Full-visible-spectrum lighting realized by a novel Eu2+-doped nitride-based cyan-emitting phosphor.

Cyan phosphors have attracted considerable attention in recent years as an indispensable component for realizing full-spectrum lighting. In this study, a novel nitride-based cyan-emitting phosphor Ca2BN2Cl:Eu2+ was successfully prepared. Its crystal structure refined by the Rietveld refinement reveals that Ca2BN2Cl is formed by a tight host lattice and the edge-sharing Ca(N,Cl)4 tetrahedrons along with multiple crystallographic Ca sites for Eu2+ ions to occupy, which corresponds to its broad emission band. Under the near ultraviolet (NUV) light excitation, Ca2BN2Cl:Eu2+ emits a broad-band cyan light and its full width at half-maximum (FWHM) can reach 121 nm, which effectively compensates the "cyan cavity". The time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL) spectra of Ca2BN2Cl:Eu2+ were investigated to expose the energy transfer between the multiple luminescent centers. Furthermore, the temperature-dependent spectra of Ca2BN2Cl:Eu2+ were measured to evaluate its thermal stability. All of the discussion and results reveal that Ca2BN2Cl:Eu2+ is a promising cyan phosphor for use in white light-emitting diodes to realize full-spectrum lighting.

Fluorescence covalent interaction enhanced sensor for lead ion based on novel graphitic carbon nitride nanocones.

Novel graphitic carbon nitride nanocones (g-CNNCs) were synthesized for the first time in this study. The SEM, TEM, XPS and FT-IR were used to research the structure of the g-CNNCs. We found that the g-CNNCs showed high selective and sensitive for fluorescence enhancement detection of Pb2+ ion via covalent interaction. In addition, the g-CNNCs exhibit stable and specific concentration-dependent fluorescence intensity in the presence of Pb2+ ion in the range of 1-200 µmol·dm-3, and the limit of detection was estimated to be 0.0438 µmol·dm-3 (3S/k). More importantly, the g-CNNCs were used to detect practical samples with satisfactory results.

Fast synthesis of porous copper nanoclusters for fluorescence detection of iron ions in water samples.

Copper nanoclusters (Cu NCs) have attracted great research interest in recent years owing to its unique physical, electrical and optical properties. Macromolecules have been widely used as templates to synthesize fluorescent Cu NCs. In this study, a simple method for synthesis of albumin chicken egg capped porous copper nanoclusters (p-Cu NCs) was developed for the first time. The obtained p-Cu NCs exhibited intense emission and excitation peaks at 280 nm and 340 nm, respectively. Besides, the p-Cu NCs fluorescence probe could be quenched by Fe3+ ions in aqueous solutions. Therefore, the p-Cu NCs can be excellently candidated as fluorescent probe for the detection of Fe3+ ions. Under optimized conditions, this fluorescent probe exhibited a wide linear response concentration range (0.2 to 100 µM) to Fe3+ with a detection limit of 0.0234 µM. In addition, the fluorescent probe has been successfully used for the detection of Fe3+ in natural water samples with satisfactory result.

CuGaS2-ZnS p-n nanoheterostructures: a promising visible light photo-catalyst for water-splitting hydrogen production.

In this work, novel CuGaS2-ZnS p-n type semiconductor nanoheterostructures were synthesized by a solution route, and demonstrated experimentally to be a very promising visible light active photo-catalyst for water-splitting hydrogen production. The construction of CuGaS2-ZnS heterostructures follows a multi-step strategy, employing Cu1.94S nanocrystals first as catalytic assistants for the hetero-growth of ZnS on their surfaces, and then as sacrificial seeds for the formation of CuGaS2. Excitingly, attributed to the efficient charge separation introduced by the p-n heterojunctions, the hydrogen production ability of the CuGaS2-ZnS nanoheterostructures under visible light irradiation is 15 times higher than that of the CuGaS2 component, and comparable to that of the CdS nanophase which is currently regarded as one of the most active visible photo-catalysts for hydrogen generation.

Converting Ag2S-CdS and Ag2S-ZnS into Ag-CdS and Ag-ZnS nanoheterostructures by selective extraction of sulfur.

A mild three-step solution strategy is developed to prepare Ag-MS (M=Zn, Cd) nanoheterostructures composed of MS nanorods with silver tips. First, Ag2S-MS heterostructures are synthesized by following a solution-liquid-solid mechanism with Ag2S nanoparticles as catalysts, then the Ag2S sections of the heterostructures are converted into silver nanoparticles by selective extraction of sulfur. Notably, for the prepared Ag-CdS heterostructures, the localized surface plasmon resonance of silver remarkably intensifies the photoluminescence of CdS by enhancing the excitation light absorption, which is beneficial for potential applications of CdS nanoparticles in the fields of biolabeling, light-emitting diodes, and so forth. The strategy reported herein would be useful for designing and fabricating other metal-semiconductor hybrid nanostructures with desirable performances.

Formation of AgGaS2 nano-pyramids from Ag2S nanospheres through intermediate Ag2S-AgGaS2 heterostructures and AgGaS2 sensitized Mn2+ emission.

A one-pot solution synthesis of monodisperse AgGaS2 nanocrystals with uniform pyramid-like shape is realized for the first time, in which an interesting phase and shape evolution from monodisperse Ag2S nanospheres to pure AgGaS2 nano-pyramids through an intermediate stage of Ag2S-AgGaS2 heterostructures, is revealed. Evidently, upon introducing Mn(2+) ions into the reaction system, they are incorporated into AgGaS2 nano-pyramids which act as efficient sensitization matrixes for the red emission of Mn(2+) d-d transition under blue excitation. Benefiting from their non-toxicity and facile fabrication, Mn:AgGaS2 nanocrystals may find potential applications in some fields such as blue chip excited LEDs and bio-labeling.

Controllable synthesis of metal selenide heterostructures mediated by Ag2Se nanocrystals acting as catalysts.

Ag2Se nanocrystals were demonstrated to be novel semiconductor mediators, or in other word catalysts, for the growth of semiconductor heterostructures in solution. This is a result of the unique feature of Ag2Se as a fast ion conductor, allowing foreign cations to dissolve and then to heterogrow the second phase. Using Ag2Se nanocrystals as catalysts, dimeric metal selenide heterostructures such as Ag2Se-CdSe and Ag2Se-ZnSe, and even multi-segment heterostructures such as Ag2Se-CdSe-ZnSe and Ag2Se-ZnSe-CdSe, were successfully synthesized. Several interesting features were found in the Ag2Se based heterogrowth. At the initial stage of heterogrowth, a layer of the second phase forms on the surface of an Ag2Se nanosphere, with a curved junction interface between the two phases. With further growth of the second phase, the Ag2Se nanosphere tends to flatten the junction surface by modifying its shape from sphere to hemisphere in order to minimize the conjunct area and thus the interfacial energy. Notably, the crystallographic relationship of the two phases in the heterostructure varies with the lattice parameters of the second phase, in order to reduce the lattice mismatch at the interface. Furthermore, a small lattice mismatch at the interface results in a straight rod-like second phase, while a large lattice mismatch would induce a tortuous product. The reported results may provide a new route for developing novel selenide semiconductor heterostructures which are potentially applicable in optoelectronic, biomedical, photovoltaic and catalytic fields.