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    A wafer-scale two-dimensional platinum monosulfide ultrathin film via metal sulfurization for high performance photoelectronics
    (Cambridge : Royal Society of Chemistry, 2022) Pang, Jinbo; Wang, Yanhao; Yang, Xiaoxin; Zhang, Lei; Li, Yufen; Zhang, Yu; Yang, Jiali; Yang, Feng; Wang, Xiao; Cuniberti, Gianaurelio; Liu, Hong; Rümmeli, Mark H.
    2D nonlayered materials have attracted enormous research interests due to their novel physical and chemical properties with confined dimensions. Platinum monosulfide as one of the most common platinum-group minerals has been less studied due to either the low purity in the natural product or the extremely high-pressure conditions for synthesis. Recently, platinum monosulfide (PtS) 2D membranes have emerged as rising-star materials for fundamental Raman and X-ray photoelectron spectral analysis as well as device exploration. However, a large-area homogeneous synthesis route has not yet been proposed and released. In this communication, we report a facile metal sulfurization strategy for the synthesis of a 4-inch wafer-scale PtS film. Enhanced characterization tools have been employed for thorough analysis of the crystal structure, chemical environment, vibrational modes, and atomic configuration. Furthermore, through theoretical calculations the phase diagram of the Pt–S compound has been plotted for showing the successful formation of PtS in our synthesis conditions. Eventually, a high-quality PtS film has been reflected in device demonstration by a photodetector. Our approach may shed light on the mass production of PtS films with precise control of their thickness and homogeneity as well as van der Waals heterostructures and related electronic devices.
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    Applications of MXenes in human-like sensors and actuators
    (New York, NY [u.a.] : Springer, 2022) Pang, Jinbo; Peng, Songang; Hou, Chongyang; Wang, Xiao; Wang, Ting; Cao, Yu; Zhou, Weijia; Sun, Ding; Wang, Kai; Rümmeli, Mark H.; Cuniberti, Gianaurelio; Liu, Hong
    Human beings perceive the world through the senses of sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch, space, and balance. The first five senses are prerequisites for people to live. The sensing organs upload information to the nervous systems, including the brain, for interpreting the surrounding environment. Then, the brain sends commands to muscles reflexively to react to stimuli, including light, gas, chemicals, sound, and pressure. MXene, as an emerging two-dimensional material, has been intensively adopted in the applications of various sensors and actuators. In this review, we update the sensors to mimic five primary senses and actuators for stimulating muscles, which employ MXene-based film, membrane, and composite with other functional materials. First, a brief introduction is delivered for the structure, properties, and synthesis methods of MXenes. Then, we feed the readers the recent reports on the MXene-derived image sensors as artificial retinas, gas sensors, chemical biosensors, acoustic devices, and tactile sensors for electronic skin. Besides, the actuators of MXene-based composite are introduced. Eventually, future opportunities are given to MXene research based on the requirements of artificial intelligence and humanoid robot, which may induce prospects in accompanying healthcare and biomedical engineering applications. [Figure not available: see fulltext.]
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    Surface modification of silicon nanowire based field effect transistors with stimuli responsive polymer brushes for biosensing applications
    (Basel : MDPI, 2020) Klinghammer, Stephanie; Rauch, Sebastian; Pregl, Sebastian; Uhlmann, Petra; Baraban, Larysa; Cuniberti, Gianaurelio
    We demonstrate the functionalization of silicon nanowire based field effect transistors (SiNW FETs) FETs with stimuli-responsive polymer brushes of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAM) and poly(acrylic acid) (PAA). Surface functionalization was confirmed by atomic force microscopy, contact angle measurements, and verified electrically using a silicon nanowire based field effect transistor sensor device. For thermo-responsive PNIPAAM, the physicochemical properties (i.e., a reversible phase transition, wettability) were induced by crossing the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) of about 32 C. Taking advantage of this property, osteosarcomic SaoS-2 cells were cultured on PNIPAAM-modified sensors at temperatures above the LCST, and completely detached by simply cooling. Next, the weak polyelectrolyte PAA, that is sensitive towards alteration of pH and ionic strength, was used to cover the silicon nanowire based device. Here, the increase of pH will cause deprotonation of the present carboxylic (COOH) groups along the chains into negatively charged COO- moieties that repel each other and cause swelling of the polymer. Our experimental results suggest that this functionalization enhances the pH sensitivity of the SiNW FETs. Specific receptor (bio-)molecules can be added to the polymer brushes by simple click chemistry so that functionality of the brush layer can be tuned optionally. We demonstrate at the proof-of concept-level that osteosarcomic Saos-2 cells can adhere to PNIPAAM-modified FETs, and cell signals could be recorded electrically. This study presents an applicable route for the modification of highly sensitive, versatile FETs that can be applied for detection of a variety of biological analytes. © 2020 by the authors.
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    Applications of Carbon Nanotubes in the Internet of Things Era
    (Berlin ; Heidelberg [u.a.] : Springer, 2021) Pang, Jinbo; Bachmatiuk, Alicja; Yang, Feng; Liu, Hong; Zhou, Weijia; Rümmeli, Mark H.; Cuniberti, Gianaurelio
    The post-Moore's era has boosted the progress in carbon nanotube-based transistors. Indeed, the 5G communication and cloud computing stimulate the research in applications of carbon nanotubes in electronic devices. In this perspective, we deliver the readers with the latest trends in carbon nanotube research, including high-frequency transistors, biomedical sensors and actuators, brain-machine interfaces, and flexible logic devices and energy storages. Future opportunities are given for calling on scientists and engineers into the emerging topics.
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    Determination of the Entire Stent Surface Area by a New Analytical Method
    (Basel : MDPI, 2020) Saqib, Muhammad; Bernhardt, Ricardo; Kästner, Markus; Beshchasna, Natalia; Cuniberti, Gianaurelio; Opitz, Jörg
    Stenting is a widely used treatment procedure for coronary artery disease around the world. Stents have a complex geometry, which makes the characterization of their corrosion difficult due to the absence of a mathematical model to calculate the entire stent surface area (ESSA). Therefore, corrosion experiments with stents are mostly based on qualitative analysis. Additionally, the quantitative analysis of corrosion is conducted with simpler samples made of stent material instead of stents, in most cases. At present, several methods are available to calculate the stent outer surface area (SOSA), whereas no model exists for the calculation of the ESSA. This paper presents a novel mathematical model for the calculation of the ESSA using the SOSA as one of the main parameters. The ESSA of seven magnesium alloy stents (MeKo Laser Material Processing GmbH, Sarstedt, Germany) were calculated using the developed model. The calculated SOSA and ESSA for all stents are 33.34%(±0.26%) and 111.86 mm (±0.85 mm), respectively. The model is validated by micro-computed tomography (micro-CT), with a difference of 12.34% (±0.46%). The value of corrosion rates calculated using the ESSA computed with the developed model will be 12.34% (±0.46%) less than that of using ESSA obtained by micro-CT.
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    Magnetofluidic platform for multidimensional magnetic and optical barcoding of droplets
    (Cambridge : RSC, 2014) Lin, Gungun; Makarov, Denys; Medina-Sánchez, Mariana; Guix, Maria; Baraban, Larysa; Cuniberti, Gianaurelio; Schmidt, Oliver G.
    We present a concept of multidimensional magnetic and optical barcoding of droplets based on a magnetofluidic platform. The platform comprises multiple functional areas, such as an encoding area, an encoded droplet pool and a magnetic decoding area with integrated giant magnetoresistive (GMR) sensors. To prove this concept, penicillin functionalized with fluorescent dyes is coencapsulated with magnetic nanoparticles into droplets. While fluorescent dyes are used as conventional optical barcodes which are decoded with an optical decoding setup, an additional dimensionality of barcodes is created by using magnetic nanoparticles as magnetic barcodes for individual droplets and integrated micro-patterned GMR sensors as the corresponding magnetic decoding devices. The strategy of incorporating a magnetic encoding scheme provides a dynamic range of ~40 dB in addition to that of the optical method. When combined with magnetic barcodes, the encoding capacity can be increased by more than 1 order of magnitude compared with using only optical barcodes, that is, the magnetic platform provides more than 10 unique magnetic codes in addition to each optical barcode. Besides being a unique magnetic functional element for droplet microfluidics, the platform is capable of on-demand facile magnetic encoding and real-time decoding of droplets which paves the way for the development of novel non-optical encoding schemes for highly multiplexed droplet-based biological assays.
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    Boron doping of SWCNTs as a way to enhance the thermoelectric properties of melt‐mixed polypropylene/SWCNT composites
    (Basel : MDPI, 2020) Krause, Beate; Bezugly, Viktor; Khavrus, Vyacheslav; Ye, Liu; Cuniberti, Gianaurelio; Pötschke, Petra
    Composites based on the matrix polymer polypropylene (PP) filled with single‐walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) and boron‐doped SWCNTs (B‐SWCNTs) were prepared by melt‐mixing to analyze the influence of boron doping of SWCNTs on the thermoelectric properties of these nanocomposites. It was found that besides a significantly higher Seebeck coefficient of B‐SWCNT films and powder packages, the values for B‐SWCNT incorporated in PP were higher than those for SWCNTs. Due to the higher electrical conductivity and the higher Seebeck coefficients of B‐SWCNTs, the power factor (PF) and the figure of merit (ZT) were also higher for the PP/B‐SWCNT composites. The highest value achieved in this study was a Seebeck coefficient of 59.7 μV/K for PP with 0.5 wt% B‐SWCNT compared to 47.9 μV/K for SWCNTs at the same filling level. The highest PF was 0.78 μW/(m∙K2) for PP with 7.5 wt% B‐SWCNT. SWCNT macro‐ and microdispersions were found to be similar in both composite types, as was the very low electrical percolation threshold between 0.075 and 0.1 wt% SWCNT. At loadings between 0.5 and 2.0 wt%, B‐SWCNT‐based composites have one order of magnitude higher electrical conductivity than those based on SWCNT. The crystallization behavior of PP is more strongly influenced by B‐SWCNTs since their composites have higher crystallization temperatures than composites with SWCNTs at a comparable degree of crystallinity. Boron doping of SWCNTs is therefore a suitable way to improve the electrical and thermoelectric properties of composites. © 2020 by the authors.
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    Real-Time Monitoring of Blood Parameters in the Intensive Care Unit: State-of-the-Art and Perspectives
    (Basel : MDPI, 2022) Bockholt, Rebecca; Paschke, Shaleen; Heubner, Lars; Ibarlucea, Bergoi; Laupp, Alexander; Janićijević, Željko; Klinghammer, Stephanie; Balakin, Sascha; Maitz, Manfred F.; Werner, Carsten; Cuniberti, Gianaurelio; Baraban, Larysa; Spieth, Peter Markus
    The number of patients in intensive care units has increased over the past years. Critically ill patients are treated with a real time support of the instruments that offer monitoring of relevant blood parameters. These parameters include blood gases, lactate, and glucose, as well as pH and tem-perature. Considering the COVID-19 pandemic, continuous management of dynamic deteriorating parameters in patients is more relevant than ever before. This narrative review aims to summarize the currently available literature regarding real-time monitoring of blood parameters in intensive care. Both, invasive and non-invasive methods are described in detail and discussed in terms of general advantages and disadvantages particularly in context of their use in different medical fields but especially in critical care. The objective is to explicate both, well-known and frequently used as well as relatively unknown devices. Furtehrmore, potential future direction in research and development of realtime sensor systems are discussed. Therefore, the discussion section provides a brief description of current developments in biosensing with special emphasis on their technical implementation. In connection with these developments, the authors focus on different electrochemical approaches to invasive and non-invasive measurements in vivo.
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    Polymerization driven monomer passage through monolayer chemical vapour deposition graphene
    ([London] : Nature Publishing Group UK, 2018-10-3) Zhang, Tao; Liao, Zhongquan; Sandonas, Leonardo Medrano; Dianat, Arezoo; Liu, Xiaoling; Xiao, Peng; Amin, Ihsan; Gutierrez, Rafael; Chen, Tao; Zschech, Ehrenfried; Cuniberti, Gianaurelio; Jordan, Rainer
    Mass transport through graphene is receiving increasing attention due to the potential for molecular sieving. Experimental studies are mostly limited to the translocation of protons, ions, and water molecules, and results for larger molecules through graphene are rare. Here, we perform controlled radical polymerization with surface-anchored self-assembled initiator monolayer in a monomer solution with single-layer graphene separating the initiator from the monomer. We demonstrate that neutral monomers are able to pass through the graphene (via native defects) and increase the graphene defects ratio (Raman ID/IG) from ca. 0.09 to 0.22. The translocations of anionic and cationic monomers through graphene are significantly slower due to chemical interactions of monomers with the graphene defects. Interestingly, if micropatterned initiator-monolayers are used, the translocations of anionic monomers apparently cut the graphene sheet into congruent microscopic structures. The varied interactions between monomers and graphene defects are further investigated by quantum molecular dynamics simulations.
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    Growth of all-carbon horizontally aligned single-walled carbon nanotubes nucleated from fullerene-based structures
    (London : BioMed Central, 2013) Ibrahim, Imad; Zhang, Yang; Popov, Alexey; Dunsch, Lothar; Büchner, Bernd; Cuniberti, Gianaurelio; Rümmeli, Mark H.
    All-carbon single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) were successfully synthesized, nucleated using a fullerene derivative. A systematic investigation into the initial preparation of C60 fullerenes as growth nucleators for the SWCNTs was conducted. Enhancement in the yield of the produced SWCNT has been achieved with exploring different dispersing media for the fullerenes, the period, and environment of the initial thermal treatment of the fullerenes in addition to the use of different fullerene-based structures. The systematic studies significantly advance our understanding of the growth of the all-carbon catalyst-free single-walled carbon nanotubes. Field-effect transistors were fabricated using the catalyst-free SWCNT and then electrically characterized, showing current capacity as high as the well-studied catalyst-assisted nanotubes.