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Characterization and analytical techniques are methods used to identify, isolate or quantify chemicals or materials, or to characterize their physical properties. They include microscopy, light or radiation scattering, spectroscopy, calorimetry, chromatography, gravimetric and other measurements used in chemistry and materials science.
Observing the evolution of the solid electrolyte interphase on SiOx-based electrodes in Li-ion batteries is challenging. Here, authors use three-dimensional tomography to visualize the growth of the interphase on single SiOx particles and propose a mechanical confinement strategy to prevent aging.
CO electroreduction is a promising process for obtaining high-value chemicals but it typically suffers from low durability. Now the degradation mechanisms of membrane-electrode-assembly devices during high-rate CO reduction are identified via operando wide-angle X-ray scattering measurements and circumvented.
The orientation of reinforcing fibers in composite materials is key to their performance, yet is hard to determine as fibers are buried within a sample. Here, an algorithm allows for the rapid determination of in-plane fiber orientation, based on microscopy images of adjacent regions.
The ever-expanding field of gravitational wave science calls for controlled laboratory experiments on dynamic gravitation to provide insights and more precise measurements of gravity. The authors propose, model, and experimentally realize a system using two rotating bars as transmitter and a bending beam resonator as detector, finding that the near field gravitational energy transfer that creates detector amplitudes of up to 100 nm/s is 10 to the power of 25 times higher than what would be expected from gravitational waves emitted from an equivalent quadrupole gravitational wave generator.
Emily Draper explains how to design and build electrochemical equipment for neutron scattering experiments with simple, at-hand components and techniques.
Adopting standardized and reliable methodologies to accurately measure particle removal efficiency when developing fibrous materials for controlling airborne contamination is crucial. Here, the authors recommend best practices for experimental assessments and reporting to ensure a reliable evaluation of new airborne particle filtration media and technologies.
By tracking the electrochromic doping front, a hole-limited electrochemical doping mechanism is discovered in organic mixed ionic–electronic conductors.
Local vibrational modes at substitutional impurities in monolayer graphene are resolved with a sensitivity at the chemical bonding level, revealing the impacts of different chemical configurations and mass of impurity atoms on the defect-perturbed vibrational properties.
