A unique semiconductor-carbon-metal hybrid structure design as a counter electrode in dye-sensitized solar cells.

The catalytic activity of counter electrodes (CEs) severely restricts the photovoltaic conversion efficiency of dye-sensitized solar cells. However, electrons trapped by bulk defects greatly reduce the catalytic activity of the CE. In this study, we report a novel In2S3-C-Au hybrid structure designed by simply decorating Au particles on the surface of carbon-coated hierarchical In2S3 flower-like architectures, which could avoid the abovementioned problems. This effect can be attributed to the unique contribution of indium sulfide, carbon, and Au from the hybrid structure, as well as to their synergy. Electrochemical measurements revealed that the hybrid structure possessed high catalytic activity and electrochemical stability for the interconversion of the redox couple I3-/I-. Moreover, this superior performance can be incorporated into the dye-sensitized solar cells system. We used this hybrid structure as a counter electrode by casting it on an FTO substrate to form a film, which displayed better photovoltaic conversion efficiency (8.91%) than the commercial Pt counterpart (7.67%).

Facile Preparation and Lithium Storage Properties of TiO2 @Graphene Composite Electrodes with Low Carbon Content.

Over the past decade, TiO2 /graphene composites as electrodes for lithium ion batteries have attracted a great deal of attention for reasons of safety and environmental friendliness. However, most of the TiO2 /graphene electrodes have large graphene content (9-40 %), which is bound to increase the cost of the battery. Logically, reducing the amount of graphene is a necessary part to achieve a green battery. The synthesis of TiO2 nanosheets under solvothermal conditions without additives is now demonstrated. Through mechanical mixing TiO2 nanosheets with different amount of reduced graphene (rGO), a series of TiO2 @graphene composites was prepared with low graphene content (rGO content 1, 2, 3, and 5 wt %). When these composites were evaluated as anodes for lithium ion batteries, it was found that TiO2 +3 wt % rGO manifested excellent cycling stability and a high specific capacity (243.7 mAh g(-1) at 1 C; 1 C=167.5 mA g(-1) ), and demonstrated superior high-rate discharge/charge capability at 20 C.

miR-34a inhibits cell proliferation in prostate cancer by downregulation of SIRT1 expression.

MicroRNA-34a (miR-34a) functions as a tumor suppressor gene and inhibits abnormal cell growth by regulating the expression of other genes. The role of miR-34a in regulating sirtuin 1 (SIRT1) in prostate cancer remains unclear. The objective of the present study was to investigate the biological function and molecular mechanisms of miR-34a regulation of SIRT1 in human prostate cancer samples and the human prostate cancer cell line, PC-3. Fresh prostate tissues were obtained from patients, and the miR-34a expression in prostate cancer tissues was measured using reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). qPCR and western blotting were performed to assess the effects of miR-34a overexpression on SIRT1 regulation in PC-3 cells, and the cell growth was assessed by Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8). Flow cytometry was used to assess the cell cycle status of the cells. The miR-34a expression levels in prostate cancer tissues were significantly reduced compared with adjacent normal prostate tissues (P<0.05). SIRT1 expression levels in PC-3 cells with over-expression of miR-34a were significantly reduced compared with those in the negative control (P<0.05). The over-expression of miR-34a inhibited PC-3 cells growth and resulted in increased cell cycle arrest compared with the negative control (P<0.05). In conclusion, miR-34a inhibits the human prostate cancer cell proliferation, in part, through the downregulation of SIRT1 expression.

Mesoporous Bi2S3 nanorods with graphene-assistance as low-cost counter-electrode materials in dye-sensitized solar cells.

In this work, we report the synthesis of mesoporous Bi2S3 nanorods under hydrothermal conditions without additives, and investigated their catalytic activities as the CE in DSCs by I-V curves and tested conversion efficiency. To further improve their power conversion efficiency, we added different amounts of reduced graphene by simple physical mixing. With the addition of 9 wt% reduced graphene (rGO), the short-circuit current density, open-circuit voltage and fill factor were Jsc = 15.33 mA cm(-2), Voc = 0.74 V and FF = 0.609. More importantly, the conversion efficiency reached 6.91%, which is slightly inferior to the commercial Pt counter electrode (7.44%). Compared to the conventional Pt counter electrodes of solar cells, this new material has the advantages of low-cost, facile synthesis and high efficiency with graphene assistance. To the best of our knowledge, this Bi2S3 + 9 wt% rGO system has the best performance ever recorded in all Bi2S3-based CEs in the DSCs system.

A facile shape-selective growth of ZnO nanotips and graded nanowires from its oriented nanorods in a saturated ZnS solution.

A facile solution-based route is developed for the preparation of distinctive ZnO nanostructures via a dissolution-growth of ZnO nanorods in a saturated ZnS solution at a water-bath temperature of 95 °C. In the dissolution-growth process, a series of novel morphologies including nanotips, tapered and graded nanowires can be conveniently achieved by simply changing the heating time. The pointed ends of the nanotips have a diameter of several nanometers, and the graded nanowires have a gradient change in diameter from a few to tens of nanometers along the longitudinal direction with the size of the thin end matching the Bohr exciton radius of ZnO. Furthermore, the formation mechanism from the ZnO nanorods to the nanotips, to the tapered and graded nanowires is discussed based on shape-evolution observations.

Tunable single-doped single-host full-color-emitting LaAlO(3):Eu phosphor via valence state-controlled means.

A full-color-emitting phosphor of valence-varied Eu doped perovskite-type LaAlO(3) with the aid of energy transfer is demonstrated and its luminescence properties can be tuned through controllable addition of doped ions.

Fabrication of Densely Packed AlN Nanowires by a Chemical Conversion of Al(2)O(3) Nanowires Based on Porous Anodic Alumina Film.

Porous alumina film on aluminum with gel-like pore wall was prepared by a two-step anodization of aluminum, and the corresponding gel-like porous film was etched in diluted NaOH solution to produce alumina nanowires in the form of densely packed alignment. The resultant alumina nanowires were reacted with NH(3) and evaporated aluminum at an elevated temperature to be converted into densely packed aluminum nitride (AlN) nanowires. The AlN nanowires have a diameter of 15-20 nm larger than that of the alumina nanowires due to the supplement of the additional evaporated aluminum. The results suggest that it might be possible to prepare other aluminum compound nanowires through similar process.

A simple approach for large-area fabrication of Ag nanorings.

A simple and low-cost method based on a two-step heat treatment of AgNO(3)/SiO(2) film has been developed for fabricating metal Ag nanoring arrays. The as-prepared nanorings have an inner diameter of 70-250 nm and an average wall thickness (namely wire diameter) of approximately 30 nm with a number density of approximately 10(9) cm(-2) on the surface of the SiO(2) matrix. X-ray diffraction (XRD) results reveal that these nanorings exhibit a face-centered cubic crystal structure. Furthermore, a new growth mechanism, namely a molten metal bubble as a self-template, is tentatively proposed for Ag nanorings.