Recent technological advances in the nanotechnology field have permitted the design of polymeric thin films and polymer-based nanocomposites for energy storage [1], high-k dielectrics [2], light-emitting diodes [3], actuators [4], sensors [5], among many others. While these thin films have been tailored to exhibit unique optical, electrical, and electromechanical properties, enhancements in mec...

Controlled patterning of conducting polymers at a microor nanoscale is the first step towards the fabrication of miniaturized functional devices. Here, we introduce an approach for the nanopatterning of conducting polymers using an improved monomer ‘‘ink’’ in dip-pen nanolithography ~DPN!. The nominal monomer ‘‘ink’’ is converted, in situ, to its conducting solid-state polymeric form after patt...

purpose : to investigate the sensations experienced by chinese patients during refractive surgery including the laser in situ keratomileusis (lasik), epi-lasik, and sub-bowman keratomileusis (sbk) techniques. a prospective, randomized, and self-matched clinical study was conducted. methods : the participants included 44 men and 58 women aged 16 to 47 years old (mean 24.3±0.6 years) who underwen...

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of composite preheating and polymerization mode on degree of conversion (DC), microhardness (KHN), plasticization (P), and depth of polymerization (DP) of a bulk fill composite. METHODS Forty disc-shaped samples (n = 5) of a bulk fill composite were prepared (5 × 4 mm thick) and randomly divided into 4 groups according to light-curing ...

This work compares the preparation of nanocomposites of polystyrene (PS), poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), and PSMMA co-polymer containing silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) using in situ bulk polymerization with and without microwave irradiation (MWI). The AgNPs prepared were embedded within the polymer matrix. A modification in the thermal stability of the PS/Ag, PMMA/Ag, and PSMMA/Ag nanocomposit...