Near-infrared (NIR) surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) study of novel functional phenothiazines for potential use in dye sensitized solar cells (DSSC).

Phenothiazines are of potential use as dye sensitizers in Grätzel-type dye sensitized solar cells (DSSC). Plasmonic nanoparticles like gold nanoparticles can enhance the power conversion efficiency of these solar cells. In this work near-infrared surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (NIR-SERS) is used to investigate the interaction between six novel phenothiazine-merocyanine dyes containing the three different functional groups rhodanine, 1,3-indanedione and cyanoacylic acid with plasmonic nanomaterials, to decide if the incorporation of plasmonic nanoparticles could enhance the efficiency of a Grätzel-type solar cell.

Heterobimetallic triple-decker complexes derived from a dianionic aromatic stannole ligand.

A neutral heterobimetallic triple-decker stannole complex was prepared by the reaction of an anionic ruthenocene bearing a stannole dianionic ligand with [Rh(cod)Cl]2 (cod = 1,5-cyclooctadiene), and the resulting Ru-Rh complex exhibits an electronic property different from those of the corresponding Ru-Ru and Rh-Rh complexes. The Ru-Rh complex can be decomposed in ionic liquids to metal nanoparticles.

Metal Nanoparticles in Ionic Liquids.

During the last years ionic liquids (ILs) were increasingly used and investigated as reaction media, hydrogen sources, catalysts, templating agents and stabilizers for the synthesis of (monometallic and bimetallic) metal nanoparticles (M-NPs). Especially ILs with 1,3-dialkyl-imidazolium cations featured prominently in the formation and stabilization of M-NPs. This chapter summarizes studies which focused on the interdependencies of the IL with the metal nanoparticle and tried to elucidate, for example, influences of the IL-cation, -anion and alkyl chain length.

Soft, Wet-Chemical Synthesis of Metastable Superparamagnetic Hexagonal Close-Packed Nickel Nanoparticles in Different Ionic Liquids.

The microwave-induced decomposition of bis{N,N'-diisopropylacetamidinate}nickel(II) [Ni{MeC(NiPr) } ] or bis(1,5-cyclooctadiene)nickel(0) [Ni(COD) ] in imidazolium-, pyridinium-, or thiophenium-based ionic liquids (ILs) with different anions (tetrafluoroborate, [BF ] , hexafluorophosphate, [PF ] , and bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide, [NTf ] ) yields small, uniform nickel nanoparticles (Ni NPs), which are stable in the absence of capping ligands (surfactants) for more than eight weeks. The soft, wet-chemical synthesis yields the metastable Ni hexagonal close-packed (hcp) and not the stable Ni face-centered cubic (fcc) phase. The size of the nickel nanoparticles increases with the molecular volume of the used anions from about 5 nm for [BF ] to ≈10 nm for [NTf ] (with 1-alkyl-3-methyl-imidazolium cations).