On the Luminescence Properties and Surface Passivation Mechanism of III- and N-Polar Nanopillar Ultraviolet Multiple-Quantum-Well Light Emitting Diodes.

The non-centrosymmetricity of III-nitride wurtzite crystals enables metal or nitrogen polarity with dramatically different surface energies and optical properties. In this work, III-polar and N-polar nanostructured ultraviolet multiple quantum wells (UV-MQWs) were fabricated by nanosphere lithography and reactive ion etching. The influence of KOH etching and rapid thermal annealing treatments on the luminescence behaviors were carefully investigated, showing a maximum enhancement factor of 2.4 in emission intensity for III-polar nanopillars, but no significant improvement for N-polar nanopillars. The discrepancy in optical behaviors between III- and N-polar nanopillar MQWs stems from carrier localization in III-polar surface, as indium compositional inhomogeneity is discovered by cathodoluminescence mapping, and a defect-insensitive emission property is observed. Therefore, non-radiative recombination centers such as threading dislocations or point defects are unlikely to influence the optical property even after post-fabrication surface treatment. This work lays solid foundation for future study on the effects of surface treatment on III- and N-polar nanostructured light-emitting-diodes and provides a promising route for the design of nanostructure photonic devices.

Design and simulation of perovskite solar cells with Gaussian structured gradient-index optics.

To unlock the full potential of the perovskite solar cell (PSC) photocurrent density and power conversion efficiency, the topic of optical management and design optimization is of absolute importance. Here, we propose a gradient-index optical design of the PSC based on a Gaussian-type front-side glass structure. Numerical simulations clarify a broadband light-harvesting response of the new design, showing that a maximal photocurrent density of 23.35 mA/cm2 may be expected, which is an increase by 1.21 mA/cm2 compared with that of the traditional flat-glass counterpart (22.14 mA/cm2). Comprehensive analysis of the electric field distributions elucidates the light-trapping mechanism. Furthermore, PSCs having the Gaussian index profile display superior optical properties and performance compared to those of the uniform index counterpart under varying conditions of perovskite layer thicknesses and incident angles. The simulation results in this study provide an effective design scheme to promote optical absorption in PSCs.

Single-Step Formation of Ni Nanoparticle-Modified Graphene-Diamond Hybrid Electrodes for Electrochemical Glucose Detection.

The development of accurate, reliable devices for glucose detection has drawn much attention from the scientific community over the past few years. Here, we report a single-step method to fabricate Ni nanoparticle-modified graphene-diamond hybrid electrodes via a catalytic thermal treatment, by which the graphene layers are directly grown on the diamond surface using Ni thin film as a catalyst, meanwhile, Ni nanoparticles are formed in situ on the graphene surface due to dewetting behavior. The good interface between the Ni nanoparticles and the graphene guarantees efficient charge transfer during electrochemical detection. The fabricated electrodes exhibit good glucose sensing performance with a low detection limit of 2 µM and a linear detection range between 2 µM-1 mM. In addition, this sensor shows great selectivity, suggesting potential applications for sensitive and accurate monitoring of glucose in human blood.

Electrochemical Enantiomer Recognition Based on sp³-to-sp² Converted Regenerative Graphene/Diamond Electrode.

It is of great significance to distinguish enantiomers due to their different, even completely opposite biological, physiological and pharmacological activities compared to those with different stereochemistry. A sp³-to-sp² converted highly stable and regenerative graphene/diamond electrode (G/D) was proposed as an enantiomer recognition platform after a simple ß-cyclodextrin (ß-CD) drop casting process. The proposed enantiomer recognition sensor has been successfully used for d and l-phenylalanine recognition. In addition, the G/D electrode can be simply regenerated by half-minute sonication due to the strong interfacial bonding between graphene and diamond. Therefore, the proposed G/D electrode showed significant potential as a reusable sensing platform for enantiomer recognition.

Performance enhancement of ultraviolet light emitting diode incorporating Al nanohole arrays.

Enhanced photoluminescence and improved internal quantum efficiency were demonstrated for ultraviolet light emitting diodes (UV-LEDs) with Al nanohole arrays deposited on the top surface. The effects of the thickness and periodicity of the plasmonic structures on the optical properties of UV-LEDs were studied, and an optimized nanohole array parameter was illustrated. Classical electrodynamic simulations showed that the radiated power is mostly concentrated along the edge of the Al nanohole arrays. Even though no obvious dip was observed in the transmission spectra associated with localized surface plasmon resonance, significant improvements in radiatiative recombination and light extraction efficiency were demonstrated, indicating the influence of Al nanohole arrays on the light emission control of UV-LEDs. It is anticipated that the enhanced luminescence can be obtained for various emitting wavelengths by directly adjusting the periodicity and morphology of the Al nanohole arrays and this new technology can alleviate crystal quality requirements of III-nitride thin films in the development of high efficiency UV optoelectronic devices.

Highly stable and regenerative graphene-diamond hybrid electrochemical biosensor for fouling target dopamine detection.

Graphene is widely recognized as a promising nanomaterial for the construction of high-performance electrochemical biosensors. However, the lack of strong interfacial forces between graphene and conductive substrates is a bottleneck in the fabrication of highly stable graphene electrodes. In this work, few-layer graphene was directly formed on a high pressure high temperature (HPHT) diamond substrate via sp3-to-sp2 conversion by catalytic thermal treatment and using diamond itself as the carbon source. The hybrid electrode prototype was also highly conductive and had a linear electrochemical response to dopamine in the concentration range of 5 µM - 2 mM, with a low detection limit of 200 nM. After prolonged and repeated exposure to dopamine, electrode fouling was observed which led to sensitivity degradation. Based on the strong interfacial bonding between graphene and HPHT diamond, regeneration of the fouled electrode and full performance recovery would be easily achieved by ultrasonic cleaning. The hybrid electrode is highly robust, and shows potential in its application to the detection of biofouling molecules, food processing and wastewater treatment.

Label-Free Electrochemical Detection of Vanillin through Low-Defect Graphene Electrodes Modified with Au Nanoparticles.

Graphene is an excellent modifier for the surface modification of electrochemical electrodes due to its exceptional physical properties and, for the development of graphene-based chemical and biosensors, is usually coated on glassy carbon electrodes (GCEs) via drop casting. However, the ease of aggregation and high defect content of reduced graphene oxides degrade the electrical properties. Here, we fabricated low-defect graphene electrodes by catalytically thermal treatment of HPHT diamond substrate, followed by the electrodeposition of Au nanoparticles (AuNPs) with an average size of ≈60 nm on the electrode surface using cyclic voltammetry. The Au nanoparticle-decorated graphene electrodes show a wide linear response range to vanillin from 0.2 to 40 µM with a low limit of detection of 10 nM. This work demonstrates the potential applications of graphene-based hybrid electrodes for highly sensitive chemical detection.

Enhancing light coupling and emission efficiencies of AlGaN thin film and AlGaN/GaN multiple quantum wells with periodicity-wavelength matched nanostructure array.

Poor light extraction efficiency (LEE) has been one of the major challenges responsible for the low external quantum efficiency of AlGaN-based ultraviolet light emitting Diodes (UV-LEDs). In this study, AlGaN nanostructure arrays were fabricated using a large-scale nanosphere self-assembly technique followed by reactive ion etching, and the transmission property of the AlGaN thin film and the photoluminescence (PL) behavior of AlGaN/GaN multiple-quantum-wells (MQWs) were investigated. A 90% light transmission value was obtained for the AlGaN thin film and a 2.5-fold increase in the band edge luminescence of the MQWs were obtained with an optimized nanostructure periodicity. Essentially, a general rule of periodicity-MQW emission wavelength matching criteria-was provided. Both the light transmission properties of the Al0.55Ga0.45N/AlN/sapphire thin film and the photoluminescence (PL) behavior of the AlGaN/GaN MQWs contribute to an improved understanding of the light extraction mechanism of PhC patterned UV-LEDs. Raman spectra also demonstrated the strain relaxation inside the MQW after nanostructure fabrication and thermal annealing. This study provides a pathway towards higher efficiency UV-LEDs with the help of a periodicity-wavelength matched nanostructure array.

Acceptor Side-Chain Effects on the Excited State Dynamics of Two-Dimensional-Like Conjugated Copolymers in Solution.

Excited state dynamics of two-dimensional-like conjugated copolymers PFDCN and PFSDCN based on alternating fluorene and triphenylamine main chains and malononitrile pendant acceptor groups with thiophene as π-bridge, have been investigated by using transient absorption spectroscopy. There is an additional conjugated -C=C- bond in PFDCN, which distinguishes it from PFSDCN. The lowest energy absorption band of each copolymer absorption spectrum is attributed to the π-π* transition with intramolecular charge-transfer, which has a lower fluorescence contribution than those of higher energy absorption bands. The optical excitation of either PFDCN or PFSDCN solution generates polaron pairs that then self-localize and evolve to a bound singlet exciton within a few picoseconds. Due to the additional conjugated -C=C- bond in the acceptor side-chain, PFDCN has a stronger intramolecular charge-transfer characteristic compared with PFSDCN, therefore exhibiting a longer self-localization time (7 ps vs. 3 ps for PFSDCN) and a shorter fluorescence lifetime (1.48 ns vs. 1.60 ns for PFSDCN).