Dependence of Photocurrent Enhancements in Quantum Dot (QD)‐Sensitized MoS2 Devices on MoS2 Film Properties

This report demonstrates highly efficient nonradiative energy transfer (NRET) from alloyed CdSeS/ZnS semiconductor nanocrystal quantum dots (QDs) to MoS₂ films of varying layer thicknesses, including pristine monolayers, mixed monolayer/bilayer, polycrystalline bilayers, and bulk‐like thicknesses, with NRET efficiencies of over 90%. Large‐area MoS₂ films are grown on Si/SiO₂ substrates by chemical vapor deposition. Despite the ultrahigh NRET efficiencies there is no distinct increase in the MoS₂ photoluminescence intensity. However, by studying the optoelectronic properties of the MoS₂ devices before and after adding the QD sensitizing layer photocurrent enhancements as large as ≈14‐fold for pristine monolayer devices are observed, with enhancements on the order of ≈2‐fold for MoS₂ devices of mixed monolayer and bilayer thicknesses. For the polycrystalline bilayer and bulk‐like MoS₂ devices there is almost no increase in the photocurrent after adding the QDs. Industrially scalable techniques are specifically utilized to fabricate the samples studied in this report, demonstrating the viability of this hybrid structure for commercial photodetector or light harvesting applications.     

Mesoporous Silicon‐PLGA Composite Microspheres for the Double Controlled Release of Biomolecules for Orthopedic Tissue Engineering

In this study, poly(dl ‐lactide‐co‐glycolide)/porous silicon (PLGA/pSi) composite microspheres, synthesized by a solid‐in‐oil‐in‐water (S/O/W) emulsion method, are developed for the long‐term controlled delivery of biomolecules for orthopedic tissue engineering applications. Confocal and fluorescent microscopy, together with material analysis, show that each composite microsphere contained multiple pSi particles embedded within the PLGA matrix. The release profiles of fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)‐labeled bovine serum albumin (FITC‐BSA), loaded inside the pSi within the PLGA matrix, indicate that both PLGA and pSi contribute to the control of the release rate of the payload. Protein stability studies show that PLGA/pSi composite can protect BSA from degradation during the long term release. We find that during the degradation of the composite material, the presence of the pSi particles neutralizes the acidic pH due to the PLGA degradation by‐products, thus minimizing the risk of inducing inflammatory responses in the exposed cells while stimulating the mineralization in osteogenic growth media. Confocal studies show that the cellular uptake of the composite microspheres is avoided, while the fluorescent payload is detectable intracellularly after 7 days of co‐incubation. In conclusion, the PLGA/pSi composite microspheres offer an additional level of controlled release and could be ideal candidates as drug delivery vehicles for orthopedic tissue engineering applications.     

Dumbbell Fluidic Tweezers for Dynamical Trapping and Selective Transport of Microobjects

Mobile microvortices generated by rotating nickel (Ni) nanowires (NW) have been reported as capable of inducing fluidic trapping that can be precisely focused and translated to manipulate microobjects. Here, a new design for significantly enhanced fluidic trapping is reported, which is a dumbbell (DB)‐shaped magnetic actuator, assembled by a Ni NW and two polystyrene microbeads. In contrast to the single mode of tumbling trapping possessed by Ni NW, the magnetic dumbbell is able to perform dynamical trapping and implement on‐demand transport of microobjects in three modes, i.e., tumbling, wobbling, and rolling. Experiments are conducted to demonstrate the robustness and efficacy of the fluidic trap by the DB actuator. And simulations using a finite element model compare the fluidic traps induced by NW and DB, followed by further discussion on the actuation and transport efficiency of NW and DB fluidic tweezers (FT). At last, some practical issues regarding the application of DB FT are addressed.     

Effects of Photo‐oxidation on the Performance of Poly[2‐methoxy‐5‐(3′,7′‐dimethyloctyloxy)‐1,4‐phenylene vinylene]:[6,6]‐Phenyl C61‐Butyric Acid Methyl Ester Solar Cells

A study of the photo‐oxidation of films of poly[2‐methoxy‐5‐(3′,7′‐dimethyloctyloxy)‐1,4‐phenylene vinylene] (MDMO‐PPV) blended with [6,6]‐phenyl C₆₁‐butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM), and solar cells based thereon, is presented. Solar‐cell performance is degraded primarily through loss in short‐circuit current density, J_SC. The effect of the same photodegradation treatment on the optical‐absorption, charge‐recombination, and charge‐transport properties of the active layer is studied. It is concluded that the loss in J_SC is primarily due to a reduction in charge‐carrier mobility, owing to the creation of more deep traps in the polymer during photo‐oxidation. Recombination is slowed down by the degradation and cannot therefore explain the loss in photocurrent. Optical absorption is reduced by photo‐bleaching, but the size of this effect alone is insufficient to explain the loss in device photocurrent.     

A Comparison of the Migration of ‘Spiked’ and ‘Intrinsic’ Substances from Paper and Board into Raisins and into Tenax as a Food Simulant

Four samples of paper and board (P/B) of a type used for packaging dry foods were subjected to migration experiments using raisins and the polymeric powder Tenax as a food simulant. The P/B samples contained only low levels of diisopropylnaphthalene (DiPN) and diisobutyl phthalate (DiBP), and so, experiments were also conducted after spiking the P/B with added model substances. These were o‐xylene, acetophenone, dodecane, benzophenone, DiPN and DiBP. Migration experiments into raisins and Tenax were conducted for 10 days at 40°C. Migration levels depended strongly on the nature of the substance. Migration from spiked P/B samples was more extensive (as a percentage of that available) than migration of intrinsic migratable substances, and so, studying spiked samples tends to be conservative. It is considered likely that this is because of binding of substances, especially aromatics with pi‐electrons such as DiPN and DiBP, to active sites on the surface of P/B fibres, resulting in non‐linear absorption isotherms. However, further work would be needed to prove this conclusively. Considering the results overall and also that raisins packed in P/B can have a shelf life of up to 1 year at ambient temperatures, the test results using Tenax as a food simulant are considered to be appropriate without application of a correction factor. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Fractality of tics as a quantitative assessment tool for Tourette syndrome

Tics manifest as brief, purposeless and unintentional movements or noises that, for many individuals, can be suppressed temporarily with effort. Previous work has hypothesized that the chaotic temporal nature of tics could possess an inherent fractality, that is, have neighbour-to-neighbour correlation at all levels of timescale. However, demonstrating this phenomenon has eluded researchers for more than two decades, primarily because of the challenges associated with estimating the scale-invariant, power law exponent—called the fractal dimension D_f—from fractional Brownian noise. Here, we confirm this hypothesis and establish the fractality of tics by examining two tic time series datasets collected 6–12 months apart in children with tics, using random walk models and directional statistics. We find that D_f is correlated with tic severity as measured by the YGTTS total tic score, and that D_f is a sensitive parameter in examining the effect of several tic suppression conditions on the tic time series. Our findings pave the way for using the fractal nature of tics as a robust quantitative tool for estimating tic severity and treatment effectiveness, as well as a possible marker for differentiating typical from functional tics.     

Clinical biochemistry and pathology of mature beef cattle following ante-mortem intravenous administration of a commercial papain preparation

Ten healthy beef cattle in a commercial abbatoir were treated intravenously before slaughter with a commercial papain-based tenderising injection (Pro Ten). Animals were observed for behavioural and clinical abnormalities following treatment. Serum enzyme activities were measured pre-treatment and post-treatment immediately pre-slaughter < 6 min later to detect liver and muscle damage. Carcases were examined grossly post mortem. Histological examination of liver, kidney and muscle followed. Nine contemporary, age-matched controls were similarly examined. It was concluded that ProTen treatment did not cause any detectable hepatocellular or renal damage and there was no significant difference in the parameters examined between treated and untreated cattle. A decision to ban the use of ProTen in cattle could not therefore be based on the premise that it interfered with the animal's welfare in the period following injection under the conditions pertaining in this experiment.     

Genome-wide bacterial toxicity screening uncovers the mechanisms of toxicity of a cationic polystyrene nanomaterial

By exploiting a genome-wide collection of bacterial single-gene deletion mutants, we have studied the toxicological pathways of a 60-nm cationic (amino-functionalized) polystyrene nanomaterial (PS-NH(2)) in bacterial cells. The IC(50) of commercially available 60 nm PS-NH(2) was determined to be 158 μg/mL, the IC(5) is 108 μg/mL, and the IC(90) is 190 μg/mL for the parent E. coli strain of the gene deletion library. Over 4000 single nonessential gene deletion mutants of Escherichia coli were screened for the growth phenotype of each strain in the presence and absence of PS-NH(2). This revealed that genes clusters in the lipopolysaccharide biosynthetic pathway, outer membrane transport channels, ubiquinone biosynthetic pathways, flagellar movement, and DNA repair systems are all important to how this organism responds to cationic nanomaterials. These results, coupled with those from confirmatory assays described herein, suggest that the primary mechanisms of toxicity of the 60-nm PS-NH(2) nanomaterial in E. coli are destabilization of the outer membrane and production of reactive oxygen species. The methodology reported herein should prove generally useful for identifying pathways that are involved in how cells respond to a broad range of nanomaterials and for determining the mechanisms of cellular toxicity of different types of nanomaterials.     

Aspects of the kinetics of the radiation-induced polymerization of acrylonitrile in dimethylformamide

The radiation-induced homopolymerization of acrylonitrile (AN) in dimethylformamide (DMF) has been followed in detail over a range of monomer concentrations. In all cases a short induction period was observed which was equivalent to 1.6 × 10⁴ rad. The initial rates of polymerization for solutions of AN in DMF of mole fraction (×) of 0.33, 0.20, and 0.10 are 1.44 × 10^?5, 7.23 × 10^?6, and 2.79 × 10^?6 mole/dm³rad, respectively. Deviations of the polymerization pathway from the standard unity in monomer dependence are examined in terms of radical production ratios to the monomer and the solvent (Φ_M/Φ_S) and the polymer together with the solvent (Φ_p/Φ_s), for various mole fractions of AN in DMF. Thus, an indirect route to G_radical(events) is provided together with the corresponding k/k_t values.