Here, we provide a detailed evaluation of photoluminescence (PL) as a comprehensive tool for phosphorene characterization with the emphasis on a prominent quantitative role of PL in providing fingerprint-like features due to its extreme sensitivity to the band structure details, anisotropy, disorder, external fields, etc. Factors such as number of layers, dimensionality, structural and chemical disorder, and environmental factors and their effect on phosphorene’s PL signal are reviewed and discussed. Applications of PL in monitoring phosphorene and its modifications, as well as potential impacts on the fields of chemical and biosensing, nanomedicine, and solar energy harvesting, are also elaborated.

Chemical vapor transport (CVT) method is widely used for bulk black phosphorus (BP) fabrication. In this work, we demonstrate that CVT provides a route for the fabrication of BP nanoribbons and nanobelts. This method consists of a two-step procedure, including initial BP column growth using the CVT technique, followed by ultrasonic treatment and centrifugation. The obtained nanostructures preserve BP column dimensions, forming ultralong ribbon-like structures with the length to the width aspect ratio of up to 500. Computational modeling of the growth mechanism of a BP flake is also presented in support of the observed columnar growth. Calculation of the average energy of the molecule in the asymmetric flakes shows that the growth of the structure in the zigzag direction is more energetically favorable than in the armchair direction.

The long cycle life stability and high energy density are limiting broader feasible applications of supercapacitors (SCs). The novel diamondized titania nanocomposite SCs deliver high power and energy densities along with high capacitance retention rates. SC electrodes were fabricated utilizing a combination of Ti anodization followed by chemical vapor deposition resulting in the simultaneous growth of the complex boron-doped diamond (BDD)/TiC interface. The first-principles simulations along with extended molecular investigations conducted by bright-field transmission electron microscopy and high resolution-scanning electron microscopy revealed that capacitive phenomena are delivered by nanoporous, multifaceted, and substoichiometric TiC, forming clusters at the lateral surfaces of titania nanotubes. Next, TiC mechanical stability and effective charge transfer electrode–electrolyte are efficiently provided by the highly conductive, although discontinuous BDD overlayer. The assembled two-electrode SC devices exhibited capacitances of 15 mF cm–2, which were stable at 0.1 V s–1 scan rate in various neutral aqueous electrolytes. The composite TiO2 nanotube arrays-BDD SCs showed outstanding long-term cycling stability with a capacitance retention of 93% after 100,000 chronopotentiometry cycles verified by postaging cyclic voltammetry tests. In parallel, the energy and power density calculated at a current density of 3 A g–1 achieved levels as high as 14.74 W h kg–1 and 24.68 kW kg–1, revealing the superior performance of the assembled devices compared to recently reported SCs.

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