Interest in thin films of functional organic materials has increased enormously in recent years because of the wide range of possible applications. Here we report an experimental setup for processing various organic materials into thin structured films under atmospheric pressure. The technique is based on an electrospray process. Microdroplets are initially formed and dried, generating ions that are extracted by electrostatic lenses. Thin structured films are then produced by the deposition of the resulting ion beam onto a moveable target. The technique offers several interesting features, including precise control of film thicknesses. We have also made experiments to investigate structured deposition, this being the first step towards the production of thin films where in all three dimensions the chemical composition can be chosen at will. This might provide a simple approach towards creating thin structured films and composites that are currently unattainable.

Mandelate racemase (EC 5.1.2.2) is one of the few biochemically well-characterized racemases. The remarkable stability of this cofactor-independent enzyme and its broad substrate tolerance make it an ideal candidate for the racemization of non-natural a-hydroxycarboxylic acids under physiological reaction conditions to be applied in deracemization protocols in connection with a kinetic resolution step. This review summarizes all aspects of mandelate racemase relevant for the application of this enzyme in preparative-scale biotransformations with special emphasis on its substrate tolerance. Collection and evaluation of substrate structure-activity data led to a set of general guidelines, which were used as basis for the construction of a general substrate model, which allows a quick estimation of the expected activity for a given substrate.

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