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The rapidly increasing solar conversion efficiency (PCE) of hybrid organic–inorganic perovskite (HOIP) thin‐film semiconductors has triggered interest in their use for direct solar‐driven water splitting to produce hydrogen. However, application of these low‐cost, electronic‐structure‐tunable HOIP tandem photoabsorbers has been hindered by the instability of the photovoltaic‐catalyst‐electrolyte (PV+E) interfaces. Here, photolytic water splitting is demonstrated using an integrated configuration consisting of an HOIP/n+silicon single junction photoabsorber and a platinum (Pt) thin film catalyst. An extended electrochemical (EC) lifetime in alkaline media is achieved using titanium nitride on both sides of the Si support to eliminate formation of insulating silicon oxide, and as an effective diffusion barrier to allow high‐temperature annealing of the catalyst/TiO2‐protected‐n+silicon interface necessary to retard electrolytic corrosion. Halide composition is examined in the (FA1‐xCsx)PbI3 system with a bandgap suitable for tandem operation. A fill factor of 72.5% is achieved using a Spiro‐OMeTAD‐hole‐transport‐layer (HTL)‐based HOIP/n+Si solar cell, and a high photocurrent density of −15.9 mA cm−2 (at 0 V vs reversible hydrogen electrode) is attained for the HOIP/n+Si/Pt photocathode in 1 m NaOH under simulated 1‐sun illumination. While this thin‐film design creates stable interfaces, the intrinsic photo‐ and electro‐degradation of the HOIP photoabsorber remains the main obstacle for future HOIP/Si tandem PEC devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Endohedral metallofullerenes (EMFs) are excellent carriers of rare‐earth element (REE) ions in biomedical applications because they preclude the release of toxic metal ions. However, existing approaches to synthesize water‐soluble EMF derivatives yield mixtures that inhibit precise drug design. Here we report the synthesis of metallobuckytrio (MBT), a three‐buckyball system, as a modular platform to develop structurally defined water‐soluble EMF derivatives with ligands by choice. Demonstrated with PEG ligands, the resulting water‐soluble MBTs show superb biocompatibility. The Gd MBTs exhibit superior T1 relaxivity than typical Gd complexes, potentially superseding current clinical MRI contrast agents in both safety and efficiency. The Lu MBTs generated reactive oxygen species upon light irradiation, showing promise as photosensitizers. With their modular nature to incorporate other ligands, we anticipate the MBT platform to open new paths towards bio‐specific REE drugs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A hierarchically ordered porous carbon electrocatalyst with exclusively surface‐anchored cobalt species, dubbed Co@HOPC, is synthesized from polyaniline and cobalt‐functionalized silica microparticles templates, and its high electrocatalytic activity for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is demonstrated. The material requires a small potential (320 mV) to drive the reaction with a current density of 10 mA cm−2 and a small Tafel slope of 31.2 mV dec−1. Moreover, Co@HOPC shows better catalytic activity for OER than in situ cobalt‐doped and surface cobalt‐loaded hierarchically ordered porous carbon materials synthesized by traditional methods. This is due to the abundant surface cobalt species present in Co@HOPC and the material's good electrical conductivity. This work provides a new strategy to utilize functionalized silica microparticles as templates to synthesize hierarchically ordered porous carbon materials with metal‐rich surfaces and efficient electrocatalytic activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Perovskite light‐emitting diodes (LEDs) require small grain sizes to spatially confine charge carriers for efficient radiative recombination. As grain size decreases, passivation of surface defects becomes increasingly important. Additionally, polycrystalline perovskite films are highly brittle and mechanically fragile, limiting their practical applications in flexible electronics. In this work, the introduction of properly chosen bulky organo‐ammonium halide additives is shown to be able to improve both optoelectronic and mechanical properties of perovskites, yielding highly efficient, robust, and flexible perovskite LEDs with external quantum efficiency of up to 13% and no degradation after bending for 10 000 cycles at a radius of 2 mm. Furthermore, insight of the improvements regarding molecular structure, size, and polarity at the atomic level is obtained with first‐principles calculations, and design principles are provided to overcome trade‐offs between optoelectronic and mechanical properties, thus increasing the scope for future highly efficient, robust, and flexible perovskite electronic device development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contrast Agents, Endohedral Fullerenes, Rare Earth Compounds, Supramolecular Chemistry, Synthesis Design Keywords: Contrast Agents; Endohedral Fullerenes; Rare Earth Compounds; Supramolecular Chemistry; Synthesis Design EN Contrast Agents Endohedral Fullerenes Rare Earth Compounds Supramolecular Chemistry Synthesis Design 1 1 1 01/11/23 20230116 NES 230116 B Fullerenes b . In their Research Article (e202211704), Jianyuan Zhang et al. report the synthesis of metallobuckytrio (MBT), a three-buckyball system, as a modular platform for a family of structurally defined metallofullerene derivatives that can safely carry rare-earth elements. [Extracted from the article]

Endohedral metallofullerenes (EMFs) are excellent carriers of rare‐earth element (REE) ions in biomedical applications because they preclude the release of toxic metal ions. However, existing approaches to synthesize water‐soluble EMF derivatives yield mixtures that inhibit precise drug design. Here we report the synthesis of metallobuckytrio (MBT), a three‐buckyball system, as a modular platform to develop structurally defined water‐soluble EMF derivatives with ligands by choice. Demonstrated with PEG ligands, the resulting water‐soluble MBTs show superb biocompatibility. The Gd MBTs exhibit superior T1 relaxivity than typical Gd complexes, potentially superseding current clinical MRI contrast agents in both safety and efficiency. The Lu MBTs generated reactive oxygen species upon light irradiation, showing promise as photosensitizers. With their modular nature to incorporate other ligands, we anticipate the MBT platform to open new paths towards bio‐specific REE drugs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]