Pyrochlore NaYbO: A Potential Quantum Spin Liquid Candidate.

The search for quantum spin liquids (QSL) and chemical doping in such materials to explore superconductivity have continuously attracted intense interest. Here, we report the discovery of a potential QSL candidate, pyrochlore-lattice β-NaYbO. Colorless and transparent NaYbO single crystals, layered α-NaYbO (∼250 μm on edge) and octahedral β-NaYbO (∼50 μm on edge), were grown for the first time.

High-Performance Oxide Crystal BaTeWO X-ray Detector with High Stability, Low Detection Limit, and Ultralow Dark Current Drift.

X-ray detection materials and devices have received widespread attention due to their irreplaceable role in the medical, industrial, and military fields. In this paper, BaTeWO (BTW) crystal containing lone pairs of electrons with large atomic numbers and high density is reported as a new type of oxide crystal X-ray detection material. The anisotropic X-ray detection performance of the BTW single crystal (SC) is systematically studied.

Crystal Structural Editing: Novel Biaxial MgTeO Crystal as Zero-Order Waveplates.

Waveplates are important optical components to control the polarization of light. Currently, they are often fabricated from uniaxial crystals, and there is no report about waveplates based on the biaxial crystals. In this work, a novel biaxial crystal MgTeO with a structure constructed by 0D TeO groups is designed and grown as waveplate materials for the first time.

High Sensitivity X-Ray Detectors with Low Degradation Based on Deuterated Halide Perovskite Single Crystals.

Methylammonium lead single crystal (MAPbI SC) possesses superior optoelectronic properties and low manufacturing cost, making it an ideal candidate for X-ray detection. However, the ionic migration of the perovskites usually leads to instability, dark current drift, and hysteresis of the detector, limiting their applications in well-established technologies. Here, a series of X-ray detectors of MAPbI SCs are reported with different degrees of deuteration (DMAPbI, x = 0, 0.

In-Situ Growth of One-Dimensional Blocking Layer to Mitigate Deficient Surface of Single-Crystal Perovskites.

Organic-inorganic halide perovskite (OIHP) single crystals are promising for optoelectronic application, but their high surface trap density and associated ion migration hinders device performance and stability. Herein, a one-dimensional (1D) perovskites are designed and proposed as blocking layer at the crystal/electrode interface to mitigate the surface issues. As a model system, the interface ion migration in CsFAPbI (FA=formamidinium) single-crystal perovskite solar cells (PSCs) is obviously suppressed, leading to increase of T lifetime from 260 to 1000 hours, five times better than previously reported results.

Large Piezoelectricity Induced by Internal Stress in (K,Na)NbO Single Crystals.

Achieving a high piezoelectric response and excellent stability is essential for practical applications of ferroelectric materials. Herein, large piezoelectricity of = 167 pC/N and = 0.52 is found in a KNaNbO lead-free ferroelectric single crystal without poling, which is comparable to the artificially poled KNN crystals.

High-Throughput Growth of Armored Perovskite Single Crystal Fibers for Pixelated Arrays.

The poor machinability of halide perovskite crystals severely hampered their practical applications. Here a high-throughput growth method is reported for armored perovskite single-crystal fibers (SCFs). The mold-embedded melt growth (MEG) method provides each SCF with a capillary quartz shell, thus guaranteeing their integrality when cutting and polishing.

Efficient Screening of Pharmaceutical Cocrystals by Microspacing In-Air Sublimation.

Cocrystal screening and single-crystal growth remain the primary obstacles in the development of pharmaceutical cocrystals. Here, we present a new approach for cocrystal screening, microspacing in-air sublimation (MAS), to obtain new cocrystals and grow high-quality single crystals of cocrystals within tens of minutes. The method possesses the advantages of strong designable ability of devices, user-friendly control, and compatibility with materials, especially for the thermolabile molecules.

High Sensitivity and Ultra-Broad-Range NH Sensor Arrays by Precise Control of Step Defects on The Surface of Cl-Ndi Single Crystals.

Vapor sensors with both high sensitivity and broad detection range are technically challenging yet highly desirable for widespread chemical sensing applications in diverse environments. Generally, an increased surface-to-volume ratio can effectively enhance the sensitivity to low concentrations, but often with the trade-off of a constrained sensing range. Here, an approach is demonstrated for NH sensor arrays with an unprecedentedly broad sensing range by introducing controllable steps on the surface of an n-type single crystal.

Dimensional and Optoelectronic Tuning of Lead-free Perovskite Cs Bi I Br Single Crystals for Enhanced Hard X-ray Detection.

Inorganic Bi-based perovskites have shown great potential in X-ray detection for their large absorption to X-rays, diverse low-dimensional structures, and eco-friendliness without toxic metals. However, they suffer from poor carrier transport properties compared to Pb-based perovskites. Here, we propose a mixed-halogen strategy to tune the structural dimensions and optoelectronic properties of Cs Bi I Br (0≤n≤9).

High-Quality Acousto-Optic Modulators with High Diffraction Efficiency, Polarization Extinction Ratio, and Small Insertion Loss Based on a Novel BaO-TeO -WO Glass.

The Q-switched material and device have attracted extensive attention due to their irreplaceable role in pulsed lasers. In this paper, BaO-TeO -WO glass (BTW glass) with sound velocity and sound attenuation coefficient of 3422 m s and 0.653 dB cm is successfully selected and fabricated as acousto-optic material.

Bright photoactivatable probes based on triphenylethylene for Cu detection in tap water and tea samples.

Photoactivatable probes can switch fluorescence on from a weak or nonemission state to improve the sensitivity of the sensing system. In this work, we successfully constructed three highly emissive photoactivatable probes, 2-DP, 1-2-DP and 2-2-DP, for Cu detection. Under UV irradiation, the photoluminescence quantum yields of 2-DP, 1-2-DP and 2-2-DP display approximately 52.

Different Dissolution Molecular Pathways of Azilsartan Crystals with Different Forms Revealed by Atomic Force Microscopy.

Here, using atomic force microscopy (AFM), the dissolution behaviors and dissolution molecular pathways of two azilsartan crystals, the isopropanol solvate (AZ-IPA), and form I (AZ-I), in pure water and 6-30% poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) aqueous solutions are revealed. The dissolution behaviors of step retreat and etch pit formation are observed on the (100) faces of the two crystals, with a single step corresponding to one molecular monolayer in crystal structures. Etching rates of pits increase with PEG concentration.

Crystal growth and negative thermal expansion properties of a YMoO single crystal.

A bulk-size single crystal of YMoO with 20 × 11 × 8 mm was successfully grown by the top-seed solution growth (TSSG) method. The full-width at half maximum of (100) and (010) crystal faces is 37 and 27 arcsec, respectively. The thermal conductivity coefficients , , , and are determined to be 1.

The effect of triethylamine on dye-sensitized upconversion luminescence and its application in nanoprobes and photostability.

Triethylamine (TEA) is an effective medium for inhibiting dye aggregation and improving the luminescence of dye-sensitized lanthanide-doped upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs). However, excessive TEA will cause quenching of upconversion luminescence. In this paper, the possible mechanism of TEA affecting upconversion luminescence is discussed.

2D SiP/h-BN for a Gate-Controlled Phototransistor with Ultrahigh Sensitivity.

Two-dimensional (2D) materials are extremely attractive for the construction of highly sensitive photodetectors due to their unique electronic and optical properties. However, developing 2D photodetectors with ultrahigh sensitivity for extremely low-light-level detection is still a challenge owing to the limitation of high dark current and low detectivity. Herein, a gate-controlled phototransistor based on 2D SiP/hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) was rationally designed and demonstrated ultrahigh sensitivity for the first time.

High-Performance and Self-Powered X-Ray Detectors Made of Smooth Perovskite Microcrystalline Films with 100 μm Grains.

Perovskite single crystals and polycrystalline films have complementary merits and deficiencies in X-ray detection and imaging. Herein, we report preparation of dense and smooth perovskite microcrystalline films with both merits of single crystals and polycrystalline films through polycrystal-induced growth and hot-pressing treatment (HPT). Utilizing polycrystalline films as seeds, multi-inch-sized microcrystalline films can be in situ grown on diverse substrates with maximum grain size reaching 100 μm, which endows the microcrystalline films with comparable carrier mobility-lifetime (μτ) product as single crystals.

Morphology dependent light-induced photoluminescence enhancement of CsPbBr microcrystals.

Herein, we report a facile method for growing CsPbBr cube and prism microcrystals by microspacing in-air sublimation. Morphology-dependent photoluminescence behavior investigation reveals that the CsPbBr cubes show higher photoluminescence quantum yield and longer PL lifetime than the prisms. In contrast, CsPbBr prisms exhibit more considerable light-induced photoluminescence enhancement.

Homogeneously Oriented Organic Single-Crystalline Patterns Grown by Microspacing In-Air Sublimation.

Fabrication of single-crystalline organic semiconductor patterns is of key importance to enable practical applications. However due to the poor controllability on nucleation locations and the intrinsic anisotropic nature of single-crystals, growth of single-crystal patterns with homogeneous orientation is a big challenge especially by the vapor method. Herein a vapor growth protocol to achieve patterned organic semiconductor single-crystals with high crystallinity and uniform crystallographic orientation is presented.

Polymer-Assisted Compressed Flux Growth: A Universal and High-Yield Method for Dimension-Controlled Single Crystals.

Single crystals possess the most perfect and stable morphology and represent the intrinsic and upper limits of performance when integrated into various application scenarios. However, for a large portion of the newly emerging low-dimensional and molecular materials, the mass production of crystals with a desirable shape is still challenging. Here, a universal and high-yield method to grow functional single crystals with controlled dimensions is provided that can be directly integrated into a device.

Ammonia Electrosynthesis with a Stable Metal-Free 2D Silicon Phosphide Catalyst.

Metal-free 2D phosphorus-based materials are emerging catalysts for ammonia (NH ) production through a sustainable electrochemical nitrogen reduction reaction route under ambient conditions. However, their efficiency and stability remain challenging due to the surface oxidization. Herein, a stable phosphorus-based electrocatalyst, silicon phosphide (SiP), is explored.

Passively Q-switched single crystal fiber pulsed laser at 1.05 µm with TCT as the saturable absorber.

In this paper, TiCT MXene prepared by LiF/HCl etching method was spin-coated on glass substrate and sapphire substrate as the saturable absorber (SA), and the MXene SA is combined with Yb: LuAG single crystal fiber (SCF) for the first time to achieve a 1.05 µm passively Q-switched pulsed laser output with the average power, pulse width, and repetition frequency of 1.989 W, 149.

A processable, scalable, and stable full-color ultralong afterglow system based on heteroatom-free hydrocarbon doped polymers.

Although room-temperature phosphorescence (RTP) organic materials are a widely-studied topic especially popular in recent decades, long-lived RTP able to fulfil broad time-resolved application requirements reliably, are still rare. Polymeric materials doped with phosphorescent chromophores generally feature high productivity and diverse applications, compared with their crystalline counterparts. This study proves that pure polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) may even outperform chromophores containing hetero- or heavy-atoms.