Nanowerk May 31, 2021 For successful implementation of photoelectrocatalytic synthesis of fuels and value-added chemicals hybrid photoelectrodes with low energy consumption and high photocurrent densities are essential. Researchers in Japan have developed a laser-driven technology to print sensitizers with desired morphologies and layer thickness onto different substrates, such as glass, carbon, or carbon nitride (CN). The process uses a thin polymer reactor impregnated with transition metal salts, confining the growth of TMO nanostructures on the interface in milliseconds, while their morphology can be tuned by the laser. Multiple nano-p-n junctions at the interface increase the electron/hole lifetime by efficient charge […]
Tag Archives: Nanomaterials
Nanosheet-based electronics could be one drop away
Nanowerk January 8, 2021 Researchers in Japan overcame the “coffee ring” effect of drop casting by controlled convection using a pipette and a hotplate. They found that dropping a solution containing 2D nanosheets with a simple pipette onto a substrate heated on a hotplate to a temperature of about 100°C, followed by removal of the solution, causes the nanosheets to come together in about 30 seconds to form a tile-like layer. They demonstrated controlled thermal convection by depositing particle solutions of titanium dioxide, calcium niobate, ruthenium oxide, and graphene oxide. They also tried different sizes and shapes of a variety […]
Intelligent nanomaterials for photonics
Science Daily October 7, 2020 2D materials – combined with optical fibers – can enable novel applications in the areas of sensors, non-linear optics, and quantum technologies. An international team of researchers (Germany, Australia) studied the chemical vapor deposition of monolayer MoS2 and WS2 crystals on the core of microstructured exposed‐core optical fibers and their interaction with the fibers’ guided modes. Two distinct application possibilities of 2D‐functionalized waveguides to exemplify their potential are demonstrated. First, the excitonic 2D material photoluminescence is simultaneously excited and collected with the fiber modes. Then it is shown that third‐harmonic generation is modified by the highly […]
Harvesting hydrogen from nanogardens
Nanowerk July 3, 2020 By manipulating (electro)chemical gradients using a combined hydrothermal and electrodeposition strategy, an international team of researchers (China, the Netherlands) has shown the controlled growth of Co(OH)2 nanostructures, mimicking the process of garden cultivation. The resulting “nano-garden” can selectively contain different patterns, all of which can be fully phosphidated into CoP without losing the structural integrity. Under pH-universal conditions, the CoP “soil + flower-with-stem” structure shows a much more “effective” surface area for gas-evolving reactions with lower activation and concentration overpotentials. This provides superior bifunctional catalytic activity for both reactions, outperforming noble metal counterparts…read more. Open Access […]
Computer program can translate a free-form 2-D drawing into a DNA structure
Phys.org January 3, 2019 Scaffolded DNA origami offers the unique ability to organize molecules in nearly arbitrary spatial patterns at the nanometer scale, with wireframe designs further enabling complex 2D and 3D geometries with irregular boundaries and internal structures. A team of researchers in the US (MIT, Arizona State University) has developed a fully autonomous procedure to design all DNA staple sequences needed to fold any free-form 2D scaffolded DNA origami wireframe object. The algorithm enables the full autonomy of scaffold routing and staple sequence design with arbitrary network edge lengths and vertex angles. The technique has utility for nanoscale […]
New megalibrary approach proves useful for the rapid discovery of new nanomaterials
Nanowerk December 18, 2018 A team of researchers in the US (Northwestern University, AFRL at Wright-Patterson AFB) supports the efficacy of a potentially revolutionary new tool developed at Northwestern University to rapidly test millions (even billions) of nanoparticles to determine the best one for a specific use. The tool utilizes a combinatorial library, or megalibrary, of nanoparticles in a very controlled way. The libraries are created using Mirkin’s Polymer Pen Lithography (PPL) technique, which relies on arrays with hundreds of thousands of pyramidal tips to deposit individual polymer “dots” of various sizes and composition, each loaded with different metal salts […]