The Center for NanoScience (CeNS) was founded in 1998 at the Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU) in Munich. Its aim is to promote, bundle and join interdisciplinary research in the field of nanoscience in the Munich area. CeNS is an association of working groups from basic research and industry and acts as a network which connects various institutions from a variety of disciplines. The members cooperate in a horizontal structure based on voluntary commitment, and are supported by a small coordination team.CeNS consolidates research activities at the nanometer scale from physics, chemistry, biochemistry, and medicine. The CeNS network promotes the mutual understanding and the collaboration between these disciplines by joint seminars, workshops, and schools..
Phase-engineered two-dimensional (2D) MoS2 has shown great potential for hydrogen evolution reactions (HER), yet the phase-dependent catalytic activity variations and active site distributions remain unclear. Using phase-pure 2D 2H-, 1T '-, and 1T & tprime;-MoS2 single crystals, we implemented a multiscale characterization approach combining micrometer-scale electrochemical testing, conductivity measurements, and in situ imaging of hydrogen nanobubbles to investigate the HER performance across different phases. We revealed a clear activity trend: 1T ' edge > 1T ' basal plane approximate to 1T & tprime; edge > 1T & tprime; basal plane > 2H edge > 2H basal plane, correlating with phase-specific conductivity. Real-time fluorescence imaging of labeled H-2 nanobubbles during HER uncovered contrasting active site distributions: 2H-MoS2 demonstrates edge-preferential activity, while metastable 1T ' and 1T & tprime; phases display more uniformly distributed reactivity. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations trace this basal-plane activation to sulfur coordination geometry alterations in metastable phases. Our findings elucidated the structure-activity relationships governing phase-dependent HER performance while demonstrating phase engineering as an important optimization strategy for 2D electrocatalysts.
Widespread application of organic-inorganic halide perovskites (OIHP) still faces a major obstacle in mitigating moisture-induced degradation. Integrating organic spacers, as defect passivation facilitators along with low-dimensional phase (LDP) formation is an effective approach to enhance the efficiency and robustness of 3D methyl ammonium lead iodide (MAPI) in photovoltaics (PV). Here, the formamidinium cation (FA+) employing 3,5-difluorobenzene-1-carboximidamidium iodide (2F), 4-(trifluoromethyl)benzene-1-carboximidamidium iodide (3F), and 2,3,4,5,6-pentafluorobenzene-1-carboximidamidium iodide (5F) organic spacers as passivation layer in 3D/LDP OIHP solar cells is utilized. Fluorine atom position and quantity in organic spacers change the optoelectronic characteristics of the perovskites, enhancing hydrophobicity, facilitating LDP formation, and augmenting dipole moments, thereby facilitating charge separation processes. PV performance analysis reveals that 3F-treated 3D/LDP devices achieve the highest efficiency of 19.22%. Experimental results and density functional theory (DFT) studies attribute the higher performance of 3F-modified devices to effective LDP formation, enhanced passivation of defect states at perovskite surfaces and grain boundaries, the highest dipole moment and lowest band gap among the evaluated spacers. The stability tests show that, after 1000 h, 3F- and 5F-modified 3D/LDP OIHP devices retain over 85% of their initial efficiency. This research opens novel avenues for designing appropriate organic spacers to attenuate defects in 3D/LDP PV devices.
Nanozymes with intrinsic ROS-generating abilities hold promise as next-generation antimicrobials; however, optimizing their enzyme-mimic efficiency remains a significant challenge. Here, we fabricated popcorn-shaped copper-erbium nanoalloys (CuEr NAs) via a simple one-pot coreduction method, resulting in stabilized nanoconstructs with dual enzyme-mimic activities. We described that CuEr NAs effectively inactivate Escherichia coli (E. coli) by generating intracellular ROS and depleting glutathione (GSH) through the release of copper ions. These ions induced oxidative stress by generating hydroxyl radicals (center dot OH) in acidic environments and oxidizing GSH to glutathione disulfide (GSSG), thereby amplifying ROS generation. CuEr NAs exhibited potent antibacterial activity and enhanced wound healing efficacy in an infected wound model by reducing the bacterial load, ameliorating inflammation, and promoting tissue remodeling. Histological analysis showed enhanced collagen deposition and re-epithelialization in wounds treated with CuEr NAs, highlighting their potential as a flexible platform for antimicrobial and regenerative biomedical applications. This study highlights CuEr NAs as a viable platform for antimicrobial applications and provides insights into the fabrication of multifunctional nanoantimicrobials.
Nucleic acid therapeutics are poised to revolutionize the clinical treatment of diseases once considered undruggable. Although these therapeutic approaches hold significant promise, delivering the nucleic acid cargo remains challenging due to susceptibility to nuclease degradation. Among all carrier systems, polymers stand out for their high tunability and cost-effectiveness. However, their flexible structure greatly expands the chemical space, making experimental exploration both costly and time-consuming. Leveraging published data and machine learning methods provides a valuable strategy to address these issues. The present study demonstrates a way to merge data from multiple sources and uses this information to identify new polyesters that effectively deliver siRNA into lung cells. One newly discovered polymer is further examined in ex vivo experiments and tested in a mouse model. The results indicate that a polymer capable of silencing specific genes in vivo can be discovered through machine learning, circumventing an extensive trial-and-error process in the search for novel materials.
Perovskite nanocrystals have positioned themselves at the forefront of next‐generation emitter applications due to their extraordinary optoelectronic properties, which include widely tunable narrow emission spectra and low‐cost syntheses. However, stability issues and halide ion exchange inhibit the realization of heterostructures, severely limiting their applicability and decelerating their commercialization. Here, a block copolymer templated halide perovskite nanocrystal synthesis with a post‐synthetic treatment is combined with UV‐C light to obtain ultra‐stable thin film emitters. The UV light induces cross‐linking between the polymer strands, thereby rendering them insoluble to the organic solvent and nearly impervious to halide ion diffusion while retaining the nanocrystals’ optical properties. This method enabled the fabrication of an all‐perovskite nanocrystal white light‐emitting thin film. The resulting films feature narrow linewidths ( < 95 meV) for each RGB emission peak. Additionally, the color temperature of the ’white’ light can be tuned with a color gamut approximating the Rec. 2020 standard. These RGB‐emissive phosphor films can be combined with commercial UV or blue LED backlights to create the next‐generation high‐efficiency, high‐quality phosphor‐converted white LEDs or color displays.
