Electrical, electrochemical and structural studies of a chlorine-derived ionic liquid-based polymer gel electrolyte

• Ashish Gupta,
• Amrita Jain,
• Manju Kumari and
• Santosh K. Tripathi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 1252–1261, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.92

• surface morphology of a pure PVdF-HFP film, {(PVdF-HFP)-[BDiMIM][Cl]} (4:6), and ({(PVdF-HFP)-[BDiMIM][Cl]} (4:6)) (20 wt %) + [PC-Mg(ClO4)2 (0.3 M)] (80 wt %), where PC is the plasticizer propylene carbonate, was characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and is depicted in Figure 1a–c

• . Figure 1a shows the surface morphology of a pure PVdF-HFP film, indicating an uneven and rough surface of the crystalline polymer. Upon the addition of the ionic liquid [BDiMIM][Cl] on PVdF-HFP, the sizes of the grains start decreasing and the membrane becomes flexible and appears as a swollen structure

• Cu Kα radiation. The scan rate was fixed to 5°·min−1. The surface morphology of the synthesized polymer electrolyte films was recorded by using a scanning electron microscope (JEOL JXA - 8100 EPMA). The ionic conductivity of any polymer gel electrolyte film plays an important role, especially at the

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

• number L also characterizes fractal textures and quantifies the fractal-to-fractal gaps; the higher the lacunarity, the lower is the homogeneity [49]. In fractal studies, surface morphology, geometrical features, and degree of self-organization of materials are determined through these dimensionless

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

A Au/CuNiCoS₄/p-Si photodiode: electrical and morphological characterization

• Adem Koçyiğit,
• Adem Sarılmaz,
• Teoman Öztürk,
• Faruk Ozel and
• Murat Yıldırım

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 984–994, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.74

• understand the structural and morphological characteristics of the nanocrystals. A Zeiss-Evo SEM-EDX was employed to determine surface morphology and EDS patterns of the nanocrystals. I–V measurements were carried out on a Fytronix FY-7000 in the dark and under illumination of 20 to 100 mW in 20 mW intervals

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

• (ZnONR) were grown via a hydrothermal method (HT) to create a rough surface morphology. Sample B was placed into the ALD growth chamber without modification of the surface morphology. During HT growth, sample B was kept under nitrogen atmosphere. After the HT process, both samples were transferred to the

• calculated for the MZO/ZnONR system, which equals to 1150 ± 50 nm. The estimated thickness of the AZO top electrode was 270 ± 20 nm. In the case of the sample B, the thickness of the deposited films equals to 320 ± 30 nm and 260 ± 10 nm for MZO and AZO, respectively. Figure 4 shows the surface morphology of

• to a non-uniform surface morphology, as intended by us. The average root mean square (RMS) roughness of sample A equals 60 nm. As a result, light reflection is reduced for the cell. This effect was published previously [14] for PV structures prepared on a thicker Si absorber. This feature enhances

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

• surface pattern formation at elevated temperatures are the result of the self-organization of adsorbed atoms. They are usually governed by kinetic factors, that is, the rates of processes realized on the growing surface. One of the interesting phenomena influencing the formation of surface morphology at

• 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

• include the formation of surface steps [28][29][30][31], faceting of the surface [32][33][34][35][36][37], elimination of instability of surface morphology caused by stress and wetting of the substrate [38][39][40][41], the evolution of contact irregularities in switches of microelectromechanical systems

High-yield synthesis of silver nanowires for transparent conducting PET films

• Gul Naz,
• Hafsa Asghar,
• Muhammad Ramzan,
• Muhammad Arshad,
• Rashid Ahmed,
• Muhammad Bilal Tahir,
• Bakhtiar Ul Haq,
• Nadeem Baig and
• Junaid Jalil

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 624–632, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.51

• spectrophotometer in the 400–800 nm wavelength range. A Bruker D8 Advance X-ray diffractometer, operating at 35 mA and 40 keV, was used to scan the sample from 20° to 85° at room temperature. To examine the surface morphology of as-synthesized powder samples, the scanning electron microscopes (Nova Nano SEM 450

Interface interaction of transition metal phthalocyanines with strontium titanate (100)

• Reimer Karstens,
• Thomas Chassé and
• Heiko Peisert

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 485–496, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.39

• termination; but slightly different preparation conditions may affect also the surface morphology and roughness. Notably, for all three preparations the intensity of the interface component is in the range between 40% and 60%. That is, only for about the half of the molecules an interaction between the Co ion

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

• , and a spot size of about 1 µm. Surface morphology and particle size of the synthesized cobalt oxide powder were observed using a Carl Zeiss CrossBeam Auriga scanning electron microscope (SEM) operated at 5 kV and a JEOL – JEM 1011 transmission electron microscope (TEM) operated at 80 kV. The specific

Structural and optical characteristics determined by the sputtering deposition conditions of oxide thin films

• Petronela Prepelita,
• Florin Garoi and
• Valentin Craciun

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 354–365, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.29

• we studied the surface of the samples at different magnifications (50000× and 20000×) by scanning them with a beam of accelerated electrons at very high energies (≈20 keV). The structural quality and surface morphology were investigated using a scanning electron microscope (FEI Co., model Inspect S50

• (Figure 6a’–c’) and ZnO (Figure 7a’–c’) thin films is also provided by SEM surface measurements. The surfaces are smooth, with small differences between the surface morphology of a thinner oxide film as compared to a thicker one. For ZnO samples, there is a tendency for self-structuring of the deposited

• and (b) O 1s XPS spectra acquired from ZnO samples. Cross-sectional SEM images of the cleaved SiO2 films with measured thickness values of (a) dSiO2 = 200 nm, (b) dSiO2 = 250.3 nm, and (c) dSiO2 = 300 nm. SEM micrographs of the surface morphology for the corresponding thin films are also depicted: (a

TiO_x/Pt₃Ti(111) surface-directed formation of electronically responsive supramolecular assemblies of tungsten oxide clusters

• Marco Moors,
• Yun An,
• Agnieszka Kuc and
• Kirill Yu. Monakhov

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 203–212, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.16

• and 900 K. It should be remarked that, although the height information in STM images is always a convolution of electronic and topographic surface properties, their origin in this case is expected to be strongly dominated by the surface morphology. This is due to the formation of compact oxide island

Imaging of SARS-CoV-2 infected Vero E6 cells by helium ion microscopy

• Natalie Frese,
• Patrick Schmerer,
• Martin Wortmann,
• Matthias Schürmann,
• Matthias König,
• Michael Westphal,
• Friedemann Weber,
• Holger Sudhoff and
• Armin Gölzhäuser

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 172–179, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.13

• the uncoated surface morphology of cells and virus particles, allowing one to identify and investigate sites at which a cell interacts with the virus. While its principle of operation is very similar to SEM, HIM utilizes a beam of positively charged helium ions (He+) instead of negatively charged

Paper-based triboelectric nanogenerators and their applications: a review

• Jing Han,
• Nuo Xu,
• Yuchen Liang,
• Mei Ding,
• Junyi Zhai,
• Qijun Sun and
• Zhong Lin Wang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 151–171, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.12

• . Therefore, corresponding treatment processes (e.g., deposition of conductive materials by laser patterning, screen printing, spray coating, thermal deposition, surface morphology engineering, and chemical modification [46][92][93][94][95][96][97][98]) are often applied to convert paper into a conductive

Atomic layer deposited films of Al₂O₃ on fluorine-doped tin oxide electrodes: stability and barrier properties

• Hana Krýsová,
• Michael Neumann-Spallart,
• Hana Tarábková,
• Pavel Janda,
• Ladislav Kavan and
• Josef Krýsa

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 24–34, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.2

• the substrates before and after ALD deposition of an Al2O3 layer. As shown in Figure S1 and Figure S2 (Supporting Information File 1), the surface morphology of both substrates, the as-received and the Al2O3-coated SiO2 layer, was almost identical. This indicates a uniform distribution of the

• deposited Al2O3. The height-density distribution (Figure S2, Supporting Information File 1), calculated from the AFM topography images (Figure 1), shows that the deposition of Al2O3 onto FTO substrates does not change its surface morphology. Calculated RMS (root mean square) values for AFM images of FTO and

Self-standing heterostructured NiC_x-NiFe-NC/biochar as a highly efficient cathode for lithium–oxygen batteries

• Shengyu Jing,
• Xu Gong,
• Shan Ji,
• Linhui Jia,
• Bruno G. Pollet,
• Sheng Yan and
• Huagen Liang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1809–1821, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.163

• PANalytical B.V. Empyean X-ray diffractometer with Cu Kα radiation (λ = 1.5406 Å). The surface morphology of the film catalyst was studied via scanning electron microscopy (SEM) on a Carl Zeiss Ultra Plus scanning electron microscope. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), high-resolution TEM (HR-TEM), and

Out-of-plane surface patterning by subsurface processing of polymer substrates with focused ion beams

• Serguei Chiriaev,
• Luciana Tavares,
• Vadzim Adashkevich,
• Arkadiusz J. Goszczak and
• Horst-Günter Rubahn

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1693–1703, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.151

• of the polymer. Effects of subsurface and surface processes on the surface morphology have been studied for three polymer materials: poly(methyl methacrylate), polycarbonate, and polydimethylsiloxane, by using focused ion beam irradiation with He+, Ne+, and Ga+. Thin films of a Pt60Pd40 alloy and of

• polymer bulk [7]. In fact, the method utilizes ion energy losses to manipulate the surface morphology by means of radiation damage generated in the substrate bulk and minimizes the surface damage resulting from sputtering. This leaves the thin films and the prefabricated thin-film nanostructures on the

• high transparency, biocompatibility, and low cost, enable the broad use of PDMS for the fabrication of microfluidic, microelectromechanical, and microoptical devices [20]. The effects of ion irradiation on chemical and physical properties and on the surface morphology of PDMS have been extensively

The influence of an interfacial hBN layer on the fluorescence of an organic molecule

• Christine Brülke,
• Oliver Bauer and
• Moritz M. Sokolowski

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1663–1684, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.149

• experiment. We observed by light microscopy that Ag(100) samples that had been prepared in a similar manner as the Cu(111) surface used here and that yielded a high-quality LEED pattern indicating the presence of long-range ordered and large, defect-free terraces, actually show variations in their surface

• morphology on a micrometer scale [60]. We propose that the defect-rich regions exhibit a large step density due to impurities and/or grain boundaries. Consequently, we assume that the hot spots are related to an inhomogeneous mesoscopic roughness of the Cu(111) surface, which is remnant after sputtering and

Walking energy harvesting and self-powered tracking system based on triboelectric nanogenerators

• Mingliang Yao,
• Guangzhong Xie,
• Qichen Gong and
• Yuanjie Su

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1590–1595, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.141

• the electrode as an output terminal. Characterization and electrical measurement of the u-TENG Field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM, Hitachi SU-8020) was used to characterize the surface morphology of the modified PTFE film. A Stanford Research Systems equipment was used to measure the

Fabrication of nano/microstructures for SERS substrates using an electrochemical method

• Jingran Zhang,
• Tianqi Jia,
• Xiaoping Li,
• Junjie Yang,
• Zhengkai Li,
• Guangfeng Shi,
• Xinming Zhang and
• Zuobin Wang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1568–1576, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.139

• . The depth and diameter of the nanopores gradually increased as the treatment time increased, as shown in Figure 2b,c. Figure 2d shows cross-sectional SEM images of arrayed nanopores. The surface morphology includes MgO and Mg layers. In addition, a clamp is used to fix the sample. As shown in Figure 2

• , all PEO-treated Mg specimens demonstrate the typical surface morphology, which comprises of micrometer and sub-micrometer-sized quasi-circular pores and cracks. This porous and uneven surface is a result of the consecutive dielectric breakdown of the passivation layer and the heat generated during

High permittivity, breakdown strength, and energy storage density of polythiophene-encapsulated BaTiO₃ nanoparticles

• Adnanullah Khan,
• Amir Habib and
• Adeel Afzal

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1190–1197, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.103

• Chemical structure and surface morphology of the as-prepared BTO nanoparticles, core–shell-type BTO-PTh nanoparticles, and pristine PTh are characterized and reported herein. Figure 2 shows the FTIR spectra of PTh, BTO, and BTO-PTh nanoparticles. A distinct peak at 560 cm−1 is the characteristic stretching

• of as-prepared BTO nanoparticles. Clusters or agglomerates of nanoparticles can be seen with easily identifiable individual BTO nanoparticles. The size of BTO nanoparticles is in the range of 70–150 nm. In contrast, the core–shell BTO-PTh nanoparticles exhibit uniform surface morphology, as shown in

• assumed that PTh multilayers are held together through π–π stacking interactions between the polymeric chains, which prevent PTh from irreversible slithering out-of-place [25]. Therefore, core–shell BTO-PTh nanoparticles possess a distinct morphology. The surface morphology of all samples is further

Highly sensitive detection of estradiol by a SERS sensor based on TiO₂ covered with gold nanoparticles

• Andrea Brognara,
• Ili F. Mohamad Ali Nasri,
• Beatrice R. Bricchi,
• Andrea Li Bassi,
• Caroline Gauchotte-Lindsay,
• Matteo Ghidelli and
• Nathalie Lidgi-Guigui

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1026–1035, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.87

• phase (as demonstrated by Raman spectra, not shown) and caused dewetting in the Au layer with the subsequent formation of NPs [32]. Evaporation and dewetting of Au on TiO2 layers with different porosity was carried out to exploit the effect of the surface morphology on the formation of Au NPs, yielding

Gas-sensing features of nanostructured tellurium thin films

• Dumitru Tsiulyanu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1010–1018, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.85

• (PhotoniTech Pte Ltd., Singapore) atomic force microscope. The surface morphology of the films was investigated using either a TESLA BS 340 or a VEGA TESCAN TS 5130 MM (TESCAN, Czech Republic) scanning electron microscope (SEM). To investigate the structural features of the grown films, X-ray analysis was

• , identified in our preliminary works as ohmics [25][26], which form electrically transparent contacts with Te. The gold or copper wires were then attached to the electrodes with a silver paste. Figure 1A shows the surface morphology of a Te film grown on a Pyrex glass substrate at a rate of 10 nm/s. As shown

• , the film contains a dense nanocrystalline layer with randomly oriented crystals with sizes ranging from 50–100 nm. Figure 1B shows the surface morphology of an amorphous Te film grown on preliminary nanostructured Al2O3. Pure amorphous films grown on Pyrex glass substrates were uniform and did not

Extracting viscoelastic material parameters using an atomic force microscope and static force spectroscopy

• Cameron H. Parvini,
• M. A. S. R. Saadi and
• Santiago D. Solares

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 922–937, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.77

• microscopy (AFM) techniques have provided and continue to provide increasingly important insights into surface morphology, mechanics, and other critical material characteristics at the nanoscale. One attractive implementation involves extracting meaningful material properties, which demands physically

Band tail state related photoluminescence and photoresponse of ZnMgO solid solution nanostructured films

• Vadim Morari,
• Aida Pantazi,
• Nicolai Curmei,
• Vitalie Postolache,
• Emil V. Rusu,
• Marius Enachescu,
• Ion M. Tiginyanu and
• Veaceslav V. Ursaki

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 899–910, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.75

• deposited by spin coating and subjected to post-deposition annealing at 400 °C and 500 °C is similar. However, the morphology degrades for films annealed at temperatures higher than 600 °C. Figure 2 compares the surface morphology of films prepared by aerosol spray pyrolysis and spin coating annealed at 500

A set of empirical equations describing the observed colours of metal–anodic aluminium oxide–Al nanostructures

• Cristina V. Manzano,
• Jakob J. Schwiedrzik,
• Gerhard Bürki,
• Laszlo Pethö,
• Johann Michler and
• Laetitia Philippe

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 798–806, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.64

• AAO film surface morphology As mentioned above, thickness and porosity are the two morphological parameters of AAO films that have the greatest influence on the colour obtained when depositing a metal layer on top of these nanostructures. Different AAO films were anodized under the same conditions