Highlights

Apr 26, 2013

Permanent Assembly of Soft Matter Chains as New Materials

Bhuvnesh Bharti (1,) Anne-Laure Fameau (2) Gerhard H. Findenegg (3) and Orlin D. Velev (1) 1 Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, North Carolina State University 2 Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, Nantes, France 3 Institut für Chemie, Technische Universität Berlin, Germany

Binding with oppositely charged particles •Heteroaggregate structure directed by AC-electric field •Chain length distribution tuned by particle size/number ratio •Developed a unique combinatorial approach for predicting chain length

Apr 26, 2013

Supporting STEM Education and Professional Careers through the REU Program

The long term goals of the Triangle MRSEC REU program are to maximize opportunities for undergraduate involvement MRSEC research, recruit diverse undergraduate students from across the country, and encourage and support future careers in materials science and engineering. Our 2012 class of REU students represented a diverse group of undergraduates with 50% females and 75% underrepresented minorities.

Apr 22, 2013

Northwestern University

Plasmonic Bowtie Nanolaser Arrays

Jae Yong Suh1, Chul Hoon Kim1,3, Wei Zhou2, Mark D. Huntington2 Dick T. Co1,3, Michael R. Wasielewski1,3, and Teri W. Odom1,2,3 1Department of Chemistry, 2Department of Materials Science and Engineering, and 3Argonne-Northwestern Solar Energy Research (ANSER) Center, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, USA

Lasing from an electromagnetic hot spot supported by coupled metal nanoparticles (NPs) has been demonstrated for the first time. This new nanolaser architecture is based on three dimensional (3D) Au bowtie NPs supported by an organic gain material. The extreme field compression, and thus ultra-small mode volume, within the bowtie gap produced laser oscillations at the localized surface plasmon resonance gap mode of the 3D bowties. Transient absorption measurements confirmed ultrafast resonant energy transfer between the

Apr 18, 2013

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Harnessing In-Fiber Fluid Instabilities To Create Multimaterial Particles From Fibers

Ayman Abouraddy (UCF), Yoel Fink (MIT)

From drug delivery to catalysis to optoelectronics, the need for efficient fabrication pathways for particles over a wide range of sizes, from a variety of materials, and in many different structures is critical to functionality. Researchers in IRG-III have exploited the inherent scalability of fiber production and an in-fiber Plateau–Rayleigh capillary

Apr 18, 2013

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

New Technique Provides Better Understanding of Problems with Lithium-Air Rechargeable Batteries

Yang Shao-Horn (MIT)

The lack of fundamental understanding of the role of oxygen in non-water based electrolytes significantly hinders the development of rechargeable lithium-air batteries. This IRG has developed a new X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) technique that makes it possible to study the lithium/oxygen chemistry occurring during battery operation as a function of applied voltage and controlled oxygen pressure.

Apr 5, 2013

Colorado School of Mines

The Case for Small Quantum Dots

H. Li, Z. Wu, and M. T. Lusk (Colorado School of Mines) Renewable Energy MRSEC, NSF DMR-0820518

Why are 1-2 nm silicon quantum dots ideal as solar materials?

Apr 3, 2013

Colorado School of Mines

Education and Outreach in the Renewable Energy MRSEC

B. Moskal, J. Strong, T. Ohno, C. A. Stone (Colorado School of Mines), Renewable Energy REMRSEC, NSF DMR-0820518

Teacher Workshop: Eighteen elementary school teachers participated in summer workshop. Student impact of approximately 200 students. Summer Camp: Instruction for a summer camp for forty-two dyslexic students. Intervention provided opportunity to experience success in science.

Apr 3, 2013

Colorado School of Mines

Electrochromic Thin Film Transistors

C. Wolden, C-p. Li (Colorado School of Mines) R. Tennet, A. Dillon (National Renewable Energy Laboratory), Renewable Energy MRSEC, NSF DMR-0820518

We demonstrated an oxide-based TFT using electrochromic WO3 as the channel

Apr 3, 2013

Colorado School of Mines

Ultrafast Electron Transfer in Hydrogenated Nanocrystalline Si

M. R. Bergren, B. J. Simonds, R. Ahrenkiel, T. E. Furtak, R. T. Collins, P. C. Taylor (Colorado School of Mines) B. Yan, G. Yue (United Solar Ovonic) M.C. Beard (National Renewable Energy Laboratory), Renewable Energy MRSEC, NSF DMR-0820518

Apr 3, 2013

University of Utah

Organic topological insulators in organometallic Lattices

Discovery: A class of 2D covalent organic framework made of triphenyl- metal compounds are found to be topological insulators exhibiting robust nontrivial topological edge states. Approach: Predictive First-principles band structure and band topology calculations.