Towards Room Temperature Phase Transition of W-Doped VO Thin Films Deposited by Pulsed Laser Deposition: Thermochromic, Surface, and Structural Analysis.

Vanadium dioxide (VO) with an insulator-to-metal (IMT) transition (∼68 °C) is considered a very attractive thermochromic material for smart window applications. Indeed, tailoring and understanding the thermochromic and surface properties at lower temperatures can enable room-temperature applications. The effect of W doping on the thermochromic, surface, and nanostructure properties of VO thin film was investigated in the present proof.

Ultrafast Laser Processing of Nanostructured Patterns for the Control of Cell Adhesion and Migration on Titanium Alloy.

Femtosecond laser texturing is a promising surface functionalization technology to improve the integration and durability of dental and orthopedic implants. Four different surface topographies were obtained on titanium-6aluminum-4vanadium plates by varying laser processing parameters and strategies: surfaces presenting nanostructures such as laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS) and 'spikes', associated or not with more complex multiscale geometries combining micro-pits, nanostructures and stretches of polished areas. After sterilization by heat treatment, LIPSS and spikes were characterized to be highly hydrophobic, whereas the original polished surfaces remained hydrophilic.

2D reproduction of the face on the Turin Shroud by infrared femtosecond pulse laser processing.

Femtosecond pulse laser processing concentrates a huge quantity of light energy in extremely short pulses of a few tens to hundreds of femtoseconds, enabling superficial laser machining or marking of any kind of materials, with a reduced or insignificant heat affected area. A digitized paper printed image of the face on the Turin Shroud was used to monitor a scan head intercalated between a femtosecond pulsed laser source and a linen fabric sample, enabling the direct 2D reproduction of the image of the face with a laser beam size corresponding to one pixel of the digitized image. The contrast in the marked image was controlled by adjusting the energy density, the number of superimposed pulses per pixel, and the distance between successive impacts.

Electroanalytical Performance of Nitrogen-Doped Graphene Films Processed in One Step by Pulsed Laser Deposition Directly Coupled with Thermal Annealing.

Graphene-based materials are widely studied to enable significant improvements in electroanalytical devices requiring new generations of robust, sensitive and low-cost electrodes. In this paper, we present a direct one-step route to synthetize a functional nitrogen-doped graphene film onto a Ni-covered silicon electrode substrate heated at high temperature, by pulsed laser deposition of carbon in the presence of a surrounding nitrogen atmosphere, with no post-deposition transfer of the film. With the ferrocene methanol system, the functionalized electrode exhibits excellent reversibility, close to the theoretical value of 59 mV, and very high sensitivity to hydrogen peroxide oxidation.