Margaretha Andersson

Identification of cell adhesion molecules in the human follicle-associated epithelium that improve nanoparticle uptake into the Peyer's patches

The aim of this study was to identify cell adhesion molecules that could serve as targets of the human follicle-associated epithelium (FAE) overlying Peyers patches and to assess nanoparticle uptake levels across this epithelium. We first studied the expression of the mouse M-cell marker β1-integrin and used a model of human FAE derived from intestinal epithelial Caco-2 cells and Raji B-cells to identify additional potential targets by cDNA array. The protein expression of potential targets in the model FAE and in human ileal FAE tissues was quantified by immunofluorescence. Integrin targeting was studied by investigating the transport of Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD)-coated (integrin-binding), Arg-Gly-Glu (RGE)-coated (nonintegrin-binding), and uncoated nanoparticles across ileal specimens mounted in Ussing chambers. Both β1-integrin and the cell adhesion molecule CD9 were more abundantly expressed in the model and human FAE compared with the Caco-2 control cells or villus epithelium (VE). Uncoated nanoparticles were not taken up across either FAE or VE. General integrin targeting with RGD improved the nanoparticle transport dramatically across the FAE and to a lower extent across the VE. Compared with RGE, RGD improved transport 4-fold across the FAE. There was no difference in the transport of RGD- and RGE-coated nanoparticles across the VE. In conclusion, β1-integrin and CD9 were identified as targets in human FAE. The difference in RGD- and RGE-mediated transport across the FAE, but not the VE, suggests that a specific integrin interaction was the dominating mechanism for improved nanoparticle uptake across the FAE., whereas charge interaction contributed substantially to the improved VE uptake.

Multivariate analysis method for energy calibration and improved mass assignment in recoil spectrometry

Abstract Heavy ion recoil spectrometry is rapidly becoming a well established analysis method, but the associated data analysis processing is still not well developed. The pronounced nonlinear response of silicon detectors for heavy ions leads to serious limitation and complication in mass gating, which is the principal factor in obtaining energy spectra with minimal cross talk between elements. To overcome the above limitation, a simple empirical formula with an associated multiple regression method is proposed for the absolute energy calibration of the time of flight-energy dispersive detector telescope used in recoil spectrometry. A radical improvement in mass assignment was realized, which allows a more accurate and improved depth profiling with the important feature of making the data processing much easier.

Recoil spectrometry : ion accelerator based elemental characterisation of surface layers

Recoil Spectrometry covers a group of techniques that are very similar to the well known Rutherford backscattering Spectrometry technique, but with the important difference that one measures the recoiling target atom rather than the projectile ion. This makes it possible to determine both the identity of the recoil and its depth of origin from its energy and velocity, using a suitable detector system. The incident ion is typically high-energy (30–100MeV)35C1,81Br or127I. Low concentrations of light elements such as C, O and N can be profiled in a heavy matrix such as Fe or GaAs. Here we present an overview of mass and energy dispersive recoil Spectrometry and illustrate its successful use in some typical applications.

INTERFACIAL REACTION STUDIES OF CR, NI, TI, AND PT METALLIZATION ON INP

Interfacial reactions between (100) InP and thin films of the transition metals Cr, Ni, Pt, and Ti have been studied. A thin layer of metal was deposited onto the InP substrates using e‐beam evaporation and parts of the samples were then subjected to heat treatment in vacuum for 30 min at several temperatures up to 500 °C. Separate characterizations of the metal, In, and P depth distributions were carried out using mass and energy dispersive recoil spectrometry. The different crystalline phases observed were determined using x‐ray diffraction. The near‐noble metals (Ni, Pt) formed ternary phases, while Ti and Cr formed phosphides. The phases formed were generally stable up to 500 °C with the major exception being Pt where the ternary phase decomposed to form PtIn2, PtP2, and Pt3In7.

Empirical characterisation of mass distribution broadening in ToF-E recoil spectrometry

Abstract The mass broadening function in mass and energy dispersive recoil spectrometry using a detector telescope for time-of-flight and energy determination, has been characterised for a number of isotopes in the range A = 12 to 197. The broadening was well described by a Gaussian function where the standard deviation is given by the empirical equation: θ A ( E, A ) = C 1 + C 2 A 3/2 E − 1 + C 3 A 2 E − 2/3 + C 4 AE 1/2

Recoil spectrometry of thin film reactions in the Pd/InP system

Interfacial reactions between (100) InP and Pd were investigated as part of a systematic study aimed at investigating the stability of planar nonalloyed metallizations to InP. A 50‐nm‐thick Pd film was deposited on an InP substrate, and parts of it were subsequently thermally treated for 30 min at temperatures varying from 100 to 500 °C in steps of 50 °C. Separate characterizations of the Pd, In, and P depth distributions were obtained using mass and energy dispersive recoil spectrometry. The different phases were determined using x‐ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscopy was used to study the surface topography. It is assumed that the interaction starts in the as‐deposited sample, and definite formation of a ternary phase with the suggested composition Pd5In2P2 starts at an annealing temperature of 100 °C. At 250 °C all Pd is chemically reacted. Preferential outdiffusion of P leads to a loss of P from the surface at 500 °C, and the only phase observed in the x‐ray diffraction spectrum from the ...

Mass and energy dispersive recoil spectrometry of SixGe1−x grown by electron beam evaporation

Abstract Mass and energy dispersive recoil spectrometry employing 77 MeV 127 I ions from the recently commissioned ANTARES (FN Tandem) accelerator facility at Lucas Heights have been used to examine the isotopic composition of samples of Si x Ge 1− x grown by Electron Beam Evaporation (EBE) at the Australian National University. Analysis of RBS spectra using yield simulations indicated the presence of an unobserved element. Oxygen was considered a likely contaminant for incorporation into the Si x Ge 1− x layer by a reaction between Ge and residual oxygen in the EBE system. Determination of oxygen concentration and distribution is not normally possible with RBS but may be inferred from yield simulations using the code RUMP. Recoil spectrometry has shown the presence of oxygen in the Si x Ge 1− x layer at lower concentrations than inferred from RBS and has enabled the determination of energy spectra for individual elements.

Formation of thin films of CoSi2 on GaAs

CoSi2 exhibits the features of low resistivity and stability at elevated temperatures which make it interesting to employ for metallization on GaAs. The interfacial reactions in GaAs samples with thin film overlayers of Si and Co [Si(220 nm)/Co(50 nm)/(〈100〉‐GaAs)] were studied using x‐ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, x‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and mass and energy dispersive recoil spectrometry. Samples were vacuum furnace annealed for time periods between 1 and 8 h at temperatures ranging from 300 to 700 °C. It was found that a CoSi2 layer formed without observable reaction with the substrate at 500 °C and above. The excess Si (Si/Co atomic ratio of 2.41) remained near the surface as elemental Si and as SiO2 for the 500 and 600 °C annealings. For the 700 °C annealing the excess near‐surface Si was not observed.

Mass and energy dispersive recoil spectrometry of MOCVD grown AlxGa1−xAs

Mass and energy dispersive Recoil Spectrometry (RS) has been employed to study stoichiometric variations in AlxGa1−xAs layers. Quantitative determination of x is an important problem in the production of device materials which is not easily solved with standard techniques. Rutherford Backscattering Spectrometry (RBS) has been used extensively in semiconductor research but overlap of signals in the backscattered ion spectrum is an important limitation in the analysis of materials such as AlxGa1−xAs which contain elements of low and similar masses. Particle Induced X-ray Emission (PIXE) analysis has good elemental resolution for this class of materials but provides little depth resolution. RS enables the determination of separate energy spectra for individual or small groups of isotopes. This allows it to be used in many situations where RBS is inappropriate. It employs a heavy ion beam to cause constituent nuclei to recoil from the target, and a Time of Flight and Energy (ToF-E) detector to detect these recoiling nuclei. Appropriate mass selection of the ToF-E data allows the determination of depth distributions for each element.

Separation of mass-overlapped time of flight-energy elastic recoil detection analysis data using Ryan and Jamieson's dynamic analysis method

Time of flight-energy (ToF-E) elastic recoil detection analysis (ERDA) data often contains mass signals with considerable overlap from adjacent isotopes in the mass-energy plane. An evaluation has been carried out of the suitability of the dynamic analysis method proposed by Ryan and Jamieson to decompose elemental signals with overlapping mass. This method is shown to work very well on generated test data and the result when it was applied to experimental data appears quite promising. Very accurate mass calibration and lineshape determination was found to be a prerequisite for the application of the method.