Heterostructure Composites Research Articles

Study of Strained-SiGe Channel P-MOSFET Using Silvaco TCAD: Impact of Channel Thickness

Compressively strained SiGe is an interesting channel material for sub 45 nm p-MOSFETs because of its superior hole mobility (up to 10x over bulk Si channels) and compatibility with current Si manufacturing technologies. In this work, the impact of heterostructure composition and SiGe channel thickness on the electrical characteristics of p-MOSFET are studied. Using strained Si0.8Ge0.2 p-MOSFET, the thickness was altered to a few thicknesses of 3 nm, 5 nm, 7 nm, and 9 nm respectively. The optimal thickness was then used for Ge compositions (x = 0.2). The project was realized utilizing computer-aided Silvaco TCAD tools, with ATHENA tools creating the p-MOSFET structure and ATLAS tools doing the device simulation. The strained-Si1-xGex p-MOSFET and the Si p-MOSFET were compared in terms of their performances. The ID-VG and ID-VD characteristics, as well as the threshold voltage, VTH extraction, were the focus of the device simulation. The 7 nm thickness strained-Si0.8Ge0.2 p-MOSFET exhibited lower VTH than other SiGe thicknesses and the Si p-MOSFET which is VTH = 0.074 V. The lower threshold voltage of the strained-Si0.8Ge0.2 with 7 nm thickness indicating that the strained-Si1-xGex contributed to the decreased power consumption. In addition, the extracted IDsat for the strained-Si0.8Ge0.2 p-MOSFET with 7nm thickness provided higher IDsat compared to conventional Si p-MOSFET and other SiGe thicknesses devices. As compared to Si p-MOSFETs, the output characteristics of the strained-Si1-xGex demonstrated a drain current improvement by a factor of 1.01.

Cation-Driven Assembly of Bilayered Vanadium Oxide and Graphene Oxide Nanoflakes to Form Two-Dimensional Heterostructure Electrodes for Li-Ion Batteries.

Lithium preintercalated bilayered vanadium oxide (LVO or δ-LixV2O5·nH2O) and graphene oxide (GO) nanoflakes were assembled using a concentrated lithium chloride solution and annealed under vacuum at 200 °C to form two-dimensional (2D) δ-LixV2O5·nH2O and reduced GO (rGO) heterostructures. We found that the Li+ ions from LiCl enhanced the oxide/carbon heterointerface formation and served as stabilizing ions to improve structural and electrochemical stability. The graphitic content of the heterostructure could be easily controlled by changing the initial GO concentration prior to assembly. We found that increasing the GO content in our heterostructure composition helped inhibit the electrochemical degradation of LVO during cycling and improved the rate capability of the heterostructure. A combination of scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction was used to help confirm that a 2D heterointerface formed between LVO and GO, and the final phase composition was determined using energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and thermogravimetric analysis. Scanning transmission electron microscopy and electron energy-loss spectroscopy were additionally used to examine the heterostructures at high resolution, mapping the orientations of rGO and LVO layers and locally imaging their interlayer spacings. Further, electrochemical cycling of the cation-assembled LVO/rGO heterostructures in Li-ion cells with a non-aqueous electrolyte revealed that increasing the rGO content led to improved cycling stability and rate performance, despite slightly decreased charge storage capacity. The heterostructures with 0, 10, 20, and 35 wt % rGO exhibited capacities of 237, 216, 174, and 150 mAh g-1, respectively. Moreover, the LVO/rGO-35 wt % and LVO/rGO-20 wt % heterostructures retained 75% (110 mAh g-1) and 67% (120 mAh g-1) of their initial capacities after increasing the specific current from 20 to 200 mA g-1, while the LVO/rGO-10 wt % sample retained only 48% (107 mAh g-1) of its initial capacity under the same cycling conditions. In addition, the cation-assembled LVO/rGO electrodes exhibited enhanced electrochemical stability compared to electrodes prepared through physical mixing of LVO and GO nanoflakes in the same ratios as the heterostructure electrodes, further revealing the stabilizing effect of a 2D heterointerface. The cation-driven assembly approach, explored in this work using Li+ cations, was found to induce and stabilize the formation of stacked 2D layers of rGO and exfoliated LVO. The reported assembly methodology can be applied for a variety of systems utilizing 2D materials with complementary properties for applications as electrodes in energy storage devices.

Reactive Template-Engaged Synthesis of NiSx/MoS2 Nanosheets Decorated on Hollow and Porous Carbon Microtubes with Optimal Electronic Modulation toward High-Performance Enzyme-like Performance

As a promising cost-effective nanozyme, MoS2 nanosheets (NSs) have been considered as a good candidate for the enzyme-like catalysis. However, their catalytic activity is still restricted by the insufficient active sites and poor conductivity, and thus, the comprehensive performances are still unsatisfactory. To address these issues, herein, we design and fabricate an intelligent tubular nanostructure of hierarchical hollow nanotubes, which are assembled by NiSx/MoS2 NSs encapsulated into N-doped carbon microtubes (NiSx/MoS2@NCMTs). The N-doped carbon microtubes (NCMTs) serve as a conductive skeleton, integrating with NiSx/MoS2 NSs and ensuring their well-distribution, thereby maximally exposing more active sites. Additionally, the tube-like structure is favorable for increasing the mass transfusion to ensure their excellent catalytic performance. Profiting from their component and structural advantages, the obtained NiSx/MoS2@NCMTs exhibit a surprisingly enhanced enzyme-like activity. Based on these, a facile colorimetric sensing platform to detect H2O2 and GSH has been developed. This proposed approach can be expected to synthesize a series of tubular heterostructured MoS2-based composites, which will be widely applied in catalysis, energy storage, disease diagnosis, etc.

Atomically Thin Metal-Dielectric Heterostructures by Atomic Layer Deposition.

Heterostructures increasingly attracted attention over the past several years to enable various optoelectronic and photonic applications. In this work, atomically thin interfaces of Ir/Al2O3 heterostructures compatible with micro-optoelectronic technologies are reported. Their structural and optical properties were determined by spectroscopic and microscopic techniques (XRR, XPS, HRTEM, spectroscopic ellipsometry, and UV/vis/NIR spectrophotometry). The XRR and HRTEM analyses reveal a layer-by-layer growth mechanism of Ir in atomic scale heterostructures, which is different from the typical island-type growth of metals on dielectrics. Alongside, XPS investigations imply the formation of Ir-O-Al bonding at the interfaces for lower Ir concentrations, in contrast to the nanoparticle core-shell structure formation. Precisely tuning the ratio of the constituents ensures the control of the dispersion profile along with a transition from effective dielectric to metallic heterostructures. The Ir coating thickness was varied ranging from a few angstroms to films of about 7 nm in the heterostructures. The transition has been observed in the structures containing individual Ir coating thicknesses of about 2-4 nm. Following this, we show epsilon-near-zero metamaterials with tunable dielectric constants by precisely varying the composition of such heterostructures. Overall, a comprehensive study on structural and optical properties of the metal-dielectric interfaces of Ir/Al2O3 heterostructures was addressed, indicating an extension of the material portfolio available for novel optical functionalities.

Au-based heterostructure composites for photo and electro catalytic energy conversions

In recent decades, the innovative green technologies of electrocatalysis and photocatalysis have been urgently developed for energy as well as environmental concerns. In photocatalysis, traditional semiconductors exhibit minor visible light absorption that shows poor photocatalytic performance. The plasmonic gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) have superior absorption cross-sections for visible light by means of localized SPR excitation, which emit hot charge carriers and then vastly improve the photocatalytic activity in the wide applications of dye decomposition, organic synthesis, water splitting, N2 fixation, CO2 reduction. Regarding to electrocatalytic energy conversion, Au-based nanocomposites possess versatility and high stability (e.g., high resistance to CO poisoning). Thus, nanogold electrocatalysts reveal outstanding performances in the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), oxygen evolution reaction (OER), hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) and CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR). This Review summarizes the progress in utilizing plasmonic gold NPs for photocatalytic and electrocatalytic energy conversions. The activity of size-dependent and metal structures,the fundamental understanding of molecular activation and catalytic mechanisms are also discussed in detail. Future efforts are expected to achieve new promising catalysts to encounter the prerequisite of industrial and extensive practical applications.

β-Ni(OH)2/NiFe2O4 heterostructure composite derived from layered double hydroxides precursor for ethanol oxidation electrocatalysis

We reported facile fabrication of a novel β-Ni(OH)2/NiFe2O4 heterostructure composite by KOH alkaline etching three-component NiFeAl-layered double hydroxides (NiFeAl-LDHs) precursor for ethanol oxidation electrocatalysis. Detailed investigation of evolution progress from NiFeAl-LDHs precursor to β-Ni(OH)2/NiFe2O4 demonstrated that growth of such composite structure underwent partial dealumination and spontaneous lattice rearrangement of NiFeAl-LDHs to form α-Ni(OH)2/NiFeAl-LDHs compound, followed by deep dealumination and topological transformation to produce β-Ni(OH)2/NiFe2O4. Compared to NiFeAl-LDHs precursor, β-Ni(OH)2/NiFe2O4 heterostructure prepared in 15 M KOH alkaline had enhanced activity (approximately 10 times) for ethanol electrocatalysis, smaller electron transfer resistance of 1.33 Ω, and increased long-term stability. In situ diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFTS) and in situ Raman spectroscopy were further performed to explore reaction mechanism and transformation process of β-Ni(OH)2/NiFe2O4 in ethanol electrocatalysis, which verified that the process of electron donating and electron receiving between NiFe2O4 and β-Ni(OH)2 realized more electron transfer and greatly improved the fuel utilization.

NIR-response amorphous FeOOH anchored BiO2-x for chlorophenols photodegradation via molecular oxygen activation

Chlorophenols (CPs) are universal and toxic pollutants in nature, as they have been widely detected in surface water, groundwater, sediment, ambient air, soil, and the human body. In this work, novel FeOOH/BiO2-x binary heterostructure composites with UV-Vis-NIR full-spectrum response were successfully constructed by anchoring highly dispersed amorphous FeOOH on BiO2-x nanosheets. A series characterization indicated the binary components were successfully obtained. The FeOOH/BiO2-x photocatalysts exhibited highly enhanced photocatalytic activity for the degradation of chlorophenols under UV-Vis-NIR full-spectrum irradiation. The amorphous FeOOH could effectively broaden the light response range, modulate the energy band structure and promote the separation and transfer of photogenerated electron-holes pairs, thus boosting the activation of molecular oxygen to generate •O2–. Furthermore, FeOOH/BiO2-x maintained excellent photocatalytic performance upon real solar light of varied irradiance for consecutive 7 days, indicative of great potential towards phenolic pollutants degradation in water. The redox couples of Fe3+/Fe2+ and Bi(3+x)+/Bi3+ also accelerate the efficient generation of reactive oxygen species over FeOOH/BiO2-x with improved durability. This work not only contributes to the design of full-spectrum responsive photocatalysts, but also provides a rational strategy for molecular oxygen activation towards the elimination of emerging contaminants.

One-pot fabrication CoS2 modified MoS2-g-C3N4 ternary heterostructure composites with enhanced photocatalytic hydrogen production from water

In this work, we prepared several CoS2-MoS2-g-C3N4 ternary heterojunction photocatalysts in-situ synthesized at one-pot high temperature processing. The spectroscopic and optoelectronic properties of the samples were analyzed by fluorescence and electrochemical methods, while the photocatalytic hydrogen production activity and stability of the different samples were investigated under visible light conditions (λ ≥ 420 nm). The results showed that the 0.02-CoS2-MoS2-g-C3N4 sample exhibited excellent photocatalytic production performance. It's because of the improved separation and transport capacity of photogenerated electrons and holes, which based on the effect of heterojunction between MoS2 and g-C3N4. The introduction of CoS2 could be further enhance the photocatalytic hydrogen production performance due to the increased active center and reducing the reaction energy barrier. This study can provide a new insight in the practical applications for photocatalytic hydrogen production.

Design of NiS@Ni3S2/CdS heterostructure with intimate contact interface for sensitive photoelectrochemical detection of lincomycin

Owing to their internal electric field effect and abundant photo-induced carriers, photoactive heterostructured materials are considered a feasible approach to improve the sensitivity of a photoelectrochemical (PEC) sensor. Herein, a novel NiS@Ni3S2/CdS heterostructure composite is derived from Ni-loaded zeolitic imidazolate framework (Ni-ZIF). The PEC experiments showed the NiS@Ni3S2/CdS composite exhibits superior photocurrent response than NiS@Ni3S2 and CdS. This is attributed to the fact that the type II heterojunction of NiS@Ni3S2/CdS with a tightly connected interface reduces the transport distance of carriers and facilitates electron-hole separation. Next, using the NiS@Ni3S2/CdS modified electrode, an aptamer/glutaraldehyde/chitosan/NiS@Ni3S2/CdS/ITO PEC biosensor is developed, which exhibits excellent sensitivity for lincomycin (Lin) detection with a wide linear range (0.0001 ∼ 1.25 nM) and a low detection limit of 0.067 pM. The prepared sensor is further employed to monitor Lin in the actual milk. The results confirm that the prepared sensing electrode displays good selectivity, repeatability and stability.

3D reduced graphene oxide wrapped MoS2@Sb2S3 heterostructures for high performance sodium-ion batteries

Metal sulfides have been widely used as the anode materials of sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) due to their high theoretical capacity. However, their inherent low conductivity and irreversible volume expansion limit their electrochemical performance and application. To solve these problems, the MoS2@Sb2S3 heterostructure composites wrapped by 3D interconnected reduce graphene oxide (rGO) are prepared. The MoS2@Sb2S3 heterostructure accelerates the transfer of ions and electrons, and provides rich active sites, which facilitates electrolyte penetration and improves the interfacial reaction kinetics. Wrap 3D interconnected rGO networks around the porous MoS2@Sb2S3 composites to reduce the volume expansion of composite materials in the process of sodiumization and desodiumization, and ensure the structural stability. The theoretical calculation further supports the experimental results that the MoS2@Sb2S3/rGO heterojunction promotes the redistribution of different charge density and optimizes the adsorption energy of the composite for Na+, thus accelerating the electrochemical reaction kinetics. The MoS2@Sb2S3/rGO composite as the anode materials of SIBs can achieve a discharge specific capacity of 591.6 mAh g−1 at the second cycle with current density of 5 A g−1, and 162.1 mAh g−1 after 1100 cycles. High-rate capacities are achieved for SIBs (350.4 mAh g−1 @ 1 A g−1, 260.1 mAh g−1 @ 5 A g−1). This work provides a practical method for preparing anode materials of SIBs with excellent electrochemical performance.

Design of Ag2O/In2O3 heterostructure composites with hollow fish basket-like structures for detecting petroleum volatile gases

In this study, Ag2O/In2O3 composites with hollow fish basket-like structure were synthesized by facile one-step hydrothermal method involving the modification of In2O3 by doping with Ag2O, which effectively enhanced the performance of gas-sensitive materials. X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were used to analyze the structure, morphology, and content of the samples. The results showed that the synthesized product was polycrystalline with hollow fish basket-like microsphere structure; moreover, XRD and TEM results demonstrated the formation of p–n heterojunction structure between Ag2O and In2O3. Based on this, the gas-sensitive performance study of Ag2O/In2O3 composites for C3H8-based petroleum volatile gases was carried out by static experimental methods, including the study of operating temperature, humidity, sensitivity response, response-recovery time, selectivity, and stability. The results showed that the composite exhibited the best sensing performance when the Ag2O doping was 0.6%. The maximum sensitivity was obtained for C3H8 at an operating temperature of 140 °C, with a response value of 210.3. This value is roughly 2.52 times greater than the sensitivity of undoped In2O3 (84.1 at 180 °C). Moreover, Ag2O/In2O3 composites exhibited high reaction sensitivity, good selectivity, and excellent stability when the doping amount of Ag2O was 0.6%. The experimental results clearly indicate that adding Ag2O improves the gas-sensitive performance compared to pure In2O3. This is attributed to presence of more adsorbed oxygen and oxygen vacancies on the surface of In2O3, the catalytic effect of Ag2O, and the formation of p–n type heterojunctions.

New maxen-based heterostructures for solar energy harvesting

A systematic study of the synthesis and photoactive properties of MXene heterostructures from four-component MAX phases is proposed for the first time. Important fundamental knowledge on the energy band structure of such materials was obtained, which allowed to explain the photoexcitation and charge transfer processes in photocatalytic compositions of this class. The mechanism of catalytic action of MXene heterostructure compositions was studied. Conducted research extends the field of fundamental knowledge about MXene heterostructures and provides a basis for their practical application, including the transition to new materials for the needs of alternative energy.

Interface channels accelerating ion transport through alkaline earth metal carbonate - Gd0.1Ce0.9O1.95 heterostructure

Designing the interface proton channel between different phases to accelerate the proton ion transport is an effective way to realize the high proton conduction for the low-temperature ceramic fuel cell (CFC). Cerium based materials coated with molten carbonate has been widely demonstrated for high performance CFCs. Here, we prepared alkaline earth metal carbonate - Gd0.1Ce0.9O1.95 (GDC) heterostructure composites in various compositions by precipitation method using NH4HCO3 and NaHCO3 as the deposit. The samples prepared using NH4HCO3 as the electrolyte, the cell can deliver an even higher power output of 811 mW cm−2. The results are much higher than that reported in the literature for the GDC electrolyte fuel cells. The ion conduction on the interface between GDC and solid carbonate particles is proposed. The ionic conductivity is determined to be 0.13 S cm−1 at 500 °C; while GDC as reported in literature is 0.005 S cm−1 at the same temperature. This proposed solid carbonate-GDC heterostructure method has succeeded in enhancing ionic conductivity and the CFC performance, which presents a new way to develop high proton conducting materials and advanced ceramic fuel cells at low temperatures (<550 °C).

Round-comb Fe2O3@SnO2 heterostructures enable efficient light harvesting and charge extraction for high-performance all-inorganic perovskite solar cells

The precise design of an electron transport layer (ETL) to improve the light-harvesting and quality of perovskite (PVK) film plays a crucial role in the photovoltaic performance of n-i-p perovskite solar cells (PSCs). In this work, a novel three-dimensional (3D) round-comb Fe2O3@SnO2 heterostructure composites with high conductivity and electron mobility induced by its Type-II band alignment and matched lattice spacing is prepared and employed as an efficient mesoporous ETL for all-inorganic CsPbBr3 PSCs. Arising from the multiple light scattering sites provided by the 3D round-comb structure, the diffuse reflectance of Fe2O3@SnO2 composites is increased to improve the light absorption of the deposited PVK film. Besides, the mesoporous Fe2O3@SnO2 ETL affords not only more active surface for sufficient exposure to the CsPbBr3 precursor solution but also a wettable surface to reduce the barrier for heterogeneous nucleation, which realizes the regulated growth of a high-quality PVK film with less undesired defect. Hence, both the light-harvesting capability, the photoelectrons transport and extraction are improved, and the charge recombination is restrained, delivering an optimized power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 10.23 % with a high short-circuit current density of 7.88 mA cm−2 for the c-TiO2/Fe2O3@SnO2 ETL based all-inorganic CsPbBr3 PSCs. Moreover, under lasting erosion at 25 °C and 85 % RH for 30 days and light-soaking (AM 1.5G) for 480 h in air atmosphere, the unencapsulated-device shows superiorly persistent durability.

Investigating the Electrochemical Properties of a Semiconductor Heterostructure Composite Based on WO3-CaFe2O4 Particles Planted on Porous Ni-Foam for Fuel Cell Applications

There is tremendous potential for both small- and large-scale applications of low-temperature operational ceramic fuel cells (LT-CFCs), which operate between 350 °C and 550 °C. Unfortunately, the low operating temperature of CFCs was hampered by inadequate oxygen reduction electrocatalysts. In this work, the electrochemical characteristics of a semiconductor heterostructure composite based on WO3-CaFe2O4 deposited over porous Ni-foam are investigated. At low working temperatures of 450–500 °C, the developed WO3-CaFe2O4 pasted on porous Ni–foam heterostructure composite cathode exhibits very low area-specific resistance (0.78 Ω cm2) and high oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) activity. For button-sized SOFCs with H2 and atmospheric air fuels, we have demonstrated high-power densities of 508 mW cm−2 running at 550 °C, and even potential operation at 450 °C, using WO3-CaFe2O4 seeded on porous Ni-foam cathode. Moreover, WO3-CaFe2O4 composite heterostructure with Ni foam paste exhibits very low activation energy compared to both WO3 and CaFe2O4 alone, which supports ORR activity. To comprehend the enhanced ORR electrocatalytic activity of WO3-CaFe2O4 pasted on porous Ni-foam heterostructure composite, several spectroscopic tests including X-ray diffraction (XRD), photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) were used. The findings may also aid in the creation of useful cobalt-free electrocatalysts for LT-SOFCs.

Engineering core–shell heterocomposites of integrated 0D ZIF-8 (Zn) attached on 1D MIL-68 (In) nanorods for high performance electromagnetic wave absorption

With the booming development and wide applications of smart and portable devices, electromagnetic wave (EMW) pollution and radiation are attracting more and more attention. EMW absorption materials play a vital role in solving the above problems. It is a still challenge to simultaneously realize strong reflection loss (RL), broad effective absorption bandwidth and lightweight of EMW absorption materials. In this paper, ZnO/C@In/C core–shell porous carbon hetero-rods were designed and synthesized via the pyrolysis of double MOFs with core–shell structure (MIL-68 (In) nanorods coated by ZIF-8 (Zn) dodecahedron nanoparticles). The ratio of MIL-68 (In) and ZIF-8 (Zn) in ZnO/C@In/C heterostructure composite was adjusted to achieve the impedance matching, resulting in most EMW entering composites. ZnO/C@In/C-0.136 exhibits a minimum RL of −56.75 dB at 16.34 GHz and broad effective absorption bandwidth of 6.76 GHz under the thickness of 2.36 mm, which is due to the impedance matching and high attenuation ability coming from a large number of interfaces. The finding of this study not only provides a facile preparation method of porous carbon with core–shell structure, but also offers a strategy for achieving strong RL and wide effective absorption bandwidth via synergistic effect of dielectric loss and impedance matching.

In Situ Construction of Manganese Oxide Photothermocatalysts for the Deep Removal of Toluene by Highly Utilizing Sunlight Energy.

The alternative use of electric energy by renewable energy to supply power for catalytic oxidation of pollutants is a sustainable technology, requiring a competent catalyst to realize efficient utilization of light and drive the catalytic reaction. Herein, in situ-synthesized manganese oxide heterostructure composites are developed through solvothermal reduction and subsequent calcination of amorphous manganese oxide (AMO). 95% of toluene conversion and 80% of CO2 mineralization were achieved over amorphous manganese oxide calcined at 250 °C (AMO-250) under light irradiation, and catalyst stability was maintained for at least 40 h. Highly utilization of light energy, uniformly dispersed nanoparticles, large specific surface area, improved metal reducibility, and oxygen desorption and migration ability at low temperature contribute to the good catalytic oxidation activity of AMO-250. Light activated more lattice oxygen to participate in the reaction via the Mars-van Krevelen (MvK) mechanism, and traditional e--h+ photocatalytic behavior exists over the AMO-250 heterostructure composite as an auxiliary degradation path. The reaction pathways of photothermocatalysis and thermocatalysis are close, except for the emergence of different copolymers, where light enhances the deep conversion of intermediates. A proof-of-concept study under natural sunlight has confirmed the feasibility of practical application in the photothermocatalytic degradation of pollutants.

Heterostructured 2D/2D ZnIn2S4/g-C3N4 nanohybrids for photocatalytic degradation of antibiotic sulfamethoxazole and photoelectrochemical properties

In recent years, antibiotic drugs have been extensively used owing to increased industrial growth, and this has created issues related to drinking water and a green environment. Different techniques have been used to resolve these issues, among which heterogeneous photocatalysis has been widely explored for the elimination of toxic compounds from wastewater resources. In this study, ZnIn2S4, g-C3N4, and ZnIn2S4/g-C3N4 hybrid heterostructured composites are synthesized via hydrothermal method and used these (i) for the removal of antibiotic sulfamethoxazole pollutant and (ii) photoelectrochemical water oxidation. The nanomaterials were characterized using X-ray diffraction, Scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and UV–vis spectroscopy. The developed hybrid heterostructured composites were able to degrade sulfamethoxazole pollutants as well as offer improved photoelectrochemical properties compared to pristine samples. The catalytic performance of the materials developed under visible light irradiation was greatly improved for the degradation of the antibiotic drug up to 89.4% in 2 h. Moreover, the hybrid heterostructured photoelectrode showed a better photocurrent density (8.68 mA/cm2) and exhibited ∼19.2 and 29.9 times greater photocurrent density than the pristine photoelectrodes. Such a considerably increased catalytic activity was attributed to the active separation of charge carriers and transmission. The study offers an innovative approach to develop effective catalysts, and for the degradation of sulfamethoxazole as well as the PEC properties for hydrogen production.

Achieving Stable and Ultrafast Potassium Storage of Antimony Anode via Dual Confinement of MXene@Carbon Framework.

Antimony-based anode materials are recognized for their high potassium storage capacities and appropriate operating potentials. However, the large volume expansion of Sb during the potassiation/depotassiation process, which results in a quick capacity decay, severely limits its practical application in potassium-ion batteries (PIBs). Here, a carbon-coated Sb/MXene heterostructure composite (CSM) is synthesized by adsorption of Sb3+ on MXene nanosheets via Sb-O-Ti bonds followed by carbothermic reduction to construct dual-confined MXene@carbon conductive framework capable of withstanding high volume expansion of Sb and conducive to enabling accelerated electron transfer kinetics. The CSM composite, particularly CSM-700, when configured as an anode for PIBs, realized high capacity (484.4mAh g-1 at 0.1A g-1 ), an ultra-stable cycling performance with a high reversible capacity of 435.9mAh g-1 at 0.1A g-1 after 100 cycles corresponding to a capacity retention rate of 90.0%, and superior rate performance of 323.0mAh g-1 at 1A g-1 . The proposed strategy offers a simple route to construct high-performance Sb-based anodes for advanced PIBs.

High aspect ratio TiO2–Mn3O4 heterostructure: proficient nanorods for pathogen inhibition and supercapacitor application

ABSTRACT Supercapacitors are in great demand owing to necessity of clean and sustainable energy. Alternately, waterborne microbial infections are prime cause of diseases. So, there is demand for synthesis of novel materials with multifunctional adaptability. Herein, heterostructured TiO2–Mn3O4 composite nanorods were synthesised by two-step methods. In first step, TiO2 nanorods were prepared using electrospinning and by hydrothermal method Mn3O4 nanoparticles were attached to TiO2 surface. The composite heterostructure was described using sophisticated procedures such as X-ray diffraction, Fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy, Scanning electron and Transmission electron microscopy. Antimicrobial studies were probed against Gram-negative Escherichia coli and Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus pathogens. The results demonstrated that TiO2–Mn3O4 composite has more heightened antimicrobial activity than pristine TiO2. Additionally, the synthesised TiO2–Mn3O4 composite was implied as an electrode for supercapacitors. The definite capacitance of TiO2–Mn3O4 nanocomposite calculated at a potential scan rate of 5 mV/s was as amplified as 470 Fg−1.