Search

We investigated the effect of specific surface area on the electrochemical properties of NiCo2O4 (NCO) for glucose detection. NCO nanomaterials with controlled specific surface areas were prepared by additive-assisted hydrothermal synthesis, and self-assembled nanostructures with urchin-, pine-needle-, tremella-, and flower-like morphologies were obtained. The novelty of this method is the systematic control of chemical reaction routes assisted by the addition of different additives during synthesis, which results in the spontaneous formation of various morphologies without any difference in the crystal structure and chemical states of the constituent elements. Such morphological control of NCO nanomaterials leads to considerable changes in the electrochemical performance for glucose detection. Combined with materials characterization, the relationship between the specific surface area and the electrochemical performance is discussed for glucose detection. This work can provide scientific insights for tailoring the surface area of nanostructures, which determines their functionality for potential applications in glucose biosensors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sol-gel derived nano-sized glass frits were incorporated into the Ag conductive ink for silicon solar cell metallization. This mixture was specifically formulated for inkjet printing on textured Si wafers with 80 nm thick SiN x anti reflection coating layers. The correlation between the contact resistance and interface microstructures were studied using scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. In addition, the specific contact resistance between the front contact and emitter was measured at various firing conditions using the transfer length model. On an emitter with the sheet resistance of 60 Ω/sq, a specific contact resistance below 5 mΩ cm2 could be achieved at a peak firing temperature around 800 °C. We found that the incorporated nano-glass frit act as a very effective fire through agent, and an abundant amount of Ag crystallites was observed along the interface glass layer. (© 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH &Co. KGaA, Weinheim) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]