Scaling Up DNA Origami Lattice Assembly

The surface-assisted hierarchical assembly of DNA origami nanostructures is a promising route to fabricate regular nanoscale lattices. In this work, the scalability of this approach is explored and the formation of a homogeneous polycrystalline DNA origami lattice at the mica-electrolyte interface over a total surface area of 18.75 cm² is demonstrated. The topological analysis of more than 50 individual AFM images recorded at random locations over the sample surface showed only minuscule and random variations in the quality and order of the assembled lattice. The analysis of more than 450 fluorescence microscopy images of a quantum dot-decorated DNA origami lattice further revealed a very homogeneous surface coverage over cm² areas with only minor boundary effects at the substrate edges. At total DNA costs of € 0.12 per cm², this large-scale nanopatterning technique holds great promise for the fabrication of functional surfaces.     

Synthesis and properties of novel soluble poly(amide‐imide)s with different pendant substituents

Two types of novel fluorinated diimide‐diacid monomers—[2,2′‐(4,4′‐(3′‐methylbiphenyl‐2,5‐diyl)bis(oxy)bis(3‐(trifluoromethyl)‐4,1‐phenylene))bis(1,3‐dioxoisoindoline‐5‐carboxylic acid)] (III) and [2,2′‐(4,4′‐(3′‐(trifluoromethyl)biphenyl‐2,5‐diyl)bis(oxy)bis(3‐(trifluoromethyl)‐4,1‐phenylene))bis(1,3‐dioxoisoindoline‐5‐carboxylic acid)] (IV)—were respectively designed and prepared by the condensation of diamines I and II with two molar equivalents of trimellitic anhydride. From both diimide‐diacids, two series of novel poly(amide‐imide)s (PAIs) (IIIa–IIIe and IVa–IVe) bearing different pendant groups were prepared by direct polymerization with various aromatic diamines (a–e). All the PAIs had a high glass transition temperatures (T_gs, 232–265 °C), excellent thermal stability (exhibiting only 5% weight loss at 493–542 °C under nitrogen) and good solubility in various organic solvents due to the introduction of the bulky pendant groups. The cast films of these PAIs (80–90 μm) had good optical transparency (73–81% at 450 nm, 85–88% at 550 nm and 87–89% at 800 nm) and low dielectric constants (2.65–2.98 at 1 MHz). The spin‐coated films of these PAIs presented a minimum birefringence value as low as 0.0077–0.0143 at 650 nm and low optical absorption at the near‐infrared optical communication wavelengths of 1310 and 1550 nm. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2017 , 55, 3243–3252     

Evolution of concentration fluctuation during phase separation of polystyrene/poly(vinyl methyl ether) blend in the presence of nanosilica

The influence of nanosilica on the concentration fluctuation of polystyrene/poly (vinyl methyl ether) (PS/PVME) mixtures was investigated during phase separation. The amplitude of concentration fluctuation was quantified by dielectric spectrums based on the idea of Lodge–Mcleish model and the linearized Cahn–Hilliard theory could describe the amplitude evolution of concentration fluctuation at the early stage of phase separation. Hydrophilic nanosilica A200 dispersed in PVME‐rich phase behaved an obvious inhibition effect on the concentration fluctuation of blend matrix, while hydrophobic nanosilica R974 dispersed in PS‐rich phase had little effect on the concentration fluctuation. The kinetics and amplitude evolution of concentration fluctuation during phase separation for PS/PVME/A200 nanocomposites were remarkably restrained due to the surface adsorption of PVME on A200. As the segmental dynamics of PVME and PS in homogeneous matrix was hardly influenced by A200 and R974, the enhanced miscibility and the significantly constrained flow relaxation of PVME chains might contribute to the retarded concentration fluctuation of PS/PVME/A200 nanocomposites. While the weak interaction between R974 and components of blend matrix and little effect of R974 on the molecular dynamics of PS chains may result in the weak retardation of concentration fluctuation for blend matrix. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2017 , 55, 1337–1349     

Synthesis,Crystal Structure,Fluorescent and Antioxidation Properties of Cerium(III) and Europium(III) Complexes with Bis(3‐methoxysalicylidene)‐3‐oxapentane‐1,5‐diamine

Two aliphatic ether Schiff base lanthanide complexes (Ln = Eu, Ce) with bis(3‐methoxysalicylidene)‐3‐oxapentane‐1,5‐diamine (Bod), were synthesized and characterized by physicochemical and spectroscopic methods. [Eu(Bod)(NO₃)₃] ( 1 ) is a discrete mononuclear species and [Ce(Bod)(NO₃)₃DMF]_∞ ( 2 ) exhibits an inorganic coordination polymer. In the two complexes, the metal ions both are ten‐coordinated and the geometric structure around the Ln^III atom can be described as distorted hexadecahedron. Under excitation at room temperature, the red shift in the fluorescence band of the ligand in the complexes compared with that of the free ligand can be attributed to coordination of the rare earth ions to the ligand. Moreover, the antioxidant activities of the two complexes were investigated. The results demonstrated that the complexes have better scavenging activity than both the ligand and the usual antioxidants on the hydroxyl and superoxide radicals.     

Hydrothermal Synthesis and Crystal Structures of Na2Be3(SeO3)4·H2O and Cs2[Mg(H2O)6]3(SeO3)4

The selenites, Na₂Be₃(SeO₃)₄ · H₂O and Cs₂[Mg(H₂O)₆]₃(SeO₃)₄, were synthesized under hydrothermal conditions. The crystal structures of Na₂Be₃(SeO₃)₄ · H₂O and Cs₂[Mg(H₂O)₆]₃(SeO₃)₄ were determined by single‐crystal X‐ray diffractions. Na₂Be₃(SeO₃)₄ · H₂O crystallizes in the triclinic space group P1 (no. 2) with unit cell parameters a = 4.8493(9), b = 12.013(2), c = 12.077(2) Å, and Z = 2, whereas Cs₂[Mg(H₂O)₆]₃(SeO₃)₄ crystallizes in the monoclinic space group C2/m (no. 12) with lattice cell parameters a = 12.596(6), b = 7.297(4), c = 16.914(8) Å, and Z = 2. Na₂Be₃(SeO₃)₄ · H₂O features a three‐dimensional open framework structure formed by BeO₄ tetrahedra and SeO₃ trigonal pyramids. Na cations and H₂O molecules are located in different tunnels. Cs₂[Mg(H₂O)₆]₃(SeO₃)₄ has a structure composed of isolated [Mg(H₂O)₆] octahedra and SeO₃ trigonal pyramids interacted by hydrogen bonds, and Cs cations are resided in‐between. Both compounds were characterized by thermogravimetric analysis and FT‐IR spectroscopy.     

纳米金-还原氧化石墨烯修饰葡萄糖氧化酶传感器的制备及其电流法检测饮料中的葡萄糖

利用纳米金(Au NPs)与还原氧化石墨烯(rGO)复合纳米材料制备了葡萄糖氧化酶生物传感器并用于饮料中葡萄糖含量的检测。将壳聚糖作为还原剂及稳定剂,通过一步法合成了Au NPs-rGO复合材料,并通过物理吸附固定葡萄糖氧化酶(GOx)来制作GOx生物传感器。该传感器在磷酸盐缓冲溶液(0.1 mol/L,p H6.0)中,-0.45 V(vs.Ag/Ag Cl)电位下电流法检测葡萄糖含量,线性检测范围为0.01~0.88 mmol/L,灵敏度为22.54μA·mmol-1·L·cm-2,检出限为1.01μmol/L,且表观米氏常数为0.497 mmol/L。该传感器用于多种饮料中葡萄糖含量的直接检测,结果满意。     

Encapsulation of nanocrystals with responsive gels for spatial optical identification

A tripeptide (β-AspFF) gelator was designed and synthesised using solid-phase peptide synthesis. The as-prepared gelator formed a stable and clear multi-responsive gel in toluene solution. Encapsulating the quantum dots with β-AspFF effectively increased stability and antioxidisation ability which are beneficial for optical identification.     

Implications of Nitrogen Doping on Geometrical and Electronic Structure of the Fullerene Dimers

Because of its unsaturated bonds, C₆₀ is susceptible to polymerize into dimers. The implications of nitrogen doping on the geometrical and electronic structure of C₆₀ dimers have been ambiguous for years. A quarter‐century after the discovery of azafullerene dimer (C₅₉N)₂, we reported its single crystallographic structure in 2019. Herein, the unambiguous crystal structure information of (C₅₉N)₂ is elucidated specifically, revealing that the inter‐cage C—C single bond length of (C₅₉N)₂ is comparable with that of an ordinary C(sp³)‐C(sp³) single bond, and that the most stable conformer of (C₅₉N)₂ is gauche‐conformer with a dihedral angle of 66°. To amend the structural deviations, geometrical structure of (C₅₉N)₂ is optimized by a B3LYP‐D3BJ function, which is proved to be more consistent with its single crystal structure than those by the commonly used B3LYP function. Moreover, the calculation method is also suitable for other representative fullerene dimers, such as (C₆₀)₂ and its divalent anion. Additionally, the dissociation of (C₅₉N)₂ at 473 K under mass spectrometric conditions suggests the inter‐cage C—C bond is relatively weaker than an ordinary C—C single bond, which can be explained by the interaction energies of inter‐cages.     

电泳法制备的致密氧化锡薄膜及其在高稳定性钙钛矿太阳能电池中的应用

在平面型钙钛矿太阳能电池中常采用SnO₂作为电子传输层材料,相应的SnO₂薄膜常采用溶液旋涂法制备。但是由于前驱液中的纳米颗粒可能会发生部分团聚、基底和溶液难以完全避免灰尘等杂质颗粒混入,且最佳的SnO₂电子传输层的厚度通常仅有约20 nm,所以这种方法制备的电子传输层难以保证严格致密和无纳米针孔。在本工作中,我们报道了一种电泳沉积制备致密SnO₂薄膜的方法,并用其有效地提高了钙钛矿太阳能电池的光电转换效率和工况稳定性。通过电泳法,表面带负电荷的SnO₂纳米颗粒在电场的作用下沉积到氧化铟锡(ITO)阳极表面,这种方法得到的薄膜比旋涂法制备的更为致密。将其应用于n-i-p结构的钙钛矿太阳能电池中,能够使得暗电流降低并抑制载流子的非辐射复合,从而提高电池的短路电流和开路电压,进而实现更高的光电转换效率(从18.17%提高到19.52%),且能消除迟滞效应。更重要的是,长期工况稳定性测试表明基于电泳-旋涂法制备的器件在1个太阳的光照下、最大功率点处连续工作960 h后,仍然能够保持71%的初始效率;然而基于旋涂法制备的器件在工作100 h后即降低到初始效率的70%。本工作提供了一种全新的SnO₂电子传输层的制备方法,显著地提高了器件性能和工况稳定性,后续有望应用于制备大面积器件和电池模组。