Anna Katharina Sambale

Autonomous experiments rely on the integration of control, data acquisition, analysis, and decision-making frameworks. While such systems have been demonstrated at individual facilities, adapting them to additional instruments remains challenging due to differences in local infrastructure. We present a modular workflow that connects existing open-source tools for data access (Tiled), workflow orchestration (Prefect), analysis and visualization (pyFAI, Plotly Dash), and Gaussian-process-based adaptive sampling (gpCAM) into a unified framework for autonomous scattering experiments. The same configuration operates across two synchrotron beamlines (ALS 7.3.3 and PETRA III P03) with only minimal facility-specific adjustments, as shown in proof-of-concept demonstrations. This validates that a consistent design emphasizing modularity and shared interfaces can ease deployment across diverse experimental environments. The resulting framework provides a flexible foundation for extending autonomous control and analysis capabilities beyond a single beamline or instrument.

Implantable and resorbable electronic devices show excellent potential for short‐term medical monitoring, especially in the context of post‐surgical care. Bioresorbable sensors are of special interest, as they eliminate the need for surgical retrieval, thereby reducing patient risk and clinical burden. In this work, Polydioxanone (PDO) is explored, a medically licensed, flexible, resorbable material, as a promising substrate for the integration of bioresorbable electronic components. Using a targeted, bottom‐up approach, the feasibility of integrating basic electronic elements and sensors is demonstrated directly on PDO, including resistive temperature sensors, conductivity sensors for electrolytic environments, organic electrochemical transistors, and passive antennas for potential wireless communication. This work highlights the potential of PDO as a platform material for future fully resorbable medical devices and contributes to the growing toolkit for fully resorbable sensor technologies.

The production of fibre-reinforced composites for use in applications such as type-4 pressure vessels for hydrogen storage is achieved through the use of a thermoset matrix. However, the recycling of thermosets presents a significant challenge due to the lack of established recycling methods. Epoxy-based vitrimers show thermoset characteristics during the manufacturing and utilisation phases but exhibit thermoplastic behaviour at elevated temperatures of 190 °C. This study investigates the industrial-scale production of carbon fibre reinforced vitrimers via a wet filament winding, as exemplified by a type-4 pressure vessel demonstrator. Processing conditions of industrial processes have yet to be applied to vitrimers; therefore, two vitrimer formulations are compared to a conventional epoxy thermoset. The processability and resulting composite quality of wound composites using these materials as matrices are compared. The mechanical properties of the composites are compared using an interlaminar shear strength test, demonstrating that the vitrimeric matrices exhibit 19.8% (23 °C) and 49.2% (140 °C) improved interlaminar strength. Consequently, the epoxy-based vitrimers investigated in this study can be employed as a direct replacement for the thermoset matrix in industrial-scale applications, with the potential for recycling the composite. To increase composite qualities, the winding process must be adapted for vitrimers, since a pore free composite could not be achieved.

This paper investigates water absorption in polyamide 6.6 and the resulting hygroscopic swelling and changes in mechanical properties. First, sorption and swelling experiments on specimens from injection molded plates are presented. The observed swelling behavior is dependent on the melt flow direction of the injection molding process. Additionally, thermal analysis and mechanical tensile tests were performed for different conditioning states. The water sorption is accompanied by a decrease in the glass transition temperature and a significant reduction in stiffness and strength. Next, a sequentially coupled modeling approach is presented. A nonlinear diffusion model is followed by mechanical simulations accounting for swelling and concentration-dependent properties. For the mechanical properties, the notion of a “gap” temperature caused by the shift of the glass transition range due to water-induced plasticization is employed. This model enables the computation of local moisture concentration fields and the resultant swelling and changes in stress–strain behavior.

Aims The use of fully covered self-expanding metal stents (FC-SEMS) in distal biliary stenosis is limited by migration as a frequent complication. In this study, we aimed to define predictors for stent migration based on the biomechanical stent characteristics. Methods The pull-out force of FC-SEMS was quantified by a tensile test machine pulling the expanded stents out of a silicon tube with a 5 mm inner diameter. We analysed a monocentric, retrospective cohort of 178 FC-SEMS cases for treatment success and complications. Stent dysfunction was defined as need for unscheduled ERCP and complicated retrieval was defined as >1 intervention required for retrieval of the proximal migrated FC-SEMS. Results Biomechanical measurements of the 4 stent types used in the clinical cohort revealed a 4-fold higher maximum pull-out force of FC-SEMS with anchoring fins (AF, F_max=14.2+/-0.1 N) in comparison with FC-SEMS with flare ends (FE, F_max=3.8+/-1.0 N, p<0.0001). Clinically, 6 stents (8%) in the AF-group versus 43 stents (48%) in the FE-group migrated after a median of 111 days of follow-up (p<0.0001). Complicated retrieval of proximally migrated stents was not observed for AF-stents but for 6 (6%) FE-stents (p=0.033). While the rate of stent dysfunction showed no difference between the groups, the time to dysfunction was 2 times longer in the AF-group (p=0.029). The key findings are summarized in Table 1. Conclusions The pull-out force of FC-SEMS predicts stent migration in distal biliary stenoses and may thus be used to classify stents for this application ([Table 1]). Table 1. Comparison of FC-SEMS with AFs vs. FC-SEMS with FEs for distal biliary stenosis after a median follow-up of 111 days. Article published online: 14 April 2023 © 2023. European Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. All rights reserved. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Rüdigerstraße 14, 70469 Stuttgart, Germany

In this contribution, a numerical calculation environment for the determination of the moisture absorption of polyamide 6 (PA 6) is developed. The focus in this context is on modeling and evaluating the influence of locally varying water concentrations and existing moisture gradients on the mechanical properties of the material. Defined moisture distributions are set by specific conditioning processes and compared to the results of an FE calculation environment. The developed numerical method combines a mass diffusion with a subsequent structural‐mechanical simulation. The first includes a transient analysis of moisture absorption and the resulting swelling processes and residual stresses. The water concentration and residual stress distributions determined within this calculation are implemented as initial conditions in the structural mechanics FE analysis. The experimental setup of the three‐point bending test is considered in this case. The evaluation of the moisture‐induced influence on the mechanical behavior of the considered PA 6 is performed using a linear elastic modeling approach. The validation and evaluation of the calculation quality is carried out for the sorption and swelling calculation as well as for the FE model by means of experimental test data. The calculation methodology presented in this work provides a novel and even more accurate approach for the design of plastic components which are exposed to the influence of environmental humidity or direct water contact in their application.

Superlattice deformation in PbS quantum dot thin films introduced by uniaxial strain: In situ GISAXS study on the correlation of morphology and photoluminescence.