Efficient room-temperature near-infrared detection with solution-processed networked single wall carbon nanotube field effect transistors.

Efficient room temperature NIR detection with sufficient current gain is made with a solution-processed networked SWNT FET. The high performance NIR-FET with significantly enhanced photocurrent by more than two orders of magnitude compared to dark current in the depleted state is attributed to multiple Schottky barriers in the network, each of which absorb NIR and effectively separate photocarriers to corresponding electrodes.

1D/2D Hybrid Te/Graphene and Te/MoS2: Multifaceted Broadband Photonics and Green-Energy Applications.

We highlight the enhanced electronic and optical functionalization in the hybrid heterojunction of one-dimensional (1D) tellurene with a two-dimensional (2D) monolayer of graphene and MoS2 in both lateral and vertical geometries. The structural configurations of these assemblies are optimized with a comparative analysis of the energetics for different positional placements of the 1D system with respect to the hexagonal 2D substrate. The 1D/2D coupling of the electronic structure in this unique assembly enables the realization of the three different types of heterojunctions, viz. type I, type II, and Z-scheme. The interaction with 1D tellurene enables the opening of a band gap of the order of hundreds of meV in 2D graphene for both lateral and vertical geometries. With both static and time-dependent first-principles analysis, we indicate their potential applications in broadband photodetection and absorption, covering a wide range of visible to infrared (near-IR to mid-IR) spectrum from 380 to 10 000 nm. We indicate that this 1D/2D assembly also has bright prospects in green-energy harvesting.

Scalable Van der Waals Two-Dimensional PtTe2 Layers Integrated onto Silicon for Efficient Near-to-Mid Infrared Photodetection.

In recent years, there has been increasing interest in leveraging two-dimensional (2D) van der Waals (vdW) crystals for infrared (IR) photodetection, exploiting their unusual optoelectrical properties. Some 2D vdW materials with small band gap energies such as graphene and black phosphorus have been explored as stand-alone IR responsive layers in photodetectors. However, the devices incorporating these IR-sensitive 2D layers often exhibited poor performances owing to their preparation issues such as limited scalability and air instability. Herein, we explored wafer-scale 2D platinum ditelluride (PtTe2) layers for near-to-mid IR photodetection by directly growing them onto silicon (Si) wafers. 2D PtTe2/Si heterojunctions exhibited wavelength- and intensity-dependent high photocurrents in a spectral range of ∼1-7 µm, significantly outperforming stand-alone 2D PtTe2 layers. The observed superiority is attributed to their excellent Schottky junction characteristics accompanying suppressed carrier recombination as well as optical absorbance competition between 2D PtTe2 layers and Si. The direct and scalable growth of 2D PtTe2 layers was further extended to demonstrate mechanically flexible IR photodetectors.

Superhydrophobic Surfaces as a Source of Airborne Singlet Oxygen through Free Space for Photodynamic Therapy.

A superhydrophobic (SH) sandwich system has been developed to enable "contact-free" airborne singlet oxygen (1O2) delivery to a water droplet. The contact-free feature means that the sensitizer is physically separated from the droplet, which presents opportunities for photodynamic therapy (PDT). Trapping of airborne 1O2 in a H2O droplet residing on a lower SH surface was monitored with 9,10-anthracene dipropionate dianion by varying distances to an upper 1O2-generating surface. Short distances of 20 µm efficiently delivered airborne 1O2 to the droplet in single-digit picomolar steady-state concentrations. Delivery decreases linearly with distance, but 50% of the 1O2 steady-state concentration is trapped at a distance of 300 µm from the generating surface. The 1270 nm luminescence intensity was measured within the SH sandwich system, confirming the presence of airborne 1O2. Physical quenching of 1O2 to ground-state 3O2 by the water droplet itself and both physical and chemical quenching of 1O2 by the water droplet containing the trap 9,10-anthracene dipropionate dianion are observed. Unlike a majority of work in the field of PDT with dissolved sensitizers, where 1O2 diffuses short (hundreds of nanometers) distances, we show the delivery of airborne 1O2 via a superhydrophobic surface is effective through air in tenths of millimeters distances to oxidize an organic compound in water. Our results provide not only potential relevance to PDT but also surface bacterial inactivation processes.

Semimetallic Graphene for Infrared Sensing.

Both photothermal and photovoltaic infrared (IR) detectors employ sensing materials that have an optical band gap. Different from these conventional materials, graphene has a conical band structure that imposes zero band gap. In this study, using the semimetallic multilayer graphene, IR detection at room temperature is realized. The relatively high Seebeck coefficient, ranging from 40 to 60 µV/K, compared to that of the metal, and the large optical absorption in the mid-IR region, in the wavelength range of 7-17 µm, enable graphene to detect IR without an absorber, which is essential for most IR detectors because the band gap of the sensing materials is much larger than the energy of IR and the incident IR can be absorbed directly by the sensing material. Thus, the incident IR can be absorbed directly by the sensing material in our device. The developed detector with a SiN membrane shows high responsivity and detectivity, which are 140 V/W and 5 × 108 cm·Hz1/2/W at 5 Hz, respectively. In addition, the IR sensor shows a response time of 600 µs. In the room-temperature operation of the IR sensor array without cooling, our sensors detect IR emitted from a human body and track the movement. The availability of large-area graphene in current technology opens new applications for metallic two-dimensional materials and a possibility for scale-up.

Electrical Transport Properties of Polymorphic MoS2.

The engineering of polymorphs in two-dimensional layered materials has recently attracted significant interest. Although the semiconducting (2H) and metallic (1T) phases are known to be stable in thin-film MoTe2, semiconducting 2H-MoS2 is locally converted into metallic 1T-MoS2 through chemical lithiation. In this paper, we describe the observation of the 2H, 1T, and 1T' phases coexisting in Li-treated MoS2, which result in unusual transport phenomena. Although multiphase MoS2 shows no transistor-gating response, the channel resistance decreases in proportion to the temperature, similar to the behavior of a typical semiconductor. Transmission electron microscopy images clearly show that the 1T and 1T' phases are randomly distributed and intervened with 2H-MoS2, which is referred to as the 1T and 1T' puddling phenomenon. The resistance curve fits well with 2D-variable range-hopping transport behavior, where electrons hop over 1T domains that are bounded by semiconducting 2H phases. However, near 30 K, electrons hop over charge puddles. The large temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR) of multiphase MoS2, -2.0 × 10(-2) K(-1) at 300 K, allows for efficient IR detection at room temperature by means of the photothermal effect.

Separation of maleic anhydride grafted polypropylene using multidimensional high-temperature liquid chromatography.

Functionalization addresses a property gap of polyolefins and opens new perspectives due to improved surface properties in applications like composites (e.g., glass fiber reinforced polypropylene) and anti-corrosive coatings for metals. Various techniques have been developed to characterize functionalized polyolefins, yet no analytical approach addressing their chemical heterogeneity exists. Using High Temperature Size Exclusion Chromatography (HT-SEC) coupled to infrared spectroscopy we could show for two model samples of polypropylene grafted maleic anhydride (PP-g-MA), differing in their nominal MA content, that the grafting density increases with decreasing molar mass. Crystallization Analysis Fractionation (CRYSTAF) does not enable to separate these samples according to their composition to the extent required. Yet, when using High Temperature High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HT-HPLC), with either silica gel or Mica as stationary phase and a gradient mobile phase, a deformulation into a grafted and a non-grafted fraction could be achieved. This was confirmed by analyzing the eluted fractions by infrared spectroscopy. Hyphenating the separation according to composition with a separation according to molar mass (HT-HPLC x HT-SEC) enabled for the first time to reveal the bivariate distribution of PP-g-MA with regard to the molar mass and composition. Using on-line infrared detection quantitative information on the compositional and molar mass parameters of the individual fractions could be obtained.

A method based on infrared detection for determining the moisture content of ceramic plaster materials.

In this work, we describe a methodology for developing a mathematical model based on infrared (IR) detection to determine the moisture content (M) in solid samples. For this purpose, an experimental setup was designed, developed and calibrated against the gravimetric method. The experimental arrangement allowed for the simultaneous measurement of M and the electromotive force (EMF), fitting the experimental variables as much as possible. These variables were correlated by a mathematical model, and the obtained correlation was M=1.12×exp(3.47×EMF), ±2.54%. This finding suggests that it is feasible to measure the moisture content when it has greater values than 2.54%. The proposed methodology could be used for different conditions of temperature, relative humidity and drying rates to evaluate the influence of these variables on the amount of energy received by the IR detector.