Graphitic carbon nitride, g-C3N4, can be made by polymerization of cyanamide, dicyandiamide or melamine. Depending on reaction conditions, different materials with different degrees of condensation, properties and reactivities are obtained. The firstly formed polymeric C3N4 structure, melon, with pendant amino groups, is a highly ordered polymer. Further reaction leads to more condensed and less defective C3N4 species, based on tri-s-triazine (C6N7) units as elementary building blocks. High resolution transmission electron microscopy proves the extended two-dimensional character of the condensation motif. Due to the polymerization-type synthesis from a liquid precursor, a variety of material nanostructures such as nanoparticles or mesoporous powders can be accessed. Those nanostructures also allow fine tuning of properties, the ability for intercalation, as well as the possibility to give surface-rich materials for heterogeneous reactions. Due to the special semiconductor properties of carbon nitrides, they show unexpected catalytic activity for a variety of reactions, such as for the activation of benzene, trimerization reactions, and also the activation of carbon dioxide. Model calculations are presented to explain this unusual case of heterogeneous, metal-free catalysis. Carbon nitride can also act as a heterogeneous reactant, and a new family of metal nitride nanostructures can be accessed from the corresponding oxides.

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Graphitic carbon nitride materials: variation of structure and morphology and their use as metal-free catalysts

A large body of work has been reported in the last 5 years on the development of lead-free piezoceramics in the quest to replace lead–zirconate–titanate (PZT) as the main material for electromechanical devices such as actuators, sensors, and transducers. In specific but narrow application ranges the new materials appear adequate, but are not yet suited to replace PZT on a broader basis. In this paper, general guidelines for the development of lead-free piezoelectric ceramics are presented. Suitable chemical elements are selected first on the basis of cost and toxicity as well as ionic polarizability. Different crystal structures with these elements are then considered based on simple concepts, and a variety of phase diagrams are described with attractive morphotropic phase boundaries, yielding good piezoelectric properties. Finally, lessons from density functional theory are reviewed and used to adjust our understanding based on the simpler concepts. Equipped with these guidelines ranging from atom to phase diagram, the current development stage in lead-free piezoceramics is then critically assessed.

Perspective on the Development of Lead-free Piezoceramics

Graphitic carbon nitrides (g-C3N4) are becoming increasingly significant due to the theoretical prediction of their unusual properties and promising applications ranging from photocatalysis, heterogeneous catalysis, to fuel cells. Recently, a variety of nanostructured and nanoporous g-C3N4 materials have been developed for a wide range of new applications. This feature article gives, at first, an overview on the synthesis of g-C3N4 nanomaterials with controllable structure and morphology, and secondly, presents and categorizes applications of g-C3N4 as multifunctional metal-free catalysts for environmental protection, energy conversion and storage. A special emphasis is placed on the potential applications of nanostructured g-C3N4 in the areas of artificial photocatalysis for hydrogen production, oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) for fuel cells, and metal-free heterogeneous catalysis. Finally, this perspective highlights crucial issues that should be addressed in the future in the aforementioned exciting research areas.

Graphitic carbon nitride materials: controllable synthesis and applications in fuel cells and photocatalysis

Kamihara and coworkers' report of superconductivity at ${T}_{c}=26\text{ }\text{ }\mathrm{K}$ in fluorine-doped LaFeAsO inspired a worldwide effort to understand the nature of the superconductivity in this new class of compounds. These iron pnictide and chalcogenide (FePn/Ch) superconductors have Fe electrons at the Fermi surface, plus an unusual Fermiology that can change rapidly with doping, which lead to normal and superconducting state properties very different from those in standard electron-phonon coupled ``conventional'' superconductors. Clearly, superconductivity and magnetism or magnetic fluctuations are intimately related in the FePn/Ch, and even coexist in some. Open questions, including the superconducting nodal structure in a number of compounds, abound and are often dependent on improved sample quality for their solution. With ${T}_{c}$ values up to 56 K, the six distinct Fe-containing superconducting structures exhibit complex but often comparable behaviors. The search for correlations and explanations in this fascinating field of research would benefit from an organization of the large, seemingly disparate data set. This review provides an overview, using numerous references, with a focus on the materials and their superconductivity.

Superconductivity in iron compounds

Synthesis of nanocrystals with exposed high-energy facets is a well-known challenge in many fields of science and technology. The higher reactivity of these facets simultaneously makes them desirable catalysts for sluggish chemical reactions and leads to their small populations in an equilibrated crystal. Using anatase TiO2 as an example, we demonstrate a facile approach for creating high-surface-area stable nanosheets comprising nearly 100% exposed (001) facets. Our approach relies on spontaneous assembly of the nanosheets into three-dimensional hierarchical spheres, which stabilizes them from collapse. We show that the high surface density of exposed TiO2 (001) facets leads to fast lithium insertion/deinsertion processes in batteries that mimic features seen in high-power electrochemical capacitors.

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Constructing Hierarchical Spheres from Large Ultrathin Anatase TiO2 Nanosheets with Nearly 100% Exposed (001) Facets for Fast Reversible Lithium Storage

We report the superconductivity at above 30 K in a FeSe-layer compound K0.8Fe2Se2 (nominal composition) achieved by metal K intercalating in between FeSe layers. It is isostructural to BaFe2As2 and possesses the highest T-c for FeSe-layer materials so far under ambient pressure. Hall effect indicates the carriers are dominated by electron in this superconductor. We confirm that the observed superconductivity at above 30 K is due to this FeSe-based 122 phase. Our results demonstrate that FeSe-layer materials are really remarkable superconductors via structure and carrier modulation.

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Superconductivity in the iron selenide K x Fe 2 Se 2 (0≤x≤1.0)

We report a simple and effective carbon-free nanocoating strategy for large-scale synthesis of Mo2N nanolayer coated MoO2 hollow nanostructures. This strategy only involves commercial MoO3 powders reacted with reduced gas. The carbon-free nanocoating of Mo2N is highly effective in improving the electrochemical properties of MoO2, promising advanced batteries with high specific capacity up to 815 mA h g−1, long cycle-life (e.g., >100 cycles) and high rate capability compared with the carbon nanocoating commonly used in electrode materials. The present nitride-nanocoating strategy is facile but effective, and therefore it is very promising for large-scale industrial production. It may be extended to prepare other metal oxides with nitride coating nanolayers to enhance their performances as electrode materials.

Synthesis of Mo2N nanolayer coated MoO2 hollow nanostructures as high-performance anode materials for lithium-ion batteries

Defect-induced magnetism is firstly observed in neutron irradiated SiC single crystals. We demonstrated that the intentionally created defects dominated by divacancies (V(Si)V(C)) are responsible for the observed magnetism. First-principles calculations revealed that defect states favor the formation of local moments and the extended tails of defect wave functions make long-range spin couplings possible. Our results confirm the existence of defect-induced magnetism, implying the possibility of tuning the magnetism of wide band-gap semiconductors by defect engineering.

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Defect-induced magnetism in neutron irradiated 6H-SiC single crystals.

Structural and magnetic properties of Si1−xCoxC

KZnB3O6 is synthesized under ambient pressure from a stoichiometric mixture of K2CO3, ZnO, and H3BO3 (500 °C for 12 h and annealing at 750 °C for 24 h).

Xiaolong Chen

Papers

Superconductivity in the iron selenide K x Fe 2 Se 2 (0≤x≤1.0)

Synthesis of Mo2N nanolayer coated MoO2 hollow nanostructures as high-performance anode materials for lithium-ion batteries

Defect-induced magnetism in neutron irradiated 6H-SiC single crystals.

Structural and magnetic properties of Si1−xCoxC

Stable oxoborate with edge-sharing BO4 tetrahedra synthesized under ambient pressure.