Near-field effects and energy transfer in hybrid metal-oxide nanostructures

• Ulrich Herr,
• Barat Achinuq,
• Cahit Benel,
• Giorgos Papageorgiou,
• Manuel Goncalves,
• Johannes Boneberg,
• Paul Leiderer,
• Paul Ziemann,
• Peter Marek and
• Horst Hahn

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 306–317, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.34

• aluminium (TMA) and TTIP sources. In both cases, combination with water vapor allows to grow oxides of the respective metal in a layer by layer mode, and achieve a conformal coating of well-defined thickness in this way. The advantage of the ALD process is that this conformal coating can be achieved without

Grating-assisted coupling to nanophotonic circuits in microcrystalline diamond thin films

• Patrik Rath,
• Svetlana Khasminskaya,
• Christoph Nebel,
• Christoph Wild and
• Wolfram H.P. Pernice

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 300–305, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.33

• various options, group-III/IV nitride semiconductors, such as silicon nitride (≈5 eV), gallium nitride (3.37 eV) and aluminium nitride (AlN, 6.14 eV), have been investigated [11][12][13]. Because of their larger bandgap, these materials allow for waveguiding throughout the visible spectrum and do not

Grain boundaries and coincidence site lattices in the corneal nanonipple structure of the Mourning Cloak butterfly

• Ken C. Lee and
• Uwe Erb

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 292–299, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.32

• effect, which provides some protection from predators. In recent years many artificial moth-eye-type surfaces have been developed as antireflection, antiglare surfaces by various methods such as photoresist patterning, porous aluminium oxide templating or direct reproduction, e.g., [7][8][9]. With

Electrospinning preparation and electrical and biological properties of ferrocene/poly(vinylpyrrolidone) composite nanofibers

• Ji-Hong Chai and
• Qing-Sheng Wu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 189–197, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.19

• applied for electrospinning. Aluminium foil served as the counter electrode with a tip-to-collector distance of 15 cm. The solution flow rate was 1 mL/h. Characterization SEM images were obtained on a Philips XL-30E scanning electron microscope (SEM) after gold sputter-coating. The XRD patterns of samples

• were determined with an X-ray diffractometer with Cu Kα radiation (k = 0.15405 nm, 40 kV, 100 mA) over the 2-theta angle range of 10–70 °C with a scanning rate of 10 °C/min. The TGA data was obtained by a DSC-STA 449C Jupiter thermal analysis instrument. About 4 mg sample in an aluminium pan was heated

Plasmonic oligomers in cylindrical vector light beams

• Mario Hentschel,
• Jens Dorfmüller,
• Harald Giessen,
• Sebastian Jäger,
• Andreas M. Kern,
• Kai Braun,
• Dai Zhang and
• Alfred J. Meixner

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 57–65, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.6

• particularly suited for excitation with cylindrical vector beams. We study magneto-inductive coupling between adjacent nanostructures. We utilize high-resolution lithographic techniques for the preparation of complex nanostructures consisting of gold as well as aluminium. These structures are subsequently

• is given by the superposition of the excitation spot and its intensity distribution with the geometry of the oligomer rings. A convolution of these two quantities describes the observed phenomenon. Near-field microscopy of aluminium heptamers During the progress of our experiments we found that the

• gold structures show substantial photoluminescence [28][29][30]. For some of the conducted experiments, as discussed above, this phenomenon is beneficial, yet, it turned out to be mostly bothersome. In order to circumvent this problem, we designed oligomer structures consisting of aluminium. The new

Diamond nanophotonics

• Katja Beha,
• Helmut Fedder,
• Marco Wolfer,
• Merle C. Becker,
• Petr Siyushev,
• Mohammad Jamali,
• Anton Batalov,
• Christopher Hinz,
• Jakob Hees,
• Lutz Kirste,
• Harald Obloh,
• Etienne Gheeraert,
• Boris Naydenov,
• Ingmar Jakobi,
• Florian Dolde,
• Sébastien Pezzagna,
• Daniel Twittchen,
• Matthew Markham,
• Daniel Dregely,
• Harald Giessen,
• Jan Meijer,
• Fedor Jelezko,
• Christoph E. Nebel,
• Rudolf Bratschitsch,
• Alfred Leitenstorfer and
• Jörg Wrachtrup

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 895–908, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.100

• suitable masks. Using high-aspect-ratio mica masks, we have shown that high-energy deep implants can be created with nanometer spatial precision. Subsequently, we have demonstrated the coupling of diamond nanocrystals to plasmonic resonators. Emitter–resonator coupling was achieved for different aluminium

• aluminium interband transitions and background. The second, slow decay is due to the coupled color center. Enhancement of the collection efficiency with a hemispherical solid immersion lens (SIL). (a) Reduction of the effective numerical aperture due to refraction at the surface of a high-index medium. (b

Sub-10 nm colloidal lithography for circuit-integrated spin-photo-electronic devices

• Adrian Iovan,
• Marco Fischer,
• Roberto Lo Conte and
• Vladislav Korenivski

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 884–892, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.98

• -porous anodic aluminium oxide [19] were shown to scale to sub-10 nm dimensions and potentially compete with the above advanced lithographic techniques at this scale. Another potential alternative for sub-10 nm patterning is colloidal lithography, which is very attractive at larger dimensions due to its

• monolayer is formed (Figure 2a), reactive oxygen plasma is used to reduce the size of the particles (Figure 2b). When the desired particle diameter is reached, a reinforcing layer of aluminium is deposited, as shown in Figure 2c, which in the later process stages acts as a hard mask. A lift-off of the

Influence of the diameter of single-walled carbon nanotube bundles on the optoelectronic performance of dry-deposited thin films

• Kimmo Mustonen,
• Toma Susi,
• Antti Kaskela,
• Patrik Laiho,
• Ying Tian,
• Albert G. Nasibulin and
• Esko I. Kauppinen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 692–702, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.79

• produced by vaporization from a resistively heated iron wire (current 2.7 A, diameter 250 μm, purity 99.95%, Goodfellow, USA) in a H2/Ar (7/93 mol ratio) flow of 480 cm3·min−1 inside an aluminium oxide (Al2O3) tube (inner diameter 16 mm). Particles formed and grew through vapor nucleation–condensation and

• -deposited SWCNT networks were press transferred [6][16] from the low adhesion filters onto silicon or aluminium substrates for scanning electron microscope observation (SEM, JEOL JSM-7500FA, Japan) used to measure the SWCNT bundle lengths (Lbundle). Similarly, SWCNT networks were transferred onto optically

• significantly, which thus seems to be best improved by simply increasing the bundle lengths. The bundle diameter, on the other hand, should be minimized, provided bundle lengths can be maximized simultaneously. SEM images of as-prepared SWCNT networks dry-transferred onto the aluminium substrate. From top left

A facile approach to nanoarchitectured three-dimensional graphene-based Li–Mn–O composite as high-power cathodes for Li-ion batteries

• Wenyu Zhang,
• Yi Zeng,
• Chen Xu,
• Ni Xiao,
• Yiben Gao,
• Lain-Jong Li,
• Xiaodong Chen,
• Huey Hoon Hng and
• Qingyu Yan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 513–523, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.59

• half cells. The electrodes were fabricated by mixing LMO/G (90 wt %) and poly(vinylidene fluoride) (10 wt %) in N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone. The mixture was stirred overnight and then cast onto aluminium foils to form uniform electrodes followed by drying in vacuum at 50 °C for 10 h. As for pure LMO

• electrodes, commercial LMO (80 wt %, purchased from Sigma-Aldrich), Super-P (10 wt %) and poly(vinylidene fluoride) (10 wt %) were mixed and cast onto aluminium foils. CR2032 coin cells were assembled in an argon-filled glove box with the contents of oxygen and moisture below 0.1 ppm, using lithium foils as

Structural, electronic and photovoltaic characterization of multiwalled carbon nanotubes grown directly on stainless steel

• Luca Camilli,
• Manuela Scarselli,
• Silvano Del Gobbo,
• Paola Castrucci,
• Eric Gautron and
• Maurizio De Crescenzi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 360–367, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.42

• MWCNTs form a quasi-continuous film, which creates the photoactive Schottky heterojunction with the Si. The top electrodes were made of silver paint, while the rear contact was sputtered aluminium. The photocurrent spectra were measured by using an optical setup comprising a xenon lamp equipped with a

• photovoltaic device. The Schottky junction between the Si and the MWCNT film is the photoactive junction. Steps of SiO2 (300 nm) are used to avoid a short-circuit forming between the silver paint (top electrode) and the silicon substrate. The back contact is made of aluminium. In the in-plane geometry, the

Ultraviolet photodetection of flexible ZnO nanowire sheets in polydimethylsiloxane polymer

• Jinzhang Liu,
• Nunzio Motta and
• Soonil Lee

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 353–359, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.41

• 1100–1200 °C, and the vaporized growth species were transported by a gas flow that consisted of 1000 sccm N2 and 30 sccm O2. Cotton-like white products were deposited in the low-temperature (between ca. 200 °C and room temperature) region. We placed a curved aluminium foil against the inner wall of the

Noncontact atomic force microscopy study of the spinel MgAl₂O₄(111) surface

• Morten K. Rasmussen,
• Kristoffer Meinander,
• Flemming Besenbacher and
• Jeppe V. Lauritsen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 192–197, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.21

• distinct pattern of line vacancies reflected by the underlying lattice structure. Consequently, by the creation of triangular patches in a 6√3×6√3R30° superstructure, the polar-stabilization requirements are met. Keywords: aluminium oxide; metal oxide surfaces; noncontact atomic force microscopy (NC-AFM

• of step edges in the present case for MgAl2O4(111), a ball model is constructed in Figure 2c, which illustrates the structure of single step edges arising for an oxygen-terminated surface. When a step edge is created and terminated by aluminium cations (grey balls) in this model, more oxygen atoms

• creation of triangular structures as observed in the experiments. Starting from a fully covered O layer, the removal of oxygen atoms along the thin black line in Figure 3b, leads to a factor of two fewer aluminium atoms exposed as compared to removal of oxygen atoms along the thin red line. Figure 3c

Self-assembly of octadecyltrichlorosilane: Surface structures formed using different protocols of particle lithography

• ChaMarra K. Saner,
• Kathie L. Lusker,
• Zorabel M. LeJeune,
• Wilson K. Serem and
• Jayne C. Garno

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 114–122, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.12

• images indicate differences in tip–surface interactions, but were not normalized for the comparison of friction changes between different tips or experiments. The tips were silicon nitride probes. Tips used with tapping-mode AFM were rectangular shaped ultrasharp silicon tips that have an aluminium

Impact of cell shape in hierarchically structured plant surfaces on the attachment of male Colorado potato beetles (Leptinotarsa decemlineata)

• Bettina Prüm,
• Robin Seidel,
• Holger Florian Bohn and
• Thomas Speck

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 57–64, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.7

• commercial garden shop. Morphology The morphology of the plant surfaces was characterised by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). For investigation of epicuticular wax crystals, the samples were mounted on aluminium stubs without any prior dehydration step. For SEM analysis of cell shape and cuticular folds

• , leaf samples were dehydrated in methanol [31] and critical point dried (LPD 030, Bal-Tec). For cross-section analysis of plant surfaces, the critical-point-dried samples were cut with a razor blade. Samples were mounted on aluminium stubs by means of conductive double-sided adhesive tabs (Plano

Enhancement of the critical current density in FeO-coated MgB₂ thin films at high magnetic fields

• Andrei E. Surdu,
• Hussein H. Hamdeh,
• Imad A. Al-Omari,
• David J. Sellmyer,
• Alexei V. Socrovisciuc,
• Andrei A. Prepelita,
• Ezgi T. Koparan,
• Ekrem Yanmaz,
• Valery V. Ryazanov,
• Horst Hahn and
• Anatolie S. Sidorenko

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2011, 2, 809–813, doi:10.3762/bjnano.2.89

• attempts to solve the above-mentioned problem relating to the decay of the critical current in an external magnetic field. Various research teams have tried to increase the critical current density either by doping MgB2 with various substances (carbon [3], aluminium [4], etc.) or by adding nanoparticles of

Generation and agglomeration behaviour of size-selected sub-nm iron clusters as catalysts for the growth of carbon nanotubes

• Ravi Joshi,
• Benjamin Waldschmidt,
• Jörg Engstler,
• Rolf Schäfer and
• Jörg J. Schneider

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2011, 2, 734–739, doi:10.3762/bjnano.2.80

• all of the formed oxide species that are accumulated. A 10 nm Al layer was deposited prior to cluster deposition on the SiOx grid. This thin Al barrier layer later ensures CNT growth [12]. Sintering of the iron catalyst during heating is minimized due to the low Tammann temperature of aluminium (194

• °C), which prevents the iron particles from agglomeration and hence providing a good aluminium–iron interaction. Moreover, the deposited Al layer is also partially oxidized on top of the SiOx grid surface [12] and forms a stable alumina–catalyst interface, which stabilizes the deposited iron clusters

• application of a high voltage pulse to the 90° mirror, which was aligned to the target (11). The incident energy of the mass-selected clusters was 2550 eV with an energy spread of approximately 150 eV (FWHM). Chemical vapour deposition of CNTs A 10 nm thick aluminium buffer layer was deposited by means of

The effect of surface anisotropy in the slippery zone of Nepenthes alata pitchers on beetle attachment

• Elena V. Gorb and
• Stanislav N. Gorb

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2011, 2, 302–310, doi:10.3762/bjnano.2.35

• beetles were studied in the SEM at an acceleration voltage of 3 kV. For this purpose, insects were air-dried, mounted with their dorsal side to aluminium holders, sputter-coated with gold-palladium (thickness 6 nm), and examined in SEM, as described above. The diameter of the claw tip (D) was estimated

Infrared receptors in pyrophilous (“fire loving”) insects as model for new un-cooled infrared sensors

• David Klocke,
• Anke Schmitz,
• Helmut Soltner,
• Herbert Bousack and
• Helmut Schmitz

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2011, 2, 186–197, doi:10.3762/bjnano.2.22

• have a significant lower absorption coefficient which requires the application of an additional absorber such as plastic, aluminium, antimony or lead [21]. When the absorbing film is directly on the inner surface of the window, the assumption of a boundary layer as in the case of water is valid