Ken Haenen

Observation of the subgap optical absorption in polymer-fullerene blend solar cells

This letter reports on highly sensitive optical absorption measurements on organic donor-acceptor solar cells, using Fourier-transform photocurrent spectroscopy (FTPS). The spectra cover an unprecedented dynamic range of eight to nine orders of magnitude making it possible to detect defect and disorder related sub-band gap transitions. Direct measurements on fully encapsulated solar cells with an active layer of poly[2-methoxy-5-(3′,7′-dimethyl-octyloxy)]-p-phenylene-vinylene:(6,6)-phenyl-C61-butyric-acid (1:4 weight ratio) enabled a study of the intrinsic defect generation due to UV illumination. Solar cell temperature annealing effects in poly(3-hexylthiophene):PCBM (1:2 weight ratio) cells and the induced morphological changes are related to the changes in the absorption spectrum, as determined with FTPS.

Separation of intra- and intergranular magnetotransport properties in nanocrystalline diamond films on the metallic side of the metal-insulator transition

A systematic study on the morphology and electronic properties of thin heavily boron-doped nanocrystalline diamond (NCD)films is presented. The films have nominally the same thickness ( 150nm) and are grown with a fixed B/C ratio (5000ppm) but with different C/H ratios (0.5-5%) in the gas phase. The morphology of the films is investigated by x-ray diffraction and atomic force microscopy measurements, which confirm that lower C/H ratios lead to a larger average grain size. Magnetotransport measurements reveal a decrease in resistivity and a large increase in mobility, approaching the values obtained for single-crystal diamond as the average grain size of the films increases. In all films, the temperature dependence of resistivity decreases with larger grains and the charge carrier density and mobility are thermally activated. It is possible

Heat-Transfer Resistance at Solid–Liquid Interfaces: A Tool for the Detection of Single-Nucleotide Polymorphisms in DNA

In this article, we report on the heat-transfer resistance at interfaces as a novel, denaturation-based method to detect single-nucleotide polymorphisms in DNA. We observed that a molecular brush of double-stranded DNA grafted onto synthetic diamond surfaces does not notably affect the heat-transfer resistance at the solid-to-liquid interface. In contrast to this, molecular brushes of single-stranded DNA cause, surprisingly, a substantially higher heat-transfer resistance and behave like a thermally insulating layer. This effect can be utilized to identify ds-DNA melting temperatures via the switching from low- to high heat-transfer resistance. The melting temperatures identified with this method for different DNA duplexes (29 base pairs without and with built-in mutations) correlate nicely with data calculated by modeling. The method is fast, label-free (without the need for fluorescent or radioactive markers), allows for repetitive measurements, and can also be extended toward array formats. Reference measurements by confocal fluorescence microscopy and impedance spectroscopy confirm that the switching of heat-transfer resistance upon denaturation is indeed related to the thermal on-chip denaturation of DNA.

Enhanced Growth and Osteogenic Differentiation of Human Osteoblast-Like Cells on Boron-Doped Nanocrystalline Diamond Thin Films

Intrinsic nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) films have been proven to be promising substrates for the adhesion, growth and osteogenic differentiation of bone-derived cells. To understand the role of various degrees of doping (semiconducting to metallic-like), the NCD films were deposited on silicon substrates by a microwave plasma-enhanced CVD process and their boron doping was achieved by adding trimethylboron to the CH4:H2 gas mixture, the B∶C ratio was 133, 1000 and 6700 ppm. The room temperature electrical resistivity of the films decreased from >10 MΩ (undoped films) to 55 kΩ, 0.6 kΩ, and 0.3 kΩ (doped films with 133, 1000 and 6700 ppm of B, respectively). The increase in the number of human osteoblast-like MG 63 cells in 7-day-old cultures on NCD films was most apparent on the NCD films doped with 133 and 1000 ppm of B (153,000±14,000 and 152,000±10,000 cells/cm2, respectively, compared to 113,000±10,000 cells/cm2 on undoped NCD films). As measured by ELISA per mg of total protein, the cells on NCD with 133 and 1000 ppm of B also contained the highest concentrations of collagen I and alkaline phosphatase, respectively. On the NCD films with 6700 ppm of B, the cells contained the highest concentration of focal adhesion protein vinculin, and the highest amount of collagen I was adsorbed. The concentration of osteocalcin also increased with increasing level of B doping. The cell viability on all tested NCD films was almost 100%. Measurements of the concentration of ICAM-1, i.e. an immunoglobuline adhesion molecule binding inflammatory cells, suggested that the cells on the NCD films did not undergo significant immune activation. Thus, the potential of NCD films for bone tissue regeneration can be further enhanced and tailored by B doping and that B doping up to metallic-like levels is not detrimental for cells.

Direct visualization of boron dopant distribution and coordination in individual chemical vapor deposition nanocrystalline B-doped diamond grains

The boron dopant distribution in individual heavily boron-doped nanocrystalline diamond film grains, with sizes ranging from 100 to 350 nm in diameter, has been studied using a combination of high resolution annular dark field scanning transmission electron microscopy and spatially resolved electron energy-loss spectroscopy. Using these tools, the boron distribution and local boron coordination have been determined. Quantification results reveal embedding of B dopants in the diamond lattice, and a preferential enrichment of boron at defective areas and twin boundaries. Coordination mapping reveals a distinct difference in coordination of the B dopants in “pristine” diamond areas and in defective regions.

Toward deep blue nano hope diamonds: heavily boron-doped diamond nanoparticles.

The production of boron-doped diamond nanoparticles enables the application of this material for a broad range of fields, such as electrochemistry, thermal management, and fundamental superconductivity research. Here we present the production of highly boron-doped diamond nanoparticles using boron-doped CVD diamond films as a starting material. In a multistep milling process followed by purification and surface oxidation we obtained diamond nanoparticles of 10-60 nm with a boron content of approximately 2.3 × 10(21) cm(-3). Aberration-corrected HRTEM reveals the presence of defects within individual diamond grains, as well as a very thin nondiamond carbon layer at the particle surface. The boron K-edge electron energy-loss near-edge fine structure demonstrates that the B atoms are tetrahedrally embedded into the diamond lattice. The boron-doped diamond nanoparticles have been used to nucleate growth of a boron-doped diamond film by CVD that does not contain an insulating seeding layer.

Wide range pressure sensor based on a piezoelectric bimorph microcantilever

Since the development of the atomic force microscope, interest in microfabricated cantilevers has grown. Cantilevers are excellent micromechanical sensors. In this work, we use a commercially available piezoelectric bimorph cantilever as pressure and temperature sensor. The piezoelectric layer acts as both sensor and actuator. The sensor detects the change in the resonance frequencies due to the drag force of the surrounding gas. The frequency shift of the resonant modes is measured as a function of the pressure and the temperature. The results show that both pressure and temperature can be measured simultaneously using the piezoelectric bimorph cantilever’s resonant frequencies.

Enhanced performance of polymer:fullerene bulk heterojunction solar cells upon graphene addition

Graphene has potential for applications in solar cells. We show that the short circuit current density of P3HT (Poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl):PCBM((6,6)-Phenyl C61 butyric acid methyl ester) solar cells is enhanced by 10% upon the addition of graphene, with a 15% increase in the photon to electric conversion efficiency. We discuss the performance enhancement by studying the crystallization of P3HT, as well as the electrical transport properties. We show that graphene improves the balance between electron and hole mobilities with respect to a standard P3HT:PCBM solar cell.

Structural and optical properties of DNA layers covalently attached to diamond surfaces

Label-free detection of DNA molecules on chemically vapor-deposited diamond surfaces is achieved with spectroscopic ellipsometry in the infrared and vacuum ultraviolet range. This nondestructive method has the potential to yield information on the average orientation of single as well as double-stranded DNA molecules, without restricting the strand length to the persistence length. The orientational analysis based on electronic excitations in combination with information from layer thicknesses provides a deeper understanding of biological layers on diamond. The pi-pi* transition dipole moments, corresponding to a transition at 4.74 eV, originate from the individual bases. They are in a plane perpendicular to the DNA backbone with an associated n-pi* transition at 4.47 eV. For 8-36 bases of single- and double-stranded DNA covalently attached to ultra-nanocrystalline diamond, the ratio between in- and out-of-plane components in the best fit simulations to the ellipsometric spectra yields an average tilt angle of the DNA backbone with respect to the surface plane ranging from 45 degrees to 52 degrees . We comment on the physical meaning of the calculated tilt angles. Additional information is gathered from atomic force microscopy, fluorescence imaging, and wetting experiments. The results reported here are of value in understanding and optimizing the performance of the electronic readout of a diamond-based label-free DNA hybridization sensor.

Local boron environment in B-doped nanocrystalline diamond films.

Thin films of heavily B-doped nanocrystalline diamond (B:NCD) have been investigated by a combination of high resolution annular dark field scanning transmission electron microscopy and spatially resolved electron energy-loss spectroscopy performed on a state-of-the-art aberration corrected instrument to determine the B concentration, distribution and the local B environment. Concentrations of ~1 to 3 at.% of boron are found to be embedded within individual grains. Even though most NCD grains are surrounded by a thin amorphous shell, elemental mapping of the B and C signal shows no preferential embedding of B in these amorphous shells or in grain boundaries between the NCD grains, in contrast with earlier work on more macroscopic superconducting polycrystalline B-doped diamond films. Detailed inspection of the fine structure of the boron K-edge and comparison with density functional theory calculated fine structure energy-loss near-edge structure signatures confirms that the B atoms present in the diamond grains are substitutional atoms embedded tetrahedrally into the diamond lattice.