Probing the Structure and Orientation of Carboxylic Acid-Terminated Self-Assembled Monolayers.

Self-assembled monolayers (SAMs), such as alkanethiols (AT), are widely used as functional coatings or interfaces between different materials. There is an assumption that the arrangement and alignment of the hydrocarbon chains in films made from carboxyl-terminated alkanethiols are similar to those made from alkanethiols. Here, the structure of the outermost layer and near-surface region of SAMs formed from carboxyl-terminated alkanethiols of various lengths has been analyzed.

Interfacial Modification of Lithium Metal Anode by Boron Nitride Nanosheets.

Metallic lithium (Li) is the most attractive anode for Li batteries because it holds the highest theoretical specific capacity (3860 mA h g) and the lowest redox potential (-3.040 V vs SHE). However, the poor interface stability of the Li anode, which is caused by the high reactivity and dendrite formation of metallic Li upon cycling, leads to undesired electrochemical performance and safety issues.

Effect of TiO Film Thickness on the Stability of Au Clusters with a CrO Layer.

Radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering allows the fabrication of TiO films with high purity, reliable control of film thickness, and uniform morphology. In the present study, the change in surface roughness upon heating two different thicknesses of RF sputter-deposited TiO films was investigated. As a measure of the process of the change in surface morphology, chemically -synthesised phosphine-protected Au clusters covered by a photodeposited CrO layer were used as a probe.

A Review of State of the Art in Phosphine Ligated Gold Clusters and Application in Catalysis.

Atomically precise gold clusters are highly desirable due to their well-defined structure which allows the study of structure-property relationships. In addition, they have potential in technological applications such as nanoscale catalysis. The structural, chemical, electronic, and optical properties of ligated gold clusters are strongly defined by the metal-ligand interaction and type of ligands.

CrO layer inhibits agglomeration of phosphine-protected Au clusters on TiO films.

The properties of semiconductor surfaces can be modified by the deposition of metal clusters consisting of a few atoms. The properties of metal clusters and of cluster-modified surfaces depend on the number of atoms forming the clusters. Deposition of clusters with a monodisperse size distribution thus allows tailoring of the surface properties for technical applications.

Creation of High-Performance Heterogeneous Photocatalysts by Controlling Ligand Desorption and Particle Size of Gold Nanocluster.

Recently, the creation of new heterogeneous catalysts using the unique electronic/geometric structures of small metal nanoclusters (NCs) has received considerable attention. However, to achieve this, it is extremely important to establish methods to remove the ligands from ligand-protected metal NCs while preventing the aggregation of metal NCs. In this study, the ligand-desorption process during calcination was followed for metal-oxide-supported 2-phenylethanethiolate-protected gold (Au) 25-atom metal NCs using five experimental techniques.

Composition and properties of RF-sputter deposited titanium dioxide thin films.

The photocatalytic properties of titania (TiO) have prompted research utilising its useful ability to convert solar energy into electron-hole pairs to drive novel chemistry. The aim of the present work is to examine the properties required for a synthetic method capable of producing thin TiO films, with well defined, easily modifiable characteristics. Presented here is a method of synthesis of TiO nanoparticulate thin films generated using RF plasma capable of homogenous depositions with known elemental composition and modifiable properties at a far lower cost than single-crystal TiO.