Low-Temperature Remote Plasma Synthesis of Highly Porous TiO2 as Electron Transport Layers in Perovskite Solar Cells

Halide perovskite solar cells (PSCs) offer high efficiency at low production costs, making them a promising solution for future photovoltaic technologies. Optimizing charge transport layers is crucial, with porous TiO2 widely used as electron transport layers (ETLs) due to their suitable energy band alignment, transparency, and abundance. However, their performance depends strongly on crystallinity, requiring…

Improving energy storage properties of carbon felt electrodes for vanadium redox flow batteries via ZIF modifications

In this study, we successfully enhanced the electrochemical energy storage properties of commercial carbon felts by modifying their surface with metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) of the zeolitic imidazolate framework (ZIF) type, incorporating Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, and Zn as metal centres. These modifications were achieved through two distinct processes: layer-by-layer deposition and a hydrothermal synthesis method.…

Voids and nanopores in nanocolumnar platinum thin films grown by magnetron sputtering and evaporation at oblique angles: A comparative analysis

Nanocolumnar thin films deposited at oblique angle (OA) by magnetron sputtering or evaporation often show common structural aspects when grown under equivalent geometrical conditions. This is the case of the column tilt angle as a function of the geometrical deposition arrangement, which coincides for some materials no matter the technique. This feature has usually been…

Mechanisms of De-icing by Surface Rayleigh and Plate Lamb Acoustic Waves

Acoustic waves (AW) have recently emerged as an energy-efficient ice-removal procedure compatible with functional and industrial-relevant substrates. However, critical aspects at fundamental and experimental levels have yet to be disclosed to optimize their operational conditions. Identifying the processes and mechanisms by which different types of AWs induce de-icing are some of these issues. Herein, using…

Advances in Hybrid Icing and Frosting Protection Strategies for Optics, Lens, and Photonics in Cold Environments Using Thin-Film Acoustic Waves

Fogging, icing, or frosting on optical lenses, optics/photonics, windshields, vehicle/airplane windows, and solar panel surfaces have often shown serious safety concerns with hazardous conditions and impaired sight. Various active techniques, such as resistive heating, and passive techniques, such as icephobic treatments, are widely employed for their prevention and elimination. However, these methods are not always…

In situ growing of ZIF-8 crystals into TiO2 micro columnar films

This study proposes a fast and simple method for the in situ growth of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) on metal oxide substrates as an alternative to the traditional approaches of using gold substrates and self-assembled monolayers (SAMs). As a case study, zeolitic imidazolate framework 8 (ZIF-8) crystals were grown in micro columnar TiO2 films through simple…

Atomic-Scale Modeling of Water and Ice Behavior on Vibrating Surfaces: Toward the Design of Surface Acoustic Wave Anti-icing and Deicing Systems

Within these studies, atomic-scale molecular dynamics simulations have been performed to analyze the behavior of water droplets and ice clusters on hydrophilic and hydrophobic surfaces subjected to high-frequency vibrations. The methodology applied herewith aimed at understanding the phenomena governing the anti-icing and deicing process enabled by surface acoustic waves (SAWs). The complex wave propagation was…

Multidimensional nanoarchitectures for improved indoor light harvesting in dye-sensitized solar cells

Dye Sensitized Solar Cells (DSSCs) have recently gained renewed interest for their potential in indoor light harvesting and powering wireless devices. However, to fully exploit their potential, crucial aspects require further attention, in particular, the improvement of spectral compatibility and low-light harvesting mechanisms, as well as the development of efficient photoanodes through high-yield scalable methods.…

Facile integration of single-crystalline phthalocyanine nanowires and nanotrees as photo-enhanced conductometric sensors

This article presents a reproducible and affordable methodology for fabricating organic nanowires (ONWs) and nanotrees (ONTs) as light-enhanced conductometric O2 sensors. This protocol is based on a solventless procedure for the formation of high-density arrays of nanowires and nanotrees on interdigitated electrodes. The synthesis combines physical vapour deposition for the self-assembled growth of free-phthalocyanine nanowires and soft plasma etching to prompt the nucleation sites on the as-grown ONWs to allow for the formation of nanotrees. Electrical conductivity in…