Silicon and germanium nanocrystals: properties and characterization

• Ivana Capan,
• Alexandra Carvalho and
• José Coutinho

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1787–1794, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.189

• enhancement. This is only valid for small NCs, while the enhancement diminishes as the density of larger NCs increases. As already mentioned, one of the main applications of the embedded NCs is in memory devices. To check the charge trapping properties of the embedded NCs, different electrical

• characterization techniques could be applied. The most common is the capacitance-voltage (C–V) technique that gives information about the memory window. Moreover, C–V gives valuable information as far as interface-defects and oxide defects are concerned. There are numerous studies on the charge-trapping properties

• of embedded NCs. However, it should be noted that in a significant number of those, the effects of defects (either interface-related or in the oxide) have been completely neglected, and the observed memory window (the flat band voltage shift ΔVFB) has been unconditionally ascribed to the NCs trapping

Magnesium batteries: Current state of the art, issues and future perspectives

• Rana Mohtadi and
• Fuminori Mizuno

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1291–1311, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.143

• deposition/stripping are volatile as they are ether-based. To overcome this challenge, one strategy would be trapping the solvent, used to solvate the magnesium ions, within a polymeric matrix. The electrolyte formed in this case is referred to as a gel electrolyte. This concept was previously applied to Li

Effects of palladium on the optical and hydrogen sensing characteristics of Pd-doped ZnO nanoparticles

• Anh-Thu Thi Do,
• Hong Thai Giang,
• Thu Thi Do,
• Ngan Quang Pham and
• Giang Truong Ho

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1261–1267, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.140

• -temperature wet-chemical process. Photoluminescence (PL) measurements at room temperature are then carried out in order to determine the role of vacancies, trapping levels, and the transition shift of the PL emission maximum in these samples. In order to study and optimize the four main factors affecting the

Organic and inorganic–organic thin film structures by molecular layer deposition: A review

• Pia Sundberg and
• Maarit Karppinen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1104–1136, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.123

Dry friction of microstructured polymer surfaces inspired by snake skin

• Martina J. Baum,
• Lars Heepe,
• Elena Fadeeva and
• Stanislav N. Gorb

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1091–1103, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.122

• that a decrease in frictional coefficient is due to the reduction of adhesive components of the frictional mechanisms [51][52]. Another approach to explain the reduction in frictional coefficient on many microstructured surfaces could be the possibility of trapping of loose wear particles within the

Functionalized nanostructures for enhanced photocatalytic performance under solar light

• Liejin Guo,
• Dengwei Jing,
• Maochang Liu,
• Yubin Chen,
• Shaohua Shen,
• Jinwen Shi and
• Kai Zhang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 994–1004, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.113

• found to have a close relationship with the doping amount of Ni ions and the highest activity was obtained when the amount of Ni doping was 1%. Here, the enhanced photocatalytic activity was attributed to doped Ni2+ ions which served as shallow trapping sites, preferentially trapping photoexcited holes

• . The assumption of the role of Ni2+ as shallow trapping sites could be rationalized by considering that the energy level of Ni2+ is located very close to the valence band edge of TiO2 [16]. After trapping a hole, Ni2+ will be oxidized to Ni3+. However, due to the instability of Ni3+, it will quickly

• return to Ni2+ again. The shallow trapping can therefore separate the arrival of photogenerated charges at the surface, so the recombination at the channel surface of mesopores could be greatly reduced. However, when the doping concentration is higher than the optimal level, or for too large particles

Optimizing the synthesis of CdS/ZnS core/shell semiconductor nanocrystals for bioimaging applications

• Li-wei Liu,
• Si-yi Hu,
• Ying Pan,
• Jia-qi Zhang,
• Yue-shu Feng and
• Xi-he Zhang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 919–926, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.105

• QDs, and 38 ns for CdS QDs. ZnS has a major influence on the lifetime decay profile of CdS/ZnS QDs. Trapping states are caused by surface defects located within the bandgap, which lead to the rise of nonradiative recombination. Emission spectra The emission spectra were collected by using a Fluorolog

Optical modeling-assisted characterization of dye-sensitized solar cells using TiO₂ nanotube arrays as photoanodes

• Jung-Ho Yun,
• Il Ku Kim,
• Yun Hau Ng,
• Lianzhou Wang and
• Rose Amal

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 895–902, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.102

• TiO2 nanoparticles, vertically well-ordered TNT-based DSSCs presented an enhanced electron transport by efficiently reducing the recombination possibility of photogenerated charge carriers through minimizing the trapping sites that normally exist in the grain boundaries of randomly oriented TiO2

Fibrillar adhesion with no clusterisation: Functional significance of material gradient along adhesive setae of insects

• Stanislav N. Gorb and
• Alexander E. Filippov

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 837–845, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.95

• contact may be increased due to the presence of specific micro- and nanostructures [1][2][3][4][5]. Crack trapping mechanisms in adhesive systems with multiple contacts provide advantages in attachment on rough substrates [6]. Also hierarchical organization of insect pad structures enables formation of

Measuring air layer volumes retained by submerged floating-ferns Salvinia and biomimetic superhydrophobic surfaces

• Matthias J. Mayser,
• Holger F. Bohn,
• Meike Reker and
• Wilhelm Barthlott

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 812–821, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.93

• the Cassie wetting state the solid–water interface is strongly reduced while the majority of the interface is between water and air, thereby trapping an air layer between water and surface. As a result the adhesion of the water to the surface is minimised and individual droplets often roll off at very

Visible light photooxidative performance of a high-nuclearity molecular bismuth vanadium oxide cluster

• Johannes Tucher and
• Carsten Streb

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 711–716, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.83

• oxidant. Trapping experiments using ethanol as a hydroxyl radical scavenger show significantly decreased photocatalytic substrate oxidation in the presence of EtOH. Photocatalytic performance analyses using monochromatic visible light irradiation show that the quantum efficiency Φ for indigo

High activity of Ag-doped Cd_0.1Zn_0.9S photocatalyst prepared by the hydrothermal method for hydrogen production under visible-light irradiation

• Leny Yuliati,
• Melody Kimi and
• Mustaffa Shamsuddin

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 587–595, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.69

• was reported to show activity for hydrogen production from water [21] and hydrogen sulfide [22]. On the other hand, the properties of Ag+-doped Cd1−xZnxS have been investigated by spectroscopic and photochemical studies [23]. It was proposed that the Ag+ might act as a hole trapping site. Since the

Photovoltaic properties of ZnO nanorods/p-type Si heterojunction structures

• Rafal Pietruszka,
• Bartlomiej S. Witkowski,
• Grzegorz Luka,
• Lukasz Wachnicki,
• Sylwia Gieraltowska,
• Krzysztof Kopalko,
• Eunika Zielony,
• Piotr Bieganski,
• Ewa Placzek-Popko and
• Marek Godlewski

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 173–179, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.17

• PV efficiency of the obtained hybrid PV cells [43]. However, a detailed explanation of the effect observed in this work will require a further study. Conclusion We investigated PV structures based on zinc oxide nanorods. Their 3D morphology leads to an increased light trapping. ZnONR with different

Large-scale atomistic and quantum-mechanical simulations of a Nafion membrane: Morphology, proton solvation and charge transport

• Pavel V. Komarov,
• Pavel G. Khalatur and
• Alexei R. Khokhlov

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 567–587, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.65

• due to local energy minima trapping, we generated several samples. Each initial configuration was created as a random distribution of Nafion chains, water molecules and hydronium ions. In the initial state we did not build our systems at a density equal to the experimental one. Instead, not to start

3D nano-structures for laser nano-manipulation

• Gediminas Seniutinas,
• Lorenzo Rosa,
• Gediminas Gervinskas,
• Etienne Brasselet and
• Saulius Juodkazis

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 534–541, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.62

• the patterns of such nano-wells was investigated experimentally and numerically. By doing numerical simulations of 50-nm and 100-nm diameter polystyrene beads in water and air, we show the potential of such patterns for self-induced back-action (SIBA) trapping. The best trapping conditions were found

• to be a trapping force of 2 pN/W/μm2 (numerical result) exerted on a 50-nm diameter bead in water. The simulations were based on the analytical Lorentz force model. Keywords: extraordinary transmission; near field; optical tweezing; plasmonics; reactive ion etching; self-induced back-action

• ; Introduction Optical trapping is a fundamental experimental technique for physics and biology, which allows to precisely control and position micrometer-sized objects such as dielectric parts for nano-assembly, and biomaterials such as cells and bacteria, through the use of gradient forces, which originate

Digging gold: keV He⁺ ion interaction with Au

• Vasilisa Veligura,
• Gregor Hlawacek,
• Robin P. Berkelaar,
• Raoul van Gastel,
• Harold J. W. Zandvliet and
• Bene Poelsema

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 453–460, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.53

• trapping in Cu, which has similar physical properties to Au. In this case blistering was observed after a fluence of 4.0 × 1017 cm−2. As is seen from the Figure 5b, there is a negative volume offset, which is attributed to two effects. First, sputtering of the surface will result in material loss. Secondly

Kelvin probe force microscopy of nanocrystalline TiO₂ photoelectrodes

• Alex Henning,
• Gino Günzburger,
• Res Jöhr,
• Yossi Rosenwaks,
• Biljana Bozic-Weber,
• Catherine E. Housecroft,
• Edwin C. Constable,
• Ernst Meyer and
• Thilo Glatzel

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 418–428, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.49

• governed mainly by diffusion and not by drift current (electric field). Preferential trapping of electrons (holes) in defect states of the TiO2 network leads to different diffusion coefficients for electrons and holes. Surface photovoltage under sub-bandgap illumination Figure 6a shows a semilogarithmic

• component of the total recombination time is attributed to an electron diffusion process across the TiO2 network towards the contact, whereas the fast recombination process occurs within single particles [55]. The slow electron diffusion throughout the network is due to trapping and detrapping [46] in

High-resolution electrical and chemical characterization of nm-scale organic and inorganic devices

• Pierre Eyben

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 318–319, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.35

• , threading dislocations, and microtwins that affect the diffusion of dopants and the material mobility (due to scattering). When growth is performed in narrow trenches, dislocations are trapped within the confined volume (aspect-ratio trapping) and, theoretically, defect-free layers can be obtained. However

Near-field effects and energy transfer in hybrid metal-oxide nanostructures

• Ulrich Herr,
• Barat Achinuq,
• Cahit Benel,
• Giorgos Papageorgiou,
• Manuel Goncalves,
• Johannes Boneberg,
• Paul Leiderer,
• Paul Ziemann,
• Peter Marek and
• Horst Hahn

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 306–317, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.34

• the absorption, especially in thin-film structures, as well as the exploitation of field enhancements in the near-field region. Another approach reviewed in [6] for “light trapping” in photovoltaics is the excitation of surface plasmon polaritons at the interface between metals and semiconductors

Micro- and nanoscale electrical characterization of large-area graphene transferred to functional substrates

• Gabriele Fisichella,
• Salvatore Di Franco,
• Patrick Fiorenza,
• Raffaella Lo Nigro,
• Fabrizio Roccaforte,
• Cristina Tudisco,
• Guido G. Condorelli,
• Nicolò Piluso,
• Noemi Spartà,
• Stella Lo Verso,
• Corrado Accardi,
• Cristina Tringali,
• Sebastiano Ravesi and
• Filippo Giannazzo

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 234–242, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.24

• effect due to carrier trapping, and, consequently, an underestimation of the carrier mobility. Furthermore, the presence of charged traps at the graphene/substrate interface strongly affects the mobility in graphene due to Coulomb scattering [11][26], leading to a degradation with respect to the ideal

Photoresponse from single upright-standing ZnO nanorods explored by photoconductive AFM

• Igor Beinik,
• Markus Kratzer,
• Astrid Wachauer,
• Lin Wang,
• Yuri P. Piryatinski,
• Gerhard Brauer,
• Xin Yi Chen,
• Yuk Fan Hsu,
• Aleksandra B. Djurišić and
• Christian Teichert

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 208–217, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.21

• . The surface conductivity of ZnO is highly dependent on the presence of adsorbates [20][21][22][23]. Such surface defects serve as binding sites for chemisorption processes and may contribute to the scattering and trapping of carriers [24], which lower the intrinsic conductivity of the material

• conduction band contributing to the photocurrent. The existence of the PHS state implies also a trapping of the mobile charge carriers in this state. The transition back to the nonconductive state requires a simultaneous thermal activation of the electrons from the PHS state to the conduction band and

Influence of diffusion on space-charge-limited current measurements in organic semiconductors

• Thomas Kirchartz

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 180–188, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.18

• are generally disordered materials, it is important to investigate the effects of energetic disorder on the results of our simulations. In order to take the effect of disorder into account, a multiple trapping model together with exponential band tails is used in some simulations (Figure 3 and Figure

Reduced electron recombination of dye-sensitized solar cells based on TiO₂ spheres consisting of ultrathin nanosheets with [001] facet exposed

• Hongxia Wang,
• Meinan Liu,
• Cheng Yan and
• John Bell

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 378–387, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.44

• dye molecule) excites an electron from the ground state of the dye molecule to its excited state. The electron is then injected to the conduction band of the adjacent TiO2 material, owing to a favorable alignment of the energetics. The electron goes through a series of trapping/detrapping process in

• that mimics the physical process in the device. The equivalent circuit that depicts the process of electron trapping/detrapping in DSCs is shown in Figure 3a. It contains a series resistance, Rs, a capacitance at the Pt electrode/electrolyte interface, CPt, and a resistance for the charge-transfer

Electron-beam patterned self-assembled monolayers as templates for Cu electrodeposition and lift-off

• Zhe She,
• Andrea DiFalco,
• Georg Hähner and
• Manfred Buck

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 101–113, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.11

• the same. The depth between the Cu surface and the copper-free area was 30 nm after lift-off, revealing an incomplete filling of the trench by the glue, which is again likely due to trapping of air. On comparison of the friction images of the Cu structure as deposited and after lift-off (Figures 9b

Femtosecond time-resolved photodissociation dynamics of methyl halide molecules on ultrathin gold films

• Mihai E. Vaida,
• Robert Tchitnga and
• Thorsten M. Bernhardt

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2011, 2, 618–627, doi:10.3762/bjnano.2.65

• photodissociation when the molecules are in contact with the metal substrate [33][34]. In contrast to CH3I, however, the photodissociation of the first monolayer of CH3Br and CH3Cl is easily promoted on the Pt(111) surface through UV irradiation [24][31][35][36]. Trapping of iodine atoms at the surface subsequent

• trapping of the iodine atoms at the surface subsequent to CD3I photodissociation. Consequently, during the laser irradiation of the sample an iodine film (or a gold–iodine layer) might be formed between the Au surface and the subsequently adsorbed CD3I molecules. On this iodine film, the photodissociation