19.2% Efficient InP Heterojunction Solar Cell with Electron-Selective TiO2 Contact.

We demonstrate an InP heterojunction solar cell employing an ultrathin layer (∼10 nm) of amorphous TiO2 deposited at 120 °C by atomic layer deposition as the transparent electron-selective contact. The TiO2 film selectively extracts minority electrons from the conduction band of p-type InP while blocking the majority holes due to the large valence band offset, enabling a high maximum open-circuit voltage of 785 mV. A hydrogen plasma treatment of the InP surface drastically improves the long-wavelength response of the device, resulting in a high short-circuit current density of 30.5 mA/cm2 and a high power conversion efficiency of 19.2%

Carbon Nanotubes: Printed Carbon Nanotube Electronics and Sensor Systems (Adv. Mater. 22/2016).

Printed electronics and sensors enable new applications ranging from low-cost disposable analytical devices to large-area sensor networks. Recent progress in printed carbon nanotube electronics in terms of materials, processing, devices, and applications is discussed on page 4397 by A. Javey and co-workers. The research challenges and opportunities regarding the processing and system-level integration are also discussed for enabling of practical applications

Room temperature multiplexed gas sensing using chemical-sensitive 3.5-nm-thin silicon transistors

There is great interest in developing a low-power gas sensing technology that can sensitively and selectively quantify the chemical composition of a target atmosphere. Nanomaterials have emerged as extremely promising candidates for this technology due to their inherent low-dimensional nature and high surface-to-volume ratio. Among these, nanoscale silicon is of great interest because pristine silicon is largely inert on its own in the context of gas sensing, unless functionalized with an appropriate gas-sensitive material. We report a chemical-sensitive field-effect transistor (CS-FET) platform based on 3.5-nm-thin silicon channel transistors. Using industry compatible processing techniques, the conventional electrically active gate stack is replaced by an ultrathin chemical-sensitive layer that is electrically conconducting and coupled to the 3.5-nm-thin silicon channel. We demonstrate a low-power, sensitive, and selective multiplexed gas sensing technology using this platform by detecting H_2S, H_2, and NO_2 at room temperature for environment, health, and safety in the oil and gas industry, offering significant advantages over existing technology. Moreover, the system described here can be readily integrated with mobile electronics for distributed sensor networks in environmental pollution mapping and personal air-quality monitors

Fully integrated wearable sensor arrays for multiplexed in situ perspiration analysis

Wearable sensor technologies are essential to the realization of personalized medicine through continuously monitoring an individual’s state of health. Sampling human sweat, which is rich in physiological information, could enable non-invasive monitoring. Previously reported sweat-based and other non-invasive biosensors either can only monitor a single analyte at a time or lack on-site signal processing circuitry and sensor calibration mechanisms for accurate analysis of the physiological state. Given the complexity of sweat secretion, simultaneous and multiplexed screening of target biomarkers is critical and requires full system integration to ensure the accuracy of measurements. Here we present a mechanically flexible and fully integrated (that is, no external analysis is needed) sensor array for multiplexed in situ perspiration analysis, which simultaneously and selectively measures sweat metabolites (such as glucose and lactate) and electrolytes (such as sodium and potassium ions), as well as the skin temperature (to calibrate the response of the sensors). Our work bridges the technological gap between signal transduction, conditioning (amplification and filtering), processing and wireless transmission in wearable biosensors by merging plastic-based sensors that interface with the skin with silicon integrated circuits consolidated on a flexible circuit board for complex signal processing. This application could not have been realized using either of these technologies alone owing to their respective inherent limitations. The wearable system is used to measure the detailed sweat profile of human subjects engaged in prolonged indoor and outdoor physical activities, and to make a real-time assessment of the physiological state of the subjects. This platform enables a wide range of personalized diagnostic and physiological monitoring applications

General Thermal Texturization Process of MoS_2 for Efficient Electrocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution Reaction

Molybdenum disulfide (MoS_2) has been widely examined as a catalyst containing no precious metals for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER); however, these examinations have utilized synthesized MoS_2 because the pristine MoS_2 mineral is known to be a poor catalyst. The fundamental challenge with pristine MoS_2 is the inert HER activity of the predominant (0001) basal surface plane. In order to achieve high HER performance with pristine MoS_2, it is essential to activate the basal plane. Here, we report a general thermal process in which the basal plane is texturized to increase the density of HER-active edge sites. This texturization is achieved through a simple thermal annealing procedure in a hydrogen environment, removing sulfur from the MoS_2 surface to form edge sites. As a result, the process generates high HER catalytic performance in pristine MoS_2 across various morphologies such as the bulk mineral, films composed of micron-scale flakes, and even films of a commercially available spray of nanoflake MoS_2. The lowest overpotential (η) observed for these samples was η = 170 mV to obtain 10 mA/cm_2 of HER current density

General Thermal Texturization Process of MoS_2 for Efficient Electrocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution Reaction

Molybdenum disulfide (MoS_2) has been widely examined as a catalyst containing no precious metals for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER); however, these examinations have utilized synthesized MoS_2 because the pristine MoS_2 mineral is known to be a poor catalyst. The fundamental challenge with pristine MoS_2 is the inert HER activity of the predominant (0001) basal surface plane. In order to achieve high HER performance with pristine MoS_2, it is essential to activate the basal plane. Here, we report a general thermal process in which the basal plane is texturized to increase the density of HER-active edge sites. This texturization is achieved through a simple thermal annealing procedure in a hydrogen environment, removing sulfur from the MoS_2 surface to form edge sites. As a result, the process generates high HER catalytic performance in pristine MoS_2 across various morphologies such as the bulk mineral, films composed of micron-scale flakes, and even films of a commercially available spray of nanoflake MoS_2. The lowest overpotential (η) observed for these samples was η = 170 mV to obtain 10 mA/cm_2 of HER current density

Fully integrated wearable sensor arrays for multiplexed in situ perspiration analysis

Wearable sensor technologies are essential to the realization of personalized medicine through continuously monitoring an individual’s state of health. Sampling human sweat, which is rich in physiological information, could enable non-invasive monitoring. Previously reported sweat-based and other non-invasive biosensors either can only monitor a single analyte at a time or lack on-site signal processing circuitry and sensor calibration mechanisms for accurate analysis of the physiological state. Given the complexity of sweat secretion, simultaneous and multiplexed screening of target biomarkers is critical and requires full system integration to ensure the accuracy of measurements. Here we present a mechanically flexible and fully integrated (that is, no external analysis is needed) sensor array for multiplexed in situ perspiration analysis, which simultaneously and selectively measures sweat metabolites (such as glucose and lactate) and electrolytes (such as sodium and potassium ions), as well as the skin temperature (to calibrate the response of the sensors). Our work bridges the technological gap between signal transduction, conditioning (amplification and filtering), processing and wireless transmission in wearable biosensors by merging plastic-based sensors that interface with the skin with silicon integrated circuits consolidated on a flexible circuit board for complex signal processing. This application could not have been realized using either of these technologies alone owing to their respective inherent limitations. The wearable system is used to measure the detailed sweat profile of human subjects engaged in prolonged indoor and outdoor physical activities, and to make a real-time assessment of the physiological state of the subjects. This platform enables a wide range of personalized diagnostic and physiological monitoring applications

Application of 3D Printing for Smart Objects with Embedded Electronic Sensors and Systems

Applications of a 3D printing process are presented. This process integrates liquid-state printed components and interconnects with IC chips in all three dimensions, various orientations, and multiple printing layers to deliver personalized system-level functionalities. As an example application, a form-fitting glove is demonstrated with embedded programmable heater, temperature sensor, and the associated control electronics for thermotherapeutic treatment