Recent highlights in nanoscale and mesoscale friction

• Andrea Vanossi,
• Dirk Dietzel,
• Andre Schirmeisen,
• Ernst Meyer,
• Rémy Pawlak,
• Thilo Glatzel,
• Marcin Kisiel,
• Shigeki Kawai and
• Nicola Manini

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1995–2014, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.190

• friction by exploiting structural lubricity is not only interesting from a fundamental scientific point of view, but also holds alluring perspectives for technology [3]. However, for a long time, technical exploitation was considered difficult due to the influence of interface contamination, which can

• ]. Only recently, several systems have been discovered in which structural superlubricity can be observed under ambient conditions. For graphene stacks the self-retracting motion was found to remain a robust feature even under ambient conditions, which indicates that contamination cannot enter the

• initio simulations additionally elucidated how interface contamination is prevented by sufficiently large energy barriers and how absolute friction values are compatible with the atomic interactions upon application of the scaling laws. A recent study has pointed out that mechanical cleaning of

Synthesis of rare-earth metal and rare-earth metal-fluoride nanoparticles in ionic liquids and propylene carbonate

• Marvin Siebels,
• Lukas Mai,
• Laura Schmolke,
• Kai Schütte,
• Juri Barthel,
• Junpei Yue,
• Jörg Thomas,
• Bernd M. Smarsly,
• Anjana Devi,
• Roland A. Fischer and
• Christoph Janiak

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1881–1894, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.180

• the polymerization of olefins [15][16] and as precursors in chemical vapor (CVD) processes of rare-earth materials such as oxides and nitrides [17][18][19]. It is especially advantageous that the decomposition products from the amidinate ligand are gaseous so that product contamination is minimized

• rare-earth metal ions (typically below −2.0 V vs NHE) cause much difficulties regarding the chemical reduction of any chosen precursor and the prevention of post-synthesis oxidation or contamination of the RE-NPs. Recently, Alivisatos and co-authors reported on the synthesis of Pt3Y and other so-called

• ) show the expected signals for Eu, Gd or Er and fluoride besides the bands for carbon and copper of the carbon-coated copper grid. The oxygen peak can largely be attributed to air contamination when the sample was introduced into the TEM device. A quantification of fluoride against rare-earth metal was

Know your full potential: Quantitative Kelvin probe force microscopy on nanoscale electrical devices

• Amelie Axt,
• Ilka M. Hermes,
• Victor W. Bergmann,
• Niklas Tausendpfund and
• Stefan A. L. Weber

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1809–1819, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.172

• silicon substrate. Here, we use an array of micron-scale interdigitated electrodes on glas with a defined potential difference applied between neighboring electrodes. By investigating the pre-defined potential difference between the electrodes, a possible influence of tip- or sample contamination can be

• difference between neighboring electrodes. Thus, the measured potential difference is not influenced by contamination of the surface, the tip or local changes in the materials. To minimize the influence of potential variations along the electrodes we furthermore disabled the slow scan axis during the

• extreme cases: in the center of the structure and on the outer most electrodes. In the center of the structure and in the absence of a stray field, the CPD varied from −220 mV to −148 mV (Figure 7 (left)). Such variations can be due to local changes in the CPD caused by contamination of the tip or

A visible-light-controlled platform for prolonged drug release based on Ag-doped TiO₂ nanotubes with a hydrophobic layer

• Caihong Liang,
• Jiang Wen and
• Xiaoming Liao

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1793–1801, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.170

• full XPS spectrum of Zn-Ag-TNTs, in which Zn, Ti, Ag and O elements are detected. These spectra suggest the successful decoration of Ag as well as loading of Zn. The presence of C may be attributed to the incorporation from the electrolyte and the organic contamination adsorbed from environment. Figure

Preparation of micro/nanopatterned gelatins crosslinked with genipin for biocompatible dental implants

• Reika Makita,
• Tsukasa Akasaka,
• Seiichi Tamagawa,
• Yasuhiro Yoshida,
• Saori Miyata,
• Hirofumi Miyaji and
• Tsutomu Sugaya

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1735–1754, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.165

• adopted to evaluate the initial attachment ability; this is because faster cell attachment to the surface of dental implants, considered as one of the applications of gelatin patterns, is important to avoid bacterial contamination from the oral cavity. As shown in Figure 7, the number of attached cells on

Multimodal noncontact atomic force microscopy and Kelvin probe force microscopy investigations of organolead tribromide perovskite single crystals

• Yann Almadori,
• David Moerman,
• Jaume Llacer Martinez,
• Philippe Leclère and
• Benjamin Grévin

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1695–1704, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.161

• for MAPbBr3 [1][21]). This confirms that the surface investigated corresponds to the (100) plane of the MAPbBr3 crystal. Several features appearing as white spots in the topographic images indicate moreover the likelihood of defects, which could be attributed to surface contamination upon exposure to

• (enabling discrimination between extrinsic surface contamination and intrinsic defect formation). Here, our primary goal is to check if the surface photovoltage and crystal photostriction can be simultaneously and reliably probed by nc-AFM/KPFM. The discussion will be thus focused on the analysis of the

Friction force microscopy of tribochemistry and interfacial ageing for the SiO_x/Si/Au system

• Christiane Petzold,
• Marcus Koch and
• Roland Bennewitz

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1647–1658, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.157

• sequence was performed first with tips with intact passivating layer and then repeated with activated tips. Electron microscopy (SEM, TEM) Contamination and modification of the AFM tips were examined by scanning electron microscopy (10 kV acceleration voltage) using secondary-electron and backscattered

Sulfur-, nitrogen- and platinum-doped titania thin films with high catalytic efficiency under visible-light illumination

• Boštjan Žener,
• Lev Matoh,
• Giorgio Carraro,
• Bojan Miljević and
• Romana Cerc Korošec

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1629–1640, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.155

• survey spectra of the specimen (not reported) indicate the presence of carbon, oxygen and nitrogen in all the analyzed samples. Irrespective of the synthesis conditions, the C 1s peak (not reported) is located at 284.8 eV, which can be attributed to adventitious surface contamination due to air exposure

Optical near-field mapping of plasmonic nanostructures prepared by nanosphere lithography

• Gitanjali Kolhatkar,
• Alexandre Merlen,
• Jiawei Zhang,
• Chahinez Dab,
• Gregory Q. Wallace,
• François Lagugné-Labarthet and
• Andreas Ruediger

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1536–1543, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.144

• techniques lead to sample contamination due to the use of a molecular marker. Other techniques based on electron–sample interactions can be utilized to non-destructively map the distribution of the localized plasmon modes. In photoemission electron microscopy (PEEM), the sample is irradiated with a

• require complex experimental devices, it provides fast measurements with high resolution, and can be applied to virtually any kind of sample. No additional treatment is required, and no chemical solution is employed, avoiding sample contamination. Conclusion In summary, we measured the optical near-field

Cr(VI) remediation from aqueous environment through modified-TiO₂-mediated photocatalytic reduction

• Rashmi Acharya,
• Brundabana Naik and
• Kulamani Parida

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1448–1470, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.137

• areas [10]. Moreover, accidental leakage and improper disposal at mining sites are also sources of Cr(VI) contamination in natural water ecosystems [11][12]. Being a strong oxidizing agent with cytotoxic, mutagenic and carcinogenic properties, Cr(VI) causes a wide range of clinical/health hazards like

Chemistry for electron-induced nanofabrication

• Petra Swiderek,
• Hubertus Marbach and
• Cornelis W. Hagen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1317–1320, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.124

• the ligands is co-deposited along with the desired elements. This unintended contamination often deteriorates the targeted properties of the deposit and thus impedes the progress of FEBID technology [7][8]. Novel molecular precursors and improved processes are thus needed to advance FEBID to its full

Formation mechanisms of boron oxide films fabricated by large-area electron beam-induced deposition of trimethyl borate

• Aiden A. Martin and
• Philip J. Depond

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1282–1287, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.120

• of nanometers to a few micrometers using modified scanning electron microscope (SEM) tools [10][11]. While deposition of films of the order of millimeters has been shown using residual contamination or diffusion pump oil in high-vacuum conditions [12][13], the deposition of films of this thickness

Field-controlled ultrafast magnetization dynamics in two-dimensional nanoscale ferromagnetic antidot arrays

• Anulekha De,
• Sucheta Mondal,
• Sourav Sahoo,
• Saswati Barman,
• Yoshichika Otani,
• Rajib Kumar Mitra and
• Anjan Barman

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1123–1134, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.104

• -thick protective layer of Al2O3 was deposited on top of the Py film in an ultrahigh vacuum chamber at a base pressure of 2 × 10−8 Torr. The Al2O3 capping layer was deposited on the Py film to protect the samples from external contamination of the environment, degradation with time, and also from direct

Review on nanoparticles and nanostructured materials: history, sources, toxicity and regulations

• Jaison Jeevanandam,
• Ahmed Barhoum,
• Yen S. Chan,
• Alain Dufresne and
• Michael K. Danquah

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1050–1074, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.98

• by-products during diesel and gas combustion processes [91]. More than 90% of carbon NPs present in the atmosphere are diesel-generated particles [92]. Thus, pollution from vehicles is a major cause of nanoparticulate contamination in urban atmosphere [93]. The hazardous effect of automobile exhaust

• nanocrystals [178] and Ag NPs [179], respectively, as shown in Figure 5A. Recently, it was found that the spores of bacteria such as Bacillus anthracis on the nanoscale can cause food contamination and contagious diseases [180]. Similarly, a list of autotrophic plants and heterotrophic microbes that help in

Comparative study of antibacterial properties of polystyrene films with TiO_x and Cu nanoparticles fabricated using cluster beam technique

• Vladimir N. Popok,
• Cesarino M. Jeppesen,
• Peter Fojan,
• Anna Kuzminova,
• Jan Hanuš and
• Ondřej Kylián

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 861–869, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.80

• considered, namely a potential contamination with Cu ions. Hence, polymers with Cu NPs should be used carefully in the cases of food or drugs. Experimental Preparation of polymer films with metal clusters PS films are prepared by a standard spin-coating procedure from a solvent mixture of 2 wt % PS in

Synthesis and characterization of two new TiO₂-containing benzothiazole-based imine composites for organic device applications

• Anna Różycka,
• Agnieszka Iwan,
• Krzysztof Artur Bogdanowicz,
• Michal Filapek,
• Natalia Górska,
• Damian Pociecha,
• Marek Malinowski,
• Patryk Fryń,
• Agnieszka Hreniak,
• Jakub Rysz,
• Paweł Dąbczyński and
• Monika Marzec

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 721–739, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.67

• (0.3248 g) and degassed at high vacuum for 8 h at 150 °C in order to remove the contamination. Adsorption–desorption isotherms were recorded at the pressure of 10−5 to 760 mmHg which was close to the saturation pressure of 1.0 p/p0. To calculate the surface area of TiO2 Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) theory

Dynamics and fragmentation mechanism of (C₅H₄CH₃)Pt(CH₃)₃ on SiO₂ surfaces

• Kaliappan Muthukumar,
• Harald O. Jeschke and
• Roser Valentí

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 711–720, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.66

• of the organic contamination, a fundamental understanding of how the molecules behave on the substrates is necessary. This will be helpful, either to modify the existing class of precursor materials or to design a novel set of precursors, specific for electron beam deposition. To address this, we

• fully and partially hydroxylated SiO2 surfaces. We focus on explaining the initial reactions and the possible fragmentation pathways of the (C5H4CH3)Pt(CH3)3 molecule on the SiO2 surface, and we explain the nature of organic contamination in the deposits. Computational Details DFT calculations for the

• detachment of either the methylcyclopentadienyl ring or the methyl group. Detached methylcyclopentadienyl rings and the dissociated methyl groups block the surface active sites and might be the source of organic contamination. Since the composition of the obtained deposits dictate the conductance behavior

Tuning adhesion forces between functionalized gold colloidal nanoparticles and silicon AFM tips: role of ligands and capillary forces

• Sven Oras,
• Sergei Vlassov,
• Marta Berholts,
• Rünno Lõhmus and
• Karine Mougin

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 660–670, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.61

• the size and shape of the particles, and longer contact times may contribute to the increase of these interaction forces. The low values of adhesion obtained for –OH coated Au NPs can be explained by a possible contamination of the Au NPs deposited on the silicon wafer. Due to the high polarity of the

• –OH functional group compared to those of –NH2 and –SH groups, a higher adhesion value might have been expected. However, this high polarity of the tail group also confers a high reactivity to Au NPs, especially with contamination in air. As a result, the final adhesive behavior of the Au coated NPs

• to take all aspects into account and give decisive explanation of the obtained results and broad scattering of measured values. Possible reasons may include deviation of NPs geometry from spherical shape, variation of the tip radii between different AFM probes, contamination and wear of the AFM tip

Single-step process to improve the mechanical properties of carbon nanotube yarn

• Maria Cecilia Evora,
• Xinyi Lu,
• Nitilaksha Hiremath,
• Nam-Goo Kang,
• Kunlun Hong,
• Roberto Uribe,
• Gajanan Bhat and
• Jimmy Mays

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 545–554, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.52

• polyacrylonitrile (PAN) from the literature (Figure 1c). This process relies on the fundamentals of radiation grafting polymerization. The advantage of the process is that an initiator is not required, avoiding the formation of free radicals on the substrate backbone/monomer, contamination and problems with local

Review: Electrostatically actuated nanobeam-based nanoelectromechanical switches – materials solutions and operational conditions

• Liga Jasulaneca,
• Jelena Kosmaca,
• Raimonds Meija,
• Jana Andzane and
• Donats Erts

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 271–300, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.29

Comparative study of post-growth annealing of Cu(hfac)₂, Co₂(CO)₈ and Me₂Au(acac) metal precursors deposited by FEBID

• Marcos V. Puydinger dos Santos,
• Aleksandra Szkudlarek,
• Artur Rydosz,
• Carlos Guerra-Nuñez,
• Fanny Béron,
• Kleber R. Pirota,
• Stanislav Moshkalev,
• José Alexandre Diniz and
• Ivo Utke

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 91–101, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.11

• , respectively. The precursors have been separately filled into their reservoirs inside a glove box in argon atmosphere, before being introduced on the substrate surface by heating up to 50 °C the GIS. Each precursor was used separately on different samples and experiments in order to avoid cross contamination

• . Thus, the K-values of each atom were extracted from both the FEBID deposit and the substrate. The background signal from the detector, as well as the residual carbon signal arising from contamination deposition occurring during the EDX scan, were subtracted from the EDX spectra using a reference

Electron-driven and thermal chemistry during water-assisted purification of platinum nanomaterials generated by electron beam induced deposition

• Ziyan Warneke,
• Markus Rohdenburg,
• Jonas Warneke,
• Janina Kopyra and
• Petra Swiderek

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 77–90, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.10

• insights into the chemistry that occurs during purification of FEBID nanostructures with implications also for the stability of the carbonaceous matrix of nanogranular FEBID materials under humid conditions. Keywords: carbon contamination; electron induced reactions; focused electron beam induced

Response under low-energy electron irradiation of a thin film of a potential copper precursor for focused electron beam induced deposition (FEBID)

• Leo Sala,
• Iwona B. Szymańska,
• Céline Dablemont,
• Anne Lafosse and
• Lionel Amiaud

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 57–65, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.8

• corresponds to the loss of an entire ligand, which is certainly the most favourable situation to achieve improved purity of the final deposit. On the contrary, the ligand fragmentation can be viewed as a potential source of carbonaceous contamination of the future deposited product. The amine ligand

Facile synthesis of silver/silver thiocyanate (Ag@AgSCN) plasmonic nanostructures with enhanced photocatalytic performance

• Xinfu Zhao,
• Dairong Chen,
• Abdul Qayum,
• Bo Chen and
• Xiuling Jiao

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2781–2789, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.277

• . Keywords: Ag@AgSCN; degradation of oxytetracycline; plasmonic photocatalyst; stability; Introduction In the past decade, water decontamination technology has attracted great attention due to the increasing health risk that water contamination poses to humankind. The removal of pollutants has been

Impact of titanium dioxide nanoparticles on purification and contamination of nematic liquid crystals

• Dmitrii Pavlovich Shcherbinin and
• Elena A. Konshina

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2766–2770, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.275

• contamination of liquid crystals. Nematic liquid crystals with high and low initial ionic contamination have been examined. It has been shown that titanium dioxide nanoparticles reduced the ion density of liquid crystals with high initial ionic contamination from 134.5 × 1012 cm−3 to 63.2 × 1012 cm−3. In the

• case of liquid crystals with low initial ionic contamination, the nanoparticles led to an insignificant increase of ion density from 19.8 × 1012 cm−3 to 25.7 × 1012 cm−3. Keywords: ionic impurities; liquid crystals; nanoparticles; titanium dioxide; Findings Nowadays, liquid crystals (LCs) are widely

• addition, nanoparticles can induce other new functions in liquid crystals, including improved response time [14][15], surface plasmon resonance [16], and improvements in alignment [17]. The ionic contamination of LCs remains one of the challenges to LC technology. Ionic conductivity negatively affects LC