Plasmon-assisted spin transition in gold nanostar@spin crossover heterostructures

Aquí presentamos el diseño de nanopartículas core@shell formadas por un núcleo de nanoestrella de Au metálico y una capa cruzada de espín basada en el polímero de coordinación [Fe(Htrz)2(trz)](BF4). Este procedimiento es general y se ha extendido a otras morfologías metálicas (nanovarillas, nanotriángulos). Gracias al efecto fototérmico derivado de las propiedades plasmónicas de la nanoestrella de Au, el 60 % de los centros de hierro experimentan una transición de espín térmico dentro de la histéresis térmica provocada por una irradiación de baja intensidad con un láser de 808 nm. En comparación con otras morfologías de Au, la gran ventaja de la forma de nanoestrella surge de los puntos cal…

Crystallographic and geometrical dependence of water oxidation activity in Co-based layered hydroxides

Cobalt-based layered hydroxides (LHs) stand out as one of the best families of electroactive materials for the alkaline oxygen evolution reaction (OER). However, fundamental aspects such as the influence of the crystalline structure and its connection with the geometry of the catalytic sites remains poorly understood. Thus, to address this we have conducted a thorough experimental and in silico study on the most essential Co-LHs (i.e.: ɑ-LH, β-LH and LDH) which allows us to understand the role of the layered structure and coordination environment of Co atoms on the OER performance. The ɑ-LH, containing both octahedral and tetrahedral sites, behaves as the best OER catalyst in comparison to …

Prussian blue@MoS2 layer composites as highly efficient cathodes for sodium- and potassium-ion batteries

Prussian blue (PB) represents a simple, economical, and eco‐friendly system as cathode material for sodium‐ion batteries (SIBs). However, structural problems usually worsen its experimental performance thus motivating the search for alternative synthetic strategies and the formation of composites that compensate these deficiencies. Herein, a straightforward approach for the preparation of PB/MoS2‐based nanocomposites is presented. MoS2 provides a 2D active support for the homogeneous nucleation of porous PB nanocrystals, which feature superior surface areas than those obtained by other methodologies, giving rise to a compact PB shell covering the full flake. The nanocomposite exhibits an ex…

Boosting the supercapacitive behavior of CoAl-layered double hydroxides via tuning the metal composition and interlayer space

Layered double hydroxides (LDHs) are promising supercapacitor materials due to their wide chemical versatility, earth abundant metals and high specific capacitances. Many parameters influencing the supercapacitive performance have been studied such as the chemical composition, the synthetic approaches, and the interlayer anion. However, no systematic studies about the effect of the basal space have been carried out. Here, two-dimensional (2D) CoAl-LDHs were synthesized through anion exchange reactions using surfactant molecules in order to increase the interlayer space (ranging from 7.5 to 32.0 Å). These compounds exhibit similar size and dimensions but different basal space to explore excl…

Influence of crystallographic structure and metal vacancies on the oxygen evolution reaction performance of Ni-based layered hydroxides

Nickel-based layered hydroxides (LHs) are a family of efficient electrocatalysts for the alkaline oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Nevertheless, fundamental aspects such as the influence of the crystalline structure and the role of lattice distortion of the catalytic sites remain poorly understood and typically muddled. Herein, we carried out a comprehensive investigation on ɑ-LH, β-LH and LDH phases, analysing the role exerted by Ni-vacancies by means of structural, spectroscopical, in-silico and electrochemical studies. Indeed, density functional theory (DFT) calculations, in agreement with X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS), confirm that the presence of Ni-vacancies produces acute disto…

The design of magneto-plasmonic nanostructures formed by magnetic Prussian Blue-type nanocrystals decorated with Au nanoparticles.

Abstract: We have developed a general protocol for the preparation of hybrid nanostructures formed by nanoparticles (NPs) of molecule-based magnets based on Prussian Blue Analogues (PBAs) decorated with plasmonic Au NPs of different shapes. By adjusting the pH, Au NPs can be attached preferentially along the edges of the PBA or randomly on the surface. The protocol allows tuning the plasmonic properties of the hybrids in the whole visible spectrum.

Continuous‐Flow Synthesis of High‐Quality Few‐Layer Antimonene Hexagons

2D materials show outstanding properties that can bring many applications in different technological fields. However, their uses are still limited by production methods. In this context, antimonene is recently suggested as a new 2D material to fabricate different (opto)electronic devices, among other potential applications. This work focuses on optimizing the synthetic parameters to produce high-quality antimonene hexagons and their implementation in a large-scale manufacturing procedure. By means of a continuous-flow synthesis, few-layer antimonene hexagons with ultra-large lateral dimensions (up to several microns) and a few nanometers thick are isolated. The suitable chemical post-treatm…

New Molecular-Based Materials for Enabling Electro-Optical Bistability in the Silicon Photonics Platform

Electro-optical bistability is a functionality which can be crucial for a wide range of applications as it can enable non-volatile and ultra-low power switching performance. We investigate the integration of a molecular-based material presenting a Spin Crossover (SCO) effect in the silicon platform for enabling optical bistability. The SCO phenomenon involves a switching process between two molecular spin states. This spin transition comes along with a change in the optical refractive index that can be switched by different external stimuli such as a variation of temperature or light irradiation and which has a hysteretic behaviour. The SCO material can be synthetized as nanoparticles so th…

Liquid phase exfoliation of carbonate-intercalated layered double hydroxides.

Direct exfoliation of a carbonate layered double hydroxide (LDH) has been achieved by using a novel horn-probe sonic tip, avoiding the development of time-consuming anion-exchange reactions. The most suitable solvents were chosen based on the Hildebrand solubility parameters and the thickness of the exfoliated nanosheets confirmed unambiguously the successful delamination.

Reinforced Room-Temperature Spin Filtering in Chiral Paramagnetic Metallopeptides

Chirality-induced spin selectivity (CISS), whereby helical molecules polarize the spin of electrical current, is an intriguing effect with potential applications in nanospintronics. In this nascent field, the study of the CISS effect using paramagnetic chiral molecules, which could introduce another degree of freedom in controlling the spin transport, remains so far unexplored. To address this challenge, herein we propose the use of self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) of helical lanthanide-binding peptides. To elucidate the effect of the paramagnetic nuclei, monolayers of the peptide coordinating paramagnetic or diamagnetic ions are prepared. By means of spin-dependent electrochemistry, the CI…

Influence of the Interlayer Space on the Water Oxidation Performance in a Family of Surfactant-Intercalated NiFe-Layered Double Hydroxides

Layered double hydroxides (LDHs) are low dimensional materials that act as benchmark catalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Many LDH properties affecting the OER have been studied to reach the optimal efficiency but no systematic studies concerning the influence of the interlayer space have been developed. In this context, these materials allow a large tunability in their chemical composition enabling the substitution of the interlayer anion and therefore modifying exclusively the basal space. Here, we synthesize by anion exchange reactions a surfactantintercalated family of NiFe-LDHs with increasing basal spacing ranging from 8.0 to 31.6 Å (one of the largest reported so far fo…

Hybrid nanostructures based on gold nanoparticles and functional coordination polymers: Chemistry, physics and applications in biomedicine, catalysis and magnetism

During the last decade, the scientific community has become interested in hybrid nanomaterials, especially the ones that combine gold nanoparticles with a second functional component. In this context, coordination polymers are materials that possess potential advantages over conventional inorganic nanomaterials and organic compounds such as chemical versatility, easy processability, high specific area, low toxicity, biodegradability and electronic and magnetic functionalities to name a few. In this manner, the wise integration of Au nanoparticles with coordination polymers in different types of nanostructures has allowed extending the scope of properties and applications of these systems, a…

Evaluation of the electrochemical anion recognition ofNO3−-imprinted poly(Azure A) inNO3−/Cl−mixed solutions by ac-electrogravimetry

Abstract During the reversible electrochemical reactions of the intrinsically conducting polymer (ICP) films, ions are inserted in them to balance the inner charge site of the polymer. For this reason, doped ICP films with anions or cations can be good candidates for the electrochemical removal of contaminant ions from wastewater. In this work, a polymer of a phenothiazine derivative (poly(Azure A or PAA)) was electrosynthesized by cyclic voltammetry in aqueous solutions using nitrate ions as a structural template. After that, PAA film was repeatedly cycled in identical conditions in a monomer-free solution. The electrochemical anion recognition of the nitrate-imprinted poly(Azure A) ( N O …

Improving the onset potential and Tafel slope determination of earth-abundant water oxidation electrocatalysts

To date, a plethora of electrocatalysts for the Oxygen Evolution Reaction (OER) have been proposed. For evaluating their electrocatalytic behavior the determination of the onset potential in each studied electrolyte is a key parameter. Nevertheless, this evaluation becomes particularly problematic for first- transition metal catalysts as well as by the use of electroactive collectors ( e.g. Ni foams) whose redox peaks overlap the onset potential. A usual solution to detect the onset potential requires the availabil- ity of in-situ mass spectrometric determination of the generated oxygen. In this work, we present fast and easier available cyclic voltammetry and coulovoltammetric responses to…

Design of Bistable Gold@Spin‐Crossover Core–Shell Nanoparticles Showing Large Electrical Responses for the Spin Switching

<p>A simple protocol to prepare core-shell gold@spin-crossover (Au@SCO) nanoparticles (NPs) based on the 1D spin-crossover [Fe(Htrz)<sub>2</sub>(trz)](BF<sub>4</sub>) coordination polymer is reported. The synthesis relies on a two-step approach consisting on a partial surface ligand substitution of the citrate-stabilized Au NPs followed by the controlled growth of a very thin layer of the SCO polymer. As a result, colloidally stable core@shell spherical NPs of 19 nm in size exhibiting a narrow distribution in sizes have been obtained, revealing a switchable SCOshell of <i>ca.</i>4 nm. Temperature-dependent charge transport measurements of an electri…

Core–Shell Nanoparticles: Design of Bistable Gold@Spin‐Crossover Core–Shell Nanoparticles Showing Large Electrical Responses for the Spin Switching (Adv. Mater. 27/2019)

Cover Feature: Boosting the Supercapacitive Behavior of CoAl Layered Double Hydroxides via Tuning the Metal Composition and Interlayer Space (Batteries & Supercaps 6/2020)

Liquid phase exfoliation of antimonene: systematic optimization, characterization and electrocatalytic properties

Antimonene, a novel group 15 two-dimensional material, is attracting great attention due to its outstanding physical and chemical properties. Despite its thermodynamic stability, the pronounced covalent character of the interlayer interactions imposes severe limitations on its exfoliation into mono- and few-layer. Here, we develop a systematic study of liquid phase exfoliation (LPE) with the aim to optimize antimonene production in terms of concentration and dimensional anisotropy, investigating the most relevant experimental factors affecting the exfoliation: pre-processing of pristine antimony, solvent selection based on Hansen solubility parameters and ultrasound conditions. Moreover, ex…

Enhancing the electrocatalytic activity and stability of Prussian blue analogues by increasing their electroactive sites through the introduction of Au nanoparticles

Prussian blue analogues (PBAs) have been proven as excellent Earth-abundant electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in acidic, neutral and alkaline media. Further improvements can be achieved by increasing their electrical conductivity, but scarce attention has been paid to quantify the electroactive sites of the electrocatalyst when this enhancement occurs. In this work, we have studied how the chemical design influences the specific density of electroactive sites in different Au-PBA nanostructures. Thus, we have first obtained and fully characterized a variety of monodisperse core@shell hybrid nanoparticles of Au@PBA (PBA of NiIIFeII and CoIIFeII) with different shell siz…

Cover Feature: Boosting the Supercapacitive Behavior of CoAl Layered Double Hydroxides via Tuning the Metal Composition and Interlayer Space

The Cover Feature illustrates the improvement in the supercapacitive performance of CoAl layered double hydroxides (LDHs) after enlarging their interlayer space with anionic surfactants. This enhancement in the energy storage is ascribed to the increase in the electrochemical surface area (ECSA), the higher electrolyte diffusion, and the partial aluminum dissolution. PNICTOCHEM 804110 (G.A.) CIDEGENT/2018/001 Portada de revista, actividad de difusión.