Temporal Evolution of Microscopic Structure and Functionality during Crystallization of Amorphous Indium-Based Oxide Films.

Understanding the crystallization mechanism of amorphous metal-oxide thin films remains of importance to avoid the deterioration of multifunctional flexible electronics. We derived the crystallization mechanism of indium-based functional amorphous oxide films by using in situ X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) measurements. Crystallization begins with surface nucleation, especially at low annealing temperatures, and proceeds simultaneous nucleation and growth in the bulk.

A visible-light active TiO photocatalyst multilayered with WO.

Sputter-deposited TiO films with high visible-light photocatalytic activity were successfully realized by a hybrid TiO/Pt/WO film structure with Pt nanoparticles uniformly distributed at the interface of the TiO and WO films. The TiO/Pt/WO hybrid films enable the complete decomposition of CHCHO under visible-light irradiation. The water contact angle of the TiO/Pt/WO hybrid films reaches below 5° under visible-light irradiation.

On the Crystal Structural Control of Sputtered TiO2 Thin Films.

In this study, we focused on the origin on the selective deposition of rutile and anatase TiO2 thin films during the sputtering process. The observation on microstructural evolution of the TiO2 films by transmission electron microscopy revealed the coexistence of rutile and anatase TiO2 phases in the initial stage under the preferential growth conditions for the anatase TiO2; the observations further revealed that the anatase phase gradually dominated the crystal structure with increasing film thickness. These results suggest that the bombardment during the sputtering deposition did not obviously affect the TiO2 crystal structure, and this was also confirmed by off-axis magnetron sputtering experiments.

Visible-light active photocatalytic WO3 films loaded with Pt nanoparticles deposited by sputtering.

Visible-Light active photocatalytic tungsten trioxide (WO3) films were deposited at a substrate temperature of 800 degrees C by dc reactive magnetron sputtering using a W metal target. In addition, Platinum (Pt) was deposited on the WO3 film surfaces at room temperature, also by sputtering. In the early stages of Pt growth, formation of Pt nanoparticles could be expected because of the island structure observed in Volmer-Weber-type growth mode.

Novel emission properties of melem caused by the heavy metal effect of lanthanides(III) in a LB film.

A novel emissive molecular system is constructed by the intercalation of the fluorophore melem (triamino-tri-s-triazine) within a Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) film of stearic acid with the periodic arrangement of lanthanides (Ln(III)), mainly Pr(III) with supporting of Eu(III). From emission spectra, decay curves, quantum yields and XPS measurements, it is clarified that the external heavy metal effect of Pr(III) on melem is much stronger in the film than in the bulk solid state, resulting in producing an unusual triplet state of melem. The triplet state of melem in the LB film donates the excitation energy to Pr(III) in the LB film, which is completely different from the energy transfer pathway of Pr-melem complex in the solid state through the singlet state of melem.

Molecular distortion effect on ff-emission in a Pr(III) complex with 4,7-diphenyl-1,10-phenanthroline.

The electronic and structural behaviour of a Pr(III) complex with 4,7-diphenyl-1,10-phenanthroline, [Pr(bathophen)(2)(NO(3))(3)], is investigated with respect to the effect of configuration changes on the Pr(III) centre. [Pr(bathophen)(2)(NO(3))(3)] luminesces from the excited states of the ligand and the metal ion. The fluorescence, ff-emission ((1)D(2)-->(3)H(4)), and phosphorescence bands appear at 394, 608.