Natural Sugar-Assisted, Chemically Reinforced, Highly Durable Piezoorganic Nanogenerator with Superior Power Density for Self-Powered Wearable Electronics.

Natural piezoelectric materials are of increasing interest, particularly for applications in biocompatible, implantable, and flexible electronic devices. In this paper, we introduce a cost-effective, easily available natural piezoelectric material, that is, sugar in the field of wearable piezoelectric nanogenerators (PNGs) where low electrical output, biocompatibility, and performance durability are still critical issues. We report on a high-performance piezoorganic nanogenerator (PONG) based on the hybridization of sugar-encapsulated polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) nanofiber webs (SGNFW).

Room-Temperature Atomic-Layer-Deposited Al O Improves the Efficiency of Perovskite Solar Cells over Time.

Electrical characterisation of perovskite solar cells consisting of room-temperature atomic-layer-deposited aluminium oxide (RT-ALD-Al O ) film on top of a methyl ammonium lead triiodide (CH NH PbI ) absorber showed excellent stability of the power conversion efficiency (PCE) over a long time. Under the same environmental conditions (for 355 d), the average PCE of solar cells without the ALD layer decreased from 13.6 to 9.

Evidence of Nitrogen Contribution to the Electronic Structure of the CH NH PbI Perovskite.

Despite fast development of hybrid perovskite solar cells, there are many fundamental questions related to the perovskite film which remain open. For example, there are contradicting theoretical reports on the role of the organic methylammonium cation (CH NH ) in the methylammonium lead triiodide (CH NH PbI ) perovskite film. From one side it is reported that the organic cation does not contribute to electronic structure of the CH NH PbI film.

New insights into water photooxidation on reductively pretreated hematite photoanodes.

It has been recently demonstrated that the photoactivity toward oxygen evolution of a number of n-type metal oxides can be substantially improved by a reductive electrochemical pretreatment. Such an enhancement has been primarily linked to the formation of low valent metal species that increase electrode conductivity. In this work, we report new insights into the electrochemical doping using highly ordered (110)-oriented hematite nanorods directly grown on FTO.

Alkaline electrochemical water oxidation with multi-shelled cobalt manganese oxide hollow spheres.

Multi-shelled hollow spheres of cobalt manganese oxides (CMOs) deposited on Ni foam exhibited superior alkaline electrochemical water oxidation activity and surpassed those of bulk CMO and commercial noble metal-based catalysts. A higher amount of cobalt in the spinel structure resulted in the transformation of the tetragonal to the cubic phase with a decrease in the overpotential of oxygen evolution.

Selective Deposition of an Ultrathin Pt Layer on a Au-Nanoisland-Modified Si Photocathode for Hydrogen Generation.

Platinum, being the most efficient and stable catalyst, is used in photoelectrochemical (PEC) devices. However, a minimal amount of Pt with maximum catalytic activity is required to be used to minimize the cost of production. In this work, we use an environmentally friendly, cost-effective, and less Pt-consuming method to prepare PEC devices for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER).

Room-Temperature Atomic Layer Deposition of Al O : Impact on Efficiency, Stability and Surface Properties in Perovskite Solar Cells.

In this work, solar cells with a freshly made CH NH PbI perovskite film showed a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 15.4 % whereas the one with 50 days aged perovskite film only 6.1 %.

Engineering of Sub-Nanometer SiOx Thickness in Si Photocathodes for Optimized Open Circuit Potential.

Silicon is one of the most promising materials to be used for tandem-cell water-splitting devices. However, the electrochemical instability of bare Si makes it difficult to be used for stable devices. Besides that, the photovoltage loss in Si, caused by several factors (e.

Cerium(III) Complex Modified Gold Electrode: An Efficient Electrocatalyst for the Oxygen Evolution Reaction.

Exploring efficient and inexpensive electrocatalysts for the oxidation of water is of great importance for various electrochemical energy storage and conversion technologies. In the present study, a new water-soluble [Ce(III)(DMF) (HSO4)3] complex was synthesized and characterized by UV-vis, photoluminescence, and high-resolution X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy techniques. Owing to classic 5d → 4f transitions, an intense photoluminescence in the UV region was observed from the water-soluble [Ce(III)(DMF) (HSO4)3] complex.

Analyzing Structural Changes of Fe-N-C Cathode Catalysts in PEM Fuel Cell by Mößbauer Spectroscopy of Complete Membrane Electrode Assemblies.

The applicability of analyzing by Mößbauer spectroscopy the structural changes of Fe-N-C catalysts that have been tested at the cathode of membrane electrode assemblies in proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells is demonstrated. The Mößbauer characterization of powders of the same catalysts was recently described in our previous publication. A possible change of the iron species upon testing in fuel cell was investigated here by Mößbauer spectroscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray cross-sectional imaging, and neutron activation analysis.

Modification of Hematite Electronic Properties with Trimethyl Aluminum to Enhance the Efficiency of Photoelectrodes.

The electronic properties of hematite were investigated by means of synchrotron radiation photoemission (SR-PES) and X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS). Hematite samples were exposed to trimethyl aluminum (TMA) pulses, a widely used Al-precursor for the atomic layer deposition (ALD) of Al2O3. SR-PES and XAS showed that the electronic properties of hematite were modified by the interaction with TMA.

DNA-Assisted β-phase Nucleation and Alignment of Molecular Dipoles in PVDF Film: A Realization of Self-Poled Bioinspired Flexible Polymer Nanogenerator for Portable Electronic Devices.

A flexible nanogenerator (NG) is fabricated with a poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) film, where deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is the agent for the electroactive β-phase nucleation. Denatured DNA is co-operating to align the molecular -CH2/-CF2 dipoles of PVDF causing piezoelectricity without electrical poling. The NG is capable of harvesting energy from a variety of easily accessible mechanical stress such as human touch, machine vibration, football juggling, and walking.

Graphene oxide monolayers as atomically thin seeding layers for atomic layer deposition of metal oxides.

Graphene oxide (GO) was explored as an atomically-thin transferable seed layer for the atomic layer deposition (ALD) of dielectric materials on any substrate of choice. This approach does not require specific chemical groups on the target surface to initiate ALD. This establishes GO as a unique interface which enables the growth of dielectric materials on a wide range of substrate materials and opens up numerous prospects for applications.

Si microstructures laminated with a nanolayer of TiO2 as long-term stable and effective photocathodes in PEC devices.

Photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting is one of the most emerging fields for green energy generation and storage. Here we show a study of microstructured Si covered by a TiO2 nano-layer. The microstructures are prepared by galvanostatic selective etching of Si.

Self-poled transparent and flexible UV light-emitting cerium complex-PVDF composite: a high-performance nanogenerator.

Cerium(III)-N,N-dimethylformamide-bisulfate [Ce(DMF)(HSO4)3] complex is doped into poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) to induce a higher yield (99%) of the electroactive phases (β- and γ-phases) of PVDF. A remarkable enhancement of the output voltage (∼32 V) of a nanogenerator (NG) based on a nonelectrically poled cerium(III) complex containing PVDF composite film is achieved by simple repeated human finger imparting, whereas neat PVDF does not show this kind of behavior. This high electrical output resembles the generation of self-poled electroactive β-phase in PVDF due to the electrostatic interactions between the fluoride of PVDF and the surface-active positive charge cloud of the cerium complex via H-bonding and/or bipolar interaction among the opposite poles of cerium complex and PVDF, respectively.

Unification of catalytic water oxidation and oxygen reduction reactions: amorphous beat crystalline cobalt iron oxides.

Catalytic water splitting to hydrogen and oxygen is considered as one of the convenient routes for the sustainable energy conversion. Bifunctional catalysts for the electrocatalytic oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) are pivotal for the energy conversion and storage, and alternatively, the photochemical water oxidation in biomimetic fashion is also considered as the most useful way to convert solar energy into chemical energy. Here we present a facile solvothermal route to control the synthesis of amorphous and crystalline cobalt iron oxides by controlling the crystallinity of the materials with changing solvent and reaction time and further utilize these materials as multifunctional catalysts for the unification of photochemical and electrochemical water oxidation as well as for the oxygen reduction reaction.

Improved performance of a polymer nanogenerator based on silver nanoparticles doped electrospun P(VDF-HFP) nanofibers.

We report on the electrospinning of poly(vinylidene fluoride-hexafluoropropylene) [P(VDF-HFP)] nanofibers doped with silver nanoparticles for the preparation of a polymer based nanogenerator (PNG). It has been found that the yield of the piezoelectric phase is increased by the addition of silver nanoparticles. Furthermore, defects in the P(VDF-HFP) electrospun fibers are removed resulting in a significant enhancement in the output power of the PNG.

Quantum size effects in TiO2 thin films grown by atomic layer deposition.

We study the atomic layer deposition of TiO2 by means of X-ray absorption spectroscopy. The Ti precursor, titanium isopropoxide, was used in combination with H2O on Si/SiO2 substrates that were heated at 200 °C. The low growth rate (0.

Ellipsometry and XPS comparative studies of thermal and plasma enhanced atomic layer deposited Al2O3-films.

We report on results on the preparation of thin (<100 nm) aluminum oxide (Al2O3) films on silicon substrates using thermal atomic layer deposition (T-ALD) and plasma enhanced atomic layer deposition (PE-ALD) in the SENTECH SI ALD LL system. The T-ALD Al2O3 layers were deposited at 200 °C, for the PE-ALD films we varied the substrate temperature range between room temperature (rt) and 200 °C. We show data from spectroscopic ellipsometry (thickness, refractive index, growth rate) over 4" wafers and correlate them to X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) results.

Correlations between mass activity and physicochemical properties of Fe/N/C catalysts for the ORR in PEM fuel cell via 57Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy and other techniques.

The aim of this work is to clarify the origin of the enhanced PEM-FC performance of catalysts prepared by the procedures described in Science 2009, 324, 71 and Nat. Commun. 2011, 2, 416.

Surface functionalization of nanostructured Fe2O3 polymorphs: from design to light-activated applications.

Nanostructured iron(III) oxide deposits are grown by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) at 400-500 °C on Si(100) substrates from Fe(hfa)2TMEDA (hfa = 1,1,1,5,5,5-hexafluoro-2,4-pentanedionate; TMEDA = N,N,N',N'-tetramethylethylenediamine), yielding the selective formation of α-Fe2O3 or the scarcely studied ε-Fe2O3 polymorphs under suitably optimized preparative conditions. By using Ti(OPr(i))4 (OPr(i) = iso-propoxy) and water as atomic layer deposition (ALD) precursors, we subsequently functionalized the obtained materials at moderate temperatures (<300 °C) by an ultrathin titanomagnetite (Fe3-xTixO4) overlayer. An extensive multitechnique characterization, aimed at elucidating the system structure, morphology, composition and optical properties, evidenced that the photoactivated hydrophilic and photocatalytic behavior of the synthesized materials is dependent both on iron oxide phase composition and ALD surface modification.

Growth of TiO2 with thermal and plasma enhanced atomic layer deposition.

We show a comparative study of the TiO2 ALD with TTIP and either O2 or O2-plasma on Si/SiO2 substrates. In particular we compare the surface morphology and crystalline phase by means of Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) and X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy (XAS) for different O2-plasma procedures upon changing the time between cycles and the N2-purging pressure. The AFM images show that already these parameters may induce structural changes in the TiO2 films grown by ALD, with the formation of crystallites with average lateral width varying between 15 and 80 nm.

Metallic single-crystal CoSi nanowires via chemical vapor deposition of single-source precursor.

We report the synthesis, structural characterization, and electrical transport properties of free-standing single-crystal CoSi nanowires synthesized via a single-source precursor route. Nanowires with diameters of 10-150 nm and lengths of greater than 10 mum were synthesized through the chemical vapor deposition of Co(SiCl(3))(CO)(4) onto silicon substrates that were covered with 1-2 nm thick SiO(2). Transmission electron microscopy confirms the single-crystal structure of the cubic CoSi.

Synthesis and properties of single-crystal FeSi nanowires.

We report for the first time the chemical synthesis of free-standing single-crystal nanowires (NWs) of FeSi, the only transition-metal Kondo insulator and the host structure for ferromagnetic semiconductor Fe(x)Co(1-x)Si. Straight and smooth FeSi nanowires are produced on silicon substrates covered with a thin layer of silicon oxide through the decomposition of the single-source organometallic precursor trans-Fe(SiCl3)2(CO)4 in a simple chemical vapor deposition process. Unlike typical vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) NW growth, FeSi NWs form without the addition of metal catalysts, have no catalyst tips, and depend strongly on the surface employed.