2017, Winkler, A., Harazim, S., Collins, D.J., Brünig, R., Schmidt, H., Menzel, S.B.

In this work, we discuss and demonstrate the principle features of surface acoustic wave (SAW) aerosol generation, based on the properties of the fluid supply, the acoustic wave field and the acoustowetting phenomena. Furthermore, we demonstrate a compact SAW-based aerosol generator amenable to mass production fabricated using simple techniques including photolithography, computerized numerical control (CNC) milling and printed circuit board (PCB) manufacturing. Using this device, we present comprehensive experimental results exploring the complexity of the acoustic atomization process and the influence of fluid supply position and geometry, SAW power and fluid flow rate on the device functionality. These factors in turn influence the droplet size distribution, measured here, that is important for applications including liquid chromatography, pulmonary therapies, thin film deposition and olfactory displays.

2015, Micheel, Mathias, Torres Ziegenbein, Christian, Gilch, Peter, Ryseck, Gerald

(6-4) Photolesions between adjacent pyrimidine DNA bases are prone to secondary photochemistry. It has been shown that singlet excited (6-4) moieties form Dewar valence isomers as well as triplet excitations. We here report on the triplet state of a minimal model for the (6-4) photolesion, 1-methyl-2(1H)-pyrimidinone. Emphasis is laid on its ability to abstract hydrogen atoms from alcohols and carbohydrates. Steady-state and time-resolved experiments consistently yield bimolecular rate constants of ∼104 M−1 s−1 for the hydrogen abstraction. The process also occurs intramolecularly as experiments on zebularine (1-(β-D-ribofuranosyl)-2(1H)-pyrimidinone) show.

2016, Sypien, Anna, Stoica, Mihail, Czeppe, Tomasz

The results of investigation of the influence of additions of 2 and 3 at.% of Sn and simultaneously of Sn and 3 at.% Nb on microstructure and properties of the bulk metallic glasses of composition (Ti40Cu36−x Zr10Pd14Sn x )100−y Nb y are reported. It was found that the additions of Sn increased the temperatures of glass transition (T g), primary crystallization (T x ), melting, and liquidus as well as supercooled liquid range (ΔT) and glass forming ability (GFA). The nanohardness and elastic modulus decreased in alloys with 2 and 3 at.% Sn additions, revealing similar values. The 3 at.% Nb addition to the Sn-containing amorphous phase decreased as well all the T g, T x , T L, and T m temperatures as ΔT and GFA; however, relatively larger values of this parameters in alloys containing larger Sn content were preserved. In difference to the previously published results, in the case of the amorphous alloys containing small Nb and Sn additions, a noticeable amount of the quenched-in crystalline phases was not confirmed, at least of the micrometric sizes. In the case of the alloys containing Sn or both Sn and Nb, two slightly different amorphous phase compositions were detected, suggesting separation in the liquid phase. Phase composition of the alloys determined after amorphous phase crystallization was similar for all compositions. The phases Cu8Zr3, CuTiZr, and Pd3Zr were mainly identified in the proportions dependent on the alloy compositions.

2011, Wang, Gang, Mattern, Norbert, Bednarčí, Jozef, Xia, Lei, Zhai, QiJie, Dong, YuanDa, Eckert, Jürgen

The structural behavior of binary Cu50Zr50 and ternary Cu50Zr45Ti5 bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) under applied stress was investigated by means of in-situ high energy X-ray synchrotron diffraction. The components of the strain tensors were determined from the shifts of the maxima of the atomic pair correlation functions (PDF) in real space. The anisotropic atomic reorientation in the first-nearest-neighbor shell versus stress suggests structural rearrangements in short-range order. Within the plastic deformation range the overall strain of the metallic glass is equal to the yield strain. After unloading, the atomic structure returns to the stress-free state, and the short-range order is identical to that of the undeformed state. Plastic deformation, however, leads to localized shear bands whose contribution to the volume averaged diffraction pattern is too weak to be detected. A concordant region evidenced by the anisotropic component is activated to counterbalance the stress change due to the atomic bond reorientation in the first-nearest-neighbor shell. The size of the concordant region is an important factor dominating the yield strength and the plastic strain ability of the BMGs.

2010, Malsch, D., Gleichmann, N., Kielpinski, M., Mayer, G., Henkel, T., Mueller, D., Van Steijn, V., Kleijn, C.R., Kreutzer, M.T.

We describe the formation of water in oil droplets, which are commonly used in lab-on-a-chip systems for sample generation and dosing, at microfluidic T-shaped nozzles from elastic feed lines. A narrow nozzle forms a barrier for a liquid-liquid interface, such that pressure can build up behind the nozzle up to a critical pressure. Above this critical pressure, the liquid bursts into the main channel. Build-up of pressure is possible when the fluid before the nozzle is compressible or when the channel that leads to the nozzle is elastic. We explore the value of the critical pressure and the time required to achieve it. We describe the fluid flow of the sudden burst, globally in terms of flow rate into the channel and spatially resolved in terms of flow fields measured using micro-PIV. A total of three different stages-the lag phase, a spill out phase, and a linear growth phase-can be clearly discriminated during droplet formation. The lag time linearly scales with the curvature of the interface inside the nozzle and is inversly proportional to the flow rate of the dispersed phase. A complete overview of the evolution of the growth of droplets and the internal flow structure is provided in the digital supplement. © The Author(s) 2009.

2013, Favero, F.C., Becker, M., Spittel, R., Rothhardt, M., Kobelke, J., Bartelt, H.

We report on a fast and sensitive temperature sensor using a micro-structured or photonic crystal fiber interferometer with a high germanium doped fiber core. The wavelength sensitivity for temperature variation was as high as δλ/δT= 78 pm/ C up to 500 C, which was 6 times more sensitive than the fiber Bragg grating temperature sensitivity of δλ/δT= 13 pm/ C at 1550 nm. The sensor device was investigated concerning the sensitivity characteristics and response time.

2016, Nowak, R., Sobczak, N., Bruzda, G., Wojewoda-Budka, J., Litynska-Dobrzynska, L., Homa, M., Kaban, I., Xi, L., Jaworska, L.

Wetting characteristics of the Al/ZrB2 system were experimentally determined by the sessile drop method with application of separate heating of the ZrB2 and Al samples and combined with in situ cleaning of Al drop from native oxide film directly in vacuum chamber. The tests were performed in ultrahigh vacuum of 10−6 mbar at temperatures 710, 800, and 900 °C as well as in flowing inert gas (Ar) atmosphere at 1400 °C. The results evidenced that liquid Al does not wet ZrB2 substrate at 710 and 800 °C, forming high contact angles (θ) of 128° and 120°, respectively. At 900 °C, wetting phenomenon (θ < 90°) occurs in 29th minute and the contact angle decreases monotonically to the final value of 80°. At 1400 °C, wetting takes place immediately after drop deposition with a fast decrease in the contact angle to 76°. The solidified Al/ZrB2 couples were studied by scanning and transmission electron microscopy coupled with x-ray energy diffraction spectroscopy. Structural characterization revealed that only in the Al/ZrB2 couple produced at the highest temperature of 1400 °C new phases (Al3Zr, AlB2 and α-Al2O3) were formed.

2012, Ćwik, J., Palewski, T., Nenkov, K.

Specific heat measurements have been performed on polycrystalline HoCo2, ErCo2 and their solid solutions Ho1−x Er x Co2 (0.1≤x≤0.5). These compounds were synthesized using high-purity rare-earth metals and cobalt. X-ray diffraction patterns taken at room temperature reveal that all compounds have the C15 cubic Laves phase structure. Heat capacity measurements have been performed in the temperature range of 2–300 K without magnetic field and in a magnetic field of 1 and 2 T. The magnetocaloric effect has been estimated in terms of isothermal magnetic entropy change for all solid solutions in magnetic fields up to 2 T. The effect of increasing Er amount in Ho1−x Er x Co2 on the magnetic and magnetocaloric properties will be discussed.

2012, Bierlich, J., Kobelke, J., Brand, D., Kirsch, K., Dellith, J., Bartelt, H.

Silica-based fiber tips are used in a variety of spectroscopic, micro- or nano-scopic optical sensor applications and photonic micro-devices. The miniaturization of optical sensor systems and the technical implementation using optical fibers can provide new sensor designs with improved properties and functionality for new applications. The selective-etching of specifically doped silica fibers is a promising method in order to form complex photonic micro structures at the end or within fibers such as tips and cavities in various shapes useful for the all-fiber sensor and imaging applications. In the present study, we investigated the preparation of geometrically predefined, nanoscaled fiber tips by taking advantage of the dopant concentration profiles of highly doped step-index fibers. For this purpose, a gas phase etching process using hydrofluoric acid (HF) vapor was applied. The shaping of the fiber tips was based on very different etching rates as a result of the doping characteristics of specific optical fibers. Technological studies on the influence of the etching gas atmosphere on the temporal tip shaping and the final geometry were performed using undoped and doped silica fibers. The influence of the doping characteristics was investigated in phosphorus-, germanium-, fluorine- and boron-doped glass fibers. Narrow exposed as well as protected internal fiber tips in various shapes and tip radiuses down to less than 15 nm were achieved and characterized geometrically and topologically. For investigations into surface plasmon resonance effects, the fiber tips were coated with nanometer-sized silver layers by means of vapour deposition and finally subjected to an annealing treatment.

2012, Glampedaki, P., Calvimontes, A., Dutschk, V., Warmoeskerken, M.M.C.G.

A new approach to functionalize the surface of polyester textiles is described in this study. Functionalization was achieved by incorporating pH/temperature-responsive polyelectrolyte microgels into the textile surface layer using UV irradiation. The aim of functionalization was to regulate polyester wettability according to ambient conditions by imparting stimuli-responsiveness from the microgel to the textile itself. Microgels consisted of pH/thermo-responsive microparticles of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide- co-acrylic acid) either alone or complexed with the pH-responsive natural polysaccharide chitosan. Scanning Electron Microscopy, X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy, ζ-potential measurements, and topographical analysis were used for surface characterization. Wettability of polyester textiles was assessed by dynamic wetting, water vapor transfer, and moisture regain measurements. One of the main findings showed that the polyester surface was rendered pH-responsive, both in acidic and alkaline pH region, owing to the microgel incorporation. With a marked relaxation in their structure and an increase in their microporosity, the functionalized textiles exhibited higher water vapor transfer rates both at 20 and 40 °C, and 65% relative humidity compared with the reference polyester. Also, at 40 °C, i.e., above the microgel Lower Critical Solution Temperature, the functionalized polyester textiles had lower moisture regains than the reference. Finally, the type of the incorporated microgel affected significantly the polyester total absorption times, with an up to 300% increase in one case and an up to 80% decrease in another case. These findings are promising for the development of functional textile materials with possible applications in biotechnology, technical, and protective clothing.