Abstract: The incorporation of aluminum into the silica columns of hierarchical mesoporous materials (HMMs) was studied. The HMMs were synthesized by a combination of hard and soft templating methods, forming mesoporous SBA-15-type silica columns inside the pores of anodic aluminum oxide membranes via evaporation induced self-assembly (EISA). By adding Al-isopropoxide to the EISA-mixture a full tetrahedral incorporation of Al and thus the creation of acid sites was achieved, which was proved by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Electron microscopy showed that the use of Al-isopropoxide as an Al source for the HMMs led to a change in the mesopore ordering of silica material from circular hexagonal (donut-like) to columnar hexagonal and a 37% increase in specific surface (BET surface). These results were confirmed by a combination of nitrogen physisorption and small-angle X-ray scattering experiments and can be attributed to a swelling of the P123 micelles with isopropanol. The columnar mesopore ordering of silica is advantageous towards the pore accessibility and therefore preferential for many possible applications including catalysis and adsorption on the acid tetrahedral Al-sites. (C) 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Abstract: The implementation of plasmonic nanoparticles in vivo remains hindered by important limitations such as biocompatibility, solubility in biological fluids, and physiological stability. A general and versatile protocol is presented, based on seeded emulsion polymerization, for the controlled encapsulation of gold and silver nanoparticles. This procedure enables the encapsulation of single nanoparticles as well as nanoparticle clusters inside a protecting polymer shell. Specifically, the efficient coating of nanoparticles of both metals is demonstrated, with final dimensions ranging between 50 and 200 nm, i.e., sizes of interest for bio-applications. Such hybrid nanocomposites display extraordinary stability in high ionic strength and oxidizing environments, along with high cellular uptake, and low cytotoxicity. Overall, the prepared nanostructures are promising candidates for plasmonic applications under biologically relevant conditions.

Abstract: The impact of graphene reinforcement on the mechanical properties of metals has been a subject of intense investigation over the last decade in surface applications to mitigate the impact of tribological loadings or for strengthening purposes when dispersed into a bulk material. Here, the effect on the plastic indentation response of a single graphene layer grown on copper is analyzed for two configurations: one with graphene at the surface, the other with graphene sandwiched under a 100 nm thick copper cap layer. Nanoindentation under both displacement and load control conditions show both earlier and shorter pop-in excursions compared to systems without graphene. Atomic force microscopy reveals much smoother pile-ups with no slip traces in the presence of a surface graphene layer. The configuration with the intercalated graphene layer appears as an ideal elementary system to address bulk hardening mechanisms by indentation testing. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) cross-sections below indents show more diffuse and homogeneous dislocation activity in the presence of graphene. 3D dislocation dynamics simulations allow unraveling of the origin of these 3D complex phenomena and prove that the collective dislocation mechanisms are dominantly controlled by the strong back stress caused by the graphene barrier. These results provide a quantitative understanding of the impact of graphene on dislocation mechanisms for both surface and bulk applications, but with an impact that is not as large as anticipated from other studies or general literature claims.

Abstract: The hydrothermal aging stability of 3Y-TZP-xM2O3 (M = La, Nd, Sc) was investigated as a function of 0.02–5 mol% M2O3 dopant content and correlated to the overall phase content, t-ZrO2 lattice parameters, grain size distribution, grain boundary chemistry and ionic conductivity.
The increased aging stability with increasing Sc2O3 content and the optimum content of 0.4–0.6 mol% Nd2O3 or 0.2–0.4 mol% La2O3, resulting in the highest aging resistance, could be directly related to the constituent phases and the lattice parameters of the remaining tetragonal zirconia.
At low M2O3 dopant contents ≤0.4 mol%, the different aging behavior of tetragonal zirconia was attributed to the defect structure of the zirconia grain boundary which was influenced by the dopant cation radius. It was observed that the grain boundary ionic resistivity and the aging resistance followed the same trend: La3+ > Nd3+ > Al3+ > Sc3+, proving that hydrothermal aging is driven by the diffusion of water-derived mobile species through the oxygen vacancies. Accordingly, we elucidated the underlying mechanism by which a larger trivalent cation segregating at the zirconia grain boundary resulted in a higher aging resistance.

Abstract: The hydrogen evolution properties of CZTS heterostructure photocathodes are reported with graphene oxide (GO) as a co-catalyst layer coated by a drop-cast method and an Al2O3 protection layer fabricated using atomic layer deposition. In the CZTS absorber, a minor deviation from stoichiometry across the cross section of the thin film results in nanoscale growth of spurious phases, but the kesterite phase remains the dominant phase. We have investigated the band alignment parameters such as the band gap, work function, and Fermi level position that are crucial for making kesterite-based heterostructure devices. The photocurrent density in the photocathode CZTS/CdS/ZnO is found to be improved to -4.71 mAmiddotcm(-2) at -0.40 V-RHE, which is 3 times that of the pure CZTS. This enhanced photoresponse can be attributed to faster carrier separation at p-n junction regions driven by upward band bending at CZTS grain boundaries and the ZnO layer. GO as a co-catalyst over the heterostructure photocathode significantly improves the photocurrent density to -6.14 mAmiddotcm(-2) at -0.40 V-RHE by effective charge migration in the CZTS/CdS/ZnO/GO configuration, but the onset potential shifts only after application of the Al2O3 protection layer. Significant photocurrents of -29 mAmiddotcm(-2) at -0.40 V-RHE and -8 mAmiddotcm(-2) at 0 V-RHE are observed, with an onset potential of 0.7 V-RHE in CZTS/CdS/ZnO/GO/Al2O3. The heterostructure configuration and the GO co-catalyst reduce the charge-transfer resistance, while the Al2O3 top layer provides a stable photocurrent for a prolonged time (similar to 16 h). The GO co-catalyst increases the flat band potential from 0.26 to 0.46 V-RHE in CZTS/CdS/ZnO/GO, which supports the bias-induced band bending at the electrolyte-electrode interface.

Abstract: The homojunction of oxygen/metal vacancies and its interfacial n-p effect on the physiochemical properties are rarely reported. Interfacial n-p homojunctions of TiO2 are fabricated by directly decorating interfacial p-type titanium-defected TiO2 around n-type oxygen-defected TiO2 nanocrystals in amorphous-anatase homogeneous nanostructures. Experimental measurements and theoretical calculations on the cell lattice parameters show that the homojunction of oxygen and titanium vacancies changes the charge density of TiO2; a strong EPR signal caused by oxygen vacancies and an unreported strong titanium vacancies signal of 2D H-1 TQ-SQ MAS NMR are present. Amorphous-anatase TiO2 shows significant performance regarding the photogeneration current, photocatalysis, and energy storage, owing to interfacial n-type to p-type conductivity with high charge mobility and less structural confinement of amorphous clusters. A new homojunction of oxygen and titanium vacancies concept, characteristics, and mechanism are proposed at an atomic-/nanoscale to clarify the generation of oxygen vacancies and titanium vacancies as well as the interface electron transfer.

Abstract: The highly porous and desolvated (activated) coordination polymer [Zn4O(btb)2] (btb = benzene-1,3,5-tribenzoate; MOF-177) was loaded with the organometallic compounds [Cp2Fe], [Cp*2Zn], [Cu(OCHMeCH2NMe2)2], [CpCuL] (L = PMe3, CNtBu) and [CpPd(3-C3H5)] via solvent-free adsorption from the gas-phase. The inclusion compounds of the type [LnM]a@MOF-177, where [LnM] indicates the respective compound and the parameter a denotes the number of molecules per formula unit of the MOF-177, were characterised by elemental analysis, FT-IR, solid-state NMR spectroscopy and by powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD). Remarkably high effective loadings of up to 11 molecules [Cp2Fe] and 10 molecules [CpPd(3-C3H5)] per cavity were determined. The analytical data prove that the host lattice and the guest molecules interact only by weak van-der-Waals forces without any significant change of the framework or the chemical nature of the included molecules. Cu nanoparticles showing the typical surface plasmon resonance at 580 nm and Pd nanoparticles of about 2.6 nm in size were formed inside the cavities of MOF-177 by the thermally activated hydrogenolysis of the inclusion compounds [CpCuCNtBu]2@MOF-177 and by photolysis of [CpPd(3-C3H5)]10@MOF-177 in an inert atmosphere (Ar). PXRD, FT-IR and NMR studies revealed that the MOF-177 matrix remained unchanged during the decomposition process of the precursors. N2 adsorption studies of the obtained materials Cu@MOF-177 (e.g. 10.6 wt.% Cu, 2309 m2 g-1) and Pd@MOF-177 (e.g. 32.5 wt.%, 1063 m2 g-1) reveal high remaining specific surface areas (Langmuir model).

Abstract: The high-temperature superconductor YBa2Cu3O6+δ consists of two main structural units—a bilayer of CuO2 planes that are central to superconductivity and a CuO2+δ chain layer. Although the functional role of the planes and chains has long been established, most probes integrate over both, which makes it difficult to distinguish the contribution of each. Here we use electron energy loss spectroscopy to directly resolve the plane and chain contributions to the electronic structure in YBa2Cu3O6 and YBa2Cu3O7. We directly probe the charge transfer of holes from the chains to the planes as a function of oxygen content, and show that the change in orbital occupation of Cu is large in the chain layer but modest in CuO2 planes, with holes in the planes doped primarily into the O 2p states. These results provide direct insight into the local electronic structure and charge transfers in this important high-temperature superconductor.

Abstract: The high temperature phase of Ni1-xS has the NiAs-type structure. The coexistence of two superstructures, ''3a3a3c'' and ''2a2a3c'' with the basic phase is confirmed by means of electron diffraction. The 2a2a3c superstructure is studied by means of electron diffraction and high resolution electron microscopy. A structure model is proposed based on the periodic insertion of stacking faults in the NiAs-type basic structure and the ordering of vacancies in alternate metal-atom layers. Microtwinning in very narrow slabs is found to be a main feature of the 2a2a3c regions and two defect models are discussed.

Abstract: The growth of MoS2 layer near the Mo/CZTS interface during sulphurization process can have an impact on back contact cell parameters (series resistance and fill factor) depending upon the thickness or quality of MoS2. This study reports the dependence of the thickness of interfacial MoS2 layer on the growth of graphene at the interface between molybdenum back contact and deposited CZTS layer. The graphene layer reduces the accumulation of Zn/ZnS, Sn/SnO2 and formation of pores near the MoS2-CZTS interface. The use of graphene as interface layer can be potentially useful for improving the quality of Mo/MoS2/CZTS interface.

Abstract: The graphene-metal contact is very important for optimizing the performance of graphene based electronic devices. However, it is difficult to probe the properties of the graphene/metal interface directly via transport measurements in traditional graphene lateral devices, because the dominated transport channel is graphene, not the interface. Here, we employ the Au/graphene/Au vertical and lateral hybrid structure to unveil the metal-graphene interface properties, where the transport is dominated by the charge carriers across the interface. The magnetoresistance (MR) of Au/monolayer graphene/Au and Au/stacked two-layered graphene/Au devices is measured and modulated by gate voltage, demonstrating that the interface is a device. The gate-tunable MR is identified from the graphene lying on the SiO2 substrate and underneath the top metal electrode. Our unique structures couple the in-plane and out-of-plane transport and display linear MR with small amplitude oscillations at low temperatures. Under a magnetic field, the electronic coupling between the graphene edge states and the electrode leads to the appearance of quantum oscillations. Our results not only provide a new pathway to explore the intrinsic transport mechanism at the graphene/metal interface but also open up new vistas of magnetoelectronics.

Abstract: The giant cationic palladium clusters, approximate formula Pd561L60(OAc)180 (L = Dipy, Phen), were characterized by electron diffraction and high resolution microscopy to contain an FCC metal core, most of the larger Pd particles (8 nm) exhibiting multiple twinning, evidence for a distorted icosahedral structure.

Abstract: The fundamental plasticity mechanisms in thin freestanding Zr65Ni35 metallic glass films are investigated in order to unravel the origin of an outstanding strength/ductility balance. The deformation process is homogenous until fracture with no evidence of catastrophic shear banding. The creep/relaxation behaviour of the films was characterized by on-chip tensile testing, revealing an activation volume in the range 100–200 Å3. Advanced high-resolution transmission electron microscopy imaging and spectroscopy exhibit a very fine glassy nanostructure with well-defined dense Ni-rich clusters embedded in Zr-rich clusters of lower atomic density and a ~2–3 nm characteristic length scale. Nanobeam electron diffraction analysis reveals that the accumulation of plastic deformation at roomtemperature
correlates with monotonously increasing disruption of the local atomic order. These results provide experimental evidences of the dynamics of shear transformation zones activation in metallic glasses. The impact of the nanoscale structural heterogeneities on the mechanical properties including the rate dependent behaviour is discussed, shedding new light on the governing plasticity mechanisms in metallic glasses with initially heterogeneous atomic arrangement.

Abstract: The formation of Ni silicides is studied by transmission electron microscopy during in situ heating experiments of 12 nm Ni layers on blanket silicon, or in patterned structures covered with a thin chemical oxide. It is shown that the first phase formed is the NiSi2 which grows epitaxially in pyramidal crystals. The formation of NiSi occurs quite abruptly around 400 degreesC when a monosilicide layer covers the disilicide grains and the silicon in between. The NiSi phase remains stable up to 800 degreesC, at which temperature the layer finally fully transforms to NiSi2. The monosilicide grains show different epitaxial relationships with the Si substrate. Ni2Si is never observed. (C) 2001 American Institute of Physics.

Abstract: The formation of a 3D network composed of free standing and interconnected Pt nanowires is achieved by a two-step method, consisting of conformal deposition of Pt by atomic layer deposition (ALD) on a forest of carbon nanotubes and subsequent removal of the carbonaceous template. Detailed characterization of this novel 3D nanostructure was carried out by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The characterization showed that this pure 3D nanostructure of platinum is self-supported and offers an enhancement of the electrochemically active surface area by a factor of 50.