Block copolymer micelles with near infrared metal phthalocyanine dyes for laser induced writing.

A route has been developed to disperse metal-containing phthalocyanine dyes in a non-polar medium based on amphiphilic block copolymer micelles of poly[styrene-block-(4-vinylpyridine)] (PS-b-P4VP) and poly[styrene-block-(acrylic acid)] (PS-b-PAA) copolymers. Polar P4VP and PAA efficiently encapsulate cobalt(II), manganese(II), and nickel(II) phthalocyanine dyes by axial coordination of nitrogen and µ-oxo bridged dimerization with the transition metals, respectively. Good dispersion of the dyes is confirmed by the linear enhancement of Q-bands in UV-vis absorption spectra with dye concentration. A thin monolayered PS-b-P4VP micelle film that contained a nickel(II) phthalocyanine dye which efficiently adsorbs a laser beam on a localized area to generate a local heat higher than the glass transition temperatures of both blocks. One-dimensional laser writing on the dye-containing film allows the fabrication of a few submicrometer wide line patterns in which the self-assembled nanostructure of the block copolymer is modified by the directional heat arising from laser scanning.

Automated control of blood glucose in the OR and surgical ICU.

A device which integrates existing intravenous continuous glucose monitors and infusion pumps into a central hub for automated intravenous intensive insulin therapy, targeting non-diabetic critically-ill patients is presented. Additionally, a fuzzy logic based controller that is capable of automatically making closed-loop decisions to achieve tight glycemic control between a euglycemic range of 90 to 120 mg/dl is presented. Initial bench top testing shows a significant improvement in glycemic control with fuzzy logic control when compared to manual infusion protocols currently used in hospitals; future animal testing will be performed to verify these results in vivo.

Nanopatterning of thin polymer films by controlled dewetting on a topographic pre-pattern.

We develop a non-lithographic method for fabricating ordered micro/nanostructures of polymer thin films based on controlled dewetting of the films on topographically pre-patterned substrates with a large area. An ordered nanopattern of polystyrene (PS) is accomplished by thermal treatment of a thin PS film above its Tg spin coated on a topographically patterned substrate. We investigate the influence of pattern geometry on the final morphology of the dewetted polymer films using both mesa and indent patterned substrates. The controlled dewetting, initiated preferentially at the edges of individual pre-patterned mesas, in particular gives rise to spherical cap domains located at the center of the mesas. The domains are much smaller than the individual mesas as a consequence of the significant pattern reduction to nearly 300%. The arrays of 70 nm PS nano-sphere caps are obtained from arrays of 200 nm square pre-patterned mesas. Our method is also applicable for other polymers such as a poly(4-vinyl pyridine) (P4VP) containing Rhodamine 6G (Rh6G) dye on a pre-patterned PS substrate and successfully produced highly fluorescent stable nanopatterned films.