Optical Emission Study Of Reaction Mechanisms In The Deposition Of Nitrogen-containing Amorphous Hydrogenated Carbon Films

An expansion approach that is very simple for arbitrary profiles is presented. This requires only the diagolization of a matrix to obtain the eigen values. A couple-mode theory for calculation of diffraction of incident energy through inhomogeneous media, including gratings, and dispersion of electromagnetic energy propagating in photonic media is presented. A recursive R-matrix approach that is much more stable than a transfer T approach has been used. A transmission diffraction from a seven layer-deep square array of dielectric cylinders is calculated.1341901190

Synthesis of multifunctional chlorhexidine-doped thin films for titanium-based implant materials

Our goal was to create bio-functional chlorhexidine (CHX)-doped thin films on commercially pure titanium (cpTi) discs using the glow discharge plasma approach. Different plasma deposition times (50, 35 and 20 min) were used to create bio-functional surfaces based on silicon films with CHX that were compared to the control groups [no CHX and bulk cpTi surface (machined)]. Physico-chemical and biological characterizations included: 1. Morphology, roughness, elemental chemical composition, film thickness, contact angle and surface free energy; 2. CHX-release rate; 3. Antibacterial effect on Streptococcus sanguinis biofilms at 24, 48 and 72 h; 4. Cytotoxicity and metabolic activity using fibroblasts cell culture (NIH-F3T3 cells) at 1, 2, 3 and 4 days; 5. Protein expression by NIH-F3T3 cells at 1, 2, 3 and 4 days; and 6. Co-culture assay of fibroblasts cells and S. sanguinis to assess live and dead cells on the confocal laser scanning microscopy, mitochondrial activity (XTT), membrane leakage (LDH release), and metabolic activity (WST-1 assay) at 1, 2 and 3 days of co-incubation. Data analysis showed that silicon films, with or without CHX coated cpTi discs, increased surface wettability and free energy (p 0.05), whereas cell metabolism (MTT assay) was affected by CHX, with the 35 min of plasma deposition time group displaying the lowest values as compared to bulk cpTi (p 0.05). Altogether, the findings of the current study support the conclusion that silicon films added with CHX can be successfully created on titanium discs and have the potential to affect bacterial growth and inflammatory markers without affecting cell viability/proliferation rates

Deciphering pyritization-kerogenization gradient for fish soft-tissue preservation.

Soft-tissue preservation provides palaeobiological information that is otherwise lost during fossilization. In Brazil, the Early Cretaceous Santana Formation contains fish with integument, muscles, connective tissues, and eyes that are still preserved. Our study revealed that soft-tissues were pyritized or kerogenized in different microfacies, which yielded distinct preservation fidelities. Indeed, new data provided the first record of pyritized vertebrate muscles and eyes. We propose that the different taphonomic pathways were controlled by distinct sedimentation rates in two different microfacies. Through this process, carcasses deposited in each of these microfacies underwent different residence times in sulphate-reduction and methanogenesis zones, thus yielding pyritized or kerogenized softtissues, and a similar process has previously been suggested in studies of a late Ediacaran lagerst?tte

Desenvolvimento e avaliação de uma fonte DC de alta tensão para utilização em sistema de deposição de filmes finos por pulverização catódica

RESUMO O trabalho em questão está relacionado ao projeto e construção de uma fonte de alta tensão em corrente contínua utilizando materiais e dispositivos adquiridos no comércio local visando sua aplicação no processo de pulverização catódica. Essa técnica permite a deposição de filmes finos de metais, óxidos e nitretos sobre substratos sólidos. Como teste de funcionamento e aplicação da fonte DC, com a mesma instalada em canhão de pulverização em alto vácuo, filmes finos de diferentes espessuras de cobre, aço inoxidável 304 e tungstênio foram depositados e estudados. Análise de espessura, morfologia, e resistência elétrica e resistividade foram conduzidas. Filmes com resistividade elétrica dependente das espessuras foram obtidos. A fonte DC se mostrou confiável em operação e permite a deposição de uma infinidade de materiais nas mais diferentes espessuras sobre vários tipos de substratos