The effect of laminin-1-doped nanoroughened implant surfaces: Gene expression and morphological evaluation

Aim. This study aimed to observe the morphological and molecular effect of laminin-1 doping to nanostructured implant surfaces in a rabbit model. Materials and Methods. Nanostructured implants were coated with laminin-1 (test; dilution, 100 g/mL) and inserted into the rabbit tibiae. Noncoated implants were used as controls. After 2 weeks of healing, the implants were removed and subjected to morphological analysis using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and gene expression analysis using the real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Results. SEM revealed bony tissue attachment for both control and test implants. Real-time RT-PCR analysis showed that the expression of osteoblast markers RUNX-2, osteocalcin, alkaline phosphatase, and collagen I was higher (1.62-fold, 1.53-fold, 1.97-fold, and 1.04-fold, resp.) for the implants modified by laminin-1 relative to the control. All osteoclast markers investigated in the study presented higher expression on the test implants than controls as follows: tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (1.67-fold), calcitonin receptor (1.35-fold), and ATPase (1.25-fold). The test implants demonstrated higher expression of inflammatory markers interleukin-10 (1.53-fold) and tumour necrosis factor-α (1.61-fold) relative to controls. Conclusion. The protein-doped surface showed higher gene expression of typical genes involved in the osseointegration cascade than the control surface. © 2012 Humberto Osvaldo Schwartz-Filho et al.

Chemical stability and electrical properties of Nb doped BaCe 0.9Y 0.1O 3-δ as a high temperature proton conducting electrolyte for IT-SOFC

BaCe 0.9-xNb xY 0.1O 3-δ (where x=0, 0.01, 0.03 and 0.05) powders were synthesized by solid-state reaction to investigate the influence of Nb concentration on chemical stability and electrical properties of the sintered samples. The dense electrolyte pellets were formed from the powders after being uniaxially pressed and sintered at 1550 °C. The electrical conductivities determined by impedance measurements in temperature range of 550-750 °C in different atmospheres (dry argon and wet hydrogen) showed a decreasing trend with an increase of Nb content. For all samples higher conductivities were observed in the wet hydrogen than in dry argon atmosphere. The chemical stability was enhanced with increasing of Nb concentration. It was found that BaCe 0.87Nb 0.03Y 0.1O 3-δ is the optimal composition that satisfies the opposite demands for electrical conductivity and chemical stability, reaching 0.8×10 -2 S cm -1 in wet hydrogen at 650 °C compared to 1.01×10 -2 S cm -1 for undoped electrolyte. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd and Techna Group S.r.l.

Orange emission in Pr3+-doped fluoroindate glasses

We synthesize and study the properties of praseodymium doped fluoroindate glasses. Glass compositions with praseodymium molar concentrations up to 5% were obtained with good optical quality. Thermal, optical, and luminescence properties are investigated. Judd-Ofelt analysis is used to determine radiative lifetime and emission cross-section of the orange transition originating from the 3P0 level. We find that these glasses are good candidates for the realization of blue diode laser pumped orange lasers for quantum information processing applications. © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

High-density nanoparticle ceramic bodies: A study of heating rates in the sinterization of Gadolinium-doped Ceria

An investigation on the sinterization of Gd:CeO2 (Ce 0.85Gd0.15O1.9-δ ceramic system) 3-10 nm nanoparticles in pressed bodies was done. The heating rate was taken as a key parameter and two competing sinterization processes were identified, associated with different diffusional mechanisms. Using heating rates of 113 C min -1, a high-final density (98 % of the theoretical) was obtained by superposing the two aforementioned mechanisms, resulting in a homogeneous microstructure at lower temperatures. © 2012 Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, Hungary.

Giant enhancement of phonon-assisted one-photon excited frequency upconversion in a Nd3+-doped tellurite glass

Changing the sample's temperature from 200 K to 535 K, we observed 670-fold enhancement of a phonon-assisted upconversion emission at ≈754 nm obtained from a Nd3+-doped tellurite glass excited by 5 ns laser pulses at 805 nm. A rate-equation model, including the relevant energy levels and temperature dependent transition rates, is proposed to describe the process. The results fit well with the data when one considers the nonradiative transitions contributing for the 754 nm luminescence are promoted by an effective phonon mode with energy of 700 cm-1. © 2013 American Institute of Physics.

Decay of photo-induced conductivity in Sb-doped SnO2 thin films, using monochromatic light of about bandgap energy

Doping tin dioxide (SnO2) with pentavalent Sb5+ ions leads to an enhancement in the electrical conductivity of this material, because Sb5+ substitutes Sn4+ in the matrix, promoting an electronic density increase in the conduction band, due to the donor-like nature of the doping atom. Results of computational simulation, based on the Density Functional Theory (DFT), of SnO2:4%Sb and SnO2:8%Sb show that the bandgap magnitude is strongly affected by the doping concentration, because the energy value found for 4 at%Sb and 8 at%Sb was 3.27 eV and 3.13 eV, respectively, whereas the well known value for undoped SnO2 is about 3.6 eV. Sb-doped SnO2 thin films were obtained by the sol-gel-dip-coating technique. The samples were submitted to excitation with below theoretical bandgap light (450 nm), as well as above bandgap light (266 nm) at low temperature, and a temperature-dependent increase in the conductivity is observed. Besides, an unusual temperature and time dependent decay when the illumination is removed is also observed, where the decay time is slower for higher temperatures. This decay is modeled by considering thermally activated cross section of trapping centers, and the hypothesis of grain boundary scattering as the dominant mechanism for electronic mobility. © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Cation distribution and magnetic characterization of the multiferroic cobalt manganese Co2MnO4 spinel doped with bismuth

The structural and magnetic properties of the cubic spinel oxide Co 2MnO4 (Fd3m space group) doped with different concentrations of bismuth, were investigated by X-ray diffraction and SQUID magnetometry. The Bi3+ ions entering into the CoIII octahedral sites do not alter the effective moment, μeff ∼8.2 μB, whereas both the magnetization M50 kOe at the highest field (50 kOe) and the field-cooled MFC magnetizations increased when increasing the Bi content. The ferrimagnetic character of the parent compound, Co2MnO4, is maintained for all materials although the antiferromagnetic interactions Co2+-Co2+ are affected, resulting in higher values of the Curie-Weiss temperature. Due to the large ionic radius of Bi, octahedra distortions occur as well as valence fluctuations of the Mn ions, giving rise to Jahn-Teller effects and enhancing the exchange interactions. The off-center Bi3+ ion is responsible of non-centrosymmetric charge ordering and should lead to multiferroïsme conditions for the BixCo2-xMnO4 material. © 2012 Elsevier B.V.

Evidence of weak ferromagnetism in doped plasticized polyaniline (PANI-DDoESSA)0.5 from electron spin resonance measurements

X-band electron spin resonance (ESR) measurements have been performed on a conducting free-standing film of polyaniline plasticized and protonated with di-n-dodecyl ester of sulfosuccinic acid (DDoESSA). The magnetic field was applied parallel and perpendicular to the plane of the film. At around 75 K a transition is observed from Pauli susceptibility to a localized state in which the spin 1/2 polarons behave as spin 1/2 dimers. A rough estimation of the intradimer and interdimer exchange constants is obtained. Below 5 K, ESR data reveal a weak ferromagnetism with the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya vector mainly oriented in the plane of the film. The existence of a relatively well-defined n-fold axis along the chain direction in the crystalline regions confers a symmetry compatible with such analysis. © 2013 IOP Publishing Ltd.

Piezoresponse force microscopy characterization of rare-earth doped BiFeO3 thin films grown by the soft chemical method

The multiferroic behavior with ion modification using rare-earth cations on crystal structures, along with the insulating properties of BiFeO3 (BFO) thin films was investigated using piezoresponse force microscopy. Rare-earth-substituted BFO films with chemical compositions of (Bi 1.00-xRExFe1.00O3 (x=0; 0.15), RE=La and Nd were fabricated on Pt (111)/Ti/SiO2/Si substrates using a chemical solution deposition technique. A crystalline phase of tetragonal BFO was obtained by heat treatment in ambient atmosphere at 500 °C for 2 h. Ion modification using La3+ and Nd3+ cations lowered the leakage current density of the BFO films at room temperature from approximately 10-6 down to 10-8 A/cm2. The observed improved magnetism of the Nd3+ substituted BFO thin films can be related to the plate-like morphology in a nanometer scale. We observed that various types of domain behavior such as 71° and 180° domain switching, and pinned domain formation occurred. The maximum magnetoelectric coefficient in the longitudinal direction was close to 12 V/cm Oe. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd and Techna Group S.r.l.

Enhanced stability in CO2 of Ta doped BaCe0.9Y 0.1O3-δ electrolyte for intermediate temperature SOFCs

The influence of Ta concentration on the stability of BaCe 0.9-xTaxY0.1O3-δ (where x=0.01, 0.03 and 0.05) powders and sintered samples in CO2, their microstructure and electrical properties were investigated. The ceramic powders were synthesized by the method of solid state reaction, uniaxially pressed and sintered at 1550 °C to form dense electrolyte pellets. A significant stability in CO2 indicated by the X-ray analysis performed was observed for the samples with x≥0.03. The electrical conductivities determined by impedance measurements in the temperature range of 550-750 °C and in various atmospheres (dry argon, wet argon and wet hydrogen) increased with temperature but decreased with Ta concentration. The highest conductivities were observed in the wet hydrogen atmosphere, followed by those in wet argon, while the lowest were obtained in the dry argon atmosphere for each dopant concentration. The composition with Ta content of 3 mol% showed satisfactory characteristics: good resistance to CO2 in extreme testing conditions, while a somewhat reduced electrical conductivity is still comparable with that of BaCe0.9Y0.1O3-δ. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd and Techna Group S.r.l.

Evidence of defect-mediated magnetic coupling on hydrogenated Co-doped ZnO

Hydrogenated bulk Zn1-xCoxO samples were synthesized via standard solid-state reaction route with Co molar concentrations up to 15 at.%. Magnetic characterization demonstrates a room temperature ferromagnetic behavior associated to a paramagnetic Curie-Weiss component. Detailed microstructural analysis was carried out to exclude the presence of extrinsic sources of ferromagnetism. The magnetization increases linearly as a function of Co concentration. Hall measurements reveal an insulating character for the whole set of samples. In this context, the defect mediated magnetic coupling between the Co atoms under the scope of the bound magnetic polarons model is used to interpret the observed room temperature ferromagnetism. © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Sonochemical synthesis and magnetism in co-doped ZnO nanoparticles

The understanding and control of ferromagnetism in diluted magnetic semiconducting oxides (DMO) is a special challenge in solid-state physics and materials science due to its impact in magneto-optical devices and spintronics. Several studies and mechanisms have been proposed to explain intrinsic ferromagnetism in DMO compounds since the theoretical prediction of room-temperature ferromagnetism. However, genuine and intrinsic ferromagnetism in 3d-transition metal-doped n-type ZnO semiconductors is still a controversial issue. Furthermore, for DMO nanoparticles, some special physical and chemical effects may also play a role. In this contribution, structural and magnetic properties of sonochemically prepared cobalt-doped ZnO nanoparticles were investigated. A set of ZnO samples was prepared varying cobalt molar concentration and time of ultrasonic exposure. The obtained results showed that single phase samples can be obtained by the sonochemical method. However, cobalt nanoclusters can be detected depending on synthesis conditions. Magnetic measurements indicated a possible ferromagnetic response, associated to defects and cobalt substitutions at the zinc site by cobalt. However, ferromagnetism is depleted at higher magnetic fields. Also, an antiferromagnetic response is detected due to cobalt oxide cluster at high cobalt molar concentrations. © 2012 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.

Visible to infrared energy conversion in Pr3+-Yb3+ co-doped fluoroindate glasses

Processes involving visible to infrared energy conversion are presented for Pr3+-Yb3+ co-doped fluoroindate glasses. The emission in the visible and infrared regions, the luminescence decay time of the Pr 3+:3P0 → 3H4 (482 nm), Pr3+:1D2 → 3H6 (800 nm), Yb3+:2F5/2 → 2F 7/2 (1044 nm) transitions and the photoluminescence excitation spectra were measured in Pr3+ samples and in Pr3+-Yb 3+ samples as a function of the Yb3+ concentration. In addition, energy transfer efficiencies were estimated from Pr3+: 3P0 and Pr3+:1D2 levels to Yb3+:2F7/2 level. Down-Conversion (DC) emission is observed due to a combination of two different processes: 1-a one-step cross relaxation (Pr3+:3P0 → 1G4; Yb3+:2F7/2 → 2F5/2) resulting in one photon emitted by Pr3+ (1G4 → 3H5) and one photon emitted by Yb3+ (2F7/2 → 2F5/2); 2-a resonant two-step first order energy transfer, where the first part of energy is transferred to Yb3+ neighbor through cross relaxation (Pr3+:3P0 → 1G4; Yb3+:2F7/2 → 2F5/2) followed by a second energy transfer step (Pr 3+:1G4 → 3H4; Yb3+:2F7/2 → 2F5/2). A third process leading to one IR photon emission to each visible photon absorbed involves cross relaxation energy transfer (Pr3+: 1D2 → 3F4; Yb 3+:2F7/2 → 2F5/2). © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Photoluminescence properties of praseodymium doped cerium oxide nanoparticles

The structural and photoluminescent properties at room temperature of CeO2 nanoparticles synthesized by a Microwave-Assisted Hydrothermal Method (MAH) under different praseodymium contents was undertaken. X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), UV-vis Spectroscopy (UV-vis), Fourier Transform Raman (FT-Raman) and Photoluminescence (PL) measurements were employed. XRD revealed that the nanoparticles are free of secondary phases and crystallize in the cubic structure while FT-Raman revealed a typical scattering mode of fluorite type. The UV/vis absorption spectroscopy suggested the presence of intermediate energy levels in the band gap of structurally ordered powders. The most intense PL emission was obtained for nanoparticles which represent a lower particle size. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd and Techna Group S.r.l.

Influência do pH da suspensão coloidal nas propriedades de filmes finos de Sn'O IND. 2'

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)