A Continuous Gradient Colloidal Glass (Adv. Mater. 7/2023)

Langmuir

In this study, we systematically analyze the surface tension and Hansen solubility parameters (HSPs) of imidazolium-based ionic liquids (ILs) with different anions ([NTf2]−, [PF6]−, [I]−, and [Br]−). These anions are combined with the classical 1-alkyl-3-methyl-substituted imidazolium cations ([CnC1Im]+) and a group of oligoether-functionalized imidazolium cations ([(mPEGn)2Im]+) based on methylated polyethylene glycol (mPEGn). In detail, the influences of the length of the alkyl- and the mPEGn-chain, the anion size, and the water content are investigated experimentally. For [CnC1Im]+-based ILs, the surface tension decreases with increasing alkyl chain length in all cases, but the magnitude of this decrease depends on the size of the anion ([NTf2]− < [PF6]− < [Br]− ≤ [I]−). Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations on [CnC1Im]+-based ILs indicate that these differences are caused by the interplay of charged and …

Carbon Letters

A thorough knowledge and understanding of the structure–property relationship between thermal conductivity and C-fiber morphology is important to estimate the behavior of carbon fiber components, especially under thermal loading. In this paper, the thermal conductivities of different carbon fibers with varying tensile modulus were analyzed perpendicular and parallel to the fiber direction. Besides the measurement of carbon fiber reinforced polymers, we also measured the thermal conductivity of single carbon fibers directly. The measurements clearly proved that the thermal conductivity increased with the tensile modulus both in fiber and perpendicular direction. The increase is most pronounced in fiber direction. We ascribed the increase in tensile modules and thermal conductivity to increasing anisotropy resulting from the orientation of graphitic domains and microvoids.Graphical abstract

Advanced Materials Interfaces

Nanostructured materials that mimic structural coloration in nature can be synthetically created by colloidal self‐assembly. To maximize optical effects, the natural world integrates melanin as a broadband absorber to remove incoherently scattered light. Polydopamine (PDA) is used as a synthetic analog of natural melanin to systematically investigate the influence of absorber quantity and distribution on color saturation in colloidal photonic crystals. The absorbing PDA is integrated into two distinct ways: homogenous colloidal crystals are produced from core–shell particles with incrementally increasing polydopamine shells, and heterogeneous colloidal crystals are formed by co‐assembly of varying ratios of polystyrene (PS) and absorbing PS@PDA particles. The chromaticity is quantified by converting the measured spectra to reconstructed colors in the L*a*b* color sphere to identify structures with optimal color …

Langmuir

Unraveling the two-dimensional (2D) structural ordering of colloidal particles assembled at a flat surface is essential for understanding and optimizing their physical properties. So far, grazing-incidence small-angle X-ray scattering (GISAXS) has been widely used to determine crystallographic information on 2D self-assembled structures of nanosize objects. However, solving the structure of 2D lattices consisting of micrometer (μm)-sized objects still remains a challenge using scattering methods. Here, a model 2D SCALMS (supported catalytically active liquid metal solution) template is fabricated from μm-sized polystyrene (PS) spheres that form a monolayer on top of the flat solid support. GISAXS patterns of the sample were collected for rotation angles around its surface normal in steps of 3°. For every rotation angle, different Bragg-type interference maxima along the out-of-plane (qz) direction were observed. On …

Microfluidics and Nanofluidics

In this study, we show the design and manufacturing of microfluidic deterministic lateral displacement (DLD) devices for sub-micrometer particle separation. For that purpose, devices with pillar gaps of 4 µm and a periodicity of 50 were designed. After photolithographic manufacturing of SU-8 masters with different heights (15 and 30 µm) and vertical sidewalls for soft-lithographic replication with polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) the influence of flow rate on the separation efficiency of 0.45 and 0.97 µm particles was investigated. The 15 µm devices were operated at 0.125 and 0.5 µl/min sample flow rate and the 30 µm devices at 0.5 and 2.0 µl/min, respectively. Excellent separation efficiencies were observed for both device heights at the lower sample flow rates, while separation efficiencies decreased at the respective higher sample flow rates. The decrease in separation efficiency was attributed to deformation of the soft …

ACS photonics

Molecular chirality plays fundamental roles in biology. The chiral response of a molecule occurs at a specific spectral position, determined by its molecular structure. This fingerprint can be transferred to other spectral regions via the interaction with localized surface plasmon resonances of gold nanoparticles. Here, we demonstrate that molecular chirality transfer occurs also for plasmonic lattice modes, providing a very effective and tunable means to control chirality. We use colloidal self-assembly to fabricate non-close packed, periodic arrays of achiral gold nanoparticles, which are embedded in a polymer film containing chiral molecules. In the presence of the chiral molecules, the surface lattice resonances (SLRs) become optically active, i.e., showing handedness-dependent excitation. Numerical simulations with varying lattice parameters show circular dichroism peaks shifting along with the spectral positions of …

Advanced Engineering Materials

A novel strategy for manufacturing of the main insulation of high‐voltage rotating machines is presented. The developed process is based on established electrostatic powder coating equipment. Using complete automation enables the precise and reproducible application of homogeneous powder coating layers. Individual layers can be stacked by process repetitions to achieve a desired layer thickness. This coating strategy alters the particle deposition process by introducing additional capillary bridges that significantly increase powder adhesion. A systematic parameter study is performed to provide process–structure relations connecting various process parameters with the resultant coating thickness and homogeneity. The parameters of the developed coating process are iteratively improved to maximize coating homogeneity and minimize defect density, the most critical parameters in high‐voltage insulation …

Journal of Materials Chemistry A

With ongoing miniaturization and weight reduction of portable electronic devices, effective heat dissipation is essential to inhibit malfunctions and premature failure. The application of fillers in a polymer matrix enhances the thermal conductivity of lightweight materials but impedes recyclability. All-polyethylene (all-PE) materials represent a sustainable and easy-to-recycle single-material alternative, whereby high and tunable thermal conductivity is provided by process-induced hierarchical PE nanostructures. Essential for this type of composite-free high-performance material is the specific PE composition containing high amounts of ultra-high molecular weight PE that form ultrastrong extended-chain nanostructures induced by shear and elongational flow during processing. This results in self-reinforcing fibre-like shish-kebab nanostructures with a high thermal conductivity parallel to the extended PE chains …

Macromolecular Materials and Engineering

Liquid‐infused surfaces exhibit remarkable repellency properties toward water, oils, and complex fluids and are widely applied to maintain clean, operational, and high‐performing surfaces in various fields, from the biomedical sector to marine infrastructure. Polydopamine (PDA) forms an ideal base layer for the development of such coatings as it adheres to virtually any substrate and can be chemically modified via amino‐containing molecules to adjust the surface properties. Here, strategies are explored to increase the mechanical stability of such coatings by i) incorporating imidazole during film formation to increase crosslinking, and ii) formation of a composite consisting of the organic PDA and an inorganic siliceous porous coating by infiltration of a preformed porous silica layer with PDA. Both strategies exhibit improved resistance to tangential shear assessed by a sandpaper abrasion test and to dynamic …

In this contribution, we present a novel type of sub-cycle field-resolved microscopy of Terahertz electric near-fields inside micro- and nanostructures. The “Quantum-probe Field Microscopy” (QFIM) scheme is based on fluorescence microscopy of semiconductor Quantum-dot luminescence and harnesses the Quantum-confined Stark effect for recording stroboscopic “movies” of ultrafast resonant and propagating THz-excitations. The scheme is compatible with strong local driving field strengths, sub-micrometer resolution and sub-cycle sampling of multi-THz waveforms. We discuss experimental implementations, recent results and future prospects of this versatile microscopy scheme.

Sensors

Scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM) is a versatile scanning probe technique that allows monitoring of a plethora of electrochemical reactions on a highly resolved local scale. SECM in combination with atomic force microscopy (AFM) is particularly well suited to acquire electrochemical data correlated to sample topography, elasticity, and adhesion, respectively. The resolution achievable in SECM depends critically on the properties of the probe acting as an electrochemical sensor, i.e., the working electrode, which is scanned over the sample. Hence, the development of SECM probes received much attention in recent years. However, for the operation and performance of SECM, the fluid cell and the three-electrode setup are also of paramount importance. These two aspects received much less attention so far. Here, we present a novel approach to the universal implementation of a three-electrode setup for SECM in practically any fluid cell. The integration of all three electrodes (working, counter, and reference) near the cantilever provides many advantages, such as the usage of conventional AFM fluid cells also for SECM or enables the measurement in liquid drops. Moreover, the other electrodes become easily exchangeable as they are combined with the cantilever substrate. Thereby, the handling is improved significantly. We demonstrated that high-resolution SECM, i.e., resolving features smaller than 250 nm in the electrochemical signal, could be achieved with the new setup and that the electrochemical performance was equivalent to the one obtained with macroscopic electrodes.

Advanced Materials Technologies

One innovative way to cool structures is by transforming plastic waste into passive cooling foils. This process is called upcycling, and it helps reduce plastic waste, promotes a more sustainable future, and contributes to a cyclic polymer economy. In article 2300444, Qimeng Song, Markus Retsch, and co-workers demonstrate how chip bags can be repurposed, showcasing the potential of upcycling.

Advanced Materials

2D colloidal crystallization provides a simple strategy to produce defined nanostructure arrays over macroscopic areas. Regularity and long‐range order of such crystals is essential to ensure functionality, but difficult to achieve in self‐assembling systems. Here, a simple loudspeaker setup for the acoustic crystallization of 2D colloidal crystals (ACDC) of polystyrene, microgels, and core–shell particles at liquid interfaces is introduced. This setup anneals an interfacial colloidal monolayer and affords an increase in average grain size by almost two orders of magnitude. The order is characterized via the structural color of the colloidal crystal, the acoustic annealing process is optimized via the frequency and the amplitude of the applied sound wave, and its efficiency is rationalized via the surface coverage‐dependent interactions within the interfacial colloidal monolayer. Computer simulations show that multiple …

Advanced Materials

Colloidal crystals and glasses manipulate light propagation depending on their chemical composition, particle morphology, and mesoscopic structure. This light–matter interaction has been intensely investigated, but a knowledge gap remains for mesostructures comprising a continuous property gradient of the constituting particles. Here, a general synthetic approach to bottom‐up fabrication of continuous size gradient colloidal ensembles is introduced. First, the technique synthesizes a dispersion with a specifically designed gradual particle size distribution. Second, self‐assembly of this dispersion yields a photonic colloidal glass with a continuous size gradient from top to bottom. Local and bulk characterization methods are used to highlight the significant potential of this mesostructure, resulting in vivid structural colors along, and in superior light scattering across the gradient. The process describes a general …

Langmuir

Colloidal lithography utilizes self-assembled particle monolayers as lithographic masks to fabricate arrays of nanostructures by combination of directed evaporation and etching steps. This process provides complex nanostructures over macroscopic areas in a simple, convenient, and parallel fashion without requiring clean-room infrastructure and specialized equipment. The appeal of the method comes at the price of imperfections impairing the optical quality, especially for arrayed nanostructures relying on well-ordered lattices. Imperfections are often generically mentioned to rationalize the discrepancy between experimental and simulated resonances. Yet, little attention is given to detailed structure–property relationships connecting typical defects directly with the optical properties. Here, we use a correlative approach to connect nano- and microscopic defects occurring from the colloidal lithography process with …

Nature communications

Bifurcations in kinetic pathways decide the evolution of a system. An example is crystallization, in which the thermodynamically stable polymorph may not form due to kinetic hindrance. Here, we use confined self-assembly to investigate the interplay of thermodynamics and kinetics in the crystallization pathways of finite clusters. We report the observation of decahedral clusters from colloidal particles in emulsion droplets and show that these decahedral clusters can be thermodynamically stable, just like icosahedral clusters. Our hard sphere simulations reveal how the development of the early nucleus shape passes through a bifurcation that decides the cluster symmetry. A geometric argument explains why decahedral clusters are kinetically hindered and why icosahedral clusters can be dominant even if they are not in the thermodynamic ground state.

Communications Physics

The narrow escape theory (NET) predicts the escape time distribution of Brownian particles confined to a domain with reflecting borders except for one small window. Applications include molecular activation events in cell biology and biophysics. Specifically, the mean first passage time can be analytically calculated from the size of the domain, the escape window, and the diffusion coefficient of the particles. In this study, we systematically tested the NET in a disc by variation of the escape opening. Our model system consisted of micro-patterned lipid bilayers. For the measurement of , we imaged diffusing fluorescently-labeled lipids using single-molecule fluorescence microscopy. We overcame the lifetime limitation of fluorescent probes by re-scaling the measured time with the fraction of escaped particles. Experiments were complemented by matching stochastic numerical simulations. To conclude, we confirmed the …

Advanced Science

Smart, responsive materials are required in various advanced applications ranging from anti‐counterfeiting to autonomous sensing. Colloidal crystals are a versatile material class for optically based sensing applications owing to their photonic stopband. A careful combination of materials synthesis and colloidal mesostructure rendered such systems helpful in responding to stimuli such as gases, humidity, or temperature. Here, an approach is demonstrated to simultaneously and independently measure the time and temperature solely based on the inherent material properties of complex colloidal crystal mixtures. An array of colloidal crystals, each featuring unique film formation kinetics, is fabricated. Combined with machine learning‐enabled image analysis, the colloidal crystal arrays can autonomously record isothermal heating events — readout proceeds by acquiring photographs of the applied sensor using a …

The Journal of Physical Chemistry C

Ruddlesden–Popper hybrid halide perovskites are quasi-two-dimensional materials with a layered structure and structural dynamics that are determined by the interplay between the organic and inorganic layers. While their optical properties are governed by confinement effects, the atomistic origin of thermal and electronic properties of these materials is yet to be fully established. Here we combine computational and experimental techniques to study A2PbI4 (A = butylammonium (BA), phenethylammonium (PEA)) Ruddlesden–Popper perovskites and compare them with the quintessential perovskite CH3NH3PbI3. We use first-principles density functional theory, molecular dynamics simulations based on machine-learned interatomic potentials, thermal measurements, temperature-dependent Raman spectroscopy, and ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy to probe the thermal and electronic properties of these …

Advanced Materials

In organic light‐emitting diode (OLED), achieving high efficiency requires effective triplet exciton confinement by carrier‐transporting materials, which typically have higher triplet energy (ET) than the emitter, leading to poor stability. Here, an electron‐transporting material (ETM), whose ET is 0.32 eV lower than that of the emitter is reported. In devices, it surprisingly exhibits strong confinement effect and generates excellent efficiency. Additionally, the device operational lifetime is 4.9 times longer than the device with a standard ETM, 1,3,5‐tri(1‐phenyl‐1H‐benzo[d]imidazol‐2‐yl) phenyl (whose ET 0.36 eV is higher than the emitter). This anomalous finding is ascribed to the exceptionally long triplet state lifetime (≈0.2 s) of the ETM. It is named as long‐lifetime triplet exciton reservoir effect. The systematic analysis reveals that the long triplet lifetime of ETM can compensate the requirement for high ET with the help of …

Advanced Materials

The buried interface of the perovskite layer has a profound influence on its film morphology, defect formation, and aging resistance from the outset, therefore, significantly affects the film quality and device performance of derived perovskite solar cells. Especially for FAPbI3, although it has excellent optoelectronic properties, the spontaneous transition from the black perovskite phase to nonperovskite phase tends to start from the buried interface at the early stage of film formation then further propagate to degrade the whole perovskite. In this work, by introducing ─NH3+ rich proline hydrochloride (PF) with a conjugated rigid structure as a versatile medium for buried interface, it not only provides a solid α‐phase FAPbI3 template, but also prevents the phase transition induced degradation. PF also acts as an effective interfacial stress reliever to enhance both efficiency and stability of flexible solar cells. Consequently, a …

Advanced Materials

Carbon‐based superoxide dismutase (SOD) mimetic nanozymes have recently been employed as promising antioxidant nanotherapeutics due to their distinct properties. The structural features responsible for the efficacy of these nanomaterials as antioxidants are, however, poorly understood. Here, the process–structure–property–performance properties of coconut‐derived oxidized activated charcoal (cOAC) nano‐SOD mimetics are studied by analyzing how modifications to the nanomaterial's synthesis impact the size, as well as the elemental and electrochemical properties of the particles. These properties are then correlated to the in vitro antioxidant bioactivity of poly(ethylene glycol)‐functionalized cOACs (PEG‐cOAC). Chemical oxidative treatment methods that afford smaller, more homogeneous cOAC nanoparticles with higher levels of quinone functionalization show enhanced protection against oxidative …

Advanced Materials

In article number 2308993, Xumin Ding, Shah Nawaz Burokur, Guangwei Hu, and co-workers report an optical quantum logic operator with high fidelity. The device is driven by an all-optical diffractive neural network, while combining polarization-and spatial-multiplexing strategies to achieve four classical quantum gates. This work substantially improves the integration and flexibility of quantum computing systems.

Advanced Materials

Aqueous zinc‐ion batteries are attractive post‐lithium battery technologies for grid‐scale energy storage because of their inherent safety, low cost and high theoretical capacity. However, their practical implementation in wide‐temperature surroundings persistently confronts irregular zinc electrodeposits and parasitic side reactions on metal anode, which leads to poor rechargeability, low Coulombic efficiency and short lifespan. Here, this work reports lamellar nanoporous Cu/Al2Cu heterostructure electrode as a promising anode host material to regulate high‐efficiency and dendrite‐free zinc electrodeposition and stripping for wide‐temperatures aqueous zinc‐ion batteries. In this unique electrode, the interconnective Cu/Al2Cu heterostructure ligaments not only facilitate fast electron transfer but work as highly zincophilic sites for zinc nucleation and deposition by virtue of local galvanic couples while the …

Advanced Materials

Despite the vital importance of monitoring the progression of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and its progressive form, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), an efficient imaging modality that is readily available at hospitals is currently lacking. Here, a new magnetic‐resonance‐imaging (MRI)‐based imaging modality is presented that allows for efficient and longitudinal monitoring of NAFLD and NASH progression. The imaging modality uses manganese‐ion (Mn2+)‐chelated bilirubin nanoparticles (Mn@BRNPs) as a reactive‐oxygen‐species (ROS)‐responsive MRI imaging probe. Longitudinal T1‐weighted MR imaging of NASH model mice is performed after injecting Mn@BRNPs intravenously. The MR signal enhancement in the liver relative to muscle gradually increases up to 8 weeks of NASH progression, but decreases significantly as NASH progresses to the cirrhosis‐like stage at weeks 10 and 12. A …

Advanced Materials

Developing commercially viable electrocatalyst lies at the research hotspot of rechargeable Zn‐air batteries, but it is still challenging to meet the requirements of energy efficiency and durability in realistic applications. Strategic material design is critical to addressing its drawbacks in terms of sluggish kinetics of oxygen reactions and limited battery lifespan. Herein, a “raisin‐bread” architecture is designed for a hybrid catalyst constituting cobalt nitride as the core nanoparticle with thin oxidized coverings, which is further deposited within porous carbon aerogel. Based on synchrotron‐based characterizations, this hybrid provides oxygen vacancies and Co‐Nx‐C sites as the active sites, resulting from a strong coupling between CoOxNy nanoparticles and 3D conductive carbon scaffolds. Compared to the oxide reference, it performs enhanced stability in harsh electrocatalytic environments, highlighting the benefits of the …

Advanced Materials

In article number 2305415, Xiangyang Zhang, Walid A. Daoud, and co-workers report a surface-to-pore catalytic interface structured electrode that is designed and implemented in vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB), therein lies the concept of decoupling the activation and transport processes. This study addresses a critical challenge in conventional catalyst designs, aiming to substantially upgrade VRFB performance while sustaining remarkable durability for encouraging widespread adoption.

Advanced Materials

Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) are a rapidly growing class of materials that offer great promise in various applications. However, the synthesis remains challenging: for example, a range of crystal structures can often be accessed from the same building blocks, which complicates the phase selectivity. Likewise, the high sensitivity to slight changes in synthesis conditions may cause reproducibility issues. This is crucial, as it hampers the research and commercialization of affected MOFs. Here, it presents the first‐ever interlaboratory study of the synthetic reproducibility of two Zr–porphyrin MOFs, PCN‐222 and PCN‐224, to investigate the scope of this problem. For PCN‐222, only one sample out of ten was phase pure and of the correct symmetry, while for PCN‐224, three are phase pure, although none of these show the spatial linker order characteristic of PCN‐224. Instead, these samples resemble dPCN‐224 …

Advanced Materials

Multi‐dimensional multiplexed metasurface holography extends holographic information capacity, promises revolutionary advancements for vivid imaging, information storage and encryption. However, achieving multifunctional metasurface holography by forward design method is still difficult since it relies heavily on Jones matrix engineering, which places high demands on physical knowledge and processing technology. To break these limitations and simplify the design process, here we propose an end‐to‐end inverse design framework. By directly linking the metasurface to the reconstructed images and employing a loss function to guide the update of metasurface, the calculation of hologram can be omitted, thus greatly simplifying the design process. In addition, the requirements on the completeness of meta‐library can also be significantly reduced, allowing multi‐channel hologram to be achieved using meta …

Advanced Materials

Near‐infrared (NIR) spectral information is important for detecting and analyzing material compositions. However, snapshot NIR spectral imaging systems still pose significant challenges owing to the lack of high‐performance NIR filters and bulky setups, preventing effective encoding and integration with mobile devices. In this study, we introduce a snapshot spectral imaging system that employs a compact NIR metasurface featuring 25 distinct C4 symmetry structures. Benefitting from the sufficient spectral variety and low correlation coefficient among these structures, center‐wavelength accuracy of 0.05 nm and full width at half maximum (FWHM) accuracy of 0.13 nm are realized. The system maintains good performance within an incident angle of 1°. A novel meta‐attention network prior iterative denoising reconstruction (MAN‐IDR) algorithm guided by both meta‐attention and spatial‐spectral attention is …

Advanced Materials

Interpenetrated metal‐organic frameworks (MOFs) with non‐aromatic ligands provide a unique platform for adsorption, catalysis, and sensing applications. However, non‐emission and the lack of optical property tailoring make it challenging to fabricate smart responsive devices with non‐aromatic interpenetrated MOFs based on ligand‐centered emission. In this paper, we introduce the pressure‐induced aggregation effect in non‐aromatic interpenetrated Zn4O(ADC)4(Et3N)6 (IRMOF‐0) nanocrystals (NCs), where carbonyl groups aggregation results in O‐O distances smaller than the sum of the van der Waals radii (3.04 Å), triggering the photoluminescence turn‐on behavior. It is noteworthy that the IRMOF‐0 NCs display an ultra‐broad emission tunability of 130 nm from deep blue (440 nm) to yellow (570 nm) upon release to ambient conditions at different pressures. The eventual retention of through‐space n‐π …

Advanced Materials

Chiral B/N embedded multi‐resonance (MR) emitters open a new paradigm of circularly polarized (CP) organic light‐emitting diodes (OLEDs) owing to their unique narrowband spectra. However, pure‐red CP‐MR emitters and devices remain exclusive in literature. Herein, by introducing a B‐N covalent bond to lower the electron‐withdrawing ability of the para‐positioned B‐π‐B motif, the first pair of pure‐red double hetero‐[n]helicenes (n = 6 and 7) CP‐MR emitter peaking 617 nm with a small full‐width at half‐maximum of 38 nm and a high photoluminescence quantum yield of ≈100% in toluene is developed. The intense mirror‐image CP light produced by the enantiomers is characterized by high photoluminescence dissymmetry factors (gPL) of +1.40/−1.41 × 10−3 from their stable helicenes configuration. The corresponding devices using these enantiomers afford impressive CP electroluminescence …

Advanced Materials

Colour‐tunable organic light‐emitting diodes (CT‐OLEDs) have a large colour‐tuning range, high efficiency and operational stability at practical luminance, making them ideal for human‐machine interactive terminals of wearable biomedical devices. However, the device operational lifetime of CT‐OLEDs is currently far from reaching practical requirements. To address this problem, we designed a tetradentate Pt(II) complex named tetra‐Pt‐dbf, which can emit efficiently in both monomer and aggregation states. This emitter has a high Td of 508°C and a large intermolecular bonding energy of ‐52.0 kcal/mol, which improve its thermal/chemical stability. Our unique single‐emitter CT‐OLED essentially avoids the “colour‐ageing issue” and achieves a large colour‐tuning span (red to yellowish green) and a high EQE of ∼30% at 1000 cd m−2 as well as an EQE of above 25% at 10000 cd m−2. We estimated a superior …

Advanced Materials

The development of organic‐based optoelectronic technologies for the indoor Internet of Things market, which relies on ambient energy sources, has increased, with organic photovoltaics (OPVs) and photodetectors (OPDs) considered promising candidates for sustainable indoor electronic devices. However, the manufacturing processes of standalone OPVs and OPDs can be complex and costly, resulting in high production costs and limited scalability, thus limiting their use in a wide range of indoor applications. This study uses a multi‐component photoactive structure to develop a self‐powering dual‐functional sensory device with effective energy harvesting and sensing capabilities. The optimized device demonstrates improved free‐charge generation yield by quantifying charge carrier dynamics, with a high output power density of over 81 and 76 µW cm−2 for rigid and flexible OPVs under indoor conditions (LED …

Advanced Materials

Quasi‐solid‐state potassium‐ion batteries (SSPIBs) are of great potential for commercial use due to the abundant reserves and cost‐effectiveness of resources, as well as high safety. Gel polymer electrolytes (GPEs) with high ionic conductivity and fast interfacial charge transport are necessary for SSPIBs. Here, the weak electrostatic force between K+ and electronegative functional groups in the ethoxylated trimethylolpropane triacrylate (ETPTA) polymer chains, which can promote fast migration of free K+, is revealed. To further enhance the interfacial reaction kinetics, a multilayered GPE by in situ growth of poly(vinylidenefluoride‐co‐hexafluoropropylene) (PVDF‐HFP) on ETPTA (PVDF‐HFP|ETPTA|PVDF‐HFP) is constructed to improve the interface contact and provide sufficient K+ concentration in PVDF‐HFP. A high ion transference number (0.92) and a superior ionic conductivity (5.15 × 10−3 S cm−1) are …

Advanced Materials

The conduction efficiency of ions in excitable tissues and of charged species in organic conjugated materials both benefit from having ordered domains and anisotropic pathways. In this study, a photocurrent‐generating cardiac biointerface is presented, particularly for investigating the sensitivity of cardiomyocytes to geometrically comply to biomacromolecular cues differentially assembled on a conductive nanogrooved substrate. Through a polymeric surface‐templated approach, photoconductive substrates with symmetric peptide‐quaterthiophene (4T)‐peptide units assembled as 1D nanostructures on nanoimprinted polyalkylthiophene (P3HT) surface are developed. The 4T‐based peptides studied here can form 1D nanostructures on prepatterned polyalkylthiophene substrates, as directed by hydrogen bonding, aromatic interactions between 4T and P3HT, and physical confinement on the nanogrooves. It is …

Advanced Materials

The pursuit of high‐performance and long‐lasting protonic ceramic electrochemical cells (PCECs) has been impeded by the lack of efficient and enduring proton conductors. Conventional research approaches, predominantly based on a trial‐and‐error methodology, have proven to be demanding of resources and time‐consuming. Here we report our findings in harnessing high‐throughput computational methods to expedite the discovery of optimal electrolytes for PCECs. We methodically computed the oxygen vacancy formation energy (EV), hydration energy (EH), and the adsorption energies of H2O and CO2 for a set of 932 oxide candidates. Notably, our findings highlight BaSnxCe0.8‐xYb0.2O3‐δ (BSCYb) as a prospective game‐changing contender, displaying superior proton conductivity and chemical resilience when compared to the well‐regarded BaZrxCe0.8‐xY0.1Yb0.1O3‐δ (BZCYYb) series …

Advanced Materials

As large molecular tertiary structures, some proteins can act as small robots that find, bind, and chaperone target protein clients, showing the potential to serve as smart building blocks in self‐assembly fields. Instead of using such intrinsic functions, most self‐assembly methodologies for proteins aim for de novo‐designed structures with accurate geometric assemblies, which could limit procedural flexibility. Here, we present a strategy enabling polymorphic clustering of quaternary proteins, exhibiting simplicity and flexibility of self‐assembling paths for proteins in forming monodisperse quaternary cage particles. We propose that the enzyme protomer DegQ, previously solved at low resolution, may potentially be usable as a threefold symmetric building block, which can form polyhedral cages incorporated by the chaperone action of DegQ in the presence of protein clients. To obtain highly monodisperse cage …

Advanced Materials

Polar dielectrics are key materials of interest for infrared (IR) nanophotonic applications due to their ability to host phonon‐polaritons that allow for low‐loss, subdiffractional control of light. The properties of phonon‐polaritons are limited by the characteristics of optical phonons, which are nominally fixed for most “bulk” materials. Superlattices composed of alternating atomically thin materials offer control over crystal anisotropy through changes in composition, optical phonon confinement, and the emergence of new modes. In particular, the modified optical phonons in superlattices offer the potential for so‐called crystalline hybrids whose IR properties cannot be described as a simple mixture of the bulk constituents. To date, however, studies have primarily focused on identifying the presence of new or modified optical phonon modes rather than assessing their impact on the IR response. This study focuses on …