Materials Today Physics最新文献

{"title":"Recent advances and challenges of tactile sensing for robotics: from fundamentals to applications","authors":"Ziheng Zhan ,&nbsp;Yang Yang ,&nbsp;Wenjuan Zuo ,&nbsp;Mingzhu Xie ,&nbsp;Meng Ning","doi":"10.1016/j.mtphys.2025.101740","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mtphys.2025.101740","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Tactile sensing technology has become indispensable for next-generation robotic systems, offering unprecedented capabilities in mechanical stimulus detection through physical interaction. While this field has evolved significantly over three decades, recent innovations in material architectures, bioinspired microstructures, and hybrid sensing mechanisms have enabled transformative advances in electronic skin, dexterous manipulation, and human-robot collaboration. In this review, we systematically reviewed the development of tactile sensors by critically analyzing designs to applications, and focused on recent progress in advanced materials, complex structure design and promising applications. Based on the difference of sensing mechanism, we introduced some novel material-level strategies (resistive, capacitive, piezoelectric, triboelectric, and vision-based sensors) that achieve synergistic improvements in sensitivity and robustness. Furthermore, breakthroughs in 3D microstructures of sensors are summarized with comparisons of sensing performance. These architectural innovations not only augment perceptual capabilities but also significantly improve operational durability without performance degradation. Based on enhanced performance of tactile sensors, emerging applications in perception and recognition, manipulation with extremely high accuracy, medical care and so on were introduced. We further identify underexplored opportunities and challenges in tactile processing, providing a roadmap for future research. Finally, the challenges and prospects of the future development of tactile sensors are pointed out.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18253,"journal":{"name":"Materials Today Physics","volume":"54 ","pages":"Article 101740"},"PeriodicalIF":10.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143884625","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Fabrication of flexible transparent paper substrate via epoxy resin impregnation and luminescence enhancement through synergistic action of high transparency and desirable haze of substrate for LEC devices","authors":"Zhongming Song ,&nbsp;Guodong Liu ,&nbsp;Tianhao Wang ,&nbsp;Jiahao Wu ,&nbsp;Hanbin Liu ,&nbsp;Zhijian Li","doi":"10.1016/j.mtphys.2025.101738","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mtphys.2025.101738","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In this study, we present a novel method for fabricating flexible transparent paper substrates via epoxy resin impregnation and coating, which exhibit high transparency (90.98 %) and desirable haze (41.5 %). In this method, the epoxy resin with a refractive index close to that of cellulose fibers, is employed to effectively fill the porous structure of the paper substrate, significantly enhancing the transparency of the substrate while maintaining an appropriate haze. This not only allows for more light transmission but also facilitates light absorption and scattering at wide angles, improving the optical coupling efficiency for light-emitting devices. Additionally, the fibers in the substrate provide the skeletal structure, whilst the fiber encapsulation by the epoxy enhances the mechanical properties and chemical stability of the substrate. Simultaneously, due to the interfacial interlocking and hydrogen bonding of the conductive PEDOT:PSS spin-coated with its interacting substrate, it forms a flexible PEDOT:PSS electrode having stable physical and chemical performance. Finally, based on the excellent optical and mechanical properties of the prepared substrate, we successfully fabricate light-emitting electrochemical cells (LECs) through an all-solution processing method under ambient conditions. The LECs on the transparent paper substrate achieve superior maximum luminance (<em>L</em>_max = 1082.4 cd m⁻²) and current efficiency (<em>CE</em>_max = 1.14 cd A⁻¹), surpassing those of devices prepared on conventional PET. This work proposes a novel method for the preparation of a low-cost and high-performance substrate.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18253,"journal":{"name":"Materials Today Physics","volume":"54 ","pages":"Article 101738"},"PeriodicalIF":10.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143884628","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Stark manifold ultraviolet emission in Gd-implanted β-Ga2O3 thin films","authors":"Martin S. Williams ,&nbsp;Mahmoud Elhajhasan ,&nbsp;Marco Schowalter ,&nbsp;Lewis Penman ,&nbsp;Alexander Karg ,&nbsp;Patrick Vogt ,&nbsp;Fabien C.-P. Massabuau ,&nbsp;Andreas Rosenauer ,&nbsp;Gordon Callsen ,&nbsp;Carsten Ronning ,&nbsp;Martin Eickhoff ,&nbsp;Manuel Alonso-Orts","doi":"10.1016/j.mtphys.2025.101731","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mtphys.2025.101731","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;div&gt;&lt;div&gt;Gadolinium (Gd) is a promising optically active lanthanide for UV emission. In this work, the optical emission properties of Gd-implanted monoclinic gallium oxide (&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;mi&gt;β&lt;/mi&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;-Ga&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msub&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;2&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msub&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;O&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msub&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;3&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msub&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;) thin films are investigated. Second phase formation (&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;mi&gt;γ&lt;/mi&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;-Ga&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msub&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;2&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msub&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;O&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msub&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;3&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msub&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;) is observed due to implantation-induced damage of the &lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;mi&gt;β&lt;/mi&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;-Ga&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msub&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;2&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msub&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;O&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msub&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;3&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msub&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt; lattice. Annealing the implanted films results in various &lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;mi&gt;β&lt;/mi&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;-Ga&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msub&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;2&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msub&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;O&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msub&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;3&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msub&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt; grain orientations. The relationship between the crystalline nature and the optical properties of the &lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;mi&gt;β&lt;/mi&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;-Ga&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msub&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;2&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msub&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;O&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msub&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;3&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msub&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;:Gd&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msup&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;3&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;mo&gt;+&lt;/mo&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msup&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt; films is studied. Optical activation occurs after annealing at 700 °C, revealing a photoluminescence (PL) band at 3.92 eV. This emission is attributed to the &lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msup&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;6&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msup&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;P&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;msub&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;7&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;mo&gt;/&lt;/mo&gt;&lt;mn&gt;2&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msub&gt;&lt;mo&gt;→&lt;/mo&gt;&lt;msup&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mspace&gt;&lt;/mspace&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;8&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msup&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;S&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msub&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;7&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;mo&gt;/&lt;/mo&gt;&lt;mn&gt;2&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msub&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt; transition of Gd&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msup&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;3&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;mo&gt;+&lt;/mo&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msup&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt; in &lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;mi&gt;β&lt;/mi&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;-Ga&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msub&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;2&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msub&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;O&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msub&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;3&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msub&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;. Its four constituent emission components at 3.9118 eV, 3.9153 eV, 3.9221 eV and 3.9348 eV, due to the ion’s &lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msup&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;6&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msup&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;P&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msub&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;7&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;mo&gt;/&lt;/mo&gt;&lt;mn&gt;2&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msub&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt; Stark splitting in the &lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;mi&gt;β&lt;/mi&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;-Ga&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msub&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;2&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msub&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;O&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msub&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;3&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msub&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt; crystal field, are investigated. The transition energies are independent of annealing temperature and film growth method, highlighting the insensitivity of the 4f&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msup&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;7&lt;/mn","PeriodicalId":18253,"journal":{"name":"Materials Today Physics","volume":"54 ","pages":"Article 101731"},"PeriodicalIF":10.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143880821","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Regulating electron effect by interface-induced dislocation in Fe2P/Fe to accelerate oxygen reduction reactions","authors":"Jin Yan ,&nbsp;Shiyu Li ,&nbsp;Meihuan Liu ,&nbsp;Haiqing Zhou ,&nbsp;Hui Su","doi":"10.1016/j.mtphys.2025.101739","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mtphys.2025.101739","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Achieving precise control of the electronic environment of transition metal compounds is important for improving the efficiency of electrocatalytic oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) but continues a formidable challenge. Herein, we present a novel Fe₂P/Fe heterostructure catalyst with abundant dislocation defects, where the oxidation state of Fe shift from 0.11 to 0.97, leading to an enhanced ORR performance. In situ FTIR and DFT showed that the dislocation-rich heterojunction catalysts enhanced the desorption of ∗OOH intermediates, facilitated the hydrogenation process of ∗O, and improved the kinetic process of the 4e⁻ reaction. Consequently, the developed Fe₂P/Fe catalyst exhibited a mass activity of 164.3 A g_metal⁻¹, which is over three times greater than the traditional Pt/C catalyst that measured 53.6 A g_metal⁻¹, highlighting its remarkable efficacy. This significant activity enhancement was accompanied by 99.56 % 4e⁻ selectivity and half-slope potential (<em>E</em>_1/2 = 0.90 V). In addition, the catalyst also performs excellent power density (150.4 mW cm⁻²) in zinc-air batteries (ZABs) and maintains long-term stability after 130 h of continuous charging and discharging. This work on dislocation-rich non-noble metal catalysts provides new insights into oxygen reduction catalysts.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18253,"journal":{"name":"Materials Today Physics","volume":"54 ","pages":"Article 101739"},"PeriodicalIF":10.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143880822","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The role of interfacial (intrinsic) electric field on the structural, electronic, linear and nonlinear optical properties of MoS2/MoSSe vdWHs","authors":"Le-Jun Wang ,&nbsp;Yi Xiang ,&nbsp;Wen-Bo Yuan ,&nbsp;Xing Zou ,&nbsp;Shi-Fa Wang ,&nbsp;Chun-Ming Yang ,&nbsp;Lei Hu","doi":"10.1016/j.mtphys.2025.101737","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mtphys.2025.101737","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Many studies report that second harmonic generation (SHG) would be significantly modified by the interfacial electric field (interfacial-<em>EF</em>) in two-dimensional (2D) van der Waals heterojunctions (vdWHs). However, the physical picture between the interfacial-<em>EF</em> and the SHG-coefficient of 2D vdWHs has not been visualized. Hence, this manuscript studies the SHG property of 2D MoS₂/MoSSe vdWHs using first-principles calculations, focusing on the intrinsic electric field (intrinsic-<em>EF</em>) reversal of the MoSSe layer, expecting to amplify the interfacial-<em>EF</em> alternation and the SHG-coefficient alternation simultaneously. The electronic and linear optical properties, closely correlated with SHG application, are also investigated. After the intrinsic-<em>EF</em> reversal of the MoSSe layer, (1) larger charge transfers and stronger interfacial-<em>EF</em>s between the MoS₂ and MoSSe layers are obtained; (2) The linear optical absorption and the linear optical refractive index of MoS₂/MoSSe vdWHs are nearly not changed, which is confirmed by the vanishing optical transition between the MoS₂ and MoSSe layers; (3) Large out-of-plane SHG-coefficients in 2D MoS₂/MoSSe vdWHs can be induced, which is clarified by the interfacial-<em>EF</em>; (4) As a result, the SHG-intensity parallel to the pump field could be strengthened. Summarily, this manuscript visualizes that the SHG-coefficient and the SHG-intensity of 2D vdWHs could be enhanced by the interfacial-<em>EF</em>.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18253,"journal":{"name":"Materials Today Physics","volume":"54 ","pages":"Article 101737"},"PeriodicalIF":10.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143880820","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Realizing high-performance quantum anomalous Hall insulators by surface halogenation","authors":"Li Deng ,&nbsp;Xiang Yin ,&nbsp;Yanzhao Wu ,&nbsp;Junwei Tong ,&nbsp;Xianmin Zhang","doi":"10.1016/j.mtphys.2025.101736","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mtphys.2025.101736","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Although numerous methods have been proposed to realize the quantum anomalous Hall (QAH) effect, the high-performance QAH effect is yet limited. In this study, the surface halogenation strategy is applied to trigger the QAH states in a series of group-VIB transition metal dichalcogenide monolayers. All MoS₂Cl₂, MoSe₂Cl₂, and MoTe₂Cl₂ monolayers present a high Chern number <span><math><mrow><mi>C</mi><mo>=</mo><mo>−</mo><mn>2</mn></mrow></math></span>, and their nontrivial topological gaps are 23.5, 55.9, and 83.6 meV, respectively. Both the MoS₂Cl₂ and MoSe₂Cl₂ possess in-plane magnetic anisotropy, showing a Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless transition temperature of 432 and 450 K. The MoTe₂Cl₂ exhibits an out-of-plane magnetic anisotropy and Curie temperature up to 521 K. The ferromagnetism of Mo<em>X</em>₂Cl₂ monolayers originates from the modulation of valence electron filling via surface halogenation. The realization of QAH states by surface halogenation is also demonstrated in W<em>X</em>₂Cl₂, W<em>X</em>₂Br₂, and Mo<em>X</em>₂Br₂ monolayers. This work offers insights for designing novel QAH insulators, facilitating the development of topological electronic devices.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18253,"journal":{"name":"Materials Today Physics","volume":"54 ","pages":"Article 101736"},"PeriodicalIF":10.0,"publicationDate":"2025-04-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143878078","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Enhancing Mg3(Bi, Sb)2 thermoelectric performance via ZrSb1-x modified grain-boundary","authors":"Qintuo Zhang ,&nbsp;Zhen Fan ,&nbsp;Xiaofan Zhang ,&nbsp;Nan Chen ,&nbsp;Kaiwei Guo ,&nbsp;Qi Zhao ,&nbsp;Yi Wang ,&nbsp;Chengpeng Pan ,&nbsp;Shuai Qi ,&nbsp;Xuan Zhou ,&nbsp;Guannan Li ,&nbsp;Yang Liu ,&nbsp;Congcong Liu ,&nbsp;Yibao Liu ,&nbsp;Jingkun Xu ,&nbsp;Huaizhou Zhao ,&nbsp;Hangtian Zhu","doi":"10.1016/j.mtphys.2025.101733","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mtphys.2025.101733","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Grain boundaries, as critical structural defects in materials, play a pivotal role in thermoelectric research. Mg₃(Bi, Sb)₂-based materials, which are prominent n-type thermoelectric materials, are significantly affected by the second phase at grain boundaries. This study investigates the influence of ZrSb_1-x on the thermoelectric properties of Mg₃(Bi, Sb)₂, with particular focus on its impact on the chemical environment at grain boundaries. The ZrSb₂ exacerbates the loss of Mg, resulting in a transition of the material from n-type to p-type conductivity. In contrast, the ZrSb_3/5 mitigates the formation of Bi-rich precipitate, reduces the interfacial potential barriers, and enhances grain growth. A sample containing 5 % ZrSb_3/5 achieved a room temperature <em>zT</em> of 0.9, and the formation of <span><math><mo>&lt;</mo><mn>10</mn><mover><mn>1</mn><mo>¯</mo></mover><mn>1</mn><mo>&gt;</mo></math></span> twins was observed. Furthermore, a thermoelectric device composed of this material, paired with commercial p-type Bi₂Te₃, demonstrated a maximum temperature difference of 67 K and a peak cooling power density of 1.2 W/cm². The mathematical relationship between the device's COP under any operating condition and its fundamental parameters (<em>Q</em>_c,max, Δ<em>T</em>_max and <em>I</em>_max) was derived.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18253,"journal":{"name":"Materials Today Physics","volume":"54 ","pages":"Article 101733"},"PeriodicalIF":10.0,"publicationDate":"2025-04-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143857706","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Enhanced passivation and contact properties of boron emitters through PECVD-deposited double boron silicate glass layers for high-efficiency tunnel oxide passivating contact solar cells","authors":"Xian Zhang ,&nbsp;Haojiang Du ,&nbsp;Wei Liu ,&nbsp;Zunke Liu ,&nbsp;Hongkai Zhou ,&nbsp;Ruoyi Wang ,&nbsp;Hongyu Zhang ,&nbsp;Huan Pu ,&nbsp;Mingdun Liao ,&nbsp;Zhiqin Ying ,&nbsp;Xi Yang ,&nbsp;Zhenhai Yang ,&nbsp;Yuheng Zeng ,&nbsp;Jichun Ye","doi":"10.1016/j.mtphys.2025.101735","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mtphys.2025.101735","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The mainstream industrial-grade boron emitters for <em>n</em>-type tunnel oxide passivating contact (TOPCon) solar cells (SCs) are typically fabricated using low-pressure (LP) boron diffusion technology. Although this approach has achieved great success in the photovoltaic (PV) industry, LP-based boron emitters still face significant challenges in meeting the current demands for high-efficiency c-Si SCs while ensuring safe production. Plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD)-based boron diffusion technology holds the potential to address these issues, which, however, usually suffers from poor passivation quality, limiting its broader application in the PV industry. In this work, we propose a flexible and controllable method using PECVD to deposit a double-layer boron silicate glass (BSG), combined with high-temperature annealing, for the fabrication of boron emitters. Our results indicate that the PECVD-based boron emitters exhibit a higher surface boron concentration and a shallower boron diffusion depth, which enhance hole transport compared to LP-based boron emitters. Consequently, the PECVD-based boron emitters achieve superior passivation and contact properties, with a high implied open-circuit voltage of 715 mV, a low single-sided saturation current density of 8.8 fA/cm², and a low contact resistivity of less than 0.5 mΩ·cm². Additionally, proof-of-concept TOPCon SCs incorporating such PECVD-based boron emitters are fabricated, achieving a remarkable efficiency of 24.30 %, surpassing that of LP-based TOPCon SCs (23.51 %). This study introduces a flexible PECVD-based boron diffusion technology for TOPCon SCs, demonstrating significantly improved passivation and contact properties and highlighting its potential applications in the PV industry.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18253,"journal":{"name":"Materials Today Physics","volume":"54 ","pages":"Article 101735"},"PeriodicalIF":10.0,"publicationDate":"2025-04-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143857698","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Ti-decorated SiC2 as a high-performance anode material for Li-ion batteries: A DFT-D2 approach","authors":"Samira Nikmanesh ,&nbsp;Seshasai Srinivasan ,&nbsp;Rosa Safaiee","doi":"10.1016/j.mtphys.2025.101734","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mtphys.2025.101734","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study employs dispersion-corrected DFT-D2 calculations to investigate Li adsorption on pristine and Ti-decorated SiC₂, evaluating their potential as anode materials for Li-ion batteries. Key analyses, including adsorption energy, density of states (DOS), Bader charge, diffusion barrier, and open-circuit voltage (OCV), reveal that the incorporation of titanium (Ti) into SiC₂ significantly enhances the electrochemical performance, stability, and lithium atom diffusion characteristics of the material. Ti increases the adsorption energy, Eads, from −1.422 eV for SiC₂ to −1.641 eV for Ti-decorated SiC₂, strengthening the bond between lithium ions and the substrate. This stronger interaction improves capacity retention and cycling stability by reducing lithium desorption during cycling. While this increase in adsorption energy may slightly impede lithium diffusion, it contributes to greater structural stability and durability under high-rate charging and discharging conditions. Additionally, OCV is enhanced from 0.340 V in SiC₂ to 0.392 V in Ti-decorated SiC₂, improving the overall energy output. The lattice constants exhibit a minimal change of only 0.21 %, indicating that lithium intercalation and deintercalation during battery charge and discharge cycles have an insignificant impact on volume variation. With a capacity of 965.25 mAh/g, Ti-decorated SiC₂ achieves a more favorable balance of stability, rate capability, and energy efficiency compared to undoped SiC₂, making it a promising material for practical, long-term applications in lithium-ion batteries.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18253,"journal":{"name":"Materials Today Physics","volume":"54 ","pages":"Article 101734"},"PeriodicalIF":10.0,"publicationDate":"2025-04-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143857627","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Electronic and phononic characteristics of high-performance radiative cooling pigments h-BN: A comparative study to BaSO4","authors":"Ziqi Guo ,&nbsp;Ioanna Katsamba ,&nbsp;Daniel Carne,&nbsp;Dudong Feng,&nbsp;Kellan Moss,&nbsp;Emily Barber,&nbsp;Ziqi Fang,&nbsp;Andrea Felicelli,&nbsp;Xiulin Ruan","doi":"10.1016/j.mtphys.2025.101721","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mtphys.2025.101721","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>A thin layer, lightweight, and ultra-white hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) nanoporous paint has been developed recently. However, the underlying atomic and nanostructural physics of the paint’s radiative cooling performance remains quite elusive. In this work, a multiscale, multiphysics computational framework is employed to gain atomic level insights of the high radiative cooling performance. By leveraging first-principles calculations to study the electronic transitions and phonon dynamics, the refractive index and extinction coefficient are predicted across solar and mid-infrared (mid-IR) spectra, which are then used to calculate the optical properties of a single nanoparticle either by Mie Theory or computationally solving Maxwell’s Equations. Subsequently, the photon Monte Carlo simulation is used to predict the photon transport in nanoplatelet-matrix nanocomposites, by including the anisotropic optical properties of nanoplatelets for the first time. The predicted solar reflectance and sky window emissivity of the nanocomposites agree well with the experiments. By comparing with BaSO₄-based paint, we attribute the high solar reflectance of h-BN paint at a lower thickness to its higher refractive index and nanoplatelet morphology, and attribute the relatively lower sky window emissivity to its lower extinction coefficient in mid-IR. Surprisingly, aligning the nanoplatelets horizontally does not significantly improve the solar reflectance at <span><math><mrow><mn>150</mn><mspace></mspace><mi>μ</mi><mi>m</mi></mrow></math></span> coating thickness due to diminishing returns. Finally, we compile many radiative cooling pigments and order the following few in decreasing refractive index: h-BN, BaSO₄, CaCO₃, SiO₂. Our work advances the understanding of atomic-scale features in designing radiative cooling materials.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18253,"journal":{"name":"Materials Today Physics","volume":"54 ","pages":"Article 101721"},"PeriodicalIF":10.0,"publicationDate":"2025-04-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143853150","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}