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Program Highlights for year 2016

3D Multimodal Imaging of Biphasic Thermoelectrics

The use of a prototype “TriBeam” microscope, a scanning electron microscope equipped with a femtosecond laser for rapid serial sectioning, allows 3D views of materials to be obtained.

Electrocatalytic Surfaces Using Bulk Metallic Glass Nanostructures

Metallic glass nanostructures provide a new platform for electrocatalytic applications. Several surface modification strategies that remove or add metal species (images, right) improve the catalytic activity of metallic glass nanostructures.   These strategies were demonstrated for three key electrocatalytic reactions important for renewable energy.     

Revealing Hidden Phases in Materials

Strong interactions at the interface between a crystalline film and substrate can impart new structure to thin films. Here, a germanium surface (purple atoms) squeezes a BaTiO3 thin film above, revealing a hidden phase not seen in the bulk. The hidden phase of BaTiO3 shows oxygen octahedra cages (shaded in aqua) alternating in size.

Metasurface Generation of Accelerating Light

Artificially designed planar devices known as metasurfaces can control the output of an incident beam to generate prechosen patterns.

A III-Nitride Monolithic Nanowire Laser for Silicon Photonics

Present day silicon chips for communication and computing are densely packed with transistors and other passive elements.

Persistent Optical Gating of a Topological Insulator

An inter-MRSEC collaboration between the University of Chicago and the Pennsylvania State University led to the discovery of a new technique that enables bidirectional control of the chemical potential in a topological insulator (TI).

Red, Yellow, Green, and Blue Lasing Using Colloidal Quantum Wells

There is an abiding interest in using nanocrystals as laser gain media due to their tunable emission wavelengths, low cost, and solution processability. However, it has been proven difficult to achieve low lasing thresholds suitable for practical applicatons.

Plate Mechanical Metamaterials

We introduced the concept of plate mechanical metamaterials [1] and its initial realization in the form of freestanding corrugated plates made out of ultrathin films.

Helium Conservation in the Property Measurement Facility (SEF)

The NSF has awarded additional funds to support helium conservation in the Property Measurement Shared Experimental Facility (SEF). The SEF hosts over a dozen low temperature measurement capabilities requiring liquid helium.

Dendrimer-Nanocrystal Building Blocks

Optimum function of plasmonic nanocrystal in assembly requires precision control of separation. Often, larger separations are desired while still maintaining order. With our COMPASS collaborators, Hough and Donnio, IRG-4 has developed a new class of building blocks that incorporate dendrimer ligands.

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