Au@Cu2- x S core-shell nanocrystals (NCs) have been synthesized under large lattice mismatch with high crystallinity, controllable shape, and nonstoichiometric composition. Both experimental observations and simulations are used to verify the flexible dual-mode plasmon coupling. The enhanced photothermal effect is harnessed for diverse HeLa cancer cell ablation applications in the NIR-I window (750-900 nm) and the NIR-II window (1000-1400 nm).

Engineering the electronic structure of BiOCl through the creation of oxygen vacancies can be a good strategy to enhance the photooxidation activity of BiOCl.

BiOBr nanosheets with highly reactive {001} facets exposed were selectively synthesized by a facile hydrothermal method. The inner strain in the BiOBr nanosheets has been tuned continuously by the pH value. The photocatalytic performance of BiOBr in dye degradation can be manipulated by the strain effect. The low-strain BiOBr nanosheets show improved photocatalytic activity. Density functional calculations suggest that strain can modify the band structure and symmetry in BiOBr. The enhanced photocatalytic activity in low-strain BiOBr nanosheets is due to improved charge separation attributable to a highly dispersive band structure with an indirect band gap. AbstractBiOBr nanosheets with highly reactive {001} facets exposed were selectively synthesized by a

Rational design of bifunctional, high-performance, and stable non-noble metal-based electrocatalysts for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is of great importance and challenging for the realization of overall water splitting. Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) have been intensively studied as pyrolyzing precursors to prepare electrocatalysts. However, the aggregation of powder and the low conductivity of polymer binders have limited the applications of powder electrocatalysts. Therefore, the direct growth of MOFs on conductive and porous substrates will be a favorable way to prepare efficient electrocatalysts for electrocatalytic water splitting. Herein, we report a facile strategy for constructing three-dimensional N-doped carbon nanotube frameworks derived from metal–organic framework on Ni foam as a bifunctional electrocatalyst for overall water splitting. The resulting electrocatalyst exhibits excellent stability and high OER and HER activity with rather low overpotentials of 230 and 141 mV at 10 mA/cm2 in 1.0 M KOH, respectively. Specifically, the as-synthesized electrodes were used as both the cathode and anode for overall water splitting with 10 mA/cm2 at a cell voltage of only 1.62 V. The outstanding electrocatalytic performance is mainly attributed to a large number of accessible active sites of Co nanoparticles dispersed by the N-doped carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and the ultra-high surface area of CNT frameworks. The presented strategy offers a novel approach for developing MOF-derived nanocarbon materials on Ni foam for electrocatalysis and electrochemical energy devices.

Cobalt oxides have been paid much attention in oxygen evolution reaction (OER). To enhance the catalysis reaction performance, here we reported Co3O4 nanocrystals anchored on phosphorus-doped carbon nitride (P-CN) sheets via Co–N bonds for highly efficient OER. By simply sintering the mixture of Co3O4 nanocrystals with P-CN sheets in the tube furnace, the Co–N bonds were well-formed as indicated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis, forming efficient charge transfer channels to conquer the barriers between glassy carbon electrode surface and Co3O4 active sites. The Co3O4 nanocrystals distributed on the P-CN substrates homogeneously and exposed most of the potential active sites of Co3O4 during electrochemical processes. Because of the synergy between Co3O4 and P-CN, the OER performance of as-fabricated Co3O4/P-CN catalyst showed the lowest overpotential (320 mV), the lowest Tafel slope (66.8 mV dec–1), and the highest electrochemical active surface area (ESCA, 133.58 mF cm–2).