The aim of this work is to describe the segregation phenomenon of random perfluorinated copolymers toward the surface of a polystyrene (PS) matrix. Three random perfluorinated copolymers, named POISE-a (Polymer prOcessing Interface StabilizEr), synthesized with different amounts of chemically bound fluorine, were mixed with a commercial PS matrix by a solvent casting process. Their effect on the wettability properties of PS as a function of their concentration was measured first under static conditions with different liquids (water, formamide, diethylene glycol) and then under dynamic conditions with water.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis brief review covers the thermoelectric properties of one-dimensional materials, such as nanowires and nanotubes. The highly localised peaks of the electronic density of states near the Fermi levels of these nanostructured materials improve the Seebeck coefficient. Moreover, quantum confinement leads to discrete energy levels and a modified density of states, potentially enhancing electrical conductivity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIron-based superconductors are under study for their potential for high-field applications due to their excellent superconducting properties such as low structural anisotropy, large upper critical fields and low field dependence of the critical current density. Between them, Fe(Se,Te) is simple to be synthesized and can be fabricated as a coated conductor through laser ablation on simple metallic templates. In order to make all the steps simple and fast, we have applied the spark plasma sintering technique to synthesize bulk Fe(Se,Te) to obtain quite dense polycrystals in a very short time.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFor many years, research in the field of steroid synthesis has aimed to understand the regulation of the rate-limiting step of steroid synthesis, i.e. the transport of cholesterol from the outer to the inner mitochondrial membrane, and identify the protein involved in the conversion of cholesterol into pregnenolone.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe organization of fear memory involves the participation of multiple brain regions. However, it is largely unknown how fear memory is formed, which circuit pathways are used for "printing" memory engrams across brain regions, and the role of identified brain circuits in memory retrieval. With advanced genetic methods, we combinatorially blocked presynaptic output and manipulated N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) in the basolateral amygdala (BLA) and medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) before and after cued fear conditioning.
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