1. Electric field driven reconfigurable multistable topological defect patternsSaša Harkai, Bryce S. Murray, Charles Rosenblatt, Samo Kralj, 2020, original scientific article Abstract: Topological defects appear in symmetry breaking phase transitions and are ubiquitous throughout Nature. As an ideal testbed for their study, defect configurations in nematic liquid crystals (NLCs) could be exploited in a rich variety of technological applications. Here we report on robust theoretical and experimental investigations in which an external electric field is used to switch between predetermined stable chargeless disclination patterns in a nematic cell, where the cell is sufficiently thick that the disclinations start and terminate at the same surface. The different defect configurations are stabilized by a master substrate that enforces a lattice of surface defects exhibiting zero total topological charge value. Theoretically, we model disclination configurations using a Landau-de Gennes phenomenological model. Experimentally, we enable diverse defect patterns by implementing an in-house-developed atomic force measurement scribing method, where NLC configurations are monitored via polarized optical microscopy. We show numerically and experimentally that an “alphabet” of up to 18 unique line defect configurations can be stabilized in a 4 × 4 lattice of alternating �=±1 surface defects, which can be “rewired” multistably using appropriate field manipulation. Our proof-of-concept mechanism may lead to a variety of applications, such as multistable optical displays and rewirable nanowires. Our studies also are of interest from a fundamental perspective. We demonstrate that a chargeless line could simultaneously exhibit defect-antidefect properties. Consequently, a pair of such antiparallel disclinations exhibits an attractive interaction. For a sufficiently closely spaced pair of substrate-pinned defects, this interaction could trigger rewiring, or annihilation if defects are depinned. Keywords: line defects, topological defects, nematic liquid crystals, electric field, atomic force microscopy, numerical techniques, polarized optical microscopy Published in DKUM: 18.11.2024; Views: 0; Downloads: 2
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2. A geostress measurement method based on an integrated drilling and optical microscopic imaging systemJinchao Wang, Chunying Wang, Zengqiang Han, Yiteng Wang, Xinjian Tang, 2018, original scientific article Abstract: Conventional geostress measurement methods are limited by deficiencies including the measurable depth, the complexity, and the long duration of operation. To address these problems and achieve the measurement of geostress in deep wells under conditions of complex high pressures and high temperatures, we propose a new measurement method for geostress based on an integrated drilling and optical microscopy system. Its innovative integrated structure eliminates the problems associated with complex procedures and depth limits, and avoids rock creep caused by long delays, significantly improving the accuracy and range of the measurements. It works by using microscopic imaging and direct contact probes to capture the changes of a borehole’s cross-sectional outlines before and after stress relief. The resulting images are analyzed with search circles to obtain the positions of probe apices, which can be fitted into ellipses that describe the outlines, and calculate the state of the stress. The validity and accuracy of the method was verified by in-door tests and field applications in the ZK1 borehole. The results show that: (1) the integrated system can be used to measure micrometer-grade deformations; (2) the searchcircle approach can accurately obtain the positions of probe apices; and (3) the stress measurement method based on the system is accurate and feasible. Keywords: geostress, probe, optical microscopy, measurement while drilling, search circle Published in DKUM: 11.10.2018; Views: 1594; Downloads: 598
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3. Raziskave interakcij med celicami in biopolimernimi materiali z naprednimi eksperimentalnimi metodami kot osnova za študij biokompatibilnosti polimerovRok Podlipec, 2015, doctoral dissertation Abstract: The last two decades have been determined by the development in the field of tissue engineering. Beside the constant progress in new biomaterials and scaffold fabrication methods, currently the main focus is to understand scaffolds biocompatibility. In our thesis, physical aspects of scaffold biocompatibility were studied by correlating molecular to macro scale physical properties of scaffolds with cell attachment and cell growth. In order to focus on scaffold physical properties, scaffolds were prepared by the same chemical composition of natural polymer gelatin excluding biochemical effects on the cell response. Scaffold with different physical properties were obtained by changing the temperature, pH and crosslinker degree during the cryogelation and populated by the fibroblast cells. Advanced experimental biophysical methods were applied to determine the polymer mobility via electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) with spin labelling, the scaffold mechanical properties via rheometry, dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) and nanoindentation using atomic force microscope (AFM) and the scaffold porosity via confocal fluorescence microscopy (CFM). The anisotropy of the molecular mobility of the side chains of polymers in the crosslinked gelatin structure was found to correlate with the initial cell growth (throughout the first week) the best of all the physical properties measured. About five times less efficient cell growth was measured on the scaffolds with highly mobile, spatially nonrestricted dynamics of the polymer side chains, in comparison with cell growth on the scaffolds with the restricted rotational motion of polymers. The result indicates that cells identify and respond to the degree of polymer mobility, where partially immobile phase is necessary for efficient cell attachment and efficient cell growth. So far, the molecular mobility of polymers constituting tissue engineering materials has never been studied thoroughly with respect to its influence on cell response, and therefore may represent a new experimental approach in understanding biocompatibility.
To further understand cell-scaffold interaction, the study focused also on the first events during cell attachment - bond formation between the cell surface proteins and the specific binding sites on the material. In our thesis, cell adhesion dynamics was investigated in real-time on the surfaces of gelatin scaffolds with different physical properties using spatially-controlled cell manipulation by the optical tweezers and the confocal fluorescence microscopy detection. Our goal was to elucidate, if the adhesion dynamics can be correlated with cell growth and if it can be dependent on the scaffold polymer molecular mobility.
Quantitative characterization of the optical tweezers force applied during cell-scaffold adhesion analysis was done by viscous drag force calibration and dynamic cell sequential trapping of individual cells. The maximal force on a trapped cell not causing the thermal damage was measured up to 200 pN, with nearly linearly increasing force profile across the cell towards the plasma membrane. By submicron spatial resolution of cell manipulation, we managed to quantify probability of cell adhesion, cell adhesion strength and mechanism of cell attachment, including the formation of the membrane tethers, which slow down the adhesion process. Adhesion strength was classified according to the displacement of the attached cell under the force of optical tweezers measured in the direction of the scaffold surface.Cell adhesion was shown to significantly correlate with cell growth in the first days of culture, while the adhesion itself seems to be dependent on the molecular mobility of surface polymers. The result indicates that the interactions during the first seconds may markedly direct further cell response. The developed methodology for cell adhesion analysis on the surfaces of 3D scaffolds serves as a good tool to forecast scaffold biocompatibility. Keywords: polymer molecular mobility, mechanical response, morphology, scaffold biocompatibility, cell growth, single cell manipulation, cell adhesion dynamics, optical tweezers, electron paramagnetic resonance, dynamical mechanical analysis, nanoindentation, fluorescence microscopy and microspectroscopy Published in DKUM: 06.10.2015; Views: 2496; Downloads: 179
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4. Effects of plasma treatment on water sorption in viscose fibresMiha Devetak, Nejc Skoporc, Martin Rigler, Zdenka Peršin Fratnik, Irena Drevenšek Olenik, Martin Čopič, Karin Stana-Kleinschek, 2012, original scientific article Abstract: We investigated water sorption in viscose nonwoven fibres manufactured by Tosama d.d. with the surface density of 175 g/m2. A comparison between untreated fibres and by oxygen plasma treated fibres was made using optical polarization microscopy. Plasma treatment was done for 10 minutes at pressure of 75 Pa at current of 250 mA at the power of 500 W. Swelling was characterized by measurements of fibre diameter. Modifications of intensity of the polarized light transmitted through the fibre were measured as a function of time of exposure to water. Characteristic swelling and intensity modification times were resolved for untreated and oxygen plasma treated fibres. The swelling time of oxygen plasma in comparison to untreated plasma is reduced by the factor of 0.54 and intensity change time by the factor of 0.4. From the characteristic swelling and intensity change times it was concluded that oxygen plasma treatment of viscose increases the speed of water sorption. Keywords: plasma treatment, viscose, optical polarization microscopy Published in DKUM: 01.06.2012; Views: 1972; Downloads: 88
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