An Exploration of New Energy Storage System: High Energy Density,High Safety,and Fast Charging Lithium Ion Battery

Rechargeable lithium ion battery (LIB) has dominated the energy market from portable electronics to electric vehicles, but the fast‐charging remains challenging. The safety concerns of lithium deposition on graphite anode or the decreased energy density using Li₄Ti₅O₁₂ (LTO) anode are incapable to satisfy applications. Herein, the sulfurized polyacrylonitrile (SPAN) is explored for the first time as a high capacity and safer anode in LIBs, in which the high voltage cathode of LiNi_1/3Co_1/3Mn_1/3O₂ (NCM‐H) is further introduced to configure a new SPAN|NCM‐H battery with great fast‐charging features. The LIB demonstrates a good stability with a high capacity retention of 89.7% after 100 cycles at a high voltage of 3.5 V (i.e., 4.6 V vs Li⁺/Li). Particularly, the excellent rate capability is confirmed and 78.7% of initial capacity can still be delivered at 4.0C. In addition, 97.6% of the battery capacity can be charged within 2.0C, which is much higher than 80% in current fast‐charging application standards. The feature of lithiation potential (>1.0 V vs Li⁺/Li) of SPAN avoids the lithium deposition and improves the safety, while the high capacity over 640 mAh g^?1 promises 43.5% higher energy density than that of LTO‐based battery, enabling its great competitiveness to conventional LIBs.     

Spherical Lithium Deposition Enables High Li-Utilization Rate,Low Negative/Positive Ratio,and High Energy Density in Lithium Metal Batteries

Lithium metal battery promises an attractively high energy density. A high Li-utilization rate of Li metal anode is the prerequisite for the high energy density and avoiding a huge waste of the Li resource. However, the dendritic Li deposition gives rise to “dead Li” and parasitic interfacial reactions, resulting in a low Li utilization rate. Herein, Li deposition is regulated to spherical Li by designing an MXene host with an egg-box structure, suitable curvature, and continuous gradient lithiophilic structure. Because the spherical Li greatly reduces the interfacial side reactions and avoids the formation of dead Li, the Li anode affords a high plating/stripping efficiency. Furthermore, the gradient lithiophilic design results in a bottom-up growth of the spherical Li within the host, safely away from the separator. Thus, the spherical Li anode realizes a long life of >3000 h with a high Li-utilization rate of >90%, stable cycling in full cells at an areal capacity up to 5 mAh cm⁻² with a low negative/positive ratio of 0.8, which is critical for high energy density. Such spherical deposition highlights the critical role of the morphological control of alkali metals and provides a viable method to build practical high-energy metal batteries.     

Ultrafast Synthesis of Large-Sized and Conductive Na3V2(PO4)2F3 Simultaneously Approaches High Tap Density,Rate and Cycling Capability

The Na₃V₂(PO₄)₂F₃ (NVPF) cathode material is usually nano-sized particles exhibiting low tap density, high specific surface area, correspondingly low volume energy density, and cycle stability of the sodium-ion batteries (SIBs). Herein, a high-temperature shock (HTS) strategy is proposed to synthesize NVPF (HTS-NVPF) with uniform conducting network and high tap density. During a typical HTS process (heating rate of 1100 °C s⁻¹ for 10 s), the precursors rapidly crystallize and form large-sized and dense particles. The tight connection between particles not only enhances their contact with carbon layers, but also reduces the specific surface area that inhibits side reactions between the interfaces and the electrolyte. Besides, ultrafast synthesis of NVPF reduces the F loss and amount of Na₃V₂(PO₄)₃ impurities, which improve cycling capability. The HTS-NVPF demonstrates a high energy density of 413.4 Wh kg⁻¹ and an ultra-high specific capacity of 103.4 mAh g⁻¹ at 10 C as well as 84.2% capacity retention after 1000 cycles. In addition, the excellent temperature adaptability of HTS-NVPF (−45–55 °C) and remarkable electrochemical properties of NVPF||HC full cell demonstrate extreme competitiveness in commercial SIBs. Therefore, the HTS technique is considered to be a high-efficiency strategy to synthetize NVPF and is expected to prepare other cathode materials.     

Smart Hybrids of Zn2GeO4 Nanoparticles and Ultrathin g‐C3N4 Layers: Synergistic Lithium Storage and Excellent Electrochemical Performance

Smart hybrids of Zn₂GeO₄ nanoparticles and ultrathin g‐C₃N₄ layers (Zn₂GeO₄/g‐C₃N₄ hybrids) are realized by a facile solution approach, where g‐C₃N₄ layers act as an effective substrate for the nucleation and subsequent in situ growth of Zn₂GeO₄ nanoparticles. A synergistic effect is demonstrated on the two building blocks of Zn₂GeO₄/g‐C₃N₄ hybrids for lithium storage: Zn₂GeO₄ nanoparticles contribute high capacity and serve as spacers to isolate the ultrathin g‐C₃N₄ layers from restacking, resulting in expanded interlayer and exposed vacancies with doubly bonded nitrogen for extra Li‐ion storage and diffusion pathway; 2D g‐C₃N₄ layers, in turn, minimize the strain of particles expansion and prevent the formation of unstable solid electrolyte interphase, leading to highly reversible lithium storage. Benefiting from the remarkable synergy, the Zn₂GeO₄/g‐C₃N₄ hybrids exhibit highly reversible capacity of 1370 mA h g^?1 at 200 mA g^?1 after 140 cycles and excellent rate capability of 950 mA h g^?1 at 2000 mA g^?1. The synergistic effect originating from the hybrids brings out excellent electrochemical performance, and thus casts new light on the development of high‐energy and high‐power anode materials.     

Advances and Prospects in Improving the Utilization Efficiency of Lithium for High Energy Density Lithium Batteries

Lithium-ion batteries have attracted much attention in the field like portable devices and electronic vehicles. Due to growing demands of energy storage systems, lithium metal batteries with higher energy density are promising candidates to replace lithium-ion batteries. However, using excess amounts of lithium can lower the energy density and cause safety risks. To solve these problems, it is crucial to use limited amount of lithium in lithium metal batteries to achieve higher utilization efficiency of lithium, higher energy density, and higher safety. The main reasons for the loss of active lithium are the side reactions between electrolyte and electrode, growth of lithium dendrites, and the volume change of electrode materials during the charge and discharge process. Based on these issues, much effort have been put to improve the utilization efficiency of lithium such as mitigating the side reactions, guiding the uniform lithium deposition, and increasing the adhesion between electrolyte and electrode. In this review, strategies for high utilization efficiency of lithium are presented. Moreover, the remaining challenges and the future perspectives on improving the utilization of lithium are also outlined.     

Si3N4膜对MOS电容器存储时间影响的研究

Si3N4薄膜淀积速率对MOS电容器存储时间影响很大。在850℃下，栅介质SiO2膜厚度100nm，MOS电容器存储时间420s。在50Pa真空压力下，通过淀积70nm厚Si2N4薄膜后，MOS电容器无存储时间。经900℃O2气氛退火40min，MOS电容器的存储时间也不到2s。采用声7孔径降低气体流速，从而降低淀积速率，在840℃下，栅介质SiO2膜厚度100nm，MOS电容器存储时间420s；在60．71Pa真空压力下，淀积70nm厚Si3N4薄膜后，MOS电容器存储时间曲线不正常，经900℃O2气氛退火40min，曲线恢复正常，MOS电容器存储时间达到400s以上。     

A Novel 3D Li/Li9Al4/Li-Mg Alloy Anode for Superior Lithium Metal Batteries

Lithium metal has been recognized as the most promising anode material due to its high capacity and low electrode potential. However, the high reactivity, infinite volume variation, and uncontrolled dendrites growth of Li during long-term cycling severely limit its practical applications. To address these issues, herein, a novel 3D Al/Mg/Li alloy (denoted as AM-Li) anode is designed and constructed by a facile smelting-rolling strategy, which improves the surface stability, electrochemical cycling stability, and rate capability in lithium metal batteries. Specifically, the optimized AM-Li|AM-Li symmetric cell exhibits low polarization voltage (< 20 mV) and perfect cycling stability at 1 mA cm⁻²-1 mAh cm⁻² for more than 1600 h. Moreover, the AM-Li|NCM811 full cell exhibits superior rate capability up to 5 C and excellent cyclability for 100 cycles at 0.5 C with a high capacity retention of 90.8%. The realization of lithium-poor or lithium-free anode materials will be a major development trend of anode materials in the future. Therefore, the research shows that the construction of 3D alloy framework is beneficial to improve the cycling stability of Li anodes by suppressing the volume expansion effect and Li dendrite growth, which will promote the further development of lithium-poor metal anodes.     

Lithium Ion Breathable Electrodes with 3D Hierarchical Architecture for Ultrastable and High‐Capacity Lithium Storage

Transition‐metal oxides show genuine potential in replacing state‐of‐the‐art carbonaceous anode materials in lithium‐ or sodium‐ion batteries because of their much higher theoretical capacity. However, they usually undergo massive volume change, which leads to numerous problems in both material and electrode levels, such as material pulverization, instable solid‐electrolyte interphase, and electrode failure. Here, it is demonstrated that lithium‐ion breathable hybrid electrodes with 3D architecture tackle all these problems, using a typical conversion‐type transition‐metal oxide, Fe₃O₄, of which nanoparticles are anchored onto 3D current collectors of Ni nanotube arrays (NTAs) and encapsulated by δ‐MnO₂ layers (Ni/Fe₃O₄@MnO₂). The δ‐MnO₂ layers reversibly switch lithium insertion/extraction of internal Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles and protect them against pulverizing and detaching from NTA current collectors, securing exceptional integrity retention and efficient ion/electron transport. The Ni/Fe₃O₄@MnO₂ electrodes exhibit superior cyclability and high‐capacity lithium storage (retaining ≈1450 mAh g^?1, ≈96% of initial value at 1 C rate after 1000 cycles).     

Lu2O3为助剂的β-Si3N4晶种的制备与表征

在自增韧陶瓷的烧结过程中,添加β-Si3N4晶种有利于高温下长柱状晶的形成与生长,可以改善陶瓷的强度和韧性;本文以Lu2O3为添加剂,通过对原始Si3N4粉进行热处理,制备出转相充分、具有柱状形貌β-Si3N4晶种,重点研究了Lu2O3对氮化硅相变和晶种形貌的影响.实验结果表明,以Lu2O3为添加剂,在1750 ℃下热处理2 h能得到具有较纯β相含量和大长径比的β-Si3N4晶种.     

以Si3N4为埋层的SOI结构制备与器件模拟

为了减少经典SOI器件的自加热效应,首次成功地用外延方法制备以Si3N4薄膜为埋层的新结构SOSN,用HRTEM和SRP表征了SOI的新结构.实验结果显示,Si3N4层为非晶状态,新结构的SOSN具有良好的结构和电学性能.对传统SOI和新结构SOI的MOSFETs输出电流的输出特性和温度分布用TCAD仿真软件进行了模拟.模拟结果表明,新结构SOSN的MOSFET器件沟道温度和NDR效益都得到很大的降低,表明SOSN能够有效地克服自加热效应和提高MOSFET漏电流.     

多孔硅外延转移技术制备以氮化硅为绝缘埋层的SOI新结构

为减少自加热效应 ,利用多孔硅外延转移技术成功地制备出一种以氮化硅为埋层的 SOI新结构 .高分辨率透射电镜和扩展电阻测试结果表明得到的 SOI新结构具有很好的结构和电学性能 ,退火后的氮化硅埋层为非晶结构 .     

Electrical properties of Ge metal–oxide–semiconductor capacitors with high-k La2O3 gate dielectric incorporated by N or/and Ti

LaON, LaTiO and LaTiON films are deposited as gate dielectrics by incorporating N or/and Ti into La2O3 using the sputtering method to fabricate Ge MOS capacitors, and the electrical properties of the devices are carefully examined. LaON/Ge capacitors exhibit the best interface quality, gate leakage property and device reliability, but a smaller k value (14.9). LaTiO/Ge capacitors exhibit a higher k value (22.7), but a deteriorated interface quality, gate leakage property and device reliability. LaTiON/Ge capacitors exhibit the highest k value (24.6), and a relatively better interface quality (3.1E11 eV^-1cm^-2), gate leakage property (3.6E3 A/cm^2 at Vg = 1 V + Vfb) and device reliability. Therefore, LaTiON is more suitable for high performance Ge MOS devices as a gate dielectric than LaON and LaTiO materials.     

Dramatic Activity of C3N4/BiPO4 Photocatalyst with Core/Shell Structure Formed by Self‐Assembly

Core/shell structured C₃N₄/BiPO₄ photocatalyst is fabricated via a facile ultrasonic dispersion method. The thickness of the shell may be controlled by tuning the amount of C₃N₄ in the dispersion, which determines the enhanced level of photocatalytic activity. The optimum photocatalytic activity of C₃N₄/BiPO₄ at a weight ratio of 4% (C₃N₄/BiPO₄) under UV irradiation is almost 4.5 times as high as that of reference P25 (TiO₂) and 2.5 times of BiPO₄. More attractively, the dramatic visible light photocatalytic activity is generated due to the C₃N₄ loaded. The enhancement in performance is demonstrated to be the match of lattice and energy level between the C₃N₄ and BiPO₄. This match facilitates the separation and transfer of photogenerated electron–hole pairs at the heterojunction interfaces and may be important for other core/shell structured materials. In addition, this method is expected to be extended for other C₃N₄ loaded materials.     

Ultrathin‐Nanosheet‐Induced Synthesis of 3D Transition Metal Oxides Networks for Lithium Ion Battery Anodes

A general ultrathin‐nanosheet‐induced strategy for producing a 3D mesoporous network of Co₃O₄ is reported. The fabrication process introduces a 3D N‐doped carbon network to adsorb metal cobalt ions via dipping process. Then, this carbon matrix serves as the sacrificed template, whose N‐doping effect and ultrathin nanosheet features play critical roles for controlling the formation of Co₃O₄ networks. The obtained material exhibits a 3D interconnected architecture with large specific surface area and abundant mesopores, which is constructed by nanoparticles. Merited by the optimized structure in three length scales of nanoparticles–mesopores–networks, this Co₃O₄ nanostructure possesses superior performance as a LIB anode: high capacity (1033 mAh g^?1 at 0.1 A g^?1) and long‐life stability (700 cycles at 5 A g^?1). Moreover, this strategy is verified to be effective for producing other transition metal oxides, including Fe₂O₃, ZnO, Mn₃O₄, NiCo₂O₄, and CoFe₂O₄.     

Facile Preparation of High‐Content N‐Doped CNT Microspheres for High‐Performance Lithium Storage

Herein, high‐content N‐doped carbon nanotube (CNT) microspheres (HNCMs) are successfully synthesized through simple spray drying and one‐step pyrolysis. HNCM possesses a hierarchically porous architecture and high‐content N‐doping. In particular, HNCM800 (HNCM pyrolyzed at 800 °C) shows high nitrogen content of 12.43 at%. The porous structure derived from well‐interconnected CNTs not only offers a highly conductive network and blocks diffusion of soluble lithium polysulfides (LiPSs) in physical adsorption, but also allows sufficient sulfur infiltration. The incorporation of N‐rich CNTs provides strong chemical immobilization for LiPSs. As a sulfur host for lithium–sulfur batteries, good rate capability and high cycling stability is achieved for HNCM/S cathodes. Particularly, the HNCM800/S cathode delivers a high capacity of 804 mA h g^?1 at 0.5 C after 1000 cycles corresponding to low fading rate (FR) of only 0.011% per cycle. Remarkably, the cathode with high sulfur loading of 6 mg cm^?2 still maintains high cyclic stability (capacity of 555 mA h g^?1 after 1000 cycles, FR 0.038%). Additionally, CNT/Co₃O₄ microspheres are obtained by the oxidation of CNTs/Co in the air. The as‐prepared CNT/Co₃O₄ microspheres are employed as an anode for lithium‐ion batteries and present excellent cycling performance.     

Wood-Inspired Binder Enabled Vertical 3D Printing of g-C3N4/CNT Arrays for Highly Efficient Photoelectrochemical Hydrogen Evolution

2D nanomaterials are very attractive for photoelectrochemical applications due to their ultra-thin structure, excellent physicochemical properties of large surface-area-to-volume ratios, and the resulting abundant active sites and high charge transport capacity. However, the application of commonly used 2D nanomaterials with disordered-stacking is always limited by high photoelectrode tortuosity, few surface-active sites, and low mass transfer efficiency. Herein, inspired by wood structures, a vertical 3D printing strategy is developed to rapidly build vertically aligned and hierarchically porous graphitic carbon nitride/carbon nanotube (g-C₃N₄/CNT) arrays by using lignin as a binder for efficient photoelectrochemical hydrogen evolution. Arising from the directional electron transport and multiple light scattering in the out-of-plane aligned and porous architecture, the resulting g-C₃N₄/CNT arrays display an outstanding hydrogen evolution performance, with the hydrogen yield up to 4.36 µmol (cm⁻² h⁻¹) at a bias of −0.5 V versus RHE, 12.7 and 41.6 times higher than traditional thick g-C₃N₄/CNT and g-C₃N₄ films, respectively. Moreover, this 3D printed structure can overcome the agglomeration problem of the commonly used g-C₃N₄ with powder configuration and shows desirable recyclability and stability. This facile and scalable vertical 3D printing strategy will open a new avenue to highly enhance the photoelectrochemical performance of 2D nanomaterials for sustainably production of clean energy.     

Fabrication and Simulation of Silicon-on-Insulator Structure with Si3N4 as a Buried Insulator

In order to minimize the self-heating effect of the classic SOI devices,SOI structures with Si3N4 film as a buried insulator (SOSN) are successfully formed using epitaxial layer transfer technology for the first time.The new SOI structures are investigated with high-resolution cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy and spreading resistance profile.Experiment results show that the buried Si3N4 layer is amorphous and the new SOI material has good structural and electrical properties.The output current characteristics and temperature distribution are simulated and compared to those of standard SOI MOSFETs.Furthermore,the channel temperature and negative differential resistance are reduced during high-temperature operation,suggesting that SOSN can effectively mitigate the self-heating penalty.The new SOI device has been verified in two-dimensional device simulation and indicated that the new structures can reduce device self-heating and increase drain current of the SOI MOSFET.     

Large‐Scale Synthesis of a New Polymeric Carbon Nitride—C3N3 with Good Photoelectrochemical Performance

Polymeric carbon nitride (PCN) has been extensively researched in recent years. This research has mainly focussed on C₃N₄ because types of PCN are quite limited and other types are not easily synthesized. Therefore developing new types of easily‐synthesized PCN beyond C₃N₄ offers new opportunities. C₃N₃ has been predicted but it has not been successfully synthesized before. Herein it is prepared in large scale from cheap cyanuric chloride on a copper surface under nonvacuum conditions. The C₃N₃ has a good photoelectrochemical (PEC) activity for water splitting and can be exfoliated to 2D polymeric films. This breakthrough work not only enlarges the family of PCN, but also opens the door for large‐scale synthesis of other similar C–C bonded 2D conjugated polymers based on Ullmann polymerization. Similar to graphene and C₃N₄, follow‐up research related to this C₃N₃ in different fields may emerge in the near future.     

Eradicating Multidrug‐Resistant Bacteria Rapidly Using a Multi Functional g‐C3N4@ Bi2S3 Nanorod Heterojunction with or without Antibiotics

Wound infections caused by multidrug‐resistant (MDR) bacteria are hard to treat because of tolerance to existing antibiotics, repeated infection, and concomitant inflammation. Herein, zinc atom–doped g‐C₃N₄ and Bi₂S₃ nanorod heterojunctions (CN–Zn/BiS) are investigated for disinfection under near‐infrared light (NIR). The photocatalysis of CN–Zn/BiS is enhanced because of efficient charge separation during the interface electron field and increased oxygen adsorption capacity. Then, 99.2% antibacterial efficiency is shown toward methicillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and 99.6% toward Escherichia coli under 10 min NIR irradiation. Meanwhile, a strategy for the combination of lapsed β‐lactam antibiotics with the photosensitizer CN–Zn/BiS is provided to kill MRSA by NIR without observable resistance, suggesting an approach to solve the problem of bacterial infection with NIR light penetrability and for exploiting new anti‐infection methods. The CN–Zn/BiS nanocomposite can also regulate genes and the inflammatory response through inflammatory factors (IL‐1β, IL‐6, TNF‐α, and iNOS) in vivo to accelerate tissue regeneration and thereby promote wound healing.     

Synthesis of Leaf‐Vein‐Like g‐C3N4 with Tunable Band Structures and Charge Transfer Properties for Selective Photocatalytic H2O2 Evolution

Photocatalytic H₂O₂ evolution through two‐electron oxygen reduction has attracted wide attention as an environmentally friendly strategy compared with the traditional anthraquinone or electrocatalytic method. Herein, a biomimetic leaf‐vein‐like g‐C₃N₄ as an efficient photocatalyst for H₂O₂ evolution is reported, which owns tenable band structure, optimized charge transfer, and selective two‐electron O₂ reduction. The mechanism for the regulation of band structure and charge transfer is well studied by combining experiments and theoretical calculations. The H₂O₂ yield of CN4 (287 µmol h^?1) is about 3.3 times higher than that of pristine CN (87 µmol h^?1), and the apparent quantum yield for H₂O₂ evolution over CN4 reaches 27.8% at 420 nm, which is much higher than that for many other current photocatalysts. This work not only provides a novel strategy for the design of photocatalyst with excellent H₂O₂ evolution efficiency, but also promotes deep understanding for the role of defect and doping sites on photocatalytic activity.