Urgent Need of Atomic Layer Deposition for Advanced Materials Development in Renewable Energy and Green Chemistry

我们迫切需要康考迪亚大学的原子层沉积（ALD）系统来加速可再生能源和绿色化学的研究项目，包括下一代固态电池、废塑料的升级回收和光合作用的微纳集成。ALD是一种强大的薄膜技术，即使在高纵横比结构上也可以实现出色的覆盖和保形沉积，并且由于其自限制性质，沉积膜的厚度在原子水平上可以精确控制。从无机材料（金属氧化物、卤化物、氮化物等）到有机聚合物（聚脲、PEDOT等），从单原子/纳米团簇到连续薄膜，在开发各种纳米结构的多类型功能材料方面也具有无可比拟的优势。因此，该团队将充分利用ALD设备的优势，开发从纳米级到原子级的先进材料，包括固态电池的界面设计（X. Li博士），废聚乙烯升级回收的单原子氢解催化剂（Z. Ye博士），以及用于微纳集成和传感的原子级金属氧化物涂层材料（M. Packirisamy博士）。该设备对Concordia大学纳米技术的发展具有重要意义，将促进各院系之间的跨学科合作，扩大HQP培训的范围和质量。ALD设备的成功收购将使加拿大工业和纳米技术社区受益，通过加速相关应用商业化进程，将新的知识、专业知识和技术转移到清洁能源和绿色化学工业，并直接减少环境污染。

We urgently require an atomic layer deposition (ALD) system at Concordia University to accelerate the research programs in renewable energy and green chemistry, including the next-generation solid-state batteries, upcycling of waste plastics, and micro-nano integration for photosynthesis. ALD is a powerful thin-film technique that can realize excellent coverage and conformal deposition even on high-aspect-ratio structures and the thickness of the as-deposited film is precisely controllable at the atomic level due to its self-limiting nature. It also has unparalleled advantages in developing multiple types of functional materials with various nanostructures, from inorganic materials (metal oxides, halides, nitrides, etc.) to organic polymers (polyurea, PEDOT, etc.), from single atoms/nanoclusters to continuous thin films. Therefore, the team will take full advantages of the requested ALD equipment in the development of advanced materials from nanoscale to atomic-scale in their expertise, including the interface design of solid-state batteries (Dr. X. Li), single-atom hydrogenolysis catalysts for the upcycling of waste polyethylene (Dr. Z. Ye), and atomic-scale metal-oxide coating materials for the micro-nano integration and sensing (Dr. M. Packirisamy). The equipment is of significant importance for the development of nanotechnology in Concordia University that will facilitate the cross-disciplinary collaboration between the departments and broadening the range and quality of training HQP. Successful acquirement of the ALD equipment will benefit the Canadian industry and the nanotechnology community by transferring new knowledge, expertise, and technologies to clean energy and green chemistry industries by accelerating the relevant application commercialization process and directly reducing the environmental pollution.