The rapid development of micro/nanofabrication techniques have enabled engineering of material interfacial properties. Micro/nanostructures with unique electrical, mechanical, thermal, magnetic, optical, and biological properties, have found applications in a wide range of fields such as electronics, photonics, biological/chemical sensing, tissue engineering, and diagnostics, etc. As such, numerous strategies have been developed for structuring materials into micro/nano- scale. However, the challenge still lies in the high cost, low throughput, complexity in fabrication, and difficulty in scaling up. This thesis aims to explore fabrication strategies for micro/nanostructured surfaces that are versatile, simple, and inexpensive. The thin film stencil lift-off technique with both Parylene and self-adhesive vinyl has been explored for this purpose. Further applications of the resulted micro/nanostructured surfaces are also presented in this thesis. Through improved Parylene stencil fabrication process, both spontaneously phase-segregated and arbitrary binary supported lipid bilayer patterns have been achieved. Also, the microstructured Parylene surfaces have been ddemonstrated for patterning stacked SLBs that are either homogeneous or phase-segregated. Without any lithography technique involved, vinyl stencil lift-off offers as a facile and inexpensive benchtop method for patterning thin films such as metal and glassy films. Combining the thermal shrinking of shape memory polymer, the patterned feature sizes are further decreased by 60% in both x and y dimensions, pushing the patterning resolution to down to sub-100 μm range. In addition, the shrinking process induces micro/nanostructures onto the deposited thin film, and the structure sizes are easily tunable with film thickness deposited. Further applications of such patterned micro/nanostructured surfaces has also been explored. The structured gold films have served as high-surface-area electrodes for electrochemical sensing. By introducing photoresist as a sacrificial layer, the structured gold thin films can be lifted off and transferred onto elastomeric substrate, and serve stretchable and flexible sensors. Such sensing devices exhibit great stability and reproducibility even when working under external strain. Finally, the micro/nanostructured glassy surfaces have been employed as substrate for cell growth to study topographical effect on cell morphology. It has been concluded that rougher surfaces lead to cell elongation, and finer structures promote filopodia generation. These results underscore the strength and suitability of thin film stencil lift-off as a powerful technique for creating micro- and nanostructured surfaces. These structured surfaces could find applications in many other areas, due to their great properties such as tunable structure size, high surface area, flexibility, and long-term stability. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Inkjet printing has generated considerable interest as a technique for the patterning of functional materials in the liquid phase onto a substrate. Despite its high promise, the phenomena associated with inkjet printing remain incompletely understood. This research project investigates inkjet printing of cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) as a possible method for the fabrication of cellulose micropatterns. CNCs were prepared from wood pulp by H₂SO₄ hydrolysis and characterized in terms of length, width, and thickness distributions by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and dynamic light scattering. Aqueous CNC suspensions were characterized in terms of shear viscosity with a rheometer. Glass substrates were cleaned with a detergent solution, aqua regia, or a solvent mixture, and characterized in terms of surface chemical composition, surface free energy, polarity, roughness, ζ-potential, and surface charge distribution in air by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, contact angle measurements, AFM, streaming potential, and scanning Kelvin probe microscopy (SKPM). Additionally, poly(ethylene glycol)-grafted glass substrates were prepared and characterized in terms of surface free energy, polarity, and roughness. Aqueous CNC suspensions were printed in different patterns onto the different glass substrates with a commercial, piezoelectric drop-on-demand inkjet printer. Inkjet deposited droplet residues and micropatterns were analyzed by AFM, scanning electron microscopy, and polarized-light microscopy. At low CNC concentrations (0.05 wt %), inkjet-deposited droplets formed ring-like residues due to the "coffee drop effect". The "coffee drop effect" could be suppressed by the use of higher CNC concentrations. The resulting dot-like droplet residues exhibited Maltese cross interference patterns between crossed polarizers, indicating a radial orientation of the birefringent, elongated CNCs in these residues. The observed Maltese cross interference patterns represent unprecedented indirect evidence for a center-to-edge radial flow in drying droplets. The degree of definition of the micropatterns depended strongly on the surface properties of the glass substrates. Well-defined micropatterns were obtained on aqua regia-cleaned substrates. In addition to the surface free energy and polarity, other factors seemed to play a role in the formation of the inkjet-printed micropatterns. If these factors can be identified and controlled, inkjet deposition of CNCs could become an attractive method for the fabrication of cellulose micropatterns. / Ph. D.

Recently, technological advancement and the promise of next-generation devices have created an overwhelming push for the continued miniaturization of active systems to the micro- and nanometer scale. In this regime, traditional mechanical systems are largely inaccessible and as a result new active or stimuli-responsive materials are required. The work presented in this dissertation provides an understanding of the responsive nature of polymer and biopolymer interfaces especially in contact with metal nanoparticles. This understanding was utilized in conjunction with top-down template-based and self-assembly fabrication strategies to create hybrid protein based films and active polymer-metal hybrids that exhibit large and well-defined modulation of mechanical and optical properties. These materials processing developments represent advancement in the current state of the art specifically in three major areas: 1. template-based top-down control of protein chain conformation, 2. high-throughput synthesis and assembly of strongly coupled plasmonic nanoparticles with modulated optical properties (both near- and far-field), 3. field-assisted assembly of highly mobile and non-close packed magnetic nanorods with capabilities for rapid actuation.

Capítulo 1. A investigação teve como objetivo desenvolver filmes finos de sílica micropadronizada (FFSM) contendo micro-agregados de nanohidroxiapatita (nanoHA) que não ficassem totalmente cobertos pela sílica e assim pudessem interagir diretamente com as células vizinhas e o objetivo específico foi avaliar o efeito da presença de dois filmes (FFSM com ou sem a adição de nanohidroxiapatita) na resistência característica (?0) e no módulo de Weibull (m) de uma Y-TZP. Processamento sol-gel e litografia foram usados para aplicar o FFSM sobre os espécimes de Y-TZP. Três grupos experimentais foram produzidos: Y-TZP, Y-TZP+FFSM e Y-TZP+FFSM+nanoHA borrifada. Todas as superfícies foram caracterizadas por MEV/EDS e testadas em resistência à flexão em quatro pontos (n=30) em água a 37°C. A análise de Weibull foi usada para determinar ?0 e m (método de probabilidade máxima). A Y-TZP foi recoberta com êxito com o FFSM e FFSM+nanoHA. Micrografias indicaram que os micro-agregados de nanoHA não foram totalmente cobertos pela sílica. Não houve diferença estatisticamente significativa entre os grupos experimentais para ?0 e m. Essa investigação obteve sucesso em produzir filmes finos de sílica micropadronizada contendo micro-agregados de nanoHA que permaneceram expostos ao meio ambiente. Os filmes desenvolvidos não prejudicaram a confiabilidade estrutural da Y-TZP comercial, como confirmado pela estatística de Weibull. Capítulo 2. Objetivos: avaliar o efeito da concentração de vidro bioativo (VB), de zero e 10% em massa e da temperatura de sinterização (1.200°C e 1.300°C) na microestrutura, densidade relativa e resistência à flexão do compósito Y-TZP/VB. Material e métodos: os pós de Y-TZP e Y-TZP/VB foram prensados uniaxialmente e sinterizados a 1.200°C e 1.300°C por 1 hora. A microestrutura foi caracterizada pela análise de difração de raios X, microscopia eletrônica de varredura e espectroscopia de energia dispersiva (EDS). A densidade relativa foi calculada por meio dos valores de densidade obtidos pelo princípio de Archimedes. Para a resistência à flexão, espécimes (n=6) foram fraturados no teste de resistência à flexão biaxial usando um dispositivo de pistão sobre 3 esferas em uma máquina universal de ensaios. Resultados: a adição de VB diminuiu o tamanho de grão do compósito, aumentou as porosidades e causou uma diminuição significativa na densidade relativa (Y-TZP/1.300°C=97,7%a; Y-TZP/1.200°C=91,1%b; Y-TZP/VB/1.300°C 79,7%c e Y-TZP/VB/1.200°C 77,4%d) e diminuiu também significativamente a resistência à flexão (em MPa, Y-TZP/1.300°C=628,3a; Y-TZP/1.200°C=560,8b; Y-TZP/VB=1.300°C=189,1c e Y-TZP/VB/1.200°C=153,0c). As fases cristalinas de zircônia cúbica estabilizada por cálcio e silicato de sódio zircônio foram formadas após a adição de VB. Conclusão: a adição de vidro bioativo na Y-TZP aumentou a porosidade e resultou na formação de zircônia cúbica estabilizada com cálcio e silicato de sódio zircônio. A adição de vidro também resultou na diminuição do tamanho de grão, densidade e resistência à flexão. Os espécimes sinterizados a 1.300°C mostraram valores de densidade superior e grãos maiores quando comparados ao grupo sinterizado a 1.200°C. / Chapter 1. This investigation aimed at developing micropatterned silica thin films (MSTF) containing nanoHA micro-aggregates that were not completely covered by silica so that they could directly interact with the surrounding cells and the specific objectives was to evaluate the effect of the presence of two films (MSTF with or without nanoHA addition) on the characteristic strength (?0) and Weibull modulus (m) of a Y-TZP. Sol-gel process and soft-lithography were used to apply the MSTF onto the Y-TZP specimens. Three experimental groups were produced: Y-TZP, Y-TZP+MSTF and Y-TZP+MSTF+sprayed nanoHA. All surfaces were characterized by SEM/EDS and tested for four-point flexural strength (n=30) in water at 37°C. Weibull analysis was used to determine m and ?0 (maximum likelihood method). Y-TZP was successfully coated with MSFT and MSFT+nanoHA. SEM micrographs indicated that the micro-aggregates of nanoHA were not entirely covered by the silica. There was no statistically significant difference among the experimental groups for ?0 and m. This investigation was successful in producing a micropatterned silica thin film containing nanoHA micro-aggregates that remained exposed to the environment. The developed films did not jeopardize the structural reliability of a commercial Y-TZP, as confirmed by the Weibull statistics. Chapter 2. Objectives: to evaluate the effect the bioactive glass (BG) concentration (0 and 10wt%) and the sintering temperature (1.200°C and 1.300°C) on the microstructure, relative density and flexural strength of the composite Y-TZP/BG. Methods: The Y-TZP and Y-TZP/BG powders were uniaxially pressed and sintered at 1.200°C or 1.300°C for 1 h. The microstructure was characterized by X-ray diffraction analysis, scanning electron microscopy and Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy. Relative density was calculated from density values obtained using the Archimedes\' principle. For the flexural strength, specimens (n=6) were fractured in a biaxial flexural setup using a piston-on-3-balls fixture in a universal testing machine. Results: BG addition decreased the grain size of the composite, increased porosity and caused a significant decrease in the relative density (Y-TZP/1.300°C=97.7%a; Y-TZP/1.200°C=91.1%b; Y-TZP/BG/1.300°C 79.7%c and Y-TZP/BG/1.200°C 77.4%d) and flexural strength (in MPa, Y-TZP/1.300°C=628.3a; Y-TZP/1.200°C=560.8b; Y-TZP/BG=1.300°C=189.1c and Y-TZP/BG/1.200°C=153.0c). The crystalline phases of calcium stabilized cubic zirconia and sodium zirconium silicate were formed after the addition of BG. Conclusion: Addition of bioactive glass to Y-TZP increased porosity and resulted in the formation of calcium stabilized cubic zirconia and sodium zirconium silicate. Also, glass addition resulted in decrease in grain size, density and flexural strength. Composite specimens sintered at 1.300°C showed the highest density values and larger grains compared to those sintered at 1.200°C

Capítulo 1. A investigação teve como objetivo desenvolver filmes finos de sílica micropadronizada (FFSM) contendo micro-agregados de nanohidroxiapatita (nanoHA) que não ficassem totalmente cobertos pela sílica e assim pudessem interagir diretamente com as células vizinhas e o objetivo específico foi avaliar o efeito da presença de dois filmes (FFSM com ou sem a adição de nanohidroxiapatita) na resistência característica (?0) e no módulo de Weibull (m) de uma Y-TZP. Processamento sol-gel e litografia foram usados para aplicar o FFSM sobre os espécimes de Y-TZP. Três grupos experimentais foram produzidos: Y-TZP, Y-TZP+FFSM e Y-TZP+FFSM+nanoHA borrifada. Todas as superfícies foram caracterizadas por MEV/EDS e testadas em resistência à flexão em quatro pontos (n=30) em água a 37°C. A análise de Weibull foi usada para determinar ?0 e m (método de probabilidade máxima). A Y-TZP foi recoberta com êxito com o FFSM e FFSM+nanoHA. Micrografias indicaram que os micro-agregados de nanoHA não foram totalmente cobertos pela sílica. Não houve diferença estatisticamente significativa entre os grupos experimentais para ?0 e m. Essa investigação obteve sucesso em produzir filmes finos de sílica micropadronizada contendo micro-agregados de nanoHA que permaneceram expostos ao meio ambiente. Os filmes desenvolvidos não prejudicaram a confiabilidade estrutural da Y-TZP comercial, como confirmado pela estatística de Weibull. Capítulo 2. Objetivos: avaliar o efeito da concentração de vidro bioativo (VB), de zero e 10% em massa e da temperatura de sinterização (1.200°C e 1.300°C) na microestrutura, densidade relativa e resistência à flexão do compósito Y-TZP/VB. Material e métodos: os pós de Y-TZP e Y-TZP/VB foram prensados uniaxialmente e sinterizados a 1.200°C e 1.300°C por 1 hora. A microestrutura foi caracterizada pela análise de difração de raios X, microscopia eletrônica de varredura e espectroscopia de energia dispersiva (EDS). A densidade relativa foi calculada por meio dos valores de densidade obtidos pelo princípio de Archimedes. Para a resistência à flexão, espécimes (n=6) foram fraturados no teste de resistência à flexão biaxial usando um dispositivo de pistão sobre 3 esferas em uma máquina universal de ensaios. Resultados: a adição de VB diminuiu o tamanho de grão do compósito, aumentou as porosidades e causou uma diminuição significativa na densidade relativa (Y-TZP/1.300°C=97,7%a; Y-TZP/1.200°C=91,1%b; Y-TZP/VB/1.300°C 79,7%c e Y-TZP/VB/1.200°C 77,4%d) e diminuiu também significativamente a resistência à flexão (em MPa, Y-TZP/1.300°C=628,3a; Y-TZP/1.200°C=560,8b; Y-TZP/VB=1.300°C=189,1c e Y-TZP/VB/1.200°C=153,0c). As fases cristalinas de zircônia cúbica estabilizada por cálcio e silicato de sódio zircônio foram formadas após a adição de VB. Conclusão: a adição de vidro bioativo na Y-TZP aumentou a porosidade e resultou na formação de zircônia cúbica estabilizada com cálcio e silicato de sódio zircônio. A adição de vidro também resultou na diminuição do tamanho de grão, densidade e resistência à flexão. Os espécimes sinterizados a 1.300°C mostraram valores de densidade superior e grãos maiores quando comparados ao grupo sinterizado a 1.200°C. / Chapter 1. This investigation aimed at developing micropatterned silica thin films (MSTF) containing nanoHA micro-aggregates that were not completely covered by silica so that they could directly interact with the surrounding cells and the specific objectives was to evaluate the effect of the presence of two films (MSTF with or without nanoHA addition) on the characteristic strength (?0) and Weibull modulus (m) of a Y-TZP. Sol-gel process and soft-lithography were used to apply the MSTF onto the Y-TZP specimens. Three experimental groups were produced: Y-TZP, Y-TZP+MSTF and Y-TZP+MSTF+sprayed nanoHA. All surfaces were characterized by SEM/EDS and tested for four-point flexural strength (n=30) in water at 37°C. Weibull analysis was used to determine m and ?0 (maximum likelihood method). Y-TZP was successfully coated with MSFT and MSFT+nanoHA. SEM micrographs indicated that the micro-aggregates of nanoHA were not entirely covered by the silica. There was no statistically significant difference among the experimental groups for ?0 and m. This investigation was successful in producing a micropatterned silica thin film containing nanoHA micro-aggregates that remained exposed to the environment. The developed films did not jeopardize the structural reliability of a commercial Y-TZP, as confirmed by the Weibull statistics. Chapter 2. Objectives: to evaluate the effect the bioactive glass (BG) concentration (0 and 10wt%) and the sintering temperature (1.200°C and 1.300°C) on the microstructure, relative density and flexural strength of the composite Y-TZP/BG. Methods: The Y-TZP and Y-TZP/BG powders were uniaxially pressed and sintered at 1.200°C or 1.300°C for 1 h. The microstructure was characterized by X-ray diffraction analysis, scanning electron microscopy and Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy. Relative density was calculated from density values obtained using the Archimedes\' principle. For the flexural strength, specimens (n=6) were fractured in a biaxial flexural setup using a piston-on-3-balls fixture in a universal testing machine. Results: BG addition decreased the grain size of the composite, increased porosity and caused a significant decrease in the relative density (Y-TZP/1.300°C=97.7%a; Y-TZP/1.200°C=91.1%b; Y-TZP/BG/1.300°C 79.7%c and Y-TZP/BG/1.200°C 77.4%d) and flexural strength (in MPa, Y-TZP/1.300°C=628.3a; Y-TZP/1.200°C=560.8b; Y-TZP/BG=1.300°C=189.1c and Y-TZP/BG/1.200°C=153.0c). The crystalline phases of calcium stabilized cubic zirconia and sodium zirconium silicate were formed after the addition of BG. Conclusion: Addition of bioactive glass to Y-TZP increased porosity and resulted in the formation of calcium stabilized cubic zirconia and sodium zirconium silicate. Also, glass addition resulted in decrease in grain size, density and flexural strength. Composite specimens sintered at 1.300°C showed the highest density values and larger grains compared to those sintered at 1.200°C

In dieser Arbeit wurden Techniken untersucht, die die zur Verfügung stehende Pulsenergie von Hochleistungslasern effektiv nutzen und in einem Schritt eine Vielzahl einzelner periodisch angeordneter Strukturen herstellen. Dazu wird durch optische Strahlformung ein Laserstrahl mit mehreren Intensitätsmaxima hergestellt. Dazu wurden das Direkte Laserinterferenzstrukturieren (DLIP) und die Microlensarray-Strukturierung (MLAS) genutzt. Beide Verfahren bieten die Möglichkeit, großflächig periodische Strukturen in einem einstufigen Verfahren herzustellen. Beim DLIP werden mit einem Laserpuls, aufgrund von Interferenzeffekten mehrere tausend Linien oder Punkte auf bis zu Quadratzentimeter großen Flächen erzeugt. Microlensarrays (MLA) sind optische Elemente mit einer periodischen Linsenanordnung, die mehrere Brennpunkte aus einem einzigen Laserstrahl erzeugen. Durch die Verwendung als Fokussieroptik können einige tausend Laserpunkte mit einem einzigen Puls erzeugt werden. Anhand verschiedener Materialien werden die Möglichkeiten und Grenzen dieser Techniken untersucht und die Qualität der Strukturen im Hinblick auf die geplante Anwendung untersucht. Die für diese Arbeit genutzten Materialien sind ausschließlich nichtmetallische Werkstoffe. Es werden die Keramiken Hydroxylapatit, Aluminium- und Zirkonoxid, die leitfähigen Dünnschichten aluminium- und bordotiertes Zinkoxid und Indiumzinnoxid auf Glassubstrat und der Kunststoff PET untersucht. Hydroxylapatit ist eine Keramik die aufgrund ihrer guten Biokompatibilität in Knochen- und Zahnimplantaten verwendet wird. Eine Oberflächenstrukturierung ermöglicht eine Verbesserung des Zellwachstums. Aluminium- und Zirkonoxid werden ebenfalls in Gelenkimplantaten verwendet jedoch als Gleitfläche. Eine Strukturierung dieser Flächen verringert möglicherweise Reibung und Verschleiß in ähnlicher Weise wie bei Metallen bereits mehrfach gezeigt. Hier werden aufgrund der benötigten Strukturgrößen mit Perioden von mehreren Mikrometern sowohl DLIP als auch MLAS genutzt. Die leitfähigen Schichten und das PET finden vorrangig in optischer Elektronik Anwendung. Diese findet zunehmende Bedeutung in Form von Solarzellen und Lichtemittierenden Dioden. Die periodische Strukturierung des Substrates oder des beschichteten Substrates bringt ein Beugungsgitter in diese Elemente ein. Bestehende Untersuchungen haben bereits einen positiven Effekt von lithografisch hergestellten Beugungsgittern nachgewiesen. In dieser Arbeit wird untersucht, ob DLIP ebenfalls einen positiven Effekt hat.

Moderne optoelektronische Dünnfilmapplikationen erfordern den Einsatz effizienter großflächiger Elektrodensysteme, die einerseits über sehr gute Leitfähigkeitseigenschaften verfügen und andererseits eine hohe Transparenz in einem breiten Wellenlängenspektrum aufweisen. Momentan wird für derartige Anwendungen zum Großteil der Werkstoff Indiumzinnoxid (ITO) eingesetzt, dessen Hauptbestandteil Indium nur in geringen Mengen auf der Erde vorkommt. Für die Erhaltung der Marktfähigkeit und zur Weiterentwicklung der Dünnschichtelektronik ist es nötig, dieses Ressourcenproblem zu lösen. Eine Möglichkeit zur Substitution von ITO ist die Verwendung dünner metallischer Filme als transparente Elektroden. Die vorliegende Dissertationsschrift untersucht in diesem Zusammenhang die Anwendung der Direkten Laserinterferenzstrukturierung (DLIP). Um hinreichend große optische Transparenz bei entsprechender elektrischer Leitfähigkeit zu erhalten, werden Dünnschichtensysteme aus Kupfer, Aluminium, Chrom und Silber mit verschiedenen periodischen Lochmustern zwischen 1,5-2,7 µm perforiert. Im Anschluss werden die bearbeiteten Probenkörper hinsichtlich ihrer optischen, elektrischen und topografischen Eigenschaften vermessen. Die umfangreichen gewonnenen Daten werden in einer Auswertung zusammengefasst und mit Resultaten aus numerischen Modellrechnungen verglichen. Neben den Ergebnissen zur Effizienzsteigerung der Dünnfilme untersucht die vorliegende Arbeit die laserinduzierte Ablationsdynamik metallischer Filme auf Glassubstrat zwischen 5-40 nm Schichtdicke.

In dieser Arbeit wurden Techniken untersucht, die die zur Verfügung stehende Pulsenergie von Hochleistungslasern effektiv nutzen und in einem Schritt eine Vielzahl einzelner periodisch angeordneter Strukturen herstellen. Dazu wird durch optische Strahlformung ein Laserstrahl mit mehreren Intensitätsmaxima hergestellt. Dazu wurden das Direkte Laserinterferenzstrukturieren (DLIP) und die Microlensarray-Strukturierung (MLAS) genutzt. Beide Verfahren bieten die Möglichkeit, großflächig periodische Strukturen in einem einstufigen Verfahren herzustellen. Beim DLIP werden mit einem Laserpuls, aufgrund von Interferenzeffekten mehrere tausend Linien oder Punkte auf bis zu Quadratzentimeter großen Flächen erzeugt. Microlensarrays (MLA) sind optische Elemente mit einer periodischen Linsenanordnung, die mehrere Brennpunkte aus einem einzigen Laserstrahl erzeugen. Durch die Verwendung als Fokussieroptik können einige tausend Laserpunkte mit einem einzigen Puls erzeugt werden. Anhand verschiedener Materialien werden die Möglichkeiten und Grenzen dieser Techniken untersucht und die Qualität der Strukturen im Hinblick auf die geplante Anwendung untersucht. Die für diese Arbeit genutzten Materialien sind ausschließlich nichtmetallische Werkstoffe. Es werden die Keramiken Hydroxylapatit, Aluminium- und Zirkonoxid, die leitfähigen Dünnschichten aluminium- und bordotiertes Zinkoxid und Indiumzinnoxid auf Glassubstrat und der Kunststoff PET untersucht. Hydroxylapatit ist eine Keramik die aufgrund ihrer guten Biokompatibilität in Knochen- und Zahnimplantaten verwendet wird. Eine Oberflächenstrukturierung ermöglicht eine Verbesserung des Zellwachstums. Aluminium- und Zirkonoxid werden ebenfalls in Gelenkimplantaten verwendet jedoch als Gleitfläche. Eine Strukturierung dieser Flächen verringert möglicherweise Reibung und Verschleiß in ähnlicher Weise wie bei Metallen bereits mehrfach gezeigt. Hier werden aufgrund der benötigten Strukturgrößen mit Perioden von mehreren Mikrometern sowohl DLIP als auch MLAS genutzt. Die leitfähigen Schichten und das PET finden vorrangig in optischer Elektronik Anwendung. Diese findet zunehmende Bedeutung in Form von Solarzellen und Lichtemittierenden Dioden. Die periodische Strukturierung des Substrates oder des beschichteten Substrates bringt ein Beugungsgitter in diese Elemente ein. Bestehende Untersuchungen haben bereits einen positiven Effekt von lithografisch hergestellten Beugungsgittern nachgewiesen. In dieser Arbeit wird untersucht, ob DLIP ebenfalls einen positiven Effekt hat.:1 Einleitung 1 2 Stand der Technik 4 2.1 Verfahren zur Herstellung periodischer Strukturen 4 2.1.1 Überblick 4 2.1.2 Laserabtragende Verfahren 5 2.1.3 Photolithografische Verfahren 16 2.2 Ausgewählte Anwendungen von Oberflächenstrukturen 19 2.2.1 Optimierung der Effizienz von organischer Elektronik 19 2.2.2 Veränderung der biologischen Eigenschaften 25 2.2.3 Veränderung der tribologischen Eigenschaften 27 3 Materialien und Methoden 29 3.1 Verwendete Materialien 29 3.1.1 Eigenschaften der verwendeten Keramiken 29 3.1.2 Eigenschaften der verwendeten transparenten leitfähigen Oxide 30 3.1.3 Eigenschaften des verwendeten Polyethylenterephthalat 31 3.1.4 Übersicht zu allen Materialkennwerten 32 3.2 Experimenteller Aufbau 33 3.2.1 Verwendetes Lasersystem 33 3.2.2 Bestimmung der Ablationsschwellfluenzen 33 3.2.3 Klassischer Laserinterferenzstrukturierungsaufbau 35 3.2.4 Strukturierung mittels Microlensarray (MLA) 37 3.2.5 Übersicht der untersuchten Materialien und Methoden 38 3.3 Charakterisierungsmethoden 39 3.3.1 Charakterisierung der Oberflächentopographie 39 3.3.2 Charakterisierung der optischen Eigenschaften 40 3.3.3 Charakterisierung der elektrischen Eigenschaften 40 3.3.4 Charakterisierung der tribologischen Eigenschaften 41 3.4 Thermische Simulation 41 4 Ergebnisse und Diskussion der Oberflächenstrukturierung 43 4.1 Strukturierung von Keramiken 43 4.1.1 Bestimmung der Ablationsschwellen der Keramiken 43 4.1.2 Direkte Laserinterferenzstrukturierung der Keramiken 46 4.1.3 Microlensarray-Strukturierung der Keramiken 59 4.2 Ergebnisse der Strukturierung der transparenten leitfähigen Oxide 73 4.2.1 Bestimmung der Ablationsschwellen 73 4.2.2 Strukturierung von Aluminiumdotiertem Zinkoxid (AZO) 75 4.2.3 Strukturierung von bordotiertem Zinkoxid (ZnO:B) 89 4.2.4 Strukturierung von Indiumzinnoxid (ITO) 100 4.3 Ergebnisse der Strukturierung von PET 106 4.4 Übersicht der ermittelten Parameter 118 5 Entwicklung neuer Strukturierungskonzepte und deren Möglichkeiten 121 5.1 Vergleich der Strukturierung von Keramiken mit MLAS und DLW 121 5.2 Kombination der DLIP Technik mit einem Galvanometer-Scanner 126 5.3 Konzept zur Integration der DLIP Technik in ein Rolle-zu-Rolle-Herstellungsverfahren 131 5.4 Theoretisch Erreichbare Strukturierungsgeschwindigkeiten der neuen Bearbeitungskonzepte 134 6 Zusammenfassung 136 Literatur 141

Poor skeletal health results from aging and metabolic diseases such as obesity and diabetes and involves impaired homeostatic balance between marrow osteogenesis and adipogenesis. Tissue engineering provides researchers with the ability to generate improved, highly controlled and tailorable in vitro model systems to better understand mechanisms of homeostasis, disease, and healing and regeneration. Model systems that allow assembly of modules of MSCs, osteoblasts, and adipocytes in a number of configurations to engage in signaling crosstalk offer the potential to study integrative physiological aspects and complex interactions in the face of changes in local and systemic microenvironments. Thus, the overall goal of this dissertation was to examine integrative physiological aspects between MSCs, osteoblasts, and adipocytes that exist within the marrow microenvironment. To investigate the effects of intercellular signaling in different microenvironmental contexts, methods were developed to photolithographically pattern and assemble cell-laden PEG-based hydrogels with high spatial fidelity and tissue-scale thickness for long-term 3D co-culture of multiple cell types. This platform was applied to study effects of crosstalk between MSCs, osteoblasts and adipocytes on markers of differentiation in each cell type. Additionally, responses of MSCs to systemic perturbations in glucose concentration were modulated by mono-, co-, and tri-culture with these cell types in a model of diabetes-induced skeletal disease. Together, these studies provided valuable insight into unique and differential effects of intercellular signaling within the niche environment of MSCs and their terminally differentiated progeny during homeostatic and pathological states, and offer opportunities further study of integrative physiological interactions between mesenchymal lineage cells.

Actuellement, il est largement reconnu que la décision des cellules souches de maintenir leur caractère souche ou se différencier vers une lignée spécialisée dépend particulièrement de la nature de leur microenvironnement, appelé niche cellulaire. Une des composantes essentielles de cette niche cellulaire est la matrice extracellulaire (MEC), qui au-delà de sa fonction de support cellulaire, détermine le devenir des cellules souches en fonction de sa composition biochimique, sa structure et sa localisation. D’un point de vue rationnel, un biomatériau destiné à remplacer la fonction d’un tissu endommagé doit non seulement jouer le rôle d’échafaudage cellulaire mais également mimer les propriétés de la MEC dans son ensemble. Malheureusement, il est extrêmement difficile de concevoir des biomatériaux mimétiques de la MEC naturelle tenant compte de sa complexité structurelle et fonctionnelle. Pour pallier à cette problématique, il semble nécessaire d’effectuer un travail en amont de déconstruction/reconstruction de la complexité de la MEC en étudiant l’effet individuel puis combiné de ses propriétés sur la différenciation des cellules souches. Ce projet de doctorat rentre dans le cadre de ce travail et vise à déterminer le rôle spécifique ou concomitant de différentes propriétés inhérentes à la MEC sur la différenciation ostéoblastique des cellules souches mésenchymateuses humaines (hCSMs). En effet, nous avons évalué l’effet de la composition biochimique de la MEC et la distribution spatiale des ligands sur la différenciation des hCSMs, en fonctionnalisant la surface d’un matériau modèle avec les peptides RGD et/ou BMP-2, distribués d’une manière aléatoire ou structurée. / Actually, it is well-established that maintaining the stemness character of stem cells or eliciting their lineage-specific differentiation is closely related to the nature of their microenvironment, known as stem cell niche. The extracellular matrix (ECM), a key component of stem cell niche, not only provides a support function for stem cells but also dictates their fate decision. From a rational point of view, a biomaterial intended to replace a damaged tissue should mimic the natural ECM in all its aspects, including its biochemistry, 3D structure, topography, porosity, rigidity…. etc. Unfortunately, the design of biomaterials that fully mimic the natural ECM is still a big challenge, due to its high structural and functional complexity. Towards the development of finely-tuned biomaterials, it seems important to start by deconstructing and then reconstructing the complexity of the ECM. In this context, the thesis project, herein, seeks to evaluate both the individual and the synergistic effect of different properties inherent to the natural ECM on human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) osteogenic differentiation. Indeed, we investigated whether the biochemical composition of the ECM and the spatial distribution of its components modulate hMSCs osteogenesis. This was achieved by creating different artificial ECMs, in vitro, containing RGD and/or BMP-2 mimetic peptides, distributed randomly or as specific micropatterns on the surface of a model material.