Journal of Materials Chemistry Blog

Don’t forget Journal of Materials Chemistry is publishing a themed issue on Materials for Biosurfaces. Please contact the editorial office if you would like to contribute an article. The Guest Editors of this themed issue are Professor Christopher K. Ober (Cornell University, USA), Dr. Christian Ohm (Cornell University, USA), Ms. Mary E. Welch (Cornell University, USA).

The issue will focus on the synthetic and physical chemistry of biosurfaces with a primary attention to polymer based surfaces and the role of surfaces in biomedical related applications such as biosensors. Materials of interest include polymer brushes, hydrogels, membranes and self-assembled monolayers. The role of surfaces in cell adhesion and cell-surface interactions is also a topic of this special issue.  

The deadline for the receipt of manuscripts for this themed issue is 20^th March 2012

Manuscripts can be submitted using the RSC’s on-line submissions service. Please clearly state in the comment to editors section during submission that the manuscript is “submitted in response to the call for papers for the themed issue on Materials for Biosurfaces”.

Journal of Materials Chemistry will publish a themed issue on Nanomaterials for Energy Conversion and Storage in 2012. Please contact the editorial office if you are interested in contributing an article. The Guest Editors for this issue are Professor Michael Graetzel (École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausann) and Dr. K. Kalyanasundaram (École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne). 

One of the main challenges facing mankind in the 21st Century is in the energy sector. Rapid increase in industrialization, urbanization and population growth has led to pronounced increase in the global energy demands. With depleting fossil fuels and growing concern on environmental protection, urgent research efforts are needed to find alternative energy resources that are efficient, economical and ecologically friendly. We need to find urgently new means of generating, store and transport power at TW scale.  Since energy resources such as solar and wind are intermittent and power usage is increasingly on numerous portable electronic devices, efficient means have to be found for storage and transportation of energy. A number of electrical-electronic, photonic and optoelectronic devices have been proposed for this purpose. Typical systems under consideration include photovoltaic solar cells, batteries, supercapacitors, field-effect transistors, fuel cells, thermoelectric, thermal- and photo-catalysts and luminescence display devices.

Fortunately during late last century there has been a phenomenal increase in our understanding of systems at the atomic and molecular level. Advances permit now to tailor-make, characterize and manipulate materials at single molecule level and build devices putting pieces together at the molecular level (nanoengineering in a bottom-up approach). The topic of this special issue is how to use advances in material science and nanotechnology in designing systems for efficient inter-conversion of energy forms between thermal, solar (photonics) and electrical energy. Graphenes, Carbon nanotubes and conducting polymers are typical examples where nanoscale design permits their efficient performance in a number of energy conversion and storage devices. All devices dealing with conversion of energy forms and storage will be considered for this issue. Hydrogen produced via photochemical decomposition of water is an attractive energy resource. Hence hydrogen production, its storage and burning in fuel cells to get electricity will be included as well.  

The deadline for the receipt of manuscripts for this themed issue is 11th June 2012

Manuscripts can be submitted using the RSC’s on-line submissions service. Please clearly state that the manuscript is submitted in response to the call for papers for the themed issue on Nanomaterials for Energy Conversion and Storage.

The themed issue on Organic Optoelectronic Materials is now online. Guest editors Wenping Hu, Zhenan Bao and Klaus Muellen introduce this themed issue of Journal of Materials Chemistry in their Editorial. This themed issue is dedicated to one of the pioneers of the field, Professor Daoben Zhu, on the occasion of his 70th birthday.

The issue contains a selection of communications, papers & reviews covering the field of organic optoelectronic materials including:

Highlight

• Photonic applications of one-dimensional organic single-crystalline nanostructures: optical waveguides and optically pumped lasers
  Qiu Hong Cui, Yong Sheng Zhao and Jiannian Yao, J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 4136-4140

Applications

• Charge transfer state in highly efficient polymer–fullerene bulk heterojunction solar cells
  Claudia Piliego and Maria Antonietta Loi, J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 4141-4150

Feature Articles

• Open-shell polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons
  Zhe Sun and Jishan Wu, J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 4151-4160
• Functional fullerenes for organic photovoltaics
  Chang-Zhi Li, Hin-Lap Yip and Alex K.-Y. Jen, J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 4161-4177
• Structures and properties of conjugated Donor–Acceptor copolymers for solar cell applications
  Zhi–Guo Zhang and Jizheng Wang, J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 4178-4187
• π-Extended TTF: a versatile molecule for organic electronics
  Fulvio G. Brunetti, Juan Luis López, Carmen Atienza and Nazario Martín, J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 4188-4205
• Solid-state light-emitting electrochemical cells based on ionic iridium(III) complexes
  Tao Hu, Lei He, Lian Duan and Yong Qiu, J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 4206-4215
• Prospects and challenges of organic/group IV nanomaterial solar cells
  Tao Song, Shuit-Tong Lee and Baoquan Sun, J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 4216-4232
• Phosphine oxide derivatives for organic light emitting diodes
  Soon Ok Jeon and Jun Yeob Lee, J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 4233-4243
• Polymer blends with semiconducting nanowires for organic electronics
  Sae Byeok Jo, Wi Hyoung Lee, Longzhen Qiu and Kilwon Cho, J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 4244-4260

You can read all the papers in the themed issue here:

To keep up-to-date with all the latest research, sign up for the journal’s e-alerts or RSS feeds or follow Journal of Materials Chemistry on Twitter or Facebook.

Journal of Materials Chemistry will publish a themed issue on Materials for Biosurfaces in 2012. Please contact the editorial office if you would like to contribute an article.

The Guest Editors of the issue will be Professor Christopher K. Ober (Cornell University, USA), Dr. Christian Ohm (Cornell University, USA), Ms. Mary E. Welch (Cornell University, USA).

The issue will focus on the synthetic and physical chemistry of biosurfaces with a primary attention to polymer based surfaces and the role of surfaces in biomedical related applications such as biosensors. Materials of interest include polymer brushes, hydrogels, membranes and self-assembled monolayers. The role of surfaces in cell adhesion and cell-surface interactions is also a topic of this special issue.  

Journal of Materials Chemistry publishes original research that demonstrates novelty and advance, either in the chemistry used to produce materials or in the properties/applications of the materials produced. All manuscripts will be handled by the Journal of Materials Chemistry Editorial office and refereed in accordance to the standard procedures of the journal.

The deadline for the receipt of manuscripts for this themed issue is Monday 20^th February 2012

Manuscripts can be submitted using the RSC’s on-line submissions service. Please clearly state in the comment to editors section during submission that the manuscript is “submitted by invitation for the themed issue on Materials for Biosurfaces”.

We hope that you will be able to contribute to this themed issue and we look forward to hearing from you.

Professor Christopher K. Ober, Cornell University, Guest Editor
Dr. Christian Ohm, Cornell University, Guest Editor
Ms. Mary E. Welch, Cornell University
Dr Liz Davies, Editor, Journal of Materials Chemistry

The ‘Self-organisation of nanoparticles‘ themed issue guest edited by Professor Nicholas A. Kotov (University of Michigan) is now online. Professor Kotov introduces the themed issue with an editorial on ‘Practical aspects of self-organization of nanoparticles: experimental guide and future applications’.

The outside cover image come from the Feature Article Self-assembly and flux closure studies of magnetic nanoparticle rings by Alexander Wei, Takeshi Kasama and Rafal E. Dunin-Borkowski. The inside cover features an image from Reversible assembly of metal nanoparticles induced by penicillamine. Dynamic formation of SERS hot spots by Patricia Taladriz-Blanco and co-workers.

The full issue is published in Journal of Materials Chemistry as issue 42, 2011, but here is a selection of Applications & Feature Articles as a sample of what the issue contains.

• Metallic nanostructures assembled by DNA and related applications in surface-enhancement Raman scattering (SERS) detection
• Self-assembly and flux closure studies of magnetic nanoparticle rings
• Chemically induced self-assembly of spherical and anisotropic inorganic nanocrystals
• Metal nanomaterial-based self-assembly: Development, electrochemical sensing and SERS applications
• Click-chemistry for nanoparticle-modification
• Bionanoparticles and hybrid materials: tailored structural properties, self-assembly, materials and developments in the field
• 2D superlattices and 3D supracrystals of metal nanocrystals: a new scientific adventure
• Gold nanorod ensembles as artificial molecules for applications in sensors
• Self-assembly of latex particles for the creation of nanostructures with tunable plasmonic properties
• Self-assembly of particles: some thoughts and comments
• Chiral nanoparticle assemblies: circular dichroism, plasmonic interactions, and exciton effects
• Magnetic nanoparticles: recent advances in synthesis, self-assembly and applications
• Chemistry, physics, and engineering of electrically percolating arrays of nanoparticles: a mini review

The Materials Chemistry of Nanofabrication themed issue is now online. The guest editor for this issue was Kenneth R. Carter University of Massachusetts, Amherst, USA. Here is Professor Carter’s editorial “Nanofabrication: past, present and future” introducing the topic. 

The outside front cover showcases “DNA nanofabrication by scanning near-field photolithography of oligo(ethylene glycol) terminated SAMs: Controlled scan-rate dependent switching between head group oxidation and tail group degradation” by Shuqing Sun and co-workers. “Fabrication of wafer-scale polystyrene photonic crystal multilayers via the layer-by-layer scooping transfer technique” is the paper featured on the inside front cover.

The full issue contains 4 hot articles.

• Fabrication of functional colloidal photonic crystals based on well-designed latex particles
• Fabrication of wafer-scale polystyrene photonic crystal multilayers via the layer-by-layer scooping transfer technique
• DNA nanofabrication by scanning near-field photolithography of oligo(ethylene glycol) terminated SAMs: Controlled scan-rate dependent switching between head group oxidation and tail group degradation
• Formation of hierarchical silica nanochannels through nanoimprint lithography

To keep up-to-date with all the latest research, sign up for the journal’s e-alerts or RSS feeds or follow Journal of Materials Chemistry on Twitter.

The Advanced Materials for Lithium Batteries themed issue is now online. The guest editors for this issue are Professor M. Saiful Islam (Bath, UK) and Professor Linda Nazar (Waterloo, Canada). Here is their editorial introducing the topic.  

The outside front cover illustrates a Feature Article on One dimensional Si/Sn – based nanowires and nanotubes for lithium-ion energy storage materials by Nam-Soon Choi, Yan Yao, Yi Cui and Jaephil Cho. This review was selected as a Hot Article. On the inside front cover was Direct and modified ionothermal synthesis of LiMnPO4 with tunable morphology for rechargeable Li-ion batteries by Prabeer Barpanda, Karim Djellab, Nadir Recham, Michel Armand and Jean-Marie Tarascon. This paper was also a Hot Article.  

The full issue contains 7 hot articles. Here’s the full list:

• One dimensional Si/Sn – based nanowires and nanotubes for lithium-ion energy storage materials
• What can we learn about battery materials from their magnetic properties?
• SnO2 hollow structures and TiO2 nanosheets for lithium-ion batteries
• Effect of ball-milling and lithium insertion on the lithium mobility and structure of Li3Fe2(PO4)3
• Benefits of N for O substitution in polyoxoanionic electrode materials: a first principles investigation of the electrochemical properties of Li2FeSiO4−yNy (y = 0, 0.5, 1)
• Direct and modified ionothermal synthesis of LiMnPO4 with tunable morphology for rechargeable Li-ion batteries
• The influence on Fermi energy of Li-site change in LizTi1−yNiyS2 on crossing z = 1

To keep up-to-date with all the latest research, sign up for the journal’s e-alerts or RSS feeds or follow Journal of Materials Chemistry on Twitter.

Journal of Materials Chemistry is planning to produce a themed issue on Integrating Functionality into Metal-Organic Frameworks in 2012. Please e-mail the editorial office, materials-rsc@rsc.org, if you are interested in contributing an article.

The Guest Editors of the issue will be Professor Stefan Kaskel (Dresden, Germany) and Professor Roland Fischer (Bochum, Germany).

Porous Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs) have set records in recent years regarding specific surface area and pore volume. The field of MOFs has exploded moving from applications in adsorption towards more and more rational integration of specific functions revealing novel applications in drug delivery and sensing, including attractive mechanical and magnetic properties. Specific functionalization allows for the integration of chiral groups for enantioselective catalysis and separation. The search for very large pores and higher specific surface area remains a key challenge in the rapidly expanding field of MOFs, especially in catalysis and high pressure gas storage. High porosity enables anchoring of molecular catalysts, impregnation with catalyst precursors, or adsorption of larger drug molecules in MOFs for fine chemical transformation, nanoparticle formation, sensing, or drug delivery. Self assembly and thin film techniques are essential for device integration of such novel porous materials.

The deadline for the receipt of manuscripts for this themed issue is
November 1.
 

Manuscripts can be submitted using the RSC’s on-line submissions service. Please clearly mark that the manuscript is submitted for the themed issue on Integrating Functionality into Metal-Organic Frameworks (short: MOFs).

Please would you inform the editorial office by e-mail at materials-rsc@rsc.org as soon as possible if you plan to submit to the issue and whether your contribution will be original research or a review-type article. We would like to have a list of authors who intend to contribute as soon as possible.