anilinonaphthalene-8-sulfonate (ANS). Taken together, our results indicate that the two proteolytic fragments 1-88 and 89-153 of apoMb adopt partly folded states characterized by sufficiently nativelike conformational features that promote their specific association and mutual stabilization into a nicked protein species much resembling in its structural features intact apoMb. It is suggested that the formation of a noncovalent complex upon fragment complementation can mimic the protein folding process of the entire protein chain, with the difference that the folding of the complementary fragments is an intermolecular process. In particular, this study emphasizes the

Securing wilderness landscapes in South Africa : Nick Steele, private wildlife conservancies and saving rhinos

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wels,; H.,

2015-01-01

Private wildlife conservation is booming business in South Africa! Nick Steele stood at the cradle of this development in the politically turbulent 1970s and 1980s, by stimulating farmers in Natal (now KwaZulu-Natal) to pool resources in order to restore wilderness landscapes, but at the same time

Direct Synthesis of Co-doped Graphene on Dielectric Substrates Using Solid Carbon Sources

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Qi Wang; Pingping Zhang; Qiqi Zhuo; Xiaoxin Lv; Jiwei Wang; Xuhui Sun

2015-01-01

Direct synthesis of high-quality doped graphene on dielectric substrates without transfer is highly desired for simplified device processing in electronic applications.However,graphene synthesis directly on substrates suitable for device applications,though highly demanded,remains unattainable and challenging.Here,a simple and transfer-free synthesis of high-quality doped graphene on the dielectric substrate has been developed using a thin Cu layer as the top catalyst and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons as both carbon precursors and doping sources.N-doped and N,F-co-doped graphene have been achieved using TPB and F16Cu Pc as solid carbon sources,respectively.The growth conditions were systematically optimized and the as-grown doped graphene were well characterized.The growth strategy provides a controllable transfer-free route for high-quality doped graphene synthesis,which will facilitate the practical applications of graphene.

GeSn-on-insulator substrate formed by direct wafer bonding

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lei, Dian; Wang, Wei; Gong, Xiao, E-mail: elegong@nus.edu.sg, E-mail: yeo@ieee.org; Yeo, Yee-Chia, E-mail: elegong@nus.edu.sg, E-mail: yeo@ieee.org [Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117576 (Singapore); Lee, Kwang Hong; Wang, Bing [Low Energy Electronic Systems (LEES), Singapore MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART), 1 CREATE Way, #10-01 CREATE Tower, Singapore 138602 (Singapore); Bao, Shuyu [Low Energy Electronic Systems (LEES), Singapore MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART), 1 CREATE Way, #10-01 CREATE Tower, Singapore 138602 (Singapore); School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798 (Singapore); Tan, Chuan Seng [School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798 (Singapore)

2016-07-11

GeSn-on-insulator (GeSnOI) on Silicon (Si) substrate was realized using direct wafer bonding technique. This process involves the growth of Ge{sub 1-x}Sn{sub x} layer on a first Si (001) substrate (donor wafer) followed by the deposition of SiO{sub 2} on Ge{sub 1-x}Sn{sub x}, the bonding of the donor wafer to a second Si (001) substrate (handle wafer), and removal of the Si donor wafer. The GeSnOI material quality is investigated using high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, high-resolution X-ray diffraction (HRXRD), atomic-force microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and spectroscopic ellipsometry. The Ge{sub 1-x}Sn{sub x} layer on GeSnOI substrate has a surface roughness of 1.90 nm, which is higher than that of the original Ge{sub 1-x}Sn{sub x} epilayer before transfer (surface roughness is 0.528 nm). The compressive strain of the Ge{sub 1-x}Sn{sub x} film in the GeSnOI is as low as 0.10% as confirmed using HRXRD and Raman spectroscopy.

Using directed evolution to probe the substrate specificity of mandelamide hydrolase.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Pan-Fen; Yep, Alejandra; Kenyon, George L; McLeish, Michael J

2009-02-01

Mandelamide hydrolase (MAH), a member of the amidase signature family, catalyzes the hydrolysis of mandelamide to mandelate and ammonia. X-ray structures of several members of this family, but not that of MAH, have been reported. These reveal nearly superimposable conformations of the unusual Ser-cisSer-Lys catalytic triad. Conversely, the residues involved in substrate recognition are not conserved, implying that the binding pocket could be modified to change the substrate specificity, perhaps by directed evolution. Here we show that MAH is able to hydrolyze small aliphatic substrates such as lactamide, albeit with low efficiency. A selection method to monitor changes in mandelamide/lactamide preference was developed and used to identify several mutations affecting substrate binding. A homology model places some of these mutations close to the catalytic triad, presumably in the MAH active site. In particular, Gly202 appears to control the preference for aromatic substrates as the G202A variant showed three orders of magnitude decrease in k(cat)/K(m) for (R)- and (S)-mandelamide. This reduction in activity increased to six orders of magnitude for the G202V variant.

Dehalogenation of chloroalkanes by nickel(i) porphyrin derivatives, a computational study.

Science.gov (United States)

Szatkowski, L; Hall, M B

2016-11-14

The nickel(i) octaethylisobacteriochlorin anion ([OEiBCh-Ni (I) ] - ) is commonly used as a synthetic model of cofactor F 430 from Methyl-Coenzyme M Reductase. In this regard, experimental studies show that [OEiBCh-Ni (I) ] - can catalyze dehalogenation of aliphatic halides in DMF solution by a highly efficient S N 2 reaction. To better understand this process, we constructed theoretical models of the dehalogenation of chloromethane by a simple nickel(i) isobacteriochlorin anion and compared its reactivity with that of similar Ni (I) complexes with other porphyrin-derived ligands: porphyrin, chlorin, bactreriochlorin, hexahydroporphyrin and octahydroporphyrin. Our calculations predict that all of the porphyrin derivative's model reactions proceed through low-spin complexes. Relative to the energy of the separate reactants the theoretical activation energies (free-energy barriers with solvation corrections) for the dehalogenation of chloromethane are similar for all of the porphyrin derivatives and range for the different functionals from 10-15 kcal mol -1 for B3LYP to 5-10 kcal mol -1 for M06-L and to 13-18 kcal mol -1 for ωB97X-D. The relative free energies of the products of the dehalogenation step, L-Ni-Me adducts, have a range from -5 to -40 kcal mol -1 for all functionals; generally becoming more negative with increasing saturation of the porphyrin ligand. Moreover, no significant differences in the theoretical chlorine kinetic isotope effect were discernable with change of porphyrin ligand.

Direct growth of nanocrystalline hexagonal boron nitride films on dielectric substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tay, Roland Yingjie [School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore, Singapore 639798 (Singapore); Temasek Laboratories@NTU, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore, Singapore 639798 (Singapore); Tsang, Siu Hon [Temasek Laboratories@NTU, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore, Singapore 639798 (Singapore); Loeblein, Manuela; Chow, Wai Leong [School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore, Singapore 639798 (Singapore); CNRS-International NTU Thales Research Alliance CINTRA UMI 3288, Research Techno Plaza, 50 Nanyang Drive, Singapore, Singapore 637553 (Singapore); Loh, Guan Chee [Institue of High Performance Computing, 1 Fusionopolis Way, #16-16 Connexis, Singapore 138632 (Singapore); Department of Physics, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan 49931 (United States); Toh, Joo Wah; Ang, Soon Loong [School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore, Singapore 639798 (Singapore); Teo, Edwin Hang Tong, E-mail: htteo@ntu.edu.sg [School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore, Singapore 639798 (Singapore); School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore, Singapore 639798 (Singapore)

2015-03-09

Atomically thin hexagonal-boron nitride (h-BN) films are primarily synthesized through chemical vapor deposition (CVD) on various catalytic transition metal substrates. In this work, a single-step metal-catalyst-free approach to obtain few- to multi-layer nanocrystalline h-BN (NCBN) directly on amorphous SiO{sub 2}/Si and quartz substrates is demonstrated. The as-grown thin films are continuous and smooth with no observable pinholes or wrinkles across the entire deposited substrate as inspected using optical and atomic force microscopy. The starting layers of NCBN orient itself parallel to the substrate, initiating the growth of the textured thin film. Formation of NCBN is due to the random and uncontrolled nucleation of h-BN on the dielectric substrate surface with no epitaxial relation, unlike on metal surfaces. The crystallite size is ∼25 nm as determined by Raman spectroscopy. Transmission electron microscopy shows that the NCBN formed sheets of multi-stacked layers with controllable thickness from ∼2 to 25 nm. The absence of transfer process in this technique avoids any additional degradation, such as wrinkles, tears or folding and residues on the film which are detrimental to device performance. This work provides a wider perspective of CVD-grown h-BN and presents a viable route towards large-scale manufacturing of h-BN substrates and for coating applications.

Laser direct synthesis and patterning of silver nano/microstructures on a polymer substrate.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Yi-Kai; Lee, Ming-Tsang

2014-08-27

This study presents a novel approach for the rapid fabrication of conductive nano/microscale metal structures on flexible polymer substrate (polyimide). Silver film is simultaneously synthesized and patterned on the polyimide substrate using an advanced continuous wave (CW) laser direct writing technology and a transparent, particle-free reactive silver ion ink. The location and shape of the resulting silver patterns are written by a laser beam from a digitally controlled micromirror array device. The silver patterns fabricated by this laser direct synthesis and patterning (LDSP) process exhibit the remarkably low electrical resistivity of 2.1 μΩ cm, which is compatible to the electrical resistivity of bulk silver. This novel LDSP process requires no vacuum chamber or photomasks, and the steps needed for preparation of the modified reactive silver ink are simple and straightforward. There is none of the complexity and instability associated with the synthesis of the nanoparticles that are encountered for the conventional laser direct writing technology which involves nanoparticle sintering process. This LDSP technology is an advanced method of nano/microscale selective metal patterning on flexible substrates that is fast and environmentally benign and shows potential as a feasible process for the roll-to-roll manufacturing of large area flexible electronic devices.

Site- and strand-specific nicking of DNA by fusion proteins derived from MutH and I-SceI or TALE repeats.

Science.gov (United States)

Gabsalilow, Lilia; Schierling, Benno; Friedhoff, Peter; Pingoud, Alfred; Wende, Wolfgang

2013-04-01

Targeted genome engineering requires nucleases that introduce a highly specific double-strand break in the genome that is either processed by homology-directed repair in the presence of a homologous repair template or by non-homologous end-joining (NHEJ) that usually results in insertions or deletions. The error-prone NHEJ can be efficiently suppressed by 'nickases' that produce a single-strand break rather than a double-strand break. Highly specific nickases have been produced by engineering of homing endonucleases and more recently by modifying zinc finger nucleases (ZFNs) composed of a zinc finger array and the catalytic domain of the restriction endonuclease FokI. These ZF-nickases work as heterodimers in which one subunit has a catalytically inactive FokI domain. We present two different approaches to engineer highly specific nickases; both rely on the sequence-specific nicking activity of the DNA mismatch repair endonuclease MutH which we fused to a DNA-binding module, either a catalytically inactive variant of the homing endonuclease I-SceI or the DNA-binding domain of the TALE protein AvrBs4. The fusion proteins nick strand specifically a bipartite recognition sequence consisting of the MutH and the I-SceI or TALE recognition sequences, respectively, with a more than 1000-fold preference over a stand-alone MutH site. TALE-MutH is a programmable nickase.

Sequential and Multistep Substrate Interrogation Provides the Scaffold for Specificity in Human Flap Endonuclease 1

KAUST Repository

Sobhy, M.; Joudeh, L.; Huang, X.; Takahashi, Masateru; Hamdan, S.

2013-01-01

Human flap endonuclease 1 (FEN1), one of the structure-specific 5' nucleases, is integral in replication, repair, and recombination of cellular DNA. The 5' nucleases share significant unifying features yet cleave diverse substrates at similar positions relative to 5' end junctions. Using single-molecule Förster resonance energy transfer, we find a multistep mechanism that verifies all substrate features before inducing the intermediary-DNA bending step that is believed to unify 5' nuclease mechanisms. This is achieved by coordinating threading of the 5' flap of a nick junction into the conserved capped-helical gateway, overseeing the active site, and bending by binding at the base of the junction. We propose that this sequential and multistep substrate recognition process allows different 5' nucleases to recognize different substrates and restrict the induction of DNA bending to the last common step. Such mechanisms would also ensure the protection ofDNA junctions from nonspecific bending and cleavage. 2013 The Authors.

Sequential and Multistep Substrate Interrogation Provides the Scaffold for Specificity in Human Flap Endonuclease 1

KAUST Repository

Sobhy, M.

2013-06-06

Human flap endonuclease 1 (FEN1), one of the structure-specific 5\\' nucleases, is integral in replication, repair, and recombination of cellular DNA. The 5\\' nucleases share significant unifying features yet cleave diverse substrates at similar positions relative to 5\\' end junctions. Using single-molecule Förster resonance energy transfer, we find a multistep mechanism that verifies all substrate features before inducing the intermediary-DNA bending step that is believed to unify 5\\' nuclease mechanisms. This is achieved by coordinating threading of the 5\\' flap of a nick junction into the conserved capped-helical gateway, overseeing the active site, and bending by binding at the base of the junction. We propose that this sequential and multistep substrate recognition process allows different 5\\' nucleases to recognize different substrates and restrict the induction of DNA bending to the last common step. Such mechanisms would also ensure the protection ofDNA junctions from nonspecific bending and cleavage. 2013 The Authors.

Direct Growth of High-Quality InP Layers on GaAs Substrates by MOCVD

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

K. F. Yarn

2003-01-01

group V partial pressure, growth rate and V/III ratios. A mirror-like, uniform surface and high crystal quality of the metamorphic buffer layer directly grown on a GaAs substrate can be achieved. Finally, to investigate the performance of the metamorphic microwave devices, we also fabricate the InAlAs/InGaAs metamorphic HEMT on GaAs substrates.

Direct growth of cerium oxide nanorods on diverse substrates for superhydrophobicity and corrosion resistance

Science.gov (United States)

Cho, Young Jun; Jang, Hanmin; Lee, Kwan-Soo; Kim, Dong Rip

2015-06-01

Superhydrophobic surfaces with anti-corrosion properties have attracted great interest in many industrial fields, particularly to enhance the thermal performance of offshore applications such as heat exchangers, pipelines, power plants, and platform structures. Nanostructures with hydrophobic materials have been widely utilized to realize superhydrophobicity of surfaces, and cerium oxide has been highlighted due to its good corrosion resistive and intrinsically hydrophobic properties. However, few studies of direct growth of cerium oxide nanostructures on diverse substrates have been reported. Herein we report a facile hydrothermal method to directly grow cerium oxide nanorods on diverse substrates, such as aluminum alloy, stainless steel, titanium, and silicon. Diverse substrates with cerium oxide nanorods exhibited superhydrophobicity with no hydrophobic modifiers on their surfaces, and showed good corrosion resistive properties in corrosive medium. We believe our method could pave the way for realization of scalable and sustainable corrosion resistive superhydrophobic surfaces in many industrial fields.

Siim Nestor soovitab : Jus Fine ja DJ Hype. Mutant ja Nick Luscombe. Kuurorti kogumik / Siim Nestor

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Nestor, Siim, 1974-

2005-01-01

Inglise drum'n'bass-staar DJ Hype 17. märtsil klubis Privé üritusel "Jus' Fine". Inglise diskor Nick Luscombe üritusel "Mutant" 18. märtsil klubis Privé. Plaadifirma Kuurortrecords esitleb 18. märtsil oma uut kogumikplaati Pirita jõe suudmes asuval laeval Monica

An ultrasensitive colorimeter assay strategy for p53 mutation assisted by nicking endonuclease signal amplification.

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Zhenyu; Yang, Weiqiang; Zhang, Guiyun; Liu, Qida; Qiu, Bin; Cai, Zongwei; Chen, Guonan

2011-08-28

A novel catalytic colorimetric assay assisted by nicking endonuclease signal amplification (NESA) was developed. With the signal amplification, the detection limit of the p53 target gene can be as low as 1 pM, which is nearly 5 orders of magnitude lower than that of other previously reported colorimetric DNA detection strategies based on catalytic DNAzyme.

Nickel enhanced graphene growth directly on dielectric substrates by molecular beam epitaxy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wofford, Joseph M., E-mail: joewofford@gmail.com, E-mail: lopes@pdi-berlin.de; Lopes, Joao Marcelo J., E-mail: joewofford@gmail.com, E-mail: lopes@pdi-berlin.de; Riechert, Henning [Paul-Drude-Institut für Festkörperelektronik, Hausvogteiplatz 5-7, 10117 Berlin (Germany); Speck, Florian; Seyller, Thomas [Technische Universität Chemnitz, Institut für Physik, Reichenhainer Str. 70, 09126 Chemnitz (Germany)

2016-07-28

The efficacy of Ni as a surfactant to improve the crystalline quality of graphene grown directly on dielectric Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}(0001) substrates by molecular beam epitaxy is examined. Simultaneously exposing the substrate to a Ni flux throughout C deposition at 950 °C led to improved charge carrier mobility and a Raman spectrum indicating less structural disorder in the resulting nanocrystalline graphene film. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy confirmed that no residual Ni could be detected in the film and showed a decrease in the intensity of the defect-related component of the C1s level. Similar improvements were not observed when a lower substrate temperature (850 °C) was used. A close examination of the Raman spectra suggests that Ni reduces the concentration of lattice vacancies in the film, possibly by catalytically assisting adatom incorporation.

Substrate tolerant direct block copolymer nanolithography

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Li, Tao; Wang, Zhongli; Schulte, Lars

2016-01-01

Block copolymer (BC) self-assembly constitutes a powerful platform for nanolithography. However, there is a need for a general approach to BC lithography that critically considers all the steps from substrate preparation to the final pattern transfer. We present a procedure that significantly sim...... plasma treatment enables formation of the oxidized PDMS hard mask, PS block removal and polymer or graphene substrate patterning....

Site-specifically modified oligodeoxyribonucleotides as templates for Escherichia coli DNA polymerase I

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Connor, D.; Stoehrer, G.

1985-01-01

Oligodeoxyribonucleotides with site-specific modifications have been used as substrates for Escherichia coli DNA polymerase I holoenzyme and Klenow fragment. Modifications included the bulky guanine-8-aminofluorene adduct and a guanine oxidation product resembling the product of photosensitized DNA oxidation. By a combination of primers and nick-mers, conditions of single-strand-directed DNA synthesis and nick-translation could be created. The results show that the polymerase can bypass both types of lesions. Bypass occurs on a single-stranded template but is facilitated on a nicked, double-stranded template. Only purines, with guanine more favored than adenine, are incorporated across both lesions. The results indicate that site-specifically modified oligonucleotides can be sensitive probes for the action of polymerases on damaged templates. They also suggest a function for polymerase I, in its nick-translation capacity, during DNA repair and mutagenesis

Long Spin-Relaxation Times in a Transition-Metal Atom in Direct Contact to a Metal Substrate.

Science.gov (United States)

Hermenau, Jan; Ternes, Markus; Steinbrecher, Manuel; Wiesendanger, Roland; Wiebe, Jens

2018-03-14

Long spin-relaxation times are a prerequisite for the use of spins in data storage or nanospintronics technologies. An atomic-scale solid-state realization of such a system is the spin of a transition-metal atom adsorbed on a suitable substrate. For the case of a metallic substrate, which enables the direct addressing of the spin by conduction electrons, the experimentally measured lifetimes reported to date are on the order of only hundreds of femtoseconds. Here, we show that the spin states of iron atoms adsorbed directly on a conductive platinum substrate have a surprisingly long spin-relaxation time in the nanosecond regime, which is comparable to that of a transition metal atom decoupled from the substrate electrons by a thin decoupling layer. The combination of long spin-relaxation times and strong coupling to conduction electrons implies the possibility to use flexible coupling schemes to process the spin information.

Direct nanofabrication and transmission electron microscopy on a suite of easy-to-prepare ultrathin film substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Allred, Daniel B.; Zin, Melvin T.; Ma, Hong; Sarikaya, Mehmet; Baneyx, Francois; Jen, Alex K.-Y.; Schwartz, Daniel T.

2007-01-01

A high-yield, easy to master method for preparing electron transparent metal, oxide, and carbon ultrathin film substrates suitable for direct nano/micro-fabrication and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) is presented. To demonstrate the versatility of these substrates for fabrication processes, we use e-beam lithography, self-assembled colloidal and protein templates, and microcontact printing to create patterned masks for subsequent electrodeposition of two dimensional and three dimensional structures. The electrodeposited structures range in scale from a few nanometers to a few micrometers in characteristic dimensions. Because fabrication occurs directly on ultrathin films, TEM analysis of the resulting materials and buried interfaces is straightforward without any destructive sample preparation. We show that all the normal TEM analytical methods (imaging, diffraction, electron and X-ray spectroscopies) are compatible with the fabricated structures and the thin film substrates. These electron transparent substrates have largely rendered the need for TEM sample preparation on fabricated structures obsolete in our lab

Direct comparison of graphene devices before and after transfer to different substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sachs, Raymond; Lin, Zhisheng; Odenthal, Patrick; Kawakami, Roland; Shi, Jing

2014-01-01

The entire graphene field-effect-transistor devices first fabricated on SiO 2 /Si are peeled from the surface and placed on a different wafer. Both longitudinal and transverse resistivity measurements of the devices before and after the transfer are measured to calculate the mobility for a direct comparison. After transferred to different SiO 2 /Si wafers, the mobility, generally, is comparable, and the defect density does not show any significant increase, which indicates the degradation due to the transfer process itself is minimal. The same method can be applied to transfer graphene devices to any arbitrary substrates (e.g., SrTiO 3 or STO). The transfer method developed here not only eliminates the need to locate single-layer graphene on non-SiO 2 /Si substrates for patterning but also provides a convenient way to study the effects of various substrates on graphene electronic properties

Direct evidence of strain transfer for InAs island growth on compliant Si substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Marçal, L. A. B.; Magalhães-Paniago, R.; Malachias, Angelo, E-mail: angeloms@fisica.ufmg.br [Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Av. Antonio Carlos 6627, CEP 31270-901, Belo Horizonte (Brazil); Richard, M.-I. [European Synchrotron (ESRF), ID01 beamline, CS 40220, 38043 Grenoble Cedex 9 (France); Aix-Marseille University, IM2NP-CNRS, Faculté des Sciences de St Jérôme, 13397 Marseille (France); Cavallo, F. [Center for High Technology Materials, University of New Mexico, 1313 Goddard St., Albuquerque, New Mexico 87106 (United States); University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1500 Engineering Drive, Madison, Wisconsin 53706 (United States); Lagally, M. G. [University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1500 Engineering Drive, Madison, Wisconsin 53706 (United States); Schmidt, O. G. [Institute for Integrative Nanosciences, IFW-Dresden, D-01171 Dresden (Germany); Schülli, T. Ü. [European Synchrotron (ESRF), ID01 beamline, CS 40220, 38043 Grenoble Cedex 9 (France); Deneke, Ch. [Laboratório Nacional de Nanotecnologia (LNNano/CNPEM), C.P. 6192, CEP 13083-970, Campinas (Brazil)

2015-04-13

Semiconductor heteroepitaxy on top of thin compliant layers has been explored as a path to make inorganic electronics mechanically flexible as well as to integrate materials that cannot be grown directly on rigid substrates. Here, we show direct evidences of strain transfer for InAs islands on freestanding Si thin films (7 nm). Synchrotron X-ray diffraction measurements using a beam size of 300 × 700 nm{sup 2} can directly probe the strain status of the compliant substrate underneath deposited islands. Using a recently developed diffraction mapping technique, three-dimensional reciprocal space maps were reconstructed around the Si (004) peak for specific illuminated positions of the sample. The strain retrieved was analyzed using continuous elasticity theory via Finite-element simulations. The comparison of experiment and simulations yields the amount of strain from the InAs islands, which is transferred to the compliant Si thin film.

Direct dry transfer of chemical vapor deposition graphene to polymeric substrates

OpenAIRE

Fechine, Guilhermino J. M.; Martin-Fernandez, Inigo; Yiapanis, George; de Oliveira, Ricardo V. Bof; Hu, Xiao; Yarovsky, Irene; Neto, Antonio H. Castro; Ozyilmaz, Barbaros

2014-01-01

We demonstrate the direct dry transfer of large area Chemical Vapor Deposition graphene to several polymers (low density polyethylene, high density polyethylene, polystyrene, polylactide acid and poly(vinylidenefluoride-co-trifluoroethylene) by means of only moderate heat and pressure, and the later mechanical peeling of the original graphene substrate. Simulations of the graphene-polymer interactions, rheological tests and graphene transfer at various experimental conditions show that contro...

DNA fragments assembly based on nicking enzyme system.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rui-Yan Wang

Full Text Available A couple of DNA ligation-independent cloning (LIC methods have been reported to meet various requirements in metabolic engineering and synthetic biology. The principle of LIC is the assembly of multiple overlapping DNA fragments by single-stranded (ss DNA overlaps annealing. Here we present a method to generate single-stranded DNA overlaps based on Nicking Endonucleases (NEases for LIC, the method was termed NE-LIC. Factors related to cloning efficiency were optimized in this study. This NE-LIC allows generating 3'-end or 5'-end ss DNA overlaps of various lengths for fragments assembly. We demonstrated that the 10 bp/15 bp overlaps had the highest DNA fragments assembling efficiency, while 5 bp/10 bp overlaps showed the highest efficiency when T4 DNA ligase was added. Its advantage over Sequence and Ligation Independent Cloning (SLIC and Uracil-Specific Excision Reagent (USER was obvious. The mechanism can be applied to many other LIC strategies. Finally, the NEases based LIC (NE-LIC was successfully applied to assemble a pathway of six gene fragments responsible for synthesizing microbial poly-3-hydroxybutyrate (PHB.

ZnO nanostructures directly grown on paper and bacterial cellulose substrates without any surface modification layer.

Science.gov (United States)

Costa, Saionara V; Gonçalves, Agnaldo S; Zaguete, Maria A; Mazon, Talita; Nogueira, Ana F

2013-09-21

In this report, hierarchical ZnO nano- and microstructures were directly grown for the first time on a bacterial cellulose substrate and on two additional different papers by hydrothermal synthesis without any surface modification layer. Compactness and smoothness of the substrates are two important parameters that allow the growth of oriented structures.

A meta-selective C-H borylation directed by a secondary interaction between ligand and substrate

Science.gov (United States)

Kuninobu, Yoichiro; Ida, Haruka; Nishi, Mitsumi; Kanai, Motomu

2015-09-01

Regioselective C-H bond transformations are potentially the most efficient method for the synthesis of organic molecules. However, the presence of many C-H bonds in organic molecules and the high activation barrier for these reactions make these transformations difficult. Directing groups in the reaction substrate are often used to control regioselectivity, which has been especially successful for the ortho-selective functionalization of aromatic substrates. Here, we describe an iridium-catalysed meta-selective C-H borylation of aromatic compounds using a newly designed catalytic system. The bipyridine-derived ligand that binds iridium contains a pendant urea moiety. A secondary interaction between this urea and a hydrogen-bond acceptor in the substrate places the iridium in close proximity to the meta-C-H bond and thus controls the regioselectivity. 1H NMR studies and control experiments support the participation of hydrogen bonds in inducing regioselectivity. Reversible direction of the catalyst through hydrogen bonds is a versatile concept for regioselective C-H transformations.

Design and fabrication of directional diffractive device on glass substrate for multiview holographic 3D display

Science.gov (United States)

Su, Yanfeng; Cai, Zhijian; Liu, Quan; Zou, Wenlong; Guo, Peiliang; Wu, Jianhong

2018-01-01

Multiview holographic 3D display based on the nano-grating patterned directional diffractive device can provide 3D images with high resolution and wide viewing angle, which has attracted considerable attention. However, the current directional diffractive device fabricated on the photoresist is vulnerable to damage, which will lead to the short service life of the device. In this paper, we propose a directional diffractive device on glass substrate to increase its service life. In the design process, the period and the orientation of the nano-grating at each pixel are carefully calculated accordingly by the predefined position of the viewing zone, and the groove parameters are designed by analyzing the diffraction efficiency of the nano-grating pixel on glass substrate. In the experiment, a 4-view photoresist directional diffractive device with a full coverage of pixelated nano-grating arrays is efficiently fabricated by using an ultraviolet continuously variable spatial frequency lithography system, and then the nano-grating patterns on the photoresist are transferred to the glass substrate by combining the ion beam etching and the reactive ion beam etching for controlling the groove parameters precisely. The properties of the etched glass device are measured under the illumination of a collimated laser beam with a wavelength of 532nm. The experimental results demonstrate that the light utilization efficiency is improved and optimized in comparison with the photoresist device. Furthermore, the fabricated device on glass substrate is easier to be replicated and of better durability and practicability, which shows great potential in the commercial applications of 3D display terminal.

Chemoselective, Substrate-directed Fluorination of Functionalized Cyclopentane β-Amino Acids.

Science.gov (United States)

Kiss, Loránd; Nonn, Melinda; Sillanpää, Reijo; Haukka, Matti; Fustero, Santos; Fülöp, Ferenc

2016-12-06

This work describes a substrate-directed fluorination of some highly functionalized cyclopentane derivatives. The cyclic products incorporating CH 2 F or CHF 2 moieties in their structure have been synthesized from diexo- or diendo-norbornene β-amino acids following a stereocontrolled strategy. The synthetic study was based on an oxidative transformation of the ring carbon-carbon double bond of the norbornene β-amino acids, followed by transformation of the resulted "all cis" and "trans" diformyl intermediates by fluorination with "chemodifferentiation". © 2016 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Direct metal transfer printing on flexible substrate for fabricating optics functional devices

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, Yingjie; Zhou, Xiaohong; Zhang, Feng; Shi, Zhenwu; Chen, Linsen; Peng, Changsi

2015-11-01

New functional materials and devices based on metal patterns can be widely used in many new and expanding industries,such as flat panel displays, alternative energy,sensors and so on. In this paper, we introduce a new transfer printing method for fabricating metal optics functional devices. This method can directly transfer a metal pattern from a polyethylene terephthalate (PET)supported UV or polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) pattern to another PET substrate. Purely taking advantage of the anaerobic UV curing adhesive (a-UV) on PET substrate, metal film can be easily peeled off from micro/nano-structured surface. As a result, metal film on the protrusion can be selectively transferred onto the target substrate, to make it the metal functional surface. But which on the bottom can not be transferred. This method provides low cost fabrication of metal thin film devices by avoiding high cost lithography process. Compared with conventional approach, this method can get more smooth rough edges and has wider tolerance range for the original master mold. Future developments and potential applications of this metal transfer method will be addressed.

Sudha Bhattacharya Jawaharlal Nehru University New Delhi

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

TSC

Bottom strand. 1. 2. 3. G A T C. 5. 1. 3. 4. 2. *. Nicking profile of EN on the 174 bp substrate. Insertion point. Bottom strand labelled 174bp substrate. Transposon insertion point. Endonuclease nicks at three hot spots. The transposon inserts at hot spot # 3 ...

Directional freezing for the cryopreservation of adherent mammalian cells on a substrate

Science.gov (United States)

Braslavsky, Ido

2018-01-01

Successfully cryopreserving cells adhered to a substrate would facilitate the growth of a vital confluent cell culture after thawing while dramatically shortening the post-thaw culturing time. Herein we propose a controlled slow cooling method combining initial directional freezing followed by gradual cooling down to -80°C for robust preservation of cell monolayers adherent to a substrate. Using computer controlled cryostages we examined the effect of cooling rates and dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) concentration on cell survival and established an optimal cryopreservation protocol. Experimental results show the highest post-thawing viability for directional ice growth at a speed of 30 μm/sec (equivalent to freezing rate of 3.8°C/min), followed by gradual cooling of the sample with decreasing rate of 0.5°C/min. Efficient cryopreservation of three widely used epithelial cell lines: IEC-18, HeLa, and Caco-2, provides proof-of-concept support for this new freezing protocol applied to adherent cells. This method is highly reproducible, significantly increases the post-thaw cell viability and can be readily applied for cryopreservation of cellular cultures in microfluidic devices. PMID:29447224

First principle analyses of direct bandgap solar cells with absorbing substrates versus mirrors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kirk, Alexander P. [School of Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona 85287 (United States); Kirk, Wiley P. [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, Texas 76019 (United States)

2013-11-07

Direct bandgap InP, GaAs, CdTe, and Ga{sub 0.5}In{sub 0.5}P solar cells containing backside mirrors as well as parasitically absorbing substrates are analyzed for their limiting open circuit voltage and power conversion efficiency with comparison to record solar cells. From the principle of detailed balance, it is shown quantitatively that mirror solar cells have greater voltage and power conversion efficiency than their substrate counterparts. Next, the radiative recombination coefficient and maximum radiative lifetime of GaAs mirror and substrate solar cells are calculated and compared to the nonradiative Auger and Shockley-Read-Hall (SRH) lifetimes. Mirror solar cells have greater radiative lifetime than their substrate variants. Auger lifetime exceeds radiative lifetime for both substrate and mirror cells while SRH lifetime may be less or greater than radiative lifetime depending on trap concentration and capture cross section. Finally, the change in free energy of the photogenerated carriers is analyzed in a comparison between InP, GaAs, CdTe, and Ga{sub 0.5}In{sub 0.5}P mirror and substrate solar cells in order to characterize the relationship between solar photon quality and free energy management in solar cells with differing bandgaps. Wider bandgap visible threshold Ga{sub 0.5}In{sub 0.5}P solar cells make better use of the available change in free energy of the photogenerated charge carriers, even when normalized to the bandgap energy, than narrower bandgap near-IR threshold InP, GaAs, and CdTe solar cells.

Self-supported ceramic substrates with directional porosity by mold freeze casting

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gurauskis, Jonas; Graves, Christopher R.; Moreno, R.

2016-01-01

in a mold and applying directional freeze casting. Use of optimized suspension, cryoprotector additive and mold proved to deliver defect free ceramic films with high dimensional control. Microstructure analysis demonstrated the formation of desirable aligned porosity at macro-structural scale and resulted...... to be highly dependent on colloidal behaviour and freeze casting conditions. Manufactured green films were joined by lamination at room temperature and sintered to obtain symmetrical cells consisting of two porous self-supported substrate electrodes (∼420 μm) and dense yttria stabilized zirconia electrolyte...

Laser-Direct Writing of Silver Metal Electrodes on Transparent Flexible Substrates with High-Bonding Strength.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Weiping; Bai, Shi; Ma, Ying; Ma, Delong; Hou, Tingxiu; Shi, Xiaomin; Hu, Anming

2016-09-21

We demonstrate a novel approach to rapidly fabricate conductive silver electrodes on transparent flexible substrates with high-bonding strength by laser-direct writing. A new type of silver ink composed of silver nitrate, sodium citrate, and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) was prepared in this work. The role of PVP was elucidated for improving the quality of silver electrodes. Silver nanoparticles and sintered microstructures were simultaneously synthesized and patterned on a substrate using a focused 405 nm continuous wave laser. The writing was completed through the transparent flexible substrate with a programmed 2D scanning sample stage. Silver electrodes fabricated by this approach exhibit a remarkable bonding strength, which can withstand an adhesive tape test at least 50 times. After a 1500 time bending test, the resistance only increased 5.2%. With laser-induced in-situ synthesis, sintering, and simultaneous patterning of silver nanoparticles, this technology is promising for the facile fabrication of conducting electronic devices on flexible substrates.

Isothermal amplification detection of nucleic acids by a double-nicked beacon.

Science.gov (United States)

Shi, Chao; Zhou, Meiling; Pan, Mei; Zhong, Guilin; Ma, Cuiping

2016-03-01

Isothermal and rapid amplification detection of nucleic acids is an important technology in environmental monitoring, foodborne pathogen detection, and point-of-care clinical diagnostics. Here we have developed a novel method of isothermal signal amplification for single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) detection. The ssDNA target could be used as an initiator, coupled with a double-nicked molecular beacon, to originate amplification cycles, achieving cascade signal amplification. In addition, the method showed good specificity and strong anti-jamming capability. Overall, it is a one-pot and isothermal strand displacement amplification method without the requirement of a stepwise procedure, which greatly simplifies the experimental procedure and decreases the probability of contamination of samples. With its advantages, the method would be very useful to detect nucleic acids in point-of-care or field use. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The singer and the song: Nick Cave and the archetypal function of the cover version

OpenAIRE

Wiseman-Trowse, Nathan J B

2013-01-01

Throughout his career, from The Boys Next Door, through The Birthday Party, and with The Bad Seeds, Australian singer / songwriter Nick Cave has balanced his own set of creative voices alongside those of others through his choice of cover versions. Cave’s 1986 album with The Bad Seeds, ‘Kicking Against the Pricks’, is a collection of cover versions that spans American folk idioms (‘Black Betty’, ‘Hey Joe’, ‘The Singer’), Tin-Pan-Alley balladeering (‘Something’s Gotten Hold of my Heart’, ‘By t...

Direct in Situ Conversion of Metals into Metal-Organic Frameworks: A Strategy for the Rapid Growth of MOF Films on Metal Substrates.

Science.gov (United States)

Ji, Hoon; Hwang, Sunhyun; Kim, Keonmok; Kim, CheolGi; Jeong, Nak Cheon

2016-11-30

The fabrication of metal-organic framework (MOF) films on conducting substrates has demonstrated great potential in applications such as electronic conduction and sensing. For these applications, direct contact of the film to the conducting substrate without a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) is a desired step that must be achieved prior to the use of MOF films. In this report, we propose an in situ strategy for the rapid one-step conversion of Cu metal into HKUST-1 films on conducting Cu substrates. The Cu substrate acts both as a conducting substrate and a source of Cu 2+ ions during the synthesis of HKUST-1. This synthesis is possible because of the simultaneous reaction of an oxidizing agent and a deprotonating agent, in which the former agent dissolves the metal substrate to form Cu 2+ ions while the latter agent deprotonates the ligand. Using this strategy, the HKUST-1 film could not only be rapidly synthesized within 5 min but also be directly attached to the Cu substrate. Based on microscopic studies, we propose a plausible mechanism for the growth reaction. Furthermore, we show the versatility of this in situ conversion methodology, applying it to ZIF-8, which comprises Zn 2+ ions and imidazole-based ligands. Using an I 2 -filled HKUST-1 film, we further demonstrate that the direct contact of the MOF film to the conducting substrate makes the material more suitable for use as a sensor or electronic conductor.

Directed divergent evolution of a thermostable D-tagatose epimerase towards improved activity for two hexose substrates.

Science.gov (United States)

Bosshart, Andreas; Hee, Chee Seng; Bechtold, Matthias; Schirmer, Tilman; Panke, Sven

2015-03-02

Functional promiscuity of enzymes can often be harnessed as the starting point for the directed evolution of novel biocatalysts. Here we describe the divergent morphing of an engineered thermostable variant (Var8) of a promiscuous D-tagatose epimerase (DTE) into two efficient catalysts for the C3 epimerization of D-fructose to D-psicose and of L-sorbose to L-tagatose. Iterative single-site randomization and screening of 48 residues in the first and second shells around the substrate-binding site of Var8 yielded the eight-site mutant IDF8 (ninefold improved kcat for the epimerization of D-fructose) and the six-site mutant ILS6 (14-fold improved epimerization of L-sorbose), compared to Var8. Structure analysis of IDF8 revealed a charged patch at the entrance of its active site; this presumably facilitates entry of the polar substrate. The improvement in catalytic activity of variant ILS6 is thought to relate to subtle changes in the hydration of the bound substrate. The structures can now be used to select additional sites for further directed evolution of the ketohexose epimerase. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Principle of topography-directed inkjet printing for functional micro-tracks in flexible substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Keum, Chang-Min; Lee, In-Ho; Park, Hea-Lim; Kim, Chiwoo; Lüssem, Björn; Choi, Jong Sun; Lee, Sin-Doo

2017-06-01

We present a general principle of topography-directed (TD) inkjet printing for functional micro-tracks embedded in a flexible elastomer substrate. The essential features of the TD inkjet printing in a micro-structured substrate with periodic grooves and ridges are described in terms of the topographic parameters for the transformation from a single droplet to a filament or an edge-disjoint pattern of ink in the groove. Silver ink, being widely used for producing conductive wires by conventional inkjet printing, is utilized as a testbed in our study. The underlying mechanisms for the spreading and drying processes of ink drops under the topographic compartment can be understood in a two-dimensional parameter space of the aspect ratio of the groove and the contact angle of ink on the substrate. The wetting morphologies of ink droplets are described in an analytical model where the Laplace pressure and the mean curvature at the vapor/ink interface are taken into account. The first principle of the TD inkjet printing would be applicable for constructing a variety of functional micro-tracks with high pattern fidelity from different classes of solutions such as conducting polymers, organic semiconductors, and colloidal nanoparticles.

Radiolytic preparation of thin Au film directly on resin substrate using high-energy electron beam

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ohkubo, Yuji, E-mail: okubo@upst.eng.osaka-u.ac.jp [Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, 2-1 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871 (Japan); Seino, Satoshi; Nakagawa, Takashi; Kugai, Junichiro [Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, 2-1 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871 (Japan); Ueno, Koji [Japan Electron Beam Irradiation Service Ltd., 5-3 Ozushima, Izumiohtsu, Osaka 595-0074 (Japan); Yamamoto, Takao A. [Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, 2-1 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871 (Japan)

2016-04-01

A novel method for preparing thin Au films directly on resin substrates using an electron beam was developed. The thin Au films were prepared on a resin substrate by the reduction of Au ions in an aqueous solution via irradiation with a high-energy electron beam (4.8 MeV). This reduction method required 7 s of the irradiation time of the electron beam. Furthermore, no reductant or catalyst was needed. As the concentration of Au ions in the precursor solution was increased, the amount of Au deposited on the resin substrate increased, too, and the structure of the prepared Au film changed. As a result, the film color changed as well. Cross-sectional scanning electron microscope images of the thus-prepared Au film indicated that the Au films were consisted of two layers: a particle layer and a bottom bulk layer. There was strong adhesion between the Au films and the underlying resin substrates. This was confirmed by the tape-peeling test and through ultrasonic cleaning. After both processes, Au remained on the resin substrates, while most of the particle-like moieties were removed. This indicated that the thin Au films prepared via irradiation with a high-energy electron beam adhered strongly to the resin substrates. - Highlights: • A thin gold (Au) film was formed by EBIRM for the first time. • The irradiation time of the electron beam was less than 10 s. • Thin Au films were obtained without reductant or catalyst. • Au films were consisted of two layers: a particle layer and a bottom bulk layer. • There was strong adhesion between the bottom bulk layer and the underlying resin substrates.

Laser Direct Write micro-fabrication of large area electronics on flexible substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zacharatos, F.; Makrygianni, M.; Geremia, R.; Biver, E.; Karnakis, D.; Leyder, S.; Puerto, D.; Delaporte, P.; Zergioti, I.

2016-01-01

Highlights: • Laser Direct Writing of metallic patterns with a minimum feature size of 1 μm. • Selective Laser Ablation of 50 nm thick metal films on flexible substrates. • Selective Laser sintering resulting in an electrical resistivity of 9 μΩ cm. • Laser fabrication of interdigitated electrodes for sensor applications. - Abstract: To date, Laser Direct Write (LDW) techniques, such as Laser Induced Forward Transfer (LIFT), selective laser ablation and selective laser sintering of metal nanoparticle (NP) ink layers are receiving growing attention for the printing of uniform and well-defined conductive patterns with resolution down to 10 μm. For flexible substrates in particular, selective laser sintering of such NP patterns has been widely applied, as a low temperature and high resolution process compatible with large area electronics. In this work, LDW of silver NP inks has been carried out on polyethylene-terephthalate (PET), polyethylene-naphthalate (PEN) and polyimide (PI) substrates to achieve low electrical resistivity electrodes. In more detail, high speed short pulsed (picosecond and nanosecond) lasers with repetition rates up to 1 MHz were used to print (LIFT) metal NP inks. We thus achieved uniform and continuous patterns with a minimum feature size of 1 μm and a total footprint larger than 1 cm"2. Next, the printed patterns were laser sintered with ns pulses at 532 nm over a wide laser fluence window, resulting in an electrical resistivity of 10 μΩ cm. We carried out spatial beam shaping experiments to achieve a top-hat laser intensity profile and employed selective laser ablation of thin films (thickness on the order of 100 nm) to produce silver micro-electrodes with a resolution on the order of 10 μm and a low line edge roughness. Laser sintering was combined with laser ablation to constitute a fully autonomous micro-patterning technique of metallic micro-features, with a 10 μm resolution and geometrical characteristics tuned for

Laser Direct Write micro-fabrication of large area electronics on flexible substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zacharatos, F.; Makrygianni, M. [National Technical University of Athens, Physics Department, Zografou Campus, 15780 (Greece); Geremia, R.; Biver, E.; Karnakis, D. [Oxford Lasers Ltd, Unit 8 Moorbrook Park, Oxfordshire OX11 7HP (United Kingdom); Leyder, S.; Puerto, D.; Delaporte, P. [Aix-Marseille University, CNRS, LP3 – UMR 7341, 13288 Marseille Cedex 9 (France); Zergioti, I., E-mail: zergioti@central.ntua.gr [National Technical University of Athens, Physics Department, Zografou Campus, 15780 (Greece)

2016-06-30

Highlights: • Laser Direct Writing of metallic patterns with a minimum feature size of 1 μm. • Selective Laser Ablation of 50 nm thick metal films on flexible substrates. • Selective Laser sintering resulting in an electrical resistivity of 9 μΩ cm. • Laser fabrication of interdigitated electrodes for sensor applications. - Abstract: To date, Laser Direct Write (LDW) techniques, such as Laser Induced Forward Transfer (LIFT), selective laser ablation and selective laser sintering of metal nanoparticle (NP) ink layers are receiving growing attention for the printing of uniform and well-defined conductive patterns with resolution down to 10 μm. For flexible substrates in particular, selective laser sintering of such NP patterns has been widely applied, as a low temperature and high resolution process compatible with large area electronics. In this work, LDW of silver NP inks has been carried out on polyethylene-terephthalate (PET), polyethylene-naphthalate (PEN) and polyimide (PI) substrates to achieve low electrical resistivity electrodes. In more detail, high speed short pulsed (picosecond and nanosecond) lasers with repetition rates up to 1 MHz were used to print (LIFT) metal NP inks. We thus achieved uniform and continuous patterns with a minimum feature size of 1 μm and a total footprint larger than 1 cm{sup 2}. Next, the printed patterns were laser sintered with ns pulses at 532 nm over a wide laser fluence window, resulting in an electrical resistivity of 10 μΩ cm. We carried out spatial beam shaping experiments to achieve a top-hat laser intensity profile and employed selective laser ablation of thin films (thickness on the order of 100 nm) to produce silver micro-electrodes with a resolution on the order of 10 μm and a low line edge roughness. Laser sintering was combined with laser ablation to constitute a fully autonomous micro-patterning technique of metallic micro-features, with a 10 μm resolution and geometrical characteristics tuned for

Direct growth of CdSe nanorods on ITO substrates by co-anchoring of ZnO nanoparticles and ethylenediamine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pan Shangke; Xu Tingting; Venkatesan, Swaminathan; Qiao Qiquan

2012-01-01

To grow CdSe nanorods directly onto indium tin oxide (ITO) substrates, a ZnO buffer layer composed of nanoparticles with diameter of ∼30–40 nm was prepared by spin coating ZnO sol–gel solution onto the ITO substrates. CdSe nanorods were then successfully in situ grown onto ITO substrates with diameter of ∼30–40 nm and length of ∼120–160 nm using solvothermal method in which CdSe·0.5en (en = ethylenediamine) acted as solution precursor. The in situ synthesized CdSe nanorods were conformed and characterized by atomic force microscope and electron microscopy. The mechanism of such in situ CdSe growth was understood as ZnO nanoparticles anchored en onto ITO substrates, while en linked CdSe with ZnO.

Direct-current substrate bias effects on amorphous silicon sputter-deposited films for thin film transistor fabrication

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jun, Seung-Ik; Rack, Philip D.; McKnight, Timothy E.; Melechko, Anatoli V.; Simpson, Michael L.

2005-01-01

The effect that direct current (dc) substrate bias has on radio frequency-sputter-deposited amorphous silicon (a-Si) films has been investigated. The substrate bias produces a denser a-Si film with fewer defects compared to unbiased films. The reduced number of defects results in a higher resistivity because defect-mediated conduction paths are reduced. Thin film transistors (TFTs) that were completely sputter deposited were fabricated and characterized. The TFT with the biased a-Si film showed lower leakage (off-state) current, higher on/off current ratio, and higher transconductance (field effect mobility) than the TFT with the unbiased a-Si film

Distinct kinetics of human DNA ligases I, IIIalpha, IIIbeta, and IV reveal direct DNA sensing ability and differential physiological functions in DNA repair

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chen, Xi; Ballin, Jeff D.; Della-Maria, Julie; Tsai, Miaw-Sheue; White, Elizabeth J.; Tomkinson, Alan E.; Wilson, Gerald M.

2009-05-11

The three human LIG genes encode polypeptides that catalyze phosphodiester bond formation during DNA replication, recombination and repair. While numerous studies have identified protein partners of the human DNA ligases (hLigs), there has been little characterization of the catalytic properties of these enzymes. In this study, we developed and optimized a fluorescence-based DNA ligation assay to characterize the activities of purified hLigs. Although hLigI joins DNA nicks, it has no detectable activity on linear duplex DNA substrates with short, cohesive single-strand ends. By contrast, hLigIII{beta} and the hLigIII{alpha}/XRCC1 and hLigIV/XRCC4 complexes are active on both nicked and linear duplex DNA substrates. Surprisingly, hLigIV/XRCC4, which is a key component of the major non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) pathway, is significantly less active than hLigIII on a linear duplex DNA substrate. Notably, hLigIV/XRCC4 molecules only catalyze a single ligation event in the absence or presence of ATP. The failure to catalyze subsequent ligation events reflects a defect in the enzyme-adenylation step of the next ligation reaction and suggests that, unless there is an in vivo mechanism to reactivate DNA ligase IV/XRCC4 following phosphodiester bond formation, the cellular NHEJ capacity will be determined by the number of adenylated DNA ligaseIV/XRCC4 molecules.

Dewetting of thin films on flexible substrates via direct-write laser exposure

Science.gov (United States)

Ferrer, Anthony Jesus

Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) have enabled a wide variety of technologies both in the consumer space and in industrial/research areas. At the market level, such devices advance by the invention and innovation of production techniques. Additionally, there has been increased demand for flexible versions of such MEMS devices. Thin film patterning, represents a key technology for the realization of such flexible electronics. Patterns and methods that can be directly written into the thin film allow for design modification on the fly with the need for harsh chemicals and long etching steps. Laser-induced dewetting has the potential to create patterns in thin films at both the microscopic and nanoscopic level without wasting deposited material. This thesis presents the first demonstration of high-speed direct-write patterning of metallic thin films that uses a laser-induced dewetting phenomenon to prevent material loss. The ability to build film material with this technique is explored using various scanning geometries. Finally, demonstrations of direct-write dewetting of a variety of thin films will be presented with special consideration for high melting point metals deposited upon polymer substrates.

A direct method to measure the fracture toughness of indium tin oxide thin films on flexible polymer substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chang, Rwei-Ching; Tsai, Fa-Ta; Tu, Chin-Hsiang

2013-01-01

This work presents a straightforward method to measure the fracture toughness of thin films deposited on flexible substrates. A 200 nm thick indium tin oxide (ITO) thin film is deposited on a 188 μm thick terephthalate (PET) substrate by a radio frequency magnetron sputtering machine. Using nanoindentation to induce brittle fracture on the ITO thin films, the energy release is calculated from integrating the resulting load–depth curve. An approach that directly measures the fracture toughness of thin films deposited on flexible substrates is proposed. A comparison shows that the results of the proposed method agree well with those of other reports. Furthermore, in order to improve the toughness of the ITO thin films, a copper interlayer is added between the ITO thin film and PET substrate. It shows that the fracture toughness of the ITO thin film deposited on the copper interlayer is higher than that of the one without the interlayer, which agrees well with the critical load tested by micro scratch. Further observations on optical and electric performances are also discussed in this work. - Highlights: • A straightforward method to measure the film's toughness • Directly using the load-depth curve of nanoindentation • The toughness is consistent with the critical load tested by micro scratch. • Interlayers can improve the film's toughness. • Optical and electric performances are also discussed

Direct writing of large-area micro/nano-structural arrays on single crystalline germanium substrates using femtosecond lasers

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Lin; Wang, Jun

2017-06-01

A direct writing technique for fabricating micro/nano-structural arrays without using a multi-scanning process, multi-beam interference, or any assisted microlens arrays is reported. Various sub-wavelength micro/nano-structural arrays have been directly written on single crystalline germanium substrate surfaces using femtosecond laser pulses. The evolution of the multiscale surface morphology from periodic micro/nano-structures to V-shaped microgrooves has been achieved, and the relationship between array characteristics and laser polarization directions has been discussed. The self-organization model agrees well with the experimental results in this study.

Controlling optical properties of periodic gold nanoparticle arrays by changing the substrate, topologic shapes of nanoparticles, and polarization direction of incident light

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ting, Li; Li, Yu; Zhi-Xin, Lu; Gang, Song; Kai, Zhang

2011-01-01

The effects of various parameters including thickness and dielectric constants of substrates, shapes of nanoparticles, and polarization direction of incident light, on the extinction spectra of periodic gold nanoparticle arrays are investigated by the full-vectorial three-dimensional (3D) finite difference time domain (FDTD) method. The calculated results show that the substrate affects the extinction spectra by coupling the fields co-excited by the substrate and gold nanoparticles. Extinction spectra are influenced by the shapes of the nanoparticles, but there are no obvious changes in extinction spectra for similar shapes. The polarization direction of incident light has a great influence on the extinction spectra. The implications of these results are discussed. (condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties)

Bonding temperature dependence of GaInAsP/InP laser diode grown on hydrophilically directly bonded InP/Si substrate

Science.gov (United States)

Aikawa, Masaki; Onuki, Yuya; Hayasaka, Natsuki; Nishiyama, Tetsuo; Kamada, Naoki; Han, Xu; Kallarasan Periyanayagam, Gandhi; Uchida, Kazuki; Sugiyama, Hirokazu; Shimomura, Kazuhiko

2018-02-01

The bonding-temperature-dependent lasing characteristics of 1.5 a µm GaInAsP laser diode (LD) grown on a directly bonded InP/Si substrate were successfully obtained. We have fabricated the InP/Si substrate using a direct hydrophilic wafer bonding technique at bonding temperatures of 350, 400, and 450 °C, and deposited GaInAsP/InP double heterostructure layers on this InP/Si substrate. The surface conditions, X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, photoluminescence (PL) spectra, and electrical characteristics after the growth were compared at these bonding temperatures. No significant differences were confirmed in X-ray diffraction analysis and PL spectra at these bonding temperatures. We realized the room-temperature lasing of the GaInAsP LD on the InP/Si substrate bonded at 350 and 400 °C. The threshold current densities were 4.65 kA/cm2 at 350 °C and 4.38 kA/cm2 at 400 °C. The electrical resistance was found to increase with annealing temperature.

The mismatch repair and meiotic recombination endonuclease Mlh1-Mlh3 is activated by polymer formation and can cleave DNA substrates in trans.

Science.gov (United States)

Manhart, Carol M; Ni, Xiaodan; White, Martin A; Ortega, Joaquin; Surtees, Jennifer A; Alani, Eric

2017-04-01

Crossing over between homologs is initiated in meiotic prophase by the formation of DNA double-strand breaks that occur throughout the genome. In the major interference-responsive crossover pathway in baker's yeast, these breaks are resected to form 3' single-strand tails that participate in a homology search, ultimately forming double Holliday junctions (dHJs) that primarily include both homologs. These dHJs are resolved by endonuclease activity to form exclusively crossovers, which are critical for proper homolog segregation in Meiosis I. Recent genetic, biochemical, and molecular studies in yeast are consistent with the hypothesis of Mlh1-Mlh3 DNA mismatch repair complex acting as the major endonuclease activity that resolves dHJs into crossovers. However, the mechanism by which the Mlh1-Mlh3 endonuclease is activated is unknown. Here, we provide evidence that Mlh1-Mlh3 does not behave like a structure-specific endonuclease but forms polymers required to generate nicks in DNA. This conclusion is supported by DNA binding studies performed with different-sized substrates that contain or lack polymerization barriers and endonuclease assays performed with varying ratios of endonuclease-deficient and endonuclease-proficient Mlh1-Mlh3. In addition, Mlh1-Mlh3 can generate religatable double-strand breaks and form an active nucleoprotein complex that can nick DNA substrates in trans. Together these observations argue that Mlh1-Mlh3 may not act like a canonical, RuvC-like Holliday junction resolvase and support a novel model in which Mlh1-Mlh3 is loaded onto DNA to form an activated polymer that cleaves DNA.

On the use of an appropriate TdT-mediated dUTP-biotin nick end labeling assay to identify apoptotic cells.

OpenAIRE

Lebon, C.; Rodriguez, G.V.; Zaoui, I.E.; Jaadane, I.; Behar-Cohen, F.; Torriglia, A.

2015-01-01

Apoptosis is an essential cellular mechanism involved in many processes such as embryogenesis, metamorphosis, and tissue homeostasis. DNA fragmentation is one of the key markers of this form of cell death. DNA fragmentation is executed by endogenous endonucleases such as caspase-activated DNase (CAD) in caspase-dependent apoptosis. The TUNEL (TdT-mediated dUTP-biotin nick end labeling) technique is the most widely used method to identify apoptotic cells in a tissue or culture and to assess dr...

Self-Assembled Nanocube-Based Plasmene Nanosheets as Soft Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering Substrates toward Direct Quantitative Drug Identification on Surfaces.

Science.gov (United States)

Si, Kae Jye; Guo, Pengzhen; Shi, Qianqian; Cheng, Wenlong

2015-05-19

We report on self-assembled nanocube-based plasmene nanosheets as new surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrates toward direct identification of a trace amount of drugs sitting on topologically complex real-world surfaces. The uniform nanocube arrays (superlattices) led to low spatial SERS signal variances (∼2%). Unlike conventional SERS substrates which are based on rigid nanostructured metals, our plasmene nanosheets are mechanically soft and optically semitransparent, enabling conformal attachment to real-world solid surfaces such as banknotes for direct SERS identification of drugs. Our plasmene nanosheets were able to detect benzocaine overdose down to a parts-per-billion (ppb) level with an excellent linear relationship (R(2) > 0.99) between characteristic peak intensity and concentration. On banknote surfaces, a detection limit of ∼0.9 × 10(-6) g/cm(2) benzocaine could be achieved. Furthermore, a few other drugs could also be identified, even in their binary mixtures with our plasmene nanosheets. Our experimental results clearly show that our plasmene sheets represent a new class of unique SERS substrates, potentially serving as a versatile platform for real-world forensic drug identification.

Thickness-controlled direct growth of nanographene and nanographite film on non-catalytic substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Du, Lei; Yang, Liu; Hu, Zhiting; Zhang, Jiazhen; Huang, Chunlai; Sun, Liaoxin; Wang, Lin; Wei, Dacheng; Chen, Gang; Lu, Wei

2018-05-01

Metal-catalyzed chemical vapor deposition (CVD) has been broadly employed for large-scale production of high-quality graphene. However, a following transfer process to targeted substrates is needed, which is incompatible with current silicon technology. We here report a new CVD approach to form nanographene and nanographite films with accurate thickness control directly on non-catalytic substrates such as silicon dioxide and quartz at 800 °C. The growth time is as short as a few seconds. The approach includes using 9-bis(diethylamino)silylanthracene as the carbon source and an atomic layer deposition (ALD) controlling system. The structure of the formed nanographene and nanographite films were characterized using atomic force microscopy, high resolution transmission electron microscopy, Raman scattering, and x-ray photoemission spectroscopy. The nanographite film exhibits a transmittance higher than 80% at 550 nm and a sheet electrical resistance of 2000 ohms per square at room temperature. A negative temperature-dependence of the resistance of the nanographite film is also observed. Moreover, the thickness of the films can be precisely controlled via the deposition cycles using an ALD system, which promotes great application potential for optoelectronic and thermoelectronic-devices.

Direct determination of phosphatase activity from physiological substrates in cells.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhongyuan Ren

Full Text Available A direct and continuous approach to determine simultaneously protein and phosphate concentrations in cells and kinetics of phosphate release from physiological substrates by cells without any labeling has been developed. Among the enzymes having a phosphatase activity, tissue non-specific alkaline phosphatase (TNAP performs indispensable, multiple functions in humans. It is expressed in numerous tissues with high levels detected in bones, liver and neurons. It is absolutely required for bone mineralization and also necessary for neurotransmitter synthesis. We provided the proof of concept that infrared spectroscopy is a reliable assay to determine a phosphatase activity in the osteoblasts. For the first time, an overall specific phosphatase activity in cells was determined in a single step by measuring simultaneously protein and substrate concentrations. We found specific activities in osteoblast like cells amounting to 116 ± 13 nmol min(-1 mg(-1 for PPi, to 56 ± 11 nmol min(-1 mg(-1 for AMP, to 79 ± 23 nmol min(-1 mg(-1 for beta-glycerophosphate and to 73 ± 15 nmol min(-1 mg(-1 for 1-alpha-D glucose phosphate. The assay was also effective to monitor phosphatase activity in primary osteoblasts and in matrix vesicles. The use of levamisole--a TNAP inhibitor--served to demonstrate that a part of the phosphatase activity originated from this enzyme. An IC50 value of 1.16 ± 0.03 mM was obtained for the inhibition of phosphatase activity of levamisole in osteoblast like cells. The infrared assay could be extended to determine any type of phosphatase activity in other cells. It may serve as a metabolomic tool to monitor an overall phosphatase activity including acid phosphatases or other related enzymes.

An engineered cell-imprinted substrate directs osteogenic differentiation in stem cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kamguyan, Khorshid; Katbab, Ali Asghar; Mahmoudi, Morteza

2018-01-01

A cell-imprinted poly(dimethylsiloxane)/hydroxyapatite nanocomposite substrate was fabricated to engage topographical, mechanical, and chemical signals to stimulate and boost stem cell osteogenic differentiation. The physicochemical properties of the fabricated substrates, with nanoscale resolution...

Role of arginine-292 in the substrate specificity of aspartate aminotransferase as examined by site-directed mutagenesis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cronin, C.N.; Kirsch, J.F.

1988-01-01

X-ray crystallographic data have implicated Arg-292 as the residue responsible for the preferred side-chain substrate specificity of asparate aminotransferase. It forms a salt bridge with the β or γ carboxylate group of the substrate. In order to test this proposal and, in addition, to attempt to reverse the substrate charge specificity of this enzyme, Arg-292 has been converted to Asp-292 by site-directed mutagenesis. The activity k/sub cat//K/sub M/) of the mutant enzyme, R292D, toward the natural anionic substrates L-aspartate, L-glutamate, and α-ketoglutarate is depressed by over 5 orders of magnitude, whereas the activity toward the keto acid pyruvate and a number of aromatic and other neutral amino acids is reduced by only 2-9-fold. These results confirm the proposal that Arg-292 is critical for the rapid turnover of substrates bearing anionic side chains and show further that, apart from the desired alteration no major perturbations of the remainder of the molecule have been made. The activity of R292D toward the cationic amino acids L-arginine, L-lysine, and L-ornithine is increased by 9-16-fold over that of wild type and the ratio (k/sub cat//K/sub M/)/sub cationic//(k/sub cat//K/sub M/)/sub anionic/ is in the range 2-40-fold for R292D, whereas this ratio has a range of [(0.3-6) x 10 -6 ]-fold for wild type. Thus, the mutation has produced an inversion of the substrate charge specificity. Possible explanations for the less-than-expected reactivity of R292D with arginine are discussed

Self-Assembled Local Artificial Substrates of GaAs on Si Substrate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Frigeri C

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract We propose a self-assembling procedure for the fabrication of GaAs islands by Droplet Epitaxy on silicon substrate. Controlling substrate temperature and amount of supplied gallium is possible to tune the base size of the islands from 70 up to 250 nm and the density from 107 to 109 cm−2. The islands show a standard deviation of base size distribution below 10% and their shape evolves changing the aspect ratio from 0.3 to 0.5 as size increases. Due to their characteristics, these islands are suitable to be used as local artificial substrates for the integration of III–V quantum nanostructures directly on silicon substrate.

Template-directed ligation of tethered mononucleotides by t4 DNA ligase for kinase ribozyme selection.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

David G Nickens

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: In vitro selection of kinase ribozymes for small molecule metabolites, such as free nucleosides, will require partition systems that discriminate active from inactive RNA species. While nucleic acid catalysis of phosphoryl transfer is well established for phosphorylation of 5' or 2' OH of oligonucleotide substrates, phosphorylation of diffusible small molecules has not been demonstrated. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: This study demonstrates the ability of T4 DNA ligase to capture RNA strands in which a tethered monodeoxynucleoside has acquired a 5' phosphate. The ligation reaction therefore mimics the partition step of a selection for nucleoside kinase (deoxyribozymes. Ligation with tethered substrates was considerably slower than with nicked, fully duplex DNA, even though the deoxynucleotides at the ligation junction were Watson-Crick base paired in the tethered substrate. Ligation increased markedly when the bridging template strand contained unpaired spacer nucleotides across from the flexible tether, according to the trends: A(2>A(1>A(3>A(4>A(0>A(6>A(8>A(10 and T(2>T(3>T(4>T(6 approximately T(1>T(8>T(10. Bridging T's generally gave higher yield of ligated product than bridging A's. ATP concentrations above 33 microM accumulated adenylated intermediate and decreased yields of the gap-sealed product, likely due to re-adenylation of dissociated enzyme. Under optimized conditions, T4 DNA ligase efficiently (>90% joined a correctly paired, or TratioG wobble-paired, substrate on the 3' side of the ligation junction while discriminating approximately 100-fold against most mispaired substrates. Tethered dC and dG gave the highest ligation rates and yields, followed by tethered deoxyinosine (dI and dT, with the slowest reactions for tethered dA. The same kinetic trends were observed in ligase-mediated capture in complex reaction mixtures with multiple substrates. The "universal" analog 5-nitroindole (dNI did not support ligation when

Site directed recombination

Science.gov (United States)

Jurka, Jerzy W.

1997-01-01

Enhanced homologous recombination is obtained by employing a consensus sequence which has been found to be associated with integration of repeat sequences, such as Alu and ID. The consensus sequence or sequence having a single transition mutation determines one site of a double break which allows for high efficiency of integration at the site. By introducing single or double stranded DNA having the consensus sequence flanking region joined to a sequence of interest, one can reproducibly direct integration of the sequence of interest at one or a limited number of sites. In this way, specific sites can be identified and homologous recombination achieved at the site by employing a second flanking sequence associated with a sequence proximal to the 3'-nick.

Direct growth and patterning of multilayer graphene onto a targeted substrate without an external carbon source.

Science.gov (United States)

Kang, Dongseok; Kim, Won-Jun; Lim, Jung Ah; Song, Yong-Won

2012-07-25

Using only a simple tube furnace, we demonstrate the synthesis of patterned graphene directly on a designed substrate without the need for an external carbon source. Carbon atoms are absorbed onto Ni evaporator sources as impurities, and incorporated into catalyst layers during the deposition. Heat treatment conditions were optimized so that the atoms diffused out along the grain boundaries to form nanocrystals at the catalyst-substrate interfaces. Graphene patterns were obtained under patterned catalysts, which restricted graphene formation to within patterned areas. The resultant multilayer graphene was characterized by Raman spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy to verify the high crystallinity and two-dimensional nanomorphology. Finally, a metal-semiconductor diode with a catalyst-graphene contact structure were fabricated and characterized to assess the semiconducting properties of the graphene sheets with respect to the display of asymmetric current-voltage behavior.

Direct Growth of Graphene Films on 3D Grating Structural Quartz Substrates for High-Performance Pressure-Sensitive Sensors.

Science.gov (United States)

Song, Xuefen; Sun, Tai; Yang, Jun; Yu, Leyong; Wei, Dacheng; Fang, Liang; Lu, Bin; Du, Chunlei; Wei, Dapeng

2016-07-06

Conformal graphene films have directly been synthesized on the surface of grating microstructured quartz substrates by a simple chemical vapor deposition process. The wonderful conformality and relatively high quality of the as-prepared graphene on the three-dimensional substrate have been verified by scanning electron microscopy and Raman spectra. This conformal graphene film possesses excellent electrical and optical properties with a sheet resistance of 80% (at 550 nm), which can be attached with a flat graphene film on a poly(dimethylsiloxane) substrate, and then could work as a pressure-sensitive sensor. This device possesses a high-pressure sensitivity of -6.524 kPa(-1) in a low-pressure range of 0-200 Pa. Meanwhile, this pressure-sensitive sensor exhibits super-reliability (≥5000 cycles) and an ultrafast response time (≤4 ms). Owing to these features, this pressure-sensitive sensor based on 3D conformal graphene is adequately introduced to test wind pressure, expressing higher accuracy and a lower background noise level than a market anemometer.

A simple technique for direct growth of Au into a nanoporous alumina layer on conductive glass as a reusable SERS substrate

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yu, Jiajie [Chemicobiology and Functional Materials Institute, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing 210094 (China); Shen, Muzhong [School of Engineering, AnHui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036 (China); Liu, Siyu; Li, Feng [Chemicobiology and Functional Materials Institute, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing 210094 (China); Sun, Dongping, E-mail: sundpe301@163.com [School of Engineering, AnHui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036 (China); Wang, Tianhe, E-mail: thwang56@126.com [Chemicobiology and Functional Materials Institute, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing 210094 (China)

2017-06-01

Graphical abstract: A simple technique for direct growth of gold nanoparticles (GNPs) into a nanostructured porous alumina layer on conductive glass slide (PAOCG). Gold was uniformly distributed in porous alumina layer. Au/PAOCG can serve as a portable, durable and reusable SERS substrate. - Highlights: • A simple method of producing nanoporous alumina layer on conductive glasses. • A facile technique for direct growth of gold nanoparticles (GNPs) into PAOCG. • It presents a general protocol for preparation of (MNPs) on conductive glasses. • Au/PAOCG exhibits high SERS sensitivity and excellent reusability. - Abstract: In this paper, we describe a simple technique for direct growth of gold nanoparticles (GNPs) into a nanostructured porous alumina layer on conductive glass slide (PAOCG). PAOCG was attached firmly with a small piece of steel and was then immersed in a HAuCl{sub 4} solution. Electro-induced electrons from steel were employed to reduce AuCl{sub 4}{sup −} on PAOCG. The galvanic replacement reaction (GRR) was adopted as the fundamental mechanism for reducing metal precursors. This mechanism was further studied by open circuit potential-time (OCP-t) experiment and the result demonstrated that steel induced the continuous proceeding of this reaction. This strategy presents a simple and general protocol for preparation of metal nanoparticles (MNPs) on conductive glass substrates. The SERS properties of Au/PAOCG were investigated using aqueous crystal violet (CV) and 4-mercaptopyridine (4-Mpy) as probe molecules. Au/PAOCG allowed as low as 10{sup −9} M CV and 10{sup −8} M 4-Mpy to be detected. The reusability of this substrate was achieved by measuring the SERS spectrum of the probe molecules followed with a 400 °C heat treatment for 10 min to remove the residuals. This substrate could be reused for at least ten cycles without any significantly reduced SERS performance. Therefore, this surface can serve as a portable, durable and reusable SERS

Direct patterning of negative nanostructures on self-assembled monolayers of 16-mercaptohexadecanoic acid on Au(111) substrate via dip-pen nanolithography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zheng Zhikun; Yang Menglong; Liu Yaqing; Zhang Bailin

2006-01-01

Both bare and self-assembled monolayer (SAM) protected gold substrate could be etched by allyl bromide according to atomic force microscopy (AFM), x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometric (ICPMS) analysis results. With this allyl bromide ink material, negative nanopatterns could be fabricated directly by dip-pen nanolithography (DPN) on SAMs of 16-mercaptohexadecanoic acid (MHA) on Au(111) substrate. A tip-promoted etching mechanism was proposed where the gold-reactive ink could penetrate the MHA resist film through tip-induced defects resulting in local corrosive removal of the gold substrate. The fabrication mechanism was also confirmed by electrochemical characterization, energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) analysis and fabrication of positive nanopatterns via a used DPN tip

Direct patterning of negative nanostructures on self-assembled monolayers of 16-mercaptohexadecanoic acid on Au(111) substrate via dip-pen nanolithography

Science.gov (United States)

Zheng, Zhikun; Yang, Menglong; Liu, Yaqing; Zhang, Bailin

2006-11-01

Both bare and self-assembled monolayer (SAM) protected gold substrate could be etched by allyl bromide according to atomic force microscopy (AFM), x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometric (ICPMS) analysis results. With this allyl bromide ink material, negative nanopatterns could be fabricated directly by dip-pen nanolithography (DPN) on SAMs of 16-mercaptohexadecanoic acid (MHA) on Au(111) substrate. A tip-promoted etching mechanism was proposed where the gold-reactive ink could penetrate the MHA resist film through tip-induced defects resulting in local corrosive removal of the gold substrate. The fabrication mechanism was also confirmed by electrochemical characterization, energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) analysis and fabrication of positive nanopatterns via a used DPN tip.

Hydrothermal–galvanic couple synthesis of directionally oriented BaTiO3 thin films on TiN-coated substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang, Chia-Jung; Tsai, Di-You; Chan, Pei-Hsuan; Wu, Chu-Tsun; Lu, Fu-Hsing

2013-01-01

BaTiO 3 films were synthesized on TiN-coated Si substrate below 100 °C by a hydrothermal–galvanic couple technique in barium contained alkaline solutions. X-ray diffraction and electron backscatter diffraction results show that the BaTiO 3 thin films were directionally oriented grown on the TiN/Si substrates, i.e., (111) BaTiO 3 over (111) TiN. The surface morphologies revealed that BaTiO 3 nucleated and grew over the TiN surface with a single layer. From kinetic analyses, the growth rates of BaTiO 3 films prepared by the hydrothermal–galvanic couple technique were faster than a hydrothermal method. The galvanic effects were confirmed by investigating the induced currents and energies. The galvanic currents were generated and controlled by both the dissolution of TiN and the formation of BaTiO 3 . The output electric energies increased rapidly with the reaction time and leveled off at the full coverage of BaTiO 3 . - Highlights: • Cubic BaTiO 3 films are synthesized by a hydrothermal–galvanic couple method (HT–GC). • Growth rates of BaTiO 3 films made by HT–GC are faster than a hydrothermal method. • BaTiO 3 films are directionally oriented grown on the TiN/Si substrates. • Galvanic currents are controlled by dissolution of TiN and formation of BaTiO 3

Repair of pyrimidine dimers in radiation-sensitive mutants rad3, rad4, rad6, and rad9 of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. [nicking

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Prakash, L [Rochester Univ., N.Y. (USA). Dept. of Radiation Biology and Biophysics; Rochester Univ., N.Y. (USA). School of Medicine and Dentistry)

1977-10-01

The ability to remove ultraviolet-induced pyrimidine dimers was examined in four radiation-sensitive mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The susceptibility of DNA from irradiated cells to nicking by either the T4 uv-endonuclease or an endonuclease activity found in crude extracts of Micrococcus luteus was used to measure the presence of dimers in DNA. The rad3 and rad4 mutants are shown to be defective in dimer excision whereas the rad6 and rad9 mutants are proficient in dimer excision.

Direct writing and electro-mechanical characterization of Ag micro-patterns on polymer substrates for flexible electronics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Torres Arango, Maria A.; Cokeley, Anna M.; Beard, Jared J.; Sierros, Konstantinos A.

2015-01-01

There is currently a great interest in developing flexible electrodes. Such components are used in most electronic devices from displays to solar cells to flexible sensors. To date most of them are fabricated using expensive vacuum techniques, and are based on transparent conducting oxides. These oxides are not entirely compatible with flexible substrates under the application of mechanical stresses, due to their brittle nature. Therefore, there is a need to explore novel low-cost, large-area fabrication methods to deposit alternative conducting materials with enhanced electro-mechanical performance. This work focuses on Ag patterns fabricated at low temperatures (below 150 °C) on flexible polyethylene naphthalate utilizing a robotic printing approach. Such lithography-free method minimizes material waste by printing exact amounts of inks on digitally predefined locations. Additionally, it allows a broad feature size range, from a few μm to a few mm, and a variety of ink viscosities for better pattern control. We investigate the synthesis and direct writing of Ag particle-based inks, patterned-on-flex as lines and grids in the μm scale. We report on a high-yield ink synthesis method (~ 61.6%) with controlled particle size. It is found that the electrical resistivity (1.75 ∗ 10"−"4 Ω cm) of the patterns is in the same range with similar particle-based conductive components. The correlation between annealing temperature, microstructural evolution, and electrical performance is established. Also, the optical transmittance of the patterns can be controlled to meet specific application requirements by regulating the substrate surface area covered. Finally, the mechanical behavior under both monotonic and cyclic conditions shows a superior performance compared to brittle counterparts and underlines the potential of such metallic micro-patterns to be utilized in a wide range of flexible electronic applications. It is believed that direct writing of Ag patterns on

Direct writing and electro-mechanical characterization of Ag micro-patterns on polymer substrates for flexible electronics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Torres Arango, Maria A.; Cokeley, Anna M.; Beard, Jared J.; Sierros, Konstantinos A., E-mail: kostas.sierros@mail.wvu.edu

2015-12-01

There is currently a great interest in developing flexible electrodes. Such components are used in most electronic devices from displays to solar cells to flexible sensors. To date most of them are fabricated using expensive vacuum techniques, and are based on transparent conducting oxides. These oxides are not entirely compatible with flexible substrates under the application of mechanical stresses, due to their brittle nature. Therefore, there is a need to explore novel low-cost, large-area fabrication methods to deposit alternative conducting materials with enhanced electro-mechanical performance. This work focuses on Ag patterns fabricated at low temperatures (below 150 °C) on flexible polyethylene naphthalate utilizing a robotic printing approach. Such lithography-free method minimizes material waste by printing exact amounts of inks on digitally predefined locations. Additionally, it allows a broad feature size range, from a few μm to a few mm, and a variety of ink viscosities for better pattern control. We investigate the synthesis and direct writing of Ag particle-based inks, patterned-on-flex as lines and grids in the μm scale. We report on a high-yield ink synthesis method (~ 61.6%) with controlled particle size. It is found that the electrical resistivity (1.75 ∗ 10{sup −4} Ω cm) of the patterns is in the same range with similar particle-based conductive components. The correlation between annealing temperature, microstructural evolution, and electrical performance is established. Also, the optical transmittance of the patterns can be controlled to meet specific application requirements by regulating the substrate surface area covered. Finally, the mechanical behavior under both monotonic and cyclic conditions shows a superior performance compared to brittle counterparts and underlines the potential of such metallic micro-patterns to be utilized in a wide range of flexible electronic applications. It is believed that direct writing of Ag patterns

The Effect of Substrate Topography on Direct Reprogramming of Fibroblasts to Induced Neurons

Science.gov (United States)

Kulangara, Karina; Adler, Andrew F.; Wang, Hong; Chellappan, Malathi; Hammett, Ellen; Yasuda, Ryohei; Leong, Kam W.

2014-01-01

Cellular reprogramming holds tremendous potential for cell therapy and regenerative medicine. Recently, fibroblasts have been directly converted into induced neurons (iNs) by overexpression of the neuronal transcription factors Ascl1, Brn2 and Myt1L. Hypothesizing that cell-topography interactions could influence the fibroblast-to-neuron reprogramming process, we investigated the effects of various topographies on iNs produced by direct reprogramming. Final iN purity and conversion efficiency were increased on micrograting substrates. Neurite branching was increased on microposts and decreased on microgratings, with a simplified dendritic arbor characterized by the reduction of MAP2+ neurites. Neurite outgrowth increased significantly on various topographies. DNA microarray analysis detected 20 differentially expressed genes in iNs reprogrammed on smooth versus microgratings, and quantitative PCR (qPCR) confirmed the upregulation of Vip and downregulation of Thy1 and Bmp5 on microgratings. Electrophysiology and calcium imaging verified the functionality of these iNs. This study demonstrates the potential of applying topographical cues to optimize cellular reprogramming. PMID:24709523

DNA Polymerase Fidelity: Comparing Direct Competition of Right and Wrong dNTP Substrates with Steady State and Presteady State Kinetics†

Science.gov (United States)

Bertram, Jeffrey G.; Oertell, Keriann; Petruska, John; Goodman, Myron F.

2009-01-01

DNA polymerase fidelity is defined as the ratio of right (R) to wrong (W) nucleotide incorporations when dRTP and dWTP substrates compete at equal concentrations for primer extension at the same site in the polymerase-primer-template DNA complex. Typically, R incorporation is favored over W by 103 – 105, even in the absence of 3′-exonuclease proofreading. Straightforward in principal, a direct competition fidelity measurement is difficult to perform in practice because detection of a small amount of W is masked by a large amount of R. As an alternative, enzyme kinetics measurements to evaluate kcat/Km for R and W in separate reactions are widely used to measure polymerase fidelity indirectly, based on a steady-state derivation by Fersht. A systematic comparison between direct competition and kinetics has not been made until now. By separating R and W products using electrophoresis, we have successfully made accurate fidelity measurements for directly competing R and W dNTP substrates for 9 of the 12 natural base mispairs. We compare our direct competition results with steady state and presteady state kinetic measurements of fidelity at the same template site, using the proofreading-deficient mutant of Klenow Fragment (KF−) DNA polymerase. All the data are in quantitative agreement. PMID:20000359

Direct dry transfer of CVD graphene to an optical substrate by in situ photo-polymerization

Science.gov (United States)

Kessler, Felipe; Muñoz, Pablo A. R.; Phelan, Ciaran; Romani, Eric C.; Larrudé, Dunieskys R. G.; Freire, Fernando L.; Thoroh de Souza, Eunézio A.; de Matos, Christiano J. S.; Fechine, Guilhermino J. M.

2018-05-01

Here, we report on a method that allows graphene produced by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) to be directly transferred to an optically transparent photo resin, by in situ photo-polymerization of the latter, with high efficiency and low contamination. Two photocurable resins, A and B, with different viscosities but essentially the same chemical structure, were used. Raman spectroscopy and surface energy results show that large continuous areas of graphene were transferred with minimal defects to the lower viscosity resin (B), due to the better contact between the resin and graphene. As a proof-of-principle optical experiment, graphene on the polymeric substrate was subjected to high-intensity femtosecond infrared pulses and third-harmonic generation was observed with no noticeable degradation of the sample. A sheet third-order susceptibility χ (3) = 0.71 ×10-28m3V-2 was obtained, matching that of graphene on a glass substrate. These results indicate the suitability of the proposed transfer method, and of the photo resin, for the production of nonlinear photonic components and devices.

Direct growth of graphene on quartz substrates for label-free detection of adenosine triphosphate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xu, Shicai; Man, Baoyuan; Jiang, Shouzhen; Yue, Weiwei; Yang, Cheng; Liu, Mei; Chen, Chuansong; Zhang, Chao

2014-01-01

We demonstrate that continuous, uniform graphene films can be directly synthesized on quartz substrates using a two-temperature-zone chemical vapor deposition system and that their layers can be controlled by adjusting the precursor partial pressure. Raman spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy confirm the formation of monolayer graphene with a grain size of ∼100 nm. Hall measurements show a room-temperature carrier mobility above 1500 cm 2  V −1  s −1 . The optical transmittance and conductance of the graphene films are comparable to those of transferred metal-catalyzed graphene. The method avoids the complicated and skilled post-growth transfer process and allows the graphene to be directly incorporated into a fully functional biosensor for label-free detection of adenosine triphosphate (ATP). This device shows a fast response time of a few milliseconds and achieves a high sensitivity to ATP molecules over a very wide range from 0.002 to 5 mM. (paper)

Direct growth of graphene on quartz substrates for label-free detection of adenosine triphosphate.

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Shicai; Man, Baoyuan; Jiang, Shouzhen; Yue, Weiwei; Yang, Cheng; Liu, Mei; Chen, Chuansong; Zhang, Chao

2014-04-25

We demonstrate that continuous, uniform graphene films can be directly synthesized on quartz substrates using a two-temperature-zone chemical vapor deposition system and that their layers can be controlled by adjusting the precursor partial pressure. Raman spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy confirm the formation of monolayer graphene with a grain size of ∼100 nm. Hall measurements show a room-temperature carrier mobility above 1500 cm2 V(-1) s(-1). The optical transmittance and conductance of the graphene films are comparable to those of transferred metal-catalyzed graphene. The method avoids the complicated and skilled post-growth transfer process and allows the graphene to be directly incorporated into a fully functional biosensor for label-free detection of adenosine triphosphate (ATP). This device shows a fast response time of a few milliseconds and achieves a high sensitivity to ATP molecules over a very wide range from 0.002 to 5 mM.

Higher-resolution selective metallization on alumina substrate by laser direct writing and electroless plating

Science.gov (United States)

Lv, Ming; Liu, Jianguo; Wang, Suhuan; Ai, Jun; Zeng, Xiaoyan

2016-03-01

How to fabricate conductive patterns on ceramic boards with higher resolution is a challenge in the past years. The fabrication of copper patterns on alumina substrate by laser direct writing and electroless copper plating is a low cost and high efficiency method. Nevertheless, the lower resolution limits its further industrial applications in many fields. In this report, the mechanisms of laser direct writing and electroless copper plating were studied. The results indicated that as the decomposed products of precursor PdCl2 have different chemical states respectively in laser-irradiated zone (LIZ) and laser-affected zone (LAZ). This phenomenon was utilized and a special chemical cleaning method with aqua regia solution was taken to selectively remove the metallic Pd in LAZ, while kept the PdO in LIZ as the only active seeds. As a result, the resolution of subsequent copper patterns was improved significantly. This technique has a great significance to develop the microelectronics devices.

Direct growth of graphene on quartz substrate as saturable absorber for femtosecond solid-state laser

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xu, S C; Man, B Y; Jiang, S Z; Chen, C S; Liu, M; Yang, C; Gao, S B; Zhang, C; Feng, D J; Huang, Q J; Hu, G D; Chen, X F

2014-01-01

We present a novel method for the direct metal-free growth of graphene on quartz substrate. The direct-grown graphene yields excellent nonlinear saturable absorption properties and is demonstrated to be suitable as a saturable absorber (SA) for an ultrafast solid-state laser. Nearly Fourier-limited 367 fs was obtained at a central wavelength of 1048 nm with a repetition rate of 105.7 MHz. At a pump power of 7.95 W, the average output power was 1.93 W and the highest pulse energy reached 18.3 nJ, with a peak power of 49.8 kW. Our work opens an easy route for making a reliable graphene SA with a mode-locking technique and also displays an exciting prospect in making low-cost and ultrafast lasers. (letter)

Electrochemical Capacitors Based on Aligned Carbon Nanotubes Directly Synthesized on Tantalum Substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Byung Woo; Chung, Hae Geun; Kim, Woong; Min, Byoung Koun; Kim, Hong Gon

2010-01-01

We demonstrate that vertically aligned carbon nanotubes can be synthesized directly on tantalum substrate via waterassisted chemical vapor deposition and evaluate their properties as electrochemical capacitors. The mean diameter of the carbon nanotubes was 7.1 ± 1.5 nm, and 70% of them had double walls. The intensity ratio of G-band to D-band in Raman spectra was as high as 5, indicating good quality of the carbon nanotubes. Owing to the alignment and low equivalent series resistance, the carbon nanotube based supercapacitors showed good rate performance. Rectangular shape of cyclic voltammogram was maintained even at the scan rate of > 1 V/s in 1 M sulfuric acid aqueous solution. Specific capacitance was well-retained (∼94%) even when the discharging current density dramatically increased up to 145 A/g. Consequently, specific power as high as 60 kW/kg was obtained from as-grown carbon nanotubes in aqueous solution. Maximum specific energy of ∼20 Wh/kg was obtained when carbon nanotubes were electrochemically oxidized and operated in organic solution. Demonstration of direct synthesis of carbon nanotubes on tantalum current collectors and their applications as supercapacitors could be an invaluable basis for fabrication of high performance carbon nanotube supercapacitors

Seed-mediated direct growth of CdSe nanoclusters on substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pan Shangke; Ebrahim, Shaker; Soliman, Moataz; Qiao Qiquan

2013-01-01

Different shapes of CdSe nanostructures were obtained by hydrothermal method with varied Se sources and buffer layers. Hexagonal nanoparticles of CdSe with Wurtzite structure were synthesized from Se powder resource, while CdSe nanoclusters with Wurtzite structure were grown from Na 2 SeO 3 aqueous solution resources at 165 °C using cetyltrimethylammonium bromide as surfactant. Using ZnO nanoparticles as a seed layer, CdSe nanostructures only partially covered the indium tin oxide (ITO) substrates. With ZnO/CdSe quantum dots composite seed layer, CdSe nanostructures fully covered the ITO substrates.

Aligned carbon nanotube, graphene and graphite oxide thin films via substrate-directed rapid interfacial deposition

Science.gov (United States)

D'Arcy, Julio M.; Tran, Henry D.; Stieg, Adam Z.; Gimzewski, James K.; Kaner, Richard B.

2012-05-01

A procedure for depositing thin films of carbon nanostructures is described that overcomes the limitations typically associated with solution based methods. Transparent and conductively continuous carbon coatings can be grown on virtually any type of substrate within seconds. Interfacial surface tension gradients result in directional fluid flow and film spreading at the water/oil interface. Transparent films of carbon nanostructures are produced including aligned ropes of single-walled carbon nanotubes and assemblies of single sheets of chemically converted graphene and graphite oxide. Process scale-up, layer-by-layer deposition, and a simple method for coating non-activated hydrophobic surfaces are demonstrated.A procedure for depositing thin films of carbon nanostructures is described that overcomes the limitations typically associated with solution based methods. Transparent and conductively continuous carbon coatings can be grown on virtually any type of substrate within seconds. Interfacial surface tension gradients result in directional fluid flow and film spreading at the water/oil interface. Transparent films of carbon nanostructures are produced including aligned ropes of single-walled carbon nanotubes and assemblies of single sheets of chemically converted graphene and graphite oxide. Process scale-up, layer-by-layer deposition, and a simple method for coating non-activated hydrophobic surfaces are demonstrated. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: Droplet coalescence, catenoid formation, mechanism of film growth, scanning electron micrographs showing carbon nanotube alignment, flexible transparent films of SWCNTs, AFM images of a chemically converted graphene film, and SEM images of SWCNT free-standing thin films. See DOI: 10.1039/c2nr00010e

Activation of Saccharomyces cerevisiae Mlh1-Pms1 Endonuclease in a Reconstituted Mismatch Repair System*

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Catherine E.; Bowen, Nikki; Graham, William J.; Goellner, Eva M.; Srivatsan, Anjana; Kolodner, Richard D.

2015-01-01

Previous studies reported the reconstitution of an Mlh1-Pms1-independent 5′ nick-directed mismatch repair (MMR) reaction using Saccharomyces cerevisiae proteins. Here we describe the reconstitution of a mispair-dependent Mlh1-Pms1 endonuclease activation reaction requiring Msh2-Msh6 (or Msh2-Msh3), proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), and replication factor C (RFC) and a reconstituted Mlh1-Pms1-dependent 3′ nick-directed MMR reaction requiring Msh2-Msh6 (or Msh2-Msh3), exonuclease 1 (Exo1), replication protein A (RPA), RFC, PCNA, and DNA polymerase δ. Both reactions required Mg2+ and Mn2+ for optimal activity. The MMR reaction also required two reaction stages in which the first stage required incubation of Mlh1-Pms1 with substrate DNA, with or without Msh2-Msh6 (or Msh2-Msh3), PCNA, and RFC but did not require nicking of the substrate, followed by a second stage in which other proteins were added. Analysis of different mutant proteins demonstrated that both reactions required a functional Mlh1-Pms1 endonuclease active site, as well as mispair recognition and Mlh1-Pms1 recruitment by Msh2-Msh6 but not sliding clamp formation. Mutant Mlh1-Pms1 and PCNA proteins that were defective for Exo1-independent but not Exo1-dependent MMR in vivo were partially defective in the Mlh1-Pms1 endonuclease and MMR reactions, suggesting that both reactions reflect the activation of Mlh1-Pms1 seen in Exo1-independent MMR in vivo. The availability of this reconstituted MMR reaction should now make it possible to better study both Exo1-independent and Exo1-dependent MMR. PMID:26170454

Activation of Saccharomyces cerevisiae Mlh1-Pms1 Endonuclease in a Reconstituted Mismatch Repair System.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Catherine E; Bowen, Nikki; Graham, William J; Goellner, Eva M; Srivatsan, Anjana; Kolodner, Richard D

2015-08-28

Previous studies reported the reconstitution of an Mlh1-Pms1-independent 5' nick-directed mismatch repair (MMR) reaction using Saccharomyces cerevisiae proteins. Here we describe the reconstitution of a mispair-dependent Mlh1-Pms1 endonuclease activation reaction requiring Msh2-Msh6 (or Msh2-Msh3), proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), and replication factor C (RFC) and a reconstituted Mlh1-Pms1-dependent 3' nick-directed MMR reaction requiring Msh2-Msh6 (or Msh2-Msh3), exonuclease 1 (Exo1), replication protein A (RPA), RFC, PCNA, and DNA polymerase δ. Both reactions required Mg(2+) and Mn(2+) for optimal activity. The MMR reaction also required two reaction stages in which the first stage required incubation of Mlh1-Pms1 with substrate DNA, with or without Msh2-Msh6 (or Msh2-Msh3), PCNA, and RFC but did not require nicking of the substrate, followed by a second stage in which other proteins were added. Analysis of different mutant proteins demonstrated that both reactions required a functional Mlh1-Pms1 endonuclease active site, as well as mispair recognition and Mlh1-Pms1 recruitment by Msh2-Msh6 but not sliding clamp formation. Mutant Mlh1-Pms1 and PCNA proteins that were defective for Exo1-independent but not Exo1-dependent MMR in vivo were partially defective in the Mlh1-Pms1 endonuclease and MMR reactions, suggesting that both reactions reflect the activation of Mlh1-Pms1 seen in Exo1-independent MMR in vivo. The availability of this reconstituted MMR reaction should now make it possible to better study both Exo1-independent and Exo1-dependent MMR. © 2015 by The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

Robust plasmonic substrates

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kostiučenko, Oksana; Fiutowski, Jacek; Tamulevicius, Tomas

2014-01-01

Robustness is a key issue for the applications of plasmonic substrates such as tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy, surface-enhanced spectroscopies, enhanced optical biosensing, optical and optoelectronic plasmonic nanosensors and others. A novel approach for the fabrication of robust plasmonic...... substrates is presented, which relies on the coverage of gold nanostructures with diamond-like carbon (DLC) thin films of thicknesses 25, 55 and 105 nm. DLC thin films were grown by direct hydrocarbon ion beam deposition. In order to find the optimum balance between optical and mechanical properties...

Higher-resolution selective metallization on alumina substrate by laser direct writing and electroless plating

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lv, Ming; Liu, Jianguo; Wang, Suhuan; Ai, Jun; Zeng, Xiaoyan

2016-01-01

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • Mechanisms of laser direct writing and electroless plating were studied. • Active seeds in laser-irradiated zone and laser-affected zone were found to be different. • A special chemical cleaning method with aqua regia was taken. • Higher-resolution copper patterns on alumina ceramic were obtained conveniently. - Abstract: How to fabricate conductive patterns on ceramic boards with higher resolution is a challenge in the past years. The fabrication of copper patterns on alumina substrate by laser direct writing and electroless copper plating is a low cost and high efficiency method. Nevertheless, the lower resolution limits its further industrial applications in many fields. In this report, the mechanisms of laser direct writing and electroless copper plating were studied. The results indicated that as the decomposed products of precursor PdCl_2 have different chemical states respectively in laser-irradiated zone (LIZ) and laser-affected zone (LAZ). This phenomenon was utilized and a special chemical cleaning method with aqua regia solution was taken to selectively remove the metallic Pd in LAZ, while kept the PdO in LIZ as the only active seeds. As a result, the resolution of subsequent copper patterns was improved significantly. This technique has a great significance to develop the microelectronics devices.

Growth of ZnO nanowire arrays directly onto Si via substrate topographical adjustments using both wet chemical and dry etching methods

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Smith, Nathan A., E-mail: 523615@swansea.ac.uk [Centre for Nanohealth, Department of Physics, College of Science, University of Swansea, Singleton Park SA2 8PP United Kingdom (United Kingdom); Evans, Jon E.; Jones, Daniel R. [Multidisciplinary Nanotechnology Centre, College of Engineering, University of Swansea, Singleton Park, SA2 8PP United Kingdom (United Kingdom); Lord, Alex M. [Centre for Nanohealth, College of Engineering, University of Swansea, Singleton Park, SA2 8PP United Kingdom (United Kingdom); Wilks, S.P. [Centre for Nanohealth, Department of Physics, College of Science, University of Swansea, Singleton Park SA2 8PP United Kingdom (United Kingdom)

2015-03-15

Highlights: • Arrays of catalyst-free ZnO NWs have been grown by CVD without seed layers on Si. • Si surface topography was altered by substrate etching, resulting in NW growth. • XPS analysis shows growth is related to topography and not surface contamination. • Using e-beam lithography with etching, selective nanowire growth is demonstrated. • Electrical measurements on the arrays show improved conduction through the Si. - Abstract: Arrays of CVD catalyst-free ZnO nanowires have been successfully grown without the use of seed layers, using both wet chemical and dry plasma etching methods to alter surface topography. XPS analysis indicates that the NW growth cannot be attributed to a substrate surface chemistry and is therefore directly related to the substrate topography. These nanowires demonstrate structural and optical properties typical of CVD ZnO nanowires. Moreover, the NW arrays exhibit a degree of vertical alignment of less than 20° from the substrate normal. Electrical measurements suggest an improved conduction path through the substrate over seed layer grown nanowires. Furthermore, the etching technique was combined with e-beam lithography to produce high resolution selective area nanowire growth. The ability to pattern uniform nanowires using mature dry etch technology coupled with the increased charge transport through the substrate demonstrates the potential of this technique in the vertical integration of nanowire arrays.

Laser Direct Write micro-fabrication of large area electronics on flexible substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Zacharatos, F.; Makrygianni, M.; Geremia, R.; Biver, E.; Karnakis, D.; Leyder, S.; Puerto, D.; Delaporte, P.; Zergioti, I.

2016-06-01

To date, Laser Direct Write (LDW) techniques, such as Laser Induced Forward Transfer (LIFT), selective laser ablation and selective laser sintering of metal nanoparticle (NP) ink layers are receiving growing attention for the printing of uniform and well-defined conductive patterns with resolution down to 10 μm. For flexible substrates in particular, selective laser sintering of such NP patterns has been widely applied, as a low temperature and high resolution process compatible with large area electronics. In this work, LDW of silver NP inks has been carried out on polyethylene-terephthalate (PET), polyethylene-naphthalate (PEN) and polyimide (PI) substrates to achieve low electrical resistivity electrodes. In more detail, high speed short pulsed (picosecond and nanosecond) lasers with repetition rates up to 1 MHz were used to print (LIFT) metal NP inks. We thus achieved uniform and continuous patterns with a minimum feature size of 1 μm and a total footprint larger than 1 cm2. Next, the printed patterns were laser sintered with ns pulses at 532 nm over a wide laser fluence window, resulting in an electrical resistivity of 10 μΩ cm. We carried out spatial beam shaping experiments to achieve a top-hat laser intensity profile and employed selective laser ablation of thin films (thickness on the order of 100 nm) to produce silver micro-electrodes with a resolution on the order of 10 μm and a low line edge roughness. Laser sintering was combined with laser ablation to constitute a fully autonomous micro-patterning technique of metallic micro-features, with a 10 μm resolution and geometrical characteristics tuned for interdigitated electrodes for sensor applications.

Method for adhering a coating to a substrate structure

Science.gov (United States)

Taxacher, Glenn Curtis; Crespo, Andres Garcia; Roberts, III, Herbert Chidsey

2015-02-17

A method for adhering a coating to a substrate structure comprises selecting a substrate structure having an outer surface oriented substantially parallel to a direction of radial stress, modifying the outer surface to provide a textured region having steps to adhere a coating thereto, and applying a coating to extend over at least a portion of the textured region, wherein the steps are oriented substantially perpendicular to the direction of radial stress to resist deformation of the coating relative to the substrate structure. A rotating component comprises a substrate structure having an outer surface oriented substantially parallel to a direction of radial stress. The outer surface defines a textured region having steps to adhere a coating thereto, and a coating extends over at least a portion of the textured region. The steps are oriented substantially perpendicular to the direction of radial stress to resist creep.

Carbon nanotube substrates and catalyzed hot stamp for polishing and patterning the substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yuhuang [Evanston, IL; Hauge, Robert H [Houston, TX; Schmidt, Howard K [Houston, TX; Kim, Myung Jong [Houston, TX; Kittrell, W Carter [Houston, TX

2009-09-08

The present invention is generally directed to catalyzed hot stamp methods for polishing and/or patterning carbon nanotube-containing substrates. In some embodiments, the substrate, as a carbon nanotube fiber end, is brought into contact with a hot stamp (typically at 200-800.degree. C.), and is kept in contact with the hot stamp until the morphology/patterns on the hot stamp have been transferred to the substrate. In some embodiments, the hot stamp is made of material comprising one or more transition metals (Fe, Ni, Co, Pt, Ag, Au, etc.), which can catalyze the etching reaction of carbon with H.sub.2, CO.sub.2, H.sub.2O, and/or O.sub.2. Such methods can (1) polish the carbon nanotube-containing substrate with a microscopically smooth finish, and/or (2) transfer pre-defined patterns from the hot stamp to the substrate. Such polished or patterned carbon nanotube substrates can find application as carbon nanotube electrodes, field emitters, and field emitter arrays for displays and electron sources.

Structural features of epitaxial NiFe2O4 thin films grown on different substrates by direct liquid injection chemical vapor deposition

Science.gov (United States)

Datta, R.; Loukya, B.; Li, N.; Gupta, A.

2012-04-01

NiFe2O4 (NFO) thin films are grown on four different substrates, i.e., Lead Zinc Niobate-Lead Titanate (PZN-PT), Lead Magnesium Niobate-Lead Titanate (PMN-PT), MgAl2O4 (MAO) and SrTiO3 (STO), by a direct liquid injection chemical vapor deposition technique (DLI-CVD) under optimum growth conditions where relatively high growth rate (˜20 nm/min), smooth surface morphology and high saturation magnetization values in the range of 260-290 emu/ cm3 are obtained. The NFO films with correct stoichiometry (Ni:Fe=1:2) grow epitaxially on all four substrates, as confirmed by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy and x-ray diffraction. While the films on PMN-PT and PZN-PT substrates are partially strained, essentially complete strain relaxation occurs for films grown on MAO and STO. The formations of threading dislocations along with dark diffused contrast areas related to antiphase domains having a different cation ordering are observed on all four substrates. These crystal defects are correlated with lattice mismatch between the film and substrate and result in changes in magnetic properties of the films. Atomic resolution HAADF imaging and EDX line profiles show formation of a sharp interface between the film and the substrate with no inter-diffusion of Pb or other elements across the interface. Antiphase domains are observed to originate at the film-substrate interface.

Review on mechanism of directly fabricating wafer-scale graphene on dielectric substrates by chemical vapor deposition

Science.gov (United States)

Ning, Jing; Wang, Dong; Chai, Yang; Feng, Xin; Mu, Meishan; Guo, Lixin; Zhang, Jincheng; Hao, Yue

2017-07-01

To date, chemical vapor deposition on transition metal catalysts is a potential way to achieve low cost, high quality and uniform wafer-scale graphene. However, the removal and transfer process of the annoying catalytic metals underneath can bring large amounts of uncertain factors causing the performance deterioration of graphene, such as the pollution of surface polymeric residues, unmentioned doping and structural damages. Thus, to develop a technique of directly fabricating graphene on dielectric substrates is quite meaningful. In this review, we will present specific methods of catalyst- or transfer-free techniques for graphene growth and discuss the diversity of growth mechanisms.

Genome Editing in Mouse Spermatogonial Stem Cell Lines Using TALEN and Double-Nicking CRISPR/Cas9

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Takuya Sato

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Mouse spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs can be cultured for multiplication and maintained for long periods while preserving their spermatogenic ability. Although the cultured SSCs, named germline stem (GS cells, are targets of genome modification, this process remains technically difficult. In the present study, we tested TALEN and double-nicking CRISPR/Cas9 on GS cells, targeting Rosa26 and Stra8 loci as representative genes dispensable and indispensable in spermatogenesis, respectively. Harvested GS cell colonies showed a high targeting efficiency with both TALEN and CRISPR/Cas9. The Rosa26-targeted GS cells differentiated into fertility-competent sperm following transplantation. On the other hand, Stra8-targeted GS cells showed defective spermatogenesis following transplantation, confirming its prime role in the initiation of meiosis. TALEN and CRISPR/Cas9, when applied in GS cells, will be valuable tools in the study of spermatogenesis and for revealing the genetic mechanism of spermatogenic failure.

Functional Dissection of the DNA Interface of the Nucleotidyltransferase Domain of Chlorella Virus DNA Ligase*

Science.gov (United States)

Samai, Poulami; Shuman, Stewart

2011-01-01

Chlorella virus DNA ligase (ChVLig) has pluripotent biological activity and an intrinsic nick-sensing function. ChVLig consists of three structural modules that envelop nicked DNA as a C-shaped protein clamp: a nucleotidyltransferase (NTase) domain and an OB domain (these two are common to all DNA ligases) as well as a distinctive β-hairpin latch module. The NTase domain, which performs the chemical steps of ligation, binds the major groove flanking the nick and the minor groove on the 3′-OH side of the nick. Here we performed a structure-guided mutational analysis of the NTase domain, surveying the effects of 35 mutations in 19 residues on ChVLig activity in vivo and in vitro, including biochemical tests of the composite nick sealing reaction and of the three component steps of the ligation pathway (ligase adenylylation, DNA adenylylation, and phosphodiester synthesis). The results highlight (i) key contacts by Thr-84 and Lys-173 to the template DNA strand phosphates at the outer margins of the DNA ligase footprint; (ii) essential contacts of Ser-41, Arg-42, Met-83, and Phe-75 with the 3′-OH strand at the nick; (iii) Arg-176 phosphate contacts at the nick and with ATP during ligase adenylylation; (iv) the role of Phe-44 in forming the protein clamp around the nicked DNA substrate; and (v) the importance of adenine-binding residue Phe-98 in all three steps of ligation. Kinetic analysis of single-turnover nick sealing by ChVLig-AMP underscored the importance of Phe-75-mediated distortion of the nick 3′-OH nucleoside in the catalysis of DNA 5′-adenylylation (step 2) and phosphodiester synthesis (step 3). Induced fit of the nicked DNA into a distorted conformation when bound within the ligase clamp may account for the nick-sensing capacity of ChVLig. PMID:21335605

Functional dissection of the DNA interface of the nucleotidyltransferase domain of chlorella virus DNA ligase.

Science.gov (United States)

Samai, Poulami; Shuman, Stewart

2011-04-15

Chlorella virus DNA ligase (ChVLig) has pluripotent biological activity and an intrinsic nick-sensing function. ChVLig consists of three structural modules that envelop nicked DNA as a C-shaped protein clamp: a nucleotidyltransferase (NTase) domain and an OB domain (these two are common to all DNA ligases) as well as a distinctive β-hairpin latch module. The NTase domain, which performs the chemical steps of ligation, binds the major groove flanking the nick and the minor groove on the 3'-OH side of the nick. Here we performed a structure-guided mutational analysis of the NTase domain, surveying the effects of 35 mutations in 19 residues on ChVLig activity in vivo and in vitro, including biochemical tests of the composite nick sealing reaction and of the three component steps of the ligation pathway (ligase adenylylation, DNA adenylylation, and phosphodiester synthesis). The results highlight (i) key contacts by Thr-84 and Lys-173 to the template DNA strand phosphates at the outer margins of the DNA ligase footprint; (ii) essential contacts of Ser-41, Arg-42, Met-83, and Phe-75 with the 3'-OH strand at the nick; (iii) Arg-176 phosphate contacts at the nick and with ATP during ligase adenylylation; (iv) the role of Phe-44 in forming the protein clamp around the nicked DNA substrate; and (v) the importance of adenine-binding residue Phe-98 in all three steps of ligation. Kinetic analysis of single-turnover nick sealing by ChVLig-AMP underscored the importance of Phe-75-mediated distortion of the nick 3'-OH nucleoside in the catalysis of DNA 5'-adenylylation (step 2) and phosphodiester synthesis (step 3). Induced fit of the nicked DNA into a distorted conformation when bound within the ligase clamp may account for the nick-sensing capacity of ChVLig.

Extremely improved InP template and GaInAsP system growth on directly-bonded InP/SiO2-Si and InP/glass substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matsumoto, Keiichi; Makino, Tatsunori; Kimura, Katsuya; Shimomura, Kazuhiko

2013-01-01

We have developed an ultrathin InP template with low defect density on SiO 2 -Si and glass substrate by employing wet etching and wafer direct bonding technique. We have demonstrated epitaxial growth on these substrates and GaInAs/InP multiple quantum well layers were grown by low pressure metal-organic vapor-phase epitaxy. Photoluminescence measurements of the layers show that they are optically active and we have obtained almost the same intensity from these substrates compared to the InP substrate. These results may be attributed to improvement of InP template quality and should provide further improvements in device performance realized on SiO 2 -Si and glass substrate. And, these are promising results in terms of integration of InP-based several functional optical devices on SiO 2 -Si and glass substrate. (copyright 2013 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim) (orig.)

Rolling replication of UV-irradiated duplex DNA in the phi X174 replicative-form----single-strand replication system in vitro

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shavitt, O.; Livneh, Z.

1989-01-01

Cloning of the phi X174 viral origin of replication into phage M13mp8 produced an M13-phi X174 chimera, the DNA of which directed efficient replicative-form----single-strand rolling replication in vitro. This replication assay was performed with purified phi X174-encoded gene A protein, Escherichia coli rep helicase, single-stranded DNA-binding protein, and DNA polymerase III holoenzyme. The nicking of replicative-form I (RFI) DNA by gene A protein was essentially unaffected by the presence of UV lesions in the DNA. However, unwinding of UV-irradiated DNA by the rep helicase was inhibited twofold as compared with unwinding of the unirradiated substrate. UV irradiation of the substrate DNA caused a strong inhibition in its ability to direct DNA synthesis. However, even DNA preparations that contained as many as 10 photodimers per molecule still supported the synthesis of progeny full-length single-stranded DNA. The appearance of full-length radiolabeled products implied at least two full rounds of replication, since the first round released the unlabeled plus viral strand of the duplex DNA. Pretreatment of the UV-irradiated DNA substrate with purified pyrimidine dimer endonuclease from Micrococcus luteus, which converted photodimer-containing supercoiled RFI DNA into relaxed, nicked RFII DNA and thus prevented its replication, reduced DNA synthesis by 70%. Analysis of radiolabeled replication products by agarose gel electrophoresis followed by autoradiography revealed that this decrease was due to a reduction in the synthesis of progeny full-length single-stranded DNA. This implies that 70 to 80% of the full-length DNA products produced in this system were synthesized on molecules that carried photodimers

Protein degradation: recognition of ubiquitinylated substrates

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hartmann-Petersen, Rasmus; Gordon, Colin

2004-01-01

A cell-free system has been developed in budding yeast that provides direct evidence that the Dsk2/Dph1, Rad23/Rhp23 and Rpn10/Pus1 multi-ubiquitin-binding proteins, long implicated in substrate recognition and presentation to the 26S proteasome, actually fulfil such a role.......A cell-free system has been developed in budding yeast that provides direct evidence that the Dsk2/Dph1, Rad23/Rhp23 and Rpn10/Pus1 multi-ubiquitin-binding proteins, long implicated in substrate recognition and presentation to the 26S proteasome, actually fulfil such a role....

DNA scanning mechanism of T4 endonuclease V. Effect of NaCl concentration on processive nicking activity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gruskin, E.A.; Lloyd, R.S.

1986-01-01

T4 endonuclease V is a pyrimidine dimer-specific endonuclease which generates incisions in DNA at the sites of pyrimidine dimers by a processive reaction mechanism. A model is presented in which the degree of processivity is directly related to the efficacy of the one-dimensional diffusion of endonuclease V on DNA by which the enzyme locates pyrimidine dimers. The modulation of the processive nicking activity of T4 endonuclease V on superhelical covalently closed circular DNA (form I) which contains pyrimidine dimers has been investigated as a function of the ionic strength of the reaction. Agarose gel electrophoresis was used to separate the three topological forms of the DNA which were generated in time course reactions of endonuclease V with dimer-containing form I DNA in the absence of NaCl, and in 25, 50, and 100 mM NaCl. The degree of processivity was evaluated in terms of the mass fraction of form III (linear) DNA which was produced as a function of the fraction of form I DNA remaining. Processivity is maximal in the absence of NaCl and decreases as the NaCl concentration is increased. At 100 mM NaCl, processivity is abolished and endonuclease V generates incisions in DNA at the site of dimers by a distributive reaction mechanism. The change from the distributive to a processive reaction mechanism occurs at NaCl concentrations slightly below 50 mM. The high degree of processivity which is observed in the absence of NaCl is reversible to the distributive mechanism, as demonstrated by experiments in which the NaCl concentration was increased during the time course reaction. In addition, unirradiated DNA inhibited the incision of irradiated DNA only at NaCl concentrations at which processivity was observed

Characterization of the adenoassociated virus Rep protein complex formed on the viral origin of DNA replication

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Zengi; Brister, J. Rodney; Im, Dong-Soo; Muzyczka, Nicholas

2003-01-01

Interaction between the adenoassociated virus (AAV) replication proteins, Rep68 and 78, and the viral terminal repeats (TRs) is mediated by a DNA sequence termed the Rep-binding element (RBE). This element is necessary for Rep-mediated unwinding of duplex DNA substrates, directs Rep catalyzed cleavage of the AAV origin of DNA replication, and is required for viral transcription and proviral integration. Six discrete Rep complexes with the AAV TR substrates have been observed in vitro, and cross-linking studies suggest these complexes contain one to six molecules of Rep. However, the functional relationship between Rep oligomerization and biochemical activity is unclear. Here we have characterized Rep complexes that form on the AAV TR. Both Rep68 and Rep78 appear to form the same six complexes with the AAV TR, and ATP seems to stimulate formation of specific, higher order complexes. When the sizes of these Rep complexes were estimated on native polyacrylamide gels, the four slower migrating complexes were larger than predicted by an amount equivalent to one or two TRs. To resolve this discrepancy, the molar ratio of protein and DNA was calculated for the three largest complexes. Data from these experiments indicated that the larger complexes included multiple TRs in addition to multiple Rep molecules and that the Rep-to-TR ratio was approximately 2. The two largest complexes were also associated with increased Rep-mediated, origin cleavage activity. Finally, we characterized a second, Rep-mediated cleavage event that occurs adjacent to the normal nicking site, but on the opposite strand. This second site nicking event effectively results in double-stranded DNA cleavage at the normal nicking site

Probing protein phosphatase substrate binding

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Højlys-Larsen, Kim B.; Sørensen, Kasper Kildegaard; Jensen, Knud Jørgen

2012-01-01

Proteomics and high throughput analysis for systems biology can benefit significantly from solid-phase chemical tools for affinity pull-down of proteins from complex mixtures. Here we report the application of solid-phase synthesis of phosphopeptides for pull-down and analysis of the affinity...... profile of the integrin-linked kinase associated phosphatase (ILKAP), a member of the protein phosphatase 2C (PP2C) family. Phosphatases can potentially dephosphorylate these phosphopeptide substrates but, interestingly, performing the binding studies at 4 °C allowed efficient binding to phosphopeptides......, without the need for phosphopeptide mimics or phosphatase inhibitors. As no proven ILKAP substrates were available, we selected phosphopeptide substrates among known PP2Cδ substrates including the protein kinases: p38, ATM, Chk1, Chk2 and RSK2 and synthesized directly on PEGA solid supports through a BAL...

Towards large size substrates for III-V co-integration made by direct wafer bonding on Si

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N. Daix

2014-08-01

Full Text Available We report the first demonstration of 200 mm InGaAs-on-insulator (InGaAs-o-I fabricated by the direct wafer bonding technique with a donor wafer made of III-V heteroepitaxial structure grown on 200 mm silicon wafer. The measured threading dislocation density of the In0.53Ga0.47As (InGaAs active layer is equal to 3.5 × 109 cm−2, and it does not degrade after the bonding and the layer transfer steps. The surface roughness of the InGaAs layer can be improved by chemical-mechanical-polishing step, reaching values as low as 0.4 nm root-mean-square. The electron Hall mobility in 450 nm thick InGaAs-o-I layer reaches values of up to 6000 cm2/Vs, and working pseudo-MOS transistors are demonstrated with an extracted electron mobility in the range of 2000–3000 cm2/Vs. Finally, the fabrication of an InGaAs-o-I substrate with the active layer as thin as 90 nm is achieved with a Buried Oxide of 50 nm. These results open the way to very large scale production of III-V-o-I advanced substrates for future CMOS technology nodes.

Towards large size substrates for III-V co-integration made by direct wafer bonding on Si

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Daix, N., E-mail: dai@zurich.ibm.com; Uccelli, E.; Czornomaz, L.; Caimi, D.; Rossel, C.; Sousa, M.; Siegwart, H.; Marchiori, C.; Fompeyrine, J. [IBM Research - Zürich, Säumerstrasse 4, CH-8803 Rüschlikon (Switzerland); Hartmann, J. M. [CEA, LETI 17, rue des Martyrs, F-38054 Grenoble (France); Shiu, K.-T.; Cheng, C.-W.; Krishnan, M.; Lofaro, M.; Kobayashi, M.; Sadana, D. [IBM T. J. Watson Research Center, 1101 Kitchawan Rd., Route 134 Yorktown Heights, New York 10598 (United States)

2014-08-01

We report the first demonstration of 200 mm InGaAs-on-insulator (InGaAs-o-I) fabricated by the direct wafer bonding technique with a donor wafer made of III-V heteroepitaxial structure grown on 200 mm silicon wafer. The measured threading dislocation density of the In{sub 0.53}Ga{sub 0.47}As (InGaAs) active layer is equal to 3.5 × 10{sup 9} cm{sup −2}, and it does not degrade after the bonding and the layer transfer steps. The surface roughness of the InGaAs layer can be improved by chemical-mechanical-polishing step, reaching values as low as 0.4 nm root-mean-square. The electron Hall mobility in 450 nm thick InGaAs-o-I layer reaches values of up to 6000 cm{sup 2}/Vs, and working pseudo-MOS transistors are demonstrated with an extracted electron mobility in the range of 2000–3000 cm{sup 2}/Vs. Finally, the fabrication of an InGaAs-o-I substrate with the active layer as thin as 90 nm is achieved with a Buried Oxide of 50 nm. These results open the way to very large scale production of III-V-o-I advanced substrates for future CMOS technology nodes.

Towards large size substrates for III-V co-integration made by direct wafer bonding on Si

Science.gov (United States)

Daix, N.; Uccelli, E.; Czornomaz, L.; Caimi, D.; Rossel, C.; Sousa, M.; Siegwart, H.; Marchiori, C.; Hartmann, J. M.; Shiu, K.-T.; Cheng, C.-W.; Krishnan, M.; Lofaro, M.; Kobayashi, M.; Sadana, D.; Fompeyrine, J.

2014-08-01

We report the first demonstration of 200 mm InGaAs-on-insulator (InGaAs-o-I) fabricated by the direct wafer bonding technique with a donor wafer made of III-V heteroepitaxial structure grown on 200 mm silicon wafer. The measured threading dislocation density of the In0.53Ga0.47As (InGaAs) active layer is equal to 3.5 × 109 cm-2, and it does not degrade after the bonding and the layer transfer steps. The surface roughness of the InGaAs layer can be improved by chemical-mechanical-polishing step, reaching values as low as 0.4 nm root-mean-square. The electron Hall mobility in 450 nm thick InGaAs-o-I layer reaches values of up to 6000 cm2/Vs, and working pseudo-MOS transistors are demonstrated with an extracted electron mobility in the range of 2000-3000 cm2/Vs. Finally, the fabrication of an InGaAs-o-I substrate with the active layer as thin as 90 nm is achieved with a Buried Oxide of 50 nm. These results open the way to very large scale production of III-V-o-I advanced substrates for future CMOS technology nodes.

Direct measurement of carbon substrate oxidation and incorporation patterns in RuMP-type methylotrophs: chemostatic cultures of Methylomonas L3

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chu, I.M.; Bussineau, C.M.; Papoutsakis, E.T.

1985-01-01

A technique using C-14 isotope tracers to probe the branching of carbon flow in methylotrophic bacteria has been devised and applied to continuous steady-state cultures. Methylomonas L3, a strain which utilizes the KDPG/TA variant of the ribulose monophosphate cycle for carbon fixation, was employed in the experimental studies. The actual in vivo rates of substrate-carbon incorporation into biomass, both direct and via CO 2 , and of the two carbon oxidation schemes were determined in three different steady-state cultures. The results show that the carbon substrate is oxidized predominantly via formate (the linear oxidation scheme), and that the cyclic scheme of oxidation is minimally, if at all, utilized. The carbon incorporation and oxidation patterns appear to vary considerably with the dilution rate and the inoculum history. The experimental accuracy of the new technique is discussed in detail

Nanoscale definition of substrate materials to direct human adult stem cells towards tissue specific populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Curran, Judith M; Chen, Rui; Stokes, Robert; Irvine, Eleanor; Graham, Duncan; Gubbins, Earl; Delaney, Deany; Amro, Nabil; Sanedrin, Raymond; Jamil, Haris; Hunt, John A

2010-03-01

The development of homogenously nano-patterned chemically modified surfaces that can be used to initiate a cellular response, particularly stem cell differentiation, in a highly controlled manner without the need for exogenous biological factors has never been reported, due to that fact that precisely defined and reproducible systems have not been available that can be used to study cell/material interactions and unlock the potential of a material driven cell response. Until now material driven stem cell (furthermore any cell) responses have been variable due to the limitations in definition and reproducibility of the underlying substrate and the lack of true homogeneity of modifications that can dictate a cellular response at a sub-micron level that can effectively control initial cell interactions of all cells that contact the surface. Here we report the successful design and use of homogenously molecularly nanopatterned surfaces to control initial stem cell adhesion and hence function. The highly specified nano-patterned arrays were compared directly to silane modified bulk coated substrates that have previously been proven to initiate mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) differentiation in a heterogenous manner, the aim of this study was to prove the efficiency of these previously observed cell responses could be enhanced by the incorporation of nano-patterns. Nano-patterned surfaces were prepared by Dip Pen Nanolithography (DPN) to produce arrays of 70 nm sized dots separated by defined spacings of 140, 280 and 1000 nm with terminal functionalities of carboxyl, amino, methyl and hydroxyl and used to control cell growth. These nanopatterned surfaces exhibited unprecedented control of initial cell interactions and will change the capabilities for stem cell definition in vitro and then cell based medical therapies. In addition to highlighting the ability of the materials to control stem cell functionality on an unprecedented scale this research also introduces the

Cobalt Oxide Porous Nanofibers Directly Grown on Conductive Substrate as a Binder/Additive-Free Lithium-Ion Battery Anode with High Capacity.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Hao; Zheng, Zheng; Chen, Bochao; Liao, Libing; Wang, Xina

2017-12-01

In order to reduce the amount of inactive materials, such as binders and carbon additives in battery electrode, porous cobalt monoxide nanofibers were directly grown on conductive substrate as a binder/additive-free lithium-ion battery anode. This electrode exhibited very high specific discharging/charging capacities at various rates and good cycling stability. It was promising as high capacity anode materials for lithium-ion battery.

Substrate independent approach for synthesis of graphene platelet networks

Science.gov (United States)

Shashurin, A.; Fang, X.; Zemlyanov, D.; Keidar, M.

2017-06-01

Graphene platelet networks (GPNs) comprised of randomly oriented graphene flakes two to three atomic layers thick are synthesized using a novel plasma-based approach. The approach uses a substrate capable of withstanding synthesis temperatures around 800 °C, but is fully independent of the substrate material. The synthesis occurs directly on the substrate surface without the necessity of any additional steps. GPNs were synthesized on various substrate materials including silicon (Si), thermally oxidized Si (SiO2), molybdenum (Mo), nickel (Ni) and copper (Cu), nickel-chromium (NiCr) alloy and alumina ceramics (Al2O3). The mismatch between the atomic structures of sp2 honeycomb carbon networks and the substrate material is fully eliminated shortly after the synthesis initiation, namely when about 100 nm thick deposits are formed on the substrate. GPN structures synthesized on a substrate at a temperature of about 800 °C are significantly more porous in comparison to the much denser packed amorphous carbon deposits synthesized at lower temperatures. The method proposed here can potentially revolutionize the area of electrochemical energy storage by offering a single-step direct approach for the manufacture of graphene-based electrodes for non-Faradaic supercapacitors. Mass production can be achieved using this method if a roll-to-roll system is utilized.

Direct Metal Deposition of H13 Tool Steel on Copper Alloy Substrate: Parametric Investigation

Science.gov (United States)

Imran, M. Khalid; Masood, S. H.; Brandt, Milan

2015-12-01

Over the past decade, researchers have demonstrated interest in tribology and prototyping by the laser aided material deposition process. Laser aided direct metal deposition (DMD) enables the formation of a uniform clad by melting the powder to form desired component from metal powder materials. In this research H13 tool steel has been used to clad on a copper alloy substrate using DMD. The effects of laser parameters on the quality of DMD deposited clad have been investigated and acceptable processing parameters have been determined largely through trial-and-error approaches. The relationships between DMD process parameters and the product characteristics such as porosity, micro-cracks and microhardness have been analysed using scanning electron microscope (SEM), image analysis software (ImageJ) and microhardness tester. It has been found that DMD parameters such as laser power, powder mass flow rate, feed rate and focus size have an important role in clad quality and crack formation.

Neurobiological Substrates of Tourette's Disorder

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Leckman, James F.; Bloch, Michael H.; Smith, Megan E.; Larabi, Daouia; Hampson, Michelle

Objective: This article reviews the available scientific literature concerning the neurobiological substrates of Tourette's disorder (TD). Methods: The electronic databases of PubMed, ScienceDirect, and PsycINFO were searched for relevant studies using relevant search terms. Results:

Effects of substrate preheating during direct energy deposition on microstructure, hardness, tensile strength, and notch toughness

Science.gov (United States)

Baek, Gyeong Yun; Lee, Ki Yong; Park, Sang Hu; Shim, Do Sik

2017-11-01

This study examined the effects of substrate preheating for the hardfacing of cold-press dies using the high-speed tool steel AISI M4. The preheating of the substrate is a widely used technique for reducing the degree of thermal deformation and preventing crack formation. We investigated the changes in the metallurgical and mechanical properties of the high-speed tool steel M4 deposited on an AISI D2 substrate with changes in the substrate preheating temperature. Five preheating temperatures (100-500 °C; interval of 100 °C) were selected, and the changes in the temperature of the substrate during deposition were observed. As the preheating temperature of the substrate was increased, the temperature gradient between the melting layer and the substrate decreased; this prevented the formation of internal cracks, owing to thermal stress relief. Field-emission scanning electron microscopy showed that a dendritic structure was formed at the interface between the deposited layer and the substrate while a cellular microstructure was formed in the deposited layer. As the preheating temperature was increased, the sizes of the cells and precipitated carbides also increased. Furthermore, the hardness increased slightly while the strength and toughness decreased. Moreover, the tensile and impact properties deteriorated rapidly at excessively high preheating temperatures (greater than 500 °C). The results of this study can be used as preheating criteria for achieving the desired mechanical properties during the hardfacing of dies and molds.

Electrospinning onto Insulating Substrates by Controlling Surface Wettability and Humidity

Science.gov (United States)

Choi, WooSeok; Kim, Geon Hwee; Shin, Jung Hwal; Lim, Geunbae; An, Taechang

2017-11-01

We report a simple method for electrospinning polymers onto flexible, insulating substrates by controlling the wettability of the substrate surface. Water molecules were adsorbed onto the surface of a hydrophilic polymer substrate by increasing the local humidity around the substrate. The adsorbed water was used as the ground electrode for electrospinning. The electrospun fibers were deposited only onto hydrophilic areas of the substrate, allowing for patterning through wettability control. Direct writing of polymer fiber was also possible through near-field electrospinning onto a hydrophilic surface.

Alcohols as Substrates and Solvents for the Construction of 3-Alkoxylated-2-Oxindoles by Direct Alkoxylation of 3-Halooxindoles.

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Bing; Chen, Zhi-Yong; Liu, Huan-Huan; Wei, Qi-Di; Feng, Ting-Ting; Zhou, Ying; Wang, Can; Liu, Xiong-Li; Yuan, Wei-Cheng

2017-05-13

Described herein is an environmentally benign method for the synthesis of multisubstituted 3-alkoxylated-2-oxindoles 3 via direct alkoxylation of 3-halooxindoles 1 . A wide variety of such multisubstituted 3-alkoxylated-2-oxindole scaffolds were smoothly obtained in good yields (up to 94%) by heating in an oil bath at 35 °C for 24 h. A particularly valuable feature of this method was the development of environment-friendly chemistry using alcohols 2 as both the substrates and solvents in the presence of a catalytic amount of base.

Multi-spectral optical absorption in substrate-free nanowire arrays

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang, Junpeng; Chia, Andrew; Boulanger, Jonathan; LaPierre, Ray, E-mail: lapierr@mcmaster.ca [Department of Engineering Physics, McMaster University, 1280 Main St. West, Hamilton, Ontario L8S 4L7 (Canada); Dhindsa, Navneet; Khodadad, Iman; Saini, Simarjeet [Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Waterloo, 200 University Ave West, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1 (Canada); Waterloo Institute of Nanotechnology, University of Waterloo, 200 University Ave West, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1 (Canada)

2014-09-22

A method is presented of fabricating gallium arsenide (GaAs) nanowire arrays of controlled diameter and period by reactive ion etching of a GaAs substrate containing an indium gallium arsenide (InGaP) etch stop layer, allowing the precise nanowire length to be controlled. The substrate is subsequently removed by selective etching, using the same InGaP etch stop layer, to create a substrate-free GaAs nanowire array. The optical absorptance of the nanowire array was then directly measured without absorption from a substrate. We directly observe absorptance spectra that can be tuned by the nanowire diameter, as explained with rigorous coupled wave analysis. These results illustrate strong optical absorption suitable for nanowire-based solar cells and multi-spectral absorption for wavelength discriminating photodetectors. The solar-weighted absorptance above the bandgap of GaAs was 94% for a nanowire surface coverage of only 15%.

Konstrukce vřeten vícevřetenového soustružnického automatu

OpenAIRE

Kráčmar, Tomáš

2016-01-01

Obsahem diplomové práce je konstrukce vřeten vícevřetenového soustružnického automatu pro práci z tyče maximálního průměru 7 mm. Práce se zabývá novou koncepcí pohonu vřeten, kde jsou vřetena poháněna externími asynchronními motory přes ozubená kola s vnitřním ozubením uložená vně vřetenového bubnu namísto současného způsobu pohonu centrálními koaxiálními hřídeli. Součástí práce je rešerše vícevřetenových automatů včetně popisu hlavních uzlů, konstrukční návrh, pevnostní výpočty, výpočty trva...

The Critical Role of Substrate in Stabilizing Phosphorene Nanoflake: A Theoretical Exploration.

Science.gov (United States)

Gao, Junfeng; Zhang, Gang; Zhang, Yong-Wei

2016-04-13

Phosphorene, a new two-dimensional (2D) semiconductor, has received much interest due to its robust direct band gap and high charge mobility. Currently, however, phosphorene can only be produced by mechanical or liquid exfoliation, and it is still a significant challenge to directly epitaxially grow phosphorene, which greatly hinders its mass production and, thus, applications. In epitaxial growth, the stability of nanoscale cluster or flake on a substrate is crucial. Here, we perform ab initio energy optimizations and molecular dynamics simulations to explore the critical role of substrate on the stability of a representative phosphorene flake. Our calculations show that the stability of the phosphorene nanoflake is strongly dependent on the interaction strength between the nanoflake and substrate. Specifically, the strong interaction (0.75 eV/P atom) with Cu(111) substrate breaks up the phosphorene nanoflake, while the weak interaction (0.063 eV/P atom) with h-BN substrate fails to stabilize its 2D structure. Remarkably, we find that a substrate with a moderate interaction (about 0.35 eV/P atom) is able to stabilize the 2D characteristics of the nanoflake on a realistic time scale. Our findings here provide useful guidelines for searching suitable substrates for the directly epitaxial growth of phosphorene.

Direct synthesis of multi-layer graphene film on various substrates by microwave plasma at low temperature

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Park, Hyun Jae [Plasma Technology Research Center, 814-2 Osickdo-dong (SGFEZ), Gunsan, Jeollabuk-do 573-540 (Korea, Republic of); Ahn, Byung Wook; Kim, Tae Yoo; Lee, Jung Woo [School of Advanced Materials Science and Engineering, Advanced Materials and Process Research Center (AMPRC), Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon 440-746 (Korea, Republic of); Jung, Yong Ho; Choi, Yong Sup [Plasma Technology Research Center, 814-2 Osickdo-dong (SGFEZ), Gunsan, Jeollabuk-do 573-540 (Korea, Republic of); Song, Young Il, E-mail: physein01@skku.edu [School of Advanced Materials Science and Engineering, Advanced Materials and Process Research Center (AMPRC), Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon 440-746 (Korea, Republic of); Suh, Su Jeong, E-mail: suhsj@skku.edu [School of Advanced Materials Science and Engineering, Advanced Materials and Process Research Center (AMPRC), Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon 440-746 (Korea, Republic of)

2015-07-31

We introduce a possible route for vertically standing multi-layer graphene films (VMGs) on various substrates at low temperature by electron cyclone resonance microwave plasma. VMG films on various substrates, including copper sheet, glass and silicon oxide wafer, were analyzed by studying their structural, electrical, and optical properties. The density and temperature of plasma were measured using Cylindrical Langmuir probe analysis. The morphologies and microstructures of multi-layer graphene were characterized using field emission scattering electron microscope, high resolution transmission electron microscope, and Raman spectra measurement. The VMGs on different substrates at the same experimental conditions synthesized the wrinkled VMGs with different heights. In addition, the transmittance and electrical resistance were measured using ultra-violet visible near-infrared spectroscopy and 4 probe point surface resistance measurement. The VMGs on glass substrate obtained a transmittance of 68.8% and sheet resistance of 796 Ω/square, whereas the VMGs on SiO{sub 2} wafer substrate showed good sheet resistance of 395 Ω/square and 278 Ω/square. The results presented herein demonstrate a simple method of synthesizing of VMGs on various substrates at low temperature for mass production, in which the VMGs can be used in a wide range of application fields for energy storage, catalysis, and field emission due to their unique orientation. - Highlights: • We present for synthesis method of graphene at low temperature on various substrates. • We grow the graphene films at low temperature under of 432 °C. • Structural information of graphene films were studied upon Raman spectroscopy. • Inter-layer spacing of vertically standing graphene relies on synthesis time. • We measured a transmittance and a resistance for graphene films on difference substrate.

Thin polymer films on chemically patterned, corrugated substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Geoghegan, Mark; Wang Chun; Rehse, Nicolaus; Magerle, Robert; Krausch, Georg

2005-01-01

We study the effect of a chemical pattern on the wetting and dewetting behaviour of thin polystyrene (PS) films on regularly corrugated silicon substrates. Our results reveal that the film preparation, annealing method, and confinement play a critical role in the final film structure. On evaporating gold on both sides of the facets (such that it covered the crests of the facets, and not the troughs), we observed dewetting, which proceeded to the gold, demonstrating an enthalpic effect contrary to the outcome previously observed when gold was only evaporated on one side of the facet. We also coated the substrate with octadecyltrichlorosilane (OTS); this led to a gold and OTS striped structure. PS films several nanometres thick dewet such substrates, with a preferential direction for dewetting in the direction of the stripes forming droplets of a considerably larger size than the stripes

Thin film with oriented cracks on a flexible substrate

Science.gov (United States)

Feng, Bao; McGilvray, Andrew; Shi, Bo

2010-07-27

A thermoelectric film is disclosed. The thermoelectric film includes a substrate that is substantially electrically non-conductive and flexible and a thermoelectric material that is deposited on at least one surface of the substrate. The thermoelectric film also includes multiple cracks oriented in a predetermined direction.

Vitreous carbon mask substrate for X-ray lithography

Science.gov (United States)

Aigeldinger, Georg [Livermore, CA; Skala, Dawn M [Fremont, CA; Griffiths, Stewart K [Livermore, CA; Talin, Albert Alec [Livermore, CA; Losey, Matthew W [Livermore, CA; Yang, Chu-Yeu Peter [Dublin, CA

2009-10-27

The present invention is directed to the use of vitreous carbon as a substrate material for providing masks for X-ray lithography. The new substrate also enables a small thickness of the mask absorber used to pattern the resist, and this enables improved mask accuracy. An alternative embodiment comprised the use of vitreous carbon as a LIGA substrate wherein the VC wafer blank is etched in a reactive ion plasma after which an X-ray resist is bonded. This surface treatment provides a surface enabling good adhesion of the X-ray photoresist and subsequent nucleation and adhesion of the electrodeposited metal for LIGA mold-making while the VC substrate practically eliminates secondary radiation effects that lead to delamination of the X-ray resist form the substrate, the loss of isolated resist features, and the formation of a resist layer adjacent to the substrate that is insoluble in the developer.

Substrate bias induced synthesis of flowered-like bunched carbon nanotube directly on bulk nickel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bisht, Atul [Polymorphic Carbon Thin Films Group, Physics of Energy Harvesting Division, CSIR-National Physical Laboratory, Dr. K. S. Krishnan Marg, New Delhi 110012 (India); Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), CSIR Campus, New Delhi 110012 (India); Chockalingam, S. [Polymorphic Carbon Thin Films Group, Physics of Energy Harvesting Division, CSIR-National Physical Laboratory, Dr. K. S. Krishnan Marg, New Delhi 110012 (India); Panwar, O.S., E-mail: ospanwar@mail.nplindia.ernet.in [Polymorphic Carbon Thin Films Group, Physics of Energy Harvesting Division, CSIR-National Physical Laboratory, Dr. K. S. Krishnan Marg, New Delhi 110012 (India); Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), CSIR Campus, New Delhi 110012 (India); Kesarwani, A.K. [Polymorphic Carbon Thin Films Group, Physics of Energy Harvesting Division, CSIR-National Physical Laboratory, Dr. K. S. Krishnan Marg, New Delhi 110012 (India); Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), CSIR Campus, New Delhi 110012 (India); Singh, B.P. [Physics and Engineering of Carbon Materials, Division of Materials Physics and Engineering, CSIR-National Physical Laboratory, Dr. K. S. Krishnan Marg, New Delhi 110012 (India); Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), CSIR Campus, New Delhi 110012 (India); Singh, V.N. [Electron and Ion Microscopy, Sophisticated and Analytical Instruments, CSIR-National Physical Laboratory, Dr. K. S. Krishnan Marg, New Delhi 110012 (India); Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), CSIR Campus, New Delhi 110012 (India)

2016-02-15

Highlights: • Flowered-like bunched MWCNTs have been synthesized by MW PECVD technique. • Effect of substrate bias on the properties of MWCNT has been studied. • Minimum E{sub T} = 1.9 V/μm with β = 4770 has been obtained in the film deposited at −350 V. - Abstract: This paper reports the effect of substrate bias on the multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) deposited on nickel foil by microwave plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition technique. The MWCNTs have been characterized by the scanning electron microscopy (SEM), high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), Raman spectroscopy, field emission and current–voltage characteristic of the heterojunction diode. The SEM images exhibit unique hierarchical flowered-like bunched and conformally coated MWCNTs. Substrate bias induced ion bombardment helps in the enhancement of hydrocarbon dissociation and is responsible for flowered-like MWCNTs growth. The HRTEM micrographs show the base growth mechanism for MWCNTs. The value of turn on field for emission decreases from 5.5 to 1.9 V/μm and field enhancement factor increases from 927 to 4770, respectively, with the increase of substrate bias. The diode ideality factor of CNT/ n-Si heterojunction is evaluated as 2.4 and the on/off current ratio is found to be 7 at ±2 V, respectively.

Rutile TiO2 nanorod arrays directly grown on Ti foil substrates towards lithium-ion micro-batteries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dong Shanmu; Wang Haibo; Gu Lin; Zhou Xinhong; Liu Zhihong; Han Pengxian; Wang Ya; Chen Xiao; Cui Guanglei; Chen Liquan

2011-01-01

Nanosized rutile TiO 2 is one of the most promising candidates for anode material in lithium-ion micro-batteries owing to their smaller dimension in ab-plane resulting in an enhanced performance for area capacity. However, few reports have yet emerged up to date of rutile TiO 2 nanorod arrays growing along c-axis for Li-ion battery electrode application. In this study, single-crystalline rutile TiO 2 nanorod arrays growing directly on Ti foil substrates have been fabricated using a template-free method. These nanorods can significantly improve the electrochemical performance of rutile TiO 2 in Li-ion batteries. The capacity increase is about 10 times in comparison with rutile TiO 2 compact layer.

Seneca Valley Virus 3Cpro Substrate Optimization Yields Efficient Substrates for Use in Peptide-Prodrug Therapy.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Linde A Miles

Full Text Available The oncolytic picornavirus Seneca Valley Virus (SVV-001 demonstrates anti-tumor activity in models of small cell lung cancer (SCLC, but may ultimately need to be combined with cytotoxic therapies to improve responses observed in patients. Combining SVV-001 virotherapy with a peptide prodrug activated by the viral protease 3Cpro is a novel strategy that may increase the therapeutic potential of SVV-001. Using recombinant SVV-001 3Cpro, we measured cleavage kinetics of predicted SVV-001 3Cpro substrates. An efficient substrate, L/VP4 (kcat/KM = 1932 ± 183 M(-1s(-1, was further optimized by a P2' N→P substitution yielding L/VP4.1 (kcat/KM = 17446 ± 2203 M(-1s(-1. We also determined essential substrate amino acids by sequential N-terminal deletion and substitution of amino acids found in other picornavirus genera. A peptide corresponding to the L/VP4.1 substrate was selectively cleaved by SVV-001 3Cpro in vitro and was stable in human plasma. These data define an optimized peptide substrate for SVV-001 3Cpro, with direct implications for anti-cancer therapeutic development.

Direct quantification of fungal DNA from soil substrate using real-time PCR.

Science.gov (United States)

Filion, Martin; St-Arnaud, Marc; Jabaji-Hare, Suha H

2003-04-01

Detection and quantification of genomic DNA from two ecologically different fungi, the plant pathogen Fusarium solani f. sp. phaseoli and the arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus Glomus intraradices, was achieved from soil substrate. Specific primers targeting a 362-bp fragment from the SSU rRNA gene region of G. intraradices and a 562-bp fragment from the F. solani f. sp. phaseoli translation elongation factor 1 alpha gene were used in real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays conjugated with the fluorescent SYBR(R) Green I dye. Standard curves showed a linear relation (r(2)=0.999) between log values of fungal genomic DNA of each species and real-time PCR threshold cycles and were quantitative over 4-5 orders of magnitude. Real-time PCR assays were applied to in vitro-produced fungal structures and sterile and non-sterile soil substrate seeded with known propagule numbers of either fungi. Detection and genomic DNA quantification was obtained from the different treatments, while no amplicon was detected from non-seeded non-sterile soil samples, confirming the absence of cross-reactivity with the soil microflora DNA. A significant correlation (Pgenomic DNA of F. solani f. sp. phaseoli or G. intraradices detected and the number of fungal propagules present in seeded soil substrate. The DNA extraction protocol and real-time PCR quantification assay can be performed in less than 2 h and is adaptable to detect and quantify genomic DNA from other soilborne fungi.

A directly cooled grating substrate for ALS [Advanced Light Source] undulator beam lines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

DiGennaro, R.; Swain, T.

1989-08-01

Design analyses using finite element methods are presented for thermal distortion of water-cooled diffraction grating substrates for a potential application at the LBL Advanced Light Source, demonstrating that refinements in cooling channel configuration and heat flux distribution can significantly reduce optical surface distortion with high heat loads. Using an existing grating substrate design, sensitivity of tangential slope errors due to thermal distortion is evaluated for a variety of thermal boundary conditions, including coolant flow rate and heat transfer film coefficients, surface illumination area and heat distribution profile, and location of the convection cooling surfaces adjacent to the heated region. 1 ref., 5 figs., 2 tabs

An aptasensor for staphylococcus aureus based on nicking enzyme amplification reaction and rolling circle amplification.

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Jingguo; Guo, Jia; Maina, Sarah Wanjiku; Yang, Yumeng; Hu, Yimin; Li, Xuanxuan; Qiu, Jiarong; Xin, Zhihong

2018-05-15

An ultra-sensitive aptamer-based biosensor for the detection of staphylococcus aureus was established by adopting the nicking enzyme amplification reaction (NEAR) and the rolling circle amplification (RCA) technologies. Aptamer-probe (AP), containing an aptamer and a probe sequence, was developed to act as the recognition unit of the biosensor, which was specifically bound to S. aureus. The probe was released from AP and initiated into the subsequent DNA amplification reactions where S. aureus was present, converting the detection of S. aureus to the investigation of probe oligonucleotide. The RCA amplification products contained a G-quadruplex motif and formed a three dimensional structure in presence of hemin. The G4/hemin complex showed horseradish peroxidase (HRP)-mimic activity and catalyzed the chemiluminescence reaction of luminol mediated by H 2 O 2 . The results showed that the established biosensor could detect S. aureus specifically with a good linear correlation at 5-10 4  CFU/mL. The signal values based on NEAR-RCA two-step cycle were boosted acutely, much higher than that relied on one-cycle magnification. The limit of detection (LoD) was determined to be as low as 5 CFU/mL. The established aptasensor exhibited a good discrimination of living against dead S. aureus, and can be applied to detect S. aureus in the food industry. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Magnus-induced ratchet effects for skyrmions interacting with asymmetric substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Reichhardt, C.; Ray, D.; Olson Reichhardt, C. J.

2015-07-01

We show using numerical simulations that pronounced ratchet effects can occur for ac driven skyrmions moving over asymmetric quasi-one-dimensional substrates. We find a new type of ratchet effect called a Magnus-induced transverse ratchet that arises when the ac driving force is applied perpendicular rather than parallel to the asymmetry direction of the substrate. This transverse ratchet effect only occurs when the Magnus term is finite, and the threshold ac amplitude needed to induce it decreases as the Magnus term becomes more prominent. Ratcheting skyrmions follow ordered orbits in which the net displacement parallel to the substrate asymmetry direction is quantized. Skyrmion ratchets represent a new ac current-based method for controlling skyrmion positions and motion for spintronic applications.

Rapid growth of single-layer graphene on the insulating substrates by thermal CVD

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chen, C.Y. [Faculty of Materials Science and Engineering, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650093 (China); Key Laboratory of Marine Materials and Related Technologies, Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Marine Materials and Protective Technologies, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201 (China); Dai, D.; Chen, G.X.; Yu, J.H. [Key Laboratory of Marine Materials and Related Technologies, Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Marine Materials and Protective Technologies, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201 (China); Nishimura, K. [Key Laboratory of Marine Materials and Related Technologies, Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Marine Materials and Protective Technologies, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201 (China); Advanced Nano-processing Engineering Lab, Mechanical Systems Engineering, Kogakuin University (Japan); Lin, C.-T. [Key Laboratory of Marine Materials and Related Technologies, Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Marine Materials and Protective Technologies, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201 (China); Jiang, N., E-mail: jiangnan@nimte.ac.cn [Key Laboratory of Marine Materials and Related Technologies, Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Marine Materials and Protective Technologies, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201 (China); Zhan, Z.L., E-mail: zl_zhan@sohu.com [Faculty of Materials Science and Engineering, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650093 (China)

2015-08-15

Highlights: • A rapid thermal CVD process has been developed to directly grow graphene on the insulating substrates. • The treating time consumed is ≈25% compared to conventional CVD procedure. • Single-layer and few-layer graphene can be formed on quartz and SiO{sub 2}/Si substrates, respectively. • The formation of thinner graphene at the interface is due to the fast precipitation rate of carbon atoms during cooling. - Abstract: The advance of CVD technique to directly grow graphene on the insulating substrates is particularly significant for further device fabrication. As graphene is catalytically grown on metal foils, the degradation of the sample properties is unavoidable during transfer of graphene on the dielectric layer. Moreover, shortening the treatment time as possible, while achieving single-layer growth of graphene, is worthy to be investigated for promoting the efficiency of mass production. Here we performed a rapid heating/cooling process to grow graphene films directly on the insulating substrates by thermal CVD. The treating time consumed is ≈25% compared to conventional CVD procedure. In addition, we found that high-quality, single-layer graphene can be formed on quartz, but on SiO{sub 2}/Si substrate only few-layer graphene can be obtained. The pronounced substrate effect is attributed to the different dewetting behavior of Ni films on the both substrates at 950 °C.

Functional properties and structural requirements of the plasmid pMV158-encoded MobM relaxase domain.

Science.gov (United States)

Fernández-López, Cris; Pluta, Radoslaw; Pérez-Luque, Rosa; Rodríguez-González, Lorena; Espinosa, Manuel; Coll, Miquel; Lorenzo-Díaz, Fabián; Boer, D Roeland

2013-07-01

A crucial element in the horizontal transfer of mobilizable and conjugative plasmids is the relaxase, a single-stranded endonuclease that nicks the origin of transfer (oriT) of the plasmid DNA. The relaxase of the pMV158 mobilizable plasmid is MobM (494 residues). In solution, MobM forms a dimer through its C-terminal domain, which is proposed to anchor the protein to the cell membrane and to participate in type 4 secretion system (T4SS) protein-protein interactions. In order to gain a deeper insight into the structural MobM requirements for efficient DNA catalysis, we studied two endonuclease domain variants that include the first 199 or 243 amino acid residues (MobMN199 and MobMN243, respectively). Our results confirmed that the two proteins behaved as monomers in solution. Interestingly, MobMN243 relaxed supercoiled DNA and cleaved single-stranded oligonucleotides harboring oriTpMV158, whereas MobMN199 was active only on supercoiled DNA. Protein stability studies using gel electrophoresis and mass spectrometry showed increased susceptibility to degradation at the domain boundary between the N- and C-terminal domains, suggesting that the domains change their relative orientation upon DNA binding. Overall, these results demonstrate that MobMN243 is capable of nicking the DNA substrate independently of its topology and that the amino acids 200 to 243 modulate substrate specificity but not the nicking activity per se. These findings suggest that these amino acids are involved in positioning the DNA for the nuclease reaction rather than in the nicking mechanism itself.

UV Direct Laser Interference Patterning of polyurethane substrates as tool for tuning its surface wettability

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Estevam-Alves, Regina [Instituto de Física de São Carlos, Universidade de São Paulo, 13560-970 São Carlos (Brazil); Günther, Denise; Dani, Sophie; Eckhardt, Sebastian; Roch, Teja [Fraunhofer Institute for Material and Beam Technology IWS, Winterbergstr. 28, Dresden 01277 (Germany); Chair for Large Area Laser Based Surface Micro/Nano-Structuring, Institute for Manufacturing Technology, Technische Universität Dresden, George-Bähr-Str. 3c, 01069 Dresden (Germany); Mendonca, Cleber R., E-mail: crmendon@ifsc.usp.br [Instituto de Física de São Carlos, Universidade de São Paulo, 13560-970 São Carlos (Brazil); Cestari, Ismar N. [Heart Institute (InCOr), University of São Paulo Medical School, São Paulo 05403-000 (Brazil); Lasagni, Andrés F., E-mail: andres_fabian.lasagni@tu-dresden.de [Fraunhofer Institute for Material and Beam Technology IWS, Winterbergstr. 28, Dresden 01277 (Germany); Chair for Large Area Laser Based Surface Micro/Nano-Structuring, Institute for Manufacturing Technology, Technische Universität Dresden, George-Bähr-Str. 3c, 01069 Dresden (Germany)

2016-06-30

Highlights: • First reported experiments on Direct Laser Interference Patterning of polyurethane. • First reported sub-micrometer structures (feature size ∼250 nm) fabricated in polyurethane materials using laser processing technologies. • Anisotropic wetting behavior of structured surfaces and possibility to tune the contact angle as function of surface structure parameters. - Abstract: Direct Laser Interference Patterning (DLIP) is a versatile tool for the fabrication of micro and sub-micropatterns on different materials. In this work, DLIP was used to produce periodic surface structures on polyurethane (PU) substrates with spatial periods ranging from 0.5 to 5.0 μm. The influence of the laser energy density on the quality and topographical characteristics of the produced micropatterns was investigated. To characterize the surface topography of the produced structures, Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Confocal Microscopy (CFM) were utilized. It was found that high quality and defect free periodic line-like patterns with spatial periods down to 500 nm could be fabricated, with structure depths between 0.88 up to 1.25 μm for spatial periods larger than 2.0 μm and up to 270 nm for spatial periods between 500 nm and 1.0 μm. Measurements of the contact angle of water on the treated surface allowed to identify an anisotropic wetting behavior depending mainly on the spatial period and filling factor of the structured surfaces.

Method for producing textured substrates for thin-film photovoltaic cells

Science.gov (United States)

Lauf, Robert J.

1994-01-01

The invention pertains to the production of ceramic substrates used in the manufacture of thin-film photovoltaic cells used for directly converting solar energy to electrical energy. Elongated ribbon-like sheets of substrate precursor containing a mixture of ceramic particulates, a binder, and a plasticizer are formed and then while green provided with a mechanically textured surface region used for supporting the thin film semiconductor of the photovoltaic cell when the sheets of the substrate precursor are subsequently cut into substrate-sized shapes and then sintered. The textured surface pattern on the substrate provides enhanced light trapping and collection for substantially increasing the solar energy conversion efficiency of thin-film photovoltaic cells.

Top-down Approach for the Direct Synthesis, Patterning, and Operation of Artificial Micromuscles on Flexible Substrates.

Science.gov (United States)

Maziz, Ali; Plesse, Cédric; Soyer, Caroline; Cattan, Eric; Vidal, Frédéric

2016-01-27

Recent progress in the field of microsystems on flexible substrates raises the need for alternatives to the stiffness of classical actuation technologies. This paper reports a top-down process to microfabricate soft conducting polymer actuators on substrates on which they ultimately operate. The bending microactuators were fabricated by sequentially stacking layers using a layer polymerization by layer polymerization of conducting polymer electrodes and a solid polymer electrolyte. Standalone microbeams thinner than 10 μm were fabricated on SU-8 substrates associated with a bottom gold electrical contact. The operation of microactuators was demonstrated in air and at low voltage (±4 V).

Influence of substrate geometry on ion-plasma coating deposition process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khoroshikh, V.M.; Leonov, S.A.; Belous, V.A.

2008-01-01

Influence of substrate geometry on the feature of Ti vacuum arc plasma streams condensation process in presence of N 2 or Ar in a discharge ambient were investigated. Character of gas pressure and substrate potential influence on deposition rate is conditioned the competitive processes of condensation and sputtering, and also presence of double electric layer on a border plasma-substrate. Influence of potential on deposition rate especially strongly shows up for cylindrical substrates of small size. For such substrates it was found substantial (approximately in 4 times) growth of deposition rate at the increasing of negative potential from 100 to 700 V when nitrogen pressure is ∼0,3...2,5 Pa. Possibility of droplet-free coating deposition the substrate backs and in discharge ambient, being outside area of cathode direct visibility is shown

Plasma jet printing for flexible substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gandhiraman, Ram P.; Singh, Eric; Diaz-Cartagena, Diana C.; Koehne, Jessica; Meyyappan, M. [Center for Nanotechnology, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California 94035 (United States); Nordlund, Dennis [Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, Menlo Park, California 94025 (United States)

2016-03-21

Recent interest in flexible electronics and wearable devices has created a demand for fast and highly repeatable printing processes suitable for device manufacturing. Robust printing technology is critical for the integration of sensors and other devices on flexible substrates such as paper and textile. An atmospheric pressure plasma-based printing process has been developed to deposit different types of nanomaterials on flexible substrates. Multiwalled carbon nanotubes were deposited on paper to demonstrate site-selective deposition as well as direct printing without any type of patterning. Plasma-printed nanotubes were compared with non-plasma-printed samples under similar gas flow and other experimental conditions and found to be denser with higher conductivity. The utility of the nanotubes on the paper substrate as a biosensor and chemical sensor was demonstrated by the detection of dopamine, a neurotransmitter, and ammonia, respectively.

Quantized transport for a skyrmion moving on a two-dimensional periodic substrate

Science.gov (United States)

Reichhardt, C.; Ray, D.; Reichhardt, C. J. Olson

2015-03-01

We examine the dynamics of a skyrmion moving over a two-dimensional periodic substrate utilizing simulations of a particle-based skyrmion model. We specifically examine the role of the nondissipative Magnus term on the driven motion and the resulting skyrmion velocity-force curves. In the overdamped limit, there is a depinning transition into a sliding state in which the skyrmion moves in the same direction as the external drive. When there is a finite Magnus component in the equation of motion, a skyrmion in the absence of a substrate moves at an angle with respect to the direction of the external driving force. When a periodic substrate is added, the direction of motion or Hall angle of the skyrmion is dependent on the amplitude of the external drive, only approaching the substrate-free limit for higher drives. Due to the underlying symmetry of the substrate the direction of skyrmion motion does not change continuously as a function of drive, but rather forms a series of discrete steps corresponding to integer or rational ratios of the velocity components perpendicular ( ) and parallel ( ) to the external drive direction: / =n /m , where n and m are integers. The skyrmion passes through a series of directional locking phases in which the motion is locked to certain symmetry directions of the substrate for fixed intervals of the drive amplitude. Within a given directionally locked phase, the Hall angle remains constant and the skyrmion moves in an orderly fashion through the sample. Signatures of the transitions into and out of these locked phases take the form of pronounced cusps in the skyrmion velocity versus force curves, as well as regions of negative differential mobility in which the net skyrmion velocity decreases with increasing external driving force. The number of steps in the transport curve increases when the relative strength of the Magnus term is increased. We also observe an overshoot phenomena in the directional locking, where the skyrmion motion

Real-time sensing of epithelial cell-cell and cell-substrate interactions by impedance spectroscopy on porous substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mondal, D.; RoyChaudhuri, C., E-mail: chirosreepram@yahoo.com [Department of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering, Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology, Shibpur, Howrah 711103 (India); Pal, D. [Department of Aerospace Engineering and Applied Mechanics, Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology, Shibpur, Howrah 711103 (India)

2015-07-28

Oxidized porous silicon (PS) is a common topographical biocompatible substrate that potentially provides a distinct in vitro environment for better understanding of in vivo behavior. But in the reported studies on oxidized PS, cell-cell and cell-substrate interactions have been detected only by fluorescent labeling. This paper is the first attempt to investigate real-time sensing of these interactions on HaCaT cells by label-free impedance spectroscopy on oxidized PS of two pore diameters (50 and 500 nm). One of the major requirements for successful impedance spectroscopy measurement is to restrict the channeling of electric field lines through the pores. To satisfy this criterion, we have designed the pore depths after analyzing the penetration of the medium by using computational fluid dynamics simulation. A distributed electrical model was also developed for estimating the various cellular attributes by considering a pseudorandom distribution of pores. It is observed from the impedance measurements and from the model that the proliferation rate increases for 50 nm pores but decreases for 500 nm pores compared to that for planar substrates. The rate of decrease in cell substrate separation (h) in the initial stage is more than the rate of increase in cell-cell junction resistance (R{sub b}) corresponding to the initial adhesion phase of cells. It is observed that R{sub b} and h are higher for 50 nm pores than those for planar substrates, corresponding to the fact that substrates more conducive toward cell adhesion encourage cell-cell interactions than direct cell-substrate interactions. Thus, the impedance spectroscopy coupled with the proposed theoretical framework for PS substrates can sense and quantify the cellular interactions.

Real-time sensing of epithelial cell-cell and cell-substrate interactions by impedance spectroscopy on porous substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mondal, D.; RoyChaudhuri, C.; Pal, D.

2015-01-01

Oxidized porous silicon (PS) is a common topographical biocompatible substrate that potentially provides a distinct in vitro environment for better understanding of in vivo behavior. But in the reported studies on oxidized PS, cell-cell and cell-substrate interactions have been detected only by fluorescent labeling. This paper is the first attempt to investigate real-time sensing of these interactions on HaCaT cells by label-free impedance spectroscopy on oxidized PS of two pore diameters (50 and 500 nm). One of the major requirements for successful impedance spectroscopy measurement is to restrict the channeling of electric field lines through the pores. To satisfy this criterion, we have designed the pore depths after analyzing the penetration of the medium by using computational fluid dynamics simulation. A distributed electrical model was also developed for estimating the various cellular attributes by considering a pseudorandom distribution of pores. It is observed from the impedance measurements and from the model that the proliferation rate increases for 50 nm pores but decreases for 500 nm pores compared to that for planar substrates. The rate of decrease in cell substrate separation (h) in the initial stage is more than the rate of increase in cell-cell junction resistance (R b ) corresponding to the initial adhesion phase of cells. It is observed that R b and h are higher for 50 nm pores than those for planar substrates, corresponding to the fact that substrates more conducive toward cell adhesion encourage cell-cell interactions than direct cell-substrate interactions. Thus, the impedance spectroscopy coupled with the proposed theoretical framework for PS substrates can sense and quantify the cellular interactions

Effects of flexible substrate thickness on Al-induced crystallization of amorphous Ge thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oya, Naoki [Institute of Applied Physics, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8573 (Japan); Toko, Kaoru, E-mail: toko@bk.tsukuba.ac.jp [Institute of Applied Physics, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8573 (Japan); Saitoh, Noriyuki; Yoshizawa, Noriko [Electron Microscope Facility, TIA, AIST, 16-1 Onogawa, Tsukuba 305-8569 (Japan); Suemasu, Takashi [Institute of Applied Physics, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8573 (Japan)

2015-05-29

Amorphous germanium (a-Ge) thin films were directly crystallized on flexible plastic substrates at 325 °C using Al-induced crystallization. The thickness of the plastic substrate strongly influenced the crystal quality of the resulting polycrystalline Ge layers. Using a thicker substrate lowered the stress on the a-Ge layer during annealing, which increased the grain size and fraction of (111)-oriented grains within the Ge layer. Employing a 125-μm-thick substrate led to 95% (111)-oriented Ge with grains having an average size of 100 μm. Transmission electron microscopy demonstrated that the Ge grains had a low-defect density. Production of high-quality Ge films on plastic substrates allows for the possibility for developing Ge-based electronic and optical devices on inexpensive flexible substrates. - Highlights: • Polycrystalline Ge thin films are directly formed on flexible plastic substrates. • Al-induced crystallization allows the low-temperature growth (325 °C) of amorphous Ge. • The substrate bending during annealing strongly influences the crystal quality of poly-Ge. • A thick substrate (125 μm) leads to 95% (111)-oriented Ge with grains 100 μm in size.

Stress-directed compositional patterning of SiGe substrates for lateral quantum barrier manipulation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ghosh, Swapnadip; Kaiser, Daniel; Sinno, Talid; Bonilla, Jose; Han, Sang M.

2015-01-01

While vertical stacking of quantum well and dot structures is well established in heteroepitaxial semiconductor materials, manipulation of quantum barriers in the lateral directions poses a significant engineering challenge. Here, we demonstrate lateral quantum barrier manipulation in a crystalline SiGe alloy using structured mechanical fields to drive compositional redistribution. To apply stress, we make use of a nano-indenter array that is pressed against a Si 0.8 Ge 0.2 wafer in a custom-made mechanical press. The entire assembly is then annealed at high temperatures, during which the larger Ge atoms are selectively driven away from areas of compressive stress. Compositional analysis of the SiGe substrates reveals that this approach leads to a transfer of the indenter array pattern to the near-surface elemental composition, resulting in near 100% Si regions underneath each indenter that are separated from each other by the surrounding Si 0.8 Ge 0.2 bulk. The “stress transfer” process is studied in detail using multiscale computer simulations that demonstrate its robustness across a wide range of applied stresses and annealing temperatures. While the “Si nanodot” structures formed here are not intrinsically useful as quantum structures, it is anticipated that the stress transfer process may be modified by judicious control of the SiGe film thickness and indenter array pattern to form more technologically useful structures

Optimization of a DNA Nicking Assay to Evaluate Oenocarpus bataua and Camellia sinensis Antioxidant Capacity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Louis-Jérôme Leba

2014-10-01

Full Text Available This study was aimed at assessing the DNA damage protective activity of different types of extracts (aqueous, methanolic and acetonic using an in vitro DNA nicking assay. Several parameters were optimized using the pUC18 plasmid, especially FeSO4, EDTA, solvent concentrations and incubation time. Special attention has been paid to removing the protective and damaging effect of the solvent and FeSO4 respectively, as well as to identifying the relevant positive and negative controls. For each solvent, the optimal conditions were determined: (i for aqueous extracts, 0.33 mM of FeSO4 and 0.62 mM of EDTA were incubated for 20 min at 37 °C; (ii for acetone extracts, 1.16% solvent were incubated for 15 min at 37 °C with 1.3 mM of FeSO4 and 2.5 mM of EDTA and (iii for methanol extracts, 0.16% solvent, were incubated for 1.5 h at 37 °C with 0.33 mM of FeSO4 and 0.62 mM of EDTA. Using the optimized conditions, the DNA damage protective activity of aqueous, methanolic and acetonic extracts of an Amazonian palm berry (Oenocarpus bataua and green tea (Camellia sinensis was assessed. Aqueous and acetonic Oenocarpus bataua extracts were protective against DNA damage, whereas aqueous, methanolic and acetonic extracts of Camellia sinensis extracts induced DNA damage.

The growth of urchin-like Co{sub 3}O{sub 4} directly on sensor substrate and its gas sensing properties

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shen, Shui Fa, E-mail: sfshen@fzu.edu.cn; Xu, Mei Li; Lin, Dong Bao; Pan, Hai Bo

2017-02-28

Highlights: • Urchin-like Co{sub 3}O{sub 4} successfully grew on ceramic tube by a hydrothermal method. • The dependence of the product morphology on reaction additives was investigated. • The formation mechanism of urchin-like Co{sub 3}O{sub 4} was proposed. • The sensor with urchin-like Co{sub 3}O{sub 4} growing directly on ceramic tubes exhibits higher response sensitivity than the sensors fabricated from other morphological Co{sub 3}O{sub 4} or by traditional coating method. - Abstract: Urchin-like Co{sub 3}O{sub 4} has successfully grown directly on ITO glass and sensor ceramic substrate through hydrothermal reaction followed by calcination. The combined characterizations of X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns, nitrogen adsorption-desorption and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) indicate that the as-prepared product possesses good crystallinity, large specific surface area and urchin-like morphology which is greatly influenced by the reaction additives. The sensor with urchin-like Co{sub 3}O{sub 4} growing directly on ceramic sensor tube exhibits higher response sensitivity than the sensors fabricated with other morphological Co{sub 3}O{sub 4} or by traditional coating method.

XPS study of graphene oxide reduction induced by (100) and (111)-oriented Si substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Priante, F.; Salim, M.; Ottaviano, L.; Perrozzi, F.

2018-02-01

The reduction of graphene oxide (GO) has been extensively studied in literature in order to let GO partially recover the properties of graphene. Most of the techniques proposed to reduce GO are based on high temperature annealing or chemical reduction. A new procedure, based on the direct reduction of GO by etched Si substrate, was recently proposed in literature. In the present work, we accurately investigated the Si-GO interaction with x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. In order to avoid external substrate oxidation factors we used EtOH as the GO solvent instead of water, and thermal annealing was carried out in UHV. We investigated the effect of Si(100), Si(111) and Au substrates on GO, to probe the role played by both the substrate composition and substrate orientation during the reduction process. A similar degree of GO reduction was observed for all samples but only after thermal annealing, ruling out the direct reduction effect of the substrate.

Site-selective metallization of polymeric substrates by the hyperbranched polymer templates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Peiyuan; Yang, Fang; Li, Xiangcheng; He, Chunling; Su, Wei; Chen, Jinhao; Huo, Lini; Chen, Rui; Lu, Chensheng; Liang, Lifang

2013-01-01

We demonstrate a simple, cost-effective and universal technique for the fabrication of copper circuit pattern on flexible polymeric substrate. This method relies on a ternary polyethylenimine-poly(acrylic acid)-substrate film incorporating palladium catalysts, which are used as adhesive interlayers for the copper metallization of flexible polymeric substrates. We demonstrated the fabrication of patterned copper films on a variety of flexible polymers with minimum feature sizes of 200 μm. And the resulting copper circuit showed strong adhesion with underlying flexible polymeric substrates. The films were characterized by ATR FT-IR, contact angle, XPS, XRD, TEM and SEM. The direct patterning of metallic circuit on flexible polymeric substrate indicates great potential for the use in electronics industry.

Site-selective metallization of polymeric substrates by the hyperbranched polymer templates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Li, Peiyuan, E-mail: lipearpear@163.com [College of Pharmacy, Guangxi University of Chinese Medicine, Nanning 530001 (China); Yang, Fang [College of Chemistry and Life Science, Guangxi Teachers Education University, Nanning 530001 (China); Li, Xiangcheng [School of Computer, Electronics and Information, Guangxi University, Nanning 530001 (China); He, Chunling [College of Pharmacy, Guangxi University of Chinese Medicine, Nanning 530001 (China); Su, Wei, E-mail: suwmail@163.com [College of Chemistry and Life Science, Guangxi Teachers Education University, Nanning 530001 (China); Chen, Jinhao [College of Chemistry and Life Science, Guangxi Teachers Education University, Nanning 530001 (China); Huo, Lini; Chen, Rui; Lu, Chensheng [College of Pharmacy, Guangxi University of Chinese Medicine, Nanning 530001 (China); Liang, Lifang [College of Chemistry and Life Science, Guangxi Teachers Education University, Nanning 530001 (China)

2013-09-01

We demonstrate a simple, cost-effective and universal technique for the fabrication of copper circuit pattern on flexible polymeric substrate. This method relies on a ternary polyethylenimine-poly(acrylic acid)-substrate film incorporating palladium catalysts, which are used as adhesive interlayers for the copper metallization of flexible polymeric substrates. We demonstrated the fabrication of patterned copper films on a variety of flexible polymers with minimum feature sizes of 200 μm. And the resulting copper circuit showed strong adhesion with underlying flexible polymeric substrates. The films were characterized by ATR FT-IR, contact angle, XPS, XRD, TEM and SEM. The direct patterning of metallic circuit on flexible polymeric substrate indicates great potential for the use in electronics industry.

Effect of substrate crystallographic orientation of garnet-ferrite film properties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Burym, Yu.A.; Dubinko, S.V.; Mitsaj, Yu.N.; Borovitskaya, L.N.; Prokopov, A.P.

1992-01-01

Samples of garnet-ferrite films with a composition (YbGdPrBi) 3 (FeAlGa) 5 O 12 grown under identical conditions on variously oriented substrates, have been studied. The substrate orientation was changed in such a way that the vector of the substrate normal was in the [110] plane between the [111] and [112] directions. We have found that the substrate misorientation leads to an inclined position of the easy magnetization axis (EMA) and a reduction of the film growth rate. The change of the film physical properties (Faraday rotation, Curie temperature, magnetization) indicates the film composition variation with the substrate orientation change. The temperature dependence of the EMA slope angle in the studied samples is determined by the magnetoelastic contribution to the anisotropy constants. (author)

Enzyme-linked electrochemical DNA ligation assay using magnetic beads.

Science.gov (United States)

Stejskalová, Eva; Horáková, Petra; Vacek, Jan; Bowater, Richard P; Fojta, Miroslav

2014-07-01

DNA ligases are essential enzymes in all cells and have been proposed as targets for novel antibiotics. Efficient DNA ligase activity assays are thus required for applications in biomedical research. Here we present an enzyme-linked electrochemical assay based on two terminally tagged probes forming a nicked junction upon hybridization with a template DNA. Nicked DNA bearing a 5' biotin tag is immobilized on the surface of streptavidin-coated magnetic beads, and ligated product is detected via a 3' digoxigenin tag recognized by monoclonal antibody-alkaline phosphatase conjugate. Enzymatic conversion of napht-1-yl phosphate to napht-1-ol enables sensitive detection of the voltammetric signal on a pyrolytic graphite electrode. The technique was tested under optimal conditions and various situations limiting or precluding the ligation reaction (such as DNA substrates lacking 5'-phosphate or containing a base mismatch at the nick junction, or application of incompatible cofactor), and utilized for the analysis of the nick-joining activity of a range of recombinant Escherichia coli DNA ligase constructs. The novel technique provides a fast, versatile, specific, and sensitive electrochemical assay of DNA ligase activity.

Ultrasensitive electrochemical biosensor for detection of DNA from Bacillus subtilis by coupling target-induced strand displacement and nicking endonuclease signal amplification.

Science.gov (United States)

Hu, Yuhua; Xu, Xueqin; Liu, Qionghua; Wang, Ling; Lin, Zhenyu; Chen, Guonan

2014-09-02

A simple, ultrasensitive, and specific electrochemical biosensor was designed to determine the given DNA sequence of Bacillus subtilis by coupling target-induced strand displacement and nicking endonuclease signal amplification. The target DNA (TD, the DNA sequence from the hypervarient region of 16S rDNA of Bacillus subtilis) could be detected by the differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) in a range from 0.1 fM to 20 fM with the detection limit down to 0.08 fM at the 3s(blank) level. This electrochemical biosensor exhibits high distinction ability to single-base mismatch, double-bases mismatch, and noncomplementary DNA sequence, which may be expected to detect single-base mismatch and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Moreover, the applicability of the designed biosensor for detecting the given DNA sequence from Bacillus subtilis was investigated. The result obtained by electrochemical method is approximately consistent with that by a real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction detecting system (QPCR) with SYBR Green.

In Vitro Screening of Synthetic Fluorogenic Substrates for Detection of Cancer Procoagulant Activity.

Science.gov (United States)

Krause, Jason; Frost, Carminita L

2018-04-01

Cancer procoagulant (CP), a direct activator of coagulation factor X, is among one of the tumour cell products or activities which may promote fibrin formation and has been suggested to be selectively associated with the malignant phenotype. At present, the most reliable assay for the quantification of CP activity is the three-stage chromogenic assay which utilises the ability of CP to activate factor X. In this assay, the activation of factor X leads to the formation of activated thrombin from prothrombin and the eventual hydrolyses of a thrombin chromogenic substrate which contains a p-nitroaniline leaving group. The complexity of the three-stage chromogenic assay suggests a need for a direct method of assaying CP activity. This study focuses on the design of a fluorogenic substrate that would enable the direct quantification of CP activity. The results of the study show two promising substrates for the determination of CP activity: Boc-PQVR-AMC and PQVR-AMC. Further analysis showed that Boc-PQVR-AMC could be excluded as a potential substrate for CP since it was also cleaved by collagenase.

Highly Sensitive Filter Paper Substrate for SERS Trace Explosives Detection

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pedro M. Fierro-Mercado

2012-01-01

Full Text Available We report on a novel and extremely low-cost surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS substrate fabricated depositing gold nanoparticles on common lab filter paper using thermal inkjet technology. The paper-based substrate combines all advantages of other plasmonic structures fabricated by more elaborate techniques with the dynamic flexibility given by the inherent nature of the paper for an efficient sample collection, robustness, and stability. We describe the fabrication, characterization, and SERS activity of our substrate using 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, 2,4-dinitrotoluene, and 1,3,5-trinitrobenzene as analytes. The paper-based SERS substrates presented a high sensitivity and excellent reproducibility for analytes employed, demonstrating a direct application in forensic science and homeland security.

Direct transparent electrode patterning on layered GaN substrate by screen printing of indium tin oxide nanoparticle ink for Eu-doped GaN red light-emitting diode

Science.gov (United States)

Kashiwagi, Y.; Koizumi, A.; Takemura, Y.; Furuta, S.; Yamamoto, M.; Saitoh, M.; Takahashi, M.; Ohno, T.; Fujiwara, Y.; Murahashi, K.; Ohtsuka, K.; Nakamoto, M.

2014-12-01

Transparent electrodes were formed on Eu-doped GaN-based red-light-emitting diode (GaN:Eu LED) substrates by the screen printing of indium tin oxide nanoparticle (ITO np) inks as a wet process. The ITO nps with a mean diameter of 25 nm were synthesized by the controlled thermolysis of a mixture of indium complexes and tin complexes. After the direct screen printing of ITO np inks on GaN:Eu LED substrates and sintering at 850 °C for 10 min under atmospheric conditions, the resistivity of the ITO film was 5.2 mΩ cm. The fabricated LED up to 3 mm square surface emitted red light when the on-voltage was exceeded.

Influence of substrate rocks on Fe-Mn crust composition

Science.gov (United States)

Hein, J.R.; Morgan, C.L.

1999-01-01

Principal Component and other statistical analyses of chemical and mineralogical data of Fe-Mn oxyhydroxide crusts and their underlying rock substrates in the central Pacific indicate that substrate rocks do not influence crust composition. Two ridges near Johnston Atoll were dredged repetitively and up to seven substrate rock types were recovered from small areas of similar water depths. Crusts were analyzed mineralogically and chemically for 24 elements, and substrates were analyzed mineralogically and chemically for the 10 major oxides. Compositions of crusts on phosphatized substrates are distinctly different from crusts on substrates containing no phosphorite. However, that relationship only indicates that the episodes of phosphatization that mineralized the substrate rocks also mineralized the crusts that grew on them. A two-fold increase in copper contents in crusts that grew on phosphatized clastic substrate rocks, relative to crusts on other substrate rock types, is also associated with phosphatization and must have resulted from chemical reorganization during diagenesis. Phosphatized crusts show increases in Sr, Zn, Ca, Ba, Cu, Ce, V, and Mo contents and decreases in Fe, Si, and As contents relative to non-phosphatized crusts. Our statistical results support previous studies which show that crust compositions reflect predominantly direct precipitation from seawater (hydrogenetic), and to lesser extents reflect detrital input and diagenetic replacement of parts of the older crust generation by carbonate fluorapatite.

The influence of substrate material on ascidian larval settlement.

Science.gov (United States)

Chase, Anna L; Dijkstra, Jennifer A; Harris, Larry G

2016-05-15

Submerged man-made structures present novel habitat for marine organisms and often host communities that differ from those on natural substrates. Although many factors are known to contribute to these differences, few studies have directly examined the influence of substrate material on organism settlement. We quantified larval substrate preferences of two species of ascidians, Ciona intestinalis (cryptogenic, formerly C. intestinalis type B) and Botrylloides violaceus (non-native), on commonly occurring natural (granite) and man-made (concrete, high-density polyethylene, PVC) marine materials in laboratory trials. Larvae exhibited species-specific settlement preferences, but generally settled more often than expected by chance on concrete and HDPE. Variation in settlement between materials may reflect preferences for rougher substrates, or may result from the influence of leached chemicals on ascidian settlement. These findings indicate that an experimental plate material can influence larval behavior and may help us understand how substrate features may contribute to differences in settlement in the field. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Na+/substrate Coupling in the Multidrug Antiporter NorM Probed with a Spin-labeled Substrate

Science.gov (United States)

Steed, P. Ryan; Stein, Richard A.; Mishra, Smriti; Goodman, Michael C.; Mchaourab, Hassane S.

2013-01-01

NorM of the multidrug and toxic compound extrusion (MATE) family of transporters couples the efflux of a broad range of hydrophobic molecules to an inward Na+ gradient across the cell membrane. Several crystal structures of MATE transporters revealed distinct substrate binding sites leading to differing models of the mechanism of ion-coupled substrate extrusion. In the experiments reported here, we observed that a spin-labeled derivative of daunorubicin, Ruboxyl, is transported by NorM from Vibrio cholerae. It is therefore ideal to characterize mechanistically relevant binding interactions with NorM and to directly address the coupling of ion and drug binding. Fluorescence and EPR experiments revealed that Ruboxyl binds to NorM with micromolar affinity and becomes immobilized upon binding, even in the presence of Na+. Using double electron-electron resonance (DEER) spectroscopy, we determined that Ruboxyl binds to a single site on the periplasmic side of the protein. The presence of Na+ did not translocate the substrate to a second site as previously proposed. These experiments surprisingly show that Na+ does not affect the affinity or location of the substrate binding site on detergent-solubilized NorM, thus suggesting that additional factors beyond simple mutual exclusivity of binding, such as the presence of a Na+ gradient across the native membrane, govern Na+/drug coupling during antiport. PMID:23902581

Spatial control of direct chemical vapor deposition of graphene on silicon dioxide by directional copper dewetting

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van den Beld, Wesley Theodorus Eduardus; van den Berg, Albert; Eijkel, Jan C.T.

2016-01-01

In this paper we present a method for the spatial control of direct graphene synthesis onto silicon dioxide by controlled dewetting. The dewetting process is controlled through a combination of using a grooved substrate and conducting copper deposition at an angle. The substrate is then treated

Gold/silver/gold trilayer films on nanostructured polycarbonate substrates for direct and label-free nanoplasmonic biosensing.

Science.gov (United States)

López-Muñoz, Gerardo A; Estévez, M-Carmen; Vázquez-García, Marc; Berenguel-Alonso, Miguel; Alonso-Chamarro, Julián; Homs-Corbera, Antoni; Lechuga, Laura M

2018-05-01

Ultrasmooth gold/silver/gold trilayer nanostructured plasmonic sensors were obtained using commercial Blu-ray optical discs as nanoslits-based flexible polymer substrates. A thin gold film was used as an adhesion and nucleation layer to improve the chemical stability and reduce the surface roughness of the overlying silver film, without increasing ohmic plasmon losses. The structures were physically and optically characterized and compared with nanostructures of single gold layer. Ultrasmooth and chemically stable trilayer nanostructures with a surface roughness <0.5 nm were obtained following a simple and reproducible fabrication process. They showed a figure of merit (FOM) value up to 69.2 RIU -1 which is significantly higher (more than 95%) than the gold monolayer counterpart. Their potential for biosensing was demonstrated by employing the trilayer sensor for the direct and refractometric (label-free) detection of C-reactive protein (CRP) biomarker in undiluted urine achieving a Limit of Detection (LOD) in the pM order. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Purification of SUMO conjugating enzymes and kinetic analysis of substrate conjugation

Science.gov (United States)

Yunus, Ali A.; Lima, Christopher D.

2009-01-01

SUMO conjugation to protein substrates requires the concerted action of a dedicated E2 ubiquitin conjugation enzyme (Ubc9) and associated E3 ligases. Although Ubc9 can directly recognize and modify substrate lysine residues that occur within a consensus site for SUMO modification, E3 ligases can redirect specificity and enhance conjugation rates during SUMO conjugation in vitro and in vivo. In this chapter, we will describe methods utilized to purify SUMO conjugating enzymes and model substrates which can be used for analysis of SUMO conjugation in vitro. We will also describe methods to extract kinetic parameters during E3-dependent or E3-independent substrate conjugation. PMID:19107417

AC magnetization loss characteristics of HTS coated-conductors with magnetic substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsukamoto, O.; Liu, M.; Odaka, S.; Miyagi, D.; Ohmatsu, K.

2007-01-01

AC magnetization loss characteristics of an HTS coated tape conductor with magnetic substrate subjected to an external AC magnetic field were investigated. The external magnetic field was perpendicular or parallel to the wide face of the tape conductor. Magnetization losses in the conductor and in the magnetic substrate itself without the superconductor layer, were measured by electric and calorimetric methods. The influence of the magnetic property of the substrate was strongly dependent on the direction of the external magnetic field. When the external magnetic field was perpendicular, magnetic property of the substrate did not affect the magnetization loss characteristics. This result suggests that the magnetization losses can be reduced by subdivisions of the superconducting layers even in the case of magnetic substrate conductors. When the external magnetic field was parallel, the magnetization losses were dominated by the losses in the magnetic substrate. Therefore, to reduce the magnetization losses in this case, reduction of magnetization losses in the substrate is necessary

Substrate heating and cooling during magnetron sputtering of copper target

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shapovalov, Viktor I.; Komlev, Andrey E.; Bondarenko, Anastasia S., E-mail: stopnastia@gmail.com; Baykov, Pavel B.; Karzin, Vitaliy V.

2016-02-22

Heating and cooling processes of the substrate during the DC magnetron sputtering of the copper target were investigated. The sensitive element of a thermocouple was used as a substrate. It was found, that the heat outflow rate from the substrate is lower when the magnetron is turned off rather than when it is turned on. Furthermore, the heating rate, the ultimate temperature, and the heat outflow rate related to the deposition of copper atoms are directly proportional to the discharge current density. - Highlights: • New effect of heat outflow from substrate when magnetron is on was discovered. • This new effect is linear in terms of heat outflow rate to target current ratio. • Kinetic equation for heating process additively considers this effect.

Chemically Functionalized Carbon Nanotubes as Substrates for Neuronal Growth

Science.gov (United States)

Hu, Hui; Ni, Yingchun; Montana, Vedrana; Haddon, Robert C.; Parpura, Vladimir

2009-01-01

We report the use of chemically modified carbon nanotubes as a substrate for cultured neurons. The morphological features of neurons that directly reflect their potential capability in synaptic transmission are characterized. The chemical properties of carbon nanotubes are systematically varied by attaching different functional groups that confer known characteristics to the substrate. By manipulating the charge carried by functionalized carbon nanotubes we are able to control the outgrowth and branching pattern of neuronal processes. PMID:21394241

Mastering the biaxial stress state in nanometric thin films on flexible substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Faurie, D., E-mail: faurie@univ-paris13.fr [LSPM-CNRS, UPR3407, Université Paris 13, Villetaneuse (France); Renault, P.-O.; Le Bourhis, E. [Institut Pprime UPR3346, CNRS – Université de Poitiers, Futuroscope (France); Geandier, G. [Institut Jean Lamour, CNRS UMR7198, Université de Lorraine, Nancy Cedex (France); Goudeau, P. [Institut Pprime UPR3346, CNRS – Université de Poitiers, Futuroscope (France); Thiaudière, D. [SOLEIL Synchrotron, Saint-Aubin, Gif-Sur-Yvette (France)

2014-07-01

Biaxial stress state of thin films deposited on flexible substrate can be mastered thanks to a new biaxial device. This tensile machine allows applying in-plane loads F{sub x} and F{sub y} in the two principal directions x and y of a cruciform-shaped polymer substrate. The transmission of the deformation at film/substrate interface allows controlling the stress and strain field in the thin films. We show in this paper a few illustrations dealing with strain measurements in polycrystalline thin films deposited on flexible substrate. The potentialities of the biaxial device located at Soleil synchrotron are also discussed.

Direct transparent electrode patterning on layered GaN substrate by screen printing of indium tin oxide nanoparticle ink for Eu-doped GaN red light-emitting diode

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kashiwagi, Y.; Yamamoto, M.; Saitoh, M.; Takahashi, M.; Ohno, T.; Nakamoto, M.; Koizumi, A.; Fujiwara, Y.; Takemura, Y.; Murahashi, K.; Ohtsuka, K.; Furuta, S.

2014-01-01

Transparent electrodes were formed on Eu-doped GaN-based red-light-emitting diode (GaN:Eu LED) substrates by the screen printing of indium tin oxide nanoparticle (ITO np) inks as a wet process. The ITO nps with a mean diameter of 25 nm were synthesized by the controlled thermolysis of a mixture of indium complexes and tin complexes. After the direct screen printing of ITO np inks on GaN:Eu LED substrates and sintering at 850 °C for 10 min under atmospheric conditions, the resistivity of the ITO film was 5.2 mΩ cm. The fabricated LED up to 3 mm square surface emitted red light when the on-voltage was exceeded

Direct transparent electrode patterning on layered GaN substrate by screen printing of indium tin oxide nanoparticle ink for Eu-doped GaN red light-emitting diode

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kashiwagi, Y., E-mail: kasiwagi@omtri.or.jp; Yamamoto, M.; Saitoh, M.; Takahashi, M.; Ohno, T.; Nakamoto, M. [Osaka Municipal Technical Research Institute, 1-6-50 Morinomiya, Joto-ku, Osaka 536-8553 (Japan); Koizumi, A.; Fujiwara, Y. [Division of Materials and Manufacturing Science, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, 2-1 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871 (Japan); Takemura, Y.; Murahashi, K.; Ohtsuka, K. [Okuno Chemical Industries Co., Ltd., 2-1-25 Hanaten-nishi, Joto-ku, Osaka 536-0011 (Japan); Furuta, S. [Tomoe Works Co., Ltd., 7-13 Tsurumachi, Amagasaki 660-0092 (Japan)

2014-12-01

Transparent electrodes were formed on Eu-doped GaN-based red-light-emitting diode (GaN:Eu LED) substrates by the screen printing of indium tin oxide nanoparticle (ITO np) inks as a wet process. The ITO nps with a mean diameter of 25 nm were synthesized by the controlled thermolysis of a mixture of indium complexes and tin complexes. After the direct screen printing of ITO np inks on GaN:Eu LED substrates and sintering at 850 °C for 10 min under atmospheric conditions, the resistivity of the ITO film was 5.2 mΩ cm. The fabricated LED up to 3 mm square surface emitted red light when the on-voltage was exceeded.

The impact of fabrication parameters and substrate stiffness in direct writing of living constructs.

Science.gov (United States)

Tirella, Annalisa; Ahluwalia, Arti

2012-01-01

Biomolecules and living cells can be printed in high-resolution patterns to fabricate living constructs for tissue engineering. To evaluate the impact of processing cells with rapid prototyping (RP) methods, we modeled the printing phase of two RP systems that use biomaterial inks containing living cells: a high-resolution inkjet system (BioJet) and a lower-resolution nozzle-based contact printing system (PAM(2)). In the first fabrication method, we reasoned that cell damage occurs principally during drop collision on the printing surface, in the second we hypothesize that shear stresses act on cells during extrusion (within the printing nozzle). The two cases were modeled changing the printing conditions: biomaterial substrate stiffness and volumetric flow rate, respectively, in BioJet and PAM(2). Results show that during inkjet printing impact energies of about 10(-8) J are transmitted to cells, whereas extrusion energies of the order of 10(-11) J are exerted in direct printing. Viability tests of printed cells can be related to those numerical simulations, suggesting a threshold energy of 10(-9) J to avoid permanent cell damage. To obtain well-defined living constructs, a combination of these methods is proposed for the fabrication of scaffolds with controlled 3D architecture and spatial distribution of biomolecules and cells. Copyright © 2012 American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE).

Dip-coating with prestructured substrates: transfer of simple liquids and Langmuir–Blodgett monolayers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wilczek, Markus; Thiele, Uwe; Gurevich, Svetlana V; Zhu, Juan; Chi, Lifeng

2017-01-01

When a plate is withdrawn from a liquid bath, either a static meniscus forms in the transition region between the bath and the substrate or a liquid film of finite thickness (a Landau–Levich film) is transferred onto the moving substrate. If the substrate is inhomogeneous, e.g. has a prestructure consisting of stripes of different wettabilities, the meniscus can be deformed or show a complex dynamic behavior. Here we study the free surface shape and dynamics of a dragged meniscus occurring for striped prestructures with two orientations, parallel and perpendicular to the transfer direction. A thin film model is employed that accounts for capillarity through a Laplace pressure and for the spatially varying wettability through a Derjaguin (or disjoining) pressure. Numerical continuation is used to obtain steady free surface profiles and corresponding bifurcation diagrams in the case of substrates with different homogeneous wettabilities. Direct numerical simulations are employed in the case of the various striped prestructures. The final part illustrates the importance of our findings for particular applications that involve complex liquids by modeling a Langmuir–Blodgett transfer experiment. There, one transfers a monolayer of an insoluble surfactant that covers the surface of the bath onto the moving substrate. The resulting pattern formation phenomena can be crucially influenced by the hydrodynamics of the liquid meniscus that itself depends on the prestructure on the substrate. In particular, we show how prestructure stripes parallel to the transfer direction lead to the formation of bent stripes in the surfactant coverage after transfer and present similar experimental results. (paper)

Biofunctionalization on Alkylated Silicon Substrate Surfaces via “Click” Chemistry

OpenAIRE

Qin, Guoting; Santos, Catherine; Zhang, Wen; Li, Yan; Kumar, Amit; Erasquin, Uriel J.; Liu, Kai; Muradov, Pavel; Trautner, Barbara Wells; Cai, Chengzhi

2010-01-01

Biofunctionalization of silicon substrates is important to the development of silicon-based biosensors and devices. Compared to conventional organosiloxane films on silicon oxide intermediate layers, organic monolayers directly bound to the non-oxidized silicon substrates via Si-C bonds enhance the sensitivity of detection and the stability against hydrolytic cleavage. Such monolayers presenting a high density of terminal alkynyl groups for bioconjugation via copper-catalyzed azide-alkyne 1,3...

ZnO nanocoral reef grown on porous silicon substrates without catalyst

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abdulgafour, H.I.; Yam, F.K.; Hassan, Z.; AL-Heuseen, K.; Jawad, M.J.

2011-01-01

Research highlights: → Porous silicon (PS) technology is utilized to grow coral reef-like ZnO nanostructures on the surface of Si substrates. → Flower-like aligned ZnO nanorods are fabricated directly onto the silicon substrates through zinc powder evaporation using a simple thermal evaporation method without a catalyst for comparison. → The PL spectra show that for ZnO nanocoral reefs the UV emission shifts slightly towards lower frequency. → This non-catalyst growth technique on the rough surface of substrates may have potential applications in the fabrication of nanoelectronic and nanooptical devices. - Abstract: Porous silicon (PS) technology is utilized to grow coral reef-like ZnO nanostructures on the surface of Si substrates with rough morphology. Flower-like aligned ZnO nanorods are also fabricated directly onto the silicon substrates through zinc powder evaporation using a simple thermal evaporation method without a catalyst for comparison. The characteristics of these nanostructures are investigated using field-emission scanning electron microscopy, grazing-angle X-ray diffraction (XRD), and photoluminescence (PL) measurements of structures grown on both Si and porous Si substrates. The texture coefficient obtained from the XRD spectra indicates that the coral reef-like nanostructures are highly oriented on the porous silicon substrate with decreasing nanorods length and diameter from 800-900 nm to 3.5-5.5 μm and from 217-229 nm to 0.6-0.7 μm, respectively. The PL spectra show that for ZnO nanocoral reefs the UV emission shifts slightly towards lower frequency and the intensity increase with the improvement of ZnO crystallization. This non-catalyst growth technique on the rough surface of substrates may have potential applications in the fabrication of nanoelectronic and nanooptical devices.

ZnO nanocoral reef grown on porous silicon substrates without catalyst

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Abdulgafour, H.I., E-mail: hind_alshaikh@yahoo.com [School of Physics, University Sains Malaysia 11800 Penang (Malaysia); Yam, F.K.; Hassan, Z.; AL-Heuseen, K.; Jawad, M.J. [School of Physics, University Sains Malaysia 11800 Penang (Malaysia)

2011-05-05

Research highlights: > Porous silicon (PS) technology is utilized to grow coral reef-like ZnO nanostructures on the surface of Si substrates. > Flower-like aligned ZnO nanorods are fabricated directly onto the silicon substrates through zinc powder evaporation using a simple thermal evaporation method without a catalyst for comparison. > The PL spectra show that for ZnO nanocoral reefs the UV emission shifts slightly towards lower frequency. > This non-catalyst growth technique on the rough surface of substrates may have potential applications in the fabrication of nanoelectronic and nanooptical devices. - Abstract: Porous silicon (PS) technology is utilized to grow coral reef-like ZnO nanostructures on the surface of Si substrates with rough morphology. Flower-like aligned ZnO nanorods are also fabricated directly onto the silicon substrates through zinc powder evaporation using a simple thermal evaporation method without a catalyst for comparison. The characteristics of these nanostructures are investigated using field-emission scanning electron microscopy, grazing-angle X-ray diffraction (XRD), and photoluminescence (PL) measurements of structures grown on both Si and porous Si substrates. The texture coefficient obtained from the XRD spectra indicates that the coral reef-like nanostructures are highly oriented on the porous silicon substrate with decreasing nanorods length and diameter from 800-900 nm to 3.5-5.5 {mu}m and from 217-229 nm to 0.6-0.7 {mu}m, respectively. The PL spectra show that for ZnO nanocoral reefs the UV emission shifts slightly towards lower frequency and the intensity increase with the improvement of ZnO crystallization. This non-catalyst growth technique on the rough surface of substrates may have potential applications in the fabrication of nanoelectronic and nanooptical devices.

Various compositions containing organic substrates to produce Eugenia uniflora L. seedlings

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Licielo Romero Vieira

2015-09-01

Full Text Available The use of substrates formulated with agro-industrial residues, such as coconut shell fiber, sawdust, and carbonized rice husk, is among the sustainable alternatives to decrease the production costs of seedlings of plant species. This study aimed to evaluate the use of various substrates for obtaining high quality Eugenia uniflora L. seedlings. The experiment was conducted at the Federal University of Pampa (UNIPAMPA – Campus in São Gabriel, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, by sowing directly into 200 cm3 polypropylene tubes, testing various substrates (50% commercial substrate Plantmax® + 50% rice husk; commercial substrate Plantmax®; 50% commercial substrate Plantmax® + 50% coconut shell fiber; and 50% commercial substrate Plantmax® + 50% sawdust. Every 3 days, the number of emerged seedlings was evaluated and, after 180 days, the following morphological features were analyzed: shoot height, stem diameter, number of leaves, root and total fresh weight, shoot, root, and total dry weight, and Dickson’s quality index. The results indicate that all substrates were suitable for Eugenia uniflora emergence, but that containing 50% commercial substrate Plantmax® + 50% sawdust provided a delay in the emergence of this Myrtaceae; also, substrates containing 50% commercial substrate Plantmax® + 50% husk rice and 50% commercial substrate Plantmax® + 50% coconut shell fiber showed to be satisfactory for the growth of Eugenia uniflora seedlings.

Diamond-like carbon films deposited on three-dimensional shape substrate model by liquid electrochemical technique

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

He, Y.Y.; Zhang, G.F.; Zhao, Y.; Liu, D.D.; Cong, Y.; Buck, V.

2015-01-01

Diamond-like carbon (DLC) films were deposited on three-dimensional (3D) shape substrate model by electrolysis of 2-propanol solution at low temperature (60 °C). This 3D shape model was composed of a horizontally aligned stainless steel wafer and vertically aligned stainless steel rods. Morphology and microstructure of the films were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and Raman spectroscopy, respectively. The results suggested there were only differences in film uniformity and thickness for two kinds of samples. The hydrogenated amorphous carbon films deposited on horizontally aligned substrate were smooth and homogeneous. And the film thickness of DLC films gained on the vertical substrates decreased along vertical direction. It is believed that bubble formation could enhance nucleation on the wetted capillary area. This experiment shows that deposition of DLC films by liquid phase deposition on 3D shape conductive substrates is possible. - Highlights: • DLC film is expected to be deposited on complex surface/shape substrate. • DLC film is deposited on 3D shape substrate by liquid electrochemical method. • Horizontal substrate is covered by smooth and homogeneous DLC films. • Film thickness decreases along vertical direction due to boiling effect

Diamond-like carbon films deposited on three-dimensional shape substrate model by liquid electrochemical technique

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

He, Y.Y. [Institute of Nano-photonics, School of Physics and Materials Engineering, Dalian Nationalities University, 116600 Dalian (China); Zhang, G.F. [School of Materials Science and Engineering, Dalian University of Technology, 116024, Dalian China (China); Zhao, Y.; Liu, D.D. [Institute of Nano-photonics, School of Physics and Materials Engineering, Dalian Nationalities University, 116600 Dalian (China); Cong, Y., E-mail: congyan@ciomp.ac.cn [Institute of Nano-photonics, School of Physics and Materials Engineering, Dalian Nationalities University, 116600 Dalian (China); Buck, V. [Thin Film Technology Group, Faculty of Physics, University Duisburg-Essen and CeNIDE, 47057 Duisburg (Germany)

2015-09-01

Diamond-like carbon (DLC) films were deposited on three-dimensional (3D) shape substrate model by electrolysis of 2-propanol solution at low temperature (60 °C). This 3D shape model was composed of a horizontally aligned stainless steel wafer and vertically aligned stainless steel rods. Morphology and microstructure of the films were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and Raman spectroscopy, respectively. The results suggested there were only differences in film uniformity and thickness for two kinds of samples. The hydrogenated amorphous carbon films deposited on horizontally aligned substrate were smooth and homogeneous. And the film thickness of DLC films gained on the vertical substrates decreased along vertical direction. It is believed that bubble formation could enhance nucleation on the wetted capillary area. This experiment shows that deposition of DLC films by liquid phase deposition on 3D shape conductive substrates is possible. - Highlights: • DLC film is expected to be deposited on complex surface/shape substrate. • DLC film is deposited on 3D shape substrate by liquid electrochemical method. • Horizontal substrate is covered by smooth and homogeneous DLC films. • Film thickness decreases along vertical direction due to boiling effect.

Directed ordering of phase separated domains and dewetting of thin polymer blend films on a topographically patterned substrate.

Science.gov (United States)

Bhandaru, Nandini; Karim, Alamgir; Mukherjee, Rabibrata

2017-07-21

Substrate pattern guided self-organization of ultrathin and confined polymeric films on a topographically patterned substrate is a useful approach for obtaining ordered meso and nano structures over large areas, particularly if the ordering is achieved during film preparation itself, eliminating any post-processing such as thermal or solvent vapor annealing. By casting a dilute solution of two immiscible polymers, polystyrene (PS) and polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA), from a common solvent (toluene) on a topographically patterned substrate with a grating geometry, we show the formation of self-organized meso patterns with various degrees of ordering. The morphology depends on both the concentration of the dispensed solution (C n ) and the blend composition (R B ). Depending on the extent of dewetting during spin coating, the final morphologies can be classified into three distinct categories. At a very low C n the solution dewets fully, resulting in isolated polymer droplets aligned along substrate grooves (Type 1). Type 2 structures comprising isolated threads with aligned phase separated domains along each substrate groove are observed at intermediate C n . A continuous film (Type 3) is obtained above a critical concentration (C n *) that depends on R B . While the extent of ordering of the domains gradually diminishes with an increase in film thickness for Type 3 patterns, the size of the domains remains much smaller than that on a flat substrate, resulting in significant downsizing of the features due to the lateral confinement imposed on the phase separation process by the topographic patterns. Finally, we show that some of these structures exhibit excellent broadband anti-reflection (AR) properties.

The substrate-binding protein imposes directionality on an electrochemical sodium gradient-driven TRAP transporter

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mulligan, Christopher; Geertsma, Eric R.; Severi, Emmanuele; Kelly, David J.; Poolman, Bert; Thomas, Gavin H.

2009-01-01

Substrate-binding protein-dependent secondary transporters are widespread in prokaryotes and are represented most frequently by members of the tripartite ATP-independent periplasmic (TRAP) transporter family. Here, we report the membrane reconstitution of a TRAP transporter, the sialic acid-specific

Surface-enhanced raman spectroscopy substrate for arsenic sensing in groundwater

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Peidong; Mulvihill, Martin; Tao, Andrea R.; Sinsermsuksakul, Prasert; Arnold, John

2015-06-16

A surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) substrate formed from a plurality of monolayers of polyhedral silver nanocrystals, wherein at least one of the monolayers has polyvinypyrrolidone (PVP) on its surface, and thereby configured for sensing arsenic is described. Highly active SERS substrates are formed by assembling high density monolayers of differently shaped silver nanocrystals onto a solid support. SERS detection is performed directly on this substrate by placing a droplet of the analyte solution onto the nanocrystal monolayer. Adsorbed polymer, polyvinypyrrolidone (PVP), on the surface of the nanoparticles facilitates the binding of both arsenate and arsenite near the silver surface, allowing for highly accurate and sensitive detection capabilities.

Ordered to isotropic morphology transition in pattern-directed dewetting of polymer thin films on substrates with different feature heights.

Science.gov (United States)

Roy, Sudeshna; Mukherjee, Rabibrata

2012-10-24

Controlled dewetting of a thin polymer film on a topographically patterned substrate is an interesting approach for aligning isotropic dewetted structures. In this article, we investigate the influence of substrate feature height (H(S)) on the dewetting pathway and final pattern morphology by studying the dewetting of polystyrene (PS) thin films on grating substrates with identical periodicity (λ(P) = 1.5 μm), but H(S) varying between 10 nm and 120 nm. We identify four distinct categories of final dewetted morphology, with different extent of ordering: (1) array of aligned droplets (H(S) ≈ 120 nm); (2) aligned undulating ribbons (H(S) ≈ 70-100 nm); (3) multilength scale structures with coexisting large droplets uncorrelated to the substrate and smaller droplets/ribbons aligned along the stripes (H(S) ≈ 40-60 nm); and (4) large droplets completely uncorrelated to the substrate (H(S) dewetted morphologies and transition across categories remain generically unaltered. We finally show that the structures obtained by dewetting on different H(S) substrates exhibits different levels of hydrophobicity because of combined spatial variation of chemical and topographic contrast along the surface. Thus, the work reported in this article can find potential application in fabricating surfaces with controlled wettability.

Wrinkling of graphene membranes supported by silica nanoparticles on substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Yamamoto, Mahito; Cullen, William; Fuhrer, Michael; Einstein, Theodore; Department of Physics, University of Maryland Team

2011-03-01

The challenging endeavor of modulating the morphology of graphene via a patterned substrate to produce a controlled deformation has great potential importance for strain engineering the electronic properties of graphene. An essential step in this direction is to understand the response of graphene to substrate features of known geometry. Here we employ silica nanoparticles with a diameter of 10-100 nm to uniformly decorate Si O2 and mica substrates before depositing graphene, to promote nanoscale modulation of graphene geometry. The morphology of graphene on this modified substrate is then characterized by atomic force spectroscopy. We find that graphene on the substrate is locally raised by the supporting nanoparticles, and wrinkling propagates radially from the protrusions to form a ridge network which links the protrusions. We discuss the dependence of the wrinkled morphology on nanoparticle diameter and graphene thickness in terms of graphene elasticity and adhesion energy. Supported by NSF-MRSEC, Grant DMR 05-20471

Entropy-driven crystal formation on highly strained substrates

KAUST Repository

Savage, John R.

2013-05-20

In heteroepitaxy, lattice mismatch between the deposited material and the underlying surface strongly affects nucleation and growth processes. The effect of mismatch is well studied in atoms with growth kinetics typically dominated by bond formation with interaction lengths on the order of one lattice spacing. In contrast, less is understood about how mismatch affects crystallization of larger particles, such as globular proteins and nanoparticles, where interparticle interaction energies are often comparable to thermal fluctuations and are short ranged, extending only a fraction of the particle size. Here, using colloidal experiments and simulations, we find particles with short-range attractive interactions form crystals on isotropically strained lattices with spacings significantly larger than the interaction length scale. By measuring the free-energy cost of dimer formation on monolayers of increasing uniaxial strain, we show the underlying mismatched substrate mediates an entropy-driven attractive interaction extending well beyond the interaction length scale. Remarkably, because this interaction arises from thermal fluctuations, lowering temperature causes such substrate-mediated attractive crystals to dissolve. Such counterintuitive results underscore the crucial role of entropy in heteroepitaxy in this technologically important regime. Ultimately, this entropic component of lattice mismatched crystal growth could be used to develop unique methods for heterogeneous nucleation and growth of single crystals for applications ranging from protein crystallization to controlling the assembly of nanoparticles into ordered, functional superstructures. In particular, the construction of substrates with spatially modulated strain profiles would exploit this effect to direct self-assembly, whereby nucleation sites and resulting crystal morphology can be controlled directly through modifications of the substrate.

Direct synthesis of porous NiO nanowall arrays on conductive substrates for supercapacitor application

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhu, Jianhui; Jiang, Jian; Liu, Jingping; Ding, Ruimin; Ding, Hao; Feng, Yamin; Wei, Guangming; Huang, Xintang

2011-01-01

Porous NiO nanowall arrays (NWAs) grown on flexible Fe-Co-Ni alloy have been successfully synthesized by using nullaginite (Ni 2 (OH) 2 CO 3 ) as precursor and investigated as supercapacitor electrodes. In details, we adopted a simple hydrothermal method to realize Ni 2 (OH) 2 CO 3 NWAs and examined their robust mechanical adhesion to substrate via a long-time ultrasonication test. Porous NiO NWAs were then obtained by a post-calcination towards precursors at 500 o C in nitrogen atmosphere. Electrochemical properties of as-synthesized NiO NWAs were evaluated by cyclic voltammetry and galvanostatic charge/discharge; porous NiO NWAs electrode delivered a specific capacitance of 270 F/g (0.67 A/g); even at high current densities, the electrode could still deliver a high capacitance up to 236 F/g (13.35 A/g). Meanwhile, it exhibited excellent cycle lifetime with ∼93% specific capacitance kept after 4000 cycles. These results suggest that as-made porous NiO NWAs electrode is a promising candidate for future thin-film supercapacitors and other microelectronic systems. -- Graphical abstract: Porous NiO nanowall arrays (NWAs) grown on alloy substrate have been made using nullaginite as precursor and studied as supercapacitor electrodes. Porous nanowalls interconnected with each other resulting in the formation of extended-network architectures and exhibited excellent capacitor properties. NiO NWAs electrode delivered a capacitance of 270 F/g (0.67 A/g); even at high current density, the electrode could still deliver a high capacitance up to 236 F/g (13.35 A/g). Besides, it exhibited excellent cycle lifetime with ∼93% capacitance kept after 4000 cycles. These remarkable results made it possible for mass production of NiO NWAs and future thin-film microelectronic applications. Display Omitted Research highlights: → Large-scale nullaginite (Ni 2 (OH) 2 CO 3 ) nanowall arrays (NWAs) have been synthesized on flexible alloy substrate by a facile hydrothermal method. �

Cell-substrate interaction with cell-membrane-stress dependent adhesion.

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, H; Yang, B

2012-01-10

Cell-substrate interaction is examined in a two-dimensional mechanics model. The cell and substrate are treated as a shell and an elastic solid, respectively. Their interaction through adhesion is treated using nonlinear springs. Compared to previous cell mechanics models, the present model introduces a cohesive force law that is dependent not only on cell-substrate distance but also on internal cell-membrane stress. It is postulated that a living cell would establish focal adhesion sites with density dependent on the cell-membrane stress. The formulated mechanics problem is numerically solved using coupled finite elements and boundary elements for the cell and the substrate, respectively. The nodes in the adhesion zone from either side are linked by the cohesive springs. The specific cases of a cell adhering to a homogeneous substrate and a heterogeneous bimaterial substrate are examined. The analyses show that the substrate stiffness affects the adhesion behavior significantly and regulates the direction of cell adhesion, in good agreement with the experimental results in the literature. By introducing a reactive parameter (i.e., cell-membrane stress) linking biological responses of a living cell to a mechanical environment, the present model offers a unified mechanistic vehicle for characterization and prediction of living cell responses to various kinds of mechanical stimuli including local extracellular matrix and neighboring cells. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

PREFACE: Cell-substrate interactions Cell-substrate interactions

Science.gov (United States)

Gardel, Margaret; Schwarz, Ulrich

2010-05-01

system, is strongly modulated by mechanosensing on substrates of varying stiffness [21]. Mogilner and Rubinstein present a theoretical systems analysis for the shape of rapidly migrating keratocytes [22]. Saez et al show, with microfabricated pillar assays, how force is distributed within a layer of epithelial cells [23]. For three-dimensional tissue models, new techniques have to be developed to characterize the complex mechanics of hydrogels. Levental et al [24] and Kotlarchyk et al [25] approach this challenge with mechanical and optical methods, respectively. Narayanan et al combine experiments and continuum models to explore how chemo-mechanical interactions influence tumor growth [26]. References [1] Chen C S, Mrksich M, Huang S, Whitesides G M and Ingber D E 1997 Geometric control of cell life and death Science 276 1425 [2] Pelham R J Jr and Wang Y-L 1997 Cell locomotion and focal adhesions are regulated by substrate flexibility Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 94 13661 [3] Engler A J, Sen S, Sweeney H L and Discher D E 2006 Matrix elasticity directs stem cell lineage specification Cell 126 677-89 [4] Geiger B, Spatz J P and Bershadsky A D 2009 Environmental sensing through focal adhesions Nat. Rev. Mol. Cell Biol. 10 21 [5] Boettiger D and Wehrle-Haller B 2010 Integrin and glycocalyx mediated contributions to cell adhesion identified by single cell force spectroscopy J. Phys.: Condens. Matter 22 194101 [6] Chirasatitsin S and Engler A J 2010 Detecting cell-adhesive sites in extracellular matrix using force spectroscopy mapping J. Phys.: Condens. Matter 22 194102 [7] Scrimgeour J, Kodali V K, Kovari D T and Curtis J E 2010 Photobleaching-activated micropatterning on self-assembled monolayers J. Phys.: Condens. Matter 22 194103 [8] Stricker J, Sabass B, Schwarz U S and Gardel M L 2010 Optimization of traction force microscopy for micron-sized focal adhesions J. Phys.: Condens. Matter 22 194104 [9] Metzner C, Raupach C, Mierke C T and Fabry B 2010 Fluctuations of

On-substrate fabrication of porous Al2O3 templates with tunable pore diameters and interpore distances

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Berger, Nele; Rubahn, Horst-Günter; habouti, salah

2016-01-01

This work is focused on the on-substrate fabrication of porous aluminum oxide templates by anodization of a thin aluminum film deposited directly on the substrate using different concentrations of oxalic acid. These on-substrate templates are used for fabricating supported, free-standing nanorod...

2D mesoscale colloidal crystal patterns on polymer substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Bredikhin, Vladimir; Bityurin, Nikita

2018-05-01

The development of nanosphere lithography relies on the ability of depositing 2D colloidal crystals comprising micro- and nano-size elements on substrates of different materials. One of the most difficult problems here is deposition of coatings on hydrophobic substrates, e.g. polymers, from aqueous colloidal solutions. We use UV photooxidation for substrate hydrophilization. We demonstrate a new method of producing a two-dimensional ordered array of polymer microparticles (polystyrene microspheres ∼1 μm in diameter) on a polymer substrate (PMMA). We show that implementation of the new deposition technique for directed self-assembly of microspheres on an UV irradiated surface provides an opportunity to obtain coatings on a hydrophilized PMMA surface of large area (∼5 cm2). UV irradiation of the surface through masks allows creating 2D patterns consisting of mesoscale elements formed by the deposited self-assembled microparticles owing to the fact that the colloidal particles are deposited only on the irradiated area leaving the non-irradiated sections intact.

In Situ Demonstration and Characteristic Analysis of the Protease Using Substrate Immersing Zymography.

Science.gov (United States)

He, HaiLun; Li, Hao; Liu, Dan

2017-01-01

Zymography, the detection of proteolytic activities on the basis of protein substrate degradation, has been a technique described in the literature for at least in the past 50 years. In this study, we used substrate immersing zymography to analyze proteolysis of proteases. Instead of being directly added into a sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) gel, the substrates were added into the immersing solution after electrophoresis. With substrate immersing zymography, some characters of proteases, such as enzyme forms, potential proteolytic activity, molecular weights, presence of complexes, and potentially active enzyme fragments in complex biological samples, can be determined.

Rapid and direct spectrophotometric method for kinetics studies and routine assay of peroxidase based on aniline diazo substrates.

Science.gov (United States)

Mirazizi, Fatemeh; Bahrami, Azita; Haghbeen, Kamahldin; Shahbani Zahiri, Hossein; Bakavoli, Mehdi; Legge, Raymond L

2016-12-01

Peroxidases are ubiquitous enzymes that play an important role in living organisms. Current spectrophotometrically based peroxidase assay methods are based on the production of chromophoric substances at the end of the enzymatic reaction. The ambiguity regarding the formation and identity of the final chromophoric product and its possible reactions with other molecules have raised concerns about the accuracy of these methods. This can be of serious concern in inhibition studies. A novel spectrophotometric assay for peroxidase, based on direct measurement of a soluble aniline diazo substrate, is introduced. In addition to the routine assays, this method can be used in comprehensive kinetics studies. 4-[(4-Sulfophenyl)azo]aniline (λmax = 390 nm, ɛ = 32 880 M(-1) cm(-1) at pH 4.5 to 9) was introduced for routine assay of peroxidase. This compound is commercially available and is indexed as a food dye. Using this method, a detection limit of 0.05 nmol mL(-1) was achieved for peroxidase.

Varactor-tuned Substrate Integrated Evanescent Filter

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Zhurbenko, Vitaliy; Acar, Öncel; Dong, Yunfeng

Evanescent mode waveguides allow for more compact microwave component design in comparison to the traditional fundamental mode waveguide technology. Evanescent waveguides can be integrated into a dielectric substrate in order to further reduce the mass and volume. Unfortunately, traditional...... realization methods used in the standard evanescent waveguides are often not directly applicable to substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) technology due to dielectric filling and small height of the waveguide. In this work, one of the realization methods of evanescent waveguides using lumped elements...... is considered. In contrast to other methods described in the literature, it avoids etching split ring resonators in the metal layer of the SIW. The filters presented here use varactors as tuning elements. The varactors (as well as DC decoupling circuits) are mounted on the surface of PCB bringing the lower...

Synthesis of organolanthanides by metal addition on insaturated substrates in ether and reactivity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Olivier, H.

1988-01-01

The aim of the study is the extension to rare earths of the synthesis, well known for alkaline or alkaline earth metals, by direct metal addition to insaturated substrates in ether and where the metal is directly bound to carbon. A definition of formation conditions and affinity rules is attempled, both with substrates (essentially aromatic hydrocarbons and ketones) and with metals: Yb, Sm, Ce, Nd and others. The nature of obtained products by reaction of electrophiles on synthetised organometallics, allows investigations specific reactivity and structure. Potential catalytic transformation of olefins is precised [fr

Direct observation of CD4 T cell morphologies and their cross-sectional traction force derivation on quartz nanopillar substrates using focused ion beam technique

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Dong-Joo; Kim, Gil-Sung; Hyung, Jung-Hwan; Lee, Won-Yong; Hong, Chang-Hee; Lee, Sang-Kwon

2013-07-01

Direct observations of the primary mouse CD4 T cell morphologies, e.g., cell adhesion and cell spreading by culturing CD4 T cells in a short period of incubation (e.g., 20 min) on streptavidin-functionalized quartz nanopillar arrays (QNPA) using a high-content scanning electron microscopy method were reported. Furthermore, we first demonstrated cross-sectional cell traction force distribution of surface-bound CD4 T cells on QNPA substrates by culturing the cells on top of the QNPA and further analysis in deflection of underlying QNPA via focused ion beam-assisted technique.

Synthesis of Vertically Aligned ZnO Nano rods on Various Substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hassan, J.J.; Hassan, Z.; Abu Hassan, H.; Mahdi, M.A.

2011-01-01

We successfully synthesized vertically aligned ZnO nano rods on Si, GaN, Sic, Al 2 O 3 , ITO, and quartz substrates using microwave assisted chemical bath deposition (MA-CBD) method. All these types of substrates were seeded with PVA-ZnO nano composites layer prior to the nano rods growth. The effect of substrate type on the morphology of the ZnO nano rods was studied. The diameter of grown ZnO nano rods ranged from 50 nm to 200 nm. Structural quality and morphology of ZnO nano rods were determined by x-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy, which revealed hexagonal wurtzite structures perpendicular to the substrate along the z-axis in the direction of (002). Photoluminescence measurements of grown ZnO nano rods on all substrates exhibited high UV peak intensity. Raman scattering studies were conducted to estimate the lattice vibration modes. (author)

Evaluating Factor XIII Specificity for Glutamine-Containing Substrates Using a MALDI-TOF Mass Spectrometry Assay

Science.gov (United States)

Doiphode, Prakash G.; Malovichko, Marina V.; Mouapi, Kelly Njine; Maurer, Muriel C.

2014-01-01

Activated Factor XIII (FXIIIa) catalyzes the formation of γ-glutamyl-ε-lysyl cross-links within the fibrin blood clot network. Although several cross-linking targets have been identified, the characteristic features that define FXIIIa substrate specificity are not well understood. To learn more about how FXIIIa selects its targets, a matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization – time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) based assay was developed that could directly follow the consumption of a glutamine-containing substrate and the formation of a cross-linked product with glycine ethylester. This FXIIIa kinetics assay is no longer reliant on a secondary coupled reaction, on substrate labeling, or on detecting the final deacylation portion of the transglutaminase reaction. With the MALDI-TOF MS assay, glutamine-containing peptides derived from α2-antiplasmin, S. Aureus fibronectin binding protein A, and thrombin activatable fibrinolysis inhibitor were examined directly. Results suggest that the FXIIIa active site surface responds to changes in substrate residues following the reactive glutamine. The P-1 substrate position is sensitive to charge character and the P-2 and P-3 to the broad FXIIIa substrate specificity pockets. The more distant P-8 to P-11 region serves as a secondary substrate anchoring point. New knowledge on FXIIIa specificity may be used to design better substrates or inhibitors of this transglutaminase. PMID:24751466

Static and kinetic friction characteristics of nanowire on different substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Hyun-Joon [Department of Precision Mechanical Engineering, Kyungpook National University, Sangju 37224 (Korea, Republic of); Nguyen, Gia Hau; Ky, Dinh Le Cao; Tran, Da Khoa [School of Mechanical Engineering, University of Ulsan, Ulsan 44610 (Korea, Republic of); Jeon, Ki-Joon [Department of Environmental Engineering, Inha University, Incheon 22212 (Korea, Republic of); Chung, Koo-Hyun, E-mail: khchung@ulsan.ac.kr [School of Mechanical Engineering, University of Ulsan, Ulsan 44610 (Korea, Republic of)

2016-08-30

Highlights: • Direct measurement of kinetic friction of oxidized Si NW using AFM. • Determination of static friction of oxidized Si NW from most bent state. • Friction characteristics of oxidized Si NW on SiO{sub 2} and graphene. • Estimation of shear stress between cylindrical NW and flat substrate. • No significant dependence of shear stress on NW radius. - Abstract: Friction characteristics of nanowires (NWs), which may be used as building blocks for nano-devices, are crucial, especially for cases where contact sliding occurs during the device operation. In this work, the static and kinetic friction characteristics of oxidized Si NWs deposited on thermally grown SiO{sub 2} and chemical vapor-deposited single layer graphene were investigated using an atomic force microscope (AFM). Kinetic friction between the oxidized Si NWs and the substrates was directly measured by the AFM. Static friction was also obtained from the most bent state of the NWs using the individually determined elastic moduli of the NWs from kinetic friction experiments based on elastic beam theory. Furthermore, the shear stress between the oxidized Si NWs and the substrates was estimated based on adhesive contact theory. It was found that both static and kinetic friction increased as the radius of the NWs increased. The friction of the oxidized Si NWs on the graphene substrate was found to be smaller than that on the SiO{sub 2} substrate, which suggests that chemical vapor-deposited graphene can be used as a lubricant or as a protective layer in nano-devices to reduce friction. The shear stress estimated from the kinetic friction data between the oxidized Si NWs and the SiO{sub 2} substrate ranged from 7.5 to 12.3 MPa while that between the oxidized Si NWs and the graphene substrate ranged from 4.7 to 7.0 MPa. The result also indicated that the dependence of shear stress on the radius of the NWs was not significant. These findings may provide insight into the friction characteristics

Static and kinetic friction characteristics of nanowire on different substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Hyun-Joon; Nguyen, Gia Hau; Ky, Dinh Le Cao; Tran, Da Khoa; Jeon, Ki-Joon; Chung, Koo-Hyun

2016-01-01

Highlights: • Direct measurement of kinetic friction of oxidized Si NW using AFM. • Determination of static friction of oxidized Si NW from most bent state. • Friction characteristics of oxidized Si NW on SiO 2 and graphene. • Estimation of shear stress between cylindrical NW and flat substrate. • No significant dependence of shear stress on NW radius. - Abstract: Friction characteristics of nanowires (NWs), which may be used as building blocks for nano-devices, are crucial, especially for cases where contact sliding occurs during the device operation. In this work, the static and kinetic friction characteristics of oxidized Si NWs deposited on thermally grown SiO 2 and chemical vapor-deposited single layer graphene were investigated using an atomic force microscope (AFM). Kinetic friction between the oxidized Si NWs and the substrates was directly measured by the AFM. Static friction was also obtained from the most bent state of the NWs using the individually determined elastic moduli of the NWs from kinetic friction experiments based on elastic beam theory. Furthermore, the shear stress between the oxidized Si NWs and the substrates was estimated based on adhesive contact theory. It was found that both static and kinetic friction increased as the radius of the NWs increased. The friction of the oxidized Si NWs on the graphene substrate was found to be smaller than that on the SiO 2 substrate, which suggests that chemical vapor-deposited graphene can be used as a lubricant or as a protective layer in nano-devices to reduce friction. The shear stress estimated from the kinetic friction data between the oxidized Si NWs and the SiO 2 substrate ranged from 7.5 to 12.3 MPa while that between the oxidized Si NWs and the graphene substrate ranged from 4.7 to 7.0 MPa. The result also indicated that the dependence of shear stress on the radius of the NWs was not significant. These findings may provide insight into the friction characteristics of NWs.

Hsc66 substrate specificity is directed toward a discrete region of the iron-sulfur cluster template protein IscU.

Science.gov (United States)

Hoff, Kevin G; Ta, Dennis T; Tapley, Tim L; Silberg, Jonathan J; Vickery, Larry E

2002-07-26

Hsc66 and Hsc20 comprise a specialized chaperone system important for the assembly of iron-sulfur clusters in Escherchia coli. Only a single substrate, the Fe/S template protein IscU, has been identified for the Hsc66/Hsc20 system, but the mechanism by which Hsc66 selectively binds IscU is unknown. We have investigated Hsc66 substrate specificity using phage display and a peptide array of IscU. Screening of a heptameric peptide phage display library revealed that Hsc66 prefers peptides with a centrally located Pro-Pro motif. Using a cellulose-bound peptide array of IscU we determined that Hsc66 interacts specifically with a region (residues 99-103, LPPVK) that is invariant among all IscU family members. A synthetic peptide (ELPPVKIHC) corresponding to IscU residues 98-106 behaves in a similar manner to native IscU, stimulating the ATPase activity of Hsc66 with similar affinity as IscU, preventing Hsc66 suppression of bovine rhodanese aggregation, and interacting with the peptide-binding domain of Hsc66. Unlike native IscU, however, the synthetic peptide is not bound by Hsc20 and does not synergistically stimulate Hsc66 ATPase activity with Hsc20. Our results indicate that Hsc66 and Hsc20 recognize distinct regions of IscU and further suggest that Hsc66 will not bind LPPVK motifs with high affinity in vivo unless they are in the context of native IscU and can be directed to Hsc66 by Hsc20.

Studying substrate effects on localized surface plasmons in an individual silver nanoparticle using electron energy-loss spectroscopy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fujiyoshi, Yoshifumi; Nemoto, Takashi; Kurata, Hiroki, E-mail: kurata@eels.kuicr.kyoto-u.ac.jp

2017-04-15

In this study, electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) in conjunction with scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) was used to investigate surface plasmons in a single silver nanoparticle (NP) on a magnesium oxide substrate, employing an incident electron trajectory parallel to the substrate surface. This parallel irradiation allowed a direct exploration of the substrate effects on localized surface plasmon (LSP) excitations as a function of the distance from the substrate. The presence of the substrate was found to lower the symmetry of the system, such that the resonance energies of LSPs were dependent on the polarization direction relative to the substrate surface. The resulting mode splitting could be detected by applying different electron trajectories, providing results similar to those previously obtained from optical studies using polarized light. However, the LSP maps obtained by STEM-EELS analysis show an asymmetric intensity distribution with the highest intensity at the top surface of the NP (that is, far from the substrate), a result that is not predicted by optical simulations. We show that modifications of the applied electric field by the substrate cause this asymmetric intensity distribution in the LSP maps.

Infrared photothermal imaging of trace explosives on relevant substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Kendziora, Christopher A.; Furstenberg, Robert; Papantonakis, Michael; Nguyen, Viet; Borchert, James; Byers, Jeff; McGill, R. Andrew

2013-06-01

We are developing a technique for the stand-off detection of trace explosives on relevant substrate surfaces using photo-thermal infrared (IR) imaging spectroscopy (PT-IRIS). This approach leverages one or more compact IR quantum cascade lasers, tuned to strong absorption bands in the analytes and directed to illuminate an area on a surface of interest. An IR focal plane array is used to image the surface and detect small increases in thermal emission upon laser illumination. The PT-IRIS signal is processed as a hyperspectral image cube comprised of spatial, spectral and temporal dimensions as vectors within a detection algorithm. The ability to detect trace analytes on relevant substrates is critical for stand-off applications, but is complicated by the optical and thermal analyte/substrate interactions. This manuscript describes recent PT-IRIS experimental results and analysis for traces of RDX, TNT, ammonium nitrate (AN) and sucrose on relevant substrates (steel, polyethylene, glass and painted steel panels). We demonstrate that these analytes can be detected on these substrates at relevant surface mass loadings (10 μg/cm2 to 100 μg/cm2) even at the single pixel level.

Clamping effect on the piezoelectric responses of screen-printed low temperature PZT/Polymer films on flexible substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Almusallam, A.; Yang, K.; Zhu, D.; Torah, R. N.; Komolafe, A.; Tudor, J.; Beeby, S. P.

2015-11-01

This paper introduces a new flexible lead zirconate titanate (PZT)/polymer composite material that can be screen-printed onto fabrics and flexible substrates, and investigates the clamping effect of these substrates on the characterization of the piezoelectric material. Experimental results showed that the optimum blend of PZT/polymer binder with a weight ratio of 12:1 provides a dielectric constant of 146. The measured value of the piezoelectric coefficient d33 was found to depend on the substrate used. Measured d33clp values of 70, 40, 36 pC N-1 were obtained from the optimum formulation printed on Polyester-cotton with an interface layer, Kapton and alumina substrates, respectively. The variation in the measured d33clp values occurs because of the effect of the mechanical boundary conditions of the substrate. The piezoelectric film is mechanically bonded to the surface of the substrate and this constrains the film in the plane of the substrate (the 1-direction). This constraint means that the perpendicular forces (applied in the 3-direction) used to measure d33 introduce a strain in the 1-direction that produces a charge of the opposite polarity to that induced by the d33 effect. This is due to the negative sign of the d31 coefficient and has the effect of reducing the measured d33 value. Theoretical and experimental investigations confirm a reduction of 13%, 50% and 55% in the estimated freestanding d33fs values (80 pC N-1) on Polyester-cotton, Kapton and alumina substrates, respectively. These results demonstrate the effect of the boundary conditions of the substrate/PZT interface on the piezoelectric response of the PZT/polymer film and in particular the reduced effect of fabric substrates due to their lowered stiffness.

Effect of substrate thickness on ejection of phenylalanine molecules adsorbed on free-standing graphene bombarded by 10 keV C{sub 60}

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Golunski, M. [Institute of Physics, Jagiellonian University, ul. Lojasiewicza 11, 30-348 Krakow (Poland); Verkhoturov, S.V.; Verkhoturov, D.S.; Schweikert, E.A. [Department of Chemistry, Texas A& M University, College Station, TX 77840 (United States); Postawa, Z., E-mail: zbigniew.postawa@uj.edu.pl [Institute of Physics, Jagiellonian University, ul. Lojasiewicza 11, 30-348 Krakow (Poland)

2017-02-15

Highlights: • Substrate thickness has a prominent effect on the molecular ejection mechanism. • Collisions with projectile atoms leads to molecular ejection at thin substrates. • Interactions with deforming graphene sheet ejects molecules from thicker substrates. • Probability of fragmentation process decreases with the graphene substrate thickness. - Abstract: Molecular dynamics computer simulations have been employed to investigate the effect of substrate thickness on the ejection mechanism of phenylalanine molecules deposited on free-standing graphene. The system is bombarded from the graphene side by 10 keV C{sub 60} projectiles at normal incidence and the ejected particles are collected both in transmission and reflection directions. It has been found that the ejection mechanism depends on the substrate thickness. At thin substrates mostly organic fragments are ejected by direct collisions between projectile atoms and adsorbed molecules. At thicker substrates interaction between deforming topmost graphene sheet and adsorbed molecules becomes more important. As this process is gentle and directionally correlated, it leads predominantly to ejection of intact molecules. The implications of the results to a novel analytical approach in Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry based on ultrathin free-standing graphene substrates and a transmission geometry are discussed.

Directed assembly of carbon nanotubes on soft substrates for use as a flexible biosensor array

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koh, Juntae; Yang Lee, Byung; Kim, Tae Hyun; Lee, Joohyung; Hong, Seunghun; Yi, Mihye; Jhon, Young Min

2008-01-01

We have developed a method to selectively assemble and align carbon nanotubes (CNTs) on soft substrates for use as flexible biosensors. In this strategy, a thin oxide layer was deposited on soft substrates via low temperature plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition, and a linker-free assembly process was applied on the oxide surface where the assembly of carbon nanotubes was guided by methyl-terminated molecular patterns on the oxide surface. The electrical characterization of the fabricated CNT devices exhibited a typical p-type gating effect and 1/f noise behavior. The bare oxide regions near CNTs were functionalized with glutamate oxidase to fabricate selective biosensors to detect two forms of glutamate substances existing in different situations: L-glutamic acid, a neurotransmitting material, and monosodium glutamate, a food additive.

Yield of lettuce grown in aquaponic system using different substrates

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rodrigo A. Jordan

Full Text Available ABSTRACT In the aquaponic system, the characteristics of the materials used as substrate directly affect plant development, because besides acting as a support base, they must present a surface to fix microorganisms, responsible for the conversion of nutrients into forms more easily available to plants. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of four growing substrates on the yield of lettuce grown in aquaponic system. The experimental design was randomized blocks with four treatments, which corresponded to the substrates, and six replicates. Plants were grown using the nutrient film technique (NFT system. The substrates used in the experiment were: coconut shell fiber with crushed stone #3, expanded vermiculite, zeolite and phenolic foam. The treatment with phenolic foam was considered as the least suitable for lettuce cultivation in aquaponic system, because it caused lower yield (20.8 t ha-1. The treatment using coconut shell fiber with crushed stone #3 was considered as the most adequate, since it led to higher yield (39.9 t ha-1 compared with the other substrates analyzed.

The directed preparation of TiO2 nanotubes film on FTO substrate via hydrothermal method for gas sensing application

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pham Van Viet

2016-04-01

Full Text Available In this research, we directly synthesized TiO2 nanotubes film on Fluorine doped Tin oxide (FTO substrate via hydrothermal method from commercial TiO2 in NaOH solution at 135 ℃ for 24 hours. The samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD pattern, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM and transmitting electron microscopy (TEM. The average diameter of TiO2 nanotubes (TNTs is about 10–12 nm and their length is about a few hundred nanometers. The sensitivity ability of TNTs increases as the gas concentration increases and developing to the highest sensitivity of TNTs is 2.4 at 700 ppm of the ethanol concentration. The same as the gas concentration, the sensitivity of TNTs increases when the temperature increases. Besides, the sensitivity of samples at 250 ℃ is doubled compared to samples determined at 100 ℃.

Precise micropatterning of silver nanoparticles on plastic substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ammosova, Lena; Jiang, Yu; Suvanto, Mika; Pakkanen, Tapani A.

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Silver ink has been deposited on plastic substrate and silver nanoparticles have been produced. • 3D control allows both ink superimposing and deposition on complicated surfaces. • Polyol method ensures the formation of metallic mircopatterns with high uniformity. • Substrate wettability, ink volume, and sintering temperature influences deposited patterns. - Abstract: Conventional fabrication methods to obtain metal patterns on polymer substrates are restricted by high operating temperature and complex preparation steps. The present study demonstrates a simple yet versatile method for preparation of silver nanoparticle micropatterns on polymer substrates with various surface geometry. With the microworking robot technique, we were able not only to directly structure the surface, but also precisely deposit silver nanoparticle ink on the desired surface location with the minimum usage of ink material. The prepared silver nanoparticle ink, containing silver cations and polyethylene glycol (PEG) as a reducing agent, yields silver nanoparticle micropatterns on plastic substrates at low sintering temperature without any contamination. The influence of the ink behaviour was studied, such as substrate wettability, ink volume, and sintering temperature. The ultraviolet visible (UV–vis), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) measurements revealed the formation of micropatterns with uniformly distributed silver nanoparticles. The prepared patterns are expected to have a broad range of applications in optics, medicine, and sensor devices owing to the unique properties of silver. Furthermore, the deposition of a chemical compound, which is different from the substrate material, not only adds a fourth dimension to the prestructured three-dimensional (3D) surfaces, but also opens new application areas to the conventional surface structures.

Precise micropatterning of silver nanoparticles on plastic substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ammosova, Lena; Jiang, Yu; Suvanto, Mika; Pakkanen, Tapani A., E-mail: tapani.pakkanen@uef.fi

2017-04-15

Highlights: • Silver ink has been deposited on plastic substrate and silver nanoparticles have been produced. • 3D control allows both ink superimposing and deposition on complicated surfaces. • Polyol method ensures the formation of metallic mircopatterns with high uniformity. • Substrate wettability, ink volume, and sintering temperature influences deposited patterns. - Abstract: Conventional fabrication methods to obtain metal patterns on polymer substrates are restricted by high operating temperature and complex preparation steps. The present study demonstrates a simple yet versatile method for preparation of silver nanoparticle micropatterns on polymer substrates with various surface geometry. With the microworking robot technique, we were able not only to directly structure the surface, but also precisely deposit silver nanoparticle ink on the desired surface location with the minimum usage of ink material. The prepared silver nanoparticle ink, containing silver cations and polyethylene glycol (PEG) as a reducing agent, yields silver nanoparticle micropatterns on plastic substrates at low sintering temperature without any contamination. The influence of the ink behaviour was studied, such as substrate wettability, ink volume, and sintering temperature. The ultraviolet visible (UV–vis), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) measurements revealed the formation of micropatterns with uniformly distributed silver nanoparticles. The prepared patterns are expected to have a broad range of applications in optics, medicine, and sensor devices owing to the unique properties of silver. Furthermore, the deposition of a chemical compound, which is different from the substrate material, not only adds a fourth dimension to the prestructured three-dimensional (3D) surfaces, but also opens new application areas to the conventional surface structures.

Protein kinase substrate identification on functional protein arrays

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhou Fang

2008-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Over the last decade, kinases have emerged as attractive therapeutic targets for a number of different diseases, and numerous high throughput screening efforts in the pharmaceutical community are directed towards discovery of compounds that regulate kinase function. The emerging utility of systems biology approaches has necessitated the development of multiplex tools suitable for proteomic-scale experiments to replace lower throughput technologies such as mass spectroscopy for the study of protein phosphorylation. Recently, a new approach for identifying substrates of protein kinases has applied the miniaturized format of functional protein arrays to characterize phosphorylation for thousands of candidate protein substrates in a single experiment. This method involves the addition of protein kinases in solution to arrays of immobilized proteins to identify substrates using highly sensitive radioactive detection and hit identification algorithms. Results To date, the factors required for optimal performance of protein array-based kinase substrate identification have not been described. In the current study, we have carried out a detailed characterization of the protein array-based method for kinase substrate identification, including an examination of the effects of time, buffer compositions, and protein concentration on the results. The protein array approach was compared to standard solution-based assays for assessing substrate phosphorylation, and a correlation of greater than 80% was observed. The results presented here demonstrate how novel substrates for protein kinases can be quickly identified from arrays containing thousands of human proteins to provide new clues to protein kinase function. In addition, a pooling-deconvolution strategy was developed and applied that enhances characterization of specific kinase-substrate relationships and decreases reagent consumption. Conclusion Functional protein microarrays are an

Methods to introduce sub-micrometer, symmetry-breaking surface corrugation to silicon substrates to increase light trapping

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Han, Sang Eon; Hoard, Brittany R.; Han, Sang M.; Ghosh, Swapnadip

2018-04-10

Provided is a method for fabricating a nanopatterned surface. The method includes forming a mask on a substrate, patterning the substrate to include a plurality of symmetry-breaking surface corrugations, and removing the mask. The mask includes a pattern defined by mask material portions that cover first surface portions of the substrate and a plurality of mask space portions that expose second surface portions of the substrate, wherein the plurality of mask space portions are arranged in a lattice arrangement having a row and column, and the row is not oriented parallel to a [110] direction of the substrate. The patterning the substrate includes anisotropically removing portions of the substrate exposed by the plurality of spaces.

Effect of annealing temperature on the electrical transport properties of CaRuO3-δ thin films directly deposited on the Si substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Paik, Hanjong; Kim, Youngha; No, Kwangsoo; Cann, David P.; Yoon, DongJoo; Kim, ByungIl; Kim, Yangsoo

2007-01-01

We investigate the effect of annealing temperature on the preferentially (110)-oriented CaRuO 3-δ (CRO) thin films directly prepared on Si(100) substrate by rf magnetron sputtering. Crystalline quality and electrical transport properties of the CRO thin films were modified by post-annealing treatment. It was obvious that 700 C post-annealing brought about excellent metallic characteristics with the elevation of carrier concentration and mobility. From this result, we suggested that enhanced (110) orientation, and the ratio of chemical composition Ru 4+ /Ca 2+ ion were responsible for the transport properties of CRO thin film. (copyright 2007 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim) (orig.)

Ecomorphology of Astyanax species in streams with different substrates

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marcela A. Souza

2014-02-01

Full Text Available In the present study, we assessed the ecomorphology of two species of Astyanax in streams with different substrates found in the Rio São Francisco Basin. The dominant substrate of each stream was defined as either "fine" (0 to 2 mm, "gravel" (2 to 250 mm, "rock" (> 250 mm, or "leaf bank". We analyzed a total of 22 ecomorphological attributes of Astyanax intermedius Eigenmann, 1908 (127 individuals and Astyanax rivularis (Lütken, 1875 (238 individuals adults. We detected significant ecomorphological differences between the populations of A. rivularis and A. intermedius from habitats with different types of substrates. However, the two species did not show the same morphological differences depending on the type of substrate. These results confirmed the hypothesis that individuals from environments with different characteristics may have different ecomorphological patterns. Knowing that morphology is associated with habitat use and available resources, the loss of a resource or a modification in the environment may directly affect the permanence of a species, leading to a loss of morphologic diversity.

High quality GaAs single photon emitters on Si substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bietti, S.; Sanguinetti, S.; Cavigli, L.; Accanto, N.; Vinattieri, A.; Minari, S.; Abbarchi, M.; Isella, G.; Frigeri, C.; Gurioli, M.

2013-01-01

We describe a method for the direct epitaxial growth of a single photon emitter, based on GaAs quantum dots fabricated by droplet epitaxy, working at liquid nitrogen temperatures on Si substrates. The achievement of quantum photon statistics up to T=80 K is directly proved by antibunching in the second order correlation function as measured with a H anbury Brown and Twiss interferometer

Large area substrate for surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) using glass-drawing technique

Science.gov (United States)

Ivanov, Ilia N; Simpson, John T

2012-06-26

A method of making a large area substrate comprises drawing a plurality of tubes to form a plurality of drawn tubes, and cutting the plurality of drawn tubes into cut drawn tubes. Each cut drawn tube has a first end and a second end along the longitudinal direction of the respective cut drawn tube. The cut drawn tubes collectively have a predetermined periodicity. The method of making a large area substrate also comprises forming a metal layer on the first ends of the cut drawn tubes to provide a large area substrate.

Graphene substrates enhance optical transfection efficiency in pluripotent stem cells

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Khanyile, T

2013-09-01

Full Text Available Studies directed at investigating the role of nanomaterial substrates with varying properties in tissue engineering research are essential. In this research arena, pluripotent stem cells are popular for their self renewing ability and are widely...

Direct Synthesis of Carbon Nanotube Field Emitters on Metal Substrate for Open-Type X-ray Source in Medical Imaging

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Amar Prasad Gupta

2017-07-01

Full Text Available We report the design, fabrication and characterization of a carbon nanotube enabled open-type X-ray system for medical imaging. We directly grew the carbon nanotubes used as electron emitter for electron gun on a non-polished raw metallic rectangular-rounded substrate with an area of 0.1377 cm2 through a plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition system. The stable field emission properties with triode electrodes after electrical aging treatment showed an anode emission current of 0.63 mA at a gate field of 7.51 V/μm. The 4.5-inch cubic shape open type X-ray system was developed consisting of an X-ray aperture, a vacuum part, an anode high voltage part, and a field emission electron gun including three electrodes with focusing, gate and cathode electrodes. Using this system, we obtained high-resolution X-ray images accelerated at 42–70 kV voltage by digital switching control between emitter and ground electrode.

Direct Synthesis of Carbon Nanotube Field Emitters on Metal Substrate for Open-Type X-ray Source in Medical Imaging.

Science.gov (United States)

Gupta, Amar Prasad; Park, Sangjun; Yeo, Seung Jun; Jung, Jaeik; Cho, Chonggil; Paik, Sang Hyun; Park, Hunkuk; Cho, Young Chul; Kim, Seung Hoon; Shin, Ji Hoon; Ahn, Jeung Sun; Ryu, Jehwang

2017-07-29

We report the design, fabrication and characterization of a carbon nanotube enabled open-type X-ray system for medical imaging. We directly grew the carbon nanotubes used as electron emitter for electron gun on a non-polished raw metallic rectangular-rounded substrate with an area of 0.1377 cm² through a plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition system. The stable field emission properties with triode electrodes after electrical aging treatment showed an anode emission current of 0.63 mA at a gate field of 7.51 V/μm. The 4.5-inch cubic shape open type X-ray system was developed consisting of an X-ray aperture, a vacuum part, an anode high voltage part, and a field emission electron gun including three electrodes with focusing, gate and cathode electrodes. Using this system, we obtained high-resolution X-ray images accelerated at 42-70 kV voltage by digital switching control between emitter and ground electrode.

Substrate Handbook for Biogas Production; Substrathandbok foer biogasproduktion

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Carlsson, My; Uldal, Martina (AnoxKaldnes AB, Lund (Sweden))

2009-02-15

Today, co-digestion plants in Sweden treat a broad range of different substrates, of which some have not previously been used for anaerobic digestion. The major part of this organic waste derives from households, restaurants, food industries and farms. When evaluating a new substrate as feed for anaerobic digestion, several different aspects need to be taken into consideration, such as anaerobic degradability, TS/VS content, nutrient composition and risk for mechanical problems. Consequently, there is a need for practical guidelines on how to evaluate new substrates as raw materials for biogas production, including not only gas yield but also what practical and microbiological problems that may arise when the specific substrate is treated together with other substrates in the plant. The aim with this handbook is to provide a basis on how to evaluate new substrates as feed for anaerobic digestion. The intention is that this material will save time and effort for the personnel at the plant when they come in contact with new types of waste. Also, the aim is to facilitate the process of identifying new substrates within the ABP-regulation (1774/2002) and what requirements are then demanded on handling. The work with the handbook has been divided in three different parts; (1) an extensive literature study and a compilation of the achieved results, (2) interviews with personnel at most of the Swedish co-digestion plants to identify substrates and problems of interest, and (3) lab tests of selected substrates. The lab tests included Bio Methane Potential (BMP) tests as well as a simple characterization of each substrate based on fat/protein/carbohydrate content. All data origins from anaerobic digestion within the mesophilic temperature range, but the results and discussion are applicable also for thermophilic anaerobic digestion. The result of this work is a written report together with an Excel file which are to be directly used by the biogas plants as a basis in the

Remote and direct plasma regions for low-temperature growth of carbon nanotubes on glass substrates for display applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tabatabaei, M K; Ghafouri fard, H; Koohsorkhi, J; Khatami, S; Mohajerzadeh, S

2011-01-01

A novel method for growing carbon nanotubes (CNTs) on glass substrates is introduced in this study. A two-stage plasma was used to achieve low-temperature and vertically aligned CNTs. Ni deposited on indium tin oxide/glass substrate was used as the catalyst and hydrogen and acetylene were used as gas feeds. In this investigation a new technique was developed to grow vertically aligned CNTs at temperatures below 400 deg. C while CNT growth by plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition required high temperatures. Low-temperature growth of vertically aligned CNTs was suitable for the fabrication of micro-lens and self-oriented displays on glass substrates. Also, we have reported a new configuration for CNT-based display by means of controlling the refractive index of liquid crystal around the CNT by applying a proper voltage to the top and bottom array.

Crystal Structure and Substrate Specificity of Drosophila 3,4-Dihydroxyphenylalanine Decarboxylase

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Han, Q.; Ding, H; Robinson, H; Christensen, B; Li, J

2010-01-01

3,4-Dihydroxyphenylalanine decarboxylase (DDC), also known as aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase, catalyzes the decarboxylation of a number of aromatic L-amino acids. Physiologically, DDC is responsible for the production of dopamine and serotonin through the decarboxylation of 3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine and 5-hydroxytryptophan, respectively. In insects, both dopamine and serotonin serve as classical neurotransmitters, neuromodulators, or neurohormones, and dopamine is also involved in insect cuticle formation, eggshell hardening, and immune responses. In this study, we expressed a typical DDC enzyme from Drosophila melanogaster, critically analyzed its substrate specificity and biochemical properties, determined its crystal structure at 1.75 Angstrom resolution, and evaluated the roles residues T82 and H192 play in substrate binding and enzyme catalysis through site-directed mutagenesis of the enzyme. Our results establish that this DDC functions exclusively on the production of dopamine and serotonin, with no activity to tyrosine or tryptophan and catalyzes the formation of serotonin more efficiently than dopamine. The crystal structure of Drosophila DDC and the site-directed mutagenesis study of the enzyme demonstrate that T82 is involved in substrate binding and that H192 is used not only for substrate interaction, but for cofactor binding of drDDC as well. Through comparative analysis, the results also provide insight into the structure-function relationship of other insect DDC-like proteins.

Crystal structure and substrate specificity of Drosophila 3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine decarboxylase.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Qian Han

2010-01-01

Full Text Available 3,4-Dihydroxyphenylalanine decarboxylase (DDC, also known as aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase, catalyzes the decarboxylation of a number of aromatic L-amino acids. Physiologically, DDC is responsible for the production of dopamine and serotonin through the decarboxylation of 3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine and 5-hydroxytryptophan, respectively. In insects, both dopamine and serotonin serve as classical neurotransmitters, neuromodulators, or neurohormones, and dopamine is also involved in insect cuticle formation, eggshell hardening, and immune responses.In this study, we expressed a typical DDC enzyme from Drosophila melanogaster, critically analyzed its substrate specificity and biochemical properties, determined its crystal structure at 1.75 Angstrom resolution, and evaluated the roles residues T82 and H192 play in substrate binding and enzyme catalysis through site-directed mutagenesis of the enzyme. Our results establish that this DDC functions exclusively on the production of dopamine and serotonin, with no activity to tyrosine or tryptophan and catalyzes the formation of serotonin more efficiently than dopamine.The crystal structure of Drosophila DDC and the site-directed mutagenesis study of the enzyme demonstrate that T82 is involved in substrate binding and that H192 is used not only for substrate interaction, but for cofactor binding of drDDC as well. Through comparative analysis, the results also provide insight into the structure-function relationship of other insect DDC-like proteins.

How metal films de-wet substrates-identifying the kinetic pathways and energetic driving forces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McCarty, Kevin F; Hamilton, John C; Thuermer, Konrad; Jones, Frank; Talin, A Alec; Bartelt, Norman C; Sato, Yu; K Schmid, Andreas; Saa, Angela; Figuera, Juan de la; Stumpf, Roland

2009-01-01

We study how single-crystal chromium films of uniform thickness on W(110) substrates are converted to arrays of three-dimensional (3D) Cr islands during annealing. We use low-energy electron microscopy (LEEM) to directly observe a kinetic pathway that produces trenches that expose the wetting layer. Adjacent film steps move simultaneously uphill and downhill relative to the staircase of atomic steps on the substrate. This step motion thickens the film regions where steps advance. Where film steps retract, the film thins, eventually exposing the stable wetting layer. Since our analysis shows that thick Cr films have a lattice constant close to bulk Cr, we propose that surface and interface stress provide a possible driving force for the observed morphological instability. Atomistic simulations and analytic elastic models show that surface and interface stress can cause a dependence of film energy on thickness that leads to an instability to simultaneous thinning and thickening. We observe that de-wetting is also initiated at bunches of substrate steps in two other systems, Ag/W(110) and Ag/Ru(0001). We additionally describe how Cr films are converted into patterns of unidirectional stripes as the trenches that expose the wetting layer lengthen along the W[001] direction. Finally, we observe how 3D Cr islands form directly during film growth at elevated temperature. The Cr mesas (wedges) form as Cr film steps advance down the staircase of substrate steps, another example of the critical role that substrate steps play in 3D island formation.

Substrate Integrated Evanescent Filters Employing Coaxial Stubs

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Zhurbenko, Vitaliy

2015-01-01

Evanescent mode substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) is one of the promising technologies for design of light-weight low-cost microwave components. Traditional realization methods used in the standard evanescent waveguide technology are often not directly applicable to SIW due to dielectric filli...... of the microwave filter are discussed. The approach is useful in applications where a sharp roll-off at the upper stop-band is required....

Nanowires-based light emitters on thermally and electrically conductive substrates and of making same

KAUST Repository

Ooi, Boon S.; Zhao, Chao; Ng, Tien Khee

2017-01-01

Elemental or compound semiconductors on metal substrates and methods of growing them are provided. The methods can include the steps of: (i) providing a metal substrate; (ii) adding an interlayer on a surface of the metal substrate, and (iii) growing semiconductor nanowires on the interlayer using a semiconductor epitaxy growth system to form the elemental or compound semiconductor. The method can include direct growth of high quality group III-V and group III-N based materials in the form of nanowires and nanowires-based devices on metal substrates. The nanowires on all- metal scheme greatly simplifies the fabrication process of nanowires based high power light emitters.

Nanowires-based light emitters on thermally and electrically conductive substrates and of making same

KAUST Repository

Ooi, Boon S.

2017-04-27

Elemental or compound semiconductors on metal substrates and methods of growing them are provided. The methods can include the steps of: (i) providing a metal substrate; (ii) adding an interlayer on a surface of the metal substrate, and (iii) growing semiconductor nanowires on the interlayer using a semiconductor epitaxy growth system to form the elemental or compound semiconductor. The method can include direct growth of high quality group III-V and group III-N based materials in the form of nanowires and nanowires-based devices on metal substrates. The nanowires on all- metal scheme greatly simplifies the fabrication process of nanowires based high power light emitters.

Dynamics of Preferential Substrate Recognition in HIV-1 Protease: Redefining the Substrate Envelope

Science.gov (United States)

Özen, Ayşegül; Haliloğlu, Türkan; Schiffer, Celia A.

2011-01-01

HIV-1 protease (PR) permits viral maturation by processing the Gag and Gag-Pro-Pol polyproteins. Though HIV-1 PR inhibitors (PIs) are used in combination antiviral therapy, the emergence of drug resistance has limited their efficacy. The rapid evolution of HIV-1 necessitates the consideration of drug resistance in novel drug-design strategies. Drug-resistant HIV-1 PR variants, while no longer efficiently inhibited, continue to efficiently hydrolyze the natural viral substrates. Though highly diverse in sequence, the HIV-1 PR substrates bind in a conserved three-dimensional shape we defined as the “substrate envelope”. We previously showed that resistance mutations arise where PIs protrude beyond the substrate envelope, as these regions are crucial for drug binding but not for substrate recognition. Here, we extend this model by considering the role of protein dynamics in the interaction of HIV-1 PR with its substrates. Seven molecular dynamics simulations of PR-substrate complexes were performed to estimate the conformational flexibility of substrates in their complexes. Interdependency of the substrate-protease interactions may compensate for the variations in cleavage-site sequences, and explain how a diverse set of sequences can be recognized as substrates by the same enzyme. This diversity may be essential for regulating sequential processing of substrates. We also define a dynamic substrate envelope as a more accurate representation of PR-substrate interactions. This dynamic substrate envelope, described by a probability distribution function, is a powerful tool for drug design efforts targeting ensembles of resistant HIV-1 PR variants with the aim of developing drugs that are less susceptible to resistance. PMID:21762811

Control of biaxial strain in single-layer molybdenite using local thermal expansion of the substrate

Science.gov (United States)

Plechinger, Gerd; Castellanos-Gomez, Andres; Buscema, Michele; van der Zant, Herre S. J.; Steele, Gary A.; Kuc, Agnieszka; Heine, Thomas; Schüller, Christian; Korn, Tobias

2015-03-01

Single-layer MoS2 is a direct-gap semiconductor whose electronic band structure strongly depends on the strain applied to its crystal lattice. While uniaxial strain can be easily applied in a controlled way, e.g., by bending of a flexible substrate with the atomically thin MoS2 layer on top, experimental realization of biaxial strain is more challenging. Here, we exploit the large mismatch between the thermal expansion coefficients of MoS2 and a silicone-based substrate to apply a controllable biaxial tensile strain by heating the substrate with a focused laser. The effect of this biaxial strain is directly observable in optical spectroscopy as a redshift of the MoS2 photoluminescence. We also demonstrate the potential of this method to engineer more complex strain patterns by employing highly absorptive features on the substrate to achieve non-uniform heat profiles. By comparison of the observed redshift to strain-dependent band structure calculations, we estimate the biaxial strain applied by the silicone-based substrate to be up to 0.2%, corresponding to a band gap modulation of 105 meV per percentage of biaxial tensile strain.

Low profile conformal antenna arrays on high impedance substrate

CERN Document Server

Singh, Hema; Jha, Rakesh Mohan

2016-01-01

This book presents electromagnetic (EM) design and analysis of dipole antenna array over high impedance substrate (HIS). HIS is a preferred substrate for low-profile antenna design, owing to its unique boundary conditions. Such substrates permit radiating elements to be printed on them without any disturbance in the radiation characteristics. Moreover HIS provides improved impedance matching, enhanced bandwidth, and increased broadside directivity owing to total reflection from the reactive surface and high input impedance. This book considers different configurations of HIS for array design on planar and non-planar high-impedance surfaces. Results are presented for cylindrical dipole, printed dipole, and folded dipole over single- and double-layered square-patch-based HIS and dogbone-based HIS. The performance of antenna arrays is analyzed in terms of performance parameters such as return loss and radiation pattern. The design presented shows acceptable return loss and mainlobe gain of radiation pattern. Thi...

Catalytic Efficiency of Basidiomycete Laccases: Redox Potential versus Substrate-Binding Pocket Structure

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Olga A. Glazunova

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Laccases are copper-containing oxidases that catalyze a one-electron abstraction from various phenolic and non-phenolic compounds with concomitant reduction of molecular oxygen to water. It is well-known that laccases from various sources have different substrate specificities, but it is not completely clear what exactly provides these differences. The purpose of this work was to study the features of the substrate specificity of four laccases from basidiomycete fungi Trametes hirsuta, Coriolopsis caperata, Antrodiella faginea, and Steccherinum murashkinskyi, which have different redox potentials of the T1 copper center and a different structure of substrate-binding pockets. Enzyme activity toward 20 monophenolic substances and 4 phenolic dyes was measured spectrophotometrically. The kinetic parameters of oxidation of four lignans and lignan-like substrates were determined by monitoring of the oxygen consumption. For the oxidation of the high redox potential (>700 mV monophenolic substrates and almost all large substrates, such as phenolic dyes and lignans, the redox potential difference between the enzyme and the substrate (ΔE played the defining role. For the low redox potential monophenolic substrates, ΔE did not directly influence the laccase activity. Also, in the special cases, the structure of the large substrates, such as dyes and lignans, as well as some structural features of the laccases (flexibility of the substrate-binding pocket loops and some amino acid residues in the key positions affected the resulting catalytic efficiency.

Numerical study of friction of flake and adsorbed monolayer on atomically clean substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matsukawa, Hiroshi; Haraguchi, Kazuhiro; Ozaki, Shinsuke

2007-01-01

Frictional behaviors of flake and adsorbed monolayer on substrate can be observed by Frictional force microscope and Quartz crystal microbalance experiments and are typical problems in nano-friction. Computer simulations had been played important roles in understanding those behaviors, but in most of them the driving direction coincides with one of the crystal axes of the substrate. Here we report our numerical results of direction dependence of friction of flake and adsorbed monolayer. We found a new kind of dynamical phase transition in which flake and adsorbed monlayer change their structure relative to the substrate and make incommensurae structure to reduce kinetic frictional force after certain transition time. When the driving velocity is decreased the transition time tends to diverge at certain critical velocity for the flake. For the adsorbed monlayer the transition time tends to diverge at certain critical magnitudes of the external force or the interaction strength between adsorbates when they are decreased

Studies on direct and indirect electrochemical immunoassays

OpenAIRE

Buckley, Eileen

1989-01-01

Two approaches to electrochemical immunoassay are reported. The first approach was an indirect method, involving an electroactive, enzyme-catalysed, substrate to product reaction. Conditions were optimised for the amperometric detection of para-aminophenol, the electroactive product of the alkaline phosphatase catalysed hydrolysis of a new substrate, p-aminophenylphosphate, after separation by HPLC. The second approach involved the direct electrochemical detection of an immunoglo...

Substrate system for spray forming

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chu, Men G. (Export, PA); Chernicoff, William P. (Harrisburg, PA)

2002-01-01

A substrate system for receiving a deposit of sprayed metal droplets including a movable outer substrate on which the sprayed metal droplets are deposited. The substrate system also includes an inner substrate disposed adjacent the outer substrate where the sprayed metal droplets are deposited on the outer substrate. The inner substrate includes zones of differing thermal conductivity to resist substrate layer porosity and to resist formation of large grains and coarse constituent particles in a bulk layer of the metal droplets which have accumulated on the outer substrate. A spray forming apparatus and associated method of spray forming a molten metal to form a metal product using the substrate system of the invention is also provided.

A proteomic approach for comprehensively screening substrates of protein kinases such as Rho-kinase.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mutsuki Amano

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Protein kinases are major components of signal transduction pathways in multiple cellular processes. Kinases directly interact with and phosphorylate downstream substrates, thus modulating their functions. Despite the importance of identifying substrates in order to more fully understand the signaling network of respective kinases, efficient methods to search for substrates remain poorly explored. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We combined mass spectrometry and affinity column chromatography of the catalytic domain of protein kinases to screen potential substrates. Using the active catalytic fragment of Rho-kinase/ROCK/ROK as the model bait, we obtained about 300 interacting proteins from the rat brain cytosol fraction, which included the proteins previously reported as Rho-kinase substrates. Several novel interacting proteins, including doublecortin, were phosphorylated by Rho-kinase both in vitro and in vivo. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: This method would enable identification of novel specific substrates for kinases such as Rho-kinase with high sensitivity.

Hydrothermally grown ZnO nanorods on self-source substrate and their field emission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

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

2007-01-01

Vertically aligned zinc oxide nanorod arrays were grown directly using a zinc foil as both source and substrate in pure water at low temperature by a simple hydrothermal reaction. The morphology and crystal structure of the ZnO nanorod arrays were examined by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and x-ray diffraction, respectively. The nanorods grew along the [0 0 0 1] direction and were 80 nm in diameter and almost 2 μm in length. Directly employing the zinc foil substrate as cathode, the field emission (FE) of the ZnO nanorods presented a two-stage slope behaviour in a ln(J/E 2 )-1/E plot according to the Fowler-Nordheim equation. The FE behaviour was investigated by considering the action of the defects in ZnO nanorods based on the measurement of the photoluminescence

On the temperature effect of substrate and evaporation rate on condensate dispersion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Orlov, Yu.F.; Belotserkovskaya, N.G.; Gustylev, V.K.

1978-01-01

On the basis of available and new experimental data an attempt has been made to generalize the results of studying the effect of the substrate temperature and evaporation rate on the dispersity of amorphous condensates of Sb 2 S 3 and on that of crystalline condensates of PbO and PbTe. The dispersity of the condensates is shown to decrease with a substrate temperature and evaporation rate. The specific surface decreases linearly with the 3-5-fold rise in the evaporation rate. A dispersity decrease is due to the temperature rise in the medium where condensation takes place. The pattern of dispersity dependence on the substrate temperature and evaporation rate does not depend on the mechanism of vapour condensation and is the same both for aerosol mechanism of the condensate formation and for vapour condensation directly on the substrate

Effect of Direct Current on Solid-Liquid Interfacial Tension and Wetting Behavior of Ga–In–Sn Alloy Melt on Cu Substrate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Limin Zhang

2018-01-01

Full Text Available The effect of direct current (DC on the wetting behavior of Cu substrate by liquid Ga–25In–13Sn alloy at room temperature is investigated using a sessile drop method. It is found that there is a critical value for current intensity, below which the decrease of contact angle with increasing current intensity is approximately linear and above which contact angle tends to a stable value from drop shape. Current polarity is a negligible factor in the observed trend. Additionally, the observed change in contact angles is translated into the corresponding change in solid-liquid interfacial tension using the equation of state for liquid interfacial tensions. The solid-liquid interfacial tension decreases under DC. DC-induced promotion of solute diffusion coefficient is likely to play an important role in determining the wettability and solid-liquid interfacial tension under DC.

Modelling substrate specificity and enantioselectivity for lipases and esterases by substrate-imprinted docking

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tyagi Sadhna

2009-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Previously, ways to adapt docking programs that were developed for modelling inhibitor-receptor interaction have been explored. Two main issues were discussed. First, when trying to model catalysis a reaction intermediate of the substrate is expected to provide more valid information than the ground state of the substrate. Second, the incorporation of protein flexibility is essential for reliable predictions. Results Here we present a predictive and robust method to model substrate specificity and enantioselectivity of lipases and esterases that uses reaction intermediates and incorporates protein flexibility. Substrate-imprinted docking starts with covalent docking of reaction intermediates, followed by geometry optimisation of the resulting enzyme-substrate complex. After a second round of docking the same substrate into the geometry-optimised structures, productive poses are identified by geometric filter criteria and ranked by their docking scores. Substrate-imprinted docking was applied in order to model (i enantioselectivity of Candida antarctica lipase B and a W104A mutant, (ii enantioselectivity and substrate specificity of Candida rugosa lipase and Burkholderia cepacia lipase, and (iii substrate specificity of an acetyl- and a butyrylcholine esterase toward the substrates acetyl- and butyrylcholine. Conclusion The experimentally observed differences in selectivity and specificity of the enzymes were reproduced with an accuracy of 81%. The method was robust toward small differences in initial structures (different crystallisation conditions or a co-crystallised ligand, although large displacements of catalytic residues often resulted in substrate poses that did not pass the geometric filter criteria.

In situ fabrication of AgI films on various substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zheng, Z.; Liu, A.R.; Wang, S.M.; Huang, B.J.; Ma, X.M.; Zhao, H.X.; Li, D.P.; Zhang, L.Z.

2008-01-01

A facile solution-phase chemical route is developed to directly construct silver iodide (AgI) films/crystals on various substrates including silver foil, silicon wafer and glass, etc. The resulting AgI films were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The AgI films with different morphologies can be obtained by controlling the reaction parameters. This method is a simple and fast way for in situ deposition of AgI crystals/films on different substrates. These films may be applied in chemical sensing systems and solid-state batteries as solid electrolytes

Molecular Determinants for Substrate Interactions with the Glycine Transporter GlyT2.

Science.gov (United States)

Carland, Jane E; Thomas, Michael; Mostyn, Shannon N; Subramanian, Nandhitha; O'Mara, Megan L; Ryan, Renae M; Vandenberg, Robert J

2018-03-21

Transporters in the SLC6 family play key roles in regulating neurotransmission and are the targets for a wide range of therapeutics. Important insights into the transport mechanisms and the specificity of drug interactions of SLC6 transporters have been obtained from the crystal structures of a bacterial homologue of the family, LeuT Aa , and more recently the Drosophila dopamine transporter and the human serotonin transporter. However, there is disputed evidence that the bacterial leucine transporter, LeuT Aa , contains two substrate binding sites that work cooperatively in the mechanism of transport, with the binding of a second substrate being required for the release of the substrate from the primary site. An alternate proposal is that there may be low affinity binding sites that serve to direct the flow of substrates to the primary site. We have used a combination of molecular dynamics simulations of substrate interactions with a homology model of GlyT2, together with radiolabeled amino acid uptake assays and electrophysiological analysis of wild-type and mutant transporters, to provide evidence that substrate selectivity of GlyT2 is determined entirely by the primary substrate binding site and, furthermore, if a secondary site exists then it is a low affinity nonselective amino acid binding site.

Characterization of the interdependency between residues that bind the substrate in a beta-glycosidase.

Science.gov (United States)

Tomassi, M H; Rozenfeld, J H K; Gonçalves, L M; Marana, S R

2010-01-01

The manner by which effects of simultaneous mutations combine to change enzymatic activity is not easily predictable because these effects are not always additive in a linear manner. Hence, the characterization of the effects of simultaneous mutations of amino acid residues that bind the substrate can make a significant contribution to the understanding of the substrate specificity of enzymes. In the beta-glycosidase from Spodoptera frugiperda (Sfbetagly), both residues Q39 and E451 interact with the substrate and this is essential for defining substrate specificity. Double mutants of Sfbetagly (A451E39, S451E39 and S451N39) were prepared by site-directed mutagenesis, expressed in bacteria and purified using affinity chromatography. These enzymes were characterized using p-nitrophenyl beta-galactoside and p-nitrophenyl beta-fucoside as substrates. The k cat/Km ratio for single and double mutants of Sfbetagly containing site-directed mutations at positions Q39 and E451 was used to demonstrate that the effect on the free energy of ESdouble dagger (enzyme-transition state complex) of the double mutations (Gdouble daggerxy) is not the sum of the effects resulting from the single mutations (Gdouble daggerx and Gdouble daggery). This difference in Gdouble dagger indicates that the effects of the single mutations partially overlap. Hence, this common effect counts only once in Gdouble daggerxy. Crystallographic data on beta-glycosidases reveal the presence of a bidentate hydrogen bond involving residues Q39 and E451 and the same hydroxyl group of the substrate. Therefore, both thermodynamic and crystallographic data suggest that residues Q39 and E451 exert a mutual influence on their respective interactions with the substrate.

Impact of layer and substrate properties on the surface acoustic wave velocity in scandium doped aluminum nitride based SAW devices on sapphire

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gillinger, M., E-mail: manuel.gillinger@tuwien.ac.at; Knobloch, T.; Schneider, M.; Schmid, U. [Institute of Sensor and Actuator Systems, TU Wien, 1040 Vienna (Austria); Shaposhnikov, K.; Kaltenbacher, M. [Institute of Mechanics and Mechatronics, TU Wien, 1040 Vienna (Austria)

2016-06-06

This paper investigates the performance of surface acoustic wave (SAW) devices consisting of reactively sputter deposited scandium doped aluminum nitride (Sc{sub x}Al{sub 1-x}N) thin films as piezoelectric layers on sapphire substrates for wireless sensor or for RF-MEMS applications. To investigate the influence of piezoelectric film thickness on the device properties, samples with thickness ranging from 500 nm up to 3000 nm are fabricated. S{sub 21} measurements and simulations demonstrate that the phase velocity is predominantly influenced by the mass density of the electrode material rather than by the thickness of the piezoelectric film. Additionally, the wave propagation direction is varied by rotating the interdigital transducer structures with respect to the crystal orientation of the substrate. The phase velocity is about 2.5% higher for a-direction compared to m-direction of the sapphire substrate, which is in excellent agreement with the difference in the anisotropic Young's modulus of the substrate corresponding to these directions.

Characterization of CYP154F1 from Thermobifida fusca YX and Extension of Its Substrate Spectrum by Site-Directed Mutagenesis.

Science.gov (United States)

Rühlmann, Ansgar; Groth, Georg; Urlacher, Vlada B

2018-03-02

Previous studies on cytochrome P450 monooxygenases (CYP) from family 154 reported their substrate promiscuity and high activity. Hence, herein, the uncharacterized family member CYP154F1 is described. Screening of more than 100 organic compounds revealed that CYP154F1 preferably accepts small linear molecules with a carbon chain length of 8-10 atoms. In contrast to thoroughly characterized CYP154E1, CYP154F1 has a much narrower substrate spectrum and lower activity. A structural alignment of homology models of CYP154F1 and CYP154E1 revealed few differences in the active sites of both family members. By gradual mutagenesis of the CYP154F1 active site towards those of CYP154E1, a key residue accounting for the different activities of both enzymes was identified at position 234. Substitution of T234 for large hydrophobic amino acids led to up to tenfold higher conversion rates of small substrates, such as geraniol. Replacement of T234 by small hydrophobic amino acids, valine or alanine, resulted in mutants with extended substrate spectra. These mutants are able to convert some of the larger substrates of CYP154E1, such as (E)-stilbene and (+)-nootkatone. © 2018 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Nicking endonuclease-assisted signal amplification of a split molecular aptamer beacon for biomolecule detection using graphene oxide as a sensing platform.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Xiang; Ding, Xuelian; Fan, Jing

2015-12-07

Sensitive and selective detection of ultralow concentrations of specific biomolecules is important in early clinical diagnoses and biomedical applications. Many types of aptasensors have been developed for the detection of various biomolecules, but usually suffer from false positive signals and high background signals. In this work, we have developed an amplified fluorescence aptasensor platform for ultrasensitive biomolecule detection based on enzyme-assisted target-recycling signal amplification and graphene oxide. By using a split molecular aptamer beacon and a nicking enzyme, the typical problem of false positive signals can be effectively resolved. Only in the presence of a target biomolecule, the sensor system is able to generate a positive signal, which significantly improves the selectivity of the aptasensor. Moreover, using graphene oxide as a super-quencher can effectively reduce the high background signal of a sensing platform. We select vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) as model analytes in the current proof-of-concept experiments. It is shown that under optimized conditions, our strategy exhibits high sensitivity and selectivity for the quantification of VEGF and ATP with a low detection limit (1 pM and 4 nM, respectively). In addition, this biosensor has been successfully utilized in the analysis of real biological samples.

Bacterial reduction in genotoxicity of Direct Red 28 dye.

Science.gov (United States)

Bafana, Amit; Jain, Minakshi; Agrawal, Gaurav; Chakrabarti, Tapan

2009-03-01

Direct Red 28 (DR28) is a benzidine-based azo dye widely used in several countries. It has also been a subject of intense research for its anti-prion activity. Like other benzidine-based azo dyes, it is also carcinogenic and toxic. However, there are very few studies addressing its detoxification. In the present study, a Bacillus velezensis strain was used for detoxification of DR28. Toxicity was checked by a battery of highly sensitive genotoxicity assays like comet assay, DNA ladder formation, terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick-end labeling assay and flow cytometric Annexin V binding assay. HL-60 cell line was used as the test system. All the assays showed an initial increase in toxicity upon biodegradation due to release of mutagenic products, like benzidine and 4-aminobiphenyl, from the dye. These intermediates caused significant DNA damage and induced apoptosis in HL-60 cells. Then the culture degraded these mutagenic intermediates, due to which the toxicity was reduced gradually, finally resulting in nearly complete detoxification.

Direct assessment of substrate binding to the Neurotransmitter:Sodium Symporter LeuT by solid state NMR

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Erlendsson, Simon; Gotfryd, Kamil; Larsen, Flemming Hofmann

2017-01-01

The Neurotransmitter:Sodium Symporters (NSSs) represent an important class of proteins mediating sodium-dependent uptake of neurotransmitters from the extracellular space. The substrate binding stoichiometry of the bacterial NSS protein, LeuT, and thus the principal transport mechanism, has been...

Molecular mechanism of strict substrate specificity of an extradiol dioxygenase, DesB, derived from Sphingobium sp. SYK-6.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Keisuke Sugimoto

Full Text Available DesB, which is derived from Sphingobium sp. SYK-6, is a type II extradiol dioxygenase that catalyzes a ring opening reaction of gallate. While typical extradiol dioxygenases show broad substrate specificity, DesB has strict substrate specificity for gallate. The substrate specificity of DesB seems to be required for the efficient growth of S. sp. SYK-6 using lignin-derived aromatic compounds. Since direct coordination of hydroxyl groups of the substrate to the non-heme iron in the active site is a critical step for the catalytic reaction of the extradiol dioxygenases, the mechanism of the substrate recognition and coordination of DesB was analyzed by biochemical and crystallographic methods. Our study demonstrated that the direct coordination between the non-heme iron and hydroxyl groups of the substrate requires a large shift of the Fe (II ion in the active site. Mutational analysis revealed that His124 and His192 in the active site are essential to the catalytic reaction of DesB. His124, which interacts with OH (4 of the bound gallate, seems to contribute to proper positioning of the substrate in the active site. His192, which is located close to OH (3 of the gallate, is likely to serve as the catalytic base. Glu377' interacts with OH (5 of the gallate and seems to play a critical role in the substrate specificity. Our biochemical and structural study showed the substrate recognition and catalytic mechanisms of DesB.

Effect of substrate on excess electrical conductivity in thin superconducting lead films above the transition temperature

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ashwini Kumar, P K

1976-03-01

Measurements were made on Pb films grown directly on to glass and Pb films grown on glass precoated with LiF to investigate the effect of the substrate on thermodynamic fluctuations of Cooper pairs. A change in the substrate appears to alter the strength of the pair breaking mechanism. 17 references.

The Role of XPG in Processing (CAGn/(CTGn DNA Hairpins

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hou Caixia

2011-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background During DNA replication or repair, disease-associated (CAGn/(CTGn expansion can result from formation of hairpin structures in the repeat tract of the newly synthesized or nicked DNA strand. Recent studies identified a nick-directed (CAGn/(CTGn hairpin repair (HPR system that removes (CAGn/(CTGn hairpins from human cells via endonucleolytic incisions. Because the process is highly similar to the mechanism by which XPG and XPF endonucleases remove bulky DNA lesions during nucleotide excision repair, we assessed the potential role of XPG in conducting (CAGn/(CTGn HPR. Results To determine if the XPG endonuclease is involved in (CAGn/(CTGn hairpin removal, two XPG-deficient cell lines (GM16024 and AG08802 were examined for their ability to process (CAGn/(CTGn hairpins in vitro. We demonstrated that the GM16024 cell line processes all hairpin substrates as efficiently as HeLa cells, and that the AG08802 cell line is partially defective in HPR. Analysis of repair intermediates revealed that nuclear extracts from both XPG-deficient lines remove CAG/CTG hairpins via incisions, but the incision products are distinct from those generated in HeLa extracts. We also show that purified recombinant XPG protein greatly stimulates HPR in XPG-deficient extracts by promoting an incision 5' to the hairpin. Conclusions Our results strongly suggest that 1 human cells possess multiple pathways to remove (CAGn/(CTGn hairpins located in newly synthesized (or nicked DNA strand; and 2 XPG, although not essential for (CAGn/(CTGn hairpin removal, stimulates HPR by facilitating a 5' incision to the hairpin. This study reveals a novel role for XPG in genome-maintenance and implicates XPG in diseases caused by trinucleotide repeat expansion.

Catalytic total hydrodeoxygenation of biomass-derived polyfunctionalized substrates to alkanes.

Science.gov (United States)

Nakagawa, Yoshinao; Liu, Sibao; Tamura, Masazumi; Tomishige, Keiichi

2015-04-13

The total hydrodeoxygenation of carbohydrate-derived molecules to alkanes, a key reaction in the production of biofuel, was reviewed from the aspect of catalysis. Noble metals (or Ni) and acid are the main components of the catalysts, and group 6 or 7 metals such as Re are sometimes added as modifiers of the noble metal. The main reaction route is acid-catalyzed dehydration plus metal-catalyzed hydrogenation, and in some systems metal-catalyzed direct CO dissociation is involved. The appropriate active metal, acid strength, and reaction conditions depend strongly on the reactivity of the substrate. Reactions that use Pt or Pd catalysts supported on Nb-based acids or relatively weak acids are suitable for furanic substrates. Carbohydrates themselves and sugar alcohols undergo CC dissociation easily. The systems that use metal-catalyzed direct CO dissociations can give a higher yield of the corresponding alkane from carbohydrates and sugar alcohols. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Directed evolution of enzymes using microfluidic chips

Science.gov (United States)

Pilát, Zdeněk.; Ježek, Jan; Šmatlo, Filip; Kaůka, Jan; Zemánek, Pavel

2016-12-01

Enzymes are highly versatile and ubiquitous biological catalysts. They can greatly accelerate large variety of reactions, while ensuring appropriate catalytic activity and high selectivity. These properties make enzymes attractive biocatalysts for a wide range of industrial and biomedical applications. Over the last two decades, directed evolution of enzymes has transformed the field of protein engineering. We have devised microfluidic systems for directed evolution of haloalkane dehalogenases in emulsion droplets. In such a device, individual bacterial cells producing mutated variants of the same enzyme are encapsulated in microdroplets and supplied with a substrate. The conversion of a substrate by the enzyme produced by a single bacterium changes the pH in the droplet which is signalized by pH dependent fluorescence probe. The droplets with the highest enzymatic activity can be separated directly on the chip by dielectrophoresis and the resultant cell lineage can be used for enzyme production or for further rounds of directed evolution. This platform is applicable for fast screening of large libraries in directed evolution experiments requiring mutagenesis at multiple sites of a protein structure.

A signal-substrate match in the substrate-borne component of a multimodal courtship display

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Damian O. ELIAS, Andrew C. MASON, Eileen A. HEBETS

2010-06-01

Full Text Available The environment can impose strong limitations on the efficacy of signal transmission. In particular, for vibratory communication, the signaling environment is often extremely heterogeneous at very small scales. Nevertheless, natural selection is expected to select for signals well-suited to effective transmission. Here, we test for substrate-dependent signal efficacy in the wolf spider Schizocosa stridulans Stratton 1991. We first explore the transmission characteristics of this important signaling modality by playing recorded substrate-borne signals through three different substrates (leaf litter, pine litter, and red clay and measuring the propagated signal. We found that the substrate-borne signal of S. stridulans attenuates the least on leaf litter, the substrate upon which the species is naturally found. Next, by assessing mating success with artificially muted and non-muted males across different signaling substrates (leaf litter, pine litter, and sand, we explored the relationship between substrate-borne signaling and substrate for mating success. We found that muted males were unsuccessful in obtaining copulations regardless of substrate, while mating success was dependent on the signaling substrate for non-muted males. For non-muted males, more males copulated on leaf litter than any other substrate. Taken together, these results confirm the importance of substrate-borne signaling in S. stridulans and suggest a match between signal properties and signal efficacy – leaf litter transmits the signal most effectively and males are most successful in obtaining copulations on leaf litter [Current Zoology 56 (3: 370–378, 2010].

Bio-Inspired Micromechanical Directional Acoustic Sensor

Science.gov (United States)

Swan, William; Alves, Fabio; Karunasiri, Gamani

Conventional directional sound sensors employ an array of spatially separated microphones and the direction is determined using arrival times and amplitudes. In nature, insects such as the Ormia ochracea fly can determine the direction of sound using a hearing organ much smaller than the wavelength of sound it detects. The fly's eardrums are mechanically coupled, only separated by about 1 mm, and have remarkable directional sensitivity. A micromechanical sensor based on the fly's hearing system was designed and fabricated on a silicon on insulator (SOI) substrate using MEMS technology. The sensor consists of two 1 mm2 wings connected using a bridge and to the substrate using two torsional legs. The dimensions of the sensor and material stiffness determine the frequency response of the sensor. The vibration of the wings in response to incident sound at the bending resonance was measured using a laser vibrometer and found to be about 1 μm/Pa. The electronic response of the sensor to sound was measured using integrated comb finger capacitors and found to be about 25 V/Pa. The fabricated sensors showed good directional sensitivity. In this talk, the design, fabrication and characteristics of the directional sound sensor will be described. Supported by ONR and TDSI.

Multi-scale graphene patterns on arbitrary substrates via laser-assisted transfer-printing process

KAUST Repository

Park, J. B.

2012-01-01

A laser-assisted transfer-printing process is developed for multi-scale graphene patterns on arbitrary substrates using femtosecond laser scanning on a graphene/metal substrate and transfer techniques without using multi-step patterning processes. The short pulse nature of a femtosecond laser on a graphene/copper sheet enables fabrication of high-resolution graphene patterns. Thanks to the scale up, fast, direct writing, multi-scale with high resolution, and reliable process characteristics, it can be an alternative pathway to the multi-step photolithography methods for printing arbitrary graphene patterns on desired substrates. We also demonstrate transparent strain devices without expensive photomasks and multi-step patterning process. © 2012 American Institute of Physics.

Silicon nanostructures produced by laser direct etching

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Müllenborn, Matthias; Dirac, Paul Andreas Holger; Petersen, Jon Wulff

1995-01-01

A laser direct-write process has been applied to structure silicon on a nanometer scale. In this process, a silicon substrate, placed in a chlorine ambience, is locally heated above its melting point by a continuous-wave laser and translated by high-resolution direct-current motor stages. Only...

Optimization of the enzyme system for hydrolysis of pretreated lignocellulose substrates; Optimering av enzymsystemet foer hydrolys av foerbehandlade lignocellulosa substrat

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tjerneld, Folke [Lund univ., (Sweden). Dept. of Biochemistry

2000-06-01

This project aims to clarify the reasons for the slow and incomplete enzymatic hydrolysis of certain lignocellulose substrates, particularly softwood e.g. spruce. Based on this knowledge we will optimize the enzyme system so that the yield of fermentable sugars is increased as well as the rate of hydrolysis. We will also study methods for recycling of the enzymes in the process by adsorption on fresh substrate. Progress in these areas will lead to improved process economy in an ethanol process. We collaborate with Chemical Engineering on hydrolysis of pretreated lignocellulose substrates and with Analytical Chemistry and Applied Microbiology on analysis of potential inhibitors. Within this main research direction the work at Biochemistry during this project period (since 970701) has been focused on the following areas: (1) Studies of the role of substrate properties in the enzymatic hydrolysis to clarify the reasons for the decrease in the rate of hydrolysis; (2) enzyme adsorption on lignin; (3) studies of recently identified low molecular weight endo glucanases which may be used for more effective penetration of small pores in pretreated substrates (this part is financed by the Nordic Energy Research Program). Central results during the period: In order to study the role of substrate properties for hydrolysis we have initiated investigations on steam pretreated substrates with several techniques. Measurements of pore sizes have been done with probe molecules of known molecular weights. Results show that probe molecules with diameters larger than 50 Aangstroem can more easily penetrate pretreated willow compared with spruce, which can be a part of the explanation for the better hydrolysability of hardwood substrates compared with softwood. We have started studies with electron microscopy of pretreated substrates at different degrees of enzymatic hydrolysis. With scanning electron microscopy (SEM) we can see significant differences in substrate structure in

Morphology Controlled Fabrication of InN Nanowires on Brass Substrates

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Huijie Li

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Growth of semiconductor nanowires on cheap metal substrates could pave the way to the large-scale manufacture of low-cost nanowire-based devices. In this work, we demonstrated that high density InN nanowires can be directly grown on brass substrates by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition. It was found that Zn from the brass substrates is the key factor in the formation of nanowires by restricting the lateral growth of InN. The nanowire morphology is highly dependent on the growth temperature. While at a lower growth temperature, the nanowires and the In droplets have large diameters. At the elevated growth temperature, the lateral sizes of the nanowires and the In droplets are much smaller. Moreover, the nanowire diameter can be controlled in situ by varying the temperature in the growth process. This method is very instructive to the diameter-controlled growth of nanowires of other materials.

Aromatic residues located close to the active center are essential for the catalytic reaction of flap endonuclease-1 from hyperthermophilic archaeon Pyrococcus horikoshii.

Science.gov (United States)

Matsui, Eriko; Abe, Junko; Yokoyama, Hideshi; Matsui, Ikuo

2004-04-16

Flap endonuclease-1 (FEN-1) possessing 5'-flap endonuclease and 5'-->3' exonuclease activity plays important roles in DNA replication and repair. In this study, the kinetic parameters of mutants at highly conserved aromatic residues, Tyr33, Phe35, Phe79, and Phe278-Phe279, in the vicinity of the catalytic centers of FEN-1 were examined. The substitution of these aromatic residues with alanine led to a large reduction in kcat values, although these mutants retained Km values similar to that of the wild-type enzyme. Notably, the kcat of Y33A and F79A decreased 333-fold and 71-fold, respectively, compared with that of the wild-type enzyme. The aromatic residues Tyr33 and Phe79, and the aromatic cluster Phe278-Phe279 mainly contributed to the recognition of the substrates without the 3' projection of the upstream strand (the nick, 5'-recess-end, single-flap, and pseudo-Y substrates) for the both exo- and endo-activities, but played minor roles in recognizing the substrates with the 3' projection (the double flap substrate and the nick substrate with the 3' projection). The replacement of Tyr33, Phe79, and Phe278-Phe279, with non-charged aromatic residues, but not with aliphatic hydrophobic residues, recovered the kcat values almost fully for the substrates without the 3' projection of the upstream strand, suggesting that the aromatic groups of Tyr33, Phe79, and Phe278-Phe279 might be involved in the catalytic reaction, probably via multiple stacking interactions with nucleotide bases. The stacking interactions of Tyr33 and Phe79 might play important roles in fixing the template strand and the downstream strand, respectively, in close proximity to the active center to achieve the productive transient state leading to the hydrolysis.

Characterization of the interdependency between residues that bind the substrate in a β-glycosidase

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M.H. Tomassi

2010-01-01

Full Text Available The manner by which effects of simultaneous mutations combine to change enzymatic activity is not easily predictable because these effects are not always additive in a linear manner. Hence, the characterization of the effects of simultaneous mutations of amino acid residues that bind the substrate can make a significant contribution to the understanding of the substrate specificity of enzymes. In the β-glycosidase from Spodoptera frugiperda (Sfβgly, both residues Q39 and E451 interact with the substrate and this is essential for defining substrate specificity. Double mutants of Sfβgly (A451E39, S451E39 and S451N39 were prepared by site-directed mutagenesis, expressed in bacteria and purified using affinity chromatography. These enzymes were characterized using p-nitrophenyl β-galactoside and p-nitrophenyl β-fucoside as substrates. The k cat/Km ratio for single and double mutants of Sfβgly containing site-directed mutations at positions Q39 and E451 was used to demonstrate that the effect on the free energy of ES‡ (enzyme-transition state complex of the double mutations (∆∆G‡xy is not the sum of the effects resulting from the single mutations (∆∆G‡x and ∆∆G‡y. This difference in ∆∆G‡ indicates that the effects of the single mutations partially overlap. Hence, this common effect counts only once in ∆∆G‡xy. Crystallographic data on β-glycosidases reveal the presence of a bidentate hydrogen bond involving residues Q39 and E451 and the same hydroxyl group of the substrate. Therefore, both thermodynamic and crystallographic data suggest that residues Q39 and E451 exert a mutual influence on their respective interactions with the substrate.

Limited diffusive fluxes of substrate facilitate coexistence of two competing bacterial strains

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dechesne, Arnaud; Or, D.; Smets, Barth F.

2008-01-01

. It has been proposed, but never unambiguously experimentally tested, that a low substrate diffusive flux would impact bacterial diversity, by promoting the coexistence between slow-growing bacteria and their potentially faster-growing competitors. We used a simple experimental system, based on a Petri...... dish and a perforated Teflon((R)) membrane to control diffusive fluxes of substrate (benzoate) whilst permitting direct observation of bacterial colonies. The system was inoculated with prescribed strains of Pseudomonas, whose growth was quantified by microscopic monitoring of the fluorescent proteins...

Nanodiamond resonators fabricated on 8″ Si substrates using adhesive wafer bonding

Science.gov (United States)

Lebedev, V.; Lisec, T.; Yoshikawa, T.; Reusch, M.; Iankov, D.; Giese, C.; Žukauskaitė, A.; Cimalla, V.; Ambacher, O.

2017-06-01

In this work, the adhesive wafer bonding of diamond thin films onto 8″ silicon substrates is reported. In order to characterize bonded nano-crystalline diamond layers, vibrometry and interferometry studies of micro-fabricated flexural beam and disk resonators were carried out. In particular, surface topology along with resonant frequencies, eigenmodes and mechanical quality factors were recorded and analyzed in order to obtain physical parameters of the transferred films. The vibration properties of the bonded resonators were compared to those fabricated directly on 3″ silicon substrates.

PTB domain-directed substrate targeting in a tyrosine kinase from the unicellular choanoflagellate Monosiga brevicollis.

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Victoria Prieto-Echagüe

2011-04-01

Full Text Available Choanoflagellates are considered to be the closest living unicellular relatives of metazoans. The genome of the choanoflagellate Monosiga brevicollis contains a surprisingly high number and diversity of tyrosine kinases, tyrosine phosphatases, and phosphotyrosine-binding domains. Many of the tyrosine kinases possess combinations of domains that have not been observed in any multicellular organism. The role of these protein interaction domains in M. brevicollis kinase signaling is not clear. Here, we have carried out a biochemical characterization of Monosiga HMTK1, a protein containing a putative PTB domain linked to a tyrosine kinase catalytic domain. We cloned, expressed, and purified HMTK1, and we demonstrated that it possesses tyrosine kinase activity. We used immobilized peptide arrays to define a preferred ligand for the third PTB domain of HMTK1. Peptide sequences containing this ligand sequence are phosphorylated efficiently by recombinant HMTK1, suggesting that the PTB domain of HMTK1 has a role in substrate recognition analogous to the SH2 and SH3 domains of mammalian Src family kinases. We suggest that the substrate recruitment function of the noncatalytic domains of tyrosine kinases arose before their roles in autoinhibition.

Refining the reaction mechanism of O2 towards its co-substrate in cofactor-free dioxygenases

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Pedro J. Silva

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Cofactor-less oxygenases perform challenging catalytic reactions between singlet co-substrates and triplet oxygen, in spite of apparently violating the spin-conservation rule. In 1-H-3-hydroxy-4-oxoquinaldine-2,4-dioxygenase, the active site has been suggested by quantum chemical computations to fine tune triplet oxygen reactivity, allowing it to interact rapidly with its singlet substrate without the need for spin inversion, and in urate oxidase the reaction is thought to proceed through electron transfer from the deprotonated substrate to an aminoacid sidechain, which then feeds the electron to the oxygen molecule. In this work, we perform additional quantum chemical computations on these two systems to elucidate several intriguing features unaddressed by previous workers. These computations establish that in both enzymes the reaction proceeds through direct electron transfer from co-substrate to O2 followed by radical recombination, instead of minimum-energy crossing points between singlet and triplet potential energy surfaces without formal electron transfer. The active site does not affect the reactivity of oxygen directly but is crucial for the generation of the deprotonated form of the co-substrates, which have redox potentials far below those of their protonated forms and therefore may transfer electrons to oxygen without sizeable thermodynamic barriers. This mechanism seems to be shared by most cofactor-less oxidases studied so far.

Structural and optical characterization of GaN heteroepitaxial films on SiC substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morse, M.; Wu, P.; Choi, S.; Kim, T.H.; Brown, A.S.; Losurdo, M.; Bruno, G.

2006-01-01

We have estimated the threading dislocation density and type via X-ray diffraction and Williamson-Hall analysis to elicit qualitative information directly related to the electrical and optical quality of GaN epitaxial layers grown by PAMBE on 4H- and 6H-SiC substrates. The substrate surface preparation and buffer choice, specifically: Ga flashing for SiC oxide removal, controlled nitridation of SiC, and use of AlN buffer layers all impact the resultant screw dislocation density, but do not significantly influence the edge dislocation density. We show that modification of the substrate surface strongly affects the screw dislocation density, presumably due to impact on nucleation during the initial stages of heteroepitaxy

Structural and optical characterization of GaN heteroepitaxial films on SiC substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Morse, M. [Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Duke University, 128 Hudson Hall, Durham, NC (United States) and Department of Physics, Duke University, 128 Hudson Hall, Durham, NC (United States)]. E-mail: michael.morse@duke.edu; Wu, P. [Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Duke University, 128 Hudson Hall, Durham, NC (United States); Department of Physics, Duke University, 128 Hudson Hall, Durham, NC (United States); Choi, S. [Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Duke University, 128 Hudson Hall, Durham, NC (United States); Department of Physics, Duke University, 128 Hudson Hall, Durham, NC (United States); Kim, T.H. [Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Duke University, 128 Hudson Hall, Durham, NC (United States); Department of Physics, Duke University, 128 Hudson Hall, Durham, NC (United States); Brown, A.S. [Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Duke University, 128 Hudson Hall, Durham, NC (United States) and Department of Physics, Duke University, 128 Hudson Hall, Durham, NC (United States)]. E-mail: abrown@ee.duke.edu; Losurdo, M. [Institute of Inorganic Methodologies and of Plasmas, IMIP-CNR, via Orabona, 4-70126 Bari (Italy); Bruno, G. [Institute of Inorganic Methodologies and of Plasmas, IMIP-CNR, via Orabona, 4-70126 Bari (Italy)

2006-10-31

We have estimated the threading dislocation density and type via X-ray diffraction and Williamson-Hall analysis to elicit qualitative information directly related to the electrical and optical quality of GaN epitaxial layers grown by PAMBE on 4H- and 6H-SiC substrates. The substrate surface preparation and buffer choice, specifically: Ga flashing for SiC oxide removal, controlled nitridation of SiC, and use of AlN buffer layers all impact the resultant screw dislocation density, but do not significantly influence the edge dislocation density. We show that modification of the substrate surface strongly affects the screw dislocation density, presumably due to impact on nucleation during the initial stages of heteroepitaxy.

Identifications of Putative PKA Substrates with Quantitative Phosphoproteomics and Primary-Sequence-Based Scoring.

Science.gov (United States)

Imamura, Haruna; Wagih, Omar; Niinae, Tomoya; Sugiyama, Naoyuki; Beltrao, Pedro; Ishihama, Yasushi

2017-04-07

Protein kinase A (PKA or cAMP-dependent protein kinase) is a serine/threonine kinase that plays essential roles in the regulation of proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis. To better understand the functions of PKA, it is necessary to elucidate the direct interplay between PKA and their substrates in living human cells. To identify kinase target substrates in a high-throughput manner, we first quantified the change of phosphoproteome in the cells of which PKA activity was perturbed by drug stimulations. LC-MS/MS analyses identified 2755 and 3191 phosphopeptides from experiments with activator or inhibitor of PKA. To exclude potential indirect targets of PKA, we built a computational model to characterize the kinase sequence specificity toward the substrate target site based on known kinase-substrate relationships. Finally, by combining the sequence recognition model with the quantitative changes in phosphorylation measured in the two drug perturbation experiments, we identified 29 reliable candidates of PKA targeting residues in living cells including 8 previously known substrates. Moreover, 18 of these sites were confirmed to be site-specifically phosphorylated in vitro. Altogether this study proposed a confident list of PKA substrate candidates, expanding our knowledge of PKA signaling network.

Multilayer graphene growth on polar dielectric substrates using chemical vapour deposition

Science.gov (United States)

Karamat, S.; Çelik, K.; Shah Zaman, S.; Oral, A.

2018-06-01

High quality of graphene is necessary for its applications at industrial scale production. The most convenient way is its direct growth on dielectrics which avoid the transfer route of graphene from metal to dielectric substrate usually followed by graphene community. The choice of a suitable dielectric for the gate material which can replace silicon dioxide (SiO2) is in high demand. Various properties like permittivity, thermodynamic stability, film morphology, interface quality, bandgap and band alignment of other dielectrics with graphene needs more exploration. A potential dielectric material is required which could be used to grow graphene with all these qualities. Direct growth of graphene on magnesium oxide (MgO) substrates is an interesting idea and will be a new addition in the library of 2D materials. The present work is about the direct growth of graphene on MgO substrates by an ambient pressure chemical vapour deposition (CVD) method. We address the surface instability issue of the polar oxides which is the most challenging factor in MgO. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) measurements showed the topographical features of the graphene coated on MgO. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) study is carried out to extract information regarding the presence of necessary elements, their bonding with substrates and to confirm the sp-2 hybridization of carbon, which is a characteristic feature of graphene film. The chemical shift is due to the surface reconstruction of MgO in the prepared samples. For graphene-MgO interface, valence band offset (VBO) and conduction band offset (CBO) extracted from valence band spectra reported. Further, we predicted the energy band diagram for single layer and thin film of graphene. By using the room-temperature energy band gap values of MgO and graphene, the CBO is calculated to be 6.85 eV for single layer and 5.66 eV for few layer (1-3) of graphene layers.

Direct CVD Graphene Growth on Semiconductors and Dielectrics for Transfer-Free Device Fabrication.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Huaping; Yu, Gui

2016-07-01

Graphene is the most broadly discussed and studied two-dimensional material because of its preeminent physical, mechanical, optical, and thermal properties. Until now, metal-catalyzed chemical vapor deposition (CVD) has been widely employed for the scalable production of high-quality graphene. However, in order to incorporate the graphene into electronic devices, a transfer process from metal substrates to targeted substrates is inevitable. This process usually results in contamination, wrinkling, and breakage of graphene samples - undesirable in graphene-based technology and not compatible with industrial production. Therefore, direct graphene growth on desired semiconductor and dielectric substrates is considered as an effective alternative. Over the past years, there have been intensive investigations to realize direct graphene growth using CVD methods without the catalytic role of metals. Owing to the low catalytic activity of non-metal substrates for carbon precursor decomposition and graphene growth, several strategies have been designed to facilitate and engineer graphene fabrication on semiconductors and insulators. Here, those developed strategies for direct CVD graphene growth on semiconductors and dielectrics for transfer-free fabrication of electronic devices are reviewed. By employing these methods, various graphene-related structures can be directly prepared on desired substrates and exhibit excellent performance, providing versatile routes for varied graphene-based materials fabrication. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Annealing impact on the structural and photoluminescence properties of ZnO thin films on Ag substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xu, Linhua; Zheng, Gaige; Lai, Min; Pei, Shixin

2014-01-01

Graphical abstract: The Gaussian fitting indicates that the PL spectra of the ZnO thin films include four emission peaks which are centered at 380, 520, 570 and 610 nm, respectively. The ZnO thin film deposited on an Ag substrate shows a stronger green emission and a weaker UV emission than the ZnO thin film directly deposited on a Si substrate annealed at 400 °C. With the rise of annealing temperature, the visible emission intensity and wavelength are largely changed. Highlights: • ZnO thin films have been prepared on Ag substrates by sol–gel method. • The Ag substrates have a great effect on the photoluminescence of ZnO thin films. • All the films exhibit three visible emission bands including green, yellow and red. • Annealing causes a large change of the visible emission intensity and wavelength. -- Abstract: In this work, ZnO thin films were prepared by sol–gel method on Ag substrates. The structural and optical properties of the films annealed at different temperatures were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and photoluminescence, respectively. The results of XRD showed that all the ZnO thin films had a wurtzite phase and were preferentially oriented along the c-axis direction. The sample annealed at 400 °C exhibited better crystalline quality than the ZnO thin film directly deposited on a Si substrate annealed at the same temperature. The photoluminescence spectra showed that ZnO thin films had an ultraviolet emission band and three visible emission bands including green, yellow and red band. The sample annealed at 400 °C exhibited a stronger green emission and a weaker ultraviolet emission compared with the ZnO thin film deposited on a Si substrate annealed at the same temperature. The difference of the luminescence properties was thought to be originated from different substrates. As for the ZnO films on Ag substrates, the increase of annealing temperature led to different changes of visible emissions

Permeability and Microstructure of Suspension Plasma-Sprayed YSZ Electrolytes for SOFCs on Various Substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Marr, Michael; Kesler, Olivera

2012-12-01

Yttria-stabilized zirconia electrolyte coatings for solid oxide fuel cells were deposited by suspension plasma spraying using a range of spray conditions and a variety of substrates, including finely structured porous stainless steel disks and cathode layers on stainless steel supports. Electrolyte permeability values and trends were found to be highly dependent on which substrate was used. The most gas-tight electrolyte coatings were those deposited directly on the porous metal disks. With this substrate, permeability was reduced by increasing the torch power and reducing the stand-off distance to produce dense coating microstructures. On the substrates with cathodes, electrolyte permeability was reduced by increasing the stand-off distance, which reduced the formation of segmentation cracks and regions of aligned and concentrated porosity. The formation mechanisms of the various permeability-related coating features are discussed and strategies for reducing permeability are presented. The dependences of electrolyte deposition efficiency and surface roughness on process conditions and substrate properties are also presented.

Binary codes storage and data encryption in substrates with single proton beam writing technology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Jun; Zhan Furu; Hu Zhiwen; Chen Lianyun; Yu Zengliang

2006-01-01

It has been demonstrated that characters can be written by proton beams in various materials. In contributing to the rapid development of proton beam writing technology, we introduce a new method for binary code storage and data encryption by writing binary codes of characters (BCC) in substrates with single proton beam writing technology. In this study, two kinds of BCC (ASCII BCC and long bit encrypted BCC) were written in CR-39 by a 2.6 MeV single proton beam. Our results show that in comparison to directly writing character shapes, writing ASCII BCC turned out to be about six times faster and required about one fourth the area in substrates. The approach of writing long bit encrypted BCC by single proton beams supports preserving confidential information in substrates. Additionally, binary codes fabricated by MeV single proton beams in substrates are more robust than those formed by lasers, since MeV single proton beams can make much deeper pits in the substrates

Fabrication of a Schottky junction diode with direct growth graphene on silicon by a solid phase reaction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kalita, Golap; Hirano, Ryo; Ayhan, Muhammed E; Tanemura, Masaki

2013-01-01

We demonstrate fabrication of a Schottky junction diode with direct growth graphene on n-Si by the solid phase reaction approach. Metal-assisted crystallization of a-C thin film was performed to synthesize transfer-free graphene directly on a SiO 2 patterned n-Si substrate. Graphene formation at the substrate and catalyst layer interface is achieved in presence of a Co catalytic and CoO carbon diffusion barrier layer. The as-synthesized material shows a linear current–voltage characteristic confirming the metallic behaviour of the graphene structure. The direct grown graphene on n-Si substrate creates a Schottky junction with a potential barrier of 0.44 eV and rectification diode characteristic. Our finding shows that the directly synthesized graphene on Si substrate by a solid phase reaction process can be a promising technique to fabricate an efficient Schottky junction device. (paper)

Collective ratchet effects and reversals for active matter particles on quasi-one-dimensional asymmetric substrates.

Science.gov (United States)

McDermott, Danielle; Olson Reichhardt, Cynthia J; Reichhardt, Charles

2016-10-19

Using computer simulations, we study a two-dimensional system of sterically interacting self-mobile run-and-tumble disk-shaped particles with an underlying periodic quasi-one-dimensional asymmetric substrate, and show that a rich variety of collective active ratchet behaviors arise as a function of particle density, activity, substrate period, and the maximum force exerted by the substrate. The net dc drift, or ratchet transport flux, is nonmonotonic since it increases with increased activity but is diminished by the onset of self-clustering of the active particles. Increasing the particle density decreases the ratchet transport flux for shallow substrates but increases the ratchet transport flux for deep substrates due to collective hopping events. At the highest particle densities, the ratchet motion is destroyed by a self-jamming effect. We show that it is possible to realize reversals of the direction of the net dc drift in the deep substrate limit when multiple rows of active particles can be confined in each substrate minimum, permitting emergent particle-like excitations to appear that experience an inverted effective substrate potential. We map out a phase diagram of the forward and reverse ratchet effects as a function of the particle density, activity, and substrate properties.

[Substrate specificities of bile salt hydrolase 1 and its mutants from Lactobacillus salivarius].

Science.gov (United States)

Bi, Jie; Fang, Fang; Qiu, Yuying; Yang, Qingli; Chen, Jian

2014-03-01

In order to analyze the correlation between critical residues in the catalytic centre of BSH and the enzyme substrate specificity, seven mutants of Lactobacillus salivarius bile salt hydrolase (BSH1) were constructed by using the Escherichia coli pET-20b(+) gene expression system, rational design and site-directed mutagenesis. These BSH1 mutants exhibited different hydrolytic activities against various conjugated bile salts through substrate specificities comparison. Among the residues being tested, Cys2 and Thr264 were deduced as key sites for BSH1 to catalyze taurocholic acid and glycocholic acid, respectively. Moreover, Cys2 and Thr264 were important for keeping the catalytic activity of BSH1. The high conservative Cys2 was not the only active site, other mutant amino acid sites were possibly involved in substrate binding. These mutant residues might influence the space and shape of the substrate-binding pockets or the channel size for substrate passing through and entering active site of BSH1, thus, the hydrolytic activity of BSH1 was changed to different conjugated bile salt.

Structural basis for substrate placement by an archaeal box C/D ribonucleoprotein particle.

Science.gov (United States)

Xue, Song; Wang, Ruiying; Yang, Fangping; Terns, Rebecca M; Terns, Michael P; Zhang, Xinxin; Maxwell, E Stuart; Li, Hong

2010-09-24

Box C/D small nucleolar and Cajal body ribonucleoprotein particles (sno/scaRNPs) direct site-specific 2'-O-methylation of ribosomal and spliceosomal RNAs and are critical for gene expression. Here we report crystal structures of an archaeal box C/D RNP containing three core proteins (fibrillarin, Nop56/58, and L7Ae) and a half-mer box C/D guide RNA paired with a substrate RNA. The structure reveals a guide-substrate RNA duplex orientation imposed by a composite protein surface and the conserved GAEK motif of Nop56/58. Molecular modeling supports a dual C/D RNP structure that closely mimics that recently visualized by electron microscopy. The substrate-bound dual RNP model predicts an asymmetric protein distribution between the RNP that binds and methylates the substrate RNA. The predicted asymmetric nature of the holoenzyme is consistent with previous biochemical data on RNP assembly and provides a simple solution for accommodating base-pairing between the C/D guide RNA and large ribosomal and spliceosomal substrate RNAs. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Direct determination of monolayer MoS2 and WSe2 exciton binding energies on insulating and metallic substrates

KAUST Repository

Park, Soohyung; Mutz, Niklas; Schultz, Thorsten; Blumstengel, Sylke; Han, Ali; Aljarb, Areej; Li, Lain-Jong; List-Kratochvil, Emil J W; Amsalem, Patrick; Koch, Norbert

2018-01-01

Understanding the excitonic nature of excited states in two-dimensional (2D) transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) is of key importance to make use of their optical and charge transport properties in optoelectronic applications. We contribute to this by the direct experimental determination of the exciton binding energy (E b,exc) of monolayer MoS2 and WSe2 on two fundamentally different substrates, i.e. the insulator sapphire and the metal gold. By combining angle-resolved direct and inverse photoelectron spectroscopy we measure the electronic band gap (E g), and by reflectance measurements the optical excitonic band gap (E exc). The difference of these two energies is E b,exc. The values of E g and E b,exc are 2.11 eV and 240 meV for MoS2 on sapphire, and 1.89 eV and 240 meV for WSe2 on sapphire. On Au E b,exc is decreased to 90 meV and 140 meV for MoS2 and WSe2, respectively. The significant E b,exc reduction is primarily due to a reduction of E g resulting from enhanced screening by the metal, while E exc is barely decreased for the metal support. Energy level diagrams determined at the K-point of the 2D TMDCs Brillouin zone show that MoS2 has more p-type character on Au as compared to sapphire, while WSe2 appears close to intrinsic on both. These results demonstrate that the impact of the dielectric environment of 2D TMDCs is more pronounced for individual charge carriers than for a correlated electron–hole pair, i.e. the exciton. A proper dielectric surrounding design for such 2D semiconductors can therefore be used to facilitate superior optoelectronic device function.

Direct determination of monolayer MoS2 and WSe2 exciton binding energies on insulating and metallic substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Soohyung; Mutz, Niklas; Schultz, Thorsten; Blumstengel, Sylke; Han, Ali; Aljarb, Areej; Li, Lain-Jong; List-Kratochvil, Emil J. W.; Amsalem, Patrick; Koch, Norbert

2018-04-01

Understanding the excitonic nature of excited states in two-dimensional (2D) transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) is of key importance to make use of their optical and charge transport properties in optoelectronic applications. We contribute to this by the direct experimental determination of the exciton binding energy (E b,exc) of monolayer MoS2 and WSe2 on two fundamentally different substrates, i.e. the insulator sapphire and the metal gold. By combining angle-resolved direct and inverse photoelectron spectroscopy we measure the electronic band gap (E g), and by reflectance measurements the optical excitonic band gap (E exc). The difference of these two energies is E b,exc. The values of E g and E b,exc are 2.11 eV and 240 meV for MoS2 on sapphire, and 1.89 eV and 240 meV for WSe2 on sapphire. On Au E b,exc is decreased to 90 meV and 140 meV for MoS2 and WSe2, respectively. The significant E b,exc reduction is primarily due to a reduction of E g resulting from enhanced screening by the metal, while E exc is barely decreased for the metal support. Energy level diagrams determined at the K-point of the 2D TMDCs Brillouin zone show that MoS2 has more p-type character on Au as compared to sapphire, while WSe2 appears close to intrinsic on both. These results demonstrate that the impact of the dielectric environment of 2D TMDCs is more pronounced for individual charge carriers than for a correlated electron-hole pair, i.e. the exciton. A proper dielectric surrounding design for such 2D semiconductors can therefore be used to facilitate superior optoelectronic device function.

Direct determination of monolayer MoS2 and WSe2 exciton binding energies on insulating and metallic substrates

KAUST Repository

Park, Soohyung

2018-01-03

Understanding the excitonic nature of excited states in two-dimensional (2D) transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) is of key importance to make use of their optical and charge transport properties in optoelectronic applications. We contribute to this by the direct experimental determination of the exciton binding energy (E b,exc) of monolayer MoS2 and WSe2 on two fundamentally different substrates, i.e. the insulator sapphire and the metal gold. By combining angle-resolved direct and inverse photoelectron spectroscopy we measure the electronic band gap (E g), and by reflectance measurements the optical excitonic band gap (E exc). The difference of these two energies is E b,exc. The values of E g and E b,exc are 2.11 eV and 240 meV for MoS2 on sapphire, and 1.89 eV and 240 meV for WSe2 on sapphire. On Au E b,exc is decreased to 90 meV and 140 meV for MoS2 and WSe2, respectively. The significant E b,exc reduction is primarily due to a reduction of E g resulting from enhanced screening by the metal, while E exc is barely decreased for the metal support. Energy level diagrams determined at the K-point of the 2D TMDCs Brillouin zone show that MoS2 has more p-type character on Au as compared to sapphire, while WSe2 appears close to intrinsic on both. These results demonstrate that the impact of the dielectric environment of 2D TMDCs is more pronounced for individual charge carriers than for a correlated electron–hole pair, i.e. the exciton. A proper dielectric surrounding design for such 2D semiconductors can therefore be used to facilitate superior optoelectronic device function.

Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy with Au-nanoparticle substrate fabricated by using femtosecond pulse

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Wending; Li, Cheng; Gao, Kun; Lu, Fanfan; Liu, Min; Li, Xin; Zhang, Lu; Mao, Dong; Gao, Feng; Huang, Ligang; Mei, Ting; Zhao, Jianlin

2018-05-01

Au-nanoparticle (Au-NP) substrates for surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) were fabricated by grid-like scanning a Au-film using a femtosecond pulse. The Au-NPs were directly deposited on the Au-film surface due to the scanning process. The experimentally obtained Au-NPs presented local surface plasmon resonance effect in the visible spectral range, as verified by finite difference time domain simulations and measured reflection spectrum. The SERS experiment using the Au-NP substrates exhibited high activity and excellent substrate reproducibility and stability, and a clearly present Raman spectra of target analytes, e.g. Rhodamine-6G, Rhodamine-B and Malachite green, with concentrations down to 10‑9 M. This work presents an effective approach to producing Au-NP SERS substrates with advantages in activity, reproducibility and stability, which could be used in a wide variety of practical applications for trace amount detection.

Graphene growth on Ge(100)/Si(100) substrates by CVD method.

Science.gov (United States)

Pasternak, Iwona; Wesolowski, Marek; Jozwik, Iwona; Lukosius, Mindaugas; Lupina, Grzegorz; Dabrowski, Pawel; Baranowski, Jacek M; Strupinski, Wlodek

2016-02-22

The successful integration of graphene into microelectronic devices is strongly dependent on the availability of direct deposition processes, which can provide uniform, large area and high quality graphene on nonmetallic substrates. As of today the dominant technology is based on Si and obtaining graphene with Si is treated as the most advantageous solution. However, the formation of carbide during the growth process makes manufacturing graphene on Si wafers extremely challenging. To overcome these difficulties and reach the set goals, we proposed growth of high quality graphene layers by the CVD method on Ge(100)/Si(100) wafers. In addition, a stochastic model was applied in order to describe the graphene growth process on the Ge(100)/Si(100) substrate and to determine the direction of further processes. As a result, high quality graphene was grown, which was proved by Raman spectroscopy results, showing uniform monolayer films with FWHM of the 2D band of 32 cm(-1).

Human exonuclease 1 (EXO1) activity characterization and its function on FLAP structures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Keijzers, Guido; Bohr, Vilhelm A; Juel Rasmussen, Lene

2015-01-01

structures, we determined factors essential for the thermodynamic stability of EXO1. We show that enzymatic activity and stability of EXO1 on DNA is modulated by temperature. By characterization of EXO1 flap activity using various DNA flap substrates, we show that EXO1 has a strong capacity for degrading...... double stranded DNA and has a modest endonuclease or 5' flap activity. Furthermore, we report novel mechanistic insights into the processing of flap structures, showing that EXO1 preferentially cleaves one nucleotide inwards in a double stranded region of a forked and nicked DNA flap substrates...

High microwave performance ion-implanted GaAs MESFETs on InP substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wada, M.; Kato, K.

1990-01-01

Ion implantation was employed, for the first time, in fabricating GaAs MESFETs in undoped 2 μm thick GaAs epitaxial layers directly grown on InP substrates by low-pressure MOVPE. The Si-ion-implanted GaAs layer on InP substrates showed excellent electrical characteristics: a mobility of 4300 cm 2 /Vs with a carrier density of 2 x 10 17 cm -3 at room temperature. The MESFET (0.8 μm gate length) exhibited a current-gain cutoff frequency of 25 GHz and a maximum frequency of oscillation of 53 GHz, the highest values yet reported to GaAs MESFETs on InP substrates. These results demonstrate the high potential of ion-implanted MESFETs as electronic devices for high-speed InP-based OEICs. (author)

Fed-batch culture for the direct conversion of cellulosic substrates to acetic acid/ethanol by Fusarium oxysporum

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kumar, P.K.R.; Singh, A.; Schuegerl, K. (Hannover Univ. (Germany). Inst. fuer Technische Chemie)

1991-01-01

The production of acetic acid/ethanol and hydrolytic enzymes from potato waste (cellulosic waste from potato starch industries) by Fusarium oxysporum 841 was improved considerably by using fed-batch culture. In this, two types of feed policies were adopted consisting of different substrate concentrations and feeding times. In fed-batch culture, the enzymes tested, namely avicelase, CMCase, cellobiase and xylanase, showed significant improvements over batch fermentations with regard to enzyme titres and productivities. The maximum concentration, yield and productivity of acetic acid were 22.5 g litre{sup -1}, 0.38 g (g {sub strate}){sup -1} and 0.09 g litre{sup -1} h{sup -1}, respectively, and these values for ethanol were 5.7 g litre{sup -1}, 0.1 g (g substrate){sup -1} and 0.03 g litre{sup -1}h{sup -1}, respectively. (author).

Automated cassette-to-cassette substrate handling system

Science.gov (United States)

Kraus, Joseph Arthur; Boyer, Jeremy James; Mack, Joseph; DeChellis, Michael; Koo, Michael

2014-03-18

An automated cassette-to-cassette substrate handling system includes a cassette storage module for storing a plurality of substrates in cassettes before and after processing. A substrate carrier storage module stores a plurality of substrate carriers. A substrate carrier loading/unloading module loads substrates from the cassette storage module onto the plurality of substrate carriers and unloads substrates from the plurality of substrate carriers to the cassette storage module. A transport mechanism transports the plurality of substrates between the cassette storage module and the plurality of substrate carriers and transports the plurality of substrate carriers between the substrate carrier loading/unloading module and a processing chamber. A vision system recognizes recesses in the plurality of substrate carriers corresponding to empty substrate positions in the substrate carrier. A processor receives data from the vision system and instructs the transport mechanism to transport substrates to positions on the substrate carrier in response to the received data.

Inkjet printing of silver citrate conductive ink on PET substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nie Xiaolei; Wang Hong; Zou Jing

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► A direct synthesis method of silver conductive film on PET substrate was presented. ► A stable particle-free conductive ink was prepared. ► Formation of silver-amine complex reduced the thermal decomposition temperature. ► Conductive patterns for flexible electronics were fabricated by inkjet printing. ► Silver film on PET substrate possessed highest adhesion rating even without polymer. - Abstract: Direct synthesis of silver conductive film on PET substrate by inkjet printing silver citrate conductive ink was presented in this paper. This kind of conductive ink contained silver citrate as silver precursor, 1,2-diaminopropane as complex agent dissolving the silver salt and methanol and isopropanol as a media adjusting the viscosity and surface tension. The formation of silver-amine complex reduced the decomposition temperature from 180 °C to 135 °C, thus the ink could be cured at relatively low temperature. The film reached the lowest resistivity of 17 μΩ cm after cured at 150 °C for 50 min, 3.1 μΩ cm at 230 °C and possessed high reflection and excellent adhesive property. Electrical conductivity, surface morphology and composition were investigated by four-point probe method, scanning electron microscope (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). It is demonstrated how the cured condition affects the silver film. Moreover, radio-frequency identification (RFID) antenna was fabricated by inkjet printing, which opens up routes for the flexible electronics fabrication.

Parametric Investigation of Diode and CO2 Laser in Direct Metal Deposition of H13 Tool Steel on Copper Substrate

OpenAIRE

M. Khalid Imran; Syed Masood; Milan Brandt; Sudip Bhattacharya; Jyotirmoy Mazumder

2011-01-01

In the present investigation, H13 tool steel has been deposited on copper alloy substrate using both CO2 and diode laser. A detailed parametric analysis has been carried out in order to find out optimum processing zone for coating defect free H13 tool steel on copper alloy substrate. Followed by parametric optimization, the microstructure and microhardness of the deposited clads have been evaluated. SEM micrographs revealed dendritic microstructure in both clads. However,...

Influence of substrate material on the microstructure and optical properties of hot wall deposited SnS thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bashkirov, S.A.; Gremenok, V.F.; Ivanov, V.A.; Shevtsova, V.V.; Gladyshev, P.P.

2015-01-01

Tin monosulfide SnS raises an interest as a promising material for photovoltaics. The influence of the substrate material on the microstructure and optical properties of SnS thin films with [111] texture obtained by hot wall vacuum deposition on glass, molybdenum and indium tin oxide substrates is reported. The lattice parameters for layers grown on different substrates were determined by X-ray diffraction and their deviations from the data reported in the literature for single α-SnS crystals were discussed. The change in the degree of preferred orientation of the films depending on the substrate material is observed. The direct nature of the optical transitions with the optical band gap of 1.15 ± 0.01 eV is reported. - Highlights: • SnS thin films were hot wall deposited on glass, molybdenum and indium tin oxide. • Physical properties of the films were studied with respect to the substrate type. • The SnS lattice parameter deviations were observed and the explanation was given. • The direct optical transitions with the band gap of 1.15 ± 0.01 eV were observed

The effect of optical substrates on micro-FTIR analysis of single mammalian cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Wehbe, Katia; Filik, Jacob; Frogley, Mark D; Cinque, Gianfelice

2013-02-01

The study of individual cells with infrared (IR) microspectroscopy often requires living cells to be cultured directly onto a suitable substrate. The surface effect of the specific substrates on the cell growth-viability and associated biochemistry-as well as on the IR analysis-spectral interference and optical artifacts-is all too often ignored. Using the IR beamline, MIRIAM (Diamond Light Source, UK), we show the importance of the substrate used for IR absorption spectroscopy by analyzing two different cell lines cultured on a range of seven optical substrates in both transmission and reflection modes. First, cell viability measurements are made to determine the preferable substrates for normal cell growth. Successively, synchrotron radiation IR microspectroscopy is performed on the two cell lines to determine any genuine biochemically induced changes or optical effect in the spectra due to the different substrates. Multivariate analysis of spectral data is applied on each cell line to visualize the spectral changes. The results confirm the advantage of transmission measurements over reflection due to the absence of a strong optical standing wave artifact which amplifies the absorbance spectrum in the high wavenumber regions with respect to low wavenumbers in the mid-IR range. The transmission spectra reveal interference from a more subtle but significant optical artifact related to the reflection losses of the different substrate materials. This means that, for comparative studies of cell biochemistry by IR microspectroscopy, it is crucial that all samples are measured on the same substrate type.

Direct metal brazing to cermet feedthroughs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hopper, A.C. Jr.

1984-01-01

An improved method for brazing metallic components to a cermet surface in an alumina substrate eliminates the prior art metallized layer over the cermet via and adjoining alumina surfaces. Instead, a nickel layer is applied over the cermet surface only and metallic components are brazed directly to this nickel coated cermet surface. As a result, heretofore unachievable tensile strength joints are produced. In addition, cermet vias with their brazed metal components can be spaced more closely in the alumina substrate because of the elimination of the prior art metallized alumina surfaces

Nonlinear optical parameters of nanocrystalline AZO thin film measured at different substrate temperatures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jilani, Asim, E-mail: asim.jilane@gmail.com [Centre of Nanotechnology, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah (Saudi Arabia); Abdel-wahab, M.Sh [Centre of Nanotechnology, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah (Saudi Arabia); Materials Science and Nanotechnology Department, Faculty of Postgraduate Studies for Advanced Sciences, Beni -Suef University, Beni-Suef (Egypt); Al-ghamdi, Attieh A. [Centre of Nanotechnology, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah (Saudi Arabia); Dahlan, Ammar sadik [Department of architecture, faculty of environmental design, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah (Saudi Arabia); Yahia, I.S. [Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, King Khalid University, P.O. Box 9004, Abha (Saudi Arabia); Nano-Science & Semiconductor Labs, Department of Physics, Faculty of Education, Ain Shams University, Roxy, 11757 Cairo (Egypt)

2016-01-15

The 2.2 wt% of aluminum (Al)-doped zinc oxide (AZO) transparent and preferential c-axis oriented thin films were prepared by using radio frequency (DC/RF) magnetron sputtering at different substrate temperature ranging from room temperature to 200 °C. For structural analysis, X-ray Diffraction (XRD) and Atomic Force Electron Microscope (AFM) was used for morphological studies. The optical parameters such as, optical energy gap, refractive index, extinction coefficient, dielectric loss, tangent loss, first and third order nonlinear optical properties of transparent films were investigated. High transmittance above 90% and highly homogeneous surface were observed in all samples. The substrate temperature plays an important role to get the best transparent conductive oxide thin films. The substrate temperature at 150 °C showed the growth of highly transparent AZO thin film. Energy gap increased with the increased in substrate temperature of Al doped thin films. Dielectric constant and loss were found to be photon energy dependent with substrate temperature. The change in substrate temperature of Al doped thin films also affect the non-liner optical properties of thin films. The value of χ{sup (3)} was found to be changed with the grain size of the thin films that directly affected by the substrate temperature of the pure and Al doped ZnO thin films.

Antireflective conducting nanostructures with an atomic layer deposited an AlZnO layer on a transparent substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Hyun-Woo; Ji, Seungmuk; Herdini, Diptya Suci; Lim, Hyuneui; Park, Jin-Seong; Chung, Kwun-Bum

2015-01-01

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • We investigated the antireflective conducting nanostructures on a transparent substrate using atomic layer deposited AlZnO films. • The conformal AlZnO layer on a transparent nanostructured substrate exhibited 5.52 × 10 −4 Ω cm in resistivity and 88% in average visible transmittance. • The improvement of transparency was explained by the gradual changes of the refractive index in the film depth direction. • The decrease in electrical resistivity is strongly correlated to the increased surface area with the nanostructure and the change of chemical bonding states. - Abstract: The antireflective conducting nanostructures on a transparent substrate were shown to have enhanced optical and electrical properties via colloidal lithography and atomic layer deposition. The conformal AlZnO layer on a transparent nanostructured substrate exhibited 5.52 × 10 −4 Ω cm in resistivity and 88% in average visible transmittance, both of which were superior to those of a flat transparent conducting substrate. The improvement of transparency was explained by the gradual changes of the refractive index in the film depth direction. The decrease in electrical resistivity is strongly correlated to the increased surface area with the nanostructure and the change of chemical bonding states.

Calculation of adhesive and cohesive fracture toughness of a thin brittle coating on a polymer substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jansson, N.E.; Leterrier, Y.; Medico, L.; Manson, J.-A.E.

2006-01-01

Determination of fracture parameters for brittle coatings with a sub-micron thickness is not a straightforward task. Since direct evaluation through testing with for instance a double cantilever beam or compact tension tests is hardly applicable due to the extreme thinness of the coating, methods such as the fragmentation test are used. When a structure with a brittle coating on a soft substrate is strained, the coating develops a crack pattern with parallel cracks perpendicular to the loading direction. The crack density (number of cracks per unit length) increases with strain up to a saturation value. Analytical formulas to model the fragmentation process exist but are limited to elastic materials. In this work finite element simulations are applied in order to deduce the adhesive and cohesive fracture properties of the interface and coating respectively from experimental data. The simulations include both the plastic behaviour of the substrate and debonding of the coating from the substrate, the latter achieved by application of a cohesive zone model. The main conclusion is that the plastic dissipation within the substrate must be correctly accounted for to get realistic interfacial and coating fracture toughness values

Agarose gel shift assay reveals that calreticulin favors substrates with a quaternary structure in solution

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Boelt, Sanne Grundvad; Houen, Gunnar; Højrup, Peter

2015-01-01

Here we present an agarose gel shift assay that, in contrast to other electrophoresis approaches, is loaded in the center of the gel. This allows proteins to migrate in either direction according to their isoelectric points. Therefore, the presented assay enables a direct visualization, separation...... structure. It is also demonstrated that the agarose gel shift assay is useful in the study of other protein interactions and can be used as an alternative method to native polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis....... measure of interactions. Therefore, no interaction studies between calreticulin and substrates in solution have been investigated previously. The results presented here indicate that calreticulin has a preference for substrates with a quaternary structure and primarily β-sheets in their secondary...

Long-Wavelength InAs/GaAs Quantum-Dot Light Emitting Sources Monolithically Grown on Si Substrate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Siming Chen

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Direct integration of III–V light emitting sources on Si substrates has attracted significant interest for addressing the growing limitations for Si-based electronics and allowing the realization of complex optoelectronics circuits. However, the high density of threading dislocations introduced by large lattice mismatch and incompatible thermal expansion coefficient between III–V materials and Si substrates have fundamentally limited monolithic epitaxy of III–V devices on Si substrates. Here, by using the InAlAs/GaAs strained layer superlattices (SLSs as dislocation filter layers (DFLs to reduce the density of threading dislocations. We firstly demonstrate a Si-based 1.3 µm InAs/GaAs quantum dot (QD laser that lases up to 111 °C, with a low threshold current density of 200 A/cm2 and high output power over 100 mW at room temperature. We then demonstrate the operation of InAs/GaAs QD superluminescent light emitting diodes (SLDs monolithically grown on Si substrates. The fabricated two-section SLD exhibits a 3 dB linewidth of 114 nm, centered at ～1255 nm with a corresponding output power of 2.6 mW at room temperature. Our work complements hybrid integration using wafer bonding and represents a significant milestone for direct monolithic integration of III–V light emitters on Si substrates.

Fabrication of non-hexagonal close packed colloidal array on a substrate by transfer

Science.gov (United States)

Banik, Meneka; Mukherjee, Rabibrata

Self-organized colloidal arrays find application in fabrication of solar cells with advanced light management strategies. We report a simple spincoating based approach for fabricating two dimensional colloidal crystals with hexagonal and non-hexagonal close packed assembly on flat and nanopatterned substrates. The non-HCP arrays were fabricated by spin coating the particles onto soft lithographically fabricated substrates. The substrate patterns impose directionality to the particles by confining them within the grooves. We have developed a technique by which the HCP and non-HCP arrays can be transferred to any surface. For this purpose the colloidal arrays were fabricated on a UV degradable PMMA layer, resulting in transfer of the particles on UV exposure. This allows the colloidal structures to be transported across substrates irrespective of their surface energy, wettability or morphology. Since the particles are transferred without exposing it to any kind of chemical or thermal environment, it can be utilized for placing particles on top of thin film solar cells for improving their absorption efficiency.

Unmasking tandem site interaction in human acetylcholinesterase. Substrate activation with a cationic acetanilide substrate.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Joseph L; Cusack, Bernadette; Davies, Matthew P; Fauq, Abdul; Rosenberry, Terrone L

2003-05-13

Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) contains a narrow and deep active site gorge with two sites of ligand binding, an acylation site (or A-site) at the base of the gorge, and a peripheral site (or P-site) near the gorge entrance. The P-site contributes to catalytic efficiency by transiently binding substrates on their way to the acylation site, where a short-lived acyl enzyme intermediate is produced. A conformational interaction between the A- and P-sites has recently been found to modulate ligand affinities. We now demonstrate that this interaction is of functional importance by showing that the acetylation rate constant of a substrate bound to the A-site is increased by a factor a when a second molecule of substrate binds to the P-site. This demonstration became feasible through the introduction of a new acetanilide substrate analogue of acetylcholine, 3-(acetamido)-N,N,N-trimethylanilinium (ATMA), for which a = 4. This substrate has a low acetylation rate constant and equilibrates with the catalytic site, allowing a tractable algebraic solution to the rate equation for substrate hydrolysis. ATMA affinities for the A- and P-sites deduced from the kinetic analysis were confirmed by fluorescence titration with thioflavin T as a reporter ligand. Values of a >1 give rise to a hydrolysis profile called substrate activation, and the AChE site-specific mutant W86F, and to a lesser extent wild-type human AChE itself, showed substrate activation with acetylthiocholine as the substrate. Substrate activation was incorporated into a previous catalytic scheme for AChE in which a bound P-site ligand can also block product dissociation from the A-site, and two additional features of the AChE catalytic pathway were revealed. First, the ability of a bound P-site ligand to increase the substrate acetylation rate constant varied with the structure of the ligand: thioflavin T accelerated ATMA acetylation by a factor a(2) of 1.3, while propidium failed to accelerate. Second, catalytic rate

Influence of substrate mineralogy on bacterial mineralization of calcium carbonate: implications for stone conservation.

Science.gov (United States)

Rodriguez-Navarro, Carlos; Jroundi, Fadwa; Schiro, Mara; Ruiz-Agudo, Encarnación; González-Muñoz, María Teresa

2012-06-01

The influence of mineral substrate composition and structure on bacterial calcium carbonate productivity and polymorph selection was studied. Bacterial calcium carbonate precipitation occurred on calcitic (Iceland spar single crystals, marble, and porous limestone) and silicate (glass coverslips, porous sintered glass, and quartz sandstone) substrates following culturing in liquid medium (M-3P) inoculated with different types of bacteria (Myxococcus xanthus, Brevundimonas diminuta, and a carbonatogenic bacterial community isolated from porous calcarenite stone in a historical building) and direct application of sterile M-3P medium to limestone and sandstone with their own bacterial communities. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), and 2-dimensional XRD (2D-XRD) analyses revealed that abundant highly oriented calcite crystals formed homoepitaxially on the calcitic substrates, irrespective of the bacterial type. Conversely, scattered spheroidal vaterite entombing bacterial cells formed on the silicate substrates. These results show that carbonate phase selection is not strain specific and that under equal culture conditions, the substrate type is the overruling factor for calcium carbonate polymorph selection. Furthermore, carbonate productivity is strongly dependent on the mineralogy of the substrate. Calcitic substrates offer a higher affinity for bacterial attachment than silicate substrates, thereby fostering bacterial growth and metabolic activity, resulting in higher production of calcium carbonate cement. Bacterial calcite grows coherently over the calcitic substrate and is therefore more chemically and mechanically stable than metastable vaterite, which formed incoherently on the silicate substrates. The implications of these results for technological applications of bacterial carbonatogenesis, including building stone conservation, are discussed.

High-resolution and high-conductive electrode fabrication on a low thermal resistance flexible substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kang, Bongchul; Kno, Jinsung; Yang, Minyang

2011-01-01

Processes based on the liquid-state pattern transfer, like inkjet printing, have critical limitations including low resolution and low electrical conductivity when fabricating electrodes on low thermal resistance flexible substrates such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Those are due to the nonlinear transfer mechanism and the limit of the sintering temperature. Although the laser direct curing (LDC) of metallic inks is an alternative process to improve the resolution, it is also associated with the disadvantages of causing thermal damage to the polymer substrate. This paper suggests the laser induced pattern adhesion transfer method to fabricate electrodes of both high electrical conductivity and high resolution on a PET substrate. First, solid patterns are cost-effectively created by the LDC of the organometallic silver ink on a glass that is optically and thermally stable. The solid patterns sintered on the glass are transferred to the PET substrate by the photo-thermally generated adhesion force of the substrate. Therefore, we achieved electrodes with a minimum line width of 10 µm and a specific resistance of 3.6 μΩcm on the PET substrate. The patterns also showed high mechanical reliability

High-resolution and high-conductive electrode fabrication on a low thermal resistance flexible substrate

Science.gov (United States)

Kang, Bongchul; Kno, Jinsung; Yang, Minyang

2011-07-01

Processes based on the liquid-state pattern transfer, like inkjet printing, have critical limitations including low resolution and low electrical conductivity when fabricating electrodes on low thermal resistance flexible substrates such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Those are due to the nonlinear transfer mechanism and the limit of the sintering temperature. Although the laser direct curing (LDC) of metallic inks is an alternative process to improve the resolution, it is also associated with the disadvantages of causing thermal damage to the polymer substrate. This paper suggests the laser induced pattern adhesion transfer method to fabricate electrodes of both high electrical conductivity and high resolution on a PET substrate. First, solid patterns are cost-effectively created by the LDC of the organometallic silver ink on a glass that is optically and thermally stable. The solid patterns sintered on the glass are transferred to the PET substrate by the photo-thermally generated adhesion force of the substrate. Therefore, we achieved electrodes with a minimum line width of 10 µm and a specific resistance of 3.6 μΩcm on the PET substrate. The patterns also showed high mechanical reliability.

Preparation and characterization of nanostructured ZrO2 coatings on dense and porous substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shi Jingyu; Verweij, Henk

2008-01-01

Nanostructured ZrO 2 coatings are prepared on both dense and porous substrates by wet-chemical deposition of non-agglomerated 5 nm precursor particle dispersions, followed by thermal processing. The precursor particle dispersions are made by modified emulsion precipitation and a purification treatment to remove reaction products and additives. The coatings are formed by depositing the precursor nanoparticle dispersion directly onto the substrate, followed by drying and heating at 600 deg. C. Scanning electron microscopy and cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy observations of the heat-treated coatings indicate that the ZrO 2 coating on dense Si wafer substrate has a homogeneous, dense particle packing structure with shallow meniscus-shaped depressions in the surface, and microcracks below the meniscus surface. On the other hand, coatings formed on a meso-porous γ-alumina membrane substrate are free of defects, but with a lower packing density. The mechanism of the substrate effect on the particle packing behavior and defect formation during coating deposition is discussed. It is expected that by using a thin porous substrate with reduced capillary force, a defect-free, homogenously dense-packed coating structure can be achieved

Ratchet Effects, Negative Mobility, and Phase Locking for Skyrmions on Periodic Substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Reichhardt, Charles; Ray, Dipanjan; Olson Reichhardt, Cynthia

We examine the dynamics of skyrmions interacting with 1D and 2D periodic substrates in the presence of dc and ac drives. We find that the Magnus term strongly affects the skyrmion dynamics and that new kinds of phenomena can occur which are absent for overdamped ac and dc driven particles interacting with similar substrates. We show that it is possible to realize a Magnus induced ratchet for skyrmions interacting with an asymmetric potential, where the application of an ac drive can produce quantized dc motion of the skyrmions even when the ac force is perpendicular to the substrate asymmetry direction. For symmetric substrates it is also possible to achieve a negative mobility effect where the net skyrmion motion runs counter to an applied dc drive. Here, as a function of increasing dc drive, the velocity-force curves show a series of locking phases that have different features from the classic Shapiro steps found in overdamped systems. In the phase locking and ratcheting states, the skyrmions undergo intricate 2D orbits induced by the Magnus term.

Multifunctionality is affected by interactions between green roof plant species, substrate depth, and substrate type.

Science.gov (United States)

Dusza, Yann; Barot, Sébastien; Kraepiel, Yvan; Lata, Jean-Christophe; Abbadie, Luc; Raynaud, Xavier

2017-04-01

Green roofs provide ecosystem services through evapotranspiration and nutrient cycling that depend, among others, on plant species, substrate type, and substrate depth. However, no study has assessed thoroughly how interactions between these factors alter ecosystem functions and multifunctionality of green roofs. We simulated some green roof conditions in a pot experiment. We planted 20 plant species from 10 genera and five families (Asteraceae, Caryophyllaceae, Crassulaceae, Fabaceae, and Poaceae) on two substrate types (natural vs. artificial) and two substrate depths (10 cm vs. 30 cm). As indicators of major ecosystem functions, we measured aboveground and belowground biomasses, foliar nitrogen and carbon content, foliar transpiration, substrate water retention, and dissolved organic carbon and nitrates in leachates. Interactions between substrate type and depth strongly affected ecosystem functions. Biomass production was increased in the artificial substrate and deeper substrates, as was water retention in most cases. In contrast, dissolved organic carbon leaching was higher in the artificial substrates. Except for the Fabaceae species, nitrate leaching was reduced in deep, natural soils. The highest transpiration rates were associated with natural soils. All functions were modulated by plant families or species. Plant effects differed according to the observed function and the type and depth of the substrate. Fabaceae species grown on natural soils had the most noticeable patterns, allowing high biomass production and high water retention but also high nitrate leaching from deep pots. No single combination of factors enhanced simultaneously all studied ecosystem functions, highlighting that soil-plant interactions induce trade-offs between ecosystem functions. Substrate type and depth interactions are major drivers for green roof multifunctionality.

Microstructure of vapor deposited coatings on curved substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rodgers, Theron M.; Zhao, Hengbei; Wadley, Haydn N. G., E-mail: haydn@virginia.edu [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Virginia, 395 McCormick Rd., P.O. Box 400745, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904 (United States)

2015-09-15

Thermal barrier coating systems consisting of a metallic bond coat and ceramic over layer are widely used to extend the life of gas turbine engine components. They are applied using either high-vacuum physical vapor deposition techniques in which vapor atoms rarely experience scattering collisions during propagation to a substrate, or by gas jet assisted (low-vacuum) vapor deposition techniques that utilize scattering from streamlines to enable non-line-of-sight deposition. Both approaches require substrate motion to coat a substrate of complex shape. Here, direct simulation Monte Carlo and kinetic Monte Carlo simulation methods are combined to simulate the deposition of a nickel coating over the concave and convex surfaces of a model airfoil, and the simulation results are compared with those from experimental depositions. The simulation method successfully predicted variations in coating thickness, columnar growth angle, and porosity during both stationary and substrate rotated deposition. It was then used to investigate a wide range of vapor deposition conditions spanning high-vacuum physical vapor deposition to low-vacuum gas jet assisted vapor deposition. The average coating thickness was found to increase initially with gas pressure reaching a maximum at a chamber pressure of 8–10 Pa, but the best coating thickness uniformity was achieved under high vacuum deposition conditions. However, high vacuum conditions increased the variation in the coatings pore volume fraction over the surface of the airfoil. The simulation approach was combined with an optimization algorithm and used to investigate novel deposition concepts to tailor the local coating thickness.

Microstructure of vapor deposited coatings on curved substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rodgers, Theron M.; Zhao, Hengbei; Wadley, Haydn N. G.

2015-01-01

Thermal barrier coating systems consisting of a metallic bond coat and ceramic over layer are widely used to extend the life of gas turbine engine components. They are applied using either high-vacuum physical vapor deposition techniques in which vapor atoms rarely experience scattering collisions during propagation to a substrate, or by gas jet assisted (low-vacuum) vapor deposition techniques that utilize scattering from streamlines to enable non-line-of-sight deposition. Both approaches require substrate motion to coat a substrate of complex shape. Here, direct simulation Monte Carlo and kinetic Monte Carlo simulation methods are combined to simulate the deposition of a nickel coating over the concave and convex surfaces of a model airfoil, and the simulation results are compared with those from experimental depositions. The simulation method successfully predicted variations in coating thickness, columnar growth angle, and porosity during both stationary and substrate rotated deposition. It was then used to investigate a wide range of vapor deposition conditions spanning high-vacuum physical vapor deposition to low-vacuum gas jet assisted vapor deposition. The average coating thickness was found to increase initially with gas pressure reaching a maximum at a chamber pressure of 8–10 Pa, but the best coating thickness uniformity was achieved under high vacuum deposition conditions. However, high vacuum conditions increased the variation in the coatings pore volume fraction over the surface of the airfoil. The simulation approach was combined with an optimization algorithm and used to investigate novel deposition concepts to tailor the local coating thickness

Structural insights into the cofactor-assisted substrate recognition of yeast methylglyoxal/isovaleraldehyde reductase Gre2.

Science.gov (United States)

Guo, Peng-Chao; Bao, Zhang-Zhi; Ma, Xiao-Xiao; Xia, Qingyou; Li, Wei-Fang

2014-09-01

Saccharomyces cerevisiae Gre2 (EC1.1.1.283) serves as a versatile enzyme that catalyzes the stereoselective reduction of a broad range of substrates including aliphatic and aromatic ketones, diketones, as well as aldehydes, using NADPH as the cofactor. Here we present the crystal structures of Gre2 from S. cerevisiae in an apo-form at 2.00Å and NADPH-complexed form at 2.40Å resolution. Gre2 forms a homodimer, each subunit of which contains an N-terminal Rossmann-fold domain and a variable C-terminal domain, which participates in substrate recognition. The induced fit upon binding to the cofactor NADPH makes the two domains shift toward each other, producing an interdomain cleft that better fits the substrate. Computational simulation combined with site-directed mutagenesis and enzymatic activity analysis enabled us to define a potential substrate-binding pocket that determines the stringent substrate stereoselectivity for catalysis. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Maintainable substrate carrier for electroplating

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Chen-An [Milpitas, CA; Abas, Emmanuel Chua [Laguna, PH; Divino, Edmundo Anida [Cavite, PH; Ermita, Jake Randal G [Laguna, PH; Capulong, Jose Francisco S [Laguna, PH; Castillo, Arnold Villamor [Batangas, PH; Ma,; Xiaobing, Diana [Saratoga, CA

2012-07-17

One embodiment relates to a substrate carrier for use in electroplating a plurality of substrates. The carrier includes a non-conductive carrier body on which the substrates are placed and conductive lines embedded within the carrier body. A plurality of conductive clip attachment parts are attached in a permanent manner to the conductive lines embedded within the carrier body. A plurality of contact clips are attached in a removable manner to the clip attachment parts. The contact clips hold the substrates in place and conductively connecting the substrates with the conductive lines. Other embodiments, aspects and features are also disclosed.

Quantitative Photochemical Immobilization of Biomolecules on Planar and Corrugated Substrates: A Versatile Strategy for Creating Functional Biointerfaces

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, Teresa A.; Herman, Christine T.; Limpoco, Francis T.; Michael, Madeline C.; Potts, Gregory K.; Bailey, Ryan C.

2014-01-01

Methods for the generation of substrates presenting biomolecules in a spatially controlled manner are enabling tools for applications in biosensor systems, microarray technologies, fundamental biological studies and biointerface science. We have implemented a method to create biomolecular patterns by using light to control the direct covalent immobilization of biomolecules onto benzophenone-modified glass substrates. We have generated substrates presenting up to three different biomolecules patterned in sequence, and demonstrate biomolecular photopatterning on corrugated substrates. The chemistry of the underlying monolayer was optimized to incorporate poly(ethylene glycol) to enable adhesive cell adhesion onto patterned extracellular matrix proteins. Substrates were characterized with contact angle goniometry, AFM, and immunofluorescence microscopy. Importantly, radioimmunoassays were performed to quantify the site density of immobilized biomolecules on photopatterned substrates. Retention of function of photopatterned proteins was demonstrated both by native ligand recognition and cell adhesion to photopatterned substrates, revealing that substrates generated with this method are suitable for probing specific cell receptor-ligand interactions. This molecularly general photochemical patterning method is an enabling tool that will allow the creation of substrates presenting both biochemical and topographical variation, which is an important feature of many native biointerfaces. PMID:21793535

Modification of Surface Energy via Direct Laser Ablative Surface Patterning

Science.gov (United States)

Wohl, Christopher J., Jr. (Inventor); Belcher, Marcus A. (Inventor); Connell, John W. (Inventor); Hopkins, John W. (Inventor)

2015-01-01

Surface energy of a substrate is changed without the need for any template, mask, or additional coating medium applied to the substrate. At least one beam of energy directly ablates a substrate surface to form a predefined topographical pattern at the surface. Each beam of energy has a width of approximately 25 micrometers and an energy of approximately 1-500 microJoules. Features in the topographical pattern have a width of approximately 1-500 micrometers and a height of approximately 1.4-100 micrometers.

Detection of Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. basilici in substrates and roots by PCR.

Science.gov (United States)

Pugliese, M; Ferrocino, I; Gullino, M L; Garibaldi, A

2013-01-01

Fusarium oxysporum is a soil-borne fungus that causes vascular wilts in a wide variety of plant species. Basil is recognized as an ecological niche for Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. basilici (FOB) and this fungus is now present in most countries where basil is cultivated. The rapid identification of the species affecting basil plants is necessary to define a successful method for crop protection. The aim of this study was to develop a PCR method for the rapid detection of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. basilici in substrates. The specificity of the primers used was tested using the DNA extracted directly from substrate samples. Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. basilici was artificially inoculated with decreasing amounts in a commercial substrate (sphagnum peat moss) and in a mixture with 40% of municipal compost, after steam disinfestation. Basil seeds (cv. Fine verde) were sown in pots that were laid on a bench in the greenhouse. At time 0 and after 7, 14 and 21 days from the inoculation, substrate and root samples were collected and prepared for microbial analysis and for the DNA extraction. DNA extraction was carried out using NucleoSpin Soil Kit (Macherey-Nagel, Germany). PCR amplification for the specific detection was carried out using primer sets Bik 1 (5'-ATT CAA GAG CTA AAG GTC C-3') and Bik 4 (5'-TTT GAC CAA GAT AGA TGC C-3') for the first PCR, while primers Bik 1 + Bik 2 (5'-AAA GGT AGT ATA TCG GAG G-3') for the nested PCR to increase detection sensitivity. Disease incidence was also assessed 21 days after seeding. The results showed the presence of amplified fragments of the expected size when the concentration of F. oxysporum f.sp. basilici was at least 3.5 Log CFU g(-1) by using DNA extract directly from substrate, before roots were infected by the pathogen. The detection of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. basilici by PCR method developed in this study is certainly simple and fast and can be useful for its reliable detection in substrate samples, but not to guarantee that

Electric field stimulation through a substrate influences Schwann cell and extracellular matrix structure

Science.gov (United States)

Nguyen, Hieu T.; Wei, Claudia; Chow, Jacqueline K.; Nguy, Lindsey; Nguyen, Hieu K.; Schmidt, Christine E.

2013-08-01

Objective. Electric field (EF) stimulation has been used to cue cell growth for tissue engineering applications. In this study, we explore the electrical parameters and extracellular mechanisms that elicit changes in cell behavior when stimulated through the substrate. Approach. Rat Schwann cell morphology was compared when exposed to EF through the media or a conductive indium tin oxide substrate. Ionic and structural effects were then analyzed on Matrigel and collagen I, respectively. Main results. When stimulating through media, cells had greater alignment perpendicular to the EF with higher current densities (106 mA cm-2 at 245 mV mm-1), and reached maximum alignment within 8 h. Stimulation through the substrate with EF (up to 110 mV mm-1) did not affect Schwann cell orientation, however the EF caused extracellular matrix (ECM) coatings on substrates to peel away, suggesting EF can physically change the ECM. Applying alternating current (ac) 2-1000 Hz signals through the media or substrate both caused cells to flatten and protrude many processes, without preferential alignment. Matrigel exposed to a substrate EF of 10 mV mm-1 for 2 h had a greater calcium concentration near the cathode, but quickly dissipated when the EF was removed. Schwann cells seeded 7 d after gels were exposed to substrate EF still aligned perpendicular to the EF direction. Microscopy of collagen I exposed to substrate EF shows alignment and bundling of fibrils. Significance. These findings demonstrate EF exposure can control Schwann cell alignment and morphology, change ECM bulk/surface architecture, and align ECM structures.

Pre-patterned ZnO nanoribbons on soft substrates for stretchable energy harvesting applications

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, Teng; Wang, Yong; Tang, Rui; Yu, Hongyu; Jiang, Hanqing

2013-05-01

Three pre-patterned ZnO nanoribbons in different configurations were studied in this paper, including (a) straight ZnO nanoribbons uniformly bonded on soft substrates that form sinusoidal buckles, (b) straight ZnO nanoribbons selectively bonded on soft substrates that form pop-up buckles, and (c) serpentine ZnO nanoribbons bonded on soft substrates via anchors. The nonlinear dynamics and random analysis were conducted to obtain the fundamental frequencies and to evaluate their performance in energy harvesting applications. We found that pop-up buckles and overhanging serpentine structures are suitable for audio frequency energy harvesting applications. Remarkably, almost unchanged fundamental natural frequency upon strain is achieved by properly patterning ZnO nanoribbons, which initiates a new and exciting direction of stretchable energy harvesting using nano-scale materials in audio frequency range.

Inkjet printing of silver citrate conductive ink on PET substrate

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nie Xiaolei [Key Laboratory for Green Chemical Technology of Ministry of Education, School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072 (China); Wang Hong, E-mail: hongwang@tju.edu.cn [Key Laboratory for Green Chemical Technology of Ministry of Education, School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072 (China); Zou Jing [Key Laboratory for Green Chemical Technology of Ministry of Education, School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072 (China)

2012-11-15

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer A direct synthesis method of silver conductive film on PET substrate was presented. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer A stable particle-free conductive ink was prepared. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Formation of silver-amine complex reduced the thermal decomposition temperature. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Conductive patterns for flexible electronics were fabricated by inkjet printing. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Silver film on PET substrate possessed highest adhesion rating even without polymer. - Abstract: Direct synthesis of silver conductive film on PET substrate by inkjet printing silver citrate conductive ink was presented in this paper. This kind of conductive ink contained silver citrate as silver precursor, 1,2-diaminopropane as complex agent dissolving the silver salt and methanol and isopropanol as a media adjusting the viscosity and surface tension. The formation of silver-amine complex reduced the decomposition temperature from 180 Degree-Sign C to 135 Degree-Sign C, thus the ink could be cured at relatively low temperature. The film reached the lowest resistivity of 17 {mu}{Omega} cm after cured at 150 Degree-Sign C for 50 min, 3.1 {mu}{Omega} cm at 230 Degree-Sign C and possessed high reflection and excellent adhesive property. Electrical conductivity, surface morphology and composition were investigated by four-point probe method, scanning electron microscope (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). It is demonstrated how the cured condition affects the silver film. Moreover, radio-frequency identification (RFID) antenna was fabricated by inkjet printing, which opens up routes for the flexible electronics fabrication.

Directed evolution of a thermostable l-aminoacylase biocatalyst

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Parker, Brenda M.; Taylor, Ian N.; Woodley, John

2011-01-01

Enzymes from extreme environments possess highly desirable traits of activity and stability for application under process conditions. One such example is l-aminoacylase (E.C. 3.5.1.14) from Thermococcus litoralis (TliACY), which catalyzes the enantioselective amide hydrolysis of N-protected l......-amino acids, useful for resolving racemic mixtures in the preparation of chiral intermediates. Variants of this enzyme with improved activity and altered substrate preference are highly desirable. We have created a structural homology model of the enzyme and applied various two different directed evolution....... The substrate preference of wild type decreases with increasingly branched and sterically hindered substrates. However, the mutant S100T/M106K disrupted this simple trend by selectively improving the substrate preference for N-benzoyl valine, with a >30-fold shift in the ratio of kcat values for N...

Copper-vapor-catalyzed chemical vapor deposition of graphene on dielectric substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Chao; Wu, Tianru; Wang, Haomin; Zhang, Xuefu; Shi, Zhiyuan; Xie, Xiaoming

2017-07-01

Direct synthesis of high-quality graphene on dielectric substrates is important for its application in electronics. In this work, we report the process of copper-vapor-catalyzed chemical vapor deposition of high-quality and large graphene domains on various dielectric substrates. The copper vapor plays a vital role on the growth of transfer-free graphene. Both single-crystal domains that are much larger than previous reports and high-coverage graphene films can be obtained by adjusting the growth duration. The quality of the obtained graphene was verified to be comparable with that of graphene grown on Cu foil. The progress reported in this work will aid the development of the application of transfer-free graphene in the future.

Substrate-Bound Protein Gradients to Study Haptotaxis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sebastien G. Ricoult

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Cells navigate in response to inhomogeneous distributions of extracellular guidance cues. The cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying migration in response to gradients of chemical cues have been investigated for over a century. Following the introduction of micropipettes and more recently microfluidics for gradient generation, much attention and effort was devoted to study cellular chemotaxis, which is defined as guidance by gradients of chemical cues in solution. Haptotaxis, directional migration in response to gradients of substrate-bound cues, has received comparatively less attention; however it is increasingly clear that in vivo many physiologically relevant guidance proteins – including many secreted cues – are bound to cellular surfaces or incorporated into extracellular matrix and likely function via a haptotactic mechanism. Here, we review the history of haptotaxis. We examine the importance of the reference surface, the surface in contact with the cell that is not covered by the cue, which forms a gradient opposing the gradient of the protein cue and must be considered in experimental designs and interpretation of results. We review and compare microfluidics, contact-printing, light patterning and 3D fabrication to pattern substrate-bound protein gradients in vitro, and focus on their application to study axon guidance. The range of methods to create substrate-bound gradients discussed herein make possible systematic analyses of haptotactic mechanisms. Furthermore, understanding the fundamental mechanisms underlying cell motility will inform bioengineering approaches to program cell navigation and recover lost function.

Out-of-substrate plane orientation control of thin YBa2Cu3O x films on NdGaO3 tilted-axes substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mozhaev, Peter B.; Mozhaeva, Julia E.; Bdikin, Igor K.; Kotelyanskii, Iosif M.; Lusanov, Valery A.; Hansen, Jorn Bindslev; Jacobsen, Claus S.; Kholkin, Andrey L.

2006-01-01

Epitaxial heterostructures YBa 2 Cu 3 O x (YBCO)/CeO 2 /NdGaO 3 were prepared on tilted-axes NdGaO 3 substrates using laser ablation technique. Morphology, crystal structure and electrical properties of the obtained films were characterized. The seeding mechanisms are affected by the tilt angle, resulting in superior YBCO films on NdGaO 3 substrates in an intermediate range of tilt angles of 6-14 o . The introduction of CeO 2 layer leads to change of the YBCO film orientation: at low deposition rate c-oriented films are formed, while at high deposition rates the film grows with c-axis tilted along the [1 1 0] NdGaO 3 direction. Bi-epitaxial films and structures were prepared by removal of part of the CeO 2 layer using ion-beam milling

Analysis of effect of nanoporous alumina substrate coated with polypyrrole nanowire on cell morphology based on AFM topography.

Science.gov (United States)

El-Said, Waleed Ahmed; Yea, Cheol-Heon; Jung, Mi; Kim, Hyuncheol; Choi, Jeong-Woo

2010-05-01

In this study, in situ electrochemical synthesis of polypyrrole nanowires with nanoporous alumina template was described. The formation of highly ordered porous alumina substrate was demonstrated with Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). In addition, Fourier transform infrared analysis confirmed that polypyrrole (PP) nanowires were synthesized by direct electrochemical oxidation of pyrrole. HeLa cancer cells and HMCF normal cells were immobilized on the polypyrrole nanowires/nanoporous alumina substrates to determine the effects of the substrate on the cell morphology, adhesion and proliferation as well as the biocompatibility of the substrate. Cell adhesion and proliferation were characterized using a standard MTT assay. The effects of the polypyrrole nanowires/nanoporous alumina substrate on the cell morphology were studied by AFM. The nanoporous alumina coated with polypyrrole nanowires was found to exhibit better cell adhesion and proliferation than polystyrene petridish, aluminum foil, 1st anodized and uncoated 2nd anodized alumina substrate. This study showed the potential of the polypyrrole nanowires/nanoporous alumina substrate as biocompatibility electroactive polymer substrate for both healthy and cancer cell cultures applications.

Modeling of InP HBTs in Transferred-Substrate Technology for Millimeter-Wave Applications

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Johansen, Tom Keinicke; Rudolph, Matthias; Jensen, Thomas

2013-01-01

In this paper, the modeling of InP heterojunction bipolar transistors (HBTs) in transferred substrate (TS) technology is investigated. At first, a direct parameter extraction methodology dedicated to III-V based HBTs is employed to determine the small-signal equivalent circuit parameters from...

Empirical evaluation of inhibitory product, substrate, and enzyme effects during the enzymatic saccharification of lignocellulosic biomass.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Benjamin T; Knutsen, Jeffrey S; Davis, Robert H

2010-05-01

The cellulose hydrolysis kinetics during batch enzymatic saccharification are typified by a rapid initial rate that subsequently decays, resulting in incomplete conversion. Previous studies suggest that changes associated with the solution, substrate, or enzymes may be responsible. In this work, kinetic experiments were conducted to determine the relative magnitude of these effects. Pretreated corn stover (PCS) was used as a lignocellulosic substrate likely to be found in a commercial saccharification process, while Avicel and Kraft lignin were used to create model substrates. Glucose inhibition was observed by spiking the reaction slurry with glucose during initial-rate experiments. Increasing the glucose concentration from 7 to 48 g/L reduced the cellulose conversion rate by 94%. When product sugars were removed using ultrafiltration with a 10 kDa membrane, the glucose-based conversion increased by 9.5%. Reductions in substrate reactivity with conversion were compared directly by saccharifying PCS and Avicel substrates that had been pre-reacted to different conversions. Reaction of substrate with a pre-conversion of 40% resulted in about 40% reduction in the initial rate of saccharification, relative to fresh substrate with identical cellulose concentration. Overall, glucose inhibition and reduced substrate reactivity appear to be dominant factors, whereas minimal reductions of enzyme activity were observed.

Kinetics of directed self-assembly of block copolymers on chemically patterned substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Müller, Marcus; Li, Weihua; Rey, Juan Carlos Orozco; Welling, Ulrich

2015-01-01

Chemically patterned surfaces have been successfully employed to direct the kinetics of self-assembly of block copolymers into dense, periodic morphologies (”chemoepitaxy”). Significant efforts have been directed towards understanding the kinetics of structure formation and, particularly, the formation and annihilation of defects. In the present manuscript we use computer simulations of a soft, coarse-grained polymer model to study the kinetics of structure formation of lamellar-forming block copolymer thin films on a chemical pattern of lines and spaces. The case where the copolymer material replicates the surface pattern and the more subtle scenario of sparse guiding patterns are considered. Our simulation results highlight (1) the importance of the early stages of pattern-directed self-assembly that template the subsequent morphology and (2) the dependence of the free-energy landscape on the incompatibility between the two blocks of the copolymer. (paper)

Defect-Free Graphene Synthesized Directly at 150 °C via Chemical Vapor Deposition with No Transfer.

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Byeong-Ju; Choi, Jin-Seok; Eom, Ji-Ho; Ha, Hyunwoo; Kim, Hyun You; Lee, Seonhee; Shin, Hyunjung; Yoon, Soon-Gil

2018-02-27

Direct graphene synthesis on substrates via chemical vapor deposition (CVD) is an attractive approach for manufacturing flexible electronic devices. The temperature for graphene synthesis must be below ∼200 °C to prevent substrate deformation while fabricating flexible devices on plastic substrates. Herein, we report a process whereby defect-free graphene is directly synthesized on a variety of substrates via the introduction of an ultrathin Ti catalytic layer, due to the strong affinity of Ti to carbon. Ti with a thickness of 10 nm was naturally oxidized by exposure to air before and after the graphene synthesis, and the various functions of neither the substrates nor the graphene were influenced. This report offers experimental evidence of high-quality graphene synthesis on Ti-coated substrates at 150 °C via CVD. The proposed methodology was applied to the fabrication of flexible and transparent thin-film capacitors with top electrodes of high-quality graphene.

Ion exchange substrates for plant cultivation in extraterrestrial stations and space crafts

Science.gov (United States)

Soldatov, Vladimir

2012-07-01

Ion exchange substrates Biona were specially designed at the Belarus Academy of Sciences for plants cultivation in spacecrafts and extraterrestrial stations. The first versions of such substrates have been successfully used in several space experiments and in a long-term experiment in which three soviet test-spacemen spent a full year in hermetic cabin imitating a lunar station cabin (1067-1968). In this experiment the life support system included a section with about one ton of the ion exchange substrate, which was used to grow ten vegetations of different green cultures used in the food of the test persons. Due to failure of a number of Soviet space experiments, decay of the Soviet Union and the following economic crisis the research in this field carried out in Belarus were re-directed to the needs of usual agriculture, such as adaptation of cell cultures, growing seedlings, rootage of cuttings etc. At present ion exchange substrate Biona are produced in limited amounts at the experimental production plant of the Institute of Physical Organic Chemistry and used in a number of agricultural enterprises. New advanced substrates and technologies for their production have been developed during that time. In the presentation scientific principles of preparation and functioning of ion exchange substrates as well as results of their application for cultivation different plants are described. The ion exchange substrate is a mixture of cation and anion exchangers saturated in a certain proportions with all ions of macro and micro elements. These chemically bound ions are not released to water and become available for plants in exchange to their root metabolites. The substrates contain about 5% mass of nutrient elements far exceeding any other nutrient media for plants. They allow generating 3-5 kg of green biomass per kilogram of substrate without adding any fertilizers; they are sterile by the way of production and can be sterilized by usual methods; allow regeneration

Impact of substrate corrugation on the sliding friction levels of adsorbed films.

Science.gov (United States)

Coffey, T; Krim, J

2005-08-12

We report a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) study of sliding friction for solid xenon monolayers at 77 K on Cu(111), Ni(111), graphene/Ni(111), and C(60) substrates. Simulations have predicted a strong dependence of phononic friction coefficient (eta) on surface corrugation in systems with similar lattice spacing, eta approximately U(2)(0), but this has never before been shown experimentally. In order to make direct comparisons with theory, substrates with similar lattice spacing but varying amplitudes of surface corrugation were studied. QCM data reveal friction levels proportional to U(2)(0), validating current theoretical and numerical predictions. Measurements of Xe/C(60) are also included for comparison purposes.

Comparison of structural properties of thermally evaporated CdTe thin films on different substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tariq, G.H.; Anis-ur-Rehman, M.

2011-01-01

The direct energy band gap in the range of 1.5 eV and the high absorption coefficient (105 cm/sup -1/) makes Cadmium Telluride (CdTe) a suitable material for fabrication of thin film solar cells. Thin film solar cells based on CdTe (1 cm area) achieved efficiency of 15.6% on a laboratory scale. CdTe thin films were deposited by thermal evaporation technique under vacuum 2 X 10/sup -5/mbar on glass and stainless steel (SS) substrates. During deposition substrates temperature was kept same at 200 deg. C for all samples. The structural properties were determined by the X-ray Diffraction (XRD) patterns. All samples exhibit polycrystalline nature. Dependence of different structural parameters such as lattice parameter, micro strain, and grain size and dislocation density on thickness was studied. Also the influence of the different substrates on these parameters was investigated. The analysis showed that the preferential orientation of films was dependent on the substrate type. (author)

Nanoparticle manipulation in the near-substrate areas of low-temperature, high-density rf plasmas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rutkevych, P.P.; Ostrikov, K.; Xu, S.

2005-01-01

Manipulation of a single nanoparticle in the near-substrate areas of high-density plasmas of low-temperature glow discharges is studied. It is shown that the nanoparticles can be efficiently manipulated by the thermophoretic force controlled by external heating of the substrate stage. Particle deposition onto or repulsion from nanostructured carbon surfaces critically depends on the values of the neutral gas temperature gradient in the near-substrate areas, which is directly measured in situ in different heating regimes by originally developed temperature gradient probe. The measured values of the near-surface temperature gradient are used in the numerical model of nanoparticle dynamics in a variable-length presheath. Specific conditions enabling the nanoparticle to overcome the repulsive potential and deposit on the substrate during the discharge operation are investigated. The results are relevant to fabrication of various nanostructured films employing structural incorporation of the plasma-grown nanoparticles, in particular, to nanoparticle deposition in the plasma-enhanced chemical-vapor deposition of carbon nanostructures in hydrocarbon-based plasmas

The growth and characterization of well aligned RuO2 nanorods on sapphire substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, C C; Chen, R S; Tsai, T Y; Huang, Y S; Tsai, D S; Tiong, K K

2004-01-01

Self-assembled and well aligned RuO 2 nanorods (NRs) have been grown on sapphire (SA) substrates via metal-organic chemical vapour deposition (MOCVD), using bis(ethylcyclopentadienyl)ruthenium as the source reagent. The surface morphology, structural, and spectroscopic properties of the as-deposited NRs were characterized using field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), selected-area electron diffractometry (SAD), x-ray diffraction (XRD), x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and micro-Raman spectroscopy. FESEM micrographs reveal that vertically aligned nanorods (NRs) were grown on SA(100), while the NRs on the SA(012) were grown with a tilt angle of ∼ 35 degrees from the normal to the substrates. TEM and SAD measurements showed that the RuO 2 NRs with square cross-section have the long axis directed along the [001] direction. The XRD results indicate that the RuO 2 NRs are (002) oriented on SA(100) and (101) oriented on SA(012) substrates. A strong substrate effect on the alignment of the RuO 2 NRs growth has been demonstrated and the probable mechanism for the formation of these NRs has been discussed. XP spectra show the coexistence of higher oxidation state of ruthenium in the as-grown RuO 2 NRs. Micro-Raman spectra show the red-shift and peak broadening of the RuO 2 signatures with respect to that of the bulk counterpart which may be indicative of a phonon confinement effect for these NRs

Preparation and surface characterization of plasma-treated and biomolecular-micropatterned polymer substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Langowski, Bryan Alfred

A micropatterning process creates distinct microscale domains on substrate surfaces that differ from the surfaces' original chemical/physical properties. Numerous micropatterning methods exist, each having relative advantages and disadvantages in terms of cost, ease, reproducibility, and versatility. Polymeric surfaces micropatterned with biomolecules have many applications, but are specifically utilized in tissue engineering as cell scaffolds that attempt to controlled tissue generation in vivo and ex vivo. As the physical and chemical cues presented by micropatterned substrates control resulting cellular behavior, characterization of these cues via surface-sensitive analytical techniques is essential in developing cell scaffolds that mimic complex in vivo physicochemical environments. The initial focus of this thesis is the chemical and physical characterization of plasma-treated, microcontact-printed (muCP) polymeric substrates used to direct nerve cell behavior. Unmodified and oxygen plasma-treated poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) substrates were analyzed by surface sensitive techniques to monitor plasma-induced chemical and physical modifications. Additionally, protein-micropattern homogeneity and size were microscopically evaluated. Lastly, poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) stamps and contaminated PMMA substrates were characterized by spectroscopic and microscopic methods to identify a contamination source during microcontact printing. The final focus of this thesis is the development of microscale plasma-initiated patterning (muPIP) as a versatile, reproducible micropatterning method. Using muPIP, polymeric substrates were micropatterned with several biologically relevant inks. Polymeric substrates were characterized following muPIP by surface-sensitive techniques to identify the technique's underlying physical and chemical bases. In addition, neural stem cell response to muPIP-generated laminin micropatterns was microscopically and biologically evaluated

Electrical characteristic of spin coated Fe-Porphyrin on Cu substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Utari, E-mail: utari@ugm.ac.id [Department of Physics, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Sebelas Maret, Jl. Ir. Sutami 36A Kentingan Surakarta 57126 (Indonesia); Department of Physics, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Bulaksumur BLS 21 Yogyakarta 55281 (Indonesia); Kusumandari,; Purnama, Budi, E-mail: bpurnama@mipa.uns.ac.id [Department of Physics, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Sebelas Maret, Jl. Ir. Sutami 36A Kentingan Surakarta 57126 (Indonesia); Mudasir [Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Bulaksumur BLS 21 Yogyakarta 55281 (Indonesia); Abraha, Kamsul [Department of Physics, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Bulaksumur BLS 21 Yogyakarta 55281 (Indonesia)

2016-06-17

This paper describes the electrical-characteristics of Fe-Porphyrin thin films on Cu substrates. The thin layer samples used were deposited by spin coating methods on Cu-substrates at room temperature with and without induced magnetic field in the plane direction of the surface films. Fe-porphyrin was dissolved in chloroform and mixed with a magnetic stirrer for 60 min at a rotational speed of 200 rpm. The experimental results show that the mobility carrier charge of the Fe-Porphyrin layer with induced magnetic field during deposition has lower value than that without induced magnetic field case. The decrease of the mobility can be attribute to the change of the surface morphology in Fe-porphyrin films by means of increase in the nano-granular/nano-molecular size caused by the induce magnetic field.

Silver nanoparticles deposited on anodic aluminum oxide template using magnetron sputtering for surface-enhanced Raman scattering substrate

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wong-ek, Krongkamol [Nanoscience and Technology Program, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330 (Thailand); Eiamchai, Pitak; Horprathum, Mati; Patthanasettakul, Viyapol [National Electronics and Computer Technology Center, 112 Thailand Science Park, Phahonyothin Rd., Klong Luang, Pathumthani 12120 (Thailand); Limnonthakul, Puenisara [Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, King Mongkut' s University of Technology Thonburi, Bangkok 10140 (Thailand); Chindaudom, Pongpan [National Electronics and Computer Technology Center, 112 Thailand Science Park, Phahonyothin Rd., Klong Luang, Pathumthani 12120 (Thailand); Nuntawong, Noppadon, E-mail: noppadon.nuntawong@nectec.or.t [National Electronics and Computer Technology Center, 112 Thailand Science Park, Phahonyothin Rd., Klong Luang, Pathumthani 12120 (Thailand)

2010-09-30

Low-cost and highly sensitive surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrates have been fabricated by a simple anodizing process and a magnetron sputtering deposition. The substrates, which consist of silver nanoparticles embedded on anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) templates, are investigated by a scanning electron microscope and a confocal Raman spectroscopy. The SERS activities are demonstrated by Raman scattering from adsorbed solutions of methylene blue and pyridine on the SERS substrate surface. The most optimized SERS substrate contains the silver nanoparticles, with a size distribution of 10-30 nm, deposited on the AAO template. From a calculation, the SERS enhancement factor is as high as 8.5 x 10{sup 7}, which suggests strong potentials for direct applications in the chemical detection and analyses.

Fluorogenic Substrates for Visualizing Acidic Organelle Enzyme Activities.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fiona Karen Harlan

Full Text Available Lysosomes are acidic cytoplasmic organelles that are present in all nucleated mammalian cells and are involved in a variety of cellular processes including repair of the plasma membrane, defense against pathogens, cholesterol homeostasis, bone remodeling, metabolism, apoptosis and cell signaling. Defects in lysosomal enzyme activity have been associated with a variety of neurological diseases including Parkinson's Disease, Lysosomal Storage Diseases, Alzheimer's disease and Huntington's disease. Fluorogenic lysosomal staining probes were synthesized for labeling lysosomes and other acidic organelles in a live-cell format and were shown to be capable of monitoring lysosomal metabolic activity. The new targeted substrates were prepared from fluorescent dyes having a low pKa value for optimum fluorescence at the lower physiological pH found in lysosomes. They were modified to contain targeting groups to direct their accumulation in lysosomes as well as enzyme-cleavable functions for monitoring specific enzyme activities using a live-cell staining format. Application to the staining of cells derived from blood and skin samples of patients with Metachromatic Leukodystrophy, Krabbe and Gaucher Diseases as well as healthy human fibroblast and leukocyte control cells exhibited localization to the lysosome when compared with known lysosomal stain LysoTracker® Red DND-99 as well as with anti-LAMP1 Antibody staining. When cell metabolism was inhibited with chloroquine, staining with an esterase substrate was reduced, demonstrating that the substrates can be used to measure cell metabolism. When applied to diseased cells, the intensity of staining was reflective of lysosomal enzyme levels found in diseased cells. Substrates specific to the enzyme deficiencies in Gaucher or Krabbe disease patient cell lines exhibited reduced staining compared to that in non-diseased cells. The new lysosome-targeted fluorogenic substrates should be useful for research

Analysis of Apoptosis in Ultraviolet-Induced Sea Cucumber (Stichopus japonicus) Melting Using Terminal Deoxynucleotidyl-Transferase-Mediated dUTP Nick End-Labeling Assay and Cleaved Caspase-3 Immunohistochemistry.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Jing-Feng; Gao, Rong-Chun; Wu, Hai-Tao; Li, Peng-Fei; Hu, Xian-Shu; Zhou, Da-Yong; Zhu, Bei-Wei; Su, Yi-Cheng

2015-11-04

The sea cucumber body wall melting phenomenon occurs under certain circumstances, and the mechanism of this phenomenon remains unclear. This study investigated the apoptosis in the ultraviolet (UV)-induced sea cucumber melting phenomenon. Fresh sea cucumbers (Stichopus japonicus) were exposed to UV radiation for half an hour at an intensity of 0.056 mW/cm(2) and then held at room temperature for melting development. The samples were histologically processed into formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissues. The apoptosis of samples was analyzed with the terminal deoxynucleotidyl-transferase-mediated dUTP nick end-labeling (TUNEL) assay and cleaved caspase-3 immunohistochemistry. The emergence of TUNEL-positive cells speeds up between 0.5 and 2 h after UV irradiation. Cleaved caspase-3 positive cells were obviously detected in sample tissues immediately after the UV irradiation. These results demonstrated that sea cucumber melting induced by UV irradiation was triggered by the activation of caspase-3 followed by DNA fragmentation in sea cucumber tissue, which was attributed to apoptosis but was not a consequence of autolysis activity.

Non-permeable substrate carrier for electroplating

Science.gov (United States)

Abas, Emmanuel Chua; Chen, Chen-An; Ma, Diana Xiaobing; Ganti, Kalyana Bhargava

2012-11-27

One embodiment relates to a substrate carrier for use in electroplating a plurality of substrates. The substrate carrier comprises a non-conductive carrier body on which the substrates are to be held. Electrically-conductive lines are embedded within the carrier body, and a plurality of contact clips are coupled to the electrically-conductive lines embedded within the carrier body. The contact clips hold the substrates in place and electrically couple the substrates to the electrically-conductive lines. The non-conductive carrier body is continuous so as to be impermeable to flow of electroplating solution through the non-conductive carrier body. Other embodiments, aspects and features are also disclosed.

Thin-film X-ray filters on microstructured substrates and their thermophysical properties

Science.gov (United States)

Mitrofanov, A. V.

2018-02-01

It is shown that structured substrates having micron- or submicron-sized through holes and coated with an ultrathin organic film can be used for the fabrication of thin-film X-ray filters via direct growth of functional layers on a substrate by sputter deposition, without additional complex processing steps. An optimised process is considered for the fabrication of X-ray filters on support structures in the form of electroplated fine nickel grids and on track-etched polymer membranes with micron- and submicrondiameter through pores. 'Optimisation' is here taken to mean matching the sputter deposition conditions with the properties of substrates so as to avoid overheating. The filters in question are intended for both imaging and single-channel detectors operating in the soft X-ray and vacuum UV spectral regions, at wavelengths from 10 to 60 nm. Thermal calculations are presented for the heating of ultrathin layers of organic films and thin-film support substrates during the sputter deposition of aluminium or other functional materials. The paper discusses approaches for cooling thinfilm composites during the sputter deposition process and the service of the filters in experiments and gives a brief overview of the works that utilised filters produced by the described technique on microstructured substrates, including orbital solar X-ray research in the framework of the CORONAS programme and laboratory laser plasma experiments.

Topography evolution of rough-surface metallic substrates by solution deposition planarization method

Science.gov (United States)

Chu, Jingyuan; Zhao, Yue; Liu, Linfei; Wu, Wei; Zhang, Zhiwei; Hong, Zhiyong; Li, Yijie; Jin, Zhijian

2018-01-01

As an emerging technique for surface smoothing, solution deposition planarization (SDP) has recently drawn more attention on the fabrication of the second generation high temperature superconducting (2G-HTS) tapes. In our work, a number of amorphous oxide layers were deposited on electro-polished or mirror-rolled metallic substrates by chemical solution route. Topography evolution of surface defects on these two types of metallic substrates was thoroughly investigated by atomic force microscopy (AFM). It was showed that root mean square roughness values (at 50 × 50 μm2 scanning scale) on both rough substrates reduced to ∼5 nm after coating with SDP-layer. The smoothing effect was mainly attributed to decrease of the depth at grain boundary grooving on the electro-polished metallic substrate. On the mirror-rolled metallic substrates, the amplitude and frequency of the height fluctuation perpendicular to the rolling direction were gradually reduced as depositing more numbers of SDP-layer. A high Jc value of 4.17 MA cm-2 (at 77 K, s.f.) was achieved on a full stack of YBCO/CeO2/IBAD-MgO/SDP-layer/C276 sample. This study enhanced understanding of the topography evolution on the surface defects covered by the SDP-layer, and demonstrated a low-cost route for fabricating IBAD-MgO based YBCO templates with a simplified architecture.

Rational design of Raman-labeled nanoparticles for a dual-modality, light scattering immunoassay on a polystyrene substrate.

Science.gov (United States)

Israelsen, Nathan D; Wooley, Donald; Hanson, Cynthia; Vargis, Elizabeth

2016-01-01

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is a powerful light scattering technique that can be used for sensitive immunoassay development and cell labeling. A major obstacle to using SERS is the complexity of fabricating SERS probes since they require nanoscale characterization and optical uniformity. The light scattering response of SERS probes may also be modulated by the substrate used for SERS analysis. A typical SERS substrate such as quartz can be expensive. Polystyrene is a cheaper substrate option but can decrease the SERS response due to interfering Raman emission peaks and high background fluorescence. The goal of this research is to develop an optimized process for fabricating Raman-labeled nanoparticles for a SERS-based immunoassay on a polystyrene substrate. We have developed a method for fabricating SERS nanoparticle probes for use in a light scattering immunoassay on a polystyrene substrate. The light scattering profile of both spherical gold nanoparticle and gold nanorod SERS probes were characterized using Raman spectroscopy and optical absorbance spectroscopy. The effects of substrate interference and autofluorescence were reduced by selecting a Raman reporter with a strong light scattering response in a spectral region where interfering substrate emission peaks are minimized. Both spherical gold nanoparticles and gold nanorods SERS probes used in the immunoassay were detected at labeling concentrations in the low pM range. This analytical sensitivity falls within the typical dynamic range for direct labeling of cell-surface biomarkers using SERS probes. SERS nanoparticle probes were fabricated to produce a strong light scattering signal despite substrate interference. The optical extinction and inelastic light scattering of these probes was detected by optical absorbance spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy, respectively. This immunoassay demonstrates the feasibility of analyzing strongly enhanced Raman signals on polystyrene, which is an

Motion of a drop driven by substrate vibrations

Science.gov (United States)

Brunet, P.; Eggers, J.; Deegan, R. D.

2009-01-01

We report an experimental study of liquid drops moving against gravity, when placed on a vertically vibrating inclined plate, which is partially wet by the drop. Frequency of vibrations ranges from 30 to 200 Hz, and above a threshold in vibration acceleration, drops experience an upward motion. We attribute this surprising motion to the deformations of the drop, as a consequence of an up/down symmetry-breaking induced by the presence of the substrate. We relate the direction of motion to contact angle measurements.

Trapping and proteomic identification of cellular substrates of the ClpP protease in Staphylococcus aureus

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Feng, Jingyuan; Michalik, Stephan; Varming, Anders Nissen

2013-01-01

In the important human pathogen Staphylococcus aureus the cytoplasmic ClpP protease is essential for mounting cellular stress responses and for virulence. To directly identify substrates of the ClpP protease, we expressed in vivo a proteolytic inactive form of ClpP (ClpP(trap)) that will retain...... but not degrade substrates translocated into its proteolytic chamber. Substrates captured inside the proteolytic barrel were co-purified along with the His-tagged ClpP complex and identified by mass spectrometry. In total, approximately 70 proteins were trapped in both of the two S. aureus strains NCTC8325......A, and the cell division protein FtsZ. Newly identified ClpP substrates include the global transcriptional regulators PerR and HrcA, proteins involved in DNA damage repair (RecA, UvrA, UvrB), and proteins essential for protein synthesis (RpoB and Tuf). Our study hence underscores the central role of Clp...

Near-equilibrium chemical vapor deposition of high-quality single-crystal graphene directly on various dielectric substrates.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Jianyi; Guo, Yunlong; Jiang, Lili; Xu, Zhiping; Huang, Liping; Xue, Yunzhou; Geng, Dechao; Wu, Bin; Hu, Wenping; Yu, Gui; Liu, Yunqi

2014-03-05

By using near-equilibrium chemical vapor deposition, it is demonstrated that high-quality single-crystal graphene can be grown on dielectric substrates. The maximum size is about 11 μm. The carrier mobility can reach about 5650 cm(2) V(-1) s(-1) , which is comparable to those of some metal-catalyzed graphene crystals, reflecting the good quality of the graphene lattice. © 2013 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Optimizing Polymer Lab-on-Chip Platforms for Ultrasonic Manipulation: Influence of the Substrate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Itziar González

2015-05-01

Full Text Available The choice of substrate material in a chip that combines ultrasound with microfluidics for handling biological and synthetic microparticles can have a profound effect on the performance of the device. This is due to the high surface-to-volume ratio that exists within such small structures and acquires particular relevance in polymer-based resonators with 3D standing waves. This paper presents three chips developed to perform particle flow-through separation by ultrasound based on a polymeric SU-8 layer containing channelization over three different substrates: Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA; Pyrex; and a cracked PMMA composite-like structure. Through direct observations of polystyrene microbeads inside the channel, the three checked chips exhibit their potential as disposable continuous concentration devices with different spatial pressure patterns at frequencies of resonance close to 1 Mhz. Chips with Pyrex and cracked PMMA substrates show restrictions on the number of pressure nodes established in the channel associated with the inhibition of 3D modes in the solid structure. The glass-substrate chip presents some advantages associated with lower energy requirements to collect particles. According to the results, the use of polymer-based chips with rigid substrates can be advantageous for applications that require short treatment times (clinical tests handling human samples and low-cost fabrication.

Protective amorphous carbon coatings on glass substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Silins, Kaspars; Baránková, Hana; Bardos, Ladislav

2017-11-01

Thick amorphous carbon films were deposited by the Magnets-in-Motion (M-M) rf linear hollow cathode at varying acetylene contents in Ar in a hybrid PVD/PE-CVD process directly on glass substrates. The hollow cathode plates manufactured from graphite were used as the PVD target. The measurements show that the films can reach thickness of up to 50 μm at deposition rates of up to 2.5 μm/min. Scratch test measurements confirm that well adhering films several μm thick can be achieved at C2H2 contents of up to 0.5%.

Coating of substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cairns, J.A.; Nelson, R.L.; Woodhead, J.L.

1979-01-01

The process is concerned with providing substrates with coatings obtainable from sols, for example to protect the substrate (such as in nuclear reactors or hydrocarbon cracking plant) or to provide a carrier for catalytically active material. Hitherto, coatings obtained from sols have had a high porosity and high surface area so that they have not been entirely satisfactory for the above applications. In the process described, dense, low-porosity coatings are provided by contacting the substrate with a sol of refractory material (e.g. CeO 2 or SiO 2 ) convertible to a gel of density at least 40% of the theoretical density of the refractory material, and converting the sol to the gel. Optionally, the gel may be converted to a ceramic coating by firing. (author)

Activated carbon addition affects substrate pH and germination of six plant species

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kabouw, P.; Nab, M.; Dam, van M.

2010-01-01

Activated carbon (AC) is widely used in ecological studies for neutralizing allelopathic compounds. However, it has been suggested that AC has direct effects on plants because it alters substrate parameters such as nutrient availability and pH. These side-effects of AC addition may interfere with

Hydrological performance of dual-substrate-layer green roofs using porous inert substrates with high sorption capacities.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Xiaoou; Tian, Yimei; Zhao, Xinhua; Peng, Chenrui

2017-06-01

Given that the common medium in existing green roofs is a single layer composed of organic and inorganic substrates, seven pilot-scale dual-substrate-layer extensive green roofs (G1-G7), which include nutrition and adsorption substrate layers, were constructed in this study. The effectiveness of porous inert substrates (activated charcoal, zeolite, pumice, lava, vermiculite and expanded perlite) used as the adsorption substrate for stormwater retention was investigated. A single-substrate-layer green roof (G8) was built for comparison with G1-G7. Despite the larger total rainfall depth (mm) of six types of simulated rains (43.2, 54.6, 76.2, 87.0, 85.2 and 86.4, respectively), the total percent retention of G1-G7 varied between 14% and 82% with an average of 43%, exhibiting better runoff-retaining capacity than G8 based on the maximum potential rainfall storage depth per unit height of adsorption substrate. Regression analysis showed that there was a logarithmic relationship between cumulative rainfall depth with non-zero runoff and stormwater retention for G1-G4 and a linear relationship for G5-G8. To enhance the water retention capacity and extend the service life of dual-substrate-layer extensive green roofs, the mixture of activated charcoal and/or pumice with expanded perlite and/or vermiculite is more suitable as the adsorption substrate than the mixture containing lava and/or zeolite.

Sealed substrate carrier for electroplating

Science.gov (United States)

Ganti, Kalyana Bhargava [Fremont, CA

2012-07-17

One embodiment relates to a substrate carrier for use in electroplating a plurality of substrates. The substrate carrier includes a non-conductive carrier body on which the substrates are held, and conductive lines are embedded within the carrier body. A conductive bus bar is embedded into a top side of the carrier body and is conductively coupled to the conductive lines. A thermoplastic overmold covers a portion of the bus bar, and there is a plastic-to-plastic bond between the thermoplastic overmold and the non-conductive carrier body. Other embodiments, aspects and features are also disclosed.

Flexible and foldable paper-substrate thermoelectric generator (teg)

KAUST Repository

Rojas, Jhonathan Prieto

2017-08-24

Flexible and foldable paper-substrate thermoelectric generators (TEGs) and methods for making the paper-substrate TEGs are disclosed. A method includes depositing a plurality of thermocouples in series on a paper substrate to create a paper-substrate TEG, wherein the plurality of thermocouples is deposited between two contact points of the paper-substrate TEG. The method may also include setting the power density and maximum achievable temperature gradient of the paper-substrate TEG by folding the paper-substrate TEG. A paper-substrate TEG apparatus may include a paper substrate and a plurality of thermocouples deposited in series on the paper substrate between two contact points of the paper-substrate TEG, wherein the power density and maximum achievable temperature gradient of the paper-substrate TEG is set by folding the paper-substrate TEG.

Characteristics of surface acoustic waves in (11\\bar 2 0)ZnO film/ R-sapphire substrate structures

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yan; Zhang, ShuYi; Xu, Jing; Xie, YingCai; Lan, XiaoDong

2018-02-01

(11\\bar 2 0)ZnO film/ R-sapphire substrate structure is promising for high frequency acoustic wave devices. The propagation characteristics of SAWs, including the Rayleigh waves along [0001] direction and Love waves along [1ī00] direction, are investigated by using 3 dimensional finite element method (3D-FEM). The phase velocity ( v p), electromechanical coupling coefficient ( k 2), temperature coefficient of frequency ( TCF) and reflection coefficient ( r) of Rayleigh wave and Love wave devices are theoretically analyzed. Furthermore, the influences of ZnO films with different crystal orientation on SAW properties are also investigated. The results show that the 1st Rayleigh wave has an exceedingly large k 2 of 4.95% in (90°, 90°, 0°) (11\\bar 2 0)ZnO film/ R-sapphire substrate associated with a phase velocity of 5300 m/s; and the 0th Love wave in (0°, 90°, 0°) (11\\bar 2 0)ZnO film/ R-sapphire substrate has a maximum k 2 of 3.86% associated with a phase velocity of 3400 m/s. And (11\\bar 2 0)ZnO film/ R-sapphire substrate structures can be used to design temperature-compensated and wide-band SAW devices. All of the results indicate that the performances of SAW devices can be optimized by suitably selecting ZnO films with different thickness and crystal orientations deposited on R-sapphire substrates.

Reproducible and recyclable SERS substrates: Flower-like Ag structures with concave surfaces formed by electrodeposition

Science.gov (United States)

Bian, Juncao; Shu, Shiwei; Li, Jianfu; Huang, Chao; Li, Yang Yang; Zhang, Rui-Qin

2015-04-01

Direct synthesis of three-dimensional Ag structures on solid substrates for the purposes of producing reproducible and recyclable surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) applications remains challenging. In this work, flower-like Ag structures with concave surfaces (FACS) were successfully electrodeposited onto ITO glass using the double-potentiostatic method. The FACS, with an enhancement factor of the order of 108, exhibited a SERS signal intensity 3.3 times stronger than that measured from Ag nanostructures without concave surfaces. A cleaning procedure involving lengthy immersion of the sample in ethanol and KNO3 was proposed to recycle the substrate and confirmed by using rhodamine 6G, adenine, and 4-aminothiophenol as target molecules. The findings can help to advance the practical applications of Ag nanostructure-based SERS substrates.

Plastic properties of thin films on substrates as measured by submicron indentation hardness and substrate curvature techniques

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Doerner, M.F.; Gardner, D.S.; Nix, W.D.

1986-01-01

Substrate curvature and submicron indentation measurements have been used recently to study plastic deformation in thin films on substrates. In the present work both of these techniques have been employed to study the strength of aluminum and tungsten thin films on silicon substrates. In the case of aluminum films on silicon substrates, the film strength is found to increase with decreasing thickness. Grain size variations with film thickness do not account for the variations in strength. Wafer curvature measurements give strengths higher than those predicted from hardness measurements suggesting the substrate plays a role in strengthening the film. The observed strengthening effect with decreased thickness may be due to image forces on dislocations in the film due to the elastically stiffer silicon substrate. For sputtered tungsten films, where the substrate is less stiff than the film, the film strength decreases with decreasing film thickness

Ligand-accelerated non-directed C-H functionalization of arenes

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Peng; Verma, Pritha; Xia, Guoqin; Shi, Jun; Qiao, Jennifer X.; Tao, Shiwei; Cheng, Peter T. W.; Poss, Michael A.; Farmer, Marcus E.; Yeung, Kap-Sun; Yu, Jin-Quan

2017-11-01

The directed activation of carbon-hydrogen bonds (C-H) is important in the development of synthetically useful reactions, owing to the proximity-induced reactivity and selectivity that is enabled by coordinating functional groups. Palladium-catalysed non-directed C-H activation could potentially enable further useful reactions, because it can reach more distant sites and be applied to substrates that do not contain appropriate directing groups; however, its development has faced substantial challenges associated with the lack of sufficiently active palladium catalysts. Currently used palladium catalysts are reactive only with electron-rich arenes, unless an excess of arene is used, which limits synthetic applications. Here we report a 2-pyridone ligand that binds to palladium and accelerates non-directed C-H functionalization with arene as the limiting reagent. This protocol is compatible with a broad range of aromatic substrates and we demonstrate direct functionalization of advanced synthetic intermediates, drug molecules and natural products that cannot be used in excessive quantities. We also developed C-H olefination and carboxylation protocols, demonstrating the applicability of our methodology to other transformations. The site selectivity in these transformations is governed by a combination of steric and electronic effects, with the pyridone ligand enhancing the influence of sterics on the selectivity, thus providing complementary selectivity to directed C-H functionalization.

Neutrophil adhesion and chemotaxis depend on substrate mechanics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jannat, Risat A; Hammer, Daniel A; Robbins, Gregory P; Ricart, Brendon G; Dembo, Micah

2010-01-01

Neutrophil adhesion to the vasculature and chemotaxis within tissues play critical roles in the inflammatory response to injury and pathogens. Unregulated neutrophil activity has been implicated in the progression of numerous chronic and acute diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, asthma and sepsis. Cell migration of anchorage-dependent cells is known to depend on both chemical and mechanical interactions. Although neutrophil responses to chemical cues have been well characterized, little is known about the effect of underlying tissue mechanics on neutrophil adhesion and migration. To address this question, we quantified neutrophil migration and traction stresses on compliant hydrogel substrates with varying elasticity in a micromachined gradient chamber in which we could apply either a uniform concentration or a precise gradient of the bacterial chemoattractant fMLP. Neutrophils spread more extensively on substrates of greater stiffness. In addition, increasing the stiffness of the substrate leads to a significant increase in the chemotactic index for each fMLP gradient tested. As the substrate becomes stiffer, neutrophils generate higher traction forces without significant changes in cell speed. These forces are often displayed in pairs and focused in the uropod. Increases in the mean fMLP concentration beyond the K D of the receptor lead to a decrease in chemotactic index on all surfaces. Blocking with an antibody against β 2 -integrins leads to a significant reduction, but not an elimination, of directed motility on stiff materials, but no change in motility on soft materials, suggesting neutrophils can display both integrin-dependent and integrin-independent motility. These findings are critical for understanding how neutrophil migration may change in different mechanical environments in vivo and can be used to guide the design of migration inhibitors that more efficiently target inflammation.

Neutrophil adhesion and chemotaxis depend on substrate mechanics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jannat, Risat A; Hammer, Daniel A [Department of Bioengineering, University of Pennsylvania, 240 Skirkanich Hall, 210 South 33rd Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104 (United States); Robbins, Gregory P; Ricart, Brendon G [Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Pennsylvania, 311A Towne Building, 220 South 33rd Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104 (United States); Dembo, Micah, E-mail: hammer@seas.upenn.ed [Department of Biomedical Engineering, Boston University, 44 Cummington Street, Boston, MA 02215 (United States)

2010-05-19

Neutrophil adhesion to the vasculature and chemotaxis within tissues play critical roles in the inflammatory response to injury and pathogens. Unregulated neutrophil activity has been implicated in the progression of numerous chronic and acute diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, asthma and sepsis. Cell migration of anchorage-dependent cells is known to depend on both chemical and mechanical interactions. Although neutrophil responses to chemical cues have been well characterized, little is known about the effect of underlying tissue mechanics on neutrophil adhesion and migration. To address this question, we quantified neutrophil migration and traction stresses on compliant hydrogel substrates with varying elasticity in a micromachined gradient chamber in which we could apply either a uniform concentration or a precise gradient of the bacterial chemoattractant fMLP. Neutrophils spread more extensively on substrates of greater stiffness. In addition, increasing the stiffness of the substrate leads to a significant increase in the chemotactic index for each fMLP gradient tested. As the substrate becomes stiffer, neutrophils generate higher traction forces without significant changes in cell speed. These forces are often displayed in pairs and focused in the uropod. Increases in the mean fMLP concentration beyond the K{sub D} of the receptor lead to a decrease in chemotactic index on all surfaces. Blocking with an antibody against {beta}{sub 2}-integrins leads to a significant reduction, but not an elimination, of directed motility on stiff materials, but no change in motility on soft materials, suggesting neutrophils can display both integrin-dependent and integrin-independent motility. These findings are critical for understanding how neutrophil migration may change in different mechanical environments in vivo and can be used to guide the design of migration inhibitors that more efficiently target inflammation.

In situ demonstration and characteristic analysis of the protease components from marine bacteria using substrate immersing zymography.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Dan; Yang, XingHao; Huang, JiaFeng; Wu, RiBang; Wu, CuiLing; He, HaiLun; Li, Hao

2015-01-01

Zymography is a widely used technique for the study of proteolytic activities on the basis of protein substrate degradation. In this study, substrate immersing zymography was used in analyzing proteolysis of extracellular proteases. Instead of being added directly into a sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) gel, the substrates were added into the immersing solution after electrophoresis. Substrate immersing zymography could accurately determine the molecular weight of trypsin, and band intensities were linearly related to the amount of protease. The diversity of extracellular proteases produced by different marine bacteria was analyzed by substrate immersing zymography, and large variations of proteolysis were evidenced. The proteolytic activity of Pseudoalteromonas strains was more complicated than that of other strains. Five Pseudoalteromonas strains and five Vibrio strains were further analyzed by substrate immersing zymography with different substrates (casein and gelatin), and multiple caseinolytic and gelatinolytic profiles were detected. The extracellular proteolytic profiles of Pseudoalteromonas strains exhibited a large intraspecific variation. Molecular weight (Mw) of the main protease secreted by Vibrio was 35 kDa. Additionally, the time-related change trends of the activities of extracellular proteases produced by Pseudoalteromonas sp. SJN2 were analyzed by substrate immersing zymography. These results implied the potential application of substrate immersing zymography for the analysis of the diversity of bacterial extracellular proteases.

Graphene on insulating crystalline substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Akcoeltekin, S; El Kharrazi, M; Koehler, B; Lorke, A; Schleberger, M

2009-01-01

We show that it is possible to prepare and identify ultra-thin sheets of graphene on crystalline substrates such as SrTiO 3 , TiO 2 , Al 2 O 3 and CaF 2 by standard techniques (mechanical exfoliation, optical and atomic force microscopy). On the substrates under consideration we find a similar distribution of single layer, bilayer and few-layer graphene and graphite flakes as with conventional SiO 2 substrates. The optical contrast C of a single graphene layer on any of those substrates is determined by calculating the optical properties of a two-dimensional metallic sheet on the surface of a dielectric, which yields values between C = -1.5% (G/TiO 2 ) and C = -8.8% (G/CaF 2 ). This contrast is in reasonable agreement with experimental data and is sufficient to make identification by an optical microscope possible. The graphene layers cover the crystalline substrate in a carpet-like mode and the height of single layer graphene on any of the crystalline substrates as determined by atomic force microscopy is d SLG = 0.34 nm and thus much smaller than on SiO 2 .

Effects of adhesion dynamics and substrate compliance on the shape and motility of crawling cells.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Falko Ziebert

Full Text Available Computational modeling of eukaryotic cells moving on substrates is an extraordinarily complex task: many physical processes, such as actin polymerization, action of motors, formation of adhesive contacts concomitant with both substrate deformation and recruitment of actin etc., as well as regulatory pathways are intertwined. Moreover, highly nontrivial cell responses emerge when the substrate becomes deformable and/or heterogeneous. Here we extended a computational model for motile cell fragments, based on an earlier developed phase field approach, to account for explicit dynamics of adhesion site formation, as well as for substrate compliance via an effective elastic spring. Our model displays steady motion vs. stick-slip transitions with concomitant shape oscillations as a function of the actin protrusion rate, the substrate stiffness, and the rates of adhesion. Implementing a step in the substrate's elastic modulus, as well as periodic patterned surfaces exemplified by alternating stripes of high and low adhesiveness, we were able to reproduce the correct motility modes and shape phenomenology found experimentally. We also predict the following nontrivial behavior: the direction of motion of cells can switch from parallel to perpendicular to the stripes as a function of both the adhesion strength and the width ratio of adhesive to non-adhesive stripes.

Influence of the substrate texture on the structural and electrochemical properties of sputtered LiCoO2 thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jung, Ki-Taek; Cho, Gyu-Bong; Kim, Ki-Won; Nam, Tae-Hyun; Jeong, Hyo-Min; Huh, Sun-Chul; Chung, Han-Shik; Noh, Jung-Pil

2013-01-01

LiCoO 2 thin films were fabricated on textured and annealed STS304 substrates by direct current magnetron sputtering method. The effects of the substrate texture on the structural and electrochemical properties of the LiCoO 2 thin film deposited on both the substrates have been investigated. The crystal structures and surface morphologies of the deposited films were analyzed by X-ray diffractometry (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM). Based on the XRD analysis, the LiCoO 2 thin film deposited on the textured substrate was found to exhibit (003) preferred orientation, while the film deposited on annealed substrate exhibited (104) preferred orientation. In addition, SEM analysis revealed that the film deposited on the textured substrate showed a smooth morphology. On the other hand, the film deposited on the annealed substrate exhibited a very rough surface morphology, which resulted in a higher surface area. Consequently, the initial discharge capacity of the film deposited on the annealed substrate was higher than that of the film deposited on the textured substrate. The film deposited on the textured substrate exhibited a good cyclic performance compared to the film deposited on the annealed substrate. - Highlights: • The sputtered LiCoO 2 thin films were influenced by the substrate texture. • The film deposited on the annealed substrate exhibited (104) preferred orientation. • The film deposited on the textured substrate exhibited a good cyclic performance

High-performance flexible thin-film transistors fabricated using print-transferrable polycrystalline silicon membranes on a plastic substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Qin, Guoxuan; Yuan, Hao-Chih; Ma, Zhenqiang; Yang, Hongjun; Zhou, Weidong

2011-01-01

Inexpensive polycrystalline Si (poly-Si) with large grain size is highly desirable for flexible electronics applications. However, it is very challenging to directly deposit high-quality poly-Si on plastic substrates due to processing constrictions, such as temperature tolerance and residual stress. In this paper, we present our study on poly-Si membranes that are stress free and most importantly, are transferrable to any substrate including a low-temperature polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate. We formed poly-Si-on-insulator by first depositing small-grain size poly-Si on an oxidized Si wafer. We then performed high-temperature annealing for recrystallization to obtain larger grain size. After selective doping on the poly-Si-on-insulator, buried oxide was etched away. By properly patterning the poly-Si layer, residual stress in the released poly-Si membranes was completely relaxed. The flat membrane topology allows the membranes to be print transferred to any substrates. High-performance TFTs were demonstrated on the transferred poly-Si membranes on a PET substrate

Routes to the past: neural substrates of direct and generative autobiographical memory retrieval.

Science.gov (United States)

Addis, Donna Rose; Knapp, Katie; Roberts, Reece P; Schacter, Daniel L

2012-02-01

Models of autobiographical memory propose two routes to retrieval depending on cue specificity. When available cues are specific and personally-relevant, a memory can be directly accessed. However, when available cues are generic, one must engage a generative retrieval process to produce more specific cues to successfully access a relevant memory. The current study sought to characterize the neural bases of these retrieval processes. During functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), participants were shown personally-relevant cues to elicit direct retrieval, or generic cues (nouns) to elicit generative retrieval. We used spatiotemporal partial least squares to characterize the spatial and temporal characteristics of the networks associated with direct and generative retrieval. Both retrieval tasks engaged regions comprising the autobiographical retrieval network, including hippocampus, and medial prefrontal and parietal cortices. However, some key neural differences emerged. Generative retrieval differentially recruited lateral prefrontal and temporal regions early on during the retrieval process, likely supporting the strategic search operations and initial recovery of generic autobiographical information. However, many regions were activated more strongly during direct versus generative retrieval, even when we time-locked the analysis to the successful recovery of events in both conditions. This result suggests that there may be fundamental differences between memories that are accessed directly and those that are recovered via the iterative search and retrieval process that characterizes generative retrieval. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Tuning stress-induced magnetic anisotropy and high frequency properties of FeCo films deposited on different curvature substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Z.K.; Feng, E.X.; Liu, Q.F.; Wang, J.B.; Xue, D.S.

2012-01-01

It is important to control magnetic anisotropy of ferromagnetic materials. In this work, FeCo thin films are deposited on the curving substrates by electrochemical deposition to adjust the stress-induced magnetic anisotropy. The compressive stress is produced in the as-deposited films after the substrates are flattened. A simplified theoretical model of ferromagnetic resonance is utilized to measure the intrinsic magnetic anisotropy field and saturation magnetization. The results show that the stress-induced magnetic anisotropy and the resonance frequency increase with the increase of substrate curvature. The induced easy axis is perpendicular to the compressive stress direction.

Integration substrate with a ultra-high-density capacitor and a through-substrate via

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Klootwijk, J.H.; Roozeboom, F.; Ruigrok, J.J.M.; Reefman, D.

2014-01-01

An integration substrate for a system in package comprises a through-substrate via and a trench capacitor wherein with a trench filling that includes at least four electrically conductive capacitor-electrode layers in an alternating arrangement with dielectric layers. --The capacitor-electrode

Construction of 3D Metallic Nanowire Arrays on Arbitrarily-Shaped Substrate.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Fei; Li, Jingning; Yu, Fangfang; Peng, Ru-Wen; Wang, Mu; Mu Wang Team

Formation of three-dimensional (3D) nanostructures is an important step of advanced manufacture for new concept devices with novel functionality. Despite of great achievements in fabricating nanostructures with state of the art lithography approaches, these nanostructures are normally limited on flat substrates. Up to now it remains challenging to build metallic nanostructures directly on a rough and bumpy surface. Here we demonstrate a unique approach to fabricate metallic nanowire arrays on an arbitrarily-shaped surface by electrodeposition, which is unknown before 2016. Counterintuitively here the growth direction of the nanowires is perpendicular to their longitudinal axis, and the specific geometry of nanowires can be achieved by introducing specially designed shaped substrate. The spatial separation and the width of the nanowires can be tuned by voltage, electrolyte concentration and temperature in electrodeposition. By taking cobalt nanowire array as an example, we demonstrate that head-to-head and tail-to-tail magnetic domain walls can be easily introduced and modulated in the nanowire arrays, which is enlightening to construct new devices such as domain wall racetrack memory. We acknowledge the foundation from MOST and NSF(China).

Stretched inverse opal colloid crystal substrates-induced orientation of fibroblast

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Y C; Tang, Z M; Feng, Z Q; Xie, Z Y; Gu, Z Z

2010-01-01

Recently, there has been increasing interest in studying the interaction between mammalian cells and nanometer-sized structures. However, the effect of nanostructures on cell behavior, such as cell morphology and alignment, is still largely unknown. Inverse opal colloid crystal substrates, which can be stretched to produce nano-scale pore structures of different degrees of orientation, serve as a convenient model system to study the effect of nanotopography on cell morphology and cell alignment. In this work, we fabricated inverse opal colloidal crystal films that were either unstretched or stretched to three, four or six times their original length, producing pore structures of increasing degree of orientation. Human dermal fibroblast-fetal (HDF-f) cells were seeded and cultured on these four types of substrates. The results from fluorescence microscopy and scanning electron microscopy indicated that cells showed the highest degree of alignment when cultured on inverse opal colloid crystal films that were stretched the most (six times original length). The results also demonstrated that the orientation of nanostructures could affect both the morphology and growth direction of fibroblasts. The ability to control the direction of cell growth through the engineering of nanostructures could have important applications in tissue engineering, especially for tissues with anisotropic structures, such as cardiac muscle, blood vessel, tendon and ligament.

Stretched inverse opal colloid crystal substrates-induced orientation of fibroblast

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Y C; Tang, Z M; Feng, Z Q; Xie, Z Y; Gu, Z Z, E-mail: gu@seu.edu.c [State Key Laboratory of Bioelectronics, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096 (China)

2010-06-01

Recently, there has been increasing interest in studying the interaction between mammalian cells and nanometer-sized structures. However, the effect of nanostructures on cell behavior, such as cell morphology and alignment, is still largely unknown. Inverse opal colloid crystal substrates, which can be stretched to produce nano-scale pore structures of different degrees of orientation, serve as a convenient model system to study the effect of nanotopography on cell morphology and cell alignment. In this work, we fabricated inverse opal colloidal crystal films that were either unstretched or stretched to three, four or six times their original length, producing pore structures of increasing degree of orientation. Human dermal fibroblast-fetal (HDF-f) cells were seeded and cultured on these four types of substrates. The results from fluorescence microscopy and scanning electron microscopy indicated that cells showed the highest degree of alignment when cultured on inverse opal colloid crystal films that were stretched the most (six times original length). The results also demonstrated that the orientation of nanostructures could affect both the morphology and growth direction of fibroblasts. The ability to control the direction of cell growth through the engineering of nanostructures could have important applications in tissue engineering, especially for tissues with anisotropic structures, such as cardiac muscle, blood vessel, tendon and ligament.

High-yield growth of vertically aligned carbon nanotubes on a continuously moving substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guzman de Villoria, R; Hart, A J; Steiner, S A III; Wardle, B L; Figueredo, S L; Slocum, A H

2009-01-01

Vertically aligned carbon nanotube (CNT) arrays are grown on a moving substrate, demonstrating continuous growth of nanoscale materials with long-range order. A cold-wall chamber with an oscillating moving platform is used to locally heat a silicon growth substrate coated with an Fe/Al 2 O 3 catalyst film for CNT growth via chemical vapor deposition. The reactant gases are introduced over the substrate through a directed nozzle to attain high-yield CNT growth. Aligned multi-wall carbon nanotube arrays (or 'forests') with heights of ∼1 mm are achieved at substrate speeds up to 2.4 mm s -1 . Arrays grown on moving substrates at different velocities are studied in order to identify potential physical limitations of repeatable and fast growth on a continuous basis. No significant differences are noted between static and moving growth as characterized by scanning electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy, although overall growth height is marginally reduced at the highest substrate velocity. CNT arrays produced on moving substrates are also found to be comparable to those produced through well-characterized batch processes consistent with a base-growth mechanism. Growth parameters required for the moving furnace are found to differ only slightly from those used in a comparable batch process; thermal uniformity appears to be the critical parameter for achieving large-area uniform array growth. If the continuous-growth technology is combined with a reaction zone isolation scheme common in other types of processing (e.g., in the manufacture of carbon fibers), large-scale dense and aligned CNT arrays may be efficiently grown and harvested for numerous applications including providing interlayers for advanced composite reinforcement and improved electrical and thermal transport.

High-yield growth of vertically aligned carbon nanotubes on a continuously moving substrate.

Science.gov (United States)

Guzmán de Villoria, R; Figueredo, S L; Hart, A J; Steiner, S A; Slocum, A H; Wardle, B L

2009-10-07

Vertically aligned carbon nanotube (CNT) arrays are grown on a moving substrate, demonstrating continuous growth of nanoscale materials with long-range order. A cold-wall chamber with an oscillating moving platform is used to locally heat a silicon growth substrate coated with an Fe/Al2O3 catalyst film for CNT growth via chemical vapor deposition. The reactant gases are introduced over the substrate through a directed nozzle to attain high-yield CNT growth. Aligned multi-wall carbon nanotube arrays (or 'forests') with heights of approximately 1 mm are achieved at substrate speeds up to 2.4 mm s(-1). Arrays grown on moving substrates at different velocities are studied in order to identify potential physical limitations of repeatable and fast growth on a continuous basis. No significant differences are noted between static and moving growth as characterized by scanning electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy, although overall growth height is marginally reduced at the highest substrate velocity. CNT arrays produced on moving substrates are also found to be comparable to those produced through well-characterized batch processes consistent with a base-growth mechanism. Growth parameters required for the moving furnace are found to differ only slightly from those used in a comparable batch process; thermal uniformity appears to be the critical parameter for achieving large-area uniform array growth. If the continuous-growth technology is combined with a reaction zone isolation scheme common in other types of processing (e.g., in the manufacture of carbon fibers), large-scale dense and aligned CNT arrays may be efficiently grown and harvested for numerous applications including providing interlayers for advanced composite reinforcement and improved electrical and thermal transport.

Bacterial cellulose membrane as flexible substrate for organic light emitting devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Legnani, C.; Vilani, C.; Calil, V.L.; Barud, H.S.; Quirino, W.G.; Achete, C.A.; Ribeiro, S.J.L.; Cremona, M.

2008-01-01

Bacterial cellulose (BC) membranes produced by gram-negative, acetic acid bacteria (Gluconacetobacter xylinus), were used as flexible substrates for the fabrication of Organic Light Emitting Diodes (OLED). In order to achieve the necessary conductive properties indium tin oxide (ITO) thin films were deposited onto the membrane at room temperature using radio frequency (r.f.) magnetron sputtering with an r.f. power of 30 W, at pressure of 8 mPa in Ar atmosphere without any subsequent thermal treatment. Visible light transmittance of about 40% was observed. Resistivity, mobility and carrier concentration of deposited ITO films were 4.90 x 10 -4 Ohm cm, 8.08 cm 2 /V-s and - 1.5 x 10 21 cm -3 , respectively, comparable with commercial ITO substrates. In order to demonstrate the feasibility of devices based on BC membranes three OLEDs with different substrates were produced: a reference one with commercial ITO on glass, a second one with a SiO 2 thin film interlayer between the BC membrane and the ITO layer and a third one just with ITO deposited directly on the BC membrane. The observed OLED luminance ratio was: 1; 0.5; 0.25 respectively, with 2400 cd/m 2 as the value for the reference OLED. These preliminary results show clearly that the functionalized biopolymer, biodegradable, biocompatible bacterial cellulose membranes can be successfully used as substrate in flexible organic optoelectronic devices

Integration substrate with a ultra-high-density capacitor and a through-substrate via

NARCIS (Netherlands)

2008-01-01

An integration substrate for a system in package comprises a through-substrate via and a trench capacitor wherein with a trench filling that includes at least 4 elec. conductive capacitor-electrode layers in an alternating arrangement with dielec. layers. The capacitor-electrode layers are

MOVPE and characterization of GaN-based structures on alternative substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dikme, Y.

2006-06-20

This study involves growth experiments of GaN-based layer structures on silicon (Si), lithium aluminate (LiAlO{sub 2}) and the composite substrate SiCOI. Substrate specific preparation and growth procedures were developed. Because of the different lattice constants and thermal expansion coefficients between GaN and the substrate materials and because of the high depositions temperatures (>1000 C) complex interlayers are required to create a crossover from the substrate to the GaN layer and to prevent substrate/layer bowing and cracks developing in the epitaxial layers. Crystallographic, thermal and electronic properties of these materials were investigated and the developed layers were used as buffer layers for electronic and opto electronic devices. On Si AlN/GaN distributed Bragg reflectors (DBR), InGaN/GaN multiple quantum well (MQW) and AlGaN/GaN HEMT (high electron mobility transistor) were demonstrated. The transistor structures showed high power densities, which were comparable to industrially fabricated devices. As well as the reflection of a certain wavelength region, the DBR layers additionally showed positive influence on succeeding GaN top layer optical properties. For the first time laser emission of an optically pumped InGaN/GaN MQW on Si was demonstrated with low excitation density and a high operating temperature. GaN-based structures were deposited on LiAlO2 in the m-plane crystal orientation; that do not exhibit polarization mechanisms in growth direction. For the deposition of coalesced GaN films a seal-coating of the LiAlO{sub 2} surface was developed and finally LED structures were grown on these substrates. For the first time electroluminescence of LED structures on LiAlO{sub 2} was achieved. The growth on the composite substrate SiCOI was initiated with an HT AlN layer and it was demonstrated that SiCOI is comparable to a bulk SiC substrate for the GaN-based epitaxy. The developed and investigated layer structure served as buffer for the

RanBP3 influences interactions between CRM1 and its nuclear protein export substrates

OpenAIRE

Englmeier, Ludwig; Fornerod, Maarten; Bischoff, F. Ralf; Petosa, Carlo; Mattaj, Iain W.; Kutay, Ulrike

2001-01-01

We investigated the role of RanBP3, a nuclear member of the Ran-binding protein 1 family, in CRM1-mediated protein export in higher eukaryotes. RanBP3 interacts directly with CRM1 and also forms a trimeric complex with CRM1 and RanGTP. However, RanBP3 does not bind to CRM1 like an export substrate. Instead, it can stabilize CRM1–export substrate interaction. Nuclear RanBP3 stimulates CRM1-dependent protein export in permeabilized cells. These data indicate that RanBP3 functions by a novel mec...

Growth of Gold-assisted Gallium Arsenide Nanowires on Silicon Substrates via Molecular Beam Epitaxy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ramon M. delos Santos

2008-06-01

Full Text Available Gallium arsenide nanowires were grown on silicon (100 substrates by what is called the vapor-liquid-solid (VLS growth mechanism using a molecular beam epitaxy (MBE system. Good quality nanowires with surface density of approximately 108 nanowires per square centimeter were produced by utilizing gold nanoparticles, with density of 1011 nanoparticles per square centimeter, as catalysts for nanowire growth. X-ray diffraction measurements, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy revealed that the nanowires are epitaxially grown on the silicon substrates, are oriented along the [111] direction and have cubic zincblende structure.

A conserved helicase processivity factor is needed for conjugation and replication of an integrative and conjugative element.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jacob Thomas

Full Text Available Integrative and conjugative elements (ICEs are agents of horizontal gene transfer and have major roles in evolution and acquisition of new traits, including antibiotic resistances. ICEs are found integrated in a host chromosome and can excise and transfer to recipient bacteria via conjugation. Conjugation involves nicking of the ICE origin of transfer (oriT by the ICE-encoded relaxase and transfer of the nicked single strand of ICE DNA. For ICEBs1 of Bacillus subtilis, nicking of oriT by the ICEBs1 relaxase NicK also initiates rolling circle replication. This autonomous replication of ICEBs1 is critical for stability of the excised element in growing cells. We found a conserved and previously uncharacterized ICE gene that is required for conjugation and replication of ICEBs1. Our results indicate that this gene, helP (formerly ydcP, encodes a helicase processivity factor that enables the host-encoded helicase PcrA to unwind the double-stranded ICEBs1 DNA. HelP was required for both conjugation and replication of ICEBs1, and HelP and NicK were the only ICEBs1 proteins needed for replication from ICEBs1 oriT. Using chromatin immunoprecipitation, we measured association of HelP, NicK, PcrA, and the host-encoded single-strand DNA binding protein Ssb with ICEBs1. We found that NicK was required for association of HelP and PcrA with ICEBs1 DNA. HelP was required for association of PcrA and Ssb with ICEBs1 regions distal, but not proximal, to oriT, indicating that PcrA needs HelP to progress beyond nicked oriT and unwind ICEBs1. In vitro, HelP directly stimulated the helicase activity of the PcrA homologue UvrD. Our findings demonstrate that HelP is a helicase processivity factor needed for efficient unwinding of ICEBs1 for conjugation and replication. Homologues of HelP and PcrA-type helicases are encoded on many known and putative ICEs. We propose that these factors are essential for ICE conjugation, replication, and genetic stability.

Molecular Modeling of Peroxidase and Polyphenol Oxidase: Substrate Specificity and Active Site Comparison

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lalida Shank

2010-09-01

Full Text Available Peroxidases (POD and polyphenol oxidase (PPO are enzymes that are well known to be involved in the enzymatic browning reaction of fruits and vegetables with different catalytic mechanisms. Both enzymes have some common substrates, but each also has its specific substrates. In our computational study, the amino acid sequence of grape peroxidase (ABX was used for the construction of models employing homology modeling method based on the X-ray structure of cytosolic ascorbate peroxidase from pea (PDB ID:1APX, whereas the model of grape polyphenol oxidase was obtained directly from the available X-ray structure (PDB ID:2P3X. Molecular docking of common substrates of these two enzymes was subsequently studied. It was found that epicatechin and catechin exhibited high affinity with both enzymes, even though POD and PPO have different binding pockets regarding the size and the key amino acids involved in binding. Predicted binding modes of substrates with both enzymes were also compared. The calculated docking interaction energy of trihydroxybenzoic acid related compounds shows high affinity, suggesting specificity and potential use as common inhibitor to grape ascorbate peroxidase and polyphenol oxidase.

Physical association of pyrimidine dimer DNA glycosylase and apurinic/apyrimidinic DNA endonuclease essential for repair of ultraviolet-damaged DNA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nakabeppu, Y.; Sekiguchi, M.

1981-01-01

T4 endonuclease, which is involved in repair of uv-damaged DNA, has been purified to apparent physical homogeneity. Incubation of uv-irradiated poly(dA).poly(dT) with the purified enzyme preparations resulted in production of alkali-labile apyrimidinic sites, followed by formation of nicks in the polymer. By performing a limited reaction with T4 endonuclease V at pH 8.5, irradiated polymer was converted to an intermediate form that carried a large number of alkali-labile sites but only a few nicks. The intermediate was used as substrate for the assay of apurinic/apyrimidinic DNA endonuclease activity. The two activities, a pyrimidine dimer DNA glycosylase and an apurinic/apyrimidinic DNA endonuclease, were copurified and found in enzyme preparations that contained only a 16,000-dalton polypeptide. These results strongly suggested that a DNA glycosylase specific for pyrimidine dimers and an apurinic/apyrimidinic DNA endonuclease reside in a single polypeptide chain coded by the denV gene of bacteriophage T4

Direct printing and reduction of graphite oxide for flexible supercapacitors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jung, Hanyung [Department of Nano Science and Technology, Graduate School of Convergence Science and Technology, Seoul National University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Ve Cheah, Chang [Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Jeong, Namjo [Energy Materials and Convergence Research Department, Korea Institute of Energy Research, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Lee, Junghoon, E-mail: jleenano@snu.ac.kr [Department of Nano Science and Technology, Graduate School of Convergence Science and Technology, Seoul National University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Division of WCU Multiscale Mechanical Design, School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2014-08-04

We report direct printing and photo-thermal reduction of graphite oxide (GO) to obtain a highly porous pattern of interdigitated electrodes, leading to a supercapacitor on a flexible substrate. Key parameters optimized include the amount of GO delivered, the suitable photo-thermal energy level for effective flash reduction, and the substrate properties for appropriate adhesion after reduction. Tests with supercapacitors based on the printed-reduced GO showed performance comparable with commercial supercapacitors: the energy densities were 1.06 and 0.87 mWh/cm{sup 3} in ionic and organic electrolytes, respectively. The versatility in the architecture and choice of substrate makes this material promising for smart power applications.

Direct printing and reduction of graphite oxide for flexible supercapacitors

Science.gov (United States)

Jung, Hanyung; Ve Cheah, Chang; Jeong, Namjo; Lee, Junghoon

2014-08-01

We report direct printing and photo-thermal reduction of graphite oxide (GO) to obtain a highly porous pattern of interdigitated electrodes, leading to a supercapacitor on a flexible substrate. Key parameters optimized include the amount of GO delivered, the suitable photo-thermal energy level for effective flash reduction, and the substrate properties for appropriate adhesion after reduction. Tests with supercapacitors based on the printed-reduced GO showed performance comparable with commercial supercapacitors: the energy densities were 1.06 and 0.87 mWh/cm3 in ionic and organic electrolytes, respectively. The versatility in the architecture and choice of substrate makes this material promising for smart power applications.

Direct printing and reduction of graphite oxide for flexible supercapacitors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jung, Hanyung; Ve Cheah, Chang; Jeong, Namjo; Lee, Junghoon

2014-01-01

We report direct printing and photo-thermal reduction of graphite oxide (GO) to obtain a highly porous pattern of interdigitated electrodes, leading to a supercapacitor on a flexible substrate. Key parameters optimized include the amount of GO delivered, the suitable photo-thermal energy level for effective flash reduction, and the substrate properties for appropriate adhesion after reduction. Tests with supercapacitors based on the printed-reduced GO showed performance comparable with commercial supercapacitors: the energy densities were 1.06 and 0.87 mWh/cm 3 in ionic and organic electrolytes, respectively. The versatility in the architecture and choice of substrate makes this material promising for smart power applications

Hydroxyapatite coating on the titanium substrate modulated by a recombinant collagen-like protein

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pan Mingli; Kong Xiangdong; Cai Yurong; Yao Juming

2011-01-01

Research highlights: → Hydroxyapatite was deposited on alkali-heat treated Ti substrate by immersing in 1.5 x SBF solution containing the recombinant collagen-like protein. → The recombinant collagen-like protein accelerated the preferential nucleation and growth of hydroxyapatite along c axis on the Ti substrate. → Hydroxyapatite-collagen composite on the Ti substrate promoted the attachment, subsequently proliferation and differentiation of MG-63 cells. - Abstract: Plenty of techniques have been developed to modify the surface character of titanium (Ti) and its alloys in order to realize their biological bond to natural bone. In this work, a biomimetic process was employed to form a hydroxyapatite (HAp) coating on the alkali-heat treated Ti substrate in 1.5 times simulated body fluid (1.5 x SBF) with the addition of a recombinant collagen-like protein. The coating was characterized using SEM-EDX, FESEM, and XRD. Results showed that the recombinant collagen-like protein could accelerate the preferential nucleation and directional growth along c axis of HAp on the pretreated Ti substrates. The investigation of in vitro cell cultivation showed that the existence of recombinant collagen-like protein in coating could improve the initial cell adhesion, proliferation and differentiation of MG-63 cells, which implied the materials possessed excellent biocompatibility and had a wide potential in biomedical application.

Hydroxyapatite coating on the titanium substrate modulated by a recombinant collagen-like protein

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pan Mingli [Key Laboratory of Advanced Textile Materials and Manufacturing Technology of Ministry of Education, College of Materials and Textile, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018 (China); Kong Xiangdong [College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018 (China); Cai Yurong [Key Laboratory of Advanced Textile Materials and Manufacturing Technology of Ministry of Education, College of Materials and Textile, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018 (China); Yao Juming, E-mail: yaoj@zstu.edu.cn [Key Laboratory of Advanced Textile Materials and Manufacturing Technology of Ministry of Education, College of Materials and Textile, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018 (China)

2011-04-15

Research highlights: {yields} Hydroxyapatite was deposited on alkali-heat treated Ti substrate by immersing in 1.5 x SBF solution containing the recombinant collagen-like protein. {yields} The recombinant collagen-like protein accelerated the preferential nucleation and growth of hydroxyapatite along c axis on the Ti substrate. {yields} Hydroxyapatite-collagen composite on the Ti substrate promoted the attachment, subsequently proliferation and differentiation of MG-63 cells. - Abstract: Plenty of techniques have been developed to modify the surface character of titanium (Ti) and its alloys in order to realize their biological bond to natural bone. In this work, a biomimetic process was employed to form a hydroxyapatite (HAp) coating on the alkali-heat treated Ti substrate in 1.5 times simulated body fluid (1.5 x SBF) with the addition of a recombinant collagen-like protein. The coating was characterized using SEM-EDX, FESEM, and XRD. Results showed that the recombinant collagen-like protein could accelerate the preferential nucleation and directional growth along c axis of HAp on the pretreated Ti substrates. The investigation of in vitro cell cultivation showed that the existence of recombinant collagen-like protein in coating could improve the initial cell adhesion, proliferation and differentiation of MG-63 cells, which implied the materials possessed excellent biocompatibility and had a wide potential in biomedical application.

Direct fabrication of polymer micro-lens array

Science.gov (United States)

Coppola, S.; Pagliarulo, V.; Vespini, V.; Nasti, G.; Olivieri, F.; Grilli, S.; Ferraro, P.

2017-06-01

In order to break the rigidity of classic lithographic techniques, a flexible pyro-electric-electrohydrodynamic (EHD) inkjet printing is presented. In particular, here is showed a method able to manipulate highly viscous polymers, usable for optical integrated devices. The system proposed reaches spatial resolution up to the nano-scale and can print, for instance, nano-particles and high viscous polymer solutions. This technique allows writing patterns directly onto a substrate of interest in 2D or in 3D configuration and is studied in order to overcome limitations in terms of type of materials, geometry and thickness of the substrate. In the present work, we show the potential of pyro-EHD printing in fields as optics and micro-fluidics. A micro-channel chip is functionalized with a PDMS-made micro-lenses array, directly printed on the chip. The geometric properties and the quality of the lenses are evaluated by a Digital Holography (DH) analysis.

Direct current magnetron sputter-deposited ZnO thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hoon, Jian-Wei; Chan, Kah-Yoong; Krishnasamy, Jegenathan; Tou, Teck-Yong; Knipp, Dietmar

2011-01-01

Zinc oxide (ZnO) is a very promising electronic material for emerging transparent large-area electronic applications including thin-film sensors, transistors and solar cells. We fabricated ZnO thin films by employing direct current (DC) magnetron sputtering deposition technique. ZnO films with different thicknesses ranging from 150 nm to 750 nm were deposited on glass substrates. The deposition pressure and the substrate temperature were varied from 12 mTorr to 25 mTorr, and from room temperature to 450 deg. C, respectively. The influence of the film thickness, deposition pressure and the substrate temperature on structural and optical properties of the ZnO films was investigated using atomic force microscopy (AFM) and ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectrometer. The experimental results reveal that the film thickness, deposition pressure and the substrate temperature play significant role in the structural formation and the optical properties of the deposited ZnO thin films.

Carbon Nanofibers Synthesized on Selective Substrates for Nonvolatile Memory and 3D Electronics

Science.gov (United States)

Kaul, Anupama B.; Khan, Abdur R.

2011-01-01

A plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) growth technique has been developed where the choice of starting substrate was found to influence the electrical characteristics of the resulting carbon nanofiber (CNF) tubes. It has been determined that, if the tubes are grown on refractory metallic nitride substrates, then the resulting tubes formed with dc PECVD are also electrically conducting. Individual CNFs were formed by first patterning Ni catalyst islands using ebeam evaporation and liftoff. The CNFs were then synthesized using dc PECVD with C2H2:NH3 = [1:4] at 5 Torr and 700 C, and approximately equal to 200-W plasma power. Tubes were grown directly on degenerately doped silicon substrates with resistivity rho approximately equal to 1-5 meterohm-centimeter, as well as NbTiN. The approximately equal to 200-nanometer thick refractory NbTiN deposited using magnetron sputtering had rho approximately equal to 113 microohm-centimeter and was also chemically compatible with CNF synthesis. The sample was then mounted on a 45 beveled Al holder, and placed inside a SEM (scanning electron microscope). A nanomanipulator probe stage was placed inside the SEM equipped with an electrical feed-through, where tungsten probes were used to make two-terminal electrical measurements with an HP 4156C parameter analyzer. The positive terminal nanoprobe was mechanically manipulated to physically contact an individual CNF grown directly on NbTiN as shown by the SEM image in the inset of figure (a), while the negative terminal was grounded to the substrate. This revealed the tube was electrically conductive, although measureable currents could not be detected until approximately equal to 6 V, after which point current increased sharply until compliance (approximately equal to 50 nA) was reached at approximately equal to 9.5 V. A native oxide on the tungsten probe tips may contribute to a tunnel barrier, which could be the reason for the suppressed transport at low biases

Biofunctionalization on alkylated silicon substrate surfaces via "click" chemistry.

Science.gov (United States)

Qin, Guoting; Santos, Catherine; Zhang, Wen; Li, Yan; Kumar, Amit; Erasquin, Uriel J; Liu, Kai; Muradov, Pavel; Trautner, Barbara Wells; Cai, Chengzhi

2010-11-24

Biofunctionalization of silicon substrates is important to the development of silicon-based biosensors and devices. Compared to conventional organosiloxane films on silicon oxide intermediate layers, organic monolayers directly bound to the nonoxidized silicon substrates via Si-C bonds enhance the sensitivity of detection and the stability against hydrolytic cleavage. Such monolayers presenting a high density of terminal alkynyl groups for bioconjugation via copper-catalyzed azide-alkyne 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition (CuAAC, a "click" reaction) were reported. However, yields of the CuAAC reactions on these monolayer platforms were low. Also, the nonspecific adsorption of proteins on the resultant surfaces remained a major obstacle for many potential biological applications. Herein, we report a new type of "clickable" monolayers grown by selective, photoactivated surface hydrosilylation of α,ω-alkenynes, where the alkynyl terminal is protected with a trimethylgermanyl (TMG) group, on hydrogen-terminated silicon substrates. The TMG groups on the film are readily removed in aqueous solutions in the presence of Cu(I). Significantly, the degermanylation and the subsequent CuAAC reaction with various azides could be combined into a single step in good yields. Thus, oligo(ethylene glycol) (OEG) with an azido tag was attached to the TMG-alkyne surfaces, leading to OEG-terminated surfaces that reduced the nonspecific adsorption of protein (fibrinogen) by >98%. The CuAAC reaction could be performed in microarray format to generate arrays of mannose and biotin with varied densities on the protein-resistant OEG background. We also demonstrated that the monolayer platform could be functionalized with mannose for highly specific capturing of living targets (Escherichia coli expressing fimbriae) onto the silicon substrates.

Earthworm effects without earthworms: inoculation of raw organic matter with worm-worked substrates alters microbial community functioning.

Science.gov (United States)

Aira, Manuel; Domínguez, Jorge

2011-01-27

Earthworms are key organisms in organic matter decomposition because of the interactions they establish with soil microorganisms. They enhance decomposition rates through the joint action of direct effects (i.e. effects due to direct earthworm activity such as digestion, burrowing, etc) and indirect effects (i.e. effects derived from earthworm activities such as cast ageing). Here we test whether indirect earthworm effects affect microbial community functioning in the substrate, as when earthworms are present (i. e., direct effects). To address these questions we inoculated fresh organic matter (pig manure) with worm-worked substrates (vermicompost) produced by three different earthworm species. Two doses of each vermicompost were used (2.5 and 10%). We hypothesized that the presence of worm-worked material in the fresh organic matter will result in an inoculum of different microorganisms and nutrients. This inoculum should interact with microbial communities in fresh organic matter, thus promoting modifications similar to those found when earthworms are present. Inoculation of worm-worked substrates provoked significant increases in microbial biomass and enzyme activities (β-glucosidase, cellulase, phosphatase and protease). These indirect effects were similar to, although lower than, those obtained in pig manure with earthworms (direct and indirect earthworm effects). In general, the effects were not dose-dependent, suggesting the existence of a threshold at which they were triggered. Our data reveal that the relationships between earthworms and microorganisms are far from being understood, and suggest the existence of several positive feedbacks during earthworm activity as a result of the interactions between direct and indirect effects, since their combination produces stronger modifications to microbial biomass and enzyme activity.

Earthworm effects without earthworms: inoculation of raw organic matter with worm-worked substrates alters microbial community functioning.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Manuel Aira

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Earthworms are key organisms in organic matter decomposition because of the interactions they establish with soil microorganisms. They enhance decomposition rates through the joint action of direct effects (i.e. effects due to direct earthworm activity such as digestion, burrowing, etc and indirect effects (i.e. effects derived from earthworm activities such as cast ageing. Here we test whether indirect earthworm effects affect microbial community functioning in the substrate, as when earthworms are present (i. e., direct effects. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: To address these questions we inoculated fresh organic matter (pig manure with worm-worked substrates (vermicompost produced by three different earthworm species. Two doses of each vermicompost were used (2.5 and 10%. We hypothesized that the presence of worm-worked material in the fresh organic matter will result in an inoculum of different microorganisms and nutrients. This inoculum should interact with microbial communities in fresh organic matter, thus promoting modifications similar to those found when earthworms are present. Inoculation of worm-worked substrates provoked significant increases in microbial biomass and enzyme activities (β-glucosidase, cellulase, phosphatase and protease. These indirect effects were similar to, although lower than, those obtained in pig manure with earthworms (direct and indirect earthworm effects. In general, the effects were not dose-dependent, suggesting the existence of a threshold at which they were triggered. CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE: Our data reveal that the relationships between earthworms and microorganisms are far from being understood, and suggest the existence of several positive feedbacks during earthworm activity as a result of the interactions between direct and indirect effects, since their combination produces stronger modifications to microbial biomass and enzyme activity.

PLZT capacitor on glass substrate

Science.gov (United States)

Fairchild, M. Ray; Taylor, Ralph S.; Berlin, Carl W.; Wong, Celine W. K.; Ma, Beihai; Balachandran, Uthamalingam

2016-01-05

A lead-lanthanum-zirconium-titanate (PLZT) capacitor on a substrate formed of glass. The first metallization layer is deposited on a top side of the substrate to form a first electrode. The dielectric layer of PLZT is deposited over the first metallization layer. The second metallization layer deposited over the dielectric layer to form a second electrode. The glass substrate is advantageous as glass is compatible with an annealing process used to form the capacitor.

Hydrophilicity Reinforced Adhesion of Anodic Alumina Oxide Template Films to Conducting Substrates for Facile Fabrication of Highly Ordered Nanorod Arrays.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Chuanju; Wang, Guiqiang; Yang, Rui; Sun, Xiangyu; Ma, Hui; Sun, Shuqing

2017-01-17

Arrays of ordered nanorods are of special interest in many fields. However, it remains challenging to obtain such arrays on conducting substrates in a facile manner. In this article, we report the fabrication of highly ordered and vertically standing nanorod arrays of both metals and semiconductors on Au films and indium tin oxide glass substrates without an additional layering. In this approach, following the simple hydrophilic treatment of an anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) membrane and conducting substrates, the AAO membrane was transferred onto the modified substrates with excellent adhesion. Subsequently, nanorod arrays of various materials were electrodeposited on the conducting substrates directly. This method avoids any expensive and tedious lithographic and ion milling process, which provides a simple yet robust route to the fabrication of arrays of 1D materials with high aspect ratio on conducting substrates, which shall pave the way for many practical applications in a range of fields.

Phonon scattering in graphene over substrate steps

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sevincli, Haldun; Brandbyge, Mads

2014-01-01

We calculate the effect on phonon transport of substrate-induced bends in graphene. We consider bending induced by an abrupt kink in the substrate, and provide results for different step-heights and substrate interaction strengths. We find that individual substrate steps reduce thermal conductance...

The Copper Substrate Developments for the HIE-ISOLDE High-Beta Quarter Wave Resonator

CERN Document Server

Alberty, L; Aviles, I; Calatroni, S; Capatina, O; Foffano, G; Kadi, Y; Moyret, P; Schirm, K-M; Tardy, T; Venturini Delsolaro, W; D'Elia, A

2013-01-01

A new Linac using superconducting Quarter-Wave Resonators (QWRs) is under construction at CERN in the framework of the HIE-ISOLDE project. The QWRs are made by niobium sputtered on a bulk copper substrate. The working frequency at 4.5 K is 101.28 MHz and they will provide 6 MV/m accelerating gradient on the beam axis with a total maximum power dissipation of 10 W. The properties of the cavity substrate have a direct impact on the final cavity performance. The copper substrate has to ensure an optimum surface for the niobium sputtered layer. It has also to fulfil the required geometrical tolerances, the mechanical stability during operation and the thermal performance to optimally extract the RF dissipated power on cavity walls. The paper presents the mechanical design of the high β cavities. The procurement process of the copper raw material is detailed, including specifications and tests. The manufacturing sequence of the complete cavity is then explained and the structural and thermo-mechanical behaviour...

Voltage-Controlled Spray Deposition of Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes on Semiconducting and Insulating Substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Maulik, Subhodip; Sarkar, Anirban; Basu, Srismrita; Daniels-Race, Theda

2018-05-01

A facile, cost-effective, voltage-controlled, "single-step" method for spray deposition of surfactant-assisted dispersed carbon nanotube (CNT) thin films on semiconducting and insulating substrates has been developed. The fabrication strategy enables direct deposition and adhesion of CNT films on target samples, eliminating the need for substrate surface functionalization with organosilane binder agents or metal layer coatings. Spray coating experiments on four types of sample [bare silicon (Si), microscopy-grade glass samples, silicon dioxide (SiO2), and polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA)] under optimized control parameters produced films with thickness ranging from 40 nm to 6 μm with substantial surface coverage and packing density. These unique deposition results on both semiconducting and insulator target samples suggest potential applications of this technique in CNT thin-film transistors with different gate dielectrics, bendable electronics, and novel CNT-based sensing devices, and bodes well for further investigation into thin-film coatings of various inorganic, organic, and hybrid nanomaterials on different types of substrate.

Direct Write Printing on Thin and Flexible Substrates for Space Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Paquette, Beth

2016-01-01

This presentation describes the work done on direct-write printing conductive traces for a flexible detector application. A Repeatability Plan was established to define detector requirements, material and printer selections, printing facilities, and tests to verify requirements are met. Designs were created for the detector, and printed using an aerosol jet printer. Testing for requirement verification is ongoing.

Growth of vertically oriented InN nanorods from In-rich conditions on unintentionally patterned sapphire substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Terziyska, Penka T., E-mail: pterziy1@lakeheadu.ca [Semiconductor Research Laboratory, Department of Electrical Engineering, Lakehead University, 955 Oliver Road, Thunder Bay, ON P7B 5E1 (Canada); Butcher, Kenneth Scott A. [Semiconductor Research Laboratory, Department of Electrical Engineering, Lakehead University, 955 Oliver Road, Thunder Bay, ON P7B 5E1 (Canada); MEAglow Ltd., Box 398, 2400 Nipigon Road, Thunder Bay, ON P7C4W1 (Canada); Rafailov, Peter [Institute of Solid State Physics, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 72 Tzarigradsko Chaussee Blvd., 1784 Sofia (Bulgaria); Alexandrov, Dimiter [Semiconductor Research Laboratory, Department of Electrical Engineering, Lakehead University, 955 Oliver Road, Thunder Bay, ON P7B 5E1 (Canada); MEAglow Ltd., Box 398, 2400 Nipigon Road, Thunder Bay, ON P7C4W1 (Canada)

2015-10-30

Highlights: • Vertical InN nanorods are grown on selective areas of sapphire substrates. • In metal droplets nucleate on the sharp needle apexes on the selective areas. • The preferred orientation and the growth direction of the nanorods are (0 0 0 1). • The nanorods grow from the supersaturated indium melt on their tops. - Abstract: Vertically oriented InN nanorods were grown on selective areas of unintentionally patterned c-oriented sapphire substrates exhibiting sharp needles that preferentially accommodate In-metal liquid droplets, using Migration Enhanced Afterglow (MEAglow) growth technique. We point out that the formation of AlN needles on selected areas can be reproduced intentionally by over-nitridation of unmasked areas of sapphire substrates. The liquid indium droplets serve as a self-catalyst and the nanorods grow from the supersaturated indium melt in the droplet in a vertical direction. X-ray diffraction measurements indicate the presence of hexagonal InN only, with preferred orientation along (0 0 0 1) crystal axis, and very good crystalline quality. The room temperature Raman spectrum shows the presence of the A{sub 1}(TO), E{sub 2}(high) and A{sub 1}(LO) phonon modes of the hexagonal InN.

Investigation of growth, structural and electronic properties of V2O3 thin films on selected substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nateprov, Alexei

2006-08-01

The present work is devoted to the experimental study of the MI transition in V 2 O 3 thin films, grown on different substrates. The main goal of the work was to develop a technology of growth of V 2 O 3 thin films on substrates with different electrical and structural properties (diamond and LiNbO 3 ), designed for specific applications. The structural and electrical properties of the obtained films were characterized in detail with a special focus on their potential applications. The MIT of V 2 O 3 was investigated by SAW using first directly deposited V 2 O 3 thin film onto a LiNbO 3 substrate. (orig.)

Deterioration of exchange bias in CoO-Co bilayers by the roughness of the ZnO substrates

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stamopoulos D.

2014-07-01

Full Text Available The Exchange Bias (EB effect is observed at the interface of Antiferromagnet/Ferromagnet (AF/FM structures and depends on the interface roughness (IR. Until today, only low IR values, usually below 10 nm, have been investigated. Here we investigate an extended range of IR through controlling the surface roughness (SR of the employed substrates. We employ CoO/Co bilayers (thickness within 10-60 nm, a classic AF/FM structure that exhibits intense EB. ZnO was employed as the substrate in both film and bulk forms, enabling us to vary the SR up to 840 nm. Our data reveal a strong relative decrease, ranging within 20-65%, of both the shift HshiftEB and coercive HcEB fields upon increase of SR (IR, for both parallel and normal magnetic field-sample configurations. For the explanation of these findings we propose that in thin AF/FM structures deposited on rough substrates the local magnetization, Mf of the FM is ‘locked’ mainly in-layer due to shape anisotropy, thus it is forced to follow the morphologically rough landscape of the substrate. This imposes misalignment between Mf, that is ‘directionally random’, and Hex, that is ‘directionally oriented’. This weakens the biasing potential of Hex on Mf and reduces the relative macroscopic parameters Hshift EB amd Hc EB.

Optoelectronic Properties and Structural Characterization of GaN Thick Films on Different Substrates through Pulsed Laser Deposition

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wei-Kai Wang

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Approximately 4-μm-thick GaN epitaxial films were directly grown onto a GaN/sapphire template, sapphire, Si(111, and Si(100 substrates by high-temperature pulsed laser deposition (PLD. The influence of the substrate type on the crystalline quality, surface morphology, microstructure, and stress states was investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD, photoluminescence (PL, atomic force microscopy (AFM, transmission electron microscopy (TEM, and Raman spectroscopy. Raman scattering spectral analysis showed a compressive film stress of −0.468 GPa for the GaN/sapphire template, whereas the GaN films on sapphire, Si(111, and Si(100 exhibited a tensile stress of 0.21, 0.177, and 0.081 GPa, respectively. Comparative analysis indicated the growth of very close to stress-free GaN on the Si(100 substrate due to the highly directional energetic precursor migration on the substrate’s surface and the release of stress in the nucleation of GaN films during growth by the high-temperature (1000 °C operation of PLD. Moreover, TEM images revealed that no significant GaN meltback (Ga–Si etching process was found in the GaN/Si sample surface. These results indicate that PLD has great potential for developing stress-free GaN templates on different substrates and using them for further application in optoelectronic devices.

Inoculation of sphagnum-based soil substrate with entomopathogenic fungus Isaria fumosorosea (Hypocreales: Cordycipitaceae)

Science.gov (United States)

Zemek, Rostislav; Konopická, Jana; Bohatá, Andrea

2018-04-01

Convenient ecological alternative to broad-spectrum chemical pesticides is the utilization of natural enemies, like predators, parasitoids and microorganisms. A substantial number of microbial biopesticides based on entomopathogenic fungi have been developed worldwide since 1960s. Beauveria bassiana (Balsamo-Crivelli) Vuillemin, Metarhizium anisopliae (Metchnikoff) Sorokin, Isaria fumosorosea (Wize), and B. brongniartii (Saccardo) Petch are the most common species used in commercially produced mycopesticides. Besides direct biological pest control, these fungi could be also used in preventive application programs, particularly in ornamental or nursery plants to provide better control against pests. The aim of the present study was to investigate potential of pre-colonization of sphagnum-based soil substrate with I. fumosorosea strain CCM 8367 which was found earlier to be highly virulent against several pest species. We developed simple laboratory apparatus for application of fungal spore suspension into the substrate. Suspension was prepared from blastospores obtained by submerged cultivation on potato dextrose broth (PDB) medium using an orbital shaker. Inoculated substrate was placed into plastic bags and stored at constant temperature for six months. Every month, samples were analyzed for concentration of colony forming units (CFU) by elution and selective medium technique. The results showed that at 20°C the fungus successfully colonized the soil substrate and persisted there although the mean concentration slightly decreased from 5.89×104 to 2.76×104 CFU per milliliter of substrate during the experiment. Temperature 30°C had negative effect on survival of the fungus and is not recommended for long-term storage of pre-inoculated substrate. We can conclude that I. fumosorosea-colonized substrate can be convenient for preventive and permanent protection of various plants against soil-dwelling pests.

Large-scale uniform ZnO tetrapods on catalyst free glass substrate by thermal evaporation method

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Alsultany, Forat H., E-mail: foratusm@gmail.com [School of Physics, USM, 11800 Penang (Malaysia); Hassan, Z. [Institute of Nano-Optoelectronics Research and Technology Laboratory (INOR), USM, 11800 Penang (Malaysia); Ahmed, Naser M. [School of Physics, USM, 11800 Penang (Malaysia)

2016-07-15

Highlights: • Investigate the growth of ZnO-Ts on glass substrate by thermal evaporation method. • Glass substrate without any catalyst or a seed layer. • The morphology was controlled by adjusting the temperature of the material and the substrate. • Glass substrate was placed vertically in the quartz tube. - Abstract: Here, we report for the first time the catalyst-free growth of large-scale uniform shape and size ZnO tetrapods on a glass substrate via thermal evaporation method. Three-dimensional networks of ZnO tetrapods have needle–wire junctions, an average leg length of 2.1–2.6 μm, and a diameter of 35–240 nm. The morphology and structure of ZnO tetrapods were investigated by controlling the preparation temperature of each of the Zn powder and the glass substrate under O{sub 2} and Ar gases. Studies were carried out on ZnO tetrapods using X-ray diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy, UV–vis spectrophotometer, and a photoluminescence. The results showed that the sample grow in the hexagonal wurtzite structure with preferentially oriented along (002) direction, good crystallinity and high transmittance. The band gap value is about 3.27 eV. Photoluminescence spectrum exhibits a very sharp peak at 378 nm and a weak broad green emission.

Engineered jadomycin analogues with altered sugar moieties revealing JadS as a substrate flexible O-glycosyltransferase.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Liyuan; Pan, Guohui; Zhu, Xifen; Fan, Keqiang; Gao, Wubin; Ai, Guomin; Ren, Jinwei; Shi, Mingxin; Olano, Carlos; Salas, José A; Yang, Keqian

2017-07-01

Glycosyltransferases (GTs)-mediated glycodiversification studies have drawn significant attention recently, with the goal of generating bioactive compounds with improved pharmacological properties by diversifying the appended sugars. The key to achieving glycodiversification is to identify natural and/or engineered flexible GTs capable of acting upon a broad range of substrates. Here, we report the use of a combinatorial biosynthetic approach to probe the substrate flexibility of JadS, the GT in jadomycin biosynthesis, towards different non-native NDP-sugar substrates, enabling us to identify six jadomycin B analogues with different sugar moieties. Further structural engineering by precursor-directed biosynthesis allowed us to obtain 11 new jadomycin analogues. Our results for the first time show that JadS is a flexible O-GT that can utilize both L- and D- sugars as donor substrates, and tolerate structural changes at the C2, C4 and C6 positions of the sugar moiety. JadS may be further exploited to generate novel glycosylated jadomycin molecules in future glycodiversification studies.

Laser-assisted simultaneous transfer and patterning of vertically aligned carbon nanotube arrays on polymer substrates for flexible devices.

Science.gov (United States)

In, Jung Bin; Lee, Daeho; Fornasiero, Francesco; Noy, Aleksandr; Grigoropoulos, Costas P

2012-09-25

We demonstrate a laser-assisted dry transfer technique for assembling patterns of vertically aligned carbon nanotube arrays on a flexible polymeric substrate. A laser beam is applied to the interface of a nanotube array and a polycarbonate sheet in contact with one another. The absorbed laser heat promotes nanotube adhesion to the polymer in the irradiated regions and enables selective pattern transfer. A combination of the thermal transfer mechanism with rapid direct writing capability of focused laser beam irradiation allows us to achieve simultaneous material transfer and direct micropatterning in a single processing step. Furthermore, we demonstrate that malleability of the nanotube arrays transferred onto a flexible substrate enables post-transfer tailoring of electric conductance by collapsing the aligned nanotubes in different directions. This work suggests that the laser-assisted transfer technique provides an efficient route to using vertically aligned nanotubes as conductive elements in flexible device applications.

Offshore Substrate

Data.gov (United States)

California Natural Resource Agency — This shapefile displays the distribution of substrate types from Pt. Arena to Pt. Sal in central/northern California. Originally this data consisted of seven paper...

CVD growth of large-area and high-quality HfS2 nanoforest on diverse substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Zheng, Binjie; Wang, Zegao; Qi, Fei; Wang, Xinqiang; Yu, Bo; Zhang, Wanli; Chen, Yuanfu

2018-03-01

Two-dimensional layered transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) have attracted burgeoning attention due to their various properties and wide potential applications. As a new TMD, hafnium disulfide (HfS2) is theoretically predicted to have better electrical performance than widely studied MoS2. The experimental researches also confirmed the extraordinary feature in electronics and optoelectronics. However, the maximal device performance may not be achieved due to its own limitation of planar structure and challenge of transfer without contamination. Here, through the chemical vapor deposition (CVD) technique, inch-size HfS2 nanoforest has been directly grown on diverse objective substrates covering insulating, semiconducting and conducting substrates. This direct CVD growth without conventional transfer process avoids contamination and degradation in quality, suggesting its promising and wide applications in high-quality and multifarious devices. It is noted that all the HfS2 nanoforests grown on diverse substrates are constructed with vertically aligned few-layered HfS2 nanosheets with high crystalline quality and edge orientation. Moreover, due to its unique structure, the HfS2 nanoforest owns abundant exposed edge sites and large active surface area, which is essential to apply in high-performance catalyst, sensor, and energy storage or field emitter.

Synthesis of Y-Tip Graphitic Nanoribbons from Alcohol Catalytic Chemical Vapor Deposition on Piezoelectric Substrate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zainab Yunusa

2015-01-01

Full Text Available We report the synthesis of Graphitic Nanoribbons (GNRs using Alcohol Catalytic Chemical Vapor Deposition (ACCVD. Bulk GNR was synthesized directly on a piezoelectric substrate using one-step ACCVD. The synthesized GNRs were characterized by X-Ray Diffraction (XRD, Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM, Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM, Energy Dispersive X-Ray (EDX, Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM, and Raman spectroscopy. The characterization results showed Y-tip morphology of bulk and filamentous as-grown GNR having varying width that lies between tens and hundreds of nm and length of several microns. Based on the thickness obtained from the AFM and the analysis from the Raman spectroscopy, it was concluded that the synthesized GNRs are multiple-layered and graphitic in nature. With the direct synthesis of GNR on a piezoelectric substrate, it could have applications in the sensor industries, while the Y-tip GNR could have potentialities in semiconductor applications.

F2-laser patterning of indium tin oxide (ITO) thin film on glass substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xu, M.Y.; Li, J.; Herman, P.R.; Lilge, L.D.

2006-01-01

This paper reports the controlled micromachining of 100 nm thick indium tin oxide (ITO) thin films on glass substrates with a vacuum-ultraviolet 157 nm F 2 laser. Partial to complete film removal was observed over a wide fluence window from 0.49 J/cm 2 to an optimized single pulse fluence of 4.5 J/cm 2 for complete film removal. Optical microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and energy dispersive X-ray analysis show little substrate or collateral damage by the laser pulse which conserved the stoichiometry, optical transparency and electrical conductivity of ITO coating adjacent to the trenches. At higher fluence, a parallel micron sized channel can be etched in the glass substrate. The high photon energy and top-hat beam homogenized optical system of the F 2 laser opens new means for direct structuring of electrodes and microchannels in biological microfluidic systems or in optoelectronics. (orig.)

Influence of substrate orientation on the structural properties of GaAs nanowires in MOCVD

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Muhammad, R., E-mail: rosnita@utm.my; Othaman, Z., E-mail: zulothaman@gmail.com; Ibrahim, Z., E-mail: zuhairi@utm.my; Sakrani, S., E-mail: samsudi3@yahoo.com [Faculty of Science, UniversitiTeknologi Malaysia, 81310 UTM, Johor (Malaysia); Wahab, Y., E-mail: wyussof@gmail.com [Razak School, UniversitiTeknologi Malaysia, 54100 Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia)

2016-04-19

In this study, the effect of substrate orientation on the structural properties of GaAs nanowires grown by a metal organic chemical vapor deposition has been investigated. Gold colloids were used as catalyst to initiate the growth of nanowiresby the vapour-liquid-solid (VLS) mechanism. From the field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), the growth of the nanowires were at an elevation angle of 90°, 60°, 65° and 35° with respect to the GaAs substrate for (111)B, (311)B, (110) and (100) orientations respectively. The preferential NW growth direction is always <111>B. High-resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM) micrograph showed the NWs that grew on the GaAs(111)B has more structural defects when compared to others. Energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX) indicated the presence of Au, Ga and As. The bigger diameter NWs dominates the (111)B substrate surface.

Carbon Dioxide-Mediated C(sp3)-H Arylation of Amine Substrates.

Science.gov (United States)

Kapoor, Mohit; Liu, Daniel; Young, Michael C

2018-05-25

Elaborating amines via C-H functionalization has been an important area of research over the past decade but has generally relied on an added directing group or sterically hindered amine approach. Since free-amine-directed C(sp 3 )-H activation is still primarily limited to cyclization reactions and to improve the sustainability and reaction scope of amine-based C-H activation, we present a strategy using CO 2 in the form of dry ice that facilitates intermolecular C-H arylation. This methodology has been used to enable an operationally simple procedure whereby 1° and 2° aliphatic amines can be arylated selectively at their γ-C-H positions. In addition to potentially serving as a directing group, CO 2 has also been demonstrated to curtail the oxidation of sensitive amine substrates.

Role of the substrate on the magnetic anisotropy of magnetite thin films grown by ion-assisted deposition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Prieto, Pilar; Prieto, José Emilio; Gargallo-Caballero, Raquel; Marco, José Francisco; Figuera, Juan de la

2015-01-01

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • The magnetic anisotropy of magnetite thin films is controlled by the substrate induced microstructure. • Single-crystal oxide substrates induce fourfold in-plane magnetic anisotropy • MgO and SrTiO_3 substrates show the same magnetic behavior despite its different mismatch with Fe_3O_4 films. • Silicon and glass substrates induce in-plane magnetic isotropy and uniaxial anisotropy, respectively. - Abstract: Magnetite (Fe_3O_4) thin films were deposited on MgO (0 0 1), SrTiO_3 (0 0 1), LaAlO_3 (0 0 1) single crystal substrates as well on as silicon and amorphous glass in order to study the effect of the substrate on their magnetic properties, mainly the magnetic anisotropy. We have performed a structural, morphological and compositional characterization by X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy and Rutherford backscattering ion channeling in oxygen resonance mode. The magnetic anisotropy has been investigated by vectorial magneto-optical Kerr effect. The results indicate that the magnetic anisotropy is especially influenced by the substrate-induced microstructure. In-plane isotropy and uniaxial anisotropy behavior have been observed on silicon and glass substrates, respectively. The transition between both behaviors depends on grain size. For LaAlO_3 substrates, in which the lattice mismatch between the Fe_3O_4 films and the substrate is significant, a weak in-plane fourfold magnetic anisotropy is induced. However when magnetite is deposited on MgO (0 0 1) and SrTiO_3 (0 0 1) substrates, a well-defined fourfold in-plane magnetic anisotropy is observed with easy axes along [1 0 0] and [0 1 0] directions. The magnetic properties on these two latter substrates are similar in terms of magnetic anisotropy and coercive fields.

Study on ECR dry etching and selective MBE growth of AlGaN/GaN for fabrication of quantum nanostructures on GaN (0001) substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oikawa, Takeshi; Ishikawa, Fumitaro; Sato, Taketomo; Hashizume, Tamotsu; Hasegawa, Hideki

2005-01-01

This paper attempts to form AlGaN/GaN quantum wire (QWR) network structures on patterned GaN (0001) substrates by selective molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) growth. Substrate patterns were prepared along - and -directions by electron cyclotron resonance assisted reactive-ion beam etching (ECR-RIBE) process. Selective growth was possible for both directions in the case of GaN growth, but only in the -direction in the case of AlGaN growth. A hexagonal QWR network was successfully grown on a hexagonal mesa pattern by combining the -direction and two other equivalent directions. AFM observation confirmed excellent surface morphology of the grown network. A clear cathodoluminescence (CL) peak coming from the embedded AlGaN/GaN QWR structure was clearly identified

Effect of shear strain on the deflection of a clamped magnetostrictive film-substrate system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ming Zhenghui; Ming Li; Bo Zou; Xia Luo

2011-01-01

The effect of in-plane shear strain of a clamped bimorph on the deflection produced by magnetization of the film is investigated. The deflection is found by minimizing the Gibbs free energy with respect to four parameters, strains and curvatures along x and y directions at the interface, by assuming that the curvature in the y direction varies as a function of aspect ratio w/l along x. A set of standard linear equations of four parameters are obtained and the deflection is expressed in terms of the four parameters by solving the equations using Cramer rules. The inconsistencies pointed out by previous authors are also reviewed. For actuators made of thick and short clamped film-substrate system, the in-plane shear deformation should not be omitted. The present calculation model can give a relatively simple and accurate prediction of deflection for thick and short specimens of aspect ratio w/l<10, which supports the results obtained by finite element modeling. - Highlights: → We model the deflection of a thick magnetostrictive film-substrate cantilever plate. → Total stress along z from magnetic field is not zero without external force. → Effect of in-plane shear strain in calculating deflection examined. → Analytical solution of deflection obtained by assuming a curvature function. → Shear strain for short cantilever film-substrate plate considered.

Method of forming through substrate vias (TSVs) and singulating and releasing die having the TSVs from a mechanical support substrate

Science.gov (United States)

Okandan, Murat; Nielson, Gregory N

2014-12-09

Accessing a workpiece object in semiconductor processing is disclosed. The workpiece object includes a mechanical support substrate, a release layer over the mechanical support substrate, and an integrated circuit substrate coupled over the release layer. The integrated circuit substrate includes a device layer having semiconductor devices. The method also includes etching through-substrate via (TSV) openings through the integrated circuit substrate that have buried ends at or within the release layer including using the release layer as an etch stop. TSVs are formed by introducing one or more conductive materials into the TSV openings. A die singulation trench is etched at least substantially through the integrated circuit substrate around a perimeter of an integrated circuit die. The integrated circuit die is at least substantially released from the mechanical support substrate.

Metal oxide nanorod arrays on monolithic substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gao, Pu-Xian; Guo, Yanbing; Ren, Zheng

2018-01-02

A metal oxide nanorod array structure according to embodiments disclosed herein includes a monolithic substrate having a surface and multiple channels, an interface layer bonded to the surface of the substrate, and a metal oxide nanorod array coupled to the substrate surface via the interface layer. The metal oxide can include ceria, zinc oxide, tin oxide, alumina, zirconia, cobalt oxide, and gallium oxide. The substrate can include a glass substrate, a plastic substrate, a silicon substrate, a ceramic monolith, and a stainless steel monolith. The ceramic can include cordierite, alumina, tin oxide, and titania. The nanorod array structure can include a perovskite shell, such as a lanthanum-based transition metal oxide, or a metal oxide shell, such as ceria, zinc oxide, tin oxide, alumina, zirconia, cobalt oxide, and gallium oxide, or a coating of metal particles, such as platinum, gold, palladium, rhodium, and ruthenium, over each metal oxide nanorod. Structures can be bonded to the surface of a substrate and resist erosion if exposed to high velocity flow rates.

Experimental Investigation of Terminal Fans Prograding on a Salt Substrate: 3-d Physical Experiments

Science.gov (United States)

Chatmas, E.; Kim, W.

2015-12-01

strongly dependent on substrate thickness and basin slope directly influences channel geometry. These findings will also be compared to the Mojave River Wash located in southern California off the San Bernardino Mountains near Zzyzx, CA to further understand the dynamics of terminal fans on a mobile substrate.

Interaction of silicene with β-Si3N4(0001)/Si(111) substrate; energetics and electronic properties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Filippone, Francesco

2014-01-01

The free-standing, quasi-2D layer of Si is known as silicene, in analogy with graphene. Much effort is devoted in the study of silicene, since, similarly to graphene, it shows a very high electron mobility. The interaction of silicene with a hybrid substrate, β-Si 3 N 4 (0001)/Si(111), exposing the β-Si 3 N 4 (0001) surface, has been studied by means of Density Functional calculations, with van der Waals interactions included. Once deepened the most important structural and electronic features of the hybrid substrate, we demonstrated that an electron transfer occurs from the substrate to the silicene layer. In turn, such an electron transfer can be modulated by the doping of the substrate. The β-Si 3 N 4 /silicene interaction appears to be strong enough to ensure adequate adsorption stability. It is also shown that electronic states of substrate and adsorbate still remain decoupled, paving the way for the exploitation of the peculiar electron mobility properties of the silicene layer. A detailed analysis in both direct and reciprocal space is reported. (paper)

Substrate binding accelerates the conformational transitions and substrate dissociation in multidrug efflux transporter AcrB

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Beibei eWang

2015-04-01

Full Text Available The tripartite efflux pump assembly AcrAB-TolC is the major multidrug resistance transporter in E. coli. The inner membrane transporter AcrB is a homotrimer, energized by the proton movement down the transmembrane electrochemical gradient. The asymmetric crystal structures of AcrB with three monomers in distinct conformational states (access (A, binding (B and extrusion (E support a functional rotating mechanism, in which each monomer of AcrB cycles among the three states in a concerted way. However, the relationship between the conformational changes during functional rotation and drug translocation has not been totally understood. Here, we explored the conformational changes of the AcrB homotrimer during the ABE→BEA transition in different substrate-binding states using targeted MD simulations. It was found that the dissociation of substrate from the distal binding pocket of B monomer is closely related to the concerted conformational changes in the translocation pathway, especially the side chain reorientation of Phe628 and Tyr327. A second substrate binding at the proximal binding pocket of A monomer evidently accelerates the conformational transitions as well as substrate dissociation in B monomer. The acceleration effect of the multi-substrate binding mode provides a molecular explanation for the positive cooperativity observed in the kinetic studies of substrate efflux and deepens our understanding of the functional rotating mechanism of AcrB.

Method For Producing Mechanically Flexible Silicon Substrate

KAUST Repository

Hussain, Muhammad Mustafa

2014-08-28

A method for making a mechanically flexible silicon substrate is disclosed. In one embodiment, the method includes providing a silicon substrate. The method further includes forming a first etch stop layer in the silicon substrate and forming a second etch stop layer in the silicon substrate. The method also includes forming one or more trenches over the first etch stop layer and the second etch stop layer. The method further includes removing the silicon substrate between the first etch stop layer and the second etch stop layer.

Method For Producing Mechanically Flexible Silicon Substrate

KAUST Repository

Hussain, Muhammad Mustafa; Rojas, Jhonathan Prieto

2014-01-01

A method for making a mechanically flexible silicon substrate is disclosed. In one embodiment, the method includes providing a silicon substrate. The method further includes forming a first etch stop layer in the silicon substrate and forming a second etch stop layer in the silicon substrate. The method also includes forming one or more trenches over the first etch stop layer and the second etch stop layer. The method further includes removing the silicon substrate between the first etch stop layer and the second etch stop layer.

Droplet-Assisted Laser Direct Nanoscale Writing on Silicon

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yuan-Jen Chang

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Nano-structuring using laser direct writing technology has shown great potential for industrial applications. A novel application of water droplets to this technology is proposed in this paper. With a hydrophobic layer and a controlled substrate temperature, a layer of randomly distributed water droplets with a high contact angle is formed on the substrate. These liquid droplets can be used as lenses to enhance the laser intensity at the bottom of the droplets. As a result, nanoscale holes can be fabricated on the substrate by controlling the laser energy density. We successfully fabricated holes with a diameter of 600 nm at a substrate temperature of 12 ∘C and a power density of 1.2 × 108 W/cm2 in our experiments. We also found that the hole diameter was around a ninth of the water droplet diameter. Meanwhile, the machined holes are not affected much by the focal length of the lens, but a hole with less than 100 nm in diameter at the center was observed.

Substrate Stiffness Controls Osteoblastic and Chondrocytic Differentiation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells without Exogenous Stimuli.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rene Olivares-Navarrete

Full Text Available Stem cell fate has been linked to the mechanical properties of their underlying substrate, affecting mechanoreceptors and ultimately leading to downstream biological response. Studies have used polymers to mimic the stiffness of extracellular matrix as well as of individual tissues and shown mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs could be directed along specific lineages. In this study, we examined the role of stiffness in MSC differentiation to two closely related cell phenotypes: osteoblast and chondrocyte. We prepared four methyl acrylate/methyl methacrylate (MA/MMA polymer surfaces with elastic moduli ranging from 0.1 MPa to 310 MPa by altering monomer concentration. MSCs were cultured in media without exogenous growth factors and their biological responses were compared to committed chondrocytes and osteoblasts. Both chondrogenic and osteogenic markers were elevated when MSCs were grown on substrates with stiffness <10 MPa. Like chondrocytes, MSCs on lower stiffness substrates showed elevated expression of ACAN, SOX9, and COL2 and proteoglycan content; COMP was elevated in MSCs but reduced in chondrocytes. Substrate stiffness altered levels of RUNX2 mRNA, alkaline phosphatase specific activity, osteocalcin, and osteoprotegerin in osteoblasts, decreasing levels on the least stiff substrate. Expression of integrin subunits α1, α2, α5, αv, β1, and β3 changed in a stiffness- and cell type-dependent manner. Silencing of integrin subunit beta 1 (ITGB1 in MSCs abolished both osteoblastic and chondrogenic differentiation in response to substrate stiffness. Our results suggest that substrate stiffness is an important mediator of osteoblastic and chondrogenic differentiation, and integrin β1 plays a pivotal role in this process.

Synthesis of c-oriented YbBa2Cu3O7-δ films on single and polycrystalline substrates by oxidation of liquid alloys

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Luo, J.S.; Merchant, N.; Maroni, V.A.; Gruen, D.M.; Tani, B.S.; Sandhage, K.H.; Craven, C.A.

1991-11-01

Textured superconducting films of YbBa 2 Cu 3 O 7-δ supported on single and polycrystalline substrates were prepared by oxidation of a liquid precursor alloy. The substrates were coated by dipping them into a molten alloy (YbBa 2 Cu 3 , m.p. ∼870 degree C), withdrawing them from the melt, then oxidizing the adhering liquid alloy layer to the corresponding oxide phase, i.e., YbBa 2 Cu 3 O 7-δ . Samples prepared in this way exhibited a superconducting transition at ∼80 K following annealing in pure OP 2 at 500 degree C. With SrTiO 3 (100) and MgO (100) substrates, evidence was seen for the epitaxial growth of YbBa 2 Cu 3 O 7-δ crystals having their c-axis parallel to the [100] direction of the substrate. For polycrystalline MgO, x-ray diffraction and microstructural examination showed that the high-T c crystallites in the films were also oriented with their c-axis perpendicular to the substrate surface, but the a and b axes directions were randomly oriented rather than epitaxial

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION Indicators for suicide substrate ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Jatinder

The usual trend is to apply QSSA to a system with high substrate concentration. But, QSSA, i.e., steadiness in intermediate concentration, may even be achieved at high and even comparable enzyme-substrate ratio. Whether a system will attain a steady state depends not only on the high substrate concentration, but also on ...

Manufacturing Process for OLED Integrated Substrate

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hung, Cheng-Hung [Vitro Flat Glass LLC, Cheswick, PA (United States). Glass Technology Center

2017-03-31

The main objective of this project was to develop a low-cost integrated substrate for rigid OLED solid-state lighting produced at a manufacturing scale. The integrated substrates could include combinations of soda lime glass substrate, light extraction layer, and an anode layer (i.e., Transparent Conductive Oxide, TCO). Over the 3⁺ year course of the project, the scope of work was revised to focus on the development of a glass substrates with an internal light extraction (IEL) layer. A manufacturing-scale float glass on-line particle embedding process capable of producing an IEL glass substrate having a thickness of less than 1.7mm and an area larger than 500mm x 400mm was demonstrated. Substrates measuring 470mm x 370mm were used in the OLED manufacturing process for fabricating OLED lighting panels in single pixel devices as large as 120.5mm x 120.5mm. The measured light extraction efficiency (calculated as external quantum efficiency, EQE) for on-line produced IEL samples (>50%) met the project’s initial goal.

Spectrophotometric determination of substrate-borne polyacrylamide.

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Jianhang; Wu, Laosheng

2002-08-28

Polyacrylamides (PAMs) have wide application in many industries and in agriculture. Scientific research and industrial applications manifested a need for a method that can quantify substrate-borne PAM. The N-bromination method (a PAM analytical technique based on N-bromination of amide groups and spectrophotometric determination of the formed starch-triiodide complex), which was originally developed for determining PAM in aqueous solutions, was modified to quantify substrate-borne PAM. In the modified method, the quantity of substrate-borne PAM was converted to a concentration of starch-triiodide complex in aqueous solution that was then measured by spectrophotometry. The method sensitivity varied with substrates due to sorption of reagents and reaction intermediates on the substrates. Therefore, separate calibration for each substrate was required. Results from PAM samples in sand, cellulose, organic matter burnt soils, and clay minerals showed that this method had good accuracy and reproducibility. The PAM recoveries ranged from 95.8% to 103.7%, and the relative standard deviations (n = 4) were application and facilitating PAM-related research.

High glucose recovery from direct enzymatic hydrolysis of bisulfite-pretreatment on non-detoxified furfural residues.

Science.gov (United States)

Xing, Yang; Bu, Lingxi; Sun, Dafeng; Liu, Zhiping; Liu, Shijie; Jiang, Jianxin

2015-10-01

This study reports four schemes to pretreat wet furfural residues (FRs) with sodium bisulfite for production of fermentable sugar. The results showed that non-detoxified FRs (pH 2-3) had great potential to lower the cost of bioconversion. The optimal process was that unwashed FRs were first pretreated with bisulfite, and the whole slurry was then directly used for enzymatic hydrolysis. A maximum glucose yield of 99.4% was achieved from substrates pretreated with 0.1 g NaHSO3/g dry substrate (DS), at a relatively low temperature of 100 °C for 3 h. Compared with raw material, enzymatic hydrolysis at a high-solid of 16.5% (w/w) specifically showed more excellent performance with bisulfite treated FRs. Direct bisulfite pretreatment improved the accessibility of substrates and the total glucose recovery. Lignosulfonate in the non-detoxified slurry decreased the non-productive adsorption of cellulase on the substrate, thus improving enzymatic hydrolysis. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Evaluation of Surface Cleaning Procedures for CTGS Substrates for SAW Technology with XPS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Erik Brachmann

2017-11-01

Full Text Available A highly efficient and reproducible cleaning procedure of piezoelectric substrates is essential in surface acoustic waves (SAW technology to fabricate high-quality SAW devices, especially for new applications such SAW sensors wherein new materials for piezoelectric substrates and interdigital transducers are used. Therefore, the development and critical evaluation of cleaning procedures for each material system that is under consideration becomes crucial. Contaminants like particles or the presence of organic/inorganic material on the substrate can dramatically influence and alter the properties of the thin film substrate composite, such as wettability, film adhesion, film texture, and so on. In this article, focus is given to different cleaning processes like SC-1 and SC-2, UV-ozone treatment, as well as cleaning by first-contact polymer Opticlean, which are applied for removal of contaminants from the piezoelectric substrate Ca 3 TaGa 3 Si 2 O 14 . By means of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, the presence of the most critical contaminants such as carbon, sodium, and iron removed through different cleaning procedures were studied and significant differences were observed between the outcomes of these procedures. Based on these results, a two-step cleaning process, combining SC-1 at a reduced temperature at 30 ∘ C instead of 80 ∘ C and a subsequent UV-ozone cleaning directly prior to deposition of the metallization, is suggested to achieve the lowest residual contamination level.

Furaldehyde substrate specificity and kinetics of Saccharomyces cerevisiae alcohol dehydrogenase 1 variants.

Science.gov (United States)

Laadan, Boaz; Wallace-Salinas, Valeria; Carlsson, Åsa Janfalk; Almeida, João Rm; Rådström, Peter; Gorwa-Grauslund, Marie F

2014-08-09

A previously discovered mutant of Saccharomyces cerevisiae alcohol dehydrogenase 1 (Adh1p) was shown to enable a unique NADH-dependent reduction of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), a well-known inhibitor of yeast fermentation. In the present study, site-directed mutagenesis of both native and mutated ADH1 genes was performed in order to identify the key amino acids involved in this substrate shift, resulting in Adh1p-variants with different substrate specificities. In vitro activities of the Adh1p-variants using two furaldehydes, HMF and furfural, revealed that HMF reduction ability could be acquired after a single amino acid substitution (Y295C). The highest activity, however, was reached with the double mutation S110P Y295C. Kinetic characterization with both aldehydes and the in vivo primary substrate acetaldehyde also enabled to correlate the alterations in substrate affinity with the different amino acid substitutions. We demonstrated the key role of Y295C mutation in HMF reduction by Adh1p. We generated and kinetically characterized a group of protein variants using two furaldehyde compounds of industrial relevance. Also, we showed that there is a threshold after which higher in vitro HMF reduction activities do not correlate any more with faster in vivo rates of HMF conversion, indicating other cell limitations in the conversion of HMF.

A study on arrangement characteristics of microparticles in sedimentation on flat and round substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Yeo, Eunju; Son, Minhee; Kim, Kwanoh; Kim, Jeong Hwan; Yoo, Yeong-Eun; Choi, Doo-Sun; Kim, Jungchul; Yoon, Seok Ho; Yoon, Jae Sung

2017-12-01

Recent advances of microfabrication techniques have enabled diverse structures and devices on the microscale. This fabrication method using microparticles is one of the most promising technologies because it can provide a cost effective process for large areas. So, many researchers are studying modulation and manipulation of the microparticles in solution to obtain a proper arrangement. However, the microparticles are in sedimentation status during the process in many cases, which makes it difficult to control their arrangement. In this study, droplets containing microparticles were placed on a substrate with minimal force and we investigated the arrangement of these microparticles after evaporation of the liquid. Experiments have been performed with upward and downward substrates to change the direction of gravity. The geometry of substrates was also changed, which were flat or round. The results show that the arrangement depends on the size of particles and gravity and geometry of the substrate. The arrangement also depends on the movement of the contact line of the droplets, which may recede or be pinned during evaporation. This study is expected to provide a method of the fabrication process for microparticles which may not be easily manipulated due to sedimentation.

Roles of s3 site residues of nattokinase on its activity and substrate specificity.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Shuming; Feng, Chi; Zhong, Jin; Huan, Liandong

2007-09-01

Nattokinase (Subtilisin NAT, NK) is a bacterial serine protease with high fibrinolytic activity. To probe their roles on protease activity and substrate specificity, three residues of S3 site (Gly(100), Ser(101) and Leu(126)) were mutated by site-directed mutagenesis. Kinetics parameters of 20 mutants were measured using tetrapeptides as substrates, and their fibrinolytic activities were determined by fibrin plate method. Results of mutation analysis showed that Gly(100) and Ser(101) had reverse steric and electrostatic effects. Residues with bulky or positively charged side chains at position 100 decreased the substrate binding and catalytic activity drastically, while residues with the same characters at position 101 could obviously enhance protease and fibrinolytic activity of NK. Mutation of Leu(126) might impair the structure of the active cleft and drastically decreased the activity of NK. Kinetics studies of the mutants showed that S3 residues were crucial to keep protease activity while they moderately affected substrate specificity of NK. The present study provided some original insight into the P3-S3 interaction in NK and other subtilisins, as well as showed successful protein engineering cases to improve NK as a potential therapeutic agent.

Ion Diffusion-Directed Assembly Approach to Ultrafast Coating of Graphene Oxide Thick Multilayers.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Xiaoli; Gao, Weiwei; Yao, Weiquan; Jiang, Yanqiu; Xu, Zhen; Gao, Chao

2017-10-24

The layer-by-layer (LbL) assembly approach has been widely used to fabricate multilayer coatings on substrates with multiple cycles, whereas it is hard to access thick films efficiently. Here, we developed an ion diffusion-directed assembly (IDDA) strategy to rapidly make multilayer thick coatings in one step on arbitrary substrates. To achieve multifunctional coatings, graphene oxide (GO) and metallic ions were selected as the typical building blocks and diffusion director in IDDA, respectively. With diffusion of metallic ions from substrate to negatively charged GO dispersion spontaneously (i.e., from high-concentration region to low-concentration region), GO was assembled onto the substrate sheet-by-sheet via sol-gel transformation. Because metallic ions with size of subnanometers can diffuse directionally and freely in the aqueous dispersion, GO was coated on the substrate efficiently, giving rise to films with desired thickness up to 10 μm per cycle. The IDDA approach shows three main merits: (1) high efficiency with a μm-scale coating rate; (2) controllability over thickness and evenness; and (3) generality for substrates of plastics, metals and ceramics with any shapes and morphologies. With these merits, IDDA strategy was utilized in the efficient fabrication of functional graphene coatings that exhibit outstanding performance as supercapacitors, electromagnetic interference shielding textiles, and anticorrosion coatings. This IDDA approach can be extended to other building blocks including polymers and colloidal nanoparticles, promising for the scalable production and application of multifunctional coatings.

Bayesian inference of substrate properties from film behavior

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aggarwal, R; Demkowicz, M J; Marzouk, Y M

2015-01-01

We demonstrate that by observing the behavior of a film deposited on a substrate, certain features of the substrate may be inferred with quantified uncertainty using Bayesian methods. We carry out this demonstration on an illustrative film/substrate model where the substrate is a Gaussian random field and the film is a two-component mixture that obeys the Cahn–Hilliard equation. We construct a stochastic reduced order model to describe the film/substrate interaction and use it to infer substrate properties from film behavior. This quantitative inference strategy may be adapted to other film/substrate systems. (paper)

Wetting on structured substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dietrich, S; Popescu, M N; Rauscher, M

2005-01-01

Chemically patterned surfaces are of significant interest in the context of microfluidic applications, and miniaturization of such devices aims at generating structures on the nano-scale. Whereas on the micron scale purely macroscopic descriptions of liquid flow are valid, on the nanometre scale long-ranged inter-molecular interactions, thermal fluctuations such as capillary waves, and finally the molecular structure of the liquid become important. We discuss the most important conceptual differences between flow on chemically patterned substrates on the micron scale and on the nanometre scale, and formulate four design issues for nanofluidics related to channel width, channel separation, and channel bending radius. As a specific example of nano-scale transport we present a microscopic model for the dynamics of spreading of monolayers on homogeneous substrates. Kinetic Monte Carlo simulations of this model on a homogeneous substrate reveal a complex spatio-temporal structure of the extracted monolayer, which includes the emergence of interfaces and of scaling properties of density profiles. These features are discussed and rationalized within the corresponding continuum limit derived from the microscopic dynamics. The corresponding spreading behaviour on a patterned substrate is briefly addressed

Dielectric coatings on metal substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Glaros, S.S.; Baker, P.; Milam, D.

1976-01-01

Large aperture, beryllium substrate-based mirrors have been used to focus high intensity pulsed laser beams. Finished surfaces have high reflectivity, low wavefront distortion, and high laser damage thresholds. This paper describes the development of a series of metallic coatings, surface finishing techniques, and dielectric overcoatings to meet specified performance requirements. Beryllium substrates were coated with copper, diamond-machined to within 5 micro-inches to final contour, nickel plated, and abrasively figured to final contour. Bond strengths for several bonding processes are presented. Dielectric overcoatings were deposited on finished multimetallic substrates to increase both reflectivity and the damage thresholds. Coatings were deposited using both high and low temperature processes which induce varying stresses in the finished coating substrate system. Data are presented to show the evolution of wavefront distortion, reflectivity, and damage thresholds throughout the many steps involved in fabrication