Mg-Ni-H films as selective coatings: tunable reflectance by layered hydrogenation

The advancement of semiconductor materials has played a crucial role in the development of electronic and optical devices. However, scaling down semiconductor devices to the nanoscale has imposed limitations on device properties due to quantum effects. Hence, the search for successor materials has become a central focus in the fields of materials science and physics. Transition-metal nitrides (TMNs) are extraordinary materials known for their outstanding stability, biocompati...

Thermal imaging and sensing technologies offer critical information about our thermally radiant world, and in recent years, have seen dramatic increases in usage for a range of applications. However, the cost and technical finesse of manufacturing infrared optical components remain a major barrier towards the democratization of these technologies. In this report, we present a solution processed plasmonic reflective filter or PRF as a scalable and inexpensive thermal infrared ...

We investigate the electronic, the thermal, and the optical properties of BN-codoped MgO monolayers taking into account the interaction effects between the B and the N dopant atoms. The relatively wide indirect band gap of a pure MgO nanosheet can be changed to a narrow direct band gap by tuning the B-N attractive interaction. The band gap reduction does not only enhance the optical properties, including the absorption spectra and the optical conductivity, but also the most i...

Surface fogging is a common phenomenon that can have significant and detrimental effects on surface transparency and visibility. It affects the performance in a wide range of applications including windows, windshields, electronic displays, cameras, mirrors, and eyewear. A host of ongoing research is aimed at combating this problem by understanding and developing stable and effective anti-fogging coatings that are capable of handling a wide range of environmental challenges "...

The mass-production of fuel-cell vehicles and the eventual transition to the hydrogen economy will require safe, inexpensive and reliable sensors capable of simultaneously detecting low concentrations of leaking hydrogen and measuring broad ranges of hydrogen concentration in storage and energy generating systems. Although several competing sensor technologies can potentially be used in this role, just a few of them have thus far demonstrated a combination of all desirable ch...

We demonstrate the tuneablity of the ultrafast energy flow in magnetic/non-magnetic bilayer structures by changing the wavelength of the optical excitation. This is achieved by an advanced description of the temperature based $\mu$T-model that explicitly considers the wavelength- and layer-dependent absorption profile within multilayer structures. For the exemplary case of a Ni/Au bilayer, our simulations predict that the energy flow from Ni to Au is reversed when changing th...

Advent of new materials such as van der Waals heterostructures, propels new research directions in condensed matter physics and enables development of novel devices with unique functionalities. Here, we show experimentally that a monolayer of MoSe2 embedded in a charge controlled heterostructure can be used to realize an electrically tunable atomically-thin mirror, that effects 90% extinction of an incident field that is resonant with its exciton transition. The corresponding...

Inhibiting ice accumulation on surfaces is an energy-intensive task and is of significant importance in nature and technology where it has found applications in windshields, automobiles, aviation, renewable energy generation, and infrastructure. Existing methods rely on on-site electrical heat generation, chemicals, or mechanical removal, with drawbacks ranging from financial costs to disruptive technical interventions and environmental incompatibility. Here we focus on appli...

NiCo2O4 (NCO) films grown on MgAl2O4 (001) substrates have been studied using magnetometry, x-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) based on x-ray absorption spectroscopy, and spin-polarized inverse photoemission spectroscopy (SPIPES) with various thickness down to 1.6 nm. The magnetic behavior can be understood in terms of a layer of optimal NCO and an interfacial layer (1.2+/- 0.1 nm), with a small canting of magnetization at the surface. The thickness dependence of the op...

The current energy transition imposes a rapid implementation of energy storage systems with high energy density and eminent regeneration and cycling efficiency. Metal hydrides are potential candidates for generalized energy storage, when coupled with fuel cell units and/or batteries. An overview of ongoing research is reported and discussed in this review work on the light of application as hydrogen and heat storage matrices, as well as thin films for hydrogen optical sensors...