Bond strength and adaptation of pulp capping materials to dentin

This study evaluated the shear bond strength (SBS) and internal marginal adaptation of pulp‐capping materials to dentin. Flat occlusal deep dentin surfaces were produced and randomly assigned to two groups (sound or artificial caries‐affected dentin). The specimens in each group were assigned to one of seven subgroups according to the materials used: Biodentine, Theracal LC, Ultra‐Blend plus, Calcimol LC, ApaCal ART, EQUIA Forte, and Ionoseal. Buildups (3‐mm inner diameter and 2‐mm deep) were made over the dentin surfaces. The bonded specimens were tested under shear forces at a crosshead speed of 0.8 mm/min and fracture modes were determined using a stereomicroscope at 25× magnification. The materials were applied to the pulp floor of prepared Class I cavities and then the cavities were restored with composite resin. Restored molar teeth were subjected to 5,000 thermocycles and sectioned in a bucco–lingual direction. Resin replicas were made to determine the adaptation at the pulp floor with scanning electron microscopy. Significant differences were determined among both bond strengths and gap formations of the materials. EQUIA Forte applied to both dentin substrates had a significantly higher SBS than the other materials. The bond strength of each material was not influenced by the dentin condition. Biodentine (3.03%), EQUIA Forte (7.83%), and Theracal LC (13.37%) had lower gap formations compared to other materials but were not significantly different from each other.     

Functional organisation of the endomembrane network in the digestive gland of the Venus flytrap: revisiting an old story with a new microscopy toolbox

Up-to-date imaging approaches were used to address the spatiotemporal organisation of the endomembrane system in secretory cells of Dionaea muscipula. Different ‘slice and view’ methodologies were performed on resin-embedded samples to finally achieve a 3D reconstruction of the cell architecture, using ultrastructural tomography, array tomography, serial block face-scanning electron microscopy (SBF-SEM), correlation, and volume rendering at the light microscopy level. Observations of cryo-fixed samples by high-pressure freezing revealed changes of the endomembrane system that occur after trap activation and prey digestion. They provide evidence for an original strategy that adapts the secretory machinery to a specific and unique case of stimulated exocytosis in plant cells. A first secretion peak is part of a rapid response to deliver digestive fluids to the cell surface, which delivers the needed stock of digestive materials ‘on site’. The second peak of activity could then be associated with the reconstruction of the Golgi apparatus (GA), endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and vacuolar machinery, in order to prepare for a subsequent round of prey capture. Tubular continuum between ER and Golgi stacks observed on ZIO-impregnated tissues may correspond to an efficient transfer mechanism for lipids and/or proteins, especially for use in rapidly resetting the molecular GA machinery. The occurrence of one vacuolar continuum may permit continuous adjustment of cell homeostasy. The subcellular features of the secretory cells of Dionaea muscipula outline key innovations in the organisation of plant cell compartmentalisation that are used to cope with specific cell needs such as the full use of the GA as a protein factory, and the ability to create protein reservoirs in the periplasmic space. Shape-derived forces of the pleiomorphic vacuole may act as signals to accompany the sorting and entering flows of the cell.     

电子束诱导沉积钴微米线及其铁磁性

通过电子束诱导沉积的方法制备了钴(Co)微米线,并利用扫描电子显微镜(SEM)、原子力/磁力显微镜(AFM/MFM)以及物性测量系统(PPMS)等手段对Co微米线的沉积尺寸、微结构、铁磁性和电学性质进行了测试和分析。研究结果表明:Co微米线轮廓清晰、均匀性好。在不同的沉积条件下,微米线的实际长度与设定长度基本一致;实际宽度数据呈类梯形分布,半高宽是设定值的2~10倍;实际厚度低于设定厚度的60%。沉积电流对Co微米线的铁磁特性有重要影响。当沉积电流大于0.5 nA时,样品呈现出良好的铁磁特性。另外,电学性能测试结果显示Co微米线呈现绝缘特性。成功制备了室温铁磁绝缘Co微米线,这将有助于深入开展微纳尺度的结构与器件的研究和应用。     

Soft landing of runaway currents by ohmic field in J-TEXT tokamak

Recently, experimental studies on the soft landing of RE current by ohmic (OH) field have been performed in J-TEXT tokamak, as a possible auxiliary method to dissipate the RE current. With optimized horizontal displacement control of the RE beam, the toroidal electric field has been scanned from 1.6 to - 0.3 V m ^-1 during the RE plateau phase. The growth rate of RE currents and the evolution of hard x-ray (HXR) emissions have been studied. It is found that when the toroidal electric field is less than 7–12 times the theoretical critical electric field, the decay of REs could be achieved. The dissipation rate by the ohmic field can reach a maximum value of 3 MA s^-1.Furthermore, the results of HXR spectra analysis indicate the different behaviors of HXR emissions under the condition of different toroidal electric fields. The analysis of the ionized argon emissions and magnetic fluctuations shows that under the condition of different toroidal electric fields, the physical process of RE generation may be different.     

测量二次电子空间分布特征矩阵法的有效性分析

为了准确测量不同材料在实际环境中的二次电子空间分布，设计了一种新型的二次电子发射空间分布测量结构，给出了实验测量原理，用求解特征矩阵的方法对实验结果进行处理，得到了所需的二次电子空间分布。通过模拟计算对该测量方法进行了校验，模拟结果与假设二次电子空间分布函数相吻合，表明该测量方法可靠、测量精度高，为后续样机研制奠定了理论基础。     

The Electron–Phonon Interaction of Low-Dimensional and Multi-Dimensional Materials from He Atom Scattering

Atom scattering is becoming recognized as a sensitive probe of the electron–phonon interaction parameter λ at metal and metal-overlayer surfaces. Here, the theory is developed, linking λ to the thermal attenuation of atom scattering spectra (in particular, the Debye–Waller factor), to conducting materials of different dimensions, from quasi-1D systems such as W(110):H(1 × 1) and Bi(114), to quasi-2D layered chalcogenides, and high-dimensional surfaces such as quasicrystalline 2ML-Ba(0001)/Cu(001) and d-AlNiCo(00001). Values of λ obtained using He atoms compare favorably with known values for the bulk materials. The corresponding analysis indicates in addition, the number of layers contributing to the electron–phonon interaction, which is measured in an atom surface collision.     

Broad-Spectral-Range Sustainability and Controllable Excitation of Hyperbolic Phonon Polaritons in α-MoO3

Hyperbolic phonon polaritons (HPhPs) in orthorhombic-phase molybdenum trioxide (α-MoO₃) show in-plane hyperbolicity, great wavelength compression, and ultralong lifetime, therefore holding great potential in nanophotonic applications. However, its polaritonic response in the far-infrared (FIR) range remains unexplored due to challenges in experimental characterization. Here, monochromated electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS) in a scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) is used to probe HPhPs in α-MoO₃ in both mid-infrared (MIR) and FIR frequencies and correlate their behaviors with microstructures and orientations. It is found that low structural symmetry leads to various phonon modes and multiple Reststrahlen bands (RBs) over a broad spectral range (over 70 meV) and in different directions (55–63 meV and 119–125 meV along the b-axis, 68–106 meV along the c-axis, and 101–121 meV along the a-axis). These HPhPs can be selectively excited by controlling the direction of swift electrons. These findings provide new opportunities in nanophotonic and optoelectronic applications, such as directed light propagation, hyperlenses, and heat transfer.     

Pre-martensitic phenomena in Ti40.7Hf9.5Ni44.8Cu5 shape memory alloy

Pre-martensitic phenomena such as abnormal resistivity growth, diffusion scattering, “tweed” contrast and internal friction peak were observed in Ti_40.7Hf_9.5Ni_44.8Cu₅ alloy prior to the forward martensitic transformation on cooling. It was shown that all the observed phenomena were due to the formation of quasi-static strain nanodomains in the B2 phase prior to the forward martensitic transformation. This led to accumulation of the elastic energy before the phase transition and resulted in the variation in thermodynamic balance for the forward martensitic transformation and, as a result, influenced the parameters of the phase transition. The appearance of elastic energy prior to the forward transformation caused a decrease in the forward and reverse martensitic transformations' start temperatures, a widening of the temperature range of the reverse transformation and an increase in the hysteresis of the transformation.     

The effect of Cu addition on the thermoelectric properties of Cu2CdGeSe4

Recently, research in copper based quaternary chalcogenide materials has focused on the study of thermoelectric properties due to the complexity in the crystal structure. In the present work, stoichiometric quaternary chalcogenide compounds Cu_2+xCd_1−xGeSe₄ (x = 0, 0.025, 0.05, 0.075, 0.1, 0.125) were prepared by solid state synthesis. The powder X-ray diffraction patterns of all the samples showed a tetragonal crystal structure with the space group I-42m of the main phase, whereas the samples with x = 0 and x = 0.025 revealed the presence of an orthorhombic phase in addition to the main phase as confirmed by Rietveld analysis. The elemental composition of all the samples characterized by Electron Probe Micro Analyzer showed a slight deviation from the nominal composition. The transport properties were measured in the temperature range of 300 K–723 K. The electrical conductivity of all the samples increased with increasing Cu content due to the enhancement of the hole concentration caused by the substitution of Cd (divalent) by Cu (monovalent). The positive Seebeck coefficient of all the samples in the entire temperature ranges indicates that holes are the majority carriers. The Seebeck coefficient of all the samples decreased with increasing Cu content and showed a reverse trend to the electrical conductivity. The total thermal conductivity of all the samples decreased with increasing temperature which was dominated by the lattice contribution. The maximum figure of merit ZT = 0.42 at 723 K was obtained for the compound Cu_2.1Cd_0.9GeSe₄.     

Toughening effect of carbon nanotubes and carbon nanofibres in epoxy adhesives for joining carbon fibre laminates

The effect of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and carbon nanofibres (CNFs) on mode I adhesive fracture energy (G_IC) of double cantilever beam (DCB) joints of carbon fibre-reinforced laminates bonded with an epoxy adhesive has been studied. It was observed that the presence of carbon nanofillers in the epoxy adhesive results in a significant increase in the propagation value of mode I adhesive fracture energy with CNTs producing the largest increase. The toughening mechanisms, analysed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), for the two nanofiller systems differed: pull-out with CNFs, and pull-out and crack bridging with CNTs. At the macroscopic level there was also a change in the failure mode, with an increased proportion of delamination occurring in the nanoreinforced joints in comparison with the unreinforced. Two different surface treatments were also applied to the laminates: grit blasting and atmospheric plasma. The highest fracture energy was obtained in the grit blasted joints.