BRIGE: Scalable Bottom-up Synthesis of Well-defined Diamond Nanowire/Nanotube Arrays

这项扩大参与的工程研究启动补助金(Brige)提供资金，以开发一种新的自下而上的纳米制造方法来合成半导体金刚石纳米线。通过所提出的自下而上的纳米加工方法，垂直排列的金刚石纳米线阵列将被制备成具有良好的纳米结构和高纵横比的阵列。将对工艺参数进行优化，以控制钻石纳米线的尺寸和形状。将开展理论工作，以实现对金刚石晶体生长的物理了解，为纳米加工过程提供更多的见解。将对合成的金刚石纳米线进行实验表征，以揭示其结构-性质和尺寸-性质关系。我们将从实验和理论两个方面进行努力，以实现一种简单、经济的大规模制造金刚石纳米线阵列的技术。如果这项研究成功，将带来一种新的金刚石纳米线制造工艺。这项工作开发的技术将有助于纳米金刚石在各个领域的更广泛应用，如化学传感器、生物测试、光电子学和超级电容器。此外，这项研究将与教育活动紧密结合，扩大作为少数群体成员的本科生和研究生对工程研究的参与，以便他们可以在未来选择工程职业。通过与校园推广计划的合作，拟议的为期两天的互动暑期工作坊将为K-12学生提供独特的尖端工程技术实践机会，并激发他们对科学和工程的兴趣。该项目的成果将被纳入课程，并通过NSF年度报告、会议报告和期刊出版物广泛传播。

This Broadening Participation Research Initiation Grant in Engineering (BRIGE) grant provides funding to develop a novel bottom-up nanofabrication method to synthesize semiconducting diamond nanowires. Vertically aligned diamond nanowire arrays will be fabricated with well-defined nanostructures and high aspect ratios by the proposed bottom-up nanofabrication method. The processing parameters will be optimized to control the size and shape of diamond nanowires. Theoretical work will be carried out to achieve a physical understanding of the diamond crystal growth to provide more insights for the nanofabrication process. Synthesized diamond nanowires will be experimentally characterized in order to reveal their structure-property and size-property relationships. Both experimental and theoretical efforts will be implemented to achieve a simple and cost-effective technique for large-scale fabrication of well-defined diamond nanowire arrays.If successful, this research will lead to a novel manufacturing process for diamond nanowires. The technology developed in this work will contribute to wider applications of nanodiamond in various fields, such as chemical sensors, biological assays, optoelectronics, and supercapacitors. In addition, this research will be closely integrated with educational activities to broaden participation of undergraduate and graduate students who are members of minority groups in engineering research so that they may choose an engineering career in the future. Through collaboration with a campus outreach program, the proposed interactive two-day summer workshop will provide K-12 students unique hands-on-experience opportunities on cutting-edge engineering technologies, and stimulate their interests in science and engineering. The results of this project will be integrated into curriculum and broadly disseminated through NSF annual reports, conference presentations, and journal publications.