IRES: International Collaboration on Fabrication and Characterization of CdX(X=S,Se) Based Nanohybrids for Photovoltaic and Photocatalytic Applications

人们对环境问题的认识日益提高，这引起了人们对可再生能源和废料回收的兴趣。Adelphi大学（美国）和华沙大学（波兰）之间的这个合作项目将通过重点研究开发用于替代能源的新型智能材料和使用太阳能的水净化新方法来解决这些问题。 该项目将增加未来能够理解和解决这些重要问题的美国工人的数量，同时提高他们与对这些主题感兴趣的国际研究人员合作的能力。这个美国-波兰国际学生研究经验（IRES）项目为波兰华沙大学的12名美国学生提供了为期八周的光化学和纳米技术研究机会。将做出具体努力，确保STEM少数群体中的弱势群体和代表性不足的群体的参与。在波兰实习之前，学生将在阿德尔菲大学的研究实验室工作一学年，培养与拟议研究相关的基本技术技能。这种早期的职业生涯研究经验将提高美国本科生的专业培训和教育，使他们接触到现代仪器，先进的纳米技术研究及其实际应用。IRES学生将通过在国际环境中的体验式教育来培养全球能力，激励和鼓舞年轻的美国研究人员投资未来的研究事业，并成为当今变革的推动者。的世界。研究工作将集中在纳米杂化材料的制造和表征结合CdX（X=S，Se）薄膜与导电聚合物和宽带隙半导体金属氧化物的光伏和光催化应用。详细研究纳米杂化材料的形成过程及其表征将有助于确定影响半导体异质结质量的关键参数，如：材料？选择，合成和加工，以便将其组成，结构和性能联系起来。本项目中提出的实验将检验这一假设。材料合成和光电化学和光催化性能的表征将使用华沙大学实验室提供的最先进的电化学，光谱和显微镜仪器进行。美国-波兰团队希望更好地了解这些纳米混合材料的基本工作原理，以提高其有效性，并构建用于环境修复的高效太阳能电池和光催化设备。成功完成拟议的研究将建议解决一些环境问题，如：危险废物处理和低成本，高效率，替代能源。该项目的成果将通过会议介绍、期刊出版物和社区外联活动加以传播。

Increasing awareness of environmental issues has led to interest in renewable energy sources and waste materials recycling. This collaborative project between Adelphi University (US) and Warsaw University (Poland) will address these topics by focusing research on the development of novel, smart materials for alternative energy sources and new methods of water purification using solar energy. The project will increase the number of future U.S. workers who can understand and solve these important issues while increasing their ability to partner with international researchers who are also interested in these topics. This US-Polish International Research Experience for Students (IRES) project provides eight-week, photochemistry and nanotechnology research opportunity for twelve US students at Warsaw University, Poland. Specific efforts will be made ensuring the involvement of underprivileged and underrepresented in STEM minorities. Prior to their internships in Poland, students will spend the academic year working in research laboratory at Adelphi University developing essential technical skills relevant to the proposed research. This early-career research experience will enhance the professional training and education of the US undergraduate students by exposing them to modern instrumentation, advanced nanotechnology research, and its practical application. IRES students will develop global competencies through experiential education in an international environment motivating and inspiring young US researchers to invest in future research careers and become agents of change in today?s world. Research efforts will focus on fabrication and characterization of nanohybrids combining CdX (X=S, Se) thin films with conducting polymers and wide-bandgap semiconducting metal oxides for photovoltaic and photocatalytic applications. Detailed studies of the nanohybrids formation process and their characterization will help to identify the key parameters influencing the semiconductor heterojunction quality, such as: materials? choice, their synthesis and processing, in order to correlate their composition, structure and performance. The experiments proposed in this project will test this hypothesis. Both, material synthesis and characterization of the photoelectrochemical and photocatalytic properties will be performed using state-of-the-art electrochemical, spectroscopic and microscopic instrumentation available at Warsaw University laboratories. The US-Polish team expects to gain a better understanding of the basic working principles of these nanohybrid materials in order to increase their effectiveness and construct high efficiency solar cells and photocatalytic devices for environmental remediation. Successful completion of the proposed research would suggest solutions on some environmental issues, such as: hazardous waste treatment and low cost, high efficiency, alternative energy sources. The results of this project will be disseminated by conference presentations, journal publications and community outreach.