CAREER: In Situ Monitoring of Synthesis of Nanoscale Materials with Electrochemistry

About This Grant

With support from the Macromolecular, Supramolecular, and Nanochemistry (MSN) Program in the Division of Chemistry, Professor Igor Fedin of The University of Alabama is developing a universal electrochemical tool to probe syntheses of nanoscale materials from molecular precursors at elevated temperatures directly in the reaction system. This work will provide new experimental insights into nucleation and growth and will revisit the classical models, which has been around for 75 years and extend beyond colloidal nanoscale semiconductors. This knowledge will help the community achieve atomic-level understanding of transformation of matter from molecular state to clusters to solid state and produce materials of novel compositions of interest. Prof. Fedin will work to enhance the knowledge and capabilities of local Alabamian students of multiple educational levels in the chemistry of quantum materials. He will work with Dr. Robert Green of Alabama State University, a primary undergraduate institution (PUI), to establish a program where the ASU students will learn the synthesis, spectroscopy, and microscopy of colloidal nanocrystals. This project will train students in advanced synthesis, spectroscopy, electron microscopy, and electrochemistry and prepare them for careers in science and technology. With support from the Macromolecular, Supramolecular, and Nanochemistry (MSN) Program in the Division of Chemistry, Professor Igor Fedin of The University of Alabama is developing the atomic-level understanding and control over the synthesis of nanoscale materials with predefined electronic and photonic properties, including two-dimensional layered materials, quantum dots (QDs), quantum wells, metal-oxide nanocrystals (NCs), and metallic NCs. Prof. Fedin will develop an electrochemical probe that will sit in a hot reaction vessel without disrupting the natural course of the reaction, be stable under ambient reaction conditions, and provide a fast response on the dynamics of the reaction. The team will use the read-out to investigate the thermodynamics and kinetics of nucleation and growth and determine for which nanocrystals nucleation happens under the conditions of thermodynamic reversibility. This knowledge will help them develop and probe syntheses of nanocrystals of novel compositions of interest (nitrides, phosphides). With the success of the project, Prof. Fedin will develop a versatile tool to study the evolution of matter from the molecular state to clusters to the solid state. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.