The cause of irritation in the mouth, when kiwifruit nectars and dried kiwifruit products are ingested, was investigated. Idioblast cells that contain raphide crystals of calcium oxalate were isolated from inner pericarp tissue of the fruit and studied by light and electron microscopy. An experienced panel of 9 judges detected an irritation from sweetened apple puree when isolated raphide crystals were incorporated at the rate of 30 mg oxalate/100g of puree. Sensory and microscopic studies showed evidence that the irritation was caused by sharp calcium oxalate crystals exposed during processing.

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Ultraviolet Nanosecond Laser Annealing (UV-NLA) was performed on 30 nm-thick Si 0.8 Ge 0.2 epitaxial layers. The various regimes encountered, depending on the melt depth after single pulse UV-NLA, are described and discussed in this paper. Energy densities around 2.00 J/cm 2 and above led to the formation of pseudomorphic layers with a strong Ge redistribution. Starting from uniform Si 0.8 Ge 0.2 layers, Ge segregation toward the surface resulted in the formation of a Ge-rich surface layer with up to 55 at.% Ge for 2.00 J/cm 2 . Such pseudomorphic SiGe layers with a graded composition and a Ge-rich surface may find promising applications such as contact resistance lowering in doped layers.