Postdoctoral Fellowship: CREST-PRP: Investigation and design of Molecular Spintronic photovoltaic devices via Raman Spectroscopy

CREST博士后研究计划(CREST-PRP)为活跃的CREST中心的个人早期职业科学家提供两年的研究、培训和指导经验支持。CREST-PRP的目标是增加STEM劳动力的存在，这些个人是STEM领域代表性不足的群体的成员。CREST-PRP奖项表彰具有巨大潜力的研究人员，并支持他们的研究经验，以拓宽他们的视野，促进跨学科互动，并为CREST-PRP学者在科学界担任领导职位做好准备。研究项目“CREST-PRP：基于拉曼光谱的分子自旋光伏器件的研究与设计”与CREST-PRP的目标直接一致。该项目由哥伦比亚特区大学CREST纳米技术研究和教育中心(CNRE)的一名博士后研究员提交，该项目将专注于开发一种在效率、成本和可持续性方面优于典型硅基太阳能电池的新型太阳能电池。在CNRE已经开展的这一新兴太阳能电池科学的基础上，该项目将利用电子的自旋特性，利用铁和镍等地球上丰富的廉价材料开发出基于自旋的太阳能电池，使它们变得更便宜和可回收。这项拟议的研究将为制造能够产生大量光电流的大面积太阳能电池提供见解，从而推动太阳能电池科学的发展。该项目中正在研究的光学活性具有促进光收集材料、光学传感器和新型超材料的其他创新的潜力。此外，该项目将为博士后研究员提供培训和指导，提高该学者作为研究员和首席研究员的技能。该项目提出的研究也符合《芯片法案》的目标，即加强半导体研究培训，以保持美国在全球半导体行业的竞争力。本研究中使用的磁性隧道结分子自旋电子器件(MTJMSD)是通过将磁性隧道结(MTJ)的铁磁电极与金属有机团簇(OMC)或单分子磁体(SMM)桥联分子沿着器件暴露的边缘连接而成的。在室温下，顺磁性的OMC和SMM分子在铁磁电极之间产生了强烈的交换耦合。CNRE之前进行的研究表明，TaCoNiFe/AlOx/NiFe MTJMSD可以产生可重复的光电流，并通过各种磁学和光学实验方法提供了分子对铁磁金属电极的相变影响的证据。这项研究将包括各种顺磁分子桥、铁磁电极组成和绝缘体厚度。拉曼研究还表明，MTJMSD铁磁电极对可见光辐射做出响应；这一因素将允许使用拉曼光谱来研究MTJMSD交叉结区上光伏效应的空间范围。研究结果将被用于基于在所研究的MTJMSD中观察到的最佳分子/电极/空间取向来制造大面积(1 Cm2)太阳能电池。人们对这种基于自旋的光伏效应进行了有限的研究。然而，与传统的硅基设备相比，旋转式太阳能电池的开发可能会显著节省太阳能电池的生产成本。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The CREST Postdoctoral Research Program (CREST-PRP) provides two years of support for research, training, and mentoring experiences for individual early career scientists at active CREST Centers. The goal of the CREST-PRP is to increase the STEM workforce presence of individuals who are members of groups underrepresented in STEM fields. CREST-PRP awards recognize investigators with significant potential and support their research experiences to broaden their perspectives, facilitate interdisciplinary interactions, and prepare CREST-PRP scholars for positions of leadership within the scientific community. The research project “CREST-PRP: Investigation and Design of Molecular Spintronic Photovoltaic Devices Via Raman Spectroscopy” is in direct alignment with the CREST-PRP goals. Submitted by a postdoctoral researcher affiliated with the CREST Center for Nanotechnology Research and Education (CNRE) housed at the University of the District of Columbia, the project will focus on the development of a new type of solar cell that is superior to typical silicon-based solar cells in terms of efficiency, cost, and sustainability. Building on the foundational work in this emerging solar cell science already occurring at the CNRE, this project will take advantage of the spin property of electrons to generate spin-based solar cells developed from inexpensive, Earth-abundant materials like iron and nickel, making them cheaper and recyclable. The proposed research will advance solar cell science by providing insights into the fabrication of a large area solar cell capable of generating a substantial photocurrent. The optical activity under investigation in this project holds potential to promote other innovations in light harvesting materials, optical sensors, and novel metamaterials. Further, this project will provide training and mentorship to a postdoctoral researcher, enhancing the scholar’s skills as a researcher and principal investigator. The project’s proposed research also aligns with the CHIPS Act goal to bolster semiconductor research training to maintain American competitiveness in the global semiconductor industry. The Magnetic Tunnel Junction Molecular Spintronic Devices (MTJMSDs) utilized in this research are constructed by linking the ferromagnetic electrodes of a magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) with an organometallic metal cluster (OMC) or a single molecule magnet (SMM) bridging molecule along the exposed edges of the device. The paramagnetic OMC and SMM molecules create strong exchange coupling between the ferromagnetic electrodes at room temperature. Previous research conducted at the CNRE has shown that the TaCoNiFe/AlOx/NiFe MTJMSD can generate a reproducible photocurrent and provided evidence of the molecules’ transformative impact on the ferromagnetic metal electrodes using various magnetic and optical experimental methods. This study will include a variety of paramagnetic molecular bridges, ferromagnetic electrode compositions, and insulator thicknesses. Raman studies also indicate that the MTJMSDs ferromagnetic electrodes respond to visible light radiation; this factor will allow the use of Raman spectroscopy to investigate the spatial range of the photovoltaic effect on the MTJMSD cross-junction area. Findings will be used to fabricate a large area (1 cm2) solar cell based on the optimal molecule/electrode/spatial orientation observed in the studied MTJMSDs. Limited research has been conducted on this spin-based photovoltaic effect. However, the development of spin-based solar cells may lead to significant cost savings in solar cell production due to the lower cost of materials and manufacture compared to traditional silicon-based devices.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.