a b s t r a c tExtreme ultraviolet (EUV) surface modification of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) was performed in order to enhance the degree of biocompatibility. Polymer samples were irradiated by different number of EUV shots using a laser-plasma based EUV source in the presence of nitrogen gas. The physical and chemical properties of EUV modified PTFE samples were studied using Atomic Force Microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and water contact angle (WCA) methods. Pronounced wall type micro and nano-structures appeared on the EUV treated polymer surfaces resulting in increased surface roughness and hydrophobicity. Stronger cell adhesion and good cell morphology were observed on EUV modified surfaces by in-vitro cell culture studies performed using L929 fibroblasts.

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We present our recent results, related to nanoscale imaging in the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) and soft X-ray (SXR) spectral ranges and demonstrate three novel imaging systems recently developed for the purpose of obtaining high spatial resolution images of nanoscale objects with the EUV and SXR radiations. All the systems are based on laser-plasma EUV and SXR sources, employing a double stream gas puff target. The EUV and SXR full field microscopes-operating at 13.8 nm and 2.88 nm wavelengths, respectively-are currently capable of imaging nanostructures with a sub-50 nm spatial resolution with relatively short (seconds) exposure times. The third system is a SXR contact microscope, operating in the "water-window" spectral range (2.3-4.4 nm wavelength), to produce an imprint of the internal structure of the investigated object in a thin surface layer of SXR light sensitive poly(methyl methacrylate) photoresist. The development of such compact imaging systems is essential to the new research related to biological science, material science, and nanotechnology applications in the near future. Applications of all the microscopes for studies of biological samples including carcinoma cells, diatoms, and neurons are presented. Details about the sources, the microscopes, as well as the imaging results for various objects will be shown and discussed.

Soft X-ray contact microscopy potentially allows imaging of wet living biological specimens at a spatial resolution higher than optical microscopy and without many of the constraints of scanning electron microscopy. In this paper, we present the development of a laboratory scale contact microscope that uses a laser produced plasma soft X-ray source. The source is based on a double-stream gas-puff target approach and it operates in the "water window" spectral range which enables to capture images of biological samples with a natural contrast. In the preliminary experiments the contact microscope system has been used for imaging of fixed and dried non-malignant HCV29 human bladder cell lines cultured on polymethyl methacrylate photoresists. The samples were exposed with 150 pulses of soft X-rays as an initial test to demonstrate the possibility of image formation. The soft X-ray contact images registered in the photoresists exhibit high resolution in the atomic force microscopy topography which indicates the potential application of soft X-ray contact microscopy in life science to examine small features as small as few tens of nm. The technique could also be used for living cell imaging with further optimization of the microscope system and development of a special specimen holder. The details of the soft X-ray contact microscopy technique and the experimental results are presented and discussed.

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