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Nanoglasses have attracted considerable interest among material scientists due to their novel and surprising properties. However, there is still a significant gap in understanding how nanoglasses interact with biomaterials and their effects on living cells. Previous cell studies have reported indications of possible proliferation effects, but a comprehensive understanding of differentiating nanoglass influences from distinct material or topography effects is yet to be established. In this study, the interaction between nanoglass surfaces and phospholipids, which are fundamental components of cell membranes, is investigated. The findings reveal a unique stabilizing effect exhibited by nanoglasses on structures created using lipid dip‐pen nanolithography, preventing their spreading over the surface ("confinement"). This discovery suggests that nanoglasses can potentially influence the structure of cell membranes, providing a conceivable mechanism for how nanoglasses may impact cell behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Crystallization processes of glass-glass interfaces in sputtered CuZr thin film nanoglasses were directly studied using in situ heating experiments in a transmission electron microscope (TEM). By combining the in situ technique with a sophisticated symmetry analysis based on nanobeam diffraction patterns (NBDP) and electron correlation microscopy (ECM) to capture the relaxation dynamics in the nanoglass, correlations between excess volume and nucleation kinetics are attained on a microscopic scale. Particularly, glass-glass interfaces with their increased excess volume promote the onset of crystal nucleation. In-situ TEM reveals that glass-glass interfaces in CuZr nanoglasses exhibit increased excess volume promoting accelerated crystal nucleation, as shown by motif analysis extracted from nanobeam diffraction and electron correlation microscopy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Comprehensive analyses of the atomic structure using advanced analytical transmission electron microscopy‐based methods combined with atom probe tomography confirm the presence of distinct glass–glass interfaces in a columnar Cu‐Zr nanoglass synthesized by magnetron sputtering. These analyses provide first‐time in‐depth characterization of sputtered film nanoglasses and indicate that glass–glass interfaces indeed present an amorphous phase with reduced mass density as compared to the neighboring amorphous regions. Moreover, dedicated analyses of the diffusion kinetics by time‐of‐flight secondary ion mass spectroscopy (ToF SIMS) prove significantly enhanced diffusivity, suggesting fast transport along the low density glass–glass interfaces. The present results further indicate that sputter deposition is a feasible technique for reliable production of nanoglasses and that some of the concepts proposed for this new class of glassy materials are applicable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fully stabilized zirconia/graphene composites are very promising advanced structural materials having mixed ion–electron conductivity for energy storage and energy conversion applications. The existing methods of the composite manufacturing have a number of disadvantages that limit their practical use. Thus, the search for new sintering methods is an actively developing area. In this work, we report for the first time the application of the SiC powder bed sintering technique for fully stabilized zirconia (YSZ) composite fabrication. The reduced graphene oxide (rGO) was used as a graphene derivative. As a result, well-formed ceramics with high density and crystallinity, the maximal microhardness of 13 GPa and the values of the ionic conductivity up to 10−2 S/cm at 650 °C was obtained. The effects of the sintering conditions and rGO concentration on the microstructure and conductivities of ceramics are discussed in detail. The suggested powder bed sintering technique in a layered graphite/SiC/graphite powder bed allowed well-formed dense YSZ/rGO ceramics fabrication and can become a suitable alternative to existing methods for various oxide ceramic matrix composite fabrication: both conventional sintering and non-equilibrium (SPS, flash sintering) approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High‐pressure torsion is used to consolidate the melt‐spun Cu50Zr50 amorphous ribbons. The high‐pressure torsion processing is conducted varying the strain using different numbers of anvil rotations. Optical microscopy (OM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X‐ray diffraction (XRD) are used to study the effect of processing regimes on consolidation and structural changes. Oxide layers, which are present on the surface of the initial amorphous ribbons, hinder the consolidation of ribbons into fully dense samples. Individual ribbons are clearly observed in the central region of the specimen deformed for one rotation, whereas the edge regions look more consolidated due to the strain gradient along the radius during processing. An increase in strain (by increasing the number of rotations) improves the homogeneity of the consolidated samples. The high‐pressure torsion processing for ten rotations leads to the formation of dense samples with a minor concentration of small crack‐like defects in the central region. Apparently, the oxides become refined and are distributed in the matrix predominantly in the form of fine particles. Possibly, there is also some dissolution of surface oxides with the formation of a solid solution of oxygen in the amorphous metallic matrix. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]