Ag SiO2 Research Articles

High-performance single SiC nanocable-based plasmonic photodetectors for ultraviolet communication systems

Silicon carbide (SiC) nanowires are the most promising candidate for developing high-performance single-nanowire-based UV photodetector (PD) with outstanding photoelectronic properties and low power consumption. However, SiC single-nanowire-based UV PDs commonly suffer from very low light current on the order of pA or nA, requiring precision equipment or an extra current amplification circuit, which greatly limit their practical application. To overcome this bottleneck, novel SiC single nanocable-based plasmonic PDs with the light current on the order of mA were successfully developed with the features of improving light absorption and reducing the dark current. The SiC/SiO2@Ag nanocables consisting of SiC nanowire core and uniform SiO2 shell encrusted with scattered and isolated Ag nanoparticles (NPs) were fabricated by a simple, low-cost, and space-confined vacuum-heating strategy using ultralong SiC nanowires and silver nitrate precursor followed by the annealing process. In such architecture, the in situ resulting SiO2 shell can effectively passivate the surface defects of the SiC nanowire core, restrain the photo-excited carrier's losses, and effectively block the hot electron injection, leading to a great reduction in the dark current and enhancement in the light current. The encrusted Ag NPs on the nanocable surface exhibited a strong LSPR effect with significantly increased optical absorption. Benefiting from the synergistic effect of SiO2 passivation and Ag nanoparticle LSPR effect, the device current increased dramatically by several orders of magnitude to reach 0.37 mA at a bias voltage of 3 V. Moreover, the developed SiC/SiO2@Ag PDs had faster response speed (0.27 s), lower dark current at the nA level, and high stability, which can be competent for the development of real-time, accurate, and cost-effective communication systems and flame detection with impressive switching ratio as high as 66012.

Optimization and performance assessment of Ag@SiO2 core–shell nanofluids for spectral splitting PV/T system: Theoretical and experiment analysis

Ag@SiO2 nanofluid is widely used in spectral splitting PV/T system. Its core–shell structure has great influence on the optical properties. In this work, we focus on the comprehensive analysis and structure optimization of Ag@SiO2 nanofluid to achieve its optimal spectral performance. DDA method is used to predict the optical properties of Ag@SiO2 nanofluid and an optimization model based on filter efficiency is proposed. The effect of the SiO2 shell thickness and Ag core mass concentration is analyzed. It indicates that the spectral performance of Ag@SiO2 nanofluid can be improved with SiO2 shell thickness of 15–40 nm and Ag core mass concentration of 81–135 mg/L. To achieve the same theoretical merit function of 1.46, the usage of Ag mass can be reduced by 25/33/44/62 % with SiO2 coating of 10/20/40/70 nm. The optimal structure to achieve the highest filter efficiency η of 37.8 % is with a shell thickness of 20 nm and a mass concentration of 113.9 mg/L. An indoor PV/T operation testing is conducted to verify the optimization results. The merit function of Ag-based nanofluids increases from 1.58 to 1.598 and a reduction in Ag usage of 17 % is achieved with a SiO2 coating shell of 17.8 nm. Operation stability is also enhanced with no aggregation observed during the working cycle and 7-day static experiment.

Mesoporous and thermally stable phenol red encapsulated Ag-SiO2 and zincite decorated Ag-SiO2 opto-chemical Sensor

Sol-gel-based silver-doped silicon dioxide (Ag-SiO2) and zincite-decorated silver-doped silicon dioxide (Z-Ag-SiO2) are synthesized at low temperatures (80 °C). The pH indicator dye phenol red (PR) is encapsulated in Ag-SiO2 (AS) and Z-Ag-SiO2 (ZAS) for pH assessment at dynamic pH 12. Thermally stable PR encapsulated AS nanocomposite and PR encapsulated ZAS nanocomposite revealed porous nanostructure with a crystallite size of approximately 0.85 nm and 1.21 nm. The PR/AS and PR/ZAS nanocomposites also feature a surface area of about 438 m2g−1 and 370 m2g−1, respectively. The PR/AS and PR/ZAS demonstrate a pKa of 10.9 and 10.2 at 560 nm, and a rapid color response of approximately 0.46 s and 0.25 s at pH 12.

Fabrication of SERS composite substrates using Ag nanotriangles-modified SiO2 photonic crystal and the application of malachite green detection

A novel surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) composite substrates on the basis of Ag triangular nanoplates(Ag TNPs)-modified SiO2 photonic crystals (PC) is fabricated and applied to the SERS detection of malachite green (MG). It consists of uniformly arranged Ag TNP@SiO2, a new PC. Notably, Ag TNP are uniformly aligned on the SiO2 surface, forming a three-dimensional high-density hotspot nanostructure. With the tip “hot spots” of Ag TNPs, Bragg diffraction of SiO2 and coupling enhancement between Ag TNPs and SiO2, the SERS enhancement of this composite substrates was multiplied. The effect on the SERS of Ag TNP@SiO2 composite substrate was systematically optimized by tuning Ag TNP size, size of SiO2 microspheres, coverage of Ag TNPs on SiO2 and fabrication method of Ag TNPs and PC. Moreover, the uniform of SERS composite substrates and Raman signal was dramatically increased by the method of vertical deposition. Eventually, the SERS composite substrates were employed in MG detection. Its broad detection range of 1 pM–1 μM and low limit of detection (LOD) of 0.49 pM indicated acceptable sensitivity and repeatability. This work illustrates the promising applicability in food safety analysis based on SERS composite substrates composed by Ag TNP@SiO2 with numerous SERS enhancements and excellent stability.

Luminescence enhancement of Y2O3 thin films based on LSPR effect of Ag nanolayers

Based on the local surface plasmon resonance effect of Ag nanolayer, the luminescence enhancement in the visible light range of multilayer thin film has been investigated combined with metal/spacer molecule/photoluminescence material structure. The luminescence enhancement effect of multilayer thin films can be improved by adjusting the spin-coating number of Ag nanolayer and SiO2 spacer in the multilayer structure. At the same time, the mechanism of enhanced luminescence has been analyzed according to the change in fluorescence lifetime. The effect of the coupling between Ag nanolayer and luminescence layer on the radiative transition rate and fluorescence quantum yield have been discussed. The up-conversion luminescence intensity of the noble metal-modified multilayer thin film can be further improved by combining the multilayer structure with sensitized layer.

Synthesis of SiO2@Ag Nanocomposite for Investigating Metal-Enhanced Fluorescence and Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy.

SiO2@Ag nanocomposite (NC) has been synthesized by the chemical reduction and Stӧber method for Metal-enhanced fluorescence (MEF) of Rhodmine 6G (R6G) and Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) of Malachite green (MG). As-synthesized SiO2@Ag NC indicated SiO2 nanosphere (NS) and Ag nanoparticle (NP) morphologies. The SiO2@Ag NC was high quality with a well-defined crystallite phase with average sizes of 24nm and 132nm for Ag NP and SiO2 NC, respectively. By using SiO2@Ag NC, the photoluminescence (PL) intensity of the R6G (at 59.17ppm) was increased approximately 133 times. The SERS of the MG (at 1.0ppm) with SiO2@Ag NC as substrate clearly observed vibrational modes in MG dye at 798, 916, 1172, 1394, and 1616cm-1. As a result, the SERS enhancement factor (EFSERS) at 1172cm-1 obtained 6.3 × 106. This initial study points to the potential of SiO2@Ag NC as a promising material for MEF and SERS substrates to detect dyes at low concentrations.

Difunctional Ag nanoparticles with high lithiophilic and conductive decorate on core-shell SiO2 nanospheres for dendrite-free lithium metal anodes

Lithium metal is an attractive and promising anode material due to its high energy density and low working potential. However, the uncontrolled growth of lithium dendrites during repeated plating and stripping processes hinders the practical application of lithium metal batteries, leading to low Coulombic efficiency, poor lifespan, and safety concerns. In this study, we synthesized highly lithiophilic and conductive Ag nanoparticles decorated on SiO2 nanospheres to construct an optimized lithium host for promoting uniform Li deposition. The Ag nanoparticles not only act as lithiophilic sites but also provide high electrical conductivity to the Ag@SiO2@Ag anode. Additionally, the SiO2 layer serves as a lithiophilic nucleation agent, ensuring homogeneous lithium deposition and suppressing the growth of lithium dendrites. Theoretical calculations further confirm that the combination of Ag nanoparticles and SiO2 effectively enhances the adsorption ability of Ag@SiO2@Ag with Li+ ions compared to pure Ag and SiO2 materials. As a result, the Ag@SiO2@Ag coating, with its balanced lithiophilicity and conductivity, demonstrates excellent electrochemical performance, including high Coulombic efficiency, low polarization voltage, and long cycle life. In a full lithium metal cell with LiFePO4 cathode, the Ag@SiO2@Ag anode exhibits a high capacity of 133.1 and 121.4 mAh/g after 200 cycles at rates of 0.5 and 1C, respectively. These results highlight the synergistic coupling of lithiophilicity and conductivity in the Ag@SiO2@Ag coating, providing valuable insights into the field of lithiophilic chemistry and its potential for achieving high-performance batteries in the next generation.

Forging Fenton-like system to functionalize electron/hole enrichment regions for ATZ photocatalytic degradation

Independent functional regions for electrons and holes enrichment are usually driven by the construction of multiple heterostructures, which is difficult to achieve fine-controlling, resulting in the limited photocatalytic activity. TiO2-based photocatalysts with suitable forbidden band widths are promising for wide application prospects, where the construction of Schottky heterojunctions is the trick to achieve directional migration of electrons and holes. Here, a regionalized surface modification method of H–TiO2 with oxygen vacancy (Ov) and defects for efficient carrier separation was reported, in which interspersed Ag nanoparticles and SiO2 layers serve as electron/hole enrichment regions, respectively. Meanwhile, SiO2 can be served as adsorption sites for photocatalytic oxidation of small-molecule pollutants, while Ag nanoparticles with H+ adsorption capacity and reasonable guide band position can be used as an engine of Fenton-like reactions to cyclically generate the active substance H2O2 to participate in the reduction reaction. The degradation efficiency of Ag–SiO2–H–TiO2 (ASHT) can be increased by 159% for pesticide atrazine (ATZ). The superoxide radicals generated by electrons and oxygen in ASHT also generate H2O2, which promotes the centralized generation of hydroxyl radicals to improve photocatalytic performance. The structural design strategy of ASHT provides a new concept for the process of ring-opening reactions of benzene-containing contaminants in water and conversion to small molecules which will eventually be rapidly mineralized.

Preparation and Characterization of Ag Nanoparticle/SiO2 Composite for Optical Application

A facile method to fabricate volumetric light-guide plate (LGP) by micro-nanostructure of Ag/SiO2 composite was presented in this study. The Ag NPs/SiO2 composite were first prepared from a mixture of yellowish-brown Ag NPs colloids and SiO2 powder by electrostatic self-assembly method. Its chemical and physical properties were investigated by scanning transmission microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). The small particles (Ag/SiO2 composite) in the LGP could produce multiple scattering effect with different size of micro-nanoparticles, which could improve the light-scattering performance of the LGP. The effective light scattering of the material into LGP was obtained from the increased amount of the particles. Meanwhile, surface plasmon resonance effect of Ag NPs also improves the performance of LGP, which could be further applied to design device in optical application. In additional, optical properties and light scattering mechanism of the Ag NPs/SiO2 composite in the LGP are discussed and presented.

Synthesis and Characterization of Silica, Silver-Silica, and Zinc Oxide-Silica Nanoparticles for Evaluation of Blood Biochemistry, Oxidative Stress, and Hepatotoxicity in Albino Rats.

Evaluation of nanoparticles (NPs) for biomedical applications has received a lot of attention for detailed study on pharmacokinetics prior to clinical application. In this study, pure C-SiO2 (crystalline silica) NPs and SiO2 nanocomposites with silver (Ag) and zinc oxide (ZnO) were prepared by utilizing different synthesis routes such as sol-gel and co-precipitation techniques. The prepared NPs showed highly crystalline nature as confirmed by X-ray diffraction analysis where average crystallite sizes of 35, 16, and 57 nm for C-SiO2, Ag-SiO2, and ZnO-SiO2 NPs, respectively, were calculated. Fourier transform infrared analysis confirmed the presence of functional groups related to the chemicals and procedures used for sample preparation. Due to agglomeration of the prepared NPs, the scanning electron microscope images showed large particle sizes when compared to their crystalline sizes. The optical properties of the prepared NPs such as absorption were obtained with UV-Vis spectroscopy. For in vivo biological evaluation, albino rats, both male and female, kept in different groups were exposed to NPs with 500 μg/kg dose. Hematological, serum biochemistry, histo-architecture, oxidative stress biomarkers, and antioxidant parameters in liver tissues along with various biomarkers for the evaluation of erythrocytes were estimated. The results on hemato-biochemistry, histopathological ailments, and oxidative stress parameters exhibited 95% alteration in the liver and erythrocytes of C-SiO2 NPs-treated rats while 75 and 60% alteration in the liver tissues of rats due to exposure to Ag-SiO2 and ZnO-SiO2 NPs, respectively, when compared with the albino rats of the control (untreated) group. Therefore, the current study showed that the prepared NPs had adverse effects on the liver and erythrocytes causing hepatotoxicity in the albino rats in respective order C-SiO2 > Ag SiO2 > ZnO-SiO2. As the C-SiO2 NPs appeared to be the most toxic, it has been concluded that coating SiO2 on Ag and ZnO reduced their toxicological impact on albino rats. Consequently, it is suggested that Ag-SiO2 and ZnO-SiO2 NPs are more biocompatible than C-SiO2 NPs.

Double-Plasma Ti3C2Tx/Ag@SiO2 Gel Micro-/Nanoporous Structures for Improved Water Transport and Efficient Solar Steam Generation

Interfacial solar steam generation is considered the next-generation desalination and sewage treatment technology. However, realizing solar evaporators with broad-spectrum absorption, efficient thermal conversion, and high stability remains a challenge. The high light-trapping surface structure and fast water transport channels of the evaporator improve the evaporation efficiency, and solar evaporators have great potential in the field of solar steam generation. Herein, the mixture of transition-metal carbide (Ti3C2Tx) and core–shell Ag–SiO2 nanoparticles (Ag@SiO2 NPs) is fabricated as a three-dimensional (3D) vertical porous Ti3C2Tx/Ag@SiO2 gel evaporator via ice templating technology. The synergistic interaction between dual Ti3C2Tx–Ag plasma materials confined in a cross-linked microcapillary structure realizes 97.6% wide absorption in the wavelength range of 250–2500 nm. The SiO2 coating on the surface of Ag NPs can inhibit the oxidation of Ag NPs and conduct heat collection management. The 3D vertically cross-linked porous structure promotes efficient water transport and improves the mechanical strength of the evaporator. The Ti3C2Tx/Ag@SiO2 gel evaporator exhibits a high evaporation rate of 1.42 kg m–2 h–1 and a photothermal conversion efficiency of 98% under 1 sun illumination. The Ti3C2Tx/Ag@SiO2 gel evaporator shows great application prospects in seawater desalination and sewage purification.

TiO2–SiO2–Ag electrospun fibers for oxytetracycline detection by SERS

The presence of antibiotic residues such as oxytetracycline (OTC) in wastewater effluents has generated the need to monitor trace concentrations due to the development of bacterial resistance. Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) is a promising technique in detection and identification a low concentrations (ng/L) with no sample preparation. A fibrillar support Titania-Silica doped with silver particles was developed in the SERS technique focused on the detection of OTC. The ceramic fibers TiO2SiO2 obtained presented phases of Rutile, Anatase and Amorphous Silica with diameters of 335 ± 76 nm. The fibers were doped with Ag by electrodeposition, showed Ag nanoparticles with sizes from 30 nm to the formation of dendritic structures with sizes greater than 1 μm, depending on the time and voltage applied during synthesis. The support doped with Ag for 30 s at 19 V presented the highest amplification factor (AF) in SERS of 44 for the band at 1278 cm−1.

The Influence of Different Types of SiO2 Precursors and Ag Addition on the Structure of Selected Titania-Silica Gels

In this paper, samples of titania-silica system were obtained by the sol-gel method as bulk materials, using titanium propoxide Ti(C3H7O)4 to introduce titania and two precursors of SiO2: TEOS tetraethoxysilane Si(OC2H5)4 and DDS dimethyldiethoxysilane (CH3)2(C2H5O)2Si. To enhance antibacterial properties, Ag was added to gels of selected compositions. The main aim of the performed studies was to find the correlations between the structural changes and the applied precursor of silica. Simultaneously, the influence of different compositions of gels and the addition of Ag on the specimens’ structure was investigated. To study the structure, two complementary methods, FTIR (Fourier Transform InfraRed) spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction, were applied. The analysis of the FTIR spectra and the XRD patterns made it possible to confirm the amorphous state of all dried gels and establish the presence of TiO2 polymorphs: anatase and rutile in all annealed samples. The addition of Ag atoms into the gels caused the crystallization of cristobalite phase in addition to titania polymorphs. The presence of crystalline Ag phase in the annealed gels allowed the calculation dimensions of Ag crystallites based on the Scherrer equation. The use of DDS as a silica precursor led to easier and faster crystallization of different TiO2 phases in the annealed samples and parallel increases in the depolymerization of silica lattice.

The difference in microwave loss mechanism between nano- and micron-sized Ag particles

Separated E/H-field heating in microwave cavities enables us to examine the microwave loss mechanisms. We prepared mixtures of SiO2 particles (having almost no microwave loss) and Ag particles with micrometer- and nano-sizes. Their average impedance and dielectric constants were measured. Electric conductivity exhibited percolation behavior at a specific threshold of Ag fraction. When the mixtures were heated in the separated fields, H-field heating was dominant in all the fraction ranges for the micrometer-sized Ag mixture. However, E-field heating was dominant below the percolation threshold for the nano-sized Ag mixture, and above the threshold, the H-field became dominant. This change in heating rates indicates the change in the energy loss mechanism. According to the size dependence of the induction current loss in a metallic sphere, the loss becomes less effective below the size of skin depth, namely, in the nano-size region. The permittivity of nano-sized Ag particles was estimated by an approximated Lindhard’s equation, which was input into the Maxwell–Garnett mixing model for predicting the effective complex permittivity of the mixture. It was possible to interpret the measured permittivity dependence on the Ag fraction.

Biofilm growth monitoring using guided wave ultralong-range Surface Plasmon Resonance: A proof of concept

Unwelcomed biofilms are problematic in food industries, surgical devices, marine applications, and wastewater treatment plants, essentially everywhere where there is moisture. Very recently, label-free advanced sensors such as localized and extended surface plasmon resonance (SPR) have been explored as tools for monitoring biofilm formation. However, conventional noble metal SPR substrates suffer from low penetration depth (100–300 nm) into the dielectric medium above the surface, preventing the reliable detection of large entities of single or multi-layered cell assemblies like biofilms which can grow up to a few micrometers or more. In this study, we propose using a plasmonic insulator-metal-insulator (IMI) structure (SiO2–Ag–SiO2) with a higher penetration depth based on a diverging beam single wavelength format of Kretschmann configuration in a portable SPR device. An SPR line detection algorithm for locating the reflectance minimum of the device helps to view changes in refractive index and accumulation of the biofilm in real-time down to 10−7 RIU precision. The optimized IMI structure exhibits strong penetration dependence on wavelength and incidence angle. Within the plasmonic resonance, different angles penetrate different depths, showing a maximum near the critical angle. At the wavelength of 635 nm, a high penetration depth of more than 4 μm was obtained. Compared to a thin gold film substrate, for which the penetration depth is only ∼200 nm, the IMI substrate provides more reliable results. The average thickness of the biofilm after 24 h of growth was found to be between 6 and 7 μm with ∼63% live cell volume, as estimated from confocal microscopic images using an image processing tool. To explain this saturation thickness, a graded index biofilm structure is proposed in which the refractive index decreases with the distance from the interface. Furthermore, when plasma-assisted degeneration of biofilms was studied in a semi-real-time format, there was almost no effect on the IMI substrate compared to the gold substrate. The growth rate over the SiO2 surface was higher than on gold, possibly due to differences between surface charge effects. On the gold, the excited plasmon generates an oscillating cloud of electrons, while for the SiO2 case, this does not happen. This methodology can be utilized to detect and characterize biofilms with better signal reliability with respect to concentration and size dependence.

Flexible SERS Substrate with a Ag-SiO2 Cosputtered Film for the Rapid and Convenient Detection of Thiram.

It is very important to build uniform large-area dense hotspots to improve the surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) detection limit. In our research, we designed and prepared a new flexibile SERS substrate with ultradense hot spots that has the advantages of high sensitivity, good repeatability, easy fabrication, and low cost. Due to the special dense hot spot structure, the substrate reaches a SERS enhancement factor of 2.1 × 1011. Because of the excellent physical stability of polydimethylsiloxane, the substrate can be bent at will, and the SERS performance will not change with bending. This is very important to extract effective detection objects on complex surfaces. The substrate has good light transmittance and softness and can be directly attached to the detected agricultural products to realize real-time and rapid SERS monitoring. This structure exhibits extraordinary performance for thiram detection in the ultralow concentration range of 10-13 M.

Ag–SiO2 - An optimized braze for robust joining of commercial coated stainless steel to ceramic solid oxide cells

In this study, Ag–SiO2 was successfully used to join Ce/Co coated AISI 441 stainless steels produced by Sandvik to Solid Oxide Cells. Defect-free and robust joints were obtained at 950 °C when brazing in air. The influence of the chemical composition of the braze and the brazing temperature on the microstructure and mechanical properties of joints was studied. An enhanced interfacial adherence was achieved through the reaction of the SiO2 in the braze and the Co coating of the steel during the air brazing process. The obtained joints possess excellent mechanical robustness with a fracture energy of 96.5 J/m2, and a superior gas tightness (leak rate of 5.4 × 10−4 sccm cm−1) compared to the existing brazing systems. Long-term aging in air or the exposure to reducing atmosphere only had minor effects on the measured fracture energy.

Antifouling Systems Based on Copper and Silver Nanoparticles Supported on Silica, Titania, and Silica/Titania Mixed Oxides.

Silica, titania, and mixed silica–titania powders have been used as supports for loading 5 wt% Cu, 5 wt% Ag, and 2.5 wt% Cu-2.5 wt% Ag with the aim of providing a series of nanomaterials with antifouling properties. All the solids were easily prepared by the wetness-impregnation method from commercially available chemical precursors. The resulting materials were characterized by several techniques such as X-ray diffraction analysis, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, N2 physisorption, and temperature-programmed reduction measurements. Four selected Cu and Ag SiO2- and TiO2-supported powders were tested as fillers for the preparation of marine antifouling coatings and complex viscosity measurements. Titania-based coatings showed better adhesion than silica-based coatings and the commercial topcoat. The addition of fillers enhances the resin viscosity, suggesting better workability of titania-based coatings than silica-based ones. The ecotoxicological performance of the powders was evaluated by Microtox luminescence tests, using the marine luminescent bacterium Vibrio fisheri. Further investigations of the microbiological activity of such materials were carried out focusing on the bacterial growth of Pseudoalteromonas sp., Alteromonas sp., and Pseudomonas sp. through measurements of optical density at 600 nm (OD600nm).

Roll-to-roll processed silver nanowire/silicon dioxide microsphere composite for high-accuracy flexible touch sensing application

Economical accurate resistive touch sensing panels (TSPs) is fabricated by means of full roll-to-roll (R2R) slot-die coating process. The fabricated TSPs have silver nanowire (Ag NW) random network and uniformly distributed silicone dioxide microspheres (SiO2 MSs) as conducting layer and spacer, respectively. The transparent conductive composite film of Ag NW and SiO2 MSs were R2R coated simultaneously on the flexible substrate, which simplified the manufacturing process. The parametric study was conducted by regulating the diameter and concentration of the SiO2 coating solution. The touch sensing performance was characterized by comparing output images qualitatively and by computing precision and accuracy from output images in response to reference input image. As results, R2R coated SiO2 MSs played a role of space successfully and touch sensing performance was improved with diameter of larger than 1000 nm and concentration of around 1 wt%. Furthermore, multi-functional TSP was fabricated with optimized coating condition and demonstrated to yield various operations in response to touch behavior.

Tunable directional emission from electrically driven nano-strip metal-insulator-metal tunnel junctions.

Electrically driven nanoantennas for on-chip generation and manipulation of light have attracted significant attention in recent times. Metal–insulator–metal (MIM) tunnel junctions have been extensively used to electrically excite surface plasmons and photons via inelastic electron tunneling. However, the dynamic switching of light from MIM junctions into spatially separate channels has not been shown. Here, we numerically demonstrate switchable, highly directional light emission from electrically driven nano-strip Ag–SiO2–Ag tunnel junctions. The top electrode of our Ag–SiO2–Ag stack is divided into 16 nano-strips, with two of the tunnel junctions at the centre (SL and SR) acting as sources. Using full-wave electromagnetic simulations, we show that when SL is excited, the emission is highly directional with an angle of emission of −30° and an angular spread of ∼11°. When the excitation is switched to SR, the emission is redirected to an angle of 30° with an identical angular spread. A directivity of 29.4 is achieved in the forward direction, with a forward-to-backward ratio of 12. We also demonstrate wavelength-selective directional switching by changing the width, and thereby the resonance wavelength, of the sources. The emission can be tuned by varying the periodicity of the structure, paving the way for electrically driven, reconfigurable light sources.