Cantilever signature of tip detachment during contact resonance AFM

• Devin Kalafut,
• Ryan Wagner,
• Maria Jose Cadena,
• Anil Bajaj and
• Arvind Raman

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 1286–1296, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.96

• probe a sample surface, as shown in Figure 5a. Measurements were conducted using a Cypher S AFM microscope (Asylum Research, an Oxford Instruments Company, Santa Barbara, CA, USA) with a NCLAu AFM cantilever (NANOSENSORS, Neuchatel, Switzerland) on a silicon sample. This AFM system is equipped with

• Asylum Research’s blueDrive photothermal excitation module for laser-based excitation of the cantilever. The optical lever sensitivity (OLS) corresponding to the static cantilever beam shape with a point load at the tip was calculated from a force displacement curve [32] on the silicon sample. The

• signature are provided in Supporting Information File 1. These were performed using the same Cypher S AFM microscope with an ACLA AFM cantilever (Applied NanoStructures, Inc., Mountain View, CA, USA) on a silicon sample, but driven by a piezoelectric actuator under the sample instead of via photothermal

Enhancement of the piezoelectric coefficient in PVDF-TrFe/CoFe₂O₄ nanocomposites through DC magnetic poling

• Marco Fortunato,
• Alessio Tamburrano,
• Maria Paola Bracciale,
• Maria Laura Santarelli and
• Maria Sabrina Sarto

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 1262–1270, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.93

• through PFM [1][5][27] using a commercial Bruker-Veeco Dimension Icon AFM with a Co/Cr-coated-tip silicon cantilever (MESP-RC-V2, Bruker). Following the procedure described in [2][3], we scanned three different areas, 5 × 5 μm2 in size, of each sample, with 256 × 256 acquisition points per scanning area

A review on slip boundary conditions at the nanoscale: recent development and applications

• Ruifei Wang,
• Jin Chai,
• Bobo Luo,
• Xiong Liu,
• Jianting Zhang,
• Min Wu,
• Mingdan Wei and
• Zhuanyue Ma

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 1237–1251, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.91

• ]. Furthermore, Rezaei et al. performed MD simulations to study the electro-osmotic flow of an aqueous NaCl solution on a charged silicon surface [23], and similar conclusions as the ones proposed by Joly et al. were drawn in terms of the relationship between slip length and surface charge density. On the other

Morphology-driven gas sensing by fabricated fractals: A review

• Vishal Kamathe and
• Rupali Nagar

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 1187–1208, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.88

• sample, exhibiting a combination of hillocks and pores, showed the maximum sensitivity (S = 0.29) towards NO2. Another study reported dendritic nanowires (DNWs) of SnO2 on a gold-coated silicon substrate for NO2 sensing [66]. The samples were prepared by evaporation–condensation. Figure 6a and Figure 6b

• . Gracheva and co-workers prepared gas-sensitive fractal structures based on SnO2 and silicon dioxide (SiO2) by a sol–gel technique [57][69][70]. The evolution of fractal aggregates of tin and silicon dioxides resulted in the formation of spherical, labyrinth, and percolation network structures. The

The effect of cobalt on morphology, structure, and ORR activity of electrospun carbon fibre mats in aqueous alkaline environments

• Markus Gehring,
• Tobias Kutsch,
• Osmane Camara,
• Alexandre Merlen,
• Hermann Tempel,
• Hans Kungl and
• Rüdiger-A. Eichel

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 1173–1186, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.87

• , especially the lithium and silicon systems, on account of their different mechanism involving the cathode as an explicit reaction site of the metal redox chemistry [7][8][9]. From a scientific point of view, in aqueous systems, an air electrode needs to allow gas to diffuse in appropriate amounts towards the

• , samples of 1 cm2 were cut from the fibre mats and fixed on a silicon crystal in a rotating sample holder. The scan range was limited to 10° to 80°, scanned with a step width of 0.01°. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was performed with a Phi5000 VersaProbe II (ULVAC-Phi Inc., USA). Spectra were

An overview of microneedle applications, materials, and fabrication methods

• Zahra Faraji Rad,
• Philip D. Prewett and
• Graham J. Davies

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 1034–1046, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.77

• feature sizes are fabricated using the tools of the microelectronics industry from metals, silicon, and polymers. Various types of subtractive and additive manufacturing processes have been used to manufacture microneedles, but the development of microneedle-based systems using conventional subtractive

• example using porous silicon, is one possible solution [39][40][41]. However, a hydrogel reservoir which could be much larger than the microneedle array seems a better option, since it can swell to achieve greater load which can be released under finger pressure in combination with microfluidic

• is not limited to biological fluid extraction or vaccine and drug delivery. For example, silicon microneedles with heights of 320 and 400 µm were fabricated for in vivo human gene therapy [35]. Microneedles have also been used for treatment of hypertension in hemodynamic and cardiovascular disorders

Revealing the formation mechanism and band gap tuning of Sb₂S₃ nanoparticles

• Maximilian Joschko,
• Franck Yvan Fotue Wafo,
• Christina Malsi,
• Danilo Kisić,
• Ivana Validžić and
• Christina Graf

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 1021–1033, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.76

• , Abulikemu et al. reported a value of 2.15 eV, while Wang et al. reported 2.02 eV for nanoparticles received from a hot-injection synthesis using different solvents [17][19]. Variation in band gap values is also known to occur in other amorphous semiconductors, e.g., amorphous, hydrogenated silicon. This was

Progress and innovation of nanostructured sulfur cathodes and metal-free anodes for room-temperature Na–S batteries

• Marina Tabuyo-Martínez,
• Bernd Wicklein and
• Pilar Aranda

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 995–1020, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.75

• anode delivered 625 mAh·g−1 [26]. Also, silicon itself is also another promising material for sodium alloy anodes as its theoretical Na storage capacity of 954 mAh·g−1 (NaSi phase) even exceeds the one of tin (847 mAh·g−1) [26]. The low electrochemical reactivity and structural stability of crystalline

• bulk silicon during sodiation can be overcome by hybridation of nanosized Si with carbon fibers, after which Zhang et al. measured 200 mAh·g−1 after 2000 cycles [83]. The investigation into phosphorous as anode material for SiBs is motivated by the highest capacity value of P (2596 mAh·g−1), which is

Is the Ne operation of the helium ion microscope suitable for electron backscatter diffraction sample preparation?

• Annalena Wolff

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 965–983, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.73

Molecular assemblies on surfaces: towards physical and electronic decoupling of organic molecules

• Sabine Maier and
• Meike Stöhr

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 950–956, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.71

• ][30][31][32]. Additional concepts to weaken adsorbate–surface interactions involve the post-deposition intercalation of atomic species such as iodine [33]. For semiconductors, for example, bare silicon or germanium, electronic decoupling of molecules can be achieved by either the growth of ultrathin

• ][37][38][39], while also B deposition was shown to result in effective passivation of the Si surface [40][41]. In particular for electronic devices, oxidized semiconductor surfaces (e.g., silicon dioxide layers formed on bare silicon) are mostly used as substrates for fabricating devices [42]. Most of

Self-assembly of Eucalyptus gunnii wax tubules and pure ß-diketone on HOPG and glass

• Miriam Anna Huth,
• Axel Huth and
• Kerstin Koch

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 939–949, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.70

• formation on polar and non-polar substrates was also carried out for nonacosanol tubules [27]. In that study it was shown that the polarity of the substrate had an influence on the formation and the orientation of the tubules: On polar silicon wafers, randomly orientated tubules grew on top of thick crusts

Modification of a SERS-active Ag surface to promote adsorption of charged analytes: effect of Cu²⁺ ions

• Bahdan V. Ranishenka,
• Andrei Yu. Panarin,
• Irina A. Chelnokova,
• Sergei N. Terekhov,
• Peter Mojzes and
• Vadim V. Shmanai

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 902–912, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.67

• were analyzed from SEM and TEM images. To achieve a better resolution during SEM, we utilized a conductive silicon support and excluded the metal coating of the sample; Ag NPs were placed on the silicon surface by adsorptive immobilization to avoid aggregation during solvent evaporation. Figure 1 shows

• surface coverage of the glass SERS substrates, we used SEM images of the PEI-modified silicon support with analogous NP treatment supposing equal packing density (Figure 3). The surface coverage degree obtained was 58%, that is, 74% of the theoretical value for spherical particles with equal sizes and

• silicon surface functionalization Standard optical microscope glass slides of 1.0 mm thickness were used as base substrates. As a silicon support, 5 mm square-shaped polished chips of Sb-doped electrically conductive silicon were used. The modification was performed in a similar way as described in [36

Silver nanoparticles nucleated in NaOH-treated halloysite: a potential antimicrobial material

• Yuri B. Matos,
• Rodrigo S. Romanus,
• Mattheus Torquato,
• Edgar H. de Souza,
• Rodrigo L. Villanova,
• Marlene Soares and
• Emilson R. Viana

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 798–807, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.63

• seen in HNT-8 TEM image (Figure 4d). It is known that the initial nanotubular morphology of HNT is a consequence of internal torque in the crystalline structure of the clay [25]. This torque arises from the fact that, while the silicon and aluminol phases of HNT share apical oxygen atoms, the “natural

Reducing molecular simulation time for AFM images based on super-resolution methods

• Zhipeng Dou,
• Jianqiang Qian,
• Yingzi Li,
• Rui Lin,
• Jianhai Wang,
• Peng Cheng and
• Zeyu Xu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 775–785, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.61

• are key tools for nanoscale imaging and characterization with unparalleled resolution [1]. The first atomic-resolution image by AFM of the (001) surface of NaCl was reported in ultrahigh vacuum [2]. Later, in noncontact mode, the reconstructed silicon (111)-(7×7) surface was imaged with 6 Å lateral

• carried out. The simulation protocol for computing tip–sample interactions is similar to our previous work [54]. In the simulations, the tip consists of silicon atoms and it changes among different shapes, including cone, hemisphere, and single silicon atom. The conical tip height is 13 Å, the opening

9.1% efficient zinc oxide/silicon solar cells on a 50 μm thick Si absorber

• Rafal Pietruszka,
• Bartlomiej S. Witkowski,
• Monika Ozga,
• Katarzyna Gwozdz,
• Ewa Placzek-Popko and
• Marek Godlewski

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 766–774, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.60

• University of Science and Technology, Wybrzeze Wyspianskiego 27, 50-370 Wroclaw, Poland 10.3762/bjnano.12.60 Abstract Today, silicon solar cells (amorphous films and wafer-based) are a main source of green energy. These cells and their components are produced by employing various technologies. Unfortunately

• using zinc oxide nanorods. The efficiency of a textured solar cell structure is compared with the one obtained for a planar zinc oxide/silicon structure. The present results show the possibility to produce efficient solar cells on a relatively thin 50 μm thick silicon substrate. Solar cells with

• % for planar structures, respectively. The work, therefore, describes an environmentally friendly technology for PV architecture with surface textures increasing the efficiency of PV cells. Keywords: atomic layer deposition; hydrothermal method; photovoltaics; silicon; solar cell; zinc oxide

Recent progress in actuation technologies of micro/nanorobots

• Ke Xu and
• Bing Liu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 756–765, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.59

• controlled, so as to make the robot move along the surface of a graphene film in a desired trajectory. This study provided a lot of useful insight in the design of nanorobots. In the future, such designed nanorobots could be integrated into a silicon-based chip to perform specific actions. Also they could be

• in future research. Miskin et al. [33] researched a new type of electrochemical actuator, which is compatible with existing silicon electronic devices, has a controllable voltage, and can wake up a robot to move. For a long time, the lack of micro/nanoscale actuators has limited the development of

Electromigration-induced formation of percolating adsorbate islands during condensation from the gaseous phase: a computational study

• Alina V. Dvornichenko,
• Vasyl O. Kharchenko and
• Dmitrii O. Kharchenko

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 694–703, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.55

• observed on silicon substrates [12][13]. Strong effects of EM were manifested in the processes of evolution of vanadium surface morphology [14], and in the epitaxial growth of semiconductor heterostructures [15]. It was found that at low deposition temperatures the growth of surface structures occurs

A review of defect engineering, ion implantation, and nanofabrication using the helium ion microscope

• Frances I. Allen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 633–664, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.52

• interaction volume and resulting modification of the sample for helium ions impinging on bulk silicon and copper targets providing key insights into the beam–sample interaction [16]. Dose series were conducted and the interaction volumes directly visualized by preparing cross sections by gallium focused ion

• . Conversely, helium ion irradiation of another material, silicon nitride, in the HIM was found to reduce its fluorescence [60]. This was attributed to ion beam-induced disruption of the optically active defects present in the material. In the cited work, the effect was used to locally reduce the fluorescence

• of patches of a silicon nitride membrane that were subsequently perforated by helium ion beam milling to create solid-state nanopores for biomolecule detection. Following this approach, a low fluorescence background was achieved, facilitating the translocation detection of fluorescently labeled

Impact of GaAs(100) surface preparation on EQE of AZO/Al₂O₃/p-GaAs photovoltaic structures

• Piotr Caban,
• Rafał Pietruszka,
• Jarosław Kaszewski,
• Monika Ożga,
• Bartłomiej S. Witkowski,
• Krzysztof Kopalko,
• Piotr Kuźmiuk,
• Katarzyna Gwóźdź,
• Ewa Płaczek-Popko,
• Krystyna Lawniczak-Jablonska and
• Marek Godlewski

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 578–592, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.48

• ; gallium arsenide; photovoltaics; surface passivation; Introduction The atomic layer deposition (ALD) method is used for silicon passivation in photovoltaics. In recent years we proposed the usage of ALD for the construction of simplified Si-based cells [1]. Once zinc oxide (ZnO) nanorods were employed as

Properties of graphene deposited on GaN nanowires: influence of nanowire roughness, self-induced nanogating and defects

• Jakub Kierdaszuk,
• Piotr Kaźmierczak,
• Justyna Grzonka,
• Aleksandra Krajewska,
• Aleksandra Przewłoka,
• Wawrzyniec Kaszub,
• Zbigniew R. Zytkiewicz,
• Marta Sobanska,
• Maria Kamińska,
• Andrzej Wysmołek and
• Aneta Drabińska

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 566–577, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.47

• and adjacent layers should be studied. It is well established already that graphene grown on silicon carbide is less strained on substrate terraces than on terrace edges, while electron concentration on the edges is lower than that on terraces [4]. This example shows that fluctuations of substrate

• , studies of graphene on NWs with different densities and variations in height might give information about the role of supporting points on graphene properties. For example, the analysis of graphene deposited on uniformly distributed silicon nanopillars showed the dependence of graphene strain on the

• ) silicon substrates [33]. The application of different growth temperatures and growth times allowed to obtain nanowires with different variations in height [34]. In our experiment, we used three samples differing in NW substrate height and density. The samples were named N (from NWs) with the addition of a

On the stability of microwave-fabricated SERS substrates – chemical and morphological considerations

• Limin Wang,
• Aisha Adebola Womiloju,
• Christiane Höppener,
• Ulrich S. Schubert and
• Stephanie Hoeppener

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 541–551, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.44

• drop-coating and self-assembly procedures [20][21][22]. Alternatively, monolayers of nanoparticles can be formed directly on substrates by a microwave-assisted one-step fabrication process [23][24] on glass and silicon-based substrates with different shapes (e.g., on flat substrates as well as inside

Determining amplitude and tilt of a lateral force microscopy sensor

• Oliver Gretz,
• Alfred J. Weymouth,
• Thomas Holzmann,
• Korbinian Pürckhauer and
• Franz J. Giessibl

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 517–524, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.42

• setup) or biaxial AFM with normal force detection is required. Experimentally, there are several methods for performing frequency-modulation lateral force microscopy, what we refer to as LFM in this manuscript. In 2002, Pfeiffer and co-workers excited a silicon cantilever in the first torsional mode [4

Reconstruction of a 2D layer of KBr on Ir(111) and electromechanical alteration by graphene

• Zhao Liu,
• Antoine Hinaut,
• Stefan Peeters,
• Sebastian Scherb,
• Ernst Meyer,
• Maria Clelia Righi and
• Thilo Glatzel

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 432–439, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.35

• K). Atomic force microscopy Experiments were performed by using a custom-built UHV AFM microscope operating at room temperature and a base pressure of 5 × 10−11 mbar. All images were scanned with silicon cantilevers equipped with sharp tips (PPP-NCL, Nanosensors) running in noncontact AFM mode with

Solution combustion synthesis of a nanometer-scale Co₃O₄ anode material for Li-ion batteries

• Monika Michalska,
• Huajun Xu,
• Qingmin Shan,
• Shiqiang Zhang,
• Yohan Dall'Agnese,
• Yu Gao,
• Amrita Jain and
• Marcin Krajewski

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 424–431, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.34

• sites). Crystalline Co3O4 exhibits the space group Fd3m (227) [5]. It also can reversibly store eight lithium ions according to the following conversion reaction: This redox reaction corresponds to a theoretical capacity of about 890 mAh·g−1 [1][2][3][4]. However, similarly to silicon and tin materials

A stretchable triboelectric nanogenerator made of silver-coated glass microspheres for human motion energy harvesting and self-powered sensing applications

• Hui Li,
• Yaju Zhang,
• Yonghui Wu,
• Hui Zhao,
• Weichao Wang,
• Xu He and
• Haiwu Zheng

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 402–412, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.32

• Hui Li Yaju Zhang Yonghui Wu Hui Zhao Weichao Wang Xu He Haiwu Zheng School of Physics and Electronics, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China School of Mechanical and Automotive Engineering, Henan Key Laboratory for Advanced Silicon Carbide Materials, Kaifeng University, Kaifeng, 475004, China

• frictional layer and silicon rubber are separating (Figure 2a-III), the negative charges on the silicone rubber surface drive the electrons of the SCGMs to flow to ground, generating a reverse triboelectric potential. When frictional layer and silicone rubber are entirely separated, the electrostatic

• the silicon rubber can be controlled. The open-circuit voltage (VOC) peaks remain unchanged when the frequency varies from 1 to 2.5 Hz (Figure 2b-I). The short-circuit current (ISC) increases from 1 to 4.2 μA when the frequency goes from 1 to 2.5 Hz (Figure 2b-II). The peak values of VOC and ISC go up