Advancement and challenges in sample preparation for atomic force microscopy and infrared microscopy for wood-based materials.

Wood-based materials such as composites or laminates play an important role in today's furniture industry, especially in manufacturing high-quality kitchen and dining room furniture. One important aspect after fabrication is the investigation of these materials to derive quality metrics such as surface stain and scuff resistance. Current sample preparation methods are mostly straightforward and rely on cutting and grinding the materials under test, including sensitive wood substrates.

A study on electroactive PVDF/mica nanosheet composites with an enhanced γ-phase for capacitive and piezoelectric force sensing.

Herein, a multifunctional poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF)/mica nanosheet composite (PMNC) thin film was developed for preparing a capacitive and piezoelectric force sensor. A high electroactive γ-phase content (89%) of PVDF was achieved through a facile rapid cooling process of PMNC films. The crystallinity of PVDF decreased upon the addition of mica nanosheets, while the dielectric constant increased significantly (∼300%).