Highly efficient and very robust blue-excitable yellow phosphors built on multiple-stranded one-dimensional inorganic-organic hybrid chains.

Inorganic-organic hybrid semiconductors are promising candidates for energy-related applications. Here, we have developed a unique class of multiple-stranded one-dimensional (1D) structures as very robust and efficient lighting phosphors. Following a systematic ligand design strategy, these structures are constructed by forming multiple coordination bonds between adjacent copper iodide inorganic building units Cu I ( = 2, 4, 6) ( dimer, tetramer and hexamer clusters) and strong-binding bidentate organic ligands with low LUMO energies which give rise to infinite 1D chains of high stability and low bandgaps.

A biodegradable hybrid inorganic nanoscaffold for advanced stem cell therapy.

Stem cell transplantation, as a promising treatment for central nervous system (CNS) diseases, has been hampered by crucial issues such as a low cell survival rate, incomplete differentiation, and limited neurite outgrowth in vivo. Addressing these hurdles, scientists have designed bioscaffolds that mimic the natural tissue microenvironment to deliver physical and soluble cues. However, several significant obstacles including burst release of drugs, insufficient cellular adhesion support, and slow scaffold degradation rate remain to be overcome before the full potential of bioscaffold-based stem-cell therapies can be realized.

All-in-One: Achieving Robust, Strongly Luminescent and Highly Dispersible Hybrid Materials by Combining Ionic and Coordinate Bonds in Molecular Crystals.

Extensive research has been pursued to develop low-cost and high-performance functional inorganic-organic hybrid materials for clean/renewable energy related applications. While great progress has been made in the recent years, some key challenges remain to be tackled. One major issue is the generally poor stability of these materials, which originates from relatively fragile/weak bonds between inorganic and organic constituents.

Modeling Mechanism and Growth Reactions for New Nanofabrication Processes by Atomic Layer Deposition.

Recent progress in the simulation of the chemistry of atomic layer deposition (ALD) is presented for technologically important materials such as alumina, silica, and copper metal. Self-limiting chemisorption of precursors onto substrates is studied using density functional theory so as to determine reaction pathways and aid process development. The main challenges for the future of ALD modeling are outlined.

Quantum chemical and solution phase evaluation of metallocenes as reducing agents for the prospective atomic layer deposition of copper.

We propose and evaluate the use of metallocene compounds as reducing agents for the chemical vapour deposition (and specifically atomic layer deposition, ALD) of the transition metal Cu from metalorganic precursors. Ten different transition metal cyclopentadienyl compounds are screened for their utility in the reduction of Cu from five different Cu precursors by evaluating model reaction energies with density functional theory (DFT) and solution phase chemistry.

Mechanism for the atomic layer deposition of copper using diethylzinc as the reducing agent: a density functional theory study using gas-phase molecules as a model.

We present theoretical studies based on first-principles density functional theory calculations for the possible gas-phase mechanism of the atomic layer deposition (ALD) of copper by transmetalation from common precursors such as Cu(acac)(2), Cu(hfac)(2), Cu(PyrIm(R))(2) with R = (i)Pr and Et, Cu(dmap)(2), and CuCl(2) where diethylzinc acts as the reducing agent. An effect on the geometry and reactivity of the precursors due to differences in electronegativity, steric hindrance, and conjugation present in the ligands was observed. Three reaction types, namely, disproportionation, ligand exchange, and reductive elimination, were considered that together comprise the mechanism for the formation of copper in its metallic state starting from the precursors.