We report on the formation of hydrogel layers on conducting substrates via a simple electrochemical route. Free-radical polymerization is initiated by an electron transfer from the substrate to a redox-active initiator. Gels of the thermally responsive material poly-N-isopropylacrylamide (p-NIPAM) with a thickness between 25 and 250 nm were produced and characterized. The gels adhere well to th...

Advanced radiation techniques such as intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) for complex geometries in which targets are close to organs at risk have been introduced in radiation therapy, creating a need for procedures that allow easy three-dimensional (3-D) measurement of dose for verification purposes. Polymer gels that change their material properties when irradiated have been suggested for...

Thermoresponsive P(NIPAM-AA)/Fe₃O₄/SiO₂ microspheres with surface holes serving as carriers were prepared using p-Fe₃O₄/SiO₂ microspheres with a thermoresponsive copolymer. The p-Fe₃O₄/SiO₂ microspheres was obtained using a modified Pickering method and chemical etching. The surface pore size of p-Fe₃O₄/SiO₂ microspheres was in the range of 18.3 nm~37.2 nm and the cavity size was approximately ...

Stimuli-responsive, polymer-based nanostructures with anisotropic compartments are of great interest as advanced materials because they are capable of switching their shape via environmentally-triggered conformational changes, while maintaining discrete compartments. In this study, a new class of stimuli-responsive, anisotropic nanofiber scaffolds with physically and chemically distinct compart...

background:  in this study a series of basic dosimetric properties of a low-density (ld) gel dosimeter are investigated. the dose response is studied regarding to linearity, sensitivity, dose-rate and energy dependence as well as lung tissue equivalence. materials and methods: the ld gel was made by mixing the polymer gel with expanded polystyrene spheres. energy dependence was studied at two d...

Background: Accurate small radiation field dosimetry is essential in modern radiotherapy techniques such as stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) and intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT). Precise measurement of dosimetric parameters such as beam profile, percentage depth doses and output factor of these beams are complicated due to the electron disequilibrium and the steep dose gradients. In the p...