The rupture of a single liquid aluminium alloy film.

The present study is based on the idea of understanding the rupture of films in metal foams by studying free standing metallic films as a model system. Liquid dynamics, the velocity of the rupturing material as well as the behaviour of ceramic particles inside the melt were analysed optically ex situ and by synchrotron X-ray radiography in situ. It was found that the resistance of films to rupture is mainly based on the interaction between solid particles and an immobile oxide skin, the formation of which depends on the oxygen content of the surrounding atmosphere and the presence of magnesium.

Analysis of liquid metal foams through X-ray radioscopy and microgravity experiments.

Complex liquid structures such as metallic foams were produced in a furnace that allowed in situ X-ray monitoring of the evolution of the structure and distribution of the liquid in the foam. The experiments were carried out during parabolic flights which provided varying levels of gravity. The evolution of the characteristic liquid fraction profiles due to gravity induced drainage was measured and analysed in terms of the foam drainage equation, obtaining viscosity and surface tension by fitting solutions of the equation to the experimental data.

Ruthenium sulphide thin layers as catalysts for the electrooxidation of water.

Crystalline RuS(2) layers were prepared on titanium sheets by reactive magnetron sputtering using a metallic ruthenium target and a H(2)S-Ar mixture as process gas. The ability of these layers for the electrooxidation of water (OER) was investigated by differential electrochemical mass spectrometry (DEMS) in 0.5 M H(2)SO(4) electrolyte.

Three-dimensional imaging of magnetic domains.

Magnetic domains have been the subject of much scientific investigation since their theoretical existence was first postulated by P.-E. Weiss over a century ago.

Modeling of protrusion phenotypes driven by the actin-membrane interaction.

We propose a mathematical model for simulating the leading-edge dynamics of a migrating cell from the interplay among elastic properties, architecture of the actin cytoskeleton, and the mechanics of the membrane. Our approach is based on the description of the length and attachment dynamics of actin filaments in the lamellipodium network. It is used to determine the total force exerted on the membrane at each position along the leading edge and at each time step.

Anomalous shift of magnetic diffuse scattering studied by neutron diffraction.

Neutron diffraction results, in the vicinity of the magnetic phase transition of USb and MnF(2), are reported. The thermal evolution of the magnetic diffuse signal and nuclear Bragg reflections demonstrate that the centre of gravity of the magnetic signals does not lie at the predicted position as calculated from nuclear reflections. This phenomenon, called the q-shift, was first found using resonance x-ray scattering (RXS).

The brain selenoproteome: priorities in the hierarchy and different levels of selenium homeostasis in the brain of selenium-deficient rats.

The application of radionuclides for the localization of essential trace elements in vivo and the characterization of their binding proteins is a story of intermittently made improvements of the techniques used for their detection. In this study we present the use of neutron activation analysis and different autoradiographic imaging methods including real-time digital autoradiography to reveal new insights in the hierarchy of selenium homeostasis. Selenoproteins containing the essential trace element selenium play important roles in the CNS.

The influence of Cu addition on precipitation in Fe-Cr-Ni-Al-(Cu) model alloys.

Precipitation in Fe-Cr-Ni-Al-(Cu) model alloys was investigated after ageing for 0.25, 3, 10 and 100h at 798K. Characterization of nanoscale precipitates was performed using three-dimensional atom probe microscopy and transmission electron microscopy.

Elevated metallothionein-bound cadmium concentrations in urine from bladder carcinoma patients, investigated by size exclusion chromatography-inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry.

Cadmium is discussed as being involved in the development of transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) of the bladder and can be observed in urine of these patients. Investigations of urinary samples from bladder cancer patients and normal controls were carried out with special emphasis on metallothionein (MT)-bound cadmium. Compounds that are constituents of urine were separated in urine samples by means of size exclusion chromatography and cadmium was monitored continuously with a hyphenated inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) system.