Inverted perovskite solar cells with enhanced efficiency and stability are fabricated based on a nanoparticles doped hole transport layer.

Transition-metal dichalcogenide MoS 2 nanostructures have attracted tremendous attention due to their unique properties, which render them efficient nanoscale functional components for multiple applications ranging from sensors and biomedical probes to energy conversion and storage devices. However, despite the wide application range, the possibility to tune their size, shape, and composition is still a challenge. At the same time, the correlation of the structure with the optoelectronic properties is still unresolved. Here, we propose a new method to synthesize various morphologies of molybdenum sulfide nanocrystals, on the basis of ultrashort-pulsed laser fragmentation of MoS 2 platelets. Depending on the irradiation conditions, multiple MoS x morphologies in the form of nanoribbons, nanospheres, and photoluminescent quantum dots are obtained. Besides the detailed structural analysis of the various crystals formed, the structure–property relation is investigated and discussed.

Human bone marrow (BM)-derived stromal cells contain a population of skeletal stem cells (SSCs), with the capacity to differentiate along the osteogenic, adipogenic, and chondrogenic lineages, enabling their application to clinical therapies. However, current methods to isolate and enrich SSCs from human tissues remain, at best, challenging in the absence of a specific SSC marker. Unfortunately, none of the current proposed markers alone can isolate a homogeneous cell population with the ability to form bone, cartilage, and adipose tissue in humans. Here, we have designed DNA-gold nanoparticles able to identify and sort SSCs displaying specific mRNA signatures. The current approach demonstrates the significant enrichment attained in the isolation of SSCs, with potential therein to enhance our understanding of bone cell biology and translational applications.

We demonstrate the fabrication of a new DNA sensor that is based on the optical interactions occurring between oligonucleotide-coated NaYF4:Yb3+;Er3+ upconversion nanoparticles and the two-dimensional dichalcogenide materials, MoS2 and WS2. Monodisperse upconversion nanoparticles were functionalized with single-stranded DNA endowing the nanoparticles with the ability to interact with the surface of the two-dimensional materials via van der Waals interactions leading to subsequent quenching of the upconversion fluorescence. By contrast, in the presence of a complementary oligonucleotide target and the formation of double-stranded DNA, the upconversion nanoparticles could not interact with MoS2 and WS2, thus retaining their inherent fluorescence properties. Utilizing this sensor we were able to detect target oligonucleotides with high sensitivity and specificity whilst reaching a concentration detection limit as low as 5 mol·L−1, within minutes.