High Open-Circuit Voltage Cs2 AgBiBr6 Carbon-Based Perovskite Solar Cells via Green Processing of Ultrasonic Spray-Coated Carbon Electrodes from Waste Tire Sources.

Invited for this month cover is the group of Teresa Gatti at the Justus Liebig University (JLU) in Giessen, Germany, the group of Federico Bella at Politecnico di Torino (POLITO), Italy, and the group of Francesco Lamberti at the University of Padova (UNIPD), also in Italy. The image shows how waste tires can be converted in a conductive carbon powder that undergoes a green processing step to produce carbon electrodes for lead-free perovskite solar cells. Similar devices can be employed to harvest indoor light in order to power the Internet of Things (IoT) ecosystem. The Research Article itself is available at 10.1002/cssc.202201590.

Nanostructured 2D WS2@PANI nanohybrids for electrochemical energy storage.

2D materials are interesting flat nanoplatforms for the implementation of different electrochemical processes, due to the high surface area and tunable electronic properties. 2D transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) can be produced through convenient top-down liquid-phase exfoliation (LPE) methods and present capacitive behaviour that can be exploited for energy storage applications. However, in their thermodynamically stable 2H crystalline phase, they present poor electrical conductivity, being this phase a purely semiconducting one. Combination with conducting polymers like polyaniline (PANI), into nanohybrids, can provide better properties for the scope. In this work, we report on the preparation of 2D WS2@PANI hybrid materials in which we exploit the LPE TMD nanoflakes as scaffolds, onto which induce the in-situ aniline polymerization and thus achieve porous architectures, with the help of surfactants and sodium chloride acting as templating agents. We characterize these species for their capacitive behaviour in neutral pH, achieving maximum specific capacitance of 160 F/g at a current density of 1 A/g, demonstrating the attractiveness of similar nanohybrids for future use in low-cost, easy-to-make supercapacitor devices.

High Open-Circuit Voltage Cs2 AgBiBr6 Carbon-Based Perovskite Solar Cells via Green Processing of Ultrasonic Spray-Coated Carbon Electrodes from Waste Tire Sources.

Costs and toxicity concerns are at the center of a heated debate regarding the implementation of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) into commercial products. The first bottleneck could be overcome by eliminating the top metal electrode (generally gold) and the underlying hole transporting material and substituting both with one single thick layer of conductive carbon, as in the so-called carbon-based PSCs (C-PSCs). The second issue, related to the presence of lead, can be tackled by resorting to other perovskite structures based on less toxic metallic components. An interesting case is that of the double perovskite Cs2 AgBiBr6 , which at present still lacks the outstanding optoelectronic performances of the lead-based counterparts but is very stable to environmental factors. In this work, the processing of carbon electrodes onto Cs2 AgBiBr6 -based C-PSCs was reported, starting from an additive-free isopropanol ink of a carbon material obtained from the hydrothermal recycling of waste tires and employing a high-throughput ultrasonic spray coating method in normal environmental conditions. Through this highly sustainable approach that ensures a valuable step from an end-of-life to an end-of-waste status for used tires, devices were obtained delivering a record open circuit voltage of 1.293 V, which might in the future represent ultra-cheap solutions to power the indoor Internet of Things ecosystem.

A rare case of spontaneous rupture of epithelioid angiomyolipoma.

A male patient, 40 years of age, arrived at our Institute with diffuse abdominal tenderness, right flank pain, hematuria and early stage of hemorrhagic shock with anemia and initial hypotension. The immediate clinical history revealed no significant previous trauma, only subsequently was reported inconstant pain in the right flank for 4-5 days with pallor and asthenia, signs and symptoms that the patient had not investigated. Abdominal CT scan with angiographic evaluation was performed showing right kidney mass and perirenal fluid collection by blood component. Immediate nephrectomy was performed and histopathological and further immunohistochemical study, revealed the epithelioid variant of angiomyolipoma.

Lanthanide-Induced Photoluminescence in Lead-Free Cs2AgBiBr6 Bulk Perovskite: Insights from Optical and Theoretical Investigations.

Emphasis was recently placed on the Cs2AgBiBr6 double perovskite as a possible candidate to substitute toxic lead in metal halide perovskites. However, its poor light-emissive features currently make it unsuitable for solid-state lighting. Lanthanide doping is an established strategy to implement luminescence in poorly emissive materials, with the additional advantage of fine-tuning the emission wavelength. We discuss here the impact of Eu and Yb doping on the optical properties of Cs2AgBiBr6 thin films, obtained from the solution processing of hydrothermally synthesized bulk crystalline powders, by combining experiments and density functional theory calculations. Eu(III) incorporation does not lead to the characteristic 5D0 → 7F2 emission feature at 2 eV, while only a weak trap-assisted sub-band gap radiative emission is reported. Oppositely, we demonstrate that incorporated Yb(III) leads to an intense and exclusive photoluminescence emission in the near-infrared as a result of the efficient sensitization of the lanthanide 2F5/2 → 2F7/2 transition.

Straightforward Micropatterning of Oligonucleotides in Microfluidics by Novel Spin-On ZrO2 Surfaces.

DNA biochip assays often require immobilization of bioactive molecules on solid surfaces. A simple biofunctionalization protocol and precise spatial binding represent the two major challenges in order to obtain localized region specific biopatterns into lab-on-a-chip (LOC) systems. In this work, a simple strategy to anchor oligonucleotides on microstructured areas and integrate the biomolecules patterns within microfluidic channels is reported. A photosensitive ZrO2 system is proposed as an advanced platform and versatile interface for specific positioning and oriented immobilization of phosphorylated DNA. ZrO2 sol-gel structures were easily produced on fused silica by direct UV lithography, allowing a simple and fast patterning process with different geometries. A thermal treatment at 800 °C was performed to crystallize the structures and maximize the affinity of DNA to ZrO2. Fluorescent DNA strands were selectively immobilized on the crystalline patterns inside polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microchannels, allowing high specificity and rapid hybridization kinetics. Hybridization tests confirmed the correct probe anchoring and the bioactivity retention, while denaturation experiments demonstrated the possibility of regenerating the surface.

Biosensing with electroconductive biomimetic soft materials.

The development of smart biomaterials able to quantitatively analyse the dynamics of biological systems with high temporal resolution in biomimetic environments is of paramount importance in biophysics, biology and medicine. In this context, we develop a biosensing water-based soft biomaterial with tunable mechanical properties through the generation of an electroconductive nano-element network. As a proof of concept, in order to detect glucose concentration, we fabricate an electroconductive polyacrylamide glucose oxidase (GOx) loaded hydrogel (HY) modified with a small amount of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) (up to 0.85 wt%). MicroRaman maps and optical analysis show the nanotube distribution in the samples at different mass fractions. Electrochemical impedance spectra and their fitting with equivalent circuit models reveal electron conduction in the charged hydrogels in addition to ionic conductivity. The effective resulting resistance of the nanostructured network is comparable to that of a gold electrode. These findings were also confirmed by cyclic voltammetry. Interestingly, heterogeneous clustering of SWNTs shows double electric mechanisms and efficiencies. GOx-SWNT doped hydrogels show a linear glucose concentration response in the range between 0.1 mM and 1.6 mM; taken together these results show high detection limits for glucose (down to 15 µM) and a sensitivity of 0.63 µA mM-1. In the perspective of monitoring cell dynamics, hydrogel functionalization allows cell adhesion and long-term cell culture, and atomic force microscopy is used for mapping the doped hydrogel stiffness. Myoblasts, cells sensitive to mechanical substrate properties, show proper differentiation of phenotype in the SWNT-HYs with nominal physiological stiffness.

Flow biosensing and sampling in indirect electrochemical detection.

Miniaturization in biological analyses has several advantages, such as sample volume reduction and fast response time. The integration of miniaturized biosensors within lab-on-a-chip setups under flow conditions is highly desirable, not only because it simplifies process handling but also because measurements become more robust and operator-independent. In this work, we study the integration of flow amperometric biosensors within a microfluidic platform when analyte concentration is indirectly measured. As a case study, we used a platinum miniaturized glucose biosensor, where glucose is enzymatically converted to [Formula: see text] that is oxidized at the electrode. The experimental results produced are strongly coupled to a theoretical analysis of fluid dynamic conditions affecting the electrochemical response of the sensor. We verified that the choice of the inlet flow rate is a critical parameter in flow biosensors, because it affects both glucose and [Formula: see text] transport, to and from the electrode. We identify optimal flow rate conditions for accurate sensing at high time resolution. A dimensionless theoretical analysis allows the extension of the results to other sensing systems according to fluid dynamic similarity principles. Furthermore, we developed a microfluidic design that connects a sampling unit to the biosensor, in order to decouple the sampling flow rate from that of the actual measurement.

Nanotubes oxidation temperature controls the height of single-walled carbon nanotube forests on gold micropatterned thin layers.

We developed a simple methodology for a direct control of the height of carboxylated single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) forests. We found that the important step is a good control of the oxidation temperature of the nanotubes. SWNTs oxidation at different temperature was followed by Raman and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopies. Atomic force microscopy images showed that micropatterned self-assembled monolayers forests have average height from 20 to 80 nm using SWNTs oxidized in the temperature ranging from 323 to 303 K, respectively.