Noncovalent Functionalization of Few-Layered Antimonene with Fullerene Clusters and Photoinduced Charge Separation in the Composite

Photoinduced charge separation at heterojunctions between two-dimensional layered materials and small organic molecules

p-n heterojunctions are fundamental components for electronics and optoelectronics, including diodes, transistors, sensors, and solar cells. Over the past few decades, organic-inorganic p-n heterojunctions have garnered significant interest due to the diverse properties they exhibit, which are a result of the limitless combinations of organic molecules and inorganic materials. This review article concentrates on photoinduced charge separation and photocurrent generation at heterojunctions between two-dimensional layered materials and structurally well-defined organic small molecules. We highlight representative examples, including our work, and critically discuss their potential and perspectives.

Fluorination of antimonene hexagons

Fluorination of two-dimensional (2D) antimonene hexagons synthesized through a colloidal bottom-up approach has been explored using microwave-induced plasma and reactive ion etching fluorination strategies through the generation of CF4. The stability of the fluorine bond has been corroborated through DFT calculations. This work paves the way for further halogen-derivative modifications of heavy 2D pnictogens.

Antimonene: a tuneable post-graphene material for advanced applications in optoelectronics, catalysis, energy and biomedicine

The post-graphene era is undoubtedly marked by two-dimensional (2D) materials such as quasi-van der Waals antimonene. This emerging material has a fascinating structure, exhibits a pronounced chemical reactivity (in contrast to graphene), possesses outstanding electronic properties and has been postulated for a plethora of applications. However, chemistry and physics of antimonene remain in their infancy, but fortunately recent discoveries have shed light on its unmatched allotropy and rich chemical reactivity offering a myriad of unprecedented possibilities in terms of fundamental studies and applications. Indeed, antimonene can be considered as one of the most appealing post-graphene 2D materials reported to date, since its structure, properties and applications can be chemically engineered from the ground up (both using top-down and bottom-up approaches), offering an unprecedented level of control in the realm of 2D materials. In this review, we provide an in-depth analysis of the recent advances in the synthesis, characterization and applications of antimonene. First, we start with a general introduction to antimonene, and then we focus on its general chemistry, physical properties, characterization and synthetic strategies. We then perform a comprehensive study on the allotropy, the phase transition mechanisms, the oxidation behaviour and chemical functionalization. From a technological point of view, we further discuss the applications recently reported for antimonene in the fields of optoelectronics, catalysis, energy storage, cancer therapy and sensing. Finally, important aspects such as new scalable methodologies or the promising perspectives in biomedicine are discussed, pinpointing antimonene as a cutting-edge material of broad interest for researchers working in chemistry, physics, materials science and biomedicine.

Covalently Silane-Functionalized Antimonene Nanosheets and Their Copolymerized Gel Glasses for Broadband Vis-NIR Optical Limiting

Two-dimensional antimonene has many potential applications for its high mobility, high stability, and tunable band gap. The covalent chemistry of antimonene and the molecular doping or hybrid of antimonene remain incomplete for further applications. In this work, silane-functionalized antimonene nanosheets and their copolymerized organically modified silicate gel glasses are designed and prepared. The experimental data confirmed that 3-glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane interacts covalently with antimonene. Compared with unfunctionalized antimonene, the silane-functionalized antimonene shows higher concentration, higher compatibility, and dispersion stability in solvents and gel matrices. In particular, the doping concentration of functionalized antimonene nanosheets can reach 2% in gel glass, which is larger than conventional nanocomposites and nanohybrids. These nanosheets exhibit outstanding optical limiting performance in the visible and long-wavelength near-infrared regions (532-2150 nm). The mechanism of optical limiting is found to be a combination of nonlinear absorption, nonlinear refraction, and nonlinear scattering. The silane-functionalized antimonene nanosheets and their copolymerized hybrids will be promising materials for optoelectronics, biology, energy, and others.