Boosting piezoelectric properties of PVDF nanofibers via embedded graphene oxide nanosheets.

Tremendous research efforts have been directed toward developing polymer-based piezoelectric nanogenerators (PENG) in a promising step to investigate self-charging powered systems (SCPSs) and consequently, support the need for flexible, intelligent, and ultra-compact wearable electronic devices. In our work, electrospun polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) nanofiber mats were investigated while graphene oxide (GO) was added with different concentrations (from 0 to 3 wt.%).

Nano-Enriched Self-Powered Wireless Body Area Network for Sustainable Health Monitoring Services.

Advances in nanotechnology have enabled the creation of novel materials with specific electrical and physical characteristics. This leads to a significant development in the industry of electronics that can be applied in various fields. In this paper, we propose a fabrication of nanotechnology-based materials that can be used to design stretchy piezoelectric nanofibers for energy harvesting to power connected bio-nanosensors in a Wireless Body Area Network (WBAN).

Innovative antibacterial electrospun nanofibers mats depending on piezoelectric generation.

This paper introduces a new approach of testing piezoelectric nanofibers as antibacterial mat. In this work, both Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) and PVDF embedded with thermoplastic polyurethane nanofibers are synthesized as nanofibers mat via electrospinning technique. Then, such mat is analyzed as piezoelectric material to generate electric voltage under different mechanical excitations.

Stretchable nanofibers of polyvinylidenefluoride (PVDF)/thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) nanocomposite to support piezoelectric response via mechanical elasticity.

Interest in piezoelectric nanocomposites has been vastly growing in the energy harvesting field. They are applied in wearable electronics, mechanical actuators, and electromechanical membranes. In this research work, nanocomposite membranes of different blend ratios from PVDF and TPU have been synthesized.

Decay Rates of Plasmonic Elliptical Nanostructures via Effective Medium Theory.

This paper investigates the spontaneous decay rate of elliptical plasmonic nanostructures. The refractive index was analyzed using the effective medium theory (EMT). Then, the polarizability, spontaneous radiative, non-radiative decay rate, and electric field enhancement factor were characterized for the targeted elliptical nanostructures at different aspect ratios.

Acoustic Energy Harvesting and Sensing via Electrospun PVDF Nanofiber Membrane.

This paper introduces a new usage of piezoelectric poly (vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) electrospun nanofiber (NF) membrane as a sensing unit for acoustic signals. In this work, an NF mat has been used as a transducer to convert acoustic signals into electric voltage outcomes. The detected voltage has been analyzed as a function of both frequency and amplitude of the excitation acoustic signal.

In-Situ Gold-Ceria Nanoparticles: Superior Optical Fluorescence Quenching Sensor for Dissolved Oxygen.

Cerium oxide (ceria) nanoparticles (NPs) have been proved to be an efficient optical fluorescent material through generating visible emission (~530 nm) under violet excitation. This feature allowed ceria NPs to be used as an optical sensor via the fluorescence quenching Technique. In this paper, the impact of in-situ embedded gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) inside ceria nanoparticles was studied.

Piezoelastic PVDF/TPU Nanofibrous Composite Membrane: Fabrication and Characterization.

Poly (vinylidene fluoride) nanofibers (PVDF NFs) have been extensively used in energy harvesting applications due to their promising piezoresponse characteristics. However, the mechanical properties of the generated fibers are still lacking. Therefore, we are presenting in this work a promising improvement in the elasticity properties of PVDF nanofibrous membrane through thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) additives.

Efficiency improvement of up-conversion process of plasmonic-enhanced Er-doped-NaYF nanoparticles under IR excitation.

The up-conversion process is extensively studied because of its wide variety of applications such as bioimaging, energy harvesting, and optical sensors. However, the optical conversion efficiency is still relatively low and needs to be improved. Therefore, this paper introduces a detailed study of improving the up-conversion emission efficiency through adding plasmonic metallic nanostructures to the up-conversion optical centers.

Efficiency Enhancement of Perovskite Solar Cells with Plasmonic Nanoparticles: A Simulation Study.

Recently, hybrid organic-inorganic perovskites have been extensively studied due to their promising optical properties with relatively low-cost and simple processing. However, the perovskite solar cells have some low optical absorption in the visible spectrum, especially around the red region. In this paper, an improvement of perovskite solar cell efficiency is studied via simulations through adding plasmonic nanoparticles (NPs) at the rear side of the solar cell.

Plasmonic-Ceria Nanoparticles as Fluorescence Intensity and Lifetime Quenching Optical Sensor.

Ceria nanoparticles have been recently used as an optical fluorescent material with visible emission under ultraviolet excitation, due to the formation of trivalent cerium ions with corresponding oxygen vacancies. This paper introduces the enhancement of both fluorescence emission and lifetime through adding gold nanoparticles. The reason is due to possible coupling between the plasmonic resonance of gold nanoparticles and the fluorescence emission of ceria that has been achieved, along with enhanced formation of trivalent cerium ions.

Piezoresponse, Mechanical, and Electrical Characteristics of Synthetic Spider Silk Nanofibers.

This work presents electrospun nanofibers from synthetic spider silk protein, and their application as both a mechanical vibration and humidity sensor. Spider silk solution was synthesized from minor ampullate silk protein (MaSp) and then electrospun into nanofibers with a mean diameter of less than 100 nm. Then, mechanical vibrations were detected through piezoelectric characteristics analysis using a piezo force microscope and a dynamic mechanical analyzer with a voltage probe.

Solution of dispersion relations of multilayer optical fibers: a comprehensive study.

The exact solution of the modal dispersion relation of multilayer optical fibers is very critical and complicated, especially in the case of complex refractive indices of some layers added to the fiber. In this paper, a different methodology is proposed to solve the complex dispersion relations for cladding modes, based on the well-defined proper expressions of electromagnetic fields in the different layers of optical fibers. An optical fiber, coated by a dielectric nonlinear layer, is analyzed using the exact four-layer model, and the results obtained are compared with those analyzed in the literature based on the approximate three-layer model, where the effect of the coating layer is neglected when solving the dispersion relation.

Amendment performance of an apodized tilted fiber Bragg grating for a quasi-distributed-based sensor.

In this work, the characteristics of reflectivity spectra produced inside a reflective-tilted fiber Bragg grating (R-TFBG) are investigated, seeking a remarkable performance that could be able to upgrade the sensitivity range for temperature-strain sensors of quasi-distribution type. We introduce an optimized performance through a comparative investigation among different evaluation parameters, such as core radius, tilt angle, and the elite selection of apodization profiles, in addition to the traditional parameters, such as grating length, L, and index modulation amplitude, Δn. Regarding the tilt angle, its increase affects the full width at half-maximum (FWHM) affirmatively, while having a negative impact on the maximum reflectivity.

Fabrication and characterization of periodically patterned silica fiber structures for enhanced second-order nonlinearity: publisher's note.

This publisher's note amends the author list of [Opt. Express23, 8113 (2015)].

Second harmonic generation in thin optical fibers via cladding modes.

Since silica goes under the category of amorphous materials, it is difficult to investigate important processes such as second harmonic generation (SHG) in silica-based fibers. In this paper, we proposed a method for SHG relaying on cladding modes as pump modes. Cladding modes are introduced in optical fibers through tilted long period grating (T-LPG), where power of core mode is transferred into cladding modes.

Sensitivity improvement of reflective tilted FBGs.

Tilted fiber Bragg gratings are used as energy couplers in which the core mode and cladding modes can be coupled together. Cladding modes have extensive importance in sensing applications due to their sensitive characteristics to the surrounding refractive index. The cladding modes are investigated theoretically by studying a three-layer model of optical fibers, whereas the core mode is investigated by studying a two-layer model of optical fibers.

Nano-Enriched and Autonomous Sensing Framework for Dissolved Oxygen.

This paper investigates a nano-enhanced wireless sensing framework for dissolved oxygen (DO). The system integrates a nanosensor that employs cerium oxide (ceria) nanoparticles to monitor the concentration of DO in aqueous media via optical fluorescence quenching. We propose a comprehensive sensing framework with the nanosensor equipped with a digital interface where the sensor output is digitized and dispatched wirelessly to a trustworthy data collection and analysis framework for consolidation and information extraction.

Fabrication and characterization of periodically patterned silica fiber structures for enhanced second-order nonlinearity.

We develop and characterize a UV ablation technique that can be used to pattern soft materials such as polymers and nonlinear molecules self-assembled over silica microstructures. Using this method, we fabricate a spatially periodic coating of nonlinear film over a thin silica fiber taper for second harmonic generation (SHG). Experimentally, we find that the second harmonic signal produced by the taper with periodic nonlinear coating is 15 times stronger than the same taper with uniform nonlinear coating, which suggests that quasi-phase-matching is at least partially achieved in the patterned nonlinear silica taper.

Impact of lithography on the fluorescence dynamics of self-assembled fluorophores.

Micro- and nano-patterned fluorescent materials are important for many photonic devices and applications. In this paper, we investigate the impact of three common lithographical techniques, deposition and removal of sacrificial masks, ultraviolet ablation, and focused ion beam milling, on self-assembled fluorophores. We find that different patterning techniques can dramatically change the fluorescence lifetime of the fluorophores and that the degree of modification depends on the patterning techniques.

High quality factor silica microspheres functionalized with self-assembled nanomaterials.

With extremely low material absorption and exceptional surface smoothness, silica-based optical resonators can achieve extremely high cavity quality (Q) factors. However, the intrinsic material limitations of silica (e.g.

Irreversible adsorption of gold nanospheres on fiber optical tapers and microspheres.

We study the adsorption of gold nanospheres onto cylindrical and spherical glass surfaces from quiescent particle suspensions. The surfaces consist of tapers and microspheres fabricated from optical fibers and were coated with a polycation, enabling irreversible nanosphere adsorption. Our results fit well with theory, which predicts that particle adsorption rates depend strongly on surface geometry and can exceed the planar surface deposition rate by over two orders of magnitude when particle diffusion length is large compared to surface curvature.