Nondestructive testing of resistance spot welds using eddy current thermography.

The paper presents the use of eddy current thermography for detecting cracks in resistance spot welds. The sample is a three-sheet stack-up joined together by welding spots. Inductive Helmholtz coil is used for heating up the sample, and the thermal response of each spot is monitored using a cooled indium antimonide camera. The sequence of images captured is processed using the pulsed-phase thermography technique. The phase image is completed with a supplementary filtering operation to allow outlining defects. The result was confirmed with confocal microscopy inspection.

Davydov Splitting and Self-Organization in a Porphyrin Layer Noncovalently Attached to Single Wall Carbon Nanotubes.

We study the ability of porphyrin molecules to cooperate upon adsorption on the sp2 curved surface of carbon nanotube. We discuss the role of the phenyl substituents in the cooperativity of the functionalization reaction. Moreover, a specific spatial organization of the molecules around the nanotube is unveiled through polarization sensitive experiments. Furthermore, we observe an increase of the energy splitting of the porphyrin main transition upon the adsorption on the nanotube. This effect, interpreted as a Davydov splitting, is analyzed quantitatively using a dipole-dipole coupling model. This study demonstrates the ability of porphyrin molecules to create an organized self-assembled layer at the surface of the nanotubes where molecules are electronically coupled together.

Energy Transfer from Quantum Dots to Graphene and MoS2: The Role of Absorption and Screening in Two-Dimensional Materials.

We report efficient nonradiative energy transfer (NRET) from core-shell, semiconducting quantum dots to adjacent two-dimensional sheets of graphene and MoS2 of single- and few-layer thickness. We observe quenching of the photoluminescence (PL) from individual quantum dots and enhanced PL decay rates in time-resolved PL, corresponding to energy transfer rates of 1-10 ns(-1). Our measurements reveal contrasting trends in the NRET rate from the quantum dot to the van der Waals material as a function of thickness. The rate increases significantly with increasing layer thickness of graphene, but decreases with increasing thickness of MoS2 layers. A classical electromagnetic theory accounts for both the trends and absolute rates observed for the NRET. The countervailing trends arise from the competition between screening and absorption of the electric field of the quantum dot dipole inside the acceptor layers. We extend our analysis to predict the type of NRET behavior for the near-field coupling of a chromophore to a range of semiconducting and metallic thin film materials.

Observation of Excitonic Rydberg States in Monolayer MoS2 and WS2 by Photoluminescence Excitation Spectroscopy.

We have identified excited exciton states in monolayers of MoS2 and WS2 supported on fused silica by means of photoluminescence excitation spectroscopy. In monolayer WS2, the positions of the excited A exciton states imply an exciton binding energy of 0.32 eV. In monolayer MoS2, excited exciton transitions are observed at energies of 2.24 and 2.34 eV. Assigning these states to the B exciton Rydberg series yields an exciton binding energy of 0.44 eV.

Chirality dependence of the absorption cross section of carbon nanotubes.

The variation of the optical absorption of carbon nanotubes with their geometry has been a long-standing question at the heart of both metrological and applicative issues, in particular because optical spectroscopy is one of the primary tools for the assessment of the chiral species abundance of samples. Here, we tackle the chirality dependence of the optical absorption with an original method involving ultraefficient energy transfer in porphyrin-nanotube compounds that allows uniform photoexcitation of all chiral species. We measure the absolute absorption cross section of a wide range of semiconducting nanotubes at their S22 transition and show that it varies by up to a factor of 2.2 with the chiral angle, with type I nanotubes showing a larger absorption. In contrast, the luminescence quantum yield remains almost constant.

Local field effects in the energy transfer between a chromophore and a carbon nanotube: a single-nanocompound investigation.

Energy transfer in noncovalently bound porphyrin/carbon nanotube compounds is investigated at the single-nanocompound scale. Excitation spectroscopy of the luminescence of the nanotube shows two resonances arising from intrinsic excitation of the nanotube and from energy transfer from the porphyrin. Polarization diagrams show that both resonances are highly anisotropic, with a preferred direction along the tube axis. The energy transfer is thus strongly anisotropic despite the almost isotropic absorption of porphyrins. We account for this result by local field effects induced by the large optical polarizability of nanotubes. We show that the local field correction extends over several nanometers outside the nanotubes and drives the overall optical response of functionalized nanotubes.

Pi-stacking functionalization of carbon nanotubes through micelle swelling.

We report on a new, original and efficient method for pi-stacking functionalization of single-wall carbon nanotubes. This method is applied to the synthesis of a high-yield light-harvesting system combining single-wall carbon nanotubes and porphyrin molecules. We developed a micelle-swelling technique that leads to controlled and stable complexes presenting an efficient energy transfer. We demonstrate the key role of the organic solvent in the functionalization mechanism. By swelling the micelles, the solvent helps the non-water-soluble porphyrins to reach the micelle core and allows a strong enhancement of the interaction between porphyrins and nanotubes. This technique opens new avenues for the functionalization of carbon nanostructures.