Xinqing Wang

Very Large, Soluble Endohedral Fullerenes in the Series La2C90 to La2C138: Isolation and Crystallographic Characterization of La2@D5(450)-C100

An extensive series of soluble dilanthanum endohedral fullerenes that extends from La(2)C(90) to La(2)C(138) has been discovered. The most abundant of these, the nanotubular La(2)@D(5)(450)-C(100), has been isolated in pure form and characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction.

X-ray Crystallographic Characterization of New Soluble Endohedral Fullerenes Utilizing the Popular C82 Bucky Cage. Isolation and Structural Characterization of Sm@C3v(7)-C82, Sm@Cs(6)-C82, and Sm@C2(5)-C82

Three isomers of Sm@C(82) that are soluble in organic solvents were obtained from the carbon soot produced by vaporization of hollow carbon rods doped with Sm(2)O(3)/graphite powder in an electric arc. These isomers were numbered as Sm@C(82)(I), Sm@C(82)(II), and Sm@C(82)(III) in order of their elution times from HPLC chromatography on a Buckyprep column with toluene as the eluent. The identities of isomers, Sm@C(82)(I) as Sm@C(s)(6)-C(82), Sm@C(82)(II) as Sm@C(3v)(7)-C(82), and Sm@C(82)(III) as Sm@C(2)(5)-C(82), were determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction on cocrystals formed with Ni(octaethylporphyrin). For endohedral fullerenes like La@C(82), which have three electrons transferred to the cage to produce the M(3+)@(C(82))(3-) electronic distribution, generally only two soluble isomers (e.g., La@C(2v)(9)-C(82) (major) and La@C(s)(6)-C(82) (minor)) are observed. In contrast, with samarium, which generates the M(2+)@(C(82))(2-) electronic distribution, five soluble isomers of Sm@C(82) have been detected, three in this study, the other two in two related prior studies. The structures of the four Sm@C(82) isomers that are currently established are Sm@C(2)(5)-C(82), Sm@C(s)(6)-C(82), Sm@C(3v)(7)-C(82), and Sm@C(2v)(9)-C(82). All of these isomers obey the isolated pentagon rule (IPR) and are sequentially interconvertable through Stone-Wales transformations.

Wide bandgap mesoporous hematite nanowire bundles as a sensitive and rapid response ethanol sensor.

In this study, α-Fe2O3 nanowires were synthesized using mesoporous SBA-15 silica as the hard templates with the nanocasting method, and then mesoporous α-Fe2O3 nanowire bundles (NWBs) were separated from the well-dispersed α-Fe2O3 nanowires (NWs) by the centrifugation technique. Both samples were characterized by x-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), nitrogen adsorption/desorption isotherm and UV-vis spectra. All results indicated that the α-Fe2O3 NWBs with mesoporous structure presented a higher BET surface area (95 m(2) g(-1)) and wider bandgap (2.08 eV) than those of α-Fe2O3 NWs (32 m(2) g(-1) and 1.91 eV). The bandgap of α-Fe2O3 NWBs was in accordance with the bulk α-Fe2O3, while the BET surface area was much higher. The results from the gas-sensing measurement revealed that the α-Fe2O3 NWBs based gas sensor exhibited a high sensitivity of 21.7, fast response-recovery of 7.5 s and 1 s, and good selectivity to ethanol at 340 °C. The sensitivity (21.7) for ethanol of α-Fe2O3 NWBs was much better than that of the α-Fe2O3 NWs (12.2), which should be attributed to the higher BET surface area and wider bandgap of α-Fe2O3 NWBs.

Formation of FexOy hollow nanospheres inside cage type mesoporous materials: a nanocasting pathway

FexOy hollow nanospheres were synthesized inside cage type mesoporous silica LP-FDU-12 through nanocasting. The sample was reduced to Fe3O4 and then further oxidized to γ-Fe2O3 with little changes in morphology and size. The Verwey transition is observed in the Fe3O4 hollow nanosphere system for the first time with magnetic measurement.

Synthesis and Magnetic Properties of Cobalt Oxide Nanowires Array With Columnar SBA-15

Using hexagonal ordered straight-pore SBA-15 silica as hard template, mesoporous cobalt oxide (Co₃O₄) nanowires SBA-15 materials are synthesized by a nanoreplication route, and X-ray diffraction (XRD), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), and N₂ physisorption isotherms are used to characterize the microstructure of columnar SBA-15 particles, Co₃O₄-doped SBA-15 (Co₃O₄/SBA-15) and Co₃O₄ nanowires array. The results indicate that Co₃O₄ exist in the mesochannels of SBA-15 to form Co₃O₄/SBA-15 nanocomposites and Co₃O₄ nanowires present mesostructure. Furthermore, the magnetic properties of Co₃O₄ nanowires array are measured and discussed by vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) and surperconducting quantum interference device (SQUID), and the prepared Co₃O₄ nanowires array present superparamagnetism. Owing to surface effect of the uncompensated spins at the surface of Co₃O₄ nanowires, it presents a weak ferromagnetic behavior at low temperature.

Electric field mediated non-volatile tuning magnetism in CoPt/PMN-PT heterostructure for magnetoelectric memory devices

We report a power efficient non-volatile magnetoelectric memory in the CoPt/(011)PMN-PT heterostructure. Two reversible and stable electric field induced coercivity states (i.e., high-HC or low-HC) are obtained due to the strain mediated converse magnetoelectric effect. The reading process of the different coercive field information written by electric fields is demonstrated by using a magnetoresistance read head. This result shows good prospects in the application of novel multiferroic devices.

Microwave Absorption and Magnetic Properties of Cobalt Ferrites/Carbon Nanotubes Nanocomposites

Owing to the unique microstructure and the excellent dielectric properties, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were decorated with CoFe2O4 nanoparticles to synthesize the CoFe2O4/CNTs nanocomposites by the solvothermal method. The phase structure, morphology, magnetic properties and microwave absorption performance of the as-prepared CoFe2O4/CNTs were characterized and discussed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermal gravity analysis (TGA), transmission electron microscope (TEM), vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) and vector network analyzer (VNA). All results indicated that the diameter of CoFe2O4 nanoparticles decorating on the surface of CNTs increased with the solvothermal temperature. CoFe2O4/CNTs prepared at 180°C, 200°C and 220°C exhibited superparamagnetism, while the other samples presented ferromagnetism at room temperature. And with the increasing solvothermal temperature, the saturation magnetization and coercivity increased up to 72 emu/g and 2000 Oe for the sample prepared at 260°C (S-26). And the reflection loss of CoFe2O4/CNTs nanocomposites increased with the solvothermal temperature up to -15.7 dB for S-26 with the bandwidth of 2.5 GHz.

Microstructure and magnetic properties of highly ordered SBA-15 nanocomposites modified with Fe 2 O 3 and Co 3 O 4 nanoparticles

Owing to the unique order mesopores, mesoporous SBA-15 could be used as the carrier of the magnetic nanoparticles. The magnetic nanoparticles in the frame and the mesopores lead to the exchange-coupling interaction or other interactions, which could improve the magnetic properties of SBA-15 nanocomposites. Mesoporous Fe/SBA-15 had been prepared via in situ anchoring Fe2O3 into the frame and the micropores of SBA-15 using the sol-gel and hydrothermal processes. Co3O4 nanoparticles had been impregnated into the mesopores of Fe/SBA-15 to form mesoporous Fe/SBA-15-Co3O4 nanocomposites. XRD, HRTEM, VSM, and N2 physisorption isotherms were used to characterize the mesostructure and magnetic properties of the SBA-15 nanocomposites, and all results indicated that the Fe2O3 nanoparticles presented into the frame and micropores, while the Co3O4 nanoparticles existed inside the mesopores of Fe/SBA-15. Furthermore, the magnetic properties of SBA-15 could be conveniently adjusted by the Fe2O3 and Co3O4 magnetic nanoparticles. Fe/SBA-15 exhibited ferromagnetic properties, while the impregnation of Co3O4 nanoparticles greatly improved the coercivity with a value of 1424.6Oe, which was much higher than that of Fe/SBA-15.

Preparation and Characterization of Magnetic Cobalt Ferrites/SBA-15 Nanocomposite Adsorbents and the Removal of Methylene Blue

In this paper, ordered mesoporous SBA-15 silica was synthesized by the hydrothermal method, and then a series of CoFe2O4/SBA-15 nanocomposites were synthesized by a facile impregnation method. X-ray diffraction and N2 adsorption–desorption isotherms were used to characterize the microstructure and morphology of SBA-15 and CoFe2O4/SBA-15 nanocomposites. CoFe2O4 nanoparticles presented spinel phase structure and existed in the mesopores of SBA-15. The magnetic response of CoFe2O4/SBA-15 nanocomposites was characterized with vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). The adsorption efficiency of CoFe2O4/SBA-15 nanocomposites for methylene blue increased firstly with the increasing CoFe2O4 content, and then decreased. Sample-2 (SBA-15: CoFe2O4=1: 0.1 in the precursor) not only presented the best adsorptive performance, but also could be separated and retrieved effectively by magnetic separation technique.

Surface-effect enhanced magneto-electric coupling in FePt/PMN-PT multiferroic heterostructures

A series of FePt films with different film thickness are deposited on Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3–PbTiO3 (PMN-PT) substrates. A standard symmetric ‘Butterfly’ shaped ΔM/M-Edc loops is obtained in 8 nm FePt/PMN-PT heterostrucuture via strain mediated magnetoelectric coupling. For the 3 nm FePt/PMN-PT heterostructure, the loop-like in-plane magnetization (M) -E curve shares a similar shape with the electric polarization of PMN-PT as a function of electric field. The value of MS shows a dramatic change of 30.9% with Edc changing from 0 to 8 kV/cm, this giant magnetoelectric effect in 3 nm FePt/PMN-PT heterostructure results from the remnant polarization induced charge on FePt/PMN-PT interface via the screening charge effect. The enhanced magnetoelectric coupling in thin magnetic/ferroelectric heterostructures opens a promising avenue for the design of ultralow power magnetoelectric devices and information storage devices.