We report that few-layer hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) nanosheets can be produced by using a surface segregation method. The formation of h-BN sheets is via an intermediate boron-nitrogen buffer layer. Our results suggest that surface segregation of boron and nitrogen from a solid source is an alternative approach to tailoring synthesis of h-BN sheets for potential applications such as in grap...

Boron nitride nanosheets (BNNSs) with micron-sized edges were prepared in high yields by direct exfoliation of bulk hexagonal boron nitrides using ionic liquids (ILs). The ILs strongly attached onto BNNS surfaces, and dramatically enhanced the exfoliation, giving highly concentrated BNNS dispersions (∼1.9 mg mL(-1)) and yields reaching ∼50%.

Water was investigated on a h-BN/Rh(111) nanomesh template using variable temperature scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Below 52 K, two distinct phases self-assemble within the 3.2 nm unit cell of the nanomesh that consists of "holes" and "wires". In the 2 nm holes, an ordered phase of nano-ice crystals with about 40 molecules is found. The ic...

Hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) has recently emerged as an excellent substrate for graphene nanodevices, owing to its atomically flat surface and its potential to engineer graphene's electronic structure. Thus far, graphene/h-BN heterostructures have been obtained only through a transfer process, which introduces structural uncertainties due to the random stacking between graphene and h-BN subst...

Securing a semiconducting bandgap is essential for applying graphene layers in switching devices. Theoretical studies have suggested a created bulk bandgap in a graphene layer by introducing an asymmetry between the A and B sub-lattice sites. A recent transport measurement demonstrated the presence of a bandgap in a graphene layer where the asymmetry was introduced by placing a graphene layer o...

Nuclear reactions initiated by laser-accelerated particle beams are a promising new approach to many applications, from medical radioisotopes to aneutronic energy production. We present results demonstrating the occurrence of secondary nuclear reactions, initiated by the primary nuclear reaction products, using multicomponent targets composed of either natural boron (B) or natural boron nitride...

The performance of field effect transistors comprised of a zigzag graphene nanoribbon that is symmetrically doped with boron nitride (BN) as a channel material, is numerically studied for the first time. The device merit for digital applications is investigated in terms of the on-, the off- and the on/off-current ratio. Due to the strong effect of the substrate roughness on the performance of g...

Biological ion channels in membranes are selectively permeable to specific ionic species. They maintain the resting membrane potential, generate propagated action potentials, and control a wide variety of cell functions. Here it is demonstrated theoretically that boron nitride nanotubes have the ability to carry out some of the important functions of biological ion channels. Boron nitride nanot...

Boron nitride ~BN! thin films ~containing mixed cBN/hBN phase! have been deposited on Si~100! substrates using neutralized nitrogen beam and electron beam evaporation of boron. All as-deposited BN films were p type with a room-temperature carrier concentration in the range of 5310 to 1310 cm. The Mg-doped BN films showed carrier concentrations in the range of 1.2 310 cm to 5.2310 cm when the Mg...