Phonon fingerprints of CsPb2Br5

CsPb₂Br₅ is a stable, water-resistant, material derived from CsPbBr₃ perovskite and featuring two-dimensional Pb-Br framework separated by Cs layers. Both compounds can coexist at nanolength scale, which often produces conflicting optical spectroscopy results. We present a complete set of polarized Raman spectra of nonluminescent CsPb₂Br₅ single crystals that reveals the symmetry and frequency of nondegenerate Raman active phonons accessible from the basal (0 0 1) plane. The experimental results are in good agreement with density functional perturbation theory simulations, which suggests that the calculated frequencies of yet unobserved double degenerate Raman and infrared phonons are also reliable. Unlike CsPbBr₃, the lattice dynamics of CsPb₂Br₅ is stable as evidenced by the calculated phonon dispersion. The sharp Raman lines and lack of a dynamic-disorder-induced central peak in the spectra at room temperature indicate that the coupling of Cs anharmonic motion to Br atoms, known to cause the dynamic disorder in CsPbBr₃, is absent in CsPb₂Br₅.

HRTEM low dose: the unfold of the morphed graphene, from amorphous carbon to morphed graphenes

We present experimental evidence under low-dose conditions transmission electron microscopy for the unfolding of the evolving changes in carbon soot during mechanical milling. The milled soot shows evolving changes as a function of the milling severity or time. Those changes are responsible for the transformation from amorphous carbon to graphenes, graphitic carbon, and highly ordered structures such as morphed graphenes, namely Rh6 and Rh6-II. The morphed graphenes are corrugated layers of carbon with cross-linked covalently nature and sp²- or sp³-type allotropes. Electron microscopy and numerical simulations are excellent complementary tools to identify those phases. Furthermore, the TEAM 05 microscope is an outstanding tool to resolve the microstructure and prevent any damage to the sample. Other characterization techniques such as XRD, Raman, and XPS fade to convey a true identification of those phases because the samples are usually blends or mixes of the mentioned phases.

Challenges of modelling real nanoparticles: Ni@Pt electrocatalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction

Core–shell nanoparticle properties strongly dependent on cluster size and composition.

Maintaining the genuine structure of 2D materials and catalytic nanoparticles at atomic resolution

The recent development of atomic resolution, low dose-rate electron microscopy allows investigating 2D materials as well as catalytic nano particles without compromising their structural integrity. For graphene and a variety of nanoparticle compositions, it is shown that a critical dose rate exists of <100 e(-)/Å(2) s at 80 keV of electron acceleration that allows maintaining the genuine object structures including their surfaces and edges even if particles are only 3 nm large or smaller. Moreover, it is demonstrated that electron beam-induced phonon excitation from outside the field of view contributes to a contrast degradation in recorded images. These degradation effects can be eliminated by delivering electrons onto the imaged area, only, by using a Nilsonian illumination scheme in combination with a suitable aperture at the electron gun/monochromator assembly.