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Molecules
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Nanostructures: Synthesis, Characterization and Applications
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Nanostructures: Synthesis, Characterization and Applications

A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Nanochemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (8 October 2021) | Viewed by 13302

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Alessia Irrera

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
CNR-IPCF and URT LabSENS Beyond Nano CNR, Institute for Chemical and Physical Processes, Viale F. Stagno D’Alcontres 37, 98158 Messina, Italy
Interests: nanowires; nanostructures; optoelectronics; microelectronics; sensors; fractals
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Maria Josè Lo Faro

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Physics Department, University of Catania, 95123 Catania, Italy
Interests: nanomaterials; photonics; sensing; chemical etching; thin film technology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The new composites and nanostructured materials provide prospective platforms for advanced devices for nanoelectronics, photonics, and sensors. This Special Issue will focus on the aspects of nanotechnology associated with different functional materials. Different topics relevant to low-dimensional structures, such as nanowires, nanocrystals, nanopores, and nanosheets, are potential topics. Both their fabrication, such as lithography, processing, chemical and physical approaches, chemical etching, and nanoparticle formation, and their application in devices are subjects of interest. In particular, studies on nanostructures implemented in photonic devices, such as detectors, light-emitting sources, waveguides, optical modulators, and photovoltaic cells will be encouraged. Another point is the application of nanostructures in the field of biological, medical, and chemical sensing and their impact on sensing performance. Moreover, the characterization and engineering of defects and the impact of crystal quality on the properties of electronic and photonic devices are topics of concern for this Special Issue.

Potential topics include, but are not limited to:

  • fabrication and characterization of nanostructures, nanodevices, and nanosensors;
  • chemical and physical synthesis of nanostructures;
  • nanowire, nanorod, nanocluster, and nanosheet characterization;
  • optoelectronic materials and nanodevices using heterostructures and nanostructures;
  • defect characterization and engineering;
  • carrier transport in nanodevices;
  • integration of photonics with Si CMOS technology;
  • strain band-gap engineering and carrier transport in CMOS;
  • Si-based waveguide technology and nanodevice­s;
  • light-emitting devices, detectors, waveguides, optical modulators ;
  • luminescence in nanostructure-based materials;
  • rare earth doping of nanostructures;
  • photovoltaic cells;
  • integrated waveguide sensing;
  • nanomaterials for life science applications;
  • nanoscale biosensors.

Prof. Dr. Alessia Irrera
Dr. Maria Josè Lo Faro
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Molecules is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • nanostructures
  • nanodevices
  • synthesis
  • characterization
  • sensors
  • photonics

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

10 pages, 3196 KiB  
Article
Synthesis and Photochemical Properties of Monolithic TiO2 Nanowires Diode
by Massimo Zimbone, Maria Cantarella, Giuliana Impellizzeri, Sergio Battiato and Lucia Calcagno
Molecules 2021, 26(12), 3636; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules26123636 - 15 Jun 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1901
Abstract
In this paper, the structural and photochemical properties of a monolithic photochemical diode are discussed. The present structure is composed, from the top to the bottom, of a TiO2 nanowire layer, a TiO2 film, a Ti foil, and a porous layer [...] Read more.
In this paper, the structural and photochemical properties of a monolithic photochemical diode are discussed. The present structure is composed, from the top to the bottom, of a TiO2 nanowire layer, a TiO2 film, a Ti foil, and a porous layer made of Pt nanoparticles. The synthesis of the nanowires was simply carried out by Au-catalysed-assisted process; the effects of the annealing temperature and time were deeply investigated. Morphological and structural characterizations were performed by scanning electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy. The analyses showed the rutile structure of the TiO2 nanowires. The photocatalytic properties were studied through the degradation of methylene blue (MB) dye under UV light irradiation. The nanowires induced an enhancement of the photo-degradation rate, compared to TiO2 in a bulk form, due to an increase in the surface area. Moreover, the presence of a nano-porous Pt layer deposited on the rear side of the samples provided a further increase in the MB degradation rate, related to the scavenging effect of Pt nanoparticles. The overall increment of the photo-activity, due to the nano-structuration of the TiO2 and to the presence of the Pt layer, resulted a factor 7, compared to the bulk reference. In addition, photovoltage measurements allowed to assess the effects of TiO2 nano-structuration and Pt nanoparticles on the electron accumulation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanostructures: Synthesis, Characterization and Applications)
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14 pages, 2490 KiB  
Article
Biguanide-Based Synthesis of 1,3,5-Triazine Derivatives with Anticancer Activity and 1,3,5-Triazine Incorporated Calcium Citrate Nanoparticles
by Monnaya Chalermnon, Sarocha Cherdchom, Amornpun Sereemaspun, Rojrit Rojanathanes and Tanatorn Khotavivattana
Molecules 2021, 26(4), 1028; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules26041028 - 15 Feb 2021
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 4342
Abstract
Twelve derivatives of biguanide-derived 1,3,5-triazines, a promising class of anticancer agent, were synthesised and evaluated for their anticancer activity against two colorectal cancer cell lines—HCT116 and SW620. 2c and 3c which are the derivatives containing o-hydroxyphenyl substituents exhibited the highest activity with [...] Read more.
Twelve derivatives of biguanide-derived 1,3,5-triazines, a promising class of anticancer agent, were synthesised and evaluated for their anticancer activity against two colorectal cancer cell lines—HCT116 and SW620. 2c and 3c which are the derivatives containing o-hydroxyphenyl substituents exhibited the highest activity with IC50 against both cell lines in the range of 20–27 µM, which is comparable to the IC50 of cisplatin reference. Moreover, the potential use of the calcium citrate nanoparticles (CaCit NPs) as a platform for drug delivery system was studied on a selected 1,3,5-triazine derivative 2a. Condition optimisation revealed that the source of citrate ions and reaction time significantly influence the morphology, size and %drug loading of the particles. With the optimised conditions, “CaCit-2a NPs” were successfully synthesised with the size of 148 ± 23 nm and %drug loading of up to 16.3%. Furthermore, it was found that the release of 2a from the synthesised CaCit-2a NPs is pH-responsive, and 2a could be control released under the acidic cancer environment. The knowledge from this study is perceptive for further development of the 1,3,5-triazine-based anticancer drugs and provide the platform for the incorporation of other drugs in the CaCit NPs in the future. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanostructures: Synthesis, Characterization and Applications)
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11 pages, 1272 KiB  
Article
Water-in-Oil-in-Water Nanoemulsions Containing Temulawak (Curcuma xanthorriza Roxb) and Red Dragon Fruit (Hylocereus polyrhizus) Extracts
by Niken Harimurti, Mohammad Nasikin and Kamarza Mulia
Molecules 2021, 26(1), 196; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules26010196 - 02 Jan 2021
Cited by 18 | Viewed by 3959
Abstract
Hydrophobic curcumin in temulawak extract and hydrophilic betacyanin in red dragon fruit extract are high-value bioactive compounds with extensive applications in functional food. In this study, these extracts were encapsulated in water-in-oil-in-water (w/o/w) nanoemulsions as a delivery system using a two-step high-energy emulsification [...] Read more.
Hydrophobic curcumin in temulawak extract and hydrophilic betacyanin in red dragon fruit extract are high-value bioactive compounds with extensive applications in functional food. In this study, these extracts were encapsulated in water-in-oil-in-water (w/o/w) nanoemulsions as a delivery system using a two-step high-energy emulsification method. PGPR and Span 20 were used as lipophilic emulsifiers for the primary w/o emulsion. The most stable w/o/w formulation with the least oil phase separation of 5% v/v consisted of w/o emulsion (15% w/w) and Tween 80 (1.5% w/w) as hydrophilic emulsifier. The formulation was characterized by a 189-nm mean droplet diameter, 0.16 polydispersity index, and –32 mV zeta potential. The freeze–thaw stability may be attributed to the combination of low w/o emulsion content and high Tween 80 concentration in the outer water phase of the w/o/w nanoemulsions used in this study. The IC50 values of the nanoemulsion and the red dragon fruit extract were similar. It means that the higher concentration of curcumin in the nanoemulsions and the lower IC50 value of temulawak extract ensured sufficient antioxidant activities of the w/o/w nanoemulsions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanostructures: Synthesis, Characterization and Applications)
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11 pages, 4092 KiB  
Article
Ultraviolet Carbon Nanodots Providing a Dual-Mode Spectral Matching Platform for Synergistic Enhancement of the Fluorescent Sensing
by Liman Sai, Shuping Jiao and Jianwen Yang
Molecules 2020, 25(11), 2679; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules25112679 - 09 Jun 2020
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2226
Abstract
The sensing of chromium(VI) (Cr(VI)) is highly desired, due to its toxic and carcinogenic effects upon human health. Fluorescent probes, especially carbon nanodots (CNDs), have been widely used for Cr(VI) sensing via the inner filter effect (IFE). However, improving the sensitivity of these [...] Read more.
The sensing of chromium(VI) (Cr(VI)) is highly desired, due to its toxic and carcinogenic effects upon human health. Fluorescent probes, especially carbon nanodots (CNDs), have been widely used for Cr(VI) sensing via the inner filter effect (IFE). However, improving the sensitivity of these probes remains a difficult issue. In this work, CNDs derived from β-Lactoglobulin were applied as an ultrasensitive fluorescent probe for Cr(VI). With 260 nm excitation, the CNDs showed multi-band emission, including an ultraviolet 360 nm peak. The spectral matching of the CNDs with Cr(VI) led to synergistic suppression of both the excitation and emission light in the fluorescent sensing. As a consequence, the CNDs showed high sensitivity toward Cr(VI), the detection limit reaching as low as 20 nM. Moreover, taking advantage of the multi-emissive property of the CNDs, the synergistic effect was proven in an IFE-based sensing system, which might be extended to the design of other kinds of fluorescent probes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanostructures: Synthesis, Characterization and Applications)
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