ADVANCED MATERIALS -DEERFIELD BEACH THEN WEINHEIM-
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Table of contents
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Plasma-enhanced CVD of fluorocarbon thin films via CF3H/H2 chemistries
Overhang test structure deposition profiles of pulsed plasma fluorocarbon films from hexafluoropropylene oxide, 1,1,2,2-tetrafluoroethane, and difluoromethane
Polymer Network-Stabilized Liquid Crystals - Review - The polymerization in a liquid-crystalline phase of a small amount of bifunctional photoreactive monomer can stabilize the orientation of the liquid crystals, as illustrated in the Figure. The formation and properties of these polymer-stabilized liquid crystals (PSLCS) are reviewed and the influence of the preparation conditions on the polymer network morphology and thus the electro-optical performance of the PSLCs are examined
Near-Field Fluorescence Microscopy of Tris-8-hydroxyquinoline Aluminum Films - Communication - The dependence of the nanoscale optical properties of Alq3 on film morphology (Alq3
Two-Dimensional Crosslinked Nanoparticle Networks - Communication - Monolayer-protected nano-clusters exhibit good stability both in solution and dry forms and as such are promising materials for nanocircuits and nanodevices. In this article, an efficient method for fabricating 2D crosslinked nanoparticle networks using the Langmuir-Blodgett technique and dithiols as bifunctional linkers is reported. As shown in the Figure, close-packed assemblies are produced
Trapping Light in Polymer Photodiodes with Soft Embossed Gratings - Communication - Increasing the conversion efficiency is very important in photovoltaic devices, as is cheap and simple technology. Here is demonstrated a soft embossing Heating technique for printing a submicrometer grating with an elastomeric mold into an optically active polymer layer in a photovoltaic device (see Figure). The light trapping due to the grating pattern enhances the photoconversion efficiency by more than 25% at normal light incidence (see also inside front cover)
Synthesis of a High-Permeance NaA Zeolite Membrane by Microwave Heating - Communication - Zeolite membranes with high permeance and separation factors are highly desirable for practical applications. Although, in the past, very good separation factors have been obtained, it has proved difficult to achieve a high permeance. Here a comparative study of microwave versus conventional heating in the hydrothermal synthesis of NaA zeolite membranes is made. It is demonstrated that membranes prepared by microwave heating have not only a higher permeance but also a considerably shorter synthesis time. These observations are rationalized by examining the mechanism of membrane formation
Mesoporous Yttria-Zirconia and Metal-Yttria-Zirconia Solid Solutions for Fuel Cells - Communication - A new class of binary mesoporous yttria-zirconia (YZ) and ternary mesoporous metal-YZ materials (M
Templating Effects in the Growth of Metal-Free Phthalocyanine Polymorphic Double Layers - Communication - The influence of the first molecular layer on the growth and properties of subsequent layers is examined using different polymorphs of metal-free phthalocyanine (H2Pc). It is shown than the first layer acts as a morphological and structural template, as illustrated by the Figure, which is an Normarski image of a b1-a polymorphic double layer -- Characteristic b1 domains are seen although the top layer is an a film
Preparation of Mesoscale Hollow Spheres of TiO2 and SnO2 by Templating Against Crystalline Arrays of Polystyrene Beads - Communication - Mesoscale hollow spheres of ceramic materials can be prepared templating an appropriate sol-gel precursor against a crystalline array of monodisperse polystyrene beads, as demonstrated here. Spheres of well-controlled, uniform size and homogeneous wall thickness result as can be seen from the Figure, which shows the TEM cross-sectional view of an array of TiO2 hollow spheres
A Topology Map for Novel Vesicle-Polymer Hybrid Architectures - Communication - The use of vesicles as templates for the polymerization of inserted monomers gives rise to novel vesicle-polymer hybrid morphologies where a polymer bead is phase-separated from the vesicle bilayer matrix. Complex vesicle-polymer architectures, such as the "wrapped parachute" morphologies shown in the Figure, are synthesized here and then examined using cryo-transmission electron microscopy (see also cover)
Phase Separation of Carbon Nanotubes and Turbostratic Graphite Using a Functional Organic Polymer - Communication - Nanotubes are rich in potential applications, but they are very difficult to purify, and yields are often less than 1% solution presented here is to suspend nanotubes in a polymer matrix, which then acts as a filtration system. Incorporation is achieved by sonication, followed by a period of settling, during which the amorphous material falls out, leaving a highly pure sample of nanotubes (see Figure) that contains virtually no other carbonaceous material
Tuning the Optoelectronic Properties of Pyridine-Containing Polymers for Light-Emitting Devices - Communication - Increased electron affinity and improved electron-transporting properties are lent to polymers based on pyridine when compared to benzene. Here, the synthesis of new pyridine-containing conjugated polymers, such as those shown in the Figure, are described. Their optical absorption and luminescence spectra in solution and thin films are also investigated as is their potential as electron-transporting layers in LEDs
Poly (3,4-alkylenedioxypyrrole)s as Highly Stable Aqueous-Compatible Conducting Polymers with Biomedical Implications - Communication - Polypyrrole (PPy) may be set to revolutionize biological applications such as tissue engineering and biosensors due to its high electroactivity-conductivity and the water compatibility of its films. However, inherent weaknesses in PPy-based materials arise from defect sites along the PPy polymer backbone, and its instability to reduction by biologically relevant reducing agents such as dithiothreitol (DTT) and glutathione. Here is presented a family of electron-rich poly(3,4-alkylenedioxypyrrole)s that address these structural weaknesses and are stable in the conducting, oxidized form, rendering them immune to strong biological reducing agents
Materials and Fabrication Needs for Low-Cost Organic Transistor Circuits - Research News - The key building blocks of organic transistor circuits, organic thin-film field-effect transistors (FETs), are reviewed in this article. Recent important materials-related research on n-channel and solution-processable semiconductors (eg, the p-channel semiconductor dihexyl-a-pentathiophene shown in the Figure) and dielectric materials are addressed as are future needs, such as practical reel-to-reel processes
Vanadium Oxide Nanotubes -- A New Flexible Vanadate Nanophase - Research News - Vanadium oxide nanotubes have recently been discovered as the main product of a sol-gel reaction that is followed by hydrothermal treatment in the presence of air, during which vanadium oxide sheets roll up, giving rise to the scroll morphology visible in the Figure. The scrolls are highly flexible, permitting numerous exchange reactions, and can be aligned using micromolding in capillaries
Hyperbranched Polyether Polyols: A Modular Approach to Complex Polymer Architectures - Research News - A versatile modular system for complex branched polymer architectures has been developed through exploitation of the multibranching polymerization chemistry of glycidol. This report summarizes recent advances in the preparation of these novel polymers and describes the modular concept used to tailor their topology to give functional materials, such as the dye-loaded molecular nanocapsule depicted in the Figure