Fabricating Nanogaps between Nanoelectrodes using Dielectrophoresis Technique for Molecular Fluorescence Enhancement

Here we demonstrate the fabrication of nanometer-sized gaps by assembling single coreshell nanoparticles between metallic nanoelectrodes. Protein coated SiO2@Au coreshell nanopar- tides arc synthesized and positioned between fluorescent molecules-covered electrodes in a controllable way using dielectrophoretic trapping, forming nanogaps sandwiched between nanoparticle and manoelectrodes. Preliminary photoluminescence measurements show that enhanced molecular fluorescence could be detected from the fluorescent molecules inside the nanogaps. These results pave the way for realizing electrically driven molecular fluorescence based on nanogap electrodes.

MXene-wrapped ZnCo_(2)S_(4)core-shell nanospheres via electrostatic self-assembly as positive electrode materials for asymmetric supercapacitors

Constructing electrode materials with large capacity and good conductivity is an effective approach to improve the capacitor performance of asymmetric supercapacitors(ASCs).In this paper,ZnCo_(2)S_(4)core-shell nanospheres are constructed by two-step hydrothermal method.In order to improve the chemical activity of ZnCo_(2)S_(4),ZnCo_(2)S_(4)is activated using cetyltrimethylammonium bromide(CTAB).Then,MXene nanosheets are fixed on the surface of ZnCo_(2)S_(4)by electrostatic selfassembly method to improve the specific surface area of ZnCo_(2)S_(4)and MXene-wrapped ZnCo_(2)S_(4)composite is prepared in this work.Owing to the synergy effect between MXene nanosheets and ZnCo_(2)S_(4)core-shell nanospheres,the as-prepared composite displays fast ion transfer rate and charge/discharge process.The capacity of the MXenewrapped ZnCo_(2)S_(4)composite can reach 1072 F·g^(-1),which is far larger than that of ZnCo_(2)S_(4)(407 F·g^(-1))at 1 A·g^(-1).An ASC device is assembled,which delivers 1.7 V potential window and superior cyclic stability(95.41%capacitance retention).Furthermore,energy density of this device is up to 30.46 Wh·kg^(-1)at a power density of850 W·kg^(-1).The above results demonstrate that MXenewrapped ZnCo_(2)S_(4)composite has great application prospects in electrochemical energy storage field.

Internally inflated core-buffer-shell structural Si/EG/C composites as high-performance anodes for lithium-ion batteries

A watermelon-like internally inflated corebuffer-shell structural Si/electrochemically exfoliated graphene/C(Si/EG/C)composite is designed and prepared by the industrially established ball milling and spray drying method.Owing to numerous folds and voids in the EG filled between nano silicon and carbon shell,the volume fluctuations of silicon inside the Si/EG/C particles are buffered and lithium ions also could transport fast through the channels.With these advantages,the core-buffer-shell structural Si/EG/C composite demonstrates excellent electrochemical performance.The Si/EG/C anodes in half cells exhibit no degradation of the initial capacity(834 mA h g)after 100 cycles.Moreover,the Si/EG/C//LiCoOfull cells retain almost 100%of the initial discharge capacity after 500 cycles.These results highlight the potential applications of Si/EG/C in the next generation of Liion batteries.