Synergistic crystal facet engineering and structural control of WO3 films exhibiting unprecedented photoelectrochemical performance

WO3 nanoplate arrays with (002) oriented facets grown on fluorine doped SnO2 (FTO) glass substrates are tailored by tuning the precursor solution via a facile hydrothermal method. A 2-step hydrothermal method leads to the preferential growth of WO3 film with enriched (002) facets, which exhibits extraordinary photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance with a remarkable photocurrent density of 3.7 mA cm–2 at 1.23 V vs. revisable hydrogen electrode (RHE) under AM 1.5 G illumination without the use of any cocatalyst, corresponding to ~93% of the theoretical photocurrent of WO3. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations together with experimental studies reveal that the enhanced photocatalytic activity and better photo-stability of the WO3 films are attributed to the synergistic effect of highly reactive (002) facet and nanoplate structure which facilitates the photo–induced charge carrier separation and suppresses the formation of peroxo-species. Without the use of oxygen evolution cocatalysts, the excellent PEC performance, demonstrated in this work, by simply tuning crystal facets and nanostructure of pristine WO3 films may open up new opportunities in designing high performance photoanodes for PEC water splitting.

Optimization of the distance between source and substrate for device-grade SnS films grown by the thermal evaporation technique

Tin monosulfide (SnS) films with varying distance between the source and substrate (DSS) were prepared by the thermal evaporation technique at a temperature of 300 degrees C to investigate the effect of the DSS on the physical properties. The physical properties of the as-deposited films are strongly influenced by the variation of DSS. The thickness, Sn to S at.% ratio, grain size, and root mean square (rms) roughness of the films decreased with the increase of DSS. The films grown at DSS = 10 and 15 cm exhibited nearly single-crystalline nature with low electrical resistivity. From Hall-effect measurements, it is observed that the films grown at DSS <= 15 cm have p-type conduction and the films grown at higher distances have n-type conduction due to the variation of the Sn/S ratio. The films grown at DSS = 15 cm showed higher optical band gap of 1.36 eV as compared with the films grown at other distances. The effect of the DSS on the physical properties of SnS films is discussed and reported.

Energy harvesting using ionic electro-active polymer thin films with Ag-based electrodes

In this paper we employ the phenomenon of bending deformation induced transport of cations via the polymer chains in the thickness direction of an electro-active polymer (EAP)-metal composite thin film for mechanical energy harvesting. While EAPs have been applied in the past in actuators and artificial muscles, promising applications of such materials in hydrodynamic and vibratory energy harvesting are reported in this paper. For this, functionalization of EAPs with metal electrodes is the key factor in improving the energy harvesting efficiency. Unlike Pt-based electrodes, Ag-based electrodes have been deposited on an EAP membrane made of Nafion. The developed ionic metal polymer composite (IPMC) membrane is subjected to a dynamic bending load, hydrodynamically, and evaluated for the voltage generated against an external electrical load. An increase of a few orders of magnitude has been observed in the harvested energy density and power density in air, deionized water and in electrolyte solutions with varying concentrations of sodium chloride (NaCl) as compared to Pt-based IPMC performances reported in the published literature. This will have potential applications in hydrodynamic and residual environmental energy harvesting to power sensors and actuators based on micro-andn nano-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS and NEMS) for biomedical,maerospace and oceanic applications.

Spectroscopic ellipsometry investigations of the optical properties of manganese doped bismuth vanadate thin films

The optical properties of Bi(2)V(1-x)MnxO(5.5-x) (x=0.05, 0.1, 0.15 and 0.2 at.%) thin films fabricated by pulsed laser deposition on platinized Silicon Substrates were Studied in UV-visible spectral region (1.51-4.17 CV) using spectroscopic ellipsometry. The optical constants and thicknesses of these films have been obtained by fitting the ellipsometric data (Psi and Delta) using a multilayer four-phase model system and a relaxed Lorentz oscillator dispersion relation. The surface roughness and film thickness obtained by spectroscopic ellipsometry were found to be consistent with the results obtained by atomic force and scanning electron microscopy. The refractive index measured at 650 nm does not show any marginal increase with Mn content. Further, the extinction coefficient does not show much decrease with increasing Mn content. An increase in optical band gap energy from 2.52 to 2.77 eV with increasing Mn Content from x = 0.05 to 0.15 was attributed to the increase in oxygen ion vacancy disorder. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Multilayer single-component thin films and microcapsules via covalent bonded layer-by-layer self-assembly

Fabrication of single-component multilayer thin films still remains a challenging task via the layer-by-layer (LbL) approach. In this communication, we report the self-assembly of single-component multilayer thin films on flat and colloidal substrates through glutaraldehyde mediated covalent bonding.

Impedance studies on high energy Li3+ irradiated PZT thin films

The ferroelectric Pb(Zr0.48Ti0.52)O-3 (PZT) thin films prepared by the pulsed laser deposition technique were studied for their response to high energy lithium ion irradiation through impedance spectroscopy. The Debye peaks, observed in the impedance and modulus plots of irradiatedfilms, shifts towards higher frequencies compared to those of unirradiated films. This is equivalent to the trend observed with increase in temperature in the unirradiated films due to the dielectric relaxation. The irradiated films showed a decrease in the grain resistance compared to the unirradiated films. The activation energy of dielectric relaxation increases from 1.25 eV of unirradiated film to 1.62 eV of irradiated film. The observed modifications in the irradiated film were ascribed to the modifications in the grain structure due to the high value of electronic energy loss.

Studies on structural and electrical properties of sprayed SnO2 : Sb films

Thin films of antimony-doped tin oxide (SnO2:Sb) were prepared by spray pyrolysis using stannous chloride (SnCl2) and antimony trichloride (SbCl3) as precursors. The antimony doping was varied from 0 to 4 wt%. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed the surface morphology to be very smooth, yet grainy in nature. X-ray diffraction (XRD) shows films to have preferred orientation, which varies with the extent of antimony doping: undoped films prefer the (2 1 1) orientation, while the (3 0 1) orientation is preferred for doping levels of 0.5 and 1.0 wt%. For higher doping levels, the (2 0 0) orientation is preferred. This difference in preferred orientations is reflected in the SEM of the films. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) reveals that film roughness is not affected by antimony doping. The minimum sheet resistance (2.17 ohm/square) achieved in the present study is lower than values reported to date in SnO2:Sb films prepared from SnCl2 precursor. The Hall mobility of undoped SnO2 films was found to be 109.52 cm(2)/V s, which reduces to 2.55 cm(2)/ Vs for the films doped with 4 wt% of Sb. On the other hand, the carrier concentration, which is 1.23 x 10(19) cm(-3) in undoped films, increases to 2.89 x 10(21) cm(-3) for the films doped with 4 wt% of Sb. (c) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Use of the liquid-liquid interface for generating ultrathin nanocrystalline films of metals, chalcogenides, and oxides

The air-water interface has traditionally been employed to prepare particle assemblies and films of metals and semiconductors. The interface between water and an organic liquid, however, has not been investigated sufficiently for possible use in preparing nanocrystals and thin films of materials. In this article, we demonstrate the use of the liquid-liquid interface as a medium for preparing ultrathin films of metals, chalcogenides and oxides. The method involves the reaction at the interface between a metal-organic compound in the organic layer and an appropriate reagent for reduction, sulfidation, etc. in the aqueous layer. Some of the materials discussed are nanocrystalline films of gold, CuS, CuSe, CuO, and Cu(OH)(2) formed at the liquid-liquid interface. The results reported in this article should demonstrate the versatility and potential of the liquid-liquid interface for preparing nanomaterials and ultrathin films and encourage further research in this area. (c) 2005 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Structural and photoelectrical characterization of hot wall deposited CuInSe2 thin films and the fabrication of CuInSe2 based solar cells

Films of CuInSe2 were deposited onto glass substrates by a hot wall deposition method using bulk CuInSe2 as a source material. All the deposited CuInSe2 films were found to be polycrystalline in nature exhibiting the chalcopyrite structure with the crystallite orientation along (101),(112),(103),(211),(220),(312) and (400) directions. The photocurrent was found to increase with increase in film thickness and also with increase of light intensity. Photocurrent spectra show a peak related to the band-to-band transition. The spectral response of CuInSe2 thin films was studied by allowing the radiation to pass through a series of interference filters in the wavelength range 700-1200 rim. Films of higher thickness exhibited higher photosensitivity while low thickness films exhibited moderate photosensitivity. CuInSe2-based Solar cells with different types of buffer layers such as US, Cdse, CuInSe2 and CdSe0.7Te0.3 were fabricated. The current and voltage were measured using an optical power meter and an electrometer respectively. The fabricated solar cells were illuminated using 100 mW/cm(2) white light under AM1 conditions. (C) 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Use of the liquid-liquid interface for generating ultrathin nanocrystalline films of metals,chalcogenides,and oxides

The air-water interface has traditionally been employed to prepare particle assemblies and films of metals and semiconductors. The interface between water and an organic liquid, however, has not been investigated sufficiently for possible use in preparing nanocrystals and thin films of materials. In this article, we demonstrate the use of the liquid-liquid interface as a medium for preparing ultrathin films of metals, chalcogenides and oxides. The method involves the reaction at the interface between a metal-organic compound in the organic layer and an appropriate reagent for reduction, sulfidation, etc. in the aqueous layer. Some of the materials discussed are nanocrystalline films of gold, CuS, CuSe, CuO, and Cu(OH)(2) formed at the liquid-liquid interface. The results reported in this article should demonstrate the versatility and potential of the liquid-liquid interface for preparing nanomaterials and ultrathin films and encourage further research in this area.

Optical, Field-Emission, and Antimicrobial Properties of ZnO Nanostructured Films Deposited at Room Temperature by Activated Reactive Evaporation

ZnO nanostructures were deposited on flexible polymer sheet and cotton fabrics at room temperature by activated reactive evaporation. Room-temperature photoluminescence spectrum of ZnO nanostructured film exhibited a week intrinsic UV emission and a strong broad yellow-orange visible emission. TEM and HRTEM studies show that the grown nanostructures are crystalline in nature and their growth direction was indentified to be along [002]. ZnO nanostructures grown on the copper-coated flexible polymer sheets exhibited stable field-emissio characteristics with a threshold voltage of 2.74 V/mu m (250 mu A) and a very large field enhancement factor (beta) of 23,213. Cotton fabric coated with ZnO nanostructures show an excellent antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus bacteria (Gram positive), and similar to 73% reduction in the bacterial population is achieved compared to uncoated fabrics after 4 h in viability. Using a shadow mask technique, we also selectively deposited the nanostructures at room temperature on polymer substrates.

Influence of External Light Waves on the Thermoelectric Power Under Strong Magnetic Field in Ultrathin Films, Quantum Wires and Quantum Dots of Optoelectronic Materials

In this paper, an attempt is made to study the influence of external light waves on the thermoelectric power under strong magnetic field (TPSM) in ultrathin films (UFs), quantum wires (QWs) and quantum dots (QDs) of optoelectronic materials whose unperturbed dispersion relation of the conduction electrons are defined by three and two band models of Kane together with parabolic energy bands on the basis of newly formulated electron dispersion laws in each case. We have plotted the TPSM as functions of film thickness, electron concentration, light intensity and wavelength for UFs, QWs and ODs of InSb, GaAs, Hg1-xCdxTe and In1-xGaxAsyP1-y respectively. It appears from the figures that for UFs, the TPSM increases with increasing thickness in quantum steps, decreases with increasing electron degeneracy exhibiting entirely different types of oscillations and changes with both light intensity and wavelength and these two latter types of plots are the direct signature of light waves on opto-TPSM. For QWs, the opto-TPSM exhibits rectangular oscillations with increasing thickness and shows enhanced spiky oscillations with electron concentration per unit length. For QDs, the opto-TPSM increases with increasing film thickness exhibiting trapezoidal variations which occurs during quantum jumps and the length and breadth of the trapezoids are totally dependent on energy band constants. Under the condition of non-degeneracy, the results of opto-TPSM gets simplified into the well-known form of classical TPSM equation which the function of three constants only and being invariant of the signature of band structure.

Growth, self-assembly and dynamics of nano-scale films at fluid interfaces

Ultrathin films at fluid interfaces are important not only from a fundamental point of view as 2D complex fluids but have also become increasingly relevant in the development of novel functional materials. There has been an explosion in the synthesis work in this area over the last decade, giving rise to many exotic nanostructures at fluid interfaces. However, the factors controlling particle nucleation, growth and self-assembly at interfaces are poorly understood on a quantitative level. We will outline some of the recent attempts in this direction. Some of the selected investigations examining the macroscopic mechanical properties of molecular and particulate films at fluid interfaces will be reviewed. We conclude with a discussion of the electronic properties of these films that have potential technological and biological applications.