Microporous silica materials with tailored porosity are synthesized by the sol-gel process using lyotropic liquid-crystal phases as templates. The starting isotropic sol is obtained by mixing tetramethoxysilane, water and an alkyltrimethylammonium bromide. The polymerization of the silica network and the formation of the amphiphilic mesophase are simultaneous and cooperative. After thermal elimination of the surfactant molecules, an ordered porous texture is maintained in the silica material. The pore size is related to the size of the templating unit and modulated by the length of the alkyl chain of the used surfactant. In this paper, the various steps of the synthesis are studied and the porous texture of the final material is characterized and discussed in terms of templating effects.

Previous studies have shown that time spent outdoors is protective against myopia development in children. In this study, we examined the effects of 500 and 1000 lux of illumination to the eye on axial length (AL) and choroidal thickness (CT) changes in young adults.Methods: Fifteen participants (mean age, 21.60 years [2.16]) with a mean refraction of −0.34 D (0.37) were exposed to 500 and 1000 lux of illumination for 120 min in a dark room on two different days, using a pair of light-emitting glasses. Ocular measurements were repeated on an additional day in darkness (~5 lux). Ocular biometrics and CT were measured and analysed in the right eye before the light exposure (0 min), after 30, 60 and 120 min of exposure and 30 min after light offset to measure recovery using the Lenstar biometer and the Cirrus optical coherence tomographer, respectively.

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