International Postdoctoral Fellows Program: The Study of Metal-Ceramic Interfaces by Electron Energy Loss Spectroscopy

该奖项是根据国际博士后研究员计划颁发的，该计划使美国科学家和工程师能够在国外公认的卓越研究中心进行为期3至12个月的研究。该项目的奖项提供了联合研究的机会，并提供了使用国外独特或互补的设施、专业知识和实验条件的机会。该奖项将支持朱迪思·C·杨博士在德国斯图加特的马克斯·普朗克金属研究所与曼弗雷德·鲁尔博士进行为期12个月的博士后研究访问。杨博士建议做两个实验，用电子显微镜技术对两个相似的模型金属-陶瓷系统--铂-NiO和Ni-NiO的原子结构、化学和电子结构进行基础研究。对于NiO-Pt系统，相图和前人的工作表明，在合适的温度、时间和氧活度下，在界面上可以形成金属间化合物NIPT。将使用电子能量损失谱来研究金属间化合物形成的化学和电子结构。为了更基本地研究由于界面的存在而引起的电子结构的细微变化，我们将研究一个更简单的系统，Ni-NiO，它将用近边能量损失光谱来研究。该奖励建议提供国际旅行经费和12个月的津贴。

This award is under the International Postdoctoral Fellows Program, which enables U.S. scientists and engineers to conduct three to twelve months of research abroad at research centers of proven excellence. The program's awards provide opportunities for joint research, and the use of unique or complementary facilities, expertise and experimental conditions abroad. This award will support a twelve-month postdoctoral research visit by Dr. Judith C. Yang to work with Dr. Manfred Ruhle at the Max Planck Institute for Metals Research in Stuttgart, Germany. Dr. Yang proposes to do two experiments for the fundamental study of the atomic structure, chemistry and electronic structure of two similar model metal-ceramic systems, Pt-NiO and Ni-NiO, by electron microscopy techniques. For the NiO-Pt system, an intermetallic interlayer, NiPt, is expected to form at the interface by heat treatment at suitable temperature, time and oxygen activity as suggested by phase diagrams and previous work. The chemistry and the electronic structure due to formation of the intermetallic compound will be studied using electron energy loss spectroscopy. For a more fundamental study of fine changes in the electronic structure due to the presence of an interface, a simpler system, Ni-NiO, will be studied with energy loss near edge spectroscopy. The award recommendation provides funds to cover international travel and a stipend for twelve months.