There is, I think, something ethereal about i —the square root of minus one. I remember first hearing about it at school. It seemed an odd beast at that time—an intruder hovering on the edge of reality.

Usually familiarity dulls this sense of the bizarre, but in the case of i it was the reverse: over the years the sense of its surreal nature intensified. It seemed that it was impossible to write mathematics that described the real world in …

I and i

Two organolead halide perovskite nanocrystals, CH3NH3PbBr3 and CH3NH3PbI3, were found to efficiently sensitize TiO2 for visible-light conversion in photoelectrochemical cells. When self-assembled on mesoporous TiO2 films, the nanocrystalline perovskites exhibit strong band-gap absorptions as semiconductors. The CH3NH3PbI3-based photocell with spectral sensitivity of up to 800 nm yielded a solar energy conversion efficiency of 3.8%. The CH3NH3PbBr3-based cell showed a high photovoltage of 0.96 V with an external quantum conversion efficiency of 65%.

Organometal Halide Perovskites as Visible-Light Sensitizers for Photovoltaic Cells

Single-layer metal dichalcogenides are two-dimensional semiconductors that present strong potential for electronic and sensing applications complementary to that of graphene.

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Electronics and optoelectronics of two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides.

Although gold is the subject of one of the most ancient themes of investigation in science, its renaissance now leads to an exponentially increasing number of publications, especially in the context of emerging nanoscience and nanotechnology with nanoparticles and self-assembled monolayers (SAMs). We will limit the present review to gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), also called gold colloids. AuNPs are the most stable metal nanoparticles, and they present fascinating aspects such as their assembly of multiple types involving materials science, the behavior of the individual particles, size-related electronic, magnetic and optical properties (quantum size effect), and their applications to catalysis and biology. Their promises are in these fields as well as in the bottom-up approach of nanotechnology, and they will be key materials and building block in the 21st century. Whereas the extraction of gold started in the 5th millennium B.C. near Varna (Bulgaria) and reached 10 tons per year in Egypt around 1200-1300 B.C. when the marvelous statue of Touthankamon was constructed, it is probable that “soluble” gold appeared around the 5th or 4th century B.C. in Egypt and China. In antiquity, materials were used in an ecological sense for both aesthetic and curative purposes. Colloidal gold was used to make ruby glass 293 Chem. Rev. 2004, 104, 293−346

Gold nanoparticles: assembly, supramolecular chemistry, quantum-size-related properties, and applications toward biology, catalysis, and nanotechnology.

To use solar irradiation or interior lighting efficiently, we sought a photocatalyst with high reactivity under visible light. Films and powders of TiO 2- x N x have revealed an improvement over titanium dioxide (TiO 2 ) under visible light (wavelength 2 has proven to be indispensable for band-gap narrowing and photocatalytic activity, as assessed by first-principles calculations and x-ray photoemission spectroscopy.

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Visible-Light Photocatalysis in Nitrogen-Doped Titanium Oxides

T is one question that we never hear from our authors. Authors whose papers get accepted by the editor cherish their publication success, whereas authors whose papers were not accepted may in many instances put the blame squarely on the review process itself. From the author’s perspective, the paper he/she just submitted consists of the best scientific results from his/her laboratory and hence deserves publication regardless of the quality of presentation. Editors and reviewers evaluate the papers from the journal reader’s viewpoint. Essential factors in drawing a reader’s attention to a particular paper include a broad perspective, a good fit with the journal scope, and clear presentation of new scientific findings. Editors and reviewers also check to see whether the paper meets the journal’s submission criteria. Those authors who take these aspects into consideration while composing their manuscripts see a significantly higher success rate of acceptance. Here are some attributes that contribute to a favorable decision at the editor’s desk:

https://pubs.acs.org/doi/pdf/10.1021/jz501139d

Why Did You Accept My Paper

http://ma.ecsdl.org/content/MA2005-01/35/1365.full.pdf

TiO2/Pt-Ru/C Hybrid Catalyst for Methanol Oxidation

We Editors Are Authors, Too

TiO2 nanoparticles were modified with porphyrin derivatives, 5-[4-benzoic acid]-10,15,20-tris[3,5-di-tert-butylphenyl]-21H,23H-porphyrin ( Ar–H2P–COOH ), 5-[4-benzoic acid]-10,20-tris[3,5-di-tert-butylphenyl]-21H,23H-porphyrin ( H–H2P–COOH ), and 5,10,15,20-tetra[4-benzoic acid]-21H,23H-porphyrin ( H2P–4COOH ). The porphyrin-modified TiO2 nanoparticles were deposited on nanostructured OTE/SnO2 electrode together with nanoclusters of fullerene (C60) in acetonitrile–toluene (3/1, v/v) using an electrophoretic deposition technique to afford the porphyrin-modified TiO2 composite electrode denoted as OTE/SnO2/(porphyrin-modified TiO2 nanoparticle+C60)n. The porphyrin-modified TiO2 composite electrodes have efficient light absorbing properties in the visible region, exhibiting the photoactive response under visible light excitation using I 3 − / I − redox couple. The incident photon-to-photocurrent efficiency (IPCE) values of supramolecular nanostructured electrodes of porphyrin-modified TiO2 nanoparticles with fullerene [OTE/SnO2/( Ar–H2P–COO–TiO2 +C60)n, OTE/SnO2/( H–H2P–COO–TiO2 +C60)n, and OTE/SnO2/( H2P–4COO–TiO2 +C60)n] are much larger than those of the reference systems of porphyrin-modified TiO2 nanoparticles without C60 [OTE/SnO2/( Ar–H2P–COO–TiO2 )n, OTE/SnO2/( H–H2P–COO–TiO2 )n, and OTE/SnO2/( H2P–4COO–TiO2 )n]. In particular, the maximum IPCE value (41%) is obtained for OTE/SnO2/( H–H2P–COO–TiO2 +C60)n under the bias potential of 0.2 V versus SCE. This indicates that the formation of supramolecular complexes between porphyrins and fullerene on TiO2 nanoparticles plays an important role in improvement of the light energy conversion properties.

Supramolecular Nanostructured Assemblies of Different Types of Porphyrins with Fullerene Using TiO2 Nanoparticles for Light Energy Conversion.

Diffuse reflectance laser flash photolysis study has been performed to investigate the photochemical changes undergone by the anthraquinone dye, Uniblue-A, adsorbed on microcrystalline cellulose powder and cotton fabric. Under 532 nm laser pulse excitation the dye molecule undergoes photoionization to generate a cation radical on the cellulose surface. The formation of the Uniblue-A cation radical is confirmed by comparison of its absorption spectrum with that obtained by the pulse radiolysis method in a homogeneous solution. Electron donors such as triethylamine facilitate quick recovery of the dye, thus minimizing chemical transformation of the dye.

Prashant V. Kamat

Papers

Why Did You Accept My Paper

TiO2/Pt-Ru/C Hybrid Catalyst for Methanol Oxidation

We Editors Are Authors, Too

Supramolecular Nanostructured Assemblies of Different Types of Porphyrins with Fullerene Using TiO2 Nanoparticles for Light Energy Conversion.

Photochemical Behavior of Anthraquinone Based Textile Dye (Uniblue-a) Bound To Cellulose Powder and Cotton Fabric