This study aims to investigate the effect of topical applications of 10% casein phosphopeptide-amorphous calcium phosphate (CPP-ACP) on white spot lesions (WSL) detected after treatment with fixed orthodontic appliances. Sixty healthy adolescents with ≥1 clinically visible WSL at debonding were recruited and randomly allocated to a randomised controlled trial with two parallel groups. The intervention group was instructed to topically apply a CPP-ACP -containing agent (Tooth Mousse, GC Europe) once daily and the subjects of the control group brushed their teeth with standard fluoride toothpaste. The intervention period was 4 weeks and the endpoints were quantitative light-induced fluorescence (QLF) on buccal surfaces of the upper incisors, cuspids and first premolars and visual scoring from digital photos. The attrition rate was 15%, mostly due to technical errors, and 327 lesions were included in the final evaluation. A statistically significant (p < 0.05) regression of the WSL was disclosed in both study groups compared to baseline, but there was no difference between the groups. The mean area of the lesions decreased by 58% in the CPP-ACP group and 26% in the fluoride group (p = 0.06). The QLF findings were largely reflected by the clinical scores. No side effects were reported. Topical treatment of white spot lesions after debonding of orthodontic appliances with a casein phosphopeptide-stabilised amorphous calcium phosphate agent resulted in significantly reduced fluorescence and a reduced area of the lesions after 4 weeks as assessed by QLF. The improvement was however not superior to the "natural" regression following daily use of fluoride toothpaste.

Reactively sputtered tantalum oxide thin-films have been investigated as protective coatkg for aggressive media exposed sensors. Tantalum oxide is shown to be chemically very robust. The etch rate in aqueous potassium hydroxide with pH 11 at 140 "C is lower than 0.008 &h. Etching in liquids with pH values in the range from pH 211 1 have generally given etch rates below 0.04 &h. On the other hand patterning is possible in hydrofluoric acid. Further, the passivation behaviour of amorphous tantalum oxide and polycrystalline Ta20s is different in buffered hydrofluoric acid. By ex-situ annealing in O2 the residual thin-film stress can be altered from compressive to tensile and annealing at 450 "C for 30 minutes gives a stress-free film. The step coverage of the sputter deposited amorphous tantalum oxide is reasonable, but metallisation lines are hard to cover. Sputtered tantalum oxide exhibits high dielectric strength and the pinhole density for 0.5 pm thick films is below 3 cm-2.

Deep level transient spectroscopy has been applied to study the appearance of phosphorus-vacancy pairs in n-type silicon following different low-temperature surface modifications. It is established that at most 107 cm−2 vacancy is injected into the bulk of the silicon substrate during Pd2Si silicide formation. On the other hand, phosphorus-vacancies pairs are observed after electron irradiation, low energy ion bombardment, and electron gun evaporation of metal films.

~b~~a c~-Anovel wafer through-hole technique with a high vert~ca~ wiring density is introduced compatible With standard sem~con~uctor processes. The basic idea is to realize metallic lines on the inclined sidewalls of anisotropically -holes in (100) oriented silicon substrates. The key process is the app~ication of an electrodeposited photoresist capable to cover such complex three-dimensional structures.conventional deep ultraviolet light exposure enables o g r a~~y on the inclined sidewalls with a good resolution.

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Reactively sputtered tantalum oxide thin-films have been investigated as protective coatkg for aggressive media exposed sensors. Tantalum oxide is shown to be chemically very robust. The etch rate in aqueous potassium hydroxide with pH 11 at 140 "C is lower than 0.008 &h. Etching in liquids with pH values in the range from pH 211 1 have generally given etch rates below 0.04 &h. On the other hand patterning is possible in hydrofluoric acid. Further, the passivation behaviour of amorphous tantalum oxide and polycrystalline Ta20s is different in buffered hydrofluoric acid. By ex-situ annealing in O2 the residual thin-film stress can be altered from compressive to tensile and annealing at 450 "C for 30 minutes gives a stress-free film. The step coverage of the sputter deposited amorphous tantalum oxide is reasonable, but metallisation lines are hard to cover. Sputtered tantalum oxide exhibits high dielectric strength and the pinhole density for 0.5 pm thick films is below 3 cm-2.

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