Spine-like Nanostructured Carbon Interconnected by Graphene for High-performance Supercapacitors

PubMed Central

Park, Sang-Hoon; Yoon, Seung-Beom; Kim, Hyun-Kyung; Han, Joong Tark; Park, Hae-Woong; Han, Joah; Yun, Seok-Min; Jeong, Han Gi; Roh, Kwang Chul; Kim, Kwang-Bum

2014-01-01

Recent studies on supercapacitors have focused on the development of hierarchical nanostructured carbons by combining two-dimensional graphene and other conductive sp2 carbons, which differ in dimensionality, to improve their electrochemical performance. Herein, we report a strategy for synthesizing a hierarchical graphene-based carbon material, which we shall refer to as spine-like nanostructured carbon, from a one-dimensional graphitic carbon nanofiber by controlling the local graphene/graphitic structure via an expanding process and a co-solvent exfoliation method. Spine-like nanostructured carbon has a unique hierarchical structure of partially exfoliated graphitic blocks interconnected by thin graphene sheets in the same manner as in the case of ligaments. Owing to the exposed graphene layers and interconnected sp2 carbon structure, this hierarchical nanostructured carbon possesses a large, electrochemically accessible surface area with high electrical conductivity and exhibits high electrochemical performance. PMID:25134517

Fabrication of photocatalytically active vanadium oxide nanostructures via plasma route

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kajita, Shin; Yoshida, Tomoko; Ohno, Noriyasu; Ichino, Yusuke; Yoshida, Naoaki

2018-05-01

Plasma irradiation was used to create nanostructured vanadium oxide with potential commercial and industrial applications. Morphology changes were induced at the nano- and micro-meter scale, accompanied by the growth of helium nanobubbles. Micrometer-sized pillars, cube-shaped nanostructures, and fuzzy fiberform nanostructures were grown on the surface; the necessary conditions in terms of the incident ion energy and the surface temperature for those morphology changes were revealed. Hydrogen production experiments using a photocatalytic reaction with aqueous methanol solution were conducted on the fabricated samples. Enhanced H2 production was confirmed with the plasma irradiated nanostructured sample that had been oxidized in air atmosphere. Photocatalytically inactive vanadium oxide exhibited a high photocatalytic activity after nanostructurization of the surface by helium plasma irradiation.

Bioinspired peony-like beta-Ni(OH)2 nanostructures with enhanced electrochemical activity and superhydrophobicity.

PubMed

Cao, Huaqiang; Zheng, He; Liu, Kaiyu; Warner, Jamie H

2010-02-01

Constructing complex nanostructures has become increasingly important in the development of hydrogen storage, self-cleaning materials, and the formation of chiral branched nanowires. Several approaches have been developed to generate complex nanostructures, which have led to novel applications. Combining biology and nanotechnology through the utilization of biomolecules to chemically template the growth of complex nanostructures during synthesis has aroused great interest. Herein, we use a biomolecule-assisted hydrothermal method to synthesize beta-phase Ni(OH)(2) peony-like complex nanostructures with second-order structure nanoplate structure. The novel beta-Ni(OH)(2) nanostructures exhibit high-power Ni/MH battery performance, close to the theoretical capacity of Ni(OH)(2), as well as controlled wetting behavior. We demonstrate that this bioinspired route to generate a complex nanostructure has applications in environmental protection and green secondary cells. This approach opens up opportunities for the synthesis and potential applications of new kinds of nanostructures.

Nanostructured silicon ferromagnet collected by a permanent neodymium magnet.

PubMed

Okuno, Takahisa; Thürmer, Stephan; Kanoh, Hirofumi

2017-11-30

Nanostructured silicon (N-Si) was prepared by anodic electroetching of p-type silicon wafers. The obtained magnetic particles were separated by a permanent neodymium magnet as a magnetic nanostructured silicon (mN-Si). The N-Si and mN-Si exhibited different magnetic properties: the N-Si exhibited ferromagnetic-like behaviour, whereas the mN-Si exhibited superparamagnetic-like behaviour.

Development of CdS Nanostructures by Thermal Decomposition of Aminocaproic Acid-Mixed Cd-Thiourea Complex Precursor: Structural, Optical and Photocatalytic Characterization.

PubMed

Patel, Jayesh D; Mighri, Frej; Ajji, Abdellah; Chaudhuri, Tapas K

2015-04-01

The present work deals with two different CdS nanostructures produced via hydrothermal and solvothermal decompositions of aminocaproic acid (ACA)-mixed Cd-thiourea complex precursor at 175 °C. Both nanostructures were extensively characterized for their structural, morphological and optical properties. The powder X-ray diffraction characterization showed that the two CdS nanostructures present a wurtzite morphology. Scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray characterizations revealed that the hydrothermal decomposition produced well-shaped CdS flowers composed of six dendritic petals, and the solvothermal decomposition produced CdS microspheres with close stoichiometric chemical composition. The UV-vis absorption and photoluminescence spectra of CdS dendritic flowers and microsphere nanostructures showed that both nanostructures present a broad absorption between 200 and 700 nm and exhibit strong green emissions at 576 and 520 nm upon excitations at 290 nm and 260 nm, respectively. The transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) characterizations confirmed that CdS microspheres were mesoporous and were composed of small nanocrystals. A possible growth mechanism in the formation of the CdS nanostructures was proposed based on morphology evolution as a function of the reaction time. Furthermore, the as-synthesized CdS nanostructures were found to exhibit highly efficient photocatalytic activities for the degradation of methyl orange (MeO) and rhodamine B (RhB) dyes.

Hybrid silicon–carbon nanostructures for broadband optical absorption

DOE PAGES

Yang, Wen -Hua; Lu, Wen -Cai; Ho, K. M.; ...

2017-01-25

Proper design of nanomaterials for broadband light absorption is a key factor for improving the conversion efficiency of solar cells. Here we present a hybrid design of silicon–carbon nanostructures with silicon clusters coated by carbon cages, i.e., Si m@C 2n for potential solar cell application. The optical properties of these hybrid nanostructures were calculated based on time dependent density function theory (TDDFT). The results show that the optical spectra of Si m@C 2n are very different from those of pure Si m and C 2n clusters. While the absorption spectra of pure carbon cages and Si m clusters exhibit peaksmore » in the UV region, those of the Si m@C 2n nanostructures exhibit a significant red shift. Superposition of the optical spectra of various Si m@C 2n nanostructures forms a broad-band absorption, which extends to the visible light and infrared regions. As a result, the broadband adsorption of the assembled Si m@C 2n nanoclusters may provide a new approach for the design of high efficiency solar cell nanomaterials.« less

Mesoporous magnetic secondary nanostructures as versatile adsorbent for efficient scavenging of heavy metals

PubMed Central

Bhattacharya, Kakoli; Parasar, Devaborniny; Mondal, Bholanath; Deb, Pritam

2015-01-01

Porous magnetic secondary nanostructures exhibit high surface area because of the presence of plentiful interparticle spaces or pores. Mesoporous Fe3O4 secondary nanostructures (MFSNs) have been studied here as versatile adsorbent for heavy metal scavenging. The porosity combined with magnetic functionality of the secondary nanostructures has facilitated efficient heavy metal (As, Cu and Cd) remediation from water solution within a short period of contact time. It is because of the larger surface area of MFSNs due to the porous network in addition to primary nanostructures which provides abundant adsorption sites facilitating high adsorption of the heavy metal ions. The brilliance of adsorption property of MFSNs has been realized through comprehensive adsorption studies and detailed kinetics. Due to their larger dimension, MFSNs help in overcoming the Brownian motion which facilitates easy separation of the metal ion sorbed secondary nanostructures and also do not get drained out during filtration, thus providing pure water. PMID:26602613

Electrochemically synthesized nanocrystalline spinel thin film for high performance supercapacitor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gupta, Vinay; Gupta, Shubhra; Miura, Norio

Spinels are not known for their supercapacitive nature. Here, we have explored electrochemically synthesized nanostructured NiCo 2O 4 spinel thin-film electrode for electrochemical supercapacitors. The nanostructured NiCo 2O 4 spinel thin film exhibited a high specific capacitance value of 580 F g -1 and an energy density of 32 Wh kg -1 at the power density of 4 kW kg -1, accompanying with good cyclic stability.

Fast synthesis of platinum nanopetals and nanospheres for highly-sensitive non-enzymatic detection of glucose and selective sensing of ions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Taurino, Irene; Sanzó, Gabriella; Mazzei, Franco; Favero, Gabriele; de Micheli, Giovanni; Carrara, Sandro

2015-10-01

Novel methods to obtain Pt nanostructured electrodes have raised particular interest due to their high performance in electrochemistry. Several nanostructuration methods proposed in the literature use costly and bulky equipment or are time-consuming due to the numerous steps they involve. Here, Pt nanostructures were produced for the first time by one-step template-free electrodeposition on Pt bare electrodes. The change in size and shape of the nanostructures is proven to be dependent on the deposition parameters and on the ratio between sulphuric acid and chloride-complexes (i.e., hexachloroplatinate or tetrachloroplatinate). To further improve the electrochemical properties of electrodes, depositions of Pt nanostructures on previously synthesised Pt nanostructures are also performed. The electroactive surface areas exhibit a two order of magnitude improvement when Pt nanostructures with the smallest size are used. All the biosensors based on Pt nanostructures and immobilised glucose oxidase display higher sensitivity as compared to bare Pt electrodes. Pt nanostructures retained an excellent electrocatalytic activity towards the direct oxidation of glucose. Finally, the nanodeposits were proven to be an excellent solid contact for ion measurements, significantly improving the time-stability of the potential. The use of these new nanostructured coatings in electrochemical sensors opens new perspectives for multipanel monitoring of human metabolism.

Nanostructure studies of strongly correlated materials.

PubMed

Wei, Jiang; Natelson, Douglas

2011-09-01

Strongly correlated materials exhibit an amazing variety of phenomena, including metal-insulator transitions, colossal magnetoresistance, and high temperature superconductivity, as strong electron-electron and electron-phonon couplings lead to competing correlated ground states. Recently, researchers have begun to apply nanostructure-based techniques to this class of materials, examining electronic transport properties on previously inaccessible length scales, and applying perturbations to drive systems out of equilibrium. We review progress in this area, particularly emphasizing work in transition metal oxides (Fe(3)O(4), VO(2)), manganites, and high temperature cuprate superconductors. We conclude that such nanostructure-based studies have strong potential to reveal new information about the rich physics at work in these materials.

Fabrication of bimetallic Cu/Au nanotubes and their sensitive, selective, reproducible and reusable electrochemical sensing of glucose

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tee, Si Yin; Ye, Enyi; Pan, Pei Hua; Lee, Coryl Jing Jun; Hui, Hui Kim; Zhang, Shuang-Yuan; Koh, Leng Duei; Dong, Zhili; Han, Ming-Yong

2015-06-01

Herein, we report a facile two-step approach to produce gold-incorporated copper (Cu/Au) nanostructures through controlled disproportionation of the Cu+-oleylamine complex at 220 °C to form copper nanowires and the subsequent reaction with Au3+ at different temperatures of 140, 220 and 300 °C. In comparison with copper nanowires, these bimetallic Cu/Au nanostructures exhibit their synergistic effect to greatly enhance glucose oxidation. Among them, the shape-controlled Cu/Au nanotubes prepared at 140 °C show the highest electrocatalytic activity for non-enzymatic glucose sensing in alkaline solution. In addition to high sensitivity and fast response, the Cu/Au nanotubes possess high selectivity against interferences from other potential interfering species and excellent reproducibility with long-term stability. By introducing gold into copper nanostructures at a low level of 3, 1 and 0.1 mol% relative to the initial copper precursor, a significant electrocatalytic enhancement of the resulting bimetallic Cu/Au nanostructures starts to occur at 1 mol%. Overall, the present fabrication of stable Cu/Au nanostructures offers a promising low-cost platform for sensitive, selective, reproducible and reusable electrochemical sensing of glucose.Herein, we report a facile two-step approach to produce gold-incorporated copper (Cu/Au) nanostructures through controlled disproportionation of the Cu+-oleylamine complex at 220 °C to form copper nanowires and the subsequent reaction with Au3+ at different temperatures of 140, 220 and 300 °C. In comparison with copper nanowires, these bimetallic Cu/Au nanostructures exhibit their synergistic effect to greatly enhance glucose oxidation. Among them, the shape-controlled Cu/Au nanotubes prepared at 140 °C show the highest electrocatalytic activity for non-enzymatic glucose sensing in alkaline solution. In addition to high sensitivity and fast response, the Cu/Au nanotubes possess high selectivity against interferences from other potential interfering species and excellent reproducibility with long-term stability. By introducing gold into copper nanostructures at a low level of 3, 1 and 0.1 mol% relative to the initial copper precursor, a significant electrocatalytic enhancement of the resulting bimetallic Cu/Au nanostructures starts to occur at 1 mol%. Overall, the present fabrication of stable Cu/Au nanostructures offers a promising low-cost platform for sensitive, selective, reproducible and reusable electrochemical sensing of glucose. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/c5nr02399h

Formation of Semimetallic Cobalt Telluride Nanotube Film via Anion Exchange Tellurization Strategy in Aqueous Solution for Electrocatalytic Applications.

PubMed

Patil, Supriya A; Kim, Eun-Kyung; Shrestha, Nabeen K; Chang, Jinho; Lee, Joong Kee; Han, Sung-Hwan

2015-11-25

Metal telluride nanostructures have demonstrated several potential applications particularly in harvesting and storing green energy. Metal tellurides are synthesized by tellurization process performed basically at high temperature in reducing gas atmosphere, which makes the process expensive and complicated. The development of a facile and economical process for desirable metal telluride nanostructures without complicated manipulation is still a challenge. In an effort to develop an alternative strategy of tellurization, herein we report a thin film formation of self-standing cobalt telluride nanotubes on various conducting and nonconducting substrates using a simple binder-free synthetic strategy based on anion exchange transformation from a thin film of cobalt hydroxycarbonate nanostructures in aqueous solution at room temperature. The nanostructured films before and after ion exchange transformation reaction are characterized using field emission scanning electron microscope, energy dispersive X-ray analyzer, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, thin film X-ray diffraction technique, high resolution transmission electron microscope, and selected area electron diffraction analysis technique. After the ion exchange transformation of nanostructures, the film shows conversion from insulator to highly electrical conductive semimetallic characteristic. When used as a counter electrode in I3(-)/I(-) redox electrolyte based dye-sensitized solar cells, the telluride film exhibits an electrocatalytic reduction activity for I3(-) with a demonstration of solar-light to electrical power conversion efficiency of 8.10%, which is highly competitive to the efficiency of 8.20% exhibited by a benchmarked Pt-film counter electrode. On the other hand, the telluride film electrode also demonstrates electrocatalytic activity for oxygen evolution reaction from oxidation of water.

Directing self-assembly of gold nanoparticles in diblock copolymer scaffold

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Qifang; He, Jinbo; Glogowski, Elizabeth; Emrick, Todd; Russell, Thomas

2007-03-01

A versatile hierarchical approach for directing self -assembly of gold nanostructures with size 2-3nm in diblock copolymer scaffolds is found. Diblock copolymer polystyrene-b-poly(2-vinylpyridine) (PS-b-P2VP) is used to form a regular scaffold of highly anisotropic, stripe-like domains, and controlled differential wetting by dichloromethane and thermal annealing guides gold nanoparticles with half hydrophilic ligand to aggregate selectively along the scaffold, producing highly organized metal nanostructures. In as-cast block-copolymer and gold nanoparticles thin films, micelle structure and gold nanoparticles random distribution on scaffold are typically observed. However, samples annealed in dichloromethane exhibit well-defined short-range ordered nanostructure with gold nanoparticles located at the interface of PS and P2VP nanoscale domain. After annealing at 170 C, the gold nanoparticles at interface migrated into the middle of P2VP phase and exhibited long-range ordered hierarchical structures. Synergistic interactions between the gold nanoparticles and the PS-b-P2VP caused an orientation of the microdomains normal to the film surface.

Synthesis of belt-like BiOBr hierarchical nanostructure with high photocatalytic performance

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Li, Haiping; Liu, Jingyi; Hu, Tingxia

2016-05-15

Highlights: • BiOBr hierarchical nanobelts (NBs) were solvothermally prepared. • NBs show higher specific surface area and photoabsorption than BiOBr nanosheets. • NBs exhibit higher photoactivity than the nanosheets. - Abstract: One-dimensional (1D) bismuth oxyhalide (BiOX) hierarchical nanostructures are always difficult to prepare. Herein, we report, for the first time, a simple synthesis of BiOBr nanobelts (NBs) via a facile solvothermal route, using bismuth subsalicylate as the template and bismuth source. The BiOBr nanobelts are composed of irregular single crystal nanoparticles with highly exposed (0 1 0) facets. Compared with the BiOBr nanosheets (NSs) with dominant exposed (0 0 1)more » facets, they exhibit higher photocatalytic activity toward degradation of Rhodamine B and Methylene Blue under visible light irradiation. The higher photocatalytic performance of BiOBr NBs arises from their larger specific surface area and higher photoabsorption capability. This study provides a simple route for synthesis of belt-like Bi-based hierarchical nanostructures.« less

Synthesis of Co 2SnO 4@C core-shell nanostructures with reversible lithium storage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qi, Yue; Du, Ning; Zhang, Hui; Wu, Ping; Yang, Deren

This paper reports the synthesis of Co 2SnO 4@C core-shell nanostructures through a simple glucose hydrothermal and subsequent carbonization approach. The as-synthesized Co 2SnO 4@C core-shell nanostructures have been applied as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries, which exhibit improved cyclic performance compared to pure Co 2SnO 4 nanocrystals. The carbon matrix has good volume buffering effect and high electronic conductivity, which may be responsible for the improved cyclic performance.

The performance of hematite nanostructures in different humidity levels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ahmad, W. R. W.; Mamat, M. H.; Zoolfakar, A. S.; Khusaimi, Z.; Yusof, M. M.; Ismail, A. S.; Saidi, S. A.; Rusop, M.

2018-05-01

In this study, hematite (α-Fe2O3) nanostructure were prepared in Schott vials on fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) coated glass substrate using the sonicated immersion method in aqueous solution with ferric chloride FeCl3ṡ6H2O as a precursor and urea NH2-CONH2 as a stabilizer. The samples were characterized for different level of humidity conditions within range 40% to 90% RH. Based on the results obtained, the hematite nanostructure exhibited good optical properties and virtuous sensor response with high sensitivity. The fabricated hematite nanostructure has revealed a good potential for humidity sensor application based on the results obtained under different levels of humidity.

Super-SERS-active and highly effective antimicrobial Ag nanodendrites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, H. B.; Liu, P.; Liang, Y.; Xiao, J.; Yang, G. W.

2012-07-01

We have developed simple and green electrochemistry to synthesize Ag nanostructures with high purity, good crystallinity and smooth surface for applications as super-SERS (surface-enhanced Raman scattering), SERS-active substrates and with highly effective antimicrobial activities. This synthesis takes place in a clean and slow reaction environment without any chemical additives, which ensures an ultrahigh active surface of the as-synthesized Ag nanostructures owing to their purity, good crystallinity and smooth morphology. Using this method, we synthesized nearly perfect Ag nanodendrites (NDs), which exhibit super-SERS sensitivity when they are used to detect the SERS spectra of rhodamine 6G at concentrations as low as 5 × 10-16 M, and have an ultrahigh electromagnetic (EM) enhancement factor of the order of 1013, breaking through the theoretical limit of EM enhancement. Meanwhile, the as-synthesized Ag NDs possess highly effective antimicrobial activities for Escherichia coli, Candida albicans and Staphylococcus aureus, which are over 10 times that of silver nanoparticles. Additionally, the basic physics and chemistry involved in the fabrication of Ag nanostructures are pursued. These investigations show that silver nanostructures with highly active surfaces can make the most of Ag nanostructures functioning as super-SERS-active substrates and multiple antibiotics.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Yao, Kaisheng; Henan Normal University, School of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Key Laboratory of Green Chemical Media and Reactions, Xin xiang, Henan 453007; Lu, Weiwei

A novel method was proposed for successful fabrication of CuS nanostructures with various morphologies. At the ionic liquids (ILs)-modulated CHCl{sub 3}-H{sub 2}O interface, copper cupferronate [Cu(cup){sub 2}] in CHCl{sub 3} reacted with thiourea in water to generate CuS nanostructures via a solvothermal reaction process. The effects of alkyl chain length of imidazolium cations and nature of anions of the ILs, molar ratio of Cu(cup){sub 2} to thiourea, the reaction temperature and time on the morphology of the products were studied systematically. It was shown that by changing alkyl chain length of imidazolium cations and nature of anions of the ILs,more » CuS nanostructures with various morphologies, including flowers, urchins, large nanodisks and nanoparticles, could be obtained at the liquid-liquid interface, and the ILs played important template roles in directing the formation of CuS nanostructures. Furthermore, the as-prepared CuS samples exhibited high catalytic activity for photodegradation of methyl orange and thermal decomposition of ammonium perchlorate. - Graphical abstract: At the ionic liquids-modulated CHCl{sub 3}-H{sub 2}O interface, the CuS nanostructures with the various morphologies of flowers, urchins, large nanodisks and nanoparticles have been successfully prepared via a solvothermal reaction process. Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The properties of oil-H{sub 2}O interface can be modulated by employing different ILs. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The modulated interface has been used to prepare CuS nanostructures with various morphologies. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The CuS samples exhibited high catalytic activity for the photodegradation of methyl orange.« less

Comparative study of label-free electrochemical immunoassay on various gold nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rafique, S.; Gao, C.; Li, C. M.; Bhatti, A. S.

2013-10-01

Electrochemical methods such as amperometry and impedance spectroscopy provide the feasibility of label-free immunoassay. However, the performance of electrochemical interfaces varies with the shape of gold nanostructures. In the present work three types of gold nanostructures including pyramid, spherical, and rod-like nanostructures were electrochemically synthesized on the gold electrode and were further transformed into immunosensor by covalent binding of antibodies. As a model protein, a cancer biomarker, Carcinoembryonic Antigen (CEA) was detected using amperometric and impedimetric techniques on three nanostructured electrodes, which enabled to evaluate and compare the immunoassay's performance. It was found that all three immunosensors showed improved linear electrochemical response to the concentration of CEA compared to bare Au electrode. Among all the spherical gold nanostructure based immunosensors displayed superior performance. Under optimal condition, the immunosensors exhibited a limit of detection of 4.1 pg ml-1 over a concentration range of five orders of magnitude. This paper emphasizes that fine control over the geometry of nanostructures is essentially important for high-performance electrochemical immunoassay.

Controlled Growth of NiCo2O4 Nanorods and Ultrathin Nanosheets on Carbon Nanofibers for High-performance Supercapacitors

PubMed Central

Zhang, Genqiang; (David) Lou, Xiong Wen

2013-01-01

Two one-dimensional hierarchical hybrid nanostructures composed of NiCo2O4 nanorods and ultrathin nanosheets on carbon nanofibers (CNFs) are controllably synthesized through facile solution methods combined with a simple thermal treatment. The structure of NiCo2O4 can be easily controlled to be nanorods or nanosheets by using different additives in the synthesis. These two different nanostructures are evaluated as electrodes for high performance supercapacitors, in view of their apparent advantages, such as high electroactive surface area, ultrathin and porous features, robust mechanical strength, shorter ion and electron transport path. Their electrochemical performance is systematically studied, and both of these two hierarchical hybrid nanostructures exhibit high capacitance and excellent cycling stability. The remarkable electrochemical performance will undoubtedly make these hybrid structures attractive for high-performance supercapacitors with high power and energy densities. PMID:23503561

Multiple-layered effective medium approximation approach to modeling environmental effects on alumina passivated highly porous silicon nanostructured thin films measured by in-situ Mueller matrix ellipsometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mock, Alyssa; Carlson, Timothy; VanDerslice, Jeremy; Mohrmann, Joel; Woollam, John A.; Schubert, Eva; Schubert, Mathias

2017-11-01

Optical changes in alumina passivated highly porous silicon slanted columnar thin films during controlled exposure to toluene vapor are reported. Electron-beam evaporation glancing angle deposition and subsequent atomic layer deposition are utilized to deposit alumina passivated nanostructured porous silicon thin films. In-situ Mueller matrix generalized spectroscopic ellipsometry in an environmental cell is then used to determine changes in optical properties of the nanostructured thin films by inspection of individual Mueller matrix elements, each of which exhibit sensitivity to adsorption. The use of a multiple-layered effective medium approximation model allows for accurate description of the inhomogeneous nature of toluene adsorption onto alumina passivated highly porous silicon slanted columnar thin films.

Deriving magnetite nanostructures from natural resources and investigation of its erythrocyte compatibility

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chitra, S.; Bargavi, P.; Durgalakshmi, D.; Balasubramaniam, M.; Rajashree, P.; Balakumar, S.

2018-04-01

Nanostructured Iron oxide nanoparticles are being used for various biomedical applications such as Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Drug Delivery, Hyperthermia, Photo-ablation therapy and Biosensors as it exhibits tremendous biocompatibility. These magnetic materials are abundant, are available in natural resources such as sand, rock and various plants. In the present investigation, magnetic materials were separated from beach sand using external magnet and studied the properties of mineral magnetite, and it exhibits well-known compatibility with erythrocytes. Mineral magnetite derived from natural resources can demonstrate better biocompatibility and in addition, it cuts down the necessity of going towards highly expensive iron sources.

Method of Making Fine Lithium Iron Phosphate/Carbon-Based Powders with an Olivine Type Structure

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Singhal, Amit (Inventor); Dhamne, Abhijeet (Inventor); Skandan, Ganesh (Inventor)

2008-01-01

Processes for producing fine LiFePO.sub.4/C and nanostructured LiFe.sub.xM.sub.1-xPO.sub.4/C composite powders, where 1.ltoreq.x.ltoreq.0.1 and M is a metal cation. Electrodes made of either nanostructured LiFe.sub.xM.sub.1-xPO.sub.4 powders or nanostructured LiFe.sub.xM.sub.1-xPO.sub.4/C composite powders exhibit excellent electrochemical properties. That will provide high power density, low cost and environmentally friendly rechargeable Li-ion batteries.

Bactericidal Effects of HVOF-Sprayed Nanostructured TiO2 on Pseudomonas aeruginosa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jeffery, B.; Peppler, M.; Lima, R. S.; McDonald, A.

2010-01-01

Titanium dioxide (TiO2) has been shown to exhibit photocatalytic bactericidal activity. This preliminary study focused on examining the photocatalytic activity of high-velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF) sprayed nanostructured TiO2 coatings to kill Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The surfaces of the nanostructured TiO2 coatings were lightly polished before addition of the bacterial solution. Plates of P. aeruginosa were grown, and then suspended in a phosphate buffer saline (PBS) solution. The concentration of bacteria used was determined by a photo-spectrometer, which measured the amount of light absorbed by the bacteria-filled solution. This solution was diluted and pipetted onto the coating, which was exposed to white light in 30-min intervals, up to 120 min. It was found that on polished HVOF-sprayed coatings exposed to white light, 24% of the bacteria were killed after exposure for 120 min. On stainless steel controls, approximately 6% of the bacteria were not recovered. These preliminary results show that thermal-sprayed nanostructured TiO2 coatings exhibited photocatalytic bactericidal activity with P. aeruginosa.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chen, Limiao, E-mail: chenlimiao@csu.edu.cn; Jing, Qifeng; Chen, Jun

Silver nanostructures with dendritic, flower-like and irregular morphologies were controllably deposited on a silicon substrate in an aqueous hydrogen fluoride solution at room temperature. The morphology of the Ag nanostructures changed from dendritic to urchin-like, flowerlike and pinecone-like with increasing the concentration of polyvinyl pyrrolidone (MW = 55,000) from 2 to 10 mM. The Ag nanostructures were characterized by transmission electron microscopy, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray, and X-ray diffraction. Through a series of time-dependent morphological evolution studies, the growth processes of Ag nanostructures have been systematically investigated and the corresponding growth mechanisms have been discussed.more » In addition, the morphology-dependent surface-enhanced Raman scattering of as-synthesized Ag nanostructures were investigated. The results indicated that flower-like Ag nanostructure had the highest activity than the other Ag nanostructures for Rhodamine 6G probe molecules. Highlights: • A simple method was developed to prepare dendritic and flower-like Ag nanostructures. • The flower-like Ag nanoparticles exhibit highest SERS activity. • The SERS substrate based on flower-like Ag particles can be used to detect melamine.« less

Highly adhesive and high fatigue-resistant copper/PET flexible electronic substrates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, Sang Jin; Ko, Tae-Jun; Yoon, Juil; Moon, Myoung-Woon; Oh, Kyu Hwan; Han, Jun Hyun

2018-01-01

A voidless Cu/PET substrate is fabricated by producing a superhydrophilic PET surface comprised of nanostructures with large width and height and then by Cu electroless plating. Effect of PET surface nanostructure size on the failure mechanism of the Cu/PET substrate is studied. The fabricated Cu/PET substrate exhibits a maximum peel strength of 1300 N m-1 without using an interlayer, and virtually no increase in electrical resistivity under the extreme cyclic bending condition of 1 mm curvature radius after 300 k cycles. The authors find that there is an optimum nanostructure size for the highest Cu/PET adhesion strength, and the failure mechanism of the Cu/PET flexible substrate depends on the PET surface nanostructure size. Thus, this work presents the possibility to produce flexible metal/polymer electronic substrates that have excellent interfacial adhesion between the metal and polymer and high fatigue resistance against repeated bending. Such metal/polymer substrates provides new design opportunities for wearable electronic devices that can withstand harsh environments and have extended lifetimes.

DNA nanomaterials for preclinical imaging and drug delivery.

PubMed

Jiang, Dawei; England, Christopher G; Cai, Weibo

2016-10-10

Besides being the carrier of genetic information, DNA is also an excellent biological organizer to establish well-designed nanostructures in the fields of material engineering, nanotechnology, and biomedicine. DNA-based materials represent a diverse nanoscale system primarily due to their predictable base pairing and highly regulated conformations, which greatly facilitate the construction of DNA nanostructures with distinct shapes and sizes. Integrating the emerging advancements in bioconjugation techniques, DNA nanostructures can be readily functionalized with high precision for many purposes ranging from biosensors to imaging to drug delivery. Recent progress in the field of DNA nanotechnology has exhibited collective efforts to employ DNA nanostructures as smart imaging agents or delivery platforms within living organisms. Despite significant improvements in the development of DNA nanostructures, there is limited knowledge regarding the in vivo biological fate of these intriguing nanomaterials. In this review, we summarize the current strategies for designing and purifying highly-versatile DNA nanostructures for biological applications, including molecular imaging and drug delivery. Since DNA nanostructures may elicit an immune response in vivo, we also present a short discussion of their potential toxicities in biomedical applications. Lastly, we discuss future perspectives and potential challenges that may limit the effective preclinical and clinical employment of DNA nanostructures. Due to their unique properties, we predict that DNA nanomaterials will make excellent agents for effective diagnostic imaging and drug delivery, improving patient outcome in cancer and other related diseases in the near future. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Facile and rapid synthesis of Pd nanodendrites for electrocatalysis and surface-enhanced Raman scattering applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kannan, Palanisamy; Dolinska, Joanna; Maiyalagan, Thandavarayan; Opallo, Marcin

2014-09-01

Numerous properties from metal nanostructures can be tuned by controlling both their size and shape. In particular, the latter is extremely important because the type of crystalline surface affects the surface electronic density. This paper describes a simple approach to the synthesis of highly-structured, anisotropic palladium nanostructured dendrites. They were obtained using an eco-friendly biomolecule 5-hydroxytryptophan, which acts as both a reducing and stabilizing agent. The growth mechanism is proposed for the evolution of dendrites morphology. It was found that the concentration of 5-hydroxytryptophan played a vital role on the morphology of the nanostructured Pd dendrites. This nanomaterial shows enhanced electrocatalytic performance towards the oxidation of formic acid, and it exhibits surface-enhanced Raman scattering properties towards the prostate specific antigen. These properties may be explored in fuel cells and biosensors, respectively.Numerous properties from metal nanostructures can be tuned by controlling both their size and shape. In particular, the latter is extremely important because the type of crystalline surface affects the surface electronic density. This paper describes a simple approach to the synthesis of highly-structured, anisotropic palladium nanostructured dendrites. They were obtained using an eco-friendly biomolecule 5-hydroxytryptophan, which acts as both a reducing and stabilizing agent. The growth mechanism is proposed for the evolution of dendrites morphology. It was found that the concentration of 5-hydroxytryptophan played a vital role on the morphology of the nanostructured Pd dendrites. This nanomaterial shows enhanced electrocatalytic performance towards the oxidation of formic acid, and it exhibits surface-enhanced Raman scattering properties towards the prostate specific antigen. These properties may be explored in fuel cells and biosensors, respectively. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/c4nr02896a

Electropolymerization of Uniform Polyaniline Nanorod Arrays on Conducting Oxides as Counter Electrodes in Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells.

PubMed

He, Ziming; Liu, Jing; Khoo, Si Yun; Tan, Timothy Thatt Yang

2016-01-01

Conventional techniques for the synthesis of oriented polyaniline (PANI) nanostructures are often complex or time consuming. Through an innovative reduced graphene oxide (rGO) modified FTO and a low-potential electropolymerization strategy, the rapid and template-free growth of a highly ordered PANI nanorod array on the FTO substrate is realized. The highly ordered nanostructure of the PANI array leads to a high electrocatalytic activity and chemical stability. The importance of the polymerization potential and rGO surface modification to achieve this nanostructure is revealed. Compared to platinum, the PANI nanorod array exhibits an enhanced performance and stability as counter electrodes in dye-sensitized solar cells, with a 17.6 % enhancement in power conversion efficiency. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Fabrication of highly ordered 2D metallic arrays with disc-in-hole binary nanostructures via a newly developed nanosphere lithography

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Xi; Guo, Wei; Wang, Xixi; Liao, Mingdun; Gao, Pingqi; Ye, Jichun

2017-11-01

2D metallic arrays with binary nanostructures derived from a nanosphere lithography (NSL) method have been rarely reported. Here, we demonstrate a novel NSL strategy to fabricate highly ordered 2D gold arrays with disc-in-hole binary (DIHB) nanostructures in large scale by employing a sacrificing layer combined with a three-step lift-off process. The structural parameters of the resultant DIHB arrays, such as periodicity, hole diameter, disc diameter and thicknesses can be facilely controlled by tuning the nanospheres size, etching condition, deposition angle and duration, respectively. Due to the intimate interactions between two subcomponents, the DIHB arrays exhibit both an extraordinary high surface-enhanced Raman scattering enhancement factor up to 5 × 108 and a low sheet resistance down to 1.7 Ω/sq. Moreover, the DIHB array can also be used as a metal catalyzed chemical etching catalytic pattern to create vertically-aligned Si nano-tube arrays for anti-reflectance application. This strategy provides a universal route for synthesizing other diverse binary nanostructures with controlled morphology, and thus expands the applications of the NSL to prepare ordered nanostructures with multi-function.

Effects of surface morphology of ZnO seed layers on growth of ZnO nanostructures prepared by hydrothermal method and annealing.

PubMed

Yim, Kwang Gug; Kim, Min Su; Leem, Jae-Young

2013-05-01

ZnO nanostructures were grown on Si (111) substrates by a hydrothermal method. Prior to growing the ZnO nanostructures, ZnO seed layers with different post-heat temperatures were prepared by a spin-coating process. Then, the ZnO nanostructures were annealed at 500 degrees C for 20 min under an Ar atmosphere. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and photoluminescence (PL) were carried out at room temperature (RT) to investigate the structural and optical properties of the as-grown and annealed ZnO nanostructures. The surface morphologies of the seed layers changed from a smooth surface to a mountain chain-like structure as the post-heating temperatures increased. The as-grown and annealed ZnO nanostructures exhibited a strong (002) diffraction peak. Compared to the as-grown ZnO nanostructures, the annealed ZnO nanostructures exhibited significantly strong enhancement in the PL intensity ratio by almost a factor of 2.

Enhanced lithium storage performance of hierarchical CuO nanomaterials with surface fractal characteristics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Ang; He, Renyue; Bian, Zhuo; Song, Huaihe; Chen, Xiaohong; Zhou, Jisheng

2018-06-01

Self-assembled hierarchical CuO nanostructures with fractal structures were prepared by a mild method and exhibited excellent lithium storage properties, certain of which even demonstrated a high reversible capacity of 827 mAh g-1 at a rate of 0.1 C. An interesting phenomenon was observed that the electrochemical performance varies along with the structure complexity, and the products with higher surface factal dimensions exhibited larger capability and better cyclability. Structural and electrochemical analysis methods were used to explore the lithiation kinetics of the samples and the reasons for the outstanding electrochemical performances related to the complexities of hierarchical nanostructures and the irregularities of surface and mass distribution.

Growth of single-layer boron nitride dome-shaped nanostructures catalysed by iron clusters.

PubMed

Torre, A La; Åhlgren, E H; Fay, M W; Ben Romdhane, F; Skowron, S T; Parmenter, C; Davies, A J; Jouhannaud, J; Pourroy, G; Khlobystov, A N; Brown, P D; Besley, E; Banhart, F

2016-08-11

We report on the growth and formation of single-layer boron nitride dome-shaped nanostructures mediated by small iron clusters located on flakes of hexagonal boron nitride. The nanostructures were synthesized in situ at high temperature inside a transmission electron microscope while the e-beam was blanked. The formation process, typically originating at defective step-edges on the boron nitride support, was investigated using a combination of transmission electron microscopy, electron energy loss spectroscopy and computational modelling. Computational modelling showed that the domes exhibit a nanotube-like structure with flat circular caps and that their stability was comparable to that of a single boron nitride layer.

Sensitive and selective cataluminescence-based sensor system for acetone and diethyl ether determination.

PubMed

Wang, Qihui; Li, Bo; Wang, Yuhuai; Shou, Zhouxiang; Shi, Guolong

2015-05-01

A three-dimensional hierarchical CdO nanostructure with a novel bio-inspired morphology is reported. The field emission scanning electronic microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffractometer were employed to characterize the as-prepared samples. In gas-sensing measurements, acetone and diethyl ether were employed as target gases to investigate cataluminescence (CTL) sensing properties of the CdO nanostructure. The results show that the as-fabricated CdO nanostructure exhibited outstanding CTL properties such as stable intensity, high signal/noise values, short response and recovery time. The limit of detection of acetone and diethyl ether was ca. 6.5 ppm and 6.7 ppm, respectively, which was below the standard permitted concentrations. Additionally, a principal components analysis method was used to investigate the recognizable ability of the CTL sensor, and it was found that acetone and diethyl ether can be distinguished clearly. The performance of the bio-inspired CdO nanostructure-based sensor system suggested the promising application of the CdO nanostructure as a novel highly efficient CTL sensing material. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Continuous fabrication of nanostructure arrays for flexible surface enhanced Raman scattering substrate

PubMed Central

Zhang, Chengpeng; Yi, Peiyun; Peng, Linfa; Lai, Xinmin; Chen, Jie; Huang, Meizhen; Ni, Jun

2017-01-01

Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) has been a powerful tool for applications including single molecule detection, analytical chemistry, electrochemistry, medical diagnostics and bio-sensing. Especially, flexible SERS substrates are highly desirable for daily-life applications, such as real-time and in situ Raman detection of chemical and biological targets, which can be used onto irregular surfaces. However, it is still a major challenge to fabricate the flexible SERS substrate on large-area substrates using a facile and cost-effective technique. The roll-to-roll ultraviolet nanoimprint lithography (R2R UV-NIL) technique provides a solution for the continuous fabrication of flexible SERS substrate due to its high-speed, large-area, high-resolution and high-throughput. In this paper, we presented a facile and cost-effective method to fabricate flexible SERS substrate including the fabrication of polymer nanostructure arrays and the metallization of the polymer nanostructure arrays. The polymer nanostructure arrays were obtained by using R2R UV-NIL technique and anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) mold. The functional SERS substrates were then obtained with Au sputtering on the surface of the polymer nanostructure arrays. The obtained SERS substrates exhibit excellent SERS and flexibility performance. This research can provide a beneficial direction for the continuous production of the flexible SERS substrates. PMID:28051175

Chemically Designed Metallic/Insulating Hybrid Nanostructures with Silver Nanocrystals for Highly Sensitive Wearable Pressure Sensors.

PubMed

Kim, Haneun; Lee, Seung-Wook; Joh, Hyungmok; Seong, Mingi; Lee, Woo Seok; Kang, Min Su; Pyo, Jun Beom; Oh, Soong Ju

2018-01-10

With the increase in interest in wearable tactile pressure sensors for e-skin, researches to make nanostructures to achieve high sensitivity have been actively conducted. However, limitations such as complex fabrication processes using expensive equipment still exist. Herein, simple lithography-free techniques to develop pyramid-like metal/insulator hybrid nanostructures utilizing nanocrystals (NCs) are demonstrated. Ligand-exchanged and unexchanged silver NC thin films are used as metallic and insulating components, respectively. The interfaces of each NC layer are chemically engineered to create discontinuous insulating layers, i.e., spacers for improved sensitivity, and eventually to realize fully solution-processed pressure sensors. Device performance analysis with structural, chemical, and electronic characterization and conductive atomic force microscopy study reveals that hybrid nanostructure based pressure sensor shows an enhanced sensitivity of higher than 500 kPa -1 , reliability, and low power consumption with a wide range of pressure sensing. Nano-/micro-hierarchical structures are also designed by combining hybrid nanostructures with conventional microstructures, exhibiting further enhanced sensing range and achieving a record sensitivity of 2.72 × 10 4 kPa -1 . Finally, all-solution-processed pressure sensor arrays with high pixel density, capable of detecting delicate signals with high spatial selectivity much better than the human tactile threshold, are introduced.

High-capacity nanostructured germanium-containing materials and lithium alloys thereof

DOEpatents

Graetz, Jason A.; Fultz, Brent T.; Ahn, Channing; Yazami, Rachid

2010-08-24

Electrodes comprising an alkali metal, for example, lithium, alloyed with nanostructured materials of formula Si.sub.zGe.sub.(z-1), where 0

Schottky nanocontact of one-dimensional semiconductor nanostructures probed by using conductive atomic force microscopy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Jung Ah; Rok Lim, Young; Jung, Chan Su; Choi, Jun Hee; Im, Hyung Soon; Park, Kidong; Park, Jeunghee; Kim, Gyu Tae

2016-10-01

To develop the advanced electronic devices, the surface/interface of each component must be carefully considered. Here, we investigate the electrical properties of metal-semiconductor nanoscale junction using conductive atomic force microscopy (C-AFM). Single-crystalline CdS, CdSe, and ZnO one-dimensional nanostructures are synthesized via chemical vapor transport, and individual nanobelts (or nanowires) are used to fabricate nanojunction electrodes. The current-voltage (I -V) curves are obtained by placing a C-AFM metal (PtIr) tip as a movable contact on the nanobelt (or nanowire), and often exhibit a resistive switching behavior that is rationalized by the Schottky (high resistance state) and ohmic (low resistance state) contacts between the metal and semiconductor. We obtain the Schottky barrier height and the ideality factor through fitting analysis of the I-V curves. The present nanojunction devices exhibit a lower Schottky barrier height and a higher ideality factor than those of the bulk materials, which is consistent with the findings of previous works on nanostructures. It is shown that C-AFM is a powerful tool for characterization of the Schottky contact of conducting channels between semiconductor nanostructures and metal electrodes.

Solvothermal synthesis of hierarchical TiO2 nanostructures with tunable morphology and enhanced photocatalytic activity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fan, Zhenghua; Meng, Fanming; Zhang, Miao; Wu, Zhenyu; Sun, Zhaoqi; Li, Aixia

2016-01-01

This paper presents controllable growth and photocatalytic activity of TiO2 hierarchical nanostructures by solvothermal method at different temperatures. It is revealed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) that the morphology of TiO2 can be effectively controlled as rose-like, chrysanthemum-like and sea-urchin-like only changing solvothermal temperature. BET surface area analysis confirms the presence of a mesoporous network in all the nanostructures, and shows high surface area at relatively high temperature. The photocatalytic activities of the photocatalysts are evaluated by the photodegradation of RhB under UV light irradiation. The TiO2 samples exhibit high activity on the photodegradation of RhB, which is higher than that of the commercial P25. The enhancement in photocatalytic performance can be attributed to the synergetic effect of the surface area, crystallinity, band gap and crystalline size.

Electromagnetic response of dielectric nanostructures in liquid crystals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Amanaganti, S.; Chowdhury, D. R.; Ravnik, M.; Dontabhaktuni, J.

2018-02-01

Sub-wavelength periodic metallic nanostructures give rise to very interesting optical phenomena like effective refractive index, perfect absorption, cloaking, etc. However, such metallic structures result in high dissipative losses and hence dielectric nanostructures are being considered increasingly to be an efficient alternative to plasmonic materials. High refractive index (RI) dielectric nanostructures exhibit magnetic and electric resonances simultaneously giving rise to interesting properties like perfect magnetic mirrors, etc. In the present work, we study light-matter interaction of cubic dielectric structures made of very high refractive index material Te in air. We observe a distinct band-like structure in both transmission and reflection spectra resulting from the interaction between magnetic and electric dipolar modes. FDTD simulations using CST software are performed to analyse the different modes excited at the band frequencies. The medium when replaced with liquid crystal gives rise to asymmetry in the band structure emphasizing one of the dominant magnetic modes at resonance frequencies. This will help in achieving a greater control on the excitation of the predominant magnetic dipolar modes at resonance frequencies with applications as perfect magnetic mirrors.

Preparation and characterization of photocatalytic carbon dots-sensitized electrospun titania nanostructured fibers

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Li, Haopeng; Zhu, Yihua, E-mail: yhzhu@ecust.edu.cn; Cao, Huimin

2013-02-15

Graphical abstract: Display Omitted Highlights: ► The TiO{sub 2}-CDs nanostructured fibers are fabricated by using APS combining the electrospinning TiO{sub 2} nanostructured fibers and CDs. ► The CD can work as a photosensitizer in the degradation of rhodamine B under visible light irradiation. ► The TiO{sub 2}-CDs nanostructured fibers exhibit enhanced photocatalytic efficiency and can be easily handled and recycled. -- Abstract: The carbon dots (CDs) are new functional carbon-aceous materials. Compared to conventional dye molecules and semiconductor quantum dots, CDs are superior in chemical inertness and low toxicity. The TiO{sub 2}-CDs nanostructured fibers were fabricated by combining the electrospinningmore » technique and reflux method. Compared with the pure TiO{sub 2} nanostructured fibers and P25, the TiO{sub 2}-CDs nanostructured fibers exhibited enhanced photocatalytic efficiency of photodegradation of rhodamine B (RhB) under visible light irradiation. The enhanced photocatalytic activity of TiO{sub 2}-CDs nanostructured fibers could be attributed to the presence of CDs embedded in TiO{sub 2} nanostructured fibers. The CD can work as a photosensitizer in the degradation. Furthermore, the TiO{sub 2}-CDs nanostructured fibers could be easily handled and recycled due to their one-dimensional nanostructural property.« less

Self-organized broadband light trapping in thin film amorphous silicon solar cells.

PubMed

Martella, C; Chiappe, D; Delli Veneri, P; Mercaldo, L V; Usatii, I; Buatier de Mongeot, F

2013-06-07

Nanostructured glass substrates endowed with high aspect ratio one-dimensional corrugations are prepared by defocused ion beam erosion through a self-organized gold (Au) stencil mask. The shielding action of the stencil mask is amplified by co-deposition of gold atoms during ion bombardment. The resulting glass nanostructures enable broadband anti-reflection functionality and at the same time ensure a high efficiency for diffuse light scattering (Haze). It is demonstrated that the patterned glass substrates exhibit a better photon harvesting than the flat glass substrate in p-i-n type thin film a-Si:H solar cells.

Optical and structural properties of carbon dots/TiO2 nanostructures prepared via DC arc discharge in liquid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Biazar, Nooshin; Poursalehi, Reza; Delavari, Hamid

2018-01-01

Synthesis and development of visible active catalysts is an important issue in photocatalytic applications of nanomaterials. TiO2 nanostructures coupled with carbon dots demonstrate a considerable photocatalytic activity in visible wavelengths. Extending optical absorption of a wide band gap semiconductor such as TiO2 with carbon dots is the origin of the visible activity of carbon dots modified semiconductor nanostructures. In addition, carbon dots exhibit high photostability, appropriate electron transport and chemical stability without considerable toxicity or environmental footprints. In this study, optical and structural properties of carbon dots/TiO2 nanostructures prepared via (direct current) DC arc discharge in liquid were investigated. Crystal structure, morphology and optical properties of the samples were studied by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and UV-visible spectroscopy respectively. SEM images show formation of spherical nanoparticles with an average size of 27 nm. In comparison with pristine TiO2, optical transmission spectrum of carbon dots/TiO2 nanostructures demonstrates an absorption edge at longer wavelengths as well a high optical absorption in visible wavelengths which is significant for visible activity of nanostructures as a photocatalyst. Finally, these results can provide a flexible and versatile pathway for synthesis of carbon dots/oxide semiconductor nanostructures with an appropriate activity under visible light.

Physical properties of nanostructured CeO2 thin films grown by SILAR method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khan, Ishaque Ahmed; Belkhedkar, M. R.; Salodkar, R. V.; Ubale, A. U.

2018-05-01

Nanostructured CeO2 thin films have been deposited by Successive Ionic Layer Adsorption and Reaction (SILAR) method onto glass substrate using (CeNO3)3 6H2O and NaOH as cationic and anionic precursors respectively. The structural and morphological characterizations were carried out by means of X-ray diffraction, FTIR, FESEM and EDX studies. The highly resistive (1010 Ω cm) semiconducting CeO2 film exhibits 2.95 eV optical band gap.

AC electric field for rapid assembly of nanostructured polyaniline onto microsized gap for sensor devices.

PubMed

La Ferrara, Vera; Rametta, Gabriella; De Maria, Antonella

2015-07-01

Interconnected network of nanostructured polyaniline (PANI) is giving strong potential for enhancing device performances than bulk PANI counterparts. For nanostructured device processing, the main challenge is to get prototypes on large area by requiring precision, low cost and high rate assembly. Among processes meeting these requests, the alternate current electric fields are often used for nanostructure assembling. For the first time, we show the assembly of nanostructured PANI onto large electrode gaps (30-60 μm width) by applying alternate current electric fields, at low frequencies, to PANI particles dispersed in acetonitrile (ACN). An important advantage is the short assembly time, limited to 5-10 s, although electrode gaps are microsized. That encouraging result is due to a combination of forces, such as dielectrophoresis (DEP), induced-charge electrokinetic (ICEK) flow and alternate current electroosmotic (ACEO) flow, which speed up the assembly process when low frequencies and large electrode gaps are used. The main achievement of the present study is the development of ammonia sensors created by direct assembling of nanostructured PANI onto electrodes. Sensors exhibit high sensitivity to low gas concentrations as well as excellent reversibility at room temperature, even after storage in air. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Self-assembled nanostructures of linear arylacetylenes and their aza-substituted analogues

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Xu, Jia-Ju; Department of Physics and Materials Science and Centre of Super Diamond and Advanced Films; Yang, Xiong-Bo

2016-06-15

A series of linear phenylene ethynylene molecules have been synthesized, and aza-substitution has been used as a strategy to fine-tune the properties of the molecules. All the compounds exhibited pure blue emission both in solution and solid state, and fluorescence quantum yields as high as 0.66, 0.63 and 0.82 were found in chloroform solutions. The well-defined nanostructures such as quasi-cubes, cubes and rods were fabricated by self-assembly method from these compounds. The photophysical properties and aggregation behavior of self-assembled structures were analyzed in detail. The morphology as well as photophysical properties of these nanostructures have been tuned with selective requirements.

Nanostructural hierarchy increases the strength of aluminium alloys.

PubMed

Liddicoat, Peter V; Liao, Xiao-Zhou; Zhao, Yonghao; Zhu, Yuntian; Murashkin, Maxim Y; Lavernia, Enrique J; Valiev, Ruslan Z; Ringer, Simon P

2010-09-07

Increasing the strength of metallic alloys while maintaining formability is an interesting challenge for enabling new generations of lightweight structures and technologies. In this paper, we engineer aluminium alloys to contain a hierarchy of nanostructures and possess mechanical properties that expand known performance boundaries-an aerospace-grade 7075 alloy exhibits a yield strength and uniform elongation approaching 1 GPa and 5%, respectively. The nanostructural architecture was observed using novel high-resolution microscopy techniques and comprises a solid solution, free of precipitation, featuring (i) a high density of dislocations, (ii) subnanometre intragranular solute clusters, (iii) two geometries of nanometre-scale intergranular solute structures and (iv) grain sizes tens of nanometres in diameter. Our results demonstrate that this novel architecture offers a design pathway towards a new generation of super-strong materials with new regimes of property-performance space.

Field Emission and Nanostructure of Carbon Films

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Merkulov, V.I.; Lowndes, D.H.; Baylor, L.R.

1999-11-29

The results of field emission measurements of various forms of carbon films are reported. It is shown that the films nanostructure is a crucial factor determining the field emission properties. In particular, smooth, pulsed-laser deposited amorphous carbon films with both high and low sp3 contents are poor field emitters. This is similar to the results obtained for smooth nanocrystalline, sp2-bonded carbon films. In contrast, carbon films prepared by hot-filament chemical vapor deposition (HE-CVD) exhibit very good field emission properties, including low emission turn-on fields, high emission site density, and excellent durability. HF-CVD carbon films were found to be predominantly sp2-bonded.more » However, surface morphology studies show that these films are thoroughly nanostructured, which is believed to be responsible for their promising field emission properties.« less

Infrared Active Sm1-xndxnio3 Based Nano-Switchings For High Powers Laser Sources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ngom, B. D.; Kana, J. B. Kana; Nemraoui, O.; Manyala, N.; Maaza, M.; Mdjoe, R.; Beye, A. C.

2008-09-01

This contribution was targeted to engineer novel thermochromic infrared nano-structured photonics. These smart optically tuneable materials are based on rare earth nickelates in the form of ReNiO3 where Re is bi-solution of rare earth metals of Samarium "Sm" and Neodynium "Nd." In addition to their Metal-Insulator tuneable transition temperature (MIT), these MIT oxide family exhibit a specific thermal stability and thus could be ideal to an ultimate optical limiting and other Non-Linear Optical properties for high power laser sources. This MIT thermochomic ReNiO3 system is novel in its nano-structured form and has not been investigated from nonlinear optical viewpoint. This contribution reports on the optimization of the synthesis of Sm1-xNdxNiO3 Nano-structures and investigation of their corresponding MIT electron dynamics.

Fabrication of transition metal-containing nanostructures via polymer templates for a multitude of applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lu, Jennifer Qing

Nanostructures such as carbon nanotubes and semiconducting nanowires offer great technological promise due to their remarkable properties. The lack of a rational synthesis method prevents fabricating these nanostructures with desirable and consistent properties at predefined locations for device applications. In this thesis, employing polymer templates, a variety of highly ordered catalytically active transition metal nanostructures, ranging from single metallic nanoparticles of Fe, Co, Ni, Au and bimetallic nanoparticles of Ni/Fe and Co/Mo to Fe-rich silicon oxide nanodomains with uniform and tunable size and spacing have been successfully synthesized. These nanostructures have been demonstrated to be excellent catalyst systems for the synthesis of carbon nanotube and silicon nanowire. High quality, small diameter carbon nanotubes and nanowires with narrow size distribution have been successfully attained. Because these catalytically active nanostructures are uniformly distributed and do not agglomerate at the growth temperatures, uniform, high density and high quality carbon nanotube mats have been obtained. Since this polymer template approach is fully compatible with conventional top-down photolithography, lithographically selective growth of carbon nanotubes on a surface or suspended carbon nanotubes across trenches have been produced by using existing semiconductor processing. We have also shown the feasibility of producing carbon nanotubes and silicon nanowires at predefined locations on a wafer format and established a wafer-level carbon nanotube based device fabrication process. The ability of the polymer template approach to control catalyst systems at the nano-, micro- and macro-scales paves a pathway for commercialization of these 1D nanostructure-enabled devices. Beside producing well-defined, highly ordered discrete catalytically active metal-containing nanostructures by the polymer template approach, Au and Ag nanotextured surfaces have also been attained by using a self-assembled ferrocenylsilane-based inorganic block copolymer template. These Au and Ag nanotextured surfaces exhibit different surface plasmon behavior than the nanotextured surface. Greatly enhanced and uniform Raman scattering have been observed on Ag nanotextured surfaces. Highly sensitive Au nanotextured surfaces suggest their potential application as sensing surfaces for SPR-based biodetection. This simple fabrication technique of producing inorganic nanostructures with adjustable properties such as size, spacing and composition offers great promise for both fundamental research and technological development.

Preparation and photocatalytic activities of 3D flower-like CuO nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qingfei, Fan; Qi, Lan; Meili, Zhang; Ximei, Fan; Zuowan, Zhou; Chaoliang, Zhang

2016-08-01

Hierarchical 3D flower-like CuO nanostructures on the Cu substrates were synthesized by a wet chemical method and subsequent heat treatment. The synthesis, structure and morphologies of obtained samples under different concentrations of Na2S2O3 were investigated in detail and the possible growth mechanisms of the 3D flower-like CuO nanostructures were discussed. Na2S2O3 plays a key role in the generation of the 3D flower-like CuO nanostructures. When the concentration of Na2S2O3 is more than 0.4 mol/L, the 3D flower-like CuO nanostructures can be prepared on the Cu foils. The photocatalytic performances were studied by analyzing the degradation of methyl orange (MO) in aqueous solution in the presence of hydroxide water (H2O2). The 3D flower-like CuO nanostructures exhibit higher photocatalytic activity (96.2% degradation rate) than commercial CuO particles (36.3% degradation rate). The origin of the higher photocatalytic activity of the 3D flower-like CuO nanostructures was also discussed. Project supported by the High-Tech Research and Development Program of China (No. 2009AA03Z427).

Nanostructured TiO2-based gas sensors with enhanced sensitivity to reducing gases

PubMed Central

Kusior, Anna; Trenczek-Zajac, Anita

2016-01-01

2D TiO2 thin films and 3D flower-like TiO2-based nanostructures, also decorated with SnO2, were prepared by chemical and thermal oxidation of Ti substrates, respectively. The crystal structure, morphology and gas sensing properties of the TiO2-based sensing materials were investigated. 2D TiO2 thin films crystallized mainly in the form of rutile, while the flower-like 3D nanostructures as anatase. The sensor based on the 2D TiO2 showed the best performance for H2 detection, while the flower-like 3D nanostructures exhibited enhanced selectivity to CO(CH3)2 after sensitization by SnO2 nanoparticles. The sensor response time was of the order of several seconds. Their fast response, high sensitivity to selected gas species, improved selectivity and stability suggest that the SnO2-decorated flower-like 3D nanostructures are a promising material for application as an acetone sensor. PMID:28144521

Copper nanowire-graphene core-shell nanostructure for highly stable transparent conducting electrodes.

PubMed

Ahn, Yumi; Jeong, Youngjun; Lee, Donghwa; Lee, Youngu

2015-03-24

A copper nanowire-graphene (CuNW-G) core-shell nanostructure was successfully synthesized using a low-temperature plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition process at temperatures as low as 400 °C for the first time. The CuNW-G core-shell nanostructure was systematically characterized by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Raman, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements. A transparent conducting electrode (TCE) based on the CuNW-G core-shell nanostructure exhibited excellent optical and electrical properties compared to a conventional indium tin oxide TCE. Moreover, it showed remarkable thermal oxidation and chemical stability because of the tight encapsulation of the CuNW with gas-impermeable graphene shells. The potential suitability of CuNW-G TCE was demonstrated by fabricating bulk heterojunction polymer solar cells. We anticipate that the CuNW-G core-shell nanostructure can be used as an alternative to conventional TCE materials for emerging optoelectronic devices such as flexible solar cells, displays, and touch panels.

Two-dimensional polyaniline nanostructure to the development of microfluidic integrated flexible biosensors for biomarker detection.

PubMed

Liu, Pei; Zhu, Yisi; Lee, Seung Hee; Yun, Minhee

2016-12-01

In this work, we report a flexible field-effect-transistor (FET) biosensor design based on two-dimensional (2-D) polyaniline (PANI) nanostructure. The flexible biosensor devices were fabricated through a facile and inexpensive method that combines top-down and bottom-up processes. The chemically synthesized PANI nanostructure showed excellent p-type semiconductor properties as well as good compatibility with flexible design. With the 2-D PANI nanostructure being as thin as 80 nm and its extremely large surface-area-to-volume (SA/V) ratio due to the intrinsic properties of PANI chemical synthesis, the developed flexible biosensor exhibited outstanding sensing performance in detecting B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) biomarkers, and was able to achieve high specificity (averagely 112 folds) with the limit of detection as low as 100 pg/mL. PANI nanostructure under bending condition was also investigated and showed controllable conductance changes being less than 20% with good restorability which may open up the possibility for wearable applications.

Supercapacitors based on pillared graphene nanostructures.

PubMed

Lin, Jian; Zhong, Jiebin; Bao, Duoduo; Reiber-Kyle, Jennifer; Wang, Wei; Vullev, Valentine; Ozkan, Mihrimah; Ozkan, Cengiz S

2012-03-01

We describe the fabrication of highly conductive and large-area three dimensional pillared graphene nanostructure (PGN) films from assembly of vertically aligned CNT pillars on flexible copper foils for applications in electric double layer capacitors (EDLC). The PGN films synthesized via a one-step chemical vapor deposition process on flexible copper foils exhibit high conductivity with sheet resistance as low as 1.6 ohms per square and possessing high mechanical flexibility. Raman spectroscopy indicates the presence of multi walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) and their morphology can be controlled by the growth conditions. It was discovered that nitric acid treatment can significantly increase the specific capacitance of the devices. EDLC devices based on PGN electrodes (surface area of 565 m2/g) demonstrate enhanced performance with specific capacitance value as high as 330 F/g extracted from the current density-voltage (CV) measurements and energy density value of 45.8 Wh/kg. The hybrid graphene-CNT nanostructures are attractive for applications including supercapacitors, fuel cells and batteries.

Carbon-doped SnS2 nanostructure as a high-efficiency solar fuel catalyst under visible light.

PubMed

Shown, Indrajit; Samireddi, Satyanarayana; Chang, Yu-Chung; Putikam, Raghunath; Chang, Po-Han; Sabbah, Amr; Fu, Fang-Yu; Chen, Wei-Fu; Wu, Chih-I; Yu, Tsyr-Yan; Chung, Po-Wen; Lin, M C; Chen, Li-Chyong; Chen, Kuei-Hsien

2018-01-12

Photocatalytic formation of hydrocarbons using solar energy via artificial photosynthesis is a highly desirable renewable-energy source for replacing conventional fossil fuels. Using an L-cysteine-based hydrothermal process, here we synthesize a carbon-doped SnS 2 (SnS 2 -C) metal dichalcogenide nanostructure, which exhibits a highly active and selective photocatalytic conversion of CO 2 to hydrocarbons under visible-light. The interstitial carbon doping induced microstrain in the SnS 2 lattice, resulting in different photophysical properties as compared with undoped SnS 2 . This SnS 2 -C photocatalyst significantly enhances the CO 2 reduction activity under visible light, attaining a photochemical quantum efficiency of above 0.7%. The SnS 2 -C photocatalyst represents an important contribution towards high quantum efficiency artificial photosynthesis based on gas phase photocatalytic CO 2 reduction under visible light, where the in situ carbon-doped SnS 2 nanostructure improves the stability and the light harvesting and charge separation efficiency, and significantly enhances the photocatalytic activity.

Enhancing pseudocapacitive kinetics of nanostructured MnO2 through anchoring onto biomass-derived porous carbon

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Qiongyu; Chen, Jizhang; Zhou, Yuyang; Song, Chao; Tian, Qinghua; Xu, Junling; Wong, Ching-Ping

2018-05-01

The rational construction of heterostructured electrode materials that deliver superior performances to their individual counterparts offers an attractive strategy for supercapacitors. Herein, we anchor low-crystalline nanostructured MnO2 onto soybean stalk-derived carbon matrix through chemical activation and subsequent hydrothermal reaction. The highly porous and conductive matrix can effectively enhance pseudocapacitive kinetics of nanostructured MnO2. Therefore, the obtained nanocomposite exhibits high specific capacitance (384.9 F g-1 at a current density of 0.5 A g-1), great rate capability (185.0 F g-1 at 20 A g-1), and superior cyclability (90.7% capacitance retention after 5000 cycles). Using this nanocomposite as the positive electrode material, an asymmetric supercapacitor (ASC) is assembled, and achieves high specific energy of 34.2 Wh kg-1 and high specific power of 9.58 kW kg-1. The results of this study demonstrate great potential of combining biomass-derived porous carbon with metal oxides.

High-performance nanostructured supercapacitors on a sponge.

PubMed

Chen, Wei; Rakhi, R B; Hu, Liangbing; Xie, Xing; Cui, Yi; Alshareef, H N

2011-12-14

A simple and scalable method has been developed to fabricate nanostructured MnO2-carbon nanotube (CNT)-sponge hybrid electrodes. A novel supercapacitor, henceforth referred to as "sponge supercapacitor", has been fabricated using these hybrid electrodes with remarkable performance. A specific capacitance of 1,230 F/g (based on the mass of MnO2) can be reached. Capacitors based on CNT-sponge substrates (without MnO2) can be operated even under a high scan rate of 200 V/s, and they exhibit outstanding cycle performance with only 2% degradation after 100,000 cycles under a scan rate of 10 V/s. The MnO2-CNT-sponge supercapacitors show only 4% of degradation after 10,000 cycles at a charge-discharge specific current of 5 A/g. The specific power and energy of the MnO2-CNT-sponge supercapacitors are high with values of 63 kW/kg and 31 Wh/kg, respectively. The attractive performances exhibited by these sponge supercapacitors make them potentially promising candidates for future energy storage systems.

Surface-plasmon resonance-enhanced multiphoton emission of high-brightness electron beams from a nanostructured copper cathode.

PubMed

Li, R K; To, H; Andonian, G; Feng, J; Polyakov, A; Scoby, C M; Thompson, K; Wan, W; Padmore, H A; Musumeci, P

2013-02-15

We experimentally investigate surface-plasmon assisted photoemission to enhance the efficiency of metallic photocathodes for high-brightness electron sources. A nanohole array-based copper surface was designed to exhibit a plasmonic response at 800 nm, fabricated using the focused ion beam milling technique, optically characterized and tested as a photocathode in a high power radio frequency photoinjector. Because of the larger absorption and localization of the optical field intensity, the charge yield observed under ultrashort laser pulse illumination is increased by more than 100 times compared to a flat surface. We also present the first beam characterization results (intrinsic emittance and bunch length) from a nanostructured photocathode.

Synthesis and Characterization of Mimosa Pudica Leaves Shaped α-Iron Oxide Nanostructures for Ethanol Chemical Sensor Applications.

PubMed

Kim, S H; Ibrahim, Ahmed A; Kumar, R; Umar, Ahmad; Abaker, M; Hwang, S W; Baskoutas, S

2016-03-01

Herein, the synthesis of mimosa pudica leaves shaped a-iron oxide (α-Fe2O3) nanostructures is reported through simple and facile hydrothermal process. The prepared α-Fe2O3 nanostructures were characterized in terms of their morphological, structural, compositional and optical properties through a variety of characterization techniques such as FESEM, EDS, XRD, FTIR and Raman spectroscopy. The detailed characterizations revealed the well-crystallinity and dense growth of mimosa pudica leaf shaped α-Fe2O3 nanostructures. Further, the prepared nanomaterials were used as efficient electron mediator to fabricate sensitive ethanol chemical sensor. The fabricated sensor exhibited a high sensitivity of -30.37 μAmM(-1) cm(-2) and low detection limit of -0.62 μM. The observed linear dynamic range (LDR) was in the range from 10 μM-0.625 μM.

Bioinspired periodic pinecone-shaped Si subwavelength nanostructures for broadband and omnidirectional antireflective surface.

PubMed

Leem, Jung Woo; Yu, Jae Su

2012-10-01

We reported the bioinspired periodic pinecone-shaped silicon (Si) subwavelength nanostructures, which were fabricated by laser interference lithography and inductively coupled plasma etching using thermally dewetted gold (Au) nanoparticles in SiCl4 plasma, on Si substrates for broadband and wide-angle antireflective surface. For the fabricated pinecone-like Si subwavelength nanostructures, antireflection characteristics and wetting behaviors were investigated. The pinecone-shaped Si subwavelength nanostructure with a period of 320 nm for 7 nm of Au film exhibited a relatively low solar weighted reflectance value of 3.5% over a wide wavelength range of 300-1030 nm, maintaining the reflectance values of < 9.9% at a wavelength of 550 nm up to a high incident angle of theta(i) = 70 degrees for non-polarized light. This structure also showed a hydrophobic surface with a water contact angle of theta(c) approximately 102 degrees.

Observation of Metal Nanoparticles for Acoustic Manipulation

PubMed Central

Chen, Mian; Cai, Feiyan; Wang, Chen; Wang, Zhiyong; Meng, Long; Li, Fei; Zhang, Pengfei; Liu, Xin

2017-01-01

Use of acoustic trapping for the manipulation of objects is invaluable to many applications from cellular subdivision to biological assays. Despite remarkable progress in a wide size range, the precise acoustic manipulation of 0D nanoparticles where all the structural dimensions are much smaller than the acoustic wavelength is still present challenges. This study reports on the observation of metal nanoparticles with different nanostructures for acoustic manipulation. Results for the first time exhibit that the hollow nanostructures play more important factor than size in the nanoscale acoustic manipulation. The acoustic levitation and swarm aggregations of the metal nanoparticles can be easily realized at low energy and clinically acceptable acoustic frequency by hollowing their nanostructures. In addition, the behaviors of swarm aggregations can be flexibly regulated by the applied voltage and frequency. This study anticipates that the strategy based on the unique properties of the metal hollow nanostructures and the manipulation method will be highly desirable for many applications. PMID:28546912

Observation of Metal Nanoparticles for Acoustic Manipulation.

PubMed

Chen, Mian; Cai, Feiyan; Wang, Chen; Wang, Zhiyong; Meng, Long; Li, Fei; Zhang, Pengfei; Liu, Xin; Zheng, Hairong

2017-05-01

Use of acoustic trapping for the manipulation of objects is invaluable to many applications from cellular subdivision to biological assays. Despite remarkable progress in a wide size range, the precise acoustic manipulation of 0D nanoparticles where all the structural dimensions are much smaller than the acoustic wavelength is still present challenges. This study reports on the observation of metal nanoparticles with different nanostructures for acoustic manipulation. Results for the first time exhibit that the hollow nanostructures play more important factor than size in the nanoscale acoustic manipulation. The acoustic levitation and swarm aggregations of the metal nanoparticles can be easily realized at low energy and clinically acceptable acoustic frequency by hollowing their nanostructures. In addition, the behaviors of swarm aggregations can be flexibly regulated by the applied voltage and frequency. This study anticipates that the strategy based on the unique properties of the metal hollow nanostructures and the manipulation method will be highly desirable for many applications.

Template-free synthesis of cube-like Ag/AgCl nanostructures via a direct-precipitation protocol: highly efficient sunlight-driven plasmonic photocatalysts.

PubMed

Zhu, Mingshan; Chen, Penglei; Ma, Wanhong; Lei, Bin; Liu, Minghua

2012-11-01

In this paper, we report that cube-like Ag/AgCl nanostructures could be facilely fabricated in a one-pot manner through a direct-precipitation protocol under ambient conditions, wherein no additional issues such as external energy (e.g., high temperature or high pressure), surfactants, or reducing agents are required. In terms of using sodium chloride (NaCl) as chlorine source and silver acetate (CH₃COOAg) as silver source, it is disclosed that simply by adding an aqueous solution of NaCl into an aqueous solution of CH₃COOAg, Ag/AgCl nanostructures with a cube-like geometry, could be successfully formulated. We show that thus-formulated cube-like Ag/AgCl nanospecies could be used as high-performance yet durable visible-light-driven or sunlight-driven plasmonic photocatalysts for the photodegradation of methyl orange (MO) and 4-chlorophenol (4-CP) pollutants. Compared with the commercially available P25-TiO₂, and the Ag/AgCl nanospheres previously fabricated via a surfactant-assisted method, our current cube-like Ag/AgCl nanostructures could exhibit much higher photocatalytic performance. Our template free protocol might open up new and varied opportunities for an easy synthesis of cube-like Ag/AgCl-based high-performance sunlight-driven plasmonic photocatalysts for organic pollutant elimination.

New directions for nanoscale thermoelectric materials research

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dresselhaus, M. S.; Chen, G.; Tang, M. Y.; Yang, R. G.; Lee, H.; Wang, D. Z.; Ren, F.; Fleurial, J. P.; Gogna, P.

2005-01-01

Many of the recent advances in enhancing the thermoelectric figure of merit are linked to nanoscale phenomena with both bulk samples containing nanoscale constituents and nanoscale materials exhibiting enhanced thermoelectric performance in their own right. Prior theoretical and experimental proof of principle studies on isolated quantum well and quantum wire samples have now evolved into studies on bulk samples containing nanostructured constituents. In this review, nanostructural composites are shown to exhibit nanostructures and properties that show promise for thermoelectric applications. A review of some of the results obtained to date are presented.

Nanostructured Metal Oxides for Stoichiometric Degradation of Chemical Warfare Agents.

PubMed

Štengl, Václav; Henych, Jiří; Janoš, Pavel; Skoumal, Miroslav

2016-01-01

Metal oxides have very important applications in many areas of chemistry, physics and materials science; their properties are dependent on the method of preparation, the morphology and texture. Nanostructured metal oxides can exhibit unique characteristics unlike those of the bulk form depending on their morphology, with a high density of edges, corners and defect surfaces. In recent years, methods have been developed for the preparation of metal oxide powders with tunable control of the primary particle size as well as of a secondary particle size: the size of agglomerates of crystallites. One of the many ways to take advantage of unique properties of nanostructured oxide materials is stoichiometric degradation of chemical warfare agents (CWAs) and volatile organic compounds (VOC) pollutants on their surfaces.

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering from silver nanostructures with different morphologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, W. C.; Wu, X. L.; Kan, C. X.; Pan, F. M.; Chen, H. T.; Zhu, J.; Chu, Paul K.

2010-07-01

Scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction reveal that four different types of crystalline silver nanostructures including nanoparticles, nanowires, nanocubes, and bipyramids are synthesized by a solvothermal method by reducing silver nitrate with ethylene glycol using poly(vinylpyrrolidone) as an adsorption agent and adding different quantities of sodium chloride to the solution. These nanostructures which exhibit different surface plasma resonance properties in the ultraviolet-visible region are shown to be good surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrates using rhodamine 6G molecules. Our results demonstrate that the silver nanocubes, bipyramids with sharp corners and edges, and aggregated silver nanoparticles possess better SERS properties than the silver nanowires, indicating that they can serve as high-sensitivity substrates in SERS-based measurements.

Thickness-modulated tungsten-carbon superconducting nanostructures grown by focused ion beam induced deposition for vortex pinning up to high magnetic fields.

PubMed

Serrano, Ismael García; Sesé, Javier; Guillamón, Isabel; Suderow, Hermann; Vieira, Sebastián; Ibarra, Manuel Ricardo; De Teresa, José María

2016-01-01

We report efficient vortex pinning in thickness-modulated tungsten-carbon-based (W-C) nanostructures grown by focused ion beam induced deposition (FIBID). By using FIBID, W-C superconducting films have been created with thickness modulation properties exhibiting periodicity from 60 to 140 nm, leading to a strong pinning potential for the vortex lattice. This produces local minima in the resistivity up to high magnetic fields (2.2 T) in a broad temperature range due to commensurability effects between the pinning potential and the vortex lattice. The results show that the combination of single-step FIBID fabrication of superconducting nanostructures with built-in artificial pinning landscapes and the small intrinsic random pinning potential of this material produces strong periodic pinning potentials, maximizing the opportunities for the investigation of fundamental aspects in vortex science under changing external stimuli (e.g., temperature, magnetic field, electrical current).

Self-assembling graphene-anthraquinone-2-sulphonate supramolecular nanostructures with enhanced energy density for supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gao, Lifang; Gan, Shiyu; Li, Hongyan; Han, Dongxue; Li, Fenghua; Bao, Yu; Niu, Li

2017-07-01

Boosting the energy density of capacitive energy storage devices remains a crucial issue for facilitating applications. Herein, we report a graphene-anthraquinone supramolecular nanostructure by self-assembly for supercapacitors. The sulfonated anthraquinone exhibits high water solubility, a π-conjugated structure and redox active features, which not only serve as a spacer to interact with and stabilize graphene but also introduce extra pseudocapacitance contributions. The formed nest-like three-dimensional (3D) nanostructure with further hydrothermal treatment enhances the accessibility of ion transfer and exposes the redox-active quinone groups in the electrolytes. A fabricated all-solid-state flexible symmetric device delivers a high specific capacitance of 398.5 F g-1 at 1 A g-1 (1.5 times higher than graphene), superior energy density (52.24 Wh kg-1 at about 1 kW kg-1) and good stability (82% capacitance retention after 10 000 cycles).

3D porous and ultralight carbon hybrid nanostructure fabricated from carbon foam covered by monolayer of nitrogen-doped carbon nanotubes for high performance supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

He, Shuijian; Hou, Haoqing; Chen, Wei

2015-04-01

3D porous and self-supported carbon hybrids are promising electrode materials for supercapacitor application attributed to their prominent properties such as binder-free electrode fabrication process, excellent electric conductivity and high power density etc. We present here a facile chemical vapor deposition method to fabricate a novel 3D flexible carbon hybrid nanostructure by growing a monolayer of nitrogen-doped carbon nanotubes on the skeleton of carbon foam (N-CNTs/CF) with Fe nanoparticle as catalyst. With such 3D porous, flexible and ultralight carbon nanostructure as binder-free electrode material, large surface area is available and fast ionic transport is facilitated. Moreover, the carbon-based network can provide excellent electronic conductivity. The electrochemical studies demonstrate that the supercapacitor constructed from the N-CNTs/CF hybrid exhibit high power density of 69.3 kW kg-1 and good stability with capacitance retention ration above 95% after cycled at 50 A g-1 for 5000 cycles. Therefore, the prepared porous N-CNTs/CF nanostructure is expected to be a type of excellent electrode material for electrical double layer capacitors.

Enhanced Ethanol Gas Sensing Properties of SnO2-Core/ZnO-Shell Nanostructures

PubMed Central

Tharsika, T.; Haseeb, A. S. M. A.; Akbar, Sheikh A.; Sabri, Mohd Faizul Mohd; Hoong, Wong Yew

2014-01-01

An inexpensive single-step carbon-assisted thermal evaporation method for the growth of SnO2-core/ZnO-shell nanostructures is described, and the ethanol sensing properties are presented. The structure and phases of the grown nanostructures are investigated by field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques. XRD analysis indicates that the core-shell nanostructures have good crystallinity. At a lower growth duration of 15 min, only SnO2 nanowires with a rectangular cross-section are observed, while the ZnO shell is observed when the growth time is increased to 30 min. Core-shell hierarchical nanostructures are present for a growth time exceeding 60 min. The growth mechanism for SnO2-core/ZnO-shell nanowires and hierarchical nanostructures are also discussed. The sensitivity of the synthesized SnO2-core/ZnO-shell nanostructures towards ethanol sensing is investigated. Results show that the SnO2-core/ZnO-shell nanostructures deposited at 90 min exhibit enhanced sensitivity to ethanol. The sensitivity of SnO2-core/ZnO-shell nanostructures towards 20 ppm ethanol gas at 400 °C is about ∼5-times that of SnO2 nanowires. This improvement in ethanol gas response is attributed to high active sensing sites and the synergistic effect of the encapsulation of SnO2 by ZnO nanostructures. PMID:25116903

Controllable synthesis and electrochemical hydrogen storage properties of Sb₂Se₃ ultralong nanobelts with urchin-like structures.

PubMed

Jin, Rencheng; Chen, Gang; Pei, Jian; Sun, Jingxue; Wang, Yang

2011-09-01

The controlled synthesis of one-dimensional and three-dimensional Sb(2)Se(3) nanostructures has been achieved by a facile solvothermal process in the presence of citric acid. By simply controlling the concentration of citric acid, the nucleation, growth direction and exposed facet can be readily tuned, which brings the different morphologies and nanostructures to the final products. The as-prepared products have been characterized by means of X-ray diffraction, field-emission scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), high-resolution TEM and selected area electron diffraction. Based on the electron microscope observations, a possible growth mechanism of Sb(2)Se(3) with distinctive morphologies including ultralong nanobelts, hierarchical urchin-like nanostructures is proposed and discussed in detail. The electrochemical hydrogen storage measurements reveal that the morphology plays a key role on the hydrogen storage capacity of Sb(2)Se(3) nanostructures. The Sb(2)Se(3) ultralong nanobelts with high percentage of {-111} facets exhibit higher hydrogen storage capacity (228.5 mA h g(-1)) and better cycle stability at room temperature.

High-harmonic generation by field enhanced femtosecond pulses in metal-sapphire nanostructure

PubMed Central

Han, Seunghwoi; Kim, Hyunwoong; Kim, Yong Woo; Kim, Young-Jin; Kim, Seungchul; Park, In-Yong; Kim, Seung-Woo

2016-01-01

Plasmonic high-harmonic generation (HHG) drew attention as a means of producing coherent extreme ultraviolet (EUV) radiation by taking advantage of field enhancement occurring in metallic nanostructures. Here a metal-sapphire nanostructure is devised to provide a solid tip as the HHG emitter, replacing commonly used gaseous atoms. The fabricated solid tip is made of monocrystalline sapphire surrounded by a gold thin-film layer, and intended to produce EUV harmonics by the inter- and intra-band oscillations of electrons driven by the incident laser. The metal-sapphire nanostructure enhances the incident laser field by means of surface plasmon polaritons, triggering HHG directly from moderate femtosecond pulses of ∼0.1 TW cm−2 intensities. The measured EUV spectra exhibit odd-order harmonics up to ∼60 nm wavelengths without the plasma atomic lines typically seen when using gaseous atoms as the HHG emitter. This experimental outcome confirms that the plasmonic HHG approach is a promising way to realize coherent EUV sources for nano-scale near-field applications in spectroscopy, microscopy, lithography and atto-second physics. PMID:27721374

Electron-Beam-Lithographed Nanostructures as Reference Materials for Label-Free Scattered-Light Biosensing of Single Filoviruses.

PubMed

Agrawal, Anant; Majdi, Joseph; Clouse, Kathleen A; Stantchev, Tzanko

2018-05-23

Optical biosensors based on scattered-light measurements are being developed for rapid and label-free detection of single virions captured from body fluids. Highly controlled, stable, and non-biohazardous reference materials producing virus-like signals are valuable tools to calibrate, evaluate, and refine the performance of these new optical biosensing methods. To date, spherical polymer nanoparticles have been the only non-biological reference materials employed with scattered-light biosensing techniques. However, pathogens like filoviruses, including the Ebola virus, are far from spherical and their shape strongly affects scattered-light signals. Using electron beam lithography, we fabricated nanostructures resembling individual filamentous virions attached to a biosensing substrate (silicon wafer overlaid with silicon oxide film) and characterized their dimensions with scanning electron and atomic force microscopes. To assess the relevance of these nanostructures, we compared their signals across the visible spectrum to signals recorded from Ebola virus-like particles which exhibit characteristic filamentous morphology. We demonstrate the highly stable nature of our nanostructures and use them to obtain new insights into the relationship between virion dimensions and scattered-light signal.

Probing of O2 vacancy defects and correlated magnetic, electrical and photoresponse properties in indium-tin oxide nanostructures by spectroscopic techniques

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ghosh, Shyamsundar; Dev, Bhupendra Nath

2018-05-01

Indium-tin oxide (ITO) 1D nanostructures with tunable morphologies i.e. nanorods, nanocombs and nanowires are grown on c-axis (0 0 0 1) sapphire (Al2O3) substrate in oxygen deficient atmosphere through pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique and the effect of oxygen vacancies on optical, electrical, magnetic and photoresponse properties is investigated using spectroscopic methods. ITO nanostructures are found to be enriched with significant oxygen vacancy defects as evident from X-ray photoelectron and Raman spectroscopic analysis. Photoluminescence spectra exhibited intense mid-band blue emission at wavelength of region of 400-450 nm due to the electronic transition from conduction band maxima (CBM) to the singly ionized oxygen-vacancy (VO+) defect level within the band-gap. Interestingly, ITO nanostructures exhibited significant room-temperature ferromagnetism (RTFM) and the magnetic moment found proportional to concentration of VO+ defects which indicates VO+ defects are mainly responsible for the observed RTFM in nanostructures. ITO nanowires being enriched with more VO+ defects exhibited strongest RTFM as compared to other morphologies. Current voltage (I-V) characteristics of ITO nanostructures showed an enhancement of current under UV light as compared to dark which indicates such 1D nanostructure can be used as photovoltaic material. Hence, the study shows that there is ample opportunity to tailor the properties of ITOs through proper defect engineering's and such photosensitive ferromagnetic semiconductors might be promising for spintronic and photovoltaic applications.

Nano-structured wild moth cocoon fibers as radiative cooling and waveguiding optical materials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shi, Norman Nan; Tsai, Cheng-Chia; Bernard, Gary D.; Craig, Catherine; Yu, Nanfang

2017-09-01

The study shows that comet moth cocoon fibers exhibit radiative cooing properties with enhanced solar reflectivity and thermal emissivity. Nanostructured voids inside the cocoon fiber enables the cocoons to exhibit strong scattering in the visible and near-infrared. These structures also allow the fibers to exhibit strong shape birefringence and directional reflectivity. Optical waveguiding due to transverse Anderson localization is observed in these natural fibers, where the invariance and large concentration of the voids in the longitudinal direction allow the fiber to confine light in the transverse direction. To mimic the optical effects generated by these natural silk fibers, nanostructured voids are introduced into regenerated silk fibers through wet spinning to enhance reflectivity in the solar spectrum.

Facile preparation and enhanced capacitance of the polyaniline/sodium alginate nanofiber network for supercapacitors.

PubMed

Li, Yingzhi; Zhao, Xin; Xu, Qian; Zhang, Qinghua; Chen, Dajun

2011-05-17

A porous and mat-like polyaniline/sodium alginate (PANI/SA) composite with excellent electrochemical properties was polymerized in an aqueous solution with sodium sulfate as a template. Ultraviolet-visible spectra, X-ray diffraction pattern, and Fourier transform infrared spectra were employed to characterize the PANI/SA composite, indicating that the PANI/SA composite was successfully prepared. The PANI/SA nanofibers with uniform diameters from 50 to 100 nm can be observed on scanning electron microscopy. Cyclic voltammetry and galvanostatic charge/discharge tests were carried out to investigate the electrochemical properties. The PANI/SA nanostructure electrode exhibits an excellent specific capacitance as high as 2093 F g(-1), long cycle life, and fast reflect of oxidation/reduction on high current changes. The remarkable electrochemical characteristic is attributed to the nanostructured electrode materials, which generates a high electrode/electrolyte contact area and short path lengths for electronic transport and electrolyte ion. The approach is simple and can be easily extended to fabricate nanostructural composites for supercapacitor electrode materials.

Nanostructured light-absorbing crystalline CuIn(1-x)GaxSe2 thin films grown through high flux, low energy ion irradiation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hall, Allen J.; Hebert, Damon; Shah, Amish B.; Bettge, Martin; Rockett, Angus A.

2013-10-01

A hybrid effusion/sputtering vacuum system was modified with an inductively coupled plasma (ICP) coil enabling ion assisted physical vapor deposition of CuIn1-xGaxSe2 thin films on GaAs single crystals and stainless steel foils. With <80 W rf power to the ICP coil at 620-740 °C, film morphologies were unchanged compared to those grown without the ICP. At low temperature (600-670 °C) and high rf power (80-400 W), a light absorbing nanostructured highly anisotropic platelet morphology was produced with surface planes dominated by {112}T facets. At 80-400 W rf power and 640-740 °C, both interconnected void and small platelet morphologies were observed while at >270 W and above >715 °C nanostructured pillars with large inter-pillar voids were produced. The latter appeared black and exhibited a strong {112}T texture with interpillar twist angles of ±8°. Application of a negative dc bias of 0-50 V to the film during growth was not found to alter the film morphology or stoichiometry. The results are interpreted as resulting from the plasma causing strong etching favoring formation of {112}T planes and preferential nucleation of new grains, balanced against conventional thermal diffusion and normal growth mechanisms at higher temperatures. The absence of effects due to applied substrate bias suggests that physical sputtering or ion bombardment effects were minimal. The nanostructured platelet and pillar films were found to exhibit less than one percent reflectivity at angles up to 75° from the surface normal.

Tailoring Co(OH)2 hollow nanostructures via Cu2O template etching for high performance supercapacitors.

PubMed

Yang, Huan; Xie, Jiale; Bao, Shu juan; Li, Chang Ming

2015-11-01

Co(OH)2 hollow nanostructures including cube, octahedron and flower are delicately tailored via a simple and fast one-step Cu2O template etching method. The as-prepared materials were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), N2 adsorption-desorption and electrochemical methods and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). In particular, the supercapacitive behaviors of the as-prepared materials were investigated to explore relation of capacitance versus nanostructure. Results indicate that the as-prepared Co(OH)2 samples inherit the size and shape of the Cu2O templates but with an inside hollow, and the differently nanostructured Co(OH)2 exhibits different capacitive behaviors. Among various morphologies, the flower Co(OH)2 has the largest specific capacitance of 1350 F/g, while octahedron Co(OH)2 has the smallest one of 986.4 F/g. This is mainly because the flower Co(OH)2 not only has the largest available surface area, but also offers the fast interfacial electron transfer for higher pseudocapacitance and enhanced electrolyte ion diffusion rate for high power density, which is supported by both theoretical calculation, measured BET data and ac impedance measurements. This work may provide a vivid example to rationally design a nanostructure and further explore its fundamental insights for high performance supercapacitors. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A continuum state variable theory to model the size-dependent surface energy of nanostructures.

PubMed

Jamshidian, Mostafa; Thamburaja, Prakash; Rabczuk, Timon

2015-10-14

We propose a continuum-based state variable theory to quantify the excess surface free energy density throughout a nanostructure. The size-dependent effect exhibited by nanoplates and spherical nanoparticles i.e. the reduction of surface energy with reducing nanostructure size is well-captured by our continuum state variable theory. Our constitutive theory is also able to predict the reducing energetic difference between the surface and interior (bulk) portions of a nanostructure with decreasing nanostructure size.

Facile synthesis of hierarchical mesoporous weirds-like morphological MnO2 thin films on carbon cloth for high performance supercapacitor application.

PubMed

Shinde, Pragati A; Lokhande, Vaibhav C; Ji, Taeksoo; Lokhande, Chandrakant D

2017-07-15

The mesoporous nanostructured metal oxides have a lot of capabilities to upsurge the energy storing capacity of the supercapacitor. In present work, different nanostructured morphologies of MnO 2 have been successfully fabricated on flexible carbon cloth by simple but capable hydrothermal method at different deposition temperatures. The deposition temperature has strong influence on reaction kinetics, which subsequently alters the morphology and electrochemical performance. Among different nanostructured MnO 2 thin films, the mesoporous weirds composed thin film obtained at temperature of 453K exhibits excellent physical and electrochemical features for supercapacitor application. The weirds composed MnO 2 thin film exhibits specific surface area of 109m 2 g -1 , high specific capacitance of 595Fg -1 with areal capacitance of 4.16Fcm -2 at a scan rate of 5mVs -1 and high specific energy of 56.32Whkg -1 . In addition to this, MnO 2 weirds attain capacity retention of 87 % over 2000 CV cycles, representing better cycling stability. The enhanced electrochemical performance could be ascribed to direct growth of highly porous MnO 2 weirds on carbon cloth which provide more pathways for easy diffusion of electrolyte into the interior of electroactive material. The as-fabricated electrode with improved performance could be ascribed as a potential electrode material for energy storage devices. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Investigations on diamond nanostructuring of different morphologies by the reactive-ion etching process and their potential applications.

PubMed

Kunuku, Srinivasu; Sankaran, Kamatchi Jothiramalingam; Tsai, Cheng-Yen; Chang, Wen-Hao; Tai, Nyan-Hwa; Leou, Keh-Chyang; Lin, I-Nan

2013-08-14

We report the systematic studies on the fabrication of aligned, uniform, and highly dense diamond nanostructures from diamond films of various granular structures. Self-assembled Au nanodots are used as a mask in the self-biased reactive-ion etching (RIE) process, using an O2/CF4 process plasma. The morphology of diamond nanostructures is a close function of the initial phase composition of diamond. Cone-shaped and tip-shaped diamond nanostructures result for microcrystalline diamond (MCD) and nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) films, whereas pillarlike and grasslike diamond nanostructures are obtained for Ar-plasma-based and N2-plasma-based ultrananocrystalline diamond (UNCD) films, respectively. While the nitrogen-incorporated UNCD (N-UNCD) nanograss shows the most-superior electron-field-emission properties, the NCD nanotips exhibit the best photoluminescence properties, viz, different applications need different morphology of diamond nanostructures to optimize the respective characteristics. The optimum diamond nanostructure can be achieved by proper choice of granular structure of the initial diamond film. The etching mechanism is explained by in situ observation of optical emission spectrum of RIE plasma. The preferential etching of sp(2)-bonded carbon contained in the diamond films is the prime factor, which forms the unique diamond nanostructures from each type of diamond films. However, the excited oxygen atoms (O*) are the main etching species of diamond film.

Flower-like hydrogenated TiO2(B) nanostructures as anode materials for high-performance lithium ion batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Zhonghua; Zhou, Zhenfang; Nie, Sen; Wang, Honghu; Peng, Hongrui; Li, Guicun; Chen, Kezheng

2014-12-01

Flower-like hydrogenated TiO2(B) nanostructures have been synthesized via a facile solvothermal approach combined with hydrogenation treatment. The obtained TiO2(B) nanostructures show uniform and hierarchical flower-like morphology with a diameter of 124 ± 5 nm, which are further constructed by primary nanosheets with a thickness of 10 ± 1.2 nm. The Ti3+ species and/or oxygen vacancies are well introduced into the structures of TiO2(B) after hydrogen reduction, resulting in an enhancement in the electronic conductivity (up to 2.79 × 10-3 S cm-1) and the modified surface electrochemical activity. When evaluated for lithium storage capacity, the hydrogenated TiO2(B) nanostructures exhibit enhanced electrochemical energy storage performances compared to the pristine TiO2(B) nanostructures, including high capacity (292.3 mA h g-1 at 0.5C), excellent rate capability (179.6 mA h g-1 at 10C), and good cyclic stability (98.4% capacity retention after 200 cycles at 10C). The reasons for these improvements are explored in terms of the increased electronic conductivity and the facilitation of lithium ion transport arising from the introduction of oxygen vacancies and the unique flower-like morphologies.

Aqueous Black Colloids of Reticular Nanostructured Gold

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stanca, S. E.; Fritzsche, W.; Dellith, J.; Froehlich, F.; Undisz, A.; Deckert, V.; Krafft, C.; Popp, J.

2015-01-01

Since ancient times, noble gold has continuously contributed to several aspects of life from medicine to electronics. It perpetually reveals its new features. We report the finding of a unique form of gold, reticular nanostructured gold (RNG), as an aqueous black colloid, for which we present a one-step synthesis. The reticules consist of gold crystals that interconnect to form compact strands. RNG exhibits high conductivity and low reflection, and these features, coupled with the high specific surface area of the material, could prove valuable for applications in electronics and catalysis. Due to high absorption throughout the visible and infrared domain, RNG has the potential to be applied in the construction of sensitive solar cells or as a substrate for Raman spectroscopy.

Ultralight, scalable, and high-temperature-resilient ceramic nanofiber sponges.

PubMed

Wang, Haolun; Zhang, Xuan; Wang, Ning; Li, Yan; Feng, Xue; Huang, Ya; Zhao, Chunsong; Liu, Zhenglian; Fang, Minghao; Ou, Gang; Gao, Huajian; Li, Xiaoyan; Wu, Hui

2017-06-01

Ultralight and resilient porous nanostructures have been fabricated in various material forms, including carbon, polymers, and metals. However, the development of ultralight and high-temperature resilient structures still remains extremely challenging. Ceramics exhibit good mechanical and chemical stability at high temperatures, but their brittleness and sensitivity to flaws significantly complicate the fabrication of resilient porous ceramic nanostructures. We report the manufacturing of large-scale, lightweight, high-temperature resilient, three-dimensional sponges based on a variety of oxide ceramic (for example, TiO 2 , ZrO 2 , yttria-stabilized ZrO 2 , and BaTiO 3 ) nanofibers through an efficient solution blow-spinning process. The ceramic sponges consist of numerous tangled ceramic nanofibers, with densities varying from 8 to 40 mg/cm 3 . In situ uniaxial compression in a scanning electron microscope showed that the TiO 2 nanofiber sponge exhibits high energy absorption (for example, dissipation of up to 29.6 mJ/cm 3 in energy density at 50% strain) and recovers rapidly after compression in excess of 20% strain at both room temperature and 400°C. The sponge exhibits excellent resilience with residual strains of only ~1% at 800°C after 10 cycles of 10% compression strain and maintains good recoverability after compression at ~1300°C. We show that ceramic nanofiber sponges can serve multiple functions, such as elasticity-dependent electrical resistance, photocatalytic activity, and thermal insulation.

Ultralight, scalable, and high-temperature–resilient ceramic nanofiber sponges

PubMed Central

Wang, Haolun; Zhang, Xuan; Wang, Ning; Li, Yan; Feng, Xue; Huang, Ya; Zhao, Chunsong; Liu, Zhenglian; Fang, Minghao; Ou, Gang; Gao, Huajian; Li, Xiaoyan; Wu, Hui

2017-01-01

Ultralight and resilient porous nanostructures have been fabricated in various material forms, including carbon, polymers, and metals. However, the development of ultralight and high-temperature resilient structures still remains extremely challenging. Ceramics exhibit good mechanical and chemical stability at high temperatures, but their brittleness and sensitivity to flaws significantly complicate the fabrication of resilient porous ceramic nanostructures. We report the manufacturing of large-scale, lightweight, high-temperature resilient, three-dimensional sponges based on a variety of oxide ceramic (for example, TiO2, ZrO2, yttria-stabilized ZrO2, and BaTiO3) nanofibers through an efficient solution blow-spinning process. The ceramic sponges consist of numerous tangled ceramic nanofibers, with densities varying from 8 to 40 mg/cm3. In situ uniaxial compression in a scanning electron microscope showed that the TiO2 nanofiber sponge exhibits high energy absorption (for example, dissipation of up to 29.6 mJ/cm3 in energy density at 50% strain) and recovers rapidly after compression in excess of 20% strain at both room temperature and 400°C. The sponge exhibits excellent resilience with residual strains of only ~1% at 800°C after 10 cycles of 10% compression strain and maintains good recoverability after compression at ~1300°C. We show that ceramic nanofiber sponges can serve multiple functions, such as elasticity-dependent electrical resistance, photocatalytic activity, and thermal insulation. PMID:28630915

Plasmonic metamaterials with tuneable optical properties

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zayats, Anatoly

2008-03-01

Negative refraction in metamaterials has recently attracted significant attention due to its possible numerous applications in high-resolution imaging and photolithography with the so-called ``perfect lenses,'' for electromagnetic shielding (invisibility cloak), optical signal manipulation, etc. Among various realizations of negative index materials, plasmonic nanostructures play a prominent role as they allow negative refraction properties to be engineered in the visible and near infrared spectral ranges. The coupling of light to plasmonic modes, that are collective electronic excitations in metallic nanostructures, provides the possibility to confine the electromagnetic field on the sub-wavelength scale and manipulate it with high precision to achieve the desired mode dispersion and, thus, reflection, absorption and transmission properties of the nanostructures. In this talk we will discuss various pathways to control dispersion of the electromagnetic waves in plasmonic metamaterials, including plasmon polaritonic crystals and plasmonic nanorod arrays, and the approaches to active tuneability of their optical properties using optical and electric control signals. Both approaches take advantage of the very high sensitivity of surface plasmon mode dispersion on the refractive index of the dielectric adjacent to metallic nanostructure. Hybridization of plasmonic nanostructures with molecular species exhibiting nonlinear optical response allows the development of metamaterials with high effective nonlinear susceptibility due to the electromagnetic field enhancement related to plasmonic excitations. Signal and control light are then coupled to plasmonic modes that strongly interact via nonlinearity introduced by the hybridization. Concurrently, the use of electro-optically active dielectrics incorporated into plasmonic nanostructures provides the route to control optical signals electronically. Plasmonic metamaterials with tuneable optical properties can be used to control negative refraction and electromagnetic field propagation in various applications in nanophotonics, optoelectronics and optical communications.

A comparative study on omnidirectional anti-reflection SiO2 nanostructure films coating by glancing angle deposition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prachachet, R.; Samransuksamer, B.; Horprathum, M.; Eiamchai, P.; Limwichean, S.; Chananonnawathorn, C.; Lertvanithphol, T.; Muthitamongkol, P.; Boonruang, S.; Buranasiri, P.

2018-02-01

Fabricated omnidirectional anti-reflection nanostructure films as a one of the promising alternative solar cell applications have attracted enormous scientific and industrial research benefits to their broadband, effective over a wide range of incident angles, lithography-free and high-throughput process. Recently, the nanostructure SiO2 film was the most inclusive study on anti-reflection with omnidirectional and broadband characteristics. In this work, the three-dimensional silicon dioxide (SiO2) nanostructured thin film with different morphologies including vertical align, slant, spiral and thin films were fabricated by electron beam evaporation with glancing angle deposition (GLAD) on the glass slide and silicon wafer substrate. The morphological of the prepared samples were characterized by field-emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) and high-resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM). The transmission, omnidirectional and birefringence property of the nanostructure SiO2 films were investigated by UV-Vis-NIR spectrophotometer and variable angle spectroscopic ellipsometer (VASE). The spectrophotometer measurement was performed at normal incident angle and a full spectral range of 200 - 2000 nm. The angle dependent transmission measurements were investigated by rotating the specimen, with incidence angle defined relative to the surface normal of the prepared samples. This study demonstrates that the obtained SiO2 nanostructure film coated on glass slide substrate exhibits a higher transmission was 93% at normal incident angle. In addition, transmission measurement in visible wavelength and wide incident angles -80 to 80 were increased in comparison with the SiO2 thin film and glass slide substrate due to the transition in the refractive index profile from air to the nanostructure layer that improve the antireflection characteristics. The results clearly showed the enhanced omnidirectional and broadband characteristic of the three dimensional SiO2 nanostructure film coating.

Self-organization of a tetrasubstituted tetrathiafulvalene (TTF) in a silica based hybrid organic-inorganic material.

PubMed

Cerveau, Geneviève; Corriu, Robert J P; Lerouge, Frédéric; Bellec, Nathalie; Lorcy, Dominique; Nobili, Maurizio

2004-02-21

A hybrid organic inorganic nanostructured material containing a TTF core substituted by four arms exhibited a high level of both condensation at silicon (96%) and self-organization as evidenced by X-ray diffraction and an unprecedented birefringent behaviour.

Bacterium Escherichia coli- and phage P22-templated synthesis of semiconductor nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shen, Liming

The properties of inorganic materials in the nanoscale are found to be size- and shape-dependent due to quantum confinement effects, and thereby nanomaterials possess properties very different from those of single molecules as well as those of bulk materials. Assembling monodispersed nanoparticles into highly ordered hierarchical architectures is expected to generate novel collective properties for potential applications in catalysis, energy, biomedicine, etc. The major challenge in the assembly of nanoparticles lies in the development of controllable synthetic strategies that enable the growth and assembly of nanoparticles with high selectivity and good controllability. Biological matter possesses robust and precisely ordered structures that exist in a large variety of shapes and sizes, providing an ideal platform for synthesizing high-performance nanostructures. The primary goal of this thesis work has been to develop rational synthetic strategies for high-performance nanostructured materials using biological templates, which are difficult to achieve through traditional chemical synthetic methods. These approaches can serve as general bio-inspired approaches for synthesizing nanoparticle assemblies with desired components and architectures. CdS- and TiO2-binding peptides have been identified using phage display biopanning technique and the mechanism behind the specific affinity between the selected peptides and inorganic substrates are analyzed. The ZnS- and CdS-binding peptides, identified by the phage display biopanning, are utilized for the selective nucleation and growth of sulfides over self-assembled genetically engineered P22 coat proteins, resulting in ordered nanostructures of sulfide nanocrystal assemblies. The synthetic strategy can be extended to the fabrication of a variety of other nanostructures. A simple sonochemical route for the synthesis and assembly of CdS nanostructures with high yield under ambient conditions has been developed by exploiting the chemical characteristics and structure of permeabilized E. coli bacteria. The crystal phase, morphology, micro/nanostructure, optical absorption, and photocatalytic properties of the CdS nanostructures are tailored over a wide range by merely changing the synthetic conditions. Photoanodes fabricated using the nanoporous hollow CdS microrods exhibit excellent performance for the photocatalytic hydrogen production. This facile approach has been extended to the synthesis and assembly of other semiconducting sulfides, including PbS, ZnS, and HgS.

Enhancing figure-of-merit of n-type Bi2Te3-xSex

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yan, Xiao; Yang, Jian; Ma, Yi; Poudel, Bed; Lan, Yucheng; Wang, Dezhi; Ren, Zhifeng; Hao, Qing; Chen, Gang

2008-03-01

Themoelectric materials with high dimensionless figure-of-merit (ZT) are greatly demanded in energy industry, among which bismuth telluride (Bi2Te3) exhibits decent ZT around room temperature. However, thermal conductivity of Bi2Te3 is still high which limits its wider use for low temperature cooling devices. Here we investigate nanostructured bulk n-type Bi2Te3-xSex by reducing the thermal conductivity via increased phonon scattering of the significantly increased grain boundaries due to nano size grains. We first make alloyed nanopowders by mechanical alloying a mixture of elements with the right ratio and then 100% nanostructured samples by hot press.

Nanostructured Gas Sensors for Health Care: An Overview

PubMed Central

Kaushik, Ajeet; Kumar, Rajesh; Jayant, Rahul Dev; Nair, Madhavan

2015-01-01

Nanostructured platforms have been utilized for fabrication of small, sensitive and reliable gas sensing devices owing to high functionality, enhanced charge transport and electro-catalytic property. As a result of globalization, rapid, sensitive and selective detection of gases in environment is essential for health care and security. Nonmaterial such as metal, metal oxides, organic polymers, and organic-inorganic hybrid nanocomposites exhibit interesting optical, electrical, magnetic and molecular properties, and hence are found potential gas sensing materials. Morphological, electrical, and optical properties of such nanostructures can be tailored via controlling the precursor concentration and synthesis conditions resulting to achieve desired sensing. This review presents applications of nano-enabling gas sensors to detect gases for environment monitoring. The recent update, challenges, and future vision for commercial applications of such sensor are also described here. PMID:26491544

Photonic effects in natural nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rey GonzáLez, Rafael Ramón; Barrera Patiã+/-O, Claudia Patricia

Nature exhibits a great variety of structures and nanostructures. In particular the interaction light-matter has a strong dependence with the shape of the nanostructures. In some cases, in the so called structural color, ordered arrays of nanostructures play a very critical role. One of the most interesting color effects is the iridescence, the angular dependence of the observed color in some species of butterflies, insects, plants, beetles, fishes, birds and even in minerals. In the last years, iridescence has been related with photonic properties. In the present work, we present a theoretical study of the photonic properties for different patterns that exist in natural nanostructures present in wings of butterflies that exhibit iridescence. The nanostructures observed in these cases present spatial variations of the dielectric constant that are possible to model them as 1D and 2D photonic crystal. Partial photonic gaps are found as function of lattice constant, dielectric contrast and geometrical configuration. Also, disordered effects are considered. Authors would like to thank the División de Investigación Sede Bogotá for their financial support at Universidad Nacional de Colombia.

A general and high-yield galvanic displacement approach to Au-M (M = Au, Pd, and Pt) core-shell nanostructures with porous shells and enhanced electrocatalytic performances.

PubMed

Kuai, Long; Geng, Baoyou; Wang, Shaozhen; Sang, Yan

2012-07-23

In this work, we utilize the galvanic displacement synthesis and make it a general and efficient method for the preparation of Au-M (M = Au, Pd, and Pt) core-shell nanostructures with porous shells, which consist of multilayer nanoparticles. The method is generally applicable to the preparation of Au-Au, Au-Pd, and Au-Pt core-shell nanostructures with typical porous shells. Moreover, the Au-Au isomeric core-shell nanostructure is reported for the first time. The lower oxidation states of Au(I), Pd(II), and Pt(II) are supposed to contribute to the formation of porous core-shell nanostructures instead of yolk-shell nanostructures. The electrocatalytic ethanol oxidation and oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) performance of porous Au-Pd core-shell nanostructures are assessed as a typical example for the investigation of the advantages of the obtained core-shell nanostructures. As expected, the Au-Pd core-shell nanostructure indeed exhibits a significantly reduced overpotential (the peak potential is shifted in the positive direction by 44 mV and 32 mV), a much improved CO tolerance (I(f)/I(b) is 3.6 and 1.63 times higher), and an enhanced catalytic stability in comparison with Pd nanoparticles and Pt/C catalysts. Thus, porous Au-M (M = Au, Pd, and Pt) core-shell nanostructures may provide many opportunities in the fields of organic catalysis, direct alcohol fuel cells, surface-enhanced Raman scattering, and so forth. Copyright © 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Electroluminescence and transport properties in amorphous silicon nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Irrera, Alessia; Iacona, Fabio; Crupi, Isodiana; Presti, Calogero D.; Franzò, Giorgia; Bongiorno, Corrado; Sanfilippo, Delfo; Di Stefano, Gianfranco; Piana, Angelo; Fallica, Pier Giorgio; Canino, Andrea; Priolo, Francesco

2006-03-01

We report the results of a detailed study on the structural, electrical and optical properties of light emitting devices based on amorphous Si nanostructures. Amorphous nanostructures may constitute an interesting system for the monolithic integration of optical and electrical functions in Si ULSI technology. In fact, they exhibit an intense room temperature electroluminescence (EL), with the advantage of being formed at a temperature of 900 °C, while at least 1100 °C is needed for the formation of Si nanocrystals. Optical and electrical properties of amorphous Si nanocluster devices have been studied in the temperature range between 30 and 300 K. The EL is seen to have a bell-shaped trend as a function of temperature with a maximum at around 60 K. The efficiency of these devices is comparable to that found in devices based on Si nanocrystals, although amorphous nanostructures exhibit peculiar working conditions (very high current densities and low applied voltages). Time resolved EL measurements demonstrate the presence of a short lifetime, only partially due to the occurrence of non-radiative phenomena, since the very small amorphous clusters formed at 900 °C are characterized by a short radiative lifetime. By forcing a current through the device a phenomenon of charge trapping in the Si nanostructures has been observed. Trapped charges affect luminescence through an Auger-type non-radiative recombination of excitons. Indeed, it is shown that unbalanced injection of carriers (electrons versus holes) is one of the main processes limiting luminescence efficiency. These data will be reported and the advantages and limitations of this approach will be discussed.

Ice-Templated Bimodal-Porous Silver Nanowire/PDMS Nanocomposites for Stretchable Conductor.

PubMed

Oh, Jae Young; Lee, Dongju; Hong, Soon Hyung

2018-06-27

A three-dimensional (3D) bimodal-porous silver nanowire (AgNW) nanostructure with superior electrical properties is fabricated by freeze drying of AgNW aqueous dispersion with macrosized ice spheres for bimodal-porous structure. The ice sphere dispersed AgNW solution yields a 3D AgNW network at the surface of ice sphere and formation of macropores by removal of ice sphere during freeze-drying process. The resulting nanostructures exhibit excellent electrical properties due to their low electrical percolation threshold by the formation of macropores, which results in an efficient and dense 3D AgNW network with a small amount of AgNWs. The highly conductive and stretchable AgNW/poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) nanocomposites are made by impregnating the 3D porous conductive network with highly stretchable poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) matrix. The AgNW/PDMS nanocomposites exhibit a high conductivity of 42 S/cm with addition of relatively small amount of 2 wt %. The high conductivity is retained when stretched up to 120% elongation even after 100 stretching-releasing cycles. Due to high electrical conductivity and superior stretchability of AgNW/PDMS nanocomposites, these are expected to be used in stretchable electronic devices.

Aptamer-guided silver-gold bimetallic nanostructures with highly active surface-enhanced Raman scattering for specific detection and near-infrared photothermal therapy of human breast cancer cells.

PubMed

Wu, Ping; Gao, Yang; Zhang, Hui; Cai, Chenxin

2012-09-18

The aptamer (S2.2)-guided Ag-Au nanostructures (aptamer-Ag-Au) have been synthesized by photoreduction and validated by ultraviolet-visible light (UV-vis) spectra and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images. Differential interference contrast (DIC), fluorescence, and TEM images, and surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) spectra indicated that the aptamer-Ag-Au nanostructures can target the surface of human breast cancer cells (MCF-7) with high affinity and specificity. This targeting is completed via the specific interaction between S2.2 aptamer (a 25-base oligonucleotide) and MUC1 mucin (a large transmembrane glycoprotein, whose expression increased at least 10-fold at MCF-7 cells in primary and metastatic breast cancers). However, the nanostructures cannot target HepG2 (human liver cancer cells) or MCF-10A cells (human normal breast epithelial cells), because these cells are MUC1-negative expressed. Moreover, the synthesized nanostructures exhibited a high SERS activity. Based on these results, a new assay for specifically detecting MCF-7 cells has been proposed. This assay can also discriminate MCF-7 cells from MCF-10A cells and different cancer cell lines, such as HepG2 cells. In addition, the aptamer-Ag-Au nanostructures have a high capability of adsorpting near-infrared (NIR) irradiation and are able to perform photothermal therapy of MCF-7 cells at a very low irradiation power density (0.25 W/cm(2)) without destroying the healthy cells and the surrounding normal tissue. Therefore, the proposed assay is significant for the diagnosis of tumors in their nascent stage. The synthesized nanostructures could offer a protocol to specifically recognize and sensitively detect the cancer cells, and would have great potential for application in the photothermal therapy of the cancers.

Fabrication and characterization of nanostructured Mg-doped CdS/AAO nanoporous membrane for sensing applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shaban, Mohamed; Mustafa, Mona; Hamdy, Hany

2016-04-01

In this study, Mg-doped CdS nanostructure was deposited onto anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) membrane substrate using sol-gel spin coating method. The AAO membrane was prepared by a two-step anodization process combined with pore widening process. The morphology, chemical composition, and structure of the spin- coated CdS nanostructure have been studied. The morphology of the fabricated AAO membrane and the deposited Mg-doped CdS nanostructure was investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The SEM of AAO illustrates a typical hexagonal and smooth nanoporous alumina membrane with interpore distance of ~ 100 nm, the pore diameter of ~ 60 nm. SEM of Mgdoped CdS shows porous nanostructured film of CdS nanoparticles. This film well adherents and covers the AAO substrate. The energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) pattern exhibits the signals of Al, O from AAO membrane and Mg, Cd, and S from the deposited CdS. This indicates the high purity of the fabricated membrane and the deposited Mg-doped CdS nanostructure. Using X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern, Scherrer equation was used to calculate the average crystallite size. Additionally, the texture coefficients and density of dislocations were calculated. The fabricated CdS/AAO was applied to detect glucose of different concentrations. The proposed method has some advantages such as simple technology, low cost of processing, and high throughput. All of these factors facilitate the use of the prepared films in sensing applications.

Carbon nanotube-lipase hybrid nanoflowers with enhanced enzyme activity and enantioselectivity.

PubMed

Li, Kai; Wang, Jianhua; He, Yaojia; Abdulrazaq, Miaad Adnan; Yan, Yunjun

2018-06-19

Various nanoflowers are synthesized as supports for different methods of enzyme immobilization; however, the activities of these immobilized enzymes are limited because of their confinement in the nanoflowers. In order to increase the performance of nanoflowers, in this study, different protein-phosphate hybrid nanostructures were successfully synthesized and further enhanced by carbon nanotubes (CNTs) under the same conditions. Only Cu 3 (PO 4 ) 2 complex nanostructures exhibited flower-like structures and showed excellent results after enhancement with CNTs in this framework. An esterification reaction between lauric acid and 1-dodecanol was used to test enzyme activity during immobilization, revealing that the Cu 3 (PO 4 ) 2 /CNT/protein complex exhibited 68-fold higher activity relative to free lipase and 51-fold higher than that of Cu 3 (PO 4 ) 2 /Burkholderia cepacia lipase hybrid nanoflowers in the absence of CNTs. All three hybrid nanostructures showed good performance and exhibited excellent reusability in resolution reactions between 1-phenylethanol and vinyl acetate. Additionally, the substrate enantiomeric excess (ee s ) reached 98% in only 10 min, and the corresponding Cu 3 (PO 4 ) 2 /CNT/protein complex could be recycled eight times without obvious loss of activity. This approach involving nanoflowers enhanced with CNTs will be highly beneficial for decreasing mass-transfer resistance and providing enhanced enzyme loading along with promising potential for industrial application. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Engineered Metallic Nanostructures: Fabrication, Characterization, and Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bohloul, Arash

Metallic nanostructures have garnered a great deal of attention due to their fascinating optical properties, which differ from the bulk metal. They have been proven to exceed expectations in wide variety of applications including chemical and biological sensing. Nevertheless, high-throughput and low cost nanofabrication techniques are required to implant metallic nanostructures in widespread applications. With that vision, this thesis presents a versatile and reliable method for scalable fabrication of gold nanostructures. In this approach, a plasma-treated ordered array of polystyrene nanospheres acts as an initial mask. The key step in this process is the vapor-deposition of nickel as a sacrificial mask. Thereby, gold nanostructures are directly formed on the substrate through the nickel mask. This is an easy, powerful, and straightforward method that offers several degrees of freedom to precisely control the shape and size of nanostructures. We made a library of nanostructures including gold nanocrescents, double crescents, nanorings, and nanodisks with the ability to tune the size in the range of 150 to 650 nm. The fabricated nanostructures are highly packed and uniformly cover the centimeter scale substrate. The optical properties of metallic nanostructures were extensively studied by a combination of UV-Vis-NIR and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopies, and correlation between optical response and geometrical parameters were investigated. In the next part of this thesis, highly sensitive surface enhanced infrared absorption (SEIRA) analysis was demonstrated on gold nanocrescent arrays. Theoretical modeling was confirmed that these substrates provide highly dense and strong hot-spots over the substrate, which is required for surface enhanced spectroscopic studies. Gold nanocrescent arrays exhibit highly tunable plasmon resonance to cover desired molecular vibrational bands. These substrates experimentally illustrated 3 orders of magnitude enhancement of IR signal over the entire substrate and up to 5 orders of magnitude enhancement on hot-spot area. Finally, we showed that fabricated substrates are completely biocompatible for growth, adhesion, and proliferation of human dermal fibroblast cells. Leveraging the capability of gold nanocrescent arrays to enhance IR signals, we developed a real time SEIRA spectroscopic technique for label-free biological cell analysis. The performance of proposed method was assessed by in situ tracking the SEIRA signal of human dermal fibroblast cells cultured on gold nanocrescent arrays.

Glutathione Reductase-Mediated Synthesis of Tellurium-Containing Nanostructures Exhibiting Antibacterial Properties

PubMed Central

Pugin, Benoit; Cornejo, Fabián A.; Muñoz-Díaz, Pablo; Muñoz-Villagrán, Claudia M.; Vargas-Pérez, Joaquín I.; Arenas, Felipe A.

2014-01-01

Tellurium, a metalloid belonging to group 16 of the periodic table, displays very interesting physical and chemical properties and lately has attracted significant attention for its use in nanotechnology. In this context, the use of microorganisms for synthesizing nanostructures emerges as an eco-friendly and exciting approach compared to their chemical synthesis. To generate Te-containing nanostructures, bacteria enzymatically reduce tellurite to elemental tellurium. In this work, using a classic biochemical approach, we looked for a novel tellurite reductase from the Antarctic bacterium Pseudomonas sp. strain BNF22 and used it to generate tellurium-containing nanostructures. A new tellurite reductase was identified as glutathione reductase, which was subsequently overproduced in Escherichia coli. The characterization of this enzyme showed that it is an NADPH-dependent tellurite reductase, with optimum reducing activity at 30°C and pH 9.0. Finally, the enzyme was able to generate Te-containing nanostructures, about 68 nm in size, which exhibit interesting antibacterial properties against E. coli, with no apparent cytotoxicity against eukaryotic cells. PMID:25193000

Contribution of tin in electrochemical properties of zinc antimonate nanostructures: An electrode material for supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Balasubramaniam, M.; Balakumar, S.

2018-04-01

Tin (Sn) doped ZnSb2O6 nanostructures was synthesized by chemical precipitation method and was used as an electrode material for supercapacitors to explore its electrochemical stability and potentiality as energy storage materials. Their characteristic structural, morphological and compositional features were investigated through XRD, FESEM and XPS analysis. Results showed that the nanostructures have well ordered crystalline features with spherical particle morphology. As the size and morphology are the vital parameters in exhibiting better electrochemical properties, the prepared nanostructures exhibited a significant specific capacitance of 222 F/g at a current density of 0.5 A/g respectively. While charging and discharging for 1000 cycles, the capacitance retention was enhanced to 105.0% which depicts the stability and activeness of electrochemical sites present in the Sn doped ZnSb2O6 nanostructures even after cycling. Hence, the inclusion of Sn into ZnSb2O6 has contributed in improving the electrochemical properties thereby it represents itself as a potential electrode material for supercapacitors.

Hydrogen Gas Sensing Characteristics of Nanostructured NiO Thin Films Synthesized by SILAR Method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karaduman, Irmak; Çorlu, Tugba; Yıldırım, M. Ali; Ateş, Aytunç; Acar, Selim

2017-07-01

Nanostructured NiO thin films have been synthesized by a facile, low-cost successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) method, and the effects of the film thickness on their hydrogen gas sensing properties investigated. The samples were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), x-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, and energy-dispersive x-ray analysis. The XRD results revealed that the crystallinity improved with increasing thickness, exhibiting polycrystalline structure. SEM studies showed that all the films covered the glass substrate well. According to optical absorption measurements, the optical bandgap decreased with increasing film thickness. The gas sensing properties of the nanostructured NiO thin films were studied as a function of operating temperature and gas concentration. The samples showed good sensing performance of H2 gas with high response. The maximum response was 75% at operating temperature of 200°C for hydrogen gas concentration of 40 ppm. These results demonstrate that nanostructured NiO thin films synthesized by the SILAR method have potential for application in hydrogen detection.

Retained austenite thermal stability in a nanostructured bainitic steel

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Avishan, Behzad, E-mail: b_avishan@sut.ac.ir; Garcia-Mateo, Carlos, E-mail: cgm@cenim.csic.es; Yazdani, Sasan, E-mail: yazdani@sut.ac.ir

2013-07-15

The unique microstructure of nanostructured bainite consists of very slender bainitic ferrite plates and high carbon retained austenite films. As a consequence, the reported properties are opening a wide range of different commercial uses. However, bainitic transformation follows the T{sub 0} criteria, i.e. the incomplete reaction phenomena, which means that the microstructure is not thermodynamically stable because the bainitic transformation stops well before austenite reaches an equilibrium carbon level. This article aims to study the different microstructural changes taking place when nanostructured bainite is destabilized by austempering for times well in excess of that strictly necessary to end the transformation.more » Results indicate that while bainitic ferrite seems unaware of the extended heat treatment, retained austenite exhibits a more receptive behavior to it. - Highlights: • Nanostructured bainitic steel is not thermodynamically stable. • Extensive austempering in these microstructures has not been reported before. • Precipitation of cementite particles is unavoidable at longer austempering times. • TEM, FEG-SEM and XRD analysis were used for microstructural characterization.« less

Hydrothermal Synthesis and Acetylene Sensing Properties of Variety Low Dimensional Zinc Oxide Nanostructures

PubMed Central

Chen, Weigen; Peng, Shudi; Zeng, Wen

2014-01-01

Various morphologies of low dimensional ZnO nanostructures, including spheres, rods, sheets, and wires, were successfully synthesized using a simple and facile hydrothermal method assisted with different surfactants. Zinc acetate dihydrate was chosen as the precursors of ZnO nanostructures. We found that polyethylene glycol (PEG), polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), glycine, and ethylene glycol (EG) play critical roles in the morphologies and microstructures of the synthesized nanostructures, and a series of possible growth processes were discussed in detail. Gas sensors were fabricated using screen-printing technology, and their sensing properties towards acetylene gas (C2H2), one of the most important arc discharge characteristic gases dissolved in oil-filled power equipments, were systematically measured. The ZnO nanowires based sensor exhibits excellent C2H2 sensing behaviors than those of ZnO nanosheets, nanorods, and nanospheres, indicating a feasible way to develop high-performance C2H2 gas sensor for practical application. PMID:24672324

Tailoring galvanic replacement reaction for the preparation of Pt/Ag bimetallic hollow nanostructures with controlled number of voids.

PubMed

Zhang, Weiqing; Yang, Jizheng; Lu, Xianmao

2012-08-28

Here we report the synthesis of Pt/Ag bimetallic nanostructures with controlled number of void spaces via a tailored galvanic replacement reaction (GRR). Ag nanocubes (NCs) were employed as the template to react with Pt ions in the presence of HCl. The use of HCl in the GRR caused rapid precipitation of AgCl, which grew on the surface of Ag NCs and acted as a removable secondary template for the deposition of Pt. The number of nucleation sites for AgCl was tailored by controlling the amount of HCl added to the Ag NCs or by introducing PVP to the reaction. This strategy led to the formation of Pt/Ag hollow nanoboxes, dimers, multimers, or popcorn-shaped nanostructures consisting of one, two, or multiple hollow domains. Due to the presence of large void space and porous walls, these nanostructures exhibited high surface area and improved catalytic activity for methanol oxidation reaction.

Morphology dependent catalytic activity of TiO{sub 2} nanostructures towards photodegradation of Rose Bengal

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Malik, Ritu; Kumar, Ashok; Rana, Pawan S., E-mail: drpawansrana.phy@dcrustm.org

2015-08-28

This work deals with the synthesis of TiO{sub 2} nanostructures using sol-gel and hydrothermal method for evaluating their photodegradation performance towards decolorization of Rose Bengal (RB). A combination of characterization techniques including X-ray diffraction (XRD), Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and UV–Vis spectroscopy were utilized to evaluate the structural, morphological and optical properties of the obtained nanostructures. It was observed that the TiO{sub 2} nanoparticles prepared using hydrothermal method were highly crystalline and possess higher band gap value, even when same conditions of temperature, pressure, precursor ratios and solvent amount was kept constant while synthesizing TiO{sub 2} nanostructures viamore » sol-gel method. The obvious effect of porous morphology exhibited by TiO{sub 2} nanoparticles prepared using hydrothermal route is reflected in its decolorization performance whereby 92.5% of the RB dye solution was degraded in 70 min of irradiation time.« less

A Strategy for Fabricating Porous PdNi@Pt Core-shell Nanostructures and Their Enhanced Activity and Durability for the Methanol Electrooxidation

PubMed Central

Liu, Xinyu; Xu, Guangrui; Chen, Yu; Lu, Tianhong; Tang, Yawen; Xing, Wei

2015-01-01

Three-dimensionally (3D) porous morphology of nanostructures can effectively improve their electrocatalytic activity and durability for various electrochemical reactions owing to big surface area and interconnected structure. Cyanogel, a jelly-like inorganic polymer, can be used to synthesize various three-dimensionally (3D) porous alloy nanomaterials owing to its double-metal property and particular 3D backbone. Here, 3D porous PdNi@Pt core-shell nanostructures (CSNSs) are facilely synthesized by first preparing the Pd-Ni alloy networks (Pd-Ni ANWs) core via cyanogel-reduction method followed by a galvanic displacement reaction to generate the Pt-rich shell. The as-synthesized PdNi@Pt CSNSs exhibit a much improved catalytic activity and durability for the methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) in the acidic media compared to the commercial used Pt black because of their specific structural characteristics. The facile and mild method described herein is highly attractive for the synthisis of 3D porous core-shell nanostructures. PMID:25557190

Anemone-like nanostructures for non-lithographic, reproducible, large-area, and ultra-sensitive SERS substrates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Daglar, Bihter; Demirel, Gokcen Birlik; Khudiyev, Tural; Dogan, Tamer; Tobail, Osama; Altuntas, Sevde; Buyukserin, Fatih; Bayindir, Mehmet

2014-10-01

The melt-infiltration technique enables the fabrication of complex nanostructures for a wide range of applications in optics, electronics, biomaterials, and catalysis. Here, anemone-like nanostructures are produced for the first time under the surface/interface principles of melt-infiltration as a non-lithographic method. Functionalized anodized aluminum oxide (AAO) membranes are used as templates to provide large-area production of nanostructures, and polycarbonate (PC) films are used as active phase materials. In order to understand formation dynamics of anemone-like structures finite element method (FEM) simulations are performed and it is found that wetting behaviour of the polymer is responsible for the formation of cavities at the caps of the structures. These nanostructures are examined in the surface-enhanced-Raman-spectroscopy (SERS) experiment and they exhibit great potential in this field. Reproducible SERS signals are detected with relative standard deviations (RSDs) of 7.2-12.6% for about 10 000 individual spots. SERS measurements are demonstrated at low concentrations of Rhodamine 6G (R6G), even at the picomolar level, with an enhancement factor of ~1011. This high enhancement factor is ascribed to the significant electric field enhancement at the cavities of nanostructures and nanogaps between them, which is supported by finite difference time-domain (FDTD) simulations. These novel nanostructured films can be further optimized to be used in chemical and plasmonic sensors and as a single molecule SERS detection platform.The melt-infiltration technique enables the fabrication of complex nanostructures for a wide range of applications in optics, electronics, biomaterials, and catalysis. Here, anemone-like nanostructures are produced for the first time under the surface/interface principles of melt-infiltration as a non-lithographic method. Functionalized anodized aluminum oxide (AAO) membranes are used as templates to provide large-area production of nanostructures, and polycarbonate (PC) films are used as active phase materials. In order to understand formation dynamics of anemone-like structures finite element method (FEM) simulations are performed and it is found that wetting behaviour of the polymer is responsible for the formation of cavities at the caps of the structures. These nanostructures are examined in the surface-enhanced-Raman-spectroscopy (SERS) experiment and they exhibit great potential in this field. Reproducible SERS signals are detected with relative standard deviations (RSDs) of 7.2-12.6% for about 10 000 individual spots. SERS measurements are demonstrated at low concentrations of Rhodamine 6G (R6G), even at the picomolar level, with an enhancement factor of ~1011. This high enhancement factor is ascribed to the significant electric field enhancement at the cavities of nanostructures and nanogaps between them, which is supported by finite difference time-domain (FDTD) simulations. These novel nanostructured films can be further optimized to be used in chemical and plasmonic sensors and as a single molecule SERS detection platform. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: SEM images of the AAO membrane and bare polymer film, FEM simulations of anemone-like polymeric nanopillars depending on the time and pressure, and detailed calculation of the enhancement factor both including experimental and theoretical approaches. See DOI: 10.1039/c4nr03909b

Anti-iridescent colloidal photonic nanostructure from thermal gradients and polymeric brush effects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Seung Yeol; Kim, Hyoungsoo; Kim, Shin-Hyun; Stone, Howard

2017-11-01

Colloidal nanostructures induced by self-assembly are important in reflective displays, plasmonic or photonic sensors, and color pigments. During the evaporation of droplets of colloidal suspension, due to the non-uniform evaporation rate along the droplet interface, a radially outward flow is created and it carries colloidal particles to the pinned contact line of the droplet. We document that the packing at the contact line is a face-center-cubic (fcc) colloidal nanostructure in a ring shape. The fcc structure of the colloidal nanoparticles exhibits angle-dependent color. In particular, we introduce a novel method to suppress the familiar coffee-ring effect and modify colloidal nanostructures to exhibit angle-independent optical properties. A suspension of polyethylene oxide (PEO)-coated silica nanoparticles dispersed in ethanol-water mixture is prepared. The droplet containing the nanoparticles dries on a heated substrate, which creates a thermal gradient along the interface of the droplet. This thermal gradient induces thermal-Marangoni stresses that suppress the coffee-ring effects. PEO adsorbed on the surface of silica nanoparticles produces an additional interaction between colloidal nanoparticles, which makes the final structure disordered. The disordered photonic nanostructures in our experiments exhibit angle-independent structural color. This technique can be applied to printing or optical filtering systems.

Self-Assembled Hierarchical Formation of Conjugated 3D Cobalt Oxide Nanobead-CNT-Graphene Nanostructure Using Microwaves for High-Performance Supercapacitor Electrode.

PubMed

Kumar, Rajesh; Singh, Rajesh Kumar; Dubey, Pawan Kumar; Singh, Dinesh Pratap; Yadav, Ram Manohar

2015-07-15

Here we report the electrochemical performance of a interesting three-dimensional (3D) structures comprised of zero-dimensional (0D) cobalt oxide nanobeads, one-dimensional (1D) carbon nanotubes and two-dimensional (2D) graphene, stacked hierarchically. We have synthesized 3D self-assembled hierarchical nanostructure comprised of cobalt oxide nanobeads (Co-nb), carbon nanotubes (CNTs), and graphene nanosheets (GNSs) for high-performance supercapacitor electrode application. This 3D self-assembled hierarchical nanostructure Co3O4 nanobeads-CNTs-GNSs (3D:Co-nb@CG) is grown at a large scale (gram) through simple, facile, and ultrafast microwave irradiation (MWI). In 3D:Co-nb@CG nanostructure, Co3O4 nanobeads are attached to the CNT surfaces grown on GNSs. Our ultrafast, one-step approach not only renders simultaneous growth of cobalt oxide and CNTs on graphene nanosheets but also institutes the intrinsic dispersion of carbon nanotubes and cobalt oxide within a highly conductive scaffold. The 3D:Co-nb@CG electrode shows better electrochemical performance with a maximum specific capacitance of 600 F/g at the charge/discharge current density of 0.7A/g in KOH electrolyte, which is 1.56 times higher than that of Co3O4-decorated graphene (Co-np@G) nanostructure. This electrode also shows a long cyclic life, excellent rate capability, and high specific capacitance. It also shows high stability after few cycles (550 cycles) and exhibits high capacitance retention behavior. It was observed that the supercapacitor retained 94.5% of its initial capacitance even after 5000 cycles, indicating its excellent cyclic stability. The synergistic effect of the 3D:Co-nb@CG appears to contribute to the enhanced electrochemical performances.

Hierarchical Porous Intercalation-Type V2 O3 as High-Performance Anode Materials for Li-Ion Batteries.

PubMed

Liu, Pengcheng; Zhu, Kongjun; Xu, Yuan; Bian, Kan; Wang, Jing; Tai, Guo'an; Gao, Yanfeng; Luo, Hongjie; Lu, Li; Liu, Jinsong

2017-06-01

As intercalation-type anode materials for Li-ion batteries (LIBs), the commercially used graphite and Li 4 Ti 5 O 12 exhibit good cycling and rate properties, but their theoretical specific capacities are too low to meet the ever-growing demands of high-energy applications such as electric vehicles. Therefore, the development of new intercalation-type anode materials with larger capacity is very desirable. Herein, we design and synthesize novel 3 D hierarchical porous V 2 O 3 @C micro/nanostructures consisting of crumpled nanosheets, through self-reduction under annealing from the structurally similar VO 2 (B)@C precursors without the addition of any other reducing reagent or gas. Excitingly, it is found for the first time through ex situ XRD technology that V 2 O 3 is a new, promising intercalation-type anode material for LIBs with a high capacity. V 2 O 3 @C micro/nanostructures can deliver a large capacity of 732 mAh g -1 without capacity loss at 100 mA g -1 even after 136 cycles, as well as exhibiting excellent cycling and rate performances. The application of V 2 O 3 for Na-ion batteries (NIBs) is elaborated for the first time, and excitingly, it is found that V 2 O 3 @C micro/nanostructures may be promising anode materials for NIBs. © 2017 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Shape-Controlled Synthesis of Co2P Nanostructures and Their Application in Supercapacitors.

PubMed

Chen, Xiaojuan; Cheng, Ming; Chen, Di; Wang, Rongming

2016-02-17

Co2P nanostructures with rod-like and flower-like morphologies have been synthesized by controlling the decomposition process of Co(acac)3 in oleylamine system with triphenylphosphine as phosphorus source. Investigations indicate that the final morphologies of the products are determined by their peculiar phosphating processes. Electrochemical measurements manifest that the Co2P nanostructures exhibit excellent morphology-dependent supercapacitor properties. Compared with that of 284 F g(-1) at a current density of 1 A g(-1) for Co2P nanorods, the capacitance for Co2P nanoflowers reaches 416 F g(-1) at the same current density. Furthermore, an optimized asymmetric supercapacitor by using Co2P nanoflowers as anode and graphene as cathode is fabricated. It can deliver a high energy density of 8.8 Wh kg(-1) (at a high power density of 6 kW kg(-1)) and good cycling stability with over 97% specific capacitance remained after 6000 cycles, which makes the Co2P nanostructures potential applications in energy storage/conversion systems. This study paves the way to explore a new class of cobalt phosphide-based materials for supercapacitor applications.

Friction-induced nano-structural evolution of graphene as a lubrication additive

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Jun; Mao, Junyuan; Li, Yingru; He, Yongyong; Luo, Jianbin

2018-03-01

Graphene has attracted enormous attention in the field of lubrication based on its excellent physical and chemical properties. Although many studies have obtained thermally or chemically- exfoliated graphene and investigated their wide and important application, few studies have reported their physical nano-structural evolution under friction. In this study, we investigated the lubrication properties of graphene additives with different layer numbers and interlayer spacing by exfoliating. The additives with a higher degrees of exfoliation changed to ordering under friction, and had better lubrication properties, while that with a lower degrees exhibited obvious structural defects and high friction. Therefore, the original degrees of exfoliation plays a key role in the structural evolution of graphene and superior lubrication can be achieved through the physical nano-structure changing to ordering, even graphitization. Furthermore, the ordered tribofilm on the frictional interfaces was parallel to the sliding direction, meaning the highly exfoliated graphene indeed reaching slippage between its layers, which wasn't experimentally discovered in previous studies. This work provides a new understanding of the relationship between friction-induced nano-structural evolution and lubrication properties of graphene as a lubrication additive, and has great potential for the structural design of graphene as a lubrication additive.

Metal-Phenolic Carbon Nanocomposites for Robust and Flexible Energy-Storage Devices.

PubMed

Oh, Jun Young; Jung, Yeonsu; Cho, Young Shik; Choi, Jaeyoo; Youk, Ji Ho; Fechler, Nina; Yang, Seung Jae; Park, Chong Rae

2017-04-22

Future electronics applications such as wearable electronics depend on the successful construction of energy-storage devices with superior flexibility and high electrochemical performance. However, these prerequisites are challenging to combine: External forces often cause performance degradation, whereas the trade-off between the required nanostructures for strength and electrochemical performance only results in diminished energy storage. Herein, a flexible supercapacitor based on tannic acid (TA) and carbon nanotubes (CNTs) with a unique nanostructure is presented. TA was self-assembled on the surface of the CNTs by metal-phenolic coordination bonds, which provides the hybrid film with both high strength and high pseudocapacitance. Besides 17-fold increased mechanical strength of the final composite, the hybrid film simultaneously exhibits excellent flexibility and volumetric capacitance. © 2017 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Aptamer-integrated DNA nanostructures for biosensing, bioimaging and cancer therapy.

PubMed

Meng, Hong-Min; Liu, Hui; Kuai, Hailan; Peng, Ruizi; Mo, Liuting; Zhang, Xiao-Bing

2016-05-03

The combination of nanostructures with biomolecules leading to the generation of functional nanosystems holds great promise for biotechnological and biomedical applications. As a naturally occurring biomacromolecule, DNA exhibits excellent biocompatibility and programmability. Also, scalable synthesis can be readily realized through automated instruments. Such unique properties, together with Watson-Crick base-pairing interactions, make DNA a particularly promising candidate to be used as a building block material for a wide variety of nanostructures. In the past few decades, various DNA nanostructures have been developed, including one-, two- and three-dimensional nanomaterials. Aptamers are single-stranded DNA or RNA molecules selected by Systematic Evolution of Ligands by Exponential Enrichment (SELEX), with specific recognition abilities to their targets. Therefore, integrating aptamers into DNA nanostructures results in powerful tools for biosensing and bioimaging applications. Furthermore, owing to their high loading capability, aptamer-modified DNA nanostructures have also been altered to play the role of drug nanocarriers for in vivo applications and targeted cancer therapy. In this review, we summarize recent progress in the design of aptamers and related DNA molecule-integrated DNA nanostructures as well as their applications in biosensing, bioimaging and cancer therapy. To begin with, we first introduce the SELEX technology. Subsequently, the methodologies for the preparation of aptamer-integrated DNA nanostructures are presented. Then, we highlight their applications in biosensing and bioimaging for various targets, as well as targeted cancer therapy applications. Finally, we discuss several challenges and further opportunities in this emerging field.

Self-assembling graphene-anthraquinone-2-sulphonate supramolecular nanostructures with enhanced energy density for supercapacitors.

PubMed

Gao, Lifang; Gan, Shiyu; Li, Hongyan; Han, Dongxue; Li, Fenghua; Bao, Yu; Niu, Li

2017-07-07

Boosting the energy density of capacitive energy storage devices remains a crucial issue for facilitating applications. Herein, we report a graphene-anthraquinone supramolecular nanostructure by self-assembly for supercapacitors. The sulfonated anthraquinone exhibits high water solubility, a π-conjugated structure and redox active features, which not only serve as a spacer to interact with and stabilize graphene but also introduce extra pseudocapacitance contributions. The formed nest-like three-dimensional (3D) nanostructure with further hydrothermal treatment enhances the accessibility of ion transfer and exposes the redox-active quinone groups in the electrolytes. A fabricated all-solid-state flexible symmetric device delivers a high specific capacitance of 398.5 F g -1 at 1 A g -1 (1.5 times higher than graphene), superior energy density (52.24 Wh kg -1 at about 1 kW kg -1 ) and good stability (82% capacitance retention after 10 000 cycles).

Preparing cuprous oxide nanomaterials by electrochemical method for non-enzymatic glucose biosensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nguyen, Thu-Thuy; Huy, Bui The; Hwang, Seo-Young; Vuong, Nguyen Minh; Pham, Quoc-Thai; Nghia, Nguyen Ngoc; Kirtland, Aaron; Lee, Yong-Ill

2018-05-01

Cuprous oxide (Cu2O) nanostructure has been synthesized using an electrochemical method with a two-electrode system. Cu foils were used as electrodes and NH2(OH) was utilized as the reducing agent. The effects of pH and applied voltages on the morphology of the product were investigated. The morphology and optical properties of Cu2O particles were characterized using scanning electron microscopy, x-ray diffraction, and diffuse reflectance spectra. The synthesized Cu2O nanostructures that formed in the vicinity of the anode at 2 V and pH = 11 showed high uniform distribution, small size, and good electrochemical sensing. These Cu2O nanoparticles were coated on an Indium tin oxide substrate and applied to detect non-enzyme glucose as excellent biosensors. The non-enzyme glucose biosensors exhibited good performance with high response, good selectivity, wide linear detection range, and a low detection limit at 0.4 μM. Synthesized Cu2O nanostructures are potential materials for a non-enzyme glucose biosensor.

Preparing cuprous oxide nanomaterials by electrochemical method for non-enzymatic glucose biosensor.

PubMed

Nguyen, Thu-Thuy; Huy, Bui The; Hwang, Seo-Young; Vuong, Nguyen Minh; Pham, Quoc-Thai; Nghia, Nguyen Ngoc; Kirtland, Aaron; Lee, Yong-Ill

2018-05-18

Cuprous oxide (Cu 2 O) nanostructure has been synthesized using an electrochemical method with a two-electrode system. Cu foils were used as electrodes and NH 2 (OH) was utilized as the reducing agent. The effects of pH and applied voltages on the morphology of the product were investigated. The morphology and optical properties of Cu 2 O particles were characterized using scanning electron microscopy, x-ray diffraction, and diffuse reflectance spectra. The synthesized Cu 2 O nanostructures that formed in the vicinity of the anode at 2 V and pH = 11 showed high uniform distribution, small size, and good electrochemical sensing. These Cu 2 O nanoparticles were coated on an Indium tin oxide substrate and applied to detect non-enzyme glucose as excellent biosensors. The non-enzyme glucose biosensors exhibited good performance with high response, good selectivity, wide linear detection range, and a low detection limit at 0.4 μM. Synthesized Cu 2 O nanostructures are potential materials for a non-enzyme glucose biosensor.

Fern-like rGO/BiVO4 Hybrid Nanostructures for High-Energy Symmetric Supercapacitor.

PubMed

Patil, Santosh S; Dubal, Deepak P; Deonikar, Virendrakumar G; Tamboli, Mohaseen S; Ambekar, Jalindar D; Gomez-Romero, Pedro; Kolekar, Sanjay S; Kale, Bharat B; Patil, Deepak R

2016-11-23

Herein, we demonstrate the synthesis of rGO/BiVO 4 hybrid nanostructures by facile hydrothermal method. Morphological studies reveal that rGO sheets are embedded in the special dendritic fern-like structures of BiVO 4 . The rGO/BiVO 4 hybrid architecture shows the way to a rational design of supercapacitor, since these structures enable easy access of electrolyte ions by reducing internal resistance. Considering the unique morphological features of rGO/BiVO 4 hybrid nanostructures, their supercapacitive properties were investigated. The rGO/BiVO 4 electrode exhibits a specific capacitance of 151 F/g at the current density of 0.15 mA/cm 2 . Furthermore, we have constructed rGO/BiVO 4 symmetric cell which exhibits outstanding volumetric energy density of 1.6 mW h/cm 3 (33.7 W h/kg) and ensures rapid energy delivery with power density of 391 mW/cm 3 (8.0 kW/kg). The superior properties of symmetric supercapacitor can be attributed to the special dendritic fern-like BiVO 4 morphology and intriguing physicochemical properties of rGO.

3D-nanostructured boron-doped diamond for microelectrode array neural interfacing.

PubMed

Piret, Gaëlle; Hébert, Clément; Mazellier, Jean-Paul; Rousseau, Lionel; Scorsone, Emmanuel; Cottance, Myline; Lissorgues, Gaelle; Heuschkel, Marc O; Picaud, Serge; Bergonzo, Philippe; Yvert, Blaise

2015-06-01

The electrode material is a key element in the design of long-term neural implants and neuroprostheses. To date, the ideal electrode material offering high longevity, biocompatibility, low-noise recording and high stimulation capabilities remains to be found. We show that 3D-nanostructured boron doped diamond (BDD), an innovative material consisting in a chemically stable material with a high aspect ratio structure obtained by encapsulation of a carbon nanotube template within two BDD nanolayers, allows neural cell attachment, survival and neurite extension. Further, we developed arrays of 20-μm-diameter 3D-nanostructured BDD microelectrodes for neural interfacing. These microelectrodes exhibited low impedances and low intrinsic recording noise levels. In particular, they allowed the detection of low amplitude (10-20 μV) local-field potentials, single units and multiunit bursts neural activity in both acute whole embryonic hindbrain-spinal cord preparations and long-term hippocampal cell cultures. Also, cyclic voltammetry measurements showed a wide potential window of about 3 V and a charge storage capacity of 10 mC.cm(-2), showing high potentiality of this material for neural stimulation. These results demonstrate the attractiveness of 3D-nanostructured BDD as a novel material for neural interfacing, with potential applications for the design of biocompatible neural implants for the exploration and rehabilitation of the nervous system. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Hierarchical Pd-Sn alloy nanosheet dendrites: an economical and highly active catalyst for ethanol electrooxidation.

PubMed

Ding, Liang-Xin; Wang, An-Liang; Ou, Yan-Nan; Li, Qi; Guo, Rui; Zhao, Wen-Xia; Tong, Ye-Xiang; Li, Gao-Ren

2013-01-01

Hierarchical alloy nanosheet dendrites (ANSDs) are highly favorable for superior catalytic performance and efficient utilization of catalyst because of the special characteristics of alloys, nanosheets, and dendritic nanostructures. In this paper, we demonstrate for the first time a facile and efficient electrodeposition approach for the controllable synthesis of Pd-Sn ANSDs with high surface area. These synthesized Pd-Sn ANSDs exhibit high electrocatalytic activity and superior long-term cycle stability toward ethanol oxidation in alkaline media. The enhanced electrocataytic activity of Pd-Sn ANSDs may be attributed to Pd-Sn alloys, nanosheet dendrite induced promotional effect, large number of active sites on dendrite surface, large surface area, and good electrical contact with the base electrode. Because of the simple implement and high flexibility, the proposed approach can be considered as a general and powerful strategy to synthesize the alloy electrocatalysts with high surface areas and open dendritic nanostructures.

Hierarchical Pd-Sn Alloy Nanosheet Dendrites: An Economical and Highly Active Catalyst for Ethanol Electrooxidation

PubMed Central

Ding, Liang-Xin; Wang, An-Liang; Ou, Yan-Nan; Li, Qi; Guo, Rui; Zhao, Wen-Xia; Tong, Ye-Xiang; Li, Gao-Ren

2013-01-01

Hierarchical alloy nanosheet dendrites (ANSDs) are highly favorable for superior catalytic performance and efficient utilization of catalyst because of the special characteristics of alloys, nanosheets, and dendritic nanostructures. In this paper, we demonstrate for the first time a facile and efficient electrodeposition approach for the controllable synthesis of Pd-Sn ANSDs with high surface area. These synthesized Pd-Sn ANSDs exhibit high electrocatalytic activity and superior long-term cycle stability toward ethanol oxidation in alkaline media. The enhanced electrocataytic activity of Pd-Sn ANSDs may be attributed to Pd-Sn alloys, nanosheet dendrite induced promotional effect, large number of active sites on dendrite surface, large surface area, and good electrical contact with the base electrode. Because of the simple implement and high flexibility, the proposed approach can be considered as a general and powerful strategy to synthesize the alloy electrocatalysts with high surface areas and open dendritic nanostructures. PMID:23383368

Enhanced conductive loss in nickel–cobalt sulfide nanostructures for highly efficient microwave absorption and shielding

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Wanrong; Zhou, Min; Lu, Fei; Liu, Hongfei; Zhou, Yuxue; Zhu, Jun; Zeng, Xianghua

2018-06-01

Microwave-absorbing materials with light weight and high efficiency are desirable in addressing electromagnetic interference (EMI) problems. Herein, a nickel–cobalt sulfide (NCS) nanostructure was employed as a robust microwave absorber, which displayed an optimized reflection loss of  ‑49.1 dB in the gigahertz range with a loading of only 20 wt% in an NCS/paraffin wax composite. High electrical conductivity was found to contribute prominent conductive loss in NCS, leading to intense dielectric loss within a relatively low mass loading. Furthermore, owing to its high electrical conductivity and remarkable dielectric loss to microwaves, the prepared NCS exhibited excellent performance in EMI shielding. The EMI shielding efficiency of the 50 wt% NCS/paraffin composite exceeded 55 dB at the X-band, demonstrating NCS is a versatile candidate for solving EMI problems.

Novel nano-semiconductor film layer supported nano-Pd Complex Nanostructured Catalyst Pd/Ⓕ-MeOx/AC for High Efficient Selective Hydrogenation of Phenol to Cyclohexanone.

PubMed

Si, Jiaqi; Ouyang, Wenbing; Zhang, Yanji; Xu, Wentao; Zhou, Jicheng

2017-04-28

Supported metal as a type of heterogeneous catalysts are the most widely used in industrial processes. High dispersion of the metal particles of supported catalyst is a key factor in determining the performance of such catalysts. Here we report a novel catalyst Pd/Ⓕ-MeO x /AC with complex nanostructured, Pd nanoparticles supported on the platelike nano-semiconductor film/activated carbon, prepared by the photocatalytic reduction method, which exhibited high efficient catalytic performance for selective hydrogenation of phenol to cyclohexanone. Conversion of phenol achieved up to more than 99% with a lower mole ratio (0.5%) of active components Pd and phenol within 2 h at 70 °C. The synergistic effect of metal nanoparticles and nano-semiconductors support layer and the greatly increasing of contact interface of nano-metal-semiconductors may be responsible for the high efficiency. This work provides a clear demonstration that complex nanostructured catalysts with nano-metal and nano-semiconductor film layer supported on high specific surface AC can yield enhanced catalytic activity and can afford promising approach for developing new supported catalyst.

Nanostructured CuS networks composed of interconnected nanoparticles for asymmetric supercapacitors.

PubMed

Fu, Wenbin; Han, Weihua; Zha, Heming; Mei, Junfeng; Li, Yunxia; Zhang, Zemin; Xie, Erqing

2016-09-21

Nanostructured metal sulfides with excellent electrochemical activity and electrical conductivity are particularly promising for applications in high-performance energy storage devices. Here, we report on the facile synthesis of nanostructured CuS networks composed of interconnected nanoparticles as novel battery-type materials for asymmetric supercapacitors. We find that the CuS networks exhibit a high specific capacity of 49.8 mA g(-1) at a current density of 1 A g(-1), good rate capability and cycle stability. The superior performance could be attributed to the interconnected nanoparticles of CuS networks, which can facilitate electrolyte diffusion and provide fast electron pathways. Furthermore, an aqueous asymmetric supercapacitor has been assembled by using the CuS networks as the positive electrode and activated carbon as the negative electrode. The assembled device can work at a high operating voltage of 1.6 V and show a maximum energy density of 17.7 W h kg(-1) at a power density of 504 W kg(-1). This study indicates that the CuS networks have great potential for supercapacitor applications.

Enhanced photoluminescence and heterojunction characteristics of pulsed laser deposited ZnO nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mannam, Ramanjaneyulu; Kumar, E. Senthil; Priyadarshini, D. M.; Bellarmine, F.; DasGupta, Nandita; Ramachandra Rao, M. S.

2017-10-01

We report on the growth of ZnO nanostructures in different gas ambient (Ar and N2) using pulsed laser deposition technique. Despite the similar growth temperature, use of N2 ambient gas resulted in well-aligned nanorods with flat surface at the tip, whereas, nanorods grown with Ar ambient exhibited tapered tips. The Nanorods grown under N2 ambient exhibited additional Raman modes corresponding to N induced zinc interstitials. The nanorods are c-axis oriented and highly epitaxial in nature. Photoluminescence spectroscopy reveals that the UV emission can be significantly enhanced by 10 times for the nanorods grown under Ar ambient. The enhanced UV emission is attributed to the reduction in polarization electric field along the c-axis. n-ZnO nanorods/p-Si heterojunction showed rectifying I-V characteristics with a turn of voltage of 3.4 V.

Nanocolumnar coatings with selective behavior towards osteoblast and Staphylococcus aureus proliferation.

PubMed

Izquierdo-Barba, Isabel; García-Martín, José Miguel; Álvarez, Rafael; Palmero, Alberto; Esteban, Jaime; Pérez-Jorge, Concepción; Arcos, Daniel; Vallet-Regí, María

2015-03-01

Bacterial colonization and biofilm formation on orthopedic implants is one of the worst scenarios in orthopedic surgery, in terms of both patient prognosis and healthcare costs. Tailoring the surfaces of implants at the nanoscale to actively promote bone bonding while avoiding bacterial colonization represents an interesting challenge to achieving better clinical outcomes. Herein, a Ti6Al4V alloy of medical grade has been coated with Ti nanostructures employing the glancing angle deposition technique by magnetron sputtering. The resulting surfaces have a high density of nanocolumnar structures, which exhibit strongly impaired bacterial adhesion that inhibits biofilm formation, while osteoblasts exhibit good cell response with similar behavior to the initial substrates. These results are discussed on the basis of a "lotus leaf effect" induced by the surface nanostructures and the different sizes and biological characteristics of osteoblasts and Staphylococcus aureus. Copyright © 2014 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Generating gradient germanium nanostructures by shock-induced amorphization and crystallization

PubMed Central

Zhao, Shiteng; Kad, Bimal; Wehrenberg, Christopher E.; Remington, Bruce A.; Hahn, Eric N.; More, Karren L.; Meyers, Marc A.

2017-01-01

Gradient nanostructures are attracting considerable interest due to their potential to obtain superior structural and functional properties of materials. Applying powerful laser-driven shocks (stresses of up to one-third million atmospheres, or 33 gigapascals) to germanium, we report here a complex gradient nanostructure consisting of, near the surface, nanocrystals with high density of nanotwins. Beyond there, the structure exhibits arrays of amorphous bands which are preceded by planar defects such as stacking faults generated by partial dislocations. At a lower shock stress, the surface region of the recovered target is completely amorphous. We propose that germanium undergoes amorphization above a threshold stress and that the deformation-generated heat leads to nanocrystallization. These experiments are corroborated by molecular dynamics simulations which show that supersonic partial dislocation bursts play a role in triggering the crystalline-to-amorphous transition. PMID:28847926

Structural and optical properties of nanostructured CdSe thin films prepared by electrochemical deposition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bai, Rekha; Chaudhary, Sujeet; Pandya, Dinesh K.

2018-05-01

Cadmium selenide (CdSe) nanostructured thin films have been grown on fluorine doped tin oxide (FTO) coated glass substrates by potentiostatic electrochemical deposition (ECD) technique for use in solar energy conversion devices. The effect of bath temperature on the structural, morphological and optical properties of prepared CdSe films has been explored. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Raman spectroscopy clearly show that the CdSe films are polycrystalline and exhibit phase transformation from wurtzite to zincblende structure with increase in bath temperature. Optical spectra reveal that the nanostructured CdSe films have high absorbance in visible region and the films show a red shift in direct optical energy band gap from 1.90 to 1.65 eV with increase in bath temperature due to change in phase and bandgap tuning related to quantum confinement effect.

Generating gradient germanium nanostructures by shock-induced amorphization and crystallization.

PubMed

Zhao, Shiteng; Kad, Bimal; Wehrenberg, Christopher E; Remington, Bruce A; Hahn, Eric N; More, Karren L; Meyers, Marc A

2017-09-12

Gradient nanostructures are attracting considerable interest due to their potential to obtain superior structural and functional properties of materials. Applying powerful laser-driven shocks (stresses of up to one-third million atmospheres, or 33 gigapascals) to germanium, we report here a complex gradient nanostructure consisting of, near the surface, nanocrystals with high density of nanotwins. Beyond there, the structure exhibits arrays of amorphous bands which are preceded by planar defects such as stacking faults generated by partial dislocations. At a lower shock stress, the surface region of the recovered target is completely amorphous. We propose that germanium undergoes amorphization above a threshold stress and that the deformation-generated heat leads to nanocrystallization. These experiments are corroborated by molecular dynamics simulations which show that supersonic partial dislocation bursts play a role in triggering the crystalline-to-amorphous transition.

Roll-to-Roll Nanoforming of Metals Using Laser-Induced Superplasticity.

PubMed

Goswami, Debkalpa; Munera, Juan C; Pal, Aniket; Sadri, Behnam; Scarpetti, Caio Lui P G; Martinez, Ramses V

2018-05-24

This Letter describes a low-cost, scalable nanomanufacturing process that enables the continuous forming of thin metallic layers with nanoscale accuracy using roll-to-roll, laser-induced superplasticity (R2RLIS). R2RLIS uses a laser shock to induce the ultrahigh-strain-rate deformation of metallic films at room temperature into low-cost polymeric nanomolds, independently of the original grain size of the metal. This simple and inexpensive nanoforming method does not require access to cleanrooms and associated facilities, and can be easily implemented on conventional CO 2 lasers, enabling laser systems commonly used for rapid prototyping or industrial cutting and engraving to fabricate uniform and three-dimensional crystalline metallic nanostructures over large areas. Tuning the laser power during the R2RLIS process enables the control of the aspect ratio and the mechanical and optical properties of the fabricated nanostructures. This roll-to-roll technique successfully fabricates mechanically strengthened gold plasmonic nanostructures with aspect ratios as high as 5 that exhibit high oxidation resistance and strong optical field enhancements. The CO 2 laser used in R2RLIS can also integrate the fabricated nanostructures on transparent flexible substrates with robust interfacial contact. The ability to fabricate ultrasmooth metallic nanostructures using roll-to-roll manufacturing enables the large scale production, at a relatively low-cost, of flexible plasmonic devices toward emerging applications.

Insights into the enhanced photoelectrochemical performance of hydrothermally controlled hematite nanostructures for proficient solar water oxidation.

PubMed

Park, Jin Woo; Subramanian, Arunprabaharan; Mahadik, Mahadeo A; Lee, Su Yong; Choi, Sun Hee; Jang, Jum Suk

2018-03-28

In this paper, we focus on the controlled growth mechanism of α-Fe 2 O 3 nanostructures via the hydrothermal method. The field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) results reveal that at a lower hydrothermal time, the initial nucleation involves the formation of short and thin β-FeOOH nanorods. The subsequent increase in the hydrothermal time leads β-FeOOH to form thicker and longer nanorods. However, high-temperature quenching (HTQ) at 800 °C for 10 min causes the conversion of akaganeite to the hematite phase and activation of hematite by Sn 4+ diffusion from a FTO substrate. Sn 4+ diffusion from the FTO substrate to the hematite nanostructure was elaborated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). An α-Fe 2 O 3 nanorod photoanode prepared by a hydrothermal reaction for 3 h and HTQ exhibits the highest photocurrent density of 1.04 mA cm -2 . The excellent photoelectrochemical performance could be ascribed to the synergistic effect of the optimum growth of α-Fe 2 O 3 nanorod arrays and Sn 4+ diffusion. Intensity modulated photovoltage spectroscopy (IMVS) studies revealed that the α-Fe 2 O 3 photoanodes prepared at 3 h and HTQ exhibited a long electron lifetime (132.69 ms), and contribute to the enhanced PEC performance. The results confirmed that the controlled growth of the β-FeOOH nanorods, as well as Sn 4+ diffusion, played a key role in charge transfer during the photoelectrochemical application. The charge transfer mechanisms in α-Fe 2 O 3 nanostructure photoanodes prepared at different hydrothermal times and high-temperature quenching are also investigated.

Hierarchical adaptive nanostructured PVD coatings for extreme tribological applications: the quest for nonequilibrium states and emergent behavior.

PubMed

Fox-Rabinovich, German S; Yamamoto, Kenji; Beake, Ben D; Gershman, Iosif S; Kovalev, Anatoly I; Veldhuis, Stephen C; Aguirre, Myriam H; Dosbaeva, Goulnara; Endrino, Jose L

2012-08-01

Adaptive wear-resistant coatings produced by physical vapor deposition (PVD) are a relatively new generation of coatings which are attracting attention in the development of nanostructured materials for extreme tribological applications. An excellent example of such extreme operating conditions is high performance machining of hard-to-cut materials. The adaptive characteristics of such coatings develop fully during interaction with the severe environment. Modern adaptive coatings could be regarded as hierarchical surface-engineered nanostructural materials. They exhibit dynamic hierarchy on two major structural scales: (a) nanoscale surface layers of protective tribofilms generated during friction and (b) an underlying nano/microscaled layer. The tribofilms are responsible for some critical nanoscale effects that strongly impact the wear resistance of adaptive coatings. A new direction in nanomaterial research is discussed: compositional and microstructural optimization of the dynamically regenerating nanoscaled tribofilms on the surface of the adaptive coatings during friction. In this review we demonstrate the correlation between the microstructure, physical, chemical and micromechanical properties of hard coatings in their dynamic interaction (adaptation) with environment and the involvement of complex natural processes associated with self-organization during friction. Major physical, chemical and mechanical characteristics of the adaptive coating, which play a significant role in its operating properties, such as enhanced mass transfer, and the ability of the layer to provide dissipation and accumulation of frictional energy during operation are presented as well. Strategies for adaptive nanostructural coating design that enhance beneficial natural processes are outlined. The coatings exhibit emergent behavior during operation when their improved features work as a whole. In this way, as higher-ordered systems, they achieve multifunctionality and high wear resistance under extreme tribological conditions.

Hierarchical adaptive nanostructured PVD coatings for extreme tribological applications: the quest for nonequilibrium states and emergent behavior

PubMed Central

Fox-Rabinovich, German S; Yamamoto, Kenji; Beake, Ben D; Gershman, Iosif S; Kovalev, Anatoly I; Veldhuis, Stephen C; Aguirre, Myriam H.; Dosbaeva, Goulnara; Endrino, Jose L

2012-01-01

Adaptive wear-resistant coatings produced by physical vapor deposition (PVD) are a relatively new generation of coatings which are attracting attention in the development of nanostructured materials for extreme tribological applications. An excellent example of such extreme operating conditions is high performance machining of hard-to-cut materials. The adaptive characteristics of such coatings develop fully during interaction with the severe environment. Modern adaptive coatings could be regarded as hierarchical surface-engineered nanostructural materials. They exhibit dynamic hierarchy on two major structural scales: (a) nanoscale surface layers of protective tribofilms generated during friction and (b) an underlying nano/microscaled layer. The tribofilms are responsible for some critical nanoscale effects that strongly impact the wear resistance of adaptive coatings. A new direction in nanomaterial research is discussed: compositional and microstructural optimization of the dynamically regenerating nanoscaled tribofilms on the surface of the adaptive coatings during friction. In this review we demonstrate the correlation between the microstructure, physical, chemical and micromechanical properties of hard coatings in their dynamic interaction (adaptation) with environment and the involvement of complex natural processes associated with self-organization during friction. Major physical, chemical and mechanical characteristics of the adaptive coating, which play a significant role in its operating properties, such as enhanced mass transfer, and the ability of the layer to provide dissipation and accumulation of frictional energy during operation are presented as well. Strategies for adaptive nanostructural coating design that enhance beneficial natural processes are outlined. The coatings exhibit emergent behavior during operation when their improved features work as a whole. In this way, as higher-ordered systems, they achieve multifunctionality and high wear resistance under extreme tribological conditions. PMID:27877499

Electrochemical and optical biosensors based on nanomaterials and nanostructures: a review.

PubMed

Li, Ming; Li, Rui; Li, Chang Ming; Wu, Nianqiang

2011-06-01

Nanomaterials and nanostructures exhibit unique size-tunable and shape-dependent physicochemical properties that are different from those of bulk materials. Advances of nanomaterials and nanostructures open a new door to develop various novel biosensors. The present work has reviewed the recent progress in electrochemical, surface plasmon resonance (SPR), surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) and fluorescent biosensors based on nanomaterials and nanostructures. An emphasis is put on the research that demonstrates how the performance of biosensors such as the limit of detection, sensitivity and selectivity is improved by the use of nanomaterials and nanostructures.

Concave Pd-Ru nanocubes bounded with high active area for boosting ethylene glycol electrooxidation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xiong, Zhiping; Xu, Hui; Li, Shumin; Gu, Zhulan; Yan, Bo; Guo, Jun; Du, Yukou

2018-01-01

This paper reported our extensive efforts in the design of concave PdRu nanocubes via a facile wet-chemical strategy. Different from the previously reported PdRu nanostructures, the as-prepared concave PdRu nanocubes combined the advantages of fascinating nanocube structure, synergistic and electronic effect as well as high surface area. All of these beneficial terms endow them to exhibit superior electrocatalytic activity and long-term stability towards ethylene glycol oxidation as compared with commercial Pd/C. Our work highlights the significance of shape-controlled of PdRu nanostructures over the electrocatalytic performances towards the electrooxidation of ethylene glycol (EG), which will pave up a new strategy for boosting the development of renewable and clean energy technology.

Fullerene-like hydrogenated carbon films with super-low friction and wear, and low sensitivity to environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ji, Li; Li, Hongxuan; Zhao, Fei; Quan, Weilong; Chen, Jianmin; Zhou, Huidi

2010-01-01

A novel hydrogenated carbon film containing fullerene-like nanostructure was prepared by pulse bias-assisted plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition, and the fullerene-like arrangement in the film was characterized by high resolution transmission electron microscopy. The as-prepared hydrogenated carbon film exhibited super-low friction and wear in both dry N2 and humid ambient atmospheres, and was superior to the conventional hydrogenated carbon films. These excellent tribological properties could be attributed to the unique fullerene-like nanostructure, which endows the film with some special chemical and physical features, such as high chemical inertness, hardness and elastic recovery owing to the closed, curved and caged graphite planes, and hence, improves the tribological properties of the hydrogenated carbon film.

Nanocrystal solar cells processed from solution

DOEpatents

Alivisatos, A. Paul; Gur, Ilan; Milliron, Delia

2013-05-14

A photovoltaic device having a first electrode layer, a high resistivity transparent film disposed on the first electrode, a second electrode layer, and an inorganic photoactive layer disposed between the first and second electrode layers, wherein the inorganic photoactive layer is disposed in at least partial electrical contact with the high resistivity transparent film, and in at least partial electrical contact with the second electrode. The photoactive layer has a first inorganic material and a second inorganic material different from the first inorganic material, wherein the first and second inorganic materials exhibit a type II band offset energy profile, and wherein the photoactive layer has a first population of nanostructures of a first inorganic material and a second population of nanostructures of a second inorganic material.

Indirect electrocatalytic determination of choline by monitoring hydrogen peroxide at the choline oxidase-prussian blue modified iron phosphate nanostructures.

PubMed

Zhang, Hui; Yin, Yajing; Wu, Ping; Cai, Chenxin

2012-01-15

Choline, as a marker of cholinergic activity in brain tissue, is very important in biological and clinical analysis, especially in the clinical detection of the neurodegenerative disorders disease. This work presents an electrochemical approach for the detection of choline based on prussian blue modified iron phosphate nanostructures (PB-FePO(4)). The obtained nanostructures showed a good catalysis toward the electroreduction of H(2)O(2), and an amperometric choline biosensor was developed by immobilizing choline oxidase on the PB-FePO(4) nanostructures. The biosensor exhibited a rapid response (ca. 2s), low detection limit (0.4±0.05 μM), wide linear range (2 μM to 3.2 mM), high sensitivity (~75.2 μAm M(-1) cm(-2)), as well as good stability and repeatability. In addition, the common interfering species, such as ascorbic acid, uric acid and 4-acetamidophenol did not cause obvious interference due to the low detection potential (-0.05 V versus saturated calomel electrode). This nanostructure could be used as a promise platform for the construction of other oxidase-based biosensors. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

SERS active Ag encapsulated Fe@SiO2 nanorods in electromagnetic wave absorption and crystal violet detection.

PubMed

Senapati, Samarpita; Srivastava, Suneel Kumar; Singh, Shiv Brat; Kulkarni, Ajit R

2014-11-01

The present work is focused on the preparation of Fe nanorods by the chemical reduction of FeCl3 (aq) using NaBH4 in the presence of glycerol as template followed by annealing of the product at 500°C in the presence of H2 gas flow. Subsequently, its surface has been modified by silica followed by silver nanoparticles to form silica coated Fe (Fe@SiO2) and Ag encapsulated Fe@SiO2 nanostructure employing the Stöber method and silver mirror reaction respectively. XRD pattern of the products confirmed the formation of bcc phase of iron and fcc phase of silver, though silica remained amorphous. FESEM images established the growth of iron nanorods from the annealed product and also formation of silica and silver coating on its surface. The appearance of the characteristics bands in FTIR confirmed the presence of SiO2 on the Fe surface. Magnetic measurements at room temperature indicated the ferromagnetic behavior of as prepared iron nanorods, Fe@SiO2 and silver encapsulated Fe@SiO2 nanostructures. All the samples exhibited strong microwave absorption property in the high frequency range (10GHz), though it is superior for Ag encapsulated Fe@SiO2 (-14.7dB) compared with Fe@SiO2 (-9.7dB) nanostructures of the same thickness. The synthesized Ag encapsulated Fe@SiO2 nanostructure also exhibited the SERS phenomena, which is useful in the detection of the carcinogenic dye crystal violet (CV) upto the concentration of 10(-10)M. All these findings clearly demonstrate that the Ag encapsulated Fe@SiO2 nanostructure could efficiently be used in the environmental remediation. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Room-temperature synthesis of carnation-like ZnO@AgI hierarchical nanostructures assembled by AgI nanoparticles-decorated ZnO nanosheets with enhanced visible light photocatalytic activity.

PubMed

Huang, He; Huang, Ni; Wang, Zhonghua; Xia, Guangqiang; Chen, Ming; He, Lingling; Tong, Zhifang; Ren, Chunguang

2017-09-15

The preparation of highly efficient visible-light-driven photocatalyst for the photodegradation of organic pollutants has received much attention due to the increasing global energy crises and environmental pollution. In this study, carnation-like ZnO@AgI hierarchical nanostructures assembled by AgI nanoparticles-decorated ZnO nanosheets were successfully prepared via a room-temperature route. The as-prepared ZnO@AgI nanostructures exhibited highly efficient photocatalytic activity under visible light irradiation (λ>400nm). Under optimized AgI content, the ZnO@AgI-5% sample showed high photocatalytic activity, which was 25.7 and 1.5 times the activity of pure ZnO and pure AgI, respectively. Mechanism studies indicated that superoxide anion radicals (O 2 - ) was the main reactive species in the photocatalytic process. The high photocatalytic activity of the ZnO@AgI nanostructures is attributed to the highly active AgI nanoparticles and the heterojunction between AgI nanoparticles and ZnO nanosheets. The heterojunction structure reduced the recombination of the photogenerated electron-hole pairs in the conduction band (CB) and valence band (VB) of AgI nanoparticles by transferring the electrons from the CB of AgI nanoparticles to the CB of ZnO nanosheets. The composite of ZnO and AgI not only improves photocatalytic efficiency but also reduces photocatalyst cost, which is beneficial for practical application. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Synthesis and Plasmonic Understanding of Core/Satellite and Core Shell Nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ruan, Qifeng

Localized surface plasmon resonance, which stems from the collective oscillations of conduction-band electrons, endows Au nanocrystals with unique optical properties. Au nanocrystals possess extremely large scattering/absorption cross-sections and enhanced local electromagnetic field, both of which are synthetically tunable. Moreover, when Au nanocrystals are closely placed or hybridized with semiconductors, the coupling and interaction between the individual components bring about more fascinating phenomena and promising applications, including plasmon-enhanced spectroscopies, solar energy harvesting, and cancer therapy. The continuous development in the field of plasmonics calls for further advancements in the preparation of high-quality plasmonic nanocrystals, the facile construction of hybrid plasmonic nanostructures with desired functionalities, as well as deeper understanding and efficient utilization of the interaction between plasmonic nanocrystals and semiconductor components. In this thesis, I developed a seed-mediated growth method for producing size-controlled Au nanospheres with high monodispersity and assembled Au nanospheres of different sizes into core/satellite nanostructures for enhancing Raman signals. For investigating the interactions between Au nanocrystals and semiconductors, I first prepared (Au core) (TiO2 shell) nanostructures, and then studied their synthetically controlled plasmonic properties and light-harvesting applications. Au nanocrystals with spherical shapes are desirable in plasmon-coupled systems owing to their high geometrical symmetry, which facilitates the analysis of electrodynamic responses in a classical electromagnetic framework and the investigation of quantum tunneling and nonlocal effects. I prepared remarkably uniform Au nanospheres with diameters ranging from 20 nm to 220 nm using a simple seed-mediated growth method associated with mild oxidation. Core/satellite nanostructures were assembled out of differently sized Au nanospheres with molecular linkers. The plasmon resonances of the core/satellite nanostructures undergo red shifts in comparison to those of the sole Au cores, which is consistent with Mie theory analysis. As predicted by finite-difference time-domain simulations, the assembled core/satellite nanostructures exhibit large enhancements for Raman scattering. The facile growth of Au nanospheres and assembly of core/satellite nanostructures blaze a new way to the design of nanoarchitectures with desired plasmonic properties and functions. Coating semiconductors onto Au nanocrystals to form core shell configurations can increase the interactions between the two materials, benefiting from their large active interfacial area. The shell can also protect the Au nanocrystal core from aggregation, reshaping, and chemical corrosion. In this thesis, (Au nanocrystal core) (titania shell) nanostructures with tunable shell thicknesses were prepared by a facile wetchemistry method. Au nanocrystals with strong and tunable plasmon resonances in the visible and near-infrared regions can enhance and broaden the light utilization of TiO2 through the scattering/absorption enhancement, sensitization, and hot-electron injection. The integration of Au nanocrystals therefore hold the prospect of breaking the light-harvesting limit of TiO2 arising from its wide band gap. The resultant (Au core) (TiO2 shell) nanostructures were examined to be capable of efficiently generating reactive oxygen species under near-infrared resonant excitation. On the other hand, the transverse plasmon modes of Au nanorods, which are often too weak to be observed on scattering spectra, are enhanced by the TiO2 shell through energy transfer. With the increment of the shell thickness, the intensity of the transverse plasmon mode increases significantly and even becomes comparable with the longitudinal plasmon mode. Interestingly, both the transverse and longitudinal modes of the (Au core) (TiO2 shell) nanostructures exhibit asymmetric Fano line shapes. The Fano resonances result from the coupling between the core and shell, as understood by the mechanical oscillator model. Besides varying the shell thickness, the plasmonic bands of the core shell nanostructures can also be tailored by employing Au nanorods with different aspect ratios. The synthetically tunable plasmonic properties and synergistic interactions between the gold core and the titania shell make the hybrid nanostructure a multifunctional nanomaterial and ideal system for studying the plasmonic hybrid nanostructures.

Nanostructured aligned CNT platforms enhance the controlled release of a neurotrophic protein from polypyrrole

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thompson, Brianna C.; Chen, Jun; Moulton, Simon E.; Wallace, Gordon G.

2010-04-01

An aligned CNT array membrane electrode has been used as a nanostructured supporting platform for polypyrrole (PPy) films, exhibiting significant improvement in the controlled release of neurotrophin. In terms of linearity of release, stimulated to unstimulated control of NT-3 release and increased mass and % release of incorporated NT-3, the nanostructured material performed more favourably than the flat PPy film.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sabari Arul, N.; Department of Nanoscience and Technology, Bharathiar University, Coimbatore-641 046; Mangalaraj, D.

Hierarchical rose-flower-like CeO{sub 2} nanostructures were formed by using solvothermal and thermal annealing processes. The CeCO{sub 3}OH thin film was transformed into CeO{sub 2} roses due to thermal annealing. CeO{sub 2} nanostructured roses exhibited excellent photocatalytic activity with a degradation rate of 65% for the azo dye acid orange 7 (AO7) under ultraviolet illumination. The fitting of the absorbance maximum versus time showed that the degradation of AO7 obeyed pseudo-first-order reaction kinetics. The enhancement of the photocatalytic activity for the CeO{sub 2} roses was attributed to the high adsorptivity resulting from the surface active sites and special 4f electron configuration.

Manipulation of light via subwavelength nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yinghong, Gu

Subwavelength nanostructures have exhibited different and controllable optical characteristics from their original material, leading a way to artificial metamaterials and metasurfaces. These nanostructures interact with light with surface plasmon resonances, cavity and waveguide modes, scattering and diffractions and etc., so they can realize the manipulation of light, which has attracted enduring and fanatic research interest, ranging from visible light, infrared light, THz to microwaves. Nanostructures, which are welldesigned and patterned to control and engineer the resonances, have realized and improved the performance of numerous optical applications such as color printing, perfect absorption, waveplates, planar lens, holograms, cloaking, optical trapping and sensing. This thesis has presents several works on manipulating light with subwavelength nanostructures, which can be generalized into two main parts. In the first part our works are manipulating far-field characteristics of light by meta-surfaces, including the high resolution color printing and imaging with spectra manipulation, and quarter wave plate (QWP) with the phase and polarization manipulation. For the color generation applications, we have presented a comprehensive literature review on the recent developments of plasmonic colors, and then we reported our ultra-high resolution nonplasmonic color printing with ultra-narrow Si fin nanostructures and an efficient TMM calculation. For the quarter wave plate, we present a series works of plasmonic QWPs including active hybrid QWPs working at multi-wavelength in visible/near-infrared light, and in THz range based on similar mechanism. The other main part is the near-field manipulation of light by nanostructures including two aspects. One is the direct excited dark modes, and the other is the photoluminescence (PL) enhancement by nanostructures. We have proposed a new mechanism to directly excite dark modes by using an electrical shorting approach with a continuous metal cover on a periodic HSQ pillar template without any asymmetry in geometry, environment and incidence. And we will also present a cooperative work on giant PL enhancement of WSe2-Au plasmonic hybrid nanostructures. In simulation, we have explained how a squared trenched Au nanostructure with gap plasmon enhances the PL of monolayer WSe2 on top of it, in both excitation process and emission process.

Glutathione reductase-mediated synthesis of tellurium-containing nanostructures exhibiting antibacterial properties.

PubMed

Pugin, Benoit; Cornejo, Fabián A; Muñoz-Díaz, Pablo; Muñoz-Villagrán, Claudia M; Vargas-Pérez, Joaquín I; Arenas, Felipe A; Vásquez, Claudio C

2014-11-01

Tellurium, a metalloid belonging to group 16 of the periodic table, displays very interesting physical and chemical properties and lately has attracted significant attention for its use in nanotechnology. In this context, the use of microorganisms for synthesizing nanostructures emerges as an eco-friendly and exciting approach compared to their chemical synthesis. To generate Te-containing nanostructures, bacteria enzymatically reduce tellurite to elemental tellurium. In this work, using a classic biochemical approach, we looked for a novel tellurite reductase from the Antarctic bacterium Pseudomonas sp. strain BNF22 and used it to generate tellurium-containing nanostructures. A new tellurite reductase was identified as glutathione reductase, which was subsequently overproduced in Escherichia coli. The characterization of this enzyme showed that it is an NADPH-dependent tellurite reductase, with optimum reducing activity at 30°C and pH 9.0. Finally, the enzyme was able to generate Te-containing nanostructures, about 68 nm in size, which exhibit interesting antibacterial properties against E. coli, with no apparent cytotoxicity against eukaryotic cells. Copyright © 2014, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Positron annihilation study of cavities in black Au films

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Melikhova, O.; Čížek, J.; Hruška, P.; Vlček, M.; Procházka, I.; Anwand, W.; Novotný, M.; Bulíř, J.

2017-01-01

Defects in a black Au film were studied using variable energy positron annihilation spectroscopy. Black Au films exhibit porous morphology similar to cauliflower. This type of structure enhances the optical absorption due to a multiple reflections in the micro-cavities. A nanostructured black Au film was compared with conventional smooth Au films with high reflectivity. The black Au film exhibited a remarkably enhanced S-parameter in sub-surface region. This is caused by a narrow para-Positronium contribution to the annihilation peak.

One-pot synthesis of gold nanostars using plant polyphenols for cancer photoacoustic imaging and photothermal therapy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Xiao-Long; Zheng, Cheng; Zhang, Yun; Yang, Huang-Hao; Liu, Xiaolong; Liu, Jingfeng

2016-07-01

Branched plasmonic nanostructures have been found to exhibit strong enhancement of the electromagnetic field surrounding their multi-branched petals. This feature endows them with improved performance in catalysis, surface-enhanced Raman scattering, photoacoustic imaging, and photothermal therapy. Albeit several synthesis techniques have been developed, the precisely controlled growth of highly branched nanostructures with a one-pot surfactant-free procedure is still challenging. Herein, we present a simple seedless route to synthesize gold nanostars (AuNSs) using a natural plant polyphenol, gallic acid (GA), as a reducing and stabilizing agent. The size and shape of AuNSs can be tuned by simply adjusting the amount of added GA. Under the optimum condition, the as-prepared AuNSs with diameters about 100 nm exhibit strong near-infrared absorption, good photothermal efficiency, and high biocompatibility. We demonstrate that AuNSs can be utilized for simultaneous photoacoustic imaging and photothermal therapy in living cancer cells. This study highlights facile synthesized AuNSs could serve as a promising platform for cancer diagnosis and therapy.

Surface design and engineering of hierarchical hybrid nanostructures for asymmetric supercapacitors with improved electrochemical performance.

PubMed

Achilleos, Demetra S; Hatton, T Alan

2015-06-01

With the current rising world demand for energy sufficiency, there is an increased necessity for the development of efficient energy storage devices. To address these needs, the scientific community has focused on the improvement of the electrochemical properties of the most well known energy storage devices; the Li-ion batteries and electrochemical capacitors, also called supercapacitors. Despite the fact that supercapacitors exhibit high power densities, good reversibility and long cycle life, they still exhibit lower energy densities than batteries, which limit their practical application. Various strategies have been employed to circumvent this problem, specifically targetting an increase in the specific capacitance and the broadening of the potential window of operation of these systems. In recent years, sophisticated surface design and engineering of hierarchical hybrid nanostructures has facilitated significant improvements in the specific and volumetric storage capabilities of supercapacitors. These nanostructured electrodes exhibit higher surface areas for ion adsorption and reduced ion diffusion lengths for the electrolyte ions. Significant advances have also been achieved in broadening the electrochemical window of operation of these systems, as realized via the development of asymmetric two-electrode cells consisting of nanocomposite positive and negative electrodes with complementary electrochemical windows, which operate in environmentally benign aqueous media. We provide an overview of the diverse approaches, in terms of chemistry and nanoscale architecture, employed recently for the development of asymmetric supercapacitors of improved electrochemical performance. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Hierarchical Micro-/Nanostructures from Human Hair for Biomedical Applications.

PubMed

Zheng, Di-Wei; Hong, Sheng; Xu, Lu; Li, Chu-Xin; Li, Ke; Cheng, Si-Xue; Zhang, Xian-Zheng

2018-05-21

With the prominent progress of biomedical engineering, materials with high biocompatibility and versatile functions are urgently needed. So far, hierarchical structures in nature have shed some light on the design of high performance materials both in concept and implementation. Inspired by these, the hierarchical micro-/nanostructures of human hair are explored and human hair is further broken into hierarchical microparticles (HMP) and hierarchical nanoparticles (HNP) with top-down procedures. Compared with commercialized carriers, such as liposomes or albumin nanoparticles, the obtained particles exhibit high hemocompatibility and negligible immunogenicity. Furthermore, these materials also display attentional abilities in the aspects of light absorption and free radical scavenging. It is found that HMP and HNP can prevent skin from UV-induced damage and relieve symptoms of cataract in vitro. Besides, both HMP and HNP show satisfactory photothermal conversion ability. By using microcomputed tomography and intravital fluorescence microscopy, it is found that warfarin-loaded HMP can rescue mice from vein thrombosis. In another aspect, HNP modified with tumor targeted aptamers exhibit dramatic antineoplastic effect, and suppress 96.8% of tumor growth in vivo. Thus, the multifaceted materials described here might provide a new tool for addressing biomedical challenges. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Binder-free cobalt phosphate one-dimensional nanograsses as ultrahigh-performance cathode material for hybrid supercapacitor applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sankar, K. Vijaya; Lee, S. C.; Seo, Y.; Ray, C.; Liu, S.; Kundu, A.; Jun, S. C.

2018-01-01

One-dimensional (1D) nanostructure exhibits excellent electrochemical performance because of their unique physico-chemical properties like fast electron transfer, good rate capability, and cyclic stability. In the present study, Co3(PO4)2 1D nanograsses are grown on Ni foam using a simple and eco-friendly hydrothermal technique with different reaction times. The open space with uniform nanograsses displays a high areal capacitance, rate capability, energy density, and cyclic stability due to the nanostructure enhancing fast ion and material interactions. Ex-situ microscope images confirm the dependence of structural stability on the reaction time, and the nanograsses promoted ion interaction through material. Further, the reproducibility of the electrochemical performance confirms the binder-free Co3(PO4)2 1D nanograsses to be a suitable high-performance cathode material for application to hybrid supercapacitor. Finally, the assembled hybrid supercapacitor exhibits a high energy density (26.66 Wh kg-1 at 750 W kg-1) and longer lifetimes (80% retained capacitance after 6000 cycles). Our results suggests that the Co3(PO4)2 1D nanograss design have a great promise for application to hybrid supercapacitor.

Large-scale cauliflower-shaped hierarchical copper nanostructures for efficient photothermal conversion.

PubMed

Fan, Peixun; Wu, Hui; Zhong, Minlin; Zhang, Hongjun; Bai, Benfeng; Jin, Guofan

2016-08-14

Efficient solar energy harvesting and photothermal conversion have essential importance for many practical applications. Here, we present a laser-induced cauliflower-shaped hierarchical surface nanostructure on a copper surface, which exhibits extremely high omnidirectional absorption efficiency over a broad electromagnetic spectral range from the UV to the near-infrared region. The measured average hemispherical absorptance is as high as 98% within the wavelength range of 200-800 nm, and the angle dependent specular reflectance stays below 0.1% within the 0-60° incident angle. Such a structured copper surface can exhibit an apparent heating up effect under the sunlight illumination. In the experiment of evaporating water, the structured surface yields an overall photothermal conversion efficiency over 60% under an illuminating solar power density of ∼1 kW m(-2). The presented technology provides a cost-effective, reliable, and simple way for realizing broadband omnidirectional light absorptive metal surfaces for efficient solar energy harvesting and utilization, which is highly demanded in various light harvesting, anti-reflection, and photothermal conversion applications. Since the structure is directly formed by femtosecond laser writing, it is quite suitable for mass production and can be easily extended to a large surface area.

Tunable organization of cellulose nanocrystals for controlled thermal and optical response

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Diaz A., Jairo A.

The biorenewable nature of cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) has opened up new opportunities for cost-effective, sustainable materials design. By taking advantage of their distinctive structural properties and self-assembly, promising applications have started to nurture the fields of flexible electronics, biomaterials, and nanocomposites. CNCs exhibit two fundamental characteristics: rod-like morphology (5-20 nm wide, 50-500 nm long), and lyotropic behavior (i.e., liquid crystalline mesophases formed in solvents), which offer unique opportunities for structural control and fine tuning of thermal and optical properties based on a proper understanding of their individual behavior and interactions at different length scales. In the present work, we attempt to provide an integral description of the influence of single crystals in the thermal and optical response exhibited by nanostructured films. Our approach involved the connection of experimental evidence with predictions of molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. In order to assess the effect of CNC orientation in the bulk response, we produced cellulose nanostructured films under two different mechanisms, namely, self-organization and shear orientation. Self-organized nanostructured films exhibited the typical iridescent optical reflection generated by chiral nematic organization. Shear oriented films disrupted the cholesteric organization, generating highly aligned structures with high optical transparency. The resultant CNC organization present in all nanostructured films was estimated by a second order statistical orientational distribution based on two- dimensional XRD signals. A new method to determine the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) in a contact-free fashion was developed to properly characterize the thermal expansion of thin soft films by excluding other thermally activated phenomena. The method can be readily extended to other soft materials to accurately measure thermal strains in a non-destructive way. By evaluating the magnitude of film CTEs relative to those of individual CNC crystals, we highlighted the significant role played by crystalline interfaces. Likewise, after measuring the thermal conductivity of a single crystal and CNC films having multiple organizations, the interfacial thermal resistance arose as a governing factor for heat transport. We will offer further insights into the intricate connection of thermal and optical properties towards a future efficient manufacture and optimal CNC based-materials design.

Synthesis, morphology, optical and photocatalytic performance of nanostructured β-Ga{sub 2}O{sub 3}

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Girija, K.; DRDO – BU CLS, Bharathiar University, Coimbatore 641046; Thirumalairajan, S.

2013-06-01

Highlights: ► Nanostructures of β-Ga{sub 2}O{sub 3} were prepared using facile reflux condensation process. ► The pH of the reaction mixture shows evident influence on the size and shape of the nanostructures formed. ► The nanostructures exhibited good photocatalytic activity toward Rhodamine B and was found to be superior for higher pH value. - Abstract: Fine powders of β-Ga{sub 2}O{sub 3} nanostructures were prepared via low temperature reflux condensation method by varying the pH value without using any surfactant. The pH value of reaction mixture had great influence on the morphology of final products. High crystalline single phase β-Ga{sub 2}O{submore » 3} nanostructures were obtained by thermal treatment at 900 °C which was confirmed by X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy. The morphological analysis revealed rod like nanostructures at lower and higher pH values of 6 and 10, while spindle like structures were obtained at pH = 8. The phase purity and presence of vibrational bands were identified using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The optical absorbance spectrum showed intense absorption features in the UV spectral region. A broad blue emission peak centered at 441 nm due to donor–acceptor gallium–oxygen vacancy pair recombination appeared. The photocatalytic activity toward Rhodamine B under visible light irradiation was higher for nanorods at pH 10.« less

Generating gradient germanium nanostructures by shock-induced amorphization and crystallization

DOE PAGES

Zhao, Shiteng; Kad, Bimal; Wehrenberg, Christopher E.; ...

2017-08-28

Gradient nanostructures are attracting considerable interest due to their potential to obtain superior structural and functional properties of materials. Applying powerful laser-driven shocks (stresses of up to one-third million atmospheres, or 33 gigapascals) to germanium, we report a complex gradient nanostructure consisting of, near the surface, nanocrystals with high density of nanotwins. Beyond there, the structure exhibits arrays of amorphous bands which are preceded by planar defects such as stacking faults generated by partial dislocations. At a lower shock stress, the surface region of the recovered target is completely amorphous. Here, we propose that germanium undergoes amorphization above a thresholdmore » stress and that the deformation-generated heat leads to nanocrystallization. These experiments are corroborated by molecular dynamics simulations which show that supersonic partial dislocation bursts play a role in triggering the crystalline-to-amorphous transition.« less

Editorial

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goh, Gregory K. L.

2014-06-01

This special issue of the Journal of Solid State Chemistry is a peer-reviewed collection of papers presented at the 7th International Conference on Materials for Advanced Technologies (ICMAT2013), Symposium Q - Innovative processing of inorganic films and nanostructures of functional materials, organised by the Materials Research Society, Singapore and held at the Singapore International Convention & Exhibition Centre, Singapore, from 30 June to 5 July 2013. The symposium focused mainly on films, porous networks and nanostructures formed by innovative processing routes that reduce energy consumption, use new mediums, combine techniques or even innovative synthesis approaches. The understanding of film and nanostructure growth mechanisms and crystal shape control were also discussed. We acknowledge the invaluable contributions of all invited, oral and poster presenters. I also take this opportunity to thank reviewers from all over the world who kindly helped in reviewing the manuscripts and provided valuable comments, making the publication of this high quality issue possible.

Facile synthesis of dendritic gold nanostructures with hyperbranched architectures and their electrocatalytic activity toward ethanol oxidation.

PubMed

Huang, Jianshe; Han, Xinyi; Wang, Dawei; Liu, Dong; You, Tianyan

2013-09-25

Gold dendritic nanostructures with hyperbranched architectures were synthesized by the galvanic replacement reaction between nickel wire and HAuCl4 in aqueous solution. The study revealed that the morphology of the obtained nanostructures strongly depended on experimental parameters such as the HAuCl4 solution concentration, reaction temperature, and time, as well as stirring or not. According to the investigation of the growth process, it was proposed that gold nanoparticles with rough surfaces were first deposited on the nickel substrate and that subsequent growth preferentially occurred on the preformed gold nanoparticles, finally leading to the formation of hyperbranched gold dendrites via a self-organization process under nonequilibrium conditions. The electrochemical experiment results demonstrated that the as-obtained gold dendrites exhibited high catalytic activity toward ethanol electrooxidation in alkaline solution, indicating that this nanomaterial may be a potential catalyst for direct ethanol fuel cells.

Efficient monoenergetic proton beam from ultra-fast laser interaction with nanostructured targets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fazeli, R.

2018-03-01

The broad energy spectrum of laser-accelerated proton beams is the most important difficulty associated with such particle sources on the way to future applications such as medical therapy, proton imaging, inertial fusion, and high-energy physics. The generation of proton beams with enhanced monoenergetic features through an ultra-intense laser interaction with optimized nanostructured targets is reported. Targets were irradiated by 40 fs laser pulses of intensity 5.5 ×1020 W c m -2 and wavelength 1 μm. The results of multi-parametric Particle-in-Cell calculations showed that proton beams with considerably reduced energy spread can be obtained by using the proposed nanostructured target. At optimized target dimensions, the proton spectrum was found to exhibit a narrow peak at about 63 MeV with a relative energy spread of ΔE /Epeak˜ 5 % which is efficiently lower than what is expected for unstructured double layer targets (˜70%).

Generating gradient germanium nanostructures by shock-induced amorphization and crystallization

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zhao, Shiteng; Kad, Bimal; Wehrenberg, Christopher E.

Gradient nanostructures are attracting considerable interest due to their potential to obtain superior structural and functional properties of materials. Applying powerful laser-driven shocks (stresses of up to one-third million atmospheres, or 33 gigapascals) to germanium, we report a complex gradient nanostructure consisting of, near the surface, nanocrystals with high density of nanotwins. Beyond there, the structure exhibits arrays of amorphous bands which are preceded by planar defects such as stacking faults generated by partial dislocations. At a lower shock stress, the surface region of the recovered target is completely amorphous. Here, we propose that germanium undergoes amorphization above a thresholdmore » stress and that the deformation-generated heat leads to nanocrystallization. These experiments are corroborated by molecular dynamics simulations which show that supersonic partial dislocation bursts play a role in triggering the crystalline-to-amorphous transition.« less

Titanium-dioxide nanotube p-n homojunction diode

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alivov, Yahya; Ding, Yuchen; Singh, Vivek; Nagpal, Prashant

2014-12-01

Application of semiconductors in functional optoelectronic devices requires precise control over their doping and formation of junction between p- and n-doped semiconductors. While doped thin films have led to several semiconductor devices, need for high-surface area nanostructured devices for photovoltaic, photoelectrochemical, and photocatalytic applications has been hindered by lack of desired doping in nanostructures. Here, we show titanium-dioxide (TiO2) nanotubes doped with nitrogen (N) and niobium (Nb) as acceptors and donors, respectively, and formation of TiO2 nanotubes p-n homojunction. This TiO2:N/TiO2:Nb homojunction showed distinct diode-like behaviour with rectification ratio of 1115 at ±5 V and exhibited good photoresponse for ultraviolet light (λ = 365 nm) with sensitivity of 0.19 A/W at reverse bias of -5 V. These results can have important implications for development of nanostructured metal-oxide solar-cells, photodiodes, LED's, photocatalysts, and photoelectrochemical devices.

A high efficient nanostructured filter based on functionalized carbon nanotube to reduce the tobacco-specific nitrosamines, NNK

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yoosefian, Mehdi

2018-03-01

Filtration efficiency of Pd and Ni loaded single-walled carbon nanotubes via the applicability of the adsorption process for the removal NNK, the tobacco-specific nitrosamines, from tobacco smoke were investigated using first-principles calculations. The thermal and mechanical stability of designed nanostructured filter could allow them to compete with typical commercially used. It is expected that the removal efficiency of the proposed nanostructured filter could also provide a promising adsorbent candidate in removing the environmental pollutant. The suggested separation mechanism in this study was discussed with frontier molecular orbital theory, natural bond orbital (NBO) analyses and the density of states in the density functional theory framework. Finally, by the Bader theory of atoms in molecules (AIM), the topological properties of the electron density contributions for intermolecular and intramolecular interactions has been analyzed. Calculations show that the transition metal-loaded SWCNT exhibit strong affinity toward the NNK molecules.

Effects of Nanoimprinted Structures on the Performance of Organic Solar Cells

DOE PAGES

Gill, Hardeep Singh; Li, Lian; Ren, Haizhou; ...

2018-01-01

The effect of nanoimprinted structures on the performance of organic bulk heterojunction solar cells was investigated. The nanostructures were formed over the active layer employing the soft lithographic technique. The measured incident photon-to-current efficiency revealed that the nanostructured morphology over the active layer can efficiently enhance both light harvesting and charge carrier collection due to improvement of the absorption of incident light and the buried nanostructured cathode, respectively. The devices prepared with the imprinted nanostructures exhibited significantly higher power conversion efficiencies as compared to those of the control cells.

Effects of Nanoimprinted Structures on the Performance of Organic Solar Cells

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gill, Hardeep Singh; Li, Lian; Ren, Haizhou

The effect of nanoimprinted structures on the performance of organic bulk heterojunction solar cells was investigated. The nanostructures were formed over the active layer employing the soft lithographic technique. The measured incident photon-to-current efficiency revealed that the nanostructured morphology over the active layer can efficiently enhance both light harvesting and charge carrier collection due to improvement of the absorption of incident light and the buried nanostructured cathode, respectively. The devices prepared with the imprinted nanostructures exhibited significantly higher power conversion efficiencies as compared to those of the control cells.

Hierarchical NiCo2 O4 nanosheets grown on Ni nanofoam as high-performance electrodes for supercapacitors.

PubMed

Gao, Guoxin; Wu, Hao Bin; Ding, Shujiang; Liu, Li-Min; Lou, Xiong Wen David

2015-02-18

A high-performance electrode for supercapacitors is designed and synthesized by growing electroactive NiCo2 O4 nanosheets on conductive Ni nanofoam. Because of the structural advantages, the as-prepared Ni@NiCo2 O4 hybrid nanostructure exhibits significantly improved electrochemical performance with high capacitance, excellent rate capability, and good cycling stability. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Toward High-Performance and Low-Cost Hydrogen Evolution Reaction Electrocatalysts: Nanostructuring Cobalt Phosphide (CoP) Particles on Carbon Fiber Paper.

PubMed

Yu, Shu Hearn; Chua, Daniel H C

2018-05-02

In this communication, we facily fabricated nanostructured CoP particles (150 to 200 nm) on carbon fiber paper (CFP) for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) by a simple two-step process via a green route. In the first step, crystalline Co 3 O 4 nanocubes (150-200 nm) were loaded on CFP through a hydrothermal process at low temperature (120 °C). Interestingly, crystalline Co 3 O 4 nanocubes with a size 150-200 nm exhibited different growth mechanisms in contrast to the crystalline Co 3 O 4 nanocubes with a size <100 nm reported earlier. In the second step, these crystalline Co 3 O 4 nanocubes were converted to catalytically active CoP particles through chemical vapor deposition (CVD) phosphorization (denoted as CoP/CFP-H). Remarkably, CoP/CFP-H exhibited a low Tafel slope of 49.7 mV/dec and only required overpotentials of 128.1, 144.4, and 190.8 mV to drive geometric current densities of -10, -20, and -100 mA cm -2 , respectively. Besides, the CoP/CFP-H also demonstrated an excellent durability in an acidic environment under 2000 sweeps at a high scan rate (100 mV s -1 ) and a 24 h chronopotentiometry testing. For comparison, CoP was also fabricated through the electrodeposition method, followed by CVD phosphorization (denoted as CoP/CFP-E). It was found that the latter had exhibited inferior activity compared to CoP/CFP-H. The good performances of CoP/CFP-H are essentially due to the rational designs of electrode: (i) the applications of highly HER active CoP electrocatalyst, (ii) the intimate contact of nanostructured CoP on carbon fibers, and (iii) the large electrochemical surface area at electrocatalyst/electrolyte interface due to the large retaining of particles features after phosphorization. Notably, the intermediate Co 3 O 4 /CFP can serve as a platform to develop other cobalt-based functional materials.

Synthesis of nanostructured porous silica coatings on titanium and their cell adhesive and osteogenic differentiation properties.

PubMed

Inzunza, Débora; Covarrubias, Cristian; Von Marttens, Alfredo; Leighton, Yerko; Carvajal, Juan Carlos; Valenzuela, Francisco; Díaz-Dosque, Mario; Méndez, Nicolás; Martínez, Constanza; Pino, Ana María; Rodríguez, Juan Pablo; Cáceres, Mónica; Smith, Patricio

2014-01-01

Nanostructured porous silica coatings were synthesized on titanium by the combined sol-gel and evaporation-induced self-assembly process. The silica-coating structures were characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and nitrogen sorptometry. The effect of the nanoporous surface on apatite formation in simulated body fluid, protein adsorption, osteoblast cell adhesion behavior, and osteogenic differentiation of human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (hBMSCs) is reported. Silica coatings with highly ordered sub-10 nm porosity accelerate early osteoblast adhesive response, a favorable cell response that is attributed to an indirect effect due to the high protein adsorption observed on the large-specific surface area of the nanoporous coating but is also probably due to direct mechanical stimulus from the nanostructured topography. The nanoporous silica coatings, particularly those doped with calcium and phosphate, also promote the osteogenic differentiation of hBMSCs with spontaneous mineral nodule formation in basal conditions. The bioactive surface properties exhibited by the nanostructured porous silica coatings make these materials a promising alternative to improve the osseointegration properties of titanium dental implants and could have future impact on the nanoscale design of implant surfaces. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc., a Wiley Company.

Multilayer ZnO/Pd/ZnO Structure as Sensing Membrane for Extended-Gate Field-Effect Transistor (EGFET) with High pH Sensitivity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rasheed, Hiba S.; Ahmed, Naser M.; Matjafri, M. Z.; Al-Hardan, Naif H.; Almessiere, Munirah Abdullah; Sabah, Fayroz A.; Al-Hazeem, Nabeel Z.

2017-10-01

Metal oxide nanostructures have attracted considerable attention as pH-sensitive membranes because of their unique advantages. Specifically, the special properties of ZnO thin film, including high surface-to-volume ratio, nontoxicity, thermal stability, chemical stability, electrochemical activity, and high mechanical strength, have attracted massive interest. ZnO exhibits wide bandgap of 3.37 eV, good biocompatibility, high reactivity, robustness, and environmental stability. These unique properties explain why ZnO has the most applications among all nanostructured metal oxides based on its structure and properties. Moreover, ZnO has excellent electrical characteristics, enabling its use in accurate sensors with rapid response. ZnO nanostructures can be used in novel pH and biomedical sensing applications. However, ZnO thin film exhibits large sheet resistance and low conductivity. Increasing the conductivity or reducing the resistivity of ZnO sensing membranes is important to achieve low impedance. We propose herein a new design using a multilayer ZnO/Pd/ZnO structure as a pH-sensing membrane. Multiple layers were deposited by radio frequency (RF) sputtering for ZnO and direct current (DC) sputtering for Pd to achieve low sheet resistance. These multilayers with low sheet resistance of 15.8 Ω/sq were then successfully used to control the conductivity in extended-gate field-effect transistors (EGFETs). The resulting multilayered EGFET pH-sensor demonstrated improved sensing performance. The measured sensitivity of the pH sensor was 40 μA/pH and 52 mV/pH within the pH range from 2 to 12, rendering this structure suitable for use in various applications, including pH sensors and biosensors.

Polymer nanoimprinting using an anodized aluminum mold for structural coloration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kikuchi, Tatsuya; Nishinaga, Osamu; Natsui, Shungo; Suzuki, Ryosuke O.

2015-06-01

Polymer nanoimprinting of submicrometer-scale dimple arrays with structural coloration was demonstrated. Highly ordered aluminum dimple arrays measuring 530-670 nm in diameter were formed on an aluminum substrate via etidronic acid anodizing at 210-270 V and subsequent anodic oxide dissolution. The nanostructured aluminum surface led to bright structural coloration with a rainbow spectrum, and the reflected wavelength strongly depends on the angle of the specimen and the period of the dimple array. The reflection peak shifts gradually with the dimple diameter toward longer wavelength, reaching 800 nm in wavelength at 670 nm in diameter. The shape of the aluminum dimple arrays were successfully transferred to a mercapto-ester ultra-violet curable polymer via self-assembled monolayer coating and polymer replications using a nanoimprinting technique. The nanostructured polymer surfaces with positively and negatively shaped dimple arrays also exhibited structural coloration based on the periodic nanostructure, and reflected light mostly in the visible region, 400-800 nm. This nanostructuring with structural coloration can be easily realized by simple techniques such as anodizing, SAM coating, and nanoimprinting.

Mucoadhesive microparticles with a nanostructured surface for enhanced bioavailability of glaucoma drug.

PubMed

Park, Chun Gwon; Kim, Young Kook; Kim, Mi Jeung; Park, Min; Kim, Myung Hun; Lee, Seung Ho; Choi, Sung Yoon; Lee, Won Seok; Chung, You Jung; Jung, Young Eun; Park, Ki Ho; Choy, Young Bin

2015-12-28

Topical drug administration to the eye is limited by low drug bioavailability due to its rapid clearance from the preocular surface. Thus, multiple daily administrations are often needed, but patient compliance is low, hence a high chance of unsatisfactory treatment of ocular diseases. To resolve this, we propose mucoadhesive microparticles with a nanostructured surface as potential carriers for delivery of brimonidine, an ocular drug for glaucoma treatment. For sustained drug delivery, the microparticles were composed mainly of a diffusion-wall material, poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) and a mucoadhesive polymer, polyethylene glycol, was used as an additive. Due to their nanostructured surface, the microparticles with a mucoadhesive material exhibited a 13-fold increase in specific surface area and could thus adhere better to the mucous layer on the eye, as compared with the conventional spherical microparticles. When loaded with brimonidine, the mucoadhesive microparticles with a nanostructured surface increased both drug bioavailability and its activity period by a factor of more than 2 over Alphagan P, a marketed eye drop of brimonidine. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Morphology and crystallinity-controlled synthesis of manganese cobalt oxide/manganese dioxides hierarchical nanostructures for high-performance supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Fei; Li, Gang; Chen, Hao; Jia, Jia Qi; Dong, Fan; Hu, Yao Bo; Shang, Zheng Guo; Zhang, Yu Xin

2015-11-01

We demonstrate a novel preparative strategy for the well-controlled MnCo2O4.5@MnO2 hierarchical nanostructures. Both δ-MnO2 nanosheets and α-MnO2 nanorods can uniformly decorate the surface of MnCo2O4.5 nanowires to form core-shell heterostructures. Detailed electrochemical characterization reveals that MnCo2O4.5@δ-MnO2 pattern exhibits not only high specific capacitance of 357.5 F g-1 at a scan rate of 0.5 A g-1, but also good cycle stability (97% capacitance retention after 1000 cycles at a scan rate of 5 A g-1), which make it have a promising application as a supercapacitor electrode material.

Template-directed synthesis of silica nanotubes for explosive detection.

PubMed

Yildirim, Adem; Acar, Handan; Erkal, Turan S; Bayindir, Mehmet; Guler, Mustafa O

2011-10-01

Fluorescent porous organic-inorganic thin films are of interest of explosive detection because of their vapor phase fluorescence quenching property. In this work, we synthesized fluorescent silica nanotubes using a biomineralization process through self-assembled peptidic nanostructures. We designed and synthesized an amyloid-like peptide self-assembling into nanofibers to be used as a template for silica nanotube formation. The amine groups on the peptide nanofibrous system were used for nucleation of silica nanostructures. Silica nanotubes were used to prepare highly porous surfaces, and they were doped with a fluorescent dye by physical adsorption for explosive sensing. These porous surfaces exhibited fast, sensitive, and highly selective fluorescence quenching against nitro-explosive vapors. The materials developed in this work have vast potential in sensing applications due to enhanced surface area. © 2011 American Chemical Society

Portraits of colloidal hybrid nanostructures: controlled synthesis and potential applications.

PubMed

Nguyen, Thanh-Dinh

2013-03-01

Inorganic hybrid nanostructures containing two or more nanocomponents have been emerging in many areas of materials science in recent years. The particle-particle interactions in a hybrid particle system could significantly improve existing local electronic structure and induce tunable physiochemical responses. The current work reviews the diverse inorganic hybrid nanostructures formed by adhesion of the different single components via seed-mediated method. The hybrid nanomaterials have great potentials for real applications in many other fields. The nanohybrids have been used as efficient heterocatalysts for carbon monoxide conversion and photodegradation of organic contaminants. The enhanced catalytic activity of these hybrid nanocatalysts could be attributed the formation of oxygen vacancies and electron transfer across the structural junction in a hybrid system as a result of the interfacial particle-particle interactions. The synergistic combination of up-converting and semiconducting properties in an up-converting semiconducting hybrid particle results in appearance of sub-band-gap photoconductivity. This behavior has a great significance for the design of photovoltaic devices for effective solar energy conversion. The functionalization and subsequent bioconjugation of the hybrid nanostructures to afford the multifunctional nanomedical platforms for simultaneous diagnosis and therapy are reviewed. The conjugated multifunctional hybrid nanostructures exhibit high biocompatibility and highly selective binding with functional groups-fabricated alive organs through delivering them to the tumor sites. The clever combinations of multifunctional features and antibody conjugation within these vehicles make them to generally offer new opportunities for clinical diagnostics and therapeutics. Crown Copyright © 2012. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Hierarchical concave layered triangular PtCu alloy nanostructures: rational integration of dendritic nanostructures for efficient formic acid electrooxidation.

PubMed

Wu, Fengxia; Lai, Jianping; Zhang, Ling; Niu, Wenxin; Lou, Baohua; Luque, Rafael; Xu, Guobao

2018-05-08

The rational construction of multi-dimensional layered noble metal nanostructures is a great challenge since noble metals are not layer-structured materials. Herein, we report a one-pot hydrothermal synthetic method for PtCu hierarchical concave layered triangular (HCLT) nanostructures using dl-carnitine, KI, poly(vinylpyrrolidone), CuCl2, and H2PtCl6. The PtCu HCLT nanostructure is comprised of multilayered triangular dendrites. Its layer number is tunable by changing dl-carnitine concentrations, and the concavity/convexity of the PtCu triangle nanostructures is tunable by changing the H2PtCl6/CuCl2 ratio or KI concentrations. Hierarchical trigonal bipyramid nanoframes are also obtained under certain conditions. Because of its advantageous nanostructure and bimetallic synergetic effect, the obtained PtCu HCLT nanostructure exhibits enhanced electrocatalytic activity and prolonged stability to formic acid oxidation compared to commercial Pt black, Pd/C and some other nanostructures.

Growth of rutile TiO2 nanorods in Ti and Cu ion sequentially implanted SiO2 and the involved mechanisms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mu, Xiaoyu; Liu, Xiaoyu; Wang, Xiaohu; Dai, Haitao; Liu, Changlong

2018-01-01

TiO2 in nanoscale exhibits unique physicochemical and optoelectronic properties and has attracted much more interest of the researchers. In this work, TiO2 nanostructures are synthesized in amorphous SiO2 slices by implanting Ti ions, or sequentially implanting Ti and Cu ions combined with annealing at high temperature. The morphology, structure, spatial distribution and optical properties of the formed nanostructures have been investigated in detail. Our results clearly show that the thermal growth of TiO2 nanostructures in SiO2 substrate is significantly enhanced by presence of post Cu ion implantation, which depends strongly on the applied Cu ion fluence, as well as the annealing atmosphere. Due to the formation of Cu2O in the substrate, rutile TiO2 nanorods of large size have been well fabricated in the Ti and Cu sequentially implanted SiO2 after annealing in N2 atmosphere, in which Cu2O plays a role as a catalyst. Moreover, the sample with well-fabricated TiO2 nanorods exhibits a narrowed band gap, an enhanced optical absorption in visible region, and catalase-/peroxidase-like catalytic characteristics. Our findings provide an effective route to fabricate functional TiO2 nanorods in SiO2 via ion implantation.

DNA origami as an in vivo drug delivery vehicle for cancer therapy.

PubMed

Zhang, Qian; Jiang, Qiao; Li, Na; Dai, Luru; Liu, Qing; Song, Linlin; Wang, Jinye; Li, Yaqian; Tian, Jie; Ding, Baoquan; Du, Yang

2014-07-22

Many chemotherapeutics used for cancer treatments encounter issues during delivery to tumors in vivo and may have high levels of systemic toxicity due to their nonspecific distribution. Various materials have been explored to fabricate nanoparticles as drug carriers to improve delivery efficiency. However, most of these materials suffer from multiple drawbacks, such as limited biocompatibility and inability to engineer spatially addressable surfaces that can be utilized for multifunctional activity. Here, we demonstrate that DNA origami possessed enhanced tumor passive targeting and long-lasting properties at the tumor region. Particularly, the triangle-shaped DNA origami exhibits optimal tumor passive targeting accumulation. The delivery of the known anticancer drug doxorubicin into tumors by self-assembled DNA origami nanostructures was performed, and this approach showed prominent therapeutic efficacy in vivo. The DNA origami carriers were prepared through the self-assembly of M13mp18 phage DNA and hundreds of complementary DNA helper strands; the doxorubicin was subsequently noncovalently intercalated into these nanostructures. After conducting fluorescence imaging and safety evaluation, the doxorubicin-containing DNA origami exhibited remarkable antitumor efficacy without observable systemic toxicity in nude mice bearing orthotopic breast tumors labeled with green fluorescent protein. Our results demonstrated the potential of DNA origami nanostructures as innovative platforms for the efficient and safe drug delivery of cancer therapeutics in vivo.

Preparation and characterization of flexible asymmetric supercapacitors based on transition-metal-oxide nanowire/single-walled carbon nanotube hybrid thin-film electrodes.

PubMed

Chen, Po-Chiang; Shen, Guozhen; Shi, Yi; Chen, Haitian; Zhou, Chongwu

2010-08-24

In the work described in this paper, we have successfully fabricated flexible asymmetric supercapacitors (ASCs) based on transition-metal-oxide nanowire/single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) hybrid thin-film electrodes. These hybrid nanostructured films, with advantages of mechanical flexibility, uniform layered structures, and mesoporous surface morphology, were produced by using a filtration method. Here, manganese dioxide nanowire/SWNT hybrid films worked as the positive electrode, and indium oxide nanowire/SWNT hybrid films served as the negative electrode in a designed ASC. In our design, charges can be stored not only via electrochemical double-layer capacitance from SWNT films but also through a reversible faradic process from transition-metal-oxide nanowires. In addition, to obtain stable electrochemical behavior during charging/discharging cycles in a 2 V potential window, the mass balance between two electrodes has been optimized. Our optimized hybrid nanostructured ASCs exhibited a superior device performance with specific capacitance of 184 F/g, energy density of 25.5 Wh/kg, and columbic efficiency of approximately 90%. In addition, our ASCs exhibited a power density of 50.3 kW/kg, which is 10-fold higher than obtained in early reported ASC work. The high-performance hybrid nanostructured ASCs can find applications in conformal electrics, portable electronics, and electrical vehicles.

Highly Porous FeS/Carbon Fibers Derived from Fe-Carrageenan Biomass: High-capacity and Durable Anodes for Sodium-Ion Batteries.

PubMed

Li, Daohao; Sun, Yuanyuan; Chen, Shuai; Yao, Jiuyong; Zhang, Yuhui; Xia, Yanzhi; Yang, Dongjiang

2018-05-08

The nanostructured metal sulfides have been reported as promising anode materials for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) due to their high theoretical capacities but have suffered from the unsatisfactory electronic conductivity and poor structural stability during a charge/discharge process, thus limiting their applications. Herein, the one-dimensional (1D) porous FeS/carbon fibers (FeS/CFs) micro/nanostructures are fabricated through facile pyrolysis of double-helix-structured Fe-carrageenan fibers. The FeS nanoparticles are in situ formed by interacting with sulfur-containing group of natural material ι-carrageenan and uniformly embedded in the unique 1D porous carbon fibrous matrix, significantly enhancing the sodium-ion storage performance. The obtained FeS/CFs with optimized sodium storage performance benefits from the appropriate carbon content (20.9 wt %). The composite exhibits high capacity and excellent cycling stability (283 mAh g -1 at current density of 1 A g -1 after 400 cycles) and rate performance (247 mAh g -1 at 5 A g -1 ). This work provides a simple strategy to construct 1D porous FeS/CFs micro/nanostructures as high-performance anode materials for SIBs via a unique sustainable and environmentally friendly way.

Nanostructured β-type titanium alloy fabricated by ultrasonic nanocrystal surface modification.

PubMed

Kheradmandfard, Mehdi; Kashani-Bozorg, Seyed Farshid; Kim, Chang-Lae; Hanzaki, Abbas Zarei; Pyoun, Young-Shik; Kim, Jung-Hyong; Amanov, Auezhan; Kim, Dae-Eun

2017-11-01

The surface of β-type Ti-Nb-Ta-Zr (TNTZ) alloy, which is a promising material for biomedical applications, was treated with the ultrasonic nanocrystal surface modification (UNSM) technique to enhance its hardness. As a result, a gradient nanostructured (GNS) layer was generated in the surface; the microstructure of the top surface layer consisted of nanoscale lamellae with a width of about 60-200nm. In addition, there were lamellar grains consisting of nanostructured subgrains having unclear and wavy boundaries. The treated surface exhibited a hardness value of ∼385HV compared to 190HV for the untreated alloy. It was further determined that highly dense deformation twins were generated at a depth of ∼40-150µm below the UNSM-treated surface. These deformation twins led to a significant work hardening effect which aided in enhancing the mechanical properties. It was also found that UNSM treatment resulted in the formation of micropatterns on the surface, which would be beneficial for high bioactivity and bone regeneration performance of TNTZ implants. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Gyroid Nickel Nanostructures from Diblock Copolymer Supramolecules

PubMed Central

Vukovic, Ivana; Punzhin, Sergey; Voet, Vincent S. D.; Vukovic, Zorica; de Hosson, Jeff Th. M.; ten Brinke, Gerrit; Loos, Katja

2014-01-01

Nanoporous metal foams possess a unique combination of properties - they are catalytically active, thermally and electrically conductive, and furthermore, have high porosity, high surface-to-volume and strength-to-weight ratio. Unfortunately, common approaches for preparation of metallic nanostructures render materials with highly disordered architecture, which might have an adverse effect on their mechanical properties. Block copolymers have the ability to self-assemble into ordered nanostructures and can be applied as templates for the preparation of well-ordered metal nanofoams. Here we describe the application of a block copolymer-based supramolecular complex - polystyrene-block-poly(4-vinylpyridine)(pentadecylphenol) PS-b-P4VP(PDP) - as a precursor for well-ordered nickel nanofoam. The supramolecular complexes exhibit a phase behavior similar to conventional block copolymers and can self-assemble into the bicontinuous gyroid morphology with two PS networks placed in a P4VP(PDP) matrix. PDP can be dissolved in ethanol leading to the formation of a porous structure that can be backfilled with metal. Using electroless plating technique, nickel can be inserted into the template's channels. Finally, the remaining polymer can be removed via pyrolysis from the polymer/inorganic nanohybrid resulting in nanoporous nickel foam with inverse gyroid morphology. PMID:24797367

Gyroid nickel nanostructures from diblock copolymer supramolecules.

PubMed

Vukovic, Ivana; Punzhin, Sergey; Voet, Vincent S D; Vukovic, Zorica; de Hosson, Jeff Th M; ten Brinke, Gerrit; Loos, Katja

2014-04-28

Nanoporous metal foams possess a unique combination of properties - they are catalytically active, thermally and electrically conductive, and furthermore, have high porosity, high surface-to-volume and strength-to-weight ratio. Unfortunately, common approaches for preparation of metallic nanostructures render materials with highly disordered architecture, which might have an adverse effect on their mechanical properties. Block copolymers have the ability to self-assemble into ordered nanostructures and can be applied as templates for the preparation of well-ordered metal nanofoams. Here we describe the application of a block copolymer-based supramolecular complex - polystyrene-block-poly(4-vinylpyridine)(pentadecylphenol) PS-b-P4VP(PDP) - as a precursor for well-ordered nickel nanofoam. The supramolecular complexes exhibit a phase behavior similar to conventional block copolymers and can self-assemble into the bicontinuous gyroid morphology with two PS networks placed in a P4VP(PDP) matrix. PDP can be dissolved in ethanol leading to the formation of a porous structure that can be backfilled with metal. Using electroless plating technique, nickel can be inserted into the template's channels. Finally, the remaining polymer can be removed via pyrolysis from the polymer/inorganic nanohybrid resulting in nanoporous nickel foam with inverse gyroid morphology.

Sunlight-Sensitive Anti-Fouling Nanostructured TiO2 coated Cu Meshes for Ultrafast Oily Water Treatment

PubMed Central

Liu, HaoRan; Raza, Aikifa; Aili, Abulimiti; Lu, JinYou; AlGhaferi, Amal; Zhang, TieJun

2016-01-01

Nanostructured materials with desired wettability and optical property can play an important role in reducing the energy consumption of oily water treatment technologies. For effective oily water treatment, membrane materials with high strength, sunlight-sensitive anti-fouling, relative low fabrication cost, and controllable wettability are being explored. In the proposed oily water treatment approach, nanostructured TiO2-coated copper (TNS-Cu) meshes are used. These TNS-Cu meshes exhibit robust superhydrophilicity and underwater oleophobicity (high oil intrusion pressure) as well as excellent chemical and thermal stability (≈250 °C). They have demonstrated high separation efficiency (oil residue in the filtrate ≤21.3 ppm), remarkable filtration flux (≥400 kL h−1 m−2), and sunlight-sensitive anti-fouling properties. Both our theoretical analysis and experimental characterization have confirmed the enhanced light absorption property of TNS-Cu meshes in the visible region (40% of the solar spectrum) and consequently strong anti-fouling capability upon direct solar light illumination. With these features, the proposed approach promises great potential in treating produced oily wastewater from industry and daily life. PMID:27160349

Room temperature ammonia gas sensing properties of MoS2 nanostructured thin film

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sharma, Shubham; Kumar, Arvind; Kaur, Davinder

2018-05-01

Here, we have fabricated the MoS2 nanostructure thin films on the Si (100) substrate using DC magnetron sputtering technique. The MoS2 thin film sensor shows the selective responses towards the ammonia gas (NH3) under low detection range 10-500 ppm. The sensor displays a significantly high sensing response (Rg/Ra ˜2.2) towards 100 ppm ammonia gas with a very fast response and recovery time of 22 sec and 30 sec respectively. Selectivity and stability investigations exhibit the excellent sensing properties of MoS2 thin film sensor. The working principle and sensing mechanism behind their remarkable performance was also investigated in detail.

Silver-Ion-Exchanged Nanostructured Zeolite X as Antibacterial Agent with Superior Ion Release Kinetics and Efficacy against Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

PubMed

Chen, Shaojiang; Popovich, John; Iannuzo, Natalie; Haydel, Shelley E; Seo, Dong-Kyun

2017-11-15

As antibiotic resistance continues to be a major public health problem, antimicrobial alternatives have become critically important. Nanostructured zeolites have been considered as an ideal host for improving popular antimicrobial silver-ion-exchanged zeolites, because with very short diffusion path lengths they offer advantages in ion diffusion and release over their conventional microsized zeolite counterparts. Herein, comprehensive studies are reported on materials characteristics, silver-ion release kinetics, and antibacterial properties of silver-ion-exchanged nanostructured zeolite X with comparisons to conventional microsized silver-ion-exchanged zeolite (∼2 μm) as a reference. The nanostructured zeolites are submicrometer-sized aggregates (100-700 nm) made up of primary zeolite particles with an average primary particle size of 24 nm. The silver-ion-exchanged nanostructured zeolite released twice the concentration of silver ions at a rate approximately three times faster than the reference. The material exhibited rapid antimicrobial activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values ranging from 4 to 16 μg/mL after 24 h exposure in various growth media and a minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC; >99.9% population reduction) of 1 μg/mL after 2 h in water. While high concentrations of silver-ion-exchanged nanostructured zeolite X were ineffective at reducing MRSA biofilm cell viability, efficacy increased at lower concentrations. In consideration of potential medical applications, cytotoxicity of the silver-ion-exchanged nanostructured zeolite X was also investigated. After 4 days of incubation, significant reduction in eukaryotic cell viability was observed only at concentrations 4-16-fold greater than the 24 h MIC, indicating low cytotoxicity of the material. Our results establish silver-ion-exchanged nanostructured zeolites as an effective antibacterial material against dangerous antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

A Stable Plasmonic Cu@Cu2 O/ZnO Heterojunction for Enhanced Photocatalytic Hydrogen Generation.

PubMed

Lou, Yongbing; Zhang, Yake; Cheng, Lin; Chen, Jinxi; Zhao, Yixin

2018-05-09

The localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) effect has been widely utilized in photocatalysis, but most reported LSPR materials are based on noble metals of gold or silver with high chemical stability. Plasmonic copper nanoparticles that exhibit an LSPR absorbance at 600 nm are promising for many applications, such as photocatalysis. Unfortunately, plasmonic copper nanoparticles are affected by serious surface oxidation in air. Herein, a novel lollipop-shaped Cu@Cu 2 O/ZnO heterojunction nanostructure was designed, for the first time, to stabilize the plasmonic Cu core by decorating Cu@Cu 2 O core-shell structures with ZnO nanorods. This Cu@Cu 2 O/ZnO nanostructure exhibited significantly enhanced stability than that of regular Cu@Cu 2 O, which accounted for the remarkably enhanced photocatalytic H 2 evolution rate through water splitting, relative to pristine ZnO nanorods, over an extended wavelength range due to the plasmonic Cu core. © 2018 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Round-patterned ZnO nanostructure coated with siloxane-based polymer for nerve agent detection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Choi, Hyun Ji; Lee, Ji Won; Jeong, Dong-Cheol; Ha, Seonggyun; Song, Changsik; Boo, Jin-Hyo

2018-01-01

The alignment of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanostructures is expected to improve device sensitivities due to large surface areas which can be utilized to capture significant quantities of gas particles. In this study, we investigated patterned ZnO nanorods modified with polystyrene monolayers synthesized directly onto a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) cell to increase the coating surface area of the sensing material. Also, we designed and synthesized a siloxane-based polymer (S1 polymer) as a sensing material. The patterned ZnO nanorods coated with S1 polymers were fabricated and used for the detection of dimethyl methylphosphonate (DMMP). The resonance frequency of QCM was shifted due to the adsorption and desorption of a compound at the surface of the modified electrodes. We have synthesized an S1 polymer that exhibited high sensitivity to DMMP. The patterned ZnO nanorods coated with the polymer also exhibited improved sensitivity due to an enhanced surface area capable of adsorbing more DMMP vapor.

Comparative study on luminescence extraction strategies of LED by large-scale fabrication of nanopillar and nanohole structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guo, Wei; Li, Junmei; Sheikhi, Moheb; Jiang, Jie’an; Yang, Zhenhai; Li, Hongwei; Guo, Shiping; Sheng, Jiang; Sun, Jie; Bo, Baoxue; Ye, Jichun

2018-06-01

Light extraction and current injection are two important considerations in the development of high efficiency light-emitting-diodes (LEDs), but usually cannot be satisfied simultaneously in nanostructure patterned devices. In this work, we investigated near-UV LEDs with nanopillar and nanohole patterns to improve light extraction efficiency. Photoluminescence (PL) intensities were enhanced by 8.0 and 4.1 times for nanopillar and nanohole LEDs compared to that of planar LED. Nanopillar LED exhibits higher PL emission than that of the nanohole LED, attributing to a convex shape sidewall for more effective outward light scattering, and reduction of quantum-confined-stark-effect owing to strain relaxation. However, nanopillar LED exhibits lower electroluminescence intensity than the nanohole sample, which calls for further optimization in carrier distributions. Experimental results were further supported by near-field electric field simulations. This work demonstrates the difference in optical and electrical behaviors between the nanopillar and nanohole LEDs, paving the way for detailed understanding on luminescence extraction mechanisms of nanostructure patterned UV emitters.

Self-Assembly of Natural and Synthetic Drug Amphiphiles into Discrete Supramolecular Nanostructures

PubMed Central

Lock, Lye Lin; LaComb, Michelle; Schwarz, Kelly; Cheetham, Andrew G.; Lin, Yi-an; Zhang, Pengcheng

2014-01-01

Molecular assembly provides an effective approach to construct discrete supramolecular nanostructures of various sizes and shapes in a simple manner. One important technological application of the resulting nanostructures is their potential use as anticancer drug carriers to facilitate targeted delivery to tumour sites and consequently to improve clinical outcomes. In this carrier-assisted delivery strategy, anticancer drugs have been almost exclusively considered as the cargo to be carried and delivered, and their potential as molecular building blocks has been largely ignored. In this discussion, we report the use of anticancer drugs as molecular building units to create discrete supramolecular nanostructures that contain a high and quantitative drug loading and also have the potential for self-delivery. We first show the direct assembly of two amphiphilic drug molecules (methotrexate and folic acid) into discrete nanostructures. Our results reveal that folic acid exhibits rich self-assembly behaviours via Hoogsteen hydrogen bonding in various solvent conditions, whereas methotrexate was unable to assemble into any well-defined nanostructures under the same conditions, despite its similar chemical structures. Considering the low water solubility of most anticancer drugs, hydrophilic segments must be conjugated to the drug in order to bestow the necessary amphiphilicity. We have demonstrated this for camptothecin through the attachment of β-sheet-forming peptides with overall hydrophilicity. We found that the intermolecular interactions among camptothecin segments and those among β-sheet peptides act together to define the formation of stable one-dimensional nanostructures in dilute solutions, giving rise to nanotubes or nanofibers depending upon the processing conditions used. These results lead us to believe that self-assembly of drugs into discrete nanostructures not only offers an innovative way to craft self-delivering anticancer drugs, but also extends the paradigm of using molecular assembly as a toolbox to achieve functional nanostructures, to a new area which is specifically focused on the direct assembly of functional molecules (e.g. drugs, or imaging agents) into nanostructures of their own. PMID:24611283

Generation of reactive oxygen species and charge carriers in plasmonic photocatalytic Au@TiO2 nanostructures with enhanced activity.

PubMed

He, Weiwei; Cai, Junhui; Jiang, Xiumei; Yin, Jun-Jie; Meng, Qingbo

2018-06-13

The combination of semiconductor and plasmonic nanostructures, endowed with high efficiency light harvesting and surface plasmon confinement, has been a promising way for efficient utilization of solar energy. Although the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) assisted photocatalysis has been extensively studied, the photochemical mechanism, e.g. the effect of SPR on the generation of reactive oxygen species and charge carriers, is not well understood. In this study, we take Au@TiO2 nanostructures as a plasmonic photocatalyst to address this critical issue. The Au@TiO2 core/shell nanostructures with tunable SPR property were synthesized by the templating method with post annealing thermal treatment. It was found that Au@TiO2 nanostructures exhibit enhanced photocatalytic activity in either sunlight or visible light (λ > 420 nm). Electron spin resonance spectroscopy with spin trapping and spin labeling was used to investigate the enhancing effect of Au@TiO2 on the photo-induced reactive oxygen species and charge carriers. The formation of Au@TiO2 core/shell nanostructures resulted in a dramatic increase in light-induced generation of hydroxyl radicals, singlet oxygen, holes and electrons, as compared with TiO2 alone. This enhancement under visible light (λ > 420 nm) irradiation may be dominated by SPR induced local electrical field enhancement, while the enhancement under sunlight irradiation is dominated by the higher electron transfer from TiO2 to Au. These results unveiled that the superior photocatalytic activity of Au@TiO2 nanostructures correlates with enhanced generation of reactive oxygen species and charge carriers.

Influence of cuticle nanostructuring on the wetting behaviour/states on cicada wings.

PubMed

Sun, Mingxia; Liang, Aiping; Watson, Gregory S; Watson, Jolanta A; Zheng, Yongmei; Ju, Jie; Jiang, Lei

2012-01-01

The nanoscale protrusions of different morphologies on wing surfaces of four cicada species were examined under an environmental scanning electron microscope (ESEM). The water contact angles (CAs) of the wing surfaces were measured along with droplet adhesion values using a high-sensitivity microelectromechanical balance system. The water CA and adhesive force measurements obtained were found to relate to the nanostructuring differences of the four species. The adhesive forces in combination with the Cassie-Baxter and Wenzel approximations were used to predict wetting states of the insect wing cuticles. The more disordered and inhomogeneous surface of the species Leptopsalta bifuscata demonstrated a Wenzel type wetting state or an intermediate state of spreading and imbibition with a CA of 81.3° and high adhesive force of 149.5 µN. Three other species (Cryptotympana atrata, Meimuna opalifer and Aola bindusara) exhibited nanostructuring of the form of conically shaped protrusions, which were spherically capped. These surfaces presented a range of high adhesional values; however, the CAs were highly hydrophobic (C. atrata and A. bindusara) and in some cases close to superhydrophobic (M. opalifer). The wetting states of A. bindusara, C. atrata and M. opalifer (based on adhesion and CAs) are most likely represented by the transitional region between the Cassie-Baxter and Wenzel approximations to varying degrees.

Self-Assembly of Peptide Amphiphiles Designed as Imaging Probes for 19F and Relaxation-Enhanced 1H imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Preslar, Adam Truett

This work incorporates whole-body imaging functionality into peptide amphiphile (PA) nanostructures used for regenerative medicine to facilitate magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Two strategies were employed: 1. Conjugation of gadolinium chelates to peptide nanostructures to monitor biomaterial degradation in vivo with MRI and inductively-coupled plasma-mass spectroscopy (ICP-MS) 2. Synthesis of perfluorinated moiety-bearing peptide amphiphiles for 19F-MRI. The Gd(III) chelate gadoteridol was conjugated by copper-catalyzed "click" chemistry to a series of PAs known to form cylindrical nanostructures. By fitting nuclear magnetic resonance dispersion (NMRD) profiles to the Solomon-Bloembergen-Morgan (SBM) equations, it was observed that the water exchange parameter (tauM) depended on thermal annealing or calcium ion cross-linking. The sequence C16V 3A3E3G(Gd) exhibited an acceleration of nearly 100 ns after thermal annealing and calcium addition. These gadolinium-labeled PAs were used to track in vivo degradation of gels within the tibialis anterior muscle in a murine model. The half-life of biomaterial degradation was determined to be 13.5 days by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) of Gd(III). Gel implants could be monitored by MRI for eight days before the signal dispersed due to implant degradation and dilution. Additionally, nanostructures incorporating highly fluorinated domains were investigated for use as MRI contrast agents. Short, perfluoroalkyane tails of seven or eight carbon atoms in length were grafted to PA sequences containing a V2A2 beta-sheet forming sequence. The V2A2 sequence is known to drive 1D nanostructure assembly. It was found that the sequences C7F13V2A 2E2 and C7F13V2A 2K3 formed 1D assemblies in water which transition from ribbon-like to cylindrical shape as pH increases from 4.5 to 8.0. Ribbon-like nanostructures had reduced magnetic resonance signal by T 2 relaxation quenching, whereas their cylindrical counterparts exhibited strong signals with signal-to-noise ratios greater than 100. In addition to pH, the effect of divalent calcium ions on NMR signal was probed. C7 V2A2E2 was shown to exhibit the highest sensitivity to calcium in the 1.5 to 6 mM regime. This range corresponded to widening of the C7V2A2E2 nanostructure from 16+/-4 to 22+/-5 nm. It is speculated that increasing ribbon thickness is tied to magnetic resonance signal quenching due to higher local viscosity of the perfluorinated moiety.

Two-dimensional tin selenide nanostructures for flexible all-solid-state supercapacitors.

PubMed

Zhang, Chunli; Yin, Huanhuan; Han, Min; Dai, Zhihui; Pang, Huan; Zheng, Yulin; Lan, Ya-Qian; Bao, Jianchun; Zhu, Jianmin

2014-04-22

Due to their unique electronic and optoelectronic properties, tin selenide nanostructures show great promise for applications in energy storage and photovoltaic devices. Despite the great progress that has been achieved, the phase-controlled synthesis of two-dimensional (2D) tin selenide nanostructures remains a challenge, and their use in supercapacitors has not been explored. In this paper, 2D tin selenide nanostructures, including pure SnSe2 nanodisks (NDs), mixed-phase SnSe-SnSe2 NDs, and pure SnSe nanosheets (NSs), have been synthesized by reacting SnCl2 and trioctylphosphine (TOP)-Se with borane-tert-butylamine complex (BTBC) and 1,3-dimethyl-3,4,5,6-tetrahydro-2(1H)-pyrimidinone. Utilizing the interplay of TOP and BTBC and changing only the amount of BTBC, the phase-controlled synthesis of 2D tin selenide nanostructures is realized for the first time. Phase-dependent pseudocapacitive behavior is observed for the resulting 2D nanostructures. The specific capacitances of pure SnSe2 NDs (168 F g(-1)) and SnSe NSs (228 F g(-1)) are much higher than those of other reported materials (e.g., graphene-Mn3O4 nanorods and TiN mesoporous spheres); thus, these tin selenide materials were used to fabricate flexible, all-solid-state supercapacitors. Devices fabricated with these two tin selenide materials exhibited high areal capacitances, good cycling stabilities, excellent flexibilities, and desirable mechanical stabilities, which were comparable to or better than those reported recently for other solid-state devices based on graphene and 3D GeSe2 nanostructures. Additionally, the rate capability of the SnSe2 NDs device was much better than that of the SnSe NS device, indicating that SnSe2 NDs are promising active materials for use in high-performance, flexible, all-solid-state supercapacitors.

Hybrid ZnPc@TiO2 nanostructures for targeted photodynamic therapy, bioimaging and doxorubicin delivery.

PubMed

Flak, Dorota; Yate, Luis; Nowaczyk, Grzegorz; Jurga, Stefan

2017-09-01

In this study ZnPc@TiO 2 hybrid nanostructures, both nanoparticles and nanotubes, as potential photosensitizers for the photodynamic therapy, fluorescent bioimaging agents, as well as anti-cancer drug nanocarriers, were prepared via zinc phthalocyanine (ZnPc) deposition on TiO 2 . In order to provide the selectivity of prepared hybrid nanostructures towards cancer cells they were modified with folic acid molecules (FA). The efficient attachment of both ZnPc and FA molecules was confirmed with dynamic light scattering (DLS), zeta potential measurements and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). It was presented that ZnPc and FA attachment has a strong effect on fluorescence emission properties of TiO 2 nanostructures, which can be further used for their simultaneous visualization upon cellular uptake. ZnPc@TiO 2 and FA/ZnPc@TiO 2 hybrid nanotubes were then employed as doxorubicin nanocarriers. It was demonstrated that doxorubicin can be easily loaded on these hybrid nanostructures via an electrostatic interaction and then released. In vitro cytotoxicity and photo-cytotoxic activity studies showed that prepared hybrid nanostructures were selectively targeting to cancer cells. Doxorubicin loaded hybrid nanostructures were significantly more cytotoxic than un-loaded ones and their cytotoxic effect was even more severe upon irradiation. The cellular uptake of prepared hybrid nanostructures and their localization in cells was monitored in vitro in 2D cell culture and tumor-like 3D multicellular culture environment with fluorescent confocal microscopy. These hybrid nanostructures preferentially penetrated into human cervical cancer cells (HeLa) than into normal fibroblasts (MSU-1.1) and were mainly localized within the cell cytoplasm. HeLa cells spheroids were also efficiently labelled by prepared hybrid nanostructures. Fluorescent imaging of Hela cells treated with doxorubicin loaded hybrid nanostructures showed that doxorubicin was effectively delivered into cells, released and evenly distributed in the cytoplasm. In conclusion, prepared hybrid nanostructures exhibit high potential as selective bioimaging agents next to their photodynamic activity and drug delivery ability. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Amorphous hierarchical porous GeO(x) as high-capacity anodes for Li ion batteries with very long cycling life.

PubMed

Wang, Xiao-Liang; Han, Wei-Qiang; Chen, Haiyan; Bai, Jianming; Tyson, Trevor A; Yu, Xi-Qian; Wang, Xiao-Jian; Yang, Xiao-Qing

2011-12-28

Many researchers have focused in recent years on resolving the crucial problem of capacity fading in Li ion batteries when carbon anodes are replaced by other group-IV elements (Si, Ge, Sn) with much higher capacities. Some progress was achieved by using different nanostructures (mainly carbon coatings), with which the cycle numbers reached 100-200. However, obtaining longer stability via a simple process remains challenging. Here we demonstrate that a nanostructure of amorphous hierarchical porous GeO(x) whose primary particles are ~3.7 nm diameter has a very stable capacity of ~1250 mA h g(-1) for 600 cycles. Furthermore, we show that a full cell coupled with a Li(NiCoMn)(1/3)O(2) cathode exhibits high performance. © 2011 American Chemical Society

Densely packed aluminum-silver nanohelices as an ultra-thin perfect light absorber

PubMed Central

Jen, Yi-Jun; Huang, Yu-Jie; Liu, Wei-Chih; Lin, Yueh Weng

2017-01-01

Metals have been formed into nanostructures to absorb light with high efficiency through surface plasmon resonances. An ultra-thin plasmonic structure that exhibits strong absorption over wide ranges of wavelengths and angles of incidence is sought. In this work, a nearly perfect plasmonic nanostructure is fabricated using glancing angle deposition. The difference between the morphologies of obliquely deposited aluminum and silver nanohelices is exploited to form a novel three-dimensional structure, which is an aluminum-silver nanohelix array on a pattern-free substrate. With a thickness of only 470 nm, densely distributed nanohelices support rod-to-rod localized surface plasmons for broadband and polarization-independent light extinction. The extinctance remains high over wavelengths from 400 nm to 2000 nm and angles of incidence from 0° to 70°. PMID:28045135

Field emission properties of nano-structured cobalt ferrite (CoFe2O4) synthesized by low-temperature chemical method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ansari, S. M.; Suryawanshi, S. R.; More, M. A.; Sen, Debasis; Kolekar, Y. D.; Ramana, C. V.

2018-06-01

We report on the field-emission properties of structure-morphology controlled nano-CoFe2O4 (CFO) synthesized via a simple and low-temperature chemical method. Structural analyses indicate that the spongy-CFO (approximately, 2.96 nm) is nano-structured, spherical, uniformly-distributed, cubic-structured and porous. Field emission studies reveal that CFO exhibit low turn-on field (4.27 V/μm) and high emission current-density (775 μA/cm2) at a lower applied electric field of 6.80 V/μm. In addition, extremely good emission current stability is obtained at a pre-set value of 1 μA and high emission spot-density over large area (2 × 2 cm2) suggesting the applicability of these materials for practical applications in vacuum micro-/nano-electronics.

Co(OH)2 nanosheet-decorated graphene–CNT composite for supercapacitors of high energy density

PubMed Central

Cheng, Qian; Tang, Jie; Shinya, Norio; Qin, Lu-Chang

2014-01-01

A composite of graphene and carbon nanotubes has been synthesized and characterized for application as supercapacitor electrodes. By coating the nanostructured active material of Co(OH)2 onto one electrode, the asymmetric supercapacitor has exhibited a high specific capacitance of 310 F g−1, energy density of 172 Wh kg−1 and maximum power density of 198 kW kg−1 in ionic liquid electrolyte EMI-TFSI. PMID:27877633

Co(OH)2 nanosheet-decorated graphene-CNT composite for supercapacitors of high energy density.

PubMed

Cheng, Qian; Tang, Jie; Shinya, Norio; Qin, Lu-Chang

2014-02-01

A composite of graphene and carbon nanotubes has been synthesized and characterized for application as supercapacitor electrodes. By coating the nanostructured active material of Co(OH) 2 onto one electrode, the asymmetric supercapacitor has exhibited a high specific capacitance of 310 F g -1 , energy density of 172 Wh kg -1 and maximum power density of 198 kW kg -1 in ionic liquid electrolyte EMI-TFSI.

Understanding bactericidal performance on ambient light activated TiO2-InVO4 nanostructured films.

PubMed

He, Ziming; Xu, Qingchi; Tan, Timothy Thatt Yang

2011-12-01

TiO(2)-InVO(4) nanostructured films were coated onto glass substrates and systematically investigated for their bactericidal activities using Escherichia coli (E. coli) as the model bacterium under ambient light illumination. The uniform TiO(2)-InVO(4) nanostructured films were prepared using titanium isopropoxide (TTIP) as the precursor via a simple sol-gel approach. Polyethylenimine (PEI) was used as a surfactant to ensure uniform dispersion of InVO(4) and a sacrificial pore-inducing agent, generating nanostructured films. Compared to unmodified TiO(2) film, the current TiO(2)-InVO(4) films exhibited enhanced bactericidal activities under ambient light illumination. Bacterial cell "photo-fixation" was demonstrated to be crucial in enhancing the bactericidal activity. A bacterial-nanostructured surface interaction mechanism was proposed for the current ambient-light activated nanostructured film.

Luminescent systems based on the isolation of conjugated PI systems and edge charge compensation with polar molecules on a charged nanostructured surface

DOEpatents

Ivanov, Ilia N.; Puretzky, Alexander A.; Zhao, Bin; Geohegan, David B.; Styers-Barnett, David J.; Hu, Hui

2014-07-15

A photoluminescent or electroluminescent system and method of making a non-luminescent nanostructured material into such a luminescent system is presented. The method of preparing the luminescent system, generally, comprises the steps of modifying the surface of a nanostructured material to create isolated regions to act as luminescent centers and to create a charge imbalance on the surface; applying more than one polar molecule to the charged surface of the nanostructured material; and orienting the polar molecules to compensate for the charge imbalance on the surface of the nanostructured material. The compensation of the surface charge imbalance by the polar molecules allows the isolated regions to exhibit luminescence.

Microstructural, spectroscopic, and antibacterial properties of silver-based hybrid nanostructures biosynthesized using extracts of coriander leaves and seeds

PubMed Central

Luna, Carlos; Barriga-Castro, Enrique Díaz; Gómez-Treviño, Alberto; Núñez, Nuria O; Mendoza-Reséndez, Raquel

2016-01-01

Coriander leaves and seeds have been highly appreciated since ancient times, not only due to their pleasant flavors but also due to their inhibitory activity on food degradation and their beneficial properties for health, both ascribed to their strong antioxidant activity. Recently, it has been shown that coriander leaf extracts can mediate the synthesis of metallic nanoparticles through oxidation/reduction reactions. In the present study, extracts of coriander leaves and seeds have been used as reaction media for the wet chemical synthesis of ultrafine silver nanoparticles and nanoparticle clusters, with urchin- and tree-like shapes, coated by biomolecules (mainly, proteins and polyphenols). In this greener route of nanostructure preparation, the active biocompounds of coriander simultaneously play the roles of reducing and stabilizing agents. The morphological and microstructural studies of the resulting biosynthesized silver nanostructures revealed that the nanostructures prepared with a small concentration of the precursor Ag salt (AgNO3 =5 mM) exhibit an ultrafine size and a narrow size distribution, whereas particles synthesized with high concentrations of the precursor Ag salt (AgNO3 =0.5 M) are polydisperse and formation of supramolecular structures occurs. Fourier transform infrared and Raman spectroscopy studies indicated that the bioreduction of the Ag− ions takes place through their interactions with free amines, carboxylate ions, and hydroxyl groups. As a consequence of such interactions, residues of proteins and polyphenols cap the biosynthesized Ag nanoparticles providing them a hybrid core/shell structure. In addition, these biosynthesized Ag nanomaterials exhibited size-dependent plasmon extinction bands and enhanced bactericidal activities against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, displaying minimal inhibitory Ag concentrations lower than typical values reported in the literature for Ag nanoparticles, probably due to the synergy of the bactericidal activities of the Ag nanoparticle cores and their capping ligands. PMID:27703347

Rational construction of three dimensional hybrid Co3O4@NiMoO4 nanosheets array for energy storage application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hong, Wei; Wang, Jinqing; Gong, Peiwei; Sun, Jinfeng; Niu, Lengyuan; Yang, Zhigang; Wang, Zhaofeng; Yang, Shengrong

2014-12-01

Electrodes with rationally designed hybrid nanostructures can offer many opportunities for the enhanced performance in electrochemical energy storage. In this work, the uniform 2D Co3O4-based building blocks have been prepared through a facile chemical etching assistant approach and a following treatment of thermal annealing. The obtained nanosheets array has been directly employed as 2D backbone for the subsequent construction of hybrid nanostructure of Co3O4@NiMoO4 by a simple hydrothermal synthesis. As a binder-free electrode, the constructed 3D hybrid nanostructures exhibit a high specific capacitance of 1526 F g-1 at a current density of 3 mA cm-2 and a capacitance retention of 72% with the increase of current density from 3 mA cm-2 to 30 mA cm-2. Moreover, an asymmetric supercapacitor based on this hybrid Co3O4@NiMoO4 and activated carbon can deliver a maximum energy density of 37.8 Wh kg-1 at a power density of 482 W kg-1. The outstanding electrochemical behaviors presented here suggest that this hybrid nanostructured material has potential applications in energy storage.

Hot-Volumes as Uniform and Reproducible SERS-Detection Enhancers in Weakly-Coupled Metallic Nanohelices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Caridad, José M.; Winters, Sinéad; McCloskey, David; Duesberg, Georg S.; Donegan, John F.; Krstić, Vojislav

2017-03-01

Reproducible and enhanced optical detection of molecules in low concentrations demands simultaneously intense and homogeneous electric fields acting as robust signal amplifiers. To generate such sophisticated optical near-fields, different plasmonic nanostructures were investigated in recent years. These, however, exhibit either high enhancement factor (EF) or spatial homogeneity but not both. Small interparticle gaps or sharp nanostructures show enormous EFs but no near-field homogeneity. Meanwhile, approaches using rounded and separated monomers create uniform near-fields with moderate EFs. Here, guided by numerical simulations, we show how arrays of weakly-coupled Ag nanohelices achieve both homogeneous and strong near-field enhancements, reaching even the limit forreproducible detection of individual molecules. The unique near-field distribution of a single nanohelix consists of broad hot-spots, merging with those from neighbouring nanohelices in specific array configurations and generating a wide and uniform detection zone (“hot-volume”). We experimentally assessed these nanostructures via surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy, obtaining a corresponding EF of ~107 and a relative standard deviation <10%. These values demonstrate arrays of nanohelices as state-of-the-art substrates for reproducible optical detection as well as compelling nanostructures for related fields such as near-field imaging.

Enhanced Hydrogen Transport over Palladium Ultrathin Films through Surface Nanostructure Engineering.

PubMed

Abate, Salvatore; Giorgianni, Gianfranco; Gentiluomo, Serena; Centi, Gabriele; Perathoner, Siglinda

2015-11-01

Palladium ultrathin films (around 2 μm) with different surface nanostructures are characterized by TEM, SEM, AFM, and temperature programmed reduction (TPR), and evaluated in terms of H2 permeability and H2-N2 separation. A change in the characteristics of Pd seeds by controlled oxidation-reduction treatments produces films with the same thickness, but different surface and bulk nanostructure. In particular, the films have finer and more homogeneous Pd grains, which results in lower surface roughness. Although all samples show high permeo-selectivity to H2 , the samples with finer grains exhibit enhanced permeance and lower activation energy for H2 transport. The analysis of the data suggests that grain boundaries between the Pd grains at the surface favor H2 transfer from surface to subsurface. Thus, the surface nanostructure plays a relevant role in enhancing the transport of H2 over the Pd ultrathin film, which is an important aspect to develop improved membranes that function at low temperatures and toward new integrated process architectures in H2 and syngas production with enhanced sustainability. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Micromechanical Properties of Nanostructured Clay-Oxide Multilayers Synthesized by Layer-by-Layer Self-Assembly.

PubMed

Hou, Dongwei; Zhang, Guoping; Pant, Rohit Raj; Wei, Zhongxin; Shen, Shuilong

2016-11-08

Clay-based nanostructured multilayers, such as clay-polymer multilayers and clay-oxide multilayers, have attracted growing attention owing to their remarkable mechanical properties and promising application in various fields. In this paper, synthesis of a new kind of nanostructured clay-oxide multilayers by layer-by-layer self-assembly was explored. Nano-mechanical characterization of 18 clay-based multilayer samples, prepared under as-deposited (i.e., air-dried) and annealing conditions at 400 °C/600 °C with different precursor cations and multilayer structure, were carried out using nanoindentation testing, atomic force microscopy (AFM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The influencing factors, including as-deposited and annealing conditions and clay concentrations on the mechanical properties were analyzed. Results show that all of the multilayers exhibit high bonding strength between interlayers. Higher modulus and hardness of clay-based multilayers were obtained with lower clay concentrations than that with higher clay concentrations. Different relationships between the modulus and hardness and the annealing temperature exist for a specific type of clay-oxide multilayer. This work offers the basic and essential knowledge on design of clay-based nanostructured multilayers by layer-by-layer self-assembly.

Synthesis of porous carbon/silica nanostructured microfiber with ultrahigh surface area

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Dan; Dong, Yan; Cui, Liru; Lin, Huiming; Qu, Fengyu

2014-12-01

Carbon/silica-nanostructured microfibers were synthesized via electrospinning method using phenol-formaldehyde resin and tetraethyl orthosilicate as carbon and silica precursor with triblock copolymer Pluronic P123 as soft template. The prepared samples show uniform microfiber structure with 1 μm in diameter and dozens of microns in length. Additionally, the mesopores in the material is about 2-6 nm. When the silica component was removed by HF, the porous carbon microfibers (PCMFs) were obtained. In addition, after the carbon/silica composites were calcined in air, the porous silica microfibers (PSiMFs) were obtained, revealing the converse porous nanostructure as PCMFs. It is a simple way to prepare PCMFs and PSiMFs with silica and carbon as the template to each other. Additionally, PCMFs possess an ultrahigh specific surface area (2,092 m2 g-1) and large pore volume. The electrochemical performance of the prepared PCMF material was investigated in 6.0 M KOH electrolyte. The PCMF electrode exhibits a high specific capacitance (252 F g-1 at 0.5 A g-1). Then, superior cycling stability (97 % retention after 4,000 cycles) mainly is due to its unique nanostructure.

Silicon-embedded copper nanostructure network for high energy storage

DOEpatents

Yu, Tianyue

2018-01-23

Provided herein are nanostructure networks having high energy storage, electrochemically active electrode materials including nanostructure networks having high energy storage, as well as electrodes and batteries including the nanostructure networks having high energy storage. According to various implementations, the nanostructure networks have high energy density as well as long cycle life. In some implementations, the nanostructure networks include a conductive network embedded with electrochemically active material. In some implementations, silicon is used as the electrochemically active material. The conductive network may be a metal network such as a copper nanostructure network. Methods of manufacturing the nanostructure networks and electrodes are provided. In some implementations, metal nanostructures can be synthesized in a solution that contains silicon powder to make a composite network structure that contains both. The metal nanostructure growth can nucleate in solution and on silicon nanostructure surfaces.

Silicon-embedded copper nanostructure network for high energy storage

DOEpatents

Yu, Tianyue

2016-03-15

Provided herein are nanostructure networks having high energy storage, electrochemically active electrode materials including nanostructure networks having high energy storage, as well as electrodes and batteries including the nanostructure networks having high energy storage. According to various implementations, the nanostructure networks have high energy density as well as long cycle life. In some implementations, the nanostructure networks include a conductive network embedded with electrochemically active material. In some implementations, silicon is used as the electrochemically active material. The conductive network may be a metal network such as a copper nanostructure network. Methods of manufacturing the nanostructure networks and electrodes are provided. In some implementations, metal nanostructures can be synthesized in a solution that contains silicon powder to make a composite network structure that contains both. The metal nanostructure growth can nucleate in solution and on silicon nanostructure surfaces.

Graphene-modified nanostructured vanadium pentoxide hybrids with extraordinary electrochemical performance for Li-ion batteries

DOE PAGES

Liu, Qi; Li, Zhe-Fei; Liu, Yadong; ...

2015-01-20

The long-standing issues of low intrinsic electronic conductivity, slow lithium-ion diffusion and irreversible phase transitions on deep discharge prevent the high specific capacity/energy (443 mAh g -1 and 1,550 Wh kg -1) vanadium pentoxide from being used as the cathode material in practical battery applications. Here we develop a method to incorporate graphene sheets into vanadium pentoxide nanoribbons via the sol–gel process. The resulting graphene-modified nanostructured vanadium pentoxide hybrids contain only 2 wt. % graphene, yet exhibits extraordinary electrochemical performance: a specific capacity of 438 mAh g -1, approaching the theoretical value (443 mAh g -1), a long cyclability andmore » significantly enhanced rate capability. Such performance is the result of the combined effects of the graphene on structural stability, electronic conduction, vanadium redox reaction and lithium-ion diffusion supported by various experimental studies. Finally, this method provides a new avenue to create nanostructured metal oxide/graphene materials for advanced battery applications.« less

Chiromagnetic nanoparticles and gels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yeom, Jihyeon; Santos, Uallisson S.; Chekini, Mahshid; Cha, Minjeong; de Moura, André F.; Kotov, Nicholas A.

2018-01-01

Chiral inorganic nanostructures have high circular dichroism, but real-time control of their optical activity has so far been achieved only by irreversible chemical changes. Field modulation is a far more desirable path to chiroptical devices. We hypothesized that magnetic field modulation can be attained for chiral nanostructures with large contributions of the magnetic transition dipole moments to polarization rotation. We found that dispersions and gels of paramagnetic Co3O4 nanoparticles with chiral distortions of the crystal lattices exhibited chiroptical activity in the visible range that was 10 times as strong as that of nonparamagnetic nanoparticles of comparable size. Transparency of the nanoparticle gels to circularly polarized light beams in the ultraviolet range was reversibly modulated by magnetic fields. These phenomena were also observed for other nanoscale metal oxides with lattice distortions from imprinted amino acids and other chiral ligands. The large family of chiral ceramic nanostructures and gels can be pivotal for new technologies and knowledge at the nexus of chirality and magnetism.

Using shape to turn off blinking for two-colour multiexciton emission in CdSe/CdS tetrapods

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mishra, Nimai; Orfield, Noah J.; Wang, Feng; Hu, Zhongjian; Krishnamurthy, Sachidananda; Malko, Anton V.; Casson, Joanna L.; Htoon, Han; Sykora, Milan; Hollingsworth, Jennifer A.

2017-05-01

Semiconductor nanostructures capable of emitting from two excited states and thereby of producing two photoluminescence colours are of fundamental and potential technological significance. In this limited class of nanocrystals, CdSe/CdS core/arm tetrapods exhibit the unusual trait of two-colour (red and green) multiexcitonic emission, with green emission from the CdS arms emerging only at high excitation fluences. Here we show that by synthetic shape-tuning, both this multi-colour emission process, and blinking and photobleaching behaviours of single tetrapods can be controlled. Specifically, we find that the properties of dual emission and single-nanostructure photostability depend on different structural parameters--arm length and arm diameter, respectively--but that both properties can be realized in the same nanostructure. Furthermore, based on results of correlated photoluminescence and transient absorption measurements, we conclude that hole-trap filling in the arms and partial state-filling in the core are necessary preconditions for the observation of multiexciton multi-colour emission.

Using shape to turn off blinking for two-colour multiexciton emission in CdSe/CdS tetrapods

PubMed Central

Mishra, Nimai; Orfield, Noah J.; Wang, Feng; Hu, Zhongjian; Krishnamurthy, Sachidananda; Malko, Anton V.; Casson, Joanna L.; Htoon, Han; Sykora, Milan; Hollingsworth, Jennifer A.

2017-01-01

Semiconductor nanostructures capable of emitting from two excited states and thereby of producing two photoluminescence colours are of fundamental and potential technological significance. In this limited class of nanocrystals, CdSe/CdS core/arm tetrapods exhibit the unusual trait of two-colour (red and green) multiexcitonic emission, with green emission from the CdS arms emerging only at high excitation fluences. Here we show that by synthetic shape-tuning, both this multi-colour emission process, and blinking and photobleaching behaviours of single tetrapods can be controlled. Specifically, we find that the properties of dual emission and single-nanostructure photostability depend on different structural parameters—arm length and arm diameter, respectively—but that both properties can be realized in the same nanostructure. Furthermore, based on results of correlated photoluminescence and transient absorption measurements, we conclude that hole-trap filling in the arms and partial state-filling in the core are necessary preconditions for the observation of multiexciton multi-colour emission. PMID:28497776

Enhanced photo response of mesoporous nanostructured CdS thin film via electrospray aerosol deposition technique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Logu, T.; Soundarrajan, P.; Sankarasubramanian, K.; Sethuraman, K.

2018-04-01

In this work, a high crystalline and mesoporous nanostructured cadmium sulfide (CdS) thin film was successfully grown on the FTO substrates using facile Electrospray Aerosol Deposition (ESAD) technique. The structural, optical, morphological and electrical properties of CdS thin film have been systematically examined. CdS thin film exhibits the hexagonal wurtzite crystal structure with polycrystalline nature. The optical band gap energy of the prepared film was estimated from the Tauc plot and is 2.43 eV. The SEM and AFM images show that the well-interconnected CdS nanoparticles gives mesoporous like morphology. The fine aerosol generated from the ESAD process induces the alteration in the surface morphological structure of deposited CdS film that consequences in enhanced electrical and photo-physical properties. The photoconductivity of the sample has been studied which demonstrates significant photo current. The present study predicts that mesoporous nanostructured CdS thin film would be given a special interest for optoelectronic applications.

Using shape to turn off blinking for two-colour multiexciton emission in CdSe/CdS tetrapods

DOE PAGES

Mishra, Nimai; Orfield, Noah Jeremiah; Wang, Feng; ...

2017-05-12

Here, semiconductor nanostructures capable of emitting from two excited states and thereby of producing two photoluminescence colours are of fundamental and potential technological significance. In this limited class of nanocrystals, CdSe/CdS core/arm tetrapods exhibit the unusual trait of two-colour (red and green) multiexcitonic emission, with green emission from the CdS arms emerging only at high excitation fluences. Here we show that by synthetic shape-tuning, both this multi-colour emission process, and blinking and photobleaching behaviours of single tetrapods can be controlled. Specifically, we find that the properties of dual emission and single-nanostructure photostability depend on different structural parameters—arm length and armmore » diameter, respectively—but that both properties can be realized in the same nanostructure. Furthermore, based on results of correlated photoluminescence and transient absorption measurements, we conclude that hole-trap filling in the arms and partial state-filling in the core are necessary preconditions for the observation of multiexciton multi-colour emission.« less

Using shape to turn off blinking for two-colour multiexciton emission in CdSe/CdS tetrapods

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mishra, Nimai; Orfield, Noah Jeremiah; Wang, Feng

Here, semiconductor nanostructures capable of emitting from two excited states and thereby of producing two photoluminescence colours are of fundamental and potential technological significance. In this limited class of nanocrystals, CdSe/CdS core/arm tetrapods exhibit the unusual trait of two-colour (red and green) multiexcitonic emission, with green emission from the CdS arms emerging only at high excitation fluences. Here we show that by synthetic shape-tuning, both this multi-colour emission process, and blinking and photobleaching behaviours of single tetrapods can be controlled. Specifically, we find that the properties of dual emission and single-nanostructure photostability depend on different structural parameters—arm length and armmore » diameter, respectively—but that both properties can be realized in the same nanostructure. Furthermore, based on results of correlated photoluminescence and transient absorption measurements, we conclude that hole-trap filling in the arms and partial state-filling in the core are necessary preconditions for the observation of multiexciton multi-colour emission.« less

Heterogeneous nanocrystals assembled TiO2/SnO2/C composite for improved lithium storage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tian, Qinghua; Mao, Yuning; Zhang, Xuzhen; Yang, Li

2018-07-01

Using stable TiO2 and flexible carbon as double-functional structure protector of nanostructural SnO2 to fabricate TiO2/SnO2/C composites is widely considered as a favorable strategy for improving the lithium storage performance of SnO2 anodes. But, it is still a challenge to obtain a satisfying TiO2/SnO2/C composite. Herein, an interesting porous nanostructure of TiO2/SnO2/C nanosphere composite assembled by TiO2 and SnO2 nanocrystals with an outer carbon coating has been fabricated by a well-designed approach. Thanks to the perfectly combined action of porous spherical nanostructure, TiO2 and SnO2 nanocrystals and carbon coating, the as-prepared composite obtains excellent structure stability and improved electrochemcial properties. When used as a promising anode for lithium-ion batteres, it exhibits outstanding lithium storage performance, delivering a high capacity of 687.2 mAh g-1 after even 400 cycles.

A general soft-enveloping strategy in the templating synthesis of mesoporous metal nanostructures.

PubMed

Fang, Jixiang; Zhang, Lingling; Li, Jiang; Lu, Lu; Ma, Chuansheng; Cheng, Shaodong; Li, Zhiyuan; Xiong, Qihua; You, Hongjun

2018-02-06

Metal species have a relatively high mobility inside mesoporous silica; thus, it is difficult to introduce the metal precursors into silica mesopores and suppress the migration of metal species during a reduction process. Therefore, until now, the controlled growth of metal nanocrystals in a confined space, i.e., mesoporous channels, has been very challenging. Here, by using a soft-enveloping reaction at the interfaces of the solid, liquid, and solution phases, we successfully control the growth of metallic nanocrystals inside a mesoporous silica template. Diverse monodispersed nanostructures with well-defined sizes and shapes, including Ag nanowires, 3D mesoporous Au, AuAg alloys, Pt networks, and Au nanoparticle superlattices are successfully obtained. The 3D mesoporous AuAg networks exhibit enhanced catalytic activities in an electrochemical methanol oxidation reaction. The current soft-enveloping synthetic strategy offers a robust approach to synthesize diverse mesoporous metal nanostructures that can be utilized in catalysis, optics, and biomedicine applications.

Solution-processed, barrier-confined, and 1D nanostructure supported quasi-quantum well with large photoluminescence enhancement.

PubMed

Yan, Keyou; Zhang, Lixia; Kuang, Qin; Wei, Zhanhua; Yi, Ya; Wang, Jiannong; Yang, Shihe

2014-04-22

Planar substrate supported semiconductor quantum well (QW) structures are not amenable to manipulation in miniature devices, while free-standing QW nanostructures, e.g., ultrathin nanosheets and nanoribbons, suffer from mechanical and environmental instability. Therefore, it is tempting to fashion high-quality QW structures on anisotropic and mechanically robust supporting nanostructures such as nanowires and nanoplates. Herein, we report a solution quasi-heteroepitaxial route for growing a barrier-confined quasi-QW structure (ZnSe/CdSe/ZnSe) on the supporting arms of ZnO nanotetrapods, which have a 1D nanowire structure, through the combination of ion exchange and successive deposition assembly. This resulted in highly crystalline and highly oriented quasi-QWs along the whole axial direction of the arms of the nanotetrapod because a transition buffer layer (Zn(x)Cd(1-x)Se) was formed and in turn reduced the lattice mismatch and surface defects. Significantly, such a barrier-confined QW emits excitonic light ∼17 times stronger than the heterojunction (HJ)-type structure (ZnSe/CdSe, HJ) at the single-particle level. Time-resolved photoluminescence from ensemble QWs exhibits a lifetime of 10 ns, contrasting sharply with ∼300 ps for the control HJ sample. Single-particle PL and Raman spectra suggest that the barrier layer of QW has completely removed the surface trap states on the HJ and restored or upgraded the photoelectric properties of the semiconductor layer. Therefore, this deliberate heteroepitaxial growth protocol on the supporting nanotetrapod has realized a several micrometer long QW structure with high mechanical robustness and high photoelectric quality. We envision that such QWs integrated on 1D nanostructures will largely improve the performance of solar cells and bioprobes, among others.

Hydrogenation of 4-nitrophenol to 4-aminophenol at room temperature: Boosting palladium nanocrystals efficiency by coupling with copper via liquid phase pulsed laser ablation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, Hanbit; Reddy, D. Amaranatha; Kim, Yujin; Lee, Seunghee; Ma, Rory; Lim, Manho; Kim, Tae Kyu

2017-04-01

Ultra-dispersed bimetallic nanomaterials have attracted much attention in the hydrogenation of highly toxic aromatic nitro compounds to aromatic amines owing to their high stability, superior activity, reusability, and unique optical and electronic properties, as compared to monometalic nanocrystals. However, the lack of facile and economically controllable strategies of producing highly pure ultra-dispersed bimetallic nanocatalysts limits their practical industrial applications. Considering the above obstacles, we present a simple and effective strategy for the formation of bimetallic (PdCu) nanocrystals by liquid phase pulsed laser ablation using a bulk Pd metal plate submerged in CuCl2 solutions with different concentrations, in contrast to the complex and costly experimental methods used previously. The microstructural and optical properties of the synthesized nanocrystals indicate that the obtained bimetallic nanostructures are highly pure and monodispersed. Moreover, bimetallic PdCu nanostructures show a higher catalytic activity than monometallic Pd nanocrystals for the hydrogenation of 4-nitrophenol to 4-aminophenol at room temperature, also exhibiting high stability for up to four recycles. The mechanism of the enhanced catalytic activity and stability of bimetallic nanocrystals is discussed in detail. Finally, we believe that the presented design strategy and utilization of bimetallic nanocrystals for catalytic applications enables the development of novel bimetallic nanostructures by liquid phase pulsed laser ablation and their catalytic application for environmental remediation.

Mg-catalyzed autoclave synthesis of aligned silicon carbide nanostructures.

PubMed

Xi, Guangcheng; Liu, Yankuan; Liu, Xiaoyan; Wang, Xiaoqing; Qian, Yitai

2006-07-27

In this article, a novel magnesium-catalyzed co-reduction route was developed for the large-scale synthesis of aligned beta-SiC one-dimensional (1D) nanostructures at relative lower temperature (600 degrees C). By carefully controlling the reagent concentrations, we could synthesize beta-SiC rodlike and needlelike nanostructures. The possible growth mechanism of the as-synthesized beta-SiC 1D nanostructures has been investigated. The structure and morphology of the as-synthesized beta-SiC nanostructures are characterized using X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared absorption, and scanning and transmission electron microscopes. Raman and photoluminescence properties are also investigated at room temperature. The as-synthesized beta-SiC nanostructures exhibit strong shape-dependent field emission properties. Corresponding to their shapes, the as-synthesized nanorods and nanoneedles display the turn-on fields of 12, 8.4, and 1.8 V/microm, respectively.

Magnetic Binary Silicide Nanostructures.

PubMed

Goldfarb, Ilan; Cesura, Federico; Dascalu, Matan

2018-05-02

In spite of numerous advantageous properties of silicides, magnetic properties are not among them. Here, the magnetic properties of epitaxial binary silicide nanostructures are discussed. The vast majority of binary transition-metal silicides lack ferromagnetic order in their bulk-size crystals. Silicides based on rare-earth metals are usually weak ferromagnets or antiferromagnets, yet both groups tend to exhibit increased magnetic ordering in low-dimensional nanostructures, in particular at low temperatures. The origin of this surprising phenomenon lies in undercoordinated atoms at the nanostructure extremities, such as 2D (surfaces/interfaces), 1D (edges), and 0D (corners) boundaries. Uncompensated superspins of edge atoms increase the nanostructure magnetic shape anisotropy to the extent where it prevails over its magnetocrystalline counterpart, thus providing a plausible route toward the design of a magnetic response from nanostructure arrays in Si-based devices, such as bit-patterned magnetic recording media and spin injectors. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Highly stretchable and conductive silver nanowire thin films formed by soldering nanomesh junctions.

PubMed

Chen, Shih-Pin; Liao, Ying-Chih

2014-10-07

Silver nanowires (AgNWs) have been widely used for stretchable and foldable conductors due to their percolating network nanostructure. To enhance the mechanical strength of AgNW thin films under extreme stretching conditions, in this study, we utilize a simple chemical reaction to join AgNW network connections. Upon applying a reactive ink over AgNW thin films, silver nanoparticles are preferentially generated over the nanowire junctions and solder the nanomesh structures. The soldered nanostructure reinforces the conducting network and exhibits no obvious change in electrical conductivity in the stretching or rolling process with elongation strains up to 120%. Several examples are also demonstrated to show potential applications of this material in stretchable electronic devices.

Formation of tungsten oxide nanowires by ion irradiation and vacuum annealing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zheng, Xu-Dong; Ren, Feng; Wu, Heng-Yi; Qin, Wen-Jing; Jiang, Chang-Zhong

2018-04-01

Here we reported the fabrication of tungsten oxide (WO3-x ) nanowires by Ar+ ion irradiation of WO3 thin films followed by annealing in vacuum. The nanowire length increases with increasing irradiation fluence and with decreasing ion energy. We propose that the stress-driven diffusion of the irradiation-induced W interstitial atoms is responsible for the formation of the nanowires. Comparing to the pristine film, the fabricated nanowire film shows a 106-fold enhancement in electrical conductivity, resulting from the high-density irradiation-induced vacancies on the oxygen sublattice. The nanostructure exhibits largely enhanced surface-enhanced Raman scattering effect due to the oxygen vacancy. Thus, ion irradiation provides a powerful approach for fabricating and tailoring the surface nanostructures of semiconductors.

Effect of annealing on morphology and photoluminescence of beta-Ga2O3 nanostructures.

PubMed

Zhang, Shiying; Zhuang, Huizhao; Xue, Chengshan; Li, Baoli

2008-07-01

A novel method was applied to prepare one-dimensional beta-Ga2O3 nanostructure films. In this method, beta-Ga2O3 nanostructures have been successfully synthesized on Si(111) substrates through annealing sputtered Ga22O3/Mo films for differernt time under flowing ammonia. The as-synthesized beta-Ga2O3 nanostructures were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and photoluminescence (PL) spectrum. The results show that the formed nanostructures are single-crystalline Ga2O3 with monoclinic structure. The annealing time of the samples has an evident influence on the morphology and optical property of the nanostructured beta-Ga2O3 synthesized. The representative photoluminescence spectrum at room temperature exhibits a strong and broad emission band centered at 411.5 nm and a relatively weak emission peak located at 437.6 nm. The growth mechanism of the beta-Ga2O3 nanostructured materials is also discussed briefly.

Fabrication of hollow boron-doped diamond nanostructure via electrochemical corrosion of a tungsten oxide template.

PubMed

Lim, Young-Kyun; Lee, Eung-Seok; Lee, Choong-Hyun; Lim, Dae-Soon

2018-08-10

In the study, a hollow boron-doped diamond (BDD) nanostructure electrode is fabricated to increase the reactive surface area for electrochemical applications. Tungsten oxide nanorods are deposited on the silicon substrate as a template by the hot filament chemical vapor deposition (HFCVD) method. The template is coated with a 100 nm BDD layer deposited by HFCVD to form a core-shell nanostructure. The WO x core is finally electrochemically dissolved to form hollow BDD nanostructure. The fabricated hollow BDD nanostructure electrode is investigated via scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and Raman spectroscopy. The specific surface areas of the electrodes were analyzed and compared by using Brunauer-Emmett-Teller method. Furthermore, cyclic voltammetry and chronocoulometry are used to investigate the electrochemical characteristics and the reactive surface area of the as-prepared hollow BDD nanostructure electrode. A hollow BDD nanostructure electrode exhibits a reactive area that is 15 times that of a planar BDD thin electrode.

Near-infrared emission from mesoporous crystalline germanium

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Boucherif, Abderraouf; Korinek, Andreas; Aimez, Vincent; Arès, Richard

2014-10-01

Mesoporous crystalline germanium was fabricated by bipolar electrochemical etching of Ge wafer in HF-based electrolyte. It yields uniform mesoporous germanium layers composed of high density of crystallites with an average size 5-7 nm. Subsequent extended chemical etching allows tuning of crystallites size while preserving the same chemical composition. This highly controllable nanostructure exhibits photoluminescence emission above the bulk Ge bandgap, in the near-infrared range (1095-1360nm) with strong evidence of quantum confinement within the crystallites.

Bio-mimetic Nanostructure Self-assembled from Au@Ag Heterogeneous Nanorods and Phage Fusion Proteins for Targeted Tumor Optical Detection and Photothermal Therapy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Fei; Liu, Pei; Sun, Lin; Li, Cuncheng; Petrenko, Valery A.; Liu, Aihua

2014-10-01

Nanomaterials with near-infrared (NIR) absorption have been widely studied in cancer detection and photothermal therapy (PTT), while it remains a great challenge in targeting tumor efficiently with minimal side effects. Herein we report a novel multifunctional phage-mimetic nanostructure, which was prepared by layer-by-layer self-assembly of Au@Ag heterogenous nanorods (NRs) with rhodamine 6G, and specific pVIII fusion proteins. Au@Ag NRs, first being applied for PTT, exhibited excellent stability, cost-effectivity, biocompatibility and tunable NIR absorption. The fusion proteins were isolated from phage DDAGNRQP specifically selected from f8/8 landscape phage library against colorectal cancer cells in a high-throughput way. Considering the definite charge distribution and low molecular weight, phage fusion proteins were assembled on the negatively charged NR core by electrostatic interactions, exposing the N-terminus fused with DDAGNRQP peptide on the surface. The fluorescent images showed that assembled phage fusion proteins can direct the nanostructure into cancer cells. The nanostructure was more efficient than gold nanorods and silver nanotriangle-based photothermal agents and was capable of specifically ablating SW620 cells after 10 min illumination with an 808 nm laser in the light intensity of 4 W/cm2. The prepared nanostructure would become an ideal reagent for simutaneously targeted optical imaging and PTT of tumor.

Self-assembly of fatty acids on hydroxylated Al surface and effects of their stability on wettability and nanoscale organization.

PubMed

Liascukiene, Irma; Steffenhagen, Marie; Asadauskas, Svajus J; Lambert, Jean-François; Landoulsi, Jessem

2014-05-27

The self-assembly of fatty acids (FA) on the surfaces of inorganic materials is a relevant way to control their wetting properties. While the mechanism of adsorption on model flat substrate is well described in the literature, interfacial processes remain poorly documented on nanostructured surfaces. In this study, we report the self-assembly of a variety of FA on a hydroxylated Al surface which exhibits a random nanoscale organization. Our results revealed a peculiar fingerprint due to the FA self-assembly which consists in the formation of aligned nanopatterns in a state of hierarchical nanostructuration, regardless of the molecular structure of the FA (chain length, level of unsaturation). After a significant removal of adsorbed FA using UV/O3 treatment, a complete wetting was reached, and a noticeable disturbance of the surface morphology was observed, evidencing the pivotal role of FA molecules to maintain these nanostructures. The origin of wetting properties was investigated prior to and after conditioning of FA-modified samples taking into account key parameters, namely the surface roughness and its composition. For this purpose, the Wenzel roughness, defined as the third moment of power spectral density, was used, as it is sensitive to high spatial frequency and thus to the obtained hierarchical level of nanostructuration. Our results revealed that no correlation can be made between water contact angles (θ(w)) and the Wenzel roughness. By contrast, θ(w) strongly increased with the amount of -CHx- groups exhibited by adsorbed FA. These findings suggest that the main origin of hydrophobization is the presence of self-assembled molecules and that the surface roughness has only a small contribution to the wettability.

3D hierarchical Ag nanostructures formed on poly(acrylic acid) brushes grafted graphene oxide as promising SERS substrates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xing, Guoke; Wang, Ke; Li, Ping; Wang, Wenqin; Chen, Tao

2018-03-01

In this study, in situ generation of Ag nanostructures with various morphology on poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) brushes grafted onto graphene oxide (GO), for use as substrates for surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), is demonstrated. The overall synthetic strategy involves the loading of Ag precursor ions ((Ag+ and [Ag(NH3)2]+) onto PAA brush-grafted GO, followed by their in situ reduction to Ag nanostructures of various morphology using a reducing agent (NaBH4 or ascorbic acid). Novel 3D hierarchical flowerlike Ag nanostructures were obtained by using AgNO3 as precursor and ascorbic acid as reducing agent. Using 4-aminothiophenol as probe molecules, the as-prepared hierarchical Ag nanostructures exhibited excellent SERS performance, providing enhancement factors of ˜107.

Conjunction of Conducting Polymer Nanostructures with Macroporous Structured Graphene Thin Films for High-Performance Flexible Supercapacitors.

PubMed

Memon, Mushtaque A; Bai, Wei; Sun, Jinhua; Imran, Muhammad; Phulpoto, Shah Nawaz; Yan, Shouke; Huang, Yong; Geng, Jianxin

2016-05-11

Fabrication of hybridized structures is an effective strategy to promote the performances of graphene-based composites for energy storage/conversion applications. In this work, macroporous structured graphene thin films (MGTFs) are fabricated on various substrates including flexible graphene papers (GPs) through an ice-crystal-induced phase separation process. The MGTFs prepared on GPs (MGTF@GPs) are recognized with remarkable features such as interconnected macroporous configuration, sufficient exfoliation of the conductive RGO sheets, and good mechanical flexibility. As such, the flexible MGTF@GPs are demonstrated as a versatile conductive platform for depositing conducting polymers (CPs), e.g., polyaniline (PAn), polypyrrole, and polythiophene, through in situ electropolymerization. The contents of the CPs in the composite films are readily controlled by varying the electropolymerization time. Notably, electrodeposition of PAn leads to the formation of nanostructures of PAn nanofibers on the walls of the macroporous structured RGO framework (PAn@MGTF@GPs): thereafter, the PAn@MGTF@GPs display a unique structural feature that combine the nanostructures of PAn nanofibers and the macroporous structures of RGO sheets. Being used as binder-free electrodes for flexible supercapacitors, the PAn@MGTF@GPs exhibit excellent electrochemical performance, in particular a high areal specific capacity (538 mF cm(-2)), high cycling stability, and remarkable capacitive stability to deformation, due to the unique electrode structures.

Highly piezoelectric BaTiO3 nanorod bundle arrays using epitaxially grown TiO2 nanomaterials.

PubMed

Jang, Seon-Min; Yang, Su Chul

2018-06-08

Low-dimensional piezoelectric nanostructures such as nanoparticles, nanotubes, nanowires, nanoribbons and nanosheets have been developed for potential applications as energy harvesters, tunable sensors, functional transducers and low-power actuators. In this study, lead-free BaTiO 3 nanorod bundle arrays (NBA) with highly piezoelectric properties were successfully synthesized on fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) substrate via a two-step process consisting of TiO 2 epitaxial growth and BaTiO 3 conversion. Through the TiO 2 epitaxial growth on FTO substrate, (001) oriented TiO 2 nanostructures formed vertically-aligned NBA with a bundle diameter of 80 nm and an aspect ratio of six. In particular, chemical etching of the TiO 2 NBA was conducted to enlarge the surface area for effective Ba 2+ ion diffusion during the perovskite conversion process from TiO 2 to BaTiO 3 . The final structure of perovskite BaTiO 3 NBA was found to exhibit a feasible piezoelectric response of 3.56 nm with a clear phase change of 180° from the single BaTiO 3 bundle, by point piezoelectric forced microscopy (PFM) analysis. Consequently, highly piezoelectric NBA could be a promising nanostructure for various nanoscale electronic devices.

Porous α-Fe2O3 nanostructures and their lithium storage properties as full cell configuration against LiFePO4

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Veluri, P. S.; Shaligram, A.; Mitra, S.

2015-10-01

A two step approach for synthesis of porous α-Fe2O3 nanostructures has been realized via polyol method by complexing iron oxalate with ethylene glycol. Crystalline Fe2O3 samples with different porosities are obtained by calcination of Fe-Ethylene glycol complex at various temperatures. The as-prepared porous Fe2O3 structures exhibit promising lithium storage performance at high current rates. It is observed that the calcination temperature and the resultant porosity have a significant effect on capacity and cycling stability. Samples calcined at high temperature (600 °C) demonstrates stable cycle life with capacity retention of 1077 mAh g-1 at 500 mA g-1 current rate after 50 charge-discharge cycles. Samples calcined at temperatures of 500 and 600 °C display stable cycle life and high rate capability with reversible capacity of 930 mAh g-1 and 688 mAh g-1 at 5 A g-1, respectively. Impregnation of electrodes with electrolyte before cell fabrication shows enhanced electrochemical performance. The viability of Fe2O3 porous nanostructures as prospective anode material examined against commercial LiFePO4 cathode shows promising electrochemical performance.

Highly piezoelectric BaTiO3 nanorod bundle arrays using epitaxially grown TiO2 nanomaterials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jang, Seon-Min; Yang, Su Chul

2018-06-01

Low-dimensional piezoelectric nanostructures such as nanoparticles, nanotubes, nanowires, nanoribbons and nanosheets have been developed for potential applications as energy harvesters, tunable sensors, functional transducers and low-power actuators. In this study, lead-free BaTiO 3 nanorod bundle arrays (NBA) with highly piezoelectric properties were successfully synthesized on fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) substrate via a two-step process consisting of TiO2 epitaxial growth and BaTiO3 conversion. Through the TiO2 epitaxial growth on FTO substrate, (001) oriented TiO2 nanostructures formed vertically-aligned NBA with a bundle diameter of 80 nm and an aspect ratio of six. In particular, chemical etching of the TiO2 NBA was conducted to enlarge the surface area for effective Ba2+ ion diffusion during the perovskite conversion process from TiO2 to BaTiO3. The final structure of perovskite BaTiO3 NBA was found to exhibit a feasible piezoelectric response of 3.56 nm with a clear phase change of 180° from the single BaTiO3 bundle, by point piezoelectric forced microscopy (PFM) analysis. Consequently, highly piezoelectric NBA could be a promising nanostructure for various nanoscale electronic devices.

Pt-decorated zinc oxide nanorod arrays with graphitic carbon nitride nanosheets for highly efficient dual-functional gas sensing.

PubMed

Tian, Hailin; Fan, Huiqing; Ma, Jiangwei; Liu, Zhiyong; Ma, Longtao; Lei, Shenhui; Fang, Jiawen; Long, Changbai

2018-01-05

In this work, well-aligned ZnO nanorods were grown on the substrate of exfoliated g-C 3 N 4 nanosheets via a microwave-assisted hydrothermal synthesis, and then Pt/ZnO/g-C 3 N 4 nanostructures were obtained after the deposition of Pt nanoparticles. The growth of vertically ordered ZnO nanorods was occurred on g-C 3 N 4 nanosheets through the bonding interaction between Zn and N atoms, which was confirmed by XPS, FT-IR data and molecular orbital theory. The Pt/ZnO/g-C 3 N 4 nanostructures sensor exhibited the remarkable sensitivity, selectivity, and fast response/recovery time for air pollutants of ethanol and NO 2 . The application of Pt/ZnO/g-C 3 N 4 nanostructures could be used as a dual-functional gas sensor through the controlled working temperature. Besides, the Pt/ZnO/g-C 3 N 4 nanostructures sensor could be applied to the repeating detection of ethanol and NO 2 in the natural environment. The synergistic effect and improved the separation of electron-hole pairs in Pt/ZnO/g-C 3 N 4 nanostructures had been verified for the gas sensing mechanism. Additionally, Pt/ZnO/g-C 3 N 4 nanostructures revealed the excellent charge carriers transport properties in electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), such as the longer electron lifetime (τ n ), higher electron diffusion coefficient (D n ) and bigger effective diffusion length (L n ), which also played an important role for Pt/ZnO/g-C 3 N 4 nanostructures with striking gas sensing activities. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Temperature dependence of Ni3S2 nanostructures with high electrochemical performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Y. L.; Wei, X. Q.; Li, M. B.; Hou, P. Y.; Xu, X. J.

2018-04-01

Different Ni3S2 nanostructures have been successfully synthesized at different temperatures by a facile and efficient solvothermal method. The Ni3S2 nanostructures with three-dimensional (3D) nanosheets array and silkworm eggs-like morphologies were obtained by adjusting the reaction temperature. A large number of 3D nanosheets are interconnected to form an open network structure with porous of Ni3S2 at 180 °C, and electrochemical tests showed that the special structure exhibited the outstanding specific capacitance (1357 F g -1 at 1 A g-1) and excellent cycling stability (maintained 91% after 3000 cycles). In comparison, the performance of Ni3S2 silkworm eggs-like structure is not very perfect. This may be due to the fact that the 3D nanosheets with porous structure can improve the electrochemical performance by shortening effectively the diffusion path of electrolyte ions and increasing the active sites during charging and discharging. Among them, the reaction temperature is the main factor to control the formation of the 3D nanosheets array. These results indicated the Ni3S2 nanosheets promising applications as high-performance supercapacitor electrode materials.

Fabrication of CNT@void@SnO2@C with tube-in-tube nanostructure as high-performance anode for lithium-ion batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tian, Qinghua; Tian, Yang; Zhang, Zhengxi; Yang, Li; Hirano, Shin-ichi

2015-09-01

Tin dioxide/carbon composites is an important class of promising candidates for anode materials with superior electrochemical performance and thus have attracted extensive attention. Herein, a tube-in-tube nanostructure, denoted as CNT@void@SnO2@C, has been fabricated by a facile and novel strategy. The possible formation mechanism is also discussed and determined by TEM, XRD and XPS characterizations. As a promising anode material for lithium-ion batteries, the CNT@void@SnO2@C exhibits superior lithium storage properties, delivering a reversible capacity of 702.5 mAh g-1 at 200 mA g-1 even after 350 cycles. The excellent performances should be benefited from the peculiar tube-in-tube nanostructure, in which SnO2 located between CNT and outermost carbon coating layers can sure the structural integrity and high conductivity during long-term cycling, and one-dimensional void space formed between the inner CNT and outer SnO2@C nanotubes, in particular, can provide larger free space for alleviating the huge volume variation of SnO2 and accommodating the stress formed during repeated discharge/charge process.

Constructing Two-, Zero-, and One-Dimensional Integrated Nanostructures: an Effective Strategy for High Microwave Absorption Performance.

PubMed

Sun, Yuan; Xu, Jianle; Qiao, Wen; Xu, Xiaobing; Zhang, Weili; Zhang, Kaiyu; Zhang, Xing; Chen, Xing; Zhong, Wei; Du, Youwei

2016-11-23

A novel "201" nanostructure composite consisting of two-dimensional MoS 2 nanosheets, zero-dimensional Ni nanoparticles and one-dimensional carbon nanotubes (CNTs) was prepared successfully by a two-step method: Ni nanopaticles were deposited onto the surface of few-layer MoS 2 nanosheets by a wet chemical method, followed by chemical vapor deposition growth of CNTs through the catalysis of Ni nanoparticles. The as-prepared 201-MoS 2 -Ni-CNTs composites exhibit remarkably enhanced microwave absorption performance compared to Ni-MoS 2 or Ni-CNTs. The minimum reflection loss (RL) value of 201-MoS 2 -Ni-CNTs/wax composites with filler loading ratio of 30 wt % reached -50.08 dB at the thickness of 2.4 mm. The maximum effective microwave absorption bandwidth (RL< -10 dB) of 6.04 GHz was obtained at the thickness of 2.1 mm. The excellent absorption ability originates from appropriate impedance matching ratio, strong dielectric loss and large surface area, which are attributed to the "201" nanostructure. In addition, this method could be extended to other low-dimensional materials, proving to be an efficient and promising strategy for high microwave absorption performance.

Biotemplated Morpho Butterfly Wings for Tunable Structurally Colored Photocatalysts.

PubMed

Rodríguez, Robin E; Agarwal, Sneha P; An, Shun; Kazyak, Eric; Das, Debashree; Shang, Wen; Skye, Rachael; Deng, Tao; Dasgupta, Neil P

2018-02-07

Morpho sulkowskyi butterfly wings contain naturally occurring hierarchical nanostructures that produce structural coloration. The high aspect ratio and surface area of these wings make them attractive nanostructured templates for applications in solar energy and photocatalysis. However, biomimetic approaches to replicate their complex structural features and integrate functional materials into their three-dimensional framework are highly limited in precision and scalability. Herein, a biotemplating approach is presented that precisely replicates Morpho nanostructures by depositing nanocrystalline ZnO coatings onto wings via low-temperature atomic layer deposition (ALD). This study demonstrates the ability to precisely tune the natural structural coloration while also integrating multifunctionality by imparting photocatalytic activity onto fully intact Morpho wings. Optical spectroscopy and finite-difference time-domain numerical modeling demonstrate that ALD ZnO coatings can rationally tune the structural coloration across the visible spectrum. These structurally colored photocatalysts exhibit an optimal coating thickness to maximize photocatalytic activity, which is attributed to trade-offs between light absorption and catalytic quantum yield with increasing coating thickness. These multifunctional photocatalysts present a new approach to integrating solar energy harvesting into visually attractive surfaces that can be integrated into building facades or other macroscopic structures to impart aesthetic appeal.

Nanostructure of highly aromatic graphene nanosheets -- From optoelectronics to electrochemical energy storage applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Biswas, Sanjib

The exceptional electrical properties along with intriguing physical and chemical aspects of graphene nanosheets can only be realized by nanostructuring these materials through the homogeneous and orderly distribution of these nanosheets without compromising the aromaticity of the native basal plane. Graphene nanosheets prepared by direct exfoliation as opposed to the graphene oxide route are necessary in order to preserve the native chemical properties of graphene basal planes. This research has been directed at optimally combining the diverse physical and chemical aspects of graphene nanosheets such as particle size, surface area and edge chemistry to fabricate nanostructured architectures for optoelectronics and high power electrochemical energy storage applications. In the first nanostructuring effort, a monolayer of these ultrathin, highly hydrophobic graphene nanosheets was prepared on a large area substrate via self-assembly at the liquid-liquid interface. Driven by the minimization of interfacial energy these planar graphene nanosheets produce a close packed monolayer structure at the liquid-liquid interface. The resulting monolayer film exhibits high electrical conductivity of more than 1000 S/cm and an optical transmission of more than 70-80% between wavelengths of 550 nm and 2000 nm making it an ideal candidate for optoelectronic applications. In the second part of this research, nanostructuring was used to create a configuration suitable for supercapacitor applications. A free standing, 100% binder free multilayer, flexible film consisting of monolayers of graphene nanosheets was prepared by utilizing the van der Waals forces of attraction between the basal plans of the graphene nanosheets coupled with capillary driven and drying-induced collapse. A major benefit in this approach is that the graphene nanosheet's attractive physical and chemical characteristics can be synthesized into an architecture consisting of large and small nanosheets to create an aligned network designed to maximize device performance. Monolayers of large sized graphene nanosheets function as highly electrically conducting current collectors within a mesoporous network of smaller graphene nanosheets for improved rate capability of the electrical double layer capacitor (EDLC) electrode. This nano-architecture produces an electrode with superior performance for high power EDLC applications: a high frequency capacitative response; a nearly rectangular cyclic voltammogram at a scanning rate of 1000 mv/sec; a rapid current response; small equivalent series resistance (ESR); and fast ionic diffusion. Integration of this nanostructured graphene nanosheet architecture with conductive polymers or metal oxide nanostructurcs was also investigated to produce similar multilayered structures for electrochemical energy storage applications. These inexpensive graphene nanosheets coupled with this facile and robust nanostructuring process make both this new material and method highly advantageous for many potential applications ranging from optoelectronics to high power electrochemical energy storage applications.

Spatially-Interactive Biomolecular Networks Organized by Nucleic Acid Nanostructures

PubMed Central

Fu, Jinglin; Liu, Minghui; Liu, Yan; Yan, Hao

2013-01-01

Conspectus Living systems have evolved a variety of nanostructures to control the molecular interactions that mediate many functions including the recognition of targets by receptors, the binding of enzymes to substrates, and the regulation of enzymatic activity. Mimicking these structures outside of the cell requires methods that offer nanoscale control over the organization of individual network components. Advances in DNA nanotechnology have enabled the design and fabrication of sophisticated one-, two- and three-dimensional (1D, 2D and 3D) nanostructures that utilize spontaneous and sequence specific DNA hybridization. Compared to other self-assembling biopolymers, DNA nanostructures offer predictable and programmable interactions, and surface features to which other nanoparticles and bio-molecules can be precisely positioned. The ability to control the spatial arrangement of the components while constructing highly-organized networks will lead to various applications of these systems. For example, DNA nanoarrays with surface displays of molecular probes can sense noncovalent hybridization interactions with DNA, RNA, and proteins and covalent chemical reactions. DNA nanostructures can also align external molecules into well-defined arrays, which may improve the resolution of many structural determination methods, such as X-ray diffraction, cryo-EM, NMR, and super-resolution fluorescence. Moreover, by constraining target entities to specific conformations, self-assembled DNA nanostructures can serve as molecular rulers to evaluate conformation-dependent activities. This Account describes the most recent advances in the DNA nanostructure directed assembly of biomolecular networks and explores the possibility of applying this technology to other fields of study. Recently, several reports have demonstrated the DNA nanostructure directed assembly of spatially-interactive biomolecular networks. For example, researchers have constructed synthetic multi-enzyme cascades by organizing the position of the components using DNA nanoscaffolds in vitro, or by utilizing RNA matrices in vivo. These structures display enhanced efficiency compared to the corresponding unstructured enzyme mixtures. Such systems are designed to mimic cellular function, where substrate diffusion between enzymes is facilitated and reactions are catalyzed with high efficiency and specificity. In addition, researchers have assembled multiple choromophores into arrays using a DNA nanoscaffold that optimizes the relative distance between the dyes and their spatial organization. The resulting artificial light harvesting system exhibits efficient cascading energy transfers. Finally, DNA nanostructures have been used as assembly templates to construct nanodevices that execute rationally-designed behaviors, including cargo loading, transportation and route control. PMID:22642503

Layered manganese oxides-decorated and nickel foam-supported carbon nanotubes as advanced binder-free supercapacitor electrodes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Ming; Mi, Rui; Liu, Hao; Li, Fei; Zhao, Xiao Li; Zhang, Wei; He, Shi Xuan; Zhang, Yu Xin

2014-12-01

Three-dimensional carbon nanotubes@MnO2 core-shell nanostructures grown on Ni foam for binder-free capacitor electrodes have been fabricated by a floating catalyst chemical vapor deposition process and a facile hydrothermal approach. Ultrathin layered MnO2 nanosheets are uniformly coated on the surface of the carbon nanotubes (CNTs), directly grown on Ni foam. This unique well-designed binder-free electrode exhibits a high specific capacitance (325.5 F g-1 at a current density of 0.3 A g-1), good rate capability (70.7% retention), and excellent cycling stability (90.5% capacitance retention after 5000 cycles), due to the high conductivity of the close contact between CNTs and Ni foam, as well as the moderate specific surface area of the CNTs@MnO2 core-shell nanostructures. The developed synthetic strategy may provide design guidelines for constructing advanced binder-free supercapacitors electrode.

Development of a high-sensitivity plasticizer sensor based on a quartz crystal microbalance modified with a nanostructured nickel hydroxide film

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hu, Ruifen; Zhang, Kaihuan; Fan, Guokang; Luo, Zhiyuan; Li, Guang

2015-05-01

Nanostructured nickel hydroxide (nano-Ni(OH)2) was synthesized at a low temperature without annealing. Accordingly, a plasticizer sensor based on a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) modified with the nano-Ni(OH)2 sensing film was fabricated to detect dibutyl phthalate (DBP) and its relative film thickness was optimized. The sensor worked at room temperature and exhibited a high sensitivity of 4.91 Hz ppb-1 to DBP in a low concentration range of 5-20 ppb, and an ultra-low detection limit of 5 ppb was achieved. In addition, the sensor maintained good repeatability as well as stability shown by the experimental data. The responses to five possible interferences and four other plasticizers were also measured, which indicated the excellent selectivity of the sensor and its potential use in monitoring plasticizers in a gaseous state.

Advances on the nanostructuration of magnetic molecules on surfaces: the case of single-molecule magnets (SMM).

PubMed

Gómez-Segura, Jordi; Veciana, Jaume; Ruiz-Molina, Daniel

2007-09-28

SMMs exhibit slow magnetization relaxation rates characteristic of nanodomain particles whose origin is however on individual molecules. For this reason, they have attracted much interest due to their potential applications in high-density information storage devices and quantum computing applications, where for instance, each molecule can be used as a magnetic bit of information. However, for this to become a reality, several basic studies such as their deposition on surfaces are still highly required. Here we will revise all the experimental approximations that have been so far reported for their addressing, nanostructuration and study on surfaces, from the use of stamps as templates to their anchorage to gold surface through the use of thiol-based ligands. It is also important to emphasize that the results and methodologies described along this review are applicable not only to SMMs but to any molecular material.

In vitro activity of the new water-dispersible Fe3O4@usnic acid nanostructure against planktonic and sessile bacterial cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grumezescu, Alexandru Mihai; Cotar, Ani Ioana; Andronescu, Ecaterina; Ficai, Anton; Ghitulica, Cristina Daniela; Grumezescu, Valentina; Vasile, Bogdan Stefan; Chifiriuc, Mariana Carmen

2013-07-01

A new water-dispersible nanostructure based on magnetite (Fe3O4) and usnic acid (UA) was prepared in a well-shaped spherical form by a precipitation method. Nanoparticles were well individualized and homogeneous in size. The presence of Fe3O4@UA was confirmed by transmission electron microscopy, Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction. The UA was entrapped in the magnetic nanoparticles during preparation and the amount of entrapped UA was estimated by thermogravimetric analysis. Fabricated nanostructures were tested on planktonic cells growth (minimal inhibitory concentration assay) and biofilm development on Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus ( S. aureus), Enterococcus faecalis ( E. faecalis) and Gram-negative Escherichia coli ( E. coli), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) reference strains. Concerning the influence of Fe3O4@UA on the planktonic bacterial cells, the functionalized magnetic nanoparticles exhibited a significantly improved antimicrobial activity against E. faecalis and E. coli, as compared with the Fe3O4 control. The UA incorporated into the magnetic nanoparticles exhibited a very significant inhibitory effect on the biofilm formed by the S. aureus and E. faecalis, on a wide range of concentrations, while in case of the Gram-negative microbial strains, the UA-loaded nanoparticles inhibited the E. coli biofilm development, only at high concentrations, while for P. aeruginosa biofilms, no inhibitory effect was observed. The obtained results demonstrate that the new water-dispersible Fe3O4@UA nanosystem, combining the advantages of the intrinsic antimicrobial features of the UA with the higher surface to volume ratio provided by the magnetic nanocarrier dispersible in water, exhibits efficient antimicrobial activity against planktonic and adherent cells, especially on Gram-positive strains.

Effect of morphology and solvent on two-photon absorption of nano zinc oxide

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kavitha, M.K.; Haripadmam, P.C.; Gopinath, Pramod

Highlights: ► ZnO nanospheres and triangular structures synthesis by novel precipitation technique. ► The effect of precursor concentration on the size and shape of nano ZnO. ► Open aperture Z-scan measurements of the ZnO nanoparticle dispersions. ► Nanospheres exhibit higher two photon absorption coefficient than triangular nanostructures. ► Nanospheres dispersed in water exhibit higher two photon absorption coefficient than its dispersion in 2-propanol. - Abstract: In this paper, we report the effect of morphology and solvent on the two-photon absorption of nano zinc oxide. Zinc oxide nanoparticles in two different morphologies like nanospheres and triangular nanostructures are synthesized by novelmore » precipitation technique and their two-photon absorption coefficient is measured using open aperture Z-scan technique. Experimental results show that the zinc oxide nanospheres exhibit higher two-photon absorption coefficient than the zinc oxide triangular nanostructures. The zinc oxide nanospheres dispersed in water exhibit higher two-photon absorption coefficient than that of its dispersion in 2-propanol. The zinc oxide nanospheres dispersed in water shows a decrease in two-photon absorption coefficient with an increase in on-axis irradiance. The result confirms the dependence of shape and solvent on the two-photon absorption of nano zinc oxide.« less

Synthesis and enhanced acetone gas-sensing performance of ZnSnO3/SnO2 hollow urchin nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lian, Dandan; Shi, Bing; Dai, Rongrong; Jia, Xiaohua; Wu, Xiangyang

2017-12-01

A kind of novel ZnSnO3/SnO2 hollow urchin nanostructure was synthesized by a facile, eco-friendly two-step liquid-phase process. The structure, morphology, and composition of samples were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and nitrogen adsorption-desorption techniques. The results revealed that many tiny needle-like SnO2 nanowires with the average diameter of 5 nm uniformly grew on the surface of the ZnSnO3 hollow microspheres and the ZnSnO3/SnO2 hollow urchin nanostructures with different SnO2 content also were successfully prepared. In order to comprehend the evolution process of the ZnSnO3/SnO2 hollow urchin nanostructures, the possible growth mechanism of samples was illustrated via several experiments in different reaction conditions. Moreover, the gas-sensing performance of as-prepared samples was investigated. The results showed that ZnSnO3/SnO2 hollow urchin nanostructures with high response to various concentration levels of acetone enhanced selectivity, satisfying repeatability, and good long-term stability for acetone detection. Specially, the 10 wt% ZnSnO3/SnO2 hollow urchin nanostructure exhibited the best gas sensitivity (17.03 for 50 ppm acetone) may be a reliable biomarker for the diabetes patients, which could be ascribed to its large specific surface area, complete pore permeability, and increase of chemisorbed oxygen due to the doping of SnO2.

Synthesis, characterization, and applications of electroactive polymeric nanostructures for organic coatings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suryawanshi, Abhijit Jagnnath

Electroactive polymers (EAP) such as polypyrrole (PPy) and polyaniline (PANI) are being explored intensively in the scientific community. Nanostructures of EAPs have low dimensions and high surface area enabling them to be considered for various useful applications. These applications are in several fields including corrosion inhibition, capacitors, artificial muscles, solar cells, polymer light emitting diodes, and energy storage devices. Nanostructures of EAPs have been synthesized in different morphologies such as nanowires, nanorods, nanotubes, nanospheres, and nanocapsules. This variety in morphology is traditionally achieved using soft templates, such as surfactant micelles, or hard templates, such as anodized aluminum oxide (AAO). Templates provide stability and groundwork from which the polymer can grow, but the templates add undesirable expense to the process and can change the properties of the nanoparticles by integrating its own properties. In this study a template free method is introduced to synthesize EAP nanostructures of PPy and PANI utilizing ozone oxidation. The simple techniques involve ozone exposure to the monomer solution to produce aqueous dispersions of EAP nanostructures. The synthesized nanostructures exhibit uniform morphology, low particle size distribution, and stability against agglomeration. Ozone oxidation is further explored for the synthesis of silver-PPy (Ag-PPy) core-shell nanospheres (CSNs). Coatings containing PPy nanospheres were formulated to study the corrosion inhibition efficiency of PPy nanospheres. Investigation of the coatings using electrochemical techniques revealed that the PPy nanospheres may provide corrosion inhibition against filiform corrosion by oxygen scavenging mechanism. Finally, organic corrosion inhibitors were incorporated in PPy to develop efficient corrosion inhibiting systems, by using the synergistic effects from PPy and organic corrosion inhibitors.

Facile synthesis of mesoporous spinel NiCo2O4 nanostructures as highly efficient electrocatalysts for urea electro-oxidation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ding, Rui; Qi, Li; Jia, Mingjun; Wang, Hongyu

2014-01-01

Mesoporous spinel nickel cobaltite (NiCo2O4) nanostructures were synthesized via a facile chemical deposition method coupled with a simple post-annealing process. The physicochemical properties were characterized via X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectra (XPS) and nitrogen sorption measurements. The electrocatalytic performances were investigated by cyclic voltammetry (CV), chronoamperometry (CA) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) tests. The obtained NiCo2O4 materials exhibit typical agglomerate mesoporous nanostructures with a large surface area (190.1 m2 g-1) and high mesopore volume (0.943 cm3 g-1). Remarkably, the NiCo2O4 shows much higher catalytic activity, lower overpotential, better stability and greater tolerance towards urea electro-oxidation compared to those of cobalt oxide (Co3O4) synthesized by the same procedure. The NiCo2O4 electrode delivers a current density of 136 mA cm-2 mg-1 at 0.7 V (vs. Hg/HgO) in 1 M KOH and 0.33 M urea electrolytes accompanied with a desirable stability. The impressive electrocatalytic activity is largely ascribed to the high intrinsic electronic conductivity, superior mesoporous nanostructures and rich surface Ni active species of the NiCo2O4 materials, which can largely boost the interfacial electroactive sites and charge transfer rates for urea electro-oxidation, indicating promising applications in future wastewater remediation, hydrogen production and fuel cells.Mesoporous spinel nickel cobaltite (NiCo2O4) nanostructures were synthesized via a facile chemical deposition method coupled with a simple post-annealing process. The physicochemical properties were characterized via X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectra (XPS) and nitrogen sorption measurements. The electrocatalytic performances were investigated by cyclic voltammetry (CV), chronoamperometry (CA) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) tests. The obtained NiCo2O4 materials exhibit typical agglomerate mesoporous nanostructures with a large surface area (190.1 m2 g-1) and high mesopore volume (0.943 cm3 g-1). Remarkably, the NiCo2O4 shows much higher catalytic activity, lower overpotential, better stability and greater tolerance towards urea electro-oxidation compared to those of cobalt oxide (Co3O4) synthesized by the same procedure. The NiCo2O4 electrode delivers a current density of 136 mA cm-2 mg-1 at 0.7 V (vs. Hg/HgO) in 1 M KOH and 0.33 M urea electrolytes accompanied with a desirable stability. The impressive electrocatalytic activity is largely ascribed to the high intrinsic electronic conductivity, superior mesoporous nanostructures and rich surface Ni active species of the NiCo2O4 materials, which can largely boost the interfacial electroactive sites and charge transfer rates for urea electro-oxidation, indicating promising applications in future wastewater remediation, hydrogen production and fuel cells. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: XRD patterns of NO and CO; XRD patterns and XPS profiles of CO; SEM images of CO; BET plots of CO; XPS quantitative analysis of NCO; a comparison of N2 sorption data between NCO and CO; the fitted values of impedimetric parameters of NCO and CO electrodes. See DOI: 10.1039/c3nr05359h

Electronic transport properties of nanostructured MnSi-films

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schroeter, D.; Steinki, N.; Scarioni, A. Fernández; Schumacher, H. W.; Süllow, S.; Menzel, D.

2018-05-01

MnSi, which crystallizes in the cubic B20 structure, shows intriguing magnetic properties involving the existence of skyrmions in the magnetic phase diagram. Bulk MnSi has been intensively investigated and thoroughly characterized, in contrast to MnSi thin film, which exhibits widely varying properties in particular with respect to electronic transport. In this situation, we have set out to reinvestigate the transport properties in MnSi thin films by means of studying nanostructure samples. In particular, Hall geometry nanostructures were produced to determine the intrinsic transport properties.

Hydrothermal Synthesis of Nanostructured Vanadium Oxides

PubMed Central

Livage, Jacques

2010-01-01

A wide range of vanadium oxides have been obtained via the hydrothermal treatment of aqueous V(V) solutions. They exhibit a large variety of nanostructures ranging from molecular clusters to 1D and 2D layered compounds. Nanotubes are obtained via a self-rolling process while amazing morphologies such as nano-spheres, nano-flowers and even nano-urchins are formed via the self-assembling of nano-particles. This paper provides some correlation between the molecular structure of precursors in the solution and the nanostructure of the solid phases obtained by hydrothermal treatment. PMID:28883325

Toward hybrid Au nanorods @ M (Au, Ag, Pd and Pt) core-shell heterostructures for ultrasensitive SERS probes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xie, Xiaobin; Gao, Guanhui; Kang, Shendong; Lei, Yanhua; Pan, Zhengyin; Shibayama, Tamaki; Cai, Lintao

2017-06-01

Being able to precisely control the morphologies of noble metallic nanostructures is of essential significance for promoting the surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) effect. Herein, we demonstrate an overgrowth strategy for synthesizing Au @ M (M = Au, Ag, Pd, Pt) core-shell heterogeneous nanocrystals with an orientated structural evolution and highly improved properties by using Au nanorods as seeds. With the same reaction condition system applied, we obtain four well-designed heterostructures with diverse shapes, including Au concave nanocuboids (Au CNs), Au @ Ag crystalizing face central cube nanopeanuts, Au @ Pd porous nanocuboids and Au @ Pt nanotrepangs. Subsequently, the exact overgrowth mechanism of the above heterostructural building blocks is further analysed via the systematic optimiziation of a series of fabrications. Remarkably, the well-defined Au CNs and Au @ Ag nanopeanuts both exhibit highly promoted SERS activity. We expect to be able to supply a facile strategy for the fabrication of multimetallic heterogeneous nanostructures, exploring the high SERS effect and catalytic activities.

A hierarchical nanostructure consisting of amorphous MnO 2, Mn 3O 4 nanocrystallites, and single-crystalline MnOOH nanowires for supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hu, Chi-Chang; Hung, Ching-Yun; Chang, Kuo-Hsin; Yang, Yi-Lin

In this communication, a porous hierarchical nanostructure consisting of amorphous MnO 2 (a-MnO 2), Mn 3O 4 nanocrystals, and single-crystalline MnOOH nanowires is designed for the supercapacitor application, which is prepared by a simple two-step electrochemical deposition process. Because of the gradual co-transformation of Mn 3O 4 nanocrystals and a-MnO 2 nanorods into an amorphous manganese oxide, the cycle stability of a-MnO 2 is obviously enhanced by adding Mn 3O 4. This unique ternary oxide nanocomposite with 100-cycle CV activation exhibits excellent capacitive performances, i.e., excellent reversibility, high specific capacitances (470 F g -1 in CaCl 2), high power property, and outstanding cycle stability. The highly porous microstructures of this composite before and after the 10,000-cycle CV test are examined by means of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM).

Strong, ductile, and thermally stable Cu-based metal-intermetallic nanostructured composites.

PubMed

Dusoe, Keith J; Vijayan, Sriram; Bissell, Thomas R; Chen, Jie; Morley, Jack E; Valencia, Leopolodo; Dongare, Avinash M; Aindow, Mark; Lee, Seok-Woo

2017-01-09

Bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) and nanocrystalline metals (NMs) have been extensively investigated due to their superior strengths and elastic limits. Despite these excellent mechanical properties, low ductility at room temperature and poor microstructural stability at elevated temperatures often limit their practical applications. Thus, there is a need for a metallic material system that can overcome these performance limits of BMGs and NMs. Here, we present novel Cu-based metal-intermetallic nanostructured composites (MINCs), which exhibit high ultimate compressive strengths (over 2 GPa), high compressive failure strain (over 20%), and superior microstructural stability even at temperatures above the glass transition temperature of Cu-based BMGs. Rapid solidification produces a unique ultra-fine microstructure that contains a large volume fraction of Cu 5 Zr superlattice intermetallic compound; this contributes to the high strength and superior thermal stability. Mechanical and microstructural characterizations reveal that substantial accumulation of phase boundary sliding at metal/intermetallic interfaces accounts for the extensive ductility observed.

Superhydrophobic Ag nanostructures on polyaniline membranes with strong SERS enhancement.

PubMed

Liu, Weiyu; Miao, Peng; Xiong, Lu; Du, Yunchen; Han, Xijiang; Xu, Ping

2014-11-07

We demonstrate here a facile fabrication of n-dodecyl mercaptan-modified superhydrophobic Ag nanostructures on polyaniline membranes for molecular detection based on SERS technique, which combines the superhydrophobic condensation effect and the high enhancement factor. It is calculated that the as-fabricated superhydrophobic substrate can exhibit a 21-fold stronger molecular condensation, and thus further amplifies the SERS signal to achieve more sensitive detection. The detection limit of the target molecule, methylene blue (MB), on this superhydrophobic substrate can be 1 order of magnitude higher than that on the hydrophilic substrate. With high reproducibility, the feasibility of using this SERS-active superhydrophobic substrate for quantitative molecular detection is explored. A partial least squares (PLS) model was established for the quantification of MB by SERS, with correlation coefficient R(2) = 95.1% and root-mean-squared error of prediction (RMSEP) = 0.226. We believe this superhydrophobic SERS substrate can be widely used in trace analysis due to its facile fabrication, high signal reproducibility and promising SERS performance.

Nanoporous platinum-cobalt alloy for electrochemical sensing for ethanol, hydrogen peroxide, and glucose.

PubMed

Xu, Caixia; Sun, Fenglei; Gao, Hua; Wang, Jinping

2013-05-30

Nanoporous platinum-cobalt (NP-PtCo) alloy with hierarchical nanostructure is straightforwardly fabricated by dealloying PtCoAl alloy in a mild alkaline solution. Selectively etching Al resulted in a hierarchical three-dimensional network nanostructure with a narrow size distribution at 3 nm. The as-prepared NP-PtCo alloy shows superior performance toward ethanol and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) with highly sensitive response due to its unique electrocatalytic activity. In addition, NP-PtCo also exhibits excellent amperometric durability and long-term stability for H2O2 as well as a good anti-interference toward ascorbic acid, uric acid, and dopamine. The hierarchical nanoporous architecture in PtCo alloy is also highly active for glucose sensing electrooxidation and sensing in a wide linear range. The NP-PtCo alloy holds great application potential for electrochemical sensing with simple preparation, unique catalytic activity, and high structure stability. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The design, fabrication, and photocatalytic utility of nanostructured semiconductors: focus on TiO2-based nanostructures

PubMed Central

Banerjee, Arghya Narayan

2011-01-01

Recent advances in basic fabrication techniques of TiO2-based nanomaterials such as nanoparticles, nanowires, nanoplatelets, and both physical- and solution-based techniques have been adopted by various research groups around the world. Our research focus has been mainly on various deposition parameters used for fabricating nanostructured materials, including TiO2-organic/inorganic nanocomposite materials. Technically, TiO2 shows relatively high reactivity under ultraviolet light, the energy of which exceeds the band gap of TiO2. The development of photocatalysts exhibiting high reactivity under visible light allows the main part of the solar spectrum to be used. Visible light-activated TiO2 could be prepared by doping or sensitizing. As far as doping of TiO2 is concerned, in obtaining tailored material with improved properties, metal and nonmetal doping has been performed in the context of improved photoactivity. Nonmetal doping seems to be more promising than metal doping. TiO2 represents an effective photocatalyst for water and air purification and for self-cleaning surfaces. Additionally, it can be used as an antibacterial agent because of its strong oxidation activity and superhydrophilicity. Therefore, applications of TiO2 in terms of photocatalytic activities are discussed here. The basic mechanisms of the photoactivities of TiO2 and nanostructures are considered alongside band structure engineering and surface modification in nanostructured TiO2 in the context of doping. The article reviews the basic structural, optical, and electrical properties of TiO2, followed by detailed fabrication techniques of 0-, 1-, and quasi-2-dimensional TiO2 nanomaterials. Applications and future directions of nanostructured TiO2 are considered in the context of various photoinduced phenomena such as hydrogen production, electricity generation via dye-sensitized solar cells, photokilling and self-cleaning effect, photo-oxidation of organic pollutant, wastewater management, and organic synthesis. PMID:24198485

Coralloid-like Nanostructured c-nSi/SiOx@Cy Anodes for High Performance Lithium Ion Battery.

PubMed

Zhuang, Xianhuan; Song, Pingan; Chen, Guorong; Shi, Liyi; Wu, Yuan; Tao, Xinyong; Liu, Hongjiang; Zhang, Dengsong

2017-08-30

Balancing the size of the primary Si unit and void space is considered to be an effective approach for developing high performance silicon-based anode materials and is vital to create a lithium ion battery with high energy density. We herein have demonstrated the facile fabrication of coralloid-like nanostructured silicon composites (c-nSi/SiO x @Cy) via sulfuric acid etching the Al 60 Si 40 alloy, followed by a surface growth carbon layer approach. The HRTEM images of pristine and cycled c-nSi/SiO x @Cy show that abundant nanoscale internal pores and the continuous conductive carbon layer effectively avoid the pulverization and agglomeration of Si units during multiple cycles. It is interesting that the c-nSi/SiO x @C 4.0 anode exhibits a high initial Coulombic efficiency of 85.53%, and typical specific capacity of over 850 mAh g -1 after deep 500 cycles at a current density of 1 A g -1 . This work offers a facile strategy to create silicon-based anodes consisting of highly dispersed primary nano-Si units.

Nanohybrids from NiCoAl-LDH coupled with carbon for pseudocapacitors: understanding the role of nano-structured carbon

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yu, Chang; Yang, Juan; Zhao, Changtai; Fan, Xiaoming; Wang, Gang; Qiu, Jieshan

2014-02-01

Transition metal layered double hydroxides (LDHs) are one of the great potential electrode materials for pseudocapacitors. However, the aggregation and low conductivity of these metal compounds will constrain electrolyte ion and electron transfer and further affect their electrochemical performances. The nano-structured carbon coupled with the LDH matrix can act as an active component or conducting scaffold to enhance or improve the rate capacity and cycle life. Here, various nano-structured carbon species, including zero-dimensional carbon black (CB), one-dimensional carbon nanotubes (CNTs), two-dimensional reduced graphene oxide (RGO), and CNT/RGO composites were used to couple with the NiCoAl-LDHs to construct LDH-carbon nanohybrid electrodes for pseudocapacitors, and the role of the nanostructured carbon was investigated and discussed in terms of the pore structure of nanohybrids and electrical conductivity. The results show that all of the carbons can be well incorporated into the LDH nanosheets to form homogeneous nanohybrid materials. The pore structure properties and electrical conductivity of nanohybrids have statistically significant effects on the electrochemical performances of the LDH-carbon nanohybrids. Of the electrodes adopted, the nanohybrid electrode consisting of NiCoAl-LDHs, CNTs, and RGO exhibits excellent electrochemical performance with a specific capacitance as high as 1188 F g-1 at a current density of 1 A g-1 due to the synergistic effect of NiCoAl-LDHs, RGO, and CNTs, in which the RGO nanosheets are favorable for high specific surface area while the CNT has a fast electron transport path for enhancing the electrical conductivity of nanohybrids. This will shed a new light on the effect of nano-structured carbon within the electrode matrix on the electrochemical activity and open a new way for the carbon-related electrode configuration/design for supercapacitors, and other energy storage and conversion devices.Transition metal layered double hydroxides (LDHs) are one of the great potential electrode materials for pseudocapacitors. However, the aggregation and low conductivity of these metal compounds will constrain electrolyte ion and electron transfer and further affect their electrochemical performances. The nano-structured carbon coupled with the LDH matrix can act as an active component or conducting scaffold to enhance or improve the rate capacity and cycle life. Here, various nano-structured carbon species, including zero-dimensional carbon black (CB), one-dimensional carbon nanotubes (CNTs), two-dimensional reduced graphene oxide (RGO), and CNT/RGO composites were used to couple with the NiCoAl-LDHs to construct LDH-carbon nanohybrid electrodes for pseudocapacitors, and the role of the nanostructured carbon was investigated and discussed in terms of the pore structure of nanohybrids and electrical conductivity. The results show that all of the carbons can be well incorporated into the LDH nanosheets to form homogeneous nanohybrid materials. The pore structure properties and electrical conductivity of nanohybrids have statistically significant effects on the electrochemical performances of the LDH-carbon nanohybrids. Of the electrodes adopted, the nanohybrid electrode consisting of NiCoAl-LDHs, CNTs, and RGO exhibits excellent electrochemical performance with a specific capacitance as high as 1188 F g-1 at a current density of 1 A g-1 due to the synergistic effect of NiCoAl-LDHs, RGO, and CNTs, in which the RGO nanosheets are favorable for high specific surface area while the CNT has a fast electron transport path for enhancing the electrical conductivity of nanohybrids. This will shed a new light on the effect of nano-structured carbon within the electrode matrix on the electrochemical activity and open a new way for the carbon-related electrode configuration/design for supercapacitors, and other energy storage and conversion devices. Electronic supplementary information available: FE-SEM images, TEM images, TGA curves, nitrogen adsorption/desorption isotherms, and the corresponding pore size distribution as well as the current-voltage (I-V) curves of LDH-carbon nanohybrids. See DOI: 10.1039/c3nr05477b

Impact of structure and morphology of nanostructured ceria coating on AISI 304 oxidation kinetics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aadhavan, R.; Suresh Babu, K.

2017-07-01

Nanostructured ceria-based coatings are shown to be protective against high-temperature oxidation of AISI 304 due to the dynamics of oxidation state and associated defects. However, the processing parameters of deposition have a strong influence in determining the structural and morphological aspects of ceria. The present work focuses on the effect of variation in substrate temperature (50-300 °C) and deposition rate (0.1-50 Å/s) of ceria in electron beam physical vapour evaporation method and correlates the changes in structure and morphology to high-temperature oxidation protection. Unlike deposition rate, substrate temperature exhibited a profound influence on crystallite size (7-18 nm) and oxygen vacancy concentration. Upon isothermal oxidation at 1243 K for 24 h, bare AISI 304 exhibited a linear mass gain with a rate constant of 3.0 ± 0.03 × 10-3 kg2 m-4 s-1 while ceria coating lowered the kinetics by 3-4 orders. Though the thickness of the coating was kept constant at 2 μm, higher deposition rate offered one order lower protection due to the porous nature of the coating. Variation in the substrate temperature modulated the porosity as well as oxygen vacancy concentration and displayed the best protection for coatings deposited at moderate substrate temperature. The present work demonstrates the significance of selecting appropriate processing parameters to obtain the required morphology for efficient high-temperature oxidation protection.

High Strength and Thermally Stable Nanostructured Magnesium Alloys and Nanocomposites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chang, Yuan-Wei

Magnesium and its alloys are currently in the spotlight of global research because of the need to limit energy consumption and reduce the environmental impact. In particular, their low densities compared to other structural metals make them a very attractive alternative in the automobile and aerospace industries. However, their low strength compared to other structural materials (e.g. Al and steels) has limited their widespread application. This dissertation presents the results of developing and investigation of a high strength nanostructured magnesium-aluminum alloy and composite. The nanostructured magnesium alloy is prepared by cryomilling and consolidated by spark-plasma-sintering. Focused ion beam is used to prepare micropillars with different diameters ranging from 1.5 to 8 mum and micro-compression test is conducted by nanoindenter in order to evaluate the mechanical properties. The yield strength obtained in the present study is around three times higher than conventional magnesium alloys (120 MPa vs. 370 MPa). The yield strength of the nanostructured magnesium alloy is further improved through hot extrusion, resulting in a yield strength of 550 MPa and an ultimate strength of 580 MPa. The nanostructured magnesium alloy exhibits a strong size-dependence, and a significant improvement in strength is observed when the pillar diameter is reduced to below 3.5 mum. The deformation mechanisms of the compressed pillars were characterized using transmission electron microscopy. The size-induced strengthening is attributed to a less number of dislocation sources along with a higher activity of non-basal deformation mechanisms. We have also developed a high strength and thermally stable nanostructured magnesium composite by adding diamantane. A yield strength of 500 MPa is achieved, moreover, excellent thermal stability is demonstrated in the magnesium alloy containing diamantanes. The strength and grain size are thermally stable after annealing at 400°C for 100 hours. In contrast, the yield strength of the alloy without diamantanes decreases significantly after annealing due to severe grain growth. These results suggest that diamantanes are pinning the grain boundaries and inhibiting grain growth at elevated temperatures. Finally, molecular dynamics simulations and finite element analysis are used to explore the deformation mechanisms of magnesium with different grain sizes at atomic resolutions and correct tapering effect on micro-compression test, respectively. The results in the dissertation show that nanostructured Mg-Al alloy and Mg-Al-Diamantane composite are promising materials for aerospace and automobile industries.

Low temperature superplasticity and thermal stability of a nanostructured low-carbon microalloyed steel

PubMed Central

Hu, J.; Du, L.-X.; Sun, G.-S.; Xie, H.; Misra, R.D.K.

2015-01-01

We describe here for the first time the low temperature superplasticity of nanostructured low carbon steel (microalloyed with V, N, Mn, Al, Si, and Ni). Low carbon nanograined/ultrafine-grained (NG/UFG) bulk steel was processed using a combination of cold-rolling and annealing of martensite. The complex microstructure of NG/UFG ferrite and 50–80 nm cementite exhibited high thermal stability at 500 °C with low temperature elongation exceeding 100% (at less than 0.5 of the absolute melting point) as compared to the conventional fine-grained (FG) counterpart. The low temperature superplasticity is adequate to form complex components. Moreover, the low strength during hot processing is favorable for decreasing the spring back and minimize die loss. PMID:26687012

ε-MnO2 nanostructures directly grown on Ni foam: a cathode catalyst for rechargeable Li-O2 batteries.

PubMed

Hu, Xiaofei; Han, Xiaopeng; Hu, Yuxiang; Cheng, Fangyi; Chen, Jun

2014-04-07

A sponge-like ε-MnO2 nanostructure was synthesized by direct growth of ε-MnO2 on Ni foam through a facile electrodeposition route. When applied as a self-supporting, binder-free cathode material for rechargeable nonaqueous lithium-oxygen batteries, the ε-MnO2/Ni electrode exhibits considerable high-rate capability (discharge capacity of ∼6300 mA h g(-1) at a current density of 500 mA g(-1)) and enhanced cyclability (exceeding 120 cycles) without controlling the discharge depth. The superior performance is proposed to be associated with the 3D nanoporous structures and abundant oxygen defects as well as the absence of side reactions related to carbon-based conductive additives and binders.

Aluminum nanostructures with strong visible-range SERS activity for versatile micropatterning of molecular security labels.

PubMed

Lay, Chee Leng; Koh, Charlynn Sher Lin; Wang, Jing; Lee, Yih Hong; Jiang, Ruibin; Yang, Yijie; Yang, Zhe; Phang, In Yee; Ling, Xing Yi

2018-01-03

The application of aluminum (Al)-based nanostructures for visible-range plasmonics, especially for surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), currently suffers from inconsistent local electromagnetic field distributions and/or inhomogeneous distribution of probe molecules. Herein, we lithographically fabricate structurally uniform Al nanostructures which enable homogeneous adsorption of various probe molecules. Individual Al nanostructures exhibit strong local electromagnetic field enhancements, in turn leading to intense SERS activity. The average SERS enhancement factor (EF) for individual nanostructures exceeds 10 4 for non-resonant probe molecules in the visible spectrum. These Al nanostructures also retain more than 70% of their original SERS intensities after one-month storage, displaying superb stability under ambient conditions. We further achieve tunable polarization-dependent SERS responses using anisotropic Al nanostructures, facilitating the design of sophisticated SERS-based security labels. Our micron-sized security label comprises two-tier security features, including a machine-readable hybrid quick-response (QR) code overlaid with a set of ciphertexts. Our work demonstrates the versatility of Al-based structures in low-cost modern chemical nano-analytics and forgery protection.

Development of functional materials by using ultrafast laser pulses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shimotsuma, Y.; Sakakura, M.; Miura, K.

2018-01-01

The polarization-dependent periodic nanostructures inside various materials are successfully induced by ultrafast laser pulses. The periodic nanostructures in various materials can be empirically classified into the following three types: (1) structural deficiency, (2) expanded structure, (3) partial phase separation. Such periodic nanostructures exhibited not only optical anisotropy but also intriguing electric, thermal, and magnetic properties. The formation mechanisms of the periodic nanostructure was interpreted in terms of the interaction between incident light field and the generated electron plasma. Furthermore, the fact that the periodic nanostructures in semiconductors could be formed empirically only if it is indirect bandgap semiconductor materials indicates the stress-dependence of bandgap structure and/or the recombination of the excited electrons are also involved to the nanostructure formation. More recently we have also confirmed that the periodic nanostructures in glass are related to whether a large amount of non-bridged oxygen is present. In the presentation, we demonstrate new possibilities for functionalization of common materials ranging from an eternal 5D optical storage, a polarization imaging, to a thermoelectric conversion, based on the indicated phenomena.

Crystalline Gaq3Nanostructures: Preparation, Thermal Property and Spectroscopy Characterization

PubMed Central

2009-01-01

Crystalline Gaq31-D nanostructures and nanospheres could be fabricated by thermal evaporation under cold trap. The influences of the key process parameters on formation of the nanostructures were also investigated. It has been demonstrated that the morphology and dimension of the nanostructures were mainly controlled by working temperature and working pressure. One-dimensional nanostructures were fabricated at a lower working temperature, whereas nanospheres were formed at a higher working temperature. Larger nanospheres could be obtained when a higher working pressure was applied. The XRD, FTIR, and NMR analyses evidenced that the nanostructures mainly consisted of δ-phase Gaq3. Their DSC trace revealed two small exothermic peaks in addition to the melting endotherm. The one in lower temperature region was ascribed to a transition from δ to β phase, while another in higher temperature region could be identified as a transition from β to δ phase. All the crystalline nanostructures show similar PL spectra due to absence of quantum confinement effect. They also exhibited a spectral blue shift because of a looser interligand spacing and reduced orbital overlap in their δ-phase molecular structures. PMID:20596439

Synthesis of Dual NIR Two-photon Absorptive [60]fullerenyl Multiadducts for Nonlinear Light-transmittance Reduction Application

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-11-01

INTRODUCTION Nonlinear optical characteristics of [60] fullerene -derived C60-(antenna)x nanostructure conjugates are based on excited singlet state...two-photon absorption (2PA) processes in the NIR region [3]. Fullerene cages exhibit high electronegativity and electron-accepting characteristics...photoenergy by the donor DPAF-Cn antenna was able to undergo efficient intramolecular electron- or energy-transfer to the fullerene acceptor moiety in

A general synthesis strategy for the multifunctional 3D polypyrrole foam of thin 2D nanosheets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xue, Jiangli; Mo, Maosong; Liu, Zhuming; Ye, Dapeng; Cheng, Zhihua; Xu, Tong; Qu, Liangti

2018-05-01

A 3D macroporous conductive polymer foam of thin 2D polypyrrole (PPy) nanosheets is developed by adopting a novel intercalation of guest (monomer Py) between the layers of the lamellar host (3D vanadium oxide foam) template-replication strategy. The 3D PPy foam of thin 2D nanosheets exhibits diverse functions including reversible compressibility, shape memory, absorption/adsorption and mechanically deformable supercapacitor characteristics. The as-prepared 3D PPy foam of thin nanosheets is highly light weight with a density of 12 mg·cm-3 which can bear the large compressive strain up to 80% whether in wet or dry states; and can absorb organic solutions or extract dye molecules fast and efficiently. In particular, the PPy nanosheet-based foamas a mechanically deformable electrode material for supercapacitors exhibits high specific capacitance of 70 F·g-1 at a fast charge-discharge rate of 50 mA·g-1, superior to that of any other typical pure PPy-based capacitor. We envision that the strategy presented here should be applicable to fabrication of a wide variety of organic polymer foams and hydrogels of low-dimensional nanostructures and even inorganic foams and hydrogels of low-dimensional nanostructures, and thus allow for exploration of their advanced physical and chemical properties.

Design analysis of phosphor-free monolithic white light-emitting-diodes with InGaN/ InGaN multiple quantum wells on ternary InGaN substrates

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ooi, Yu Kee, E-mail: Yu.Kee.Ooi@rit.edu; Zhang, Jing, E-mail: Jing.Zhang@rit.edu

2015-05-15

Phosphor-free monolithic white light emitting diodes (LEDs) based on InGaN/ InGaN multiple quantum wells (MQWs) on ternary InGaN substrates are proposed and analyzed in this study. Simulation studies show that LED devices composed of multi-color-emitting InGaN/ InGaN quantum wells (QWs) employing ternary InGaN substrate with engineered active region exhibit stable white color illumination with large output power (∼ 170 mW) and high external quantum efficiency (EQE) (∼ 50%). The chromaticity coordinate for the investigated monolithic white LED devices are located at (0.30, 0.28) with correlated color temperature (CCT) of ∼ 8200 K at J = 50 A/cm{sup 2}. A referencemore » LED device without any nanostructure engineering exhibits green color emission shows that proper engineered structure is essential to achieve white color illumination. This proof-of-concept study demonstrates that high-efficiency and cost-effective phosphor-free monolithic white LED is feasible by the use of InGaN/ InGaN MQWs on ternary InGaN substrate combined with nanostructure engineering, which would be of great impact for solid state lighting.« less

A general synthesis strategy for the multifunctional 3D polypyrrole foam of thin 2D nanosheets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xue, Jiangli; Mo, Maosong; Liu, Zhuming; Ye, Dapeng; Cheng, Zhihua; Xu, Tong; Qu, Liangti

2018-06-01

A 3D macroporous conductive polymer foam of thin 2D polypyrrole (PPy) nanosheets is developed by adopting a novel intercalation of guest (monomer Py) between the layers of the lamellar host (3D vanadium oxide foam) template-replication strategy. The 3D PPy foam of thin 2D nanosheets exhibits diverse functions including reversible compressibility, shape memory, absorption/adsorption and mechanically deformable supercapacitor characteristics. The as-prepared 3D PPy foam of thin nanosheets is highly light weight with a density of 12 mg·cm-3 which can bear the large compressive strain up to 80% whether in wet or dry states; and can absorb organic solutions or extract dye molecules fast and efficiently. In particular, the PPy nanosheet-based foam as a mechanically deformable electrode material for supercapacitors exhibits high specific capacitance of 70 F·g-1 at a fast charge-discharge rate of 50 mA·g-1, superior to that of any other typical pure PPy-based capacitor. We envision that the strategy presented here should be applicable to fabrication of a wide variety of organic polymer foams and hydrogels of low-dimensional nanostructures and even inorganic foams and hydrogels of low-dimensional nanostructures, and thus allow for exploration of their advanced physical and chemical properties.

Semiconductor nanostructures for plasma energetic systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mustafaev, Alexander; Smerdov, Rostislav; Klimenkov, Boris

2017-10-01

In this talk we discuss the research results of the three types of ultrasmall electrodes namely the nanoelectrode arrays based on composite nanostructured porous silicon (PS) layers, porous GaP and nanocrystals of ZnO. These semiconductor materials are of great interest to nano- and optoelectronic applications by virtue of their high specific surface area and extensive capability for surface functionalization. The use of semiconductor (GaN) cathodes in photon-enhanced thermionic emission systems has also proved to be effective although only a few (less than 1%) of the incident photons exceed the 3.3 eV GaN band gap. This significant drawback provided us with a solid foundation for our research in the field of nanostructured PS, and composite materials based on it exhibiting nearly optimal parameters in terms of the band gap (1.1 eV). The band gap modification for PS nanostructured layers is possible in the range of less than 1 eV and 3 eV due to the existence of quantum confinement effect and the remarkable possibilities of PS surface alteration thus providing us with a suitable material for both cathode and anode fabrication. The obtained results are applicable for solar concentration and thermionic energy conversion systems. Dr. Sci., Ph.D, Principal Scientist, Professor.

Hexagonal CeO2 nanostructures: an efficient electrode material for supercapacitors.

PubMed

Maheswari, Nallappan; Muralidharan, Gopalan

2016-09-28

Cerium oxide (CeO2) has emerged as a new and promising pseudocapacitive material due to its prominent valance states and extensive applications in various fields. In the present study, hexagonal CeO2 nanostructures have been prepared via the hydrothermal method employing cationic surfactant cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB). CTAB ensures a slow rate of hydrolysis to form small sized CeO2 nanostructures. The role of calcination temperature on the morphological, structural, electrochemical properties and cyclic stability has been assessed for supercapacitor applications. The mesoscopic hexagonal architecture endows the CeO2 with not only a higher specific capacity, but also with an excellent rate capability and cyclability. When the charge/discharge current density is increased from 2 to 10 A g(-1) the reversible charge capacity decreased from 927 F g(-1) to 475 F g(-1) while 100% capacity retention at a high current density of 20 A g(-1) even after 1500 cycles could be achieved. Furthermore, the asymmetric supercapacitor based on CeO2 exhibited a significantly higher energy density of 45.6 W h kg(-1) at a power density of 187.5 W kg(-1) with good cyclic stability. The electrochemical richness of the CeO2 nanostructure makes it a suitable electrode material for supercapacitor applications.

Surface functionalized Cu2Zn1- x Cd x SnS4 quinternary alloyed nanostructure for DNA sensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ibraheam, A. S.; Al-Douri, Y.; Voon, C. H.; Foo, K. L.; Azizah, N.; Gopinath, S. C. B.; Ameri, M.; Ibrahim, Sattar S.

2017-03-01

A sensing plate of extended Cu2Zn1- x Cd x SnS4 quinternary alloy nanostructures, fabricated on an oxidized silicon substrate by the sol-gel method, is reported in this paper. The fabricated device was characterized and analyzed via field emission-scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and photoluminescence (PL). The XRD peaks shifted towards the lower angle side alongside increasing concentration of cadmium. The average diameter of the Cu2Zn1- x Cd x SnS4 quinternary alloy nanostructures falls between 21.55 and 43.12 nm, while the shift of the PL bandgap was from 1.81 eV ( x = 0) to 1.72 eV ( x = 1). The resulting Cu2Zn1- x Cd x SnS4 quinternary alloy nanostructures components were functionalized with oligonucleotides probe DNA molecules and interacted with the target, exhibiting good sensing capabilities due to its large surface-to-volume ratio. The fabrication, immobilization, and hybridization processes were analyzed via representative current-voltage ( I- V) plots. Its electrical profile shows that the device is capable to distinguish biomolecules. Its high performance was evident from the linear relationship between the probe DNA from cervical cancer and the target DNA, showing its applicability for medical applications.

Heterojunction Fe2O3-SnO2 Nanostructured Photoanode for Efficient Photoelectrochemical Water Splitting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han, Hyun Soo; Shin, Sun; Noh, Jun Hong; Cho, In Sun; Hong, Kug Sun

2014-04-01

Hierarchically organized nanostructures were fabricated by growing SnO2 nanoparticles on a fluorine-doped tin oxide/glass substrate via a laser ablation method. Cauliflower-like clusters consisting of agglomerated nanoparticles were deposited and aligned with respect to the substrate with a large internal surface area and open channels of pores. The morphological changes of SnO2 nanostructured films were investigated as a function of the oxygen working pressure in the range of 100-500 mTorr. A nanostructured scaffold prepared at an oxygen working pressure of 100 mTorr exhibited the best photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance. A Ti:Fe2O3-SnO2 nanostructured photoanode showed the photocurrent that was 34% larger than that of a Ti:Fe2O3 flat photoanode when the amount of Ti:Fe2O3 sensitizer was identical for the two photoanodes. The larger surface area and longer electron lifetime of the Ti:Fe2O3-SnO2 nanostructured photoanode explains its improved PEC performance.

Hydrogen peroxide-assisted synthesis of novel three-dimensional octagonal-like CuO nanostructures with enhanced visible-light-driven photocatalytic activity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Xiangyu; Chu, Deqing; Wang, Limin; Hu, Wenhui; Yang, Huifang; Sun, Jingjing; Zhu, Shaopeng; Wang, Guowei; Tao, Jian; Zhang, Songsong

2018-04-01

Novel three-dimensional octagonal-like CuO micro-/nanostructures with diameters ranging from 10 to 15 μm have been successfully prepared by hydrogen peroxide-assisted hydrothermal method and subsequent calcination. The product morphology can be changed by simply ordering the amount of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). When the amounts of H2O2 is increased, the length of the corner portion is increased and the width is narrower. The obtained octagonal CuO nanostructures were evaluated for their ability for the degradation of hazardous organic contaminants in water under visible-light irradiation. Comparing with commercial CuO and other CuO products, the CuO octagonal nanostructures exhibit excellent performance for photocatalytic decomposition of RhB (Rhodamine B). It is well established that effective photocatalytic performance results from its unique 3D octagonal nanostructures. We believe that the present work will provide some ideas for further fabrication of other novel nanostructures and exploration of their applications.

Growth of different V2O5 nanostructures as a function of deposition duration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saini, Sujit K.; Sharma, Rabindar K.; Singh, Megha; Kumar, Prabhat; Reddy, G. B.

2018-05-01

Vanadium pentoxide nanostructured thin films are synthesized using plasma assisted sublimation process (PASP). The effect of deposition duration on the growth of V2O5 nanostructured thin films (NSTs) is studied in present paper. Raman and XRD results depict that all films exhibited only orthorhombic crystalline phase of vanadium oxide (i.e. V2O5). As duration increases the growth of V2O5 nanostructures preferentially aligned along (101) crystallographic plane. Scanning electron micrographs show that different morphologies are obtained with different duration of deposition. For low durations (i.e. 30 and 40 min.) the 1D nanostructures with random alignments are obtained, whereas for prolonged durations of deposition (50 and 60 min) the embedded nanopillers having vertical alignments with uniform distribution on entire substrate are found. The occurrence of remarkable increase in visible radiation from 8% to 13% on increasing duration again implies that the crystallinity and alignments of V2O5 nanostructures is getting improved with duration.

High areal capacity, micrometer-scale amorphous Si film anode based on nanostructured Cu foil for Li-ion batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Si, Wenping; Sun, Xiaolei; Liu, Xianghong; Xi, Lixia; Jia, Yandong; Yan, Chenglin; Schmidt, Oliver G.

2014-12-01

We report a feasible design to fabricate micrometer-scale Si films deposited on nanostructured Cu foil as high areal capacity anodes for Li-ion batteries with excellent cycling performance. Nanostructured copper oxides are prepared by anodic oxidation of Cu foil in alkaline solution. The resultant copper oxide nanofibers function as matrix for thick Si films (1-2 μm) loading. Metallic Cu nanofibers are obtained by in-situ electrochemical reduction at low potentials, which work as electrical highways for fast electron transport and a reliable mechanical matrix to accommodate volume changes during lithium-silicon alloy/dealloy processes. The engineered thick Si film anode exhibit both high areal capacity (0.48 mAh cm-2 for 1 μm Si film and 0.6 mAh cm-2 for 2 μm Si film after 200 cycles at 0.225 mA cm-2) and excellent rate capability (0.52 mAh cm-2 at 1.05 mA cm-2 for 2 μm Si film). The 2 μm silicon film electrode is able to recover to the initial value of 1 mAh cm-2 when the current rate is set back to 0.15 mA cm-2 even after cycling at high current rates. The reported concept can be a general method for high-loading-film electrodes, which is industrial scalable and compatible with current battery manufacturing processes.

High Mass Loading MnO2 with Hierarchical Nanostructures for Supercapacitors.

PubMed

Huang, Zi-Hang; Song, Yu; Feng, Dong-Yang; Sun, Zhen; Sun, Xiaoqi; Liu, Xiao-Xia

2018-04-24

Metal oxides have attracted renewed interest as promising electrode materials for high energy density supercapacitors. However, the electrochemical performance of metal oxide materials deteriorates significantly with the increase of mass loading due to their moderate electronic and ionic conductivities. This limits their practical energy. Herein, we perform a morphology and phase-controlled electrodeposition of MnO 2 with ultrahigh mass loading of 10 mg cm -2 on a carbon cloth substrate to achieve high overall capacitance without sacrificing the electrochemical performance. Under optimum conditions, a hierarchical nanostructured architecture was constructed by interconnection of primary two-dimensional ε-MnO 2 nanosheets and secondary one-dimensional α-MnO 2 nanorod arrays. The specific hetero-nanostructures ensure facile ionic and electric transport in the entire electrode and maintain the structure stability during cycling. The hierarchically structured MnO 2 electrode with high mass loading yields an outstanding areal capacitance of 3.04 F cm -2 (or a specific capacitance of 304 F g -1 ) at 3 mA cm -2 and an excellent rate capability comparable to those of low mass loading MnO 2 electrodes. Finally, the aqueous and all-solid asymmetric supercapacitors (ASCs) assembled with our MnO 2 cathode exhibit extremely high volumetric energy densities (8.3 mWh cm -3 at the power density of 0.28 W cm -3 for aqueous ASC and 8.0 mWh cm -3 at 0.65 W cm -3 for all-solid ASC), superior to most state-of-the-art supercapacitors.

Effective rate constants for nanostructured heterogeneous catalysts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hendy, Shaun; Gaston, Nicola; Zhang, Philip; Lund, Nat

2012-02-01

There is currently a high level of interest in the use of nanostructured materials for catalysis. For instance, gold, which is largely inert in the bulk, can exhibit strong catalytic activity when in nanoparticle form. With precious metal catalysts such as Pt and Pd in high demand, the use of these materials in nanoparticle form can also substantially reduce costs by exposure of more surface area for the same volume of material. When reactants are plentiful, the effective activity of a nanoparticulate catalyst will increase roughly with its surface area. However, under diffusion-limited conditions, the reactant must diffuse to active sites on the catalyst, so a high surface area and a high density of active sites may bring diminishing returns if reactant is consumed faster than it arrives. Here we apply a mathematical homogenisation approach to derive simple expressions for the effective reactivity of a nanostructured catalyst under diffusion limited conditions that relate the intrinsic rate constants of the surfaces presented by the catalyst to an effective rate constant. When highly active catalytic sites, such as step edges or other defects are present, we show that distinct limiting cases emerge depending on the degree of overlap of the reactant depletion zone about each site. In gases, the size of this depletion zone is approximately the mean free path, so the effective reactivity will depend on the structure of the catalyst on that scale. We discuss implications for the optimal design of nanoparticle catalysts.

Pd/CeO2/SiC Chemical Sensors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lu, Weijie; Collins, W. Eugene

2005-01-01

The incorporation of nanostructured interfacial layers of CeO2 has been proposed to enhance the performances of Pd/SiC Schottky diodes used to sense hydrogen and hydrocarbons at high temperatures. If successful, this development could prove beneficial in numerous applications in which there are requirements to sense hydrogen and hydrocarbons at high temperatures: examples include monitoring of exhaust gases from engines and detecting fires. Sensitivity and thermal stability are major considerations affecting the development of high-temperature chemical sensors. In the case of a metal/SiC Schottky diode for a number of metals, the SiC becomes more chemically active in the presence of the thin metal film on the SiC surface at high temperature. This increase in chemical reactivity causes changes in chemical composition and structure of the metal/SiC interface. The practical effect of the changes is to alter the electronic and other properties of the device in such a manner as to degrade its performance as a chemical sensor. To delay or prevent these changes, it is necessary to limit operation to a temperature <450 C for these sensor structures. The present proposal to incorporate interfacial CeO2 films is based partly on the observation that nanostructured materials in general have potentially useful electrical properties, including an ability to enhance the transfer of electrons. In particular, nanostructured CeO2, that is CeO2 with nanosized grains, has shown promise for incorporation into hightemperature electronic devices. Nanostructured CeO2 films can be formed on SiC and have been shown to exhibit high thermal stability on SiC, characterized by the ability to withstand temperatures somewhat greater than 700 C for limited times. The exchanges of oxygen between CeO2 and SiC prevent the formation of carbon and other chemical species that are unfavorable for operation of a SiC-based Schottky diode as a chemical sensor. Consequently, it is anticipated that in a Pd/CeO2/SiC Schottky diode, the nanostructured interfacial CeO2 layer would contribute to thermal stability and, by contributing to transfer of electrons, would also contribute to sensitivity.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Shanaghi, Ali, E-mail: alishanaghi@gmail.com; Rouhaghdam, Ali Reza Sabour, E-mail: sabour01@modares.ac.ir; Ahangarani, Shahrokh, E-mail: sh.ahangarani@gmail.com

Highlights: ► The TiC{sub x} nanostructure coatings have been deposited by PACVD method. ► Dominant mechanism of growth structure at 490 °C is island-layer type. ► TiC{sub x} nanostructure coating applied at 490 °C, exhibits lowest friction coefficient. ► Young's moduli are 289.9, 400 and 187.6 GPa for 470, 490 and 510 °C, respectively. ► This higher elastic modulus and higher hardness of nanocoating obtain at 490 °C. -- Abstract: The structure, composition, and mechanical properties of nanostructured titanium carbide (TiC) coatings deposited on H{sub 11} hot-working tool steel by pulsed-DC plasma assisted chemical vapor deposition at three different temperaturesmore » are investigated. Nanoindentation and nanoscratch tests are carried out by atomic force microscopy to determine the mechanical properties such as hardness, elastic modulus, surface roughness, and friction coefficient. The nanostructured TiC coatings prepared at 490 °C exhibit lower friction coefficient (0.23) than the ones deposited at 470 and 510 °C. Increasing the deposition temperature reduces the Young's modulus and hardness. The overall superior mechanical properties such as higher hardness and lower friction coefficient render the coatings deposited at 490 °C suitable for wear resistant applications.« less

Synthesis, characterization and biological studies of copper oxide nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jillani, Saquf; Jelani, Mohsan; Hassan, Najam Ul; Ahmad, Shahbaz; Hafeez, Muhammad

2018-04-01

The development of synthetic methods has been broadly accepted as an area of fundamental importance to the understanding and application of nanoscale materials. It allows the individual to modulate basic parameters such as morphology, particle size, size distributions, and composition. Several methods have been developed to synthesize CuO nanostructures with diverse morphologies, sizes, and dimensions using different chemical and physical based approaches. In this work, CuO nanostructures have been synthesized by aqueous precipitation method and simple chemical deposition method. The characterization of these products has been carried out by the x-ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) and UV–vis spectroscopy. Biological activity such as antibacterial nature of synthesized CuO is also explored. XRD peaks analysis revealed the monoclinic crystalline phase of copper oxide nanostructures. While the rod-like and particle-like morphologies have been observed in SEM results. FTIR spectra have confirmed the formation of CuO nanoparticles by exhibiting its characteristic peaks corresponding to 494 cm‑1 and 604 cm‑1. The energy band gap of the as-prepared CuO nanostructures determined from UV–vis spectra is found to be 2.18 eV and 2.0 eV for precipitation and chemically deposited samples respectively. The antibacterial activity results described that the synthesized CuO nanoparticles showed better activity against Staphylococcus aureus. The investigated results suggested the synthesis of highly stable CuO nanoparticles with significant antibacterial activities.

Synergistically Enhanced Performance of Ultrathin Nanostructured Silicon Solar Cells Embedded in Plasmonically Assisted, Multispectral Luminescent Waveguides.

PubMed

Lee, Sung-Min; Dhar, Purnim; Chen, Huandong; Montenegro, Angelo; Liaw, Lauren; Kang, Dongseok; Gai, Boju; Benderskii, Alexander V; Yoon, Jongseung

2017-04-25

Ultrathin silicon solar cells fabricated by anisotropic wet chemical etching of single-crystalline wafer materials represent an attractive materials platform that could provide many advantages for realizing high-performance, low-cost photovoltaics. However, their intrinsically limited photovoltaic performance arising from insufficient absorption of low-energy photons demands careful design of light management to maximize the efficiency and preserve the cost-effectiveness of solar cells. Herein we present an integrated flexible solar module of ultrathin, nanostructured silicon solar cells capable of simultaneously exploiting spectral upconversion and downshifting in conjunction with multispectral luminescent waveguides and a nanostructured plasmonic reflector to compensate for their weak optical absorption and enhance their performance. The 8 μm-thick silicon solar cells incorporating a hexagonally periodic nanostructured surface relief are surface-embedded in layered multispectral luminescent media containing organic dyes and NaYF 4 :Yb 3+ ,Er 3+ nanocrystals as downshifting and upconverting luminophores, respectively, via printing-enabled deterministic materials assembly. The ultrathin nanostructured silicon microcells in the composite luminescent waveguide exhibit strongly augmented photocurrent (∼40.1 mA/cm 2 ) and energy conversion efficiency (∼12.8%) than devices with only a single type of luminescent species, owing to the synergistic contributions from optical downshifting, plasmonically enhanced upconversion, and waveguided photon flux for optical concentration, where the short-circuit current density increased by ∼13.6 mA/cm 2 compared with microcells in a nonluminescent medium on a plain silver reflector under a confined illumination.

Synergistically Enhanced Performance of Ultrathin Nanostructured Silicon Solar Cells Embedded in Plasmonically Assisted, Multispectral Luminescent Waveguides

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lee, Sung-Min; Dhar, Purnim; Chen, Huandong

Ultrathin silicon solar cells fabricated by anisotropic wet chemical etching of single-crystalline wafer materials represent an attractive materials platform that could provide many advantages for realizing high-performance, low-cost photovoltaics. However, their intrinsically limited photovoltaic performance arising from insufficient absorption of low-energy photons demands careful design of light management to maximize the efficiency and preserve the cost-effectiveness of solar cells. Herein we present an integrated flexible solar module of ultrathin, nanostructured silicon solar cells capable of simultaneously exploiting spectral upconversion and downshifting in conjunction with multispectral luminescent waveguides and a nanostructured plasmonic reflector to compensate for their weak optical absorption andmore » enhance their performance. The 8 μm-thick silicon solar cells incorporating a hexagonally periodic nanostructured surface relief are surface-embedded in layered multispectral luminescent media containing organic dyes and NaYF4:Yb3+,Er3+ nanocrystals as downshifting and upconverting luminophores, respectively, via printing-enabled deterministic materials assembly. The ultrathin nanostructured silicon microcells in the composite luminescent waveguide exhibit strongly augmented photocurrent (~40.1 mA/cm2) and energy conversion efficiency (~12.8%) than devices with only a single type of luminescent species, owing to the synergistic contributions from optical downshifting, plasmonically enhanced upconversion, and waveguided photon flux for optical concentration, where the short-circuit current density increased by ~13.6 mA/cm2 compared with microcells in a nonluminescent medium on a plain silver reflector under a confined illumination.« less

Severe Plastic Deformation of Commercial Pure Titanium (CP-Ti) for Biomedical Applications: A Brief Review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mahmoodian, Reza; Annuar, N. Syahira M.; Faraji, Ghader; Bahar, Nadia Dayana; Razak, Bushroa Abd; Sparham, Mahdi

2017-11-01

This paper reviews severe plastic deformation (SPD) techniques for producing ultrafine-grained (UFG) and nanostructured commercial pure titanium (CP-Ti) for biomedical applications as the best alternative to titanium alloys. SPD processes, effective parameters, and advantages of nanostructured CP-Ti over coarse-grained (CG) material and Ti alloys are briefly reviewed. It is reported that nanostructured CP-Ti processed via SPD exhibits higher mechanical strength comparable to Ti alloys but better biological response and superior biocompatibility. Also, different surface modification techniques offer different results on UFG and CG CP-Ti, leading to nanoscale surface topography in UFG samples. Overall, it is reported that nanostructured CP-Ti processed by SPD could be considered to be the best candidate for biomedical implants.

The optical properties of α-Fe2O3 nanostructures synthesized with different immersion time

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ahmad, W. R. W.; Mamat, M. H.; Zoolfakar, A. S.; Khusaimi, Z.; Yusof, M. M.; Ismail, A. S.; Saidi, S. A.; Rusop, M.

2018-05-01

In this study, nanostructured hematite (α-Fe2O3) thin films have been prepared successfully by sonicated immersion method on fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) coated glass substrate. The effect of the immersion time on the structural and optical properties of α-Fe2O3 nanostructure were investigated for a variation of immersion time ranging from 1 to 4 hour. From the characterization results, the surface morphology of the sample prepared in 4 hours immersion process has exhibited highest porosity, and the highest absorbance properties were found in the same sample. These results suggest that the different time duration during immersion process play important roles in optical properties of α-Fe2O3 nanostructures.

Investigations of inorganic and hybrid inorganic-organic nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kam, Kinson Chihang

This thesis focuses on the exploratory synthesis and characterization of inorganic and hybrid inorganic-organic nanomaterials. In particular, nanostructures of semiconducting nitrides and oxides, and hybrid systems of nanowire-polymer composites and framework materials, are investigated. These materials are characterized by a variety of techniques for structure, composition, morphology, surface area, optical properties, and electrical properties. In the study of inorganic nanomaterials, gallium nitride (GaN), indium oxide (In2O3), and vanadium dioxide (VO2) nanostructures were synthesized using different strategies and their physical properties were examined. GaN nanostructures were obtained from various synthetic routes. Solid-state ammonolysis of metastable gamma-Ga2O 3 nanoparticles was found to be particularly successful; they achieved high surface areas and photoluminescent study showed a blue shift in emission as a result of surface and size defects. Similarly, In2O3 nanostructures were obtained by carbon-assisted solid-state syntheses. The sub-oxidic species, which are generated via a self-catalyzed vapor-liquid-solid mechanism, resulted in 1D nanostructures including nanowires, nanotrees, and nanobouquets upon oxidation. On the other hand, hydrothermal methods were used to obtain VO2 nanorods. After post-thermal treatment, infrared spectroscopy demonstrated that these nanorods exhibit a thermochromic transition with temperature that is higher by ˜10°C compared to the parent material. The thermochromic behavior indicated a semiconductor-to-metal transition associated with a structural transformation from monoclinic to rutile. The hybrid systems, on the other hand, enabled their properties to be tunable. In nanowire-polymer composites, zinc oxide (ZnO) and silver (Ag) nanowires were synthesized and incorporated into polyaniline (PANI) and polypyrrole (PPy) via in-situ and ex-situ polymerization method. The electrical properties of these composites are significantly influenced by the nanowire-polymer ratios and chemical functionalization of the respective nanowires, up to an order of magnitude. In hybrid framework materials, nine novel phases of magnesium tartrate coordination polymers were synthesized by exploiting different analogs of tartaric acid, resulting in chiral and achiral frameworks. These phases exhibited a diverse range of structures as a result of connectivity, density, composition differences as a function of temperature. The chirality of some of these frameworks was also verified using circular dichroism.

Synthesis of polymer nanostructures with conductance switching properties

DOEpatents

Su, Kai; Nuraje, Nurxat; Zhang, Lingzhi; Matsui, Hiroshi; Yang, Nan Loh

2015-03-03

The present invention is directed to crystalline organic polymer nanoparticles comprising a conductive organic polymer; wherein the crystalline organic polymer nanoparticles have a size of from 10 nm to 200 nm and exhibits two current-voltage states: (1) a high resistance current-voltage state, and (2) a low resistance current-voltage state, wherein when a first positive threshold voltage (V.sub.th1) or higher positive voltage, or a second negative threshold voltage (V.sub.th2) or higher negative voltage is applied to the nanoparticle, the nanoparticle exhibits the low-resistance current-voltage state, and when a voltage less positive than the first positive threshold voltage or a voltage less negative than the second negative threshold voltage is applied to the nanoparticle, the nanoparticle exhibits the high-resistance current-voltage state. The present invention is also directed methods of manufacturing the nanoparticles using novel interfacial oxidative polymerization techniques.

Enhanced exchange bias and improved ferromagnetic properties in Permalloy-BiFe0.95Co0.05O3 core-shell nanostructures.

PubMed

Javed, K; Li, W J; Ali, S S; Shi, D W; Khan, U; Riaz, S; Han, X F

2015-12-14

Hybrid core-shell nanostructures consisting of permalloy (Ni80Fe20) and multiferroic(BiFeO3, BFO/BiFe0.95Co0.05O3, BFC) materials were synthesized by a two-step method, based on wet chemical impregnation and subsequent electrodeposition within porous alumina membranes. Structural and magnetic characterizations have been done to investigate doping effect on magnetic properties and exchange bias. The magnetometry analysis revealed significant enhancements of the exchange bias and coercivity in NiFe-BFC core-shell nanostructures as compared with NiFe-BFO core-shell nanostructures. The enhancements can be attributed to the effective reduction of ferromagnet domain sizes between adjacent layers of core-shell structure. It indicates that it is possible to improve properties of multiferroic composites by site-engineering method. Our approach opens a pathway to obtain optimized nanostructured multiferroic composites exhibiting tunable magnetic properties.

Enhanced exchange bias and improved ferromagnetic properties in Permalloy–BiFe0.95Co0.05O3 core–shell nanostructures

PubMed Central

Javed, K.; Li, W. J.; Ali, S. S.; Shi, D. W.; Khan, U.; Riaz, S.; Han, X. F.

2015-01-01

Hybrid core–shell nanostructures consisting of permalloy (Ni80Fe20) and multiferroic(BiFeO3, BFO/BiFe0.95Co0.05O3, BFC) materials were synthesized by a two-step method, based on wet chemical impregnation and subsequent electrodeposition within porous alumina membranes. Structural and magnetic characterizations have been done to investigate doping effect on magnetic properties and exchange bias. The magnetometry analysis revealed significant enhancements of the exchange bias and coercivity in NiFe-BFC core-shell nanostructures as compared with NiFe-BFO core-shell nanostructures. The enhancements can be attributed to the effective reduction of ferromagnet domain sizes between adjacent layers of core-shell structure. It indicates that it is possible to improve properties of multiferroic composites by site-engineering method. Our approach opens a pathway to obtain optimized nanostructured multiferroic composites exhibiting tunable magnetic properties. PMID:26658956

Photoelectrochemical enhancement of ZnO/BiVO4/ZnFe2O4/rare earth oxide hetero-nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

She, Xuefeng; Zhang, Zhuo; Baek, Minki; Yong, Kijung

2018-01-01

Over the decades, researchers have made great efforts to turn the world into a cleaner place through efficient recycling of industrial waste and developing of green energy. Here we demonstrate a prototype heterostructure photoelectrochemical (PEC) cell fabricated using recycled industrial waste. ZnFe2O4 (ZFO) nanorod (NR) clusters were synthesized on the BiVO4@ZnO hetero-nanostructures using recycled rare earth oxide (REO) slags as Fe source. The NR-based PEC cell exhibited a significantly enhanced photon to hydrogen conversion efficiency over the entire UV and visible spectrum. Further study demonstrates that the photo-carrier separation and migration processes can be facilitated by the cascade band alignment of the heterostructure and the clustered nanostructure network. In addition, the life-time of the photo-carriers can be enhanced by the REO passivation layer, leading to a further increased PEC performance. Our results present a novel approach for high efficiency PEC cells, and offer great promises to the efficient recycling of industrial waste for clean renewable energy applications.

A Self-Assembled Coumarin-Anchored Dendrimer for Efficient Gene Delivery and Light-Responsive Drug Delivery.

PubMed

Wang, Hui; Miao, Wujun; Wang, Fei; Cheng, Yiyun

2018-06-11

The assembly of low molecular weight polymers into highly efficient and nontoxic nanostructures has broad applicability in gene delivery. In this study, we reported the assembly of coumarin-anchored low generation dendrimers in aqueous solution via hydrophobic interactions. The synthesized material showed significantly improved DNA binding and gene delivery, and minimal toxicity on the transfected cells. Moreover, the coumarin moieties in the assembled nanostructures endow the materials with light-responsive drug delivery behaviors. The coumarin substitutes in the assembled nanostructures were cross-linked with each other upon irradiation at 365 nm, and the cross-linked assemblies were degraded upon further irradiation at 254 nm. As a result, the drug-loaded nanoparticle showed a light-responsive drug release behavior and light-enhanced anticancer activity. The assembled nanoparticle also exhibited a complementary anticancer activity through the codelivery of 5-fluorouracil and a therapeutic gene encoding tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL). This study provided a facile strategy to develop light-responsive polymers for the codelivery of therapeutic genes and anticancer drugs.

Non-conventional Pt-Cu alloy/carbon paper electrochemical catalyst formed by electrodeposition using hydrogen bubble as template

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, Youngkwang; Lee, Hyunjoon; Lim, Taeho; Kim, Hyun-Jong; Kwon, Oh Joong

2017-10-01

With emerging stability issues in fuel cell technology, a non-conventional catalyst not supported on carbon materials has been highlighted because it can avoid negative influences of carbon support materials on the stability, such as carbon corrosion. The nanostructured thin film catalyst is representative of non-conventional catalysts, which shows improved stability, enhanced mass specific activity, and fast mass transfer at high current densities. However, the nanostructured thin film catalyst usually requires multi-step processes for fabrication, making its mass production complex and irreproducible. We introduce a Pt-Cu alloy nanostructured thin film catalyst, which can be simply prepared by electrodeposition. By using hydrogen bubbles as a template, a three-dimensional free-standing foam of Cu was electrodeposited directly on the micro-porous layer/carbon paper and it was then displaced with Pt by simple immersion. The structure characterization revealed that a porous thin Pt-Cu alloy catalyst layer was successfully formed on the micro-porous layer/carbon paper. The synthesized Pt-Cu alloy catalyst exhibited superior durability compared to a conventional Pt/C in single cell test.

Atomistic simulations of thermal transport in Si and SiGe based materials: From bulk to nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Savic, Ivana; Mingo, Natalio; Donadio, Davide; Galli, Giulia

2010-03-01

It has been recently proposed that Si and SiGe based nanostructured materials may exhibit low thermal conductivity and overall promising properties for thermoelectric applications. Hence there is a considerable interest in developing accurate theoretical and computational methods which can help interpret recent measurements, identify the physical origin of the reduced thermal conductivity, as well as shed light on the interplay between disorder and nanostructuring in determining a high figure of merit. In this work, we investigate the capability of an atomistic Green's function method [1] to describe phonon transport in several types of Si and SiGe based systems: amorphous Si, SiGe alloys, planar and nanodot Si/SiGe multilayers. We compare our results with experimental data [2,3], and with the findings of molecular dynamics simulations and calculations based on the Boltzmann transport equation. [1] I. Savic, N. Mingo, and D. A. Stewart, Phys. Rev. Lett. 101, 165502 (2008). [2] S.-M. Lee, D. G. Cahill, and R. Venkatasubramanian, Appl. Phys. Lett. 70, 2957 (1997). [3] G. Pernot et al., submitted.

Improvement of curcuminoid bioaccessibility from turmeric by a nanostructured lipid carrier system.

PubMed

Park, Sung Jin; Garcia, Coralia V; Shin, Gye Hwa; Kim, Jun Tae

2018-06-15

Turmeric contains curcumin and its analogues, which show anticancer and antiinflammatory effects; however, curcuminoids are lipophilic and are poorly absorbed by the human body. Nanostructured lipid carriers for encapsulating whole turmeric powder were successfully produced by ultrasonication, and their physicochemical properties and stability in simulated gastric and intestinal media were evaluated. The turmeric nanostructured lipid carriers (TNLCs) exhibited a round shape, small diameter (282 ± 7.19 nm), adequate zeta potential (-22.75 ± 1.20 mV), and high encapsulation efficiency (93.3 ± 0.01%). The TNLCs were able to protect the encapsulated curcuminoids under acidic gastric conditions, and effectively released 95 ± 2.51% of the curcuminoids in the simulated intestinal medium, demonstrating their suitability for controlled release. The in vitro bioaccessibility of the encapsulated curcuminoids was 75 ± 1.24%, representing more than a fourfold increase compared to that of free turmeric. Therefore, the proposed TNLCs are a promising delivery system for increasing the bioaccessibility of curcuminoids from turmeric. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Soot Combustion over Nanostructured Ceria with Different Morphologies

PubMed Central

Zhang, Wen; Niu, Xiaoyu; Chen, Liqiang; Yuan, Fulong; Zhu, Yujun

2016-01-01

In this study, nano-structure ceria with three different morphologies (nanorod, nanoparticle and flake) have been prepared by hydrothermal and solvothermal methods. The ceria samples were deeply characterized by XRD, SEM, TEM, H2-TPR, XPS and in-situ DRIFTS, and tested for soot combustion in absence/presence NO atmospheres under loose and tight contact conditions. The prepared ceria samples exhibit excellent catalytic activities, especially, the CeO2 with nanorod (Ce-R) shows the best catalytic activity, for which the peak temperature of soot combustion (Tm) is about 500 and 368 °C in loose and tight contact conditions, respectively. The catalytic activity for Ce-R is higher than that of the reported CeO2 catalysts and reaches a level that of precious metals. The characterization results reveal that the maximal amounts of adsorbed oxygen species on the surface of the nanostructure Ce-R catalyst should be the crucial role to decide the catalytic soot performance. High BET surface area may also be a positive effect on soot oxidation activity under loose contact conditions. PMID:27353143

High-Performance Ultrathin Organic-Inorganic Hybrid Silicon Solar Cells via Solution-Processed Interface Modification.

PubMed

Zhang, Jie; Zhang, Yinan; Song, Tao; Shen, Xinlei; Yu, Xuegong; Lee, Shuit-Tong; Sun, Baoquan; Jia, Baohua

2017-07-05

Organic-inorganic hybrid solar cells based on n-type crystalline silicon and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-poly(styrenesulfonate) exhibited promising efficiency along with a low-cost fabrication process. In this work, ultrathin flexible silicon substrates, with a thickness as low as tens of micrometers, were employed to fabricate hybrid solar cells to reduce the use of silicon materials. To improve the light-trapping ability, nanostructures were built on the thin silicon substrates by a metal-assisted chemical etching method (MACE). However, nanostructured silicon resulted in a large amount of surface-defect states, causing detrimental charge recombination. Here, the surface was smoothed by solution-processed chemical treatment to reduce the surface/volume ratio of nanostructured silicon. Surface-charge recombination was dramatically suppressed after surface modification with a chemical, associated with improved minority charge-carrier lifetime. As a result, a power conversion efficiency of 9.1% was achieved in the flexible hybrid silicon solar cells, with a substrate thickness as low as ∼14 μm, indicating that interface engineering was essential to improve the hybrid junction quality and photovoltaic characteristics of the hybrid devices.

Enhanced room temperature ferromagnetism in electrodeposited Co-doped ZnO nanostructured thin films by controlling the oxygen vacancy defects

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Simimol, A.; Department of Physics, National Institute of Technology Calicut, Calicut 673601; Anappara, Aji A.

We report the growth of un-doped and cobalt doped ZnO nanostructures fabricated on FTO coated glass substrates using electrodeposition method. A detailed study on the effects of dopant concentration on morphology, structural, optical, and magnetic properties of the ZnO nanostructures has been carried out systematically by varying the Co concentration (c.{sub Co}) from 0.01 to 1 mM. For c.{sub Co }≤ 0.2 mM, h-wurtzite phase with no secondary phases of Co were present in the ZnO nanostructures. For c.{sub Co} ≤ 0.2 mM, the photoluminescence spectra exhibited a decrease in the intensity of ultraviolet emission as well as band-gap narrowing with an increase in dopantmore » concentration. All the doped samples displayed a broad emission in the visible range and its intensity increased with an increase in Co concentration. It was found that the defect centers such as oxygen vacancies and zinc interstitials were the source of the visible emission. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy studies revealed, Co was primarily in the divalent state, replacing the Zn ion inside the tetrahedral crystal site of ZnO without forming any cluster or secondary phases of Co. The un-doped ZnO nanorods exhibited diamagnetic behavior and it remained up to a c.{sub Co} of 0.05 mM, while for c.{sub Co }> 0.05 mM, the ZnO nanostructures exhibited ferromagnetic behavior at room temperature. The coercivity increased to 695 G for 0.2 mM Co-doped sample and then it decreased for c.{sub Co }> 0.2 mM. Our results illustrate that up to a threshold concentration of 0.2 mM, the strong ferromagnetism is due to the oxygen vacancy defects centers, which exist in the Co-doped ZnO nanostructures. The origin of strong ferromagnetism at room temperature in Co-doped ZnO nanostructures is attributed to the s-d exchange interaction between the localized spin moments resulting from the oxygen vacancies and d electrons of Co{sup 2+} ions. Our findings provide a new insight for tuning the defect density by precisely controlling the dopant concentration in order to get the desired magnetic behavior at room temperature.« less

Deformation Behavior of Al/a-Si Core-shell Nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fleming, Robert

Al/a-Si core-shell nanostructures (CSNs), consisting of a hemispherical Al core surrounded by a hard shell of a-Si, have been shown to display unusual mechanical behavior in response to compression loading. Most notably, these nanostructures exhibit substantial deformation recovery, even when loaded much beyond the elastic limit. Nanoindentation measurements revealed a unique mechanical response characterized by discontinuous signatures in the load-displacement data. In conjunction with the indentation signatures, nearly complete deformation recovery is observed. This behavior is attributed to dislocation nucleation and annihilation events enabled by the 3-dimensional confinement of the Al core. As the core confinement is reduced, either through an increase in confined core volume or a change in the geometrical confinement, the indentation signatures and deformation resistance are significantly reduced. Complimentary molecular dynamics simulations show that a substantial amount of dislocation egression occurs in the core of CSNs during unloading as dislocations annihilate at the core/shell interface. Smaller core diameters correlate with the development of a larger back-stress within the core during unloading, which further correlates with improved dislocation annihilation after unloading. Furthermore, dislocations nucleated in the core of core-shell nanorods are not as effectively removed as compared to CSNs. Nanostructure-textured surfaces (NSTSs) composed of Al/a-Si CSNs have improved tribological properties compared surfaces patterned with Al nanodots and a flat (100) Si surface. NSTSs have a coefficient of friction (COF) as low as 0.015, exhibit low adhesion with adhesion forces on the order of less than 1 microN, and are highly deformation resistant, with no apparent surface deformation after nanoscratch testing, even at contact forces up to 8000 microN. In comparison, (100) Si has substantially higher adhesion and COF ( 10 microN and 0.062, respectively), while the Al nanodots have both higher friction (COF 0.044) and are deformed when subjected to contact loads as low as 250 microN. This integrated experimental and computational study elucidates the mechanisms that contribute to the novel properties of Al/a-Si CSNs and characterizes the tribological properties of surface composed of these nanostructures, which provides a foundation for the rational design of novel technologies based on CSNs.

Low Temperature Annealed Zinc Oxide Nanostructured Thin Film-Based Transducers: Characterization for Sensing Applications

PubMed Central

Haarindraprasad, R.; Hashim, U.; Gopinath, Subash C. B.; Kashif, Mohd; Veeradasan, P.; Balakrishnan, S. R.; Foo, K. L.; Poopalan, P.

2015-01-01

The performance of sensing surfaces highly relies on nanostructures to enhance their sensitivity and specificity. Herein, nanostructured zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films of various thicknesses were coated on glass and p-type silicon substrates using a sol-gel spin-coating technique. The deposited films were characterized for morphological, structural, and optoelectronic properties by high-resolution measurements. X-ray diffraction analyses revealed that the deposited films have a c-axis orientation and display peaks that refer to ZnO, which exhibits a hexagonal structure with a preferable plane orientation (002). The thicknesses of ZnO thin films prepared using 1, 3, 5, and 7 cycles were measured to be 40, 60, 100, and 200 nm, respectively. The increment in grain size of the thin film from 21 to 52 nm was noticed, when its thickness was increased from 40 to 200 nm, whereas the band gap value decreased from 3.282 to 3.268 eV. Band gap value of ZnO thin film with thickness of 200 nm at pH ranging from 2 to 10 reduces from 3.263eV to 3.200 eV. Furthermore, to evaluate the transducing capacity of the ZnO nanostructure, the refractive index, optoelectric constant, and bulk modulus were analyzed and correlated. The highest thickness (200 nm) of ZnO film, embedded with an interdigitated electrode that behaves as a pH-sensing electrode, could sense pH variations in the range of 2-10. It showed a highly sensitive response of 444 μAmM-1cm-2 with a linear regression of R2 =0.9304. The measured sensitivity of the developed device for pH per unit is 3.72μA/pH. PMID:26167853

Investigating Recombination and Charge Carrier Dynamics in a One-Dimensional Nanopillared Perovskite Absorber.

PubMed

Kwon, Hyeok-Chan; Yang, Wooseok; Lee, Daehee; Ahn, Jihoon; Lee, Eunsong; Ma, Sunihl; Kim, Kyungmi; Yun, Seong-Cheol; Moon, Jooho

2018-05-22

Organometal halide perovskite materials have become an exciting research topic as manifested by intense development of thin film solar cells. Although high-performance solar-cell-based planar and mesoscopic configurations have been reported, one-dimensional (1-D) nanostructured perovskite solar cells are rarely investigated despite their expected promising optoelectrical properties, such as enhanced charge transport/extraction. Herein, we have analyzed the 1-D nanostructure effects of organometal halide perovskite (CH 3 NH 3 PbI 3- x Cl x ) on recombination and charge carrier dynamics by utilizing a nanoporous anodized alumina oxide scaffold to fabricate a vertically aligned 1-D nanopillared array with controllable diameters. It was observed that the 1-D perovskite exhibits faster charge transport/extraction characteristics, lower defect density, and lower bulk resistance than the planar counterpart. As the aspect ratio increases in the 1-D structures, in addition, the charge transport/extraction rate is enhanced and the resistance further decreases. However, when the aspect ratio reaches 6.67 (diameter ∼30 nm), the recombination rate is aggravated due to high interface-to-volume ratio-induced defect generation. To obtain the full benefits of 1-D perovskite nanostructuring, our study provides a design rule to choose the appropriate aspect ratio of 1-D perovskite structures for improved photovoltaic and other optoelectrical applications.

Inorganic Nanotubes and Fullerene-Like Nanoparticles:. from the Lab to the Market Place

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tenne, R.

2013-05-01

Layered compounds, like MoS2 were shown by the author to be unstable in the nano-regime. Using new chemical strategies, closed-cage hollow nanostructures in the form of inorganic fullerene-like nanoparticles and inorganic nanotubes were synthesized. These nanostructures exhibit numerous interesting physico-chemical properties and are employed as superior solid lubricants, with numerous other applications currently being developed.

Spectral plasmonic effect in the nano-cavity of dye-doped nanosphere-based photonic crystals.

PubMed

Yadav, Ashish; Danesh, Mohammad; Zhong, Liubiao; Cheng, Gary J; Jiang, Lin; Chi, Lifeng

2016-04-22

We demonstrated three-dimensional PMMA-based photonic crystal (3D-PC) nanostructures attached to Au nanoparticles (AuNPs), which undergo self-organization into super lattice planes and enhance the fluorescence properties. This new structure exhibited interesting tunable spectral, peak broadening plasmonic behavior because of strong plasmonic interaction at high laser powers. The presented work provides an important tool to improve the efficiency of dye laser applications.

Design and synthesis of hierarchical mesoporous WO3-MnO2 composite nanostructures on carbon cloth for high-performance supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shinde, Pragati A.; Lokhande, Vaibhav C.; Patil, Amar M.; Ji, Taeksoo; Lokhande, Chandrakant D.

2017-12-01

To enhance the energy density and power performance of supercapacitors, the rational design and synthesis of active electrode materials with hierarchical mesoporous structure is highly desired. In the present work, fabrication of high-performance hierarchical mesoporous WO3-MnO2 composite nanostructures on carbon cloth substrate via a facile hydrothermal method is reported. By varying the content of MnO2 in the composite, different WO3-MnO2 composite thin films are obtained. The formation of composite is confirmed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analyses. The Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) analysis reveals maximum specific surface area of 153 m2 g-1. The optimized WO3-MnO2 composite electrode demonstrates remarkable electrochemical performance with high specific capacitance of 657 F g-1 at a scan rate of 5 mV s-1 and superior longterm cycling stability (92% capacity retention over 2000 CV cycles). Furthermore, symmetric flexible solid-state supercapacitor based on WO3-MnO2 electrodes has been fabricated. The device exhibits good electrochemical performance with maximum specific capacitance of 78 F g-1 at a scan rate of 5 mV s-1 and specific energy of 10.8 Wh kg-1 at a specific power of 0.65 kW kg-1. The improved electrochemical performance could be ascribed to the unique combination of multivalence WO3 and MnO2 nanostructures and synergistic effect between them

Electronic transport in NbSe₂ two-dimensional nanostructures: semiconducting characteristics and photoconductivity.

PubMed

Huang, Y H; Chen, R S; Zhang, J R; Huang, Y S

2015-12-07

The electronic transport properties of two-dimensional (2D) niobium diselenide (NbSe2) layer materials with two-hexagonal single-crystalline structures grown by chemical vapor transport were investigated. Those NbSe2 nanostructures isolated simply using mechanical exfoliation were found to exhibit lower conductivity and semiconducting properties, compared with their bulk metallic counterparts. Benefiting from lower dark conductivity, NbSe2 nanoflakes exhibit a remarkable photoresponse under different wavelengths and intensity excitations. The photocurrent responsivity and photoconductive gain can reach 3.8 A W(-1) and 300, respectively; these values are higher than those of graphene and MoS2 monolayers and are comparable with those of GaS and GaSe nanosheets. The presence of electron trap states at the surface was proposed as an explanation for the reduced dark conductivity and enhanced photoconductivity in the 2D NbSe2 nanostructures. This work identifies another possibility for the application of a metallic layer material as an optoelectronic component in addition to an ultrathin transparent conducting material.

DNA Nanostructures as Models for Evaluating the Role of Enthalpy and Entropy in Polyvalent Binding

PubMed Central

Nangreave, Jeanette; Yan, Hao; Liu, Yan

2011-01-01

DNA nanotechnology allows the design and construction of nano-scale objects that have finely tuned dimensions, orientation, and structure with remarkable ease and convenience. Synthetic DNA nanostructures can be precisely engineered to model a variety of molecules and systems, providing the opportunity to probe very subtle biophysical phenomena. In this study, several such synthetic DNA nanostructures were designed to serve as models to study the binding behavior of polyvalent molecules and gain insight into how small changes to the ligand/receptor scaffolds, intended to vary their conformational flexibility, will affect their association equilibrium. This approach has yielded a quantitative identification of the roles of enthalpy and entropy in the affinity of polyvalent DNA nanostructure interactions, which exhibit an intriguing compensating effect. PMID:21381740

Comparative bone tissue integration of nanostructured and microroughened dental implants.

PubMed

Salou, Laëtitia; Hoornaert, Alain; Stanovici, Julien; Briand, Sylvain; Louarn, Guy; Layrolle, Pierre

2015-01-01

The aim was to compare osteointegration of nanostructured implants to a microsurface widely used for titanium dental implants. Commercial titanium dental implants with smooth or microroughened surfaces were nanostructured. Implants were inserted into the femoral condyles of rabbits. After 2 and 4 weeks, histomorphometry calculation was performed. Nanotubes measuring 60 nm in diameter were observed on both S-NANO (roughness: 0.05 μm) and R-NANO (roughness: 0.40 μm) surfaces. The MICRO surface exhibited typical random cavities (roughness: 2.09 μm). At 4 weeks, bone-to-implant contact values were significantly higher for the R-NANO than for the MICRO surface while no differences were observed at 2 weeks. Overall, this study shows that the nanostructured surfaces improved osteointegration similar or higher than the MICRO.

Controlled synthesis of silver nanostructures stabilized by fluorescent polyarylene ether nitrile

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jia, Kun; Shou, Hongguo; Wang, Pan; Zhou, Xuefei; Liu, Xiaobo

2016-07-01

In this work, the intrinsically fluorescent polyarylene ether nitrile (PEN) was explored to realize the controlled synthesis of fluorescent silver nanostructures with different morphology for the first time. Specifically, it was found that silver nitrate (AgNO3) can be effectively reduced to silver nanoparticles using PEN as both reducing and surface capping agents in N, N-dimethylformamide (DMF). More interestingly, the morphology of obtained fluorescent silver nanostructures can be tuned from nanospheres to nanorods by simple variation of reaction time at 130 °C using a relative PEN:AgNO3 molar concentration ratio of 1:8. Meanwhile, the obtained Ag nanostructures exhibited both localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) band and fluorescent emission around 420 nm, which would find potential applications in biochemical sensing and optical devices fields.

Silicene Flowers: A Dual Stabilized Silicon Building Block for High-Performance Lithium Battery Anodes.

PubMed

Zhang, Xinghao; Qiu, Xiongying; Kong, Debin; Zhou, Lu; Li, Zihao; Li, Xianglong; Zhi, Linjie

2017-07-25

Nanostructuring is a transformative way to improve the structure stability of high capacity silicon for lithium batteries. Yet, the interface instability issue remains and even propagates in the existing nanostructured silicon building blocks. Here we demonstrate an intrinsically dual stabilized silicon building block, namely silicene flowers, to simultaneously address the structure and interface stability issues. These original Si building blocks as lithium battery anodes exhibit extraordinary combined performance including high gravimetric capacity (2000 mAh g -1 at 800 mA g -1 ), high volumetric capacity (1799 mAh cm -3 ), remarkable rate capability (950 mAh g -1 at 8 A g -1 ), and excellent cycling stability (1100 mA h g -1 at 2000 mA g -1 over 600 cycles). Paired with a conventional cathode, the fabricated full cells deliver extraordinarily high specific energy and energy density (543 Wh kg ca -1 and 1257 Wh L ca -1 , respectively) based on the cathode and anode, which are 152% and 239% of their commercial counterparts using graphite anodes. Coupled with a simple, cost-effective, scalable synthesis approach, this silicon building block offers a horizon for the development of high-performance batteries.

Osteogenic response of human MSCs and osteoblasts to hydrophilic and hydrophobic nanostructured titanium implant surfaces.

PubMed

Lotz, Ethan M; Olivares-Navarrete, Rene; Berner, Simon; Boyan, Barbara D; Schwartz, Zvi

2016-12-01

Microstructured implant surfaces created by grit blasting and acid etching titanium (Ti) support osseointegration. This effect is further enhanced by storing in aqueous solution to retain hydrophilicity, but this also leads to surface nanostructure formation. The purpose of this study was to assess the contributions of nanostructures on the improved osteogenic response of osteoblast lineage cells to hydrophilic microstructured Ti. Human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and normal human osteoblasts (NHOsts) were cultured separately on non-nanostructured/hydrophobic (SLA), nanostructured/hydrophilic (modSLA), or nanostructured/hydrophobic (SLAnano) Ti surfaces. XPS showed elevated carbon levels on SLA and SLAnano compared to modSLA. Contact angle measurements indicated only modSLA was hydrophilic. Confocal laser microscopy revealed minor differences in mean surface roughness. SEM showed the presence of nanostructures on modSLA and SLAnano. MSCs and NHOst cells exhibited similar morphology on the substrates and osteoblastic differentiation and maturation were greatest on modSLA. These results suggest that when the appropriate microstructure is present, hydrophilicity may play a greater role in stimulating MSC and NHOst osteoblastic differentiation and maturation than the presence of nanostructures generated during storage in an aqueous environment. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part A: 104A: 3137-3148, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

High-performance supercapacitors of Cu-based porous coordination polymer nanowires and the derived porous CuO nanotubes.

PubMed

Wu, Meng-Ke; Zhou, Jiao-Jiao; Yi, Fei-Yan; Chen, Chen; Li, Yan-Li; Li, Qin; Tao, Kai; Han, Lei

2017-12-12

Electrode materials for supercapacitors with one-dimensional porous nanostructures, such as nanowires and nanotubes, are very attractive for high-efficiency storage of electrochemical energy. Herein, ultralong Cu-based porous coordination polymer nanowires (copper-l-aspartic acid) were used as the electrode material for supercapacitors, for the first time. The as-prepared material exhibits a high specific capacitance of 367 F g -1 at 0.6 A g -1 and excellent cycling stability (94% retention over 1000 cycles). Moreover, porous CuO nanotubes were successfully fabricated by the thermal decomposition of this nanowire precursor. The CuO nanotube exhibits good electrochemical performance with high rate capacity (77% retention at 12.5 A g -1 ) and long-term stability (96% retention over 1000 cycles). The strategy developed here for the synthesis of porous nanowires and nanotubes can be extended to the construction of other electrode materials for more efficient energy storage.

Ultralow contact angle hysteresis and no-aging effects in superhydrophobic tangled nanofiber structures generated by controlling the pore size of a 99.5% aluminum foil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Sangmin; Hwang, Woonbong

2009-03-01

Superhydrophobic surfaces designed to improve hydrophobicity have high advancing contact angles corresponding to the Cassie state, but these surfaces also exhibit high contact angle hysteresis. We report here a simple and inexpensive method for fabricating superhydrophobic tangled nanofiber structures with ultralow contact angle hysteresis and no-aging degradation, based on a widening process. The resulting nanostructures are suitable for diverse applications including microfluidic devices for biological studies and industrial self-cleaning products for automobiles, ships and houses.

Three-dimensional interconnected network of graphene-wrapped porous silicon spheres: in situ magnesiothermic-reduction synthesis and enhanced lithium-storage capabilities.

PubMed

Wu, Ping; Wang, Hui; Tang, Yawen; Zhou, Yiming; Lu, Tianhong

2014-03-12

A novel type of 3D porous Si-G micro/nanostructure (i.e., 3D interconnected network of graphene-wrapped porous silicon spheres, Si@G network) was constructed through layer-by-layer assembly and subsequent in situ magnesiothermic-reduction methodology. Compared with bare Si spheres, the as-synthesized Si@G network exhibits markedly enhanced anodic performance in terms of specific capacity, cycling stability, and rate capability, making it an ideal anode candidate for high-energy, long-life, and high-power lithium-ion batteries.

Morphology engineering of ZnO nanostructures for high performance supercapacitors: enhanced electrochemistry of ZnO nanocones compared to ZnO nanowires.

PubMed

He, Xiaoli; Yoo, Joung Eun; Lee, Min Ho; Bae, Joonho

2017-06-16

In this work, the morphology of ZnO nanostructures is engineered to demonstrate enhanced supercapacitor characteristics of ZnO nanocones (NCs) compared to ZnO nanowires (NWs). ZnO NCs are obtained by chemically etching ZnO NWs. Electrochemical characteristics of ZnO NCs and NWs are extensively investigated to demonstrate morphology dependent capacitive performance of one dimensional ZnO nanostructures. Cyclic voltammetry measurements on these two kinds of electrodes in a three-electrode cell confirms that ZnO NCs exhibit a high specific capacitance of 378.5 F g -1 at a scan rate of 20 mV s -1 , which is almost twice that of ZnO NWs (191.5 F g -1 ). The charge-discharge and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements also clearly result in enhanced capacitive performance of NCs as evidenced by higher specific capacitances and lower internal resistance. Asymmetric supercapacitors are fabricated using activated carbon (AC) as the negative electrode and ZnO NWs and NCs as positive electrodes. The ZnO NC⫽AC can deliver a maximum specific capacitance of 126 F g -1 at a current density of 1.33 A g -1 with an energy density of 25.2 W h kg -1 at the power density of 896.44 W kg -1 . In contrast, ZnO NW⫽AC displays 63% of the capacitance obtained from the ZnO NC⫽AC supercapacitor. The enhanced performance of NCs is attributed to the higher surface area of ZnO nanostructures after the morphology is altered from NWs to NCs.

Morphology engineering of ZnO nanostructures for high performance supercapacitors: enhanced electrochemistry of ZnO nanocones compared to ZnO nanowires

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

He, Xiaoli; Yoo, Joung Eun; Lee, Min Ho; Bae, Joonho

2017-06-01

In this work, the morphology of ZnO nanostructures is engineered to demonstrate enhanced supercapacitor characteristics of ZnO nanocones (NCs) compared to ZnO nanowires (NWs). ZnO NCs are obtained by chemically etching ZnO NWs. Electrochemical characteristics of ZnO NCs and NWs are extensively investigated to demonstrate morphology dependent capacitive performance of one dimensional ZnO nanostructures. Cyclic voltammetry measurements on these two kinds of electrodes in a three-electrode cell confirms that ZnO NCs exhibit a high specific capacitance of 378.5 F g-1 at a scan rate of 20 mV s-1, which is almost twice that of ZnO NWs (191.5 F g-1). The charge-discharge and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements also clearly result in enhanced capacitive performance of NCs as evidenced by higher specific capacitances and lower internal resistance. Asymmetric supercapacitors are fabricated using activated carbon (AC) as the negative electrode and ZnO NWs and NCs as positive electrodes. The ZnO NC⫽AC can deliver a maximum specific capacitance of 126 F g-1 at a current density of 1.33 A g-1 with an energy density of 25.2 W h kg-1 at the power density of 896.44 W kg-1. In contrast, ZnO NW⫽AC displays 63% of the capacitance obtained from the ZnO NC⫽AC supercapacitor. The enhanced performance of NCs is attributed to the higher surface area of ZnO nanostructures after the morphology is altered from NWs to NCs.

A review of advantages of high-efficiency X-ray spectrum imaging for analysis of nanostructured ferritic alloys

DOE PAGES

Parish, Chad M.; Miller, Michael K.

2014-12-09

Nanostructured ferritic alloys (NFAs) exhibit complex microstructures consisting of 100-500 nm ferrite grains, grain boundary solute enrichment, and multiple populations of precipitates and nanoclusters (NCs). Understanding these materials' excellent creep and radiation-tolerance properties requires a combination of multiple atomic-scale experimental techniques. Recent advances in scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) hardware and data analysis methods have the potential to revolutionize nanometer to micrometer scale materials analysis. The application of these methods is applied to NFAs as a test case and is compared to both conventional STEM methods as well as complementary methods such as scanning electron microscopy and atom probe tomography.more » In this paper, we review past results and present new results illustrating the effectiveness of latest-generation STEM instrumentation and data analysis.« less

Surfactant-Free Aqueous Synthesis of Pure Single-Crystalline SnSe Nanosheet Clusters as Anode for High Energy- and Power-Density Sodium-Ion Batteries.

PubMed

Yuan, Shuang; Zhu, Yun-Hai; Li, Wang; Wang, Sai; Xu, Dan; Li, Lin; Zhang, Yu; Zhang, Xin-Bo

2017-01-01

SnSe with 3D hierarchical nanostructure composed of interconnected single-crystal SnSe nanosheets is synthesized via a fast and effective strategy. Unexpectedly, when used as the anode material for Na-ion batteries (NIBs), the SnSe exhibits a high capacity (738 mA h g -1 ), superior rate capability (40 A g -1 ), and high energy density in a full cell. These results provide the possibility of SnSe use as NIBs anodes. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Sol-Gel Chemistry for Carbon Dots.

PubMed

Malfatti, Luca; Innocenzi, Plinio

2018-03-14

Carbon dots are an emerging class of carbon-based nanostructures produced by low-cost raw materials which exhibit a widely-tunable photoluminescence and a high quantum yield. The potential of these nanomaterials as a substitute of semiconductor quantum dots in optoelectronics and biomedicine is very high, however they need a customized chemistry to be integrated in host-guest systems or functionalized in core-shell structures. This review is focused on recent advances of the sol-gel chemistry applied to the C-dots technology. The surface modification, the fine tailoring of the chemical composition and the embedding into a complex nanostructured material are the main targets of combining sol-gel processing with C-dots chemistry. In addition, the synergistic effect of the sol-gel precursor combined with the C-dots contribute to modify the intrinsic chemo-physical properties of the dots, empowering the emission efficiency or enabling the tuning of the photoluminescence over a wide range of the visible spectrum. © 2018 The Chemical Society of Japan & Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Templated assembly of photoswitches significantly increases the energy-storage capacity of solar thermal fuels.

PubMed

Kucharski, Timothy J; Ferralis, Nicola; Kolpak, Alexie M; Zheng, Jennie O; Nocera, Daniel G; Grossman, Jeffrey C

2014-05-01

Large-scale utilization of solar-energy resources will require considerable advances in energy-storage technologies to meet ever-increasing global energy demands. Other than liquid fuels, existing energy-storage materials do not provide the requisite combination of high energy density, high stability, easy handling, transportability and low cost. New hybrid solar thermal fuels, composed of photoswitchable molecules on rigid, low-mass nanostructures, transcend the physical limitations of molecular solar thermal fuels by introducing local sterically constrained environments in which interactions between chromophores can be tuned. We demonstrate this principle of a hybrid solar thermal fuel using azobenzene-functionalized carbon nanotubes. We show that, on composite bundling, the amount of energy stored per azobenzene more than doubles from 58 to 120 kJ mol(-1), and the material also maintains robust cyclability and stability. Our results demonstrate that solar thermal fuels composed of molecule-nanostructure hybrids can exhibit significantly enhanced energy-storage capabilities through the generation of template-enforced steric strain.

Novel biomaterials: plasma-enabled nanostructures and functions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Levchenko, Igor; Keidar, Michael; Cvelbar, Uroš; Mariotti, Davide; Mai-Prochnow, Anne; Fang, Jinghua; (Ken Ostrikov, Kostya

2016-07-01

Material processing techniques utilizing low-temperature plasmas as the main process tool feature many unique capabilities for the fabrication of various nanostructured materials. As compared with the neutral-gas based techniques and methods, the plasma-based approaches offer higher levels of energy and flux controllability, often leading to higher quality of the fabricated nanomaterials and sometimes to the synthesis of the hierarchical materials with interesting properties. Among others, nanoscale biomaterials attract significant attention due to their special properties towards the biological materials (proteins, enzymes), living cells and tissues. This review briefly examines various approaches based on the use of low-temperature plasma environments to fabricate nanoscale biomaterials exhibiting high biological activity, biological inertness for drug delivery system, and other features of the biomaterials make them highly attractive. In particular, we briefly discuss the plasma-assisted fabrication of gold and silicon nanoparticles for bio-applications; carbon nanoparticles for bioimaging and cancer therapy; carbon nanotube-based platforms for enzyme production and bacteria growth control, and other applications of low-temperature plasmas in the production of biologically-active materials.

Scalable and template-free synthesis of nanostructured Na{sub 1.08}V{sub 6}O{sub 15} as high-performance cathode material for lithium-ion batteries

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zheng, Shili, E-mail: slzheng@ipe.ac.cn; Wang, Xinran; Yan, Hong

2016-09-15

Highlights: • Nanostructured Na{sub 1.08}V{sub 6}O{sub 15} was synthesized through additive-free sol-gel process. • Prepared Na{sub 1.08}V{sub 6}O{sub 15} demonstrated high capacity and sufficient cycling stability. • The reaction temperature was optimized to allow scalable Na{sub 1.08}V{sub 6}O{sub 15} fabrication. - Abstract: Developing high-capacity cathode material with feasibility and scalability is still challenging for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). In this study, a high-capacity ternary sodium vanadate compound, nanostructured NaV{sub 6}O{sub 15}, was template-free synthesized through sol-gel process with high producing efficiency. The as-prepared sample was systematically post-treated at different temperature and the post-annealing temperature was found to determine the cycling stabilitymore » and capacity of NaV{sub 6}O{sub 15}. The well-crystallized one exhibited good electrochemical performance with a high specific capacity of 302 mAh g{sup −1} when cycled at current density of 0.03 mA g{sup −1}. Its relatively long-term cycling stability was characterized by the cell performance under the current density of 1 A g{sup −1}, delivering a reversible capacity of 118 mAh g{sup −1} after 300 cycles with 79% capacity retention and nearly 100% coulombic efficiency: all demonstrating its significant promise of proposed strategy for large-scale synthesis of NaV{sub 6}O{sub 15} as cathode with high-capacity and high energy density for LIBs.« less

Cell–material interactions on biphasic polyurethane matrix

PubMed Central

Dicesare, Patrick; Fox, Wade M.; Hill, Michael J.; Krishnan, G. Rajesh; Yang, Shuying; Sarkar, Debanjan

2013-01-01

Cell–matrix interaction is a key regulator for controlling stem cell fate in regenerative tissue engineering. These interactions are induced and controlled by the nanoscale features of extracellular matrix and are mimicked on synthetic matrices to control cell structure and functions. Recent studies have shown that nanostructured matrices can modulate stem cell behavior and exert specific role in tissue regeneration. In this study, we have demonstrated that nanostructured phase morphology of synthetic matrix can control adhesion, proliferation, organization and migration of human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). Nanostructured biodegradable polyurethanes (PU) with segmental composition exhibit biphasic morphology at nanoscale dimensions and can control cellular features of MSCs. Biodegradable PU with polyester soft segment and hard segment composed of aliphatic diisocyanates and dipeptide chain extender were designed to examine the effect polyurethane phase morphology. By altering the polyurethane composition, morphological architecture of PU was modulated and its effect was examined on MSC. Results show that MSCs can sense the nanoscale morphology of biphasic polyurethane matrix to exhibit distinct cellular features and, thus, signifies the relevance of matrix phase morphology. The role of nanostructured phases of a synthetic matrix in controlling cell–matrix interaction provides important insights for regulation of cell behavior on synthetic matrix and, therefore, is an important tool for engineering tissue regeneration. PMID:23255285

Mn-based nanostructured building blocks: Synthesis, characterization and applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beltran Huarac, Juan

The quest for smaller functional elements of devices has stimulated increased interest in charge-transfer phenomena at the nanoscale. Mn-based nanostructured building blocks are particularly appealing given that the excited states of high-spin Mn2+ ions induce unusual d-d energy transfer processes, which is critical for better understanding the performance of electronic and spintronic devices. These nanostructures also exhibit unique properties superior to those of common Fe- and Co-based nanomaterials, including: excellent structural flexibility, enhanced electrochemical energy storage, effective ion-exchange dynamics, more comprehensive transport mechanisms, strong quantum yield, and they act as effective luminescent centers for more efficient visible light emitters. Moreover, Mn-based nanostructures (MBNs) are crucial for the design and assembly of inexpensive nanodevices in diluted magnetic semiconductors (DMS), optoelectronics, magneto-optics, and field-effect transistors, owing to the great abundance and low-cost of Mn. Nonetheless, the paucity of original methods and techniques to fabricate new multifunctional MBNs that fulfill industrial demands limits the sustainable development of innovative technology in materials sciences. In order to meet this critical need, in this thesis we develop and implement novel methods and techniques to fabricate zero- and one-dimensional highly-crystalline new-generation MBNs conducive to the generation of new technology, and provide alternative and feasible miniaturization strategies to control and devise at nanometric precision their size, shape, structure and composition. Herein, we also establish the experimental conditions to grow Mn-based nanowires (NWs), nanotubes (NTs), nanoribbons (NRs), nanosaws (NSs), nanoparticles (NPs) and nanocomposites (NCs) via chemical/physical deposition and co-precipitation chemical routes, and determine the pertinent arrangements to our experimental schemes in order to extend our bottom-up approaches towards the fabrication of different types of functional MBNs. Likewise, strategic procedures that advance the facile integration of these self-assembled nanostructures with carbon-based and magnetic/optical materials, chalcogenides, oxides, and ferroics are widely analyzed and discussed. Furthermore, we present the attractive peculiarities of three versatile MBN systems (bridging the gap between their advantageous properties and the lack of methods for their fabrication): single-crystal saw-like MnS NRs, and single-crystal MnS NWs conformally coated with carbon; doped rare-earth manganite NCs, and carbon NTs conformally coated with doped rare-earth manganite; and ZnS:Mn NPs, and Fe3O4/ZnS:Mn NCs. Concerning the applicative significance, the main features of these three systems obtained by our method are suitable to advance direct applications in nanotechnology. In this regard, this work represents a step ahead in the following areas: i) alternative anode materials to enhance the capacity and cycling performance of low-drain, long-life, low-cost, high-energy density light-weight and safer lithium-ion batteries; ii) promising luminescent materials to improve the optoelectronic performance of visible light emitters; iii) new elements for field-effect transistors that outperform the transport properties of conventional carbon-based channels; iv) bifunctional materials exhibiting optical response sensitive to external magnetic fields vital for DMS; v) novel types of nanocantilevers useful for nanosensors and nanotweezers; vi) unique multiferroics materials that exhibit magnetoelectric coupling at room temperature for spintronics; vii) potential core-shell materials showing stress-free and protective carbon shells for shock-resistance semiconductors; and viii) high-quality ceramics useful as starting materials to deposit films by pulsed laser deposition, sputtering and thermal evaporation techniques.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Xiao, Anguo, E-mail: hixiaoanguo@126.com; Zhou, Shibiao; Zuo, Chenggang

Graphical abstract: CuO nanotube array electrodes prepared by electrodeposition method exhibit an excellent lithium ion storage ability as anode of Li-ion battery. - Highlights: • CuO nanotube arrays are synthesized by an electrodeposition method. • CuO nanotube shows a high-rate performance. • CuO nanotube shows an excellent cycling performance. - Abstract: We report a facile strategy to prepared CuO nanotube arrays directly grown on Cu plate through the electrodeposition method. The as-prepared CuO nanotubes show a quasi-cylinder nanostructure with internal diameters of ca. ∼100 nm, external diameters of ca. ∼120 nm, and average length of ∼3 μm. As an anodemore » for lithium ion batteries, the electrochemical properties of the CuO nanotube arrays are investigated by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and galvanostatic charge/discharge tests. Due to the unique nanotube nanostructure, the as-prepared CuO electrodes exhibit good rate performance (550 mAh g{sup −1} at 0.1 C and 464 mAh g{sup −1} at 1 C) and cycling performance (581 mAh g{sup −1} at 0.1 C and 538 mAh g{sup −1} at 0.5 C)« less

Bond topography and nanostructure of hydrogenated fullerene-like carbon films: A comparative study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Yongfu; Gao, Kaixiong; Shi, Jing; Zhang, Junyan

2016-09-01

Fullerene-like nanostructural hydrogenated amorphous carbon (FL-C:H) films were prepared by dc- and pulse- plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition technique (PECVD). Both the films exhibit relatively stresses (0.63 GPa) in spite of their FL features and nanostructural bonding configurations, especially the pentagonal carbon rings. The creation of pentagonal rings is not fully driven by thermodynamics, but is closely related to compressive stress determined by the ion bombardment at the discharged state of the pulse- and dc- discharged plasmas methods. The dc method leads to FL's basal planes which contain less cross-linkages, and causes amorphous strongly hydrogenated structures.

Highly selective electrodeposition of sub-10 nm crystalline noble metallic nanorods inside vertically aligned multiwall carbon nanotubes.

PubMed

Wang, Xuyang; Wang, Ranran; Wu, Qiang; Zhang, Xiaohua; Yang, Zhaohui; Guo, Jun; Chen, Muzi; Tang, Minghua; Cheng, Yajun; Chu, Haibin

2016-07-08

In this paper crystalline noble metallic nanorods including Au and Ag with sub-10 nm diameter, are encapsulated within prealigned and open-ended multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) through an electrodeposition method. As the external surface of CNTs has been insulated by the epoxy the CNT channel becomes the only path for the mass transport as well as the nanoreactor for the metal deposition. Highly crystallized Au and Ag2O nanorods parallel to the radial direction of CNTs are confirmed by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy and x-ray powder diffraction spectroscopy. The Ag2O nanorods are formed by air oxidation on the Ag metals and show a single crystalline structure with (111) planes. The Au nanorods exhibit a complex crystalline structure including twin-crystal and lattice dislocation with (111) and (200) planes. These crystalline noble metallic nanostructures may have important applications for nanocatalysts for fuel cells as well as nanoelectronic and nanophotonic devices. This method is deemed to benefit the precise deposition of other crystalline nanostructures inside CNTs with a small diameter.

Highly selective electrodeposition of sub-10 nm crystalline noble metallic nanorods inside vertically aligned multiwall carbon nanotubes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Xuyang; Wang, Ranran; Wu, Qiang; Zhang, Xiaohua; Yang, Zhaohui; Guo, Jun; Chen, Muzi; Tang, Minghua; Cheng, Yajun; Chu, Haibin

2016-07-01

In this paper crystalline noble metallic nanorods including Au and Ag with sub-10 nm diameter, are encapsulated within prealigned and open-ended multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) through an electrodeposition method. As the external surface of CNTs has been insulated by the epoxy the CNT channel becomes the only path for the mass transport as well as the nanoreactor for the metal deposition. Highly crystallized Au and Ag2O nanorods parallel to the radial direction of CNTs are confirmed by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy and x-ray powder diffraction spectroscopy. The Ag2O nanorods are formed by air oxidation on the Ag metals and show a single crystalline structure with (111) planes. The Au nanorods exhibit a complex crystalline structure including twin-crystal and lattice dislocation with (111) and (200) planes. These crystalline noble metallic nanostructures may have important applications for nanocatalysts for fuel cells as well as nanoelectronic and nanophotonic devices. This method is deemed to benefit the precise deposition of other crystalline nanostructures inside CNTs with a small diameter.

Fabrication of Gold-coated 3-D Woodpile Structures for Mid-IR Thermal Emitters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Shengkai; Moridani, Amir; Kothari, Rohit; Lee, Jae-Hwang; Watkins, James

3-D metallic woodpile nanostructures possess enhancements in thermal radiation that are both wavelength and polarization specific and are promising for thermal-optical devices for various applications including thermal photovoltaics, self-cooling devices, and chemical and bio-sensors. However, current fabrication techniques for such structures are limited by slow speed, small area capability, the need for expensive facilities and, in general, are not suitable for high-throughput mass production. Here we demonstrate a new strategy for the fabrication of 3D metallic woodpile structures. Well-defined TiO2 woodpile structures were fabricated using a layer-by-layer nanoimprint method using TiO2 nanoparticle ink dispersions. The TiO2 woodpile was then coated with a high purity, conformal gold film via reactive deposition in supercritical carbon dioxide. The final gold-coated woodpile structures exhibit strong spectral and polarization specific thermal emission enhancements. The fabrication method demonstrated here is promising for high-throughput, low-cost preparation of 3D metallic woodpile structures and other 3D nanostructures. Center for Hierarchical Manufacturing, NSF.

NH3-free growth of GaN nanostructure on n-Si (1 1 1) substrate using a conventional thermal evaporation technique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saron, K. M. A.; Hashim, M. R.; Farrukh, M. A.

2012-06-01

We have investigated the influence of carrier gas on grown gallium nitride (GaN) epitaxial layers deposited on n-Si (1 1 1) by a physical vapour deposition (PVD) via thermal evaporation of GaN powder at 1150 °C. The GaN nanostructures were grown at a temperature of 1050 °C for 60 min under various gases (N2, H2 mixed with N2, and Ar2) with absence of NH3. The morphology, structure, and optical properties (SEM) images showed that the morphology of GaN displayed various shapes of nanostructured depending on the type of carrier gas. X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern showed that the GaN polycrystalline reveals a wurtzite-hexagonal structure with [0 0 1] crystal orientation. Raman spectra exhibited a red shift in peaks of E2 (high) as a result of tensile stress. Photoluminescence (PL) measurements showed two band emissions aside from the UV emission. The ultraviolet band gap of GaN nanostructure displayed a red shift as compared with the bulk GaN; this might be attributed to an increase in the defect and stress present in the GaN nanostructure. In addition, the observed blue and green-yellow emissions indicated defects due to the N vacancy and C impurity of the supplied gas. These results clearly indicated that the carrier gas, similar to the growth temperature, is one of the important parameters to control the quality of thermal evaporation (TE)-GaN epilayers.

Three dimensional (3D) microstructure-based finite element modeling of Al-SiC nanolaminates using focused ion beam (FIB) tomography

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mayer, Carl R.

Al-SiC nanolaminate composites show promise as high performance coating materials due to their combination of strength and toughness. Although a significant amount of modeling effort has been focused on materials with an idealized flat nanostructure, experimentally these materials exhibit complex undulating layer geometries. This work utilizes FIB tomography to characterize this nanostructure in 3D and finite element modeling to determine the effect that this complex structure has on the mechanical behavior of these materials. A sufficiently large volume was characterized such that a 1 × 2 μm micropillar could be generated from the dataset and compared directly to experimental results.more » The mechanical response from this nanostructure was then compared to pillar models using simplified structures with perfectly flat layers, layers with sinusoidal waviness, and layers with arc segment waviness. The arc segment based layer geometry showed the best agreement with the experimentally determined structure, indicating it would be the most appropriate geometry for future modeling efforts. - Highlights: •FIB tomography was used to determine the structure of an Al-SiC nanolaminate in 3D. •FEM was used to compare the deformation of the nanostructure to experimental results. •Idealized structures from literature were compared to the FIB determined structure. •Arc segment based structures approximated the FIB determined structure most closely.« less

Rapid and high throughput fabrication of high temperature stable structures through PDMS transfer printing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hohenberger, Erik; Freitag, Nathan; Korampally, Venumadhav

2017-07-01

We report on a facile and low cost fabrication approach for structures—gratings and enclosed nanochannels, through simple solution processed chemistries in conjunction with nanotransfer printing techniques. The ink formulation primarily consisting of an organosilicate polymeric network with a small percentage of added 3-aminopropyl triethoxysilane crosslinker allows one to obtain robust structures that are not only stable towards high temperature processing steps as high as 550 °C but also exhibit exceptional stability against a host of organic solvent washes. No discernable structure distortion was observed compared to the as-printed structures (room temperature processed) when printed structures were subjected to temperatures as high as 550 °C. We further demonstrate the applicability of this technique towards the fabrication of more complex nanostructures such as enclosed channels through a double transfer method, leveraging the exceptional room temperature cross-linking ability of the printed structures and their subsequent resistance to dissolution in organic solvent washes. The exceptional temperature and physico-chemical stability of the nanotransfer printed structures makes this a useful fabrication tool that may be applied as is, or integrated with conventional lithographic techniques for the large area fabrication of functional nanostructures and devices.

Integration of nanostructured planar diffractive lenses dedicated to near infrared detection for CMOS image sensors.

PubMed

Lopez, Thomas; Massenot, Sébastien; Estribeau, Magali; Magnan, Pierre; Pardo, Fabrice; Pelouard, Jean-Luc

2016-04-18

This paper deals with the integration of metallic and dielectric nanostructured planar lenses into a pixel from a silicon based CMOS image sensor, for a monochromatic application at 1.064 μm. The first is a Plasmonic Lens, based on the phase delay through nanoslits, which has been found to be hardly compatible with current CMOS technology and exhibits a notable metallic absorption. The second is a dielectric Phase-Fresnel Lens integrated at the top of a pixel, it exhibits an Optical Efficiency (OE) improved by a few percent and an angle of view of 50°. The third one is a metallic diffractive lens integrated inside a pixel, which shows a better OE and an angle of view of 24°. The last two lenses exhibit a compatibility with a spectral band close to 1.064 μm.

Large-scale cauliflower-shaped hierarchical copper nanostructures for efficient photothermal conversion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fan, Peixun; Wu, Hui; Zhong, Minlin; Zhang, Hongjun; Bai, Benfeng; Jin, Guofan

2016-07-01

Efficient solar energy harvesting and photothermal conversion have essential importance for many practical applications. Here, we present a laser-induced cauliflower-shaped hierarchical surface nanostructure on a copper surface, which exhibits extremely high omnidirectional absorption efficiency over a broad electromagnetic spectral range from the UV to the near-infrared region. The measured average hemispherical absorptance is as high as 98% within the wavelength range of 200-800 nm, and the angle dependent specular reflectance stays below 0.1% within the 0-60° incident angle. Such a structured copper surface can exhibit an apparent heating up effect under the sunlight illumination. In the experiment of evaporating water, the structured surface yields an overall photothermal conversion efficiency over 60% under an illuminating solar power density of ~1 kW m-2. The presented technology provides a cost-effective, reliable, and simple way for realizing broadband omnidirectional light absorptive metal surfaces for efficient solar energy harvesting and utilization, which is highly demanded in various light harvesting, anti-reflection, and photothermal conversion applications. Since the structure is directly formed by femtosecond laser writing, it is quite suitable for mass production and can be easily extended to a large surface area.Efficient solar energy harvesting and photothermal conversion have essential importance for many practical applications. Here, we present a laser-induced cauliflower-shaped hierarchical surface nanostructure on a copper surface, which exhibits extremely high omnidirectional absorption efficiency over a broad electromagnetic spectral range from the UV to the near-infrared region. The measured average hemispherical absorptance is as high as 98% within the wavelength range of 200-800 nm, and the angle dependent specular reflectance stays below 0.1% within the 0-60° incident angle. Such a structured copper surface can exhibit an apparent heating up effect under the sunlight illumination. In the experiment of evaporating water, the structured surface yields an overall photothermal conversion efficiency over 60% under an illuminating solar power density of ~1 kW m-2. The presented technology provides a cost-effective, reliable, and simple way for realizing broadband omnidirectional light absorptive metal surfaces for efficient solar energy harvesting and utilization, which is highly demanded in various light harvesting, anti-reflection, and photothermal conversion applications. Since the structure is directly formed by femtosecond laser writing, it is quite suitable for mass production and can be easily extended to a large surface area. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: XRD patterns of the fs laser structured Cu surface as produced and after the photothermal conversion test, directly measured temperature values on Cu surfaces, temperature rise on Cu surfaces at varied solar irradiation angles, comparison of the white light and IR images of the structured Cu surface with the polished Cu surface, temperature rise on the peripheral zones of the blue coating surface. See DOI: 10.1039/c6nr03662g

Fabrication, appraisal, and transdermal permeation of sildenafil citrate-loaded nanostructured lipid carriers versus solid lipid nanoparticles

PubMed Central

Elnaggar, Yosra SR; El-Massik, Magda A; Abdallah, Ossama Y

2011-01-01

Although sildenafil citrate (SC) is used extensively for erectile dysfunction, oral delivery of SC encounters many obstacles. Furthermore, the physicochemical characteristics of this amphoteric drug are challenging for delivery system formulation and transdermal permeation. This article concerns the assessment of the potential of nanomedicine for improving SC delivery and transdermal permeation. SC-loaded nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs) and solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) were fabricated using a modified high-shear homogenization technique. Nanoparticle optimization steps included particle size analysis, entrapment efficiency (EE) determination, freeze-drying and reconstitution, differential scanning calorimetry, in vitro release, stability study and high-performance liquid chromatography analysis. Transdermal permeation of the nanocarriers compared with SC suspension across human skin was assessed using a modified Franz diffusion cell assembly. Results revealed that SLNs and NLCs could be optimized in the nanometric range (180 and 100 nm, respectively) with excellent EE (96.7% and 97.5%, respectively). Nanoparticles have significantly enhanced in vitro release and transdermal permeation of SC compared with its suspensions. Furthermore, transdermal permeation of SC exhibited higher initial release from both SLN and NLC formulations followed by controlled release, with promising implications for faster onset and longer drug duration. Nanomedicines prepared exhibited excellent physical stability for the study period. Solid nanoparticles optimized in this study successfully improved SC characteristics, paving the way for an efficient topical Viagra® product. PMID:22238508

Aggregate nanostructures of organic molecular materials.

PubMed

Liu, Huibiao; Xu, Jialiang; Li, Yongjun; Li, Yuliang

2010-12-21

Conjugated organic molecules are interesting materials because of their structures and their electronic, electrical, magnetic, optical, biological, and chemical properties. However, researchers continue to face great challenges in the construction of well-defined organic compounds that aggregate into larger molecular materials such as nanowires, tubes, rods, particles, walls, films, and other structural arrays. Such nanoscale materials could serve as direct device components. In this Account, we describe our recent progress in the construction of nanostructures formed through the aggregation of organic conjugated molecules and in the investigation of the optical, electrical, and electronic properties that depend on the size or morphology of these nanostructures. We have designed and synthesized functional conjugated organic molecules with structural features that favor assembly into aggregate nanostructures via weak intermolecular interactions. These large-area ordered molecular aggregate nanostructures are based on a variety of simpler structures such as fullerenes, perylenes, anthracenes, porphyrins, polydiacetylenes, and their derivatives. We have developed new methods to construct these larger structures including organic vapor-solid phase reaction, natural growth, association via self-polymerization and self-organization, and a combination of self-assembly and electrochemical growth. These methods are both facile and reliable, allowing us to produce ordered and aligned aggregate nanostructures, such as large-area arrays of nanowires, nanorods, and nanotubes. In addition, we can synthesize nanoscale materials with controlled properties. Large-area ordered aggregate nanostructures exhibit interesting electrical, optical, and optoelectronic properties. We also describe the preparation of large-area aggregate nanostructures of charge transfer (CT) complexes using an organic solid-phase reaction technique. By this process, we can finely control the morphologies and sizes of the organic nanostructures on wires, tubes, and rods. Through field emission studies, we demonstrate that the films made from arrays of CT complexes are a new kind of cathode materials, and we systematically investigate the effects of size and morphology on electrical properties. Low-dimension organic/inorganic hybrid nanostructures can be used to produce new classes of organic/inorganic solid materials with properties that are not observed in either the individual nanosize components or the larger bulk materials. We developed the combined self-assembly and templating technique to construct various nanostructured arrays of organic and inorganic semiconductors. The combination of hybrid aggregate nanostructures displays distinct optical and electrical properties compared with their individual components. Such hybrid structures show promise for applications in electronics, optics, photovoltaic cells, and biology. In this Account, we aim to provide an intuition for understanding the structure-function relationships in organic molecular materials. Such principles could lead to new design concepts for the development of new nonhazardous, high-performance molecular materials on aggregate nanostructures.

Facile synthesis of one dimensional ZnO nanostructures for DSSC applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marimuthu, T.; Anandhan, N.

2016-05-01

Development of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanostructure based third generation dye sensitized solar cell is interesting compared to conventional silicon solar cells. ZnO nanostructured thin films were electrochemically deposited onto fluorine doped tin oxide (FTO) glass substrate. The effect of ethylene-diamine-tetra-acetic acid (EDTA) on structural, morphological and optical properties is investigated using X-ray diffraction (XRD) meter, field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) and micro Raman spectroscopy. XRD patterns reveal that the prepared nanostructures are hexagonal wutrzite structures with (101) plane orientation, the nanostructure prepared using EDTA exhibits better crystallinity. FE-SEM images illustrate that the morphological changes are observed from nanorod structure to cauliflower like structure as EDTA is added. Micro Raman spectra predict that cauliflower like structure possesses a higher crystalline nature with less atomic defects compared to nanorod structures. Dye sensitized solar cell (DSSC) is constructed for the optimized cauliflower structure, and open circuit voltage, short circuit density, fill factor and efficiency are estimated from the J-V curve.

Engineering a nanostructured "super surface" with superhydrophobic and superkilling properties.

PubMed

Hasan, Jafar; Raj, Shammy; Yadav, Lavendra; Chatterjee, Kaushik

2015-05-12

We present a nanostructured "super surface" fabricated using a simple recipe based on deep reactive ion etching of a silicon wafer. The topography of the surface is inspired by the surface topographical features of dragonfly wings. The super surface is comprised of nanopillars 4 μm in height and 220 nm in diameter with random inter-pillar spacing. The surface exhibited superhydrophobicity with a static water contact angle of 154.0° and contact angle hysteresis of 8.3°. Bacterial studies revealed the bactericidal property of the surface against both gram negative ( Escherichia coli ) and gram positive ( Staphylococcus aureus ) strains through mechanical rupture of the cells by the sharp nanopillars. The cell viability on these nanostructured surfaces was nearly six-fold lower than on the unmodified silicon wafer. The nanostructured surface also killed mammalian cells (mouse osteoblasts) through mechanical rupture of the cell membrane. Thus, such nanostructured super surfaces could find applications for designing self-cleaning and anti-bacterial surfaces in diverse applications such as microfluidics, surgical instruments, pipelines and food packaging.

Oligolysine-based coating protects DNA nanostructures from low-salt denaturation and nuclease degradation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ponnuswamy, Nandhini; Bastings, Maartje M. C.; Nathwani, Bhavik; Ryu, Ju Hee; Chou, Leo Y. T.; Vinther, Mathias; Li, Weiwei Aileen; Anastassacos, Frances M.; Mooney, David J.; Shih, William M.

2017-05-01

DNA nanostructures have evoked great interest as potential therapeutics and diagnostics due to ease and robustness of programming their shapes, site-specific functionalizations and responsive behaviours. However, their utility in biological fluids can be compromised through denaturation induced by physiological salt concentrations and degradation mediated by nucleases. Here we demonstrate that DNA nanostructures coated by oligolysines to 0.5:1 N:P (ratio of nitrogen in lysine to phosphorus in DNA), are stable in low salt and up to tenfold more resistant to DNase I digestion than when uncoated. Higher N:P ratios can lead to aggregation, but this can be circumvented by coating instead with an oligolysine-PEG copolymer, enabling up to a 1,000-fold protection against digestion by serum nucleases. Oligolysine-PEG-stabilized DNA nanostructures survive uptake into endosomal compartments and, in a mouse model, exhibit a modest increase in pharmacokinetic bioavailability. Thus, oligolysine-PEG is a one-step, structure-independent approach that provides low-cost and effective protection of DNA nanostructures for in vivo applications.

Effective load transfer by a chromium carbide nanostructure in a multi-walled carbon nanotube/copper matrix composite

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cho, Seungchan; Kikuchi, Keiko; Kawasaki, Akira; Kwon, Hansang; Kim, Yangdo

2012-08-01

Multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) reinforced copper (Cu) matrix composites, which exhibit chromium (Cr) carbide nanostructures at the MWCNT/Cu interface, were prepared through a carbide formation using CuCr alloy powder. The fully densified and oriented MWCNTs dispersed throughout the composites were prepared using spark plasma sintering (SPS) followed by hot extrusion. The tensile strengths of the MWCNT/CuCr composites increased with increasing MWCNTs content, while the tensile strength of MWCNT/Cu composite decreased from that of monolithic Cu. The enhanced tensile strength of the MWCNT/CuCr composites is a result of possible load-transfer mechanisms of the interfacial Cr carbide nanostructures. The multi-wall failure of MWCNTs observed in the fracture surface of the MWCNT/CuCr composites indicates an improvement in the load-bearing capacity of the MWCNTs. This result shows that the Cr carbide nanostructures effectively transferred the tensile load to the MWCNTs during fracture through carbide nanostructure formation in the MWCNT/Cu composite.

Tuning the Growth Pattern in 2D Confinement Regime of Sm2O3 and the Emerging Room Temperature Unusual Superparamagnetism

PubMed Central

Guria, Amit K.; Dey, Koushik; Sarkar, Suresh; Patra, Biplab K.; Giri, Saurav; Pradhan, Narayan

2014-01-01

Programming the reaction chemistry for superseding the formation of Sm2O3 in a competitive process of formation and dissolution, the crystal growth patterns are varied and two different nanostructures of Sm2O3 in 2D confinement regime are designed. Among these, the regular and self-assembled square platelets nanostructures exhibit paramagnetic behavior analogous to the bulk Sm2O3. But, the other one, 2D flower like shaped nanostructure, formed by irregular crystal growth, shows superparamagnetism at room temperature which is unusual for bulk paramagnet. It has been noted that the variation in the crystal growth pattern is due to the difference in the binding ability of two organic ligands, oleylamine and oleic acid, used for the synthesis and the magnetic behavior of the nanostructures is related to the defects incorporated during the crystal growth. Herein, we inspect the formation chemistry and plausible origin of contrasting magnetism of these nanostructures of Sm2O3. PMID:25269458

Influence of TiCl4 precursor in hydrothermal synthesis of TiO2 nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kartikay, Purnendu; Nemala, Siva Sankar; Mallick, Sudhanshu

2017-05-01

Rutile TiO2 films were deposited on the FTO substrate by the hydrothermal process using TTIP and TiCl4 as the titania precursor. Our study manifestly exhibits the influence of TiCl4 precursor on the hydrothermal growth of the TiO2 structure. The morphology of prepared film varies from nano-cauliflower to nano-flower to nano-parallelepiped rod-like structure with the addition of TiCl4 as the precursor. When TiCl4 is introduced in the precursor HCl corresponding to four times of the Ti4+ concentration is generated as a by-product during the reaction, these additional HCl promotes the etching of the nanostructure enabling the nanostructure to unfurl. We conclude that the tailoring of the nanostructure can be performed by addition of TiCl4 in the precursor

Study on GaN nanostructures: Growth and the suppression of the yellow emission

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Ting; Chen, Fei; Ji, Xiaohong; Zhang, Qinyuan

2018-07-01

GaN nanostructures were synthesized via a simple chemical vapor deposition using Ga2O3 and NH3 as precursors. Structural and morphological properties were systematically characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffractometer, transmission electron microscopy, and Raman spectroscopy. The configuration of GaN nanostructures was found to be strongly dependent on the growth temperature and the NH3 flow rate. Photoluminescence analysis revealed that all the fabricated GaN NSs exhibited a strong ultra-violet emission (∼364 nm), and the yellow emission of GaN nanorods can be suppressed at appropriate III/V ratio. The suppression of the yellow emission was attributed to the low density of surface or the VGa defect. The work demonstrates that the GaN nanostructures have potential applications in the optoelectronic and nanoelectronic devices.

Electric Switching of Fluorescence Decay in Gold-Silica-Dye Nematic Nanocolloids Mediated by Surface Plasmons.

PubMed

Jiang, Li; Mundoor, Haridas; Liu, Qingkun; Smalyukh, Ivan I

2016-07-26

Tunable composite materials with interesting physical behavior can be designed through integrating unique optical properties of solid nanostructures with facile responses of soft matter to weak external stimuli, but this approach remains challenged by their poorly controlled coassembly at the mesoscale. Using scalable wet chemical synthesis procedures, we fabricated anisotropic gold-silica-dye colloidal nanostructures and then organized them into the device-scale (demonstrated for square-inch cells) electrically tunable composites by simultaneously invoking molecular and colloidal self-assembly. We show that the ensuing ordered colloidal dispersions of shape-anisotropic nanostructures exhibit tunable fluorescence decay rates and intensity. We characterize how these properties depend on low-voltage fields and polarization of both the excitation and emission light, demonstrating a great potential for the practical realization of an interesting breed of nanostructured composite materials.

3D carbon/cobalt-nickel mixed-oxide hybrid nanostructured arrays for asymmetric supercapacitors.

PubMed

Zhu, Jianhui; Jiang, Jian; Sun, Zhipeng; Luo, Jingshan; Fan, Zhanxi; Huang, Xintang; Zhang, Hua; Yu, Ting

2014-07-23

The electrochemical performance of supercapacitors relies not only on the exploitation of high-capacity active materials, but also on the rational design of superior electrode architectures. Herein, a novel supercapacitor electrode comprising 3D hierarchical mixed-oxide nanostructured arrays (NAs) of C/CoNi3 O4 is reported. The network-like C/CoNi3 O4 NAs exhibit a relatively high specific surface area; it is fabricated from ultra-robust Co-Ni hydroxide carbonate precursors through glucose-coating and calcination processes. Thanks to their interconnected three-dimensionally arrayed architecture and mesoporous nature, the C/CoNi3 O4 NA electrode exhibits a large specific capacitance of 1299 F/g and a superior rate performance, demonstrating 78% capacity retention even when the discharge current jumps by 100 times. An optimized asymmetric supercapacitor with the C/CoNi3 O4 NAs as the positive electrode is fabricated. This asymmetric supercapacitor can reversibly cycle at a high potential of 1.8 V, showing excellent cycling durability and also enabling a remarkable power density of ∼13 kW/kg with a high energy density of ∼19.2 W·h/kg. Two such supercapacitors linked in series can simultaneously power four distinct light-emitting diode indicators; they can also drive the motor of remote-controlled model planes. This work not only presents the potential of C/CoNi3 O4 NAs in thin-film supercapacitor applications, but it also demonstrates the superiority of electrodes with such a 3D hierarchical architecture. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Bimetallic-organic framework derived porous Co3O4/Fe3O4/C-loaded g-C3N4 nanocomposites as non-enzymic electrocatalysis oxidization toward ascorbic acid, dopamine acid, and uric acid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hu, Bin; Liu, Yongkang; Wang, Zhuo-Wei; Song, Yingpan; Wang, Minghua; Zhang, Zhihong; Liu, Chun-Sen

2018-05-01

We report on the synthesis of Co- and Fe-based bimetallic nanocatalysts embedded in mesoporous carbon and g-C3N4 nanosheets (denoted as Co3O4/Fe3O4/mC@g-C3N4) for selectively simultaneous determination of ascorbic acid (AA), dopamine acid (DA), and uric acid (UA). These electrocatalysts consisting of bimetallic Co-Fe alloy nanoparticles encapsulated in N-doped carbon matrix were prepared via pyrolysis of Co/Fe-MOFs after grinding with high amounts of melamine. Chemical/crystal structures suggest high contents of mesoporous carbon in calcinated Co3O4/Fe3O4/mC nanocomposites, which exhibited enhanced electrocatalytic activity toward small biomolecules. The intrinsic performances of Co/Fe-MOFs with large specific surface area and regular nodes in the two-dimensional nanostructured g-C3N4 nanosheets endowed the as-prepared series of Co3O4/Fe3O4/mC@g-C3N4 nanocomposites with remarkable electrocatalytic activities and high adsorption ability toward oxidation of AA, DA, and UA. The developed biosensors also showed long-term stability and high selectivity for targeted analytes, with satisfactory results on actual samples in human urine. The results indicate that the as-synthesized Co3O4/Fe3O4/mC@g-C3N4 nanostructure exhibits good electrocatalytic activity and potential applications in clinical diagnosis and biosensing.

Small-sized and contacting Pt-WC nanostructures on graphene as highly efficient anode catalysts for direct methanol fuel cells.

PubMed

Wang, Ruihong; Xie, Ying; Shi, Keying; Wang, Jianqiang; Tian, Chungui; Shen, Peikang; Fu, Honggang

2012-06-11

The synergistic effect between Pt and WC is beneficial for methanol electro-oxidation, and makes Pt-WC catalyst a promising anode candidate for the direct methanol fuel cell. This paper reports on the design and synthesis of small-sized and contacting Pt-WC nanostructures on graphene that bring the synergistic effect into full play. Firstly, DFT calculations show the existence of a strong covalent interaction between WC and graphene, which suggests great potential for anchoring WC on graphene with formation of small-sized, well-dispersed WC particles. The calculations also reveal that, when Pt attaches to the pre-existing WC/graphene hybrid, Pt particles preferentially grow on WC rather than graphene. Our experiments confirmed that highly disperse WC nanoparticles (ca. 5 nm) can indeed be anchored on graphene. Also, Pt particles 2-3 nm in size are well dispersed on WC/graphene hybrid and preferentially grow on WC grains, forming contacting Pt-WC nanostructures. These results are consistent with the theoretical findings. X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy further confirms the intimate contact between Pt and WC, and demonstrates that the presence of WC can facilitate the crystallinity of Pt particles. This new Pt-WC/graphene catalyst exhibits a high catalytic efficiency toward methanol oxidation, with a mass activity 1.98 and 4.52 times those of commercial PtRu/C and Pt/C catalysts, respectively. Copyright © 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Synthesis of antireflective silica coatings through the synergy of polypeptide layer-by-layer assemblies and biomineralization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Yung-Lun; Lin, Ting-Xuan; Hsu, Feng-Ming; Jan, Jeng-Shiung

2016-01-01

We report a versatile approach to synthesize silica coatings with antireflective (AR) characteristics through the combination of a layer-by-layer (LbL) assembly technique and biomineralization. LbL assembled decanoyl-modified poly(l-lysine)/poly(l-glutamic acid) (PLL-g-Dec/PLGA) multilayer films were used as templates for silica mineralization, followed by calcination. The specific deposition of silica onto the LbL polypeptide assemblies through amine-catalyzed polycondensation resulted in silica coatings that exhibited the transcription of the nano-/microstructured polypeptide films and their film thickness and porosity can be tuned by varying the number of bilayers, degree of substitution, and PLL molecular weight. AR silica coatings exhibiting more than 6% increase in transmittance in the near UV/visible spectral range can be obtained at an optimized refractive index, thickness, and surface roughness. The abrasion test showed that the silica coatings exhibited sufficient structural durability due to continuous silica nanostructures and low surface roughness. This study demonstrated that nanostructured thin films can be synthesized for AR coatings using the synergy between the LbL assembly technique and biomineralization.We report a versatile approach to synthesize silica coatings with antireflective (AR) characteristics through the combination of a layer-by-layer (LbL) assembly technique and biomineralization. LbL assembled decanoyl-modified poly(l-lysine)/poly(l-glutamic acid) (PLL-g-Dec/PLGA) multilayer films were used as templates for silica mineralization, followed by calcination. The specific deposition of silica onto the LbL polypeptide assemblies through amine-catalyzed polycondensation resulted in silica coatings that exhibited the transcription of the nano-/microstructured polypeptide films and their film thickness and porosity can be tuned by varying the number of bilayers, degree of substitution, and PLL molecular weight. AR silica coatings exhibiting more than 6% increase in transmittance in the near UV/visible spectral range can be obtained at an optimized refractive index, thickness, and surface roughness. The abrasion test showed that the silica coatings exhibited sufficient structural durability due to continuous silica nanostructures and low surface roughness. This study demonstrated that nanostructured thin films can be synthesized for AR coatings using the synergy between the LbL assembly technique and biomineralization. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/c5nr06948c

Hollow Co2P nanoflowers assembled from nanorods for ultralong cycle-life supercapacitors.

PubMed

Cheng, Ming; Fan, Hongsheng; Xu, Yingying; Wang, Rongming; Zhang, Xixiang

2017-09-28

Hollow Co 2 P nanoflowers (Co 2 P HNFs) were successfully prepared via a one-step, template-free method. Microstructure analysis reveals that Co 2 P HNFs are assembled from nanorods and possess abundant mesopores and an amorphous carbon shell. Density functional theory calculations and electrochemical measurements demonstrate the high electrical conductivity of Co 2 P. Benefiting from the unique nanostructures, when employed as an electrode material for supercapacitors, Co 2 P HNFs exhibit a high specific capacitance, an outstanding rate capability, and an ultralong cycling stability. Furthermore, the constructed Co 2 P HNF//AC ASC exhibits a high energy density of 30.5 W h kg -1 at a power density of 850 W kg -1 , along with a superior cycling performance (108.0% specific capacitance retained after 10 000 cycles at 5 A g -1 ). These impressive results make Co 2 P HNFs a promising candidate for supercapacitor applications.

Nanofibers of fullerene C60 through interplay of ball-and-socket supermolecules.

PubMed

Hubble, Lee J; Raston, Colin L

2007-01-01

Mixing solutions of p-tBu-calix[5]arene and C(60) in toluene results in a 1:1 complex (C(60)) intersection(p-tBu-calix[5]arene), which precipitates as nanofibers. The principle structural unit is based on a host-guest ball-and-socket nanostructure of the two components, with an extended structure comprising zigzag/helical arrays of fullerenes (powder X-ray diffraction data coupled with molecular modeling). Under argon at temperatures above 309 degrees C, the fibers undergo selective volatilization of the calixarenes to afford C(60)-core nanostructures encapsulated in a graphitic material sheath, which exhibits a dramatic increase in surface area. Above 650 degrees C the material exhibits an ohmic conductance response, due to the encapsulation process.

Nanostructured materials: A novel approach to enhanced performance. Final report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Korth, G.E.; Froes, F.H.; Suryanarayana, C.

Nanostuctured materials are an emerging class of materials that can exhibit physical and mechanical characteristics often exceeding those exhibited by conventional course grained materials. A number of different techniques can be employed to produce these materials. In this program, the synthesis methods were (a) mechanical alloying , (b) physical vapor deposition, and (c) plasma processing. The physical vapor deposition and plasma processing were discontinued after initial testing with subsequent efforts focused on mechanical alloying. The major emphasis of the program was on the synthesis, consolidation, and characterization of nanostructured Al-Fe, Ti-Al, Ti-Al-Nb, and Fe-Al by alloying intermetallics with a viewmore » to increase their ductilities. The major findings of this project are reported.« less

In situ grown Ni9S8 nanorod/O-MoS2 nanosheet nanocomposite on carbon cloth as a free binder supercapacitor electrode and hydrogen evolution catalyst

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Songzhan; Chen, Tian; Wen, Jian; Gui, Pengbin; Fang, Guojia

2017-11-01

Transition metal sulfide nanostructure composites have received significant attention as energy conversion and storage devices. In this work, we report a three-dimension (3D) nanostructure with the Ni9S8 nanorods embedded in oxygen-incorporated MoS2 (O-MoS2) nanosheets for supercapacitors and hydrogen evolution catalysts. The in situ grown Ni9S8/O-MoS2 nanocomposite on carbon cloth can be used as a free binder supercapacitor electrode and hydrogen evolution catalyst. The Ni9S8/O-MoS2 nanocomposite exhibits electrochemical behaviors with a specific capacitance of 907 F g-1 (at 2 A g-1) and good cycle stability after 1200 cycles due to its unique mutual embedding 3D nanostructure. Furthermore, the Ni9S8/O-MoS2 nanocomposite also shows highly electrocatalytic features for hydrogen production with an onset overpotential of ˜150 mV and a low Tafel slope of ˜81 mV dec-1. The oxygen incorporation of MoS2 provides more active sites to participate in the catalytic process for the hydrogen evolution reaction.

Improved Photo-Detection Using Zigzag TiO2 Nanostructures as an Active Medium.

PubMed

Tiwari, A K; Mondal, A; Mahajan, B K; Choudhuri, B; Goswami, T; Sarkar, M B; Chakrabartty, S; Ngangbam, C; Saha, S

2015-07-01

Zigzag TiO2 nanostructures were fabricated using oblique angle deposition technique. The field emission gun-scanning electron microscope (FEG-SEM) image shows that the TiO2 zigzag nanostructures were ~500 nm in length. Averagely two times enhanced UV-Vis absorption was recorded for zigzag structure compared to perpendicular TiO2 nanowires. The main band transition was observed at ~3.4 eV. The zigzag TiO2 exhibited high turn on voltage (+11 V) than that of nanowire (+2 V) detector under dark which were reduced to +0.2 V and +1.0 V under white light illumination, respectively. A maximum ~6 fold photo-responsivity was observed for the zigzag TiO2 compared with nanowire device at + 1.0 V applied potential. The maximum photo-responsivity of 0.36 A/W at 370 nm was measured for the zigzag TiO2 detector. The TiO2 zigzag detector showed slow response with rise time of 10.2 s and fall time of 10.3 s respectively. The UV (370 nm) to visible (450 nm) wavelength rejection ratio of photo-responsivity was recorded ~4 times for the detector.

Structure and Electronic Properties of Interface-Confined Oxide Nanostructures

DOE PAGES

Liu, Yun; Ning, Yanxiao; Yu, Liang; ...

2017-09-16

The controlled fabrication of nanostructures has often made use of a substrate template to mediate and control the growth kinetics. Electronic substrate-mediated interactions have been demonstrated to guide the assembly of organic molecules or the nucleation of metal atoms but usually at cryogenic temperatures, where the diffusion has been limited. Combining STM, STS, and DFT studies, we report that the strong electronic interaction between transition metals and oxides could indeed govern the growth of low-dimensional oxide nanostructures. As a demonstration, a series of FeO triangles, which are of the same structure and electronic properties but with different sizes (side lengthmore » >3 nm), are synthesized on Pt(111). The strong interfacial interaction confines the growth of FeO nanostructures, leading to a discrete size distribution and a uniform step structure. Given the same interfacial configuration, as-grown FeO nanostructures not only expose identical edge/surface structure but also exhibit the same electronic properties, as manifested by the local density of states and local work functions. We expect the interfacial confinement effect can be generally applied to control the growth of oxide nanostructures on transition metal surfaces. These oxide nanostructures of the same structure and electronic properties are excellent models for studies of nanoscale effects and applications.« less

Structure and Electronic Properties of Interface-Confined Oxide Nanostructures

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Liu, Yun; Ning, Yanxiao; Yu, Liang

The controlled fabrication of nanostructures has often made use of a substrate template to mediate and control the growth kinetics. Electronic substrate-mediated interactions have been demonstrated to guide the assembly of organic molecules or the nucleation of metal atoms but usually at cryogenic temperatures, where the diffusion has been limited. Combining STM, STS, and DFT studies, we report that the strong electronic interaction between transition metals and oxides could indeed govern the growth of low-dimensional oxide nanostructures. As a demonstration, a series of FeO triangles, which are of the same structure and electronic properties but with different sizes (side lengthmore » >3 nm), are synthesized on Pt(111). The strong interfacial interaction confines the growth of FeO nanostructures, leading to a discrete size distribution and a uniform step structure. Given the same interfacial configuration, as-grown FeO nanostructures not only expose identical edge/surface structure but also exhibit the same electronic properties, as manifested by the local density of states and local work functions. We expect the interfacial confinement effect can be generally applied to control the growth of oxide nanostructures on transition metal surfaces. These oxide nanostructures of the same structure and electronic properties are excellent models for studies of nanoscale effects and applications.« less

In-vitro nanodiagnostic platform through nanoparticles and DNA-RNA nanotechnology.

PubMed

Chan, Ki; Ng, Tzi Bun

2015-04-01

Nanocomposites containing nanoparticles or nanostructured domains exhibit an even higher degree of material complexity that leads to an extremely high variability of nanostructured materials. This review introduces analytical concepts and techniques for nanomaterials and derives recommendations for a qualified selection of characterization techniques for specific types of samples, and focuses the characterization of nanoparticles and their agglomerates or aggregates. In addition, DNA nanotechnology and the more recent newcomer RNA nanotechnology have achieved almost an advanced status among nanotechnology researchers¸ therefore, the core features, potential, and significant challenges of DNA nanotechnology are also highlighted as a new discipline. Moreover, nanobiochips made by nanomaterials are rapidly emerging as a new paradigm in the area of large-scale biochemical analysis. The use of nanoscale components enables higher precision in diagnostics while considerably reducing the cost of the platform that leads this review to explore the use of nanoparticles, nanomaterials, and other bionanotechnologies for its application to nanodiagnostics in-vitro.

Electrochemical capacitance of nanostructured ruthenium-doped tin oxide Sn1- x Ru x O2 by the microemulsion method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saraswathy, Ramanathan

2017-12-01

Synthesis of nanostructured Ru-doped SnO2 was successfully carried out using the reverse microemulsion method. The phase purity and the crystallite size were analyzed by XRD. The surface morphology and the microstructure of synthesized nanoparticles were analyzed by SEM and TEM. The vibration mode of nanoparticles was investigated using FTIR and Raman studies. The electrochemical behavior of the Ru-doped SnO2 electrode was evaluated in a 0.1 mol/L Na2SO4 solution using cyclic voltammetry. The 5% Ru-doped SnO2 electrode exhibited a high specific capacitance of 535.6 F/g at a scan rate 20 mV/s, possessing good conductivity as well as the electrocycling stability. The Ru-doped SnO2 composite shows excellent electrochemical properties, suggesting that this composite is a promising material for supercapacitors.

DNA hydrogel-based supercapacitors operating in physiological fluids

PubMed Central

Hur, Jaehyun; Im, Kyuhyun; Hwang, Sekyu; Choi, ByoungLyong; Kim, Sungjee; Hwang, Sungwoo; Park, Nokyoung; Kim, Kinam

2013-01-01

DNA nanostructures have been attractive due to their structural properties resulting in many important breakthroughs especially in controlled assemblies and many biological applications. Here, we report a unique energy storage device which is a supercapacitor that uses nanostructured DNA hydrogel (Dgel) as a template and layer-by-layer (LBL)-deposited polyelectrolyte multilayers (PEMs) as conductors. Our device, named as PEM-Dgel supercapacitor, showed excellent performance in direct contact with physiological fluids such as artificial urine and phosphate buffered saline without any need of additional electrolytes, and exhibited almost no cytotoxicity during cycling tests in cell culture medium. Moreover, we demonstrated that the PEM-Dgel supercapacitor has greater charge-discharge cycling stability in physiological fluids than highly concentrated acid electrolyte solution which is normally used for supercapacitor operation. These conceptually new supercapacitors have the potential to be a platform technology for the creation of implantable energy storage devices for packageless applications directly utilizing biofluids. PMID:23412432

Spectroscopy on the wing: naturally inspired SERS substrates for biochemical analysis.

PubMed

Garrett, Natalie L; Vukusic, Peter; Ogrin, Feodor; Sirotkin, Evgeny; Winlove, C Peter; Moger, Julian

2009-03-01

We show that naturally occurring chitinous nanostructures found on the wings of the Graphium butterfly can be used as substrates for surface-enhanced Raman scattering when coated with a thin film of gold or silver. The substrates were found to exhibit excellent biocompatibility and sensitivity, making them ideal for protein assaying. An assay using avidin/biotin binding showed that the substrates could be used to quantify protein binding directly from changes in the surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) spectra and were sensitive over a concentration range comparable with a typical enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) assay. A biomimetic version of the wing nanostructures produced using a highly reproducible, large-scale fabrication process, yielded comparable enhancement factors and biocompatibility. The excellent biocompatibility of the wings and biomimetic substrates is unparalleled by other lithographically produced substrates, and this could pave the way for widespread application of ultrasensitive SERS-based bioassays.

Three novel electrochemical electrodes for the fabrication of conducting polymer/SWCNTs layered nanostructures and their thermoelectric performance.

PubMed

Shi, Hui; Liu, Congcong; Jiang, Qinglin; Xu, Jingkun; Lu, Baoyang; Jiang, Fengxing; Zhu, Zhengyou

2015-06-19

Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs), PSS/SWCNTs, and SWCNTs/ PSS nanofilms were used as working electrodes to electrodeposit polyaniline (PANI) in a mixed alcohol solution of isopropyl alcohol (IPA), boron trifluoride ethyl ether (BFEE), and polyethylene glycol (PEG). The thermoelectric (TE) performances of the resulting nanofilms were systematically investigated. SWCNTs/ PSS/PANI nanofilms showed a relatively high electrical conductivity value of 232.0 S cm(-1). The Seebeck coefficient was enhanced and exhibited the values of 33.8, 25.6, and 23.0 μV K(-1) for the SWCNTs/PANI, PEDOT:PSS/SWCNTs/PANI, and SWCNTs/ PSS/PANI films, respectively. The maximum power factor achieved was 12.3 μW m(-1) K(-2). This technique offers a facile and versatile approach to a class of layered nanostructures, and it may provide a general strategy for fabricating a new generation of conducting polymer/SWCNTs materials for further practical applications.

Self-limiting and complete oxidation of silicon nanostructures produced by laser ablation in water

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Vaccaro, L.; Messina, F.; Camarda, P.

2016-07-14

Oxidized Silicon nanomaterials produced by 1064 nm pulsed laser ablation in deionized water are investigated. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy allows to characterize the structural and chemical properties at a sub-nanometric scale. This analysis clarifies that laser ablation induces both self-limiting and complete oxidation processes which produce polycrystalline Si surrounded by a layer of SiO{sub 2} and amorphous fully oxidized SiO{sub 2}, respectively. These nanostructures exhibit a composite luminescence spectrum which is investigated by time-resolved spectroscopy with a tunable laser excitation. The origin of the observed luminescence bands agrees with the two structural typologies: Si nanocrystalsmore » emit a μs-decaying red band; defects of SiO{sub 2} give rise to a ns-decaying UV band and two overlapping blue bands with lifetime in the ns and ms timescale.« less

Sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone)/polypyrrole core-shell nanofibers: a novel polymeric adsorbent/conducting polymer nanostructures for ultrasensitive gas sensors.

PubMed

Wang, Wei; Li, Zhenyu; Jiang, Tingting; Zhao, Zhiwei; Li, Ye; Wang, Zhaojie; Wang, Ce

2012-11-01

Conducting polymers-based gas sensors have attracted increasing research attention these years. The introduction of inorganic sensitizers (noble metals or inorganic semiconductors) within the conducting polymers-based gas sensors has been regarded as the generally effective route for further enhanced sensors. Here we demonstrate a novel route for highly-efficient conducting polymers-based gas sensors by introduction of polymeric sensitizers (polymeric adsorbent) within the conducting polymeric nanostructures to form one-dimensional polymeric adsorbent/conducting polymer core-shell nanocomposites, via electrospinning and solution-phase polymerization. The adsorption effect of the SPEEK toward NH₃ can facilitate the mass diffusion of NH₃ through the PPy layers, resulting in the enhanced sensing signals. On the basis of the SPEEK/PPy nanofibers, the sensors exhibit large gas responses, even when exposed to very low concentration of NH₃ (20 ppb) at room temperature.

Tuning the Fabrication of Nanostructures by Low-Energy Highly Charged Ions.

PubMed

El-Said, Ayman S; Wilhelm, Richard A; Heller, Rene; Sorokin, Michael; Facsko, Stefan; Aumayr, Friedrich

2016-09-16

Slow highly charged ions have been utilized recently for the creation of monotype surface nanostructures (craters, calderas, or hillocks) in different materials. In the present study, we report on the ability of slow highly charged xenon ions (^{129}Xe^{Q+}) to form three different types of nanostructures on the LiF(100) surface. By increasing the charge state from Q=15 to Q=36, the shape of the impact induced nanostructures changes from craters to hillocks crossing an intermediate stage of caldera structures. A dimensional analysis of the nanostructures reveals an increase of the height up to 1.5 nm as a function of the potential energy of the incident ions. Based on the evolution of both the geometry and size of the created nanostructures, defect-mediated desorption and the development of a thermal spike are utilized as creation mechanisms of the nanostructures at low and high charge states, respectively.

Ni-Co bimetal nanowires filled multiwalled carbon nanotubes for the highly sensitive and selective non-enzymatic glucose sensor applications

PubMed Central

Ramachandran, K.; Raj kumar, T.; Babu, K. Justice; Gnana kumar, G.

2016-01-01

The facile, time and cost efficient and environmental benign approach has been developed for the preparation of Nickel (Ni)-Cobalt (Co) alloy nanowires filled multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) with the aid of mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSN)/Ni-Co catalyst. The controlled incorporation of Ni-Co nanostructures in the three dimensional (3D) pore structures of MSN yielded the catalytically active system for the MWCNT growth. The inner surface of MWCNTs was quasi-continuously filled with face-centered cubic (fcc) structured Ni-Co nanowires. The as-prepared nanostructures were exploited as non-enzymatic electrochemical sensor probes for the reliable detection of glucose. The electrochemical measurements illustrated that the fabricated sensor exhibited an excellent electrochemical performance toward glucose oxidation with a high sensitivity of 0.695 mA mM−1 cm−2, low detection limit of 1.2 μM, a wide linear range from 5 μM–10 mM and good selectivity. The unprecedented electrochemical performances obtained for the prepared nanocomposite are purely attributed to the synergistic effects of Ni-Co nanowires and MWCNTs. The constructed facile, selective and sensitive glucose sensor has also endowed its reliability in analyzing the human serum samples, which wide opened the new findings for exploring the novel nanostructures based glucose sensor devices with affordable cost and good stability. PMID:27833123

Robust optimization of a tandem grating solar thermal absorber

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Choi, Jongin; Kim, Mingeon; Kang, Kyeonghwan; Lee, Ikjin; Lee, Bong Jae

2018-04-01

Ideal solar thermal absorbers need to have a high value of the spectral absorptance in the broad solar spectrum to utilize the solar radiation effectively. Majority of recent studies about solar thermal absorbers focus on achieving nearly perfect absorption using nanostructures, whose characteristic dimension is smaller than the wavelength of sunlight. However, precise fabrication of such nanostructures is not easy in reality; that is, unavoidable errors always occur to some extent in the dimension of fabricated nanostructures, causing an undesirable deviation of the absorption performance between the designed structure and the actually fabricated one. In order to minimize the variation in the solar absorptance due to the fabrication error, the robust optimization can be performed during the design process. However, the optimization of solar thermal absorber considering all design variables often requires tremendous computational costs to find an optimum combination of design variables with the robustness as well as the high performance. To achieve this goal, we apply the robust optimization using the Kriging method and the genetic algorithm for designing a tandem grating solar absorber. By constructing a surrogate model through the Kriging method, computational cost can be substantially reduced because exact calculation of the performance for every combination of variables is not necessary. Using the surrogate model and the genetic algorithm, we successfully design an effective solar thermal absorber exhibiting a low-level of performance degradation due to the fabrication uncertainty of design variables.

Stable and Efficient CuO Based Photocathode through Oxygen-Rich Composition and Au-Pd Nanostructure Incorporation for Solar-Hydrogen Production.

PubMed

Masudy-Panah, Saeid; Siavash Moakhar, Roozbeh; Chua, Chin Sheng; Kushwaha, Ajay; Dalapati, Goutam Kumar

2017-08-23

Enhancing stability against photocorrosion and improving photocurrent response are the main challenges toward the development of cupric oxide (CuO) based photocathodes for solar-driven hydrogen production. In this paper, stable and efficient CuO-photocathodes have been developed using in situ materials engineering and through gold-palladium (Au-Pd) nanoparticles deposition on the CuO surface. The CuO photocathode exhibits a photocurrent generation of ∼3 mA/cm 2 at 0 V v/s RHE. Time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS) analysis and X-ray spectroscopy (XPS) confirm the formation of oxygen-rich (O-rich) CuO film which demonstrates a highly stable photocathode with retained photocurrent of ∼90% for 20 min. The influence of chemical composition on the photocathode performance and stability has been discussed in detail. In addition, O-rich CuO photocathodes deposited with Au-Pd nanostructures have shown enhanced photoelectrochemical performance. Linear scan voltammetry characteristic shows ∼25% enhancement in photocurrent after Au-Pd deposition and reaches ∼4 mA/cm 2 at "0" V v/s RHE. Hydrogen evolution rate significantly depends on the elemental composition of CuO and metal nanostructure. The present work has demonstrated a stable photocathode with high photocurrent for visible-light-driven water splitting and hydrogen production.

Ni-Co bimetal nanowires filled multiwalled carbon nanotubes for the highly sensitive and selective non-enzymatic glucose sensor applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ramachandran, K.; Raj Kumar, T.; Babu, K. Justice; Gnana Kumar, G.

2016-11-01

The facile, time and cost efficient and environmental benign approach has been developed for the preparation of Nickel (Ni)-Cobalt (Co) alloy nanowires filled multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) with the aid of mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSN)/Ni-Co catalyst. The controlled incorporation of Ni-Co nanostructures in the three dimensional (3D) pore structures of MSN yielded the catalytically active system for the MWCNT growth. The inner surface of MWCNTs was quasi-continuously filled with face-centered cubic (fcc) structured Ni-Co nanowires. The as-prepared nanostructures were exploited as non-enzymatic electrochemical sensor probes for the reliable detection of glucose. The electrochemical measurements illustrated that the fabricated sensor exhibited an excellent electrochemical performance toward glucose oxidation with a high sensitivity of 0.695 mA mM-1 cm-2, low detection limit of 1.2 μM, a wide linear range from 5 μM-10 mM and good selectivity. The unprecedented electrochemical performances obtained for the prepared nanocomposite are purely attributed to the synergistic effects of Ni-Co nanowires and MWCNTs. The constructed facile, selective and sensitive glucose sensor has also endowed its reliability in analyzing the human serum samples, which wide opened the new findings for exploring the novel nanostructures based glucose sensor devices with affordable cost and good stability.

Chemical Intercalation of Topological Insulator Grid Nanostructures for High-Performance Transparent Electrodes.

PubMed

Guo, Yunfan; Zhou, Jinyuan; Liu, Yujing; Zhou, Xu; Yao, Fengrui; Tan, Congwei; Wu, Jinxiong; Lin, Li; Liu, Kaihui; Liu, Zhongfan; Peng, Hailin

2017-11-01

2D layered nanomaterials with strong covalent bonding within layers and weak van der Waals' interactions between layers have attracted tremendous interest in recent years. Layered Bi 2 Se 3 is a representative topological insulator material in this family, which holds promise for exploration of the fundamental physics and practical applications such as transparent electrode. Here, a simultaneous enhancement of optical transmittancy and electrical conductivity in Bi 2 Se 3 grid electrodes by copper-atom intercalation is presented. These Cu-intercalated 2D Bi 2 Se 3 electrodes exhibit high uniformity over large area and excellent stabilities to environmental perturbations, such as UV light, thermal fluctuation, and mechanical distortion. Remarkably, by intercalating a high density of copper atoms, the electrical and optical performance of Bi 2 Se 3 grid electrodes is greatly improved from 900 Ω sq -1 , 68% to 300 Ω sq -1 , 82% in the visible range; with better performance of 300 Ω sq -1 , 91% achieved in the near-infrared region. These unique properties of Cu-intercalated topological insulator grid nanostructures may boost their potential applications in high-performance optoelectronics, especially for infrared optoelectronic devices. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

First-principles design of nanostructured hybrid photovoltaics based on layered transition metal phosphates

DOE PAGES

Lentz, Levi C.; Kolpak, Alexie M.

2017-04-28

The performance of bulk organic and hybrid organic-inorganic heterojunction photovoltaics is often limited by high carrier recombination arising from strongly bound excitons and low carrier mobility. Structuring materials to minimize the length scales required for exciton separation and carrier collection is therefore a promising approach for improving efficiency. In this work, first-principles computations are employed to design and characterize a new class of photovoltaic materials composed of layered transition metal phosphates (TMPs) covalently bound to organic absorber molecules to form nanostructured superlattices. Using a combination of transition metal substitution and organic functionalization, the electronic structure of these materials is systematicallymore » tuned to design a new hybrid photovoltaic material predicted to exhibit very low recombination due to the presence of a local electric field and spatially isolated, high mobility, two-dimensional electron and hole conducting channels. Furthermore, this material is predicted to have a large open-circuit voltage of 1.7 V. Here, this work suggests that hybrid TMPs constitute an interesting class of materials for further investigation in the search for achieving high efficiency, high power, and low cost photo Zirconium phosphate was chosen, in part, due to previous experiment voltaics.« less

Thermal decomposition of fullerene nanowhiskers protected by amorphous carbon mask

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guo, Hongxuan; Wang, Chengxiang; Miyazawa, Kun'Ichi; Wang, Hongxin; Masuda, Hideki; Fujita, Daisuke

2016-12-01

Fullerene nanostructures are well known for their unique morphology, physical and mechanical properties. The thermal stability of fullerene nanostructures, such as their sublimation at high temperature is also very important for studying their structures and applications. In this work, We observed fullerene nanowhiskers (FNWs) in situ with scanning helium ion microscopy (HIM) at elevated temperatures. The FNWs exhibited different stabilities with different thermal histories during the observation. The pristine FNWs were decomposed at the temperatures higher than 300 °C in a vacuum environment. Other FNWs were protected from decomposition with an amorphous carbon (aC) film deposited on the surface. Based on high spacial resolution, aC film with periodic structure was deposited by helium ion beam induced deposition (IBID) on the surface of FNWs. Annealed at the high temperature, the fullerene molecules were selectively sublimated from the FNWs. The periodic structure was formed on the surface of FNWs and observed by HIM. Monte Carlo simulation and Raman characterization proved that the morphology of the FNWs was changed by helium IBID at high temperature. This work provides a new method of fabricating artificial structure on the surface of FNWs with periodic aC film as a mask.

First-principles design of nanostructured hybrid photovoltaics based on layered transition metal phosphates

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lentz, Levi C.; Kolpak, Alexie M.

The performance of bulk organic and hybrid organic-inorganic heterojunction photovoltaics is often limited by high carrier recombination arising from strongly bound excitons and low carrier mobility. Structuring materials to minimize the length scales required for exciton separation and carrier collection is therefore a promising approach for improving efficiency. In this work, first-principles computations are employed to design and characterize a new class of photovoltaic materials composed of layered transition metal phosphates (TMPs) covalently bound to organic absorber molecules to form nanostructured superlattices. Using a combination of transition metal substitution and organic functionalization, the electronic structure of these materials is systematicallymore » tuned to design a new hybrid photovoltaic material predicted to exhibit very low recombination due to the presence of a local electric field and spatially isolated, high mobility, two-dimensional electron and hole conducting channels. Furthermore, this material is predicted to have a large open-circuit voltage of 1.7 V. Here, this work suggests that hybrid TMPs constitute an interesting class of materials for further investigation in the search for achieving high efficiency, high power, and low cost photo Zirconium phosphate was chosen, in part, due to previous experiment voltaics.« less

Nanostructures having high performance thermoelectric properties

DOEpatents

Yang, Peidong; Majumdar, Arunava; Hochbaum, Allon I.; Chen, Renkun; Delgado, Raul Diaz

2015-12-22

The invention provides for a nanostructure, or an array of such nanostructures, each comprising a rough surface, and a doped or undoped semiconductor. The nanostructure is an one-dimensional (1-D) nanostructure, such a nanowire, or a two-dimensional (2-D) nanostructure. The nanostructure can be placed between two electrodes and used for thermoelectric power generation or thermoelectric cooling.

Nanostructures having high performance thermoelectric properties

DOEpatents

Yang, Peidong; Majumdar, Arunava; Hochbaum, Allon I; Chen, Renkun; Delgado, Raul Diaz

2014-05-20

The invention provides for a nanostructure, or an array of such nanostructures, each comprising a rough surface, and a doped or undoped semiconductor. The nanostructure is an one-dimensional (1-D) nanostructure, such a nanowire, or a two-dimensional (2-D) nanostructure. The nanostructure can be placed between two electrodes and used for thermoelectric power generation or thermoelectric cooling.

Thermoelectric Properties in the TiO2/SnO2 System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dynys, F.; Sayir, A.; Sehirlioglu, A.; Berger, M.

2009-01-01

Nanotechnology has provided a new interest in thermoelectric technology. A thermodynamically driven process is one approach in achieving nanostructures in bulk materials. TiO2/SnO2 system exhibits a large spinodal region with exceptional stable phase separated microstructures up to 1400 C. Fabricated TiO2/SnO2 nanocomposites exhibit n-type behavior with Seebeck coefficients greater than -300 .V/K. Composites exhibit good thermal conductance in the range of 7 to 1 W/mK. Dopant additions have not achieved high electrical conductivity (<1000 S/m). Formation of oxygen deficient composites, TixSn1-xO2-y, can change the electrical conductivity by four orders of magnitude. Achieving higher thermoelectric ZT by oxygen deficiency is being explored. Seebeck coeffcient, thermal conductivity, electrical conductance and microstructure will be discussed in relation to composition and doping.

Electrical, thermal, catalytic and magnetic properties of nano-structured materials and their applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Zuwei

Nanotechnology is a subject that studies the fabrication, properties, and applications of materials on the nanometer-scale. Top-down and bottom-up approaches are commonly used in nano-structure fabrication. The top-down approach is used to fabricate nano-structures from bulk materials by lithography, etching, and polishing etc. It is commonly used in mechanical, electronic, and photonic devices. Bottom-up approaches fabricate nano-structures from atoms or molecules by chemical synthesis, self-assembly, and deposition, such as sol-gel processing, molecular beam epitaxy (MBE), focused ion beam (FIB) milling/deposition, chemical vapor deposition (CVD), and electro-deposition etc. Nano-structures can have several different dimensionalities, including zero-dimensional nano-structures, such as fullerenes, nano-particles, quantum dots, nano-sized clusters; one-dimensional nano-structures, such as carbon nanotubes, metallic and semiconducting nanowires; two-dimensional nano-structures, such as graphene, super lattice, thin films; and three-dimensional nano-structures, such as photonic structures, anodic aluminum oxide, and molecular sieves. These nano-structured materials exhibit unique electrical, thermal, optical, mechanical, chemical, and magnetic properties in the quantum mechanical regime. Various techniques can be used to study these properties, such as scanning probe microscopy (SPM), scanning/transmission electron microscopy (SEM/TEM), micro Raman spectroscopy, etc. These unique properties have important applications in modern technologies, such as random access memories, display, solar energy conversion, chemical sensing, and bio-medical devices. This thesis includes four main topics in the broad area of nanoscience: magnetic properties of ferro-magnetic cobalt nanowires, plasmonic properties of metallic nano-particles, photocatalytic properties of titanium dioxide nanotubes, and electro-thermal-optical properties of carbon nanotubes. These materials and their properties are briefly reviewed in Chapter One, including the concepts of ferro-magnetism, plasmonics, photocatalysis, thermal emission, and Raman spectra of carbon nanotubes. In Chapter Two, we focus on the magnetic properties of ferro-magnetic cobalt nanowires with high crystalline quality synthesized via a low voltage electro-deposition method. The crystal structure of these Co nanowires is characterized by high resolution transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. The magnetic properties of individual nanowires and nanowire arrays are investigated by magnetic force microscope (MFM) and superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) measurements. A theoretical model is developed to explain these experimental observations. In Chapter Three, we exploit the strong plasmon resonance of gold nanoparticles. We also demonstrate a new method for patterning SERS (surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy) aggregates of gold nanoparticles by using a focused laser beam to optically trap the nanoparticles in a water suspension. Raman spectroscopy is used to estimate the temperature in the laser spot during the in-situ aggregation, by measuring the Raman peak of the hydroxyl bond of water. In Chapter Four, we demonstrate plasmonic enhancement of photocatalytic water splitting under visible illumination by integrating strongly plasmonic Au nanoparticles with strongly catalytic TiO2. Electromagnetic simulations indicate that the near-field optical enhancement increases the electron-hole pair generation rate at the surface of the TiO2, thus increasing the amount of photo-generated charge contributing to catalysis. Our results suggest that enhancement factors many times larger than this are possible if this mechanism can be optimized. In Chapter Five, we study the Raman spectra and thermal emission spectra of individual suspended carbon nanotubes induced by electrical heating. Semiconducting and metallic devices exhibit different spectra, based on their distinctive band structures. Raman spectra and the blackbody emission background are used to fit the device temperature. In addition to the blackbody emission background, polarized peaks along the nanotube direction are observed in different ranges of the thermal emission spectra for metallic and semiconducting devices. These peaks are attributed to the transitions between Van Hove singularities that are thermally driven under these high applied bias voltages. A theoretical model is developed to calculate the thermal emission spectra based on this conclusion. In Chapter Six, we present some data of single crystal zinc oxide (ZnO) nanowires synthesized by the CVD method, including magneto-resistance measurements, optical-resistance measurements, and scanning-gate measurements. In Chapter Seven, we discuss some future work related to photocatalysis and carbon nanotubes.

Force fields for describing the solution-phase synthesis of shape-selective metal nanoparticles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Ya; Al-Saidi, Wissam; Fichthorn, Kristen

2013-03-01

Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) and polyethylene oxide (PEO) are structure-directing agents that exhibit different performance in the polyol synthesis of Ag nanostructures. The success of these structure-directing agents in selective nanostructure synthesis is often attributed to their selective binding to Ag(100) facets. We use first-principles, density-functional theory (DFT) calculations in a vacuum environment to show that PVP has a stronger preference to bind to Ag(100) than to Ag(111), whereas PEO exhibits much weaker selectivity. To understand the role of solvent in the surface-sensitive binding, we develop classical force fields to describe the interactions of the structure-directing (PVP and PEO) and solvent (ethylene glycol) molecules with various Ag substrates. We parameterize the force fields through force-and-energy matching to DFT results using simulated annealing. We validate the force fields by comparisons to DFT and experimental binding energies. Our force fields reproduce the surface-sensitive binding predicted by DFT calculations. Molecular dynamics simulations based on these force fields can be used to reveal the role of solvent, polymer chain length, and polymer concentration in the selective synthesis of Ag nanostructures.

The Physics and Applications of a 3D Plasmonic Nanostructure

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Terranova, Brandon B.

In this work, the dynamics of electromagnetic field interactions with free electrons in a 3D metallic nanostructure is evaluated theoretically. This dissertation starts by reviewing the relevant fundamentals of plasmonics and modern applications of plasmonic systems. Then, motivated by the need to have a simpler way of understanding the surface charge dynamics on complex plasmonic nanostructures, a new plasmon hybridization tree method is introduced. This method provides the plasmonicist with an intuitive way to determine the response of free electrons to incident light in complex nanostructures within the electrostatic regime. Next, a novel 3D plasmonic nanostructure utilizing reflective plasmonic coupling is designed to perform biosensing and plasmonic tweezing applications. By applying analytical and numerical methods, the effectiveness of this nanostructure at performing these applications is determined from the plasmonic response of the nanostructure to an excitation beam of coherent light. During this analysis, it was discovered that under certain conditions, this 3D nanostructure exhibits a plasmonic Fano resonance resulting from the interference of an in-plane dark mode and an out-of-plane bright mode. In evaluating this nanostructure for sensing changes in the local dielectric environment, a figure of merit of 68 is calculated, which is competitive with current localized surface plasmon resonance refractometric sensors. By evaluating the Maxwell stress tensor on a test particle in the vicinity of the nanostructure, it was found that under the right conditions, this plasmonic nanostructure design is capable of imparting forces greater than 10.5 nN on dielectric objects of nanoscale dimensions. The results obtained in these studies provides new routes to the design and engineering of 3D plasmonic nanostructures and Fano resonances in these systems. In addition, the nanostructure presented in this work and the design principles it utilizes have shown performance metrics which make it an important contribution to the fields of LSPR biosensing and plasmonic trapping and force transduction.

Scalable Synthesis of Triple-Core-Shell Nanostructures of TiO2 @MnO2 @C for High Performance Supercapacitors Using Structure-Guided Combustion Waves.

PubMed

Shin, Dongjoon; Shin, Jungho; Yeo, Taehan; Hwang, Hayoung; Park, Seonghyun; Choi, Wonjoon

2018-03-01

Core-shell nanostructures of metal oxides and carbon-based materials have emerged as outstanding electrode materials for supercapacitors and batteries. However, their synthesis requires complex procedures that incur high costs and long processing times. Herein, a new route is proposed for synthesizing triple-core-shell nanoparticles of TiO 2 @MnO 2 @C using structure-guided combustion waves (SGCWs), which originate from incomplete combustion inside chemical-fuel-wrapped nanostructures, and their application in supercapacitor electrodes. SGCWs transform TiO 2 to TiO 2 @C and TiO 2 @MnO 2 to TiO 2 @MnO 2 @C via the incompletely combusted carbonaceous fuels under an open-air atmosphere, in seconds. The synthesized carbon layers act as templates for MnO 2 shells in TiO 2 @C and organic shells of TiO 2 @MnO 2 @C. The TiO 2 @MnO 2 @C-based electrodes exhibit a greater specific capacitance (488 F g -1 at 5 mV s -1 ) and capacitance retention (97.4% after 10 000 cycles at 1.0 V s -1 ), while the absence of MnO 2 and carbon shells reveals a severe degradation in the specific capacitance and capacitance retention. Because the core-TiO 2 nanoparticles and carbon shell prevent the deformation of the inner and outer sides of the MnO 2 shell, the nanostructures of the TiO 2 @MnO 2 @C are preserved despite the long-term cycling, giving the superior performance. This SGCW-driven fabrication enables the scalable synthesis of multiple-core-shell structures applicable to diverse electrochemical applications. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Rational design of octahedron and nanowire CeO2@MnO2 core-shell heterostructures with outstanding rate capability for asymmetric supercapacitors.

PubMed

Zhu, Shi Jin; Jia, Jia Qi; Wang, Tian; Zhao, Dong; Yang, Jian; Dong, Fan; Shang, Zheng Guo; Zhang, Yu Xin

2015-10-14

Two kinds of novel CeO2@MnO2 nanostructures have been synthesized via a self-assembly strategy. The as-prepared CeO2 nanowire@MnO2 nanostructures exhibited unprecedented pseudocapacitance performance (255 F g(-1)) with outstanding rate capability. A new mechanism based on the synergistic effect between CeO2 and MnO2 was proposed to interpret this phenomenon. When assembled as an asymmetric supercapacitor, an energy density of 27.5 W h kg(-1) with a maximum power density of 1.6 kW kg(-1) was achieved for CeO2 nanowire@MnO2 nanostructures.

Improved out-coupling efficiency of organic light emitting diodes fabricated on a TiO2 planarization layer with embedded Si oxide nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sung, Young Hoon; Jung, Pil-Hoon; Han, Kyung-Hoon; Kim, Yang Doo; Kim, Jang-Joo; Lee, Heon

2017-10-01

In order to increase the out-coupling efficiency of organic light emitting diodes, conical Si oxide nanostructures were formed on a glass substrate using nanoimprint lithography with hydrogen silsesquioxane. Then, the substrate was planarized with TiO2 nanoparticles. Since TiO2 nanoparticles have a higher refractive index than Si oxide, the surface of substrate is physically flat, but optically undulated in a manner that enables optical scattering and suppression of total internal reflection. Subsequently, OLEDs formed on a substrate with nanostructured Si oxide and a TiO2 planarization layer exhibit a 25% increase in out-coupling efficiency by suppressing total internal reflection.

Self-Assembled Fe-N-Doped Carbon Nanotube Aerogels with Single-Atom Catalyst Feature as High-Efficiency Oxygen Reduction Electrocatalysts

DOE PAGES

Zhu, Chengzhou; Fu, Shaofang; Song, Junhua; ...

2017-02-06

In this study, self-assembled M–N-doped carbon nanotube aerogels with single-atom catalyst feature are for the first time reported through one-step hydrothermal route and subsequent facile annealing treatment. By taking advantage of the porous nanostructures, 1D nanotubes as well as single-atom catalyst feature, the resultant Fe–N-doped carbon nanotube aerogels exhibit excellent oxygen reduction reaction electrocatalytic performance even better than commercial Pt/C in alkaline solution.

Reconstruction of Mini-Hollow Polyhedron Mn2O3 Derived from MOFs as a High-Performance Lithium Anode Material.

PubMed

Cao, Kangzhe; Jiao, Lifang; Xu, Hang; Liu, Huiqiao; Kang, Hongyan; Zhao, Yan; Liu, Yongchang; Wang, Yijing; Yuan, Huatang

2016-03-01

A mini-hollow polyhedron Mn 2 O 3 is used as the anode material for lithium-ion batteries. Benefiting from the small interior cavity and intrinsic nanosize effect, a stable reconstructed hierarchical nanostructure is formed. It has excellent energy storage properties, exhibiting a capacity of 760 mAh g -1 at 2 A g -1 after 1000 cycles. This finding offers a new perspective for the design of electrodes with large energy storage.

Interlinked multiphase Fe-doped MnO2 nanostructures: a novel design for enhanced pseudocapacitive performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Ziya; Wang, Fengping; Li, Yan; Hu, Jianlin; Lu, Yanzhen; Xu, Mei

2016-03-01

Structure designing and morphology control can lead to high performance pseudocapacitive materials for supercapacitors. In this work, we have designed interlinked multiphase Fe-doped MnO2 nanostructures (α-MnO2/R-MnO2/ε-MnO2) to enhance the electrochemical properties by a facile method. These hierarchical hollow microspheres assembled by interconnected nanoflakes, and with plenty of porous nanorods radiating from the spherical shells were hydrothermally obtained. The supercapacitor electrode prepared from the unique construction exhibits outstanding specific capacitance of 267.0 F g-1 even under a high mass loading (~5 mg cm-2). Obviously improved performances compared to pure MnO2 are also demonstrated with a good rate capability, high energy density (1.30 mW h cm-3) and excellent cycling stability of 100% capacitance retention after 2000 cycles at 2 A g-1. The synergistic effects of alternative crystal structures, appropriate crystallinity and optimal morphology are identified to be responsible for the observations. This rational multiphase composite strategy provides a promising idea for materials scientists to design and prepare scalable electrode materials for energy storage devices.Structure designing and morphology control can lead to high performance pseudocapacitive materials for supercapacitors. In this work, we have designed interlinked multiphase Fe-doped MnO2 nanostructures (α-MnO2/R-MnO2/ε-MnO2) to enhance the electrochemical properties by a facile method. These hierarchical hollow microspheres assembled by interconnected nanoflakes, and with plenty of porous nanorods radiating from the spherical shells were hydrothermally obtained. The supercapacitor electrode prepared from the unique construction exhibits outstanding specific capacitance of 267.0 F g-1 even under a high mass loading (~5 mg cm-2). Obviously improved performances compared to pure MnO2 are also demonstrated with a good rate capability, high energy density (1.30 mW h cm-3) and excellent cycling stability of 100% capacitance retention after 2000 cycles at 2 A g-1. The synergistic effects of alternative crystal structures, appropriate crystallinity and optimal morphology are identified to be responsible for the observations. This rational multiphase composite strategy provides a promising idea for materials scientists to design and prepare scalable electrode materials for energy storage devices. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/c5nr08857g

Mesoporous nickel oxide nanowires: hydrothermal synthesis, characterisation and applications for lithium-ion batteries and supercapacitors with superior performance.

PubMed

Su, Dawei; Kim, Hyun-Soo; Kim, Woo-Seong; Wang, Guoxiu

2012-06-25

Mesoporous nickel oxide nanowires were synthesized by a hydrothermal reaction and subsequent annealing at 400 °C. The porous one-dimensional nanostructures were analysed by field-emission SEM, high-resolution TEM and N(2) adsorption/desorption isotherm measurements. When applied as the anode material in lithium-ion batteries, the as-prepared mesoporous nickel oxide nanowires demonstrated outstanding electrochemical performance with high lithium storage capacity, satisfactory cyclability and an excellent rate capacity. They also exhibited a high specific capacitance of 348 F g(-1) as electrodes in supercapacitors. Copyright © 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Band structure engineering strategies of metal oxide semiconductor nanowires and related nanostructures: A review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Piyadasa, Adimali; Wang, Sibo; Gao, Pu-Xian

2017-07-01

The electronic band structure of a solid state semiconductor determines many of its physical and chemical characteristics such as electrical, optical, physicochemical, and catalytic activity. Alteration or modification of the band structure could lead to significant changes in these physical and chemical characteristics, therefore we introduce new mechanisms of creating novel solid state materials with interesting properties. Over the past three decades, research on band structure engineering has allowed development of various methods to modify the band structure of engineered materials. Compared to bulk counterparts, nanostructures generally exhibit higher band structure modulation capabilities due to the quantum confinement effect, prominent surface effect, and higher strain limit. In this review we will discuss various band structure engineering strategies in semiconductor nanowires and other related nanostructures, mostly focusing on metal oxide systems. Several important strategies of band structure modulation are discussed in detail, such as doping, alloying, straining, interface and core-shell nanostructuring.

Wettability control of micropore-array films by altering the surface nanostructures.

PubMed

Chang, Chi-Jung; Hung, Shao-Tsu

2010-07-01

By controlling the surface nanostructure, the wettability of films with similar pore-array microstructure can be tuned from hydrophilic to nearly superhydrophobic without variation of the chemical composition. PA1 pore-array film consisting of the horizontal ZnO nanosheets was nearly superhydrophobic. PA2 pore-array film consisting of growth-hindered vertically-aligned ZnO nanorods was hydrophilic. The influences of the nanostructure shape, orientation and the micropore size on the contact angle of the PA1 films were studied. This study provides a new approach to control the wettability of films with similar pore-array structure at the micro-scale by changing their surface nanostructure. PA1 films exhibited irradiation induced reversible wettability transition. The feasibility of creating a wetted radial pattern by selective UV irradiation of PA1 film through a mask with radial pattern and water vapor condensation was also evaluated.

Self-bridging of vertical silicon nanowires and a universal capacitive force model for spontaneous attraction in nanostructures.

PubMed

Sun, Zhelin; Wang, Deli; Xiang, Jie

2014-11-25

Spontaneous attractions between free-standing nanostructures have often caused adhesion or stiction that affects a wide range of nanoscale devices, particularly nano/microelectromechanical systems. Previous understandings of the attraction mechanisms have included capillary force, van der Waals/Casimir forces, and surface polar charges. However, none of these mechanisms universally applies to simple semiconductor structures such as silicon nanowire arrays that often exhibit bunching or adhesions. Here we propose a simple capacitive force model to quantitatively study the universal spontaneous attraction that often causes stiction among semiconductor or metallic nanostructures such as vertical nanowire arrays with inevitably nonuniform size variations due to fabrication. When nanostructures are uniform in size, they share the same substrate potential. The presence of slight size differences will break the symmetry in the capacitive network formed between the nanowires, substrate, and their environment, giving rise to electrostatic attraction forces due to the relative potential difference between neighboring wires. Our model is experimentally verified using arrays of vertical silicon nanowire pairs with varied spacing, diameter, and size differences. Threshold nanowire spacing, diameter, or size difference between the nearest neighbors has been identified beyond which the nanowires start to exhibit spontaneous attraction that leads to bridging when electrostatic forces overcome elastic restoration forces. This work illustrates a universal understanding of spontaneous attraction that will impact the design, fabrication, and reliable operation of nanoscale devices and systems.

Au nanostructure arrays for plasmonic applications: annealed island films versus nanoimprint lithography

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lopatynskyi, Andrii M.; Lytvyn, Vitalii K.; Nazarenko, Volodymyr I.; Guo, L. Jay; Lucas, Brandon D.; Chegel, Volodymyr I.

2015-03-01

This paper attempts to compare the main features of random and highly ordered gold nanostructure arrays (NSA) prepared by thermally annealed island film and nanoimprint lithography (NIL) techniques, respectively. Each substrate possesses different morphology in terms of plasmonic enhancement. Both methods allow such important features as spectral tuning of plasmon resonance position depending on size and shape of nanostructures; however, the time and cost is quite different. The respective comparison was performed experimentally and theoretically for a number of samples with different geometrical parameters. Spectral characteristics of fabricated NSA exhibited an expressed plasmon peak in the range from 576 to 809 nm for thermally annealed samples and from 606 to 783 nm for samples prepared by NIL. Modelling of the optical response for nanostructures with typical shapes associated with these techniques (parallelepiped for NIL and semi-ellipsoid for annealed island films) was performed using finite-difference time-domain calculations. Mathematical simulations have indicated the dependence of electric field enhancement on the shape and size of the nanoparticles. As an important point, the distribution of electric field at so-called `hot spots' was considered. Parallelepiped-shaped nanoparticles were shown to yield maximal enhancement values by an order of magnitude greater than their semi-ellipsoid-shaped counterparts; however, both nanoparticle shapes have demonstrated comparable effective electrical field enhancement values. Optimized Au nanostructures with equivalent diameters ranging from 85 to 143 nm and height equal to 35 nm were obtained for both techniques, resulting in the largest electrical field enhancement. The application of island film thermal annealing method for nanochips fabrication can be considered as a possible cost-effective platform for various surface-enhanced spectroscopies; while the NIL-fabricated NSA looks like more effective for sensing of small-size objects.

Biomimetic artificial Si compound eye surface structures with broadband and wide-angle antireflection properties for Si-based optoelectronic applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leem, Jung Woo; Song, Young Min; Yu, Jae Su

2013-10-01

We report the biomimetic artificial silicon (Si) compound eye structures for broadband and wide-angle antireflection by integrating nanostructures (NSs) into periodically patterned microstructures (p-MSs) via thermal dewetting of gold and subsequent dry etching. The truncated cone microstructures with a two-dimensional hexagonal symmetry pattern were fabricated by photolithography and dry etching processes. The desirable shape and density of the nanostructures were obtained by controlled dewetting. The incorporation of p-MSs into the NS/Si surface further reduced the surface total reflectance over a wide wavelength range of 300-1030 nm at near normal incidence, indicating the average reflectance (Ravg) and solar weighted reflectance (RSWR) values of ~2.5% and 2%, respectively, compared to the only NSs on the flat Si surface (i.e., Ravg ~ 4.9% and RSWR ~ 4.5%). Additionally, the resulting structure improved the angle-dependent antireflection property due to its relatively omnidirectional shape, which exhibited the Ravg < 4.3% and RSWR < 3.7% in the wavelength region of 300-1100 nm even at a high incident light angle of 70° in the specular reflectance.We report the biomimetic artificial silicon (Si) compound eye structures for broadband and wide-angle antireflection by integrating nanostructures (NSs) into periodically patterned microstructures (p-MSs) via thermal dewetting of gold and subsequent dry etching. The truncated cone microstructures with a two-dimensional hexagonal symmetry pattern were fabricated by photolithography and dry etching processes. The desirable shape and density of the nanostructures were obtained by controlled dewetting. The incorporation of p-MSs into the NS/Si surface further reduced the surface total reflectance over a wide wavelength range of 300-1030 nm at near normal incidence, indicating the average reflectance (Ravg) and solar weighted reflectance (RSWR) values of ~2.5% and 2%, respectively, compared to the only NSs on the flat Si surface (i.e., Ravg ~ 4.9% and RSWR ~ 4.5%). Additionally, the resulting structure improved the angle-dependent antireflection property due to its relatively omnidirectional shape, which exhibited the Ravg < 4.3% and RSWR < 3.7% in the wavelength region of 300-1100 nm even at a high incident light angle of 70° in the specular reflectance. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: See DOI: 10.1039/c3nr02806b

Antibacterial Au nanostructured surfaces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Songmei; Zuber, Flavia; Brugger, Juergen; Maniura-Weber, Katharina; Ren, Qun

2016-01-01

We present here a technological platform for engineering Au nanotopographies by templated electrodeposition on antibacterial surfaces. Three different types of nanostructures were fabricated: nanopillars, nanorings and nanonuggets. The nanopillars are the basic structures and are 50 nm in diameter and 100 nm in height. Particular arrangement of the nanopillars in various geometries formed nanorings and nanonuggets. Flat surfaces, rough substrate surfaces, and various nanostructured surfaces were compared for their abilities to attach and kill bacterial cells. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, a Gram-positive bacterial strain responsible for many infections in health care system, was used as the model bacterial strain. It was found that all the Au nanostructures, regardless their shapes, exhibited similar excellent antibacterial properties. A comparison of live cells attached to nanotopographic surfaces showed that the number of live S. aureus cells was <1% of that from flat and rough reference surfaces. Our micro/nanofabrication process is a scalable approach based on cost-efficient self-organization and provides potential for further developing functional surfaces to study the behavior of microbes on nanoscale topographies.We present here a technological platform for engineering Au nanotopographies by templated electrodeposition on antibacterial surfaces. Three different types of nanostructures were fabricated: nanopillars, nanorings and nanonuggets. The nanopillars are the basic structures and are 50 nm in diameter and 100 nm in height. Particular arrangement of the nanopillars in various geometries formed nanorings and nanonuggets. Flat surfaces, rough substrate surfaces, and various nanostructured surfaces were compared for their abilities to attach and kill bacterial cells. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, a Gram-positive bacterial strain responsible for many infections in health care system, was used as the model bacterial strain. It was found that all the Au nanostructures, regardless their shapes, exhibited similar excellent antibacterial properties. A comparison of live cells attached to nanotopographic surfaces showed that the number of live S. aureus cells was <1% of that from flat and rough reference surfaces. Our micro/nanofabrication process is a scalable approach based on cost-efficient self-organization and provides potential for further developing functional surfaces to study the behavior of microbes on nanoscale topographies. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/c5nr06157a

γ-Fe2O3 and Fe3O4 magnetic hierarchically nanostructured hollow microspheres: preparation, formation mechanism, magnetic property, and application in water treatment.

PubMed

Xu, Jing-San; Zhu, Ying-Jie

2012-11-01

In this paper, we report the preparation of γ-Fe(2)O(3) and Fe(3)O(4) magnetic hierarchically nanostructured hollow microspheres by a solvothermal combined with precursor thermal conversion method. These γ-Fe(2)O(3) and Fe(3)O(4) magnetic hierarchically nanostructured hollow microspheres were constructed by three-dimensional self-assembly of nanosheets, forming porous nanostructures. The effects of experimental parameters including molar ratio of reactants and reaction temperature on the precursors were studied. The time-dependent experiments indicated that the Ostwald ripening was responsible for the formation of the hierarchically nanostructured hollow microspheres of the precursors. γ-Fe(2)O(3) and Fe(3)O(4) magnetic hierarchically nanostructured hollow microspheres were obtained by the thermal transformation of the precursor hollow microspheres. Both γ-Fe(2)O(3) and Fe(3)O(4) hierarchically nanostructured hollow microspheres exhibited a superparamagnetic property at room temperature and had the saturation magnetization of 44.2 and 55.4 emu/g, respectively, in the applied magnetic field of 20 KOe. Several kinds of organic pollutants including salicylic acid (SA), methylene blue (MB), and basic fuchsin (BF) were chosen as the model water pollutants to evaluate the removal abilities of γ-Fe(2)O(3) and Fe(3)O(4) magnetic hierarchically nanostructured hollow microspheres. It was found that γ-Fe(2)O(3) hierarchically nanostructured hollow microspheres showed a better adsorption ability over SA than MB and BF. However, Fe(3)O(4) hierarchically nanostructured hollow microspheres had the best performance for adsorbing MB. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Engineering optical properties using plasmonic nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tamma, Venkata Ananth

Plasmonic nanostructures can be engineered to take on unusual optical properties not found in natural materials. The optical responses of plasmonic materials are functions of the structural parameters and symmetry of the nanostructures, material parameters of the nanostructure and its surroundings and the incidence angle, frequency and polarization state of light. The scattering and hence the visibility of an object could be reduced by coating it with a plasmonic material. In this thesis, presented is an optical frequency scattering cancelation device composed of a silicon nanorod coated by a plasmonic gold nanostructure. The principle of operation was theoretically analyzed using Mie theory and the device design was verified by extensive numerical simulations. The device was fabricated using a combination of nanofabrication techniques such as electron beam lithography and focused ion beam milling. The optical responses of the scattering cancelation device and a control sample of bare silicon rod were directly visualized using near-field microscopy coupled with heterodyne interferometric detection. The experimental results were analyzed and found to match very well with theoretical prediction from numerical simulations thereby validating the design principles and our implementation. Plasmonic nanostructures could be engineered to exhibit unique optical properties such as Fano resonance characterized by narrow asymmetrical lineshape. We present dynamic tuning and symmetry lowering of Fano resonances in plasmonic nanostructures fabricated on flexible substrates. The tuning of Fano resonance was achieved by application of uniaxial mechanical stress. The design of the nanostructures was facilitated by extensive numerical simulations and the symmetry lowering was analyzed using group theoretical methods. The nanostructures were fabricated using electron beam lithography and optically characterized for various mechanical stress. The experimental results were in good agreement with the numerical simulations. The mechanically tunable plasmonic nanostructure could serve as a platform for dynamically tunable nanophotonic devices such as sensors and tunable filters.

Enhanced photoelectrochemical performance and photocatalytic activity of ZnO/TiO2 nanostructures fabricated by an electrostatically modified electrospinning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ramos, Pierre G.; Flores, Edson; Sánchez, Luis A.; Candal, Roberto J.; Hojamberdiev, Mirabbos; Estrada, Walter; Rodriguez, Juan

2017-12-01

In this work, ZnO/TiO2 nanostructures were fabricated by an electrostatically modified electrospinning technique using zinc acetate and commercially available TiO2-P25, polyvinyl alcohol, and a solvent. The ZnO/TiO2 nanostructures were fabricated on fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) glass substrate by electrospinning of aqueous solution containing different amounts of zinc acetate. The TiO2-P25 nanoparticles were immobilized within zinc acetate/PVA nanofibers. The precursor nanofibers obtained were converted into polycrystalline ZnO and ZnO/TiO2 by calcination at 600 °C. The structure and morphology of the obtained nanostructures were characterized by X-ray diffraction and field emission scanning electron microscopy, respectively. It was found that the TiO2-P25 nanoparticles were attached to the ZnO nanostructures, and the mean diameter of the nanoparticles forming the nanostructures ranged from 31 to 52 nm with increasing the amount of zinc acetate. The incident photon-to-current efficiency (IPCE) spectra of the fabricated nanostructures were measured in a three-electrode cell. The photocatalytic activities of ZnO and ZnO/TiO2 nanostructures were evaluated toward the decomposition of methyl orange. The obtained results evidenced that the coupling of TiO2 with ZnO enhanced the IPCE and improved the photocatalytic activity of ZnO. Particularly, the ZnO/TiO2 nanostructures fabricated with a zinc acetate-to-PVA ratio of 2:3 exhibited the highest IPCE and photocatalytic activity.

Visible and UV photo-detection in ZnO nanostructured thin films via simple tuning of solution method.

PubMed

Khokhra, Richa; Bharti, Bandna; Lee, Heung-No; Kumar, Rajesh

2017-11-08

This study demonstrates significant visible light photo-detection capability of pristine ZnO nanostructure thin films possessing substantially high percentage of oxygen vacancies [Formula: see text] and zinc interstitials [Formula: see text], introduced by simple tuning of economical solution method. The demonstrated visible light photo-detection capability, in addition to the inherent UV light detection ability of ZnO, shows great dependency of [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] with the nanostructure morphology. The dependency was evaluated by analyzing the presence/percentage of [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] using photoluminescence (PL) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) measurements. Morphologies of ZnO viz. nanoparticles (NPs), nanosheets (NSs) and nanoflowers (NFs), as a result of tuning of synthesis method contended different concentrations of defects, demonstrated different photo-detection capabilities in the form of a thin film photodetector. The photo-detection capability was investigated under different light excitations (UV; 380~420 nm, white ; λ > 420 nm and green; 490~570 nm). The as fabricated NSs photodetector possessing comparatively intermediate percentage of [Formula: see text] ~ 47.7% and [Formula: see text] ~ 13.8% exhibited superior performance than that of NPs and NFs photodetectors, and ever reported photodetectors fabricated by using pristine ZnO nanostructures in thin film architecture. The adopted low cost and simplest approach makes the pristine ZnO-NSs applicable for wide-wavelength applications in optoelectronic devices.

One-step preparation of nanostructured martite catalyst and graphite electrode by glow discharge plasma for heterogeneous electro-Fenton like process.

PubMed

Khataee, Alireza; Sajjadi, Saeed; Hasanzadeh, Aliyeh; Vahid, Behrouz; Joo, Sang Woo

2017-09-01

Natural Martite ore particles and graphite were modified by alternating current (AC) glow discharge plasma to form nanostructured catalyst and cathode electrode for using in the heterogeneous-electro Fenton-like (Het-EF-like) process. The performance of the plasma-treated martite (PTM) and graphite electrode (PTGE) was studied for the treatment of paraquat herbicide in a batch system. 85.78% degradation efficiency for 20 mg L -1 paraquat was achieved in the modified process under desired operational conditions (i.e. current intensity of 300 mA, catalyst amount of 1 g L -1 , pH = 6, and background electrolyte (Na 2 SO 4 ) concentration of 0.05 mol L -1 ) which was higher than the 41.03% for the unmodified one after 150 min of treatment. The ecofriendly modification of the martite particles and the graphite electrode, no chemical needed, low leached iron and milder operational pH were the main privileges of plasma utilization. Moreover, the degradation efficiency through the process was not declined after five repeated cycles at the optimized conditions, which proved the stability of the nanostructured PTM and PTGE in the long-term usage. The archived results exhibit this method is the first example of high efficient, cost-effective, and environment-friendly method for generation of nanostructured samples. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Aytug, Tolga

Maintaining clarity and avoiding the accumulation of water and dirt on optically transparent surfaces such as US military vehicle windshields, viewports, periscope optical head windows, and electronic equipment cover glasses are critical to providing a high level of visibility, improved survivability, and much-needed safety for warfighters in the field. Through a combination of physical vapor deposition techniques and the exploitation of metastable phase separation in low-alkali borosilicate, a novel technology was developed for the fabrication of optically transparent, porous nanostructured silica thin film coatings that are strongly bonded to glass platforms. The nanotextured films, initially structurally superhydrophilic, exhibit superior superhydrophobicity,more » hence antisoiling ability, following a simple but robust modification in surface chemistry. The surfaces yield water droplet contact angles as high as 172°. Moreover, the nanostructured nature of these coatings provides increased light scattering in the UV regime and reduced reflectivity (i.e., enhanced transmission) over a broad range of the visible spectrum. In addition to these functionalities, the coatings exhibit superior mechanical resistance to abrasion and are thermally stable to temperatures approaching 500°C. The overall process technology relies on industry standard equipment and inherently scalable manufacturing processes and demands only nontoxic, naturally abundant, and inexpensive base materials. Such coatings, applied to the optical components of current and future combat equipment and military vehicles will provide a significant strategic advantage for warfighters. The inherent self-cleaning properties of such superhydrophobic coatings will also mitigate biofouling of optical windows exposed to high-humidity conditions and can help decrease repair/replacement costs, reduce maintenance, and increase readiness by limiting equipment downtime.« less

The Photocatalytic Application of Semiconductor Stibnite Nanostructure Synthesized via a Simple Microwave-Assisted Approach in Propylene Glycol for Degradation of Dye Pollutants and its Optical Property

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saksornchai, Eksuree; Kavinchan, Jutarat; Thongtem, Somchai; Thongtem, Titipun

2017-11-01

Stibnite (Sb2S3) semiconducting material was successfully synthesized by a rapid and facile microwave route using antimony chloride (SbCl3) and sodiumthiosulfate (Na2S2O3) dissolved in propylene glycol (PG) containing different hydroxyethyl cellulose (HEC) masses. The phase identification, morphology, and elemental composition of products were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), field- emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopy, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The results revealed the orthorhombic phase of Sb2S3 single crystal-forming sheaf-like nanostructure, and a possible formation mechanism was proposed and discussed. Its direct band gap calculated from UV-visible absorption is 1.60 eV. In this research, the photocatalytic activities of Sb2S3 nanostructure were investigated through the degradation of methyl orange (MO) and methylene blue (MB) under visible light irradiation. The as-obtained 0.30 g HEC-added solution (0.3 HEC-Sb2S3) photocatalyst exhibited better photocatalytic activity than the other products, which degraded 91% of MO within 300 min and 90% of MB within 240 min under the Xe-lamp irradiation. The first-order plot was fitted with this experiment which the rate constant ( k) of 0.3 HEC-Sb2S3 for MO and MB degradation are 0.0085 and 0.0098 min-1, respectively. Therefore, the new experience with a novel and simple synthetic procedure of Sb2S3 photocatalyst that exhibits the characteristics of a highly effective photocatalyst under visible light irradiation was discovered.

Guided self-assembly of nanostructured titanium oxide

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Baoxiang; Rozynek, Zbigniew; Fossum, Jon Otto; Knudsen, Kenneth D.; Yu, Yingda

2012-02-01

A series of nanostructured titanium oxide particles were synthesized by a simple wet chemical method and characterized by means of small-angle x-ray scattering (SAXS)/wide-angle x-ray scattering (WAXS), atomic force microscope (AFM), scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), thermal analysis, and rheometry. Tetrabutyl titanate (TBT) and ethylene glycol (EG) can be combined to form either TiOx nanowires or smooth nanorods, and the molar ratio of TBT:EG determines which of these is obtained. Therefore, TiOx nanorods with a highly rough surface can be obtained by hydrolysis of TBT with the addition of cetyl-trimethyl-ammonium bromide (CTAB) as surfactant in an EG solution. Furthermore, TiOx nanorods with two sharp ends can be obtained by hydrolysis of TBT with the addition of salt (LiCl) in an EG solution. The AFM results show that the TiOx nanorods with rough surfaces are formed by the self-assembly of TiOx nanospheres. The electrorheological (ER) effect was investigated using a suspension of titanium oxide nanowires or nanorods dispersed in silicone oil. Oil suspensions of titanium oxide nanowires or nanorods exhibit a dramatic reorganization when submitted to a strong DC electric field and the particles aggregate to form chain-like structures along the direction of applied electric field. Two-dimensional SAXS images from chains of anisotropically shaped particles exhibit a marked asymmetry in the SAXS patterns, reflecting the preferential self-assembly of the particles in the field. The suspension of rough TiOx nanorods shows stronger ER properties than that of the other nanostructured TiOx particles. We find that the particle surface roughness plays an important role in modification of the dielectric properties and in the enhancement of the ER effect.

Guided self-assembly of nanostructured titanium oxide.

PubMed

Wang, Baoxiang; Rozynek, Zbigniew; Fossum, Jon Otto; Knudsen, Kenneth D; Yu, Yingda

2012-02-24

A series of nanostructured titanium oxide particles were synthesized by a simple wet chemical method and characterized by means of small-angle x-ray scattering (SAXS)/wide-angle x-ray scattering (WAXS), atomic force microscope (AFM), scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), thermal analysis, and rheometry. Tetrabutyl titanate (TBT) and ethylene glycol (EG) can be combined to form either TiO(x) nanowires or smooth nanorods, and the molar ratio of TBT:EG determines which of these is obtained. Therefore, TiO(x) nanorods with a highly rough surface can be obtained by hydrolysis of TBT with the addition of cetyl-trimethyl-ammonium bromide (CTAB) as surfactant in an EG solution. Furthermore, TiO(x) nanorods with two sharp ends can be obtained by hydrolysis of TBT with the addition of salt (LiCl) in an EG solution. The AFM results show that the TiO(x) nanorods with rough surfaces are formed by the self-assembly of TiO(x) nanospheres. The electrorheological (ER) effect was investigated using a suspension of titanium oxide nanowires or nanorods dispersed in silicone oil. Oil suspensions of titanium oxide nanowires or nanorods exhibit a dramatic reorganization when submitted to a strong DC electric field and the particles aggregate to form chain-like structures along the direction of applied electric field. Two-dimensional SAXS images from chains of anisotropically shaped particles exhibit a marked asymmetry in the SAXS patterns, reflecting the preferential self-assembly of the particles in the field. The suspension of rough TiO(x) nanorods shows stronger ER properties than that of the other nanostructured TiO(x) particles. We find that the particle surface roughness plays an important role in modification of the dielectric properties and in the enhancement of the ER effect.

Plasmonic resonances in hybrid systems of aluminum nanostructured arrays and few layer graphene within the UV-IR spectral range

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

González-Campuzano, R.; Saniger, J. M.; Mendoza, D.

2017-11-01

The size-controllable and ordered Al nanocavities and nanodomes arrays were synthesized by electrochemical anodization of aluminum using phosphoric acid, citric acid and mixture both acids. Few layer graphene (FLG) was transferred directly on top of Al nanostructures and their morphology were evaluated by scanning electron microscopy. The interaction between FLG and the plasmonic properties of Al nanostructures arrays were investigated based on specular reflectivity in the ultraviolet-visible-infrared range and Raman spectroscopy. We found that their optical reflectivity was dramatically reduced as compared with unstructured Al. At the same time pronounced reflectivity dips were detectable in the 200-896 nm wavelength range, which were ascribed to plasmonic resonances. The plasmonic properties of these nanostructures do not exhibit evident changes by the presence of FLG in the UV-vis range of the electromagnetic spectrum. By contrast, the surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy of FLG was observed in nanocavities and nanodomes structures that result in an intensity increase of the characteristic G and 2D bands of FLG induced by the plasmonic properties of Al nanostructures.

Oligolysine-based coating protects DNA nanostructures from low-salt denaturation and nuclease degradation

PubMed Central

Ponnuswamy, Nandhini; Bastings, Maartje M. C.; Nathwani, Bhavik; Ryu, Ju Hee; Chou, Leo Y. T.; Vinther, Mathias; Li, Weiwei Aileen; Anastassacos, Frances M.; Mooney, David J.; Shih, William M.

2017-01-01

DNA nanostructures have evoked great interest as potential therapeutics and diagnostics due to ease and robustness of programming their shapes, site-specific functionalizations and responsive behaviours. However, their utility in biological fluids can be compromised through denaturation induced by physiological salt concentrations and degradation mediated by nucleases. Here we demonstrate that DNA nanostructures coated by oligolysines to 0.5:1 N:P (ratio of nitrogen in lysine to phosphorus in DNA), are stable in low salt and up to tenfold more resistant to DNase I digestion than when uncoated. Higher N:P ratios can lead to aggregation, but this can be circumvented by coating instead with an oligolysine-PEG copolymer, enabling up to a 1,000-fold protection against digestion by serum nucleases. Oligolysine-PEG-stabilized DNA nanostructures survive uptake into endosomal compartments and, in a mouse model, exhibit a modest increase in pharmacokinetic bioavailability. Thus, oligolysine-PEG is a one-step, structure-independent approach that provides low-cost and effective protection of DNA nanostructures for in vivo applications. PMID:28561045

Second Harmonic Generation Optical Rotation Solely Attributable to Chirality in Plasmonic Metasurfaces.

PubMed

Collins, Joel T; Hooper, David C; Mark, Andrew G; Kuppe, Christian; Valev, Ventsislav Kolev

2018-05-31

Chiral plasmonic nanostructures, those lacking mirror symmetry, can be designed to manipulate the polarization of incident light resulting in chiroptical (chiral optical) effects such as circular dichroism (CD) and optical rotation (OR). Due to high symmetry sensitivity, corresponding effects in second harmonic generation (SHG-CD and SHG-OR) are typically much stronger in comparison. These nonlinear effects have long been used for chiral molecular analysis and characterization, however both linear and nonlinear optical rotation can occur even in achiral structures, if the structure is birefringent due to anisotropy. Crucially, chiroptical effects resulting from anisotropy typically exhibit a strong dependence on structural orientation. Here we report large second-harmonic generation optical rotation of ±45°, due to intrinsic chirality in a highly anisotropic helical metamaterial. The SHG intensity is found to strongly relate to the structural anisotropy, however the angle of SHG-OR is invariant under sample rotation. We show that by tuning the geometry of anisotropic nanostructures, the interaction between anisotropy, chirality, and experiment geometry can allow even greater control over the chiroptical properties of plasmonic metamaterials.

All Inkjet-Printed Amperometric Multiplexed Biosensors Based on Nanostructured Conductive Hydrogel Electrodes.

PubMed

Li, Lanlan; Pan, Lijia; Ma, Zhong; Yan, Ke; Cheng, Wen; Shi, Yi; Yu, Guihua

2018-06-13

Multiplexing, one of the main trends in biosensors, aims to detect several analytes simultaneously by integrating miniature sensors on a chip. However, precisely depositing electrode materials and selective enzymes on distinct microelectrode arrays remains an obstacle to massively produced multiplexed sensors. Here, we report on a "drop-on-demand" inkjet printing process to fabricate multiplexed biosensors based on nanostructured conductive hydrogels in which the electrode material and several kinds of enzymes were printed on the electrode arrays one by one by employing a multinozzle inkjet system. The whole inkjet printing process can be finished within three rounds of printing and only one round of alignment. For a page of sensor arrays containing 96 working electrodes, the printing process took merely ∼5 min. The multiplexed assays can detect glucose, lactate, and triglycerides in real time with good selectivity and high sensitivity, and the results in phosphate buffer solutions and calibration serum samples are comparable. The inkjet printing process exhibited advantages of high efficiency and accuracy, which opens substantial possibilities for massive fabrication of integrated multiplexed biosensors for human health monitoring.

Amorphous nickel-cobalt complexes hybridized with 1T-phase molybdenum disulfide via hydrazine-induced phase transformation for water splitting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Haoyi; Chen, Shuangming; Jia, Xiaofan; Xu, Biao; Lin, Haifeng; Yang, Haozhou; Song, Li; Wang, Xun

2017-05-01

Highly active and robust eletcrocatalysts based on earth-abundant elements are desirable to generate hydrogen and oxygen as fuels from water sustainably to replace noble metal materials. Here we report an approach to synthesize porous hybrid nanostructures combining amorphous nickel-cobalt complexes with 1T phase molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) via hydrazine-induced phase transformation for water splitting. The hybrid nanostructures exhibit overpotentials of 70 mV for hydrogen evolution and 235 mV for oxygen evolution at 10 mA cm-2 with long-term stability, which have superior kinetics for hydrogen- and oxygen-evolution with Tafel slope values of 38.1 and 45.7 mV dec-1. Moreover, we achieve 10 mA cm-2 at a low voltage of 1.44 V for 48 h in basic media for overall water splitting. We propose that such performance is likely due to the complete transformation of MoS2 to metallic 1T phase, high porosity and stabilization effect of nickel-cobalt complexes on 1T phase MoS2.

Magnetic properties of bulk, and rapidly solidified nanostructured (Nd 1-xCe x) 2Fe 14-yCo yB ribbons

DOE PAGES

Pathak, Arjun K.; Khan, M.; Gschneidner, Jr., K. A.; ...

2015-11-06

Magnetic properties of Ce and Co co-doped (Nd 1-xCe x) 2Fe 14-yCo yB compounds have been investigated both in bulk polycrystalline and rapidly solidified nanostructured ribbon forms. For certain Ce concentrations the materials exhibit spin re-orientation transitions below 140 K. The Curie temperatures, saturation magnetizations, and other magnetic properties relevant for applications as permanent magnets are controlled by Ce and Co substitutions for Nd and Fe, respectively. Most importantly, the results show that Ce, Co co-doped compounds are excellent replacements for several Dy-based high performance permanent magnets (dysprosium is one of the critical elements and is, therefore, in short supply).more » As a result, the high temperature (>375 K) magnetic properties for Nd–Ce–Fe–Co–B based alloys show promise not only as a replacement for Dy-doped Nd 2Fe 14B permanent magnets, but the new alloys also require significantly lower amounts of Nd, which too is the critical element that can be replaced by a more abundant Ce.« less

Nitrogen-doped hollow carbon spheres wrapped with graphene nanostructure for highly sensitive electrochemical sensing of parachlorophenol.

PubMed

Yi, Yinhui; Zhu, Gangbing; Sun, Heng; Sun, Jianfan; Wu, Xiangyang

2016-12-15

Owing to awfully harmful to the environment and human health, the qualitative and quantitative determination of parachlorophenol (PCP) is of great significance. In this paper, by using silica@polydopamine as template, nitrogen-doped hollow carbon spheres wrapped with reduced graphene oxide (NHCNS@RG) nanostructure was prepared successfully via a self-assembly approach due to the electrostatic interaction, and the obtained NHCNS@RG could exhibit the unique properties of NHCNS and RG: the NHCNS could impede the aggregation tendency of RG and possess high electrocatalytic activity; the RG enlarges the contacting area and offers many area-normalized edge-plane structures and active sites. Scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and electrochemical method were used to characterize the morphology and structure of NHCNS@RG. Then, the NHCNS@RG hybrids were applied for the electrochemical sensing of PCP, under the optimized conditions, the detection limit of PCP obtained in this work is 0.01μM and the linear range is 0.03-38.00μM. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Ultrahigh Molecular Weight Linear Block Copolymers: Rapid Access by Reversible-Deactivation Radical Polymerization and Self- Assembly into Large Domain Nanostructures

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mapas, Jose Kenneth D.; Thomay, Tim; Cartwright, Alexander N.

2016-05-05

Block copolymer (BCP) derived periodic nanostructures with domain sizes larger than 150 nm present a versatile platform for the fabrication of photonic materials. So far, the access to such materials has been limited to highly synthetically involved protocols. Herein, we report a simple, “user-friendly” method for the preparation of ultrahigh molecular weight linear poly(solketal methacrylate-b-styrene) block copolymers by a combination of Cu-wire-mediated ATRP and RAFT polymerizations. The synthesized copolymers with molecular weights up to 1.6 million g/mol and moderate dispersities readily assemble into highly ordered cylindrical or lamella microstructures with domain sizes as large as 292 nm, as determined bymore » ultra-small-angle x-ray scattering and scanning electron microscopy analyses. Solvent cast films of the synthesized block copolymers exhibit stop bands in the visible spectrum correlated to their domain spacings. The described method opens new avenues for facilitated fabrication and the advancement of fundamental understanding of BCP-derived photonic nanomaterials for a variety of applications.« less

Optical design of ZnO-based antireflective layers for enhanced GaAs solar cell performance.

PubMed

Lee, Hye Jin; Lee, Jae Won; Kim, Hee Jun; Jung, Dae-Han; Lee, Ki-Suk; Kim, Sang Hyeon; Geum, Dae-myeong; Kim, Chang Zoo; Choi, Won Jun; Baik, Jeong Min

2016-01-28

A series of hierarchical ZnO-based antireflection coatings with different nanostructures (nanowires and nanosheets) is prepared hydrothermally, followed by means of RF sputtering of MgF2 layers for coaxial nanostructures. Structural analysis showed that both ZnO had a highly preferred orientation along the 〈0001〉 direction with a highly crystalline MgF2 shell coated uniformly. However, a small amount of Al was present in nanosheets, originating from Al diffusion from the Al seed layer, resulting in an increase of the optical bandgap. Compared with the nanosheet-based antireflection coatings, the nanowire-based ones exhibited a significantly lower reflectance (∼2%) in ultraviolet and visible light wavelength regions. In particular, they showed perfect light absorption at wavelength less than approximately 400 nm. However, a GaAs single junction solar cell with nanosheet-based antireflection coatings showed the largest enhancement (43.9%) in power conversion efficiency. These results show that the increase of the optical bandgap of the nanosheets by the incorporation of Al atoms allows more photons enter the active region of the solar cell, improving the performance.

Porphyrin-based polymeric nanostructures for light harvesting applications: Ab initio calculations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Orellana, Walter

The capture and conversion of solar energy into electricity is one of the most important challenges to the sustainable development of mankind. Among the large variety of materials available for this purpose, porphyrins concentrate great attention due to their well-known absorption properties in the visible range. However, extended materials like polymers with similar absorption properties are highly desirable. In this work, we investigate the stability, electronic and optical properties of polymeric nanostructures based on free-base porphyrins and phthalocyanines (H2P, H2Pc), within the framework of the time-dependent density functional perturbation theory. The aim of this work is the stability, electronic, and optical characterization of polymeric sheets and nanotubes obtained from H2P and H2Pc monomers. Our results show that H2P and H2Pc sheets exhibit absorption bands between 350 and 400 nm, slightly different that the isolated molecules. However, the H2P and H2Pc nanotubes exhibit a wide absorption in the visible and near-UV range, with larger peaks at 600 and 700 nm, respectively, suggesting good characteristic for light harvesting. The stability and absorption properties of similar structures obtained from ZnP and ZnPc molecules is also discussed. Departamento de Ciencias Físicas, República 220, 037-0134 Santiago, Chile.

Nanostructured lipid carriers as novel ophthalmic delivery system for mangiferin: improving in vivo ocular bioavailability.

PubMed

Liu, Rui; Liu, Zhidong; Zhang, Chengui; Zhang, Boli

2012-10-01

The aim of this study was to develop a novel nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs) system to improve ocular bioavailability of mangiferin (MGN) for the potential treatment of cataract. The physicochemical properties of MGN-loaded NLC (MGN-NLC) formulation were characterized by particle size, polydispersity index, zeta potential, entrapment efficiency, drug loading, morphological property, and crystalline state. in vitro characteristics were investigated by drug release from NLC system, physical stability, and corneal permeation through excised rabbit cornea. Moreover, in vivo ocular tolerability was assessed by a modified Draize test and histological microscopy. Preocular retention capability was evaluated by slit-lamp observation. Pharmacokinetic study in the aqueous humor was performed by microdialysis technique. Transmission electron microscopy depicted spherical and uniform morphology. Differential scanning calorimetry and X-ray diffractometry displayed imperfect crystalline lattice. The optimized MGN-NLC formulation exhibited a sustained drug release with 3 months stability and 4.31-fold increase of in vitro corneal permeation. Furthermore, in vivo studies exhibited a high tolerance in the ocular tissues and prolonged drug retention capacity on the corneal surface. Finally, pharmacokinetic study suggested a 5.69-fold increase of ocular bioavailability compared with MGN solution (MGN-SOL). Therefore, NLC system is a promising approach for ocular delivery of MGN. Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Hierarchical nanostructures of copper(II) phthalocyanine on electrospun TiO(2) nanofibers: controllable solvothermal-fabrication and enhanced visible photocatalytic properties.

PubMed

Zhang, Mingyi; Shao, Changlu; Guo, Zengcai; Zhang, Zhenyi; Mu, Jingbo; Cao, Tieping; Liu, Yichun

2011-02-01

In the present work, 2,9,16,23-tetranitrophthalocyanine copper(II) (TNCuPc)/TiO(2) hierarchical nanostructures were successfully fabricated by a simple combination method of electrospinning technique and solvothermal processing. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), UV-vis diffuse reflectance (DR), Fourier transform infrared spectrum (FT-IR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and thermal gravimetric and differential thermal analysis (TG-DTA) were used to characterize the as-synthesized TNCuPc/TiO(2) hierarchical nanostructures. The results showed that the secondary TNCuPc nanostructures were not only successfully grown on the primary TiO(2) nanofibers substrates but also uniformly distributed without aggregation. By adjusting the solvothermal fabrication parameters, the TNCuPc nanowires or nanoflowers were facilely fabricated, and also the loading amounts of TNCuPc could be controlled on the TNCuPc/TiO(2) hierarchical nanostructural nanofibers. And, there might exist the interaction between TNCuPc and TiO(2). A possible mechanism for the formation of TNCuPc/TiO(2) hierarchical nanostructures was suggested. The photocatalytic studies revealed that the TNCuPc/TiO(2) hierarchical nanostructures exhibited enhanced photocatalytic efficiency of photodegradation of Rhodamine B (RB) compared with the pure TNCuPc or TiO(2) nanofibers under visible-light irradiation.

Microstructures and Nanostructures for Environmental Carbon Nanotubes and Nanoparticulate Soots

PubMed Central

Murr, L. E.

2008-01-01

This paper examines the microstructures and nanostructures for natural (mined) chrysotile asbestos nanotubes (Mg3 Si2O5 (OH)4) in comparison with commercial multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), utilizing scanning and transmission electron microscopy (SEM and TEM). Black carbon (BC) and a variety of specific soot particulate (aggregate) microstructures and nanostructures are also examined comparatively by SEM and TEM. A range of MWCNTs collected in the environment (both indoor and outdoor) are also examined and shown to be similar to some commercial MWCNTs but to exhibit a diversity of microstructures and nanostructures, including aggregation with other multiconcentric fullerenic nanoparticles. MWCNTs formed in the environment nucleate from special hemispherical graphene “caps” and there is evidence for preferential or energetically favorable chiralities, tube growth, and closing. The multiconcentric graphene tubes (∼5 to 50 nm diameter) differentiate themselves from multiconcentric fullerenic nanoparticles and especially turbostratic BC and carbonaceous soot nanospherules (∼8 to 80 nm diameter) because the latter are composed of curved graphene fragments intermixed or intercalated with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) isomers of varying molecular weights and mass concentrations; depending upon combustion conditions and sources. The functionalizing of these nanostructures and photoxidation and related photothermal phenomena, as these may influence the cytotoxicities of these nanoparticulate aggregates, will also be discussed in the context of nanostructures and nanostructure phenomena, and implications for respiratory health. PMID:19151426

Multifunctional, angle dependent antireflection, and hydrophilic properties of SiO2 inspired by nano-scale structures of cicada wings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zada, Imran; Zhang, Wang; Sun, Peng; Imtiaz, Muhammad; Abbas, Waseem; Zhang, Di

2017-10-01

Inspired by the multifunctional properties of cicada wings, we have precisely replicated biomorphic SiO2 with antireflective structures (ARSs) using a simple, inexpensive, and highly effective sol-gel ultrasonic method. The biomorphic replica of SiO2 was directly achieved from a cicada template at high calcination. The biomorphic SiO2 not only inherited the ARS effectively but also exhibited the excellent angle dependent antireflective properties over a wide range of incident angles (10°-60°). The change in reflectance spectra (visible wavelength) of biomorphic SiO2 was observed from 0.3% to 3.3% with the increasing incident angles. The smooth surface of the SiO2 crystal without nanostructures showed a high reflection of 9.2% compared to the biomorphic SiO2 with ARS. These excellent antireflective properties of biomorphic SiO2 can be attributed to the nanoscale structures which introduce a gradient in the refractive index between air and the material surface via ARS. In the meantime, biomorphic SiO2 demonstrates high hydrophilic properties due to the existence of nanostructures on its surface. These multifunctional properties of biomorphic SiO2, angle dependent antireflective properties, and hydrophilicity with high thermal stability may have potential applications in solar cells and antifogging optical materials.

Facile and generalized encapsulations of inorganic nanocrystals with nitrogen-doped carbonaceous coating for multifunctionality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Yong; Zhang, Jingchao; Wang, Shitong; Xu, Xiaobin; Zhang, Zhicheng; Wang, Pengpeng; Tang, Zilong; Wang, Xun

2015-02-01

A simple strategy toward versatile encapsulations of inorganic nanocrystals, through a green hydrothermal treatment of commercial polyurethane sponge, was developed. This approach enables us to realize a general method to form a surface-adherent, N-doped coating with a controllable thickness for well-defined structures. These composites exhibit active properties in optical applications and energy storage. For example, N-doped carbon encapsulated Fe2O3 nanoboxes show a very high discharge capacity and outstanding cyclability, and the capacity still remained at 1086 mA h g-1 at a current density of 400 mA g-1 after 200 cycles. Our results described here provide a simple surface coating technique to design various functional nanostructures.A simple strategy toward versatile encapsulations of inorganic nanocrystals, through a green hydrothermal treatment of commercial polyurethane sponge, was developed. This approach enables us to realize a general method to form a surface-adherent, N-doped coating with a controllable thickness for well-defined structures. These composites exhibit active properties in optical applications and energy storage. For example, N-doped carbon encapsulated Fe2O3 nanoboxes show a very high discharge capacity and outstanding cyclability, and the capacity still remained at 1086 mA h g-1 at a current density of 400 mA g-1 after 200 cycles. Our results described here provide a simple surface coating technique to design various functional nanostructures. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/c4nr07181f

Synthesis and Optical Properties of Silver Bicrystalline Nanowires

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Yugang; Xia, Younan

2002-11-01

This paper describes a solution-phase route to the large-scale synthesis of silver nanowires with diameters in the range of 30-40 nm, and lengths up to ~50 μm. The initial step of this synthesis involved the formation of Pt nanoparticles by reducing PtCl2 with ethylene glycol (EG) refluxed at ~160 °C. These Pt nanoparticles could serve as seeds for the growth of silver (formed by reducing AgNO3 with EG) through heterogeneous nucleation process because their crystal structures and lattice constants matched closely. In the presence of poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) (PVP), the growth of silver could be led to a highly anisotropic mode with formation of uniform nanowires. UV-visible spectroscopy was used to track the growth process of silver nanowires because different silver nanostructures exhibited distinctive surface plasmon resonance peaks at different frequencies. SEM, TEM, XRD, and electron diffraction were used to characterize these silver nanowires, indicating the formation of a highly pure face-centered cubic phase, as well as uniform diameter and bicrystalline structure. The morphology of these silver nanostructures could be varied from particles and rods to long wires by tuning the reaction conditions, including reaction temperature, and the ratio of PVP to silver nitrate. These silver nanowires could be used as sacrificial templates to synthesize gold nanotubes via a template-engaged replacement reaction. The dispersion of gold nanotubes exhibited a strong extinction peak in the red regime, which was around 760 nm.

Effect of doping on structural, optical and electrical properties of nanostructure ZnO films deposited onto a-Si:H/Si heterojunction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sali, S.; Boumaour, M.; Kermadi, S.; Keffous, A.; Kechouane, M.

2012-09-01

We investigated the structural; optical and electrical properties of ZnO thin films as the n-type semiconductor for silicon a-Si:H/Si heterojunction photodiodes. The ZnO film forms the front contact of the super-strata solar cell and has to exhibit good electrical (high conductivity) and optical (high transmittance) properties. In this paper we focused our attention on the influence of doping on device performance. The results show that the X-ray diffraction (XRD) spectra revealed a preferred orientation of the crystallites along c-axis. SEM images show that all films display a granular, polycrystalline morphology and the ZnO:Al exhibits a better grain uniformity. The transmittance of the doped films was found to be higher when compared to undoped ZnO. A low resistivity of the order of 2.8 × 10-4 Ω cm is obtained for ZnO:Al using 0.4 M concentration of zinc acetate. The photoluminescence (PL) spectra exhibit a blue band with two peaks centered at 442 nm (2.80 eV) and 490 nm (2.53 eV). It is noted that after doping the ZnO films a shift of the band by 22 nm (0.15 eV) is recorded and a high luminescence occurs when using Al as a dopant. Dark I-V curves of ZnO/a-Si:H/Si structure showed large difference, which means there is a kind of barrier to current flow between ZnO and a-Si:H layer. Doping films was applied and the turn-on voltages are around 0.6 V. Under reverse bias, the current of the ZnO/a-Si:H/Si heterojunction is larger than that of ZnO:Al/a-Si:H/Si. The improvement with ZnO:Al is attributed to a higher number of generated carriers in the nanostructure (due to the higher transmittance and a higher luminescence) that increases the probability of collisions.

Enhanced conversion efficiency in Si solar cells employing photoluminescent down-shifting CdSe/CdS core/shell quantum dots.

PubMed

Lopez-Delgado, R; Zhou, Y; Zazueta-Raynaud, A; Zhao, H; Pelayo, J E; Vomiero, A; Álvarez-Ramos, M E; Rosei, F; Ayon, A

2017-10-26

Silicon solar cells have captured a large portion of the total market of photovoltaic devices mostly due to their relatively high efficiency. However, Silicon exhibits limitations in ultraviolet absorption because high-energy photons are absorbed at the surface of the solar cell, in the heavily doped region, and the photo-generated electron-hole pairs need to diffuse into the junction region, resulting in significant carrier recombination. One of the alternatives to improve the absorption range involves the use of down-shifting nano-structures able to interact with the aforementioned high energy photons. Here, as a proof of concept, we use downshifting CdSe/CdS quantum dots to improve the performance of a silicon solar cell. The incorporation of these nanostructures triggered improvements in the short circuit current density (J sc , from 32.5 to 37.0 mA/cm 2 ). This improvement led to a ∼13% increase in the power conversion efficiency (PCE), from 12.0 to 13.5%. Our results demonstrate that the application of down-shifting materials is a viable strategy to improve the efficiency of Silicon solar cells with mass-compatible techniques that could serve to promote their widespread utilization.

Interlinked multiphase Fe-doped MnO2 nanostructures: a novel design for enhanced pseudocapacitive performance.

PubMed

Wang, Ziya; Wang, Fengping; Li, Yan; Hu, Jianlin; Lu, Yanzhen; Xu, Mei

2016-04-07

Structure designing and morphology control can lead to high performance pseudocapacitive materials for supercapacitors. In this work, we have designed interlinked multiphase Fe-doped MnO2 nanostructures (α-MnO2/R-MnO2/ε-MnO2) to enhance the electrochemical properties by a facile method. These hierarchical hollow microspheres assembled by interconnected nanoflakes, and with plenty of porous nanorods radiating from the spherical shells were hydrothermally obtained. The supercapacitor electrode prepared from the unique construction exhibits outstanding specific capacitance of 267.0 F g(-1) even under a high mass loading (∼5 mg cm(-2)). Obviously improved performances compared to pure MnO2 are also demonstrated with a good rate capability, high energy density (1.30 mW h cm(-3)) and excellent cycling stability of 100% capacitance retention after 2000 cycles at 2 A g(-1). The synergistic effects of alternative crystal structures, appropriate crystallinity and optimal morphology are identified to be responsible for the observations. This rational multiphase composite strategy provides a promising idea for materials scientists to design and prepare scalable electrode materials for energy storage devices.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ioannidou, Chrysoula; Lioutas, Christos B.; Frangis, Nikolaos

The high-performance PbTe-SnTe-PbS-thermoelectric system forms a completely new composite PbTe PbSnS2 with high n-type figure of merit. Electron diffraction and high-resolution electron microscopy characterization of the thermoelectric composite PbTe + 25% PbSnS2 reveals that the system is nanostructured, with PbSnS(2)nanocrystals in the range Of 80 to 500 nm in size. In most of the cases, they are endotaxially grown within the PbTe matrix. Three independent crystal superstructures were observed for the PbSnS2 inclusions, originating from the same parent SnS-type structure. The presence of the parent structure is not excluded. Modified structural models for two of the superstructures observed in themore » PbSnS2 precipitates are proposed: Often, more than one of the structural phases am observed In the same nanocrystal, providing one extra phonon scattering factor in the system. Evidence was also found for the growth process of the nanocrystals, starting from PbS and followed by gradual dissolving of SnS. Our findings suggest that this nanostructured thermoelectric composite exhibits unique structural complexity, which Contributes to the low lattice thermal :conductivity reported for these nanocomposite materials.« less

Growth of highly mesoporous CuCo2O4@C core-shell arrays as advanced electrodes for high-performance supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yan, Hailong; Lu, Yang; Zhu, Kejia; Peng, Tao; Liu, Xianming; Liu, Yunxin; Luo, Yongsong

2018-05-01

A series of CuCo2O4 nanostructures with different morphologies were prepared by a hydrothermal method in combination with thermal treatment. The morphology, structure and composition were investigated by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. As the electrode materials for supercapacitors, CuCo2O4 nanoneedles delivered the highest specific capacitance compared with other CuCo2O4 nanostructures. Electrochemical performance measurements demonstrate that the carbon layer can improve the electrochemical stability of CuCo2O4 nanoneedles. The CuCo2O4@C electrode exhibits a high specific capacitance of 1432.4 F g-1 at a current density of 1 A g-1, with capacitance retention of 98.2% after 3000 circles. These characteristics of CuCo2O4@C composite are mainly due to the unique one dimensional needle-liked architecture and the conducting carbon, which provide a faster ion/electron transfer rate. These excellent performances of the CuCo2O4@C electrode confirmed the material as a positive electrode for hybrid supercapacitor application.

Microwave-assisted synthesis of gold, silver, platinum and palladium nanostructures and their use in electrocatalytic applications.

PubMed

Safavi, Afsaneh; Tohidi, Maryam

2014-09-01

Microwave-assisted ionic liquid method was used for synthesis of various noble metals, such as gold, silver, platinum and palladium nanomaterials. This route does not employ any template agent, surface capping agents or reducing agents. The process is fast, simple and of high yield. Different metal precursors in various ionic liquids media (1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate, octyl pyridinium hexaflurophosphate and 1-octyl-3-methylimidazolium hexaflurophosphate) were applied to produce metal nanomaterials. Silver, platinium and palladium nanoparticles exhibit spherical morphology while nanosheets with high aspect ratio were obtained for gold. These metal nanostructures were incorporated into a carbon ionic liquid electrode to investigate their electrocatalytic properties. It was found that synthesis in different ionic liquids result in different activity. Excellent electrocatalytic effects toward adenine, hydrazine, formaldehyde and ethanol were observed for the modified electrodes with different nanoparticles synthesized in 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate. The high conductivity, large surface-to-volume ratio and active sites of nanosized metal particles are responsible for their electrocatalytic activity. In contrast, the carbon ionic liquid electrode modified with synthesized metal nanoparticles in octyl pyridinium hexaflurophosphate and 1-octyl-3-methylimidazolium hexaflurophosphate showed negligible activity for detection of these probes.

Thermal conductivity anisotropy in nanostructures and nanostructured materials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Termentzidis, Konstantinos

2018-03-01

Thermal conductivity anisotropy is a subject for both fundamental and application interests. The anisotropy can be induced either by van der Waals forces in bulk systems or by nanostructuration. Here, we will examine four cases in which thermal anisotropy has been observed: (i) Si/Ge superlattices which exhibit higher thermal anisotropy between in-plane and cross-plane directions for the case of smooth interfaces, (ii) amorphous/crystalline superlattices with much higher anisotropy than the crystalline/crystalline superlattices and which can reach a factor of six when the amorphous fraction increases, (iii) the impact of the density of edge and screw dislocations on the thermal anisotropy of defected GaN, and (iv) the influence of the growth direction of Bi2Te3 nanowires on thermal conductivity.

Hierarchically assembled theranostic nanostructures for siRNA delivery and imaging applications.

PubMed

Shrestha, Ritu; Elsabahy, Mahmoud; Luehmann, Hannah; Samarajeewa, Sandani; Florez-Malaver, Stephanie; Lee, Nam S; Welch, Michael J; Liu, Yongjian; Wooley, Karen L

2012-10-24

Dual functional hierarchically assembled nanostructures, with two unique functions of carrying therapeutic cargo electrostatically and maintaining radiolabeled imaging agents covalently within separate component building blocks, have been developed via the supramolecular assembly of several spherical cationic shell cross-linked nanoparticles clustered around a central anionic shell cross-linked cylinder. The shells of the cationic nanoparticles and the hydrophobic core domain of the anionic central cylindrical nanostructure of the assemblies were utilized to complex negatively charged nucleic acids (siRNA) and to undergo radiolabeling, respectively, for potential theranostic applications. The assemblies exhibited exceptional cell transfection and radiolabeling efficiencies, providing an overall advantage over the individual components, which could each facilitate only one or the other of the functions.

Spallation-induced roughness promoting high spatial frequency nanostructure formation on Cr

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abou-Saleh, A.; Karim, E. T.; Maurice, C.; Reynaud, S.; Pigeon, F.; Garrelie, F.; Zhigilei, L. V.; Colombier, J. P.

2018-04-01

Interaction of ultrafast laser pulses with metal surfaces in the spallation regime can result in the formation of anisotropic nanoscale surface morphology commonly referred to as laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS) or ripples. The surface structures generated by a single pulse irradiation of monocrystalline Cr samples are investigated experimentally and computationally for laser fluences that produce high spatial frequency nanostructures in the multi-pulse irradiation regime. Electron microscopy reveals distinct response of samples with different crystallographic surface orientations, with (100) surfaces exhibiting the formation of more refined nanostructure by a single pulse irradiation and a more pronounced LIPSS after two laser pulses as compared to (110) surfaces. A large-scale molecular dynamics simulation of laser interaction with a (100) Cr target provides detailed information on processes responsible for spallation of a liquid layer, redistribution of molten material, and rapid resolidification of the target. The nanoscale roughness of the resolidified surface predicted in the simulation features elongated frozen nanospikes, nanorims and nanocavities with dimensions and surface density similar to those in the surface morphology observed for (100) Cr target with atomic force microscopy. The results of the simulation suggest that the types, sizes and dimensions of the nanoscale surface features are defined by the competition between the evolution of transient liquid structures generated in the spallation process and the rapid resolidification of the surface region of the target. The spallation-induced roughness is likely to play a key role in triggering the generation of high-frequency LIPSS upon irradiation by multiple laser pulses.

Nanostructured carbon materials based electrothermal air pump actuators

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Qing; Liu, Luqi; Kuang, Jun; Dai, Zhaohe; Han, Jinhua; Zhang, Zhong

2014-05-01

Actuator materials can directly convert different types of energy into mechanical energy. In this work, we designed and fabricated electrothermal air pump-type actuators by utilization of various nanostructured carbon materials, including single wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs), reduced graphene oxide (r-GO), and graphene oxide (GO)/SWCNT hybrid films as heating elements to transfer electrical stimulus into thermal energy, and finally convert it into mechanical energy. Both the actuation displacement and working temperature of the actuator films show the monotonically increasing trend with increasing driving voltage within the actuation process. Compared with common polymer nanocomposites based electrothermal actuators, our actuators exhibited better actuation performances with a low driving voltage (<10 V), large generated stress (tens of MPa), high gravimetric density (tens of J kg-1), and short response time (few hundreds of milliseconds). Besides that, the pump actuators exhibited excellent stability under cyclic actuation tests. Among these actuators, a relatively larger actuation strain was obtained for the r-GO film actuator due to the intrinsic gas-impermeability nature of graphene platelets. In addition, the high modulus of the r-GO and GO/SWCNT films also guaranteed the large generated stress and high work density. Specifically, the generated stress and gravimetric work density of the GO/SWCNT hybrid film actuator could reach up to more than 50 MPa and 30 J kg-1, respectively, under a driving voltage of 10 V. The resulting stress value is at least two orders of magnitude higher than that of natural muscles (~0.4 MPa).Actuator materials can directly convert different types of energy into mechanical energy. In this work, we designed and fabricated electrothermal air pump-type actuators by utilization of various nanostructured carbon materials, including single wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs), reduced graphene oxide (r-GO), and graphene oxide (GO)/SWCNT hybrid films as heating elements to transfer electrical stimulus into thermal energy, and finally convert it into mechanical energy. Both the actuation displacement and working temperature of the actuator films show the monotonically increasing trend with increasing driving voltage within the actuation process. Compared with common polymer nanocomposites based electrothermal actuators, our actuators exhibited better actuation performances with a low driving voltage (<10 V), large generated stress (tens of MPa), high gravimetric density (tens of J kg-1), and short response time (few hundreds of milliseconds). Besides that, the pump actuators exhibited excellent stability under cyclic actuation tests. Among these actuators, a relatively larger actuation strain was obtained for the r-GO film actuator due to the intrinsic gas-impermeability nature of graphene platelets. In addition, the high modulus of the r-GO and GO/SWCNT films also guaranteed the large generated stress and high work density. Specifically, the generated stress and gravimetric work density of the GO/SWCNT hybrid film actuator could reach up to more than 50 MPa and 30 J kg-1, respectively, under a driving voltage of 10 V. The resulting stress value is at least two orders of magnitude higher than that of natural muscles (~0.4 MPa). Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: A movie showing the weight-lifting actuation process of the GO/SWCNT actuator. See DOI: 10.1039/c4nr00536h

Structural and electrochemical properties of nanostructured nickel silicides by reduction and silicification of high-surface-area nickel oxide

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chen, Xiao; Zhang, Bingsen; Li, Chuang

Graphical abstract: Nanostructured nickel silicides have been synthesized by reduction and silification of high-surface-area nickel oxide, and exhibited remarkably like-noble metal property, lower electric resistivity, and ferromagnetism at room temperature. Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer NiSi{sub x} have been prepared by reduction and silification of high-surface-area NiO. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The structure of nickel silicides changed with increasing reaction temperature. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Si doping into nickel changed the magnetic properties of metallic nickel. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer NiSi{sub x} have remarkably lower electric resistivity and like-noble metal property. -- Abstract: Nanostructured nickel silicides have been prepared by reduction and silicification of high-surface-area nickel oxide (145 m{sup 2} g{sup -1})more » produced via precipitation. The prepared materials were characterized by nitrogen adsorption, X-ray diffraction, thermal analysis, FT-IR spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, magnetic and electrochemical measurements. The nickel silicide formation involves the following sequence: NiO (cubic) {yields} Ni (cubic) {yields} Ni{sub 2}Si (orthorhombic) {yields} NiSi (orthorhombic) {yields} NiSi{sub 2} (cubic), with particles growing from 13.7 to 21.3 nm. The nickel silicides are ferromagnetic at room temperature, and their saturation magnetization values change drastically with the increase of Si content. Nickel silicides have remarkably low electrical resistivity and noble metal-like properties because of a constriction of the Ni d band and an increase of the electronic density of states. The results suggest that such silicides are promising candidates as inexpensive yet functional materials for applications in electrochemistry as well as catalysis.« less

A simple aloe vera plant-extracted microwave and conventional combustion synthesis: Morphological, optical, magnetic and catalytic properties of CoFe2O4 nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manikandan, A.; Sridhar, R.; Arul Antony, S.; Ramakrishna, Seeram

2014-11-01

Nanocrystalline magnetic spinel CoFe2O4 was synthesized by a simple microwave combustion method (MCM) using ferric nitrate, cobalt nitrate and Aloe vera plant extracted solution. For the comparative study, it was also prepared by a conventional combustion method (CCM). Powder X-ray diffraction, energy dispersive X-ray and selected-area electron diffraction results indicate that the as-synthesized samples have only single-phase spinel structure with high crystallinity and without the presence of other phase impurities. The crystal structure and morphology of the powders were revealed by high resolution scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy, show that the MCM products of CoFe2O4 samples contain sphere-like nanoparticles (SNPs), whereas the CCM method of samples consist of flake-like nanoplatelets (FNPs). The band gap of the samples was determined by UV-Visible diffuse reflectance and photoluminescence spectroscopy. The magnetization (Ms) results showed a ferromagnetic behavior of the CoFe2O4 nanostructures. The Ms value of CoFe2O4-SNPs is higher i.e. 77.62 emu/g than CoFe2O4-FNPs (25.46 emu/g). The higher Ms value of the sample suggest that the MCM technique is suitable for preparing high quality nanostructures for magnetic applications. Both the samples were successfully tested as catalysts for the conversion of benzyl alcohol. The resulting spinel ferrites were highly selective for the oxidation of benzyl alcohol and exhibit important difference among their activities. It was found that CoFe2O4-SNPs catalyst show the best performance, whereby 99.5% selectivity of benzaldehyde was achieved at close to 93.2% conversion.

Wood-Derived Ultrathin Carbon Nanofiber Aerogels.

PubMed

Li, Si-Cheng; Hu, Bi-Cheng; Ding, Yan-Wei; Liang, Hai-Wei; Li, Chao; Yu, Zi-You; Wu, Zhen-Yu; Chen, Wen-Shuai; Yu, Shu-Hong

2018-06-11

Carbon aerogels with 3D networks of interconnected nanometer-sized particles exhibit fascinating physical properties and show great application potential. Efficient and sustainable methods are required to produce high-performance carbon aerogels on a large scale to boost their practical applications. An economical and sustainable method is now developed for the synthesis of ultrathin carbon nanofiber (CNF) aerogels from the wood-based nanofibrillated cellulose (NFC) aerogels via a catalytic pyrolysis process, which guarantees high carbon residual and well maintenance of the nanofibrous morphology during thermal decomposition of the NFC aerogels. The wood-derived CNF aerogels exhibit excellent electrical conductivity, a large surface area, and potential as a binder-free electrode material for supercapacitors. The results suggest great promise in developing new families of carbon aerogels based on the controlled pyrolysis of economical and sustainable nanostructured precursors. © 2018 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Internal stress induced natural self-chemisorption of ZnO nanostructured films

PubMed Central

Chi, Po-Wei; Su, Chih-Wei; Wei, Da-Hua

2017-01-01

The energetic particles bombardment can produce large internal stress in the zinc oxide (ZnO) thin film, and it can be used to intentionally modify the surface characteristics of ZnO films. In this article, we observed that the internal stress increased from −1.62 GPa to −0.33 GPa, and the naturally wettability of the textured ZnO nanostructured films changed from hydrophobicity to hydrophilicity. According to analysis of surface chemical states, the naturally controllable wetting behavior can be attributed to hydrocarbon adsorbates on the nanostructured film surface, which is caused by tunable internal stress. On the other hand, the interfacial water molecules near the surface of ZnO nanostructured films have been identified as hydrophobic hydrogen structure by Fourier transform infrared/attenuated total reflection. Moreover, a remarkable near-band-edge emission peak shifting also can be observed in PL spectra due to the transition of internal stress state. Furthermore, our present ZnO nanostructured films also exhibited excellent transparency over 80% with a wise surface wetting switched from hydrophobic to hydrophilic states after exposing in ultraviolet (UV) surroundings. Our work demonstrated that the internal stress of the thin film not only induced natural wettability transition of ZnO nanostructured films, but also in turn affected the surface properties such as surface chemisorption. PMID:28233827

Internal stress induced natural self-chemisorption of ZnO nanostructured films

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chi, Po-Wei; Su, Chih-Wei; Wei, Da-Hua

2017-02-01

The energetic particles bombardment can produce large internal stress in the zinc oxide (ZnO) thin film, and it can be used to intentionally modify the surface characteristics of ZnO films. In this article, we observed that the internal stress increased from -1.62 GPa to -0.33 GPa, and the naturally wettability of the textured ZnO nanostructured films changed from hydrophobicity to hydrophilicity. According to analysis of surface chemical states, the naturally controllable wetting behavior can be attributed to hydrocarbon adsorbates on the nanostructured film surface, which is caused by tunable internal stress. On the other hand, the interfacial water molecules near the surface of ZnO nanostructured films have been identified as hydrophobic hydrogen structure by Fourier transform infrared/attenuated total reflection. Moreover, a remarkable near-band-edge emission peak shifting also can be observed in PL spectra due to the transition of internal stress state. Furthermore, our present ZnO nanostructured films also exhibited excellent transparency over 80% with a wise surface wetting switched from hydrophobic to hydrophilic states after exposing in ultraviolet (UV) surroundings. Our work demonstrated that the internal stress of the thin film not only induced natural wettability transition of ZnO nanostructured films, but also in turn affected the surface properties such as surface chemisorption.

Internal stress induced natural self-chemisorption of ZnO nanostructured films.

PubMed

Chi, Po-Wei; Su, Chih-Wei; Wei, Da-Hua

2017-02-24

The energetic particles bombardment can produce large internal stress in the zinc oxide (ZnO) thin film, and it can be used to intentionally modify the surface characteristics of ZnO films. In this article, we observed that the internal stress increased from -1.62 GPa to -0.33 GPa, and the naturally wettability of the textured ZnO nanostructured films changed from hydrophobicity to hydrophilicity. According to analysis of surface chemical states, the naturally controllable wetting behavior can be attributed to hydrocarbon adsorbates on the nanostructured film surface, which is caused by tunable internal stress. On the other hand, the interfacial water molecules near the surface of ZnO nanostructured films have been identified as hydrophobic hydrogen structure by Fourier transform infrared/attenuated total reflection. Moreover, a remarkable near-band-edge emission peak shifting also can be observed in PL spectra due to the transition of internal stress state. Furthermore, our present ZnO nanostructured films also exhibited excellent transparency over 80% with a wise surface wetting switched from hydrophobic to hydrophilic states after exposing in ultraviolet (UV) surroundings. Our work demonstrated that the internal stress of the thin film not only induced natural wettability transition of ZnO nanostructured films, but also in turn affected the surface properties such as surface chemisorption.

Effect of Surfactant on the Morphology of ZnO/Al:ZnO Nanostructures and Their Ethanol Sensing Applications at Room Temperature

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chitra, M.; Uthayarani, K.; Rajasekaran, N.; Neelakandeswari, N.; Girija, E. K.; Padiyan, D. Pathinettam

2016-11-01

Zinc oxide (ZnO) and aluminum (Al) doped ZnO nanostructures with and without surfactant have been successfully prepared via sol-gel route. The effect of the surfactant glyoxalic acid and various concentration of Al on the structural property of ZnO was analyzed by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). The morphology of the samples was recorded using field emission scanning electron microscopy. The uniform distribution of ZnO nanostructures with hexagonal facets is facilitated by the surfactant and the grain growth is further inhibited by the increase in concentration of Al. The ethanol (0-300ppm) sensing characteristics of the as-prepared samples were systematically investigated at room temperature. Surfactant-assisted ZnO/Al:ZnO nanostructures show higher sensitivity of 94% at room temperature than ZnO/Al:ZnO nanostructures without surfactant. Faster response at 68s and recovery at 50s is also achieved by the samples. The surfactant-assisted ZnO nanostructures exhibit sharp selective detection towards ethanol when compared to the samples without surfactant. The enhanced ethanol sensing property may be ascribed to the larger surface area which is due to uniform and smaller crystallite size of the surfactant-assisted sample.

Shape-Controlled Synthesis of Au Nanostructures Using EDTA Tetrasodium Salt and Their Photothermal Therapy Applications

PubMed Central

Jang, Youngjin; Lee, Nohyun; Kim, Jeong Hyun; Piao, Yuanzhe

2018-01-01

Tuning the optical properties of Au nanostructures is of paramount importance for scientific interest and has a wide variety of applications. Since the surface plasmon resonance properties of Au nanostructures can be readily adjusted by changing their shape, many approaches for preparing Au nanostructures with various shapes have been reported to date. However, complicated steps or the addition of several reagents would be required to achieve shape control of Au nanostructures. The present work describes a facile and effective shape-controlled synthesis of Au nanostructures and their photothermal therapy applications. The preparation procedure involved the reaction of HAuCl4 and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) tetrasodium salt, which acted as a reducing agent and ligand, at room temperature without the need for any toxic reagent or additives. The morphology control from spheres to branched forms and nanowire networks was easily achieved by varying the EDTA concentration. Detailed investigations revealed that the four carboxylic groups of the EDTA tetrasodium salt are essential for effective growth and stabilization. The produced Au nanowire networks exhibited a broad absorption band in the near-infrared (NIR) region, thereby showing efficient cancer therapeutic performance by inducing the selective photothermal destruction of cancerous glioblastoma cells (U87MG) under NIR irradiation. PMID:29670020

Plasmonic Paper as a Novel Chem/Bio Detection Platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tian, Limei

The time varying electric field of electromagnetic (EM) radiation causes oscillation of conduction electrons of metal nanoparticles. The resonance of such oscillation, termed localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR), falls into the visible spectral region for noble metals such as gold, silver and copper. LSPR of metal nanostructures is sensitive to numerous factors such as composition, size, shape, dielectric properties of surrounding medium, and proximity to other nanostructures (plasmon coupling). The sensitivity of LSPR to the refractive index of surrounding medium renders it an attractive platform for chemical and biological sensing. When the excitation light is in resonance with the plasmon frequency of the metal nanoparticle, it radiates a characteristic dipolar radiation causing a characteristic spatial distribution in which certain areas show higher EM field intensity, which is manifested as electromagnetic field enhancement. Surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) involves dramatic enhancement of the intensity of the Raman scattering from the analyte adsorbed on or in proximity to a nanostructured metal surface exhibiting such strong EM field enhancement. Both LSPR and SERS have been widely investigated for highly sensitive and label-free chemical & biological sensors. Most of the SERS/LSPR sensors demonstrated so far rely on rigid planar substrates (e.g., glass, silicon) owing to the well-established lithographic approaches, which are routinely employed for either fabrication or assembly of plasmonic nanotransducers. In many cases, their rigid nature results in low conformal contact with the sample and hence poor sample collection efficiency. We hypothesized that paper substrates are an excellent alternative to conventional rigid substrates to significantly improve the (multi-)functionality of LSPR/SERS substrates, dramatically simplify the fabrication procedures and lower the cost. The choice of paper substrates for the implementation of SERS/LSPR sensors is rationalized by numerous advantages such as (i) high specific surface area resulting in large dynamic range (ii) excellent wicking properties for rapid uptake and transport of analytes to test domains (iii) compatibility with conventional printing approaches, enabling multi-analyte plasmonic sensors (iv) significant reduction in cost (v) smaller sample volume requirement (vi) easy disposability. In this work, we have introduced novel SERS and LSPR substrates based on conventional filter paper decorated with plasmonic nanostructures, called plasmonic paper. A flexible SERS substrate based on common filter paper adsorbed with gold nanostructures allows conformal contact with real-world surfaces, enabling rapid trace detection. To realize multifunctional SERS substrates, paper substrates were cut into star-shaped structures and the fingers were differentially functionalized with polyelectrolytes that allows separation and pre-concentration of different components of a complex sample in a small surface area by taking advantage of the properties of cellulose paper and shape-enhanced capillary effect. Plasmonic paper can also serve as a novel LSPR biosensing platform by decorating the paper substrate with biofunctionalized nanostructures. Furthermore, calligraphy approach was employed to create well-isolated test domains on paper substrates using functionalized plasmonic nanostructures as ink for multiplexed chemical sensing and label-free biosensing. These plasmonic paper substrates exhibit excellent sample collection efficiency and do not require complex fabrication processes. This class of substrates is expected to have applications not only to first responders and military personal but also to several areas of medical, food analysis, and environmental research.

Interfacial Engineering of Hierarchical Transition Metal Oxide Heterostructures for Highly Sensitive Sensing of Hydrogen Peroxide.

PubMed

Zhang, Wen; Fan, Guozheng; Yi, Huan; Jia, Gan; Li, Zhaosheng; Yuan, Chunwei; Bai, Yunfei; Fu, Degang

2018-05-01

Hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) is a major messenger molecule in cellular signal transduction. Direct detection of H 2 O 2 in complex environments provides the capability to illuminate its various biological functions. With this in mind, a novel electrochemical approach is here proposed by integrating a series of CoO nanostructures on CuO backbone at electrode interfaces. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), X-ray diffraction, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy demonstrate successful formation of core-shell CuO-CoO hetero-nanostructures. Theoretical calculations further confirm energy-favorable adsorption of H 2 O 2 on surface sites of CuO-CoO heterostructures. Contributing to the efficient electron transfer path and enhanced capture of H 2 O 2 in the unique leaf-like CuO-CoO hierarchical 3D interface, an optimal biosensor-based CuO-CoO-2.5 h electrode exhibits an ultrahigh sensitivity (6349 µA m m -1 cm -2 ), excellent selectivity, and a wide detection range for H 2 O 2 , and is capable of monitoring endogenous H 2 O 2 derived from human lung carcinoma cells A549. The synergistic effects for enhanced H 2 O 2 adsorption in integrated CuO-CoO nanostructures and performance of the sensor suggest a potential for exploring pathological and physiological roles of reactive oxygen species like H 2 O 2 in biological systems. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Biologically inspired LED lens from cuticular nanostructures of firefly lantern

PubMed Central

Kim, Jae-Jun; Lee, Youngseop; Kim, Ha Gon; Choi, Ki-Ju; Kweon, Hee-Seok; Park, Seongchong; Jeong, Ki-Hun

2012-01-01

Cuticular nanostructures found in insects effectively manage light for light polarization, structural color, or optical index matching within an ultrathin natural scale. These nanostructures are mainly dedicated to manage incoming light and recently inspired many imaging and display applications. A bioluminescent organ, such as a firefly lantern, helps to out-couple light from the body in a highly efficient fashion for delivering strong optical signals in sexual communication. However, the cuticular nanostructures, except the light-producing reactions, have not been well investigated for physical principles and engineering biomimetics. Here we report a unique observation of high-transmission nanostructures on a firefly lantern and its biological inspiration for highly efficient LED illumination. Both numerical and experimental results clearly reveal high transmission through the nanostructures inspired from the lantern cuticle. The nanostructures on an LED lens surface were fabricated by using a large-area nanotemplating and reconfigurable nanomolding with heat-induced shear thinning. The biologically inspired LED lens, distinct from a smooth surface lens, substantially increases light transmission over visible ranges, comparable to conventional antireflection coating. This biological inspiration can offer new opportunities for increasing the light extraction efficiency of high-power LED packages. PMID:23112185

Synthesis of silver-titanium dioxide nanocomposites for antimicrobial applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, X. H.; Fu, H. T.; Wang, X. C.; Yang, J. L.; Jiang, X. C.; Yu, A. B.

2014-08-01

Silver-titanium dioxide (Ag-TiO2) nanostructures have attracted increasing attention because of unique functional properties and potential applications in many areas such as photocatalysis, antibacterial, and self-cleaning coatings. In this study, Ag@TiO2 core-shell nanostructures and Ag-decorated TiO2 particles (TiO2@Ag) (the size of these two nanoparticles is ranging from 200-300 nm) have been synthesized by a developed facile but efficient method. These two types of hybrid nanostructures, characterized by various advanced techniques (TEM, XRD, BET and others), exhibit unique functional properties particularly in antibacterial toward Gram negative Escherichia coli, as a case study. Specifically: (i) the TiO2@Ag nanoparticles are superior in bacterial growth inhibition in standard culture conditions (37 °C incubator) to the Ag@TiO2 core-shell ones, in which silver may dominate the antibacterial performance; (ii) while after UV irradiation treatment, the Ag@TiO2 core-shell nanoparticles exhibit better performance in killing grown bacteria than the TiO2@Ag ones, probably because of the Ag cores facilitating charge separation for TiO2, and thus produce more hydroxyl radicals on the surface of the TiO2 particles; and (iii) without UV irradiation, both TiO2@Ag and Ag@TiO2 nanostructures show poor capabilities in killing mature bacteria. These findings would be useful for designing hybrid metal oxide nanocomposites with desirable functionalities in bioapplications in terms of sterilization, deodorization, and water purification.

Dual Functional Core-Shell Fluorescent Ag2S@Carbon Nanostructure for Selective Assay of E. coli O157:H7 and Bactericidal Treatment.

PubMed

Wang, Ning; Wei, Xing; Zheng, An-Qi; Yang, Ting; Chen, Ming-Li; Wang, Jian-Hua

2017-03-24

A dual functional fluorescent core-shell Ag 2 S@Carbon nanostructure is prepared by a hydrothermally assisted multi-amino synthesis approach with folic acid (FA), polyethylenimine (PEI), and mannoses (Mans) as carbon and nitrogen sources (FA-PEI-Mans-Ag 2 S nanocomposite shortly as Ag 2 S@C). The nanostructure exhibits strong fluorescent emission at λ ex /λ em = 340/450 nm with a quantum yield of 12.57 ± 0.52%. Ag 2 S@C is bound to E. coli O157:H7 via strong interaction with the Mans moiety in Ag 2 S@C with FimH proteins on the fimbriae tip in E. coli O157:H7. Fluorescence emission from Ag 2 S@C/E. coli conjugate is closely related to the content of E. coli O157:H7. Thus, a novel procedure for fluorescence assay of E. coli O157:H7 is developed, offering a detection limit of 330 cfu mL -1 . Meanwhile, the Ag 2 S@C nanostructure exhibits excellent antibacterial performance against E. coli O157:H7. A 99.9% sterilization rate can be readily achieved for E. coli O157:H7 at a concentration of 10 6 -10 7 cfu mL -1 with 3.3 or 10 μg mL -1 of Ag 2 S@C with an interaction time of 5 or 0.5 min, respectively.

A rapid green strategy for the synthesis of Au "meatball"-like nanoparticles using green tea for SERS applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Shichao; Zhou, Xi; Yang, Xiangrui; Hou, Zhenqing; Shi, Yanfeng; Zhong, Lubin; Jiang, Qian; Zhang, Qiqing

2014-09-01

We report a simple and rapid biological approach to synthesize water-soluble and highly roughened "meatball"-like Au nanoparticles using green tea extract under microwave irradiation. The synthesized Au meatball-like nanoparticles possess excellent monodispersity and uniform size (250 nm in diameter). Raman measurements show that these tea-generated meatball-like gold nanostructures with high active surface areas exhibit a high enhancement of surface-enhanced Raman scattering. In addition, the Au meatball-like nanoparticles demonstrate good biocompatibility and remarkable in vitro stability at the biological temperature. Meanwhile, the factors that influence the Au meatball-like nanoparticles morphology are investigated, and the mechanisms behind the nonspherical shape evolution are discussed.

Two-Dimensional-Material Membranes: A New Family of High-Performance Separation Membranes.

PubMed

Liu, Gongping; Jin, Wanqin; Xu, Nanping

2016-10-17

Two-dimensional (2D) materials of atomic thickness have emerged as nano-building blocks to develop high-performance separation membranes that feature unique nanopores and/or nanochannels. These 2D-material membranes exhibit extraordinary permeation properties, opening a new avenue to ultra-fast and highly selective membranes for water and gas separation. Summarized in this Minireview are the latest ground-breaking studies in 2D-material membranes as nanosheet and laminar membranes, with a focus on starting materials, nanostructures, and transport properties. Challenges and future directions of 2D-material membranes for wide implementation are discussed briefly. © 2016 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Thermally-Resilient, Broadband Optical Absorber from UV-to-IR Derived from Carbon Nanostructures and Method of Making the Same

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kaul, Anupama B. (Inventor); Coles, James B. (Inventor)

2015-01-01

A monolithic optical absorber and methods of making same. The monolithic optical absorber uses an array of mutually aligned carbon nanotubes that are grown using a PECVD growth process and a structure that includes a conductive substrate, a refractory template layer and a nucleation layer. Monolithic optical absorbers made according to the described structure and method exhibit high absorptivity, high site densities (greater than 10.sup.9 nanotubes/cm.sup.2), very low reflectivity (below 1%), and high thermal stability in air (up to at least 400.degree. C.). The PECVD process allows the application of such absorbers in a wide variety of end uses.

Thermometry with Subnanometer Resolution in the Electron Microscope Using the Principle of Detailed Balancing.

PubMed

Lagos, Maureen J; Batson, Philip E

2018-06-13

We measure phonon energy gain and loss down to 20 meV in a single nanostructure using an atom-wide monochromatic electron beam. We show that the bulk and surface, energy loss and energy gain processes obey the principle of detailed balancing in nanostructured systems at thermal equilibrium. By plotting the logarithm of the ratio of the loss and gain bulk/surface scattering as a function of the excitation energy, we find a linear behavior, expected from detailed balance arguments. Since that universal linearity scales with the inverse of the nanosystem temperature only, we can measure the temperature of the probed object with precision down to about 1 K without reference to the nanomaterial. We also show that subnanometer spatial resolution (down to ∼2 Å) can be obtained using highly localized acoustic phonon scattering. The surface phonon polariton signal can also be used to measure the temperature near the nanostructure surfaces, but with unavoidable averaging over several nanometers. Comparison between transmission and aloof probe configurations suggests that our method exhibits noninvasive characteristics. Our work demonstrates the validity of the principle of detailed balancing within nanoscale materials at thermal equilibrium, and it describes a transparent method to measure nanoscale temperature, thus representing an advance in the development of a noninvasive method for measurements with angstrom resolution.

Nanostructured NiO-based reagentless biosensor for total cholesterol and low density lipoprotein detection.

PubMed

Kaur, Gurpreet; Tomar, Monika; Gupta, Vinay

2017-03-01

Nanostructured nickel oxide (NiO) thin film has been explored as a matrix to develop a reagentless biosensor for free and total cholesterol as well as low density lipoprotein (LDL) detection. The redox property of the matrix has been exploited to enhance the electron transfer between the enzyme and the electrode as well as to eliminate the toxic mediator in solution. X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy were carried out to characterize the NiO thin film. Biosensing response studies were accomplished using cyclic voltammetry (CV), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and differential pulse voltammetry (DPV). The developed biosensors exhibited a high sensitivity of 27 and 63 μA/mM/cm 2 over a linear range of 0.12-10.23 and 1-12 mM, respectively, for free and total cholesterol. Reagentless estimation of LDL was also achieved over the wide range 0.018-0.5 μM with a sensitivity of 0.12 mA/μM/cm 2 . The results are extremely promising for the realization of an integrated biosensor for complete detection of cholesterol in the serum samples. Graphical Abstract Reagentless sensing mechanism of (a) free cholesterol and (b) total cholesterol using nanostructured NiO matrix.

Influence of femtosecond laser produced nanostructures on biofilm growth on steel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Epperlein, Nadja; Menzel, Friederike; Schwibbert, Karin; Koter, Robert; Bonse, Jörn; Sameith, Janin; Krüger, Jörg; Toepel, Jörg

2017-10-01

Biofilm formation poses high risks in multiple industrial and medical settings. However, the robust nature of biofilms makes them also attractive for industrial applications where cell biocatalysts are increasingly in use. Since tailoring material properties that affect bacterial growth or its inhibition is gaining attention, here we focus on the effects of femtosecond laser produced nanostructures on bacterial adhesion. Large area periodic surface structures were generated on steel surfaces using 30-fs laser pulses at 790 nm wavelength. Two types of steel exhibiting a different corrosion resistance were used, i.e., a plain structural steel (corrodible) and a stainless steel (resistant to corrosion). Homogeneous fields of laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS) were realized utilizing laser fluences close to the ablation threshold while scanning the sample under the focused laser beam in a multi-pulse regime. The nanostructures were characterized with optical and scanning electron microscopy. For each type of steel, more than ten identical samples were laser-processed. Subsequently, the samples were subjected to microbial adhesion tests. Bacteria of different shape and adhesion behavior (Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus) were exposed to laser structures and to polished reference surfaces. Our results indicate that E. coli preferentially avoids adhesion to the LIPSS-covered areas, whereas S. aureus favors these areas for colonization.

Uniform Incorporation of Flocculent Molybdenum Disulfide Nanostructure into Three-Dimensional Porous Graphene as an Anode for High-Performance Lithium Ion Batteries and Hybrid Supercapacitors.

PubMed

Zhang, Fan; Tang, Yongbing; Liu, Hui; Ji, Hongyi; Jiang, Chunlei; Zhang, Jing; Zhang, Xiaolong; Lee, Chun-Sing

2016-02-01

Hybrid supercapacitors (HSCs) with lithium-ion battery-type anodes and electric double layer capacitor-type cathodes are attracting extensive attention and under wide investigation because of their combined merits of both high power and energy density. However, the performance of most HSCs is limited by low kinetics of the battery-type anode which cannot match the fast kinetics of the capacitor-type cathode. In this study, we have synthesized a three-dimensional (3D) porous composite with uniformly incorporated MoS2 flocculent nanostructure onto 3D graphene via a facile solution-processed method as an anode for high-performance HSCs. This composite shows significantly enhanced electrochemical performance due to the synergistic effects of the conductive graphene sheets and the interconnected porous structure, which exhibits a high rate capability of 688 mAh/g even at a high current density of 8 A/g and a stable cycling performance (997 mAh/g after 700 cycles at 2 A/g). Furthermore, by using this composite as the anode for HSCs, the HSC shows a high energy density of 156 Wh/kg at 197 W/kg, which also remains at 97 Wh/kg even at a high power density of 8314 W/kg with a stable cycling life, among the best results of the reported HSCs thus far.

Two-dimensional gold nanostructures with high activity for selective oxidation of carbon–hydrogen bonds

PubMed Central

Wang, Liang; Zhu, Yihan; Wang, Jian-Qiang; Liu, Fudong; Huang, Jianfeng; Meng, Xiangju; Basset, Jean-Marie; Han, Yu; Xiao, Feng-Shou

2015-01-01

Efficient synthesis of stable two-dimensional (2D) noble metal catalysts is a challenging topic. Here we report the facile synthesis of 2D gold nanosheets via a wet chemistry method, by using layered double hydroxide as the template. Detailed characterization with electron microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy demonstrates that the nanosheets are negatively charged and [001] oriented with thicknesses varying from single to a few atomic layers. X-ray absorption spectroscopy reveals unusually low gold–gold coordination numbers. These gold nanosheets exhibit high catalytic activity and stability in the solvent-free selective oxidation of carbon–hydrogen bonds with molecular oxygen. PMID:25902034

Microwave absorption properties of carbon nanocoils coated with highly controlled magnetic materials by atomic layer deposition.

PubMed

Wang, Guizhen; Gao, Zhe; Tang, Shiwei; Chen, Chaoqiu; Duan, Feifei; Zhao, Shichao; Lin, Shiwei; Feng, Yuhong; Zhou, Lei; Qin, Yong

2012-12-21

In this work, atomic layer deposition is applied to coat carbon nanocoils with magnetic Fe(3)O(4) or Ni. The coatings have a uniform and highly controlled thickness. The coated nanocoils with coaxial multilayer nanostructures exhibit remarkably improved microwave absorption properties compared to the pristine carbon nanocoils. The enhanced absorption ability arises from the efficient complementarity between complex permittivity and permeability, chiral morphology, and multilayer structure of the products. This method can be extended to exploit other composite materials benefiting from its convenient control of the impedance matching and combination of dielectric-magnetic multiple loss mechanisms for microwave absorption applications.

Two-dimensional gold nanostructures with high activity for selective oxidation of carbon-hydrogen bonds.

PubMed

Wang, Liang; Zhu, Yihan; Wang, Jian-Qiang; Liu, Fudong; Huang, Jianfeng; Meng, Xiangju; Basset, Jean-Marie; Han, Yu; Xiao, Feng-Shou

2015-04-22

Efficient synthesis of stable two-dimensional (2D) noble metal catalysts is a challenging topic. Here we report the facile synthesis of 2D gold nanosheets via a wet chemistry method, by using layered double hydroxide as the template. Detailed characterization with electron microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy demonstrates that the nanosheets are negatively charged and [001] oriented with thicknesses varying from single to a few atomic layers. X-ray absorption spectroscopy reveals unusually low gold-gold coordination numbers. These gold nanosheets exhibit high catalytic activity and stability in the solvent-free selective oxidation of carbon-hydrogen bonds with molecular oxygen.

Two-dimensional gold nanostructures with high activity for selective oxidation of carbon-hydrogen bonds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Liang; Zhu, Yihan; Wang, Jian-Qiang; Liu, Fudong; Huang, Jianfeng; Meng, Xiangju; Basset, Jean-Marie; Han, Yu; Xiao, Feng-Shou

2015-04-01

Efficient synthesis of stable two-dimensional (2D) noble metal catalysts is a challenging topic. Here we report the facile synthesis of 2D gold nanosheets via a wet chemistry method, by using layered double hydroxide as the template. Detailed characterization with electron microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy demonstrates that the nanosheets are negatively charged and [001] oriented with thicknesses varying from single to a few atomic layers. X-ray absorption spectroscopy reveals unusually low gold-gold coordination numbers. These gold nanosheets exhibit high catalytic activity and stability in the solvent-free selective oxidation of carbon-hydrogen bonds with molecular oxygen.

A Single-Step Hydrothermal Route to 3D Hierarchical Cu2 O/CuO/rGO Nanosheets as High-Performance Anode of Lithium-Ion Batteries.

PubMed

Wu, Songhao; Fu, Gaoliang; Lv, Weiqiang; Wei, Jiake; Chen, Wenjin; Yi, Huqiang; Gu, Meng; Bai, Xuedong; Zhu, Liang; Tan, Chao; Liang, Yachun; Zhu, Gaolong; He, Jiarui; Wang, Xinqiang; Zhang, Kelvin H L; Xiong, Jie; He, Weidong

2018-02-01

As anodes of Li-ion batteries, copper oxides (CuO) have a high theoretical specific capacity (674 mA h g -1 ) but own poor cyclic stability owing to the large volume expansion and low conductivity in charges/discharges. Incorporating reduced graphene oxide (rGO) into CuO anodes with conventional methods fails to build robust interaction between rGO and CuO to efficiently improve the overall anode performance. Here, Cu 2 O/CuO/reduced graphene oxides (Cu 2 O/CuO/rGO) with a 3D hierarchical nanostructure are synthesized with a facile, single-step hydrothermal method. The Cu 2 O/CuO/rGO anode exhibits remarkable cyclic and high-rate performances, and particularly the anode with 25 wt% rGO owns the best performance among all samples, delivering a record capacity of 550 mA h g -1 at 0.5 C after 100 cycles. The pronounced performances are attributed to the highly efficient charge transfer in CuO nanosheets encapsulated in rGO network and the mitigated volume expansion of the anode owing to its robust 3D hierarchical nanostructure. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Two-dimensional metamaterial transparent metal electrodes for infrared optoelectronics.

PubMed

Clark, Samuel M; Han, Sang Eon

2014-06-15

We examine the optical properties of two-dimensionally nanostructured metals in the metamaterial regime for infrared applications. Compared with straight nanowires and nanogrids, serpentine structures exhibit much lower optical losses of less than 7% even at a large metal area fraction of 0.3. The low loss is primarily due to a small effective conductivity of the meandering structures, and self-inductance plays a modest role in reducing losses in these structures. The high transparency at a large metal area coverage would be useful for transparent electrodes in optoelectronic devices.

Carbon-coated SnO2 nanotubes: template-engaged synthesis and their application in lithium-ion batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Ping; Du, Ning; Zhang, Hui; Yu, Jingxue; Qi, Yue; Yang, Deren

2011-02-01

This paper reports the synthesis of carbon-coated SnO2 (SnO2-C) nanotubes through a simple glucose hydrothermal and subsequent carbonization approach by using Sn nanorods as sacrificial templates. The as-synthesized SnO2-C nanotubes have been applied as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries, which exhibit improved cyclic performance compared to pure SnO2 nanotubes. The hollow nanostructure, together with the carbon matrix which has good buffering effect and high electronic conductivity, can be responsible for the improved cyclic performance.

A high-performance nanoporous Si/Al2O3 foam lithium-ion battery anode fabricated by selective chemical etching of the Al-Si alloy and subsequent thermal oxidation.

PubMed

Hwang, Gaeun; Park, Hyungmin; Bok, Taesoo; Choi, Sinho; Lee, Sungjun; Hwang, Inchan; Choi, Nam-Soon; Seo, Kwanyong; Park, Soojin

2015-03-14

Nanostructured micrometer-sized Al-Si particles are synthesized via a facile selective etching process of Al-Si alloy powder. Subsequent thin Al2O3 layers are introduced on the Si foam surface via a selective thermal wet oxidation process of etched Al-Si particles. The resulting Si/Al2O3 foam anodes exhibit outstanding cycling stability (a capacity retention of 78% after 300 cycles at the C/5 rate) and excellent rate capability.

On the size-dependent magnetism and all-optical magnetization switching of transition-metal silicide nanostructures

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Glushkov, G. I.; Tuchin, A. V.; Popov, S. V.

Theoretical investigations of the electronic structure, synthesis, and all-optical magnetization switching of transition-metal silicide nanostructures are reported. The magnetic moment of the nanostructures is studied as a function of the silicide cluster size and configuration. The experimentally demonstrated magnetization switching of nanostructured nickel silicide by circularly polarized light makes it possible to create high-speed storage devices with high density data recording.

Elucidating the atomistic mechanisms underpinning plasticity in Li-Si nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yan, Xin; Gouissem, Afif; Guduru, Pradeep R.; Sharma, Pradeep

2017-10-01

Amorphous lithium-silicon (a-Li-Si), especially in nanostructure form, is an attractive high-capacity anode material for next-generation Li-ion batteries. During cycles of charging and discharging, a-Li-Si undergoes substantive inelastic deformation and exhibits microcracking. The mechanical response to repeated lithiation-delithiation eventually results in the loss of electrical contact and consequent decrease of capacity, thus underscoring the importance of studying the plasticity of a-Li-Si nanostructures. In recent years, a variety of phenomenological continuum theories have been introduced that purport to model plasticity and the electro-chemo-mechanical behavior of a-Li-Si. Unfortunately, the micromechanisms and atomistic considerations underlying plasticity in Li-Si material are not yet fully understood and this impedes the development of physics-based constitutive models. Conventional molecular dynamics, although extensively used to study this material, is grossly inadequate to resolve this matter. As is well known, conventional molecular dynamics simulations can only address phenomena with characteristic time scales of (at most) a microsecond. Accordingly, in such simulations, the mechanical behavior is deduced under conditions of very high strain rates (usually, 108s-1 or even higher). This limitation severely impacts a realistic assessment of rate-dependent effects. In this work, we attempt to circumvent the time-scale bottleneck of conventional molecular dynamics and provide novel insights into the mechanisms underpinning plastic deformation of Li-Si nanostructures. We utilize an approach that allows imposition of slow strain rates and involves the employment of a new and recently developed potential energy surface sampling method—the so-called autonomous basin climbing—to identify the local minima in the potential energy surface. Combined with other techniques, such as nudged elastic band, kinetic Monte Carlo and transition state theory, we assess the behavior of a-Li-Si nanostructures under tensile strain rates ranging from 103 to 108s-1 . We find significant differences in the deformation behavior across the strain rates and discover that the well-known shear transformation zones (widely discussed in the context of amorphous materials) are formed by a "diffusionlike" process. We identify the rotation of the shear transformation zone as a key dissipation mechanism.

Superfast assembly and synthesis of gold nanostructures using nanosecond low-temperature compression via magnetic pulsed power

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Li, Binsong; Bian, Kaifu; Lane, J. Matthew D.

Gold nanostructured materials exhibit important size- and shape-dependent properties that enable a wide variety of applications in photocatalysis, nanoelectronics and phototherapy. Here we show the use of superfast dynamic compression to synthesize extended gold nanostructures, such as nanorods, nanowires and nanosheets, with nanosecond coalescence times. Using a pulsed power generator, we ramp compress spherical gold nanoparticle arrays to pressures of tens of GPa, demonstrating pressure-driven assembly beyond the quasi-static regime of the diamond anvil cell. Our dynamic magnetic ramp compression approach produces smooth, shockless (that is, isentropic) one-dimensional loading with low-temperature states suitable for nanostructure synthesis. Transmission electron microscopy clearlymore » establishes that various gold architectures are formed through compressive mesoscale coalescences of spherical gold nanoparticles, which is further confirmed by in-situ synchrotron X-ray studies and large-scale simulation. As a result, this nanofabrication approach applies magnetically driven uniaxial ramp compression to mimic established embossing and imprinting processes, but at ultra-short (nanosecond) timescales.« less

Superfast assembly and synthesis of gold nanostructures using nanosecond low-temperature compression via magnetic pulsed power

DOE PAGES

Li, Binsong; Bian, Kaifu; Lane, J. Matthew D.; ...

2017-03-16

Gold nanostructured materials exhibit important size- and shape-dependent properties that enable a wide variety of applications in photocatalysis, nanoelectronics and phototherapy. Here we show the use of superfast dynamic compression to synthesize extended gold nanostructures, such as nanorods, nanowires and nanosheets, with nanosecond coalescence times. Using a pulsed power generator, we ramp compress spherical gold nanoparticle arrays to pressures of tens of GPa, demonstrating pressure-driven assembly beyond the quasi-static regime of the diamond anvil cell. Our dynamic magnetic ramp compression approach produces smooth, shockless (that is, isentropic) one-dimensional loading with low-temperature states suitable for nanostructure synthesis. Transmission electron microscopy clearlymore » establishes that various gold architectures are formed through compressive mesoscale coalescences of spherical gold nanoparticles, which is further confirmed by in-situ synchrotron X-ray studies and large-scale simulation. As a result, this nanofabrication approach applies magnetically driven uniaxial ramp compression to mimic established embossing and imprinting processes, but at ultra-short (nanosecond) timescales.« less

Antibacterial Au nanostructured surfaces.

PubMed

Wu, Songmei; Zuber, Flavia; Brugger, Juergen; Maniura-Weber, Katharina; Ren, Qun

2016-02-07

We present here a technological platform for engineering Au nanotopographies by templated electrodeposition on antibacterial surfaces. Three different types of nanostructures were fabricated: nanopillars, nanorings and nanonuggets. The nanopillars are the basic structures and are 50 nm in diameter and 100 nm in height. Particular arrangement of the nanopillars in various geometries formed nanorings and nanonuggets. Flat surfaces, rough substrate surfaces, and various nanostructured surfaces were compared for their abilities to attach and kill bacterial cells. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, a Gram-positive bacterial strain responsible for many infections in health care system, was used as the model bacterial strain. It was found that all the Au nanostructures, regardless their shapes, exhibited similar excellent antibacterial properties. A comparison of live cells attached to nanotopographic surfaces showed that the number of live S. aureus cells was <1% of that from flat and rough reference surfaces. Our micro/nanofabrication process is a scalable approach based on cost-efficient self-organization and provides potential for further developing functional surfaces to study the behavior of microbes on nanoscale topographies.

Superfast assembly and synthesis of gold nanostructures using nanosecond low-temperature compression via magnetic pulsed power

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Binsong; Bian, Kaifu; Lane, J. Matthew D.; Salerno, K. Michael; Grest, Gary S.; Ao, Tommy; Hickman, Randy; Wise, Jack; Wang, Zhongwu; Fan, Hongyou

2017-03-01

Gold nanostructured materials exhibit important size- and shape-dependent properties that enable a wide variety of applications in photocatalysis, nanoelectronics and phototherapy. Here we show the use of superfast dynamic compression to synthesize extended gold nanostructures, such as nanorods, nanowires and nanosheets, with nanosecond coalescence times. Using a pulsed power generator, we ramp compress spherical gold nanoparticle arrays to pressures of tens of GPa, demonstrating pressure-driven assembly beyond the quasi-static regime of the diamond anvil cell. Our dynamic magnetic ramp compression approach produces smooth, shockless (that is, isentropic) one-dimensional loading with low-temperature states suitable for nanostructure synthesis. Transmission electron microscopy clearly establishes that various gold architectures are formed through compressive mesoscale coalescences of spherical gold nanoparticles, which is further confirmed by in-situ synchrotron X-ray studies and large-scale simulation. This nanofabrication approach applies magnetically driven uniaxial ramp compression to mimic established embossing and imprinting processes, but at ultra-short (nanosecond) timescales.

Superfast assembly and synthesis of gold nanostructures using nanosecond low-temperature compression via magnetic pulsed power.

PubMed

Li, Binsong; Bian, Kaifu; Lane, J Matthew D; Salerno, K Michael; Grest, Gary S; Ao, Tommy; Hickman, Randy; Wise, Jack; Wang, Zhongwu; Fan, Hongyou

2017-03-16

Gold nanostructured materials exhibit important size- and shape-dependent properties that enable a wide variety of applications in photocatalysis, nanoelectronics and phototherapy. Here we show the use of superfast dynamic compression to synthesize extended gold nanostructures, such as nanorods, nanowires and nanosheets, with nanosecond coalescence times. Using a pulsed power generator, we ramp compress spherical gold nanoparticle arrays to pressures of tens of GPa, demonstrating pressure-driven assembly beyond the quasi-static regime of the diamond anvil cell. Our dynamic magnetic ramp compression approach produces smooth, shockless (that is, isentropic) one-dimensional loading with low-temperature states suitable for nanostructure synthesis. Transmission electron microscopy clearly establishes that various gold architectures are formed through compressive mesoscale coalescences of spherical gold nanoparticles, which is further confirmed by in-situ synchrotron X-ray studies and large-scale simulation. This nanofabrication approach applies magnetically driven uniaxial ramp compression to mimic established embossing and imprinting processes, but at ultra-short (nanosecond) timescales.

Superfast assembly and synthesis of gold nanostructures using nanosecond low-temperature compression via magnetic pulsed power

PubMed Central

Li, Binsong; Bian, Kaifu; Lane, J. Matthew D.; Salerno, K. Michael; Grest, Gary S.; Ao, Tommy; Hickman, Randy; Wise, Jack; Wang, Zhongwu; Fan, Hongyou

2017-01-01

Gold nanostructured materials exhibit important size- and shape-dependent properties that enable a wide variety of applications in photocatalysis, nanoelectronics and phototherapy. Here we show the use of superfast dynamic compression to synthesize extended gold nanostructures, such as nanorods, nanowires and nanosheets, with nanosecond coalescence times. Using a pulsed power generator, we ramp compress spherical gold nanoparticle arrays to pressures of tens of GPa, demonstrating pressure-driven assembly beyond the quasi-static regime of the diamond anvil cell. Our dynamic magnetic ramp compression approach produces smooth, shockless (that is, isentropic) one-dimensional loading with low-temperature states suitable for nanostructure synthesis. Transmission electron microscopy clearly establishes that various gold architectures are formed through compressive mesoscale coalescences of spherical gold nanoparticles, which is further confirmed by in-situ synchrotron X-ray studies and large-scale simulation. This nanofabrication approach applies magnetically driven uniaxial ramp compression to mimic established embossing and imprinting processes, but at ultra-short (nanosecond) timescales. PMID:28300067

Ultracompact Pseudowedge Plasmonic Lasers and Laser Arrays.

PubMed

Chou, Yu-Hsun; Hong, Kuo-Bin; Chang, Chun-Tse; Chang, Tsu-Chi; Huang, Zhen-Ting; Cheng, Pi-Ju; Yang, Jhen-Hong; Lin, Meng-Hsien; Lin, Tzy-Rong; Chen, Kuo-Ping; Gwo, Shangjr; Lu, Tien-Chang

2018-02-14

Concentrating light at the deep subwavelength scale by utilizing plasmonic effects has been reported in various optoelectronic devices with intriguing phenomena and functionality. Plasmonic waveguides with a planar structure exhibit a two-dimensional degree of freedom for the surface plasmon; the degree of freedom can be further reduced by utilizing metallic nanostructures or nanoparticles for surface plasmon resonance. Reduction leads to different lightwave confinement capabilities, which can be utilized to construct plasmonic nanolaser cavities. However, most theoretical and experimental research efforts have focused on planar surface plasmon polariton (SPP) nanolasers. In this study, we combined nanometallic structures intersecting with ZnO nanowires and realized the first laser emission based on pseudowedge SPP waveguides. Relative to current plasmonic nanolasers, the pseudowedge plasmonic lasers reported in our study exhibit extremely small mode volumes, high group indices, high spontaneous emission factors, and high Purell factors beneficial for the strong interaction between light and matter. Furthermore, we demonstrated that compact plasmonic laser arrays can be constructed, which could benefit integrated plasmonic circuits.

Pyrrole-regulated precipitation of titania nanorods on polymer fabrics for photocatalytic degradation of trace toluene in air

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gu, Yi-Jie; Wen, Wei; Xu, Yang; Wu, Jin-Ming

2018-03-01

When compared with nanoparticulate counterparts, TiO2 thin films with vertically aligned one-dimensional (1D) nanostructures exhibit enhanced photocatalytic activity because of the highly accessible surface area. The perpendicular of the 1D nanostructure reduces the charge migration path and hence the carrier recombination rate, which also contributes to the photocatalytic activity. Furthermore, TiO2 thin films on flexible substrates are more suitable to degrade pollutants in either water or air because of its easy recovery and free-bending shape. In this study, flexible polyethylene fabrics were firstly coated with a sol-gel nanoparticulate TiO2 seed layer. Quasi-aligned TiO2 nanorods were then precipitated homogeneously under an atmospheric pressure and a low temperature not exceeding 80 °C, using a peroxy-titanium complex precursor with the additive of pyrrole. It is found that the density of TiO2 nanorods increased with the increasing amount of pyrrole monomers. The resultant TiO2 film on polyethylene fabrics exhibited a much reduced band gap of ca. 2.86 eV, which can be attributed to the surface oxygen deficiencies. When utilized to assist photocatalytic degradation of trace toluene in air under the UV light illumination, the TiO2 film exhibited a gradually increased photocatalytic activity upon the increasing cycles for up to six, because of the gradual removal of trace organics on the TiO2 surface. The highest photocatalytic efficiency is recorded to be 5 times that of TiO2 nanotube arrays, which are regarded as an excellent photocatalyst for air cleaning.

Tunable random lasing behavior in plasmonic nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yadav, Ashish; Zhong, Liubiao; Sun, Jun; Jiang, Lin; Cheng, Gary J.; Chi, Lifeng

2017-01-01

Random lasing is desired in plasmonics nanostructures through surface plasmon amplification. In this study, tunable random lasing behavior was observed in dye molecules attached with Au nanorods (NRs), Au nanoparticles (NPs) and Au@Ag nanorods (NRs) respectively. Our experimental investigations showed that all nanostructures i.e., Au@AgNRs, AuNRs & AuNPs have intensive tunable spectral effects. The random lasing has been observed at excitation wavelength 532 nm and varying pump powers. The best random lasing properties were noticed in Au@AgNRs structure, which exhibits broad absorption spectrum, sufficiently overlapping with that of dye Rhodamine B (RhB). Au@AgNRs significantly enhance the tunable spectral behavior through localized electromagnetic field and scattering. The random lasing in Au@AgNRs provides an efficient coherent feedback for random lasers.

Nanostructured titanate with different metal ions on the surface of metallic titanium: a facile approach for regulation of rBMSCs fate on titanium implants.

PubMed

Ren, Na; Li, Jianhua; Qiu, Jichuan; Sang, Yuanhua; Jiang, Huaidong; Boughton, Robert I; Huang, Ling; Huang, Wei; Liu, Hong

2014-08-13

Titanium (Ti) is widely used for load-bearing bio-implants, however, it is bio-inert and exhibits poor osteo-inductive properties. Calcium and magnesium ions are considered to be involved in bone metabolism and play a physiological role in the angiogenesis, growth, and mineralization of bone tissue. In this study, a facile synthesis approach to the in situ construction of a nanostructure enriched with Ca(2+) and Mg(2+) on the surface of titanium foil is proposed by inserting Ca(2+) and Mg(2+) into the interlayers of sodium titanate nanostructures through an ion-substitution process. The characteriz 0.67, and 0.73 nm ation results validate that cations can be inserted into the interlayer regions of the layered nanostructure without any obvious change of morphology. The cation content is positively correlated to the concentration of the solutions employed. The biological assessments indicate that the type and the amount of cations in the titanate nanostructure can alter the bioactivity of titanium implants. Compared with a Na(+) filled titanate nanostructure, the incorporation of divalent ions (Mg(2+) , Ca(2+) ) can effectively enhance protein adsorption, and thus also enhance the adhesion and differentiation ability of rat bone-marrow stem cells (rBMSCs). The Mg(2+) /Ca(2+) -titanate nanostructure is a promising implantable material that will be widely applicable in artificial bones, joints, and dental implants. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Synthesis and antimicrobial activity of gold/silver-tellurium nanostructures.

PubMed

Chang, Hsiang-Yu; Cang, Jinshun; Roy, Prathik; Chang, Huan-Tsung; Huang, Yi-Cheng; Huang, Chih-Ching

2014-06-11

Gold-tellurium nanostructures (Au-Te NSs), silver-tellurium nanostructures (Ag-Te NSs), and gold/silver-tellurium nanostructures (Au/Ag-Te NSs) have been prepared through galvanic reactions of tellurium nanotubes (Te NTs) with Au(3+), Ag(+), and both ions, respectively. Unlike the use of less environmentally friendly hydrazine, fructose as a reducing agent has been used to prepare Te NTs from TeO2 powders under alkaline conditions. The Au/Ag-Te NSs have highly catlaytic activity to convert nonfluorescent Amplex Red to form fluorescent product, revealing their great strength of generating reactive oxygen species (ROS). Au/Ag-Te NSs relative to the other two NSs exhibit greater antimicrobial activity toward the growth of E. coli, S. enteritidis, and S. aureus; the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) values of Au/Ag-Te NSs were much lower (>10-fold) than that of Ag-Te NSs and Au-Te NSs. The antibacterial activity of Au/Ag-Te NSs is mainly due to the release of Ag(+) ions and Te-related ions and also may be due to the generated ROS which destroys the bacteria membrane. In vitro cytotoxicity and hemolysis analyses have revealed their low toxicity in selected human cell lines and insignificant hemolysis in red blood cells. In addition, inhibition zone measurements using a Au/Ag-Te NSs-loaded konjac jelly film have suggested that it has great potential in practial application such as wound dressing for reducing bacterial wound infection. Having great antibacterial activitiy and excellent biocompatibility, the low-cost Au/Ag-Te NSs hold great potential as effective antimicrobial drugs.

Recent patents on perovskite ferroelectric nanostructures.

PubMed

Zhu, Xinhua

2009-01-01

Ferroelectric oxide materials with a perovskite structure have promising applications in electronic devices such as random access memories, sensors, actuators, infrared detectors, and so on. Recent advances in science and technology of ferroelectrics have resulted in the feature sizes of ferroelectric-based electronic devices entering into nanoscale dimensions. At nanoscale perovskite ferroelectric materials exhibit a pronounced size effect manifesting itself in a significant deviation of the properties of low-dimensional structures from the bulk and film counterparts. One-dimensional perovskite ferroelectric nanotube/nanowire systems, offer fundamental scientific opportunities for investigating the intrinsic size effects in ferroelectrics. In the past several years, much progress has been made both in fabrication and physical property testing of perovskite ferroelectric nanostructures. In the first part of this paper, the recent patents and literatures for fabricating ferroelectric nanowires, nanorods, nanotubes, and nanorings with promising features, are reviewed. The second part deals with the recent advances on the physical property testing of perovskite ferroelectric nanostructures. The third part summarizes the recently patents and literatures about the microstructural characterizations of perovskite ferroelectric nanostructures, to improve their crystalline quality, morphology and uniformity. Finally, we conclude this review with personal perspectives towards the potential future developments of perovskite ferroelectric nanostructures.

D-amino acid-containing supramolecular nanofibers for potential cancer therapeutics.

PubMed

Wang, Huaimin; Feng, Zhaoqianqi; Xu, Bing

2017-02-01

Nanostructures formed by peptides that self-assemble in water through non-covalent interactions have attracted considerable attention because peptides possess several unique advantages, such as modular design and easiness of synthesis, convenient modification with known functional motifs, good biocompatibility, low immunogenicity and toxicity, inherent biodegradability, and fast responses to a wide range of external stimuli. After about two decades of development, peptide-based supramolecular nanostructures have already shown great potentials in the fields of biomedicine. Among a range of biomedical applications, using such nanostructures for cancer therapy has attracted increased interests since cancer remains the major threat for human health. Comparing with L-peptides, nanostructures containing peptides made of D-amino acid (i.e., D-peptides) bear a unique advantage, biostability (i.e., resistance towards most of endogenous enzymes). The exploration of nanostructures containing D-amino acids, especially their biomedical applications, is still in its infancy. Herein we review the recent progress of D-amino acid-containing supramolecular nanofibers as an emerging class of biomaterials that exhibit unique features for the development of cancer therapeutics. In addition, we give a brief perspective about the challenges and promises in this research direction. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

ZnO nanomaterials based surface acoustic wave ethanol gas sensor.

PubMed

Wu, Y; Li, X; Liu, J H; He, Y N; Yu, L M; Liu, W H

2012-08-01

ZnO nanomaterials based surface acoustic wave (SAW) gas sensor has been investigated in ethanol environment at room temperature. The ZnO nanomaterials have been prepared through thermal evaporation of high-purity zinc powder. The as-prepared ZnO nanomaterials have been characterized with scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray Diffraction (XRD) techniques. The results indicate that the obtained ZnO nanomaterials, including many types of nanostructures such as nanobelts, nanorods, nanowires as well as nanosheets, are wurtzite with hexagonal structure and well-crystallized. The SAW sensor coated with the nanostructured ZnO materials has been tested in ethanol gas of various concentrations at room temperature. A network analyzer is used to monitor the change of the insertion loss of the SAW sensor when exposed to ethanol gas. The insertion loss of the SAW sensor varies significantly with the change of ethanol concentration. The experimental results manifest that the ZnO nanomaterials based SAW ethanol gas sensor exhibits excellent sensitivity and good short-term reproducibility at room temperature.

Simple and scalable growth of AgCl nanorods by plasma-assisted strain relaxation on flexible polymer substrates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, Jae Yong; Lee, Illhwan; Ham, Juyoung; Gim, Seungo; Lee, Jong-Lam

2017-06-01

Implementing nanostructures on plastic film is indispensable for highly efficient flexible optoelectronic devices. However, due to the thermal and chemical fragility of plastic, nanostructuring approaches are limited to indirect transfer with low throughput. Here, we fabricate single-crystal AgCl nanorods by using a Cl2 plasma on Ag-coated polyimide. Cl radicals react with Ag to form AgCl nanorods. The AgCl is subjected to compressive strain at its interface with the Ag film because of the larger lattice constant of AgCl compared to Ag. To minimize strain energy, the AgCl nanorods grow in the [200] direction. The epitaxial relationship between AgCl (200) and Ag (111) induces a strain, which leads to a strain gradient at the periphery of AgCl nanorods. The gradient causes a strain-induced diffusion of Ag atoms to accelerate the nanorod growth. Nanorods grown for 45 s exhibit superior haze up to 100% and luminance of optical device increased by up to 33%.

Local pH oscillations witness autocatalytic self-organization of biomorphic nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Montalti, M.; Zhang, G.; Genovese, D.; Morales, J.; Kellermeier, M.; García-Ruiz, J. M.

2017-02-01

Bottom-up self-assembly of simple molecular compounds is a prime pathway to complex materials with interesting structures and functions. Coupled reaction systems are known to spontaneously produce highly ordered patterns, so far observed in soft matter. Here we show that similar phenomena can occur during silica-carbonate crystallization, the emerging order being preserved. The resulting materials, called silica biomorphs, exhibit non-crystallographic curved morphologies and hierarchical textures, much reminiscent of structural principles found in natural biominerals. We have used a fluorescent chemosensor to probe local conditions during the growth of such self-organized nanostructures. We demonstrate that the pH oscillates in the local microenvironment near the growth front due to chemical coupling, which becomes manifest in the final mineralized architectures as intrinsic banding patterns with the same periodicity. A better understanding of dynamic autocatalytic crystallization processes in such simple model systems is key to the rational development of advanced materials and to unravel the mechanisms of biomineralization.

Nanoplasmonic Biosensor Using Localized Surface Plasmon Resonance Spectroscopy for Biochemical Detection.

PubMed

Zhang, Diming; Zhang, Qian; Lu, Yanli; Yao, Yao; Li, Shuang; Liu, Qingjun

2017-01-01

Localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) associated with metal nanostructures has developed into a highly useful sensor technique. Optical LSPR spectroscopy of nanostructures often shows sharp absorption and scattering peaks, which can be used to probe several bio-molecular interactions. Here, we report nanoplasmonic biosensors using LSPR on nanocup arrays (nanoCA) to recognize bio-molecular binding for biochemical detection. These sensors can be modified to quantify binding of small molecules to proteins for odorant and explosive detections. Electrochemical LSPR biosensors can also be designed by coupling electrochemistry and LSPR spectroscopy measurements. Multiple sensing information can be obtained and electrochemical LSPR property can be investigated for biosensors. In some applications, the electrochemical LSPR biosensor can be used to quantify immunoreactions and enzymatic activity. The biosensors exhibit better performance than those of conventional optical LSPR measurements. With multi-transducers, the nanoplasmonic biosensor can provide a promising approach for bio-detection in environmental monitoring, healthcare diagnostics, and food quality control.

Nanostructured mesoporous silica: new perspectives for fighting antimicrobial resistance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Voicu, Georgeta; Dogaru, Ionuţ; Meliţă, Daniela; Meştercă, Raluca; Spirescu, Vera; Stan, Eliza; Tote, Eliza; Mogoantă, Laurenţiu; Mogoşanu, George Dan; Grumezescu, Alexandru Mihai; Truşcă, Roxana; Vasile, Eugeniu; Iordache, Florin; Chifiriuc, Mariana-Carmen; Holban, Alina Maria

2015-05-01

This paper investigates the antimicrobial potential of nanostructured mesoporous silica (NMS) functionalized with essential oils (EOs) and antibiotics (ATBs). The NMS networks were obtained by the basic procedure from cetyltrimethylammonium bromide and tetraethyl orthosilicate in the form of granules with diameters ranging from 100 to 300 nm with an average pore diameter of 2.2 nm, as confirmed by the BET-TEM analyses. The Salvia officinalis (SO) and Coriandrum sativum (CS) EOs and the streptomycin and neomycin ATBs were loaded in the NMS pores. TG analysis was performed in order to estimate the amount of the entrapped volatile EOs. The results of the biological analyses revealed that NMS/SO and NMS/CS exhibited a very good antimicrobial activity to an extent comparable or even superior to the one triggered by ATB, and a good in vitro and in vivo biocompatibility. Due to their regular pores, high biocompatibility, antimicrobial activity, and capacity to stabilize the volatile EOs, the obtained NMS can be used as an efficient drug delivery system for further biomedical applications.

Three novel electrochemical electrodes for the fabrication of conducting polymer/SWCNTs layered nanostructures and their thermoelectric performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shi, Hui; Liu, Congcong; Jiang, Qinglin; Xu, Jingkun; Lu, Baoyang; Jiang, Fengxing; Zhu, Zhengyou

2015-06-01

Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs), PEDOT:PSS/SWCNTs, and SWCNTs/PEDOT:PSS nanofilms were used as working electrodes to electrodeposit polyaniline (PANI) in a mixed alcohol solution of isopropyl alcohol (IPA), boron trifluoride ethyl ether (BFEE), and polyethylene glycol (PEG). The thermoelectric (TE) performances of the resulting nanofilms were systematically investigated. SWCNTs/PEDOT:PSS/PANI nanofilms showed a relatively high electrical conductivity value of 232.0 S cm-1. The Seebeck coefficient was enhanced and exhibited the values of 33.8, 25.6, and 23.0 μV K-1 for the SWCNTs/PANI, PEDOT:PSS/SWCNTs/PANI, and SWCNTs/PEDOT:PSS/PANI films, respectively. The maximum power factor achieved was 12.3 μW m-1 K-2. This technique offers a facile and versatile approach to a class of layered nanostructures, and it may provide a general strategy for fabricating a new generation of conducting polymer/SWCNTs materials for further practical applications.

Recent progress on borophene: Growth and structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kong, Longjuan; Wu, Kehui; Chen, Lan

2018-06-01

Boron is the neighbor of carbon on the periodic table and exhibits unusual physical characteristics derived from electron-deficient, highly delocalized covalent bonds. As the nearest neighbor of carbon, boron is in many ways similar to carbon, such as having a short covalent radius and the flexibility to adopt sp 2 hybridization. Hence, boron could be capable of forming monolayer structural analogues of graphene. Although many theoretical papers have reported finding two-dimensional allotropes of boron, there had been no experimental evidence for such atom-thin boron nanostructures until 2016. Recently, the successful synthesis of single-layer boron (referred to as borophene) on the Ag(111) substrate opens the era of boron nanostructures. In this brief review, we will discuss the progress that has been made on borophene in terms of synthetic techniques, characterizations and the atomic models. However, borophene is just in infancy; more efforts are expected to be made in future on the controlled synthesis of quality samples and tailoring its physical properties.

Zinc oxide nanostructures for electrochemical cortisol biosensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vabbina, Phani Kiran; Kaushik, Ajeet; Tracy, Kathryn; Bhansali, Shekhar; Pala, Nezih

2014-05-01

In this paper, we report on fabrication of a label free, highly sensitive and selective electrochemical cortisol immunosensors using one dimensional (1D) ZnO nanorods (ZnO-NRs) and two dimensional nanoflakes (ZnO-NFs) as immobilizing matrix. The synthesized ZnO nanostructures (NSs) were characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), selective area diffraction (SAED) and photoluminescence spectra (PL) which showed that both ZnO-NRs and ZnO-NFs are single crystalline and oriented in [0001] direction. Anti-cortisol antibody (Anti-Cab) are used as primary capture antibodies to detect cortisol using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The charge transfer resistance increases linearly with increase in cortisol concentration and exhibits a sensitivity of 3.078 KΩ. M-1 for ZnO-NRs and 540 Ω. M -1 for ZnO-NFs. The developed ZnO-NSs based immunosensor is capable of detecting cortisol at 1 pM. The observed sensing parameters are in physiological range. The developed sensors can be integrated with microfluidic system and miniaturized potentiostat to detect cortisol at point-of-care.

Controlled synthesis of nanostructured molybdenum oxide electrodes for high performance supercapacitor devices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maheswari, Nallappan; Muralidharan, Gopalan

2017-09-01

Well defined crystallographic and one dimensional morphological structure of molybdenum oxide were successfully synthesized by adjusting the duration of hydrothermal treatment. The prepared molybdenum oxide was examined through XRD, SEM, FTIR, TEM, BET and electrochemical studies. The XRD patterns illustrate that MoOx prepared by variying the hydrothermal reaction time are in different crystallographic structure of MoyOx (Mo8O23 and MoO3). SEM studies reveal the different morphological structures ranging from flake like morphology to nanorods. TEM images confirm the excellent nanorod structure. The nanorod structure ensures good cyclic behaviour with maximum capacitance of 1080 F g-1 at a current density of 2 A g-1. This large capacity of the MoO3 nanostructures enabled fabrication of symmetric and asymmertic supercapacitor devices. The asymmertic device exhibits a maximum specific capacitance of 145 F g-1 at 2 mV s-1 with highest energy density of 38.6 W h kg-1 at 374.7 W kg-1 power density.

Controllable synthesis of Au@SnO2 core-shell nanohybrids with enhanced photocatalytic activities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Shaofeng; Hao, Jinggang; Ren, Feng; Wu, Wei; Xiao, Xiangheng

2017-05-01

Combination of semiconductors with plasmonic nanostructures is an effective route to promote the solar light harvesting as well as the efficiency of photocatalysis. In the present work, the Au@SnO2 hybrid nanostructures with Au nanorods as the cores and highly crystallized SnO2 nanoparticles as the shells were fabricated by a facile hydrothermal method. A critical factor, which influences the coating state of the SnO2 shells over Au NRs, was found to be the concentration of CTAB agent in the system and the corresponding mechanism was also proposed. The photocatalytic activities of the Au@SnO2 nanohybrids were examined by degradation of rhodamine B (RhB) dyes at room temperature. The Au@SnO2 nanohybrids exhibited much higher catalytic activities than that of the commercial SnO2 NPs, which could be attributed to the localized electric field enhancement effect of Au nanorods plasmon and charges transfer between the Au nanorods and SnO2.

Engineering Interface Structures and Thermal Stabilities via SPD Processing in Bulk Nanostructured Metals

DOE PAGES

Zheng, Shijian; Carpenter, John S.; McCabe, Rodney J.; ...

2014-02-27

Nanostructured metals achieve extraordinary strength but suffer from low thermal stability, both a consequence of a high fraction of interfaces. Overcoming this tradeoff relies on making the interfaces themselves thermally stable. In this paper, we show that the atomic structures of bi-metal interfaces in macroscale nanomaterials suitable for engineering structures can be significantly altered via changing the severe plastic deformation (SPD) processing pathway. Two types of interfaces are formed, both exhibiting a regular atomic structure and providing for excellent thermal stability, up to more than half the melting temperature of one of the constituents. Most importantly, the thermal stability ofmore » one is found to be significantly better than the other, indicating the exciting potential to control and optimize macroscale robustness via atomic-scale bimetal interface tuning. As a result, we demonstrate an innovative way to engineer pristine bimetal interfaces for a new class of simultaneously strong and thermally stable materials.« less

Plasmonic hole arrays for combined photon and electron management

DOE PAGES

Liapis, Andreas C.; Sfeir, Matthew Y.; Black, Charles T.

2016-11-14

Material architectures that balance optical transparency and electrical conductivity are highly sought after for thin-film device applications. However, these are competing properties, since the electronic structure that gives rise to conductivity typically also leads to optical opacity. Nanostructured metal films that exhibit extraordinary optical transmission, while at the same time being electrically continuous, offer considerable flexibility in the design of their transparency and resistivity. In this paper, we present design guidelines for metal films perforated with arrays of nanometer-scale holes, discussing the consequences of the choice of nanostructure dimensions, of the type of metal, and of the underlying substrate onmore » their electrical, optical, and interfacial properties. We experimentally demonstrate that such films can be designed to have broad-band optical transparency while being an order of magnitude more conductive than indium tin oxide. Finally, prototypical photovoltaic devices constructed with perforated metal contacts convert ~18% of the incident photons, compared to <1% for identical devices having contacts without the hole array.« less

Ultrathin Nickel Hydroxide and Oxide Nanosheets: Synthesis, Characterizations and Excellent Supercapacitor Performances

PubMed Central

Zhu, Youqi; Cao, Chuanbao; Tao, Shi; Chu, Wangsheng; Wu, Ziyu; Li, Yadong

2014-01-01

High-quality ultrathin two-dimensional nanosheets of α-Ni(OH)2 are synthesized at large scale via microwave-assisted liquid-phase growth under low-temperature atmospheric conditions. After heat treatment, non-layered NiO nanosheets are obtained while maintaining their original frame structure. The well-defined and freestanding nanosheets exhibit a micron-sized planar area and ultrathin thickness (<2 nm), suggesting an ultrahigh surface atom ratio with unique surface and electronic structure. The ultrathin 2D nanostructure can make most atoms exposed outside with high activity thus facilitate the surface-dependent electrochemical reaction processes. The ultrathin α-Ni(OH)2 and NiO nanosheets exhibit enhanced supercapacitor performances. Particularly, the α-Ni(OH)2 nanosheets exhibit a maximum specific capacitance of 4172.5 F g−1 at a current density of 1 A g−1. Even at higher rate of 16 A g−1, the specific capacitance is still maintained at 2680 F g−1 with 98.5% retention after 2000 cycles. Even more important, we develop a facile and scalable method to produce high-quality ultrathin transition metal hydroxide and oxide nanosheets and make a possibility in commercial applications. PMID:25168127

Fabrication and investigation of effect of core size in heterostructure PbS/CdS core/shell nanoparticles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Das, D.; Hussain, A. M. P.

2018-04-01

PbS/CdS core/shell (CS) nanoparticles (NPs) were fabricated with three different concentrations of PbS core and CdS shell. Formation of core/shell heterostructure was confirmed from X-ray diffraction studies. The diffraction patterns exhibited formation of cubic phase and polycrystalline core/shell nanostructure. The crystalline sizes calculated from Williamson-Hall plot exhibited increase with molar concentration of precursors with decrease in strain. High resolution electron microscopy studies also confirm the formation of core/shell structure with particle size around 10 nm. A large blue-shift for PbS core compared to its bulk and small red-shift for the PbS/CdS core/shell as compared to the core is being observed in absorption spectra.