Polarized Optoelectronics of CsPbX3 (X = Cl,Br, I) Perovskite Nanoplates with Tunable Size and Thickness

Low dimensional semiconductor nanomaterials have shown their tailorable properties for a variety of promising applications in decades. Here a general strategy to synthesize all‐inorganic CsPbX₃ (X = Cl, Br, I or their mixture) perovskite 2D nanoplates by introducing additional metal halides MX'₂ or MX'₃ (M = Cu, Zn, Al or Pb, etc.; X' = Cl, Br or I) is reported. These CsPbX₃ perovskite nanoplates have uniform thickness and tunable size, which can be feasibly controlled by the component and ratio of the metal halides, temperature, time, and ligands. The well‐defined morphology of the nanoplates makes them ideal building blocks for the self‐assembly in the face‐to‐face and column‐by‐column arrangement. Compared to the optically isotropic CsPbX₃ nanocubes, the 2D CsPbX₃ nanoplates exhibit remarkable polarized UV–vis absorption and photoluminescence not only in liquid solvent and solid resin matrix, but also in self‐assembled films. An optoelectronic photodetector sensitive for linear polarized light is fabricated to demonstrate the proof‐of‐concept.     

Construction of WS2 triangular nanoplates array for hydrogen evolution reaction over a wide pH range

As a classic transition metal dichalcogenide, WS₂ has been synthesized by a variety of methods towards different applications. However, few of them are vertically grown self-templated structures, besides, all the reported WS₂ for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) are in acidic media. Herein, we use a simple method to synthesize a new morphological WS₂ triangular nanoplates array through the sulfuration of hydrothermally obtained WO₃ nanowires on carbon cloth (WS₂TN/CC). The WS₂TNs are equilateral triangle with large surface area that grown vertically on carbon fiber. The WS₂TN/CC exhibits good catalytic activity and stability as electrocatalyst for HER in acidic media and firstly in both neutral and alkaline media. The overpotential of 196, 150 and 193 mV are needed to afford current density of 10 mA cm⁻² in acidic, neutral and alkaline media, respectively.     

Synthesis of 2D Layered BiI3 Nanoplates,BiI3/WSe2van der Waals Heterostructures and Their Electronic,Optoelectronic Properties

Two–dimensional layered materials (2DLMs) have attracted considerable recent interest as a new material platform for fundamental materials science and potential new technologies. Here we report the growth of layered metal halide materials and their optoelectronic properties. BiI₃ nanoplates can be readily grown on SiO₂/Si substrates with a hexagonal geometry, with a thickness in the range of 10–120 nm and a lateral dimension of 3–10 µm. Transmission electron microscopy and electron diffraction studies demonstrate that the individual nanoplates are high quality single crystals. Micro‐Raman studies show characteristic A _g band at ≈115 cm^?1 with slight red‐shift with decreasing thickness, and micro‐photoluminescence studies show uniform emission around 690 nm with blue‐shift with decreasing thickness. Electrical transport studies of individual nanoplates show n‐type semiconductor characteristics with clear photoresponse. Further, the BiI₃ can be readily grown on other 2DLMs (e.g., WSe₂) to form van der Waals heterostructures. Electrical transport measurements of BiI₃/WSe₂ vertical heterojunctions demonstrate p–n diode characteristics with gate‐tunable rectification behavior and distinct photovoltaic effect. The synthesis of the BiI₃ nanoplates can expand the library of 2DLMs and enable a wider range of van der Waals heterostructures.     

Synthesis of Ultrathin Metallic MTe2 (M = V,Nb, Ta) Single‐Crystalline Nanoplates

Two‐dimensional materials with intrinsic magnetism have recently drawn intense interest for both the fundamental studies and potential technological applications. However, the studies to date have been largely limited to mechanically exfoliated materials. Herein, an atmospheric pressure chemical vapor deposition route to ultrathin group VB metal telluride MTe₂ (M = V, Nb, Ta) nanoplates with thickness as thin as 3 nm is reported. It is shown that the resulting nanoplates can be systematically evolved from mostly thicker hexagonal domains to thinner triangular domains with an increasing flow rate of the carrier gas. X‐ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy studies reveal MTe₂ (M = V, Nb, Ta) nanoplates are high‐quality single crystals. High‐resolution scanning transmission electron microscope imaging reveals the VTe₂ and NbTe₂ nanoplates adopt the hexagonal 1T phase and the TaTe₂ nanoplates show a monoclinic distorted 1T phase. Electronic transport studies show that MTe₂ single crystals exhibit metallic behavior. Magnetic measurements show that VTe₂ and NbTe₂ exhibit ferromagnetism and TaTe₂ shows paramagnetic behavior. The preparation of ultrathin few‐layered MTe₂ nanoplates will open up exciting opportunities for the burgeoning field of spintronics, sensors, and magneto‐optoelectronics.     

Wave propagation analysis in functionally graded (FG) nanoplates under in-plane magnetic field based on nonlocal strain gradient theory and four variable refined plate theory

In this work, analytical solutions are presented for the wave propagation in functionally graded (FG) nanoplates using a nonlocal strain gradient theory and four-variable refined plate theory considering the magnetic field. The size effects are included using nonlocal strain gradient theory that has two length scale parameters, and the nanoplate is modeled as a plate using four-variable refined plate theory. From the knowledge of authors, it is the first time that the influences of magnetic field on the wave propagation in FG nanoplates are investigated based on present methodology.     

Designing Novel Nonsymmetric Ag/AgI Nanoplates for Superior Photocatalytic Activity

Precisely engineering the decoration of metal nanoparticles on the special surface of semiconductor represents a promising strategy to design efficient metal–semiconductor heterostructured photocatalysts. This study demonstrates a versatile soft‐template method to fabricate a novel nonsymmetrical heterostructured Ag/AgI nanoplate, in which only one side surface of the nanoplate is covered with uniform 2D Ag nanoweb. Compared with symmetrical heterostructure, the nonsymmetrical heterostructure may further facilitate the separation of photogenerated electron–hole pairs and shows a greatly enhanced photocatalytic activity. This study may open up a new way to improve the photocatalytic property by synthesizing nonsymmetrical metal–semiconductor composites.     

Solution‐Growth Strategy for Large‐Scale “CuGaO2 Nanoplate/ZnS Microsphere” Heterostructure Arrays with Enhanced UV Adsorption and Optoelectronic Properties

Intrinsically p‐type conductivity and a wide bandgap of ≈3.6 V endow inorganic delafossite CuGaO₂ with great promise for fabricating high‐performance UV photodetectors. Nevertheless, CuGaO₂‐based optoelectronic devices hindered because the intrinsic direct transitions are symmetry forbidden in CuGaO₂. This study reports a large‐area synthesis of “CuGaO₂ nanoplate/ZnS microsphere” heterostructure arrays using a facile solution‐based strategy associated with an oil/water interfacial self‐assembly approach. It is found that a large number of ZnS microspheres with a polycrystalline structure grow on the top surface of CuGaO₂ hexagonal platelets through Ostwald ripening mechanism, forming high‐density p–n heterojunctions. A parabolic dependence between the size of ZnS microsphere and the growth time is confirmed in this growth. The UV light adsorption of the heterostructure CuGaO₂/ZnS thin film is two times higher than that of the pristine CuGaO₂ thin film. Furthermore, the as‐designed “CuGaO₂ nanoplate/ZnS microsphere” heterostructure arrays exhibit enhanced photoresponse properties. This work offers a new insight into the rational design of optoelectronic devices from the synergetic effect of p‐type 2D nanoplates as well as n‐type nanostructures such as ZnS, ZnO, CdS, and CdO.     

Non‐isothermal crystallization of poly(ethylene oxide)/silver nanoplate composites

The non‐isothermal crystallization of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO)/silver nanoplate composites was studied using differential scanning calorimetry. The non‐isothermal crystallization was analyzed by combining the Avrami and Ozawa equations. It was found that the Avrami exponent for neat PEO ranges from 2.51 to 2.53, whereas it ranges from 2.54 to 3.16 for its composites, indicating that the spherical crystal morphology does not change with the addition of nanoplates. However, the rate determination of crystal growth transfers from diffusion to nucleation. The crystallization half‐time showed an increase with the addition of silver nanoplates in PEO, indicating that the overall crystallization rate of PEO decreases with the addition of nanoplates. However, the nucleation activity is larger than unity in the composites and the value increases with an increase in the nanoplate content. This behavior implies that the nanoplates act as anti‐nucleating agents to hinder nucleation. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry     

Electrochemical performance of ZnO nanoplates as anode materials for Ni/Zn secondary batteries

Plate-like ZnO with good crystallinity were prepared by a simple hydrothermal synthesis method in Zn(NO₃)₂·6H₂O and NaOH solution at 180 °C. The dimension of ZnO powder ranged from 200 to 500 nm and the average thickness was about 50 nm. The electrochemical performances of ZnO nanoplates as anode active materials for Ni/Zn cells were investigated by galvanostatic charge/discharge cycling and cyclic voltammogram (CV). The ZnO nanoplates showed better cycle stability than the conventional ZnO, and the discharge capacity maintained 420 mAh g⁻¹ throughout 80 cycling tests. At the same time, they also exhibited higher midpoint discharge voltage and lower midpoint charge voltage. The continual SEM examinations on the electrode found that the morphology of the plate-like ZnO active material did not change essentially and the zinc dendrite was suppressed effectively, which resulted in the improvement of cycle stability of Ni/Zn secondary cells.     

Multi-walled carbon nanotubes reinforced nickel phosphide composite: As an efficient electrocatalyst for hydrogen evolution reaction by one-step powder sintering

Transition metal phosphides (TMPs) have been proven to be a high-performance non-noble metal electrocatalyst with high activity and nearly ~100% Faraday efficiency. However, their applications remain faces great challenging due to its unsatisfactory exposure to catalytic active sites and electronic conductivity. Here, powder sintering was used to prepare Ni–P-Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (Ni–P-MWCNTs) composite electrodes with a hierarchical flower-like structure with a large surface area, the composite electrodes were synthesized by phosphating mixed powder (porous nickel powder, red phosphorus and MWCNTs). Due to the flower-like nanoplate hierarchical structure, the fast vectorial electron transfer along the building block nanoplates was effectively induced and active sites were highly exposed. The resulting Ni_xP-43 wt%MWCNTs shows high activity and durability towards the Hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) under acidic conditions. It demands extremely low onset-potential of 29 mV, 96 mV to achieve a current density of 10 mA cm⁻². This work suggests an effective method to facilitate grain preferred orientation growth and exposure high activity active, experimental results demonstrate that the electrocatalytic performance of as-prepared Ni–P-MWCNTs were successfully optimized through the addition of MWCNTs, and might promote further study of the TMPs catalysts for HER.