Synthesis IRG:

Dr. Ron Noftle, Dr. Abdou Lachgar, Dr. David Carroll, Dr. Nicole Levi-Polyachenko

 

The synthesis methods we employ are widely varied: CVD, Laser assisted CVD, PLD, RF Magnetron sputtering, Kratchmer Generator growth, chemical synthesis, and electro-chemical templating. The systems currently uncer study are:

• Electro-spun polymer fibers,
• Polymer nanospheres and nanowires
• Carbon Nanotubes, and their doped variants,
• Metal Nanoparticles,
• GaN, PbS, PbSe nanowires
• Conducting polymers (donor-acceptor systems)
• Caged structures

A key aspect of any nanomaterials synthesis program is the characterization techniques utilized. We specialize in electron and scanning probe microscopies, scanning probe spectroscopies, and a number of optical techniques such as Raman, Luminscences, Pulse-Probe, Time-of-flight, and z-scan for nonlinear effects. We also have a number of long standing collaborations in Raman, HRTEM, EELS, and XPS-UPS, to further our characterization methods.

Once nanoscale building blocks have been created, what do you do with them. Usually, they must be assembled into a structure that makes use of their unusual properties at the macroscale. These assemblies can be a simple as a randomly places assortment of nanotubes into thin transparent conducting films. They can be as complex as multiple and distinct nano-elements assembled into crystalline-like registry such as a photonic crystal. At Nanotech we are approaching the complexity of order using several methods:

• Directed chemical assembly
• Entropic assembly
• Biologically inspired biochemical assembly
• Templated assembly
• Chaotic advection and smart matrix assembly