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Optically transparent liquid marbles were made from water and glycerol drops embedded in surface-treated fumed silica nanoparticles. The mechanical robustness of such liquid marbles is shown to be greater than similar marbles made from microparticulate poly(tetrafluoroethylene), both under compressive and tensile loading conditions. Using liquid evaporation data and environmental scanning electron microscope images, we demonstrate that their robustness may be attributed to a nanoparticulate elastic thin film that self-assembles on the liquid-vapor interface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hollow BiFeO3 nanoparticles were synthesized by an electrospray route for the first time. The phase purity and structure have been investigated by x-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy. Transmission and scanning electron microscope investigations revealed that the as-obtained BiFeO3 hollow spheres were polycrystalline, with a shell thickness of 35 nm. The formation mechanism can be possibly explained by Ostwald ripening. Raman spectra have verified decreased vibrational frequencies in BiFeO3 nanoparticles. These hollow and core-shell multiferroic nanoparticles exhibit significantly enhanced ferromagnetism from 5 to 600 K due to a broken spiral spin structure. The ferroelectricity of hollow BiFeO3 particles exhibits a lower switching electric field, which is confirmed by Kelvin probe force microscopy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]