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Byrne DO, Ciston J, Allen FI. Probing Defectivity Beneath the Hydrocarbon Blanket in 2D hBN Using TEM-EELS. MICROSCOPY AND MICROANALYSIS : THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF MICROSCOPY SOCIETY OF AMERICA, MICROBEAM ANALYSIS SOCIETY, MICROSCOPICAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 2024:ozae064. [PMID: 39028755 DOI: 10.1093/mam/ozae064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2023] [Revised: 05/25/2024] [Accepted: 06/23/2024] [Indexed: 07/21/2024]
Abstract
The controlled creation and manipulation of defects in 2D materials has become increasingly popular as a means to design and tune new material functionalities. However, defect characterization by direct atomic-scale imaging is often severely limited by surface contamination due to a blanket of hydrocarbons. Thus, analysis techniques that can characterize atomic-scale defects despite the contamination layer are advantageous. In this work, we take inspiration from X-ray absorption spectroscopy and use broad-beam electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS) to characterize defect structures in 2D hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) based on averaged fine structure in the boron K-edge. Since EELS is performed in a transmission electron microscope (TEM), imaging can be performed in-situ to assess contamination levels and other factors such as tears in the fragile 2D sheets, which can affect the spectroscopic analysis. We demonstrate the TEM-EELS technique for 2D hBN samples irradiated with different ion types and doses, finding spectral signatures indicative of boron-oxygen bonding that can be used as a measure of sample defectiveness depending on the ion beam treatment. We propose that even in cases where surface contamination has been mitigated, the averaging-based TEM-EELS technique can be useful for efficient sample surveys to support atomically resolved EELS experiments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dana O Byrne
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
- National Center for Electron Microscopy, Molecular Foundry, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, CA 94720, USA
| | - Jim Ciston
- National Center for Electron Microscopy, Molecular Foundry, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, CA 94720, USA
| | - Frances I Allen
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
- National Center for Electron Microscopy, Molecular Foundry, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, CA 94720, USA
- California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
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2
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Dementyev P, Gölzhäuser A. Anti-Arrhenius passage of gaseous molecules through nanoporous two-dimensional membranes. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2024; 26:6949-6955. [PMID: 38334442 DOI: 10.1039/d3cp05705d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/10/2024]
Abstract
The passage of molecules through membranes is known to follow an Arrhenius-like kinetics, i.e. the flux is accelerated upon heating and vice versa. There exist though stepwise processes whose rates can decrease with temperature if, for example, adsorbed intermediates are involved. In this study, we perform temperature-variable permeation experiments in the range from -50 to +50 °C and observe anti-Arrhenius behaviour of water and ammonia permeating in two-dimensional freestanding carbon nanomembranes (CNMs). The permeation rate of water vapour is found to decrease many-fold with warming, while the passage of ammonia molecules strongly increases when the membrane is cooled down to the dew point. Liquefaction of isobutylene shows no enhancement for its transmembrane flux which is consistent with the material's pore architecture. The effects are described by the Clausius-Clapeyron relationship and highlight the key role of gas-surface interactions in two-dimensional membranes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Petr Dementyev
- Physics of Supramolecular Systems and Surfaces, Bielefeld University, 33615 Bielefeld, Germany.
| | - Armin Gölzhäuser
- Physics of Supramolecular Systems and Surfaces, Bielefeld University, 33615 Bielefeld, Germany.
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Nalge DR, Karmakar T, Bhattacharya S, Balasubramanian KB. Thermodynamic Window for Size-Controlled Pore Formation in Graphene for Large-Scale Molecular Sieves. J Phys Chem Lett 2023; 14:9758-9765. [PMID: 37882468 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpclett.3c02186] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2023]
Abstract
Nanopores in graphene monolayers are a promising option for molecular separation applications, such as desalination and carbon capture. Graphene's atomic thickness allows for an optimal balance between molecular selectivity and permeability, while its chemical stability and robust mechanical properties make it appealing for a wide range of commercial applications. However, scaling to large areas with controlled pore size distribution is an open challenge in ultrathin membranes. Here, using first-principles calculations, we identify a suitable thermodynamic window in a chemical vapor deposition system for directly growing graphene monolayers with a controlled pore size distribution. As an example, our calculations show that a postgrowth annealing step with a supersaturation range of 19.7-25 kJ/mol at 1000 K results in the creation of a controllable pore density at graphene grain boundaries, with pore sizes falling within the range of 5-8 Å. Such pores isolate hydrated Cl ions from water molecules, effectively desalinating seawater. Thus, it allows the design of targeted synthesis of large-scale 2D layers for membrane applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Divij Ramesh Nalge
- Department of Physics, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, IIT Delhi Main Rd, IIT Campus, Hauz Khas, New Delhi,Delhi 110016, India
| | - Tarak Karmakar
- Department of Chemistry, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, IIT Delhi Main Rd, IIT Campus, Hauz Khas, New Delhi, Delhi 110016, India
| | - Saswata Bhattacharya
- Department of Physics, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, IIT Delhi Main Rd, IIT Campus, Hauz Khas, New Delhi,Delhi 110016, India
| | - Krishna Bharadwaj Balasubramanian
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, IIT Delhi Main Rd, IIT Campus, Hauz Khas, New Delhi, Delhi 110016, India
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Dementyev P, Khayya N, Zanders D, Ennen I, Devi A, Altman EI. Size and Shape Exclusion in 2D Silicon Dioxide Membranes. SMALL (WEINHEIM AN DER BERGSTRASSE, GERMANY) 2023; 19:e2205602. [PMID: 36521931 DOI: 10.1002/smll.202205602] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2022] [Revised: 11/25/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
2D membranes such as artificially perforated graphene are deemed to bring great advantages for molecular separation. However, there is a lack of structure-property correlations in graphene membranes as neither the atomic configurations nor the number of introduced sub-nanometer defects are known precisely. Recently, bilayer silica has emerged as an inherent 2D membrane with an unprecedentedly high areal density of well-defined pores. Mass transfer experiments with free-standing SiO2 bilayers demonstrated a strong preference for condensable fluids over inert species, and the measured membrane selectivity revealed a key role of intermolecular forces in ångstrom-scale openings. In this study, vapor permeation measurements are combined with quantitative adsorption experiments and density functional theory (DFT) calculations to get insights into the mechanism of surface-mediated transport in vitreous 2D silicon dioxide. The membranes are shown to exhibit molecular sieving performance when exposed to vaporous methanol, ethanol, isopropanol, and tert-butanol. The results are normalized to the coverage of physisorbed molecules and agree well with the calculated energy barriers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Petr Dementyev
- Faculty of Physics, Bielefeld University, 33615, Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Neita Khayya
- Faculty of Physics, Bielefeld University, 33615, Bielefeld, Germany
| | - David Zanders
- Inorganic Materials Chemistry, Ruhr University Bochum, 44801, Bochum, Germany
| | - Inga Ennen
- Faculty of Physics, Bielefeld University, 33615, Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Anjana Devi
- Inorganic Materials Chemistry, Ruhr University Bochum, 44801, Bochum, Germany
| | - Eric I Altman
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, 06520, USA
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Iveković D, Kumar S, Gajović A, Čižmar T, Karlušić M. Response of Bilayer and Trilayer Graphene to High-Energy Heavy Ion Irradiation. MATERIALS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2023; 16:1332. [PMID: 36836962 PMCID: PMC9962982 DOI: 10.3390/ma16041332] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2022] [Revised: 01/18/2023] [Accepted: 02/02/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
High-energy heavy ion irradiation is a very useful tool for the nanostructuring of 2D materials because defects can be introduced in a controlled way. This approach is especially attractive for the mass production of graphene nanomembranes when nanopore size and density can easily be tuned by ion irradiation parameters such as ion energy and applied fluence. Therefore, understanding the basic mechanisms in nanopore formation due to high-energy heavy ion impact is of the highest importance. In the present work, we used Raman spectroscopy to investigate the response of bilayer and trilayer graphene to this type of irradiation. Spectra obtained from graphene samples irradiated with 1.8 MeV I, 23 MeV I, 3 MeV Cu, 18 MeV Cu, and 12 MeV Si beams were analysed using the Lucchese model. It was found that the efficiency of damage production scales strongly with nuclear energy loss. Therefore, even for the most energetic 23 MeV I beam, the electronic energy loss does not contribute much to damage formation and ion tracks are unlikely to be formed.
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Yuan Z, He G, Li SX, Misra RP, Strano MS, Blankschtein D. Gas Separations using Nanoporous Atomically Thin Membranes: Recent Theoretical, Simulation, and Experimental Advances. ADVANCED MATERIALS (DEERFIELD BEACH, FLA.) 2022; 34:e2201472. [PMID: 35389537 DOI: 10.1002/adma.202201472] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2022] [Revised: 03/15/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Porous graphene and other atomically thin 2D materials are regarded as highly promising membrane materials for high-performance gas separations due to their atomic thickness, large-scale synthesizability, excellent mechanical strength, and chemical stability. When these atomically thin materials contain a high areal density of gas-sieving nanoscale pores, they can exhibit both high gas permeances and high selectivities, which is beneficial for reducing the cost of gas-separation processes. Here, recent modeling and experimental advances in nanoporous atomically thin membranes for gas separations is discussed. The major challenges involved, including controlling pore size distributions, scaling up the membrane area, and matching theory with experimental results, are also highlighted. Finally, important future directions are proposed for real gas-separation applications of nanoporous atomically thin membranes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhe Yuan
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
| | - Guangwei He
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
| | - Sylvia Xin Li
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
| | - Rahul Prasanna Misra
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
| | - Michael S Strano
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
| | - Daniel Blankschtein
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
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Baldanza A, Pastore Carbone MG, Brondi C, Manikas AC, Mensitieri G, Pavlou C, Scherillo G, Galiotis C. Chemical Vapour Deposition Graphene-PMMA Nanolaminates for Flexible Gas Barrier. MEMBRANES 2022; 12:membranes12060611. [PMID: 35736318 PMCID: PMC9230733 DOI: 10.3390/membranes12060611] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2022] [Revised: 06/07/2022] [Accepted: 06/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Successful ways of fully exploiting the excellent structural and multifunctional performance of graphene and related materials are of great scientific and technological interest. New opportunities are provided by the fabrication of a novel class of nanocomposites with a nanolaminate architecture. In this work, by using the iterative lift-off/float-on process combined with wet depositions, we incorporated cm-size graphene monolayers produced via Chemical Vapour Deposition into a poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) matrix with a controlled, alternate-layered structure. The produced nanolaminate shows a significant improvement in mechanical properties, with enhanced stiffness, strength and toughness, with the addition of only 0.06 vol% of graphene. Furthermore, oxygen and carbon dioxide permeability measurements performed at different relative humidity levels, reveal that the addition of graphene leads to significant reduction of permeability, compared to neat PMMA. Overall, we demonstrate that the produced graphene-PMMA nanolaminate surpasses, in terms of gas barrier properties, the traditional discontinuous graphene-particle composites with a similar filler content. Moreover, we found that the gas permeability through the nanocomposites departs from a monotonic decrease as a function of relative humidity, which is instead evident in the case of the pure PMMA nanolaminate. This work suggests the possible use of Chemical Vapour Deposition graphene-polymer nanolaminates as a flexible gas barrier, thus enlarging the spectrum of applications for this novel material.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonio Baldanza
- Department of Chemical, Materials and Production Engineering, University of Naples Federico II, P.le Tecchio 80, 80125 Naples, Italy; (A.B.); (C.B.); (G.S.)
| | - Maria Giovanna Pastore Carbone
- Institute of Chemical Engineering Sciences, Foundation for Research and Technology—Hellas (FORTH/ICE-HT), 26504 Patras, Greece; (M.G.P.C.); (C.P.)
| | - Cosimo Brondi
- Department of Chemical, Materials and Production Engineering, University of Naples Federico II, P.le Tecchio 80, 80125 Naples, Italy; (A.B.); (C.B.); (G.S.)
| | | | - Giuseppe Mensitieri
- Department of Chemical, Materials and Production Engineering, University of Naples Federico II, P.le Tecchio 80, 80125 Naples, Italy; (A.B.); (C.B.); (G.S.)
- Correspondence: (G.M.); (C.G.)
| | - Christos Pavlou
- Institute of Chemical Engineering Sciences, Foundation for Research and Technology—Hellas (FORTH/ICE-HT), 26504 Patras, Greece; (M.G.P.C.); (C.P.)
| | - Giuseppe Scherillo
- Department of Chemical, Materials and Production Engineering, University of Naples Federico II, P.le Tecchio 80, 80125 Naples, Italy; (A.B.); (C.B.); (G.S.)
| | - Costas Galiotis
- Institute of Chemical Engineering Sciences, Foundation for Research and Technology—Hellas (FORTH/ICE-HT), 26504 Patras, Greece; (M.G.P.C.); (C.P.)
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Patras, 26504 Patras, Greece;
- Correspondence: (G.M.); (C.G.)
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Naberezhnyi D, Mai L, Doudin N, Ennen I, Hütten A, Altman EI, Devi A, Dementyev P. Molecular Permeation in Freestanding Bilayer Silica. NANO LETTERS 2022; 22:1287-1293. [PMID: 35044780 DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.1c04535] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Graphene and other single-layer structures are pursued as high-flux separation membranes, although imparting porosity endangers their crystalline integrity. In contrast, bilayer silica composed of corner-sharing (SiO4) units is foreseen to be permeable for small molecules due to its intrinsic lattice openings. This study sheds light on the mass transport properties of freestanding 2D SiO2 upon using atomic layer deposition (ALD) to grow large-area films on Au/mica substrates followed by transfer onto Si3N4 windows. Permeation experiments with gaseous and vaporous substances reveal the suspended material to be porous, but the membrane selectivity appears to diverge from the size exclusion principle. Whereas the passage of inert gas molecules is hindered with a permeance below 10-7 mol·s-1·m-2·Pa-1, condensable species like water are found to cross vitreous bilayer silica a thousand times faster in accordance with their superficial affinity. This work paves the way for bilayer oxides to be addressed as inherent 2D membranes.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Lukas Mai
- Inorganic Materials Chemistry, Ruhr University Bochum, 44801 Bochum, Germany
| | - Nassar Doudin
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Inga Ennen
- Faculty of Physics, Bielefeld University, 33615 Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Andreas Hütten
- Faculty of Physics, Bielefeld University, 33615 Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Eric I Altman
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Anjana Devi
- Inorganic Materials Chemistry, Ruhr University Bochum, 44801 Bochum, Germany
| | - Petr Dementyev
- Faculty of Physics, Bielefeld University, 33615 Bielefeld, Germany
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Allen FI. A review of defect engineering, ion implantation, and nanofabrication using the helium ion microscope. BEILSTEIN JOURNAL OF NANOTECHNOLOGY 2021; 12:633-664. [PMID: 34285866 PMCID: PMC8261528 DOI: 10.3762/bjnano.12.52] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2020] [Accepted: 04/30/2021] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
The helium ion microscope has emerged as a multifaceted instrument enabling a broad range of applications beyond imaging in which the finely focused helium ion beam is used for a variety of defect engineering, ion implantation, and nanofabrication tasks. Operation of the ion source with neon has extended the reach of this technology even further. This paper reviews the materials modification research that has been enabled by the helium ion microscope since its commercialization in 2007, ranging from fundamental studies of beam-sample effects, to the prototyping of new devices with features in the sub-10 nm domain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frances I Allen
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
- California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
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