Plasmonic Solar Cells: From Rational Design to Mechanism Overview.

Plasmonic effects have been proposed as a solution to overcome the limited light absorption in thin-film photovoltaic devices, and various types of plasmonic solar cells have been developed. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the state-of-the-art progress on the design and fabrication of plasmonic solar cells and their enhancement mechanism. The working principle is first addressed in terms of the combined effects of plasmon decay, scattering, near-field enhancement, and plasmonic energy transfer, including direct hot electron transfer and resonant energy transfer. Then, we summarize recent developments for various types of plasmonic solar cells based on silicon, dye-sensitized, organic photovoltaic, and other types of solar cells, including quantum dot and perovskite variants. We also address several issues regarding the limitations of plasmonic nanostructures, including their electrical, chemical, and physical stability, charge recombination, narrowband absorption, and high cost. Next, we propose a few potentially useful approaches that can improve the performance of plasmonic cells, such as the inclusion of graphene plasmonics, plasmon-upconversion coupling, and coupling between fluorescence resonance energy transfer and plasmon resonance energy transfer. This review is concluded with remarks on future prospects for plasmonic solar cell use.

Non-Volatile ReRAM Devices Based on Self-Assembled Multilayers of Modified Graphene Oxide 2D Nanosheets.

2D nanomaterials have been actively utilized in non-volatile resistive switching random access memory (ReRAM) devices due to their high flexibility, 3D-stacking capability, simple structure, transparency, easy fabrication, and low cost. Herein, it demonstrates re-writable, bistable, transparent, and flexible solution-processed crossbar ReRAM devices utilizing graphene oxide (GO) based multilayers as active dielectric layers. The devices employ single- or multi-component-based multilayers composed of positively charged GO (N-GO(+) or NS-GO(+)) with/without negatively charged GO(-) using layer-by-layer assembly method, sandwiched between Al bottom and Au top electrodes. The device based on the multi-component active layer Au/[N-GO(+)/GO(-)]n /Al/PES shows higher ON/OFF ratio of ≈105 with switching voltage of -1.9 V and higher retention stability (≈104 s), whereas the device based on single component (Au/[N-GO(+)]n /Al/PES) shows ≈103 ON/OFF ratio at ±3.5 V switching voltage. The superior ReRAM properties of the multi-component-based device are attributed to a higher coating surface roughness. The Au/[N-GO(+)/GO(-)]n /Al/PES device prepared from lower GO concentration (0.01%) exhibits higher ON/OFF ratio (≈109 ) at switching voltage of ±2.0 V. However, better stability is achieved by increasing the concentration from 0.01% to 0.05% of all GO-based solutions. It is found that the devices containing MnO2 in the dielectric layer do not improve the ReRAM performance.

Nanoplasmonic sensors for extracellular vesicles and bacterial membrane vesicles.

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are promising tools for the early diagnosis of diseases, and bacterial membrane vesicles (MVs) are especially important in health and environment monitoring. However, detecting EVs or bacterial MVs presents significant challenges for the clinical translation of EV-based diagnostics. In this Review, we provide a comprehensive discussion on the basics of nanoplasmonic sensing and emphasize recent developments in nanoplasmonics-based optical sensors to effectively identify EVs or bacterial MVs. We explore various nanoplasmonic sensors tailored for EV or bacterial MV detection, emphasizing the application of localized surface plasmon resonance through gold nanoparticles and their multimers. Additionally, we highlight advanced EV detection techniques based on surface plasmon polaritons using plasmonic thin film and nanopatterned structures. Furthermore, we evaluate the improved detection capability of surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy in identifying and classifying these vesicles, aided by plasmonic nanostructures. Nanoplasmonic sensing techniques have remarkable precision and sensitivity, making them a potential tool for accurate EV detection in clinical applications, facilitating point-of-care molecular diagnostics. Finally, we summarize the challenges associated with nanoplasmonic EV or bacterial MV sensors and offer insights into potential future directions for this evolving field.

Boosted Heterogeneous Catalysis by Surface-Accumulated Excess Electrons of Non-Oxidized Bare Copper Nanoparticles on Electride Support.

Engineering active sites of metal nanoparticle-based heterogeneous catalysts is one of the most prerequisite approaches for the efficient production of chemicals, but the limited active sites and undesired oxidation on the metal nanoparticles still remain as key challenges. Here, it is reported that the negatively charged surface of copper nanoparticles on the 2D [Ca2 N]+ ∙e- electride provides the unrestricted active sites for catalytic selective sulfenylation of indoles and azaindoles with diaryl disulfides. Substantial electron transfer from the electride support to copper nanoparticles via electronic metal-support interactions results in the accumulation of excess electrons at the surface of copper nanoparticles. Moreover, the surface-accumulated excess electrons prohibit the oxidation of copper nanoparticle, thereby maintaining the metallic surface in a negatively charged state and activating both (aza)indoles and disulfides under mild conditions in the absence of any further additives. This study defines the role of excess electrons on the nanoparticle-based heterogeneous catalyst that can be rationalized in versatile systems.

Bimetallic multifunctional core@shell plasmonic nanoparticles for localized surface plasmon resonance based sensing and electrocatalysis.

Smart bimetallic core@shell nanoparticles were fabricated based on gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) decorated with pH-sensitive polymer shell. Concretely, AuNPs having poly(4-vinylpyridine) (P4VP) on the surface were first fabricated through surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (SI-ATRP). Then, they were mixed with selected metal precursor solutions followed by reduction using reducing agent. The metal NPs thus introduced were uniformly distributed in P4VP polymer shells. In order to explore the diversity and viable function of the resultant nanostructures, we controlled the size of AuNP, pH, selectivity of metal precursors, etc. We investigated the structural alteration during the sequential synthetic process. The bimetallic nanostructures of AuNP@P4VP nanocomposites containing another type of metal NP at the P4VP periphery exhibit a controlled sensing property in terms of the change in the refractive index of surrounding media and a typical electrocatalytic activity for methanol oxidation reaction.

Non-oxidized bare copper nanoparticles with surface excess electrons in air.

Copper (Cu) nanoparticles (NPs) have received extensive interest owing to their advantageous properties compared with their bulk counterparts. Although the natural oxidation of Cu NPs can be alleviated by passivating the surfaces with additional moieties, obtaining non-oxidized bare Cu NPs in air remains challenging. Here we report that bare Cu NPs with surface excess electrons retain their non-oxidized state over several months in ambient air. Cu NPs grown on an electride support with excellent electron transfer ability are encapsulated by the surface-accumulated excess electrons, exhibiting an ultralow work function of ~3.2 eV. Atomic-scale structural and chemical analyses confirm the absence of Cu oxide moiety at the outermost surface of air-exposed bare Cu NPs. Theoretical energetics clarify that the surface-accumulated excess electrons suppress the oxygen adsorption and consequently prohibit the infiltration of oxygen into the Cu lattice, provoking the endothermic reaction for oxidation process. Our results will further stimulate the practical use of metal NPs in versatile applications.

Water- and acid-stable self-passivated dihafnium sulfide electride and its persistent electrocatalytic reaction.

Electrides have emerged as promising materials with exotic properties, such as extraordinary electron-donating ability. However, the inevitable instability of electrides, which is caused by inherent excess electrons, has hampered their widespread applications. We report that a self-passivated dihafnium sulfide electride ([Hf2S]2+∙2e-) by double amorphous layers exhibits a strong oxidation resistance in water and acid solutions, enabling a persistent electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution reaction. The naturally formed amorphous Hf2S layer on the cleaved [Hf2S]2+∙2e- surface reacts with oxygen to form an outermost amorphous HfO2 layer with ~10-nm thickness, passivating the [Hf2S]2+∙2e- electride. The excess electrons in the [Hf2S]2+∙2e- electride are transferred through the thin HfO2 passivation layer to water molecules under applied electric fields, demonstrating the first electrocatalytic reaction with excellent long-term sustainability and no degradation in performance. This self-passivation mechanism in reactive conditions can advance the development of stable electrides for energy-efficient applications.

Probing Multiphased Transition in Bulk MoS2 by Direct Electron Injection.

Structural phase transitions in layered two-dimensional (2D) materials are of significant interest owing to their ability to exist in multiple metastable states with distinctive properties. However, phase transition in bulk MoS2 by nondestructive electron infusion has not yet been realized. In this study, we report the 2H to 1T' phase transition and in-between intermediates in bulk MoS2 using MoS2/[Ca2N]+·e- heterostructures, in which kinetic free electrons were directly injected into MoS2. We observed various phases in MoS2 ranging from heavily doped 2H to a distorted lattice state and then on to a complete 1T' state. Snapshots of the multiphase transition were captured by extraordinary Raman shift and bandgap reduction and were further elucidated by theoretical calculations. We also observed a weakening in interlayer coupling in the vicinity of the metallic regime, which led to an unusually strong photoluminescence emission, suggesting light-efficient bulk MoS2. Our results thus suggest the optoelectronic applications that can fully utilize the multiphase transition of bulk 2D materials.

Electrocatalytic glycerol oxidation enabled by surface plasmon polariton-induced hot carriers in Kretschmann configuration.

Plasmonic hot carrier generation has attracted increasing attention due to its ability to convert light to electrical energy. The generation of plasmon-induced hot carriers can be achieved via Landau damping in the non-radiative decay process of the plasmonic excitation energy. Localized surface plasmons (LSPs) undergo both radiative and non-radiative decays, while surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) dissipate only via the non-radiative decay. Thus, it is a challenging task to exploit the surface plasmon polaritons for the efficient generation of hot carriers and their applications. In this study, a model hot-carrier-mediated electrocatalytic conversion system was demonstrated using an Au thin film in Kretschmann configuration, which is the representative platform to excite SPPs. AgPt-decorated Au nanobipyramids (AuNBPs) were designed and introduced onto the Au film, creating hot-spots to revolutionize the thin film-based photon-to-carrier conversion efficiency. The glycerol electro-oxidation reaction enabled by such SPP-induced hot carriers was evaluated and exhibited a photon-to-hot carrier conversion efficiency of 2.4 × 10-3%, which is ∼2.5 times enhanced as compared to the efficiency based on the neat Au film.

Viable stretchable plasmonics based on unidirectional nanoprisms.

Well-defined ordered arrays of plasmonic nanostructures were fabricated on stretchable substrates and tunable plasmon-coupling-based sensing properties were comprehensively demonstrated upon extension and contraction. Regular nanoprism patterns consisting of Ag, Au and Ag/Au bilayers were constructed on the stretchable polydimethylsiloxane substrate. The nanoprisms had the same orientation over the entire substrate (3 × 3 cm2) via metal deposition on a single-crystal microparticle monolayer assembly. The plasmonic sensor based on the Ag/Au bilayer showed a 6-fold enhanced surface enhanced Raman scattering signal under 20% uniaxial extension, whereas a 3-fold increase was observed upon 6% contraction, compared with the Au nanoprism arrays. The sensory behaviors were corroborated by finite-difference time-domain simulation, demonstrating the tunable electromagnetic field enhancement effect via the localized surface plasmon resonance coupling. The advanced flexible plasmonic-coupling-based devices with tunable and quantifiable performance herein suggested are expected to unlock promising potential in practical bio-sensing, biotechnological applications and optical devices.

Synergistic Nanozymetic Activity of Hybrid Gold Bipyramid-Molybdenum Disulfide Core@Shell Nanostructures for Two-Photon Imaging and Anticancer Therapy.

In recent years, the concept of combined therapy using gold hybrid nanomaterials has been broadly adopted to pioneer new anticancer treatments. However, their synergistic anticancer effects have yet to be thoroughly investigated. Herein,a hybrid gold nanobipyramid nanostructure coated with molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) semiconductor (AuNBPs@MoS2) was proposed as a smart nanozyme for anticancer therapy and two-photon bioimaging. The hybrid material showed dramatically enhanced localized surface plasmon resonance property under excitation owing to its anisotropic nature, coupled with the rich electron density in MoS2, resulting in the superior in situ photogeneration of reactive oxidative species (ROS - 1O2, •OH). We demonstrated that the synergistic effect of enhanced photothermal conversion and generation of ROS could increase the anticancer effect of AuNBPs@MoS2. Two-photon luminescence imaging confirmed that AuNBPs@MoS2 was successfully internalized in cancer cells and that simultaneous anticancer treatments based on catalytic and photothermal therapy could be achieved. This study highlighted, for the first time, a novel approach of plasmon-mediated powerful anticancer therapy and imaging via the unprecedented combination of anisotropic AuNBPs and two-dimensional MoS2 material.

Molecular overlap with optical near-fields based on plasmonic nanolithography for ultrasensitive label-free detection by light-matter colocalization.

In this work, we investigate the detection sensitivity of surface plasmon resonance (SPR) biosensors by engineering spatial distribution of electromagnetic near-fields for colocalization with molecular distribution. The light-matter colocalization was based on plasmonic nanolithography, the concept of which was confirmed by detecting streptavidin biotin interactions on triangular nanoaperture arrays after the structure of the aperture arrays was optimized for colocalization efficiency. The colocalization was shown to amplify optical signature significantly and thereby to achieve detection on the order of 100 streptavidin molecules with a binding capacity below 1fg/mm2, an enhancement by more than three orders of magnitude over conventional SPR detection.

Upconversion-Triggered Charge Separation in Polymer Semiconductors.

Upconversion is a unique optical property that is driven by a sequential photon pumping and generation of higher energy photons in a consecutive manner. The efficiency improvement in photovoltaic devices can be achieved when upconverters are integrated since upconverters contribute to the generation of extra photons. Despite numerous experimental studies confirming the relationship, fundamental explanations for a real contribution of upconversion to photovoltaic efficiency are still in demand. In this respect, we suggest a new approach to visualize the upconversion event in terms of surface photovoltage (SPV) by virtue of Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM). One of the most conventional polymer semiconductors, poly(3-hexyl thiophene) (P3HT), is employed as a sensitizer to generate charge carriers by upconverted light. KPFM measurements reveal that the light upconversion enabled the formation of charge carriers in P3HT, resulting in large SPV of -54.9 mV. It confirms that the energy transfer from upconverters to P3HT can positively impact the device performance in organic solar cells (OSCs).

Near-infrared light-responsive nanomaterials for cancer theranostics.

Early diagnosis and effective cancer therapy are required, to properly treat cancer, which causes more than 8.2 million deaths in a year worldwide. Among various cancer treatments, nanoparticle-based cancer therapies and molecular imaging techniques have been widely exploited over the past decades to overcome current drawbacks of existing cancer treatments. In particular, gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), carbon nanotubes (CNTs), graphene oxide (GO), and upconversion nanocrystals (UNCs) have attracted tremendous attention from researchers due to their near-infrared (NIR) light-responsive behaviors. These nanomaterials are considered new multifunctional platforms for cancer theranostics. They would enable on-demand control of drug release or molecular imaging in response to a remote trigger by NIR light exposure. This approach allows the patient or physician to adjust therapy precisely to a target site, thus greatly improving the efficacy of cancer treatments, while reducing undesirable side effects. In this review, we have summarized the advantages of NIR light-responsive nanomaterials for in vivo cancer treatments, which includes NIR triggered photothermal therapy (PTT) and photodynamic therapy (PDT). Furthermore, recent developments, perspectives, and new challenges of NIR light-responsive nanomaterials are discussed for cancer theranostic applications.

Layer-by-Layer Self-Assembled Graphene Multilayers as Pt-Free Alternative Counter Electrodes in Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells.

Low cost, charged, and large scale graphene multilayers fabricated from nitrogen-doped reduced graphene oxide N-rGO(+), nitrogen and sulfur codoped reduced graphene oxide NS-rGO(+), and undoped reduced graphene oxide rGO(-) were applied as alternative counter electrodes in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). The neat rGO-based counter electrodes were developed via two types of layer-by-layer (LBL) self-assembly (SA) methods: spin coating and spray coating methods. In the spin coating method, two sets of multilayer films were fabricated on poly(diallyldimethylammonium chloride) (PDDA)-coated fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) substrates using GO(-) combined with N-GO(+) followed by annealing and denoted as [rGO(-)/N-rGO(+)]n or with NS-GO(+) and denoted as [rGO(-)/NS-rGO(+)]n for counter electrodes in DSSCs. The DSSCs employing new types of counter electrodes exhibited ∼7.0% and ∼6.2% power conversion efficiency (PCE) based on ten bilayers of [rGO(-)/N-rGO(+)]10 and [rGO(-)/NS-rGO(+)]10, respectively. The DSSCs equipped with a blend of one bilayer of [rGO(-):N-rGO(+)] and [rGO(-):NS-rGO(+)] on PDDA-coated FTO substrates were prepared from a spray coating and showed ∼6.4% and ∼5.6% PCE, respectively. Thus, it was demonstrated that a combination of undoped, nitrogen-doped, and nitrogen and sulfur codoped reduced graphene oxides can be considered as potentially powerful Pt-free electrocatalysts and alternative electrodes in conventional photovoltaic devices.

Systematic study on the sensitivity enhancement in graphene plasmonic sensors based on layer-by-layer self-assembled graphene oxide multilayers and their reduced analogues.

The use of graphene in conventional plasmonic devices was suggested by several theoretic research studies. However, the existing theoretic studies are not consistent with one another and the experimental studies are still at the initial stage. To reveal the role of graphenes on the plasmonic sensors, we deposited graphene oxide (GO) and reduced graphene oxide (rGO) thin films on Au films and their refractive index (RI) sensitivity was compared for the first time in SPR-based sensors. The deposition of GO bilayers with number of deposition L from 1 to 5 was carried out by alternative dipping of Au substrate in positively- and negatively charged GO solutions. The fabrication of layer-by-layer self-assembly of the graphene films was monitored in terms of the SPR angle shift. GO-deposited Au film was treated with hydrazine to reduce the GO. For the rGO-Au sample, 1 bilayer sample showed a higher RI sensitivity than bare Au film, whereas increasing the rGO film from 2 to 5 layers reduced the RI sensitivity. In the case of GO-deposited Au film, the 3 bilayer sample showed the highest sensitivity. The biomolecular sensing was also performed for the graphene multilayer systems using BSA and anti-BSA antibody.

Configuration-controlled Au nanocluster arrays on inverse micelle nano-patterns: versatile platforms for SERS and SPR sensors.

Nanopatterned 2-dimensional Au nanocluster arrays with controlled configuration are fabricated onto reconstructed nanoporous poly(styrene-block-vinylpyridine) inverse micelle monolayer films. Near-field coupling of localized surface plasmons is studied and compared for disordered and ordered core-centered Au NC arrays. Differences in evolution of the absorption band and field enhancement upon Au nanoparticle adsorption are shown. The experimental results are found to be in good agreement with theoretical studies based on the finite-difference time-domain method and rigorous coupled-wave analysis. The realized Au nanopatterns are exploited as substrates for surface-enhanced Raman scattering and integrated into Kretschmann-type SPR sensors, based on which unprecedented SPR-coupling-type sensors are demonstrated.

Deacylation activity of cephalosporin acylase to cephalosporin C is improved by changing the side-chain conformations of active-site residues.

Semisynthetic cephalosporins are primarily synthesized from 7-aminocephalosporanic acid (7-ACA), mainly by environmentally toxic chemical deacylation of cephalosporin C (CPC). Thus, the enzymatic conversion of CPC to 7-ACA by cephalosporin acylase (CA) would be very interesting. However, CAs use glutaryl-7-ACA (GL-7-ACA) as a primary substrate and the enzymes have low turnover rates for CPC. The active-site residues of a CA were mutagenized to various residues to increase the deacylation activity of CPC, based on the active-site conformation of the CA structure. The aim was to generate sterically favored conformation of the active-site to accommodate the D-alpha-aminoadipyl moiety of CPC, the side-chain moiety that corresponds to the glutaryl moiety of GL-7-ACA. A triple mutant of the CA, Q50betaM/Y149alphaK/F177betaG, showed the greatest improvement of deacylation activity to CPC up to 790% of the wild-type. Our current study is an efficient method for improving the deacylation activity to CPC by employing the structure-based repetitive saturation mutagenesis.