Jane Hordern, Deputy Editor – Page 3 – Nanoscale & Nanoscale Advances Blog

Author Archive

Nanoscale Most-Read Q3 2011

11 Nov 2011

Top 25 most-read Nanoscale articles for Q3

Cu₂ZnSnS₄ nanocrystals and graphene quantum dots for photovoltaics
Jun Wang, Xukai Xin and Zhiqun Lin
DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10425J

The role of nanomaterials in redox-based supercapacitors for next generation energy storage devices
Xin Zhao, Beatriz Mendoza Sánchez, Peter J. Dobson and Patrick S. Grant
DOI: 10.1039/C0NR00594K

Inorganic nanostructures grown on graphene layers
Won Il Park, Chul-Ho Lee, Jung Min Lee, Nam-Jung Kim and Gyu-Chul Yi
DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10370A

Graphene edges: a review of their fabrication and characterization
Xiaoting Jia, Jessica Campos-Delgado, Mauricio Terrones, Vincent Meunier and Mildred S. Dresselhaus
DOI: 10.1039/C0NR00600A

In situ self-assembly of mild chemical reduction graphene for three-dimensional architectures
Wufeng Chen and Lifeng Yan
DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10355E

Conjugated polymers/semiconductor nanocrystals hybrid materials—preparation, electrical transport properties and applications
Peter Reiss, Elsa Couderc, Julia De Girolamo and Adam Pron
DOI: 10.1039/C0NR00403K

Mesoporous silica nanoparticles for bioadsorption, enzyme immobilisation, and delivery carriers
Amirali Popat, Sandy Budi Hartono, Frances Stahr, Jian Liu, Shi Zhang Qiao and Gao Qing (Max) Lu
DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10224A

Li ion battery materials with core–shell nanostructures
Liwei Su, Yu Jing and Zhen Zhou
DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10550G

Semiconductor nanostructure-based photovoltaic solar cells
Genqiang Zhang, Scott Finefrock, Daxin Liang, Gautam G. Yadav, Haoran Yang, Haiyu Fang and Yue Wu
DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10152H

Controlled assembly of plasmonic colloidal nanoparticle clusters
José M. Romo-Herrera, Ramón A. Alvarez-Puebla and Luis M. Liz-Marzán
DOI: 10.1039/C0NR00804D

Quantum sized, thiolate-protected gold nanoclusters
Rongchao Jin
DOI: 10.1039/B9NR00160C

Transparent and flexible electrodes and supercapacitors using polyaniline/single-walled carbon nanotube composite thin films
Jun Ge, Guanghui Cheng and Liwei Chen
DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10424A

Engineered nanoparticles for biomolecular imaging
Morteza Mahmoudi, Vahid Serpooshan and Sophie Laurent
DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10326A

2D materials: to graphene and beyond
Rubén Mas-Ballesté, Cristina Gómez-Navarro, Julio Gómez-Herrero and Félix Zamora
DOI: 10.1039/C0NR00323A

Surfactant-assisted, shape-controlled synthesis of gold nanocrystals
Junyan Xiao and Limin Qi
DOI: 10.1039/C0NR00814A

Nanoengineering and interfacial engineering of photovoltaics by atomic layer deposition
Jonathan R. Bakke, Katie L. Pickrahn, Thomas P. Brennan and Stacey F. Bent
DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10349K

Microwave chemistry for inorganic nanomaterials synthesis
Idalia Bilecka and Markus Niederberger
DOI: 10.1039/B9NR00377K

Review on the progress in synthesis and application of magnetic carbon nanocomposites
Maiyong Zhu and Guowang Diao
DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10165J

Sized controlled synthesis, purification, and cell studies with silicon quantum dots
Amane Shiohara, Sujay Prabakar, Angelique Faramus, Chia-Yen Hsu, Ping-Shan Lai, Peter T. Northcote and Richard D. Tilley
DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10458F

Solution synthesis of one-dimensional ZnO nanomaterials and their applications
Benjamin Weintraub, Zhengzhi Zhou, Yinhua Li and Yulin Deng
DOI: 10.1039/C0NR00047G

Upscaling of polymer solar cell fabrication using full roll-to-roll processing
Frederik C. Krebs, Thomas Tromholt and Mikkel Jørgensen
DOI: 10.1039/B9NR00430K

PEG-templated mesoporous silica nanoparticles exclusively target cancer cells
Luigi Pasqua et al.
DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10253B

Stabilization and functionalization of iron oxide nanoparticles for biomedical applications
Esther Amstad, Marcus Textor and Erik Reimhult
DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10173K

Enhanced photocatalytic H₂-production activity of graphene-modified titania nanosheets
Quanjun Xiang, Jiaguo Yu and Mietek Jaroniec
DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10610D

Aptamer-conjugated nanomaterials for bioanalysis and biotechnology applications
Tao Chen, Mohammed Ibrahim Shukoor, Yan Chen, Quan Yuan, Zhi Zhu, Zilong Zhao, Basri Gulbakan and Weihong Tan
DOI: 10.1039/C0NR00646G

We invite you to submit your research today.

Comments Off on Nanoscale Most-Read Q3 2011

Polystyrene fiber mats could soak up oil spills

10 Nov 2011

Nanoscale ‘HOT’ article

Scientists from China have synthesized novel polystyrene (PS) fibrous mats consisting of highly porous fibers which show much higher oil absorption capacities compared to the commercially available polypropylene fibers.

The authors say that such regulation of micro- and nanostructures of the PS fibers will widen the range of their applications in self-cleaning materials, ultra-high sensitivity sensors, tissue engineering and ion exchange materials.

Read the Nanoscale article today:

Subtle regulation of the micro- and nanostructures of electrospun polystyrene fibers and their application in oil absorption
Jinyou Lin, Bin Ding, Jianmao Yang, Jianyong Yu and Gang Sun
Nanoscale, 2012, DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10895F

Comments Off on Polystyrene fiber mats could soak up oil spills

What do zinc oxide and a rosy-faced lovebird have in common?

27 Oct 2011

It’s all to do with light emission. The barbs on the parrot’s feather contain spongy 3D amorphous macroporous structures that produce a photonic band gap of 550nm, which coincides with the visible emission range of zinc oxide materials. So, scientists have used the parrot’s feather as a template to make zinc oxide photonic nanostructrues.

Zinc oxide has been studied for its UV light emitting property to make new classes of optical devices such as ZnO lasers. In this capacity, it’s important to suppress the visible emission caused by zinc or oxygen defects in the zinc oxide materials. But, its ordered structure leads to an unstable modulation of the emission spectra and limits its applications. Combining zinc oxide materials with photonic amorphous structures with stable photonic band gaps is therefore important, say the researchers.

Their new material reduces the visible emission and amplifies the UV emission.

Read the Nanoscale paper hot off the press today:

Fabrication of ZnO photonic amorphous diamond nanostructure from parrot feather for modulated photoluminescence properties
Z Zhang, K Yu, N Liao, H Yin, L Lou, Q Yu, Y Liao and Z Zhu,
Nanoscale, 2011, DOI: 10.1039/c1nr11079a

Comments Off on What do zinc oxide and a rosy-faced lovebird have in common?

Nanoscience: Killing bacteria in broad daylight

21 Oct 2011

‘HOT’ article: Killing bacteria in broad daylight

Scientists have coated a TiO₂–InVO₄ film onto a glass layer and observed that the coating kills E. coli under ambient light.

Titanium oxide has been used by itself before, but it has to be activated with ultraviolet light. Adding InVO₄ – a stable narrow band gap semiconductor – ensures that the coating can absorb visible light. Now, the coating can be activated in daylight, increasing its potential applications in disinfecting surfaces.

Read the ‘HOT’ Nanoscale article today:

Understanding bactericidal performance on ambient light activated TiO2-InVO4 nanostructured films
Z He, Q Xu and T T Y Tan,
Nanoscale, 2011
DOI: 10.1039/c1nr11126d

killing bacteria

Comments Off on Nanoscience: Killing bacteria in broad daylight

Epigenetic modulation of human breast cancer

07 Oct 2011

‘HOT’ article

Molecular mechanisms and epigenetic characteristics of the antineoplastic action of endohedral metallofullerenol nanoparticles are investigated and are found to have uniquely antineoplastic efficacy and low toxicity.

Read the Nanoscale paper today:

Epigenetic modulation of human breast cancer by metallofullerenol nanoparticles: in vivo treatment and in vitro analysis
Jie Meng, Jianmin Xing, Yingze Wang, Juan Lu, Yuliang Zhao, Xueyun Gao, Paul C. Wang, Lee Jia and Xingjie Liang
Nanoscale, 2011, DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10898K

Comments Off on Epigenetic modulation of human breast cancer

Bionanotechnology Conference: abstract deadline approaching

30 Sep 2011

Bionanotechnology III: from biomolecular assembly to applications
4—6 January 2012
Robinson College, Cambridge, UK

Nanoscale is delighted to be supporting this conference organised by the Biochemical Society.

This meeting, the third in the series, brings together an international set of speakers who will discuss a broad range of topics in bionanotechnology from different perspectives and with different technical approaches.

Topics:

Large natural and designed assemblies
Single-molecule studies
Nanomaterials and devices in vitro
Nanomaterials and devices in vivo
Biomolecular self-assembly

Abstract deadline: 24 October 2011
Abstract submission is now open.

Earlybird registration deadline: 2 December 2011
Registration is now open.

Oral communication slots are available at this meeting. All attendees, particularly researchers in the early stages of their career, are invited to submit a poster abstract for consideration as an oral communication.

For more information see the Biochemical Society website.

Comments Off on Bionanotechnology Conference: abstract deadline approaching

Hierarchical structured materials for Li-ion batteries with high rate capability and tap density

22 Sep 2011

In this paper by Zhang et al., specially structured precursors (iron phosphate nanoplates) are lithiated to LiFePO4/C quasi-spheres which show both superior high rate capability and high tap density.

The LiFePO4/C materials have hierarchical structures with discharge capacities of more than 120, 110, and 90 mAh g⁻¹ at rates of 5 C, 10 C and 20 C, respectively. They also show a high tap density of 1.4 g cm⁻³ as cathode materials for lithium ion batteries.

micro-nano hierarchical structure This hierarchical structured LiFePO4/C material could take us a step closer to real and large-scale applications for lithium ion batteries.

Read this ‘HOT’ Nanoscale article today:

Synthesis of micro-nano hierarchical structured LiFePO4/C composite with both superior high-rate performance and high tap density
Meng Wang, Yong Yang and Youxiang Zhang
Nanoscale, 2011, DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10950B

Comments Off on Hierarchical structured materials for Li-ion batteries with high rate capability and tap density

HOT article: Unidirectional arrays of vertically alligned graphene

15 Sep 2011

Plasma-enabled, catalyst-free, and highly reproducible growth of the as-yet elusive unidirectional arrays of well-separated, vertically standing, few-layer graphene nanosheets with open reactive graphitic edges is demonstrated. The nanosheet density, length, and orientation can be effectively controlled using electric fields.

Read the Nanoscale article ‘hot off the press’ today:

Unidirectional arrays of vertically standing graphenes in reactive plasmas
Shailesh Kumar and Kostya (Ken) Ostrikov
Nanoscale, 2011, DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10860C

Comments Off on HOT article: Unidirectional arrays of vertically alligned graphene

HOT article: Graphene-modified TiO2 nanosheets with enhanced photocatalytic activity

15 Aug 2011

Graphene-modified TiO₂ nanosheet composites with 0.2–2.0 wt% graphene, prepared by a microwave-hydrothermal method, exhibit an enhanced photocatalytic H₂-production activity.

This work shows the possibility that low cost graphene sheets as a substitute for noble metals (e.g. Pt) could be used in the photocatalytic production of hydrogen. The results also demonstrate significant enhancement in the H₂-production activity by using metal-free carbon material as an effective co-catalyst.

Read the Nanoscale article:

Enhanced photocatalytic H2-production activity of graphene-modified titania nanosheets
Quanjun Xiang, Jiaguo Yu and Mietek Jaroniec
Nanoscale, 2011, DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10610D

graphene nanosheets

Comments Off on HOT article: Graphene-modified TiO2 nanosheets with enhanced photocatalytic activity

Nanoscale Review: Nanoengineering photovoltaics

01 Aug 2011

Read this ‘HOT’ Nanoscale Review which discusses the use of atomic layer deposition to nanoengineer photovoltaics:

Nanoengineering and interfacial engineering of photovoltaics by atomic layer deposition
Jonathan R. Bakke, Katie L. Pickrahn, Thomas P. Brennan and Stacey F. Bent
Nanoscale, 2011, DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10349K

Primary uses of atomic layer deposition for PV include formation of absorbing QDs at low cycle number (left), coatings on nanostructured substrates (middle), and growth of thin films (right).

Comments Off on Nanoscale Review: Nanoengineering photovoltaics

Nanoscale & Nanoscale Advances Blog