8 research outputs found
Improved Cyclic Performance of Si Anodes for Lithium-Ion Batteries by Forming Intermetallic Interphases between Si Nanoparticles and Metal Microparticles
Silicon,
an anode material with the highest capacity for lithium-ion batteries,
needs to improve its cyclic performance prior to practical applications.
Here, we report on a novel design of Si/metal composite anode in which
Si nanoparticles are welded onto surfaces of metal particles by forming
intermetallic interphases through a rapid heat treatment. Unlike pure
Si materials that gradually lose electrical contact with conductors
and binders upon repeated charging and discharging cycles, Si in the
new Si/metal composite can maintain the electrical contact with the
current collector through the intermetallic interphases, which are
inactive and do not lose physical contact with the conductors and
binders, resulting in significantly improved cyclic performance. Within
100 cycles, only 23.8% of the capacity of the pure Si anode is left
while our Si/Ni anode obtained at 900 °C maintains 73.7% of its
capacity. Therefore, the concept of employing intermetallic interphases
between Si nanoparticles and metal particles provides a new avenue
to improve the cyclic performance of Si-based anodes
Ultrasensitive Chemical Sensing through Facile Tuning Defects and Functional Groups in Reduced Graphene Oxide
Herein,
we report on a facile, low-cost, and efficient method to
tune the structure and properties of chemically reduced graphene oxide
(rGO) by applying a transient voltage across the rGO for ultrasensitive
gas sensors. A large number of defects, including pits, are formed
in the rGO upon the voltage activation. More interestingly, the number
of epoxide and ether functional groups in the rGO increased after
the voltage activation. The voltage-activated rGO was highly sensitive
to NO<sub>2</sub> with a sensitivity 500% higher than that of the
original rGO. The lower detection limit can reach an unprecedented
ultralow concentration of 50 ppb for NO<sub>2</sub> sensing. Density
functional theory (DFT) calculations revealed that the high sensitivity
to NO<sub>2</sub> is attributed to the efficient charge transfer from
ether groups to NO<sub>2</sub>, which is the dominant sensing mechanism.
This study points to a promising method to tune the properties of
graphene-based materials through the creation of additional defects
and functional groups for high-performance gas sensors
Ultrasensitive Mercury Ion Detection Using DNA-Functionalized Molybdenum Disulfide Nanosheet/Gold Nanoparticle Hybrid Field-Effect Transistor Device
Mercury,
one of the most harmful pollutants in water, has a significant
negative impact on human health. The molybdenum disulfide (MoS<sub>2</sub>) nanosheet, due to its unique electronic properties, is a
promising candidate for high-performance sensing materials. Here,
we report a DNA-functionalized MoS<sub>2</sub> nanosheet/gold nanoparticle
hybrid field-effect transistor (FET) sensor for the ultrasensitive
detection of Hg<sup>2+</sup> in an aqueous environment. Specific DNA
was used in the hybrid structure as the capture probe for the label-free
detection. By monitoring the electrical characteristics of the FET
device, the performance of the sensor was investigated. Our sensor
shows a rapid response (1–2 s) to Hg<sup>2+</sup> and an ultralow
detection limit of 0.1 nM, which is much lower than the maximum contaminant
level (MCL) for Hg<sup>2+</sup> in drinking water (9.9 nM) recommended
by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). In addition, the
sensor shows a high selectivity to Hg<sup>2+</sup> compared with other
interfering metal ions, e.g., As<sup>5+</sup>, Cd<sup>2+</sup>, Pb<sup>2+</sup>, and so forth. This rapid and ultrasensitive method for
Hg<sup>2+</sup> detection can either be potentially developed into
stand-alone hand-held sensors or be integrated into existing water
equipment for continuously monitoring the water quality
Pulse-Driven Capacitive Lead Ion Detection with Reduced Graphene Oxide Field-Effect Transistor Integrated with an Analyzing Device for Rapid Water Quality Monitoring
Rapid
and real-time detection of heavy metals in water with a portable
microsystem is a growing demand in the field of environmental monitoring,
food safety, and future cyber-physical infrastructure. Here, we report
a novel ultrasensitive pulse-driven capacitance-based lead ion sensor
using self-assembled graphene oxide (GO) monolayer deposition strategy
to recognize the heavy metal ions in water. The overall field-effect
transistor (FET) structure consists of a thermally reduced graphene
oxide (rGO) channel with a thin layer of Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> passivation as a top gate combined with sputtered gold nanoparticles
that link with the glutathione (GSH) probe to attract Pb<sup>2+</sup> ions in water. Using a preprogrammed microcontroller, chemo-capacitance
based detection of lead ions has been demonstrated with this FET sensor.
With a rapid response (∼1–2 s) and negligible signal
drift, a limit of detection (LOD) < 1 ppb and excellent selectivity
(with a sensitivity to lead ions 1 order of magnitude higher than
that of interfering ions) can be achieved for Pb<sup>2+</sup> measurements.
The overall assay time (∼10 s) for background water stabilization
followed by lead ion testing and calculation is much shorter than
common FET resistance/current measurements (∼minutes) and other
conventional methods, such as optical and inductively coupled plasma
methods (∼hours). An approximate linear operational range (5–20
ppb) around 15 ppb (the maximum contaminant limit by US Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) for lead in drinking water) makes it especially
suitable for drinking water quality monitoring. The validity of the
pulse method is confirmed by quantifying Pb<sup>2+</sup> in various
real water samples such as tap, lake, and river water with an accuracy
∼75%. This capacitance measurement strategy is promising and
can be readily extended to various FET-based sensor devices for other
targets
Fast and Selective Room-Temperature Ammonia Sensors Using Silver Nanocrystal-Functionalized Carbon Nanotubes
We report a selective, room-temperature NH<sub>3</sub> gas-sensing
platform with enhanced sensitivity, superfast response and recovery,
and good stability, using Ag nanocrystal-functionalized multiwalled
carbon nanotubes (Ag NC–MWCNTs). Ag NCs were synthesized by
a simple mini-arc plasma method and directly assembled on MWCNTs using
an electrostatic force-directed assembly process. The nanotubes were
assembled onto gold electrodes with both ends in Ohmic contact. The
addition of Ag NCs on MWCNTs resulted in dramatically improved sensitivity
toward NH<sub>3</sub>. Upon exposure to 1% NH<sub>3</sub> at room
temperature, Ag NC–MWCNTs showed enhanced sensitivity (∼9%),
very fast response (∼7 s), and full recovery within several
minutes in air. Through density functional theory calculations, we
found that the fully oxidized Ag surface plays a critical role in
the sensor response. Ammonia molecules are adsorbed at Ag hollow sites
on the AgO surface with H pointing toward Ag. A net charge transfer
from NH<sub>3</sub> to the Ag NC–MWCNTs hybrid leads to the
conductance change in the hybrid
Rapid, Sensitive, Label-Free Electrical Detection of SARS-CoV‑2 in Nasal Swab Samples
Rapid
diagnosis of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is key for
the long-term control of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus
2 (SARS-CoV-2) amid renewed threats of mutated SARS-CoV-2 around the
world. Here, we report on an electrical label-free detection of SARS-CoV-2
in nasopharyngeal swab samples directly collected from outpatients
or in saliva-relevant conditions by using a remote floating-gate field-effect
transistor (RFGFET) with a 2-dimensional reduced graphene oxide (rGO)
sensing membrane. RFGFET sensors demonstrate rapid detection (<5
min), a 90.6% accuracy from 8 nasal swab samples measured by 4 different
devices for each sample, and a coefficient of variation (CV) <
6%. Also, RFGFET sensors display a limit of detection (LOD) of pseudo-SARS-CoV-2
that is 10 000-fold lower than enzyme-linked immunosorbent
assays, with a comparable LOD to that of reverse transcription-polymerase
chain reaction (RT-PCR) for patient samples. To achieve this, comprehensive
systematic studies were performed regarding interactions between SARS-CoV-2
and spike proteins, neutralizing antibodies, and angiotensin-converting
enzyme 2, as either a biomarker (detection target) or a sensing probe
(receptor) functionalized on the rGO sensing membrane. Taken together,
this work may have an immense effect on positioning FET bioelectronics
for rapid SARS-CoV-2 diagnostics
Evidence of Nanocrystalline Semiconducting Graphene Monoxide during Thermal Reduction of Graphene Oxide in Vacuum
As silicon-based electronics are reaching the nanosize limits of the semiconductor roadmap, carbon-based nanoelectronics has become a rapidly growing field, with great interest in tuning the properties of carbon-based materials. Chemical functionalization is a proposed route, but syntheses of graphene oxide (G-O) produce disordered, nonstoichiometric materials with poor electronic properties. We report synthesis of an ordered, stoichiometric, solid-state carbon oxide that has never been observed in nature and coexists with graphene. Formation of this material, graphene monoxide (GMO), is achieved by annealing multilayered G-O. Our results indicate that the resulting thermally reduced G-O (TRG-O) consists of a two-dimensional nanocrystalline phase segregation: unoxidized graphitic regions are separated from highly oxidized regions of GMO. GMO has a quasi-hexagonal unit cell, an unusually high 1:1 O:C ratio, and a calculated direct band gap of ∼0.9 eV
Evidence of Nanocrystalline Semiconducting Graphene Monoxide during Thermal Reduction of Graphene Oxide in Vacuum
As silicon-based electronics are reaching the nanosize limits of the semiconductor roadmap, carbon-based nanoelectronics has become a rapidly growing field, with great interest in tuning the properties of carbon-based materials. Chemical functionalization is a proposed route, but syntheses of graphene oxide (G-O) produce disordered, nonstoichiometric materials with poor electronic properties. We report synthesis of an ordered, stoichiometric, solid-state carbon oxide that has never been observed in nature and coexists with graphene. Formation of this material, graphene monoxide (GMO), is achieved by annealing multilayered G-O. Our results indicate that the resulting thermally reduced G-O (TRG-O) consists of a two-dimensional nanocrystalline phase segregation: unoxidized graphitic regions are separated from highly oxidized regions of GMO. GMO has a quasi-hexagonal unit cell, an unusually high 1:1 O:C ratio, and a calculated direct band gap of ∼0.9 eV