Materials and Synchrotron Radiation

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I will advance in nanomaterials synthesis, their properties and performance in devices such as batteries, fuel cells, solar cells and catalysis, and the development and application of synchrotron technology (electron accelerator based, bright and energy tunable X-ray source). Areas include (i) Nanomaterials (materials with the size on the order of a thousandth of a hair) of increasing complexity; e.g. nanocomposites with size, morphology, phase, impurity and crystallinity dependent structures, electronic and transport properties, i.e. that I investigate how materials with such a small size behave differently from the bulk, leading to improved design of catalysts and energy devices; (ii) nanomaterials for energy applications (Li/Na ion and all solid state batteries, solar cells and electro-catalysts), tracking their performance with in situ/operando (in real time while the device is in operation) X-ray absorption measurements at the Canadian Light Source (CLS); this technique will facilitate the innovative design of devices; (iii) bio-compatible nanomaterial applications in drug delivery; (iv) development of high energy resolution spectroscopy in the tender X-ray (2000-5000 eV) and hard X-ray energy region (> 5000 eV) (v) pushing the boundaries of synchrotron applications in cultural and heritage materials. Nanostructures of metal oxides (e.g. TiO2, and ZnO), carbon-based materials (e.g. graphene and quantum dots), phosphorus- and sulfur-based materials relevant to electrode and solid-state electrolytes for all solid-state batteries, bimetallics (e.g. Ni-Pt, Fe-Pt and Co-Pt) and bio-materials (e.g. calcium silicates, phosphates and hydroxyapatite) will be explored. Synthetic techniques include anodization, vapor-liquid-solid, hydrothermal and atomic layer/molecular layer synthesis. The performance of these materials in devices will be tracked with in situ/operando X-ray absorption, X-ray fluorescence, photoemission and imaging at the CLS. I will push synchrotron frontier in (1) building situ/operando capabilities at the CLS, tracking chemical changes, e.g. during the charge and discharge of a battery; (2) implementing a high-energy-resolution (< 1 eV) tender X-ray emission spectrometer at the CLS, for P and S X-ray emission; high resolution greatly improves the sensitivity for detecting chemical changes in devices during operations. Resonant Inelastic X-ray Scattering and high energy resolution fluorescence detection (HERFD) X-ray absorption at the P and S K-edge will be possible with this spectrometer and will revolutionize the speciation of P and S; (3) advancing nano-imaging techniques with X-ray excited optical luminescence and ptychography at the SM beamline of the CLS, allowing for the study of the functionality of an individual nanostructure and (4) retrieving images from badly tarnished 19th century daguerreotype (the very first photography of human activities) of historical significance using X-ray fluorescence imaging.