EAGER: Education through Innovative Research: Novel Plasmonic Semiconductors

美国国家科学基金会使用探索性研究早期概念补助金(EARGER)资助机制，支持未经检验但可能具有变革性的研究想法或方法的早期探索性工作。特拉华州立大学的这个项目旨在将研究和教育结合起来，为等离子体半导体的新研究方向奠定基础，并通过促进本科生化学专业的创新研究来验证教育方法。这项研究将通过研究三元和四元硫化物半导体纳米结构在红外区域的等离子体效应来探索等离子体材料的范式转变。该项目的进展和方法将体现在一门旨在训练学生在研究中创新和创造性思维的课程中。最近的研究报告表明，纳米结构半导体粒子在近红外区域表现出强大的等离子体效应，这可能会极大地影响其光-物质相互作用。大量的半导体材料，包括氧化物和硫化物，已经被彻底地研究了它们的光伏性能，因此它们的制备方法很容易得到。这项拟议的项目旨在利用先前报道的CuInS2纳米环作为合成方法的模型，合成并探索锗脉络合物CuGeS2和Cu2ZnGeS4中的等离子体效应。这些史无前例的研究结果将应用于大量硫族化合物。在硫化物半导体领域产生的知识可能导致在红外探测器领域开发用于个人防护或食品安全等领域的新装置。

The National Science Foundation uses the EArly-concept Grants for Exploratory Research (EAGER) funding mechanism to support exploratory work in its early stages on untested, but potentially transformative, research ideas or approaches. The project at Delaware State University aims to integrate research and education to establish the foundation for a new research direction in plasmonic semiconductors, and for validating an educational approach by promoting innovative research to undergraduate chemistry students. The research will explore a paradigm shift in plasmonic materials by investigating ternary and quaternary chalcogenide semiconductor nanostructures for their plasmonic effects in the infrared region. The project's progress and methodology will be captured in a course designed to train students in innovation and creative thinking in research. Recent research reports indicate that nanostructured semiconductor particles could exhibit potent plasmonic effects in the near infrared region that could impact dramatically their light-matter interaction. A plethora of semiconductor materials, both oxides and chalcogenides, have been thoroughly investigated for their photovoltaic properties and therefore their preparation methods are readily available. The proposed project seeks to synthesize and explore plasmonic effects in germanium chalchogenides, CuGeS2 and Cu2ZnGeS4, using the previously reported CuInS2 nanorings as models for the synthetic approach. The findings of these unprecedented studies will be applied to a large number of chalcogenides. The knowledge generated in the area of chalcogenide semiconductors could lead to developing novel devices in the field of infrared detectors for applications in areas such as personal protection or food safety.