Multiple plasmonic effect on photocurrent generation of metal‐loaded titanium dioxide composite/dye films on gold grating surface

We demonstrate the multiple plasmonic effect on the photocurrent properties of photoanodes containing Ag or Au nanoparticles (NPs) loaded onto titanium dioxide film (Ag–TiO₂ or Au–TiO₂) on Au grating surfaces. Ag–TiO₂ or Au–TiO₂ nanocomposite particles are prepared by a flame spray pyrolysis route. The structures and morphologies of the prepared products are characterized by high‐resolution transmission electron microscopy. The Ag–TiO₂ or Au–TiO₂ composite NPs are deposited by spin coating onto the Au grating surfaces. The photoanode electrode is a layered structure of blu‐ray disc‐recordable grating substrate/Au/Ag (or Au)–TiO₂/dye/electrolyte/indium‐tin oxide. The plasmonic effect is induced when Ag or Au NPs are located within the propagating surface plasmon (SP) field on the Au grating surface. The short‐circuit photocurrent is increased by exciting the grating‐coupled propagating SP on the Au gratings and is further enhanced by positioning the Ag or Au NPs within the grating‐coupled SP field. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Fabrication and Characterization of Cytochrome C Modified Poly(3-Aminobenzoic Acid) Thin Film

The electropolymerized poly(3-aminobenzoic acid) (PABA) film on indium tin oxide electrode was used for fabrication of cytochrome c (Cyt c) modified PABA thin film upon immobilization of Cyt c onto the PABA surface. The obtained Cyt c modified PABA thin film was characterized by UV-vis spectroscopy, XPS, AFM, and SEM-EDX techniques. Shifts of the UV-vis absorption peaks were observed from Cyt c modified PABA thin film compared with Cyt c solution and PABA thin film. The formation of the covalent amide bond between the carboxylic groups of PABA and amine groups in Cyt c was observed from XPS results.     

Enhancement of visible-light photocatalytic activity of Cu-doped TiO<Subscript>2</Subscript> nanoparticles

Bare TiO₂ and Cu-doped TiO₂ nanoparticles with different nominal doping amounts of Cu ranging from of 0.5 to 5.0 mol% were synthesized using the modified sol–gel method. The samples were physically characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, Brunauer–Emmett–Teller-specific surface area, UV–Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, zeta potential, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, inductively coupled plasma, and photoluminescence techniques. The Cu-doped TiO₂ exhibited good photocatalytic activity in mineralization of oxalic acid and formic acid under visible light irradiation. Photomineralization of oxalic and formic acids under visible light irradiation revealed greatly enhanced photoactivity exhibited by the 2.0 mol% Cu-doped TiO₂ photocatalyst compared to bare TiO₂ . The enhanced photocatalytic performance arises from copper ion doping in the TiO₂ structure, leading to an extended photoresponsive range, enhanced photogenerated charge separation, and transportation efficiency.     

Electro‐Copolymerization of Layer‐by‐Layer Deposited Polythiophene and Polycarbazole Precursor Ultrathin Films

The synthesis, layer‐by‐layer deposition, and electro‐copolymerization of precursor polyelectrolyte multilayer ultrathin films with thiophene and carbazole electroactive groups are described. The interest is in observing an electrochemical cross‐linking approach towards a highly ordered ultrathin film that contains two types of monomers to result in possible layer‐limited homo‐ and copolymerization. A uniform linear growth with alternate deposition of the polyelectrolytes is observed. The multilayer films were then electrochemically polymerized anodically by cyclic voltammetry (CV), which results in copolymerization between two different electroactive groups. Cross‐linking of the layers was verified by CV and spectroelectrochemistry data with very good linear electro‐copolymerizability.

     

Doped-metal oxide nanoparticles for use as photocatalysts

Nano-sized doped-metal oxides such as Fe-doped TiO₂, WO₃-doped ZnO and Fe-doped CeO₂ were synthesized by the modified sol-gel/impregnation, flame spray pyrolysis and homogeneous precipitation/impregnation methods respectively. The crystalline phase, particles size, and crystallinity of nano-sized powder were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Specific surface area of the sample was examined by the Brunauer, Emmett and Teller (BET) adsorption–desorption of nitrogen gas. The photocatalytic activity of Fe-doped TiO₂, WO₃/ZnO, Fe-doped CeO₂ nanoparticles was examined by studying the mineralization of methanol, sucrose, glucose, oxalic acid and formic acid under UV and visible light irradiations in a pyrex spiral photoreactor. It was found that doped metal oxides could improve the photocatalytic activity of the pure metal oxides.     

Nanostructured ultrathin films of alternating sexithiophenes and electropolymerizable polycarbazole precursor layers investigated by electrochemical surface plasmon resonance (EC-SPR) spectroscopy

Nanostructured ultrathin films of linear and dendrimeric cationic sexithiophenes, 6TNL and 6TND, respectively, alternated with anionic polycarbazole precursor, poly(2-( N-carbazolyl) ethyl methacrylate- co-methacrylic acid) or PCEMMA32, were successfully fabricated using the layer-by-layer self-assembly deposition technique. The two electro-optically active oligomers exhibited distinct optical properties and aggregation behavior in solution and films as studied by UV-vis and fluorescence spectroscopy. The stepwise increase of the 6TNL/PCEMMA32 and 6TND/PCEMMA32 layers was confirmed by UV-vis spectroscopy and in situ surface plasmon resonance (SPR) spectroscopy. The intralayer electrochemical polymerization and cross-linking behavior of the carbazole functionalized PCEMMA32 layers were then investigated using cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrochemical surface plasmon resonance (EC-SPR) spectroscopy. The increase in current with each cycle confirmed intralayer cross-linking followed by the doping-dedoping process within these films. The two types of films differed with respect to dielectric constant and thickness changes before and after electropolymerization, indicating the influence of the oligothiophene layers. This demonstrated for the first time the preparation of highly ordered organic semiconductors alternated with in situ electropolymerizable layers in ultrathin films.     

Electrochemically controlled detection of adrenaline on poly(2‐aminobenzylamine) thin films by surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy and quartz crystal microbalance

In this study, we present an electrochemically controlled surface plasmon resonance (EC‐SPR) biosensor to detect adrenaline on poly(2‐aminobenzylamine) (P2ABA) thin films. The P2ABA thin films are stable and display electroactivity in a neutral PBS solution. Specific detection of adrenaline was performed on P2ABA thin films because the benzylamine groups in the P2ABA structure could specifically react with adrenalines. Adrenaline was detected in real time by EC‐SPR spectroscopy, which provides an EC‐SPR reflectivity change on the P2ABA thin film upon adrenaline injection. The measured responses were quite different from those for uric acid and ascorbic acid, which are major interferences in adrenaline detection. The electrochemically applied potential facilitates the specific detection of adrenaline. In addition, the detection of adrenaline on the P2ABA thin films was investigated by a quartz crystal microbalance technique. The detection limit for adrenaline at open circuit potential was 10 pM. The present study provides a useful information on the detection of adrenaline on the P2ABA thin films. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Electropolymerization of layer‐by‐layer precursor polymer films

The layer‐by‐layer (LbL) self‐assembly has been used to fabricate polymer thin films on any solid substrates. The multilayer polymer thin films are constructed by alternating adsorption of anionic and cationic polymers. Polyelectrolyte multilayer ultrathin films containing anionic poly[2‐(thiophen‐3‐yl)ethyl methacrylate‐co‐methacrylic acid]; P(TEM‐co‐MA) and cationic poly[4‐(9H‐carbazol‐9‐yl)‐N‐butyl‐4‐vinyl pyridium bromide]; P4VPCBZ, were fabricated. The growth of multilayer ultrathin films was followed by UV–Vis absorption spectrophotometer and surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy (SPR). The deposition of P(TEM‐co‐MA)/P4VPCBZ as multilayer self‐assembled ultrathin films regularly grow which showed linear growth of absorbance and thickness with increasing the number of layer pair. Cross‐linking of the layers was verified by cyclic voltammetry (CV), UV–Vis spectrophotometry and electrochemical surface plasmon resonance (EC‐SPR) spectroscopy with good electro‐copolymerizability. This was verified by spectroelectrochemistry. The SPR angular‐reflectivity measurement resulted in shifts to a higher reflectivity according to the change in the dielectric constant of the electropolymerized film. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.