Surface modification may be an effective means for controlling the properties of germanane, i.e., hydrogenated germanene. In this work, we investigate the formation, stability, structure and electronic properties of surface-modified germanane that results from the hydrogermylation, alkoxylation, aminization or phenylation of germanane. By assuming the typical organic surface coverage of -33%, we have com- pared organically surface-modified germanane with germanene and germanane in the framework of density functional theory. It is found that organically surface-modified germanane may all stably exist despite the endothermic nature of organic surface modification. Organic surface modification leads to the de- crease of the Ge--Ge bond length and the Ge--Ge-Ge bond angle ofgermanane, while causing the buckling distance of germanane to increase. Hydrogenation makes germanene change from a semimetal to a direct- bandgap semiconductor. Organic surface modification further impacts the band structure of the resulting germanane. Hydrogermylated/alkoxylated germanane is a direct-bandgap semiconductor, while aminated/ phenylated germanane is an indirect-bandgap semiconductor. All the organic surface modification gives rise to the increase of the bandgap of germanane.
Hui JiaRong WangZhenyi NiYong LiuXiaodong PiDeren Yang
The formation, structural and electronic properties of silicene oxides（SOs） that result from the oxidation of silicene on Ag（111） surface have been investigated in the framework of density functional theory（DFT）.It is found that the honeycomb lattice of silicene on the Ag（111） surface changes after the oxidation. SOs are strongly hybridized with the Ag（111） surface so that they possess metallic band structures. Charge accumulation between SOs and the Ag（111） surface indicates strong chemical bonding, which dramatically affects the electronic properties of SOs. When SOs are peeled off the Ag（111） surface, however, they may become semiconductors.
Muhammad AliZhenyi NiStefaan CottenierYong LiuXiaodong PiDeren Yang
In the framework of density functional theory （DFT）, we have studied the electronic properties of alkene/alkyne- hydrosilylated silicon nanocrystals （Si NCs） in the size range from 0.8 nm to 1.6 nm. Among the alkenes with all kinds of functional groups considered in this work, only those containing -NH2 and -C4H3S lead to significant hydrosilylation- induced changes in the gap between the highest occupied molecular orbital （HOMO） and the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital （LUMO） of an Si NC at the ground state. The quantum confinement effect is dominant for all of the alkene- hydrosilylated Si NCs at the ground state. At the excited state, the prevailing effect of surface chemistry only occurs at the smallest （0.8 nm） Si NCs hydrosilylated with alkenes containing -NH2 and -C4H3S. Although the alkyne hydrosilylation gives rise to a more significant surface chemistry effect than alkene hydrosilylation, the quantum confinement effect remains dominant for alkyne-hydrosilylated Si NCs at the ground state. However, at the excited state, the effect of surface chemistry induced by the hydrosilylation with conjugated alkynes is strong enough to prevail over that of quantum confinement.
Eu3+ions embedded in silica thin films codoped with SnO2 nanocrystals were fabricated by sol–gel and spin-coating methods.SnO2 nanocrystals with controllable sizes were synthesized through precisely controlling the Sn concentrations.The influences of doping and annealing conditions on the photoluminescence intensity from SnO2 nanocrystals are systematically investigated.The effective energy transfer from the defect states of SnO2nanocrystals to nearby Eu3+ions has revealed by the selective photoluminescence excitation spectra.The efficiency of the Forster resonance energy transfer is evaluated by the time-resolved photoluminescence measurements,which is about 29.1%based on the lifetime tests of the SnO2emission.
Nanocrystalline Ge （nc-Ge） single layers and nc-Ge/SiNx multilayers are prepared by laser annealing amorphous Ge （a-Ge） films and a-Ge/SiNx multilayers. The microstructures as well as the electrical properties of laser-crystallized samples are systematically studied by using various techniques. It is found that the optical band gap of nc-Ge film is reduced compared with its amorphous counterpart. The formed nc-Ge film is of p-type, and the dark conductivity is enhanced by 6 orders for an nc-Ge single layer and 4 orders for a multilayer. It is suggested that the carrier transport mechanism is dominant by the thermally activation process via the nanocrystal, which is different from the thermally annealed nc-Ge sample at an intermediate temperature. The carrier mobility of nc-Ge film can reach as high as about 39.4 cm2.V ^-1 .s^-1, which indicates their potential applications in future nano-devices.
