Review
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Liangzhu Jiang, Xi Mao, Changxu Liu, Xiaodan Guo, Renhua Deng, Jintao Zhu
Summary: Nanoparticle superlattices are periodic arrays of nanoscale building blocks that exhibit new properties. Two-dimensional nanoparticle superlattices have attracted attention due to their applications in various fields. Evaporation-induced self-assembly and the introduction of soft ligands can improve the properties of these superlattices.
CHEMICAL COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Han-Zhang Mou, Cong-Lin Zhao, Juan Song, Lei Xing, Hong-Yuan Chen, Jing-Juan Xu
Summary: In this study, the effect of ambient temperature on the in vitro self-assembly of a globular protein was investigated. The kinetics of protein aggregation and the conformational changes of the protein structure with different ambient temperatures were described. The results suggest that the ambient temperature should be considered in mechanism research on protein fibrillation for accurate comparative analysis.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Kunal J. Tiwari, Robert Fonoll Rubio, Sergio Giraldo, Lorenzo Calvo-Barrio, Victor Izquierdo-Roca, Marcel Placidi, Yudania Sanchez, Alejandro Perez-Rodriguez, Edgardo Saucedo, Zacharie Jehl Li-Kao
Summary: The study presents a method to probe the depth morphology, defect profile, and possible secondary phases in thin film semiconductors. By analyzing the morphology of Kesterite films, it is found that more than 50% of the absorber is disconnected from the substrate, highlighting a potential limitation in Kesterite solar cells. Surface-sensitive techniques allow for accurate composition profiling and direct observation of defects in Kesterite.
APPLIED SURFACE SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Fani Madzharova, Mikkel Bregnhoj, Adam Simon Chatterley, Kaja Borup Lovschall, Taner Drace, Lasse Sander Andersen Dreyer, Thomas Boesen, Tobias Weidner
Summary: Ice active bacteria can catalyze water freezing at high subzero temperatures using ice nucleating proteins (INPs). This study focuses on the assembly of synthetic model INPs of well-studied ice bacterium Pseudomonas syringae at the air-water interface and concludes that self-assembly and electrostatic interactions drive the formation of ordered INP structures capable of aligning interfacial water.
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Baomei Zhou, Cheng Qu, Shanshan Du, Wanjun Gao, Yu Zhang, Yan Ding, Hongyan Wang, Ruyan Hou, Mengke Su, Honglin Liu
Summary: In this study, a microplate-SERS reader based on three-dimensional liquid interfacial arrays (LIAs) was developed for high-throughput and semi-automatic assays. By adjusting the hydrophilicity of the container, LIAs in oil-in-water state, water-in-oil state, and two-dimensional plane state were formed. The optimized reader enables fast detection of 12 samples with good signal reproducibility.
ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Shan Jiang, Luca D'Amario, Holger Dau
Summary: Copper electrodes have shown excellent catalytic performance in the reduction of CO2, but the underlying reasons are not well understood. In this study, using operando Raman experiments, the researchers investigated the structures and molecular interactions at the electrode-electrolyte interface and discovered the formation of a copper carbonate hydroxide (CuCarHyd) that resembles malachite. It was found that the reduction of carbonate ions, bound to the metallic Cu electrode in the form of CuCarHyd structures, was the starting point of carbon reduction, challenging previous mechanistic models. The presence of CuCarHyd patches at catalytic potentials could be attributed to alkalization and local electrical potential gradients. These findings provide important insights into improving the efficiency of CO2 reduction reactions and understanding their mechanisms.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Xing Chen, Xiao-Ting Wang, Jia-Bo Le, Shu-Min Li, Xue Wang, Yu-Jin Zhang, Petar Radjenovic, Yu Zhao, Yao-Hui Wang, Xiu-Mei Lin, Jin-Chao Dong, Jian-Feng Li
Summary: Ruthenium shows comparable or even better activity than platinum for alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction, but its mechanistic aspects are not yet resolved. In this study, in situ Raman spectroscopy and theoretical calculations are combined to elucidate the dynamic spectral evidence of Ru surfaces, interfacial water, *H, and *OH intermediates. The different valence states of Ru surfaces, as well as the hydrated Na+ ion water and high-valence Ru(n+) surfaces, contribute to the dissociation of interfacial water and the generation of two distinct *H, leading to different activities. The regulation of valence state on interfacial water, intermediates, and catalytic activity provides guidelines for the rational design of high-efficiency catalysts.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Yi Liu, Shaozhi Wang, Xue Chen, Mingming Yang, Xiaoli Li, Baolai Liang
Summary: This study investigates the folded MoS2 bilayers formed by folding partial monolayer MoS2 flakes onto the monolayer MoS2 flake itself during the CVD growth process. The Raman and Photoluminescence spectroscopy reveal the lattice vibrations and photon transitions of folded MoS2 bilayers with variable interfacial coupling, showing novel physical properties such as the occurrence of folded phonons and the evolution of exciton transitions, which are promising for optoelectronic device applications.
Article
Materials Science, Composites
Sijia Hao, Zheling Li, Cheng Yang, Alexander J. Marsden, Ian A. Kinloch, Robert J. Young
Summary: Bio-inspired nanocomposites were fabricated using GO-based fillers and their interfacial energy dissipation during cyclic deformation was studied. It was found that the presence of functional groups reduced the interfacial energy dissipation in the elastic regime, but increased it with strain. This study provides new insights for the fabrication and evaluation of bio-inspired nanocomposites.
COMPOSITES SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Gitae Moon, Jun Hyup Lee
Summary: Researchers have successfully developed an environmentally friendly alignment layer for nematic liquid crystals by utilizing natural resources like chlorophyll from plants, achieving stable alignment and color-switchable behavior.
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Weimiao Wang, Zheling Li, Alex J. Marsden, Mark A. Bissett, Robert J. Young
Summary: Research has shown that hexagonal boron nitride nanosheets (BNNSs) exhibit higher internal interlayer stress transfer efficiency and better interfacial stress transfer performance compared to graphene, resulting in better mechanical reinforcement in polymer-based nanocomposites.
Article
Polymer Science
Hideyuki Uematsu, Risa Naganawa, Naoki Higashitani, Ayaka Yamaguchi, Masachika Yamane, Yukihiro Ozaki, Shuichi Tanoue
Summary: The study found that the interaction between PC and piCF led to the formation of an ordered structure of PC on the piCF surface, while this phenomenon was not observed in the PC/GF composite. Furthermore, the interfacial shear strength of PC/piCF was significantly higher than that of PC/GF.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Hengxin Fang, Jushan Wang, Yong Zhou, Sanmei Wang, Lin He, Chang Q. Sun, Biao Wang
Summary: This study investigated the hydration cell bond relaxation of urea and its derivates using perturbative differential phonon spectroscopy (PDPS). The results showed that urea and its derivates have significant impacts on surrounding water molecules through dipole polarization, anti-hydrogen bonding, and super-hydrogen bonding, affecting the viscosity and hydrogen bonding network of the solution.
JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR LIQUIDS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Haibin Sun, Shuangshuang Liang, Xiuyun Zhang
Summary: This study investigates the formation mechanism and distribution of grain boundaries in polygonal graphene islands through H-2 etching experiments and colorful Raman mapping, providing a deep understanding of the growth kinetics of mono- and bi-layer polygonal graphene through etching engineering combined with Raman spectroscopy.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Yue Yuan, Piyush Raj, Jia Zhang, Soumik Siddhanta, Ishan Barman, Jeff W. M. Bulte
Summary: Olsalazine acts as a broad-spectrum anti-cancer agent by inhibiting DNA methylation, and when conjugated with the tumor enzyme furin, it can self-assemble into nanoparticles that can be detected with high specificity using Raman spectroscopy. This sensing mechanism has potential applications in high-resolution image-guided surgery for precise delineation of tumor margins and determining microscopic tumor invasion and multifocal locoregional tumor spread.
ANGEWANDTE CHEMIE-INTERNATIONAL EDITION
(2021)
