Strain enhanced lithium adsorption and diffusion on silicene

Abstract The performance of Li-ion batteries relies heavily on the capacity and stability of constituent electrodes. Recently synthesized 2D silicene has demonstrated excellent Li-ion capacity with high charging rates. To explore the external influences for battery performance, in this work, first-principles calculations are employed to investigate the effect of external strain on the adsorption and diffusion of Li on silicene monolayers. It was found that tensile strain could enhance Li binding on silicene. The diffusion barrier is also calculated and the results show that Li diffusion through silicene is facilitated by tensile strain, whereas the strain has a limited effect on the energy barrier of diffusion parallel to the plane of pristine silicene. Our results suggest that silicene could be a promising electrode material for lithium ion batteries

First‐principles studies of lithium adsorption and diffusion on silicene with grain boundaries

Abstract As a close relative to graphene, silicene is advanced in high lithium capacity, yet attracting various manipulation strategies to promote its role in energy storage. Following grain boundary (GB) engineering route as widely used in graphene studies, in this work, first‐principles calculations were performed to investigate adsorption and diffusion behaviors of lithium on silicene with GBs of 4|8 or 5|5|8 defects. In both GB forms, donation of the Li 2s electron to the GBs significantly increases the Li adsorption energy, whereas small energy barriers facilitate the Li migration on the silicene surface. Furthermore, the large hole of GB(4‐8) also permits easy penetration of the Li ions through the defective silicene sieve. These important features demonstrate GBs are beneficial for enhancing capacity and charge speed of the Li batteries. Thus, superior anodes made of silicene with GBs are expected to serve a key solution for future energy storages

Transition metal adsorbed-doped ZnO monolayer:2D dilute magnetic semiconductor, magnetic mechanism, and beyond 2D

Abstract As an improvement over organic or inorganic layered crystals, the synthetic monolayer ZnO(M) inherits semiconductivity and hostability from its bulk, yet it acts as a promising host for dilute magnetic semiconductors. Here, we report the electronic and magnetic properties of ZnO(M) doped with one 3d transition metal ion and simultaneously adsorbed with another 3d transition metal ion. Two sequences are studied, one where the dopant is fixed to Mn and the adsorbate is varied from Sc to Zn and another where the dopant and adsorbate are reversed. First-principles results show that the stable adsorbed−doped systems possess a lower bandgap energy than that of the host. System magnetic moments can be tuned to |5 − x|μB, where x refers to the magnetic moment of the individual 3d atom. An interplay between superexchange and direct exchange yields a ferromagnetic system dually adsorbed−doped with Mn. In addition to a novel material design route, the magnetic interaction mechanism is found beyond two dimensions, having been identified for its three-dimensional bulk and zero-dimensional cluster counterparts

Evolution of lithium clusters to superatomic Li₃O⁺

Abstract Accurate knowledge of the oxidation stages of lithium is crucially important for developing next-generation Li-air batteries. The intermediate oxidation stages, however, differ in the bulk and cluster forms of lithium. In this letter, using first-principles calculations, we predict several reaction pathways leading to the formation of Li₃O⁺ superatoms. Experimental results based on time-of-flight mass spectrometry and laser ablation of oxidized lithium bulk samples agreed well with our theoretical calculations. Additionally, the highest occupied molecular orbital-lowest unoccupied molecular orbital gap of Li₃O⁺ was close to the energy released in one of these reaction paths, indicating that the superatom could act as a candidate charge-discharge unit

Introducing magnetism into 2D nonmagnetic inorganic layered crystals:a brief review from first-principles aspects

Abstract Pioneering explorations of the two-dimensional (2D) inorganic layered crystals (ILCs) in electronics have boosted low-dimensional materials research beyond the prototypical but semi-metallic graphene. Thanks to species variety and compositional richness, ILCs are further activated as hosting matrices to reach intrinsic magnetism due to their semiconductive natures. Herein, we briefly review the latest progresses of manipulation strategies that introduce magnetism into the nonmagnetic 2D and quasi-2D ILCs from the first-principles computational perspectives. The matrices are concerned within naturally occurring species such as MoS², MoSe², WS², BN, and synthetic monolayers such as ZnO and g-C²N. Greater attention is spent on nondestructive routes through magnetic dopant adsorption; defect engineering; and a combination of doping-absorbing methods. Along with structural stability and electric uniqueness from hosts, tailored magnetic properties are successfully introduced to low-dimensional ILCs. Different from the three-dimensional (3D) bulk or zero-dimensional (0D) cluster cases, origins of magnetism in the 2D space move past most conventional physical models. Besides magnetic interactions, geometric symmetry contributes a non-negligible impact on the magnetic properties of ILCs, and surprisingly leads to broken symmetry for magnetism. At the end of the review, we also propose possible combination routes to create 2D ILC magnetic semiconductors, tentative theoretical models based on topology for mechanical interpretations, and next-step first-principles research within the domain

Test of lepton flavour universality using B0→D∗−τ+ντB^0 \to D^{*-}\tau^+\nu_{\tau} decays with hadronic τ\tau channels

The branching fraction $\mathcal{B}(B^0 \to D^{*-}\tau^+\nu_\tau)$ is measured relative to that of the normalisation mode $B^0 \to D^{*-}\pi^+\pi^-\pi^+$ using hadronic $\tau^+ \to \pi^+\pi^-\pi^+(\pi^0)\bar{\nu}_\tau$ decays in proton-proton collision data at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV collected by the LHCb experiment, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 2 fb$^{-1}$. The measured ratio is $\mathcal{B}(B^0 \to D^{*-}\tau^+\nu_\tau)/\mathcal{B}(B^0 \to D^{*-}\pi^+\pi^-\pi^+)= 1.70 \pm 0.10^{+0.11}_{-0.10}$, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second is related to systematic effects. Using established branching fractions for the $B^0 \to D^{*-}\pi^+\pi^-\pi^+$ and $B^0 \to D^{*-} \mu^+\nu_\mu$ modes, the lepton universality test, $\mathcal{R}(D^{*-}) \equiv \mathcal{B}(B^0 \to D^{*-}\tau^+\nu_\tau)/\mathcal{B}(B^0 \to D^{*-} \mu^+\nu_\mu)$ is calculated, $$\mathcal{R}(D^{*-}) = 0.247 \pm 0.015 \pm 0.015 \pm 0.012\, ,$$ where the third uncertainty is due to the uncertainties on the external branching fractions. This result is consistent with the Standard Model prediction and with previous measurements.The branching fraction B(B0→D*-τ+ντ) is measured relative to that of the normalization mode B0→D*-π+π-π+ using hadronic τ+→π+π-π+(π0)ν¯τ decays in proton-proton collision data at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV collected by the LHCb experiment, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 2  fb-1. The measured ratio is B(B0→D*-τ+ντ)/B(B0→D*-π+π-π+)=1.70±0.10-0.10+0.11, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second is related to systematic effects. Using established branching fractions for the B0→D*-π+π-π+ and B0→D*-μ+νμ modes, the lepton universality test R(D*-)≡B(B0→D*-τ+ντ)/B(B0→D*-μ+νμ) is calculated, R(D*-)=0.247±0.015±0.015±0.012, where the third uncertainty is due to the uncertainties on the external branching fractions. This result is consistent with the Standard Model prediction and with previous measurements.The branching fraction $\mathcal{B}(B^0 \to D^{*-}\tau^+\nu_{\tau})$ is measured relative to that of the normalisation mode $B^0 \to D^{*-}\pi^+\pi^-\pi^+$ using hadronic $\tau^+ \to \pi^+\pi^-\pi^+(\pi^0)\bar{\nu}_{\tau}$ decays in proton-proton collision data at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV collected by the LHCb experiment, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 2 fb$^{-1}$. The measured ratio is $\mathcal{B}(B^0 \to D^{*-}\tau^+\nu_{\tau})/\mathcal{B}(B^0 \to D^{*-}\pi^+\pi^-\pi^+)= 1.70 \pm 0.10^{+0.11}_{-0.10}$, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second is related to systematic effects. Using established branching fractions for the $B^0 \to D^{*-}\pi^+\pi^-\pi^+$ and $B^0 \to D^{*-} \mu^+\nu_\mu$ modes, the lepton universality test, $\mathcal{R}(D^{*-}) \equiv \mathcal{B}(B^0 \to D^{*-}\tau^+\nu_{\tau})/\mathcal{B}(B^0 \to D^{*-} \mu^+\nu_\mu)$ is calculated, $$\mathcal{R}(D^{*-}) = 0.247 \pm 0.015 \pm 0.015 \pm 0.012\, ,$$ where the third uncertainty is due to the uncertainties on the external branching fractions. This result is consistent with the Standard Model prediction and with previous measurements