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    Semi-Interpenetrating Polymer Networks Based on N-isopropylacrylamide and 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane Sulfonic Acid for Intramolecular Force-Compensated Sensors
    (Bristol : IOP Publishing, 2021) Binder, Simon; Zschoche, Stefan; Voit, Brigitte; Gerlach, Gerald
    Stimulus-responsive hydrogels are swellable polymers that take up a specific volume depending on a measured variable present in solution. Hydrogel-based chemical sensors make use of this ability by converting the resulting swelling pressure, which depends on the measured variable, into an electrical value. Due to the tedious swelling processes, the measuring method of intramolecular force compensation is used to suppress these swelling processes and, thus, significantly increase the sensor's response time. However, intramolecular force compensation requires a bisensitive hydrogel. In addition to the sensitivity of the measured variable the gel has to provide a second sensitivity for intrinsic compensation of the swelling pressure. At the same time, this hydrogel has to meet further requirements, e.g. high compressive strength. Until now, interpenetrating polymer networks (IPN) have been used for such a force-compensatory effective hydrogel, which are complex to manufacture. In order to significantly simplify the sensor design and production, a simpler synthesis of the bisensitive hydrogel is desirable. This paper presents a new bisensitive hydrogel based on semi-interpenetrating polymer networks. It is based on a copolymer network consisting of N-isopropylacrylamide (NiPAAm) and 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane sulfonic acid (AMPS) and long PAMPS strands that permeate it. Measurements show, that this hydrogel meets all essential requirements for intramolecular force compensation and is at the same time much easier to synthesize than previously used IPN hydrogels. © 2021 The Author(s).
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    Self-Replication of Deeply Buried Doped Silicon Structures, which Remotely Control the Etching Process: A New Method for Forming a Silicon Pattern from the Bottom Up
    (Weinheim : Wiley-VCH, 2021) Schutzeichel, Christopher; Kiriy, Nataliya; Kiriy, Anton; Voit, Brigitte
    A typical microstructuring process utilizes photolithographic masks to create arbitrary patterns on silicon substrates in a top-down approach. Herein, a new, bottom-up microstructuring method is reported, which enables the patterning of n-doped silicon substrates to be performed without the need for application of etch-masks or stencils during the etching process. Instead, the structuring process developed herein involves a simple alkaline etching performed under illumination and is remotely controlled by the p-doped micro-sized implants, buried beneath a homogeneous n-doped layer at depths of 0.25 to 1 Âµm. The microstructuring is realized because the buried implants act upon illumination as micro-sized photovoltaic cells, which generate a flux of electrons and increase the negative surface charge in areas above the implants. The locally increased surface charge causes a local protection of the native silicon oxide layer from alkaline etching, which ultimately leads to the microstructuring of the substrate. In this way, substrates having at their top a thick layer of homogeneously n-doped silicon can be structured, reducing the need for costly, time-consuming photolithography steps. © 2021 The Authors. Advanced Functional Materials published by Wiley-VCH GmbH