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At least 1,621 records · Page 90

Active Site and Electronic Structure Elucidation of Pt Nanoparticles Supported on Phase-Pure Molybdenum Carbide Nanotubes

Here, we recently showed that phase-pure molybdenum carbide nanotubes can be durable supports for platinum (Pt) nanoparticles in hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). In this paper we further characterize surface properties of the same Pt/β-Mo 2 C catalyst platform using carbon monoxide (CO)-Pt and CO-Mo 2 C bond strength of different Pt particle sizes in the <3 nm range. Results from diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFTS) and temporal analysis of products (TAP) revealed the existence of different active sites as Pt particle size increases. Correlation between the resultant catalyst activity and deposited Pt particle size was further investigated using water–gas-shift (WGS) as a probe reaction, suggesting that precise control of particle diameter and thickness is needed for optimized catalytic activity.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Insights into the Surface Electronic Structure and Catalytic Activity of InO x /Au(111) Inverse Catalysts for CO 2 Hydrogenation to Methanol

In this article, the direct conversion of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) into methanol (CH 3 OH) via low-temperature hydrogenation is crucial for recycling anthropogenic CO 2 emissions and producing fuels or high value chemicals. Nevertheless, it continues to be a great challenge due to the trade-off between selectivity and catalytic activity. For CO 2 hydrogenation, In 2 O 3 catalysts are known for their high CH 3 OH selectivity. Subsequent studies explored depositing metals on In 2 O 3 to enhance CO 2 conversion. Despite extensive research on metal (M) supported In 2 O 3 catalysts, the role of In-M alloys and M/In 2 O 3 interfaces in CO 2 activation and CH 3 OH selectivity remains unclear. In this work, we have examined the behavior of In/Au(111) alloys and InO x /Au(111) inverse systems during CO 2 hydrogenation using synchrotron-based ambient-pressure X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (AP-XPS) and catalytic tests in a batch reactor. Indium forms alloys with Au(111) after deposition. The In-Au(111) alloys display high reactivity towards CO 2 and can dissociate the molecule at room temperature to generate InO x nanostructures. At very low coverages of In (≤ 0.05 ML), the InO x nanostructures are not stable under CO 2 hydrogenation conditions and the active In-Au(111) alloys produces mainly CO and little methanol. An increase in indium coverage to 0.3 ML led to stable InOx nanostructures under CO 2 hydrogenation conditions. These InO x /Au(111) catalysts displayed a high selectivity (~ 80 %) towards CH 3 OH production and an activity for CO 2 conversion that was at least 10 times larger than that of plain In 2 O 3 or Cu(111) and Cu/ZnO(000$\overline{1)}$ benchmark catalysts. The results of AP-XPS show that InO x /Au(111) produces methanol via methoxy intermediates. Inverse oxide/metal catalysts containing InOx open up a possibility for improving CO 2 → CH 3 OH conversion in processes associated with the control of environmental pollution and the production of high value chemicals.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Lateral Integration of SnS and GeSe van der Waals Semiconductors: Interface Formation, Electronic Structure, and Nanoscale Optoelectronics

The emergence of atomically thin crystals has allowed extending materials integration to lateral heterostructures where different 2D materials are covalently connected in the plane. The concept of lateral heterostructures can be generalized to thicker layered crystals, provided that a suitably faceted seed crystal presents edges to which a compatible second van der Waals material can be attached layer by layer. Here, we examine the possibility of integrating multilayer crystals of the group IV monochalcogenides SnS and GeSe, which have the same crystal structure, small lattice mismatch, and similar bandgaps. In a two-step growth process, lateral epitaxy of GeSe on the sidewalls of multilayer SnS flakes (obtained by vapor transport of a SnS 2 precursor on graphite) yields heterostructures of laterally stitched crystalline GeSe and SnS without any detectable vertical overgrowth of the SnS seeds and with sharp lateral interfaces. Combined cathodoluminescence spectroscopy and ab initio calculations show the effects of small band offsets on carrier transport and radiative recombination near the interface. Further, the results demonstrate the possibility of forming atomically connected lateral interfaces across many van der Waals layers, which is promising for manipulating optoelectronics, photonics, and for managing charge- and thermal transport.

2D layered crystals↗

Role of Interligand Coupling in Determining the Interfacial Electronic Structure of Colloidal CdS Quantum Dots

Displacement of cadmium oleate (Cd(oleate) 2 ) ligands for the exciton-delocalizing ligand 4-hexylphenyldithiocarbamate (C6-PTC) on the surfaces of CdS quantum dots (QDs) causes a decrease in the band gap (E g ) of the QD of ~100 meV for QDs with a radius of 1.9 nm and ~50 meV for QDs with a radius of 2.5 nm. The primary mechanism of this decrease in band gap, deduced in previous work, is a decrease in the confinement barrier for the excitonic hole. The increase in apparent excitonic radius of the QD that corresponds to this decrease in E g is denoted ΔR. The dependence of ΔR on the surface coverage of C6-PTC, measured by 1 H NMR spectroscopy, appears to be nonlinear. Calculations of the excitonic energy of a CdS QD upon displacement of native insulating ligands with exciton-delocalizing ligands using a 3D spherical potential well model show that this response includes the contributions to ΔR from both isolated, bound C6-PTC ligands and groups of adjacent C6-PTC ligands. Fits to the experimental plots of ΔRvs surface coverage of C6-PTC with a statistical model that includes the probability of formation of clusters of bound C6-PTC on the QD surface allow for the extraction of the height of the confinement barrier presented by a single, isolated C6-PTC molecule to the excitonic hole. Furthermore, this barrier height is less than 0.6 eV for QDs with a radius of 1.9 nm and between 0.6 and 1.2 eV for QDs with a radius of 2.5 nm.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Synthesis, Crystal and Electronic Structure of the Quaternary Magnetic EuTAl4Si2 (T = Rh and Ir) Compounds

Single crystals of the quaternary europium compounds EuRhAl4Si2 and EuIrAl4Si2 were synthesized by using the Al–Si binary eutectic as a flux. The structure of the two quaternary compounds has been refined by single crystal X-ray diffraction. Both compounds are stoichiometric and adopt an ordered derivative of the ternary KCu4S3 structure type (tetragonal tP8, P4/mmm). The two compounds reported here represent the first example of a quaternary and truly stoichiometric 1:1:4:2 phase crystallizing with this structure type. In light of our present results, the structure of the BaMg4Si3 compound given in literature as representing a new prototype is actually isotypic with the KCu4S3 structure. Local spin density approximation including the Hubbard U parameter (LSDA + U) calculations show that Eu ions are in the divalent state, with a significant hybridization between the Eu 5d, Rh (Ir) 4d (5d), Si 3p and Al 3p states. Magnetic susceptibility measured along the [001] direction confirms the divalent nature of the Eu ions in EuRhAl4Si2 and EuIrAl4Si2, which order magnetically near 11 and 15 K, respectively.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗