Efficacy of hydrodynamic interleukin 10 gene transfer in human liver segments with interest in transplantation.
Different diseases lead, during their advanced stages, to chronic or acute liver failure, whose unique treatment consists in organ transplantation. The success of intervention is limited by host immune response and graft rejection. The use of immunosuppressant drugs generally improve organ transplantation, but they cannot completely solve the problem. Also, their management is delicate, especially during the early stages of treatment. Thus, new tools to set an efficient modulation of immune response are required. The local expression of interleukin (IL) 10 protein in transplanted livers mediated by hydrodynamic gene transfer could improve the organ acceptance by the host because it presents…
Two-Dimensional Indium Selenide for Sulphur Vapour Sensing Applications
Surface-to-volume ratio in two-dimensional (2D) materials highlights among their characteristics as an inherent and intrinsic advantage taking into account their strong sensitivity to surface effects. For this reason, we have proposed in this work micromechanically exfoliated 2D nanosheets of InSe as an optical vapour sensor. As a proof of concept, we used 2-mercaptoethanol as the chemical analyte in vapour phase to monitor the change of the InSe photoluminescence (PL) before and after exposure to the analyte. For short vapour exposure times (at low analyte concentration), we found a PL enhancement of InSe nanosheets attributed to the surface localization of Se defects. For long vapour expo…
MWP phase shifters integrated in PbS-SU8 waveguides
[EN] We present new kind of microwave phase shifters (MPS) based on dispersion of PbS colloidal quantum dots (QDs) in commercially available photoresist SU8 after a ligand exchange process. Ridge PbS-SU8 waveguides are implemented by integration of the nanocomposite in a silicon platform. When these waveguides are pumped at wavelengths below the band-gap of the PbS QDs, a phase shift in an optically conveyed (at 1550 nm) microwave signal is produced. The strong light confinement produced in the ridge waveguides allows an improvement of the phase shift as compared to the case of planar structures. Moreover, a novel ridge bilayer waveguide composed by a PbS-SU8 nanocomposite and a SU8 passive…
Ag and Au/DNQ-novolac nanocomposites patternable by ultraviolet lithography: a fast route to plasmonic sensor microfabrication
In this work we report on a method to synthesize Ag–Au nanoparticles/polymer nanocomposite patterns by UV lithography. The photoresists are based on DNQ-novolac as the polymer matrix, and Ag(I) and Au(III) salts as the nanoparticle precursors. After UV lithography, silver and gold nanoparticles are in situ synthesized inside the polymer patterns during a post bake. The resulting structured nanocomposite shows a characteristic absorbance spectrum related to the plasmon frequency of the synthesized noble metal NPs. This method represents a fast, simple and low-cost approach to the formation of extended polymer patterns with embedded silver or gold NPs. Moreover, it is a mechanism to position …
Propagation length enhancement of surface plasmon polaritons in gold nano-/micro-waveguides by the interference with photonic modes in the surrounding active dielectrics
Abstract In this work, the unique optical properties of surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs), i.e. subwavelength confinement or strong electric field concentration, are exploited to demonstrate the propagation of light signal at 600 nm along distances in the range from 17 to 150 μm for Au nanostripes 500 nm down to 100 nm wide (30 nm of height), respectively, both theoretically and experimentally. A low power laser is coupled into an optical fiber tip that is used to locally excite the photoluminescence of colloidal quantum dots (QDs) dispersed in their surroundings. Emitted light from these QDs is generating the SPPs that propagate along the metal waveguides. Then, the above-referred propagat…
Metasurfaces for colour printing
We present a theoretical analysis and experimental evidences of metasurfaces based on particle resonators that achieve bright-field colour prints. We created pixels that support individual colours, miniaturized and juxtaposed at the optical diffraction limit. Different strategies are followed to offer the flexibility of using both transmitting and epi (reflective) white light sources. We discuss their potential applications in large-volume colour printing via nanoimprint lithography.
Optical properties of different polymer thin films containing in situ synthesized Ag and Au nanoparticles
Here we report on the in situ synthesis of Ag and Au nanoparticles inside several polymer matrixes by solid-state chemical reduction of a metallic salt. Poly(ethyleneimine) (PEI), poly(hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA), poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP), novolak, poly(4-vinylphenol) (P4VP), poly(4-vinylphenol)-co-(methyl methacrylate) (P4VP-co-MMA) and poly(styrene-co-allyl alcohol) (PS-co-AA) were able to reduce Ag(I) and Au(III) to the corresponding nanoparticles during the baking process. The nanoparticle diameters of Ag and Au were found to range from 2 to 25 nm. TEM also indicated a uniform distribution of nanoparticles embedded in the thin film. This approach is suitable for controlling t…
Enhanced optical response of InSe nanosheet devices decorated with CsPbX3 (X = I, Br) perovskite nanocrystals
Abstract The combination of several two-dimensional materials opens the door for the creation of cooperative nanodevices with functionalities that complement to each other and even compensate the weaknesses of the individual components. Two-dimensional indium selenide (InSe) shows one of the largest tunability bandgap found in two-dimensional materials with application in optoelectronics. However, the intrinsic out-of-plane luminescent dipolar nature limits its implementation in devices operating in vertical configuration. All-inorganic CsPbX3 (X = Br, I) cubic nanoparticles offer high absorption and emission quantum yields and great integrability with two-dimensional materials. Combining t…
Dielectric and plasmonic waveguides based on quantum dots embedded in polymers
espanolEn este trabajo se propone una revision de la implementacion de guias de onda activas basadas en la dispersion de puntos cuanticos coloidales (QDs) en polimeros. Para ello, guias de onda planas fueron fabricadas embebiendo distintos tipos de nanoestructuras semiconductoras con emision en el visible e infrarrojo (CdS, CdTe, CdSe, PbS) en PMMA, encontrandose las condiciones optimas para el guiado de su fotoluminiscencia y sus propiedades de ganancia y atenuacion. Si varios tipos de puntos son dispersados en la misma capa se propagan varios colores, siendo posible obtener luz blanca con las proporciones adecuadas de rojo, verde y azul. Asimismo, el guiado puede ser mejorado si una cubie…
Plasmonic versus catalytic effect of gold nanoparticles on mesoporous TiO2 electrodes for water splitting
a b s t r a c t Solar water splitting with metal oxide semiconductors constitutes a promising approach to the conversion of solar energy into chemical energy stored in the atomic bonds of hydrogen molecules. In the present study, we evaluate the effect of the presence of Au nanoparticles on the photoelectrochemical behaviour of mesoporous TiO2 to photo-oxidize water. We observe that the presence of Au nanoparticles leads to enhanced photocurrents for water oxidation and we explore the origin of this enhancement by optical and electrochemical characterization techniques. Our results indicate that although the Au nanoparticles are responsible for a localized surface plasmonic resonance effect…
In-situ synthesis of thiophene-based multifunctional polymeric networks with tunable conductivity and high photolithographic performance
Abstract Design of novel multifunctional polymeric materials combining electrically conducting properties with patterning capability is a significant challenge in materials science. Herein, we report on the synthesis of multifunctional interpenetrating polymer networks (IPN) by the in-situ oxidative polymerization of thiophene-based monomers with Cu(ClO 4 ) 2 inside a novolac-based photoresist. The resulting IPNs show conductivities up to 20 S/cm depending on the monomer properties. Among them, 3,3‴-Dihexyl-2,2’:5′,2’’:5″,2‴-quaterthiophene (DH4T) is chosen because it has the largest conjugation length and excellent solubility in organic solvents. Moreover, it renders a low percolation thre…
Ligand-Length Modification in CsPbBr3 Perovskite Nanocrystals and Bilayers with PbS Quantum Dots for Improved Photodetection Performance
Nanocrystals surface chemistry engineering offers a direct approach to tune charge carrier dynamics in nanocrystals-based photodetectors. For this purpose, we have investigated the effects of altering the surface chemistry of thin films of CsPbBr3 perovskite nanocrystals produced by the doctor blading technique, via solid state ligand-exchange using 3-mercaptopropionic acid (MPA). The electrical and electro-optical properties of photovoltaic and photoconductor devices were improved after the MPA ligand exchange, mainly because of a mobility increase up to 5 ×