Wettability alteration of organo-vermiculites induced by layer charge and tailored bis-N-heterocyclic quaternary ammonium salts

Wettability is an important surface property that deserves to further explore the factors on its alteration.Series of bis-N-heterocyclic quaternary ammonium salts with different spacer length and N-heterocyclic headgroups(morpholinium(BMMB,BMMD and BMMH),piperidinium(BPMH)and piperazinium(BMPMH))have been synthesized and employed for altering the wettability of vermiculite and its derivates(Vts)treated by Li^(+)-saturated heating method.The results of X-ray diffraction(XRD),Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy(FT-IR),thermogravimetric analysis(TG-DTG),scanning electron microscopy(SEM)and N_(2)adsorption/desorption isotherms indicate that all of the bis-N-heterocyclic quaternary ammonium salts have been successfully inserted into the vermiculite layers,leading to the organic monolayer.The results of capillary rise tests combined with Lipophilic to Hydrophilic Ratio(LHR)values unveil the wettability alteration of the organo-Vts.As the layer charge decreases,the hydrophilicity of the organo-Vts gradually increases,which is probably caused by the decline in binding sites.As the result of the change in spacer length of modifier,the wetting properties of morpholinium-based organo-Vts change in order of BMMD-Vts>BMMH-Vts>BMMB-Vts,and difference in N-heterocyclic headgroups leads to the sequence of wettability:BMPMH-Vts>BPMH-Vts>BMMH-Vts.Layer charge of Vt,spacer length and the type of the N-heterocyclic headgroup of modifier have the synergistic effect on the regulation of the wettability.

Current advancements on charge selective contact interfacial layers and electrodes in flexible hybrid perovskite photovoltaics

Perovskite-based photovoltaic materials have been attracting attention for their strikingly improved performance at converting sunlight into electricity.The beneficial and unique optoelectronic characteristics of perovskite structures enable researchers to achieve an incredibly remarkable power conversion efficiency.Flexible hybrid perovskite photovoltaics promise emerging applications in a myriad of optoelectronic and wearable/portable device applications owing to their inherent intriguing physicochemical and photophysical properties which enabled researchers to take forward advanced research in this growing field.Flexible perovskite photovoltaics have attracted significant attention owing to their fascinating material properties with combined merits of high efficiency,light-weight,flexibility,semitransparency,compatibility towards roll-to-roll printing,and large-area mass-scale production.Flexible perovskite-based solar cells comprise of 4 key components that include a flexible substrate,semi-transparent bottom contact electrode,perovskite(light absorber layer)and charge transport(electron/hole)layers and top(usually metal)electrode.Among these components,interfacial layers and contact electrodes play a pivotal role in influencing the overall photovoltaic performance.In this comprehensive review article,we focus on the current developments and latest progress achieved in perovskite photovoltaics concerning the charge selective transport layers/electrodes toward the fabrication of highly stable,efficient flexible devices.As a concluding remark,we briefly summarize the highlights of the review article and make recommendations for future outlook and investigation with perspectives on the perovskite-based optoelectronic functional devices that can be potentially utilized in smart wearable and portable devices.

Blast performance of layered charges enveloped by aluminum powder/rubber composites in confined spaces

A layered charge composed of the JH-2 explosive enveloped by a thick-walled cylindrical casing(active aluminum/rubber and inert lithium fluoride/rubber composites) was designed and explosion experiments were conducted in a 1.3 m3tank and a 113 m3bunker.The blast parameters,including the quasistatic pressure(ΔpQS),special impulse(I),and peak overpressure(Δpmax),and images of the explosion process were recorded,and the influence of the Al content(30% and 50%) and Al particle size(1,10,and 50 μm) on the energy release of aluminum/rubber composites were investigated.The results revealed that the use of an active layer increased the peak overpressure generated by the primary blast wave,as well as the quasistatic pressure and special impulse related to fuel burning within tens of milliseconds after detonation.When the Al content was increased from 30% to 50%,the increases of ΔpQS and I were not obvious,and Δpmaxeven decreased,possibly because of decreased combustion efficiency and greater absorption of the blast wave energy for layers with 50% Al.Compared with the pure JH-2charge,the charge with 1 μm Al particles produced the highest Δpmax,indicating that better transient blast performance was generated by smaller Al particles.However,the charge with 10 μm Al particles showed the largest ΔpQSand I,suggesting that a stronger destructive effect occurred over a longer duration for charges that contained moderate 10 μm Al.

A deep trench super-junction LDMOS with double charge compensation layer

A deep trench super-junction LDMOS with double charge compensation layer(DC DT SJ LDMOS)is proposed in this paper.Due to the capacitance effect of the deep trench which is known as silicon-insulator-silicon(SIS)capacitance,the charge balance in the super-junction region of the conventional deep trench SJ LDMOS(Con.DT SJ LDMOS)device will be broken,resulting in breakdown voltage(BV)of the device drops.DC DT SJ LDMOS solves the SIS capacitance effect by adding a vertical variable doped charge compensation layer and a triangular charge compensation layer inside the Con.DT SJ LDMOS device.Therefore,the drift region reaches an ideal charge balance state again.The electric field is optimized by double charge compensation and gate field plate so that the breakdown voltage of the proposed device is improved sharply,meanwhile the enlarged on-current region reduces its specific on-resistance.The simulation results show that compared with the Con.DT SJ LD-MOS,the BV of the DC DT SJ LDMOS has been increased from 549.5 to 705.5 V,and the R_(on,sp) decreased to 23.7 mΩ·cm^(2).

Efficiency of a blue organic light-emitting diode enhanced by inserting charge control layers into the emission region

We demonstrate high current efficiency of a blue fluorescent organic light-emitting diode （OLED） by using the charge control layers （CCLs） based on Alq3 . The CCLs that are inserted into the emitting layers （EMLs） could impede the hole injection and facilitate the electron transport, which can improve the carrier balance and further expand the exciton generation region. The maximal current efficiency of the optimal device is 5.89 cd/A at 1.81 mA/cm2 , which is about 2.19 times higher than that of the control device （CD） without the CCL, and the maximal luminance is 19.660 cd/m2 at 12V. The device shows a good color stability though the green light emitting material Alq3 is introduced as the CCL in the EML, but it has a poor lifetime due to the formation of cationic Alq3 species.

Tandem white organic light-emitting diodes adopting a C_(60) :rubrene charge generation layer

Organic bulk heterojunction fullerence(C60) doped 5, 6, 11, 12-tetraphenylnaphthacene(rubrene) as the high quality charge generation layer(CGL) with high transparency and superior charge generating capability for tandem organic light emitting diodes(OLEDs) is developed. This CGL shows excellent optical transparency about 90%, which can reduce the optical interference effect formed in tandem OLEDs. There is a stable white light emission including 468 nm and 500 nm peaks from the blue emitting layer and 620 nm peak from the red emitting layer in tandem white OLEDs. A high efficiency of about 17.4 cd/A and CIE coordinates of(0.40, 0.35) at 100 cd/m2 and(0.36, 0.34) at 1000 cd/m2 have been demonstrated by employing the developed CGL, respectively.

Charge Density Wave States and Structural Transition in Layered Chalcogenide TaSe_(2-x)Te_x

The structural features and three-dimensional nature of the charge density wave （CDW） state of the layered chalcogenide 1T-TaSe2-xTex （0≤x≤2.0） are characterized by Cs-corrected transmission electron microscopy measurements. Notable changes of both average structure and the CDW state arising from Te substitution for Se are clearly demonstrated in samples with x〉0.3. The commensurate CDW state characterized by the known star-of-David clustering in the 1T-TaSe2 crystal becomes visibly unstable with Te substitution and vanishes when x=0.3. The 1T-TaSe2-xTex （0.3≤x≤1.3） samples generally adopt a remarkable incommensurate CDW state with monoclinic distortion, which could be fundamentally in correlation with the strong qq-dependent electron-phonon coupling-induced period-lattice-distortion as identified in TaTe22. Systematic analysis demonstrates that the occurrence of superconductivity is related to the suppression of the commensurate CDW phase and the presence of discommensuration is an evident structural feature observed in the superconducting samples.

Space Charge Layer Eff ect in Sulfide Solid Electrolytes in All-Solid-State Batteries: In-situ Characterization and Resolution

All-solid-state lithium batteries(ASSLBs)have advantages of safety and high energy density,and they are expected to become the next generation of energy storage devices.Sulfide-based solid-state electrolytes(SSEs)with high ionic conduc-tivity and low grain boundary resistance exhibit remarkable practical application.However,the space charge layer(SCL)eff ect and high interfacial resistance caused by a mismatch with the current commercial oxide cathodes restrict the develop-ment of sulfide SSEs and ASSLBs.This review summarizes the research progress on the SCL eff ect of sulfide SSEs and oxide cathodes,including the mechanism and direct evidence from high performance in-situ characterizations,as well as recent progress on the interfacial modification strategies to alleviate the SCL eff ect.This study provides future direction to stabilize the high performance sulfide-based solid electrolyte/oxide cathode interface for state-of-the-art ASSLBs and future all-SSE storage devices.

Influence of charge transport layer on the crystallinity and charge extraction of pure tin-based halide perovskite film

As one of the most compelling photovoltaic devices, halide perovskite (PVK) solar cells have achieved a new surprising record power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 25.8%in 2021 [1]. This demonstrates the great potential of halide PVK solar cells as a highly competitive substitute to replace silicon-based solar cells in the photovoltaic market [2–6].

Effects of NPB anode buffer layer on charge collection in ZnO/MEH-PPV hybrid solar cells

We investigate the effects of （N,N’-diphenyl）-N,N’-bis（1-naphthyl）-1,1’-biphenyl-4,4’-diamine （NPB） buffer layers on charge collection in inverted ZnO/MEH-PPV hybrid devices. The insertion of a 3-nm NPB thin layer enhances the efficiency of charge collection by improving charge transport and reducing the interface energy barrier, resulting in better device performances. S-shaped light J–V curve appears when the thickness of the NPB layer reaches 25 nm, which is induced by the inefficient charge extraction from MEH-PPV to Ag. Capacitance–voltage measurements are performed to further investigate the influence of the NPB layer on charge collection from both simulations and experiments.

Chemical structure of grain-boundary layer in SrTiO_3 and its segregation-induced transition: A continuum interface approach

Grain-boundary（GB） structures are commonly imaged as discrete atomic columns, yet the chemical modifications are gradual and extend into the adjacent lattices, notably the space charge, hence the two-dimensional defects may also be treated as continuum changes to extended interfacial structure. This review presents a spatially-resolved analysis by electron energy-loss spectroscopy of the GB chemical structures in a series of SrTiO3 bicrystals and a ceramic, using analytical electron microscopy of the pre-Cs-correction era. It has identified and separated a transient layer at the model Σ5 grain-boundaries（GBs） with characteristic chemical bonding, extending the continuum interfacial approach to redefine the GB chemical structure. This GB layer has evolved under segregation of iron dopant, starting from subtle changes in local bonds until a clear transition into a distinctive GB chemistry with substantially increased titanium concentration confined within the GB layer in 3-unit cells, heavily strained, and with less strontium. Similar segregated GB layer turns into a titania-based amorphous film in SrTiO3 ceramic, hence reaching a more stable chemical structure in equilibrium with the intergranular Ti2O3 glass also. Space charge was not found by acceptor doping in both the strained Σ5 and amorphous GBs in SrTiO3 owing to the native transient nature of the GB layer that facilitates the transitions induced by Fe segregation into novel chemical structures subject to local and global equilibria. These GB transitions may add a new dimension into the structure–property relationship of the electronic materials.

Effect of NaCl doped into Bphen layer on the performance of tandem organic light-emitting diodes

To improve the performance of tandem organic light-emitting diodes （OLEDs）, we study the novel NaCl as n-type dopant in Bphen：NaCl layer. By analyzing their relevant energy levels and cartier transporting characteristics, we discuss the mechanisms of the effective charge generation layer （CGL） of Bphen：NaCl （6 wt%）/MoO3. In addition, we use the Bphen：NaC1 （20 wt%） layer as the electron injection layer （ELL） combining the CGL to further improve the performance of tandem device. For this tandem device, the maximal current efficiency of 9.32 cd/A and the maximal power efficiency of 1.93 lm/W are obtained, which are enhanced approximately by 2.1 and 1.1 times compared with those of the single- emissive-unit device respectively. We attribute this improvement to the increase of electron injection ability by introducing of Bphen：NaCl layer. Moreover, the CGL is almost completely transparent in the visible light region, which is also important to achieve an efficient tandem OLEDs.

Comparison between Equivalent Charge Model and Equivalent Dipole Model on Realistic Head Model

Equivalent source layer （ESL） imaging is an important kind of high-resolution electro- encephalogram （EEG） imaging. It consists of two categories： equivalent dipole layer （EDL） and equivalent charge layer （ECL）. Both of them are assumed to be located on or near the cortical surface and have been proposed as high-resolution imaging modalities or as intermediate steps to estimate the epicortical potential. Here, EDL and ECL based on a realistic head model are presented, both simulations and real data experiment are done to compare these two models. The results show that ECL can provide higher spatial resolution about source location than EDL does.

Energetic Laser-Ion Acceleration by Strong Charge-Separation Field

The laser-ion acceleration from the ultra-short and ultra-intense laser-matter interactions attracts more and more interest nowadays. When a laser pulse interacts with a target, relativistic electrons are generated in a period of few femtoseconds and driven away by the ponderomotive force, then a huge charge-separation field forms. In general cases, the ion acceleration is determined by this charge-separation field and the scale length of the plasma density. A general time-dependent solution is obtained to describe laser-plasma isothermal expansions into a vacuum, which is the fundamental theory of the laser-ion acceleration. It is adequate for non-quasi-neutral plasmas and different types of the scale length of the density gradient. The previous solutions are some special cases of our general solution. It is found that there exist both a compression layer of the ion velocity distribution and a potential well for sorue initial conditions. However, many unaccounted idiographic solutions, which may be used to reveal new mechanisms of ion acceleration, may be deduced from our general solutions.

Research progress on space charge layer effect in lithium-ion solid-state battery

The development of lithium-ion solid electrolyte provides new ideas for solving the safety problems of secondary lithium-ion batteries(LIB) and, at the same time, the improvement of energy density. However, the consequent solid-solid interfacial problems have become a typical bottleneck to the performance. It has been considered that the space charge layer(SCL) formed at the interface to balance the sharp electrochemical inherent difference of properties is one of the most important factors that affect the ion transportation along and across the interface. Its existence may hinder ion transportation and increase the interfacial impedance but may also help to provide a new percolation path for lithium ion and so to enhance the ion migration. However the mechanism of SPL formation and its regulation on ion transport is not very clear, so it has raised a lot of attention and interest from LIB researchers. The purpose of this article is to try to gain some knowledge of SCL and, at the same time to browse through the related research in recent years. Hopefully, it may help those interested in solid electrolyte development for all-solidstate lithium-ion batteries(ASSB) in the future.

Fast-response,high-stability,and high-efficiency full-color quantum dot light-emitting diodes with charge storage layer

Recently,solution-processed quantum dot lightemitting diodes(QLEDs)have emerged as a promising candidate for next-generation lighting and display devices.However,when given a constant voltage or current,the QLEDs need a certain working time to reach their maximum brightness.Such positive aging challenge,dramatically reducing the response speed of the device and causing a luminescence delay,is urgent to be investigated and resolved.In the current work,we introduce a charge-storage layer architecture by inserting copper(I)thiocyanate(CuSCN)between the organic holeinjection layer and hole-transport layer.The extracted holes will be released during the next electrical signal stimulation to increase the efficiency of charge transport.As a result,the response speed of the QLEDs is improved by an order of magnitude.In addition,by inserting an inorganic CuSCN layer,the efficiency,lifetime,and environmental stability of red/green/blue full-color QLEDs are enhanced simultaneously.Moreover,this work provides a generic strategy for the fabrication of fast-response and high-efficiency full-color QLEDs without luminescence delay,which plays a critical role in the practical industrialization of QLEDs.

Recent advances in Pb-Sn mixed perovskite solar cells

Organic-inorganic hybrid lead-tin perovskite solar cells(Pb-Sn PSCs)have attracted much attention because of their advantages of low toxicity,variable bandgap,and feasibility for all-perovskite tandem solar cells,and the current power conversion efficiency(PCE)has exceeded 23%.However,due to the rambunctious crystallization process,easily oxidized Sn(Ⅱ)and inadequate energy level arrangement,there are many defects in perovskite films resulting in serious carrier recombination,which makes PCE still lag Pb-based PSCs.The quality of perovskite films is an important factor affecting the overall device performance.The selection and optimization of transport layers not only determines the interface energy level arrangement but also affects the carrier transport.In this paper,the research progress in improving performance of Pb-Sn PSCs in recent years is reviewed from aspects of perovskite layer and transport layers.The profound understanding of different promotion methods is summarized as well.These results have certain guiding significance for the future development and commercial application of Pb-Sn PSCs.

Ionization behavior of deep level donors in passive film formed on surface of stainless steel in 5% salt solution

Deep level donor＇s ionization behavior of passive film formed on the surface of stainless steel was investigated by Mott-Schottky plots. It is indicated that transformation process of deep level donors＇ ionization behavior of passive film on surface of stainless steel can be divided into 4 stages with rising immersion time. At the initial immersion stage （10 min）, Fe（II） located in the octahedral sites of the unit cell is not ionized and the deep level does not appear in Mott-Schottky plots. At the second stage （9-38 h）, Fe（II） located in the octahedral sites starts to be ionized, which results in deep level donors＇ generation and density of deep level donors almost is constant with augmenting immersion time but the thickness of space charge layer is more and more thicker with rising immersion time. At the third stage （48 h-12 d）, density of deep level donors rises with increasing immersion time and the thickness of passive films space charge layer decreases. At last stage （above 23 d）, both the space charge layer＇s thickness and density of deep level donors are no longer changed with increasing immersion time. In the overall immersion stage, the shallow level donors＇ density is invariable all the time. The mechanism of deep level donor＇s ionization can be the generation of metal vacancies, which results in crystal lattice＇s aberration and the aberration energy urges the ionization of Fe（ II ） in octahedral sites.

Recent advances of interface engineering in inverted perovskite solar cells

Perovskite solar cells(PSCs)have witnessed great achievement in the past decade.Most of previous researches focus on the n-i-p structure of PSCs with ultra-high efficiency.While the n-i-p devices usually used the unstable charge transport layers,such as the hygroscopic doped spiro-OMe TAD,which affect the long-term stability.The inverted device with the p-i-n structure owns better stability when using stable undoped organic molecular or metal oxide materials.There are significant progresses in inverted PSCs,most of them related to charge transport or interface engineering.In this review,we will mainly summarize the inverted PSCs progresses related to the interface engineering.After that,we prospect the future direction on inverted PSCs.

Physical Alloying of Plasma Metallization Carbide Nanocomposite Coating by Allotropic Carbon Nanostructures

The fundamental scientific problem for micro- and nano-electronics has been solved—methods for creating and investigating properties of physically doped materials with spatially inhomogeneous structure at the micro- and nano-meter scale have been developed. For the application of functional nanocomposite film coatings based on carbides of various transition metals structured by nanocarbon, for the first time in the world, we developed a new technique for their plasma deposition on a substrate without the use of reaction gases (hydrocarbons such as propane, acetylene, etc.). We have created nanostructured film materials, including those with increased strength and wear resistance, heterogeneous at the nanoscale, physically doped with nanostructures—quantum traps for free electrons. We learned how to simultaneously spray (in a plasma of a stationary magnetron discharge) carbides and graphite from a special mosaic target (carbide + carbon) made mechanically. As a result of such stationary sputtering of carbides and carbon, plasma nanostructured coatings were obtained from nanocarbides, metal nanocrystals and nanocarbon. Our design of such a target made it possible to intensively cool it in the magnetron body and spray its parts (carbide + carbon) simultaneously with a high power density of a constant plasma discharge—in the range of values from 40 W/cm2 to 125 W/cm2. Such sputtering with a change in the power or the initial relative surface areas of various parts of the mosaic target (carbon and carbide) made it possible to change the average density of carbide, metal and carbon in a nanostructured (nanocarbon and metal nanostructures) coating. The changed relative density of various components of the nanocomposite (nanostructures of carbide, metal, and carbon in the form of graphite) significantly affected the physical properties of the nanocomposite coating. The creating method of multiphase nanostructured composite coatings (based on carbides of transition metals) with high hardness of 30 GPa, a low coefficient of friction to dry 0.13 - 0.16, with high heat resistance up to 3000°C and thermal stability in the nanocrystalline state over 1200°C is developed. It is established that the presence of nanographite in the composite significantly improves the impact strength and extends the range of possible applications, compared with pure carbides. The solution to this problem will allow creating new nanostructured materials, investigating their various physical parameters with high accuracy, designing, manufacturing and operating devices with new technical and functional capabilities, including for the nuclear industry and rocket science.