Transparent high-pressure nozzles for visualization of nozzle internal and external flow phenomena.

A new design for transparent high-pressure nozzles is presented in this work. This new design enables using the innovative Selective Laser Etching (SLE) method to manufacture transparent nozzles with outstanding accuracy. Therefore, not only the simultaneous visualization of the flow mechanics inside and outside the nozzle is enabled, but the manufacturing method applied also allows for the realization of individual nozzle geometries.

High quality terahertz glass wave plates.

In this paper we present four λ/2-wave plates made out of fused silica glass for operation in the terahertz frequency range. The design of the wave plates is based on form birefringence. They were fabricated by selective laser-induced etching resulting in a series of glass bars separated by air grooves.

Zero-dead-volume interfaces for two-dimensional electrophoretic separations.

We present the study on the sample transfer characteristics of two different microfluidic interfaces for 2D-CE . These interfaces were manufactured using two different microfabrication technologies: one was obtained via the classical photolithography-wet etching-anodic-bonding process; and the other was obtained via the selective laser-induced etching process. The comparison of the two interfaces, and an intact capillary as a reference, was made via the CE separation of amino acids (arginine and lysine) under different bulk flow conditions, with and without applying bias potential to the secondary channels.

Precise ablation of dental hard tissues with ultra-short pulsed lasers. Preliminary exploratory investigation on adequate laser parameters.

This study aimed to evaluate the possibility of introducing ultra-short pulsed lasers (USPL) in restorative dentistry by maintaining the well-known benefits of lasers for caries removal, but also overcoming disadvantages, such as thermal damage of irradiated substrate. USPL ablation of dental hard tissues was investigated in two phases. Phase 1--different wavelengths (355, 532, 1,045, and 1,064 nm), pulse durations (picoseconds and femtoseconds) and irradiation parameters (scanning speed, output power, and pulse repetition rate) were assessed for enamel and dentin.