We report a new pulsed chemical vapor deposition (PCVD) process to deposit nickel (Ni) and nickel carbide (Ni3C x ) thin films, using bis(1,4-di-tert-butyl-1,3-diazabutadienyl)nickel(II) precursor and either H2 gas or H2 plasma as the coreactant, at a temperature from 140 to 250 °C. All the PCVD films are fairly pure with low levels of N and O impurities. The films deposited with H2 gas at ≤200 °C are faced centered cubic-phase Ni metal films with low C content; but at ≥220 °C, another phase of rhombohedral Ni3C is formed and the C content increases. However, when H2 plasma is used, the films are always in rhombohedral Ni3C phase for the entire temperature range.

The flow of particles through confined volumes has appeared under different contexts in nature and technology. Some examples include the flow of red blood cells or drug delivery vehicles through capillaries, or surfactant-based particles in nano- or microfluidic cells. The molecular composition of the particles along with external conditions and the characteristics of the confined volume impact the response of the particle to flow. This review focuses on the problem of phospholipid vesicles constrained to flowing in channels. The review examines how experimental and computational approaches have been harnessed to study the response of these particles to the flow.

A novel, alloy-agnostic, nanofunctionalization process has been utilized to produce metal matrix composites (MMCs) via additive manufacturing, providing new geometric freedom for MMC design. MMCs were produced with the addition of tungsten carbide nanoparticles to commercially available AlSi10Mg alloy powder. Tungsten carbide was chosen due to the potential for coherent crystallographic phases that were identified utilizing a lattice-matching approach to promote wetting and increase dislocation interactions. Structures were produced with evenly distributed strengthening phases leading to tensile strengths >385 MPa and a 50% decrease in wear rate over the commercially available AlSi10Mg alloy at only 1 vol% loading of tungsten carbide.

Ultra-thin optical structures, known as metasurfaces, have shown promising light controlling capability at the nanoscale. In this paper, we study their particular case, a periodic array of high-refractive-index nanoparticles with electric and magnetic resonances. The main result of the work is a numerical demonstration that the lattice effect in the periodic arrangement of nanoparticles changes the resonance position even if the resonances are above the diffraction wavelength (Rayleigh anomaly). We show that the disk resonance changes can be achieved not only by varying periods of the array under normal light incidence but also by changing the incident angle.

We have investigated interfacial thermal resistance (ITR) between single-layer graphene and Cu substrate by using both experimental and numerical methods. For experiments, the micropipette sensing technique was utilized to measure the thermal conductivity of suspended graphene and temperature profile of supported graphene on Cu film subjected to heating with a point source continuous wave laser. The thermal conductivity of suspended single-layer graphene was measured to be 3492 ± 453 W/m°C from measurements of temperature profile on the suspended graphene. This intrinsic graphene thermal conductivity and the finite element method integrated with a multi-parameter fitting technique were used to estimate ITR between graphene and Cu film. In the multi-parameter fitting technique, the simulated temperature profile is compared with experimentally measured temperature profile on the supported graphene surface and the best-fitted parameters including thermal interface resistance was obtained. The estimated interface thermal resistance between single graphene and Cu substrate is 2.3 × 10−7 m2 K/W and the difference between experiment and simulation result during multi-parameter fitting is 6.9%.

Nanotechnology has been considered as a promising strategy for diagnosis and treatment of various diseases. However, the stability and circulation times of the conventional nano-carriers, such as liposomes and micelles, are still unsatisfied. Perfluorocarbons (PFCs) are biologic inert synthetic materials, which are highly hydrophobic and have a tendency to self-aggregation. Additionally, PFCs themselves can act as 19F magnetic resonance imaging agents and oxygen carriers. Thus, the construction of the fluorinated carriers will not only improve the stability of the carriers, but also endow them with additional functions. Here we review the recent advances of PFC-based nanosystems for diagnosis and treatment of diseases.

Biomineralization is a natural concept to alter the mechanical properties of soft matter. Mimicking this concept became desirable with a resulting great variety of approaches toward realizing functional hybrid materials. Vapor-phase infiltration (VPI), a solvent-free approach, is complementary to solution-based processes and often provides hybrid materials with a different chemical nature. This article overviews the evolution of VPI from a curiosity-driven alternative way to mimic biomineralization toward its application in functional materials design. Even though still in infancy, the rapidly growing interest shows promise for upcoming innovative applications of VPI in a great variety of research and development directions.

The formation of silver nanostructures (AgNSs) with different crystals morphology in porous SiO2/p-Si templates by the electroless wet-chemical method at temperatures between 20 and 50 °C and surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) was investigated. It was found that optimized dendritic silver architectures contain a significant number of localized “hot spots.” We show that well-reproducible AgNSs provide a significantly enhanced Raman signal of Nile blue dye molecules up to 10−6 M by using different excitation wavelengths (473, 532, and 633 nm). Based on our observations, the well-organized AgNSs can act as efficient surfaces for SERS as well as (bio)-sensor applications.

While SrTiO3 exhibits promising electronic transport properties, its high thermal conductivity (κ) is detrimental for its use as a thermoelectric material. Here, we investigate the influence of oxygen non-stoichiometry on κ in bulk SrTiO3 ceramics. A significant reduction in κ was achieved in oxygen deficient SrTiO3−δ, owing to the presence of oxygen vacancies that act as phonon scattering centers. Upon oxidation of SrTiO3−δ, the κ of pristine SrTiO3 was recovered, suggesting that oxygen vacancies were indeed responsible for the reduction in κ. Raman spectroscopy was used as an independent tool to confirm the reduction of oxygen vacancies in SrTiO3−δ upon oxidation.

The use of zinc nitride (Zn3N2) films as a transparent electrode in various electronic devices has attracted much attention owing to its high-carrier mobility. In this study, we investigate the influence of the sputtering process on structural, optical, and electrical properties of a Zn3N2 film deposited by reactive magnetron sputtering. The reactivity of nitrogen species can be improved by changing the type of sputtering gas. Compared with Ar or Ne sputtering gas, polycrystalline Zn3N2 films deposited using He sputtering gas have a larger grain size. The optical band gap of the Zn3N2 films varied from ~1.2 to 1.5 eV depending on the N2 flow ratio and type of sputtering gas. The maximum mobility was 91.1 cm2/Vs when the Zn3N2 film was deposited using Ar sputtering gas with an N2 flow ratio of 40%. The carrier density of Zn3N2 films deposited using Ar sputtering gas was notably higher than those deposited using Ne or He sputtering gas, and more oxygen atoms are considered to substitute into nitrogen sites, where oxygen is considered to be from the residual water vapor in the sputtering chamber.

Magnetic field has been used to trigger biofilm formation. Iron oxide nanoparticles were attached to bacterial cells and cells were aggregated by application of magnetic field. Artificial cellular crowding triggered quorum sensing and led to the formation of biofilm at the sub-threshold population. Aggregation process was monitored by studying temporal dynamics of capacitance and conductance profiles. Capacitive profile exhibited a plateau upon introduction of magnetic field which was retained even after field was removed. This hysteresis property signified biofilm initiation in response to artificial crowding. This work demonstrates how synthetic biology is enabled by including nanoparticles in the interactome.

The ability to manipulate matter on the nanometer length scale is an important scientific goal, and the progress in the field of colloidal nanocrystal (NC) growth in the past decades has opened avenue for controlled synthesis of nanoscale materials with many unique physical properties that could enhance existing technologies or give rise to entirely new technologic applications. At the center of the progress is ever-increasing understanding on molecular interactions within colloidal synthesis, in which nucleation and growth each plays a critical role in the control of size, shape, morphology, and structure of NCs. Semiconductor NCs in quantum confinement regime, referred to as quantum dots (QDs), highlight the importance of such control over geometric parameters, since QDs exhibit size- and shape-dependent optical properties. In this paper, we demonstrate important aspects that govern QDs growth in the context of (i) precursor conversion chemistry, and (ii) intermediate species including molecular complex and clusters. Advances in understanding the growth chemistry of QDs have proved the significance of how precursors decompose and produce intermediate species. We review recent progress in regards to the synthetic chemistry of colloidal QDs and discuss our perspective on challenges and promises in the controlled large-scale synthesis of QDs.

Diatoms are unicellular, eukaryotic microalgae inhabiting nearly all aquatic habitats. They are famous for their micro- and nanopatterned silica-based cell walls, which are envisioned for various technologic purposes. Within this review article, we summarize recent in vivo modifications of diatom biosilica with respect to the following questions: (i) Which metals are taken up by diatoms and eventually processed into nanoparticles (NPs)? (ii) Are these NPs toxic for the diatoms and––if so––what factors influence toxicity? (iii) What is the mechanism underlying NP synthesis and subsequent metabolism? (iv) How can the obtained materials be useful for materials science?

Physical understanding of crack propagation is a fundamental issue in the industry. In the literature, crack velocities of polymer materials are strongly dependent on their visco-elastic properties and energy release rates. Recently, numerical and theoretical studies have proposed that structural sizes in polymers also influence on crack propagation. Here, using polymer sheets with similar visco-elastic properties but with different pore sizes, we vary explicitly the representative structural size and examine the effect of the size on crack propagation. Findings in this work help us to understand crack propagation in polymer materials and bio-inspired materials which have porous structures.

Detection of chlorpyrifos (CPF) using a surface plasmon resonance (SPR)-enhanced photoelectrochemical sensing system is demonstrated in this study. The presence of CPF was detected based on an increase in the short-circuit photocurrent when a sample is injected into the electrolyte at different concentrations. The short-circuit photocurrent signal was enhanced by both localized SPR of the gold nanoparticles and by the effects of grating-coupled propagating SPR. Using the hybrid SPR-enhancement system, CPF detection was achieved at concentrations as low as 7.5 nM. The proposed technique of leveraging a multifunctional photovoltaic effect can be used for a variety of sensing applications.

This article reviews the semiconductor and metal-based nanohybrid-sensitized photoelectrochemical (PEC) cells for hydrogen generation from water. The nanoscale hybridization of sensitizers in the photoanode can enhance light harvesting, interfacial charge transfer, charge separation, and induce a catalytic effect in dependence on the kind of the components and interfacial junction state. Subsequent to the introduction, second and third sections present the basic structure and design of the nanohybrid-sensitized PEC cell. Fourth section deals with the effect of the interfacial bond between quantum dots and TiO2 on the electron injection process. Fifth section mainly describes the formation of heteroepitaxial junction between the components of nanohybrids. In the sixth section, the state-of-the-art nanohybrid-sensitized PEC cells are treated with a particular emphasis placed on the interface state.

Forty-eight different Ag–Al–Zr ternary alloys were prepared in various compositions to determine the metallic glass region in the Ag–Al–Zr ternary system. Experimental results indicated that the metallic glass region in the Ag–Al–Zr ternary system is Ag20–30Al10–30Zr50–60. The Ag20Al30Zr50 and Ag30Al20Zr50 alloys are supposed to have the best glass-forming ability in the Ag–Al–Zr ternary system. The phase equilibria of the Ag–Al–Zr ternary system at 773 K (500 °C) were investigated and compared with the metallic glass region results in the Ag–Al–Zr ternary system. Ternary isothermal sections of the Ag–Al–Zr system at 773 K (500 °C) were established and two ternary intermetallic phases were observed in this isothermal section.

Effective degradation of organic pollutants in wastewater is of great importance to the environment and human society. TiO2-based electrospun nanofibrous materials combining the properties of the large specific surface area, high aspect ratio, tunable compositions and structures, as well as easy to recycle, show great promise for the efficient removal of organic pollutants. In this Prospective paper, the recent progress in the degradation of organic water contaminants over visible-light-responsive TiO2-based nanofibrous materials is summarized, with emphasis on the strategies for improving the visible-light photocatalytic activity of TiO2-based nanofibrous materials. Finally, the current challenges and future outlook in this field are discussed.

In this paper, we reviewed recent research in the field of capillary suspensions and highlight a variety of applications in the field of smart materials. Capillary suspensions are liquid–liquid–solid ternary systems where only one liquid is present in a few percent and induces a strong, capillary-induced particle network. These suspensions have a large potential for exploitation, particularly in the production of porous materials since the paste itself and the properties of the final material can be adapted. We also discussed the rheological properties of the suspension and network structure to highlight the various ways these systems can be tuned.