First-principles Study on Neutral Nitrogen Impurities in Zinc Oxide

The atomic geometries, electronic structures, and formation energies of neutral nitrogen im-purities in ZnO have been investigated by first-principles calculations. The nitrogen impuri-ties are always deep acceptors, thus having no contributions to p-type conductivity. Among all the neutral nitrogen impurities, nitrogen substituting on an oxygen site has the lowest formation energy and the shallowest acceptor level, while nitrogen substituting on a zinc site has the second-lowest formation energy in oxygen-rich conditions. Nitrogen interstitials are unstable at the tetrahedral site and spontaneously relax into a kick-out configuration. Though nitrogen may occupy the octahedral site, the concentrations will be low for the high formation energy. The charge density distributions in various doping cases are discussed, and self-consistent results are obtained.     

Structural and electrical properties of Li doped ZnO under Ar/H2 atmosphere

Thin films of ZnO were grown by the sol–gel method using spin-coating technique on (0001) sapphire substrates. The effect of doping under Ar/H₂ atmosphere on the structural and electrical properties of ZnO was investigated by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), I–V characterization, Hall effect and micro-photoluminescence. The films that were annealed at 600 °C in Ar/H₂ (95/5) % atmosphere showed (002) a predominant orientation. The crystalline nature of 2 mol.  % of Li doped films were better when compared to 1 mol.  % of Li doped films. The incorporation of Li in ZnO lattice was confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and micro-photoluminescence. Hall effect measurements and I–V characterization of the Li doped ZnO thin films exhibited a better p-type behavior.     

A theoretical study on the pure and doped ZnO nanoclusters as effective nanobiosensors for 5-fluorouracil anticancer drug adsorption

The electronic sensitivity and effectiveness of the pristine, Fe,- Mg-, Al- and Ga-doped ZnO nanoclusters interacted with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) anticancer drug are theoretically investigated in the gas phase using the B3LYP/wB97XD density functional theory calculations with LANL2DZ basis set. It is concluded that 5-FU adsorption on the doped nanoclusters has relatively higher adsorption energy as compared with the pristine zinc oxide. A number of thermodynamic parameters, such as band gap energy (E_g), adsorption energy (E_ad), molecular electrostatic potential, global hardness (η) and density of electronic states, are attained and compared. Also, calculated geometrical parameters and electronic properties for the studied systems indicate that Mg- and Ga-doped Zn₁₂O₁₂ present higher sensitivity to 5-FU compared with the pristine nanocluster. Theoretical results reveal that adsorption of 5-FU on the doped nanoclusters is influenced by the electronic conductance of the nanocluster. Therefore, Mg- and Ga-doped ZnO can be considered as promising nanobiosensors for detection of 5-FU in medicine.     

Amphoteric doping of carbon nanotubes by encapsulation of organic molecules: electronic properties and quantum conductance

In order to investigate and optimize the electronic transport processes in carbon nanotubes doped with organic molecules, we have performed large-scale quantum electronic structure calculations coupled with a Green's function formulation for determining the quantum conductance. Our approach is based on an original scheme where quantum chemistry calculations on finite systems are recast to infinite, non-periodic (i.e., open) systems, therefore mimicking actual working devices. Results from these calculations clearly suggest that the electronic structure of a carbon nanotube can be easily manipulated by encapsulating appropriate organic molecules. Charge transfer processes induced by encapsulated organic molecules lead to efficient n- and p-type doping of the carbon nanotube. Even though a molecule can induce p and n doping, it is shown to have a minor effect on the transport properties of the nanotube as compared to a pristine tube. This type of doping therefore preserves the intrinsic properties of the pristine tube as a ballistic conductor. In addition, the efficient process of charge transfer between the organic molecules and the nanotube is shown to substantially reduce the susceptibility of the pi electrons of the nanotube to modification by oxygen while maintaining stable doping (i.e., no dedoping) at room temperature.     

Electronic Response of Nano-sized Cages of ZnO and MgO to Presence of Nitric Oxide

We have performed a comparative theoretical study on the adsorption of nitric oxide (NO) on Zn₁₂O₁₂ and Mg₁₂O₁₂ nanocages in terms of their energetic, geometric, and electronic properties. It has been found that NO adsorption on the MgO nanocage is energetically more favorable than that on the ZnO one. In contrast to the ZnO nanocage, HOMO-LUMO energy gap (Eg) of MgO one is dramatically decreased in the presence of NO molecule so that it is transformed from an intrinsic semiconductor (Eg≈5.00 eV) to a p-type one (Eg≈1.93 eV). We have predicted that electronic and conductance properties of the Mg₁₂O₁₂ nanocage are sensitive toward NO molecule, thus it may be potential candidate in detection of NO molecules.     

Boosting BeONT Reactivity with HCN by Calcium and Magnesium Doping: A DFT Investigation of Electronic Structure,AIM, NMR,NQR and NBO Analysis

Adsorption of the HCN molecule is very important in environment and industrial applications. The BeONT may be good candidate for HCN capture because of large surface. Unfortunately, BeONT shows limited HCN detection. Therefore, we investigate the possibility of HCN adsorption on Ca and Mg-doped BeONT by density functional theory calculations. It was found that HCN adsorption on doped nanotube has relatively higher adsorption energy as compared with the perfect one. Furthermore, there exists a strong adsorption between HCN molecule and doped nanotubes, which exhibited more active interaction and larger net charge transfer than that of pristine nanotube. As well as, calculated geometrical parameters and electronic properties for studied systems indicate that the Ca-doped BeONT and Mg-doped BeONT present high sensitivity to HCN, compared with the pristine BeONT. Theoretical results reveal that the adsorption of the HCN on the doped nanotube is influenced on the electronic conductance of the doped-BeONT. Therefore, Ca and Mg-doped nanotube can be considered as promising sensor for detecting HCN molecule. According to NBO analysis, electron flow is spontaneous from doped nanotube to HCN molecule.     

Enhancement of hydrogen physisorption on graphene and carbon nanotubes by Li doping

Density-functional calculations of the adsorption of molecular hydrogen on a planar graphene layer and on the external surface of a (4,4) carbon nanotube, undoped and doped with lithium, have been carried out. Hydrogen molecules are physisorbed on pure graphene and on the nanotube with binding energies about 80-90 meV/molecule. However, the binding energies increase to 160-180 meV/molecule for many adsorption configurations of the molecule near a Li atom in the doped systems. A charge-density analysis shows that the origin of the increase in binding energy is the electronic charge transfer from the Li atom to graphene and the nanotube. The results support and explain qualitatively the enhancement of the hydrogen storage capacity observed in some experiments of hydrogen adsorption on carbon nanotubes doped with alkali atoms.     

Computational insight into the electronic structure and absorption spectra of lithium complexes of N-confused tetraphenylporphyrin

The present work is a theoretical investigation on lithium complexes of N-confused tetraphenylporphyrins (aka inverted) employing density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent DFT, using the B3LYP, CAM-B3LYP, and M06-2X functionals in conjunction with the 6-31G(d,p) basis set. The purpose of the present study is to calculate the electronic structure and the bonding of the complexes to explain the unusual coordination environment in which Li is found experimentally and how the Li binding affects the Q and the Soret bands. The calculations show that, unlike a typical tetrahedral Li(+) cation, this Li forms a typical bond with one N and interacts with the remaining two N atoms, and it is located in the right place to form an agostic-like interaction with the internal C atom. The reaction energy, the enthalpy for the formation of the lithium complexes of N-confused porphyrins, and the effect of solvation are also calculated. The insertion of Li into N-confused porphyrin, in the presence of tetrahydrofuran, is exothermic with a reaction energy calculated to be as high as -72.4 kcal/mol using the lithium bis(trimethylsilyl)amide reagent. Finally, there is agreement in the general shape among the vis-UV spectra determined with different functionals and the experimentally available ones. The calculated geometries are in agreement with crystallographic data, where available.     

Effect of nitrogen and intrinsic defect complexes on conversion efficiency of ZnO for hydrogen generation from water

Band gap narrowing is important for applications of ZnO, especially for photoelectrochemical water splitting. In this work, we carried out first-principles electronic structure calculations with a hybrid density functional on defected ZnO. It is found that nitrogen substitutional doping alone cannot explain the largely enhanced conversion efficiency observed in nitrogen doped ZnO. Instead, complex defects formed by substitutional nitrogen and intrinsic defects play an important role in the band gap narrowing, in agreement with recent experimental results. We propose ZnO fabricated in a Zn-rich environment with heavy nitrogen doping as a photocatalyst for hydrogen generation from water splitting. A method for controlling the band gap of ZnO is also proposed.     

Structure and Thermodynamic Characteristics of Impurity Centers in Lithium-Doped Cadmium Oxide: an <Emphasis Type="Italic">Ab Initio</Emphasis> Paw-Study

The ab initio projector augmented wave (PAW) method is used to calculate the electronic structure of Li-doped cadmium oxide with NaCl structure. The preference energy for Li atoms in interstitial sites and the energy of impurity oxidation are calculated. Interstitial positions for Li atoms are shown to be stable under thermodynamic equilibrium, but Li atoms can substitute Cd atoms in presence of vacancies in the oxygen sublattice. We consider the following complexes: one Li atom in the interstitial site and the other Li atom in Cd position; one Li atom in Cd position and one oxygen vacancy; a pair of oxygen vacancies; and show that these complexes are formed to have the shortest possible distance between their components. The band gap substantially decreases when Li atoms occupy interstitial sites to explain considerable increase of experimental conductivity.     

First-principles Studies on Electronic Structures of Ga-doped ZnO and ZnS

First-principles calculations have been performed to clarify the differences of the electronic structures of Ga-doped ZnO and ZnS. Results show the local density approximation and local density approximation+U calculations are in good qualitative agreement with each other. After doping, impurity states appear near the Fermi level in both ZnO and ZnS cases.When ZnO is doped, the impurity states are delocalized in the whole conduction band. On the contrary, when ZnS is doped, though the p state of Ga is also delocalized, the s state is localized near the Fermi level. Partial charge density distributions of the frontier orbital show the same information. After an exchange of the crystal structures of ZnO and ZnS,results remain unchanged. The localized Ga s state accounts for the bad electrical properties of Ga-doped ZnS.     

The grain-boundary-related optical and electrical properties in polycrystalline p-type ZnO films

Cathodoluminescence spectra and electrical properties of the N doped and N–Al codoped p-type ZnO films and the dependence of these two properties on the post-annealing were investigated. Spectral analyses show that the intensity of the green emission strongly depends on the annealing ambient and closely relates with the width of the electron depletion region at the particle boundary. The conducting type and electrical properties of N doped and N–Al codoped ZnO films are greatly affected by the annealing process. The grain boundary effect was proposed to explain the green emission behavior and the p-type conduction in polycrystalline ZnO based films.     

Cr、Sn、Co掺杂对层状二维材料MoSi2N4的电子和光学性能的影响

基于新合成的二维材料MoSi₂N₄（MSN）,我们建立了一系列MSN的掺杂模型进行了第一原理计算。首先,我们计算了本征MSN的电子特性,包括其能带结构和态密度。然后我们研究了Cr、Sn和Co掺杂对MSN的电子和光学性质的影响。结果表明,在3种掺杂体系中,Co掺杂体系表现出最低的形成能,这表明Co掺杂体系是最稳定的。通过带隙计算表明,尽管3种掺杂模型都降低了MSN的固有带隙,但却表现出3种不同的电子特性。态密度图也显示,Cr和Co掺杂体系都在导带底（CBM）和价带顶（VBM）附近产生局部尖峰。此外,光学性质的计算中表明,掺杂后体系的光学性质也得到了改善。     

Theoretical Study of Electronic Structures and Spectra of Chalcogenido Complexes of Molybdenum, trans-Mo(Q)(2)(PH(3))(4) (Q = O, S, Se, Te)

Electronic structures of the title complexes have been studied using quantum chemical computations by different methods. It is shown that the results of Xalpha calculations agree well with expectations from classical ligand-field theory, but both are far from being in agreement with the results given by ab initio calculations. The HOMO in the ab initio Hartree-Fock molecular orbital diagrams of all these complexes is a chalcogen p(pi) lone pair orbital rather than the metal nonbonding d(xy)() orbital previously proposed. Electronic transition energies were calculated by CASSCF and CI methods. The results suggest that in the cases when Q = S, Se, and Te the lowest energy transitions should be those from the p(pi) lone pair orbitals to the metal-chalcogen pi orbitals. The calculated and observed electronic spectra of the oxo complex are in good agreement and very different from the spectra of the other complexes, and the lowest absorptions were accordingly assigned to transitions of different origins.     

Valence-shell charge concentrations and electron delocalization in alkyllithium complexes: negative hyperconjugation and agostic bonding

In this paper we present the results of density functional theory (DFT) calculations on the ethyl ligand and some related organic moieties; we then proceed to consider a range of alkyllithium complexes studied by DFT calculations and high-resolution X-ray and neutron diffraction. Topological analysis of the charge density is used to follow changes in the electronic structure of the organic fragment. The charge concentrations (CCs) in the valence shell at the alpha and beta atoms reveal faithfully the delocalization of the lone pair at the Calpha atom or of the Li-C bonding electrons. Negative hyperconjugation is thus shown to arise from delocalization of the lone pair or the Li-C bonding electrons over the alkyl fragment, with depletion of the metal-directed charge concentration at Calpha, and characteristic ellipticity profiles for the bonds involved in hyperconjugative delocalization. In the case of so-called lithium agostic complexes, we show that close Li.H contacts are a consequence of this delocalization and further secondary interactions, with Li.H-C agostic interactions, playing only a minor role. The ellipticity profiles and the magnitude of the CCs at Calpha provide a quantitative measure of the extent of delocalization, and show excellent agreement between experiment and theory.     

Pulsed-field ionization electron spectroscopy and binding energies of alkali metal-dimethyl ether and -dimethoxyethane complexes

Lithium and sodium complexes of dimethyl ether (DME) and dimethoxyethane (DXE) were produced by reactions of laser-vaporized metal atoms with organic vapors in a pulsed nozzle cluster source. The mono-ligand complexes were studied by photoionization and pulsed field ionization zero electron kinetic energy (ZEKE) spectroscopy. Vibrationally resolved ZEKE spectra were obtained for Li(DME), Na(DME) and Li(DXE) and a photoionization efficiency spectrum for Na(DXE). The ZEKE spectra were analyzed by comparing with the spectra of other metal-ether complexes and with electronic structure calculations and spectral simulations. Major vibrations measured for the M(DME) (M=Li,Na) ions were M-O and C-O stretches and M-O-C and C-O-C bends. These vibrations and additional O-Li-O and O-C-C-O bends were observed for the Li(DXE) ion. The M(DME) complexes were in C2v symmetry with the metal atom binding to oxygen, whereas Li(DXE) was in a C2 ring configuration with the Li atom attaching to both oxygen atoms. Moreover, the ionization energies of these complexes were measured from the ZEKE or photoionization spectra and bond dissociation energies were derived from a thermodynamic cycle.     

Electronic and magnetic properties of all 3d transition‐metal‐doped ZnO monolayers

Stable geometries, electronic structures, and magnetic properties of the ZnO monolayer doped with 3d transition‐metal (TM) (Sc, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, and Cu) atoms substituting the cation Zn have been investigated using first‐principles pseudopotential plane wave method within density functional theory (DFT). It is found that these nine atomic species can be effectively doped in the ZnO monolayer with formation energies ranging from ?6.319 to ?0.132 eV. Furthermore, electronic structures and magnetic properties of ZnO monolayer can be modified by such doping. The results show that the doping of Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, and Cu atoms can induce magnetization, while no magnetism is observed when Sc, Ti, and V atoms are doped into the ZnO monolayer. The magnetic moment is mainly due to the strong p–d mixing of O and TM (Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, and Cu) orbitals. These results are potentially useful for spintronic applications and the development of magnetic nanostructures. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

锂掺杂ZnO陶瓷靶材制备及其掺杂引起的缺陷

采用燃烧合成和放电等离子烧结方法制备锂掺杂ZnO陶瓷靶材. 利用XRD, SEM, TEM和激光粒径分析等手段分析合成粉体与陶瓷的显微结构. 结果表明, 锂掺杂ZnO粉体与陶瓷均为纤锌矿结构, 无其他相存在; 粉体的粒径分布为0.18-1.7 μm, 烧结体致密度较高, 晶粒尺寸为1-3 μm. 此外, 分析锂元素在烧结过程中引起掺杂缺陷变化, 锂元素由ZnO晶格的间隙位置转移为替代锌晶格位置, 实现受主掺杂, 为实现p型ZnO薄膜的制备奠定基础.     

Half-metallic ferromagnetism in Ag-doped ZnO: An ab initio study

The spin-resolved electronic structures of ZnO doped with 6.25% Ag have been studied with the first-principles calculations based on the spin density functional theory. The substitutional Ag impurities and their nearest neighbor O atoms are shown to be in a spin polarized state with a global magnetization of 1.0μ_B. Ag-doped ZnO is in a ferromagnetic ground state which can be explained by Zener's double exchange mechanism. Furthermore, band structure calculations show a half-metallic behavior of the Ag-doped ZnO. These results indicate that Ag-doped ZnO shows promise as a dilute magnetic semiconductor free of magnetic precipitation and may find applications in the field of spintronics.     

Ab initio prediction of the structure and vibration-rotation spectroscopic properties of Li2OH and Li2OH+

The equilibrium structures and potential energy surfaces of the Li2OH radical and the Li2OH+ cation in their ground electronic states have been determined from accurate ab initio calculations. The vibration-rotation energy levels and spectroscopic constants of three isotopic species (Li2OH, Li2OD, 6Li2OH) were calculated by a perturbational approach. The predicted spectroscopic constants may serve as a useful guide for detecting these species by vibration-rotation spectroscopy and for assigning their spectra.