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.

/pdf/electronics-and-optoelectronics-of-two-dimensional-2jbqr1unvw.pdf

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.

/pdf/visible-light-photocatalysis-in-nitrogen-doped-titanium-np6nklr9gh.pdf

Visible-Light Photocatalysis in Nitrogen-Doped Titanium Oxides

The optoelectronic properties of hybrid perovskites are a strong function of their physical structure, and understanding the fundamental steps involved in the formation of these films can aid in the optimization and rational design of devices with tailored properties. Here we investigate the structural and optical characteristics of CH3NH3PbI3 films prepared from solutions composed of stoichiometric and nonstoichiometric quantities of lead iodide and methylammonium iodide precursors. In the presence of excess organohalide salt, a precursor phase composed of various iodoplumbate complexes is stabilized. The complexes dominate the optical properties of as-deposited films. Upon thermal treatment, the iodoplumbate precursor phase gradually evolves into the final tetragonal perovskite structure. Employing transient absorption spectroscopy, we have succeeded in tracking this transformation and gain insight into the interplay between the solid-state precursor and perovskite phases at various stages of formation....

Evolution of Organic–Inorganic Lead Halide Perovskite from Solid-State Iodoplumbate Complexes

Electrochemical rectification in CdSe + TiO2 coupled semiconductor films

Thin films of WO[sub 3] are cast from quantum size colloids onto an optically transparent electrode. These thin particulate films are found to exhibit reversible electrochromic and photoelectrochromic effects. A blue coloration of the WO[sub 3] particulate film is seen when electrons are injected into the conduction band of WO[sub 3] by electrochemical or UV-excitation methods. The onset potential of the electrochromic effect is dependent on the pH and corresponds to the flat band potential of WO[sub 3]. Spectroelectrochemical and microwave absorption experiments suggest that trapped electrons are the major species responsible for the blue coloration of the WO[sub 3] particulate film. 34 refs., 9 figs.

Electrochromic and photoelectrochromic behavior of thin WO[sub 3] films prepared from quantum size colloidal particles

Singlet and triplet excited states and the reduced and oxidized forms of two squaraine dyes, bis[4-(dimethylamino)- phenyllsquaraine (SQH) and bis[4-(dimethylamino)-2-hydroxyphenyl]squaraine (SQOH), have been investigated by picosecond and nanosecond laser flash photolysis. Both singlet and triplet excited states of SQH and SQOH have distinct and intense absorption maxima in the visible region. The lifetime of ISQOH (T s = 3.0 ns) is considerably higher than %QH ( T s = 1.5 ns) as the substituent OH group restricts rotational relaxation of the excited state. Both squaraine dyes exhibit poor intersystem crossing efficiency (Φ isc 2 semiconductor colloids.

Photochemistry of squaraine dyes. 1. Excited singlet, triplet, and redox states of bis[4-(dimethylamino)phenyl]squaraine and bis[4-(dimethylamino)-2-hydroxyphenyl]squaraine

Prashant V. Kamat

Papers

Evolution of Organic–Inorganic Lead Halide Perovskite from Solid-State Iodoplumbate Complexes

Electrochemical rectification in CdSe + TiO2 coupled semiconductor films

Electrochromic and photoelectrochromic behavior of thin WO[sub 3] films prepared from quantum size colloidal particles

Photochemistry of squaraine dyes. 1. Excited singlet, triplet, and redox states of bis[4-(dimethylamino)phenyl]squaraine and bis[4-(dimethylamino)-2-hydroxyphenyl]squaraine

Supramolecular nanostructured assemblies of different types of porphyrins with fullerene using TiO2 nanoparticles for light energy conversion