Synchrotron X-ray Studies of the Structural and Functional Hierarchies in Mineralised Human Dental Enamel: A State-of-the-Art Review.

ABSTRACT: Hard dental tissues possess a complex hierarchical structure that is particularly evident in enamel, the most mineralised substance in the human body. Its complex and interlinked organisation at the Ångstrom (crystal lattice), nano-, micro-, and macro-scales is the result of evolutionary optimisation for mechanical and functional performance: hardness and stiffness, fracture toughness, thermal, and chemical resistance. Understanding the physical-chemical-structural relationships at each scale requires the application of appropriately sensitive and resolving probes. Synchrotron X-ray techniques offer the possibility to progress significantly beyond the capabilities of conventional laboratory instruments, i.e., X-ray diffractometers, and electron and atomic force microscopes. The last few de

SUBMITTER: Besnard C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10137518 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature