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A pilot study for the quantitative surface analysis of multi-element alloy films has been performed by the Surface Analysis Working Group (SAWG) of the Consultative Committee for Amount of Substance (CCQM). The aim of this pilot study is to ensure the equivalency in the measurement capability of national metrology institutes for the quantification of multi-element alloy films. A Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) film with non-uniform depth distribution was chosen as a representative multi-element alloy film. The atomic fractions of the reference and the test CIGS films were certified by isotope dilution - inductively coupled plasma/mass spectrometry. A total number counting (TNC) method was used as a method to determine the signal intensities of the constituent elements, which are compared with their certified atomic fractions. The atomic fractions of the CIGS films were measured by various methods, such as Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (SIMS), Auger Electron Spectroscopy (AES), X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) analysis and Electron Probe Micro Analysis (EPMA) with Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectrometry (EDX). Fifteen laboratories from eight National Metrology Institutes (NMIs), one Designated Institute (DI) and six non-NMIs participated in this pilot study. Although the average atomic fractions of 18 data sets showed rather poor relative standard deviations of about 5.5 % to 6.8 %, they were greatly improved to about 1.5 % to 2.2 % by excluding 5 strongly deviating data sets from the average atomic fractions. In this pilot study, the average expanded uncertainties of SIMS, XPS, AES, XRF and EPMA were 3.84%, 3.68%, 3.81%, 2.88% and 2.90%, respectively. These values are much better than those in the key comparison K-67 for composition of a Fe-Ni alloy film. As a result, the quantification of CIGS films using the TNC method was found to be a good candidate as a subject for a CCQM key comparison.
Research software has become a central asset in academic research. It optimizes existing and enables new research methods, implements and embeds research knowledge, and constitutes an essential research product in itself. Research software must be sustainable in order to understand, replicate, reproduce, and build upon existing research or conduct new research effectively. In other words, software must be available, discoverable, usable, and adaptable to new needs, both now and in the future. Research software therefore requires an environment that supports sustainability.
Hence, a change is needed in the way research software development and maintenance are currently motivated, incentivized, funded, structurally and infrastructurally supported, and legally treated. Failing to do so will threaten the quality and validity of research. In this paper, we identify challenges for research software sustainability in Germany and beyond, in terms of motivation, selection, research software engineering personnel, funding, infrastructure, and legal aspects. Besides researchers, we specifically address political and academic decision-makers to increase awareness of the importance and needs of sustainable research software practices. In particular, we recommend strategies and measures to create an environment for sustainable research software, with the ultimate goal to ensure that software-driven research is valid, reproducible and sustainable, and that software is recognized as a first class citizen in research. This paper is the outcome of two workshops run in Germany in 2019, at deRSE19 - the first International Conference of Research Software Engineers in Germany - and a dedicated DFG-supported follow-up workshop in Berlin.
CCQM key comparison K-129 for the quantitative analysis of Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) films has been performed by the Surface Analysis Working Group (SAWG) of the Consultative Committee for Amount of Substance (CCQM). The objective of this key comparison is to compare the equivalency of the National Metrology Institutes (NMIs) and Designated Institutes (DIs) for the measurement of mole fractions of Cu, In, Ga and Se in a thin CIGS film. The measurand of this key comparison is the average mole fractions of Cu, In, Ga and Se of a test CIGS alloy film in the unit of mole fraction (mol/mol). Mole fraction with the metrological unit of mol/mol can be practically converted to atomic fraction with the unit of at%.
In this key comparison, a CIGS film with certified mole fractions was supplied as a reference specimen to determine the relative sensitivity factors (RSFs) of Cu, In, Ga and Se. The mole fractions of the reference specimen were certified by isotope dilution - inductively coupled plasma/mass spectrometry (ID-ICP/MS) and are traceable to the SI. A total number counting (TNC) method was recommended as a method to determine the signal intensities of the constituent elements acquired in the depth profiles by Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (SIMS), X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) and Auger Electron Spectroscopy (AES). Seven NMIs and one DI participated in this key comparison. The mole fractions of the CIGS films were measured by depth profiling based-SIMS, AES and XPS. The mole fractions were also measured by non-destructive X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) Analysis and Electron Probe Micro Analysis (EPMA) with Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectrometry (EDX).
In this key comparison, the average degrees of equivalence uncertainties for Cu, In, Ga and Se are 0.0093 mol/mol, 0.0123 mol/mol, 0.0047 mol/mol and 0.0228 mol/mol, respectively. These values are much smaller than that of Fe in a Fe-Ni alloy film in CCQM K-67 (0.0330 mol/mol). This means that the quantification of multi-element alloy films is possible by depth profiling analysis using the TNC method.
A pilot study for the thickness measurement of HfO2 films was performed by the Surface Analysis Working Group (SAWG) of the Consultative Committee for Amount of Substance (CCQM). The aim of this pilot study was to ensure the equivalency in the measurement capability of national metrology institutes for the thickness measurement of HfO2 films. In this pilot study, the thicknesses of six HfO2 films with nominal thickness from 1 nm to 4 nm were measured by X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray Reflectometry(XRR), X-ray Fluorescence Analysis (XRF), Transmission Electron Spectroscopy (TEM), Spectroscopic Ellipsometry (SE) and Rutherford Backscattering Spectrometry (RBS). The reference thicknesses were determined by mutual calibration of a zero-offset method (Medium Energy Ion Scattering Spectroscopy (MEIS) of KRISS) and a method traceable to the length unit (the average thicknesses of three XRR data except the thinnest film). These reference thicknesses are traceable to the length unit because they are based on the traceability of XRR. For the thickness measurement by XPS, the effective attenuation length of Hf 4f electrons was determined. In the cases of XRR and TEM, the offset values were determined from a linear fitting between the reference thicknesses and the individual data by XRR and TEM. The amount of substance of HfO2, expressed as thickness of HfO2 films (in both linear and areal density units), was found to be a good subject for a CCQM key comparison.
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The final report has been peer-reviewed and approved for publication by the CCQM.
Nanotechnology has enabled the discovery of a multitude of novel materials exhibiting unique physicochemical (PChem) properties compared to their bulk analogues. These properties have led to a rapidly increasing range of commercial applications; this, however, may come at a cost, if an association to long-term health and environmental risks is discovered or even just perceived. Many nanomaterials (NMs) have not yet had their potential adverse biological effects fully assessed, due to costs and time constraints associated with the experimental assessment, frequently involving animals. Here, the available NM libraries are analyzed for their suitability for integration with novel nanoinformatics approaches and for the development of NM specific Integrated Approaches to Testing and Assessment (IATA) for human and environmental risk assessment, all within the NanoSolveIT cloud-platform. These established and well-characterized NM libraries (e.g. NanoMILE, NanoSolutions, NANoREG, NanoFASE, caLIBRAte, NanoTEST and the Nanomaterial Registry (>2000 NMs)) contain physicochemical characterization data as well as data for several relevant biological endpoints, assessed in part using harmonized Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) methods and test guidelines.
Integration of such extensive NM information sources with the latest nanoinformatics methods will allow NanoSolveIT to model the relationships between NM structure (morphology), properties and their adverse effects and to predict the effects of other NMs for which less data is available. The project specifically addresses the needs of regulatory agencies and industry to effectively and rapidly evaluate the exposure, NM hazard and risk from nanomaterials and nano-enabled products, enabling implementation of computational ‘safe-by-design’ approaches to facilitate NM commercialization.
Interfaces provide the structural basis for function as, for example, encountered in nature in the membrane-embedded photosystem or in technology in solar cells. Synthetic functional multilayers of molecules cooperating in a coupled manner can be fabricated on surfaces through layer-by-layer self-assembly. Ordered arrays of stimulus-responsive rotaxanes undergoing well-controlled axle shuttling are excellent candidates for coupled mechanical motion. Such stimulus-responsive surfaces may help integrate synthetic molecular machines in larger systems exhibiting even macroscopic effects or generating mechanical work from chemical energy through cooperative action. The present work demonstrates the successful deposition of ordered mono- and multilayers of chemically switchable rotaxanes on gold surfaces. Rotaxane mono- and multilayers are shown to reversibly switch in a coupled manner between two ordered states as revealed by linear dichroism effects in angle-resolved NEXAFS spectra. Such a concerted switching process is observed only when the surfaces are well packed, while less densely packed surfaces lacking lateral order do not exhibit such effects.
Thermoresponsive polymer coatings can facilitate cell sheet fabrication under mild conditions by promoting cell adhesion and proliferation at 37 1C. At lower temperatures the detachment of confluent cell sheets is triggered without enzymatic treatment. Thus, confluent cell sheets with intact extracellular matrix for regenerative medicine or tissue engineering applications become available. Herein, we applied the previously identified structural design parameters of functional, thermoresponsive poly(glycidyl ether) brushes on gold to the more application-relevant substrate glass via the self-assembly of a corresponding block copolymer (PGE-AA) with a short surface-reactive, amine-presenting anchor block. Both, physical and covalent immobilization on glass via either multivalent ionic interactions of the anchor block with bare glass or the coupling of the anchor block to a polydopamine (PDA) adhesion layer on glass resulted in stable coatings. Atomic force microscopy revealed a high degree of roughness of covalently attached coatings on the PDA adhesion layer, while physically attached coatings on bare glass were smooth and in the brush-like regime. Cell sheets of primary human dermal fibroblasts detached reliably (86%) and within 20 ± 10 min from physically tethered PGE-AA coatings on glass when prepared under cloud point grafting conditions. The presence of the laterally inhomogeneous PDA adhesion layer, however, hindered the spontaneous temperature-triggered cell detachment from covalently grafted PGE-AA, decreasing both detachment rate and reliability. Despite being only physically attached, self-assembled monolayer brushes of PGE-AA block copolymers on glass are functional and stable thermoresponsive coatings for application in cell sheet fabrication of human fibroblasts as determined by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy.
Recent advances in vacuum sciences and applications are reviewed. Novel optical interferometer cavity devices enable pressure measurements with ppm accuracy. The innovative dynamic vacuum standard allows for pressure measurements with temporal resolution of 2 ms. Vacuum issues in the construction of huge ultra-high vacuum devices worldwide are reviewed. Recent advances in surface science and thin films include new phenomena observed in electron transport near solid surfaces as well as novel results on the properties of carbon nanomaterials. Precise techniques for surface and thin-film characterization have been applied in the conservation technology of cultural heritage objects and recent advances in the characterization of biointerfaces are presented. The combination of various vacuum and atmospheric-pressure techniques enables an insight into the complex phenomena of protein and other biomolecule conformations on solid surfaces. Studying these phenomena at solid–liquid interfaces is regarded as the main issue in the development of alternative techniques for drug delivery, tissue engineering and thus the development of innovative techniques for curing cancer and cardiovascular diseases. A review on recent advances in plasma medicine is presented as well as novel hypotheses on cell apoptosis upon treatment with gaseous plasma. Finally, recent advances in plasma nanoscience are illustrated with several examples and a roadmap for future activities is presented.
Drug and gene delivery via nanoparticles across biological barriers such as the alveolar-capillary barrier of the lung constitutes an interesting and increasingly relevant field in nanomedicine. Nevertheless, potential hazardous effects of nanoparticles (NPs) as well as their cellular and systemic fate should be thoroughly examined. Hence, this study was designed to evaluate the effects of amorphous silica NPs (Sicastar) and (poly)organosiloxane NPs (AmOrSil) on the viability and the inflammatory response as well as on the cellular uptake mechanisms and fate in cells of the alveolar barrier. For this purpose, the alveolar epithelial cell line (NCI H441) and microvascular endothelial cell line (ISO-HAS-1) were used in an experimental set up resembling the alveolar-capillary barrier of the lung. In terms of IL-8 and sICAM Sicastar resulted in harmful effects at higher concentrations (60 µg/ml) in conventional monocultures but not in the coculture, whereas AmOrSil showed no significant effects. Immunofluorescence counterstaining of endosomal structures in NP-incubated cells showed no evidence for a clathrin- or caveolae-mediated uptake mechanism. However, NPs were enclosed in flotillin-1 and -2 marked vesicles in both cell types. Flotillins appear to play a role in cellular uptake or trafficking mechanisms of NPs and are discussed as indicators for clathrin- or caveolae-independent uptake mechanisms. In addition, we examined the transport of NPs across this in vitro model of the alveolar-capillary barrier forming a tight barrier with a transepithelial electrical resistance of 560 ± 8 Ω cm². H441 in coculture with endothelial cells took up much less NPs compared to monocultures. Moreover, coculturing prevented the transport of NP from the epithelial compartment to the endothelial layer on the bottom of the filter insert. This supports the relevance of coculture models, which favour a differentiated and polarised epithelial layer as in vitro test systems for nanoparticle uptake.
Coordination chemistry was applied to deposit pyridine-functionalized gold nanoparticles on silicon substrates. The particles were synthesized through the Brust/Schiffrin route with a subsequent ligand exchange reaction yielding well-defined particles of two different sizes. Multilayer deposition was carried out on a pyridine-terminated SAM, anchored on a hydroxyl-terminated silicon surface. Analogously, Hunter/Vögtle-type tetralactam macrocycle multilayers were deposited as well as mixed layers containing both either in an alternating sequence or as a macrocycle multilayer with a terminating nanoparticle layer. These composite layers were examined with respect to their ability to bind squaraine axles in the macrocycle cavities. The amount of guest bound is higher for the composite layer with alternating macrocycles and nanoparticles.