Decoding disorder signatures of AuCland vacancies in MoSfilms: from synthetic to experimental inversion.

This study investigates the scope of application of a recently designed inversion methodology that is capable of obtaining structural information about disordered systems through the analysis of their conductivity response signals. Here we demonstrate that inversion tools of this type are capable of sensing the presence of disorderly distributed defects and impurities even in the case where the scattering properties of the device are only weakly affected. This is done by inverting the DC conductivity response of monolayered MoSfilms containing a minute amount of AuClcoordinated complexes.

Raman spectroscopy of a few layers of bismuth telluride nanoplatelets.

We can shape the electronic and phonon properties of BiTe crystals the variation of the number of layers. Here, we report a Raman study with the aid of first-principles calculations on few-layered BiTe systems ranging from 5 to 24 nm layer thickness using 1.92, 2.

Enhanced linear dichroism of flattened-edge black phosphorus nanoribbons.

Black phosphorus is a material with an intrinsic anisotropy in electronic and optical properties due to its puckered honeycomb lattice. Optical absorption is different for incident light with linear polarization in the armchair and zigzag directions (linear dichroism). These directions are also used in the cuts of materials to create black phosphorus nanoribbons.

Understanding the unorthodox stabilization of liquid phase exfoliated molybdenum disulfide (MoS) in water medium.

Molybdenum disulfide is a highly esteemed 2D material with interesting applications in nanoelectronics, composites, biotechnology and beyond. Its production through liquid-phase exfoliation in HO is low-cost and eco-friendly. Herein, we present a detailed experimental and theoretical investigation seeking to explain the peculiar stability of MoS in HO medium.

Ultrasound exfoliation of graphite in biphasic liquid systems containing ionic liquids: A study on the conditions for obtaining large few-layers graphene.

Herein we describe a successful protocol for graphite exfoliation using a biphasic liquid system (water/dichloromethane, DCM) containing ionic liquids (ILs; 1,3-dibenzylimidazolium benzoate- and 1-naphthoate). The use of (surface active) IL and sonication led to stable DCM/water (O/W) emulsion, which enhanced graphene formation, suppressed its re-aggregation and decreased shear/cavitation damage. The O/W emulsion stabilization by the ILs was studied by dynamic light scattering (DLS), whereas their interaction with the graphene sheets were described by Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations.

Ultrasmall (<2 nm) Au@Pt Nanostructures: Tuning the Surface Electronic States for Electrocatalysis.

The ability to tune the electronic properties of nanomaterials has played a major role in the development of sustainable energy technologies. Metallic nanocatalysts are at the forefront of these advances. Their unique properties become even more interesting when we can control the distribution of the electronic states in the nanostructure.

Ionic Liquid-Silica Precursors via Solvent-Free Sol-Gel Process and Their Application in Epoxy-Amine Network: A Theoretical/Experimental Study.

This work describes the solvent-free sol-gel synthesis of epoxy-functionalized silica-based precursors in the presence of 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium-based ionic liquids (ILs) containing different anions: chloride (Cl) and methanesulfonate (MeSO). The IL-driven sol-gel mechanisms were investigated in detail using experimental characterizations (Si NMR and ATR FTIR spectroscopy) and a theoretical computational method based on density functional theory (DFT). We observed complex IL influence on both hydrolysis and condensation steps, involving especially H-bonding and Coulomb coupling stabilization of the process intermediates.

Electron Doping of Ultrathin Black Phosphorus with Cu Adatoms.

Few-layer black phosphorus is a monatomic two-dimensional crystal with a direct band gap that has high carrier mobility for both holes and electrons. Similarly to other layered atomic crystals, like graphene or layered transition metal dichalcogenides, the transport behavior of few-layer black phosphorus is sensitive to surface impurities, adsorbates, and adatoms. Here we study the effect of Cu adatoms onto few-layer black phosphorus by characterizing few-layer black phosphorus field effect devices and by performing first-principles calculations.