Electrically Tunable Perfect Terahertz Absorber Using Embedded Combline Graphene Layer

Graphene is a powerful 2-D matter with the capability of extraordinary transparency, and tunable conductivity is employed in emerging optoelectronics devices. In this article, the design of an electrically tunable graphene-based perfect terahertz absorber is proposed and evaluated numerically. The introduced structure is composed of two graphene layers with a sharp absorption peak in the terahertz band. These graphene layers are combline and stripline separated by the insulator substrate. The position of the absorption peak is tunable on the absorption band by means of manipulation in geometric parameters of the combline graphene layer. Furthermore, the intensity and frequency of the absorption peak can be flexibly modulated by varying Fermi potential of the combline graphene layer, which can be controlled through external DC voltages without the need of changing the geometry of the structure. It is shown that the absorption band can be tuned in the bandwidth from 5 to 15 in terahertz. The findings of this paper can promote a new perspective in designing perfect ribbon absorbers based on graphene properties that can be utilized for future photodetectors, solar cells, and thermal sensors with an absorption intensity above 2 × 105(nm2) with narrow absorption bandwidth of 0.112 THz.

Effect of Stabilizers in the Synthesis of Silver Nanoparticles and Methylene Blue Oxidation

Metal nanocatalysts have received increasing attention in catalysis due to their higher reactivity and surface area-to-volume ratio at nano-size. Silver nanoparticle (AgNP) is among metal nanocatalysts that have been studied in various catalytic reactions (e.g., hydrogenation and oxidation). However, the high reactivity of AgNPs at nano-size caused instability and aggregation. Therefore, stabilizing molecules (or stabilizers) are always applied to maintain the nano size of AgNPs and prevent aggregation. Herein, the effects of different types and molar ratio of stabilizers-to-Ag precursor, to the synthesized AgNPs (i.e, size and concentration) were investigated. Two types of stabilizers, polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) and citrate were used in this study. The roles of stabilizers to the catalytic performance of synthesized AgNPs were then elucidated by using methylene blue oxidation as the model reaction. The UV-Vis absorption analyses showed that both stabilizers produced slightly different size and concentration of AgNPs based on the different wavelength and absorption intensity of the peak. We also found that the molar ratio of stabilizers-to-Ag precursor that produced better yield of AgNPs was 1:1 and 1:3 for PVP and citrate, respectively. Then, AgNPs stabilized by citrate was found having slightly higher catalytic activity in the methylene blue oxidation than AgNPs stabilized by PVP. This study provides insights to the roles of stabilizers for the synthesis of stable AgNPs with efficient catalytic reaction and can be used as guideline to other metal nanocatalysts.

One Pot Green Synthesized Silver Nanoparticles as a Selective Sensor for Hg2+ Ions.

The domains of science and technology, especially environmental protection, have brought a lot of change in nanotechnology. In the modern period, the growth of animals and plants with enough quantities is fundamentally obligatory by heavy metal ions (M+), such as Cr3+, Zn2+, Ní2+, Cu2+ and Hg2+.. However, because of their presence in both human and animal food webs, these metal ions are toxic to living things at relatively high concentrations. The ecologically friendly green approach was utilized to synthesis starch functionalized silver nanoparticles (St-Ag NPs) using water as a solvent, starch as a stabilizing agent, and glucose as a reducing agent. KOH has been used as an activator for glucose activation. The influence of diverse solutions such as AgNO3, starch, glucose, and KOH on the production of St-AgNPs was investigated. To see how these substances affect the production of St-Ag NPs, different controlled reactions were carried out in the absence of starch, glucose, and KOH. Starch, glucose, and KOH are discovered to play important roles in the synthesis of AgNPs. UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron microscope (SEM) were used for the characterization of St-Ag NPs. These starch functionalized AgNPs were used for the detection of heavy metals at 25℃. It is found during the screening process only Hg2+ showed clear changes in the color and absorption intensity of AgNPs which may be due to redox reaction that can occur between Ag0 and Hg2+. On the other hand, the color and absorption intensity of nanoparticles remain unchanged in the presence of all the other tested metals ion. The presence of other metal ions was also tested in the system. The proposed method has strong selectivity and sensitivity to Hg2+ ions. Using UV-visible spectrophotometry, the method produced had a detection limit of 1ppm. The proposed method for detecting Hg2+ in tap water samples was found to be successful..

Theoretical Investigation on the Complexation Characteristics and Spectral Properties of CdTe QDs With Four Capping Agents

In this paper, density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) are used to study the complexation characteristics CdTe quantum dots with four different capping agents, i.e. : 3-mercaptopropionic acid (MPA), reduced glutathione (GSH), 1-thioglycerol (TG) and 2-mercaptoethanesulfonate (MES). The properties of these complexes are analyzed by the complexation energy, bond lengths, electron densities, Mulliken charges and frontier molecular orbitals. In addition, the UV-Vis absorption spectra of pure CdTe QDs and those stable complexes are calculated. The results indicate that the four capping agents could form stable complexes with CdTe QDs. However, there are also some differences. For instance, the complexation between MES and QDs is the most stable and the electron amount transferred from MES to CdTe QDs is the most while the absorption intensity of UV-visible light after complexation is the largest. The stability of the complexes are followed by MPA and TG and the complexation between GSH and QDs is the most unstable, which is accompanied with the minimal electron transfer amount and the weakest absorption intensity of UV-visible light. The maximum absorption wavelengths of CdTe QDs are consistent with the experimental observed wavelength, which explains the experimental phenomena excellently.

Comparison of Antimicrobial Activity of Chitosan Nanoparticles against Bacteria and Fungi

Chitosan nanoparticles (CSNPs) have attracted wide interest; however, there has been no substantial information about a direct comparison of the antimicrobial activity of CSNPs on bacteria and fungi. Thus, in this study, simple, economically feasible CSNPs were synthesized and assessed for their antimicrobial activity. This investigation indicated that the coordination inducing effect of CSNPs could dissociate the tryptophan (Trp) and tyrosine (Tyr) residue groups on the peptide chain of the bovine serum albumin (BSA) molecule, thereby increasing the absorption intensity. The growth of E. coli and S. aureus could be completely inhibited when the concentration of CSNPs in the solution was higher than 0.6 mg/mL. The CSNPs showed more potent antibacterial activity against Gram-negative bacteria (E. coli) than against Gram-positive bacteria (S. aureus). In addition, the CSNPs were effective at initiating cellular leakage of fungal mycelia and damping off fungal pathogens, and their antifungal effects were stronger on P. steckii than on A. oryzae. Furthermore, the antimicrobial activity of the CSNPs was found to be more effective against bacteria than against fungi. This study thus ascertained the antimicrobial activity of synthesized CSNPs against different microorganisms, as well as their different degrees of inhibition.

ANALISIS KONDUKTIVITAS DAN TERMAL PADA POLIMER ELEKTROLIT DARI KITOSAN/PVA/GLISEROL/LiClO4 UNTUK APLIKASI BATERAI ION LITIUM

Penggunaan polimer ramah lingkungan merupakan tantangan bagi industri baterai ion litium saat ini dikarenakan sifatnya yang mudah terbiodegradasi menjadi keunggulan polimer alam seperti kitosan dengan bahan baku dari alam yang melimpah. Komposisi polimer elektrolit dalam penelitian ini terdiri atas kitosan, PVA, gliserol yang didopan dengan LiClO4. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menganalisis sifat konduktivitas dan termal dari polimer elektrolit kitosan/PVA/gliserol/LiClO4. Pembuatan polimer elektrolit ini menggunakan metode casting. Peningkatan massa kitosan dalam komposisi polimer elektrolit menyebabkan adanya peningkatan intensitas pada bilangan gelombang 1718 cm-1 dan peningkatan intensitas serapan pada bilngangan gelombang 1271 cm-1 dengan masing-masing puncak serapan tersebut adalah gugus fungsi dari C=O dan gugus fungsi C-O. Berdasarkan data konduktivitas menunjukkan bahwa komposisi 70/30/20/20 (kitosan /PVA/Gliserol/LiClO4) memiliki konduktivitas tertinggi sebesar 4,8 x 10-5S/cm. Hasil kurva TGA menunjukkan stabilitas termal komposisi polimer elektrolit hingga 210oC dan peningkatan jumlah kitosan dalam polimer elektrolit menurunkan kestabilan termal. Polimer elektrolit dari kitosan/PVA/Gliserol/LiClO4 dapat diaplikasikan untuk baterai ion litium berdasarkan analisis konduktivitas ionik dan kestabilan termal. ABSTRACT The use of environmentally friendly polymers is a challenge for the lithium-ion batteries industry today because its biodegradable nature is an advantage of natural polymers such as chitosan with abundant raw materials from nature. The polymer electrolyte composition in this study consisted of chitosan, PVA, glycerol doped with LiClO4. This study aims to analyze the conductivity and thermal properties of the polymer electrolyte chitosan/PVA/Glycerol/LiClO4. The polymer electrolyte was made using a casting method. The increasing of the chitosan mass in the polymer electrolyte composition led to an increase in intensity at the wave number 1718 cm-1 and an increase in absorption intensity at the wavenumber of 1271 cm-1 with absorption peaks being a functional group of C=O and C-O respectively. Based on the conductivity data, it showed that the composition of 70/30/20/20 (chitosan/PVA/Glycerol/LiClO4) had the highest conductivity of 4.8 x 10-5S/cm. The results of the TGA curve illustrated that polymer electrolyte had thermal stability until 210oC and the increasing amount of chitosan of polymer electrolyte decreased thermal stability. Polymer electrolyte chitosan

Increase the rate of plasma-assisted synthesis of silver nanoparticles through additives

The plasma-assisted method was used to synthesize silver nanoparticles, and the growth process of silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs) was monitored in real time by localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) absorption spectroscopy. The effect of additives on the synthesis of Ag-NPs was verified. It is found that the addition of isopropanol and glucose can increase the plasmon resonance absorption intensity of the reaction solution, and promote the synthesis of Ag-NPs. In the plasma-assisted method, the additives can effectively improve the synthesis efficiency of Ag-NPs, which has great inspiration for the synthesis of other metal nanoparticles.

Microstructure Optimization of Mos2/Sepiolite Nanocomposites via a Surfactant-Assisted Hydrothermal Strategy for High Efficiency Photocatalysis

The unique structure of two-dimensional molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) with rich active sites makes it a promising catalyst, whereas it also brings structural instability. Surfactant-assisted synthesis of MoS2 can be regarded as a simple way to regulate the microstructure. In this work, the surfactant additives were adopted to optimize the microstructure of MoS2/sepiolite nanocomposite, and the effects of surfactants type and concentration were investigated. For the sample prepared with 1 mol/L sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate (SDBS), it exhibits the highest intensity for the peak of MoS2 at 14.2°, highly dispersed MoS2 nanosheet on the sepiolite, the lowest absorption intensity of Rhodamine B (RhB) at 553 nm of the wavelength, and the highest photocatalytic activity which is 2.5 times and 4.2 times higher than those prepared with 1 mol/L hexadecyl trimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) and 1 mol/L polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) after a 150-minute irradiation, respectively. The above results suggest SDBS is the optimal surfactant to optimize the microstructure of MoS2/sepiolite nanocomposite. This work could provide new insights into the fabrication of high-quality MoS2-based nanocomposite.