Interface Defects Dependent on Perovskite Annealing Temperature for NiOX-Based Inverted CsPbI2Br Perovskite Solar Cells.

Nickel oxide (NiOX) is an ideal inorganic hole transport material for the fabrication of inverted perovskite solar cells owing to its excellent optical and semiconductor properties. Currently, the main research on developing the performance of NiOX-based perovskite solar cells focuses on improving the conductivity of NiOX thin films and preventing the redox reactions between metal cations (Ni3+ on the surface of NiOX) and organic cations (FA+ or MA+ in the perovskite precursors) at the NiOX/perovskite interface. In this study, a new type of interface defects in NiOX-based CsPbI2Br solar cells is reported. That is the Pb2+ from CsPbI2Br perovskites can diffuse into the lattice of NiOX surface as the annealing temperature of perovskites changes. The diffusion of Pb2+ increases the ratio of Ni3+/Ni2+ on the surface of NiOX, leading to an increase in the density of trap state at the interface between NiOX and perovskites, which eventually results in a serious decline in the photovoltaic performance of solar cells.

Polyoxyethylene tallow amine and glyphosate exert different developmental toxicities on human pluripotent stem cells-derived heart organoid model.

The early stage of heart development is highly susceptible to various environmental factors. While the use of animal models has aided in identifying numerous environmental risk factors, the variability between species and the low throughput limit their translational potential. Recently, a type of self-assembling cardiac structures, known as human heart organoids (hHOs), exhibits a remarkable biological consistency with human heart. However, the feasibility of hHOs for assessing cardiac developmental risk factors remains unexplored. Here, we focused on the cardiac developmental effects of core components of Glyphosate-based herbicides (GBHs), the most widely used herbicides, to evaluate the reliability of hHOs for the prediction of possible cardiogenesis toxicity. GBHs have been proven toxic to cardiac development based on multiple animal models, with the mechanism remaining unknown. We found that polyoxyethylene tallow amine (POEA), the most common surfactant in GBHs formulations, played a dominant role in GBHs' heart developmental toxicity. Though there were a few differences in transcriptive features, hHOs exposed to sole POEA and combined POEA and Glyphosate would suffer from both disruption of heart contraction and disturbance of commitment in cardiomyocyte isoforms. By contrast, Glyphosate only caused mild epicardial hyperplasia. This study not only sheds light on the toxic mechanism of GBHs, but also serves as a methodological demonstration, showcasing its effectiveness in recognizing and evaluating environmental risk factors, and deciphering toxic mechanisms.

Battery Capacity of Energy-Storing Quantum Systems.

The quantum battery capacity is introduced in this Letter as a figure of merit that expresses the potential of a quantum system to store and supply energy. It is defined as the difference between the highest and the lowest energy that can be reached by means of the unitary evolution of the system. This function is closely connected to the ergotropy, but it does not depend on the temporary level of energy of the system. The capacity of a quantum battery can be directly linked with the entropy of the battery state, as well as with measures of coherence and entanglement.

Generation of a human embryonic stem cell line (SKLRMe004-A) carrying NKX2.5-EGFP and TBX5-Tdtomato dual fluorescent reporters.

TBX5 and NKX2-5 are two important transcription factors regulating cardiomyocytes commitment. In this study, we generated a dual fluorescent reporter cell line based on H9 human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and called it H9-NKX2.5GFP/TBX5Td-T2A-18, which could be short for T2A-18. When T2A-18 was induced towards a cardiomyocyte fate, EGFP and Tdtomato fluorescences were observed, indicating the expression of NKX2.5 and TBX5, respectively. Meanwhile, T2A had normal karyotype and could maintain main characteristics of wildtype H9. Therefore, T2A-18 could be used as a tool to help us study the mechanism of cardiomyocytes specification from hESCs.

Efficient liquid exfoliation of KP15 nanowires aided by Hansen's empirical theory.

The KP15 nanowires with one-dimensional properties has a defect-free surface, high anisotropy, and carrier mobility which is desirable for the development of novel nanodevices. However, the preparation of nanoscale KP15 is still inefficient. In this work, the Hansen solubility parameters of KP15 were first obtained. Based on the Hansen's empirical theory, the concentration of liquid-exfoliated KP15 nanowires was improved to 0.0458 mg·mL-1 by a solution containing 50% water and 50% acetone. Approximately 79% of the KP15 nanowires had a thickness value below 50 nm and 60.9% of them had a width value below 100 nm. The thinnest KP15 nanowires reached 5.1 nm and had smooth boundaries. Meanwhile, strong temperature-dependent Raman response in exfoliated KP15 nanowires has been observed, which indicates a strong phonon-phonon coupling in those nanowires. This is helpful for non-invasive temperature measurements of KP15 nanodevices.

Exciton emissions in quasi one-dimensional layered KP15.

We studied the excitonic states of KP15 nanowires, which have high carrier mobility and in-plane anisotropic electrical and optical properties. Power, thickness, and temperature-dependent photoluminescence (PL) measurements were carried out. We found two neutral exciton emissions from KP15 nanowires. The high energy emission (1.83 eV) seems to have been produced by the surface state, and the lower one (1.67 eV) may have been produced by the original crystal structure of KP15. The KP15 nanowires also exhibited a large exciton binding energy (98 meV), which is one order of magnitude greater than those of common semiconductors. These properties make KP15 nanowires an interesting material for electrical and optical applications.

High Anisotropy in Tubular Layered Exfoliated KP15.

Two-dimensional (2D) materials with high anisotropic properties, such as black phosphorus and ReS2, show amazing potential for applications in future nanoelectronic and optoelectronic devices. However, degradation of black phosphorus under ambient conditions and the expensiveness of Re block their application. In this study, another layered material, KP15, that has highly anisotropic properties was successfully prepared. The detailed crystal structure and electron-density distribution calculation reveal that KP15 exhibits an anisotropic layered structure with two rows of P tubes connected by K atoms that are antiparallel in a single layer. Outstanding chemical stability, angular dependence of the Raman response, excitation, and exciton emission at room temperature have been found in exfoliated KP15 nanoribbons. Importantly, the exciton emission at room temperature suggests the existence of a large exciton binding energy. Our results indicate that, because this layered material, KP15, has high anisotropic properties and ultrachemical stability and is derived from abundant raw materials, it has great potential for applications in optoelectronic devices.

Rediscovering the MP15 Family (M = Li, Na, and K) as an Anisotropic Layered Semiconducting Material.

The binary alkaline metal phosphides family MP15 (M = Li, Na, K) exhibiting a layered structure nature and in-plane anisotropy is discussed through first principles. Their thickness-dependent bandstructures are reported for the first time. Furthermore, the transport studies demonstrate that single-layer MP15 exhibits a large anisotropic ratio for carrier mobility (both electron and hole) (∼101-102 magnitude) between two special crystal directions, which is the record high value among the reported two-dimensional anisotropic materials. Additionally, the chemical stability under ambient conditions and the binding energy which relates to experimental exfoliation are also investigated. The high anisotropy of the layered semiconducting MP15 family could open up considerable promise for anisotropic optics, electronics, optoelectronics devices, and energy storage applications.

Elastic Properties, Defect Thermodynamics, Electrochemical Window, Phase Stability, and Li(+) Mobility of Li3PS4: Insights from First-Principles Calculations.

The improved ionic conductivity (1.64 × 10(-4) S cm(-1) at room temperature) and excellent electrochemical stability of nanoporous ß-Li3PS4 make it one of the promising candidates for rechargeable all-solid-state lithium-ion battery electrolytes. Here, elastic properties, defect thermodynamics, phase diagram, and Li(+) migration mechanism of Li3PS4 (both γ and ß phases) are examined via the first-principles calculations. Results indicate that both γ- and ß-Li3PS4 phases are ductile while γ-Li3PS4 is harder under volume change and shear stress than ß-Li3PS4. The electrochemical window of Li3PS4 ranges from 0.6 to 3.7 V, and thus the experimentally excellent stability (>5 V) is proposed due to the passivation phenomenon. The dominant diffusion carrier type in Li3PS4 is identified over its electrochemical window. In γ-Li3PS4 the direct-hopping of Lii(+) along the [001] is energetically more favorable than other diffusion processes, whereas in ß-Li3PS4 the knock-off diffusion of Lii(+) along the [010] has the lowest migration barrier. The ionic conductivity is evaluated from the concentration and the mobility calculations using the Nernst-Einstein relationship and compared with the available experimental results. According to our calculated results, the Li(+) prefers to transport along the [010] direction. It is suggested that the enhanced ionic conductivity in nanostructured ß-Li3PS4 is due to the larger possibility of contiguous (010) planes provided by larger nanoporous ß-Li3PS4 particles. By a series of motivated and closely linked calculations, we try to provide a portable method, by which researchers could gain insights into the physicochemical properties of solid electrolyte.