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Abstract: Nanocomposites comprising magnetic nanoparticles and conducting polymers (MN‐CPs) are promising multifunctional nanomaterials that exhibit a unique combination of magnetism and electrical conductivity. Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) have a high surface area to volume ratio, excellent mechanical strength, and biocompatibility, whereas the conducting polymers are advantageous for their ease of synthesis, environmental stability, biocompatibility, and low cost. Therefore, the MN‐CP nanocomposites having synergistic qualities are being increasingly considered for almost all spheres of biomedical applications including biosensors, environmental remediation, drug delivery, as well as theranostics. In biosensors and purification applications, the magnetic affinity is useful for separation, and electrical transduction is utilized for signal transmission. MN‐CP nanocomposites are also promising in drug‐delivery applications as well since both external magnetic and electrical fields can be employed for targeted and stimuli responsive drug release. The MN‐CP nanocomposites are also potential near‐infrared (NIR) photothermal, magnetothermal, and MRI contrast agents and used for multimodal imaging in cancer diagnostics and therapeutics. MN‐CP nanocomposites are multitalented nanoparticles with unique attributes that make them advantageous over other conventional agents and other nanocomposite systems. The objective of the current review is to provide an overview of the unique properties of these nanocomposites, their synthetic strategies and their potential applications explored so far in the biomedical field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emphasis on effect of oxygen on structural and ferroelectric properties of lead zirconia titanate thin film is reported. The thin film is prepared using RF sputtering and annealed in air atmosphere to introduce oxygen vacancies. The photoelectron spectroscopy data reveal lead rich film, which decreases with annealing temperature, while oxygen content decreases from 59.32–55.82% after annealing. The decrease in oxygen causes pyrochlore formation along with perovskite phase in annealed film. The polarization graph shows reduction in domain wall mobility and film polarization due to oxygen vacancy. The pure perovskite phase is achieved using CFA by inserting O2in annealing chamber. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Radio frequency MEMS switches are key components in low power communication systems. The present paper reports fabrication of MEMS based series and shunt switches for actuation voltage in the range of 30 to 50 V. Focusing on a low cost fabrication approach, the switches were designed for higher isolation of >25 dB and low insertion loss of <0.5 dB. Aluminum was chosen as a cost effective alternative for the fabrication of the transmission line and structural beam. The shunt and series switches were investigated for a frequency range of 1 to 20 GHz. The shunt switch shows the insertion loss of 0.5 dB and isolation of -28 dB and the series switch shows the insertion loss of 0.7 dB and isolation of -27 dB at 20 GHz. The measured actuation voltage was 30 V for the shunt switch and 42 V for the series switch. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A 3 : 1 composition of functional monomer (FM)-multifunctional acrylate was spin-coated and later crosslinked under the influence of oxygen plasma on the surface of poly(dimethyl siloxane) (PDMS) to generate a surface-anchored crosslinked network bearing functional moieties. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and wetting angle measurements were used to analyze the crosslinked monomer surfaces. Scanning electron microscopy was used to visualize the surface of the film after modification. The results of the surface reconstruction of the FM surfaces and plasma-treated PDMS reveal that long-term hydrophilic surfaces were achieved. Thus, the surface architecture could be favorably manipulated with this remarkable technique with a suitable combination of FMs and crosslinkers. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2010 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Review: 130 refs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]