Optical coherence tomography is a well-known technique for the optical imaging biological tissues. However, the depth scanning range of high-resolution optical coherence tomography is restricted by its depth of focus. In this study, a Zinc Selenide (ZnSe) Microlens Array (MLA) is employed to overcome the depth-of-focus limitation of optical coherence tomography. The ZnSe material with a low Abbe number and high chromatic dispersion extends the depth of focus with transverse resolution. The ZnSe MLA focused the incident light (from visible to near-infrared (NIR) region) on multiple focal planes with the uniform distribution of light over a biological tissue. The MLA is designed using Zemax OpticStudio software and fabricated via a single-point diamond-turning based on Slow Tool Servo (STS) configuration. STS machining has the unique advantage of offering larger degrees of freedom with no additional baggage, thereby reducing the setup time. The experimental results show the effectiveness of the STS machining process in fabricating ZnSe MLA with desired accuracies. The characterization of fabricated MLA using Coherence Correlation Interferometry (CCI) depicts uniform lenslets with no structural and positional distortion, with a total error of 32 nm within the tolerance limit.

This study aimed to create and describe mucoadhesive nimodipine solid lipid nanoparticles as buccal tablets by altering the amounts of three polymers: Carbopol 934, Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose and Hydroxyethyl cellulose. The Nimodipine-loaded solid lipid nanoparticles (SLN) were formulated by high shear homogenization and ultrasonication process using palmitic and stearic acid as the lipid matrix and Tween-80 as the surfactant. The swelling properties of all formulations were investigated, and it was discovered that all formulations have a good swelling index at 6 hours. The surface pH of each batch varied between 5.6 and 6.1. The mucoadhesive strengths (15.3-29.5 g) varied with polymer concentrations, particularly Carbopol 934. All batches had considerably different dissolution profiles, ranging from a maximum release of 89.08% (at 8h in batch NT3) to a minimum release of 80.32% (at 8h in batch NT2). SLN formulations had the best results in both Entrapment efficiency and In-vitro drug release, showing that SLN may be a promising delivery strategy for improving Nimodipine release.

Rapid tooling using additive manufacturing, or 3D printing, is an emerging manufacturing technology that has the potential to revolutionize the production of complex parts using only a computer and a design program. Lightweight structures with excellent dimensional precision and lower cost for customizable geometries are possible with these printed parts. In recent years, inherent constraints of polymers, metals, and ceramics have pushed researchers toward superior alternative composite materials to boost mechanical and other critical features; current 3D printing research follows this route from neat to composite materials. The characteristics, performance, and future uses of composite materials produced using additive manufacturing methods are discussed in this review. In addition, to discuss the state of the art in additive manufacturing, this article also fabricated many technologies, including robotics, machine learning, organ-on-a-chip, and 4D bioprinting.

Functional coatings provide durability to the bulk material and add other value-added properties which enhance the surface's mechanical, electrical, optical, and many other properties. The functional response of these coatings stems from the ambiance, which can be made to sense in response to a sharp change in the temperature, pH, moisture, active ions, or mechanical stresses. Recently, many efforts have been made to impart multi-functionality within a single coating, i.e., to achieve hydrophobicity and antifouling characteristics, which can be achieved by combining an appropriate coating material with a geometric nanopattern. Such coatings are poised to shape the future of the transport, healthcare, and energy sectors, including marine, aeronautics, automobile, petrochemical, biomedical, electrical and electronic industries. This perspective sheds light on the design specifications and requirements to fabricate functional coatings and critically discusses the fabrication methods, working principles, and case studies to survey various applications with a particular focus on anti-corrosion and self-cleaning applications.