Biological and biomimetic materials and surfaces

• Stanislav Gorb and
• Thomas Speck

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 403–407, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.42

• adhesion may even surpass that measured on smooth substrates, whereas at large scale roughness, the adhesion was reduced. Presumably, on the latter substrates, the pads secrete an insufficient amount of fluid to fill the gaps between the asperities [20]. Modelling and biomimetic systems Antony et al. [21

Colorimetric gas detection by the varying thickness of a thin film of ultrasmall PTSA-coated TiO₂ nanoparticles on a Si substrate

• Urmas Joost,
• Andris Šutka,
• Meeri Visnapuu,
• Aile Tamm,
• Meeri Lembinen,
• Mikk Antsov,
• Kathriin Utt,
• Krisjanis Smits,
• Ergo Nõmmiste and
• Vambola Kisand

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 229–236, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.25

• /mixture of TiO2 and voids) was used for modelling and fitting both thickness and refractive index using the standard three-angle data sets. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was used for investigating the chemical state and elemental composition of the NP-based films after different treatments. XPS

Studying friction while playing the violin: exploring the stick–slip phenomenon

• Santiago Casado

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 159–166, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.16

• on the string, can provide valuable information regarding friction dependence on the roughness at the mesoscale. These experiments will have the advantage of testing minimized interfaces checking clear macroscale sound effects, and comparing them with results obtained from modelling. Understanding

Diffusion of dilute gas in arrays of randomly distributed, vertically aligned, high-aspect-ratio cylinders

• Wojciech Szmyt,
• Carlos Guerra and
• Ivo Utke

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 64–73, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.7

• molecules diffusing between vertically aligned carbon nanotubes. Our findings are important for the correct modelling and optimisation of gas-based deposition techniques, such as atomic layer deposition or chemical vapour deposition, frequently used for surface functionalisation of high-aspect-ratio

• nanocylinder arrays in solar cells and energy storage applications. Furthermore, gas sensing devices with high-aspect-ratio nanocylinder arrays and the growth of vertically aligned carbon nanotubes need the fundamental understanding and precise modelling of gas transport to optimise such processes. Keywords

• precise modelling of gas-transport specifics required in the optimisation of the aforementioned processes [17]. Furthermore, root growth of VACNTs with a CVD method has been reported to be limited by gas diffusion, which additionally emphasizes the need for a reliable method of gas-transport modelling [18

Grazing-incidence optical magnetic recording with super-resolution

• Gunther Scheunert,
• Sidney. R. Cohen,
• René Kullock,
• Ryan McCarron,
• Katya Rechev,
• Ifat Kaplan-Ashiri,
• Ora Bitton,
• Paul Dawson,
• Bert Hecht and
• Dan Oron

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 28–37, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.4

• . Two different laser wavelengths were used (532 and 785 nm) to demonstrate the generality of the approach and the experimental results are corroborated by extensive numerical modelling of the heating process and the super-resolution thermal profile. The first researchers to employ a similar grazing

• -fields antiparallel to the DC field, and thus created a more manageable background. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) cross-sectional imaging was done on a sample lamella prepared via focused ion beam (FIB) of one of the Seagate platters to identify the thin-film layer structure used for modelling

• as depicted in Figure 2a. It is important to notice the low roughness of the diamond-like carbon (DLC) surface, which is an important prerequisite for high-resolution MFM plane scans. For the electric field and thermal modelling the layer structure was simplified in a sensible manner as indicated in

When the going gets rough – studying the effect of surface roughness on the adhesive abilities of tree frogs

• Niall Crawford,
• Thomas Endlein,
• Jonathan T. Pham,
• Mathis Riehle and
• W. Jon P. Barnes

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 2116–2131, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.201

The cleaner, the greener? Product sustainability assessment of the biomimetic façade paint Lotusan^® in comparison to the conventional façade paint Jumbosil^®

• Florian Antony,
• Rainer Grießhammer,
• Thomas Speck and
• Olga Speck

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 2100–2115, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.200

• fractions, has been used for the modelling of the façade paint production. Where necessary, simplifications were employed and components reassigned. A first modelling setup has been checked in cooperation with chemical experts from Sto SE & Co. KGaA. In parallel, the case study by Kougoulis et al. [30] has

• been analysed to provide further evidence that the assumptions on the modelling of the formulation of the two paints are justified. Related to their mass, the most relevant formulation components of both paints are water, pigment, fillers and polymer dispersion. The mass of TiO2 is about 2 times higher

• concrete terms, this means a comparison between the possible environmental impacts associated with painting a façade with Lotusan® and Jumbosil®. The LCA was prepared “from cradle to grave” (Figure 2). Goal- and scope definition and modelling of the two alternative façade paintings: The goal- and scope

Nanostructured SnO₂–ZnO composite gas sensors for selective detection of carbon monoxide

• Paul Chesler,
• Cristian Hornoiu,
• Susana Mihaiu,
• Cristina Vladut,
• Jose Maria Calderon Moreno,
• Mihai Anastasescu,
• Carmen Moldovan,
• Bogdan Firtat,
• Costin Brasoveanu,
• George Muscalu,
• Ion Stan and
• Mariuca Gartner

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 2045–2056, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.195

• . Simulation The Pt heater was simulated in order to optimize the design for uniform heating of the sensor active area and minimizing the power consumption. The COMSOL Multiphysics® finite element analysis (FEA) tool was used for effective modelling/simulation of the heater components for the transducer. The

The difference in the thermal conductivity of nanofluids measured by different methods and its rationalization

• Aparna Zagabathuni,
• Sudipto Ghosh and
• Shyamal Kumar Pabi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 2037–2044, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.194

• . The continuum modelling to estimate the heat exchange between nanoparticles and heat-source wall will be hereafter referred to as meso-continuum modelling. In the next section a stochastic model for estimating the heat transfer from the heat-source wall to the nanoparticles via the collision-mediated

Ferromagnetic behaviour of ZnO: the role of grain boundaries

• Boris B. Straumal,
• Svetlana G. Protasova,
• Andrei A. Mazilkin,
• Eberhard Goering,
• Gisela Schütz,
• Petr B. Straumal and
• Brigitte Baretzky

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1936–1947, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.185

• ferromagnetism of undoped ZnO. A certain texture and structure of amorphous intercrystalline layers is necessary. Nevertheless, the key role of GBs in the ferromagnetic behaviour of ZnO is proven by LE-µSR. Modelling with molecular dynamics combined with density functional theory calculations permitted to find

Noise in NC-AFM measurements with significant tip–sample interaction

• Jannis Lübbe,
• Matthias Temmen,
• Philipp Rahe and
• Michael Reichling

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1885–1904, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.181

• measurement and network modelling. This analysis especially provides experimental evidence for strong noise amplification by coupling of control loops due to the tip–sample interaction. In regular NC-AFM operation with state-of-the-art hardware, signal generation and noise amplification is governed by the tip

Biomechanics of selected arborescent and shrubby monocotyledons

• Tom Masselter,
• Tobias Haushahn,
• Samuel Fink and
• Thomas Speck

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1602–1619, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.154

• consisting of stiff fibres embedded in a more flexible matrix. Finally, the technical implementation of the functional principles of such plants can be aided by finite element modelling [7]. Further studies using in vivo magnetic resonance imaging allow for revealing the internal stress–strain relationships

Three-gradient regular solution model for simple liquids wetting complex surface topologies

• Sabine Akerboom,
• Marleen Kamperman and
• Frans A. M. Leermakers

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1377–1396, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.129

• recently reported an increase of θ from ca. 80° to ca. 110° for an inverse opal of polypyrrole [10]. Our study is targeted to obtain (close to) molecular level insight in the wetting features of such surfaces using a simplistic modelling toolbox based on regular solution theory. To understand the increase

• materials that show hydrophobic contact angles and to differentiate between air entrapment and contact line pinning using a modelling approach. Macroscopic approaches such as solving the Young–Laplace equation [26][27], minimizing the availability [28], or using geometry and energy [12] to find the droplet

Experimental and simulation-based investigation of He, Ne and Ar irradiation of polymers for ion microscopy

• Lukasz Rzeznik,
• Yves Fleming,
• Tom Wirtz and
• Patrick Philipp

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1113–1128, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.104

• + bombardment influences roughness formation and preferential sputtering for polymer samples and how they compare to Ar+ primary ions used in classical SIMS by combining experimental techniques with Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations and SD_TRIM_SP modelling. The results show that diffusion coefficients for He

Modelling of ‘sub-atomic’ contrast resulting from back-bonding on Si(111)-7×7

• Adam Sweetman,
• Samuel P. Jarvis and
• Mohammad A. Rashid

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 937–945, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.85

• structure of the atoms, and it was suggested by simple symmetry arguments that the contrast could only arise from the backbonding symmetry of the surface adatoms. However, no modelling of the system has been performed in order to understand the precise origin of the contrast. In this paper we provide a

• ], but also unwanted distortions and potential artefacts [5][7][8][9][10]. Modelling using computationally inexpensive empirical potentials has produced a surprisingly good agreement with experimental data, and also allows for simulated images to be computed with a comparable size and resolution to

• common vacuum contaminant, our tip termination could also easily be a number of other common contaminants (for example H, OH or O), which would also suppress the chemical reactivity of the tip apex. Therefore our modelling, using CO parameters, is only intended to represent a ‘generic’ passivated tip. In

Facile synthesis of water-soluble carbon nano-onions under alkaline conditions

• Gaber Hashem Gaber Ahmed,
• Rosana Badía Laíño,
• Josefa Angela García Calzón and
• Marta Elena Díaz García

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 758–766, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.67

• into spherical particles composed of concentric graphitic layers (Figure 7), in order to minimize the surface energy of the newly formed edge planes of graphite [9]. Although similar open/closed geodesic structures have been used as models for quantum chemical modelling the growth and the molecular and

Magnetic switching of nanoscale antidot lattices

• Ulf Wiedwald,
• Joachim Gräfe,
• Kristof M. Lebecki,
• Maxim Skripnik,
• Felix Haering,
• Gisela Schütz,
• Paul Ziemann,
• Eberhard Goering and
• Ulrich Nowak

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 733–750, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.65

• have a common junction, a residual magnetic charge can be defined, which is the source of the magnetic stray field resulting in the contrast in the MFM investigations [16]. This interpretation is supported by the micromagnetic modelling of the system. Figure 6c shows the simulated magnetisation pattern

Contact-free experimental determination of the static flexural spring constant of cantilever sensors using a microfluidic force tool

• John D. Parkin and
• Georg Hähner

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 492–500, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.43

• increase, which could be due to a small deviation from the modelled setup because of a slight misalignment of the cantilever or an angle between fluid flow and cantilever in the experiment that is slightly different from the one in the modelling. Another parameter where a small error would lead to this

• a misalignment of the cantilever relative to the flow could lead to such a deviation. A misalignment would result in a difference between the force experienced by the cantilever during the experiment in comparison to the force obtained from modelling, although it appears unlikely that such a

Antibacterial activity of silver nanoparticles obtained by pulsed laser ablation in pure water and in chloride solution

• Brunella Perito,
• Emilia Giorgetti,
• Paolo Marsili and
• Maurizio Muniz-Miranda

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 465–473, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.40

• reasonable to expect more silver oxide in ps-ablated material. Moreover, the presence of a larger content of silver oxide on the surface of ps-ablated nanoparticles with respect to those ns-ablated was previously ascertained by means of UV–vis absorption experiments and theoretical modelling for Ag colloids

Rigid multipodal platforms for metal surfaces

• Michal Valášek,
• Marcin Lindner and
• Marcel Mayor

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 374–405, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.34

• surface, probably due to heavy steric interactions as suggested by molecular mechanics modelling. Afterwards, Lee et al. introduced and synthetized a series of new tridentate chelating adsorbates 2 (Figure 2) having different alkyl chain lengths ranging from C12 to C18 and used them to prepare loosely

• chemisorption of adsorbed molecules. Ellipsometric measurements and analysis by XPS indicates that the thickness of SAMs formed from 22-C1 is about 5 Å, which is consistent with its molecular dimensions calculated by molecular modelling assuming a planar conformation. In contrast, 22-C0, which formed

Self-organization of gold nanoparticles on silanated surfaces

• Htet H. Kyaw,
• Salim H. Al-Harthi,
• Azzouz Sellai and
• Joydeep Dutta

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 2345–2353, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.242

• are fundamentally important and also can be applied for designing and modelling of surface plasmon resonance based sensor applications. Keywords: 3-aminopropyletriethoxysilane; electrostatic interaction; functionalization; gold nanoparticles; self-assembled monolayer; self-organization; Introduction

Nanoscale rippling on polymer surfaces induced by AFM manipulation

• Mario D’Acunto,
• Franco Dinelli and
• Pasqualantonio Pingue

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 2278–2289, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.234

• wear patterns reveal the different proportions of PS and PVP within the single molecules. Finally, Aoike et al. [51] have also reported studies on random copolymers. Part 2: Theoretical modelling Once observed and described, like any other physical phenomenon, the formation of nanoripples should be

A single-source precursor route to anisotropic halogen-doped zinc oxide particles as a promising candidate for new transparent conducting oxide materials

• Daniela Lehr,
• Markus R. Wagner,
• Johanna Flock,
• Julian S. Reparaz,
• Clivia M. Sotomayor Torres,
• Alexander Klaiber,
• Thomas Dekorsy and
• Sebastian Polarz

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 2161–2172, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.222

• material [82][83]. Free-carrier absorption at low carrier concentrations and IR-active lattice vibrations determine the complex response function in the THz frequency range [84]. A theoretical approach for modelling the complex dielectric response is the Drude model, see Figure 7a. The Drude model only

Light-powered, artificial molecular pumps: a minimalistic approach

• Giulio Ragazzon,
• Massimo Baroncini,
• Serena Silvi,
• Margherita Venturi and
• Alberto Credi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 2096–2104, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.214

• trans form, which is clean and efficient, completes the cycle, regenerating the starting pseudorotaxane. A literature search [31] and molecular modelling experiments suggested that a good candidate for the critical role of the photoinactive pseudo-stopper S is the cyclopentyl moiety. The nonsymmetric

Mapping bound plasmon propagation on a nanoscale stripe waveguide using quantum dots: influence of spacer layer thickness

• Chamanei S. Perera,
• Alison M. Funston,
• Han-Hao Cheng and
• Kristy C. Vernon

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 2046–2051, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.208

• polarisation (DoP) measurements to prove that QD PL in the vicinity of the metal waveguide is arising from the local excitation of QDs by the propagating plasmon. Our experimental findings are supported by finite element modelling using COMSOL Multiphysics. Authors believe that findings of this work will prove

• waveguide was chosen to be 750 nm to visualise easily under an optical microscope. Silver stripe waveguides were designed to be excited using a 633 nm laser. Permittivities of the materials used in modelling were, Silver as −16.4 + 1.13i [12], ITO as 3.42 + 0.22i from Sopra database, glass 2.3, and SiO2 as