Freestanding and Flexible Interfacial Layer Enables Bottom-Up Zn Deposition Toward Dendrite-Free Aqueous Zn-Ion Batteries

Aqueous rechargeable zinc ion batteries are regarded as a competitive alternative to lithium-ion batteries because of their distinct advantages of high security,high energy density,low cost,and environmental friendliness.However,deep-seated problems including Zn dendrite and adverse side reactions severely impede the practical application.In this work,we proposed a freestanding Zn-electrolyte interfacial layer composed of multicapsular carbon fibers(MCFs)to regulate the plating/stripping behavior of Zn anodes.The versatile MCFs protective layer can uniformize the electric field and Zn^(2+)flux,meanwhile,reduce the deposition overpotentials,leading to high-quality and rapid Zn deposition kinetics.Furthermore,the bottom-up and uniform deposition of Zn on the Zn-MCFs interface endows long-term and high-capacity plating.Accordingly,the Zn@MCFs symmetric batteries can keep working up to 1500 h with 5 mAh cm^(−2).The feasibility of the MCFs interfacial layer is also convinced in Zn@MCFs||MnO_(2) batteries.Remarkably,the Zn@MCFs||α-MnO_(2)batteries deliver a high specific capacity of 236.1 mAh g^(−1)at 1 A g^(−1)with excellent stability,and maintain an exhilarating energy density of 154.3 Wh kg^(−1) at 33%depth of discharge in pouch batteries.

Analysis on interfacial layer of aluminum alloy and non-coated stainless steel joint made by TIG welding-brazing

Dissimilar metals TIG welding-brazing of aluminum alloy and non-coated stainless steel was investigated. The resultant joint was characterized in order to identify the phases and the brittle intermetallic compounds （IMCs） in the interracial layer by optical metalloscope （OM）, scanning electron microscopy （SEM） and energy dispersive spectrometer （ EDS） , and the cracked joint was analyzed in order to understand the cracking mechanism of the joint. The results show that the microfusion of the stainless steel can improve the wetting and spreading of liquid aluminum base filler metal on the steel suuface and the melted steel accelerates the formation of mass of brittle IMCs in the interracial layer, which causes the joint cracking badly. The whole interfacial layer is 5 -7 μm thick and comprises approximately 5μm-thickness reaction layer in aluminum side and about 2 μm-thickness diffusion layer in steel side. The stable Al-rich IMCs are formed in the interfacial layer and the phases transfer from （ Al ＋ FeAl3 ） in aluminum side to （ FeAl3 ＋ Fe2Al5 ） and （ α-Fe ＋ FeAl） in steel side.

Generation Mechanism of Interfacial Layer and Its Effect on Fe-Cr-Ni/Al-Si-Cu-Ni-Mg Composite Performance

Fe-Cr-Ni/Al-Si-Cu-Ni-Mg composite was taken as the experimental material. The chemical composition of interfacial layer was tested. The generation mechanism and influence of interfacial layer on the composite were analyzed. The results indicated that the generation of interfacial layer is sensitive to temperature. Interfacial layer will generate rapidly when temperature reaches 500 ℃ or above. The interfacial layer is mainly composed of Al, Si, Cu, Fe, and Cr, element Ni distributes at the outward of the interfacial layer for the precipitate of Ni later than Si and Cu, and there is almost no diffusion of Ni during the solution treatment. During heat treatment process, unequal quantity changing of metal atom results in disperse or concentrated vacancies or holes near the matrix. The existence of interfacial layer will induce a decrease of compression strength and plasticity at room temperature and an increase of strength at higher temperature comparing with composite without interfacial layer.

Effect of ultrathin GeO_x interfacial layer formed by thermal oxidation on Al_2O_3 capped Ge

We propose a modified thermal oxidation method in which an Al2O3 capping layer is used as an oxygen blocking layer （OBL） to form an ultrathin GeOx interracial layer, and obtain a superior Al2O3/GeOx/Ge gate stack. The GeOx interfacial layer is formed in oxidation reaction by oxygen passing through the Al2O3 OBL, in which theAl2O3 layer could restrain the oxygen diffusion and suppress the GeO desorption during thermal treatment. The thickness of the GeOx interfacial layer would dramatically decrease as the thickness of Al2O3 OBL increases, which is beneficial to achieving an ultrathin GeOx interfacial layer to satisfy the demand for small equivalent oxide thickness （EOT）. In addition, the thickness of the GeOx interfacial layer has little influence on the passivation effect of the Al2O3/Ge interface. Ge （100） p-channel metal- oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors （pMOSFETs） using the Al2O3/GeOx/Ge gate stacks exhibit excellent electrical characteristics; that is, a drain current on-off （Ionloft） ratio of above 1 104, a subthreshold slope of - 120 mV/dec, and a peak hole mobility of 265 cm2/V.s are achieved.

Interface models for thin interfacial layers

There have already been several interface models for the analyses of thin interfacial layers in bonded materials. To distinguish their corresponding advantages or limitations, a comparative study is carried out, and a new constitutive-based interface model is proposed. Through numerical examinations, the limitations of typical models are clarified. It is found that the new interface model is an efficient and accurate model, by which both the traction and the displacement jumps across the modelled interface with the thickness of zero are allowed, and the stresses within the interracial layer can also be analyzed.

Tuning the structures of polypyridinium salts as bifunctional cathode interfacial layers for all-solution-processed red quantum-dot light-emitting diodes

Self-doping cathode interfacial layers(CILs) with both favorable electron injection and transport characteristics meet the key requirement for realizing high-performance optoelectronic devices with simplified structures. Herein, four different polypyridinium salts with tunable backbones, side chains and counterions are elaborately designed to afford them desirable film-forming property, polarity, structural rigidity and self-doping feature. All-solution-processed red quantum dot light-emitting diodes(QLEDs) employing them as bifunctional CILs render remarkably improved device performances in contrast to the typical CIL material of poly[(9,9-bis(30-(N,N-dimethylamino)propyl)-2,7-fluorene)-alt-2,7-(9,9-dioctylfluorene)](PFN).The maximum external quantum efficiency of 2.74% achieved in this work represents one of the best values among the all-solution-processed QLEDs with individual organic CILs.

A Li_(3)Bi/LiF interfacial layer enabling highly stable lithium metal anode

Lithium metal anode is considered the alternative to graphite anode due to its ultra-high theoretical capacity of 3860 mAh·g^(-1).However,serious Li dendrite growth and drastic electrolyte side reactions restrain the commercial application of Li metal anode.In this work,a Li_(3)Bi/LiF interfacial layer is constructed on the surface of the Li metal anode by a spontaneous substitution reaction.The composite interfacial layer possesses excellent ionic conductivity,high mechanical strength,and great electrolyte wettability,which ensures fast Li-ion transfer and uniform Li deposition of the Li_(3)Bi/LiF@Li anode.Impressively,the Li_3Bi/LiF@Li symmetric cell provides a cycle life of more than 400 h with only 73 mV voltage polarization at 10 mA·cm^(-2).By pairing with commercial NCM622 cathode,the Li_(3)Bi/LiF@Li full cell exhibits a long cycle at a rate of 2 C.

In-situ interfacial passivation and self-adaptability synergistically stabilizing all-solid-state lithium metal batteries

The function of solid electrolytes and the composition of solid electrolyte interphase(SEI)are highly significant for inhibiting the growth of Li dendrites.Herein,we report an in-situ interfacial passivation combined with self-adaptability strategy to reinforce Li_(0.33)La_(0.557)TiO_(3)(LLTO)-based solid-state batteries.Specifically,a functional SEI enriched with LiF/Li_(3)PO_(4) is formed by in-situ electrochemical conversion,which is greatly beneficial to improving interface compatibility and enhancing ion transport.While the polarized dielectric BaTiO_(3)-polyamic acid(BTO-PAA,BP)film greatly improves the Li-ion transport kinetics and homogenizes the Li deposition.As expected,the resulting electrolyte offers considerable ionic conductivity at room temperature(4.3 x 10~(-4)S cm^(-1))and appreciable electrochemical decomposition voltage(5.23 V)after electrochemical passivation.For Li-LiFePO_(4) batteries,it shows a high specific capacity of 153 mA h g^(-1)at 0.2C after 100 cycles and a long-term durability of 115 mA h g^(-1)at 1.0 C after 800 cycles.Additionally,a stable Li plating/stripping can be achieved for more than 900 h at 0.5 mA cm^(-2).The stabilization mechanisms are elucidated by ex-situ XRD,ex-situ XPS,and ex-situ FTIR techniques,and the corresponding results reveal that the interfacial passivation combined with polarization effect is an effective strategy for improving the electrochemical performance.The present study provides a deeper insight into the dynamic adjustment of electrode-electrolyte interfacial for solid-state lithium batteries.

CsPbI nanorods as the interfacial layer for high-performance,all-solution-processed self-powered photodetectors

Heterojunction is regarded as a crucial step toward realizing high-performance devices,particularly,forming gradient energy band between heterojunctions benefits self-powered photodetectors.Therefore,in this paper,the synthesis of CsPbI3 nanorods(NRs)and its application as the interfacial layer in high-performance,all-solution-processed self-powered photodetectors are presented.For the bilayer photodetector ITO/ZnO(100 nm)/PbS-TBAI(150 nm)/Au,a responsivity of 3.6 A/W with a specific detectivity of 9.8×10^(12)Jones was obtained under 0.1 mW/cm^(2)white light illumination at zero bias(i.e.in self-powered mode).Meanwhile,the photocurrent was enhanced to an On/Off current ratio of 105 at zero bias with an open circuit voltage of 0.53 V for trilayer photodetector ITO/ZnO(100 nm)/PbSTBAI(150 nm)/CsPbI3(250 nm)/Au,in which the CsPbI3 NRs layer works as the interfacial layer.As a result,a specific detectivity of 4.5×10^(13)Jones with a responsivity of 11.12 A/W was obtained under0.1 mW/cm^(2) white light illumination,as well as the rising/decaying time of 0.57 s/0.41 s with excellent stability and reproducibility upto four weeks in air.The enhanced-performance is ascribed to the mismatch bandgap between PbS-TBAI/CsPbI_(3)interface,which can suppress the carrier recombination and provide efficient transport passages for charge carriers.Thus,it provides a feasible and efficient method for high-performance photodetectors.

Bending-stability Interfacial Layer as Dual Electron Transport Layer for Flexible Organic Photovoltaics

The flexibility of organic photovoltaics(OPVs)has attracted worldwide attention in recent years.To realize the bending-stability of OPVs,it is necessary to put forward the bending-stability of interfacial layer.A novel bendable composite is explored and successfully applied as an electron transport layer(ETL)for fully-flexible OPVs.We incorporated poly(vinylpyrrolidone)(PVP)into conjugated electrolytes(CPE)to composite a bendable ETL for high-performance OPVs devices.Fortunately,the devices based on PVP-modified CPE exhibited better device performances and more excellent mechanical properties of bendability.The fullerene-free OPVs based on PM6:IT-4 F with CPE@PVP as ETLs yield the best power conversion efficiency(PCE)of 13.42%.Moreover,a satisfying efficiency of 12.59%has been obtained for the fully-flexible OPVs.As far as we know,this is one of the highest PCE for fully-flexible OPV based PM6:IT-4 F system.More importantly,the flexible OPVs devices can retain more than 80%of its initial efficiency after 5000 bending cycles.Furthermore,among various curvature radii,the mechanical properties of the device based on CPE@PVP are superior to those of the device based on bare CPE as ETL.These findings indicate that the functional flexibility of CPE as a cathode interfacial layer is an effective strategy to fabricate high-performance flexible devices in the near future.

Light-emission organic solar cells with MoO_(3):Al interfacial layer-preparation and characterizations

A light-emitting organic solar cell(LE-OSC)with electroluminescence(EL)and photovoltaic(PV)properties is successfully fabricated by connecting the EL and PV units using a MoO_(3):Al co-evaporation interfacial layer,which has suitable work function and good transmittance.PV and EL units are fabricated based on poly(3-hexylthiophene)(P3HT)-indene-C60 bisadduct(IC60BA)blends,and 4,4′-bis(N-carbazolyl)biphenyl-factris(2-phenylpyridine)iridium(Ir(ppy)3),respectively.The work function and the transmittance of the MoO_(3):Al co-evaporation are measured and adjusted by the ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy and the optical spectrophotometer to obtain the better bi-functional device performance.The forward-and reverse-biased current density-voltage characteristics in dark and under illumination are evaluated to better understand the operational mechanism of the LE-OSCs.A maximum luminance of 1550 cd/m^(2)under forward bias and a power conversion efficiency of 0.24%under illumination(100 mW/cm^(2))are achieved in optimized LE-OSCs.The proposed device structure is expected to provide valuable information in the film conditions for understanding the polymer blends internal conditions and meliorating the film qualities.

Improvement of Ge MOS Electrical and Interfacial Characteristics by using NdAlON as Interfacial Passivation Layer

The Ge metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) capacitors were fabricated with HfO2 as gate dielectric.AlON,NdON,and NdAlON were deposited between the gate dielectric and the Ge substrate as the interfacial passivation layer (IPL).The electrical properties (such as capacitance-voltage (C-V) and gate leakage current density versus gate voltage (J_(g)-V_(g))) were measured by HP4284A precision LCR meter and HP4156A semiconductor parameter analyzer.The chemical states and interfacial quality of the high-k/Ge interface were investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS).The experimental results show that the sample with the NdAlON as IPL exhibits the excellent interfacial and electrical properties.These should be attributed to an effective suppression of the Ge suboxide and HfGeOx interlayer,and an enhanced blocking role against inter-diffusion of the elements during annealing by the NdAlON IPL.

Carbon-based interface engineering and architecture design for high-performance lithium metal anodes

Metallic lithium(Li)is considered the“Holy Grail”anode material for the nextgeneration of Li batteries with high energy density owing to the extraordinary theoretical specific capacity and the lowest negative electrochemical potential.However,owing to inhomogeneous Li-ion flux,Li anodes undergo uncontrollable Li deposition,leading to limited power output and practical applications.Carbon materials and their composites with controllable structures and properties have received extensive attention to guide the homogeneous growth of Li to achieve high-performance Li anodes.In this review,the correlation between the behavior of Li anode and the properties of carbon materials is proposed.Subsequently,we review emerging strategies for rationally designing high-performance Li anodes with carbon materials,including interface engineering(stabilizing solid electrolyte interphase layer and other functionalized interfacial layer)and architecture design of host carbon(constructing three-dimension structure,preparing hollow structure,introducing lithiophilic sites,optimizing geometric effects,and compositing with Li).Based on the insights,some prospects on critical challenges and possible future research directions in this field are concluded.It is anticipated that further innovative works on the fundamental chemistry and theoretical research of Li anodes are needed.

Polyethylene interfacial dielectric layer for organic semiconductor single crystal based field-effect transistors

Organic semiconductor single crystals(OSSCs) have shown their promising potential in high-performance organic field-effect transistors(OFETs). The interfacial dielectric layers are critical in these OFETs as they not only govern the key semiconductor/dielectric interface quality but also determine the growth of OSSCs by their wetting properties. However, reported interfacial dielectric layers either need rigorous preparation processes, rely on certain surface chemistry reactions, or exhibit poor solvent resistance, which limits their applications in low-cost, large-area, monolithic fabrication of OSSC-based OFETs. In this work, polyethylene(PE) thin films and lamellar single crystals are utilized as the interfacial dielectric layers, providing solvent resistive but wettable surfaces that facilitate the crystallization of 6,13-bis(tri-isopropylsilylethynyl)pentacene(TIPS-PEN) and 6,13-bis(triisopropylsilylethynyl)-5,7,12,14-tetraazapentacene(TIPS-TAP). As evidenced by the presence of ambipolar behavior in TIPS-PEN single crystals and the high electron mobility(2.3 ± 0.34 cm^(2)V^(-1)s^(-1)) in TIPS-TAP single crystals, a general improvement on electron transport with PE interfacial dielectric layers is revealed, which likely associates with the chemically inertness of the saturated C-H bonds. With the advantages in both processing and device operation, the PE interfacial dielectric layer potentially offers a monolithic way for the enhancement of electron transport in solution-processed OSSC-based OFETs.

Effects of Al2O3 Particulates on the Thickness of Reaction Layer of Al2O3 Joints Brazed with Al2O3-Particulate-Contained Composite Filler Materials

In order to understand the rate-controlling process for the interfacial layer growth of brazing joints brazed with active composite filler materials, the thickness of brazing joints brazed with conventional active filler metal and active composite filler materials with different volume fraction of AI2O3 participate was studied. The experimental results indicate although there are Al2O3 particulates added into active filler metals, the time dependence of interfacial layer growth is t2 as described by Fickian law for the joints brazed with conventional active filler metal. It also shows that the key factor affecting the interfacial layer growth is the volume fraction of alumina in the composite filler material compared with the titanium weight fraction in the filler material.

A Review on Interface Engineering of MXenes for Perovskite Solar Cells

With an excellent power conversion efficiency of 25.7%,closer to the Shockley–Queisser limit,perovskite solar cells(PSCs)have become a strong candidate for a next-generation energy harvester.However,the lack of stability and reliability in PSCs remained challenging for commercialization.Strategies,such as interfacial and structural engineering,have a more critical influence on enhanced performance.MXenes,two-dimensional materials,have emerged as promising materials in solar cell applications due to their metallic electrical conductivity,high carrier mobility,excellent optical transparency,wide tunable work function,and superior mechanical properties.Owing to different choices of transition elements and surface-terminating functional groups,MXenes possess the feature of tuning the work function,which is an essential metric for band energy alignment between the absorber layer and the charge transport layers for charge carrier extraction and collection in PSCs.Furthermore,adopting MXenes to their respective components helps reduce the interfacial recombination resistance and provides smooth charge transfer paths,leading to enhanced conductivity and operational stability of PSCs.This review paper aims to provide an overview of the applications of MXenes as components,classified according to their roles as additives(into the perovskite absorber layer,charge transport layers,and electrodes)and themselves alone or as interfacial layers,and their significant importance in PSCs in terms of device performance and stability.Lastly,we discuss the present research status and future directions toward its use in PSCs.

Organic Optoelectronic Synapses for Sound Perception

The neuromorphic systems for sound perception is under highly demanding for the future bioinspired electronics and humanoid robots.However,the sound perception based on volume,tone and timbre remains unknown.Herein,organic optoelectronic synapses(OOSs)are constructed for unprecedented sound recognition.The volume,tone and timbre of sound can be regulated appropriately by the input signal of voltages,frequencies and light intensities of OOSs,according to the amplitude,frequency,and waveform of the sound.The quantitative relation between recognition factor(ζ)and postsynaptic current(I=I_(light)−I_(dark))is established to achieve sound perception.Interestingly,the bell sound for University of Chinese Academy of Sciences is recognized with an accuracy of 99.8%.The mechanism studies reveal that the impedance of the interfacial layers play a critical role in the synaptic performances.This contribution presents unprecedented artificial synapses for sound perception at hardware levels.

Manipulating Nanowires in Interconnecting Layer for Efficient Tandem Organic Photovoltaics

Owing to the function of manipulating light absorption distribution,tandem organic solar cells containing multiple sub-cells exhibit high power conversion efficiencies.However,there is a substantial challenge in precisely controlling the inter-subcells carrier migration which determines the balance of charge transport across the entire device.The conductivity of"nanowires"-like conducting channel in interconnecting layer between sub-cells should be improved which calls for fine engineering on the morphology of polyelectrolyte in interconnecting layer.Here,we develop a simple method to effectively manipulating the domains of conductive components in commercially available polyelectrolyte PEDOT:PSs.The use of poor solvent could effectively modify the configuration of polystyrene sulfonic acid and thus the space for conductive components.Based on our strategy,the insulated shells wrapping conductive domains are thinned and the efficiencies of tandem organic solar cells are improved.We believe our method might provide guidance for the manufacture of tandem organic solar cells.

Anti-Corrosion and Reconstruction of Surface Crystal Plane for Zn Anodes by an Advanced Metal Passivation Technique

For the aqueous Zn-ion battery,dendrite formation,corrosion,and interfacial parasitic reactions are major issues,which greatly inhibits their practical application.How to develop a method of Zn construction or treatment to solve these issues for Zn anodes are still great challenges.Herein,a simple and cheap metal passivation technique is proposed for Zn anodes from a corrosion science perspective.Similar to the metal anticorrosion engineering,the formed interfacial protective layer in a chemical way can sufficiently solve the corrosion issues.Furthermore,the proposed passivity approach can reconstruct Zn surface-preferred crystal planes,exposing more(002)planes and improving surface hydrophilicity,which inhibits the formation of Zn dendrites and hydrogen evolution effectively.As expected,the passivated Zn achieves outstanding cycling life(1914 h)with low voltage polarization(<40 mV).Even at 6 mA cm^(−2) and 3 mA h cm^(−2),it can achieve stable Zn deposition over 460 h.The treated Zn anode coupled with MnO_(2) cathode shows prominently reinforced full batteries service life,making it a potential Zn anode candidate for excellent performance aqueous Zn-ion batteries.The proposed passivation approach provides a guideline for other metal electrodes preparation in various batteries and establishes the connections between corrosion science and batteries.

Monolithic bilayered In_(2)O_(3) as an efficient interfacial material for high-performance perovskite solar cells

Carrier recombination at the buried SnO_(2)/perovskite interface limits the efficiency and stability of n-i-p-structured perovskite solar cells(PSCs).Herein,we report an In_(2)O_(3)interfacial layer with the distinctive structure of the monolithic compact/nanostructured bilayer.The partial hydrolysis nature of the In^(3+)ion enables the formation of nanorods on top of the compact In_(2)O_(3)layer when spin-coating the In(NO_(3))_(3) aqueous solution.This novel interfacial layer reduces the pinholes of the SnO_(2)film and increases the contact area between the perovskite and electron transport material.Therefore,PSCs with the incorporation of the interfacial layer demonstrate enhanced electron extraction and suppressed carrier recombination.Consequently,the champion device achieves a power conversion efficiency of 23.87%with a high fill factor of 82.14%.The optimized device also shows robust operational stability,retaining over 80%of the initial power conversion efficiency after working at the maximum power point for over 500 h under continuous one-sun illumination.