Spinel materials are attractive to photocatalytic degradation of contaminants. In this study, strontium (Sr) doped spinel cobalt chromite (CoCr2O4) was synthesized by solution combustion method and characterized using techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). 30 -50 nm-cubic CoCr2O4 nanocrystals were obtained, and phase transitions of CoO6 -> CoO4 and CrO4 -> CrO6 occurred as the Sr doping content increased until 0.6 % Sr doped sample displayed an inverse spinel phase. The modifications in composition and structure induced the coexistence of multivalent states for Co and Cr, which in turn changed the optical, complex impedance, and magnetic spin state of CoCr2O4. The 0.6 % Sr -doped sample showed the highest photocatalytic efficiency of 93 % due to enhanced optical absorption, reduced energy band gap, oxygen vacancies formation, and a high spin state of Co. The XRD structure and photocatalytic activity remained stable even after five cycles without any leakage of metal elements. The degradation pathway and Mott -Schottky curves were employed to elucidate the mechanism behind this enhancement. The strategy employed in this study proved effective, and the synthesized materials show promise for the photocatalytic degradation of contaminants.

The creation of a Z-scheme heterojunction is a sophisticated strategy to enhance photocatalytic efficiency. In our study, we synthesized an In2S3/MnO2/BiOCl dual Z-scheme heterostructure by growing BiOCl nanoplates on the sheets of In2S3 nanoflowers, situated on the surface of MnO2 nanowires. This synthesis involved a combination of hydrothermal and solution combustion methods. Experiments and density functional theory (DFT) calculations demonstrated that the In2S3/MnO2/BiOCl composite exhibited notable photo reduction performance and photocatalytic stability. This was attributed to the pivotal roles of BiOCl and MnO2 in the composite, acting as auxiliaries to enhance the electronic structure and facilitate the adsorption/activation capacity of CO2 and H2O. The yield rates of CO, CH4, and C2H4 over In2S3/MnO2/BiOCl as the catalyst were 3.94, 5.5, and 3.64 times higher than those of pure In2S3, respectively. Photoelectrochemical analysis revealed that the dual Z-scheme heterostructure, with its oxygen vacancies and large surface area, enhanced CO2 absorption and active sites on the nanoflower/nanowire intersurfaces. Consequently, the dual Z-scheme charge transfer pathway provided efficient channels for boosting electron transfer and charge separation, resulting in high C2H4, CH4, and CO yields of formed and exihibits an promising photoreduction rate of CO2 to CO (51.2 µmol/g.h), CH4 (42.4 µmol/g.h) and C2H4 (63.2 µmol/g.h), respectively. DFT, in situ Diffuse reflectance infrared fourier transform spectroscopy, and temperature-programmed desorption tests were employed to verify the intermediates pathway. The study proposed a potential photocatalytic mechanism based on these findings.

For the first time, novel eulytite-like Eu2+/Eu3+: Na3Bi5(PO4)(6) phosphor was synthesized via high temperature solid-state reaction method in reduction environment, and the structure, luminescence performances and thermal stability were investigated and discussed using various techniques. X-ray refinement diffraction and Raman spectra revealed the around 200 nm well-crystallized eulytite-type (I43d space group) phosphors were synthesized, and a diagram of crystal structure of Na3Bi5(PO4)(6) was proposed. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis confirmed the co-existence of Eu2+ and Eu3+ ions which exhibited characteristic 4f(6)5d -> S-8(7/2) transition of Eu2+ and F-7(0)-> D-5(0,1,2,3,4) transitions of Eu3+ ions. On the other hand, due to the activation of Eu2+, samples displayed good tunability on excited and emission behaviors under different excited laser. The JO parameters, emission cross-section, branching ratio and asymmetric ratio indicated that the Eu doping increased the covalency and asymmetry of host. Thermal quenching was studied and the reasons were discussed. Through the comparison of phosphors prepared in different conditions, the thermal stability & repeatability, radiative lifetime, color purity and activation energy were remarkably superior due to the Eu doping and in particularly Eu2+ activation. Finally, the energy level and CIE chromaticity diagrams were plotted to explain the mechanism of Eu2+ activation and energy transfer between Eu2+ and Eu3+ ions. The 0.5%Eu doped Na3Bi5(PO4)(6) exhibited promising tunable red-emission performance with quantum efficiency of 92%, activation energy of 0.24 eV, red color purity of 93.74% and very low non-radiative transfer ratio 44.20 s(-1) with smaller CCT (<2200 K).

Glass containing magnetic nanocrystals are attractive to provide high optical linear and nonlinearity properties. In this study, we reported the synthesis of perovskite La0.8Sr0.2FeO3 nanocrystals in heavy metal oxide glass under the AlO3 tailoring. The influence of AlO3 amount to the formation of La0.8Sr0.2FeO3 nanocrystals and the influence of nanocrystals to glass structure, optical linear& nonlinear properties were thoroughly investigated. The 10 nm-nanocrystals of orthogonal La0.8Sr0.2FeO3 were synthesized by melting quenching followed with subsequent crystallization process at 400 degrees for 30 min under the tuning of AlO3. The formed La0.8Sr0.2FeO3 were well distributed in matrix without aggregation. Structure and chemical valence study revealed the aluminum abnormality effect and the Sr2+ induced multi-valence states of Fe ions and oxygen vacancies in La0.8Sr0.2FeO3 lattice. Such modification clearly influenced the optical ab-sorption, refractive index, polarizability, energy band gap shrinkage and nonlinearity. Physical parameters such as oxygen packing density, free volume etc. were calculated to confirm the influence of AlO3 tailored La0.8Sr0.2FeO3 crystallization to glass. The glass with 10%AlO3 amount exhibited a large thermal stability (132 degrees), low thermal expansion coefficient (10.2 x10(-6)/K) and high BO4/AlO4 units, providing suitable environment for La0.8Sr0.2FeO3 crystallization. About 20 nm nanocrystals were formed and well distributed in glass which contributed to large nonlinearity absorption coefficient (5.19 x10(-10) m/W) and FOM (13.6 x10(3) esu cm) which much superior than from relative literatures. The obtained glass with extremely good optical linear and nonlinearity performances can be promising candidate for photonics device applications. (C) 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The combination of Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) effect with hetero-p-n structure has shown promising benefits to photocatalytic activity of catalysts. In this study, Au nanoparticles doped p-n hetero-structured Co3O4/Bi2MoO6 composites were synthesized and subjected to photocatalytic and photocurrent tests using visible light irradiation. The synthesized Au/Co3O4/Bi2MoO6 efficiently removed 97.2% of Methyl orange within 60 min, showing very good photocatalytic stability through leaching test. Colorless pollutant phenol degradation test verified the excellent photocatalytic activity of Au/Co3O4/Bi2MoO6. Possible influential factors such as electron transition, charge transfer, energy band gap, DOS, polarizability, SPR effect, oxygen vacancies and anisotropy permittivity were investigated through DFT, XPS, EPR, Z-scan, UV-visible spectra, ellipsometer spectroscopy and Mott-Schottky analysis. A reasonable degradation mechanism and possible pathway for Methyl orange were proposed based on the experimental results and DFT calculations. The doped Co3O4 provided active 3d electrons transition and charge transfer which increased carriers' concentration and reduced the energy band gap, while the Au SPR enhanced internal polarization and strengthened the built-in electric field, yielding strong driving force for photo-generated electrons-holes pairs separation and consumption. In addition, magnetic Co3O4 endowed sample with room-temperature ferromagnetism which was obviously strengthened by Au NPs. The magnetism of sample was beneficial for separation and recovery in photocatalytic practical applications. (C) 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

SnO2 is a widely accepted room temperature ferromagnetic material and has found applications in rapidly growing fields of spintronics and magneto electronics. Faraday rotation diamagnetic glass has attracted research attentions in photonics, sensing and magneto optical devices due to their high refractive index, wide transmittance in UV and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) range and temperature independent Faraday rotation. In this paper, we report for the first time the fabrication of SnO2 modified diamagnetic glass with composition of xSnO(2)-(10-x)B2O3-30PbO-60Bi(2)O(3) (x = 0, 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 mol%) by melt -quenching method. The influence of SnO2 on glass forming ability, thermal, mechanical properties and Faraday rotation were evaluated through Xray Diffraction (XRD), FT-IR, Raman, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), Vicker's hardness and Verdet constant measurements. Good vitrification was achieved with SnO2 amount <= 6 molo/o. XRD spectra confirmed that too much SnO2 exist as distorted SnO6 polyhedra and there is obvious direct interaction between tin and Bi2O3 structural units. FT-IR, Raman and XPS spectra ascertain the existence of characteristic vibration of SnO4, SnO6, BbO(4), BiO3 and BO3 units. Glass with 4%SnO2 exhibited significant good glass thermal stability (102 degrees C), big Vicker's hardness (369 HV), high Verdet constant (0.1424 min/G.cm at 633 nm) and big cutoff wavelength (432 nm) due to the enhanced network connectivity, brought about by inclusion of high polarization and magnetization strong Sn-O linkages.

CeO2 shows interesting redox atmosphere dependent properties and ionic polarizing behavior in glass. In this paper, we report the fabrication and characterization of diamagnetic glass with composition of xCeO(2)-40PbO-50Bi(2)O(3)-(10-x) B2O3 (x = 0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6 and 1 mol%). The Ce3+ and Ce4+ coexistence influences the glass forming ability, glass structure and properties through characterization such as X-ray diffraction, XPS, Raman, UV/ Fourier transforms infrared spectra and Faraday rotation measurement.Due to the high optical basicity and high polarization of host glass, Ce4+ formed in 0.1% CeO2 doped glass and improved the glass thermal stability, optical cutoff and Verdet constant (0.1304 min/g.cm).

Diamagnetic TeO2-PbO-B2O3 glasses were melt-quenching fabricated and characterized for Fe3O4/Ag nanoparticles doping through radio-frequency sputtering and thermal treatment techniques. The surface plasmon resonance influenced structure, composition, optical, and magneto optical properties of Fe3O4/Ag doped glasses were investigated through XRD, SEM, XPS analysis, and Faraday rotation measurement. The optimized sputtering and thermal conditions Fe3O4 and Ag nanoparticles were obtained. Under the optimized conditions, a great enhancement of Faraday rotation, thermal property, and big UV cutoff red-shift due to the excited surface plasma’s resonance effect was achieved in diamagnetic glass.

Terbium dioxide is intensively studied in luminescence and magneto optical applications. The fabrication and characterization of diamagnetic glass with composition of xTb(2)O(3) - 30PbO - 60Bi(2)O(3) - (10 - x) B2O3 (x = 0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.4, 0.5 and 1 mol%) is reported. The influence of Tb2O3 on glass forming ability, glass structure and properties has been studied by means of DSC, XRD, Raman, UV-vis/FTIR spectral and Faraday rotation measurement by a home-made optical bench.Due to the high optical basicity and high polarization of host glass, the formation of Tb4+ in 0.1% Tb2O3 doped PBB glass contributes to an improvement on density, refractive index, thermal stability (106 degrees C), optical cutoff wavelength (501 nm) and Verdet constant (0.1301 min/G.cm).

Amorphous lithium phosphorous oxynitride film was coated directly on pre-treated lithium metal as anode of lithium air battery by radio-frequency sputtering technique from a Li3PO4 target. The structure and composition of modified anode was analyzed before and after charge/discharge test in a lithium-air battery, which comprises 0.5M LiNO3/TEGDME as the electrolyte and super P carbon as cathode. Batteries were galvanostatically discharged by an Arbin BT-2000 battery tester between open current voltage and 2.15V vs. Li+/Li at various current regimes ranging from 0.1–0.4mA/cm2. Compared with fresh lithium, LIPON-coated anode exhibited better electrochemical performance. Good charging efficiency of 90% at a narrower voltage gap with high ionic conductivity of 9.4×10−5S/cm was achieved through optimizing lithium pre-treated conditions, sputtering N2 flows and suitable solute for electrolyte.

A rare earth doped heavy metal PbO–Bi2O3–B2O3–CeO2–TbO2 system was fabricated and characterized for waveguide fabrication. A glass host was selected among 11 heavy metal oxides candidates for rare earth doping and photosensitive study in visible range. The influences of rare earth contents on spectral and properties of glasses were investigated. Glass Pb50Bi20B30 + 1 % Tb + 1 % Ce was found to be ideal for laser irradiation multifunctional waveguides material which exhibited good thermal stability, high absorption and big refractive index change (7.9 × 10−3) at 1553 nm after visible laser exposure at 10,000 pulses for 60 s.

High heavy metal oxides (60–100 mol.%) ternary PbO–Bi2O3–B2O3 (PBB) glasses were fabricated and characterized. Using a homemade single lightway DC magnetic setup, Verdet constants of PBB glasses were measured to be 0.0923–0.1664 min/G cm at 633 nm wavelengths. Glasses with substitution of PbO by Bi2O3 were studied in terms of their Faraday effects. PbO–Bi2O3–B2O3 = 50–40–10 mol.% exhibited good thermal stability, high Verdet constant (0.1503 min/G cm) and good figure of merit (0.071). Based on this glass, a magneto optical current sensor prototype was constructed and its sensitivity at different currents was evaluated to be 8.31 nW/A.

The Faraday rotation influence factors in tellurite-based glass and fibers were studied by experiments and simulations. TeO 2 –ZnO–Na 2 O–BaO glass family was fabricated and characterized in terms of the thermal and magneto-optical properties. Two core–cladding pairs for two fibers were selected from fabricated glasses. The Verdet constants of the glasses and fibers were measured at different wavelengths using a homemade optical bench, and the Verdet constant of fiber was close to that of the bulk glass. The influence from external factors (wavelength, laser power and magnetic field) and internal factors (thermal expansion coefficient difference, refractive index and Verdet constant of core and cladding) on Faraday rotation in fibers was investigated and discussed, and the purpose of this study is to improve the Faraday rotation in tellurite fibers for MO device applications both from internal material property match and external parameter configuration in measurement.

Diamagnetic TeO2-ZnO-Na2O glasses and fibers were fabricated and characterized for magneto-optical current-sensor applications. Two prototypes based on the obtained glass and fibers were constructed. An analysis of the distribution of the magnetic field flux inside the conductor was performed. Hardware and developed software were constructed for the acquisition of weak output signals induced by a low current. The good sensitivities of the fiber magneto-optical current transducer and the bulk magneto-optical current transducer are due to the high Verdet constant and homemade signal-acquisition hardware.

In this paper, we report the whole fabrication process for high-numerical aperture (NA) tellurite glass fibers from material preparation to preform fabrication, and eventually, fiber drawing. A tellurite-based high-NA (0.9) magneto-optical glass fiber was drawn successfully and characterized. First, matchable core and cladding glasses were fabricated and matched in terms of physical properties. Second, a uniform bubble-free preform was fabricated by means of a modified rod-in-tube technique. Finally, the fiber drawing process was studied and optimized. The high-NA fibers (∅(core), 40-50 μm and ∅(cladding), 120-130 μm) so obtained were characterized for their geometrical and optical properties.

The influences of PbO, Bi2O3 and GeO2 contents on mechanical, thermal, magneto-optical and structural properties of PbO–Bi2O3–GeO2–B2O3 glass system were investigated. A magneto-optical current transducer MOCT prototype with sensitivity of 7.56nW/A was constructed based on selected glass with good properties.

The Fe3O4 nanoparticles, incorporated into two diamagnetic glasses (TeO2-PbO-B2O3 and PbO-Bi2O3-B2O3) by DC magnetron sputtering, were annealed at 300 degrees C for 22 h in order to investigate the influence to the thermal stability and magneto-optical properties of glasses. The structure, morphology and magnetic properties of two sputtered glasses were compared and characterized using X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and UV-VIS spectra measurements. The Verdet constant of glasses was measured by a home-made optical bench.Sputtered samples (Fe3O4 target) were compared with the one obtained by melt-quenching Fe3O4 nanoparticles. The influence of sputtered Fe3O4 layer thickness on thermal and magneto-optical performance was investigated. The results prove that the magnetic property of both glasses, and especially the TeO2-PbO-B2O3 one, is enhanced after the incorporation of 1-5 mu m-thick-Fe3O4 layer deposited by sputtering. Compared with the uncoated glasses, no significant degradation in FT-IR transmittance, UV-VIS absorption and thermal stability were discovered. The TeO2-PbO-B2O3-Fe3O4 system exhibits the best thermal and magneto-optical performances for magneto optical applications, within the two glass families. (c) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

An ordered mesoporous carbon (OMC) as a catalyst-free cathode was tested in a Li-O-2 cell, and a detailed investigation of the relation between the size and type of pore morphology against various charge/discharge current densities was performed. The final cathode was a mixture of homemade OMC, polyvinylidene fluoride as binder and a commercial acetylene carbon black deposited over a gas diffusion layer. The cell displayed a high discharge capacity, which was related to the high pore volume, in particular to the mesopore volume of the OMC. The Li-O-2 cell assembled with such a cathode was able to deliver a high discharge capacity of 9.25 mA h cm(-2). The influence of current rate on the discharge process was also studied, and it was found that a higher current density resulted in a larger discharge overpotential and a lower discharge capacity. In a time-controlled testing mode, the cell exhibited good capacity retention and a prolonged cycle life with a cutoff capacity of 0.98 mA h cm(-2).

We report the 1.5μm emission band broadening of Er3+ observed in multicomponent SiO2–GeO2–B2O3–Na2O glasses. The largest bandwidth Δλeff=95.6nm was obtained in glass with a composition of 66.75% SiO2–13% GeO2–6% B2O3–4.45% Na2O in wt.%. The band broadening was found to be dealt with: 1) high Er3+ concentration broadening; 2) Yb3+ co-doped broadening; 3) B2O3 broadening; and 4) the reduction of Na2O content broadening. FT-IR spectra showed that the network structure of glasses changed with the glass compositions, which was proven by the significant change of the vibration band of SiO at 1100cm−1 in the shape and intensity. It resulted in a significant change of the local environment of Er3+ ions and evidenced the variation of bond covalence between Er ions and local ligands. The high Judd–Ofelt parameters influenced the broad band emission for these low refractive index (1.50–1.54) glasses.