Control of the optical properties of a nanoparticle (NP) through its structural changes underlies optical data processing, dynamic coloring, and smart sensing at the nanometer scale. Here, we report on the concept of controlling the light scattering by a NP through mixing of weakly miscible chemical elements (Fe and Au), supporting a thermal-induced phase transformation. The transformation corresponds to the transition from a homogeneous metastable solid solution phase of the (Fe,Au) NP towards an equilibrium biphasic Janus-type NP.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGreen and digital transitions will induce tremendous demand for metals and semiconductors. This raises concerns about the availability of materials in the rather near future. Addressing this challenge requires an unprecedented effort to discover new materials that are more sustainable and also to expand their functionalities beyond conventional material limits.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMetal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have been recently explored as crystalline solids for conversion into amorphous phases demonstrating non-specific mechanical, catalytic, and optical properties. The real-time control of such structural transformations and their outcomes still remain a challenge. Here, we use high-resolution transmission electron microscopy with 0.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTime-resolved optical emission spectroscopy of nanosecond-pulsed discharges ignited in liquid nitrogen between two bismuth electrodes is used to determine the main discharge parameters (electron temperature, electron density and optical thickness). Nineteen lines belonging to the Bi I system and seven to the Bi II system could be recorded by directly plunging the optical fibre into the liquid in close vicinity to the discharge. The lack of data for the Stark parameters to evaluate the broadening of the Bi I lines was solved by taking advantage of the time-resolved information supported by each line to determine them.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCore-shell particles made of calcium carbonate and coated with biocompatible polymers using the Layer-by-Layer technique can be considered as a unique drug-delivery platform that enables us to load different therapeutic compounds, exhibits a high biocompatibility, and can integrate several stimuli-responsive mechanisms for drug release. However, before implementation for diagnostic or therapeutic purposes, such core-shell particles require a comprehensive evaluation in terms of physicochemical and pharmacokinetic properties. Positron emission tomography (PET) is an advanced imaging technique for the evaluation of biodistribution of drug carriers; nevertheless, an incorporation of positron emitters in these carriers is needed.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe demonstrate herein an all-optical switch based on stimuli-responsive and photochromic-free metal-organic framework (HKUST-1). Ultrafast near-infrared laser pulses stimulate a reversible 0.4 eV blue shift of the absorption band with up to 200 s rate due to dehydration and concomitant shrinking of the structure-forming [Cu C O ] cages of HKUST-1.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSynthetic organic and inorganic carriers often have limitations associated with problematic targeting ability or non-optimized pharmacokinetics, and, therefore, they have restricted therapeutic potential. Natural drug carriers (e.g.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFOwing to the synergistic combination of a hybrid organic-inorganic nature and a chemically active porous structure, metal-organic frameworks have emerged as a new class of crystalline materials. The current trend in the chemical industry is to utilize such crystals as flexible hosting elements for applications as diverse as gas and energy storage, filtration, catalysis, and sensing. From the physical point of view, metal-organic frameworks are considered molecular crystals with hierarchical structures providing the structure-related physical properties crucial for future applications of energy transfer, data processing and storage, high-energy physics, and light manipulation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCorrection for 'Laser printing of optically resonant hollow crystalline carbon nanostructures from 1D and 2D metal-organic frameworks' by Leila R. Mingabudinova et al., Nanoscale, 2019, 11, 10155-10159.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFUsing a hybrid approach involving a slow diffusion method to synthesize 1D and 2D MOFs followed by their treatment with femtosecond infrared laser radiation, we generated 100-600 nm well-defined hollow spheres and hemispheres of graphite. This ultra-fast technique extends the library of shapes of crystalline MOF derivatives appropriate for all-dielectric nanophotonics.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHere, we study the stress-induced self-organization of Mg and Ni cations in the crystal structure of multiwalled (Mg ,Ni ) Si O (OH) phyllosilicate nanoscrolls. The phyllosilicate layer strives to compensate size and surface energy difference between the metal oxide and silica sheets by curling. But as soon as the layer grows, the scrolling mechanism becomes a spent force.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFControlling microdischarges in plasma electrolytic oxidation is of great importance in order to optimize coating quality. The present study highlights the relationship between the polarity at which breakdown occurs and the electrolyte pH as compared with the isoelectric point (IEP). It is found that working at a pH higher than the IEP of the grown oxide prevents the buildup of detrimental cathodic discharges.
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