Carbon nanotube (CNT) networks on solid substrates have recently drawn attention as a means to direct the growth and differentiation of stem cells. However, it is still not clear whether cells can recognize individual CNTs with a sub-2 nm diameter, and directional nanostructured substrates such as aligned CNT networks have not been utilized to control cell behaviors. Herein, we report that human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) grown on CNT networks could recognize the arrangement of individual CNTs in the CNT networks, which allowed us to control the growth direction and differentiation of the hMSCs. We achieved the directional growth of hMSCs following the alignment direction of the individual CNTs. Furthermore, hMSCs on aligned CNT networks exhibited enhanced proliferation and osteogenic differentiation compared to those on randomly oriented CNT networks. As a plausible explanation for the enhanced proliferation and osteogenic differentiation, we proposed mechanotransduction pathways triggered by high cytoskeletal tension in the aligned hMSCs. Our findings provide new insights regarding the capability of cells to recognize nanostructures smaller than proteins and indicate their potential applications for regenerative tissue engineering.

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The effect of thickness, temperature, and source-drain bias voltage, V(DS), on the subthreshold slope, SS, and off-state properties of black phosphorus (BP) field-effect transistors is reported. Locally back-gated p-MOSFETs with thin HfO2 gate dielectrics were analyzed using exfoliated BP layers ranging in thickness from ∼4 to 14 nm. SS was found to degrade with increasing V(DS) and to a greater extent in thicker flakes. In one of the thinnest devices, SS values as low as 126 mV/decade were achieved at V(DS) = -0.1 V, and the devices displayed record performance at V(DS) = -1.0 V with SS = 161 mV/decade and on-to-off current ratio of 2.84 × 10(3) within a 1 V gate bias window. A one-dimensional transport model has been utilized to extract the band gap, interface state density, and the work function of the metal contacts. The model shows that SS degradation in BP MOSFETs occurs due to the ambipolar turn on of the carriers injected at the drain before the onset of purely thermionic-limited transport at the source. The model is further utilized to provide design guidelines for achieving ideal SS and meet off-state leakage targets, and it is found that band edge work functions and thin flakes are required for ideal operation at high V(DS). This work represents a comprehensive analysis of the fundamental performance limitations of Schottky-contacted BP MOSFETs under realistic operating conditions.