Leuven Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Center

From Discovery to Technology

The Leuven Nanocenter brings the research and development activities of the K.U. Leuven in the areas of Nanosciences and Nanotechnology together. The center is formed by groups from different departments and faculties and disposes of the broadest range of materials and tools for Nanosciences and Nanotechnology available in Flanders. Our mission is to strengthen the interdisciplinary research and development activities by implementing around specific themes the complete innovation chain starting from fundamental knowledge and scientific discoveries towards the implementation of practical solutions and complete systems. Read more ...

Events

• 2011 Taiwan Nano, October 5-7 2011, Taipei, Taiwan
• Graphene 2012, April 10-13 2012, Brussels, Belgium
• Workshop on biomaterials and their interactions with biological and model membranes, 19-23 September 2011, Salou, Spain
• Meta 12, International conference on Metamaterials, photonic crystals and plasmonics. 19-22 April 2012, Paris, France
• 1st EOS Topical Meeting on Micro- and Nano-Optoelectronic Systems, December 7-9 2011, Bremen, Germany
• ICMON 2011 : International Conference on Microelectronics, Optoelectronics, and Nanoelectronics\, November 28-30, 2011, Venice, Italy
• Transparent electrode : What else after ITO? State of the art and future prospects, 21 November 2011, Paris, France
• TNT Trends in Nanotechnology, November 21-25, 2011 Tenerife, Spain
• GISAXS 2011. October 10 - October 12, 2011 at DESY Hamburg, Germany
• Metamaterials '2011: The Fifth International Congress on Advanced Electromagnetic Materials in Microwaves and Optics, 10-15 October 2011, Barcelona, Spain
• HAXPES 2011 4th International workshop on Hard XPS, 14-16 September 2011, Hamburg, Germany
• Nano and Giga Challenges in Electronics, Photonics and Renewable Energy, September 12-16 2011, Moscow, Russia
• International Symposium on Advanced Complex Inorganic Nanomaterials, September 11-14 2011, Namur, Belgium

Latest Results

All | Nanomagnetism | Superconductivity and fluxonics | Photonics and Photophysics | Electronics and Semiconductors | Catalysis and Reactors | NEMS and Precision Engineering | Nano-Materials | NanoBioSystems

• Fiber optic SPR biosensing of DNA hybridization and DNA–protein interactions
  Posted by Jeroen Lammertyn
  In this paper we present a fiber optic surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensor as a reusable, cost-effective and label free biosensor for measuring DNA hybridization and DNA–protein interactions. This is the first paper that combines the concept of a fiber-based SPR system with DNA aptamer bioreceptors. The fibers were sputtered with a 50 nm gold layer which was then covered with a protein repulsiv
  Read more ..
  
  

• Better materials for nonlinear optical imaging of cells
  Posted by Koen Clays
  Better dyes for COMBINED second-harmonic generation (SHG) AND two-photon fluorescence (TPF) microscopy imaging are reported. TPF results in enhanced spatial resolution, SHG provides additional structural information, both as a result of the nonlinear optical interaction. The dye is based on the highly polarizable porphyrin moiety. This important result was also highlighted in Nature, News and Vie
  Read more ..
  
  

• Reversible gelation of rod-like viruses grafted with thermoresponsive polymers
  Posted by Jan Vermant
  The synthesis and selected macroscopic properties of a new model system consisting of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM)-coated rod-like fd virus particles are presented. The sticky rod-like colloids can be used to study effect of particle shape on gelation transition, the structure and viscoelasticity of isotropic and nematic gels, and to make both open isotropic as well as ordered nematic part
  Read more ..
  
  

• Modeling and optimization of a multi-enzyme electrokinetically driven multiplexed microchip for simultaneous detection of sugars
  Posted by Jeroen Lammertyn
  A model-based methodology was developed to optimize microfluidic chips for the simultaneous enzymatic quantification of sucrose, d-glucose and d-fructose in a single microfluidic channel with an integrated optical detection system. The assays were based on measuring the change in concentration of the reaction product NADH, which is stoichiometrically related to the concentration of those component
  Read more ..
  
  

• Three-Dimensional Gas Exchange Pathways in Pome Fruit Characterized by Synchrotron X-Ray Computed Tomography
  Posted by Jeroen Lammertyn
  Our understanding of the gas exchange mechanisms in plant organs critically depends on insights in the three-dimensional (3-D) structural arrangement of cells and voids. Using synchrotron radiation x-ray tomography, we obtained for the first time high-contrast 3-D absorption images of in vivo fruit tissues of high moisture content at 1.4-µm resolution and 3-D phase contrast images of cell assembli
  Read more ..
  
  

• Tunability of pore diameter and particle size of amorphous microporous silica for diffusive controlled release of drug compounds
  Posted by Johan Martens
  Amorphous microporous silica (AMS) materials with variation in microporosity were prepared using an acidcatalyzed sol-gel procedure departing from tetraethylorthosilicate. The silicas were fined to specific particle sizes by crushing and sieving. AMS materials were loaded with 10 wt% ibuprofen either by uptake of molten ibuprofen or by adsorption of ibuprofen from a methylene chloride solution. DS
  Read more ..
  
  

• Nominal and effective dosimetry of silica nanoparticles in cytotoxicity assays
  Posted by Jin Won Seo
  Because of their small size and large specific surface area (SA), insoluble nanoparticles are almost not affected by the gravitational force and are generally formulated in stable suspensions or sols. This raises, however, a potential difficulty in in vitro assay systems in which cells adhering to the bottom of a culture vessel may not be exposed to the majority of nanoparticles in suspension. J.
  Read more ..