On the transformation of “zincone”-like into porous ZnO thin films from sub-saturated plasma enhanced atomic layer deposition

• Alberto Perrotta,
• Julian Pilz,
• Stefan Pachmajer,
• Antonella Milella and
• Anna Maria Coclite

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 746–759, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.74

• oxides in photocatalysis [30][33] and as electrodes for lithium-ion batteries [12][18], or for protective and passivating layers [28][32][35]. In this contribution, an alternative method was adopted for the formation of Zn-alkoxide layers. While ALD is known to deliver pure dense ZnO, applied in many

Review of time-resolved non-contact electrostatic force microscopy techniques with applications to ionic transport measurements

• Aaron Mascaro,
• Yoichi Miyahara,
• Tyler Enright,
• Omur E. Dagdeviren and
• Peter Grütter

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 617–633, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.62

• period of the cantilever and compare and contrast it with those previously established. Keywords: atomic force microscopy; electrostatic force microscopy; ionic transport; lithium ion batteries; nanotechnology; Introduction Since the inception of the atomic force microscope (AFM) a variety of

• + conducting glasses [7]. To further expand the power of the technique, Mascaro et al. developed a real-time averaging system used in conjunction with a fast (high-bandwidth) PLL to improve the time resolution [12]. This enabled ionic transport measurements to be performed on lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4

• ), a relevant lithium-ion battery cathode material. In this configuration the time resolution (and thus the fastest ionic conductor that can be measured) is limited by the time response of the PLL, which depends on many parameters including the free resonance frequency of the cantilever as well as the

A porous 3D-RGO@MWCNT hybrid material as Li–S battery cathode

• Yongguang Zhang,
• Jun Ren,
• Yan Zhao,
• Taizhe Tan,
• Fuxing Yin and
• Yichao Wang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 514–521, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.52

• the shuttle effect by acting as a lithium polysulfide reservoir, and iii) additional empty spaces to buffer the volume expansion/shrinkage in the charge and discharge processes enhancing the cycling performance of the battery. The electrochemical performance of the S-3D-RGO@MWCNT composite will be

• ≥ 4) and the reduction to short-chain polysulfides (n < 4), respectively. On the anodic side, the peak located at around 2.40 V corresponds to the oxidation of lithium polysulfides (Li2Sn, n < 4) and Li2S to Li2S8. It can be seen that during the cycling, the anodic peak shifts to a lower voltage

• radiation. Electrochemical measurements CR2025 coin batteries were assembled using S-3D-RGO@MWCNT as the cathode, 1 M lithium bistrifluoromethanesulfonimide and 0.1 M LiNO3 in a mixed solution of DME-DOL (1:1 by volume) as electrolyte, a Li foil as anode, and a Celgard 2300 membrane as separator. The

Advanced scanning probe lithography using anatase-to-rutile transition to create localized TiO₂ nanorods

• Julian Kalb,
• Vanessa Knittel and
• Lukas Schmidt-Mende

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 412–418, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.40

• ], fuel cells [20], lithium batteries [21][22][23][24][25][26], field-emission devices [27], data storage devices [28], gaso- and electrochromic displays [29][30], and nonlinear optical devices [31]. Even in the field of medical engineering, such structures are promising candidates for improving the

Development of an anti-pollution coating process technology for the application of an on-site PV module

• Sejin Jung,
• Wonseok Choi,
• Jung Hyun Kim and
• Jang Myoun Ko

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 332–336, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.32

• -pollution characteristics of the PV modules contained silicon dioxide (SiO2), lithium (Li), and potassium (K). The viscosity, density, and specific gravity (referring to the density of water) of the coating solution were 0.01–0.03 kg/m·s, 1.1 g/cm3, and 1.13 ± 0.05, respectively. The solution can be used to

A Ni(OH)₂ nanopetals network for high-performance supercapacitors synthesized by immersing Ni nanofoam in water

• Donghui Zheng,
• Man Li,
• Yongyan Li,
• Chunling Qin,
• Yichao Wang and
• Zhifeng Wang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 281–293, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.27

• energy density is approximately three times larger than that of a thin-film lithium ion battery (1–12 mW h/cm3, 4 V/500 μAh) [52] and far exceeds that of a MnO2-Ni(OH)2/AB//active carbon asymmetric supercapacitor (3.62 mWh/cm3 at 11 mW/cm3) [39] and a NiCo-LDH//AC asymmetric capacitor (7.4 mWh/cm3 at 103

Interaction of Te and Se interlayers with Ag or Au nanofilms in sandwich structures

• Arkadiusz Ciesielski,
• Lukasz Skowronski,
• Marek Trzcinski,
• Ewa Górecka,
• Wojciech Pacuski and
• Tomasz Szoplik

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 238–246, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.22

• °. Photoemission spectra were recorded using a VG Scienta R3000 hemispherical analyzer oriented perpendicular to the sample surface. The XPS data were recorded for all of the elements found at the surface with the energy resolution set to 100 meV (with the exception of lithium). The XPS data recordings were

Scanning probe microscopy for energy-related materials

• Rüdiger Berger,
• Benjamin Grévin,
• Philippe Leclère and
• Yi Zhang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 132–134, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.12

• relationship between Li-ion conductivity and the microstructure of the solid-state electrolyte lithium aluminum titanium phosphate films [10]. Furthermore, dielectric properties play a role for the storage of electrochemical energy. Ying Wang and co-workers report on a novel method for the characterization of

Graphene-enhanced metal oxide gas sensors at room temperature: a review

• Dongjin Sun,
• Yifan Luo,
• Marc Debliquy and
• Chao Zhang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2832–2844, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.264

• ], graphene has been widely used in various fields such as photocatalysts, lithium battery electrodes, supercapacitors, gas sensors and electronic devices [2][3][4] due to its high specific surface area (2630 m2/g) and high carrier mobility at room temperature [5]. The electrical properties of graphene are

Hydrothermal-derived carbon as a stabilizing matrix for improved cycling performance of silicon-based anodes for lithium-ion full cells

• Mirco Ruttert,
• Florian Holtstiege,
• Jessica Hüsker,
• Markus Börner,
• Martin Winter and
• Tobias Placke

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2381–2395, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.223

• carbon and Si, i.e., an improved specific/volumetric capacity and capacity retention compared to the single materials when applied as a negative electrode in lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). This work focuses on the influence of the Si content (up to 20 wt %) on the electrochemical performance, on the

• full cells. While prelithiation is able to remarkably enhance the initial capacity of the full cell by ≈18 mAh g−1, this effect diminishes with continued cycling and only a slightly enhanced capacity of ≈5 mAh g−1 is maintained after 150 cycles. Keywords: LIB full cell; lithium-ion batteries

• ; prelithiation; silicon/carbon composite; solid–electrolyte interphase (SEI); Introduction Since their market launch in 1991, the energy density of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) has increased steadily. However, further improvements in terms of power density and energy density are essential to meet the rising

Metal-free catalysis based on nitrogen-doped carbon nanomaterials: a photoelectron spectroscopy point of view

• Mattia Scardamaglia and
• Carla Bittencourt

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2015–2031, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.191

• -sensitized solar cells [67]. A high-performance anode material for lithium-ion batteries was obtained using graphene co-doped with nitrogen and fluorine, which was prepared by a hydrothermal reaction of an aqueous dispersion of graphene oxide with trimethylamine trihydrofluoride [68]. In nitrogen-doped

Synthesis of carbon nanowalls from a single-source metal-organic precursor

• André Giese,
• Sebastian Schipporeit,
• Volker Buck and
• Nicolas Wöhrl

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1895–1905, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.181

• the large surface area of the material. The high aspect ratio together with chemical stability, mechanical strength and electrical conductivity make CNWs an interesting matrix material for catalytic applications. Together with metallic nanoparticles, such as platinum, CNWs could be used in lithium-ion

Synthesis of rare-earth metal and rare-earth metal-fluoride nanoparticles in ionic liquids and propylene carbonate

• Marvin Siebels,
• Lukas Mai,
• Laura Schmolke,
• Kai Schütte,
• Juri Barthel,
• Junpei Yue,
• Jörg Thomas,
• Bernd M. Smarsly,
• Anjana Devi,
• Roland A. Fischer and
• Christoph Janiak

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1881–1894, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.180

• ]. For EuF3, no oxygen peak was seen in the XPS analysis. Therefore, SAED and PXRD data in combination with HR-XPS exclude any contamination of the REF3-NPs with metal(III) oxides. Metal fluorides are used, for example, as cathode materials in lithium-ion batteries [6]. The lithium-ion battery is one of

• the most important rechargeable energy storage devices in modern electrical appliances such as mobile phones and laptops, but also in electric and hybrid vehicles [51]. The increasing performance of modern lithium-ion batteries is of great interest in current research [52][53][54]. Grey et al. showed

• procedures [60][61][62][63]. The rare-earth metal amidinates RE(amd)3 were synthesized by an insertion reaction of methyl lithium into 1,3-diisopropylcarbodiimide in THF. The resulting lithium amidinate solution was reacted with the RE halides in a salt metathesis reaction. The ionic liquids (ILs) [BMIm][BF4

Nitrogen-doped carbon nanotubes coated with zinc oxide nanoparticles as sulfur encapsulator for high-performance lithium/sulfur batteries

• Yan Zhao,
• Zhengjun Liu,
• Liancheng Sun,
• Yongguang Zhang,
• Yuting Feng,
• Xin Wang,
• Indira Kurmanbayeva and
• Zhumabay Bakenov

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1677–1685, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.159

• carbon nanotubes coated with zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO@NCNT) were prepared via a sol–gel route as sulfur encapsulator for lithium/sulfur (Li/S) batteries. The electrochemical properties of the S/ZnO@NCNT composite cathode were evaluated in Li/S batteries. It delivered an initial capacity of 1032

• energy density of 2600 Wh·kg−1, sulfur has been considered as a promising cathode material for lithium/sulfur (Li/S) batteries [1]. Additionally, sulfur is naturally abundant, has low cost and is environmentally friendly. But it is not conductive, and it dissolves into the electrolyte in the form of

• lithium polysulfides (Li2Sn, 4 ≤ n ≤ 8) during battery operation [2]. This is one of the major challenges in the commercialization of Li/S batteries. To overcome this problem, a rational design of the sulfur-based cathode is required, such as the addition of porous conductive materials that could “attract

Nanoscale electrochemical response of lithium-ion cathodes: a combined study using C-AFM and SIMS

• Jonathan Op de Beeck,
• Nouha Labyedh,
• Alfonso Sepúlveda,
• Valentina Spampinato,
• Alexis Franquet,
• Thierry Conard,
• Philippe M. Vereecken,
• Wilfried Vandervorst and
• Umberto Celano

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1623–1628, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.154

• the anode and cathode, creates high-mobility channels for the lithium migration, thus significantly enhancing the ionic conductivity of these materials [5]. However, being based on diffusion in a solid versus a liquid, the success of ASB will depend on the capability to address the nanoscale ionic

• addition, a comparison is made with pristine electrodeposited MnO2 (thickness roughly 250 nm) before conversion to LMO by solid-state reaction; this is done to have a reference sample that does not contain lithium. The general structure of our samples and the C-AFM setup are schematically shown in Figure

• changes. In Figure 1c–f we show the impact of different (tip-induced) voltage stresses applied under ambient conditions on two electrodeposited cathodes, i.e., MnO2 before (Figure 1c,d) and after lithium insertion (LMO, Figure 1e,f). From the resulting modifications of the current maps (Figure 1d,f) it is

Correlative electrochemical strain and scanning electron microscopy for local characterization of the solid state electrolyte Li_1.3Al_0.3Ti_1.7(PO₄)₃

• Nino Schön,
• Deniz Cihan Gunduz,
• Shicheng Yu,
• Hermann Tempel,
• Roland Schierholz and
• Florian Hausen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1564–1572, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.148

• , section JARA-Energy, 52425 Jülich, Germany 10.3762/bjnano.9.148 Abstract Correlative microscopy has been used to investigate the relationship between Li-ion conductivity and the microstructure of lithium aluminum titanium phosphate (Li1.3Al0.3Ti1.7(PO4)3, LATP) with high spatial resolution. A key to

• electrolytes (SSE); Introduction Solid state electrolytes (SSE) of the NASICON-type exhibit a high ionic conductivity and are in this respect becoming comparable to conventional organic electrolytes commonly used in lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) [1][2][3][4][5]. SSEs have gained much interest in recent years

• energy density [1][8][9][10]. Lithium aluminum titanium phosphate Li1.3Al0.3Ti1.7(PO4)3 (LATP), a ceramic with NASICON-type structure, is especially considered as a beneficial solid state electrolyte due to its superior lithium-ion conductivity in the range of 2 mS cm−1 in the “bulk” and 2 µS cm−1 at

Sheet-on-belt branched TiO₂(B)/rGO powders with enhanced photocatalytic activity

• Huan Xing,
• Wei Wen and
• Jin-Ming Wu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1550–1557, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.146

• common but still draws much attention. Many types of TiO2(B) nanostructures have been synthesized, such as nanowires [9][10], nanotubes [11], nanobelts [12][13][14], nanofibers [15] and nanosheets [16]. TiO2(B) is mostly used in lithium-ion batteries due to its relatively open crystal structure, superior

Electrodeposition of reduced graphene oxide with chitosan based on the coordination deposition method

• Mingyang Liu,
• Yanjun Chen,
• Chaoran Qin,
• Zheng Zhang,
• Shuai Ma,
• Xiuru Cai,
• Xueqian Li and
• Yifeng Wang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1200–1210, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.111

• attention due to its appealing applications for sensors, supercapacitors and lithium-ion batteries. However, there are still some limitations in the current electrodeposition methods for graphene. Here, we present a novel electrodeposition method for the direct deposition of reduced graphene oxide (rGO

Nanoscale mapping of dielectric properties based on surface adhesion force measurements

• Ying Wang,
• Yue Shen,
• Xingya Wang,
• Zhiwei Shen,
• Bin Li,
• Jun Hu and
• Yi Zhang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 900–906, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.84

• properties [21]. This approach is expected to provide a simple and convenient method to characterize the dielectric distribution of graphene-based materials, and will further facilitate their application in energy generation and storage devices, i.e., super-capacitor, lithium ion battery, solar cells, and

Blister formation during graphite surface oxidation by Hummers’ method

• Olga V. Sinitsyna,
• Georgy B. Meshkov,
• Anastasija V. Grigorieva,
• Alexander A. Antonov,
• Inna G. Grigorieva and
• Igor V. Yaminsky

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 407–414, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.40

• , lithium-ion batteries, catalysts, systems for water pollution treatment, nonlinear optical devices and sensors [1][2][3][4]. One of the most important applications of graphene oxide is the synthesis of reduced graphene oxide, which exhibits properties similar to graphene [4][5]. The formation of GO

Synthesis and characterization of electrospun molybdenum dioxide–carbon nanofibers as sulfur matrix additives for rechargeable lithium–sulfur battery applications

• Ruiyuan Zhuang,
• Shanshan Yao,
• Maoxiang Jing,
• Xiangqian Shen,
• Jun Xiang,
• Tianbao Li,
• Kesong Xiao and
• Shibiao Qin

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 262–270, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.28

• ) surface area measurements, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). MoO2–CNFs with an average diameter of 425–575 nm obtained after heat treatment were used as a matrix to prepare sulfur/MoO2–CNF cathodes for lithium–sulfur (Li–S) batteries. The polysulfide adsorption

• sulfur/MoO2–CNFs electrodes was examined, and the data showed that MoO2–CNFs calcined at 850 °C delivered optimal performance with an initial capacity of 1095 mAh g−1 and 860 mAh g−1 after 50 cycles. The results demonstrated that sulfur/MoO2–CNF composites display a remarkably high lithium–ion diffusion

• coefficient, low interfacial resistance and much better electrochemical performance than pristine sulfur cathodes. Keywords: electrochemical performance; electrospinning; lithium–sulfur batteries; MoO2–CNFs; sulfur matrix; Introduction Lithium–sulfur (Li–S) batteries are considered to be the most promising

Ab initio study of adsorption and diffusion of lithium on transition metal dichalcogenide monolayers

• Xiaoli Sun and
• Zhiguo Wang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2711–2718, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.270

• monolayers of the type MX2 (M = Ti, Zr, Hf, V, Nb, Ta, Mo, Cr, W; X= S, Se, Te). The adsorption and diffusion of lithium on the stable MX2 phase was also investigated for potential application as an anode for lithium ion batteries. Some of these compounds were found to be stable in the 2H phase and some are

• in the 1T or 1T' phase, but only a few of them were stable in both 2H/1T or 2H/1T' phases. The results show that lithium is energetically favourable for adsorption on MX2 monolayers, which can be semiconductors with a narrow bandgap and metallic materials. Lithium cannot be adsorbed onto 2H-WS2 and

• 2H-WSe2, which have large bandgaps of 1.66 and 1.96 eV, respectively. The diffusion energy barrier is in the range between 0.17 and 0.64 eV for lithium on MX2 monolayers, while for most of the materials it was found to be around 0.25 eV. Therefore, this work illustrated that most of the MX2

One-step chemical vapor deposition synthesis and supercapacitor performance of nitrogen-doped porous carbon–carbon nanotube hybrids

• Egor V. Lobiak,
• Lyubov G. Bulusheva,
• Ekaterina O. Fedorovskaya,
• Yury V. Shubin,
• Pavel E. Plyusnin,
• Pierre Lonchambon,
• Boris V. Senkovskiy,
• Zinfer R. Ismagilov,
• Emmanuel Flahaut and
• Alexander V. Okotrub

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2669–2679, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.267

• nickel hydroxide in hydrogen atmosphere [15]. The hybrid showed improved cycling stability in lithium–sulfur batteries as compared to the electrode made from porous carbon only. Cai et al. have synthesized N-doped hierarchical porous carbon–CNT hybrids using a melamine-formaldehyde resin, Fe/Co catalyst

Synthesis of metal-fluoride nanoparticles supported on thermally reduced graphite oxide

• Alexa Schmitz,
• Kai Schütte,
• Vesko Ilievski,
• Juri Barthel,
• Laura Burk,
• Rolf Mülhaupt,
• Junpei Yue,
• Bernd Smarsly and
• Christoph Janiak

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2474–2483, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.247

• the MFx-NPs. Electrochemical investigations of the FeF2-NPs@TRGO as cathode material for lithium-ion batteries were evaluated by galvanostatic charge/discharge profiles. The results indicate that the FeF2-NPs@TRGO as cathode material can present a specific capacity of 500 mAh/g at a current density of

• heterogeneous nanocatalysts [55][56]. Transition-metal-fluoride nanoparticles are applied, for example, as cathode materials in lithium-ion batteries for vehicles and other mobile devices [57]. In this field, the modification of lithium–transition-metal electrodes is a very important issue to improve the

• performance of lithium-ion batteries [58][59][60][61]. Herein, we report on the utilization of metal amidinates (M{MeC[N(iPr)]2}n or M(AMD)n) of iron, cobalt and praseodymium and of tris(2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-3,5-heptanedionato)europium, Eu(dpm)3 as precursors with different types of TRGO for the synthesis of

Electron beam induced deposition of silacyclohexane and dichlorosilacyclohexane: the role of dissociative ionization and dissociative electron attachment in the deposition process

• Ragesh Kumar T P,
• Sangeetha Hari,
• Krishna K Damodaran,
• Oddur Ingólfsson and
• Cornelis W. Hagen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2376–2388, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.237

• , CAS No. 2406-34-0) was purchased from Gelest Inc, Morrisville PA, US. Silacyclohexane (SCH) was synthesized from DCSCH by following our reported procedure with a slight modification [35]. Briefly, a solution of 1,1-dichloro-1-silacyclohexane in diethyl ether was added dropwise to a lithium aluminium