Ultrasensitive CCL2 Detection in Urine for Diabetic Nephropathy Diagnosis Using a WS2-Based Plasmonic Biosensor.

The accurate diagnosis of diabetic nephropathy relies on achieving ultrasensitive biosensing for biomarker detection. However, existing biosensors face challenges such as poor sensitivity, complexity, time-consuming procedures, and high assay costs. To address these limitations, we report a WS2-based plasmonic biosensor for the ultrasensitive detection of biomarker candidates in clinical human urine samples associated with diabetic nephropathy. Leveraging plasmonic-based electrochemical impedance microscopy (P-EIM) imaging, we observed a remarkable charge sensitivity in monolayer WS2 single crystals. Our biosensor exhibits an exceptionally low detection limit (0.201 ag/mL) and remarkable selectivity in detecting CC chemokine ligand 2 (CCL2) protein biomarkers, outperforming conventional techniques such as ELISA. This work represents a breakthrough in traditional protein sensors, providing a direction and materials foundation for developing ultrasensitive sensors tailored to clinical applications for biomarker sensing.

Ferroelectric Bi2O2Te-Based Plasmonic Biosensor for Ultrasensitive Biomolecular Detection.

Ultrasensitive detection of biomarkers, particularly proteins, and microRNA, is critical for disease early diagnosis. Although surface plasmon resonance biosensors offer label-free, real-time detection, it is challenging to detect biomolecules at low concentrations that only induce a minor mass or refractive index change on the analyte molecules. Here an ultrasensitive plasmonic biosensor strategy is reported by utilizing the ferroelectric properties of Bi2O2Te as a sensitive-layer material. The polarization alteration of ferroelectric Bi2O2Te produces a significant plasmonic biosensing response, enabling the detection of charged biomolecules even at ultralow concentrations. An extraordinary ultralow detection limit of 1 fm is achieved for protein molecules and an unprecedented 0.1 fm for miRNA molecules, demonstrating exceptional specificity. The finding opens a promising avenue for the integration of 2D ferroelectric materials into plasmonic biosensors, with potential applications spanning a wide range.

An Ultrasensitive Plasmonic Sensor Based on 2D Ferroelectric Bi2 O2 Se.

Plasmonic biosensing is a label-free detection method that is commonly used to measure various biomolecular interactions. However, one of the main challenges in this approach is the ability to detect biomolecules at low concentrations with sufficient sensitivity and detection limits. Here, 2D ferroelectric materials are employed to address the issues with sensitivity in biosensor design. A plasmonic sensor based on Bi2 O2 Se nanosheets, a ferroelectric 2D material, is presented for the ultrasensitive detection of the protein molecule. Through imaging the surface charge density of Bi2 O2 Se, a detection limit of 1 fM is achieved for bovine serum albumin (BSA). These findings underscore the potential of ferroelectric 2D materials as critical building blocks for future biosensor and biomaterial architectures.

Broadband Polarization-Sensitive Photodetection of Magnetic Semiconducting MnTe Nanoribbons.

2D materials with low symmetry are explored in recent years because of their anisotropic advantage in polarization-sensitive photodetection. Herein the controllably grown hexagonal magnetic semiconducting α-MnTe nanoribbons are reported with a highly anisotropic (100) surface and their high sensitivity to polarization in a broadband photodetection, whereas the hexagonal structure is highly symmetric. The outstanding photoresponse of α-MnTe nanoribbons occurs in a broadband range from ultraviolet (UV, 360 nm) to near infrared (NIR, 914 nm) with short response times of 46 ms (rise) and 37 ms (fall), excellent environmental stability, and repeatability. Furthermore, due to highly anisotropic (100) surface, the α-MnTe nanoribbons as photodetector exhibit attractive sensitivity to polarization and high dichroic ratios of up to 2.8 under light illumination of UV-to-NIR wavelengths. These results demonstrate that 2D magnetic semiconducting α-MnTe nanoribbons provide a promising platform to design the next-generation polarization-sensitive photodetectors in a broadband range.

Pressure effect on the magnetism and crystal structure of magnetoelectric metal-organic framework [CH3NH3][Co(HCOO)3].

[CH3NH3][Co(HCOO)3] is the first perovskite-like metal-organic framework exhibiting spin-driven magnetoelectric effects. However, the high-pressure tuning effects on the magnetic properties and crystal structure of [CH3NH3][Co(HCOO)3] have not been studied. In this work, alongside ac magnetic susceptibility measurements, we investigate the magnetic transition temperature evolution under high pressure. Upon increasing the pressure from atmospheric pressure to 0.5 GPa, TN (15.2 K) remains almost unchanged. Continuing to compress the sample results in TN gradually decreasing to 14.8 K at 1.5 GPa. This may be due to pressure induced changes in the bond distance and bond angle of the O-C-O superexchange pathway. In addition, by using high pressure powder X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy, we conducted in-depth research on the pressure dependence of the lattice parameters and Raman modes of [CH3NH3][Co(HCOO)3]. The increase in pressure gives rise to a phase transition from the orthorhombic Pnma to a monoclinic phase at approximately 6.13 GPa. Our study indicates that high pressure can profoundly alter the crystal structure and magnetic properties of perovskite type MOF materials, which could inspire new endeavors in exploring novel phenomena in compressed metal-organic frameworks.

Pressure Control of the Structure and Multiferroicity in a Hydrogen-Bonded Metal-Organic Framework.

Multiferroic materials with the cross-coupling of magnetic and ferroelectric orders provide a new platform for physics study and designing novel electronic devices. However, the weak coupling strength of ferroelectricity and magnetism is the main obstacle for potential applications. The recent research focuses on enhancing the coupling effect via synthesizing novel materials in a chemical route or tuning the multiferroicity in the physical way. Among them, pressure is an effective method to modify multiferroic materials, especially when the chemical doping has reached its tuning limit. In this work, we systemically studied the multiferroic properties in a hydrogen-bonded metal-organic framework (MOF) [(CH3)2NH2]Ni(HCOO)3 under high pressure. X-ray diffraction and Raman scattering reveal that a structural phase transition occurs in a pressure region of 6-9 GPa, and the crystal structure is greatly modified by pressure. With the ac magnetic susceptibility, pyroelectric current, and dielectric constant measurements, we obtain the multiferroic property evolution under high pressure and create a temperature-pressure phase diagram. Our study demonstrates that the pressure can modify the magnetic superexchange interaction and hydrogen bonding simultaneously in these perovskite-like MOFs. The multiferroic phase region has been expanded to higher temperature due to the pressure-enhanced spin-phonon coupling effect.

Direct one-step synthesis of CoFex@Co@C hybrids derived from a metal organic framework for a lightweight and high-performance microwave absorber.

It involves invariably strong expectations and a tough challenge to explore lightweight microwave absorption materials with high efficiency and agile tenability. Here, we successfully synthesized CoFex@Co nanoparticles embedded into a carbon matrix that was directly derived from the metal organic frameworks (MOFs) via a facile method. Benefiting from the unique multi-dimensional construction and synergistic effects of carbon material with magnetic nanoparticles in both the electromagnetic energy loss and impedance matching, CoFe0.26@Co@C composite exhibited excellent microwave absorption performance, which showed a minimum reflection loss of -62.5 dB at the thickness of 1.5 mm and a broad absorption bandwidth of 14.7 GHz exceeding -10 dB at the thickness range of 1.4 to 5 mm. This study not only provides a reference for future preparation of MOF-based lightweight microwave absorption materials, but also offers the possible application owing to its simple procedure and outstanding absorption properties.

Liquid-exfoliation of S-doped black phosphorus nanosheets for enhanced oxygen evolution catalysis.

Black phosphorus (BP) has recently drawn great attention in the field of electrocatalysis due to its distinct electrocatalytic activity for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). However, the slow OER kinetics and the poor environmental stability of BP seriously limits its overall OER performance and prevents its electrocatalysis application. Here, sulfur (S)-doped BP nanosheets, which are prepared using high-pressure synthesis followed by liquid exfoliation, have been demonstrated to have much better OER electrocatalytic activity and environmental stability compared to their undoped counterparts. The S-doped BP nanosheets display a Tafel slope of 75 mV dec-1, which is a favorable value refered to the kinetics of OER in electrochemical tests. Notably, there is no degradation of S-doped BP nanosheets after six days exposure to ambient, indicating an excellent environmental stability of the S-doped BP. The density functional theory calculations show that the OER activity of BP originate from its crystal defects and heteroatom S doping can effectively enhance its OER activity and stability. These results highlight the doping effect on electrocatalytic activities and stability of BP and provide a simple and effective method to design highly efficient OER catalysts based on the modification of BP.

Effect of layer and stacking sequence in simultaneously grown 2H and 3R WS2 atomic layers.

In two-dimensional layered materials, layer number and stacking order have strong effects on the optical and electronic properties. Tungsten disulfide (WS2) crystal, as one important member among transition metal dichalcogenides, has been usually prepared in a layered 2H prototype structure with space group P63/mmc ([Formula: see text]) in spite of many other expected ones such as 3R. Here, we report simultaneous growth of 2H and 3R stacked multilayer (ML) WS2 crystals in large scale by chemical vapor deposition and effects of layer number and stacking order on optical and electronic properties. As revealed in Raman and photoluminescence (PL) measurements, with an increase in layer number, 2H and 3R stacked ML WS2 crystals show similar variation of PL and Raman peaks in position and intensity. Compared to 2H stacked ML WS2, however, 3R stacked one always exhibits the larger red (blue) shift of Raman [Formula: see text] (A1g) peak and the appearance of PL A, B and I peaks at lower energies. Thereby, PL and Raman features depend on not only layer number but also stacking order. In addition, circularly polarized luminescence from two prototype WS2 crystals under circularly polarized excitation has also been investigated, showing obvious spin or valley polarization of these CVD-grown multilayer WS2 crystals.

Superior microwave absorption properties of ultralight reduced graphene oxide/black phosphorus aerogel.

Through a facile self-assembled process, an ultralight reduced graphene oxide/black phosphorus (rGO/BP) composite aerogel was successfully fabricated. The BP nanosheets were homogeneously distributed throughout the rGO 3D framework, and the interfaces between rGO and BP possessed four kinds of interconnections, such as wrapping, wearing, bridging and weak linking. As an ultralight composite, the rGO/BP aerogel could easily stand on the stamen of a flower. Compared with pure rGO aerogel, the rGO/BP composite aerogel exhibited enhanced microwave absorption ability. The minimum reflection loss value of -46.9 dB with a thickness of 2.53 mm was obtained, and a wide absorption band of 6.1 GHz (RL < -10 dB) was achieved. The superior microwave absorption property was demonstrated to stem from the interfacial polarization loss mechanism in which the multiform interface interactions between the rGO skeleton and BP nanosheets played critical roles. The rGO/BP aerogel has great potential to be used as an ultralight microwave absorber.

Layer structured bismuth selenides Bi2Se3 and Bi3Se4 for high energy and flexible all-solid-state micro-supercapacitors.

In this work, bismuth selenides (Bi2Se3 and Bi3Se4), both of which have a layered rhombohedral crystal structure, have been found to be useful as electrode materials for supercapacitor applications. In a liquid electrolyte system (6M KOH), Bi2Se3 nanoplates exhibit much better performance as an electrode material than Bi3Se4 nanoparticles do, delivering a higher specific capacitance (272.9 F g-1) than that of Bi3Se4 (193.6 F g-1) at 5 mV s-1. This result may be attributed to the fact that Bi2Se3 nanoplates possess more active electrochemical surfaces for the reversible surface redox reactions owing to their planar quintuple stacked layers (septuple layers for Bi3Se4). To meet the demands of electronic skin, we used a novel flexible annular interdigital structure electrode to support the all-solid-state micro-supercapacitors (AMSCs). The Bi2Se3 AMSC device delivers a much better supercapacitor performance, exhibits a large stack capacitance of 89.5 F cm-3 at 20 mV s-1 (Bi3Se4: 79.1 F cm-3), a high energy density of 17.9 mWh cm-3 and a high power density of 18.9 W cm-3. The bismuth selenides also exhibit good cycle stability, with 95.5% retention after 1000 c for Bi2Se3 (Bi3Se4:90.3%). Clearly, Bi2Se3 nanoplates can be promising electrode materials for flexible annular interdigital AMSCs.

Two-dimensional materials and one-dimensional carbon nanotube composites for microwave absorption.

In this work, hierarchical architecture MoS2/CNT nanohybrids synthesized by the hydrothermal method, with different CNT proportions are systematically investigated for their microwave absorption. MoS2 nanoflowers are anchored uniformly on the surface of a CNT when the proportion of the MoS2/CNT nanohybrids was 10:2, and the reflection loss can attain -20 dB in the range of 3.4-13.9 GHz with multiple thicknesses from 1.5-5.0 mm, while an optimal consequence of -46 dB can be reached at 6.6 GHz at 2.9 mm. The excellent performance indicates that the MoS2/CNT = 10:2 nanohybrids have the potential for use as microwave absorbing materials.

Grain wall boundaries in centimeter-scale continuous monolayer WS2 film grown by chemical vapor deposition.

Centimeter-scale continuous monolayer WS2 film with large tensile strain has been successfully grown on oxidized silicon substrate by chemical vapor deposition, in which monolayer grains can be more than 200 µm in size. Monolayer WS2 grains are observed to merge together via not only traditional grain boundaries but also non-traditional ones, which are named as grain walls (GWs) due to their nanometer-scale widths. The GWs are revealed to consist of two or three layers. Though not a monolayer, the GWs exhibit significantly enhanced fluorescence and photoluminescence. This enhancement may be attributed to abundant structural defects such as stacking faults and partial dislocations in the GWs, which are clearly observable in atomically resolved high resolution transmission electron microscopy and scanning transmission electron microscopy images. Moreover, GW-based phototransistor is found to deliver higher photocurrent than that based on monolayer film. These features of GWs provide a clue to microstructure engineering of monolayer WS2 for specific applications in (opto)electronics.

Metal-organic framework derived cobalt phosphosulfide with ultrahigh microwave absorption properties.

Nanostructure composites of ferromagnetic materials embedded in nanoporous carbon (NC) derived from metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have attracted enormous attention due to their potential application in many fields, such as microwave absorption, energy storage, and conversion. The rational design of nanocomposites holds a determinant factor for overcoming the challenges involving the microwave absorption performance. Herein, CoS2/NC, CoP/NC, and CoS2-xPx/NC with a rhombic dodecahedral structure have been successfully fabricated by using the template cobalt-based MOFs (ZIF-67). A morphology analysis indicates that ferromagnetic nanoparticles are embedded in NC matrix. It is obvious that the rhombic dodecahedron can be maintained after the phosphorization and sulfurization of Co/NC derived from the thermal decomposition of ZIF-67. The microwave absorption performance can obviously be improved by the phosphorization and sulfurization of Co/NC. CoS2-xPx/NC exhibits an excellent microwave absorption property and the minimum reflection loss (RL) of CoS2-xPx/NC can reach -68 dB at 14.6 GHz with a thickness of 1.5 mm. An RL value less than -10 dB can be achieved in the microwave frequency range of 12.7-17.3 GHz (4.6 GHz) with a thickness of 1.5 mm for CoS2-xPx/NC. This article offers a novel way to fabricate cobalt-based materials/carbon composites for an excellent microwave absorber.

Unique lead adsorption behavior of activated hydroxyl group in two-dimensional titanium carbide.

The functional groups and site interactions on the surfaces of two-dimensional (2D) layered titanium carbide can be tailored to attain some extraordinary physical properties. Herein a 2D alk-MXene (Ti3C2(OH/ONa)(x)F(2-x)) material, prepared by chemical exfoliation followed by alkalization intercalation, exhibits preferential Pb(II) sorption behavior when competing cations (Ca(II)/Mg(II)) coexisted at high levels. Kinetic tests show that the sorption equilibrium is achieved in as short a time as 120 s. Attractively, the alk-MXene presents efficient Pb(II) uptake performance with the applied sorption capacities of 4500 kg water per alk-MXene, and the effluent Pb(II) contents are below the drinking water standard recommended by the World Health Organization (10 µg/L). Experimental and computational studies suggest that the sorption behavior is related to the hydroxyl groups in activated Ti sites, where Pb(II) ion exchange is facilitated by the formation of a hexagonal potential trap.

Plasmonic Imaging of Single DNA with Charge Sensitive Monolayer WS2.

Imaging the surface charge of biomolecules such as proteins and DNA, is crucial for comprehending their structure and function. Unfortunately, current methods for label-free, sensitive, and rapid imaging of the surface charge of single DNA molecules are limited. Here, we propose a plasmonic microscopy strategy that utilizes charge-sensitive single-crystal monolayer WS2 materials to image the local charge density of a single λ-DNA molecule. Our study reveals that WS2 is a highly sensitive charge-sensitive material that can accurately measure the local charge density of λ-DNA with high spatial resolution and sensitivity. The consistency of the surface charge density values obtained from the single-crystal monolayer WS2 materials with theoretical simulations demonstrates the reliability of our approach. Our findings suggest that this class of materials has significant implications for the development of label-free, scanning-free, and rapid optical detection and charge imaging of biomolecules.

Enhanced Ferromagnetism and Tunable Magnetic Anisotropy in a van der Waals Ferromagnet.

2D van der Waals (vdW) magnets have recently emerged as a promising material system for spintronic device innovations due to their intriguing phenomena in the reduced dimension and simple integration of magnetic heterostructures without the restriction of lattice matching. However, it is still challenging to realize Curie temperature far above room temperature and controllable magnetic anisotropy for spintronics application in 2D vdW magnetic materials. In this work, the pressure-tuned dome-like ferromagnetic-paramagnetic phase diagram in an iron-based 2D layered ferromagnet Fe3GaTe2 is reported. Continuously tunable magnetic anisotropy from out-of-plane to in-plane direction is achieved via the application of pressure. Such behavior is attributed to the competition between intralayer and interlayer exchange interactions and enhanced DOS near the Fermi level. The study presents the prominent properties of pressure-engineered 2D ferromagnetic materials, which can be used in the next-generation spintronic devices.

High-Performance Broadband Image Sensing Photodetector Based on MnTe/WS2 van der Waals Epitaxial Heterostructures.

Two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenide (TMDC) heterostructure is receiving considerable attention due to its novel electronic, optoelectronic, and spintronic devices with design-oriented and functional features. However, direct design and synthesis of high-quality TMDC/MnTe heterostructures remain difficult, which severely impede further investigations of semiconductor/magnetic semiconductor devices. Herein, the synthesis of high-quality vertically stacked WS2/MnTe heterostructures is realized via a two-step chemical vapor deposition method. Raman, photoluminescence, and scanning transmission electron microscopy characterizations reveal the high-quality and atomically sharp interfaces of the WS2/MnTe heterostructure. WS2/MnTe-based van der Waals field effect transistors demonstrate high rectification behavior with rectification ratio up to 106, as well as a typical p-n electrical transport characteristic. Notably, the fabricated WS2/MnTe photodetector exhibits sensitive and broadband photoresponse ranging from UV to NIR with a maximum responsivity of 1.2 × 103 A/W, a high external quantum efficiency of 2.7 × 105%, and fast photoresponse time of ∼50 ms. Moreover, WS2/MnTe heterostructure photodetectors possess a broadband image sensing capability at room temperature, suggesting potential applications in next-generation high-performance and broadband image sensing photodetectors.

An Ultrasensitive SPR biosensor for RNA detection based on robust GeP5 nanosheets.

Ultrasensitive and rapid detection of biomarkers is among the upmost priorities in promoting healthcare advancements. Improved sensitivity of photonic sensors based on two-dimensional (2D) materials have brought exciting prospects for achieving real-time and label-free biosensing at dilute target concentrations. Here, we report a high-sensitivity surface plasmon resonance (SPR) RNA sensor using metallic 2D GeP5 nanosheets as the sensing material. Theoretical evaluations revealed that the presence of GeP5 nanosheets can greatly enhance the plasmonic electric field of the Au film thereby boosting sensing sensitivity, and that optimal sensitivity (146° RIU-1) can be achieved with 3-nm-thick GeP5. By functionalizing GeP5 nanosheets with specific cDNA probes, detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA sequences were achieved using the GeP5-based SPR sensor, with high sensitivity down to a detection limit of 10 aM and excellent selectivity. This work demonstrates the immense potential of GeP5-based SPR sensors for advanced biosensing applications and paves the way for utilizing GeP5 nanosheets in novel sensor devices.

Low-temperature diffusion of oxygen through ordered carbon vacancies in Zr2C(x): the formation of ordered Zr2C(x)O(y).

Investigations are performed on low-temperature oxygen diffusion in the carbon vacancy ordered ZrC(0.6)and thus induced formation of the oxygen atom ordered ZrC(0.6)O(0.4). Theoretically, a superstructure of Zr(2)CO can be constructed via the complete substitution of carbon vacancies with O atoms in the Zr(2)C model. In the ordered ZrC(0.6), the consecutive arrangement of vacancies forms the vacancy channels along some zone axes in the C sublattice. Through these vacancy channels, the thermally activated oxygen diffusion is significantly facilitated. The oxygen atoms diffuse directly into and occupy the vacancies, producing the ordered ZrC(0.6)O(0.4). Relative to the ordered ZrC(0.6), the Zr positions are finely tuned in the ordered ZrC(0.6)O(0.4) because of the ionic Zr-O bonds. Because of this fine adjustment of Zr positions and the presence of oxygen atoms, the superstructural reflections are always observable in a selected area electron diffraction (SAED) pattern, despite the invisibility of superstructural reflections in ZrC(0.6) along some special zone axes. Similar to the vacancies in ordered ZrC(0.6), the ordering arrangement of O atoms in the ordered ZrC(0.6)O(0.4) is in nanoscale length, thus forming the nano superstructural domains with irregular shapes.