Metal-halide perovskites have rapidly emerged as one of the most promising materials of the 21st century, with many exciting properties and great potential for a broad range of applications, from photovoltaics to optoelectronics and photocatalysis. The ease with which metal-halide perovskites can be synthesized in the form of brightly luminescent colloidal nanocrystals, as well as their tunable and intriguing optical and electronic properties, has attracted researchers from different disciplines of science and technology. In the last few years, there has been a significant progress in the shape-controlled synthesis of perovskite nanocrystals and understanding of their properties and applications. In this comprehensive review, researchers having expertise in different fields (chemistry, physics, and device engineering) of metal-halide perovskite nanocrystals have joined together to provide a state of the art overview and future prospects of metal-halide perovskite nanocrystal research.

State of the Art and Prospects for Halide Perovskite Nanocrystals.

The development of green, sustainable, and economical chemical processes represents a cornerstone challenge within chemistry today. Semiconductor heterogeneous photocatalysis is currently utilized ...

Solar-Driven Metal Halide Perovskite Photocatalysis: Design, Stability, and Performance

Radiation detection, using materials to convert high-energy photons to low-energy photons (X-ray imaging) or electrical charges (X-ray detector), has become essential for a wide range of applicatio

Metal Halide Perovskites for X-ray Imaging Scintillators and Detectors

Electro-, photo-, and photoelectrocatalysis play a critical role toward the realization of a sustainable energy economy. They facilitate numerous redox reactions in energy storage and conversion systems, enabling the production of chemical feedstock and clean fuels from abundant resources like water, carbon dioxide, and nitrogen. One major obstacle for their large-scale implementation is the scarcity of cost-effective, durable, and efficient catalysts. A family of two-dimensional transition metal carbides, nitrides, and carbonitrides (MXenes) has recently emerged as promising earth-abundant candidates for large-area catalytic energy storage and conversion due to their unique properties of hydrophilicity, high metallic conductivity, and ease of production by solution processing. To take full advantage of these desirable properties, MXenes have been combined with other materials to form MXene hybrids with significantly enhanced catalytic performances beyond the sum of their individual components. MXene hybridization tunes the electronic structure toward optimal binding of redox active species to improve intrinsic activity while increasing the density and accessibility of active sites. This review outlines recent strategies in the design of MXene hybrids for industrially relevant electrocatalytic, photocatalytic, and photoelectrocatalytic applications such as water splitting, metal-air/sulfur batteries, carbon dioxide reduction, and nitrogen reduction. By clarifying the roles of individual material components in the MXene hybrids, we provide design strategies to synergistically couple MXenes with associated materials for highly efficient and durable catalytic applications. We conclude by highlighting key gaps in the current understanding of MXene hybrids to guide future MXene hybrid designs in catalytic energy storage and conversion applications.

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Rational Design of Two-Dimensional Transition Metal Carbide/Nitride (MXene) Hybrids and Nanocomposites for Catalytic Energy Storage and Conversion

Metal Halide Perovskite Light‐Emitting Devices: Promising Technology for Next‐Generation Displays

Suppressing Optical Loss at the Air/Glass Surface of Solar Cells Via Designing Geometric Arrays

Nano-crystalline Zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films on glass substrates have been fabricated by sol–gel method for different aging times. The thermal curve of the dried gel was examined and it was found that evaporation of solvent and the decomposition of the organics have completed before 250∘C. X-ray diffraction patterns and Atomic Force Microscope images of samples only have a small difference of microstructure. The transmittance spectra revealed high transmittance in visible region. The optical band gap of the samples remined stable (3.28eV). Also, the Urbach energy was calculated to explain the defect concentration. The Photoluminescence spectra in ultraviolet and visible regions were studied, and the decreased intensity of peaks at 387nm and the increased emissions in visible range were found. The results showed that excessive aging time can cause degeneration of optical properties of thin films.

Regulations of aging time on optical properties of nano-crystalline ZnO thin films fabricated by sol–gel method

Light harvesting in thin film solar cells via designing nanostructured geometries

Al–Fe alloys, with large amounts of sphere-like structures, few plate-like structures, and little needle-like structures of micron scale second phase have been successfully prepared via a new type of solid–liquid mixture approach combined with plasma arc heating (PAH). The authors have obtained Al–Fe alloys with iron content of 0–15%, which is of extremely significance that thermal plasma jet (TPJ) breaks through the limitation of low iron content in Al–Fe alloys. Microstructures characterization indicates that not only the microstructures of Al–Fe alloys are refined, but also the morphologies are optimized. Meanwhile, sharp corners of iron powders are rounded off and impurities are removed under the action of PAH, which is important for improving mechanical property of Al–Fe alloys. And then, the effects of various parameters including PAH, iron content, and melt temperature on the microstructures and mechanical performance are systematically investigated. The possible influence mechanisms of parameters are investigated and put forward, and appropriate parameters have been obtained during the processing of Al–Fe alloys via TPJ.

Investigation on the Controllable Microstructures of High Iron Content Al–Fe Alloys Fabricated via Solid–Liquid Mixture Method Combining with Plasma Arc Heating Approach

Peihua Wangyang

Papers

Suppressing Optical Loss at the Air/Glass Surface of Solar Cells Via Designing Geometric Arrays

Regulations of aging time on optical properties of nano-crystalline ZnO thin films fabricated by sol–gel method

Light harvesting in thin film solar cells via designing nanostructured geometries

Investigation on the Controllable Microstructures of High Iron Content Al–Fe Alloys Fabricated via Solid–Liquid Mixture Method Combining with Plasma Arc Heating Approach

Postannealed (GaIn)2O3 Films Deposited by Sputtering for Ultraviolet Photodetection