Abstract: While spectroscopic data on small hydrocarbons in interstellar media in combination with crossed molecular beam (CMB) experiments have provided a wealth of information on astrochemically relevant species, much of the underlying mechanistic pathways of their formation remain elusive. Therefore, in this work, the chemical reaction mechanisms of C(³P_J) + C₆H₆and C⁺(²P) + C₆H₆systems using the quantum mechanical molecular dynamics (QMMD) technique at the PBE0-D3(BJ) level of theory is investigated, mimicking a CMB experiment. Both the dynamics of the reactions as well as the electronic structure for the purpose of the reaction network are evaluated. The method is validated for the first reaction by comparison to the available experimental data. The reaction scheme for the C(³P_J) + C₆H₆system covers the literature data,<italic>e.g.</italic>the major products are the 1,2-didehydrocycloheptatrienyl radical (C₇H₅) and benzocyclopropenyl radical (C₆H₅–CH), and it reveals the existence of less common pathways for the first time. The chemistry of the C⁺(²P_J) + C₆H₆system is found to be much richer, and we have found that this is because of more exothermic reactions in this system in comparison to those in the C(³P_J) + C₆H₆system. Moreover, using the QMMD simulation, a number of reaction paths have been revealed that produce three distinct classes of reaction products with different ring sizes. All in all, at all the collision energies and orientations, the major product is the heptagon molecular ion for the ionic system. It is also revealed that the collision orientation has a dominant effect on the reaction products in both systems, while the collision energy mostly affects the charged system. These simulations both prove the applicability of this approach to simulate crossed molecular beams, and provide fundamental information on reactions relevant for the interstellar medium.

Abstract: Using first-principles calculations, we study the effect of embedding various atoms into the nanopore sites of both C6N6 and C6N8 monolayers. Our results indicate that the embedded atoms significantly affect the electronic and magnetic properties of C6N6 and C6N8 monolayers and lead to extraordinary and multifarious electronic properties, such as metallic, half-metallic, spin-glass semiconductor and dilute-magnetic semiconductor behaviour. Our results reveal that the H atom concentration dramatically affects the C6N6 monolayer. On increasing the H coverage, the impurity states also increase due to H atoms around the Fermi-level. C6N6 shows metallic character when the H atom concentration reaches 6.25%. Moreover, the effect of charge on the electronic properties of both Cr@C6N6 and C@C6N8 is also studied. Cr@C6N6 is a ferromagnetic metal with a magnetic moment of 2.40 mu(B), and when 0.2 electrons are added and removed, it remains a ferromagnetic metal with a magnetic moment of 2.57 and 2.77 mu(B), respectively. Interestingly, one can observe a semi-metal, in which the VBM and CBM in both spin channels touch each other near the Fermi-level. C@C6N8 is a semiconductor with a nontrivial band gap. When 0.2 electrons are removed, it remains metallic, and under excess electronic charge, it exhibits half-metallic behaviour.

Abstract: Sub-monolayer control over the growth at silicon-oxide interfaces is a prerequisite for epitaxial integration of complex oxides with the Si platform, enriching it with a variety of functionalities. However, the control over this integration is hindered by the intense reaction of the constituents. The most suitable buffer material for Si passivation is metallic strontium. When it is overgrown with a layer of SrTiO3 (STO) it can serve as a pseudo-substrate for the integration with functional oxides. In our study we determined a mechanism for epitaxial integration of STO with a (1 x 2) + (2 x 1) reconstructed Sr(1/2 ML)/Si(001) surface using all-pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technology. A detailed analysis of the initial deposition parameters was performed, which enabled us to develop a complete protocol for integration, taking into account the peculiarities of the PLD growth, STO critical thickness, and process thermal budget, in order to kinetically trap the reaction between STO and Si and thus to minimize the thickness of the interface layer. The as-prepared oxide layer exhibits STO(001)8Si(001) out-of-plane and STO[110]8Si[100] in-plane orientation and together with recent advances in large-scale PLD tools these results represent a new technological solution for the implementation of oxide electronics on demand.

Abstract: In this paper we study dry reforming of methane (DRM) in a gliding arc plasmatron (GAP) in the presence of N₂and O₂. N₂is added to create a stable plasma at equal fractions of CO₂and CH₄, and because emissions from industrial plants typically contain N₂, while O₂is added to enhance the process. We test different gas mixing ratios to evaluate the conversion and energy cost. We obtain conversions between 31 and 52% for CO₂and between 55 and 99% for CH₄, with total energy costs between 3.4 and 5.0 eV per molecule, depending on the gas mixture. This is very competitive when benchmarked with the literature. In addition, we present a chemical kinetics model to obtain deeper insight in the underlying plasma chemistry. This allows determination of the major reaction pathways to convert CO₂and CH₄, in the presence of O₂and N₂, into CO and H₂. We show that N₂assists in the CO₂conversion, but part of the applied energy is also wasted in N₂excitation. Adding O₂enhances the CH₄conversion, and lowers the energy cost, while the CO₂conversion remains constant, and only slightly drops at the highest O₂fractions studied, when CH₄is fully oxidized into CO₂.

Abstract: A simple procedure to obtain highly porous hydrophilic palladium nanodendrites in one-step is described. The synthetic strategy is based on the thermal reduction of a Pd precursor in the presence of a positively charged polyelectrolyte such as polyethylenimine (PEI). Advanced electron microscopy techniques combined with X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetry and BET analysis demonstrate the polycrystalline nature of the nanodendrites as well as their high porosity and active surface area, facilitating a better understanding of their unique morphology. Besides, catalytic studies performed using Raman scattering and UV-Vis spectroscopies revealed that the nanodendrites exhibit a superior performance as recyclable catalysts towards hydrogenation reaction compared to other noble metal nanoparticles.

Abstract: Using first-principles calculations the effect of topological defects, vacancies, Stone-Wales and anti-site and substitution of atoms, on the structure and electronic properties of monolayer C3N are investigated. Vacancy defects introduce localized states near the Fermi level and a local magnetic moment. While pristine C3N is an indirect semiconductor with a 0.4 eV band gap, with substitution of O, S and Si atoms for C, it remains a semiconductor with a band gap in the range 0.25-0.75 eV, while it turns into a metal with H, Cl, B, P, Li, Na, K, Be and Mg substitution. With F substitution, it becomes a dilute-magnetic semiconductor, while with Ca substitution it is a ferromagnetic-metal. When replacing the N host atom, C3N turns into: a metal (H, O, S, C, Si, P, Li and Be), ferromagnetic-metal (Mg), half-metal (Ca) and spin-glass semiconductor (Na and K). Moreover, the effects of charging and strain on the electronic properties of Na atom substitution in C3N are investigated. We found that the magnetic moment decreases or increases depending on the type and size of strain (tensile or compression). Our study shows how the band gap and magnetism in monolayer C3N can be tuned by introducing defects and atom substitution. The so engineered C3N can be a good candidate for future low dimensional devices.

Abstract: Defects are inevitably present in materials, and their existence in a material strongly affects its fundamental physical properties. We have systematically investigated the effects of surface adsorption, substitutional impurities, defect engineering, an electric field and strain engineering on the structural, electronic and magnetic properties of antimonene nanosheets, using spin-polarized density functional calculations based on first-principles. The adsorption or substitution of atoms can locally modify the atomic and electronic structures as well as induce a variety of electronic behaviors including metal, half-metal, ferromagnetic metal, dilute magnetic semiconductor and spin-glass semiconductor. Our calculations show that the presence of typical defects (vacancies and Stone-Wales defect) in antimonene affects the geometrical symmetry as well as the band gap in the electronic band structure and induces magnetism to antimonene. Moreover, by applying an external electric field and strain (uniaxial and biaxial), the electronic structure of antimonene can be easily modified. The calculation results presented in this paper provide a fundamental insight into the tunable nature of the electronic properties of antimonene, supporting its promise for use in future applications.

Abstract: C-H activation reactions are generally associated with relatively low turnover numbers (TONs) and high catalyst concentrations due to a combination of low catalyst stability and activity, highlighting the need for recyclable heterogeneous catalysts with stable single-atom active sites. In this work, several palladium loaded metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) were tested as single-site catalysts for the oxidative coupling of arenes (e.g. o-xylene) via C-H/C-H activation. Isolation of the palladium active sites on the MOF supports reduced Pd(0) aggregate formation and thus catalyst deactivation, resulting in higher turnover numbers (TONs) compared to the homogeneous benchmark reaction. Notably, a threefold higher TON could be achieved for palladium loaded MOF-808 due to increased catalyst stability and the heterogeneous catalyst could efficiently be reused, resulting in a cumulative TON of 1218 after three runs. Additionally, the palladium single-atom active sites on MOF-808 were successfully identified by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectroscopy.

Abstract: Reaction of the cation-ordered double perovskite Sr2ReLiO6 with dilute hydrogen at 475 degrees C leads to the topochemical deintercalation of oxide ions from the host lattice and the formation of a phase of composition Sr2ReLiO5.5, as confirmed by thermogravimetric and EELS data. A combination of neutron and electron diffraction data reveals the reduction process converts the -Sr2O2-ReLiO4-Sr2O2-ReLiO4- stacking sequence of the parent phase into a -Sr2O2-ReLiO3-Sr2O2-ReLiO4-, partially anion-vacant ordered sequence. Furthermore a combination of electron diffraction and imaging reveals Sr2ReLiO5.5 exhibits extensive twinning – a feature which can be attributed to the large, anisotropic volume expansion of the material on reduction. Magnetisation data reveal a strongly reduced moment of (eff) = 0.505(B) for the d(1) Re6+ centres in the phase, suggesting there remains a large orbital component to the magnetism of the rhenium centres, despite their location in low symmetry coordination environments.

Abstract: Cold atmospheric plasma in contact with solutions has many applications, but its chemistry contains many unknowns such as the undescribed reactions with solutes. By combining experiments and modelling, we report the first direct demonstration of the reaction of chloride with oxygen atoms in aqueous solutions exposed to cold plasma.

Abstract: The microstructural complexity of Li-rich cathode materials has so far hampered understanding the critical link between size, morphology and structural defects with both capacity and voltage fadings that this family of materials exhibits. Li2MnO3 is used here as a model material to extract reliable structure–property
relationships that can be further exploited for the development of high-performing and long-lasting Li-rich oxides. A series of samples with microstructural variability have been prepared and thoroughly characterized using the FAULTS software, which allows quantification of planar defects and extraction of
average crystallite sizes. Together with transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and density functional theory (DFT) results, the successful application of FAULTS analysis to Li2MnO3 has allowed rationalizing the synthesis conditions and identifying the individual impact of concurrent microstructural features on
both voltage and capacity fadings, a necessary step for the development of high-capacity Li-ion cathode materials with enhanced cycle life.

Abstract: A robust and easy to handle 3D porous platinum structure was created via replicating the 3D channel system
of an ordered mesoporous silica material using atomic layer deposition (ALD) over micrometer distances.
After ALD of Pt in the silica material, the host template was digested using hydrogen fluoride (HF). A fully
connected ordered Pt nanostructure was obtained with morphology and sizes corresponding to that of
the pores of the host matrix, as revealed with high-resolution scanning transmission electron
microscopy and electron tomography. The Pt nanostructure consisted of hexagonal Pt rods originating
from the straight mesopores (11 nm) of the host structure and linking features resulting from Pt
replication of the interconnecting mesopore segments (2–4 nm) present in the silica host structure.
Electron tomography of partial replicas, made by incomplete infilling of Zeotile-4 material with Pt,
provided insight in the connectivity and formation mechanism of the Pt nanostructure by ALD. The Pt
replica was evaluated for its potential use as electrocatalyst for the hydrogen evolution reaction, one of
the half-reactions of water electrolysis, and as microelectrode for biomedical sensing. The Pt replica
showed high activity for the hydrogen evolution reaction and electrochemical characterization revealed
a large impedance improvement in comparison with reference Pt electrodes.

Abstract: Besides providing sufficient solubility, branched alkyl chains also affect the film-forming and packing properties of organic semiconductors. In order to avoid steric hindrance as it is present in wide-spread alkyl chains comprising a branching point position at the C2-position, i.e., 2-ethylhexyl, the branching point can be moved away from the pi-conjugated backbone. In this report, we study the influence of the modification of the branching point position from the C2-position in 2-hexyldecylamine (1) to the C4-position in 4-hexyldecylamine (2) connected to the central dithieno[3,2-b: 2', 3'-d] pyrrole (DTP) moiety in a well-studied A-D-A oligothiophene on the optoelectronic properties and photovoltaic performance in solution- processed bulk heterojunction solar cells (BHJSCs) with [6,6]-phenyl-C71-butyric acid methyl ester (PC71BM) as the acceptor material. Post-treatment of the photoactive layers is performed via solvent vapor annealing (SVA) in order to improve the film microstructure of the bulk heterojunction. The time evolution of nanoscale morphological changes is followed by combining scanning transmission electron microscopy with low-energy-loss spectroscopic imaging (STEM-SI), solid-state absorption spectroscopy, and two-dimensional grazing incidence X-ray diffraction (2D-GIXRD). Our results show an improvement of the photovoltaic performance that is dependent on the branching point position in the donor oligomer. Optical spacers are utilized to increase light absorption inside the co-oligomer 2-based BHJSCs leading to increased power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) of 8.2% when compared to the corresponding co-oligomer 1-based devices. A STEM-SI analysis of the respective device cross-sections of active layers containing 1 and 2 as donor materials indeed reveals significant differences in their respective active layer morphologies.

Abstract: The vast biomedical potential of cold atmospheric pressure plasmas (CAPs) is governed by the formation of reactive species. These biologically active species are formed upon the interaction of CAPs with the surroundings. In biological milieu, water plays an essential role. The development of biomedical CAPs thus requires understanding of the sources of the reactive species in aqueous media exposed to the plasma. This is especially important in case of the COST RF plasma jet, which is developed as a reference microplasma system. In this work, we investigated the formation of the OH radicals, H atoms and H2O2 in aqueous solutions exposed to the COST plasma jet. This was done by combining experimental and modelling approaches. The liquid phase species were analysed using UV-Vis spectroscopy and spin trapping with hydrogen isotopes and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy. The discrimination between the species formed from the liquid phase and the gas phase molecules was performed by EPR and 1H-NMR analyses of the liquid samples. The concentrations of the reactive species in the gas phase plasma were obtained using a zero-dimensional (0D) chemical kinetics computational model. A three-dimensional (3D) fluid dynamics model was developed to provide information on the induced humidity in the plasma effluent. The comparison of the experimentally obtained trends for the formation of the species as a function of the feed gas and effluent humidity with the modelling results suggest that all reactive species detected in our system are mostly formed in the gas phase plasma inside the COST jet, with minor amounts arising from the plasma effluent humidity.

Abstract: <script type='text/javascript'>document.write(unpmarked('To realize spintronic devices based on topological insulators (TIs), well-defined interfaces between magnetic metals and TIs are required. Here, we characterize atomically precisely the interface between the 3d transition metal Fe and the TI Bi2Te3 at different stages of its formation. Using photoelectron diffraction and holography, we show that after deposition of up to 3 monolayers Fe on Bi2Te3 at room temperature, the Fe atoms are ordered at the interface despite the surface disorder revealed by our scanning-tunneling microscopy images. We find that Fe occupies two different sites: a hollow adatom deeply relaxed into the Bi2Te3 quintuple layers and an interstitial atom between the third (Te) and fourth (Bi) atomic layers. For both sites, our core-level photoemission spectra and density-functional theory calculations demonstrate simultaneous chemical bonding of Fe to both Te and Bi atoms. We further show that upon deposition of Fe up to a thickness of 20 nm, the Fe atoms penetrate deeper into the bulk forming a 2-5 nm interface layer containing FeTe. In addition, excessive Bi is pushed down into the bulk of Bi2Te3 leading to the formation of septuple layers of Bi3Te4 within a distance of similar to 25 nm from the interface. Controlling the magnetic properties of the complex interface structures revealed by our work will be of critical importance when optimizing the efficiency of spin injection in TI-based devices.'));