Asymmetric dimers can be formed by dewetting half-shells of gold deposited on the surfaces of spherical oxide colloids

Asymmetric dimers consisting of gold microcrystals and spherical silica colloids have been fabricated by depositing thin films of gold onto the spherical colloids to form half-shells, followed by annealing at elevated temperatures. The capability and feasibility of this procedure have been demonstrated with silica and titania beads of 0.2-2 mum in diameter and gamma-Fe2O3/polystyrene@SiO2 core-shell particles 0.5 mum in size. The dimensions of gold microcrystals could be conveniently varied in the range of 100-650 nm by controlling the thickness of gold films and/or the diameter of the spherical colloids. This method provides another route to asymmetric dimers made of colloidal particles that could be different in size, chemical composition, surface functionality, density or sign of surface charge, bulk property, or a combination of these properties.     

Growth of Sb(2)E(3) (E = S, Se) polygonal tubular crystals via a novel solvent-relief-self-seeding process

A novel solvent-relief-self-seeding (SRSS) process was applied to grow bulk polygonal tubular single crystals of Sb(2)E(3) (E = S, Se), using SbCl(3) and chalcogen elements E (E = S, Se) as the raw materials at 180 degrees C for 7 days in ethanol solution. The products were characterized by various techniques, including X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), scanning electronic microscope (SEM), transmission electronic microscope (TEM), electronic diffraction (ED), and X-ray photoelectron spectra (XPS). The calculated electrical resistivities of the tubular single crystals in the range 20-320 K were of the order of 10(5)-10(6) Omega cm for Sb(2)S(3) and 10(3)-10(4) Omega cm for Sb(2)Se(3), respectively. The studies of the optical properties revealed that the materials formed had a band gap of 1.72 eV for Sb(2)S(3) and 1.82 eV for Sb(2)Se(3), respectively. The optimal reaction conditions for the growth of bulk tubular single crystals were that the temperature was not lower than 180 degrees C and the reaction time was not shorter than 7 days. The possible growth mechanism of tubular crystals was also discussed.     

9,10⁃二(N⁃苯基吲哚⁃3⁃乙烯基)蒽的合成及聚集诱导荧光和压致荧光变色性质

通过简单的Wittig反应合成了一个荧光化合物9,10-二(N-苯基吲哚-3-乙烯基)蒽(IA-Ph); 通过核磁共振和质谱对其结构进行了确认; 利用荧光发射光谱和紫外吸收光谱对其光物理性质进行了表征. 结果表明, 化合物IA-Ph兼具聚集诱导荧光(AIE)和压致荧光变色性质, 在相同浓度下, 该化合物在THF/H₂O(体积比1∶9)混合溶液中的荧光强度比在纯四氢呋喃(THF)溶液中增加了12倍, 具有明显的AIE效应. 通过简单而有效的机械力研磨, 化合物可以从初始的发绿光转变为研磨后的橙红光, 光谱红移约68 nm; 而且在加热或溶剂熏蒸条件下, 化合物的颜色可以回复到起始的绿光, 具有完全可逆性.     

Zeros of univariate interval polynomials

Polynomials with perturbed coefficients, which can be regarded as interval polynomials, are very common in the area of scientific computing due to floating point operations in a computer environment. In this paper, the zeros of interval polynomials are investigated. We show that, for a degree n interval polynomial, the number of interval zeros is at most n and the number of complex block zeros is exactly n if multiplicities are counted. The boundaries of complex block zeros on a complex plane are analyzed. Numeric algorithms to bound interval zeros and complex block zeros are presented.     

Analysis of avalanche mechanisms in short-pulses laser-induced damage

A theory based on the rate equation of free electron is used to analyze the process of free electron multiplication in optical materials under the laser irradiation, specially researching on the effect of avalanche ionization on the electron multiplication and material damage threshold. Numerical investigation with SiO₂ is processed using this theoretical model, and damage thresholds under different avalanche models are analyzed. The result shows that during research on the energy charge between electron and electromagnetic field, the probability of avalanche ionization should be considered. Under this assumption, the numerical threshold gets well with the experimental result.     

具有聚集诱导发光特性的含氟有机金属配合物的研究进展

近年来,具有聚集诱导发光(aggregation-induced emission,AIE)特性的化合物由于在聚集态或固态发光量子效率较高而受到很多关注.含氟的功能化合物,由于氟原子的存在,往往具有独特的结构和物理、化学及生物学性质.根据中心金属和配体的种类,汇总了具有AIE性质的且含有氟代配体的有机金属配合物的研究进...     

A solution-phase, precursor route to polycrystalline SnO2 nanowires that can be used for gas sensing under ambient conditions

This paper describes a solution-based, precursor method for the facile synthesis of uniform nanowires containing rutile SnO2 nanocrystallites. In a typical procedure, nanowires of approximately 50 nm in diameters and up to 30 mum in length were obtained as a white precipitate by refluxing SnC2O4.2H2O and poly(vinylpyrrolidone) in ethylene glycol. Structural analyses by XRD, FT-IR, and TGA indicate that these highly anisotropic nanostructures were formed in an isotropic medium through the aggregation of chainlike precursors that were, in turn, formed via polyol-mediated oligomerization. These nanowires could be further converted to polycrystalline SnO2 by calcination in air at 500 degrees C. The resultant nanowires of SnO2 were highly porous and could be used for gas sensing with improved sensitivity and reversibility under ambient conditions. We have also demonstrated that this new approach could be extended to generate polycrystalline nanowires of other metal oxides such as In2O3 and anatase TiO2.     

Deposition of gold nanoparticles on β-FeOOH nanorods for detecting melamine in aqueous solution

This study demonstrates a facile but efficient approach to deposit metallic (gold) nanoparticles on β-FeOOH nanorods to obtain Au/β-FeOOH nanocomposites without the assistance of any polymers or surfactants at ambient conditions. In this method, a strong reducing agent (NaBH(4)) can be used to extensively produce Au nanoparticles, converting β-FeOOH into Fe(3)O(4) and depositing gold particles onto magnetic Fe(3)O(4) simultaneously. The microstructure, composition, and chemical properties of the obtained nanocomposites are characterized by various advanced techniques, including transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and UV-vis spectroscopy. Moreover, the Au/β-FeOOH nanocomposite can be used to detect trace melamine using UV spectrum in the ultraviolet wavelength range (190-260 nm), in which the nanocomposites show a higher sensitivity toward melamine due to the promotion of symmetry-forbidden bands (n→π(*)) of melamine molecules and also avoid the disturbance of commercial products containing solid colloids or food colorings that distort visual spectrum during the detection of chemical sensing. The deposition mechanisms and their sensing detection toward melamine are discussed.     

Experimental and theoretical studies on the role of silver in gold nanorods growth

Gold nanorods (AuNRs) have attracted high attention because of their multifunctions and potential applications in optical, electronic, catalytic and biomedical areas. This study demonstrates a key role of silver (Ag) atoms/clusters, experimentally and theoretically, in the formation and growth of AuNRs. It was found that the addition of silver salt (silver nitrate) can preferably deposit on certain Au crystalline {100} and/or {110} facets to affect the stacking of Au atoms when form and grow to AuNRs in the reported reaction system, resulting in slower atomic stacking on these two {100} and {110} facets but regular growth on the {111} facets. If no use of silver salt(s), gold nanospheres rather than nanorods were obtained in such a reaction system. It was found, by theoretical simulations (molecular dynamic method, MD), that Ag atoms can be oxidized to Ag⁺ ions by AuCl₄ ^? ions and exist in a short lifetime, which finally diffuses out from the Au crystal structure. The findings would be useful for better understanding the role of Ag in the formation and growth of AuNRs with crystal facet control, which will be beneficial for catalytic and gas sensing applications that often require highly exposed crystalline facets.

Open image in new window

Graphical abstract Silver-assisted synthesis of gold nanorods in the presence of CTAB in aqueous solution has been confirmed by both experimental method and molecular dynamic simulations.

     

Experimental and theoretical study on the β-FeOOH nanorods: growth and conversion

This study presents an experimental and theoretical study on the growth of monodispersed akaganéite (β-FeOOH) nanorods with tunable aspect ratios (longitudinal to transversal) under mild conditions (80 °C, aqueous solution). The synthesis of β-FeOOH nanorods is highly influenced by the presence of salt ions, and thus, the effect of various anions (e.g., NO₃ ⁻, SO₄ ²⁻, F⁻, Cl⁻, and Br⁻) were investigated on the microstructure, morphology, and size of the nanoparticles. It was found that these anions could interact strongly or weakly with the FeO₆ octahedral unit in the ferric oxyhydroxides, hence greatly affect the morphology, crystallization, and structure of the iron oxide/oxyhydroxide nanoparticles under the reported conditions. Moreover, these nanorods could be converted into magnetite (Fe₃O₄) through the reduction of hydrazine, which provides a new template approach to prepare magnetite nanorods with shape and size control at ambient conditions. The microstructure, composition, and structural transformation of the as-synthesized nanoparticles were characterized by various techniques, such as transmission electron microscopy (TEM and HRTEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). The possible formation and growth mechanism of akaganéite nanorods were discussed. Finally, the influence of anions on the β-FeOOH(100), (110), and (001) surfaces was further understood by theoretical simulations (e.g., molecular dynamics method).