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Bacterial infections are a common problem in daily life that can affect human health. Researchers are looking for valuable materials that can help prevent such infections and environmental pollutants. Thin films are a well-known application…
With the rapid advances of functional dielectric metasurfaces and their integration on on-chip nanophotonic devices, the necessity of metasurfaces working in different environments, especially in biological applications, arose. However, the…
Face masks provide effective, easy-to-use, and low-cost protection against airborne pathogens or infectious agents, including SARS-CoV-2. There is a wide variety of face masks available on the market for various applications, but they are…
We report a detailed study of surface and interface properties of pulsed-laser deposited NiMnSb films on Si (100) substrate as a function of film thickness. As the thickness of films is reduced below 35 nm formation of a porous layer is…
Hydrodynamic flows in biological systems are often generated by active chiral processes near or on surfaces. Important examples are beating cilia, force generation in actomyosin networks, and motile bacteria interacting with surfaces. Here…
Power-conversion efficiency is a critical factor for the wider adoption of solar-cell modules. Thin-film solar cells are cheap and easy to manufacture, but their efficiencies are low compared to crystalline-silicon solar cells and need to…
Different hypotheses have been proposed to explain the mechanism for the extremely low friction coefficient of carbon coatings and its undesired dependence on air humidity. A decisive atomistic insight is still lacking because of the…
Electronic skin, a class of wearable electronic sensors that mimic the functionalities of human skin, has made remarkable success in applications including health monitoring, human-machine interaction and electronic-biological interfaces.…
Biofilms are bacterial aggregates encased in a self-produced polymeric matrix which attach to moist surfaces and are extremely resistant to chemicals and antibiotics. Recent experiments show that their structure is defined by the interplay…
Hypothesis: Bacterial contamination of surfaces poses a major threat to public health. Designing effective antibacterial or self-cleaning surfaces requires understanding how bacteria-laden droplets interact with solid substrates and how…
We propose a new concept for the design of high-efficiency photocells based on ultra-thin (submicron) semiconductor films of controlled thickness. Using a microscopic model of a thin dielectric layer interacting with incident…
Solutions of macromolecules can undergo liquid-liquid phase separation to form droplets with ultra-low surface tension. Droplets with such low surface tension wet and spread over common surfaces such as test tubes and microscope slides,…
Surface bubbles are an abundant source of aerosols, with important implications for climate processes. In this context, we investigate the stability and thinning dynamics of soap films under effective gravity fields. Experiments are…
Brushed stimuli are perceived as pleasant when stroked lightly on the skin surface of a touch receiver at certain velocities. While the relationship between brush velocity and pleasantness has been widely replicated, we do not understand…
Porous materials possess numerous useful functions because of their high surface area and ability to modulate the transport of heat, mass, fluids, and electromagnetic waves. Unlike highly ordered structures, disordered porous structures…
Topological insulators are a class of materials with insulating bulk but protected conducting surfaces due to the combination of spin-orbit interactions and time-reversal symmetry. The surface states are topologically non-trivial and robust…
Demand for artificial body implants has been on the rise over the years. However, wear and bacterial infection are identified as two major reasons that can lead to inflammation and implant failure. In this communication, the advantages of…
Elaborating reliable and versatile strategies for efficient light coupling between free space and thin films is of crucial importance for new technologies in energy efficiency. Nanostructured materials have opened unprecedented…
Despite their technological relevance, a full microscopic understanding of glasses is still lacking. This applies even more to their surfaces whose properties largely differ from that of the bulk material. Here, we experimentally…
Porous and flexible actuating materials are important in the development of smart systems. We report here a facile method to prepare scalable, flexible actuating porous membranes based on a poly(ionic liquid)-modified tissue paper. The…