Straight roads into nowhere – obvious and not-so-obvious biological models for ferrophobic surfaces

• Wilfried Konrad,
• Christoph Neinhuis and
• Anita Roth-Nebelsick

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1345–1360, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.111

• shutdowns [17][18][19][20]) and of the facilities for subsequent processing of iron and steel. This results in huge energy losses and economic cost due to additional heating and idle running of the periphery of the blast furnace. To find prospects to reduce such losses, the Betriebsforschungsinstitut at

• Düsseldorf (a research institute of the German steel industry) formed a collaboration with Hundt & Weber at Siegen (a manufacturer of tuyères) and the Institute of Botany of the Technical University of Dresden (C. N. and W. K.). The collaboration formulated the project proposal “Increase of energy efficiency

• of blast furnaces by using novel longlife-tuyères”, which was approved by the German Federal Ministry of Economy and Energy and lasted from February 2015 to July 2018. The concept was to equip the tuyère surface with a structure that mitigates heat input into the tuyère, in order to relieve the

Near-infrared photoactive Ag-Zn-Ga-S-Se quantum dots for high-performance quantum dot-sensitized solar cells

• Roopakala Kottayi,
• Ilangovan Veerappan and
• Ramadasse Sittaramane

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1337–1344, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.110

• of solar cells. In this study, we synthesized Ag-Zn-Ga-S-Se-based alloyed QDs by colloidal hot injection and characterized them. The X-ray photoelectron spectrum analysis confirms the +1, +2, +3, −2, and −2 oxidation states of, respectively, Ag, Zn, Ga, S, and Se in the QDs, and the energy-dispersive

• performance studies. The fabricated QDSC have superior electrochemical activity with a photoconversion efficiency of 4.91%. Keywords: alloyed QDs; photoconversion efficiency; photovoltaic performance; quantum dots; Introduction Human life depends on various forms of energy. Approximately 13 terawatts of

• energy are required to maintain the current lifestyle of the world’s population [1]. Our primary source of clean abundant energy is the sun. The amount of energy received from the sun is about twice of that obtained from all non-renewable resources. Photovoltaic (PV) cells or solar cells are considered a

Recent trends in Bi-based nanomaterials: challenges, fabrication, enhancement techniques, and environmental applications

• Vishal Dutta,
• Ankush Chauhan,
• Ritesh Verma,
• C. Gopalkrishnan and
• Van-Huy Nguyen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1316–1336, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.109

• environmental restoration and energy conversion is photocatalysis powered by solar light. Traditional photocatalysts have limited practical uses due to inadequate light absorption, charge separation, and unknown reaction mechanisms. Discovering new visible-light photocatalysts and investigating their

• control and energy production, but they do not have optimum efficacy. As a result, their photocatalytic effectiveness has been significantly improved in the recent decades. Numerous newly created concepts and methodologies have brought significant progress in defining the fundamental features of

• catalyze chemical processes and transform constantly recoverable solar energy into productive chemical energy [1]. Various semiconductor nanoparticles have been used as effective photocatalysts in essential photocatalytic applications such as wastewater treatment, water dissociation, and energy conversion

Bending and punching characteristics of aluminum sheets using the quasi-continuum method

• Man-Ping Chang,
• Shang-Jui Lin and
• Te-Hua Fang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1303–1315, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.108

• . In order to accurately calculate the energy of the nonuniform deformation region, the EAM is used to calculate the interaction of the nonlocal atoms [55]. Moreover, to avoid repeated calculations at the coupled regions, the QC method performs continuous coupled calculations to modify the ghost force

• increased with an increase of the taper angle. When the taper angle increases, the contact area between the punch and the workpiece is decreased, and a higher internal energy is stored in the atoms, resulting in a higher fracture strength [63]. Figure 14 shows the shear stress distribution of various taper

Growing up in a rough world: scaling of frictional adhesion and morphology of the Tokay gecko (Gekko gecko)

• Anthony J. Cobos and
• Timothy E. Higham

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1292–1302, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.107

• and the adhesion energy between a sphere and the surface. More recent studies use the JKR model to determine the role of setal density in adhesion from insects to geckos [5]. Despite many advancements in our understanding of adhesion across organisms, few studies have incorporated ecologically

• adhesive pads is the contact area between the setae and the surface. With increasingly rough surfaces, the area for contact decreases, leading to decreased adhesive performance. In a modeling framework, the force of adhesion can be related to surface energy of the substrate, the area of the adhering pad

Enhanced electronic transport properties of Te roll-like nanostructures

• E. R. Viana,
• N. Cifuentes and
• J. C. González

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1284–1291, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.106

• cm2/Vs at 5 K. The thermal ionization of shallow acceptors, with small ionization energy between 2 and 4 meV, leads to free-hole conduction at high temperatures. The free-hole mobility follows a negative power-law temperature behavior, with an exponent between −1.28 and −1.42, indicating strong phonon

• scattering in this temperature range. At lower temperatures, the electronic conduction is dominated by nearest-neighbor hopping (NNH) conduction in the acceptor band, with a small activation energy ENNH ≈ 0.6 meV and an acceptor concentration of NA ≈ 1 × 1016 cm−3. These results demonstrate the enhanced

• under mild conditions. A large quantity of these polycrystalline nanostructures with a diameter between 100 and 900 nm and a wall thickness around 50 nm were synthesized and characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), transmission electron microscopy

Laser-processed antiadhesive bionic combs for handling nanofibers inspired by nanostructures on the legs of cribellate spiders

• Sebastian Lifka,
• Kristóf Harsányi,
• Erich Baumgartner,
• Lukas Pichler,
• Dariya Baiko,
• Karsten Wasmuth,
• Johannes Heitz,
• Marco Meyer,
• Anna-Christin Joel,
• Jörn Bonse and
• Werner Baumgartner

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1268–1283, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.105

• because nanofibers strongly adhere to any surface due to van der Waals forces [9]. For a cylindrical fiber with radius R interacting with the plane surface of a semi-infinite body, the energy per unit length due to van der Waals interaction is given as [9]: with the Hamaker constant AH, which is according

• to [9]: Here, the mass densities (ρ1 and ρ2) of the interacting bodies and the London coefficient c, which describes the particle–particle interaction, are multiplied. The van der Waals energy UvdW of the fiber obtained due to the interaction is the integral of the above interaction function µ over

• quite significantly from spider silk fibers regarding diameter and material properties (e.g., Young’s modulus). In this work, we present a theoretical model of the interaction of nanofibers with a sinusoidal surface based on an energy approach. This model allows for a prediction of the adhesive

Studies of probe tip materials by atomic force microscopy: a review

• Ke Xu and
• Yuzhe Liu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1256–1267, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.104

• nanoclusters while their fluorescence quantum yields and stability are improved to a larger extent. Gold-silver bimetallic nanoclusters (AuAgNCs) exhibit enhanced luminescence efficiency and photostability due to Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) and synergistic effects. Zhang et al. [27] synthesized

• chloramphenicol based on a vesicular quantum dot-gold colloid composite probe. They successfully developed a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) based on chloramphenicol (CAP) detection in food. Vesicular nano tracers were prepared by labeling single-stranded DNA-binding proteins on single-stranded

• current research in AFM technology. Therefore, in the field of AFM probes in the future, ultra-fine ultra-tip and ultra-long-life probes may be developed to improve the resolution and lifetime of electrical and magnetic energy probes. The nanosizing of probes, especially the modification of carbon

Role of titanium and organic precursors in molecular layer deposition of “titanicone” hybrid materials

• Arbresha Muriqi and
• Michael Nolan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1240–1255, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.103

• inorganic films used extensively in photovoltaics, (nano)electronics, energy storage and catalysis [5][6][7][8]. Similarly to ALD, MLD is based on sequential self-limiting reactions of readily vaporized inorganic precursors but the second reactant is a highly volatile organic species. Thus, in contrast to

• with Ti–N bonds. Bond dissociation energy values for the breakage of the Ti–Cl and Ti–N bonds serve as a measure of the stability of these precursors and these are 494 kJ/mol and 464 kJ/mol for Ti–Cl and Ti–N, respectively. Bond dissociation energies indicate that a lower energy is needed to break the

• : 3s²3p⁵, C: 2s22p2 and H: 1s1. Calculations were performed using the Perdew–Burke–Ernzerhof (PBE) exchange–correlation functional [53]. The employed convergence criterion for the energy was 1 × 10−4 eV while that for the forces was −2 × 10−2 eV/Å. The geometry was optimized by relaxing the ionic

Roll-to-roll fabrication of superhydrophobic pads covered with nanofur for the efficient clean-up of oil spills

• Patrick Weiser,
• Robin Kietz,
• Marc Schneider,
• Matthias Worgull and
• Hendrik Hölscher

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1228–1239, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.102

• unwanted dirt [5][6]. The lotus effect is commonly achieved by hierarchical nano- and micro-structuring of surfaces made from materials with low surface energy leading to very high contact angles (above 150°). This strategy is inspired by the lotus leaf [1] but can be found on many other surfaces in nature

A super-oscillatory step-zoom metalens for visible light

• Yi Zhou,
• Chao Yan,
• Peng Tian,
• Zhu Li,
• Yu He,
• Bin Fan,
• Zhiyong Wang,
• Yao Deng and
• Dongliang Tang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1220–1227, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.101

• than of the long focal length, which corresponds well with the traditional geometric optical theory. It should be noted that the low focusing efficiency of the SSL arises from the redistribution of the optical field energy. This is a typical feature of the optical super-oscillation phenomenon in which

• the main lobe of the super-diffraction spot is often surrounded by some sidelobes with considerable intensity, leading to the unavoidable energy loss. Discussion For simplification, we did not take into consideration the influence of factors such as the amplitude and phase modulation deviation of the

Design of surface nanostructures for chirality sensing based on quartz crystal microbalance

• Yinglin Ma,
• Xiangyun Xiao and
• Qingmin Ji

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1201–1219, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.100

• higher interaction energy for the host–guest complexes to discriminate the enantiomers in the inclusion process [66]. Fietzek et al. measured the selective adsorption of chiral limonene in three different β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) derivatives by QCM and artificial neural networks (ANN) to evaluate the chiral

• that metal surfaces may be an ideal platform to study the dynamic chiral recognition process. The adsorption orientations of the two enantiomers may have clear differences on the chiral metal surface, which makes the binding energy of enantiomers different on the crystalline surface. Dong and Wang et

Application of nanoarchitectonics in moist-electric generation

• Jia-Cheng Feng and
• Hong Xia

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1185–1200, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.99

• Jia-Cheng Feng Hong Xia State Key Laboratory on Integrated Optoelectronics, College of Electronic Science and Engineering, Jilin University, 2699 Qianjin Street, Changchun130012, China 10.3762/bjnano.13.99 Abstract The consumption of energy is an important resource that cannot be ignored in

• modern society. Non-renewable forms of energy, such as coal, natural gas, and oil, have always been important strategic resources and are always facing a crisis of shortage. Therefore, there is an urgent need for green renewable forms of energy. As an emerging green energy source, the moist-electric

• generator (MEG) has been studied in recent years and may become an energy source that can be utilized in daily life. Along with the advancement of technological means, nanoarchitectonics play an important role in MEG devices. This review aims to provide a comprehensive summary of the fundamentals of the MEG

Microneedle-based ocular drug delivery systems – recent advances and challenges

• Piotr Gadziński,
• Anna Froelich,
• Monika Wojtyłko,
• Antoni Białek,
• Julia Krysztofiak and
• Tomasz Osmałek

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1167–1184, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.98

• plate where it quickly solidifies [151]. In the microstereolithographic method, a prepared polymer or a mixture of polymers undergoes polymerization under the influence of a high-energy light source (e.g., UV radiation) [150]. Digital light processing (DLP) is also a technology based on

Nonlinear features of the superconductor–ferromagnet–superconductor φ₀ Josephson junction in the ferromagnetic resonance region

• Aliasghar Janalizadeh,
• Ilhom R. Rahmonov,
• Sara A. Abdelmoneim,
• Yury M. Shukrinov and
• Mohammad R. Kolahchi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1155–1166, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.97

• characteristics of a φ0 Josephson junction in the ferromagnetic resonance region. We show that at small values of the system parameters damping, spin–orbit interaction, and Josephson-to-magnetic energy ratio, the magnetic dynamics is reduced to the dynamics of a scalar Duffing oscillator driven by the Josephson

• system of equations in the weak coupling regime was demonstrated recently in [14]. We showed that, in this regime where the Josephson energy is small compared to the magnetic energy, the φ0 Josephson junction is equivalently described by a scalar nonlinear Duffing equation. An anomalous dependence of the

• simulations. The role of the DC superconducting current and the state with negative differential resistance (NDR) in the I–V characteristics were not clarified. Also, the effects of the Josephson-to-magnetic energy ratio and the spin–orbit coupling (SOC) were not investigated at that time. In the present

Rapid fabrication of MgO@g-C₃N₄ heterojunctions for photocatalytic nitric oxide removal

• Minh-Thuan Pham,
• Duyen P. H. Tran,
• Xuan-Thanh Bui and
• Sheng-Jie You

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1141–1154, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.96

• oxide with wide bandgap (3.5–5 eV), high availability, non-toxicity, low cost, and native structural defects [18][19]. The large bandgap energy is the limitation of MgO, reducing the photocatalytic performance and applicability of MgO [20]. Various efforts have been made to enhance the absorption in the

• −1), and M is the molecular weight of NO (g·mol−1). The photon flux in the photocatalytic experiment is 2.72·1019 cm−2·min−1, the irradiation area for the 12 cm diameter petri dish is 113.1 cm2. In addition, the bandgap energy of materials was calculated by using the Tauc and the Kubelka–Munk

• equation as described in Equations 5–7 [43]: where E is the photon energy (eV), h is Planck’s constant (4.132·10−15 eV·s), ν is the photon frequency (s−1), c is the velocity of light (nm·s−1), λ is the wavelength (nm), α is the absorption coefficient, B is a constant, and Eg is the bandgap energy (eV), R

A cantilever-based, ultrahigh-vacuum, low-temperature scanning probe instrument for multidimensional scanning force microscopy

• Hao Liu,
• Zuned Ahmed,
• Sasa Vranjkovic,
• Manfred Parschau,
• Andrada-Oana Mandru and
• Hans J. Hug

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1120–1140, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.95

• at a reasonably high resonance (several tens or hundreds of kilohertz) is best obtained with microfabricated thin cantilevers. A low cantilever thickness is further beneficial for the support loss quality factor (which is one of the relevant energy loss terms describing different mechanisms

• responsible for the loss of energy from a specific cantilever oscillation mode), because Qsupport ∝ 1/t3 [62]. The measurement of magnetic, electric, or van der Waals forces is, thus, best done with thin cantilevers. These cantilevers typically have resonance frequencies of a few tens of kilohertz (comparable

• attractive force gradient acting on the cantilever to prevent a snap to contact. Alternatively, such a snap-to-contact can also be prevented by a sufficiently large cantilever oscillation amplitude, such that the restoring force surpasses the maximum attractive force (Equation 10). Further, sufficient energy

Green synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles toward highly efficient photocatalysis and antibacterial application

• Vo Thi Thu Nhu,
• Nguyen Duy Dat,
• Le-Minh Tam and
• Nguyen Hoang Phuong

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1108–1119, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.94

• approach for the complete removal of organic pollutants due to their advantages. Semiconductors can act as catalysts for the complete degradation of organic substances when excited by light with an energy value higher than their bandgap. Among many semiconductors, TiO2 and ZnO are widely used as

• photocatalysts. ZnO has a higher quantum efficiency than that of TiO2 since it absorbs more energy in the UV region [4][5][6][7]. Furthermore, ZnO is a low-cost photocatalyst with high photocatalytic activity, nontoxicity, light sensitivity, and stability [8][9][10]. The photodegradation of organic substances by

• the use of ZnO catalysts occurs when ZnO is illuminated by light. When excited by light with an energy greater than the bandgap of ZnO, electrons from the valence band (VB) are excited to the conduction band (CB) to form photogenerated electrons in the CB and photogenerated holes in the VB [11][12

Recent advances in green carbon dots (2015–2022): synthesis, metal ion sensing, and biological applications

• Aisha Kanwal,
• Naheed Bibi,
• Sajjad Hyder,
• Arif Muhammad,
• Hao Ren,
• Jiangtao Liu and
• Zhongli Lei

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1068–1107, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.93

• synthesis of carbon dots Green synthesis of CDs mainly utilizes biomass. Biomass synthesis makes use of natural raw materials (organisms, waste material, protein products, or natural polymers), instead of reaction precursors usually used in the traditional methods, and also requires external energy supply

• groups, such as carbonyl and carboxylic groups, can produce their own energy levels. Hence, there will be a variety of routes for electrons to move from the excited state to the ground state of photon emission. Numerous functional groups can be found on the surface of CDs at low temperatures, but at high

• and were investigated to be used as a nanoscale thermometer for determining the intracellular temperature [16]. Numerous research groups have been actively examining co-doped N,S-CDs. Because the sulfur atom can supply energy or emissive trap states for photostimulated electron capture, which alters

Spindle-like MIL101(Fe) decorated with Bi₂O₃ nanoparticles for enhanced degradation of chlortetracycline under visible-light irradiation

• Chen-chen Hao,
• Fang-yan Chen,
• Kun Bian,
• Yu-bin Tang and
• Wei-long Shi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1038–1050, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.91

• BOM-20 composites. In the high-resolution spectrum of Fe 2p (Figure 4b), peaks at 725.2 and 711.4 eV are ascribed to Fe 2p1/2 and 2p3/2, respectively, implying the existence of Fe–O bonds [37]. The difference of binding energy between these two peaks is 13.9 eV, suggesting the presence of Fe3+ in BOM

• -20 [56]. Furthermore, the satellite peak of Fe(III) at 714.5 eV is observed, further indicating the presence of Fe3+ in BOM-20 [38]. However, the characteristic peak at 714.5 eV of Fe3+ in the BOM-20 composite was shifted toward lower binding energy relative to MIL101(Fe) (717.1eV), indicating an

• holes. The bandgap (Eg) of a semiconductor is usually estimated by the Tauc formula (αhν) = A(hv − Eg)n/2, where α is the absorbance, hν is the photon energy, A is a constant, Eg is the bandgap , and n is a constant. For Bi2O3 and MIL101(Fe), as direct bandgap semiconductors, the value of n is 1 [58

Electrocatalytic oxygen reduction activity of AgCoCu oxides on reduced graphene oxide in alkaline media

• Iyyappan Madakannu,
• Indrajit Patil,
• Bhalchandra Kakade and
• Kasibhatta Kumara Ramanatha Datta

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1020–1029, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.89

• ; microwave synthesis; oxygen electroreduction; reduced graphene oxide; silver NPs; Introduction Fuel cells and rechargeable metal–air batteries have become an integral part of the renewable energy system because of their superior efficiency, high power density, and reliability. Also, they are

• environmentally friendly with zero emissions at the time of use. These systems have the ability to convert chemical energy into electric energy with the highest conversion possible [1][2]. The active electrode reactions include the hydrogen oxidation reaction (HOR) and the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). The

• -workers reported the ORR activity of Ag–Co NPs dispersed on Vulcan XC72 carbon by incipient-wetness impregnation [22]. In general, the addition of a third metal to a bimetallic composition is considered to be an effective method to augment the absorption energy and improve the kinetics of the ORR [23]. Gu

Numerical study on all-optical modulation characteristics of quantum cascade lasers

• Biao Wei,
• Haijun Zhou,
• Guangxiang Li and
• Bin Tang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1011–1019, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.88

• output characteristics of QCLs. In all-optical modulation, light directly illuminates the facet of the active region of the QCL. Injection of a large amount of energy will inevitably change the original energy balance and carrier distribution and, of course, generate heat. The injected light will excite

• noting that, when the wavelength of the modulating light is close to the band gap of the active region of the QCL, most of the injected light energy excites the electrons in the valence band to transition to the conduction band and then to the upper laser subband, thereby increasing the power of the

• modulating light. However, with a decrease in the modulated laser wavelength, its energy becomes greater than the band gap between the valence band and the lower laser subband of the conduction band of the QCL active region, with the excess energy exciting the electrons to a higher energy level or high

Effects of focused electron beam irradiation parameters on direct nanostructure formation on Ag surfaces

• Jānis Sniķeris,
• Vjačeslavs Gerbreders,
• Andrejs Bulanovs and
• Ēriks Sļedevskis

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1004–1010, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.87

• energy required to break atomic bonds in hydrocarbons can be quite low (less than 5 eV) [19]. Therefore, even low-energy secondary electrons (SE), which are released from the surface around the point of impact of the EB, are capable of dissociating hydrocarbon molecules. Secondary electrons are usually

• emitted from an area much larger than the size of EB. The size of this area and the amount and energy of emitted SE depend on several factors, including the energy, current, and angle of incidence of the EB, as well as the material and thickness of the target [20][21]. The formation of carbon layers is a

• material greatly affects the growth rate of the nanowires, with the Cu surface providing the fastest growth. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) revealed the presence of both carbon and substrate materials in the nanowires. The effect of substrate material on nanowire growth rate could be attributed

Influence of water contamination on the sputtering of silicon with low-energy argon ions investigated by molecular dynamics simulations

• Grégoire R. N. Defoort-Levkov,
• Alan Bahm and
• Patrick Philipp

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 986–1003, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.86

• sputtered largely depends on the incidence angle. This fraction is the largest for incidence angles between 70 and 80° defined with respect to the sample surface. Overall, it changes from 25% to 65%. Keywords: angle dependency; argon ions; contamination; focused ion beams; ion bombardment; low energy

• . Depending on the application, the ion beam energy is in the range of 10 to 30 keV when small spot sizes are required (i.e., spot sizes in the nanometre range) and at a few keV or even in the sub-keV range when low surface damage or minimized atomic mixing is required. One example is low-energy depth

• milling is essential because most samples analysed in high-precision instruments are prepared using this method. This can be best achieved using low-beam energies, ideally in the sub-keV range [18], since low-energy ion beams (under 500 eV) produce a thinner amorphous layer due to their lower penetration

Theoretical investigations of oxygen vacancy effects in nickel-doped zirconia from ab initio XANES spectroscopy at the oxygen K-edge

• Dick Hartmann Douma,
• Lodvert Tchibota Poaty,
• Alessio Lamperti,
• Stéphane Kenmoe,
• Abdulrafiu Tunde Raji,
• Alberto Debernardi and
• Bernard M’Passi-Mabiala

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 975–985, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.85

• electric dipolar selection rule Δl = ±1, and also to the stereochemical arrangement of neighbors around the absorbing atom. By tuning the incident photon energy to the X-ray edge energy of the target atom, it is possible to determine the coordination environment, bonding characteristics, as well as spin

• , the covalency of the metal–ligand bonds, and the change in the metal oxidation state. The latter may lead to distinct changes in the spectral shape and incident energy [30][31]. For high-spin transition metals, for instance, it has been established that the L2,3-edge spectrum shifts to higher energies

• structure. The fluorite structure is not stable under ambient conditions and, thus, zirconia is usually found in the monoclinic phase. The cubic distorted fluorite structure may however be stabilized by a doping or by deposition as a thin film (because the surface energy of the cubic structure is lower than