Platinum quantum dots-decorated MXene-derived titanium dioxide nanowire/Ti_(3)C_(2) heterostructure for use in solar-driven gas-phase carbon dioxide reduction to yield value-added fuels

Solar-driven photocatalytic CO_(2) reduction to produce valuable chemicals and fuels offers an attractive strategy in alleviating the energy crisis.Pt quantum dots(PtQDs)with TiO_(2) nanowire(TiO_(2)NW)/Ti_(3)C_(2) MXene heterostructures(Pt-TiO_(2)NW/Ti_(3)C_(2)) with tight interfacial contacts between the various components were prepared at room temperature via oxidation reactions.The incorporated PtQDs played crucial roles as electron conduction bridges supported by the cocatalyst effect,effectively enhancing the separation efficiencies of photoinduced electron/hole pairs and improving CO_(2) reduction under simulated solar light irradiation.The Pt-TiO_(2)NW/Ti_(3)C_(2) heterostructures exhibited remarkable carbon monoxide(CO)and methane(CH_(4)) production at respective rates of 38.14 and 36.15μmol g^(-1)after 10 h of simulated solar light irradiation,an apparent quantum yield of 1.68%,and 79.2%selectivity for CH4.The photocatalytic activities of the Pt-TiO_(2) NW/Ti_(3)C_(2) heterostructures for CO_(2) reduction were significantly enhanced compared to those of TiO_(2)NW/Ti_(3)C_(2) and the single-component photocatalysts,and they exhibited remarkable stabilities even after five cycles.In addition,the densities of states and electronic characteristics of Ti_(3)C_(2) MXene and Pt-TiO_(2)NW/Ti_(3)C_(2) were studied using density functional theory,and a synergistic mechanism of the improvement in CO_(2) photoreduction is proposed.

Progress in organic semiconducting materials with high thermal stability for organic light-emitting devices

Organic light-emitting devices(OLEDs)have been extensively studied over the past three decades and are still attracting attention owing to their potential use in flexible and foldable displays.To achieve highly durable OLED displays for flexible devices,constitutive OLED materials need to be stable in various environments,including those with thermally and mechanically severe conditions.To this end,the present review aims to investigate the progress of OLED material research over the past two decades with respect to thermal stability.The literature survey is first conducted using the keyword“OLEDs”and then narrowed down to“high thermal stability materials for OLEDs.”The number of search results indicates that creating OLED materials with high thermal stability is a widely studied topic in the field of OLED research and has undergone an average growth rate of approximately 15%per year over the past two decades.In this review,the OLED materials used as core layers(ie,the hole injection and transport layers,emission layers,and electron injection and transport layers)are thoroughly analyzed,and the best representative materials are discussed in detail by summarizing their major thermal and electronic characteristics.Finally,several previous reports on flexible and foldable OLED displays are analyzed to determine the importance of the stability of their constitutive materials.

Recent advances in water-splitting electrocatalysts based on manganese oxide

The oxygen evolution reaction(OER)of electrochemical water splitting represents a source of hydrogen(H_(2))energy.Precious-metal-based RuO_(x)and IrO_(x)are expensive and degrade in the presence of electrolyte;thus,the development of low-cost and eco-friendly OER electrocatalysts is needed.This review summarizes the recent status of the nonprecious manganese metal-oxide-based electrocatalysts with reference to nanostructure,defect engineering,hybrid composite formation,and core-shell formation to achieve efficient OER performance.In particular,we focus on the strategies used to lower the onset potential and the Tafel slope of the water oxidation process.Future prospects for the development of manganese-oxide-based electrocatalysts are discussed.

Short-wave infrared organic phototransistors with strong infrared-absorbing polytriarylamine by electron-transfer doping

Short-wavelength infrared(SWIR)sensors have attracted keen attention due to the increasing necessity in a variety of scientific and industrial applications,including biomedical and information technology fields.Because conventional SWIR sensors are made of inorganic materials with rigid and brittle characteristics,organic materials with a discrete SWIR absorption are required for flexible SWIR sensors in the flexible electronics era.Here,we demonstrate that a polytriarylamine,poly[N,N′-bis(4-butylphenyl)-N,N′-bis(phenyl)benzidine](PolyTPD),can absorb almost full range of SWIR wavelength(λ=1000–3200 nm)after 48 h doping with tris(pentafluorophenyl)borane(BCF).The spectroscopic characterization disclosed that an electron transfer from PolyTPD to BCF created a new low energy level(gap)state leading to the SWIR absorption in the BCF-doped PolyTPD complexes.Organic phototransistors(OPTRs)with the BCF-doped PolyTPD films as a gate-sensing layer could detect the SWIR light with a reasonable photoresponsivity of~538 mAW^(−1)(λ=1500 nm),~541 mAW^(−1)(λ=2000 nm),and~222 mAW^(−1)(λ=3000 nm).The present breakthrough SWIR-OPTR technology can pave a way for further advances in SWIR-absorbing organic materials and flexible SWIR sensors.