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Transition metal sulfides gain much attention as electrode materials for supercapacitors due to their rich redox chemistry and high electrical conductivity. Designing hierarchical nanostructures is an efficient approach to fully utilize merits of each component. In this work, amorphous MoS2 is firstly demonstrated to show specific capacitance 1.6 times as that of the crystalline counterpart. Then,...
A single atomic manipulation on the delta‐doped B:Si(111)‐()R30° surface using a low temperature dynamic atomic force microscopy based on the Kolibri sensor is investigated. Through a controlled vertical displacement of the probe, a single Si adatom in order to open a vacancy is removed. It is shown that this process is completely reversible, by accurately placing a Si atom back into the vacancy site...
A high‐quality field emission electron source made of a highly ordered array of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) coated with a thin film of hexagonal boron nitride (h‐BN) is fabricated using a simple and scalable method. This method offers the benefit of reproducibility, as well as the simplicity, safety, and low cost inherent in using B2O3 as the boron precursor. Results measured using h‐BN‐coated CNT arrays...
The stabilization of G‐quadruplexes by means of K+ ions, and the separation of the nanostructures by 18‐crown‐6 or [2.2.2] cryptand, provide means to assemble switchable photonic or electrocatalytic molecular systems. On page 3654, this is exemplified with the construction of a G‐quadruplex‐based photonic “DNA spring” by I. Willner and co‐workers, and by the assembly of a switchable hemin/G‐quadruplex...
Hydrophobic ultrasmall nanoparticles synthesized in nonpolar solvents exhibit great potential in biomedical applications. However, a major challenge when applying these nanomaterials in biomedical research is the lack of a versatile strategy to render them water dispersible while preserving the hydrodynamic diameter (HD) to be less than 8 nm for efficient renal clearance. To address this problem,...
The K+/18‐crown‐6‐(or [2.2.2] cryptand)‐stimulated formation and dissociation of G‐quadruplex nanostructures lead to the cyclic and switchable photonic and electrocatalytic molecular devices.
Superhydrophobic surfaces are found by J. F. Mano and co‐workers to constitute a new, versatile, and cost‐effective tool to produce engineered polymeric assemblies in mild conditions. As reported on page 3648, the resultant hierarchical carriers consist of microcarriers embedded in a polymeric matrix and allow the encapsulation of both proteins and cells with high efficiency rates. This work is expected...
Peptide self‐assembly is an attractive route for the synthesis of intricate organic nanostructures that possess remarkable structural variety and biocompatibility. Recent studies on peptide‐based, self‐assembled materials have expanded beyond the construction of high‐order architectures; they are now reporting new functional materials that have application in the emerging fields such as artificial...
More than 122 times higher contact efficiency between soot and catalysts is achieved over the as‐prepared CeO2 nanobelt array catalysts as compared with the powder nanoparticle catalyst. A novel gravity‐driven multiple collision‐enhanced soot combustion mechanism is proposed for the first time.
Currently, peptide‐based protein‐recognition has been recognized as an effective and promising approach for protein assays. However, sandwiched peptide‐based biosensor with high sensitivity and low background has not been proposed before. Herein, a sandwiched electrochemiluminescence (ECL) peptide‐based biosensor is constructed for Cyclin A2 (CA2), a prognostic indicator in early stage of multiple...
A simple, versatile, and inexpensive strategy is developed by H. Zhang, Z. Wang, and co‐workers for transferring small hydrophobic nanoparticles into an aqueous phase using raw tryptone as a phase‐transfer agent. On page 3676, using tryptone‐NaGdF4 nanodots as typical examples, the nanodots are found to have excellent colloidal stability, outstanding MRI‐enhancing performance, efficient renal clearance,...
The facile synthesis of palladium N‐heterocyclic carbene (NHC) particles with spherical, cubic, and honeycomb morphologies is accomplished. The structures of cubic and honeycomb particles are defined as an unprecedented trinuclear palladium–NHC complex. An obvious effect of particle morphologies on catalytic activity and recyclability is observed in heterogeneous cyanosilylation.
A supercapacitor with a high energy density is greatly desirable to develop quick energy‐storage devices. On page 3694, Q. Yan and co‐workers design multifunctional architectures that effectively combine MoS2 thin nanosheets and polyaniline nanoneedle arrays as ideal building blocks. A high electrode energy density, comparable to lithium ion batteries, is achieved owing to both electrochemical active...
A straightforward strategy is described on page 3666 for generating shape‐controlled collagen building blocks with well‐defined architectures. The collagen blocks with tunable geometries are simply produced and released by J. Qin and co‐workers via a membrane‐templated microdevice in a controllable manner. The cell‐laden collagen blocks can spontaneously self‐assemble into organized microtissue constructs...
The facile synthesis of palladium N‐heterocyclic carbene (NHC) particles with spherical, cubic, and honeycomb morphologies is accomplished by R. Wang and co‐workers through adjusting solvent polarity. The structures of the cubic and honeycomb particles are defined as an unprecedented trinuclear palladium‐NHC complex. On page 3642, the relationship between the crystal structures and organometallic...
Creating artificial tissue‐like structures that possess the functionality, specificity, and architecture of native tissues remains a big challenge. A new and straightforward strategy for generating shape‐controlled collagen building blocks with a well‐defined architecture is presented, which can be used for self‐assembly of complex 3D microtissues. Collagen blocks with tunable geometries are controllably...
Plasmonic nanoparticles are commonly used as optical transducers in sensing applications. The optical signals resulting from the interaction of analytes and plamsonic nanoparticles are influenced by surrounding physical structures where the nanoparticles are located. This paper proposes inverse opal photonic crystal hydrogel as 3D structure to improve Raman signals from plasmonic staining. By hybridization...
The fabrication and properties of pH‐responsive colloidal particles are reported, which change shape rapidly (less than 200 ms), nearly independent of the diffusion of the pH altering species that trigger their actuation, and far more rapid than their Brownian motion. These particles are mechanically bistable, as revealed by their hysteretic shape response. Finite element analysis (FEA) shows that...