The development of nanodevices that exploit the unique properties of nanoparticles will require high-speed methods for patterning surfaces with nanoparticles over large areas and with high resolution. Moreover, the technique will need to work with both conducting and non-conducting surfaces. Here we report an ion-induced parallel-focusing approach that satisfies all requirements. Charged monodisperse aerosol nanoparticles are deposited onto a surface patterned with a photoresist while ions of the same polarity are introduced into the deposition chamber in the presence of an applied electric field. The ions accumulate on the photoresist, modifying the applied field to produce nanoscopic electrostatic lenses that focus the nanoparticles onto the exposed parts of the surface. We have demonstrated that the technique could produce high-resolution patterns at high speed on both conducting (p-type silicon) and non-conducting (silica) surfaces. Moreover, the feature sizes in the nanoparticle patterns were significantly smaller than those in the original photoresist pattern.

PbTe is an important thermoelectric material for power generation applications due its high conversion efficiency and reliability. Its extraordinary thermoelectric performance is attributed to band convergence of the light L and heavy Σ bands. However, the temperature at which these bands converge is disputed. In this letter, we provide direct experimental evidence combined with ab initio calculations that confirm an increasing optical gap up to 673 K and predict a band convergence temperature of 700 K, much higher than previous measurements showing saturation and band convergence at 450 K.

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The interfacial electronic structure between oxide thin films and organic semiconductors remains a key parameter for optimum functionality and performance of next‐generation organic/hybrid electronics. By tailoring defect concentrations in transparent conductive ZnO films, we demonstrate the importance of controlling the electron transfer barrier at the interface with organic acceptor molecules such as C60. A combination of electron spectroscopy, density functional theory computations, and device characterization is used to determine band alignment and electron injection barriers. Extensive experimental and first principles calculations reveal the controllable formation of hybridized interface states and charge transfer between shallow donor defects in the oxide layer and the molecular adsorbate. Importantly, it is shown that removal of shallow donor intragap states causes a larger barrier for electron injection. Thus, hybrid interface states constitute an important gateway for nearly barrier‐free charge carrier injection. These findings open new avenues to understand and tailor interfaces between organic semiconductors and transparent oxides, of critical importance for novel optoelectronic devices and applications in energy‐conversion and sensor technologies.

We demonstrate a thermal evolution path prototype to liquid thermal conductivity in solids. Thermal evolution of β-Cu 2 Se shows large interstitial displacement of constituent atoms marked with glass-like transitions and an asymptotic liquid thermal transport. With ab-initio molecular dynamics (AIMD), we identify these transitions, and with in-situ transmission electron microscopy and electron energy loss spectroscopy we confirm them. The thermal disorder of the Cu + ions forms homopolar Cu-Cu bond under a rigid Se framework, and at yet higher temperatures the Se framework undergoes thermal distortion. The non-equilibrium AIMD prediction of lattice thermal conductivity shows significant suppression of the phonon transport, in agreement with experiments and molecular behavior.

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Although several crystalline materials have been developed as Li-ion conductors for use as solid electrolytes in all-solid-state batteries (ASSBs), producing materials with high Li-ion conductivities is timeconsuming and cost-intensive. Herein, we introduce a superionic halogen-rich Li-argyrodite (HRLA) and demonstrate its innovative synthesis using ultimate-energy mechanical alloying (UMA) and rapid thermal annealing (RTA). UMA with a 49 G-force milling energy provides a one-pot process that includes mixing, glassification, and crystallization, to produce as-milled HRLA powder that is ∼70% crystallized; subsequent RTA using an infrared lamp increases this crystallinity to ∼82% within 25 min. Surprisingly, this HRLA exhibits the highest Li-ion conductivity among Li-argyrodites (10.2 mS cm −1 at 25 °C, cold-pressed powder compact) reported so far. Furthermore, we confirm that this superionic HRLA works well as a promising solid electrolyte without a decreased intrinsic electrochemical window in various electrode configurations and delivers impressive cell performance (114.2 mAh g −1 at 0.5 C).

With ab initio molecular dynamics we observe thermal disorder and find band convergence with increased temperature and close relation between thermal disorder and thermoelectric (TE) properties of p-doped PbTe. Lack of short-range order causes local overlap of valence orbitals and increase in density-of-states near the Fermi level. Effective mass becomes temperature dependent peaking in the converged-band regime. With classical molecular dynamics (MD) and the Green-Kubo autocorrelation decay we find reduction in lattice thermal conductivity (suppression of short-and long-range acoustic phonon transports). The described thermal-disorder roles lead to high TE figure-of-merit (ZT ), and in good agreement with the experimental results.