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P R O C E S S E S |
M A Y / J U N E
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Flexible glass membrane for medical
devices. Courtesy of Jaren Wilkey/BYU.
used in a range of applications includ-
ing medical devices, transformers, and
sports equipment.
www.ansto.gov.au.
FLEXIGLASS MINIATURIZES
MEDICAL TESTING
Researchers at Brigham Young
University, Provo, Utah, developed a
flexible glass membrane that could lead
to a new family of onsite, rapid analysis
medical devices. Glass has long been
a go-to material for medical testing
but its brittleness is a barrier in certain
applications. Currently, lab-on-a-chip
technology exists on the microscale,
but the new material, which bends
on the nanoscale and snaps back into
shape, could take testing to the next lev-
el of detail. “We’ve created glass mem-
branes that can move up and down and
bend,” explains electrical engineering
professor Aaron Hawkins. “They are
the first building blocks of a whole new
plumbing system that could move very
small volumes of liquid around.” The
glass membrane device would only re-
quire a drop or two of blood to run a
test, trapping and analyzing tiny biolog-
ical particles like proteins, viruses, and
DNA. Analysis time could be slashed:
Instead of shipping blood to a lab, the
new device could provide test results
on the spot.
byu.edu.
Results of simultaneous DSC-SANS measurements for the Pd41.25Ni41.25P17.5 alloy. (a) The
integrated detector counting rates as a function of temperature. The simultaneous DSC scan
is superimposed, showing a TC ~ 594 K at a heating rate of 2.5 K/min. The coexistence of two
phases can be clearly seen in the vicinity of Tc. (b) Full-Q range SANS data for three samples:
as-cast condition (C), quenched from 623 K a er the transformation had ended (S1), and
quenched a er crystallization at 673 K (X).