Pulsed-laser micropatterned quantum-dot array for white light source.

In this study, a novel photoluminescent quantum dots device with laser-processed microscale patterns has been demonstrated to be used as a white light emitting source. The pulsed laser ablation technique was employed to directly fabricate microscale square holes with nano-ripple structures onto the sapphire substrate of a flip-chip blue light-emitting diode, confining sprayed quantum dots into well-defined areas and eliminating the coffee ring effect. The electroluminescence characterizations showed that the white light emission from the developed photoluminescent quantum-dot light-emitting diode exhibits stable emission at different driving currents.

Enhancing mesenchymal stem cell response using uniaxially stretched poly(ε-caprolactone) film micropatterns for vascular tissue engineering application.

Regeneration of tunica media with anisotropic architecture still remains a challenging issue for vascular tissue engineering (TE). Herein, we present the development of flexible poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) film micropatterns to regulate mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) function for tunica media construction. Results showed that uniaxial thermal stretching of PCL films resulted in topographical micropatterns comprising of ridges/grooves, and improved mechanical properties, including yield stress, Young's modulus, and fracture stress without sacrificing film elasticity.

Controlling the near-field excitation of nano-antennas with phase-change materials.

By utilizing the strongly induced plasmon coupling between discrete nano-antennas and quantitatively controlling the crystalline proportions of an underlying Ge2Sb2Te5 (GST) phase-change thin layer, we show that nanoscale light localizations in the immediate proximity of plasmonic nano-antennas can be spatially positioned. Isolated energy hot-spots at a subwavelength scale can be created and adjusted across the landscape of the plasmonic system at a step resolution of λ/20. These findings introduce a new approach for nano-circuitry, bio-assay addressing and imaging applications.

Biomimetic three-dimensional anisotropic geometries by uniaxial stretching of poly(ε-caprolactone) films: degradation and mesenchymal stem cell responses.

Geometric cues have been used for a variety of cell regulation and tissue regenerative applications. While the function of geometric cues is being recognized, their stability and degradation behaviors are not well known. Here, we studied the influence of degradation on uniaxial-stretch-induced poly(ε-caprolactone) (UX-PCL) ridge/groove arrays and further cellular responses.

Biomimetic three-dimensional anisotropic geometries by uniaxial stretch of poly(ε-caprolactone) films for mesenchymal stem cell proliferation, alignment, and myogenic differentiation.

Anisotropic geometries are critical for eliciting cell alignment to dictate tissue microarchitectures and biological functions. Current fabrication techniques are complex and utilize toxic solvents, hampering their applications for translational research. Here, we present a novel simple, solvent-free, and reproducible method via uniaxial stretching for incorporating anisotropic topographies on bioresorbable films with ambitions to realize stem cell alignment control.

Maskless multiple-beam laser lithography for large-area nanostructure/microstructure fabrication.

This paper reports a maskless multiple-beam laser lithography technique for large-area nanostructure/microstructure fabrication. This lithography technique can flexibly generate arbitrary nanostructures/microstructures over a large area at a high speed. The feature size of the nanostructures/microstructures can be controlled by exposure time and moving speed of the nanostage.

Tuning of localized surface plasmon resonance of well-ordered Ag/Au bimetallic nanodot arrays by laser interference lithography and thermal annealing.

A novel hybrid approach to fabricate large-area well-ordered Ag/Au bimetallic nanodot arrays and its potential applications for biosensing is investigated. With the combination of laser interference lithography and the thermal annealing technique, Ag/Au bimetallic nanodots about ~50 nm are formed inside periodic nanodisk arrays at a dimension of ~530 nm on quartz substrates. Extinction spectra of the fabricated nanostructures show their localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) can be well controlled by Au concentration, which offers a means to flexibly tune the optical properties of the nanodot arrays.

Processing methods of ultrathin poly(epsilon-caprolactone) films for tissue engineering applications.

Ultrathin poly(epsilon-caprolactone) (PCL) films were fabricated through biaxially drawn films made from three different methods, namely, spin casting, 2-roll milling, and solution casting. Biaxial drawn spin cast films yield thickness of 1.2 microm which is 9 and 12 times thinner that 2-roll mill and solvent cast films, respectively.

One-wavelength tuning method for a tunable optical filter based on a cascaded polarization interference filter.

A one-wavelength tuning method is proposed to solve the tuning difficulty in a tunable optical filter based on cascaded cells. This method ensures that the optical path difference variation of all of the cells for the tuning is less than one wavelength and lowers the relative tuning accuracy requirement. Simulations show that different cells have different cross talk and loss deterioration when they undergo an error in optical path difference between the O-ray and the E-ray.