Topic Review
Dimensionality of materials
As generally known dimensionality of materials is a crucial factor to determine functions and properties of the materials. In addition to zero-dimensional, one-dimensional, three-dimensional, and further integrated functional materials, various two-dimensional materials have been paid special attention. Two-dimensional materials have their unique electronic propertiesand play important roles in interfacial sciences.
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  • 12 Aug 2021
Topic Review
Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells Nanostructures and Natural Colorants
The history of sensitized cells began with the pioneering work of Brian O’Regan and Michael Grätzel, on the promising applications of nanosized TiO2porous film electrodes in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC); these devices convert solar energy into electricity through the photoelectric effect. The first devices worked with ruthenium-based dyes and their efficiencies were around 10%. DSSCs are low cost to manufacture, eco-friendly, and are considered to have a high photon-to-electricity conversion efficiency, so they soon became an intense field of research.
  • 406
  • 08 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Effect of Grain Size on B4C and β-SiC
Nanocrystalline materials are categorized as having average grain sizes below 100 nm with a larger volume fraction of grain boundaries (GBs), leading to significant changes in their mechanical, physical, and chemical properties. Lightweight polycrystalline ceramics possess promising physical, chemical, and mechanical properties, which can be used in a variety of important structural applications. However, these ceramics with coarse-grained structures are brittle and have low fracture toughness due to their rigid covalent bonding (more often consisting of high-angle grain boundaries) that can cause catastrophic failures. Owing to these failure mechanisms in polycrystalline ceramics, a reduction in grain size to a nano-regime, which is expected to enhance the combination of hardness (or strength), toughness, and ductility, provides a promising nanomechanical research direction compared to counterpart micro-sized polycrystalline ceramics. Apart from the effects of grain size itself, the mechanical properties of B4C and SiC also show high dependency on their properties such as composition variation, anisotropy, density, etc.
  • 553
  • 28 Sep 2022
Topic Review
Effect of Phosphate on Steel Reinforcements in Mortar
Sodium nitrite (NaNO2), disodium stannate (Na2SnO3), disodium molybdate (Na2MoO4), sodium borates (NaBO2), trisodium borate (Na3BO3), cerium nitrate (Ce(NO3)2) and trisodium phosphate (Na3PO4) (TSP) have been used as corrosion inhibitors for steel. The use of phosphate chemical conversion (PCC) coatings causes the phosphates to react with Fe ions, forming insoluble compounds, thus impeding the corrosion process. Soluble phosphates react with portlandite to trigger the precipitation of an insoluble phosphate, thus reducing the phosphate content in the pore solution and, consequently, acting as a corrosion prevention method. 
  • 550
  • 28 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Effect of Sanitizing Treatments on Respirator Filtration Performance
Disposable respirator masks with an accepted performance rating are seriously compromised from an exposure to saturated alcoholic vapours, can tolerate a one-off spray treatment with an alcoholic solution and retain their attested protection under the influence of alcoholic vapours from the use of hand sanitizer or spray sanitizer.
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  • 10 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Electroluminescence Devices Based on Self-Healable Hydrogels
Self-healing generally refers to a process of recovery after failures caused by mechanical pressures. The lifetime of a conventional electroluminescence (EL) device is restricted due to the damage that occurs when mechanical strain exceeds the resistance limit. Therefore, developments of EL devices focus on developing electrode materials that can recover after stress, so that the lifetime and reliability of the EL device improve. Such device construction requires self-healable materials. Hydrogel-based materials are perfect candidates for this type of application.
  • 300
  • 06 Apr 2023
Topic Review
Electron-Beam Damage Mechanisms and Strategies in MOFs
Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs), composed of metal nodes and inorganic linkers, are promising for a wide range of applications due to their unique periodic frameworks. Understanding structure–activity relationships can facilitate the development of new MOFs. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) is a powerful technique to characterize the microstructures of MOFs at the atomic scale. In addition, it is possible to directly visualize the microstructural evolution of MOFs in real time under working conditions via in situ TEM setups. Although MOFs are sensitive to high-energy electron beams, much progress has been made due to the development of advanced TEM.
  • 367
  • 02 Jun 2023
Topic Review
Electronic Structure of TiNCl
Layered metal nitride halides MNX (M = Ti, Zr, Hf; X = Cl, Br, I) have two polymorphs, including α- and β-forms, which have the FeOCl and SmSI structures, respectively. These compounds are band insulators and become metals and show superconductivity after electron doping by intercalating alkali metals between the layers. The superconductivity of β-form had been extensively characterized from decades ago, but it is not easy to consistently interpret all experimental results using conventional phonon-mediated Bardeen–Cooper–Schriefer mechanisms. The titanium compound TiNCl crystallizes only in the α-form structure. TiNCl also exhibits superconductivity as high as ~16 K after electron doping by intercalating metals and/or organic basis. It is important to compare the superconductivity of different M–N networks. However, α-form compounds are vulnerable to moisture, unlike β-form ones. The intercalation compounds are even more sensitive to humid air. 
  • 399
  • 26 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Euclidean Graphs as Curvilinear Feature Descriptors
Euclidean graphs are an ideal data structure for the functional description of line-shaped features in digital images such as cracks as they convey both geometrical and topological information about the object path in a compact and integrated format, enabling the development of autonomous, highly tuned algorithms for identification, selection, analysis, comparison and archiving of the identified objects.
  • 613
  • 06 Apr 2023
Topic Review
FIB-SEM Tomography: Fundamentals and Applications in Materials Sciences
Focused ion beam (FIB)-scanning electron microscopy (SEM) tomography is an extremely important and reliable technique for the three-dimensional reconstruction of microscopic structures with nanometric resolution, with great potential to be integrated with other analytical techniques. FIB-SEM tomography plays a crucial role in the development of innovative multiscale and multimodal correlative microscopy workflows because it can be seamlessly integrated with other imaging modalities, as the reconstruction range bridges the gap between the non-destructive X-ray families of tomographic techniques, which provide sub-micron resolution, and the nano- to atomic-scale resolution achieved by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) tomography.
  • 375
  • 26 Oct 2023
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