Patterning of transition metal dichalcogenides catalyzed by surface plasmons with atomic precision

A surface plasmon polariton (SPP)-driven etching strategy is reported to etch various transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) into desired layers and lateral sizes by controlling the light power. The etching of TMD nanoflakes is highly dependent on the SPP propagating directions, whereby diverse patterns of TMD homostructures can be achieved. A SPP-induced...

2d

Near-infrared photosensitization via direct triplet energy transfer from lanthanide nanoparticles

A new strategy to achieve high-performance NIR-light-driven photosensitization is developed, based on lanthanide nanoparticle-organic photosensitizer nanoconjugates, through direct triplet energy transfer from the nanoparticles to the photosensitizers. This method permits efficient NIR photosensitization to generate cytotoxic singlet oxygen under 100-times-lower...

2d

Wettability of graphene and interfacial water structure

Cho and co-workers use vibrational sum-frequency-generation (VSFG) spectroscopy of interfacial water on the surface of multilayer graphene to elucidate the molecular origin of graphene wettability. They reveal the detailed hydrogen-bonding structure of interfacial water by examining the VSFG spectra of interfacial water, which they use to explain graphene’s...

2d

Controlling the shape and chirality of an eight-crossing molecular knot

Knots are ubiquitous in the macroscopic world, with uses ranging from tying shoelaces to fishing, and they transform the properties of the thing that is tied. Knots are similarly found at the nanoscale, and likewise control the properties of the molecules in which they are tied. Herein, we describe the formation of a molecular knot with eight crossing...

2d

Asymmetric radical cyclopropanation of dehydroaminocarboxylates: Stereoselective synthesis of cyclopropyl α-amino acids

Cobalt(II)-based metalloradical catalysis (MRC) has been successfully applied for the development of a new catalytic radical process that is highly effective for asymmetric cyclopropanation of dehydroaminocarboxylates with in situ-generated α-aryldiazomethanes. Supported by an optimal D2-symmetric chiral amidoporphyrin ligand, the Co(II)-based catalytic...

2d

Water-involved methane-selective catalytic oxidation by dioxygen over copper zeolites

The selective oxidation of methane to methanol is a dream reaction of direct methane functionalization, which remains a key challenge in catalysis and a hot topic of controversy. Herein, we report the water-involved methane-selective catalytic oxidation by dioxygen over copper zeolites, with the state-of-the-art methanol space-time yield of 543 mmol/molCu/h...

2d

Heat transfer and thermoregulation within single cells revealed by transient plasmonic imaging

The map of thermal conductivity within a single cell was measured using a transient plasmonic microscope. Distinct thermal properties were observed in different spatial regions of cells and between living and dead cells, normal and cancer cells, and warm- and cold-blooded animal cells. Cellular thermal regulation according to environmental temperature...

2d

Reversibly modulating a conformation-adaptive fluorophore in [2]catenane

Designing stimuli-responsive fluorescent molecular systems is of great importance owing to their wide applications. A conformation-adaptive fluorophore is introduced into the mechanically interlocked architecture of [2]catenane. The unique supramolecular environment enables the dynamic and reversible modulation of the fluorescent properties, including...

2d

Catalytic processing of plastic waste on the rise

Although all plastics are virtually produced through catalytic processes, plastic waste is marginally treated with the help of catalysis. This seems due to the greater focus of research on reaction and process engineering rather than catalyst development, under the pressure of rapidly commercializing new solutions. To unlock the full potential of catalysis,...

2d

Stereospecific and stereoconvergent nucleophilic substitution reactions at tertiary carbon centers

Nucleophilic substitutions are fundamental textbook reactions. This review discusses challenging stereospecific SN2 and SN1 substitution at tertiary stereocenters. Stereoconvergent substitution of racemic tertiary electrophiles through different mechanisms are also discussed; they include SN1, single-electron transfer, and SN2X. These reactions proceed...

2d