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Both metal and semiconductor nanoparticles can induce water splitting in response to light but in different ways: metal nanoparticles can generate hot carriers with a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect and semiconductor nanoparticles with optimal band gap and band edges are light absorbers for hydrogen and oxygen evolution reactions (HER and OER). Hence, hybrid structures of metals and semiconductors have been anticipated to have enhanced photocatalytic activities compared to pure metals and semiconductors. To find an optimal hybrid structure for the photocatalytic HER in water splitting, we herein construct Co/CoO hybrid structures with variation of the Co layer thickness, using density functional theory (DFT) calculations. It is found that the Co/CoO hybrid structures have different electronic characteristics with respect to the Co layer thickness, which leads to the varied photocatalytic activities. Based on this study, we find out the optimal Co layer thickness for the highest HER activity. For the SPR effect, a thick enough Co layer is necessary, while a thin enough Co layer is required for optimal light absorption for the HER in solar-driven water splitting. We believe that this thorough study on the photo-responses occurring in Co/CoO heterojunction systems can be considered as a framework to design new photocatalytic metal/semiconductor heterojunction systems with first-principles studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Overall photocatalytic water splitting with a high efficiency of ∼5% has recently been observed for CoO nanoparticle suspensions in the absence of an applied bias or co-catalyst. Although experimental measurements indicate that the overall photocatalytic water splitting is caused by optimal band edge alignments with respect to the redox potentials of water, the mechanism by which H2 and O2 simultaneously evolve on these nanoparticles is unknown. In this study, we used first-principles density functional theory (DFT) calculations to elucidate the mechanisms for the charge separation and H2 and O2 evolution on CoO nanoparticles under illumination in aqueous solution. We demonstrated that electrons are driven to the CoO(100) facet and holes are driven to the hydroxylated CoO(111) facet (OH*–CoO(111)) as a result of the built-in potential arising from the difference in the band edge positions on the two facets. Furthermore, based on a set of criteria, depending on if the photoexcited electrons and holes have sufficient energy to overcome the kinetic barrier along the H2 and O2 evolution reaction pathways, respectively, on the relevant surface facet, we show that H2 evolution preferentially occurs on the CoO(100) facet, while O2 evolution occurs on the OH*–CoO(111) surface. Our understanding of the overall water splitting mechanism on CoO nanoparticles provides a general explanation for the experimentally observed overall water splitting phenomena on a variety of self-standing photocatalysts, including γ-Ga2O3, Cu2O, and KTaO3, without an external driving potential or co-catalyst. In addition, we provide a new strategy for designing novel photocatalysts with high efficiency by controlling their surface configurations and morphologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nanostructured semiconducting materials are promising candidates for thermoelectrics (TEs) due to their potential to suppress phonon transport while preserving electrical properties. Modeling phonon-boundary scattering in complex geometries is crucial for predicting materials with high conversion efficiency. However, the simultaneous presence of ballistic and diffusive phonons challenges the development of models that are both accurate and computationally tractable. Using the recently developed first-principles Boltzmann transport equation (BTE) approach, we investigate diffusive phonons in nanomaterials with wide mean-free-path (MFP) distributions. First, we derive the short MFP limit of the suppression function, showing that it does not necessarily recover the value predicted by standard diffusive transport, challenging previous assumptions. Second, we identify a Robin type boundary condition describing diffuse surfaces within Fourier's law, extending the validity of diffusive heat transport in terms of Knudsen numbers. Finally, we use this result to develop a hybrid Fourier/BTE approach to model realistic materials, obtaining good agreement with experiments. These results provide insight on thermal transport in materials that are within experimental reach and open opportunities for large-scale screening of nanostructured TE materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Epitaxy-the growth of a crystalline material on a substrate-is crucial for the semiconductor industry, but is often limited by the need for lattice matching between the two material systems. This strict requirement is relaxed for van der Waals epitaxy, in which epitaxy on layered or two-dimensional (2D) materials is mediated by weak van der Waals interactions, and which also allows facile layer release from 2D surfaces. It has been thought that 2D materials are the only seed layers for van der Waals epitaxy. However, the substrates below 2D materials may still interact with the layers grown during epitaxy (epilayers), as in the case of the so-called wetting transparency documented for graphene. Here we show that the weak van der Waals potential of graphene cannot completely screen the stronger potential field of many substrates, which enables epitaxial growth to occur despite its presence. We use density functional theory calculations to establish that adatoms will experience remote epitaxial registry with a substrate through a substrate-epilayer gap of up to nine ångströms; this gap can accommodate a monolayer of graphene. We confirm the predictions with homoepitaxial growth of GaAs(001) on GaAs(001) substrates through monolayer graphene, and show that the approach is also applicable to InP and GaP. The grown single-crystalline films are rapidly released from the graphene-coated substrate and perform as well as conventionally prepared films when incorporated in light-emitting devices. This technique enables any type of semiconductor film to be copied from underlying substrates through 2D materials, and then the resultant epilayer to be rapidly released and transferred to a substrate of interest. This process is particularly attractive in the context of non-silicon electronics and photonics, where the ability to re-use the graphene-coated substrates allows savings on the high cost of non-silicon substrates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While thermal anisotropy is a desirable materials property for many applications, including transverse thermoelectrics and thermal management in electronic devices, it remains elusive in practical natural compounds. In this work, we show how nanoporous materials with anisotropic pore lattices can be used as a platform for inducing strong heat transport directionality in isotropic materials. Using density functional theory and the phonon Boltzmann transport equation, we calculate the phonon-size effects and thermal conductivity of nanoporous silicon with different anisotropic pore lattices. Our calculations predict a strong directionality in the thermal conductivity, dictated by the difference in the pore-pore distances, i.e., the phonon bottleneck, along the two Cartesian axes. Using Fourier's law, we also compute the diffusive heat transport for the same geometries obtaining significantly smaller anisotropy, revealing the crucial role of phonon-size effects in tuning thermal transport directionality. Besides enhancing our understanding of nanoscale heat transport, our results demonstrate the promise of nanoporous materials for modulating anisotropy in thermal conductivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water electrolysis is a key technology for the replacement of fossil fuels by environmentally friendly alternatives, but state-of-the-art water oxidation catalysts rely on rare elements such as Pt groups and other noble metals. In this article, we employ first-principles calculations to explore the potential of modified barium titanate (BaTiO3), an inexpensive perovskite oxide that can be synthesized from earth-abundant precursors, for the design of efficient water oxidation electrocatalysts. Our calculations identify Fe and Ni doping as a means to improve the electrical conductivity and to reduce the overpotential required for water oxidation over BaTiO3. Based on computed Pourbaix diagrams and pH/potential-dependent surface phase diagrams, we further show that BaTiO3 is stable under reaction conditions and is not sensitive with respect to poisoning by reaction intermediates and hydrogen adsorption. This proof of concept demonstrates that even minor compositional modifications of existing materials may greatly improve their catalytic activity, a fact that is often neglected when larger composition spaces are screened. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The design of catalysts for CO2 reduction is challenging because of the fundamental relationships between the binding energies of the reaction intermediates. Metal carbides have shown promise for transcending these relationships and enabling low-cost alternatives. Herein, we show that directional bonding arising from the mixed covalent/metallic character plays a critical role in governing the surface chemistry. This behavior can be described by consideration of individual d-band components. We use this model to predict efficient catalysts based on tungsten carbide with a sub-monolayer of iron adatoms. Our approach can be used to predict site-preference and binding-energy trends for complex catalyst surfaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The shape, size, and compositionof catalyst nanoparticles canhave a significant influence on catalytic activity. Understandingsuch structure–reactivity relationships is crucial for theoptimization of industrial catalysts and the design of novel catalystswith enhanced properties. In this letter, we employ a combinationof first-principles computations and large-scale Monte-Carlo simulationswith highly accurate neural network potentials to study the equilibriumsurface structure and composition of bimetallic Au/Cu nanoparticles(NPs), which have recently been of interest as stable and efficientCO2reduction catalysts. We demonstrate that the inclusionof explicit water molecules at a first-principles level of accuracyis necessary to predict experimentally observed trends in Au/Cu NPsurface composition; in particular, we find that Au-coated core–shellNPs are thermodynamically favored in vacuum, independent of Au/Cuchemical potential and NP size, while NPs with mixed Au–Cusurfaces are preferred in aqueous solution. Furthermore, we show thatboth CO and O2adsorption energies differ significantlyfor NPs with the equilibrium surface composition found in water andthose with the equilibrium surface composition found in vacuum, suggestinglarge changes in CO2reduction activity. Our results emphasizethe importance of understanding and being able to predict the effectsof catalytic environment on catalyst structure and activity. In addition,they demonstrate that first-principles-based neural network potentialsprovide a promising approach for accurately investigating the relationshipsbetween solvent, surface composition and morphology, surface electronicstructure, and catalytic activity in systems composed of thousandsof atoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Large-scale utilization of solar-energy resources will require considerable advances in energy-storage technologies to meet ever-increasing global energy demands. Other than liquid fuels, existing energy-storage materials do not provide the requisite combination of high energy density, high stability, easy handling, transportability and low cost. New hybrid solar thermal fuels, composed of photoswitchable molecules on rigid, low-mass nanostructures, transcend the physical limitations of molecular solar thermal fuels by introducing local sterically constrained environments in which interactions between chromophores can be tuned. We demonstrate this principle of a hybrid solar thermal fuel using azobenzene-functionalized carbon nanotubes. We show that, on composite bundling, the amount of energy stored per azobenzene more than doubles from 58 to 120 kJ mol-1, and the material also maintains robust cyclability and stability. Our results demonstrate that solar thermal fuels composed of molecule-nanostructure hybrids can exhibit significantly enhanced energy-storage capabilities through the generation of template-enforced steric strain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With its combination of favorable band gap, high absorption coefficient, material abundance, and low cost, iron pyrite, FeS2, has received a great deal of attention over the past decades as a promising material for photovoltaic applications such as solar cells and photoelectrochemical cells. Devices made from pyrite, however, exhibit open circuit voltages significantly lower than predicted, and despite a recent resurgence of interest in the material, there currently exists no widely accepted explanation for this disappointing behavior. In this paper, we show that phonons, which have been largely overlooked in previous efforts, may play a significant role. Using fully self-consistent G W calculations, we demonstrate that a phonon mode related to the oscillation of the sulfur-sulfur bond distance in the pyrite structure is strongly coupled to the energy of the conduction-band minimum, leading to an ultrafast (≈100 fs) oscillation in the band gap. Depending on the coherency of the phonons, we predict that this effect can cause changes of up to ±0.3 eV relative to the accepted FeS2 band gap at room temperature. Harnessing this effect via temperature or irradiation with infrared light could open up numerous possibilities for novel devices such as ultrafast switches and adaptive solar absorbers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report scanned probe characterizations of the ferroelectric phase transition in individual barium titanate (BaTiO3) nanowires. Variable-temperature electrostatic force microscopy is used to manipulate, image, and evaluate the diameter-dependent stability of ferroelectric polarizations. These measurements show that the ferroelectric phase transition temperature (TC) is depressed as the nanowire diameter (dnw) decreases, following a 1/dnw scaling. The diameter at which TC falls below room temperature is determined to be ∼3 nm, and extrapolation of the data indicates that nanowires with dnw as small as 0.8 nm can support ferroelectricity at lower temperatures. We also present density functional theory (DFT) calculations of bare and molecule-covered BaTiO3 surfaces. These calculations indicate that ferroelectricity in nanowires is stabilized by molecular adsorbates such as OH and carboxylates. These adsorbates are found to passivate polarization charge more effectively than metallic electrodes, explaining the observed stability of ferroelectricity in small-diameter BaTiO3 nanowires. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Challenges with cost, cyclability, and/or low energy density have largely prevented the development of solar thermal fuels, a potentially attractive alternative energy technology based on molecules that can capture and store solar energy as latent heat in a closed cycle. In this paper, we present a set of novel hybrid photoisomer/template solar thermal fuels that can potentially circumvent these challenges. Using first-principles computations, we demonstrate that these fuels, composed of organic photoisomers bound to inexpensive carbon-based templates, can reversibly store solar energy at densities comparable to Li-ion batteries. Furthermore, we show that variation of the template material in combination with the photoisomer can be used to optimize many of the key performance metrics of the fuel-i.e., the energy density, the storage lifetime, the temperature of the output heat, and the efficiency of the solar-to-heat conversion. Our work suggests that the solar thermal fuels concept can be translated into a practical and highly customizable energy storage and conversion technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The electrolysis of water is of global importance to store renewable energy and the methodical design of next-generation oxygen evolution catalysts requires a greater understanding of the structural and electronic contributions that give rise to increased activities. Herein, we report a series of Ruddlesden-Popper La0.5Sr1.5Ni1−xFexO4±δ oxides that promote charge transfer via cross-gap hybridization to enhance electrocatalytic water splitting. Using selective substitution of lanthanum with strontium and nickel with iron to tune the extent to which transition metal and oxygen valence bands hybridize, we demonstrate remarkable catalytic activity of 10 mA cm−2 at a 360 mV overpotential and mass activity of 1930 mA mg−1ox at 1.63 V via a mechanism that utilizes lattice oxygen. This work demonstrates that Ruddlesden-Popper materials can be utilized as active catalysts for oxygen evolution through rational design of structural and electronic configurations that are unattainable in many other crystalline metal oxide phases. Water electrolysis provides a potential means to large-scale renewable fuel generation, although sluggish oxygen evolution kinetics challenges progress. Here, authors report on Ruddlesden-Popper oxides as active oxygen evolution electrocatalysts that provide impetus for overcoming kinetic barriers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Boundary-engineering in nanostructures has the potential to dramatically impact the development of materials for high- efficiency conversion of thermal energy directly into electricity. In particular, nanostructuring of semiconductors can lead to strong suppression of heat transport with little degradation of electrical conductivity. Although this combination of material properties is promising for thermoelectric materials, it remains largely unexplored. In this work, we introduce a novel concept, the directional phonon suppression function, to unravel boundary-dominated heat transport in unprecedented detail. Using a combination of density functional theory and the Boltzmann transport equation, we compute this quantity for nanoporous silicon materials. We first compute the thermal conductivity for the case with aligned circular pores, confirming a significant thermal transport degradation with respect to the bulk. Then, by analyzing the information on the directionality of phonon suppression in this system, we identify a new structure of rectangular pores with the same porosity that enables a four-fold decrease in thermal transport with respect to the circular pores. Our results illustrate the utility of the directional phonon suppression function, enabling new avenues for systematic thermal conductivity minimization and potentially accelerating the engineering of next-generation thermoelectric devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ferroelectric surfaces provide a promising method for modifying surface reactions via an external electric field, which can potentially provide an avenue for tunable molecular binding and surface catalysis. Using first-principles density functional theory, we investigate how the properties of the PbTiO3 surface, vary with polarization and how these changes affect CO2 and H20 adsorption. We find that the polarized stoichiometric surfaces cancel the depolarizing field with an electronic reconstruction, which has a large effect on molecular binding energies. However, thermodynamically, the system will instead cancel the depolarizing field by adjusting the surface stoichiometry. Variation of the polarization and the environmental conditions can thus be used to systematically tune the surface chemistry over a wide range. In addition, we consider the addition of several different catalytic monolayers to the PbTiO3 surface, and we find that additional surface layers can be used to modify the binding of molecules to the surface while still responding to the polarization of the substrate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stable ferroelectric (FE) phases in nanometer-thick films would enable ultra-high density and fast FE field effect transistors (FelTiTs), and the stability of ferroelectricity in ultrathin films has been under intense theoretical and experimental investigation. Here we predict, using density functional theory calculations, that the low-energy epitaxial PbTiO3 (001)/Pt interface strengthens the electrode-oxide bonds by breaking in-plane symmetry and stabilizes a ground state with enhanced polarization in subnanometer oxide films, with no critical-size limit. Additionally, we show that such enhancement is related to large work function differences between the P- and P+ PbTiO3 surfaces, which gives rise to a net polarizing field in the oxide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nanostructured materials exhibit low thermal conductivity because of the additional scattering due to phononboundary interactions. As these interactions are highly sensitive to the mean free path (MFP) of phonons, MFP distributions in nanostructures can be dramatically distorted relative to bulk. Here we calculate the MFP distribution in periodic nanoporous Si for different temperatures, using the recently developed MFP-dependent Boltzmann transport equation. After analyzing the relative contribution of each phonon branch to thermal transport in nanoporous Si, we find that at room temperature optical phonons contribute 17% to heat transport, compared to 5% in bulk Si. Interestingly, we observe a constant thermal conductivity over the range 200 K < T < 300 K.We attribute this behavior to the ballistic transport of acoustic phonons with long intrinsic MFP and the temperature dependence of the heat capacity. Our findings, which are in qualitative agreement with the temperature trend of thermal conductivities measured in nanoporous Si-based systems, shed light on the origin of the reduction of thermal conductivity in nanostructured materials and demonstrate the necessity of multiscale heat transport engineering, in which the bulk material and geometry are optimized concurrently. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]