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The preparation of ceramic materials from preceramic compounds provides a means for the synthesis of new materials which cannot be obtained by conventional methods. An example is shown in the figure, which shows carbon‐fiber‐reinforced silicon carbide coated with silicon carbonitride prepared by dip‐coating the substrate with a slurry made of polyhydridomethylsilazane and silicon powder. Progress and applicational examples are reviewed magnified image.

Several boron-modified polysilazanes of general type {B[C2H4Si(R)NH]3} n (C2H4 = CHCH3 or CH2CH2) were synthesized and their thermal behavior studied. In contrast to the known derivatives with R = alkyl or aryl, we describe ceramic precursors in which the bulky moieties R are substituted with lower weight groups and/or reactive entities. Reactive units enable further cross-linking of the polymeric framework and therefore minimize depolymerization during ceramization. The polymer-to-ceramic conversion of all synthesized polymers was monitored by thermogravimetric analysis. Both low molecular weight substituents and/or cross-linking units increase the ceramic yield from 50% (R = CH3) to 83−88%. High-temperature thermogravimetric analysis in an inert gas atmosphere indicates the ceramics obtained are stable up to ∼2000 °C. XRD studies of the fully amorphous materials point out that, with increasing temperature, formation of α-SiC or α-SiC/β-Si3N4 crystalline phases occurs at 1550−1750 °C, depending on the material's composition. The resistance of these novel materials toward oxidative attack was investigated by TGA in air up to 1700 °C and SEM/EDX, indicating that the materials efficiently self-protect toward oxidation.

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The formation of nanoscale zinc oxide particles with an almost-monomodal size distribution synthesized by microwave heating of solutions of mononuclear zinc oximato or zinc acetylacetonato complexes in various alkoxyethanols is investigated. Transparent stable suspensions that contain these particles can be obtained from the zinc oximato precursor. Based on electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) studies, a core/shell model with a finite surface shell thickness of 1.000 ± 0.025 nm is proposed for the ZnO nanoparticles. Field-effect transistor (FET) devices with these ZnO particles as the active semiconducting layer exhibited a charge carrier mobility of 0.045 cm2/(V s) and I on/off current ratios of ∼460.000, with a threshold voltage of 8.78 V.

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Inorganic-binding peptides are in the focus of research fields such as materials science, nanotechnology, and biotechnology. Applications concern surface functionalization by the specific coupling to inorganic target substrates, the binding of soluble molecules for sensing applications, or biomineralization approaches for the controlled formation of inorganic materials. The specific molecular recognition of inorganic surfaces by peptides is of major importance for such applications. Zinc oxide (ZnO) is an important semiconductor material which is applied in various devices. In this study the molecular fundamentals for a ZnO-binding epitope was determined. 12-mer peptides, which specifically bind to the zinc- or/and the oxygen-terminated sides of single-crystalline ZnO (0001) and (000-1) substrates, were selected from a random peptide library using the phage display technique. For two ZnO-binding peptides the mandatory amino acid residues, which are of crucial importance for the specific binding were determined with a label-free nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) approach. NMR spectroscopy allows the identification of pH dependent interaction sites on the atomic level of 12-mer peptides and ZnO nanoparticles. Here, ionic and polar interaction forces were determined. For the oxygen-terminated side the consensus peptide-binding sequence (HSXXH) was predicted in silico and confirmed by the NMR approach.

While most forms of multicellular life have developed a calcium-based skeleton, a few specialized organisms complement their body plan with silica. However, of all recent animals, only sponges (phylum Porifera) are able to polymerize silica enzymatically mediated in order to generate massive siliceous skeletal elements (spicules) during a unique reaction, at ambient temperature and pressure. During this biomineralization process (i.e., biosilicification) hydrated, amorphous silica is deposited within highly specialized sponge cells, ultimately resulting in structures that range in size from micrometers to meters. Spicules lend structural stability to the sponge body, deter predators, and transmit light similar to optic fibers. This peculiar phenomenon has been comprehensively studied in recent years and in several approaches, the molecular background was explored to create tools that might be employed for novel bioinspired biotechnological and biomedical applications. Thus, it was discovered that spiculogenesis is mediated by the enzyme silicatein and starts intracellularly. The resulting silica nanoparticles fuse and subsequently form concentric lamellar layers around a central protein filament, consisting of silicatein and the scaffold protein silintaphin-1. Once the growing spicule is extruded into the extracellular space, it obtains final size and shape. Again, this process is mediated by silicatein and silintaphin-1, in combination with other molecules such as galectin and collagen. The molecular toolbox generated so far allows the fabrication of novel micro-and nanostructured composites, contributing to the economical and sustainable synthesis of biomaterials with unique characteristics. In this context, first bioinspired approaches implement recombinant silicatein and silintaphin-1 for applications in the field of biomedicine (biosilica-mediated regeneration of tooth and bone defects) or micro-optics (in vitro synthesis of light waveguides) with promising results.