Improved Catalyst Performance for the Oxygen Evolution Reaction under a Chiral Bias.

The oxygen evolution reaction (OER) remains an important bottleneck for widespread implementation of a hydrogen economy. While improvements in the OER can be realized by spin polarizing the reaction intermediates, these methods often rely on applying external magnetic fields to ferromagnetic catalysts or by adsorbing chiral molecules onto the catalyst. Here, we show that the addition of chiral additives to the conductive binder supporting the catalysts enhances the selectivity for O formation and results in exceedingly high mass activities.

Electron-donating functional groups strengthen ligand-induced chiral imprinting on CsPbBr quantum dots.

Chiral perovskite nanoparticles and films are promising for integration in emerging spintronic and optoelectronic technologies, yet few design rules exist to guide the development of chiral material properties. The chemical space of potential building blocks for these nanostructures is vast, and the mechanisms through which organic ligands can impart chirality to the inorganic perovskite lattice are not well understood. In this work, we investigate how the properties of chiral ammonium ligands, the most common organic ligand type used with perovskites, affect the circular dichroism of strongly quantum confined CsPbBr nanocrystals.

Examining the Effects of Homochirality for Electron Transfer in Protein Assemblies.

Protein voltammetry studies of cytochrome , immobilized on chiral tripeptide monolayer films, reveal the importance of the electron spin and the film's homochirality on electron transfer kinetics. Magnetic film electrodes are used to examine how an asymmetry in the standard heterogeneous electron transfer rate constant arises from changes in the electron spin direction and the enantiomer composition of the tripeptide monolayer; rate constant asymmetries as large as 60% are observed. These findings are rationalized in terms of the chiral induced spin selectivity effect and spin-dependent changes in electronic coupling.

Water-Accelerated Photooxidation of CHNHPbI Perovskite.

Halide perovskites have the potential to disrupt the photovoltaics market based on their high performance and low cost. However, the decomposition of perovskites under moisture, oxygen, and light raises concerns about service lifetime, especially because degradation mechanisms and the corresponding rate laws that fit the observed data have thus far eluded researchers. Here, we report a water-accelerated photooxidation mechanism dominating the degradation kinetics of archetypal perovskite CHNHPbI in air under >1% relative humidity at 25 °C.

Mg Doped CuCrO as Efficient Hole Transport Layers for Organic and Perovskite Solar Cells.

The electrical and optical properties of the hole transport layer (HTL) are critical for organic and halide perovskite solar cell (OSC and PSC, respectively) performance. In this work, we studied the effect of Mg doping on CuCrO (CCO) nanoparticles and their performance as HTLs in OSCs and PSCs. CCO and Mg doped CCO (Mg:CCO) nanoparticles were hydrothermally synthesized.

Melting temperature suppression of layered hybrid lead halide perovskites organic ammonium cation branching.

Hybrid organic-inorganic lead halide perovskites have attracted broad interest because of their unique optical and electronic properties, as well as good processability. Thermal properties of these materials, often overlooked, can provide additional critical information for developing new methods of thin film preparation using, for example, melt processing-, making films of hybrid perovskites by solidification of a thin layer of the melt liquid. We demonstrate that it is possible to tune the melting temperature of layered hybrid lead iodide perovskites over the range of more than 100 degrees by modifying the structures of alkylammonium-derived organic cations.

Synthetic Approaches for Halide Perovskite Thin Films.

Halide perovskites are an intriguing class of materials that have recently attracted considerable attention for use as the active layer in thin film optoelectronic devices, including thin-film transistors, light-emitting devices, and solar cells. The "soft" nature of these materials, as characterized by their low formation energy and Young's modulus, and high thermal expansion coefficients, not only enables thin films to be fabricated via low-temperature deposition methods but also presents rich opportunities for manipulating film formation. This comprehensive review explores how the unique chemistry of these materials can be exploited to tailor film growth processes and highlights the connections between processing methods and the resulting film characteristics.