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Now showing 1 - 10 of 12
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    Photo-Cross-Linked Dual-Responsive Hollow Capsules Mimicking Cell Membrane for Controllable Cargo Post-Encapsulation and Release
    (Weinheim : Wiley-VCH, 2016) Liu, Xiaoling; Appelhans, Dietmar; Wei, Qiang; Voit, Brigitte
    Multifunctional and responsive hollow capsules are ideal candidates to establish highly sophisticated compartments mimicking cell membranes for controllable bio-inspired functions. For this purpose pH and temperature dual-responsive and photo-cross-linked hollow capsules, based on silica-templated layer-by-layer approach by using poly(N-isopropyl acrylamide)-blockpolymethacrylate) and polyallylamine, have been prepared to use them for the subsequent and easily available post-encapsulation process of proteinlike macromolecules at room temperature and pH 7.4 and their controllable release triggered by stimuli. The uptake and release properties of the hollow capsules for cargos are highly affected by changes in the external stimuli temperature (25, 37, or 45 °C) and internal stimuli pH of the phosphate-containing buffer solution (5.5 or 7.4), by the degree of photo-cross-linking, and the size of cargo. The photo-cross-linked and dual stimuli-responsive hollow capsules with different membrane permeability can be considered as attractive material for mimicking cell functions triggered by controllable uptake and release of different up to 11 nm sized biomolecules.
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    Mechanism of Bi−Ni Phase Formation in a Microwave-Assisted Polyol Process
    (Weinheim : Wiley-VCH, 2019) Smuda, Matthias; Damm, Christine; Ruck, Michael; Doert, Thomas
    Typically, intermetallic phases are obtained in solid-state reactions or crystallization from melts, which are highly energy and time consuming. The polyol process takes advantage of low temperatures and short reaction times using easily obtainable starting materials. The formation mechanism of these intermetallic particles has received little attention so far, even though a deeper understanding should allow for better synthesis planning. In this study, we therefore investigated the formation of BiNi particles in ethylene glycol in a microwave-assisted polyol process mechanistically. The coordination behavior in solution was analyzed using HPLC-MS and UV-Vis. Tracking the reaction with PXRD measurements, FT-IR spectroscopy and HR-TEM revealed a successive reduction of Bi3+ and Ni2+, leading to novel spherical core-shell structure in a first reaction step. Bismuth particles are encased in a matrix of nickel nanoparticles of 2 nm to 6 nm in diameter and oxidation products of ethylene glycol. Step-wise diffusion of nickel into the bismuth particle intermediately results in the bismuth-rich compound Bi3Ni, which consecutively transforms into the BiNi phase as the reaction progresses. The impacts of the anion type, temperature and pH value were also investigated. © 2020 The Authors. Published by Wiley-VCH GmbH
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    A correlative analysis of gold nanoparticles internalized by A549 cells
    (Hoboken, NJ : Wiley, 2014) Böse, Katharina; Koch, Marcus; Cavelius, Christian; Kiemer, Alexandra K.; Kraegeloh, Annette
    Fluorescently labeled nanoparticles are widely used to investigate nanoparticle cell interactions by fluorescence microscopy. Owing to limited lateral and axial resolution, nanostructures (<100 nm) cannot be resolved by conventional light micro­scopy techniques. Especially after uptake into cells, a common fate of the fluorescence label and the particle core cannot be taken for granted. In this study, a correlative approach is presented to image fluorescently labeled gold nanoparticles inside whole cells by correlative light and electron microscopy (CLEM). This approach allows for detection of the fluorescently labeled particle shell as well as for the gold core in one sample. In this setup, A549 cells are exposed to 8 nm Atto 647N-labeled gold nanoparticles (3.3 × 109 particles mL−1, 0.02 μg Au mL−1) for 5 h and are subsequently imaged by confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Eight fluorescence signals located at different intracellular positions are further analyzed by TEM. Five of the eight fluorescence spots are correlated with isolated or agglomerated gold nanoparticles. Three fluorescence signals could not be related to the presence of gold, indicating a loss of the particle shell.
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    Ageing of alkylthiol-stabilized gold nanoparticles
    (Hoboken, NJ : Wiley, 2015) Lacava, Johann; Weber, Anika; Kraus, Tobias
    The ageing of spherical gold nanoparticles having 6-nm-diameter cores and a ligand shell of dodecanethiol is investigated under different storage conditions. Losses caused by agglomeration and changes in optical particle properties are quantified. Changes in colloidal stability are probed by analytical centrifugation in a polar solvent mixture. Chemical changes are detected by elementary analysis of particles and solvent. Fractionation occurs under all storage conditions. Ageing is not uniform but broadens the property distributions of the particles. Small-number statistics in the ligand shell density and the morphological heterogeneity of particles are possible explanations. Washing steps exacerbate ageing, a process that could not be fully reversed by excess ligands. Dry storage is not preferable to storage in solvent. Storage under inert argon atmosphere reduces losses more than all other conditions but could not prevent it entirely.
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    Attosecond streaking metrology with isolated nanotargets
    (Bristol : IOP Publ., 2018-01-05) Liu, Q.; Seiffert, L.; Trabattoni, A.; Castrovilli, M.C.; Galli, M.; Rupp, P.; Frassetto, F.; Poletto, L.; Nisoli, M.; Rühl, E.; Krausz, F.; Fennel, T.; Zherebtsov, S.; Calegari, F.; Kling, M.F.
    The development of attosecond metrology has enabled time-resolved studies on atoms, molecules, and (nanostructured) solids. Despite a wealth of theoretical work, attosecond experiments on isolated nanotargets, such as nanoparticles, clusters, and droplets have been lacking. Only recently, attosecond streaking metrology could be extended to isolated silica nanospheres, enabling real-time measurements of the inelastic scattering time in dielectric materials. Here, we revisit these experiments and describe the single-shot analysis of velocity-map images, which permits to evaluate the recorded number of electrons. Modeling of the recorded electron histograms allows deriving the irradiated nanoparticle statistics. Theoretically, we analyze the influence of the nanoparticle size on the field-induced delay, which is one of the terms contributing to the measured streaking delay. The obtained new insight into attosecond streaking experiments on nanoparticles is expected to guide wider implementation of the approach on other types of nanoparticles, clusters, and droplets.
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    X-ray imaging with scintillator-sensitized hybrid organic photodetectors
    (London : Nature Publishing Group, 2015) Büchele, Patric; Richter, Moses; Tedde, Sandro F.; Matt, Gebhard J.; Ankah, Genesis N.; Fischer, Rene; Biele, Markus; Metzger, Wilhelm; Lilliu, Samuele; Bikondoa, Oier; Macdonald, J. Emyr; Brabec, Christoph J.; Kraus, Tobias; Lemmer, Uli; Schmidt, Oliver
    Medical X-ray imaging requires cost-effective and high-resolution flat-panel detectors for the energy range between 20 and 120 keV. Solution-processed photodetectors provide the opportunity to fabricate detectors with a large active area at low cost. Here, we present a disruptive approach that improves the resolution of such detectors by incorporating terbium-doped gadolinium oxysulfide scintillator particles into an organic photodetector matrix. The X-ray induced light emission from the scintillators is absorbed within hundreds of nanometres, which is negligible compared with the pixel size. Hence, optical crosstalk, a limiting factor in the resolution of scintillator-based X-ray detectors, is minimized. The concept is validated with a 256 × 256 pixel detector with a resolution of 4.75 lp mm−1 at a MTF = 0.2, significantly better than previous stacked scintillator-based flat-panel detectors. We achieved a resolution that proves the feasibility of solution-based detectors in medical applications. Time-resolved electrical characterization showed enhanced charge carrier mobility with increased scintillator filling, which is explained by morphological changes.
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    Water-Soluble Polymeric Carbon Nitride Colloidal Nanoparticles for Highly Selective Quasi-Homogeneous Photocatalysis
    (Weinheim : Wiley-VCH, 2019) Krivtsov, Igor; Mitoraj, Dariusz; Adler, Christiane; Ilkaeva, Marina; Sardo, Mariana; Mafra, Luis; Neumann, Christof; Turchanin, Andrey; Li, Chunyu; Dietzek, Benjamin; Leiter, Robert; Biskupek, Johannes; Kaiser, Ute; Im, Changbin; Kirchhoff, Björn; Jacob, Timo; Beranek, Radim
    Heptazine-based polymeric carbon nitrides (PCN) are promising photocatalysts for light-driven redox transformations. However, their activity is hampered by low surface area resulting in low concentration of accessible active sites. Herein, we report a bottom-up preparation of PCN nanoparticles with a narrow size distribution (ca. 10±3 nm), which are fully soluble in water showing no gelation or precipitation over several months. They allow photocatalysis to be carried out under quasi-homogeneous conditions. The superior performance of water-soluble PCN, compared to conventional solid PCN, is shown in photocatalytic H2O2 production via reduction of oxygen accompanied by highly selective photooxidation of 4-methoxybenzyl alcohol and benzyl alcohol or lignocellulose-derived feedstock (ethanol, glycerol, glucose). The dissolved photocatalyst can be easily recovered and re-dissolved by simple modulation of the ionic strength of the medium, without any loss of activity and selectivity. © 2019 The Authors. Published by Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA.
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    Does the Processing Method Resulting in Different States of an Interconnected Network of Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes in Polymeric Blend Nanocomposites Affect EMI Shielding Properties?
    (Washington, DC : ACS Publications, 2018) Pawar, Shital Patangrao; Rzeczkowski, Piotr; Pötschke, Petra; Krause, Beate; Bose, Suryasarathi
    Electromagnetic interference (EMI), an unwanted phenomenon, often affects the reliability of precise electronic circuitry. To prevent this, an effective shielding is prerequisite to protect the electronic devices. In this study, an attempt was made to understand how processing of polymeric blend nanocomposites involving multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) affects the evolving interconnected network structure of MWCNTs and eventually their EMI shielding properties. Thereby, the overall blend morphology and especially the connectivity of the polycarbonate (PC) component, in which the MWCNTs tend to migrate, as well as the perfectness of their migration, and the state of nanotube dispersion are considered. For this purpose, blends of varying composition of PC and poly(methyl methacrylate) were chosen as a model system as they show a phase diagram with lower critical solution temperature type of characteristic. Such blends were processed in two different ways: solution mixing (from the homogeneous state) and melt mixing (in the biphasic state). In both the processes, MWCNTs (3 wt %) were mixed into the blends, and the evolved structures (after phase separation induced by annealing in solution-mixed blends) and the quenched structures (as the blends exit the extruder) were systematically studied using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Both the set of blends were subjected to the same thermal history, however, under different conditions such as under quiescent conditions (in the case of solution mixing) and under shear (in the case of melt mixing). The electrical volume conductivity and the evolved morphologies of these blend nanocomposites were evaluated and correlated with the measured EMI shielding behavior. The results indicated that irrespective of the type of processing, the MWCNTs localized in the PC component; driven by thermodynamic factors and depending on the blend composition, sea-island, cocontinuous, and phase-inverted structures evolved. Interestingly, the better interconnected network structures of MWCNTs observed using TEM in the solution-mixed samples together with larger nanotube lengths resulted in higher EMI shielding properties (-27 dB at 18 GHz) even if slightly higher electrical volume conductivities were observed in melt-mixed samples. Moreover, the shielding was absorption-driven, facilitated by the dense network of MWCNTs in the PC component of the blends, at any given concentration of nanotubes. Taken together, this study highlights the effects of different blend nanocomposite preparation methods (solution and melt) and the developed morphology and nanotube network structure in MWCNT filled blend nanocomposites on the EMI shielding behavior.
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    Template-assisted colloidal self-assembly of macroscopic magnetic metasurfaces
    (Cambridge [u.a.] : Soc., 2016) Mayer, Martin; Tebbe, Moritz; Kuttner, Christian; Schnepf, Max J.; König, Tobias A. F.; Fery, Andreas
    We demonstrate a template-assisted colloidal self-assembly approach for magnetic metasurfaces on macroscopic areas. The choice of anisotropic colloidal particle geometry, assembly pattern and metallic film is based on rational design criteria, taking advantage of mirror-charge effects for gold nanorods placed on gold film. Monodisperse gold nanorods prepared utilizing wet-chemistry are arranged with high precision on wrinkled templates to form linear array-type assemblies and subsequently transferred to a thin gold film. Due to the obtained particle-to-film distance of 1.1 nm, the plasmonic mode of the nanorod is able to couple efficiently with the supporting metallic film, giving rise to a magnetic mode in the visible spectrum (721 nm). Conventional UV-vis-NIR measurements in close correlation with electromagnetic simulations provide evidence for the presence of a magnetic resonance on the macroscopic area. The herein presented scalable lithography-free fabrication process paves the road towards colloidal functional metasurfaces with an optical response in the effective magnetic permeability.
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    Frequency dependence of magnetothermal properties for magnetic fluid and magnetically functionalized implants
    (Les Ulis : EDP Sciences, 2018) Salakhova, R.T.; Vylegzhanin, A. G.; Kashtanov, E.A.; Zverev, V.I.; Müller, R.; de Sena Pereira, F.D.; Parfenov, V.A.; Mironov, V.A.; Kritskaya, E.A.; Pyatakov, A.P.; Markov, V.K.; Malyshev, A.Yu; Kamilov, K.I; Tishin, A.M; Perov, N.; Semisalova, A.
    Heating of the magnetic nanoparticles in AC magnetic field is the effect promising for application in medicine. The mechanisms of heating in AC-magnetic field implies nontrivial dependence of the power dissipated by magnetic nanoparticles on frequency. With the use of a reconfigurable experimental setup, this frequency-dependent magnetic heating was measured on two characteristic examples: the magnetite nanoparticles conventionally used in medicine and polymer coating with micrometer sized magnetite particles. The saturation of the heating power with frequency is shown that is more pronounced for the second case of microparticles.