A Janus MoSSe monolayer is theoretically predicted to be a wide solar-spectrum water-splitting photocatalyst with a low carrier recombination rate.

Polycrystalline Bi1−xNdxFeO3 (x=0–0.15) thin films were prepared on (111) Pt∕Ti∕SiO2∕Si substrates via metal organic deposition method. The effect of Nd dopant on the structural, electric, and magnetic properties was studied. It was found that the ferroelectric polarization and saturation magnetization of the films were enhanced by appropriate Nd doping due to the structural distortion and the suppressed cycloidal spin structure. Meanwhile, Nd-doped BiFeO3 thin films exhibited magnetic anisotropy because of the magnetocrystalline anisotropy.

In this Article, we present a facile microwave-assisted synthesis route for the preparation of water-soluble and high-quality CuInS2/ZnS nanocrystals (NCs) with glutathione as the stabilizer. The as-prepared CuInS2/ZnS NCs exhibited small particle sizes (~3.3 nm), long photoluminescence lifetimes, and color-tunable properties ranging from the visible to the near-infrared by varying the initial ratio of Cu/In in the precursors. The low-toxicity, highly luminescent and biocompatible CuInS2/ZnS NCs were applied to cell imaging, showing that they could be used as promising fluorescent probes. Furthermore, the CuInS2/ZnS NCs were used as the signal labels for a fluoroimmunoassay of the biomarker IL-6, showing their great potential for use as reliable point-of-care diagnostics for biomarkers of cancer and other diseases.

Tuning Ag surface states by metal oxides is a feasible method to enhance the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) performance of Ag-based catalysts. Herein, we develop a heterostructural electrocatalyst of flowerlike Ag-supported nanosheets of metal oxides (Mn 3 O 4 and Ce-doped Mn 3 O 4 ) by a facile two-step solution method for a highly efficient alkaline ORR. Not only does Mn 3 O 4 /Ag exhibit activity comparable to that of commercial Pt/C but also small amounts of Ce 3+ (2−5 mol %) doped into Mn 3 O 4 make the ORR activity and stability outperform those of Pt/C. The roles of the adjustment of Ag surface states induced by the supported Mn 3 O 4 and Ce doping in the enhanced ORR performance were studied. The strong electron transfer from Ag substrates to Mn 3 O 4 makes the d center of Ag shift up, accelerating the kinetics of O−O bond splitting on Ag surfaces (increasing the activity of active sites for O−O bond dissociation). Additionally, 5% Ce 3+ doping further tunes Ag surface electronic structures to improve the ORR performance of Mn 3 O 4 /Ag. Meanwhile, supported Mn 3 O 4 can reduce the adsorption of oxygencontaining species on Ag surfaces by a spillover effect, and the moderately increased oxygen vacancies of Mn 3 O 4 due to 5% Ce doping further increase the active sites on oxide/Ag surfaces and electrochemically active surface areas for the ORR.

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