Business Daily Media

Men's Weekly

.

Out of the fog: honeycomb films

  • Written by ACN Newswire
Out of the fog: honeycomb films
Tsukuba, Japan, Nov 23, 2018 - (ACN Newswire) - Researchers are producing honeycomb-shaped films using an approach that mimics what happens when we breathe on a glass surface. The films have potential use in numerous applications, from tissue regeneration and bio-sensing to solar cells, explains an article in the journal Science and Technology of Advanced Materials.

Tohoku University materials scientist Hiroshi Yabu reviewed the latest research on the fabrication of honeycomb films using the 'breath-figure technique'. This technique builds on years of research into understanding what happens when a fog forms after we breathe onto a glass surface, and how dew droplets form.

Water droplets condense when humid air is passed over certain substances mixed with solvents. They form a highly uniform, closely packed array and sink into the substance. When the solvent then evaporates, a porous, honeycomb-shaped film is formed.

These honeycomb films have a wide range of potential applications depending on their individually unique properties. For example, peeling off a honeycomb film from a silicon wafer leads to the formation of nano-sized spikes on the wafer, making it 'anti-reflective'; a property that could be used to improve the efficiency of solar cells.

The films could also be used as scaffolding for tissue regeneration. Research is underway to develop biodegradable honeycomb films with properties that encourage the growth of specific types of cells and tissues.

"The production of honeycomb films can be performed on an industrial scale, greatly broadening their possible applications in areas such as optics, photonics, surface science, biotechnology, and regenerative medicine," Yabu says.

Researchers are investigating various substances and fabrication techniques to make these films for different purposes. For example, depositing metals onto already-formed honeycomb films can change their properties, such as making them conductive to heat and electricity. In contrast, films made from polyion complexes of polyamic acids can withstand heat. Films that contain 'photochromic' compounds change colour when exposed to light. Highly water-repellent films can be made using a type of fluorine-based copolymers.

Scientists are also experimenting with changing the films' shapes by stretching and shrinking them, and with ways to control water droplets and the resulting pore size and shape. For example, adding nanoparticles or adjusting the airflow direction over the drying solution leads to elliptical pores, rather than round ones.

For further information please contact: Hiroshi Yabu WPI-Advanced Institute for Materials Research Tohoku UniversityEmail: [email protected][1]

About Science and Technology of Advanced Materials Journal Open access journal, STAM publishes outstanding research articles across all aspects of materials science, including functional and structural materials, theoretical analyses, and properties of materials.

For more information about STAM, please contact:Mikiko TanifujiSTAM Publishing Director[email protected][2]

Press release distributed by ResearchSEA for Science and Technology of Advanced Materials.

Topic: Research and developmentSectors: Electronics, Nanotechnology, Science & Research, BioTech[3][4][5][6] http://www.acnnewswire.com From the Asia Corporate News Network

Copyright © 2018 ACN Newswire. All rights reserved. A division of Asia Corporate News Network.

References

  1. ^ [email protected] (www.acnnewswire.com)
  2. ^ [email protected] (www.acnnewswire.com)
  3. ^ Electronics (www.acnnewswire.com)
  4. ^ Nanotechnology (www.acnnewswire.com)
  5. ^ Science & Research (www.acnnewswire.com)
  6. ^ BioTech (www.acnnewswire.com)

Read more http://www.acnnewswire.com/press-release/english/48030/

Small-Business Cash-Flow Playbook 2025

An educational guide to managing ATO debt, real-time super and growth finance in Australia’s new landscape Why ATO debt just became the most expe...

Landowners Offered $30,000 Per Year for Just 1 Hectare: The Rise of 5MW Battery Projects Across Australia

In a pivotal shift reshaping Australia’s renewable energy landscape, landowners in Queensland, New South Wales, and Victoria are being offered up ...

Major national security tech alliance launches with Aerologix a founding member

Australia’s leading drone intelligence pioneer bolsters sovereign tech power Australia’s leading aerial data and drone intelligence platform, Aer...

Chris Hancock AM Honoured as 2025 Communications Ambassador

SYDNEY Chris Hancock AM, former CEO of AARNet, has been awarded the prestigious Communications Ambassador title at the 2025 Telecommunications Indus...

Baby boomers are driving development feasibility leading to larger apartments

As residential developers continue to grapple with feasibility issues on apartment projects, the sector is struggling to deliver volumes of new st...

Hays launches FY25/26 Salary Guide: ‘Salary Paradox’ deepens as pay rises fail Australians

Rising dissatisfaction with pay, progression and perks is fuelling a new wave of career change in FY25/26, as Australians demand more from employe...

Sell by LayBy