The COVID-19 pandemic has encouraged scientists and the general population to think more than ever before about how we interact with microbes in our indoor spaces. Research investigating transmission of SARS-CoV-2 has advanced our knowledge significantly in the last two years. However, indoor and built environment microbiomes are extremely complex polymicrobial systems. We have barely scratched the surface in our understanding of the microbial inhabitants of our indoor and urban spaces. The Microbes in the Built Environment Collection showcases recent research in this important topic around the globe. In September 2018, I attended a meeting for editorial members at Springer Nature where we were told about the opportunity to guest edit a collection of articles in Scientific Reports. A few weeks later I proposed to be the guest editor for a collection on Microbes and the Built Environment, and we started collecting manuscripts in spring of 2019. Little did we know at the time that the behaviour of microbes in indoor spaces would become such a crucial topic by the end of the year.3. The pandemic has resulted in an influx of new research investigating microbial survival and transmission pathways6. We might therefore think that we have greatly expanded our understanding of the microbes in the built environment beyond what we knew pre-pandemic. However, this assumption would be a mistake. While we know a lot more about SARS-CoV-2 viability and transmission, we have likely neglected the many other microbial inhabitants in the built environment.The COVID-19 pandemic has brought attention to how microbes circulate around the places we spend our time—whether at home, at work, or in public spaces; indoors and outdoors. There has also been much focus on the removal of microbes in indoor environments, from surfaces and the air, in order to reduce the risk of SARS-CoV-2 transmission7, freshwater systems8, marine systems9 and the microbiomes of various animals, including humans10. As mentioned, however, the microbial communities found in the built environment, such as indoor environments, public spaces, and air and water handling systems, are often neglected. We tend to think that these environments are relatively microbe-free, but this is not the case. Studying these communities, and not just single species of microbes, allows us to better understand the ecological and evolutionary factors that influence them, as well as how they may interact with ourselves and other animals.Over the past decades, much research has been carried out on the microbial communities present in natural environments such as soil11. However, there are also species present in our indoor environments which have positive roles, for instance, aiding the development of our immune systems in childhood, and outcompeting pathogens12.We tend to think of microbes as dirty and dangerous, but microbes have been around for billions of years and carry out many useful functions in their various niches. However, we still lack a full understanding of the complex and intricate relationships that various microbial species have between themselves and their environments. This is particularly true in the built environment, where our focus is typically on the removal of microbes through cleaning, due to the possible presence of pathogenic organisms that can change our lives dramatically. SARS-CoV-2 is an example of such an organism, as are the many antibiotic resistant pathogens that have emerged over the past decadesWe know little about the varied microbial communities present in our built environments—the bacteria, fungi, viruses, algae that we share our spaces with. This Collection is an attempt to get to know them better by curating manuscripts of the state-of-the-art research being carried out to better understand these communities around the world. The Collection includes a variety of microbial communities as well as a broad range of environments in which they are found.13 show the differences in the bacterial microbiomes found on floor dust, and on heating ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) intake and exhaust filter dust, using high-throughput sequencing. They show the HVAC intake filter communities to be rich in environmental outdoor organisms that are associated with the natural environment, such as Pseudomonas and Sphingomonas. On the other hand, the floor dust and dust from the HVAC exhaust filters were dominated by genera associated with human skin and the respiratory system, such as Streptococcus and Staphylococcus. Their work shows the influence that occupancy has on the microbiome in indoor spaces.The microbiome present in dust collected from various points within a building can reveal the impact of the environment on microbial community structure. Nygaard et al.14 used bacterial culture methods to look for opportunistic pathogens present in hand wash sinks. They found the drain to be a reservoir for pathogens and high levels of antibiotic resistance among the isolated organisms, and that these organisms persisted despite a rigorous daily cleaning regime. Furthermore, the resistant organisms were more frequently found in patient rather than staff sinks.Hand wash sinks in the healthcare setting were shown to be different in patient rooms and healthcare staff areas. Franco et al.15. The samples were then examined using microbiological culture methods. The results showed that the communities present on the surfaces varied according to room and touch frequency. Bedside tables tended to have higher bacterial counts and greater biodiversity when compared to other surfaces, such as the phone, bathroom door, and TV remote. The study also showed that homes where the occupants reported opening windows frequently had different microbial profiles to those who kept windows closed.Surfaces in various rooms in the homes of older adults were sampled by Sharpe et al.16, according to both location, but also aerosol size. Urban bioaerosols were found to be dominated by human skin-associated bacteria, whereas suburban samples were dominated by soil and plant associated bacteria. There was also a difference in the microbes identified in coarse larger particles and fine smaller particles. The data suggests that local environmental factors, including indoor spaces, could influence outdoor bacterial communities.Bioaerosols collected from outdoor urban and suburban areas in Japan were shown to have differing microbiomes by Tanaka et al.17 sampled various freshwater systems in urban Singapore, cultured these for microalgae, and compared the species found in different areas of the city. All samples were found to have microalgae present, and some water bodies have particularly diverse algal communities. The presence of these algae not only contribute to the biodiversity in the high-rise environment of Singapore, but many of the isolated species are also highly effective at carbon-capture, and of commercial significance.And we must not forget the eukaryotes. Lloyd et al.18 show that microbial communities in nasal passages can be influenced by the ventilation strategy within a space. Their study investigated the bacterial communities found in the nares of occupants and the surfaces within spaces using high-throughput sequencing in two groups—hospitalised patients and a non-hospitalised group. The study showed that the nasal and surface communities were more similar in mechanically ventilated spaces. Furthermore, hospitalised patients were more likely to harbour microbes found on their surrounding surfaces highlighting the importance of the patients’ environment.Finally, Chen et al.The “Microbes in the Built Environment” Collection is still open to new submissions. We are interested in work that describes the distribution and viability of microbial communities in built and managed environment contexts, such as buildings, water treatment facilities, public transport and leisure and hospitality venues.


Protonophores are compounds capable of electrogenic transport of protons acrossmembranes. Protonophores have been intensively studied over the past 50 yearsowing to their ability to uncouple oxidation and phosphorylation inmitochondria and chloroplasts. The action mechanism of classical uncouplers,such as DNP and CCCP, in mitochondria is believed to be related to theirprotonophoric activity; i.e., their ability to transfer protons across thelipid part of the mitochondrial membrane. Given the recently revealeddeviations in the correlation between the protonophoric activity of someuncouplers and their ability to stimulate mitochondrial respiration, thisreview addresses the involvement of some proteins of the inner mitochondrialmembrane, such as the ATP/ADP antiporter, dicarboxylate carrier, and ATPase, inthe uncoupling process. However, these deviations do not contradict theMitchell theory but point to a more complex nature of the interaction of DNP,CCCP, and other uncouplers with mitochondrial membranes. Therefore, a detailedinvestigation of the action mechanism of uncouplers is required for a moresuccessful pharmacological use, including their antibacterial, antiviral,anticancer, as well as cardio-, neuro-, and nephroprotective effects. It is wcarriers .Skulachcarriers , which rcarriers  is now ccarriers , which wThe listed studies caused an explosion of interest in protonophores and,together with subsequent studies, contributed significantly to proving theMitchell chemiosmotic theory. It is worth noting that the P-vs-U correlationwas immediately disputed in studies from another group , which rClassical protonophores are organic acids with pKa close to physiological pHvalues, which have an extensive system of π-electrons delocalizing thenegative charge that prevents penetration through the hydrophobic layer of themembrane .This enApproximately 50 years have passed since the first studies on protonophoresappeared, and many new small-molecule compounds with uncoupler properties havebeen identified. Many of them are described in the review , althougCompounds that effectively uncouple mitochondria but barely increase the protonconductivity of BLMs also include a recently synthesized conjugate offluorescein and triphenylphosphonium, called mitoFluo . mitoFluAs mentioned above, deviations from the P-vs-U correlation are traditionallyexplained by the interaction between uncouplers and proteins of the innermitochondrial membrane, which may increase proton transfer due to acceleratedtransfer of the anionic form of the protonophore through the lipid part of themembrane , 35. ThiThe active interaction of uncouplers with proton pumps was known even beforethe studies of the late 1960s–early 1970s, because all the uncouplersknown at that time exhibited a bell-shaped dependence of the respiration rateof mitochondria or submitochondrial particles (SMPs) on their concentration;i.e., stimulation of respiration at low concentrations of uncouplers was alwaysfollowed by its inhibition at high concentrations of uncouplers , 46. ThiAccording to this concept, deviation of triclosan from the P-vs-U correlationin the opposite direction, compared to fatty acids, is due to the fact thatmost protonophores use certain proteins during the induction of protonconductivity in mitochondrial membranes. Because triclosan induces a greaterBLM current than CCCP, while operating in mitochondria at larger concentrationsthan CCCP, the latter may be presumed to induce a proton current through somemitochondrial protein. This suggestion is supported by direct experiments onthe interaction between the azido derivative of CCCP and mitochondrial proteins. A recenIt should also be mentioned that the P-vs-U correlation appears clearlydisturbed in a series of homologues of some uncouplers. For example, ourlaboratory showed that the protonophoric activity of uncouplers based on thepopular fluorescent dye 7-nitrobenzo-2-oxa-1,3-diazole (NBD) with an alkylsubstituent grows in planar BLMs and liposomes as the alkyl chain increases. In mitoThus, it may be concluded that the P-vs-U correlation is rather poor whencomprising many of the new uncouplers discovered since the first studies inthis field. However, it should be emphasized that the Mitchell theory, largelyaccepted by the scientific community owing to the P-vs-U correlation, cannot bequestioned on this basis. The point is that the Mitchell theory has been provedby many direct experiments, such as the measurement of the generation ofelectric potentials by proton pumps or the dAnother question is the existence of a protonophore that acts in mitochondriawithout the involvement of proteins. As described above, the most popularuncouplers DNP and CCCP may hardly be considered such protonophores. GramicidinA may be such a protonophore, but it transports not only protons, but alsopotassium and sodium ions, which makes it very toxic to cells. Perhaps, thisrole may be played by triclosan, an extremely active protonophore in BLMs,surpassing both CCCP and SF6847, the most potent known uncoupler . HoweverAbove, we considered the mechanism of interaction between DNP and the ATP/ADPtranslocator, which contributes to the uncoupling effect of DNP on mitochondria. AccordiAlthough the term protonophore is defined quite clearly , the use of this term for mitochondria encounters certaindifficulties when combined with the term uncoupler. For example, shouldinduction of leaks caused by detergents , 65, 66 Another, rather controversial, concept associated with the use of uncouplers isthe term "mild uncoupling". This term was proposed by Skulachev  and StarThe history of the investigation of protonophores dates back more than 50years. In conclusion of our brief review, we would like to consider thepractical application of protonophores. We should start with the history of DNPthat was used as a remedy for obesity in the 1930s . This waWe may also mention the insecticidal, herbicidal , and fungicidaleffect of protonophores: dinitrophenol analogs, such as pentachlorophenol, 6-isobuThus, a detailed study of the action mechanism of protonophores in mitochondriaremains an important problem. Its solution may help towards a switch fromanimal experiments to the use of protonophores in clinical practice, not onlyas anthelmintic agents, but also as drugs effective against various common andsevere diseases.


The process of encapsulating cobalt nanoparticles using a graphene layer is mainly direct pyrolysis. The encapsulation structure of hybrids prepared in this way improves the catalyst stability, which greatly reduces the leaching of non-metals and prevents metal nanoparticles from growing beyond a certain size. In this study, cobalt particles surrounded by graphene layers were formed by increasing the temperature in a transmission electron microscope, and they were analyzed using scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM). Synthesized cobalt hydroxide nanosheets were used to obtain cobalt particles using an in-situ heating holder inside a TEM column. The cobalt nanoparticles are surrounded by layers of graphene, and the number of layers increases as the temperature increases. The interlayer spacing of the graphene layers was also investigated using atomic imaging. The success achieved in the encapsulation of metallic nanoparticles in graphene layers paves the way for the design of highly active and reusable heterogeneous catalysts for more challenging molecules. Metallic catalysts play a dominant role in industrial applications and the development of catalysts using base metals . Interestingly, the number of graphene layers increases when heated to above 1000 °C. The whole process was analyzed using high-resolution STEM.Recently, Co encapsulated in a carbon matrix has been developed for various reactions such as catalytic hydrogenation and ORR , annular dark field , and HAADF detectors simultaneously. Even if the material is composed of the same element, the degree of visualization differs depending on the type of detector used in STEM mode. This is because the detection degree of the scattered electron beam varies according to the scattering angle of the electron beam as it scatters through the material. Therefore, we obtained BF, DF2, DF4, and HAADF images in STEM mode to investigate the morphology and structure of a Co particle encapsulated by graphene layers as shown in Fig. The graphene layer forms to surround the Co particles, and even if the Co particles partially move, the graphene layer maintains its shape. As shown in Fig. The graphene layer surrounds the Co particles without a gap between the interface of the Co particles and the graphene layer. The number of graphene layers, which are observed prominently at 800 °C or higher, increases when a heating pulse of 1000 °C or higher is applied. Fig. 2 nanosheet exists in the form of a thin film, which crystallizes when a temperature of 800 °C or higher is applied. The crystallized carbon grows into a graphene layer surrounding the Co particles, and the number of graphene layers gradually increases due to the catalytic activation of Co at temperatures above 1000 °C. All these behaviors were observed through STEM imaging, and the graphene layer composed of low elements was observed using BF and ADF images in STEM mode, which has the advantage of using various detectors at the same time. The results of this work show a versatile and scalable technique that can be used to fabricate structured graphene materials.We summarize that the behavior of Co particles encapsulated by graphene layers formed by high temperature and electron beam irradiation. The amorphous carbon remaining in the synthesized Co (OH)2 nanosheets were synthesized using the aqueous nutrient solution containing 2 mM cobalt nitrate hexahydrate and 2 mM hexamethylenetetramine (HMTA). Depending on the opening area of a container, a calculated amount of chloroform solution of sodium hexadecyl sulfate (SHS) was added to the water-air interface. After about 30 minutes, the container was capped and placed in a convection oven at 70 °C for typically 180 minutes. The synthesized Co (OH)2 sheets were scooped using an TEM grid for imaging.Co (OH)2.STEM images were acquired using an aberration-corrected FEI Titan Cubed TEM (FEI Titan3 G2 60–300), which was operated at a 200 kV acceleration voltage with a monochromator. Dose rate was 72.5 A/m


Successful ways of fully exploiting the excellent structural and multifunctional performance of graphene and related materials are of great scientific and technological interest. New opportunities are provided by the fabrication of a novel class of nanocomposites with a nanolaminate architecture. In this work, by using the iterative lift-off/float-on process combined with wet depositions, we incorporated cm-size graphene monolayers produced via Chemical Vapour Deposition into a poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) matrix with a controlled, alternate-layered structure. The produced nanolaminate shows a significant improvement in mechanical properties, with enhanced stiffness, strength and toughness, with the addition of only 0.06 vol% of graphene. Furthermore, oxygen and carbon dioxide permeability measurements performed at different relative humidity levels, reveal that the addition of graphene leads to significant reduction of permeability, compared to neat PMMA. Overall, we demonstrate that the produced graphene–PMMA nanolaminate surpasses, in terms of gas barrier properties, the traditional discontinuous graphene–particle composites with a similar filler content. Moreover, we found that the gas permeability through the nanocomposites departs from a monotonic decrease as a function of relative humidity, which is instead evident in the case of the pure PMMA nanolaminate. This work suggests the possible use of Chemical Vapour Deposition graphene–polymer nanolaminates as a flexible gas barrier, thus enlarging the spectrum of applications for this novel material. Two-dimensional 2D) crystals are the most promising materials to date, thanks to their extraordinary physico-chemical properties and their potential to replace conventional ones in several applications . GraphenD crystalMost of the attempts reported in the literature towards practical application of graphene as gas barrier concern the fabrication of nanocomposite membranes or coatings, which are obtained by dispersing liquid or chemically exfoliated graphene flakes and related materials (GRMs)—such as graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs), graphene oxide (GO) and reduced graphene oxide (rGO)—into a polymer matrix ,8,9. In In general, the typical structure of the discontinuous graphene–polymer composites lacks the precise architecture and 2D nano-porous structure that is characteristic of all-graphene, highly packed membranes . In prin2 and O2) for gas barrier applications, at different levels of relative humidity (R.H.).The production of high-quality, continuous, macroscopic 2D materials with controlled layer thickness and reduced number of defects is a growing field that has garnered considerable attention  and whicNanolaminate membranes were produced by iterative transfer of graphene–PMMA (Gr-PMMA) layers using the ‘lift-off/float-on’ process combined with the wet depositions described in . Single-Gr-PMMAt) was measured using the scratch test method through atomic force microscopy (AFM)  in the case of CO2 and to 1.33 × 10−21 [mol m m−2 Pa−1 s−1] in the case of O2. The ratio between the pure CO2 permeability of a graphene layer and that of pure O2 is higher than its value for pure PMMA (6.40 vs. 4.57), thus suggesting that the presence of the graphene layers introduces a molecular ‘sieving’ mechanism in the nanocomposite ruled by the graphene layer defect size; this is not present in the glassy PMMA, which is characterized by solubility selectivity more than by size selectivity [2 and 0.346 nm for O2, which are in line with the higher GrP observed for CO2.One obtains a value of ectivity , in viewectivity  are equaP, can be properly quantified according to the following phenomenological equation, as has already been adopted by Pierleoni et. al. [dk represents the kinetic diameter [b is simply retrieved from the slope of the corresponding permeability coefficients curve  versus the corresponding molecular kinetic diameter and provides a quantitative estimation of the “membrane sieving capacity”.In general, the gas permeability coefficient of a multilayer membrane,  et. al.  in dealidiameter ,38, and b for pure PMMA and for Gr-PMMA nanolaminates in the case of CO2 and O2 with an “average” value of b for a single graphene layer. The corresponding values of b are about 95 nm−1 in the case of pure PMMA and about 115 nm−1 in the case of the PMMA–graphene nanolaminate and of the single graphene layer within the nanocomposite. Indeed, the value of b in the case of the nanocomposite is higher than that of the nanolaminate made of neat PMMA and slightly lower than the “average” b of the single graphene layer. This result is consistent with the described physical picture, pointing out that the ‘necking factor’ for the permeation mechanism of the penetrants is given by jumps through voids of proper size and shape distributed onto each graphene monolayer.In this context, it is of interest to compare the values of The stronger dependence of permeability on the molecular size of the penetrant compared to the pure PMMA nanolaminate membrane that was observed in the case of the single graphene monolayer, and hence for the nanocomposite, suggests that most graphene layers will mainly display nano-sized defects.2 and O2, we have investigated the permeation of the two gases at different R.H. levels.The role of graphene defects on the penetrant permeation mechanism in the nanocomposite system is expected to be significant also in the case of gas permeation in the presence of water vapour. To elucidate possible effects of water molecules on the mass transport mechanism of CO2 and O2 permeability coefficients decreased as a function of R.H. level. Starting from the analysis of pure gases, the steady-state permeation coefficient P can be expressed, in principle, as 2 and O2 can be assumed to be constant.We first analysed the case of the pure PMMA nanolaminate film, finding that both the COfficient ,39. In fIn the case of humidified streams, water vapour is absorbed within the PMMA membrane, thus affecting both the diffusivity and solubility of the test gas. In particular, a monotonic decrease in the permeabilities of both gases with R.H. was observed. The prominent effect was expected to be the reduction of solubility of the gases in view of the higher condensability of water. In fact, water competes with permanent gases for adsorption on the excess free volume micro-voids characteristic of a glassy polymer .2 and O2 display, at the highest R.H. levels investigated, a value higher than that determined at R.H. = 0.5. Although lack of detailed information on the structure of graphene nanocomposites prevents a robust explanation of this effect, in the following we propose a reasonable interpretation of the observed behaviour.In contrast, in the case of Gr-PMMA nanolaminate, a non-monotonic effect of R.H. on test gas permeabilities was detected. In fact, the experimentally determined permeabilities of both COP at higher R.H. levels could be explained by invoking the fact that the adsorption of water molecules locally affects the mass transport mechanism within the PMMA–graphene interface regions. In fact, it is well known that the CVD graphene layers within the PMMA–graphene nanolaminate may display a wrinkled morphology at the nanoscale [In fact, the transport mechanism within the nanocomposite of each testing gas through each PMMA bulk phase is expected to follow the same monotonic decreasing trend as a function of R.H., observed for the pure PMMA nanolaminate. In addition, it is expected that water molecules compete with the testing gas molecules in the passage through the single-layer graphene nanocavities. Additionally, this effect in principle contributes to a decrease in the permeability of the testing gas through the overall nanocomposite. On these bases, the observed increase in anoscale  as an inanoscale  the adsoanoscale  decreaseGrP by using Equation (4) as applied to the case of R.H. = 0.5 and R.H. = 0.8. The results are reported in 2 and O2 “equivalent” average permeabilities for a single graphene layer also display such a non-monotonic behaviour. This result is to be expected since the “equivalent” graphene layer average permeability coefficient takes into account both the molecular jump mechanism through the graphene defects and the molecular transport mechanism within the interphase regions, so that a non-monotonic decrease in GrP as a function of R.H.  could result from the trade-off between the two different dependence of the described transport mechanism as a function of relative humidity.To isolate the average contribution of a single Graphene layer within the nanocomposite, we estimated its “equivalent” permeabilities Films with a nanolaminate architecture, made of controlled alternating PMMA layers and cm-size graphene monolayers, were produced via Chemical Vapour Deposition and characterized for their mechanical and gas barrier properties. A significant improvement of mechanical properties as compared to pure PMMA was registered, with enhanced stiffness, strength, and toughness, with the addition of only 0.06 vol% of graphene.Oxygen and carbon dioxide permeability measurements, conducted at different R.H. levels, revealed that the addition of graphene monolayers led to a significant improvement in the gas barrier properties compared to neat PMMA, outperforming the traditional discontinuous graphene–particle composites, while using a similar filler content. A size-sieving effect of the graphene monolayer was evidenced, and an interesting effect of relative humidity on permeation properties was highlighted. In fact, a non-monotonic decrease behaviour of the gas permeability through the nanocomposite as a function of R.H. was found, different from the observed behaviour of pure nanolaminate PMMA, that has been tentatively attributed to the interplay between water-induced hindering of passageways through the graphene layers, the water-induced decrease in the PMMA–graphene interphase density associated with the enlarging of graphene layers wrinkles, and the decrease in the permeability coefficient of the testing gas as a function of relative humidity within the bulk polymer phase. Indeed, the latter is due to a well-established competitive mechanism of water and testing gas sorption within the polymer bulk phase.


L1 or 2-hydroxy-5-tert-butyl-1,3-benzenedicarboxaldehyde L2, respectively, were obtained and characterized by X-ray crystallography and spectroscopy . X-ray crystal structure determination and DFT calculations for compounds confirmed their geometry in solution and in the solid phase. Moreover, intermolecular interactions in the crystal structure of L1 and L2 were analyzed using 3D Hirshfeld surfaces and the related 2D fingerprint plots. The 3D Hirschfeld analyses show that the most numerous interactions were found between hydrogen atoms. A considerable number of such interactions are justified by the presence of bulk tert-butyl groups in L2. The luminescence of L1 and L2 in various solvents and in the solid state was studied. In general, the quantum efficiency between 0.14 and 0.70 was noted. The increase in the quantum efficiency with the solvent polarity in the case of L1 was observed (λex = 350 nm). For L2, this trend is similar, except for the chloroform. In the solid state, emission was registered at 552 nm and 561 nm (λex = 350 nm) for L1 and L2, respectively. Thin layers of the studied compounds were deposited on Si(111) by the spin coating method or by thermal vapor deposition and studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM/EDS), atomic force microscopy (AFM), spectroscopic ellipsometry and fluorescence spectroscopy. The ellipsometric analysis of thin materials obtained by thermal vapor deposition showed that the band-gap energy was 3.45 ± 0.02 eV (359 ± 2 nm) and 3.29 ± 0.02 eV (377 ± 2 nm) for L1/Si and L2/Si samples, respectively. Furthermore, the materials of the L1/Si and L2/Si exhibited broad emission. This feature can allow for using these compounds in LED diodes.Two macrocyclic Schiff bases derived from o-phenylenediamine and 2-hydroxy-5-methylisophthalaldehyde  Schiff base ligands reveal a broad variety of coordination architectures and structural differentiation. The presence and position of the azomethine group in macrocyclic compounds allow the formation of multi-donor ligands. Macrocyclization processes are ensured by the diversity of the structures of the resulting ligand. Thus, they give stable metal complexes with many metal ions. Macrocyclic Schiff bases are used in the fields of biochemistry ,2,3, supThe multi-donor macrocyclic Schiff bases  can form compounds of various structures, which are crucial in coordination chemistry, as they can influence the structural, magnetic, or optical properties of the obtained complexes ,15,16,17It has been intimately researched that Schiff base ligands are also organic sensors with selectivity for the different metal ions; they detect both anions and cations ,32,33,34Additionally, Schiff bases could create thin fluorescent films using the spin, dip coating, Langmuir-Blodgett or organic vapor methods . Films cL1 or 2-hydroxy-5-tertbutyl-1,3-benzenedicarboxaldehyde L2  (L1 and from -NH-CH2-(7) at 4.48 ppm  for L1 as well as at 47.37 ppm (C7) for L2   at 4.40 4.48 ppm  for L2 w−1 from stretching vibrations of the azomethine group. A sharp band at 3405 cm−1 for L1 and 3423 cm−1 for L2, can be ascribed to the vNH groups : 2.30  (H1), CH3, 4.40  (H6), CH2, 6.31  Ar-H (3), 6.75–6.78  Ar-H (9), 6.92–6.94  Ar-H (10), 7.01–7.03  Ar-H (8), 7.13–7.14  Ar-H (15), 7.17–7.18  Ar-H (11), 8.55  -N=CH-, 13.5  -OH, (13C [ppm]: 20.36 (C1), 46.91 (C6), 111.78 (C8), 117.44 (C14), 117.99 (C9), 119.55 (C10), 125.33 (C4), 128.18 (C11), 128.30 (C3), 131.57 (C15), 134.28 (C7), 136.11 (C12) 143.49 (C2) 157.36 (C5) 161.76 (C13) : 1.35  (H1), CH3, 4.48  (H7), CH2, 6.81–6.82  Ar-H (4), 7.00–7.01  Ar-H (11), 7.08–7.09 ) Ar-H (10), 7.27–7.28  Ar-H (9), 7.37  Ar-H (12), 7.45  Ar-H (16), 8.65  -N=CH-, 13.57  -OH, (13C [ppm]: 31.42 (C1), 34.05 (C2), 47.37 (C7), 111.90 (C9), 117.56 (C15), 117.98 (C10), 119.21 (C11), 124.99 (C16), 128.05 , 128.24 (C12), 130.88 (C8), 136.24 (C13), 141.89 (C3), 157.26 (C6), 162.15 (C14) (2H) -OH,  13C .,34.1H [p−1) 3423 νOH, 2958, 2861 νC-HAr, 1600, 1587 νC=N, 1508 νC=CHA, 1455, 1364 νC=CAr, 1333 νC-NHA, 1289 νPh-O. (−5 mol/dm3): λ/nm 340 , 382 , : λ/nm 338 , 346 , 380 , : λ/nm 342 , : λ/nm 342 , 390 .Selected FT-IR  , which was connected to the IL transitions.For both compounds, the bathochromic shift of the emission bands in the solid state compared to the solution was registered. The materials obtained by thermal vapor exhibited fluorescence at 560 nm  and 3.29 ± 0.02 eV (377 ± 2 nm) for L1 and L2 samples, respectively. Moreover, the L1 and L2 films exhibited semiconducting behaviour. The values of the roughness parameters indicate the achievement of smooth films of macrocyclic Schiff bases L1/Si and L2/Si. This is important because the layers which can be used, e.g., in OLEDs have to be smooth and thin. Our materials can be also used as semiconductors.The high intensity of the fluorescence indicated The computational procedure used allowed for the prediction of the relative tendencies in the absorption spectra for all the compounds and the determination of the character of the transitions in the spectra of all the isolated compounds.


The effect of MoS2 on the morphology and the electrode performance was examined in detail. The results showed that the combination of centrifugal spinning, hydrothermal synthesis, and heat treatment is an efficient way to fabricate high-performance electrodes for rechargeable batteries. Furthermore, CNFs fabricated at a carbonization temperature of 800 °C delivered the highest capacity, and the addition of MoS2 improved the reversible capacity up to 860 mAh/g and 455 mAh/g for Li- and Na-ion batteries, respectively. A specific capacity of over 380 mAh/g was observed even at a high current density of 1 A/g. Centrifugal spinning and hydrothermal synthesis allowed for the fabrication of high-performance electrodes for sodium ion batteries.Sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) are promising alternatives to lithium-ion batteries as green energy storage devices because of their similar working principles and the abundance of low-cost sodium resources. Nanostructured carbon materials are attracting great interest as high-performance anodes for SIBs. Herein, a simple and fast technique to prepare carbon nanofibers (CNFs) is presented, and the effects of carbonization conditions on the morphology and electrochemical properties of CNF anodes in Li- and Na-ion batteries are investigated. Porous CNFs containing graphene were fabricated via centrifugal spinning, and MoS Green energy storage technology is receiving significant attention owing to the increasing effects of global warming. To decrease the negative effects of greenhouse gases on the environment, the usage and storage of green energy must increase ,2,3. BecCarbonaceous materials, such as graphene, hard carbon, carbon nanofibers (CNFs), carbon sheets, and carbon nanotubes, are abundant and inexpensive; thus, nanostructured carbons are the most favorable materials for use as SIB anodes . BecauseNa+ ions ,4. For CNa+ ions .Porous nanostructured carbons are important materials, particularly for sensors, fuel cells, and energy storage, because of their high surface areas . AdditioGraphene with a two-dimensional honeycomb structure is commonly used in energy storage devices because of its high theoretical specific capacity, large specific surface area, and good electronic conductivity, which can decrease the volume expansion during the charge/discharge process. Kim et al. synthesized a hybrid CNF/highly branched graphene nanosheet (HBGN) via a chemical vapor deposition method and used it as an electrode in LIBs. The HBGN delivered a reversible capacity of approximately 300 cavities . Dufficycavities  fabricatng rates .2 makes it a promising anode material for SIBs. However, capacity fading and poor capacity retention resulted from the large volume change and pulverization, which need to be adressed for practical applications. CNFs could buffer the volume change and improve the structural integrity of MoS2-based electrodes [2@C electrodes with stable cycling performance owing to volume elasticity and excellent electrical conductivity of hierarchical Mxene and carbon structure. Li et al. [2 composite electrode and stable cycling performance was attributed to the conductive network, enhanced charge transfer, and alleviated volume expansion with the addition of graphene.The high capacity and graphene-like layered structure of MoSectrodes . Yuan etectrodes  fabricati et al.  prepared2-decorated graphene@porous CNFs were prepared for the first time by combining centrifugal spining, a novel, fast, and reliable production technique, hydrothermal synthesis, and heat treatment processing. The electrochemical properties could be optimized by tuning the thermal treatment conditions and thus controlling the structural parameters. The effects of carbonization temperature and MoS2 addition on the morphology and structure of the CNFs were studied using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Raman spectroscopy. The electrochemical performance of the prepared CNFs and MoS2-decorated graphene@porous CNFs were also investigated as anodes in Li- and Na-ion batteries.Although CNFs can be produced via different techniques, such as electrospinning, self-assembly, template synthesis, and chemical vapor deposition, centrifugal spinning has attracted significant attention owing to its high production rate, low cost, and reliable safety ,15,16,172-decorated carbon nanofibers were synthesized via hydrothermal synthesis. A certain amount of thiourea and ammonium molybdate tetrahydrate was dissolved in distilled water, and PAN/PS/graphene nanofibers were immersed in this solution. The solution was then transferred to the hydrothermal reactor and heated up to 180 °C for 24 h. The as-prepared MoS2-decorated PAN/PS/graphene nanofibers were stabilized at 280 °C for 3 h and carbonized at 800 °C for 2 h. As-prepared CNFs were used as electrodes in Na-ion and Li-ion cells. Electrochemical experiments were performed using two electrode coin-type (316ss CR2032) half cells. In SIBs, a Whatman glass microfiber filter membrane was used as a separator, and sodium metal was used as the counter electrodes. The electrolyte of the SIBs was composed of a 1.0 M of NaClO4 solution in mixed ethylene carbonate (EC) and propylene carbonate (PC) at 1:1 by volume. Polypropylene membrane was used as a separator, and lithium metal was used as the counter electrodes in Li-ion batteries. The electrolyte of the LIBs was composed of a 1.0 M of LiPF6 solution in mixed ethylene carbonate (EC), dimethyl carbonate (DMC), and diethyl carbonate (DEC) at 1:1:1 by volume. A constant current was applied to the working electrode between two potential values. The electrochemical measurements were performed by carrying out galvanostatic charge/discharge tests of 0–2.5 V at 100 mA/g.Polyacrylonitrile , polystyrene (PS), N,N-dimethyl formamide (DMF), thiourea, ammonium molybdate tetrahydrate, and graphene were purchased from Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO, USA. PAN nanofibers were prepared by centrifugal spinning. A 10 wt.% solution was fed into the spinneret, and a rotational speed of 4000 rpm was applied. The spinneret-to-collector distance was set to 10 cm. To obtain CNFs and determine the optimum carbonization temperature, PAN nanofibers were stabilized at 280 °C for 3 h and carbonized at three different temperatures: 700 °C, 800 °C, and 900 °C. In addition, a PAN/PS/graphene solution was prepared to produce porous CNFs with enhanced specific surface area and improved conductivity. MoS2-decorated graphene@porous CNFs were determined by thermogravimetric analysis . The sample was heated at a rate of 10 °C/min from room temperature to 600 °C in air. The cycling tests  to determine the electrochemical performance were performed at room temperature.SEM  was used to study the morphology of the nanofibers. The fiber diameters were calculated by measuring 100 randomly selected nanofibers in SEM images using Revolution software for each sample. XRD  with a step of 0.01 and speed of 4° per minute and Raman spectroscopy  were used to characterize the structure. The composition of MoSIn this study, a centrifugal spinning system was used to fabricate PAN and graphene/PAN/PS nanofibers. A fibrous structure with an average fiber diameter of approximately 990 nm was observed in the SEM images of the PAN nanofibers, as shown in 2 atmosphere at 700 °C, 800 °C, and 900 °C for 2 h to form polyaromatic (graphite structure) and disordered carbons (turbostratic structure). The carbonization process includes an aromatic growth and polymerization step, in which the noncarbon elements are removed as volatile gases in the form of hydrogen, nitrogen, water, ammonia, and so on [After spinning, PAN nanofibers are converted to CNFs by applying a two-step thermal treatment that includes stabilization and carbonization. In the stabilization process, the nanofibers are heated in air at 280 °C for 3 h. During this time, the chemical structure of PAN was changed to a ladder structure with cyclization, dehydrogenation, aromatization, oxidation, and crosslinking reactions occurring in the air atmosphere. Crosslinking occurs with the formation of triazine, which is the result of an intermolecular reaction involving three nitriles of three different PAN chains to prevent decomposition at high temperatures. Intermolecular and intramolecular nitrile crosslinking reactions are crucial for determining the final structure because these reactions change the chemical structure of PAN to form a ladder-like structure due to cyclization of the nitrile groups and thus determine the structure of the CNFs. An incomplete stabilization process leads to poor carbon properties. Following stabilization, PAN was carbonized in a Nnd so on ,19.SEM images of the CNFs carbonized at temperatures of 700 °C, 800 °C, and 900 °C are shown in (002) values of the CNFs carbonized at 700 °C, 800 °C, and 900 °C were calculated to be around 0.359, 0.353, 0.352 nm, respectively, which are larger than the d spacing of graphite (0.336 nm). As the carbonization temperature increased from 700 °C to 900 °C, the (002) peak sharpened, indicating structural development and a more ordered structure. Similar result was also reported by Choi et al. [The XRD pattern of the CNFs carbonized at different temperatures are shown in i et al. . Qanati i et al.  and Zhoui et al.  also repi et al. ,25. The i et al. . When thi et al. . As the D/IG) reveals the quantity of ordered graphitic structure. As the temperature increased from 700 °C to 900 °C, R decreased from 1.10 to 0.99, indicating a more ordered structure at 900 °C. Zhang et al. [D/IG decreased as the carbonization temperature increased, which indicates that an increase in temperature improves the quality of the graphitic structure.Raman spectra of the CNFs carbonized at 700 °C, 800 °C, and 900 °C are shown in e carbon . As the e carbon . The intg et al.  also repc) was determined using the Deby–Scherrer formula: kλ = Lc·β·cosθ, where K is the Scherrer parameter (K = 0.94 for the (002) diffraction peak) [c is 1.07, 1.11, and 1.13 for CNFs carbonized at 700 °C, 800 °C, and 900 °C, respectively. The in-plane graphitic crystallite size (La) was calculated using the following equation: La(nm) = 4.4(ID/IG)−1, which was developed by Knight and White [a and ID/IG. With increasing temperature, the ID/IG ratio decreased and La increased. The La values were 3.9, 4.43, and 4.43 nm as the temperature increased from 700 °C to 800 °C and then to 900 °C, respectively. Additionally, the area proportions (area under (002)/area under (100)) of CNF-700, CNF-800, and CNF-900 were 12.58, 9.06, and 8.55, respectively, demonstrating that, with increasing carbonization temperature, the structure of the CNFs became more ordered.Both XRD and Raman data demonstrated that, as the carbonization temperature increased, the graphitization of the CNFs increased, and their structure became more ordered. In addition, the crystalline stacking size (Lon peak) , and β ind White . There iThe first Li-ion cell discharge–charge curves for the CNFs carbonized at 700 °C, 800 °C, and 900 °C are shown in CNFs were also used as electrodes in Na-ion cells, and the first discharge–charge curves for the CNFs carbonized at 700 °C, 800 °C, and 900 °C are shown in The cycling performances of the Li-ion cells containing CNFs carbonized at 700 °C, 800 °C, and 900 °C are shown in The cycling performance for Na-ion cells containing CNFs carbonized at 700 °C, 800 °C, and 900 °C is shown in + = 76 nm and ionic radius of Na+ = 102 nm) [Developing a promising electrode material for Na-ion batteries is challenging because of its large ionic radius (ionic radius of Li 102 nm) . Graphen2 has high theoretical capacity and a graphene-like layered structure with large interlayer spacing of 0.62 nm. However, poor electronic conductivity and large volume change result in poor cycling performance [2 nanolayers were decorated on graphene@ porous carbon nanofibers via hydrothermal synthesis  analysis was carried out to determine the elements in the material. EDAX mapping of MoSc) (23.85 nm) increased with the addition of graphene, which proves the presence of graphene. In the XRD pattern of MoS2-decorated G-PCNFs, the major peaks at 13.8°, 32.2°, 39.5°, and 58° are respectively indexed to the (002), (100), (103), and (110) planes of MoS2 [2 phase (JCPDScardno.37-1492). The minor peaks at 33°, 43°, 50°, 55°, and 60° are ascribed to (101), (006), (105), (101), and (008), respectively [XRD pattern and Raman spectra are shown in  of MoS2 , while mectively ,45.−1 (D peak) and 1571 cm−1 (G peak) (a (4.44 nm) increased with graphene, which indicates a higher degree of order and thus higher ionic conductivity. The peaks at around 376.47 and 402.90 cm−1 were assigned to the E12g and A1g modes of MoS2 [The Raman spectra of G-PCNFs showed two peaks at 1347 cm(G peak) b. The am of MoS2 .2-decorated graphene@ porous carbon nanofiber were determined using Brunauer–Emmet–Teller (BET). The N2 adsorption–desorption isotherms and Barrett–Joyner–Halenda (BJH) plots are shown in 2 g−1 was observed due to the highly porous carbon nanofibers.The surface area and relative pore size of MoS2 content in MoS2-decorated graphene@ porous carbon nanofibers. The TGA curve is shown in 2 to MoO3 in air. On the basis of the TGA results, the mass fraction of MoS2 was around 30%.TGA was used to determine MoSThe first-cycle discharge–charge curves and cycling performance of graphene@porous CNFs in Li-ion and Na-ion batteries are shown in The reversible capacities were 365 mAh/g and 207 mAh/g for the Li-ion and Na-ion cells, respectively, in 200 cycles. The addition of graphene improved the electrochemical performance. Dufficy et al.  also repNa+ ions .2-decorated graphene@ porous carbon nanofiber electrodes in Li-ion  and Na-ion batteries  are seen in 2 on PCNFs, which led to high specific capacity with excellent cycling stability. A cycling performance at 1000 mA/g is shown on 2 shortened the diffusion path of ions and improved cycling performance even at high C-rates. The inclusion of graphene not only improved the overall electronic conductivity but also contributed to storing more ions in the structure owing to the rougher surface observed from SEM and TEM images. Moreover, the high specific capacities and excellent cycling performance was attributed to the nanostructured MoS2 layer on highly porous graphene@CNFs with high conductivity. Graphene@ porous CNFs not only prevented aggregation of MoS2 but also provided more active sites for electrochemical reactions. Nanostructured active material coating on centrifugally spun highly porous carbon nanofibers with high conductivity provided short pathways for ion difusion and elecron transport as well as large contact areas between electrode and electrolyte, leading to excellent cycle performance even at high rates.First-cycle discharge/charge curves and cycling performance of MoS2-decorated graphene-included porous CNF improved the electrochemical capacity up to 860 mAh/g in Li-ion cells and 455 mAh/g in Na-ion cells with excellent cycling performance. Combining centrifugal spinning and hydrothermal synthesis techniques is a promising way to fabricate high performance electrode materials.To support the development of cost-effective green energy storage in the face of climate change, this study explores the feasibility of nanostructured anodes in SIBs and LIBs. A novel electrode manufacturing and refinement process is presented in the form of a fast and reliable CNF preparation. Hydrothermal synthesis and heat treatment processes are presented, providing an efficient way to prepare high-performance battery electrodes. Additionally, the effect of the carbonization temperature during heat treatment on the structural properties and electrochemical performance of CNFs was investigated. XRD pattern and Raman spectra illustrated that increasing the carbonization temperature improved the ordered structure. CNFs carbonized at 800 °C, delivering the highest capacity compared to CNFs carbonized at 700 °C and 900 °C owing to high conductivity and large amount of defects. Furthermore, MoS


To this end, this study examined the effects of primary and secondary psychopathy on utilitarian and deontological response tendencies. Moreover, this study also explored the mediating role of alexithymia as well as the moderating role of gender in these effects. (2) Methods: A total of 1227 participants were recruited through the online questionnaire service wjx.cn. After deleting unfinished questionnaires, the remaining 1170 participants were included in the final data analysis. Each participant completed a demographic information questionnaire, the Levenson Self-Report Psychopathy Scale, the Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20, and six pairs of moral dilemmas. Descriptive and correlational analyses of study variables were conducted in SPSS 22.0. Mediation and gender difference analyses were conducted in AMOS 23.0. (3) Results: Primary psychopathy was negatively correlated with deontological response tendencies and uncorrelated with utilitarian response tendencies. By contrast, secondary psychopathy also correlated negatively with deontological response tendencies, but it correlated positively with utilitarian response tendencies. Mediation analysis revealed that alexithymia only mediated the relationship between secondary psychopathy and deontological response tendencies. Multi-group analysis revealed that there was no difference between females and males in the indirect effect model. (4) Conclusions: People with high primary psychopathy are less likely to reject harm in moral dilemmas. By contrast, people with high secondary psychopathy have high alexithymia, which causes them to be less concerned about avoiding harm, and they are more likely to maximize outcomes in moral dilemmas. These findings shed new light on the moral dilemma judgments of individuals with primary and secondary psychopathy. Psychopathy is characterized by callousness, a lack of empathy and remorse, profound egocentricity, and antisocial behavior . PsychopResearch on moral dilemma judgment has formed the view that utilitarian judgment and deontological judgment can be measured by using sacrificial moral dilemmas . For exaAccording to dual process theory, more powerful cognitive deliberations seem to promote utilitarian judgment ,15,16. PThe relationship between psychopathy and moral dilemma judgment has received considerable attention from clinical and moral psychology researchers. Such empirical evidence not only helps to explain other main aspects of psychopathy but also provides a deeper understanding of the mental underpinnings of moral judgment . Using sMore importantly, the majority of studies on the moral judgment of psychopathy adopted the traditional moral dilemma paradigm. The issue with the traditional moral dilemma paradigm is that deontological judgment is treated as the pure inverse of utilitarian judgment . The response to moral dilemmas only reflects a relative preference for one over the other rather than absolute preferences for either. This leads the psychological processes underlying utilitarian and deontological judgment to have an inverse relationship, in which stronger utilitarian response tendencies signify weaker deontological response tendencies and vice versa . HoweverUsing a novel process dissociation (PD) approach could independently quantify the strength of utilitarian and deontological response tendencies  approach to independently quantify the strength of utilitarian and deontological response tendencies, and examined the effects of primary and secondary psychopathy on utilitarian and deontological response tendencies. According to dual process theory, deontological response tendencies involve relatively more affective responses to harmful actions, whereas utilitarian response tendencies involve a relatively more deliberative reasoning about outcomes ,29,32. PMoreover, the mechanism of the relationship between primary and secondary psychopathy and deontological and utilitarian response tendencies requires further investigation. Psychopathy is characterized by a lack of emotional awareness and shallow emotions ,4. A conFurthermore, evidence from previous studies suggests that there are gender differences in psychopathy, alexithymia, and moral judgment ,39,40,41Mage = 18.86 years, SDage = 1.12, the number of participants in each age group  was used to measure individuals’ level of psychopathy, which is a self-report measure with sound reliability and validity ,44. The The Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20 (TAS-20) was used to measure individuals’ level of alexithymia, which is a self-report measure with well-demonstrated reliability and validity . The TASUsing a process dissociation (PD) approach could independently quantify the strength of utilitarian response tendencies and deontological response tendencies. The key to PD analyses is to employ both incongruent and congruent moral dilemmas . ParticiIncongruent dilemmas approximate the traditional high-conflict dilemma, in which harmful actions promote the greater good. Utilitarian and deontological response tendencies would drive divergent responses in incongruent dilemmas. For instance, in the incongruent dilemma of the crying baby, participants were asked whether it was appropriate to smother the child to prevent themselves and other townspeople from being killed. In this case, utilitarian response tendencies would lead people to agree to sacrificing the baby because sacrificing one person would save more lives. In contrast, deontological response tendencies would drive people to disagree with the baby sacrifice because such harmful behavior violates moral norms. Congruent dilemmas have a similar structure and wording to incongruent dilemmas, except for the outcomes: endorsing harmful actions would lead to worse outcomes overall . Thus, uIn other words, utilitarian response tendencies always drive people to reject harm in congruent dilemmas and to accept harm in incongruent dilemmas because action can maximize good outcomes, whereas deontological response tendencies always drive people to reject harm in incongruent and congruent dilemmas because action would violate moral norms. U parameter) were obtained from the difference in the proportion of “unacceptable” responses between congruent and incongruent dilemmas , alexithymia , and deontological tendencies  were not statistically significant. However, the gender differences in primary psychopathy  and utilitarian tendencies  were significant, with males scoring higher than females on primary psychopathy, and females scoring higher than males on utilitarian tendencies.Firstly, this study tested whether there were gender differences in the five variables. The results indicated that the gender differences in secondary psychopathy [χ2/df = 2.63, RMSEA = 0.04, CFI = 0.97, TLI = 0.95, SRMR = 0.05; constrained structural paths: χ2/df = 2.44, RMSEA = 0.04, CFI = 0.96, TLI = 0.96, SRMR = 0.05). For the indirect effect model for females and males, see the Because this study found gender differences, multi-group analyses was conducted to examine whether the indirect effect model differed on the basis of gender. Following the suggestion of Byrne (2001), two models that keep the basic parameters equal were built . The firχ2= 21.95, p = 0.145, suggesting that the indirect effect model did not differ by gender. This study further calculated the critical ratios of differences (CRD) to assess the between-group differences in each path coefficient [PP→A = 0.089, CRDDPP→ = 0.221, CRDSS→A = 1.009, CRDDSS→ = 0.588, CRDUSS→ = 0.29, CRDDA→ = 0.26, CRDUPP→ = 1.154, CRDUA→ = −0.507), suggesting that there was no difference between females and males in the indirect effects model.The results show that the chi-square differences between the two models were not significant, Δfficient . If the The purpose of this study is to provide more nuanced insights into the effects of sub-dimensional levels of psychopathy on moral dilemma judgments. To this end, this study examined the effects of primary and secondary psychopathy on utilitarian and deontological response tendencies. Moreover, this study also explored the mediating role of alexithymia as well as the moderating role of gender in these effects. Overall, the findings partially support the hypotheses of the present study.As hypothesized, the study found that primary psychopathy was negatively correlated with deontological response tendencies and uncorrelated with utilitarian response tendencies. This finding suggests that individuals with high primary psychopathy are less likely to reject harm across moral dilemmas. Previous studies have shown that individuals with high primary psychopathy exhibit a preference for utilitarian judgment ,28, and This study also found that secondary psychopathy correlated negatively with deontological response tendencies. However, contrary to the expected assumption, secondary psychopathy correlated positively with utilitarian response tendencies. This finding suggests that individuals with high secondary psychopathy are less likely to reject harm and more likely to maximize outcomes across moral dilemmas. Previous studies have shown that secondary psychopathy correlated positively with utilitarian judgment ,26, and Moreover, the current study hypothesized that alexithymia would mediate the relationships between primary and secondary psychopathy and deontological response tendencies. However, this study found that alexithymia only mediated the relationship between secondary psychopathy and deontological response tendencies. This finding reveals that people with high secondary psychopathy have high alexithymia, which in turn decreases deontological response tendencies. Several studies provide support for our findings. For example, Lander et al. (2012) revealed that secondary psychopathy, but not primary psychopathy, predicted a higher level of alexithymia, and they argued that this finding indicates that core emotional deficits appear to be unique to secondary psychopathy . RidingsThis study benefited from separately quantified deontological and utilitarian response tendencies among individuals with primary and secondary psychopathy. This study found that primary and secondary psychopathy have a similar effect on deontological response tendencies, but the mechanism of such a relationship is different. Moreover, primary and secondary psychopathy have different effects on utilitarian response tendencies. These findings suggest that it is necessary to consider the separate effects of primary and secondary psychopathy on moral dilemma judgments. More importantly, the present study also has some practical implications. This study found that alexithymia not only mediated the relationship between secondary psychopathy and deontological response tendencies but also mediated the relationship between psychopathy and deontological response tendencies see the . These fThis study also has several limitations. First, although hypothetical dilemmas can measure individuals’ moral concern, the possibility remains that decisions on real dilemmas may differ . Future This study provides more nuanced insights into the relationship between primary and secondary psychopathy and moral dilemma judgment. People with high primary psychopathy are less likely to reject harm in moral dilemmas. By contrast, people with high secondary psychopathy have high alexithymia, which leads them to be less concerned about avoiding harm; in addition, they are more likely to maximize outcomes in moral dilemmas. Our findings shed new light on the moral dilemma judgment of individuals with primary and secondary psychopathy.


In recent decades, the research of nano-structure devices  has experienced rapid growth. These materials have supreme electronic, thermal, optical and mechanical properties and have received widespread concern in different fields. It is worth noting that gate hysteresis behavior of field effect transistors can always be found in ambient conditions, which may influence the transmission appearance. Many researchers have put forward various views on this question. Here, we summarize and discuss the mechanisms behind hysteresis, different influencing factors and improvement methods which help decrease or eliminate unevenness and asymmetry. Low-dimensional carbon ) displays extraordinary properties and shows great potential in many fields ,2. Graph2/doping-Si substrates is shown in What should be noticed is that device instability is one of the great challenges in the application of low-dimensional materials . Hystere2 ), CYTOP (Polyperfluoro- butenylvinylether), PMMA (poly(methylmethacrylate)) , ParylenMaterial made in different ways exhibits different levels of sensitivity. In contrast to this kind of device, whose CNT was produced by drop-casting suspension, CNT fabricated by CVD shows more sensitivity to PMMA passivation in eliminating the gap and can obtain a hysteresis-free device within a certain gate range , which m2O3 could enlarge hysteresis; they can work as humidity sensors for a quick response within one second of a humidity change [In addition, not all encapsulation helps to reduce hysteresis width. For example, the formation of NaPSS(poly(sodium 4-styrenesulfonate)) and Aly change ,89. Usiny change  is anothDirac of typical deposition and passivation material we proposed in this paper is shown in Mainly, the encapsulation layer has two functions: draw water or remove electrostatic charge on the interface . The com2O3 as the encapsulation layer with a distinct process [2O3 encapsulation [2O molecules at the interface [2O3 at the defect sites of graphene [In the case of graphene, researchers have tried various passivation materials, whereas many researchers concentrate on using Al process . For grasulation  shows thsulation  and redunterface , which interface . Accordinterface ,56,92,93nterface ,21. This2O3 on top is the process called oxidization of the Al seed layer [2O3 after pulses of pretreatment with O3 and H2O is the method that reduces hysteresis by achieving sufficient surface saturation on graphene and promoting nucleation [Other processes are proposed to eliminate the residues and block the charge trapping. Depositing the Al seed layer with oxygen chamber and then depositing Aled layer . In thised layer ,96. Growcleation . Using dcleation . Encapsucleation .2O3 has a negative effect on suspended CNT characteristics. Al2O3 deposition causes larger hysteresis for CNT [2O adsorption on the large hydrophilic surface of Al2O3 [2O3 deposition layer and the suspended structure of the device used in the experiment.According to the experimental results, the deposition layer of Al for CNT , and thiof Al2O3  or changof Al2O3 . Apart fIn addition, because of enhancement of the substrate dielectric constant and the neutralization brought from the amine group, PEI (poly(ethylene imine)) with increasing concentration in methanol solvent has an enhanced screening effect and hence has a neutral Dirac point and almost zero hysteresis . While u2O3 in the formation of OH- groups and the water layer via H-bonding [It is worthy to note that small residual hysteresis still remains after passivation. According to the classification of fast charging and slow charging, the contribution of the chemical reaction reduces significantly from 58% to 30% due to the process of encapsulation, but the charge exchange at the interface still exists, which is responsible for the remaining hysteresis . Meanwhi-bonding .CNT-FET with passivation layer of OTS do not show gate hysteresis within certain measurement conditions. When giving a larger volt on gate, the hysteresis reappears in the opposite direction with a smaller value, which may be due to other mechanisms such as the residue charges in oxide being fixed, which could not be eliminated in this way . Devices2 can strongly be suppressed [2 [2 to graphene still remains [2 with anneal at high temperature in vacuum is effective to solve hysteresis problem after exposed to water in short time. However, in this way, scatter centers increase, hence carrier mobility reduces by 25% [Similarly, the deposition layer of HMDS functions as the hydrophobic layer and hysteretic behavior of graphene on HMDS primed SiOppressed , which iessed [2 ,45. HMDSessed [2 . In comp remains . Deposits by 25% . Compares by 25% .2 FETs [Because of the substrate flatness and improved bonding at the interface ,101, no 2 FETs ,102. How2 FETs .2 substrate with the aim of reducing the interface charge traps, and improving hysteresis and carrier mobility. Compared with unmodified devices, fluoropolymer modified devices show time-dependent stability and meet saturation at 4% in the first week instead of decreasing with time in ambient condition with relative humidity of 45% [2 (bottom gate) and h-BN (top gate) [Other polymers are also used in deposition which is useful in solving hysteric problem. CYTOP (Polyperfluorobutenylvinylether) is a kind of amorphous fluoropolymer used to modify the SiOy of 45% . Paryleny of 45% . Paryleny of 45% . Howeverop gate) .Choosing appropriate film as deposition layer is the key point in order to improve transport. Another question we should consider in electrical model is that deposition way changes the equivalent oxide thickness (EOT) of bottom gate devices . TherefoWhat the temporal evolution of devices is coating encapsulation layer on the top of device with deposition layer on bottom . Compare2 substrate, which helps solve this problem [It may also be more efficient to suppress hysteresis for graphene than using alternative substrates such as h-BN  or reoxi problem ; one suc problem ,107.Apart from deposition and passivation, changing dielectric contributes to alleviate this phenomenon. Polymer dielectrics  perform2–Si3N4–SiO2 (ONO) layer which has high breakdown voltage, slow defect density and high charge retention capability [3N4 and CNT is small, the effective dielectric constant of this layer is almost 3 which means that it is easy to inject and extract charges [2−TiO2−HfO2 layer as dielectric instead of SiO2 which desorbs water slower than SiO2 [2 (5 nm) as dielectric show hysteresis-free device under certain measurement [Dielectric layer called SiOpability  is also  charges . Anotherhan SiO2 . In thishan SiO2 . Top gatsurement .2, Al2O3 and Si3N4 are 14.3°, 27.9° and 42.9°, respectively. Considering the role water played in transmission, the Dirac point and hysteresis width of these dielectric devices have similar trends [The water contact angles of SiOr trends .2 and h-BN/graphene/BN shows high performance as suppressed hysteresis and p-doping [Top gate FET with the structure of h-BN/graphene/SiOp-doping . Surrounp-doping ,113,114.0.2Ti0.8)O3) instead of SiO2 reduces Coulomb scattering with increased screening effects and improved transport characteristics, but no experiments have directly proven improvement in the hysteresis characteristic [Employing a high-κ substrate such as single-crystal epitaxial PZT and ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) could make the process more efficient. RTA with a temperature of 250 °C and a duration of 10 min set as the most effective parameters is helpful to make device hysteresis free . PuttingHowever, it is worth noting that although annealing in vacuum can greatly improve hysteresis width; exposing the device to atmosphere again introduces the possibility to rebound the hysteresis .2SO4 + H2O2 solution as the presentation of chemical improvement makes a contribution to the removal of residual impurities (such as photoresist) at the substrate surface [It is commonly believed that organic contaminations and residuals influence performance . H2SO4 + surface ,121, esp2 Plasma is an effective physical method which proved to be able to change traps caused by photoresist particles on the electrodes and SiO2 substrate [Oubstrate ,68,122. ubstrate .For graphene, Ga ion irradiation has been certified as an effective way to degrade hysteresis by controlling the dose. When choosing the appropriate dwell time, most defects coalesced, resulting in a high tunneling barrier. Thus, the electron-trapping probability declined, and the hysteresis value degraded .Next, we introduce several new methods. For graphene, it is significant to avoid the contact with water and remove residues. Three categories as wet transfer, semi-dry transfer and dry transfer are proposed as main method in previous improvement. This is also appropriate to CNT FET. Apart from that, printing and self-alignment shadow mask are also the focus of attention. The comparison of hysteresis result by different methods are listed in the The dry transfer method applies to CNT, which is similar to graphene. It optimizes the fabrication steps by laminating CNT and substrate by annealing and vacuumizing .Printing as a new method is used to make hysteresis-free and flexible substrates by aerosol jet printing techniques or inverse gravure printing techniques, etc. ,122. ChaThe self-alignment shadow mask is a great candidate to deposit metal or the passivation layer. They have tapered contact geometry or suspended geometry so as to avoid charge traps or polar molecules caused by contact ,124. In 3+ help remove the extra Cu2+ dopant [We find that the process detail of separation and transferring is a key step in obtaining great performance devices. Therefore, we classify the treatments reported in previous papers into wet transfer, semi-dry transfer and dry transfer. The traditional transfer way is carried out by separating copper and graphene with the PMMA supporter by etchant solution or bubbles. Then, the film is transferred to the target substrate in water. Several researchers changed the transfer media from water to IPA and anneal in UHV at 300 °C; all these processes work as methods to remove the residual charges and change the interface bonding in order to improve transport performance, such as making the electrical curve symmetrical and reducing CNP difference ,103. Rep+ dopant . Transfe+ dopant . The dif+ dopant .2O3 deposition films is conductive to confirm the completeness and effectiveness of the transferred film [Dry transfer and direct transfer avoid the contacts of graphene with water at the interface; researchers retrieved the graphene layer through carrier and stamp which are retracted after heating and pressure, as depicted in red film . The estred film . The topred film . Apart fFinally, it is commonly believed that graphene grown through chemical methods, such as chemical vapor deposition, is more defective than mechanically exfoliated graphene, which causes more structural defects and results in hysteresis. Experiments have proven that it is possible to produce high-quality graphene, similar to exfoliated graphene, with careful control of the parameters in CVD growth with higher methane partial pressure . Catalyt2, WS2, etc.) that may not be beneficial to electronic transistors. In devices, hysteresis should be avoided or controlled. In traditional semiconductor device, hysteresis should be avoided or mitigated because of instabilities and non-uniformity introduced by hysteresis in integrated circuits. In contrast, controllable hysteretic behavior in 2D material FETs has great potentials for various applications, such as sensors and nonvolatile memory devices [Gate hysteresis is a common phenomenon which can be observed in low-dimensional material (such as CNT, graphene, GNR, MoS devices .In this paper, we summarize several mechanisms related to the formation of hysteresis at surface, interface and dielectric, factors correlated with device characteristics, environment and measurement and also improvements against certain causes. The mechanism difference between CNT and graphene originating from these characteristics, such as band structure, contact and dimension, are illustrated.For improvement, water molecules play a vital role at the surface and interface. Because of this, deposition and encapsulation could significantly remove hysteresis. It is worth noting that most of the deposition and encapsulation could not reach the aim of hysteresis-free devices, and sometimes water molecules can penetrate the cover layer, especially at higher temperature in ambient condition. In addition, because of the existence of the extra layer, the electrical field lines may deviate from the plane capacitor. This generates extra problems related to the model. Heating and annealing in a vacuum or in other gas ambient under controlled temperature is helpful to remove physisorbed and chemisorbed water molecules quickly and conveniently. However, it should be noted that the atmosphere gas molecules could also introduce hysteresis because of doping effects. It is clear that chemical and physical improvements reduce adsorbates such as photoresist. This kind of adsorbates could cause charge injection at the interface and it needs to be strictly controlled. A changing dielectric is one method to eliminate hysteresis induced by the oxide interface and bulk, which are related to tunneling at the interface and breakdown in the dielectric. Apart from that, many new processes such as dry transfer, semi-dry transfer etching copper, self-aligned fabrication method and jet print improve hysteresis to different degrees.Overall, many researchers have explored distinct methods to remove hysteresis caused by the interface and the surface; almost no one try to control the delaying width by solving problems caused by three parts simultaneously. Fabricating hysteresis-free or hysteresis-controlled devices with high quality and a large area is still a difficult problem we need to solve and confront.


We had previously found that resorcinol–formaldehyde (RF) resin powders prepared by the base-catalysed high-temperature hydrothermal method act as semiconductor photocatalysts for H2O2 generation. Herein, we report that RF resins prepared by the acid-catalysed high-temperature hydrothermal method (~523 K) using common acids at pH < 4 exhibit enhanced photocatalytic activity. The base- and acid-catalysed methods both produce methylene- and methine-bridged resins consisting of π-conjugated and π-stacked benzenoid–quinoid donor–acceptor resorcinol units. The acidic conditions result in the resins with a lower bandgap (1.7 eV) and higher conductivity because the lower-degree of crosslinking creates a strongly π-stacked architecture. The irradiation of the RF-acid resins with simulated sunlight in water with atmospheric-pressure O2 generates H2O2 at a solar-to-chemical conversion efficiency of 0.7%, which is the highest efficiency ever reported for powder catalysts used in artificial photosynthesis.The photocatalytic generation of hydrogen peroxide from water and dioxygen (H Low-bandgap polymers hold great potential for photocatalytic generation of hydrogen peroxide, but increasing catalytic activity remains challenging. Here, a solar-to-chemical conversion efficiency of 0.7 % is reached for a resorcinol-formaldehyde resin powder prepared via acid-catalyzed high-temperature hydrothermal synthesis. The photocatalytic splitting of water to generate H2/O23, the reduction of CO2 with water to CO or HCOOH5, and the reduction of N2 with water to NH37 have been studied as methods for producing solar fuels, with particulate suspensions being the simplest systems for implementing these methods, owing to their ease of scalability9. In recent years, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) has attracted significant attention as a solar fuel because it is a transportable liquid, can be used to generate electricity with a membrane-free one-compartment fuel cell10, and can be readily produced from water and O2 by semiconductor photocatalysis under ambient conditions12. The photogenerated valence band holes (VB h+) are consumed by the oxidation of water (Eq. (–) are consumed by the two-electron reduction of O2  efficiency for the H2O2 generation on recently reported photocatalysts based on a graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) are ~0.10% (g-C3N4/PDI: g-C3N4 doped with pyromellitic diimide)15, ~0.20% (g-C3N4/PDI loaded with reduced graphene oxide)16, ~0.26% (g-C3N4 reduced with NaBH4)17, and ~0.27% (g-C3N4/PDI loaded with reduced graphene oxide and boron nitride)18, respectively. This is because they (i) do not absorb long-wavelength light (λ > 500 nm), (ii) show low activity with respect to the oxidation of water  affords methylene-bridged RF resin powders comprising the benzenoid forms of resorcinol, which are π-conjugated with the quinoid forms of resorcinol via methine linkers  and efficiently promote water oxidation  resinsers Fig. . This crers Fig.  hybridis22. Both basic and acidic conditions result in methylene-bridged RF resins, albeit through different mechanisms:22 the base-catalysed reaction is triggered by the deprotonation of resorcinol  exhibit photocatalytic activity 1.5 times higher than that of RF-base resins, even though both types of resins are methylene-bridged resins containing π-conjugated and π-stacked D–A units. The RF-acid resins exhibit a lower bandgap (1.7 eV) and higher conductivity because their lower-degree of crosslinking leads to the creation of a strongly π-stacked D–A architecture owing to the higher structural flexibility. Further, the RF-acid resins produce H2O2 with an SCC efficiency of 0.7%, which is the highest ever for powder catalysts during artificial photosynthesis.The next challenge is increasing the activity of the resins. It is known that RF resins can also be prepared under acidic conditions, although all previously reported studies were performed at low temperatures (298–373 K)nol Fig. , whereasnol Fig. . Therefo23. Each of the respective acids was added to a pure water containing resorcinol and formaldehyde (mole ratio of 1/2). The pH of the solution was adjusted to ~3 by controlling the amount of the acid added, unless noted otherwise. The formed reddish solution was kept in an autoclave at the designated temperature [x (K)] for 24 h. The Soxhlet extraction of the solid using acetone and subsequent drying in vacuo afforded the RF-acid-x resin powder. As shown in Fig. 2-523 resin, which was prepared using oxalic acid (pH 3.0), is a red-black powder, whereas the RF-NH3-523 resin, which was prepared by the base-catalysed hydrothermal method (pH 7.8), is a red-orange powder23. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images of RF-(COOH)2-523  was much larger than that of the RF-NH3-523 particles (0.57 µm). N2 adsorption/desorption analysis of RF-(COOH)2-523 2-523 (1.02 m2 g–1) was much smaller than that of RF-NH3-523 (14.6 m2 g–1); this was in keeping with the particle sizes of the two resin powders. Moreover, as shown in Supplementary Fig. 2SO4, HNO3, and CH3COOH) also consisted of spherical particles with similar diameters (2.5–3.1 μm). These data indicated that, irrespective of the acid used, the acid-catalysed high-temperature hydrothermal method affords resins consisting of particles larger than those of RF-base resins.The RF-acid resins were synthesised under hydrothermal conditions523 Fig.  indicate523 Fig.  confirmeλ > 420 nm) of a pure water (30 mL) containing the resin (50 mg) in an O2 atmosphere (1 bar) at 298 K under magnetic stirring. A Xe lamp was used as the light source. Figure 2O2 generated on the different resins after 24 h of photoirradiation. The RF-NH3-523 resin23 produced ~60 μmol of H2O2 whereas the RF-acid-523 resins produced >79 μmol of H2O2, indicating that the RF-acid resins exhibited higher photocatalytic activity regardless of the acid used. The temperature during the hydrothermal process for resin synthesis must be high (523 K); it was observed that the activity of RF-(COOH)2-x decreased with a decrease in the hydrothermal temperature. Changing the resorcinol/formaldehyde ratio and pH of the solution during the synthesis also creates spherical resin particles  analysis. The spectra of both RF-NH3-523 and RF-(COOH)2-523 27. The resins exhibited a signal corresponding to the quinoid C=O carbon28 at 182 ppm (c) as well as a signal corresponding to the methine carbon29 at 126 ppm (f), with the areas being the same in both cases. This confirmed the formation of π-conjugated benzenoid–quinoid units 23. Thus, both resins contain similar numbers of D and A units.As shown in Figs. its Fig. . Table 1l–n) than aromatic carbons (d–i), with the proportion of the linker carbons in RF-(COOH)2-523 being lower than that in RF-NH3-523. Further, as can also be seen from Table 2-523 is 23.5%, which is much lower than that in RF-NH3-523 (31.2%). The ratio of the number of the linkers to the number of aromatic ring was determined to be ~2 for RF-(COOH)2-523 and ~3 for RF-NH3-523. The average number of linkers substituted in a single aromatic ring was ~3 for RF-(COOH)2-523 and ~4 for RF-NH3-523 because each linker bridges two aromatic rings. This indicated that, in the case of the RF-base resins , which could be assigned to π-stacked aromatics. Moreover, the peak of RF-(COOH)2-523 was shifted to higher angles with respect to those of RF-NH3-523. This indicated that the D–A distance in RF-(COOH)2-523 was smaller, even though both resins contained the similar numbers of D and A units  also showed peaks that were shifted to higher angles 2-523 has a positive slope  of RF-(COOH)2-523 as determined from its Tauc plot  while the top of its VB (+1.92 V versus RHE) is higher than that of RF-NH3-523 (+2.21 V). In addition, the CB and VB levels of RF-(COOH)2-523 are sufficient for the reduction of O2 39. The intensity in the case of RF-(COOH)2-523 was stronger than that of RF-NH3-523, indicating enhanced π-electron delocalisation in the former case. Moreover, the photoirradiation of the resin increased the intensity, suggesting that the photoexcited resin generated h+–e– pairs. The irradiation of RF-(COOH)2-523 with λ > 420 nm light or with monochromated 550-nm light on a fluorine tin oxide (FTO) electrode resulted in a stronger photocurrent than that seen in the case of RF-NH3-523  performed under visible-light  than that of RF-NH3-523, indicating that the increased conductivity of RF-(COOH)2-523 enhances migration of the CB e– photogenerated in the resin. These findings suggest that strongly π-stacked D–A systems  ultraviolet–visible (UV–vis) spectra of the resins Fig.  show abslot Fig. , inset wlot Fig. . The bot8 V, Eq.  showed aght Fig.  indicateems Fig.  result i2-423 and −473 resins were 69/31 and 62/38, respectively; thus, these resins contained fewer quinoid units than RF-(COOH)2-523 (51/49). Accordingly, the π-stacking-related diffraction peaks of these resins  for the synthesis of the RF-acid resins must be high, as lower temperatures decrease the photocatalytic activity of the resins Fig. . As showins Fig.  appearedons Fig.  and proding Fig. , resulti2O2 generation on RF-(COOH)2-523  of the resin was in keeping with its absorption spectrum, meaning that the bandgap photoexcitation leads to the H2O2 generation. The resin showed a larger ΦAQY value than that of RF-NH3-523 over the entire wavelength region, representing its broader, stronger light absorption and higher conductivity. The photoexcited resin catalyses the reduction of O2 through the CB e– 2-523 in water with NaIO3 as an electron accepter43 under Ar  curves of the resins 2-523 resin by the photogenerated h+–e– pairs.The action spectrum for H523 Fig.  indicateion (Eq. ). Furthe2-523 in water containing H2O2 and NaIO3 as an electron acceptor under Ar. The activity for oxidative decomposition of H2O2 by the VB h+ on the catalyst 2-523 is higher than that on RF-NH3-523, again confirming that the activity of the former was higher. It can also be observed that, in the early stage, the formation rate increases rapidly but eventually becomes constant after prolonged photoirradiation (~3 h), as is also the case for RF-NH3-52323. Accordingly, the SCC efficiency for H2O2 formation becomes almost constant at ~0.7%, which is higher than that of RF-NH3-523 (~0.5%). The high activity in the early stage is attributable to the fact that the formed VB h+ are consumed by the self-oxidation of the resin in addition to the oxidation of water. This was also observed in the case of the RF-base resins23. Supplementary Fig. 2  and methylene  carbons but increased the numbers of aldehyde (a) and ketone (b) carbons, indicating that the methylol and methylene parts of the resin are oxidised by the VB h+, as is also the case for the RF-base resins23. However, its benzenoid/quinoid ratio (51/49) did not change noticeably after the reaction (50/50). Moreover, the absorption spectrum and XRD pattern of the recovered resin were similar to those in the fresh state 46 and the highest value ever reported for photocatalytic water splitting using powder catalysts (~0.5%)47. Thus, the stable generation of H2O2 on the RF-acid resins under sunlight has significant potential for use in the production of a liquid solar fuel.The activities of the RF-acid resins were evaluated under illumination with AM1.5 G simulated sunlight (1 sun). 2 Fig. . As showate Fig.  and d. Sate Fig.  confirmeate Fig. , and a sate Fig. . These d2O2 in water in the presence of atmospheric-pressure O2 under sunlight irradiation. Further, synthesis at lower pH levels (<4) results in a lower-degree-crosslinked RF resins with a strongly π-stacked benzenoid–quinoid D–A architecture. This, in turn, results in highly conductive, lower bandgap (~1.7 eV) resins that efficiently promote water oxidation and O2 reduction under irradiation with near-infrared (λ < 720 nm) light. These RF-acid resins generate H2O2 with an SCC efficiency of more than 0.7%, which is the highest ever for artificial photosynthesis using powder photocatalysts. Further, these resins can be prepared through a simple hydrothermal reaction using inexpensive reagents . The results reported here may, therefore, contribute to the development of low-bandgap semiconducting polymers and highly active photocatalysts for H2O2 generation, which, in turn, may aid the production of liquid solar fuels.As stated above, we found that RF-acid resins prepared by the acid-catalysed hydrothermal synthesis method (~523 K) act as highly active semiconductors for the photocatalytic production of H2SO4, HNO3, (COOH)2, or CH3COOH) were prepared as follows. To being with, resorcinol  and formaldehyde  were added to water (40 mL) under stirring at room temperature. Next, the acid in question was added to the solution, and the pH of the solution was adjusted to ~3. The solution was then transferred to an autoclave (capacity: 100 mL) and heated for 24 h (heating rate: 7 K min−1), where the cooling operation of the autoclave was done by natural air cooling. The resultant product was subjected to Soxhlet extraction using acetone (12 h) and dried in vacuo at room temperature (12 h).The RF-acid-523 resins  being tested and water (30 mL) were added to a glass bottle , which was then sealed using a rubber cap. Next, O16:The SCC efficiency was determined using the following equation2O2 generation is 117 kJ mol–1  while t13C NMR23, ESR (X band), DR UV–Vis, XRD, and XPS analyses (Mg-Kα radiation)48 and SEM49 and TEM imaging50 were performed as per previously reported procedures. The electrochemical measurements were performed using 0.1 M Na2SO4 (pH 6.6) as the electrolyte and a Pt wire and an Ag/AgCl electrode as the counter and reference electrodes, respectively50. The working electrodes were prepared with FTO, carbon paper, or indium tin oxide23. The LSV measurements were performed in an O2- or Ar-saturated 0.5 M phosphate buffer solution (pH 7)51. All the potential values were expressed with respect to the RHE for ease of comparison of the data obtained at different pH values. This was done using the following equations52:DD/MAS/Supplementary InformationPeer Review File


In this paper, the effectiveness of ultra-low-energy ion implantation as a means of defect engineering in graphene was explored through the measurement of Scanning Kelvin Probe Microscopy (SKPM) and Raman spectroscopy, with boron (B) and helium (He) ions being implanted into monolayer graphene samples. We used electrostatic masks to create a doped and non-doped region in one single implantation step. For verification we measured the surface potential profile along the sample and proved the feasibility of lateral controllable doping. In another experiment, a voltage gradient was applied across the graphene layer in order to implant helium at different energies and thus perform an ion-energy-dependent investigation of the implantation damage of the graphene. For this purpose Raman measurements were performed, which show the different damage due to the various ion energies. Finally, ion implantation simulations were conducted to evaluate damage formation. As revolutionary materials with unique mechanical, thermal, and electrical properties, graphene and other 2D materials such as transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) have been the subject of extensive research and development in various fields, from electronics to biomedicine. Some of the new applications include for example sensors for biomolecules and environmental contaminants ,2,3,4, sSimulations of He implantation in graphene were conducted to provide a better understanding of the processes involved. Here, the damage formation can also be investigated depending on the implantation energy and the used fluence.−8 mbar).The ion implanter ADONIS ,23 was u voltage . Thus, iTo achieve electrostatic masking, the deceleration unit described in  is used.2 and Ni were used as samples, which were obtained from Graphene Supermarket . B was implanted with fluences of Monolayer graphene on SiO2 was used, so that the SiO2 layer acts as an insulator and the voltage drops only through the graphene layer. The samples were also obtained from Graphene Supermarket. He ions were used for the implantation with a fluence of To create an energy gradient for studying the damage of graphene when implanted with different energies, 20 nm copper contacts were first applied by sputter deposition on both sides of the graphene. Then, a constant voltage source was used to apply a potential difference of 100 V. The ground contact on the graphene was set to 0 V with respect to the 30 kV anode of the source, so that the incoming ions have an energy between 100 eV–0 eV. The current flow through the graphene layer results in a linear potential gradient along the surface. As sample, monolayer graphene on SiOications . For the measurement of the surface potential (SKPM measurements) of the sample after implantation using the electro static mask, measurements were performed with an Atomic Force Microscope, type MFP-3D Origin+ from Oxford Instruments Asylum Research , in Scanning Kelvin Probe Microscopy (SKPM) non-contact constant height mode. Here the cantilever is held at a constant height above the specimen and the force on the cantilever is measured based on an applied voltage between the cantilever and the specimen. Subsequently, the value for each measurement was averaged over an area of 5 µm × 5 µm. Normal AFM measurements were not recorded separately and the selected resolution was sufficient for averaging of the surface potential but not for specific height analyses. The damage formation was determined using Raman spectrometry. Raman spectra were measured using a confocal Raman microscope  equipped with a 532 nm Nd:YAG laser. The laser was directed onto the sample surface through an objective , with the maximum laser power remaining below 1 mW in order to avoid laser-induced modification. All the measurements were obtained in ambient conditions, at room temperatur.2 and Ni), and observing a similar change of the surface potential, both in values and in general behavior, it can be concluded that this effect is due to the doping of the graphene and not to the effects of the substrate.The SKPM measurements, shown in In graphene ,28. A tygraphene . Similargraphene .2. The sublimation energy of 7.428 eV is used as the bulk binding energy (or surface binding energy) of carbon. This also corresponds to the vacancy formation energy of graphene [To obtain a more profound understanding of the processes during implantation, simulations were performed using IMINTDYN , a binargraphene . For Si,Since IMINITDYN does not simulate a lattice structure, but assumes the layers as amorphous, the graphene layer was adjusted slightly to take the hexagonal arrangement of the atoms into account. Because of the lattice structure there is the possibility that an ion flies through the middle of the carbon ring without colliding with an atom. Therefore, the first layer in the simulation consists of 2/3 C-atoms and 1/3 vacancies since two C-atoms and one empty center are to be assigned to one carbon ring. The density of the layer, with a layer spacing of 3.35 Å, was then increased to 0.4965 The He ion energies 20, 40, 60, 80 and 100 eV were simulated with fluences of both 2 dependency of the backscattering cross section, where E is the projectile energy, the high backscattering yield is reasonable in the ultra-low energy regime. The fact that more O than Si is incorporated into the graphene is due to the double O concentration in the substrate (SiO2) as well as to the lower mass of O. Therefore the backscattering in the second collision of the cascade is more probable.. For Si c and O (. For Si d it can We have shown that, by using electrostatic masks and potential differences, graphene can be doped with different fluences in only one implantation step. In addition, by adjusting the deflection voltage, the transition region between the doped and un-doped regions can be set. This is a great step towards the production of electronical graphene devices such as transistors using ion implantation. By being able to implant a sample at different energies at different surface positions, future measurements and investigations can be accelerated and eliminates unintended experimental variations in sample preparation as only one sample needs to be implanted instead of multiple.These methods can be transferred to other 2D materials such as TMDs and therefore can be helpful for a better investigation and manipulation of these materials. Further experiments to sharpen the transition zone are planned. The simulations carried out can confirm the findings from the experiments and are therefore a valuable tool for predicting the processes during ultra-low energy ion implantation of 2D materials.