One-Step Solution Deposition of Antimony Selenoiodide Films via Precursor Engineering for Lead-Free Solar Cell Applications

Ternary chalcohalides are promising lead-free photovoltaic materials with excellent optoelectronic properties. We propose a simple one-step solution-phase precursor-engineering method for antimony selenoiodide (SbSeI) film fabrication. SbSeI films were fabricated by spin-coating the precursor solution, and heating. Various precursor solutions were synthesized by adjusting the molar ratio of two solutions based on SbCl3-selenourea and SbI3. The results suggest that both the molar ratio and the heating temperature play key roles in film phase and morphology. Nanostructured SbSeI films with a high crystallinity were obtained at a molar ratio of 1:1.5 and a temperature of 150 °C. The proposed method could be also used to fabricate (Bi,Sb)SeI.

A BioBricks toolbox for multiplexed metabolic engineering of central carbon metabolism in the tetracenomycin pathway

The tetracenomycins are aromatic anticancer polyketides that inhibit peptide translation via binding to the large ribosomal subunit. Here, we expressed the elloramycin biosynthetic gene cluster in the heterologous host Streptomyces coelicolor M1146 to facilitate the downstream production of tetracenomycin analogs. We developed a BioBricks genetic toolbox of genetic parts for substrate precursor engineering in S. coelicolor M1146::cos16F4iE. We cloned a series of integrating vectors based on the VWB, TG1, and SV1 integrase systems to interrogate gene expression in the chromosome. We genetically engineered three separate genetic constructs to modulate tetracenomycin biosynthesis: 1) the vhb hemoglobin from obligate aerobe Vitreoscilla stercoraria to improve oxygen utilization; (2) the accA2BE acetyl-CoA carboxylase to enhance condensation of malonyl-CoA; (3) lastly, the sco6196 acyltransferase, which is a metabolic regulatory switch responsible for mobilizing triacylglycerols to beta-oxidation machinery for acetyl-CoA. In addition, we engineered the tcmO 8-O-methyltransferase and newly identified tcmD 12-O-methyltransferase from Amycolatopsis sp. A23 to generate tetracenomycins C and X. We also co-expressed the tcmO methyltransferase with oxygenase urdE to generate the analog 6-hydroxy-tetracenomycin C. Altogether, this system is compatible with the BioBricks [RFC 10] cloning standard for the co-expression of multiple gene sets for metabolic engineering of Streptomyces coelicolor M1146::cos16F4iE.

Precursor engineering for high-quality Cs2AgBiBr6 films toward efficient lead-free double perovskite solar cells

We report a facile BiBr3(DMSO)2 adduct process to produce high-quality Cs2AgBiBr6 films with large grains for the first time, which leads to an enhancement of over 40% on the PCE of Cs2AgBiBr6-based solar cells compared to that of the control sample.

Achieving environment-friendly production of CsPbBr3 films for efficient solar cells via precursor engineering

High quality CsPbBr3 films fabricated from water and IPA using perovskite precursor engineering.