Physical chemistry articles within Nature Communications

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  • Article
    | Open Access

    Zinc-based aqueous battery chemistries allow for attractive cost and energy densities, but are susceptible to zinc dendrite formation during plating and internal shorting. Here, the authors show that by plating only on the side away from the counter-electrode, internal shorts can be circumvented.

    • Shougo Higashi
    • , Seok Woo Lee
    •  & Yi Cui

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Terahertz-frequency vibrational modes are thought to play a key role for DNA biological functions, yet observation of these fluctuations in solution has proven difficult so far. Here, the authors use femtosecond optical Kerr-effect spectroscopy to demonstrate their existence in physiologically relevant conditions.

    • Mario González-Jiménez
    • , Gopakumar Ramakrishnan
    •  & Klaas Wynne

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Gel electrolytes are promising for solid-state supercapacitors, due to their favourable properties such as high ion migration rate, mechanical strength, and water retention. Here, the authors report on a zwitterionic gel electrolyte giving robust performance in graphene-based solid-state supercapacitors.

    • Xu Peng
    • , Huili Liu
    •  & Yi Xie

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Phonon scattering limits charge transport in perovskite solar cells, yet the interactions involved are still poorly understood. Here, Wright et al. show by photoluminescence measurements and first-principles calculations that longitudinal optical phonons dominate the electron-phonon coupling at room temperature.

    • Adam D. Wright
    • , Carla Verdi
    •  & Laura M. Herz

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Two-color X-ray pulses with controlled time delay allow exciting one site of a molecule and then probing a different site of the same molecule with femtosecond resolution. Here, the authors use this hetero-site pump-probe technique to study charge redistribution and dissociation of the xenon difluoride molecule.

    • A. Picón
    • , C. S. Lehmann
    •  & S. H. Southworth

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Coherent Raman imaging is a high fidelity technique to obtain chemical-sensitive images, however sub-diffraction molecular organization information is still missing. Here, the authors exploit molecular bond symmetries to access the microscopic organization of molecules in a single image acquisition.

    • Carsten Cleff
    • , Alicja Gasecka
    •  & Julien Duboisset

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Amorphous silicon monoxide is known to undergo disproportionation to silicon- and silicon dioxide-like regions, however direct observation of the atomic-scale heterogeneity is still missing. Here, the authors use angstrom-beam electron diffraction to reveal precise structural details of this unusual material.

    • Akihiko Hirata
    • , Shinji Kohara
    •  & Mingwei Chen

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Van der Waals forces are individually weak, but on scale can drive many nano- and macroscopic processes. Here, Kawai et al. directly measure the van der Waals interactions between noble gas atom pairs and show how this changes with atom size and surface adsorption.

    • Shigeki Kawai
    • , Adam S. Foster
    •  & Ernst Meyer

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Polymorphism, the presence of different crystal structures of the same molecular system, provides an opportunity to discover new phenomena and properties. Here, the authors crystallize coronene in the presence of a magnetic field, forming a different polymorph, which remains stable under ambient conditions.

    • Jason Potticary
    • , Lui R. Terry
    •  & Simon R. Hall

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Cellulose nanocrystals suspensions self-assemble into cholesteric liquid crystalline droplets, namely tactoids, which then condense into helical structures upon drying. Here, Wang et al. capture the structural evolution of this nucleation process by trapping and protecting tactoids in a polymer matrix.

    • Pei-Xi Wang
    • , Wadood Y. Hamad
    •  & Mark J. MacLachlan

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The mixture of nanoparticles and polymers can dramatically alter the dynamics of the resulting system, but the detail is still under debate. Here, Baeza et al. show the formation of a percolated network by polymer bridging between adjacent nanoparticles as nanoparticle concentration increases.

    • Guilhem P. Baeza
    • , Claudia Dessi
    •  & Sanat K. Kumar

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Solid–solid phase transition via an intermediate liquid state has been identified in colloidal systems, but the universality of the phenomenon at atomic scales has not yet been proved. Pogatscher et al.observe a similar transition in a metallic glass system using fast differential scanning calorimetry.

    • S. Pogatscher
    • , D. Leutenegger
    •  & J. F. Löffler

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Photoinduced electron transfer through, and between, pyrrole moieties is an important process both in the natural world and emerging technologies. Here, the authors use both experiment and theoretical calculation to investigate a previously undiscovered relaxation pathway arising in pyrrole dimers.

    • Simon P. Neville
    • , Oliver M. Kirkby
    •  & Helen H. Fielding

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The design and understanding of electrode–electrolyte interfaces is important for the development of improved energy storage devices. Here, the authors study the controlled deposition of molybdenum polyoxometalate anions onto carbon nanotube electrodes, and show this can result in increased specific capacitance.

    • Venkateshkumar Prabhakaran
    • , B. Layla Mehdi
    •  & Julia Laskin

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Noble metals can promote the stable lattice oxygen of metal oxides to take part in oxidation reactions. Here, the authors report the preparation and reactivity of rhodium-aluminum oxide cluster ions, in which the rhodium ion promotes the transfer of five oxygen atoms from a nine-atom parent cluster to oxidize carbon monoxide.

    • Xiao-Na Li
    • , Hua-Min Zhang
    •  & Sheng-Gui He

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Direct band gap nanostructures compatible with Si-based electronics are actively investigated. Here, Biswas et al. incorporate unusually large amounts of tin in germanium nanowires by non-equilibrium kinetic trapping, and optical characterizations suggest that the nanowires exhibit a direct band gap.

    • Subhajit Biswas
    • , Jessica Doherty
    •  & Justin D. Holmes

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Conducting polymers are promising materials for applications including bioelectronics and soft robotics, but little is known about how morphology affects mixed conduction. Here, the authors show how bulk ionic/electronic transport is affected by changes in nano- and meso-scale structure in PEDOT:PSS films.

    • Jonathan Rivnay
    • , Sahika Inal
    •  & George G. Malliaras

  • Article
    | Open Access

    To exploit the internal structure of molecules it is necessary to reach very low temperatures, but this is made impractical by long relaxation times for molecular vibrations. Here the authors provide a theoretical description for the existence of a large class of systems exhibiting efficient vibrational cooling.

    • Thierry Stoecklin
    • , Philippe Halvick
    •  & Eric R. Hudson

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Metal oxides can suppress detrimental polysulfide shuttling in lithium-sulfur batteries, however selection criteria for oxide materials are still lacking. Here, the authors investigate polysulfide adsorption and diffusion on metal oxides and propose selection criteria based on balancing these two effects.

    • Xinyong Tao
    • , Jianguo Wang
    •  & Yi Cui

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The classical Lorentz gas model is widely used to describe constrained transport, but its assumption of an immobile environment is not applicable to many biological and industrial processes. Here, the authors show that the mobility of the matrix induces anomalous, logarithmic dynamics of the confined particles.

    • Tatjana Sentjabrskaja
    • , Emanuela Zaccarelli
    •  & Marco Laurati

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Most high-loading silicon-based anodes for lithium-ion batteries suffer from low efficiency and volumetric capacity. Here, the authors show that a paper-like electrode of silicon oxycarbide glass and graphene at mass loading of >2 mg cm−2can efficiently deliver high energy density for over 1,000 cycles.

    • Lamuel David
    • , Romil Bhandavat
    •  & Gurpreet Singh

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Solute segregation is challenging to experimentally identify at the atomic scale. Here, the authors report the direct observation of atomic site-dependent solute segregation behaviour in an yttria-stabilized zirconia grain boundary by atomic-resolution energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy.

    • Bin Feng
    • , Tatsuya Yokoi
    •  & Naoya Shibata

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Perovskite oxides are attractive candidates as catalysts for water electrolysis however their rational design is rare. Here, the authors report a series of cobaltite perovskites where the covalency of the Co-O bond and concentration of oxygen vacancies are controlled, and assess their catalytic performance.

    • J. Tyler Mefford
    • , Xi Rong
    •  & Keith J. Stevenson

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Calcium is an attractive but poorly studied material for the negative electrode in a rechargeable battery. Here, the authors use a multi-cation binary electrolyte along with an alloyed negative electrode to make a calcium-based rechargeable battery with enhanced stability and reduced operating temperature.

    • Takanari Ouchi
    • , Hojong Kim
    •  & Donald R. Sadoway

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Electrode materials with high energy density are important for the development of Li-ion batteries. Here, the authors report a molybdenum dioxide anode with abnormal lithium storage sites, exhibiting a discharge capacity twice its theoretical value by utilizing two different storage mechanisms.

    • Jeong Kuk Shon
    • , Hyo Sug Lee
    •  & Galen D. Stucky

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Lithium sulfides have been previously investigated as 1 V anodes for Li-ion batteries, but suffered from significant performance issues. Here, the authors report on a 1 V lithium sulfide electrode with noteworthy performance, demonstrating that sulfide-based electrodes may merit further exploration.

    • Steve J. Clark
    • , Da Wang
    •  & Peter G. Bruce

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Solid electrolytes are an attractive alternative to the flammable organic solvents typically used in intercalation batteries. Here, the authors report the computation-assisted discovery and synthesis of Na10SnP2S12, a sodium electrolyte with room temperature conductivity of 0.4 mS cm−1.

    • William D. Richards
    • , Tomoyuki Tsujimura
    •  & Gerbrand Ceder

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Density functional theory is widely used throughout the chemical sciences, but suffers from over-emphasis on charge delocalisation. Here, the authors experimentally probe the energies of two states of a diamine cation and show how a self-interaction correction allows for the accurate prediction of both states.

    • Xinxin Cheng
    • , Yao Zhang
    •  & Peter M. Weber

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Aerosol droplets have significant effects on atmospheric photochemistry, however measuring absorption from single droplets is a challenge. Here, the authors report a method to measure absorption of nanodroplets with attolitre sensitivity, showing rate enhancements for light focusing in photolysis reactions.

    • Johannes W. Cremer
    • , Klemens M. Thaler
    •  & Ruth Signorell

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Surface-mediated synthesis of low-dimensional polymers is a promising approach to design materials for targeted applications. Here, the authors introduce surface-confined thermally tunable pathways to select intra- or intermolecular reactions yielding monomeric or lowdimensional polymeric phthalocyanines.

    • Borja Cirera
    • , Nelson Giménez-Agulló
    •  & David Ecija

  • Article
    | Open Access

    There is substantial research into minimizing platinum use in polymer electrolyte membrane electrolyzers. Here, the authors report that the hydrogen evolution activity of platinum(111) electrodes can be significantly enhanced by monolayer amounts of copper, which weaken the binding of hydrogen intermediates.

    • Jakub Tymoczko
    • , Federico Calle-Vallejo
    •  & Aliaksandr S. Bandarenka

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Spin selectivity for electron transport through peptide monolayers depends on the dipole moment of the system. Here, the authors show that self-assembled monolayers of peptides with α-helix structures transform to more linear structures upon cooling, inducing a flip in the direction of dipole moment and a change in preferred spin for electron transport.

    • Meital Eckshtain-Levi
    • , Eyal Capua
    •  & Ron Naaman

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Single metal atoms promise high catalytic performances, but their implementation in future systems depends on an understanding of how their underlying support medium can offer stabilization. Here, the authors investigate Pt2+on ceria to elucidate this important fundamental consideration.

    • Filip Dvořák
    • , Matteo Farnesi Camellone
    •  & Stefano Fabris

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Sodium-oxygen batteries are promising energy storage devices but the nature of their discharge products remains unresolved. Here, the authors reveal that the dissolution and ionization of sodium superoxide leads to the formation of other phases, which increases the charge overpotential of the cell.

    • Jinsoo Kim
    • , Hyeokjun Park
    •  & Kisuk Kang

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Vapour deposition on polycrystalline films can lead to unexpectedly high and reversible compressive stress, the origin of which remains unclear. Here, the authors show, using thermodynamic arguments, that entropic effects in the extremely dilute adatom gas on the surface play a major role.

    • Amirmehdi Saedi
    •  & Marcel J. Rost

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