Search Results (243)

Advanced nanoimprint lithography (NIL) is promising for inorganic semiconductor patterning because it enables high-resolution replication with a relatively simple process flow; however, yield loss increasingly originates from spatially distributed, subcritical distortions accumulated across coating, exposure, etching, and imprinting. In this study, we propose an integrated physics-based and data-driven framework for pre-manufacturing defect-risk prediction in NIL. The framework combines an NDA-safe layout database, a physics-based process twin, and a stochastic risk prediction model using a physics-augmented convolutional neural network with conformal uncertainty calibration. Starting from binary design layouts, the process twin sequentially captures resist thickness variations during spin coating, proximity-induced dose redistribution and development-induced pattern deformation during electron-beam lithography (EBL), density-sensitive pattern transfer during reactive ion etching (RIE), and three-dimensional resist filling during imprinting, thereby generating physically consistent parameter maps for downstream learning. The results demonstrate an end-to-end virtual inspection flow that converts layouts into spatially resolved risk maps before fabrication. In addition, patterns with similar contour extent but different local density exhibit distinctly different risk distributions, indicating that manufacturability is governed not only by nominal geometry but also by local pattern environment. These findings support pre-manufacturing virtual inspection as a physically interpretable route for early yield-risk screening in advanced NIL. Full article

Cyclic pollutants such as dyes, antibiotics, phenols and VOCs in water and atmosphere feature stable structures and are difficult to mineralize, which constitutes the core problem in current environmental governance. Semiconductor photocatalysis provides a green strategy for the advanced treatment of such pollutants. Electrospun black TiO₂/Ag-loaded SiO₂ nanofiber membranes have become a research hotspot owing to their multi-component synergistic advantages. This paper systematically reviews the preparation processes and structure regulation methods of electrospun SiO₂ nanofiber membranes; expounds the loading strategies of black TiO₂ and Ag nanoparticles, the interface regulation mechanisms and the synergistic photocatalytic mechanism of the ternary composite system; summarizes the application progress in the degradation of cyclic pollutants in water and atmospheric VOCs; and emphatically analyzes the performance characteristics and key issues in the ring-opening degradation of cyclic pollutants. Studies show that the high specific surface area and porous structure of SiO₂ nanofiber membranes offer excellent support for catalytic reactions. In addition, black TiO₂ achieves a full-spectrum response through defect engineering; the SPR effect and Schottky barrier of Ag significantly improve carrier separation efficiency; and the synergistic effect of the three components enhances the adsorption–catalytic degradation capacity. Current challenges remain in ring-opening efficiency and stability, requiring multi-method breakthroughs to overcome bottlenecks, clarify mechanisms and promote engineering applications. This paper provides theoretical references for the development of high-performance fiber-based photocatalytic materials and lays a foundation for the practical application of electrospun inorganic nanofiber membranes in the field of environmental catalysis. Full article

Biobased hybrid semiconducting composites are attracting significant attention as sustainable alternatives to traditional inorganic photocatalysts for environmental remediation and energy-related applications. Recent research progress in biobased hybrid photocatalytic systems is critically reviewed to outline their design strategies, photocatalytic mechanisms, and environmental applications. These composites integrate bioderived polymers with metal oxide semiconductors, forming hybrid architectures that improve interfacial contact at the molecular level, enhance charge transfer efficiency, and impart higher structural flexibility. The polymer matrix not only provides mechanical adaptability and functional surface groups, but also serves as an environmentally friendly support that can modulate surface electronic states and influence the photoinduced electron–hole dynamics in the inorganic phase. By controlling the molecular interactions between the polymer chains and metal oxide surfaces, these hybrids can mitigate key limitations of conventional metal oxides, such as rapid electron–hole recombination and restricted visible-light absorption. This review first summarizes the fundamental electronic and structural properties of widely employed metal oxide semiconductors and highlights their intrinsic limitations in photocatalytic processes. It then examines the role of biopolymers from the perspective of molecular structure, charge transport pathways, and interfacial interaction mechanisms with the inorganic component. Various synthesis strategies—including sol–gel, hydrothermal, in situ nanoparticle generation, green synthesis, and surface functionalization—are discussed, with emphasis on their ability to tune the nanoscale morphology and interfacial chemistry of the hybrids. Applications of these biohybrid systems in dye degradation, pharmaceutical pollutant removal, heavy metal reduction, and antimicrobial photocatalysis are analyzed alongside mechanistic insights into charge separation efficiency and band alignment at the molecular interface. Furthermore, challenges related to long-term stability, reproducibility, scalability, and performance in real wastewater matrices are also addressed. Overall, this review provides a thorough discussion on the design principles, photocatalytic mechanism, and environmental applications of biobased hybrid semiconductors, while emphasizing future opportunities for the development of efficient and sustainable photocatalytic systems. Full article

One-dimensional hybrid organic–inorganic semiconductors enable band-edge engineering through reduced dimensionality and interfacial orbital hybridization. Nevertheless, the electronic physics of Cu/Ag-based systems has received limited attention. Here, we perform high-throughput first-principles calculations on 90 Cu/Ag halide HOISs derived from experimentally reported parent structures to elucidate bonding-dependent electronic behavior. We uncover a clear transition from electronically isolated inorganic chains in ionic hybrids to strongly hybridized band edges in covalent and mixed-bonding hybrid frameworks, where ligand p orbitals cooperatively couple with Cu-derived states and halogen p orbitals. This hybridization produces p-orbital-dominated band edges, enhanced dispersion, and light-hole effective masses along the 1D chains. Guided by this bonding-driven mechanism, we further identify four Cu-based compounds, which are helpful for tuning light-harvesting properties in low-dimensional hybrid semiconductors. Full article

As a novel organic–inorganic hybrid porous crystalline material, metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) are ideal sensitive materials for detecting gases, antibiotics, and ions, owing to their ultra-high specific surface area, tunable pore structures, abundant active sites, and tailorable architectures. This review systematically summarizes the core structural features, preparation methods, and modification strategies of MOFs, elaborates on the adsorption and signal conversion mechanisms in target detection, and highlights typical applications, performance advantages, and practical scenarios of MOF-based sensors, clarifying their structure–activity relationships and performance differences from traditional semiconductor sensors. It further analyzes key challenges, including insufficient stability, poor conductivity, large-scale preparation difficulties, and real-sample interference, as well as industrialization bottlenecks such as batch-to-batch reproducibility, instrument integration, and high costs. Additionally, it supplements cross-field synergistic innovations and industrialization progress, and prospects future directions: function-oriented precise design, multifunctional composite optimization, portable intelligent devices, green large-scale synthesis, and standardization promotion. This review provides a comprehensive reference for advancing MOF-based detection research and applications in environmental monitoring, industrial safety, food safety, and healthcare. Full article

Benzothiophene polymers, as a class of novel organic semiconductor materials, exhibit significant potential in the field of photocatalysis due to their broad light-responsive range and tunable energy level structures. In this study, a benzothiophene-based polymer organic semiconductor (denoted as P42) was integrated with titanium dioxide (TiO₂) via a simple sol–gel method, yielding an organic–inorganic hybrid material. This composite facilitates the modulation of energy level potentials and promotes the effective separation of photogenerated charges, thereby demonstrating remarkable synergistic catalytic performance in the photocatalytic oxidative coupling of benzylamines. By optimizing the ratio of organic to inorganic components and various photocatalytic reaction conditions, the hybrid material 1.7%P42-TiO₂, containing 1.7 wt% of the dithiophene polymer without any metal cocatalysts, exhibited outstanding performance under an air atmosphere and visible light irradiation after 12 h. It achieved a yield of over 88.7% and a selectivity exceeding 89.8% in the synthesis of N-benzoylaniline, significantly surpassing the performance of pure TiO₂ (52.9% yield, 54.9% selectivity) and P42 (54.4% yield, 54.9% selectivity). Structural and photophysical characterizations, including UV–Vis DRS, XRD, SEM, TEM, and EPR, reveal that the enhanced photocatalytic activity originates from broad visible-light absorption, improved charge separation, and well-matched energy levels. Mechanistic investigations suggest a synergistic pathway involving photoinduced hole oxidation and radical-mediated coupling. This work provides valuable insights and a reference for the solar-driven photocatalytic synthesis of nitrogen-containing platform molecules under mild conditions. Full article

Two-dimensional (2D) Ruddlesden–Popper (RP) tin halide perovskites have attracted considerable attention as lead-free photovoltaic absorbers; however, the impact of organic A-site cations on their structure and pressure-dependent optoelectronic behavior remains underexplored. In this study, density functional theory (DFT) is used to investigate the structural, electronic, and optical properties of A₂SnI₄ (A = GUA⁺, DMA⁺, MA⁺) under ambient conditions and under hydrostatic pressure. All three compounds adopt layered frameworks in which the organic cations occupy the interlayer region, while SnI₆ octahedra form the inorganic slabs. Band-gap calculations are performed using HSE06 for ambient pressure, known for its accuracy in electronic structure predictions, and PBE for pressure simulations, due to its computational efficiency in large-scale systems. At ambient pressure, Hybrid-functional (HSE06) calculations indicate that all three materials are direct-gap semiconductors, with band gaps of 2.25 eV for MA2SnI₄, 2.98 eV for DMA2SnI4, and 2.85 eV for GUA2SnI4. Under hydrostatic compression, DMA₂SnI₄ shows comparatively modest band-gap variation and saturates near 1.7 eV. In contrast, GUA₂SnI₄ and MA₂SnI₄ exhibit pronounced band-gap narrowing, including a pressure-induced direct-to-indirect transition near 2 GPa, with band gaps decreasing to 0.59 eV (GUA₂SnI₄) and 0.34 eV (MA₂SnI₄) at elevated pressures. Overall, these findings highlight that A-site chemistry, combined with hydrostatic pressure, enables tuning the electronic and optical responses in tin-based 2D RP perovskites, demonstrating their promise as tunable, lead-free photovoltaic absorbers. Full article

Solar-driven hydrogen production via photocatalytic water splitting represents a promising route toward sustainable and low-carbon energy systems. Among emerging photocatalysts, porphyrin-based framework materials, specifically porphyrinic metal–organic frameworks (PMOFs) and porphyrinic covalent organic frameworks (PCOFs), have attracted increasing attention owing to their strong visible-light absorption, tunable electronic structures, permanent porosity, and well-defined catalytic architectures. In these systems, porphyrins function as versatile photosensitizers whose photophysical properties can be precisely tailored through metalation, peripheral functionalization, and integration into ordered frameworks. This review provides a comprehensive, design-oriented overview of recent advances in PMOFs, PCOFs, and hybrid porphyrinic architectures for photocatalytic H₂ evolution. We discuss key structure–activity relationships governing light harvesting, charge separation, and hydrogen evolution kinetics, with particular emphasis on the roles of porphyrin metal centers, secondary building units, linker functionalization, framework morphology, and cocatalyst integration. Furthermore, we highlight how heterojunction engineering through coupling porphyrinic frameworks with inorganic semiconductors, metal sulfides, or single-atom catalytic sites can overcome intrinsic limitations related to charge recombination and limited spectral response. Current challenges, including long-term stability, reliance on noble metals, and scalability, are critically assessed. Finally, future perspectives are outlined, emphasizing rational molecular design, earth-abundant catalytic motifs, advanced hybrid architectures, and data-driven approaches as key directions for translating porphyrinic frameworks into practical photocatalytic hydrogen-generation technologies. Full article

The development of miniaturized, integrated, and flexible thermoelectric devices has intensified the demand for high-performance thermoelectric semiconductors. While significant advances have been made in optimizing their thermoelectric properties, mechanical performance in terms of the strength and ductility has remained a challenge. Consequently, the inherent brittleness and insufficient mechanical robustness of inorganic thermoelectric semiconductors present a major barrier to their commercial applications. Therefore, it is essential to develop thermoelectric materials with enhanced reliability and operational lifespan of flexible thermoelectric devices. This review summarizes recent breakthroughs in low-dimensional thermoelectric materials and emerging defect engineering strategies, which offer promising pathways for simultaneously improving both mechanical and thermoelectrical performance. By precisely regulating the relationship between nanostructural design and performance characteristics, new opportunities are emerging for nanostructured semiconductors in flexible thermoelectric applications across wide temperature ranges, from near-ambient to elevated conditions. Full article

While recent industrial automation trends emphasize the importance of non-destructive inspection by material-identifying millimeter-wave, terahertz-wave, and infrared (MMW, THz, IR) monitoring, fundamental tools in these wavelength bands (such as sensors) are still immature. Although inorganic semiconductors serve as diverse sensors with well-established large-scale fine-processing fabrication, the use of those devices is insufficient for non-destructive monitoring due to the lack of photo-absorbent properties for such major materials in partial regions across MMW–IR wavelengths. To satisfy the inherent advantageous non-destructive MMW–IR material identification, ultrabroadband operation is indispensable for photo-sensors under compact structure, flexible designability, and sensitive performances. This review then introduces the recent advances of carbon nanotube film-based photo-thermoelectric imagers regarding usable and high-yield device fabrication techniques and scientific synergy among computer vision to collectively satisfy material identification with three-dimensional (3D) structure reconstruction. This review synergizes material science, printable electronics, high-yield fabrication, sensor devices, optical measurements, and imaging into guidelines as functional non-destructive inspection platforms. The motivation of this review is to introduce the recent scientific fusion of MMW–IR sensors with visible-light computer vision, and emphasize its significance (non-invasive material-identifying sub-millimeter-resolution 3D-reconstruction with 660 nm–1.15 mm-wavelength imagers at noise equivalent power within 100 pWHz^−1/2) among the existing testing methods. Full article

Organic–inorganic metal halides (OIMHs) have emerged as highly promising semiconductor materials owing to their outstanding optoelectronic properties. Incorporation of chiral organic molecules into the metal–halide framework enables the construction of chiral OIMHs, which exhibit unique chiroptical phenomena in addition to the intrinsic advantages of perovskite-based semiconductors. This review provides a systematic overview of recent progress in chiral OIMHs, covering synthetic approaches, crystal structures, mechanisms of chirality transfer, circularly polarized luminescence, and circularly polarized light detection. We further highlight the current challenges and outline future research directions, emphasizing the need for strategies that enhance chiroptical responses, stability, and device integration. By bridging fundamental insights with design principles, this work aims to guide the rational development of next-generation chiral functional materials for advanced optoelectronic and spintronic applications. Full article

Although the power conversion efficiency of perovskite photovoltaics (PVs) has achieved significant progress, the operational stability is still a critical issue for their commercialization. Compared to inorganic semiconductor materials, organic species in perovskites are intrinsically unstable under long-term illumination, heat, and bias stresses. These organic species exhibit higher chemical reactivity, which can complicate the degradation mechanisms or model of perovskite PVs. In this review, we analyzed the types of chemical reactions for different organic species. The chemical instability mainly stems from the deprotonation of A-site ammonium cations, X-site halide ion migration, and oxidation of halide ions, which can even mutually influence one another. We systematically discuss the effect of this chemical instability on perovskite structure degradation under device operation. These special chemical evolutions will accelerate perovskite PVs’ degradation. Then, strategies to mitigate these reactions for enhanced operational stability are introduced. Despite substantial progress in the operational stability of perovskite PVs, achieving an operational lifetime comparable to crystalline silicon remains challenging. Therefore, a deep understanding of intrinsic perovskite structure degradation should become a research focus, contributing to improvement in the operational lifetime of perovskite PVs. Full article

Ferroelectric materials have attracted great attention for photocatalytic hydrogen (H₂) evolution due to their internal depolarization fields that promote carrier separation and directional migration. However, conventional inorganic ferroelectrics often suffer from wide band gaps and low conductivity, limiting their solar-to-hydrogen conversion efficiency. Here, we report a two-dimensional (2D) multilayered perovskite ferroelectric, [butylammonium]₂[ethylammonium]₂Pb₃I₁₀ (BAPI), which integrates robust spontaneous polarization (P_s) and excellent semiconductor properties to enable efficient photocatalysis. Under simultaneous light and ultrasonic excitation, BAPI/Pt (1 wt%) achieves a H₂ evolution rate of 1256 μmol g⁻¹ h⁻¹, which is twice that under light alone, due to dynamic polarization modulation that mitigates ionic screening and enhances internal electric fields. Notably, this enhancement vanishes when BAPI transitions to a centrosymmetric, nonpolar phase at 323 K, confirming the critical role of P_s. These findings offer a new pathway toward high-performance ferroelectric photocatalysts for solar hydrogen production. Full article

Inorganic lead halide perovskite semiconductor materials exhibit great potential in the optoelectronic field due to their excellent optical and electrical properties. However, lead toxicity and limited material stability hinder their commercial applications. Consequently, the pursuit of non-toxic, stable alternatives is imperative for the sustainable development of halide-perovskite semiconductors. Non-toxic germanium-based halide perovskites, as promising candidates, have attracted considerable attention. Here, we present a systematic first-principles investigation of the structural, electronic, elastic, and optical properties of cost-effective germanium-based halide perovskites NaGeX₃ (X = Cl, Br, I). Energy and phonon-spectrum calculations demonstrate that NaGeX₃ with the R3c space group exhibits the highest structural stability, rather than the commonly assumed cubic phase. Hybrid functional calculations reveal that the band gaps of R3c NaGeX₃ decrease monotonically with increasing halogen radius, that is, 4.75 eV (NaGeCl₃) → 3.76 eV (NaGeBr₃) → 2.69 eV (NaGeI₃), accompanied by a reduction in carrier effective masses. Additionally, mechanically stable R3c NaGeX₃ exhibits lower hardness and ductility than that of the cubic phase. Optical properties indicate that NaGeX₃ materials have strong absorption coefficients (>10⁶ cm⁻¹) and low loss in the photon energy range of 9–11 eV, suggesting that such cost-effective germanium-based halide perovskites can be used in various optoelectronic devices in the ultraviolet region. Full article