A Universal Descriptor in Determining H2 Evolution Activity for Dilute Aqueous Zn Batteries

Large-scale energy storage with aqueous Zn batteries (AZBs) have bright future, but their practical application is impeded by H₂ evolution reaction (HER), which results in poor stability of Zn–metal anodes. Here, using linear sweep voltammetry in dilute salt aqueous electrolytes, it is discovered that as the salt concentration decreases, HER is gradually suppressed, which is contrary to prior beliefs. Combining calculations and experiments, it is demonstrated that HER derives predominantly from the sum of Zn²⁺-solvated water rather than the average amount of water in the Zn²⁺-solvation structural unit or free water without interaction with Zn²⁺, which answers the puzzle from above. This result, which differs fundamentally from the previous understandings, sheds new light on the mysterious role of water chemistry in controlling HER and contributes to a more rational design of advanced electrolytes for AZBs.     

Manganese and chromium doping in atomically thin MoS2

Recently, two-dimensional materials have been attracting increasing attention because of their novel properties and promising applications. However, the impurity doping remains a significant challenge owing to the lack of the doping strategy in the atomically thin layers. Here we report on the chromium (Cr) and manganese (Mn) doping in atomically-thin MoS₂ crystals grown by chemical vapor deposition. The Cr/Mn doped MoS₂ samples are characterized by a peak at 1.76 and 1.79 eV in photoluminescence spectra, respectively, compared with the undoped one at 1.85 eV. The field-effect transistor (FET) devices based on the Mn doping show a higher threshold voltage than that of the pure MoS₂ while the Cr doping exhibits the opposite behavior. Importantly, the carrier concentration in these samples displays a remarkable difference arising from the doping effect, consistent with the evolution of the FET performance. The temperature-dependent conductivity measurements further demonstrate a large variation in activation energy. The successful incorporation of the Mn and Cr impurities into the monolayer MoS₂ paves the way towards the high Curie temperature two-dimensional dilute magnetic semiconductors.     

X-ray reflectivity and atomic force microscopy studies of MOCVD grown AlxGa1-xN/GaN superlattice structures

The grazing incidence X-ray reflectivity (GIXR) technique and atomic force microscopy (AFM) were exploited to obtain an accurate evaluation of the surfaces and interfaces for metalorganic chemical vapor deposition grown Al<,x>Ga<,1-x>N/GaN superlattice structures. The X-ray diffraction results have been combined with reflectivity data to evaluate the layer thickness and Al mole fraction in the AIGaN layer. The presence of a smooth interface is responsible for the observation of intensity oscillation in GIXR, which is well correlated to step flow observation in AFM images of the surface. The structure with a low Al mole fraction (x = 0.25) and thin well width has a rather smooth surface for the R<,rms> of AFM data value is 0.45 nm.     

Twinning in Low-Temperature MOCVD Grown GaN on (001) GaAs Substrate

GaN buffer layers (thickness ～60nm) grown on GaAs(001) by low-temperature MOCVD are investigated by X-ray diffraction pole figure measurements using synchrotron radiation in order to understand the heteroepitaxial growth features of GaN on GaAs(001) substrates.In addition to the epitaxially aligned crystallites,their corresponding twins of the first and the second order are found in the Xray diffraction pole figures.Moreover,{111} φ scans with χ at 55°reveal the abnormal distribution of Bragg diffractions.The extra intensity maxima in the pole figures shows that the process of twinning plays a dominating role during the growth process.It is suggested that the polarity of {111} facets emerged on (001) surface will affect the growth twin nucleation at the initial stages of GaN growth on GaAs(001) substrates.It is proposed that twinning is prone to occurring on {111}B,Nterminated facets.     

Dissolution Behaviors and Applications of Silicon Oxides and Nitrides in Transient Electronics

Silicon oxides and nitrides are key materials for dielectrics and encapsulation layers in a class of silicon‐based high performance electronics that has ability to completely dissolve in a controlled fashion with programmable rates, when submerged in bio‐fluids and/or relevant solutions. This type of technology, referred to as “transient electronics”, has potential applications in biomedical implants, environmental sensors, and other envisioned areas. The results presented here provide comprehensive studies of transient behaviors of thin films of silicon oxides and nitrides in diverse aqueous solutions at different pH scales and temperatures. The kinetics of hydrolysis of these materials depends not only on pH levels/ion concentrations of solutions and temperatures, but also on the morphology and chemistry of the films, as determined by the deposition methods and conditions. Encapsulation strategies with a combination of layers demonstrate enhancement of the lifetime of transient electronic devices, by reducing water/vapor permeation through the defects.     

Synthesis of Self‐Supported Ordered Mesoporous Cobalt and Chromium Nitrides

Herein, we demonstrate an ammonia nitridation approach to synthesize self‐supported ordered mesoporous metal nitrides (CoN and CrN) from mesostructured metal oxide replicas (Co₃O₄ and Cr₂O₃), which were nanocastly prepared by using mesoporous silica SBA‐15 as a hard template. Two synthetic routes are adopted. One route is the direct nitridation of mesoporous metal oxide nanowire replicas templated from SBA‐15 to metal nitrides. By this method, highly ordered mesoporous cobalt nitrides (CoN) can be obtained by the transformation of Co₃O₄ nanowire replica under ammonia atmosphere from 275 to 350 °C, without a distinct lose of the mesostructural regularity. Treating the samples above 375 °C leads to the formation of metallic cobalt and the collapse of the mesostructure due to large volume shrinkage. The other route is to transform mesostructured metal oxides/silica composites to nitrides/silica composites at 750–1000 °C under ammonia. Ordered mesoporous CrN nanowire arrays can be obtained after the silica template removal by NaOH erosion. A slowly temperature‐program‐decrease process can reduce the influence of silica nitridation and improve the purity of final CrN product. Small‐angle XRD patterns and TEM images showed the 2‐D ordered hexagonal structure of the obtained mesoporous CoN and CrN nanowires. Wide‐angle XRD patterns, HRTEM images, and SAED patterns revealed the formation of crystallized metal nitrides. Nitrogen sorption analyses showed that the obtained materials possessed high surface areas (70–90 m² g^?1) and large pore volumes (about 0.2 cm³ g^?1).     

稀氮 Ⅲ-Ⅴ族InAsN和InSbN中长波红外光电材料与器件

将少量氮原子加入Ⅲ—Ⅴ族半导体后可引起能带减小,因此这种方法可以用来实现能带结构裁剪。这种新型稀氮化物显示出了奇特的物理性质,并且具有应用于新型光电器件的潜力。特别是,备受关注的稀氮InAsN和InSbN在中长波红外光电材料上具有巨大的应用价值,并将在中长波红外器件应用领域发挥重要的作用。     

MBE growth and processing of diluted nitride quantum well lasers on GaAs (1 1 1)B

We have grown by Molecular Beam Epitaxy GaInNAs/GaAs (1 1 1)B quantum wells (QWs) embedded in p-i-n diode and laser diode structures. The impact of the different growth parameters (As flux, growth temperature, growth rate, ion density) on the optical and structural properties of this material is studied by Photoluminescence and Atomic Force Microscopy. Additionally, systematic studies of rapid thermal annealing cycles have been performed to optimize the laser structures. Finally, edge-emitting laser diodes have been processed using these structures. These devices showed room-temperature laser emission above 1.2 μm under pulsed current conditions.     

Interlayered Dendrite‐Free Lithium Plating for High‐Performance Lithium‐Metal Batteries

For its high theoretical capacity and low redox potential, Li metal is considered to be one of the most promising anode materials for next‐generation batteries. However, practical application of a Li‐metal anode is impeded by Li dendrites, which are generated during the cycling of Li plating/stripping, leading to safety issues. Researchers attempt to solve this problem by spatially confining the Li plating. Yet, the effective directing of Li deposition into the confined space is challenging. Here, an interlayer is constructed between a graphitic carbon nitrite layer (g‐C₃N₄) and carbon cloth (CC), enabling site‐directed dendrite‐free Li plating. The g‐C₃N₄/CC as an anode scaffold enables extraordinary cycling stability for over 1500 h with a small overpotential of ≈80 mV at 2 mA cm^?2. Furthermore, prominent battery performance is also demonstrated in a full cell (Li/g‐C₃N₄/CC as anode and LiCoO₂ as cathode) with high Coulombic efficiency of 99.4% over 300 cycles.     

Nanoarray Architecture of Ultra-Lithiophilic Metal Nitrides for Stable Lithium Metal Anodes

Lithium metal anode (LMA) is puzzled by the serious issues corresponding to infinite volume change and notorious lithium dendrite during long-term stripping/plating process. Herein, the transition metal nitrides array with outstanding lithiophilicity, including CoN, VN, and Ni₃N, are decorated onto carbon framework as “nests” to uniform Li nucleation and guide Li metal deposition. These transition metal nitrides with excellent conductivity can guarantee the fast electron transport, therefore maintain a stable interface for Li reduction. In addition, the designed multi-dimensional structure of metal nitride array decorated carbon framework can effectively regulate the growth of Li metal during the stripping/plating process. Of note, attributing to the lattice-matching between CoN and Li metal, the composite Li/CoN@CF anode exhibits ultra-stable cycling performance in symmetrical cells (over 4000 h@1 mA cm⁻² with 1 mAh cm⁻² and 1000h@20 mA cm⁻² with 20 mAh cm⁻²). The assembled full cells based on Li/CoN@CF composite anode, LiFePO₄ or S as cathodes, deliver excellent cycling stability and rate capability. This strategy provides an effective approach to develop a stable lithium metal anode for lithium metal batteries.