Facile control of C₂H₅OH sensing characteristics by decorating discrete Ag nanoclusters on SnO₂ nanowire networks

The effect of Ag decoration on the gas sensing characteristics of SnO(2) nanowire (NW) networks was investigated. The Ag layers with thicknesses of 5-50 nm were uniformly coated on the surface of SnO(2) NWs via e-beam evaporation, which were converted into isolated or continuous configurations of Ag islands by heat treatment at 450 °C for 2 h. The SnO(2) NWs decorated by isolated Ag nano-islands displayed a 3.7-fold enhancement in gas response to 100 ppm C(2)H(5)OH at 450 °C compared to pristine SnO(2) NWs. In contrast, as the Ag decoration layers became continuous, the response to C(2)H(5)OH decreased significantly. The enhancement and deterioration of the C(2)H(5)OH sensing characteristics by the introduction of the Ag decoration layer were strongly governed by the morphological configurations of the Ag catalysts on SnO(2) NWs and their sensitization mechanism.     

Ag2S纳米粒子的合成与表征

以油酸钠为表面活性剂、硝酸银和硫脲为反应物，在甲苯一水两相界面处合成了Ag2S纳米粒子。采用紫外一可见吸收光谱（U弘Vis）、透射电子显微镜（TEM）和广角X射线衍射（WAXD）等方法对Ag2S纳米粒子的光学性质、形貌及晶体结构进行了表征。结果表明，通过改变甲苯一水两相界面反应体系的条件，可以得到粒子尺寸窄分布的Ag2...     

Enhanced Cu₂S/CdS coaxial nanowire solar cells by piezo-phototronic effect

Nanowire solar cells are promising candidates for powering nanosystems and flexible electronics. The strain in the nanowires, introduced during growth, device fabrication and/or application, is an important issue for piezoelectric semiconductor (like CdS, ZnO, and CdTe) based photovoltaic. In this work, we demonstrate the first largely enhanced performance of n-CdS/p-Cu(2)S coaxial nanowire photovoltaic (PV) devices using the piezo-phototronics effect when the PV device is subjected to an external strain. Piezo-phototronics effect could control the electron-hole pair generation, transport, separation, and/or recombination, thus enhanced the performance of the PV devices by as high as 70%. This effect offers a new concept for improving solar energy conversation efficiency by designing the orientation of the nanowires and the strain to be purposely introduced in the packaging of the solar cells. This study shed light on the enhanced flexible solar cells for applications in self-powered technology, environmental monitoring, and even defensive technology.     

Photochemical reduction of CO₂ using TiO₂: effects of organic adsorbates on TiO₂ and deposition of Pd onto TiO₂

Reduction of CO(2) using semiconductors as photocatalysts has recently attracted a great deal of attention again. The effects of organic adsorbates on semiconductors on the photocatalytic products are noteworthy. On untreated TiO(2) (P-25) particles a considerable number of organic molecules such as acetic acid were adsorbed. Although irradiation of an aqueous suspension of this TiO(2) resulted in the formation of a significant amount of CH(4) as a major product, it was strongly suggested that its formation mainly proceeded via the photo-Kolbe reaction of acetic acid. Using TiO(2) treated by calcination and washing procedures for removal of the organic adsorbates, CO was photocatalytically generated as a major product, along with a very small amount of CH(4), from an aqueous suspension under a CO(2) atmosphere. In contrast, by using Pd (>0.5 wt %) deposited on TiO(2) (Pd-TiO(2)) on which organic adsorbates were not detected, CH(4) was the main product, but CO formation was drastically reduced compared with that on the pretreated TiO(2). Experimental data, including isotope labeling, indicated that CO(2) and CO(3)(2-) are the main carbon sources of the CH(4) formation, which proceeds on the Pd site of Pd-TiO(2). Prolonged irradiation caused deactivation of the photocatalysis of Pd-TiO(2) because of the partial oxidation of the deposited Pd to PdO.     

The effect of Ga content on In₂xGa₂-₂xO₃ nanowire transistor characteristics

We have investigated the change in structural and electrical properties of In(2x)Ga(2-2x)O(3) nanowires (x = 1, 0.69 and 0.32) grown with varied indium (In) and gallium (Ga) contents. The as-grown In(2x)Ga(2-2x)O(3) nanowires kept the cubic crystal structure of In(2)O(3) intact even when the atomic percentages of Ga were increased to 31% (x = 0.69) and 68% (x = 0.32) in comparison to the total amount of In and Ga. However, as Ga added to In(2)O(3) structure was substituted with In, the lattice constant decreased and, consequently, the main peaks observed in x-ray diffraction in the direction of (222), (400) and (440) shifted by around ～0.08°. The average threshold voltage values for the In(2x)Ga(2-2x)O(3) nanowire transistors were -9.9 V (x = 1), -6.6 V (x = 0.67) and -5.6 V (x = 0.32), exhibiting a more positive shift and the sub-threshold slope increased to 0.53 V /dec (x = 1), 0.33 V /dec (x = 0.67) and 0.27 V /dec (x = 0.32), showing an improved switching characteristic with increasing Ga.     

Anomalous transport properties of the half-metallic ferromagnets Co₂TiSi, Co₂TiGe and Co₂TiSn

In this work, the theoretical and experimental investigations of Co?TiZ (Z=Si, Ge or Sn) compounds are reported. Half-metallic ferromagnetism is predicted for all three compounds with only two bands crossing the Fermi energy in the majority channel. The magnetic moments fulfil the Slater-Pauling rule and the Curie temperatures are well above room temperature. All compounds show a metallic-like resistivity for low temperatures up to their Curie temperature, above the resistivity changes to semiconducting-like behaviour. A large negative magnetoresistance (MR) of 55 per cent is observed for Co?TiSn at room temperature in an applied magnetic field of μ(0)H=4T, which is comparable to the large negative MRs of the manganites. The Seebeck coefficients are negative for all three compounds and reach their maximum values at their respective Curie temperatures and stay almost constant up to 950?K. The highest value achieved is -52?μVK(-1) for Co?TiSn, which is large for a metal. The combination of half-metallicity and the constant large Seebeck coefficient over a wide temperature range makes these compounds interesting materials for thermoelectric applications and further spincaloric investigations.     

Ag2S纳米晶的制备及其近红外光热治疗应用

光热治疗是近年来受到广泛关注的一种低副作用的癌症治疗方法, 治疗中使用的纳米光热剂的制备和性能是决定光热治疗效应的关键因素。本研究采用热解和表面配体置换相结合的方法制备得到二氢硫辛酸(DHLA)修饰的Ag₂S纳米晶材料, 这种材料具有良好的水溶性、光热稳定性和生物相容性。研究结果显示浓度大于40 μg/mL的Ag₂S纳米晶在波长为980 nm、功率密度为5 W/cm²的红外激光照射下对宫颈癌细胞具有明显的杀伤效果, 且光热稳定性良好。Ag₂S纳米晶的光热效应与其良好的荧光成像功能相结合, 可实现光热治疗的可视化和精准化。     

Meyerozyma sp.合成Ag2S量子点及其抗菌性

利用从大庆油田土壤中筛出的耐重金属真菌季也蒙毕赤酵母(Meyerozyma sp.)还原硝酸银和亚硫酸钠合成硫化银(Ag2 S)量子点,并通过X射线光电子能谱分析(XPS)、X射线衍射(XRD)、倒置荧光显微镜、扫描电镜(SEM)对合成的硫化银(Ag2 S)量子点进行表征,同时研究了合成的硫化银(Ag2 S)量子点的抗...     

区熔法制备金属硫化物Ag2S及其热电性能研究

金属硫化物Ag2S具有优异的物理化学性能,在催化、传感及光电子等领域具有广阔的应用空间.本工作利用一种区熔技术制备了尺寸为?18 mm×50 mm的Ag2S并对其潜在热电性能进行了研究.Ag2S在450 K以下具有标准的 α-Ag2S单斜P21/c结构,450 K以上发生相变成为立方 β-Ag2S相.Ag2S在300～...     

Solution fabrication and photoelectrical properties of CuInS₂ nanocrystals on TiO₂ nanorod array

One-dimensional semiconductor architectures are receiving attention in preparing photovoltaic solar cells because of its superior charge transport as well as excellent light-harvesting efficiency. In this study, vertically aligned single-crystalline TiO(2) nanorods array was grown directly on transparent conductive glass (FTO), and then CuInS(2) nanocrystals were deposited on nanorods array by spin coating method to form TiO(2)/CuInS(2) heterostructure films. The resulting nanostructure assembly and composition was confirmed by field-emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM) , transmission electron microscopy (TEM), high-resolution TEM, and X-ray diffraction(XRD). Ultraviolet-visible absorption spectroscopy (UV-vis) data indicates that the absorbance of the nanocomposite film extended into the visible region compared with bare TiO(2) nanorod arrays. The surface photovoltage spectra (SPS) also showed a new and enhanced response region corresponding to the absorption spectrum. These results suggest that the novel CuInS(2) nanocrystals sensitized TiO(2) nanorod array on FTO photoelectrodes has a potential application in photovoltaic devices.     

Magnetic stability of SnO₂ nanosheets

Room temperature ferromagnetism has been observed in freshly synthesized and post-annealed SnO? nanosheets. The results of x-ray diffraction and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy reveal that the newly synthesized samples and those annealed at 400?°C under either an O? or Ar atmosphere possess rutile structure and no other impurity phases are observed. The fitting results of the O 1s and Sn 3d spectra from SnO? samples annealed at 400?°C under an O? or Ar atmosphere both indicate that oxygen vacancies inevitably exist in these samples. It is found that the saturation magnetization of all the annealed samples does not feature mono-dependence on oxygen vacancies, whereas an Sn vacancy related origin seems more plausible to account for variations in the magnetization of samples studied. This finding corresponds to first-principle calculation results from our previous work. Furthermore, the Curie temperature of SnO? nanosheets was estimated to be around 300?°C, rendering it a very good option for the next generation of spintronics.     

Growth kinetics and size-dependent wetting of Ag/α-Al₂O₃(0001) nanoparticles studied via the plasmonic response

The growth of vapour-deposited silver nanoparticles on α-Al?O? was studied in situ from 190 to 675 K by surface differential reflectivity spectroscopy in the UV-visible range. Changes in size, shape and density were derived from the plasmonic response modelled in the framework of interface susceptibilities by assuming that supported clusters were in the form of truncated spheres. The sticking coefficient of silver on alumina is close to one up to T ? 575 K before entering a regime of incomplete condensation. The Arrhenius dependence of the saturation density indicates a nucleation on defects at low temperature (T ≤ 300 K) and detrapping above. The particle size D evolution follows temporal power laws, independent of temperature and flux, which characterize the growth (D ～ t(0.31)) and coalescence (D ～ t(0.55)) of the film. These are indicative of the growth of isolated particles at constant density and dynamic coalescence, respectively. The wetting angle of the silver clusters is shown to increase during the growth regime, which is assigned to a combination of surface stress and mismatch-induced strain, and to decrease upon coalescence, which is attributed to plastic relaxation. For particles larger than 10 nm in size, the values of contact angle and adhesion energy level off with asymptotic limits (θ(c) = 127.5° ± 1° and 0.48 ± 0.02 J m?2) that nicely agree with tabulated data. This work highlights the ability of nanoplasmics to monitor in situ the growth kinetics of thin supported films.     

纳米Ag2S/TiO2异质复合薄膜的制备和光电性能

以异丙醇钛(C12H28O4Ti)为主要原料合成氧化钛(TiO2)前驱体溶胶,并结合230℃水热处理得到TiO2溶胶,利用电流体动力学(EHD)技术在掺氟氧化锡导电(FTO)玻璃基片上镀膜,450℃高温煅烧制备具有多级结构锐钛矿TiO2纳米薄膜.以硝酸银(AgNO3)及硫化钠(Na2S)分别为银源和硫源,采用化学浴沉积...     

High-performance visible-light-driven SnS₂/SnO₂ nanocomposite photocatalyst prepared via in situ hydrothermal oxidation of SnS₂ nanoparticles

SnS?/SnO? nanocomposites with tunable SnO? contents were prepared via in situ hydrothermal oxidation of SnS? nanoparticles in 0.375-4.5 mass% H?O? aqueous solutions at 180 °C for 0-12 h. The structure, composition and optical properties of the as-prepared SnS?/SnO? nanocomposites were characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area analysis, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectra. Furthermore, their photocatalytic properties were tested for the degradation of methyl orange in water under visible light (λ > 420 nm) irradiation. It was found that the as-prepared SnS?/SnO? nanocomposites with suitable SnO? content not only demonstrated superior photocatalytic activity to both SnS? nanoparticles and physically mixed SnS?/SnO? composite nanoparticles, but also had remarkable photocatalytic stability. The tight attachment of SnO? nanoparticles to SnS? nanoparticles, which can facilitate interfacial electron transfer and reduce the self-agglomeration of two components, was considered to play an important role in achieving the high photocatalytic performances exhibited by the as-prepared SnS?/SnO? nanocomposites.     

Surfactant-free CuInSe₂ nanocrystals transformed from In₂Se₃ nanoparticles and their application for a flexible UV photodetector

In(2)Se(3) nanoparticles were synthesized in an aqueous solution without using any surfactant and then chemically transformed into CuInSe(2) nanocrystals. The transformation was thermodynamically favorable and fast. The 93% production yield in mild reaction conditions allowed mass production of the CuInSe(2) nanocrystals. By the virtue of the surface charges, the CuInSe(2) nanocrystals were well dispersed in polar solvents. The surfactant-free nanocrystals enabled the formation of semiconducting CuInSe(2) films on a flexible polymer substrate without any thermal treatment. We took advantage of this to fabricate a flexible UV photodetector. The current and sensitivity of the devices could be improved by utilizing CuInSe(2) nanocrystals annealed at 160?°C in the reaction batch. On bending test, the detection sensitivity remained the same until the bending radius was reduced down to 4 mm. The dynamic response of the film device was stable and reproducible during light illumination (350 nm).     

Switching mechanisms in flexible solution-processed TiO₂ memristors

Memristors are emerging as unique electrical devices with potential applications in memory, reconfigurable logic and biologically inspired computing. Due to the novelty of these devices, the complete details of their switching mechanism is not yet well established. In this work, the switching mechanism of our solution-processed titanium dioxide-based memristor is investigated by studying how variations in the device area and film thickness affect electrical behavior and correlating these behavioral changes to proposed switching mechanisms. The conduction path of the switching is also investigated through electrical characterization of devices both before and after physically cutting the devices in half, as well as through infrared imaging of the devices during operation. The results suggest that the electrical behavior of these devices is dominated by a localized, charge-based phenomenon that exhibits a dependence on device area.     

Branched TiO₂ nanorods for photoelectrochemical hydrogen production

We report a hierarchically branched TiO(2) nanorod structure that serves as a model architecture for efficient photoelectrochemical devices as it simultaneously offers a large contact area with the electrolyte, excellent light-trapping characteristics, and a highly conductive pathway for charge carrier collection. Under Xenon lamp illumination (UV spectrum matched to AM 1.5G, 88 mW/cm(2) total power density), the branched TiO(2) nanorod array produces a photocurrent density of 0.83 mA/cm(2) at 0.8 V versus reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE). The incident photon-to-current conversion efficiency reaches 67% at 380 nm with an applied bias of 0.6 V versus RHE, nearly two times higher than the bare nanorods without branches. The branches improve efficiency by means of (i) improved charge separation and transport within the branches due to their small diameters, and (ii) a 4-fold increase in surface area which facilitates the hole transfer at the TiO(2)/electrolyte interface.     

A simple microwave approach for synthesis and characterization of Ag2S–AgInS2 nanocomposites

Ag₂S–AgInS₂ nanocomposites, with the aid of [Ag(HSal)] and InCl₃ as starting reagents, have been successfully synthesized by a microwave process from propylene glycol solution. Besides, the effects of preparation parameters such as irradiation time, solvents and sulfur source on the morphology and particle size of products were studied by SEM images. The synthesis procedure is novel, simple and uses less toxic reagents. The prepared Ag₂S–AgInS₂ nanostructures were characterized extensively by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), energy-dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), infrared (IR) spectrum, photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. The fill factor (FF), open circuit voltage (V_oc), and short circuit current (I_sc) were obtained by I–V characterization.     

AgInS2和Ag—Zn—In—S量子点的制备及表征

采用热注入法成功制备出三元AgInS2和四元Ag—Zn—In—S量子点,物性测试得到AgInS2量子点的发射峰为701nm,Ag—Zn—In—S量子点的发射峰593nm,即Ag-Zn-In—S量子点的发射峰相对于AgInS2量子点发生了蓝移,AgInS2和Ag—Zn—In—S量子点都表现出了较长的荧光寿命,分别为169ns和162ns,结合生物组织光学窗口范围限制,相对Ag—Z—In—S,AgInS2量子点更适用于生物标记。