Laser ablation using diode pumped solid state lasers shows great potential for a wide range of micromachining applications. We have been using a frequency quadrupled Nd:VO4 laser (266 nm wavelength), with a pulse duration < 30 ns, to ablate a sol-gel Ormocer material. With a pulse energy of around 20 μJ, and a focal spot of the order of 10 μm diameter, single pulses were found to produce crater...

First described in 1959 by physicist Richard P Feynman, who saw it as an unavoidable development in the progress of science, nanotechnology has been part of mainstream scientific theory with potential medical and dental applications since the early 1990s. Nanoparticles, nanospheres, nanorods, nanotubes, nanofibers, dendrimers and other nanostructures have been studied for various applications t...

The aim of this in vitro study was to evaluate and compare the color stability of different esthetic restorative materials (one microfilled composite, one nanofilled composite, one nanoceramic composite, one microfilled hybrid composite, one microfilled hybrid composite, one nanohybrid Ormocer based composite and one supra-nano spherical hybrid composite) after exposure to different staining so...

OBJECTIVES Light-curing of resin-based materials (RBMs) increases the pulp chamber temperature, with detrimental effects on the vital pulp. This in vitro study compared the temperature rise under demineralized human tooth dentin during light-curing and the degrees of conversion (DCs) of three different RBMs using quartz tungsten halogen (QTH) and light-emitting diode (LED) units (LCUs). MATER...

This in-Vitro study was conducted to investigate the stain resistance of direct composite resin restorative materials with different polishing systems (diamond finishing and polishing burs, aluminium oxide disks and abrasive impregnated disks) in comparison to the material cured against a mylar strip. The composite resin materials investigated included Clearfil AP-X (hybrid), Filtek Z-250 (hybr...

Today, direct composite restorations in posterior teeth are a part of the standard therapy spectrum in modern dentistry. The performance of this treatment method in the masticatory load-bearing posterior region has been conclusively proven in many clinical studies, even for extensive composite restorations with cuspal coverage. These restorations are usually carried out in an elaborate incremen...