The current state of materials development in nonlinear optics is summarized, and the promise of these materials is critically evaluated. Properties and important materials constants of current commercial materials and of new, promising, inorganic and organic molecular and polymeric materials with potential in second- and third-order nonlinear optical applications are presented.

Layered hybrid materials (LHMs) based on ordered silicoaluminate sheets linked with organic fragments, perpendicularly located and stabilized in the interlayer space, were synthesized by one-pot direct hydrothermal process, in absence of structural directing agents (SDAs), and using bridged silsesquioxanes as organosilicon precursors. By following the synthesis described here, the preliminary p...

Picric acid has a tendency to form stable picrate compounds with various organic molecules due to the presence of active electron cloud and ionic bonds (Yamaguchi et al., 1988). In the past two decades, organic nonlinear optical (NLO) picrate crystals have attracted the scientists and technologists due to their potential applications in the area of photonics including optical information proces...

The preparation and the characterization of novel geopolymer-based hybrid composites are reported. These materials have been prepared through an innovative synthetic approach, based on a co-reticulation in mild conditions of commercial epoxy based organic resins and a metakaolin-based geopolymer inorganic matrix. This synthetic strategy allows the obtainment of a homogeneous dispersion of the o...

Hydrotalcite-like compounds are two-dimensional inorganic nanolayers also known as clay minerals or anionic clays or layered double hydroxides/layered hydroxy salts, and have emerged as a single type of material with numerous biomedical applications, such as drug delivery, gene delivery, cosmetics, and biosensing. Inorganic nanolayers are promising materials due to their fascinating properties,...

This report describes recent aspects of advanced inorganic materials for photovoltaics or solar cell applications. Specific materials examined will be high-efficiency silicon, gallium arsenide and related materials, and thin-film materials, particularly amorphous silicon and (polycrystalline) copper indium selenide. Some of the advanced concepts discussed include multijunction III-V (and thin-f...

In the past few years, spiropyran has emerged as the molecule-of-choice for the construction of novel dynamic materials. This unique molecular switch undergoes structural isomerisation in response to a variety of orthogonal stimuli, e.g. light, temperature, metal ions, redox potential, and mechanical stress. Incorporation of this switch onto macromolecular supports or inorganic scaffolds allows...

0927-0256/$ see front matter 2008 Elsevier B.V. A doi:10.1016/j.commatsci.2008.07.016 * Corresponding author. E-mail addresses: [email protected] (O. Eri fysik.uu.se (M. Klintenberg). 1 Partly affiliated at Lawrence Berkeley National La during years 2002–2005. 2 Tel.: +46 18 4713625; fax: +46 18 4713524. 3 Partly affiliated at LBNL during years 1998–2005. A highly accelerated electronic...

The unique, well-defined tubular structure of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) continues to attract interest. CNTs are fascinating materials for basic scientific research with the potential for several promising applications in catalysis, electronic devices and chemical biology. In recent years, many efforts have led to the development of versatile methods to modify CNTs to obtain derivatives with more ...