MRI: Development of a Scanning Probe Microscope for Resolving Fast Local Dynamics in Nanostructured Materials

技术说明：这项主要研究仪器奖支持开发一种扫描探针显微镜，能够跟踪电荷密度，离子运动，极化和分子合作现象的动态局部变化，时间分辨率为100纳秒。该仪器将允许这些瞬态现象进行测量后，光学，电气或热激发，同时探测系统响应与纳米级的空间分辨率在受控的气氛中，并在不同的温度。 该仪器将提供的能力包括：（1）通过分析瞬态激励后的动态悬臂运动来测量发生在~100 ns时间尺度上的事件的能力;（2）能够用与悬臂运动同步的光脉冲激发样品，并使用鲁棒的，商业AFM提示，和（3）的能力，执行高带宽非接触频率调制为基础的介电测量，并比较它们与接触模式介电光谱在一个很宽的频率范围。通过允许在高带宽和高空间分辨率下进行这些动态测量，该仪器将允许通过将性能与特定结构特征直接联系起来来实现未来的材料进步，即使是在真实的技术材料和应用中经常遇到的异质薄膜中。非技术性描述：华盛顿大学的研究人员将建造并调试一台独特的扫描探针显微镜，该显微镜能够跟踪电子、离子和分子特性的动态局部变化。显微镜将能够捕捉到发生在小于20亿分之一米（比头发小20，000倍）的特征中的变化，其速度超过100亿分之一秒。一旦完成，显微镜将作为现有共享用户设施的一部分，为华盛顿大学内外的研究人员提供研究新材料的能力，这些新材料可用于推动经济和环境重要技术的应用，例如用于产生低成本能源的新太阳能光电转换器，用于消费电子和运输应用的锂离子电池，用于废热回收和热管理的热电材料、用于柔性电子器件和传感器的新型铁电体以及用于工业和环境重要分离的膜。这些设备将支持该大学能源和分子工程及科学研究所先进材料的持续培训和外联工作。该计划将支持学生和博士后学者在下一代仪器的建设和使用方面的培训，并通过鼓励与行业的联系，不仅为他们提供教育丰富，而且还支持未来商业化和广泛采用所开发仪器的可能性。

Technical Description: This Major Research Instrumentation award supports development of a scanning probe microscope capable of following dynamic local changes in charge density, ionic motion, polarization, and molecular cooperative phenomena with ~100 nanosecond temporal resolution. The instrument will allow these transient phenomena to be measured following optical, electrical, or thermal excitation while probing the system response with nanometer-scale spatial resolution in a controlled atmosphere and at varying temperatures. The instrument will offer capabilities including: (1) the ability to measure events taking place on ~100 ns timescales by analysis of the dynamic cantilever motion following a transient excitation; (2) the ability to excite the sample with optical pulses synchronized to the cantilever motion and to detect the resulting transient electrical, thermal, and dielectric relaxation processes with high resolution using robust, commercial AFM tips, and; (3) the ability to perform high-bandwidth non-contact frequency-modulation based dielectric measurements, and compare them with contact mode dielectric spectroscopy over a wide frequency range. By permitting these dynamic measurements to be performed at high bandwidth and high spatial resolution, the instrument will allow for future materials advances by directly connecting performance with specific structural features, even in heterogeneous films as are often encountered in real technological materials and applications.*******Non-Technical Description:The investigators at the University of Washington will build, and commission a unique scanning probe microscope capable of following dynamic local changes in electronic, ionic, and molecular properties. The microscope will be able to capture changes happening faster than 100 billionths of a second in features smaller than 20 billionths of a meter (20,000 times smaller than a hair) in size. Once completed, the microscope will be made available as part of an existing shared user facility, providing researchers within and beyond the University of Washington with capabilities to study new materials for applications that advance economically and environmentally important technologies such as new solar photovoltaics for generating low cost energy, Li-ion batteries for consumer electronics and transportation applications, thermoelectric materials for waste heat recovery and thermal management, novel ferroelectrics for use in flexible electronics and sensors, and membranes for industrially and environmentally important separations. The equipment will support the ongoing training and outreach efforts of the Advanced Materials for Energy and Molecular Engineering and Sciences Institutes at the University. The program will support training of student and postdoctoral scholars in the construction and use of next generation of instrumentation, and by encouraging ties with industry will not only provide them with educational enrichment but also support future possibilities for commercialization and widespread adoption of the developed instrumentation.