A process of forming a thin film photoactive layer of an optoelectronic device comprising: providing a substrate having a surface comprising or coated with a metal M selected from at least one of Pb, Sn, Ge, Si, Ti, Bi, or In; and converting the metal surface or metal coating of the substrate to a perovskite layer.

Nanostructured coating materials, methods of their production, and methods of use in a variety of applications are described. The nanostructured materials described herein include one or more 2.sup.+ and/or 3.sup.+ metal ion(s), optionally in a ternary phase, on a substrate.

Disclosed is an electrical steel sheet with an insulating coating formed by applying a surface-treatment agent to at least one surface of the electrical steel sheet and drying the surface-treatment agent, wherein the surface-treatment agent contains: certain trialkoxysilane and/or dialkoxysilane (A); a silane coupling agent (B) that does not contain a polymerizable unsaturated group in its structure; plate-like silica (C); a polymerizable unsaturated-group-containing compound (D); and water, within a range satisfying the following conditions (1) to (3): (1) a mass ratio (A/B) of (A) to (B) is from 0.05 to 1.00; (2) a content of (C) is 2 mass % to 30 mass % with respect to a total mass of (A) to (D) in the surface-treatment agent; and (3) a content of (D) is 2 mass % to 18 mass % with respect to the total mass of (A) to (D) in the surface-treatment agent.

Aqueous solutions of halogenides (oxyhalides) of zirconium and hafnium (M) with values of α=X/M near one, for X=Cl, Br and I form amorphous solids or glasses, designated as M,X, in contrast to important crystalline oxyhalide end members with α=2 (designated as MOX). The present disclosure describes methods for producing amorphous thin films comprising halogenides upon evaporation, and provides some measured physical properties, with attention to compositions for α<2. The value of a below which only glasses are formed is about one for oxychlorides and oxybromides of both Zr and Hf. The chemical formulas for all the halogenide thin films prepared as noted above can be written as a function of the single parameter α, according to M(OH).sub.4-αX.sub.α.(4α-1)H.sub.2O. This is valid for e.g., crystalline zirconium oxychloride octahydrate, and for the glassy solids found for α<2 and down to the onset of hydrolysis, α≈0.5. Thin films made by the disclosed methods are highly dense (90% of theoretical crystal density), extremely smooth (rms<0.4 nm), and highly transparent in the visible spectrum, >90%. Such thin films are useful as alkali diffusion barriers.

A process comprising: (i) coating particles of silicon carbide, silicon nitride, boron carbide or boron nitride with a metal alloy or metal layer; (ii) agglomerating the particles of step (i); thermally spraying the agglomerated metal or metal alloy coated particles onto a substrate to provide a coating thereon.

The process comprises treating 90-190 g titanium (IV) chloride in 10-100 ml de-ionized water for preparing Titanium cation (Ti.sup.4+); treating 130-275 ml potassium persulfate in 10-100 ml double-distilled water and keeping at constant temperature to obtain sulphate/oxide; dipping substrates into titanium (IV) chloride solution and re-dipping in de-ionized water to remove loosely bonded ions, if could be any; dipping substrates into potassium persulfate solution and re-dipping in de-ionized water to remove loosely bonded ions, if could be any, and keeping at 50-90° C. for complete one cycle; treating obtained Titanium cation (Ti.sup.4+) with sulphate/oxide and obtaining whitish layer on the substrate surface by necked eyes after about 10-15 cycles, suggesting initiation of film formation, wherein the deposition thickness of TiO.sub.2 layer is increased from 0.3-2.0-micron on determined 5-50 deposition cycles; and rinsing deposited films with de-ionized water and air annealed at 400-600° C. temperature to obtain anatase TiO.sub.2.

The present disclosure provides methods for forming sol-gels, sol-gel films and substrates, such as vehicle components, having a sol-gel film disposed thereon. At least one method of forming a sol-gel includes mixing a metal alkoxide, an acid stabilizer, and an organic solvent to form a first mixture having about 10 wt % or less water content based on the total weight of the first mixture. The method includes mixing an organosilane with the first mixture to form a second mixture having about 10 wt % or less water content based on the total weight of the second mixture.

The present disclosure relates to a transition metal-doped nickel phosphide nanostructure, a method for preparing the same, and a catalyst for electrochemical water decomposition including the transition metal-doped nickel phosphide nanostructure. More specifically, a transition metal-doped nickel phosphide nanostructure can be prepared by converting a zinc oxide nanostructure grown on a substrate vertically by hydrothermal synthesis to a transition metal-doped nickel oxide nanostructure by cation exchange and then phosphorizing the nickel oxide. The transition metal-doped nickel phosphide nanostructure of the present disclosure is advantageous in that it has superior catalytic activity and conductivity due to large surface area. In addition, when used as a catalyst for water decomposition under an alkaline condition, it has a low overvoltage and can have excellent catalytic activity for hydrogen evolution reaction or oxygen evolution reaction.

The present invention provides an apparatus for the deposition of thin films on a substrate, including large substrates, held preferably face-down, in a cartridge containing a liquid solution with at least a chemical precursor which, upon being subject to a uniform microwave field transmitted through a microwave-transparent window, leads to the formation of a thin film on the substrate. The present invention also provides a system for launching microwaves and controlling the process for film deposition on the substrate. The present invention also provides a process for obtaining a film of uniform thickness and characteristics on a substrate or for incorporating controlled non-uniformity. The present invention also provides an apparatus and method for film deposition on a series of substrates in a continuous batch process.

A sol-gel method for producing an anti-corrosion coating consisting of at least one layer of an oxide on a metal substrate. A non-aqueous solution of a precursor of the oxide is prepared and deposited on one surface at least of the metal substrate in order to cover said surface at least partially with a film comprising the precursor of the oxide. Hydrolysis-condensation of the precursor of the oxide is carried out by exposing the film to a humid atmosphere in order to form an oxide network in the film. Then, a treatment for stabilizing the film on the surface of the substrate is carried out, followed by a heat treatment of the surface of the metal substrate in order to crystallize the network of oxide and form the anti-corrosion coating.