CAREER: Metal-Semiconductor Hybrid Core-Shell Heteronanostructures with Geometrically Tunable Optical Properties

技术总结这个职业奖由固体与材料化学(SSMC)和电子与光子材料(EPM)计划共同赞助，旨在在整体和单纳米粒子水平上发展对金属-半导体核-壳杂化异质结构的几何相关光学特性的定量理解。这项拟议的研究将按照3M(制造、测量、模型)战略进行，包括实验和理论工作相结合。将开发强大的湿化学方法，通过这种方法可以精确地控制金属-半导体核壳纳米粒子的一整套重要的几何和组成参数。对颗粒几何形状的严格控制将使人们能够系统地和选择性地微调颗粒在可见光和近红外区的广泛光谱范围内的协同光吸收和散射特性。通过结合光谱学和电子显微镜测量，将对粒子几何和光学性质之间的相关性进行详细、定量的了解，并通过使用Mie散射理论和有限差分时间域(FDTD)模拟的理论计算进一步加强。利用粒子的优势？除了几何和光学可调谐性外，PI的团队还将进一步探索利用工程杂化纳米颗粒优化基于表面增强拉曼光谱和荧光光谱的分子传感和表征平台的新方法。非技术概述金属-半导体杂化异质结构已经成为一种新型的多功能亚波长光学元件，具有协同增强的光学特征、增强的光学可调谐性，甚至是任何孤立组件或其物理混合物对应的新的光学特性。这项职业资助旨在对金属-半导体杂化异质结构的颗粒几何和光学特性之间的关系进行定量的理解。通过拟议的研究获得的知识将极大地增强我们将所需的光学特性选择性地应用于材料和生命科学中广泛的技术应用的纳米杂化材料和器件的能力。有了这个奖项，PI将能够开发一个高度跨学科和协作的纳米科学研究和教育计划，其中包括具有不同背景的博士后研究员、研究生、本科生和高中生的广泛参与。PI小组的博士后和学生将在物理化学和材料科学的界面上接受跨学科和多学科的前沿研究培训。PI将在南卡罗来纳大学和主要是本科生机构之间建立本科生研究伙伴关系，并组织夏季研究讲习班，以促进化学和材料科学的研究和教育，并帮助提高南卡罗来纳州科学、技术、工程和数学(STEM)专业的入学率和保留率，特别是女性和学业水平较低的少数族裔。在课程开发方面，PI将开发新的实验模块，将尖端纳米科学研究纳入本科生和研究生课程。将开展外联活动，通过在一年一度的南卡罗来纳州科学和工程博览会上进行科学演示以及为高中生和教师提供暑期研究指导，向当地中学和高中的青少年提供纳米科学和纳米技术方面的教育。

TECHNICAL SUMMARYThis CAREER award co-sponsored by the Solid State and Materials Chemistry (SSMC) and the Electronic and Photonic Materials (EPM) programs aims to develop quantitative understanding of the geometry-dependent optical characteristics of metal-semiconductor core-shell hybrid heteronanostructures both at the ensemble and single-nanoparticle levels. The proposed research will be carried out following a 3M (Make, Measure, Model) strategy that involves combined experimental and theoretical efforts. Robust wet chemistry approaches will be developed through which a whole set of important geometrical and compositional parameters of the metal-semiconductor core-shell nanoparticles can be precisely fine-controlled. The tight control over the particle geometries will allow one to systematically and selectively fine-tune the synergistic light absorption and scattering properties of the particles over a broad spectral range across the visible and near-infrared regions. Detailed, quantitative understanding of the correlation between particle geometry and optical properties will be developed through combined spectroscopy and electron microscopy measurements and further enhanced by theoretical calculations using Mie scattering theory and Finite Difference Time Domain (FDTD) simulations. Taking the advantage of the particles? geometrical and optical tunability, the PI's group will further explore new ways to utilize engineered hybrid nanoparticles for the optimization of molecular sensing and characterization platforms based on surface-enhanced Raman and fluorescence spectroscopies.NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY Metal-semiconductor hybrid heteronanostructures have emerged as a new class of multifunctional sub-wavelength optical components with synergistically reinforced optical features, enhanced optical tunability, and even new optical characteristics that are otherwise inaccessible in any of the isolated components or their physical mixture counterparts. This CAREER grant aims to develop quantitative understanding of the relationship between the particle geometry and optical characteristics of metal-semiconductor hybrid heteronanostructures. The knowledge gained through the proposed research will greatly enhance our capabilities to selectively implement desired optical properties into hybrid nanoparticle-based materials and devices for widespread technological applications in materials and life sciences. With this award, the PI will be able to develop a highly interdisciplinary and collaborative nanoscience research and education program that involves broad participation of postdoctoral fellows, graduate, undergraduate, and high school students with diverse backgrounds. The postdocs and students in the PI's group will receive interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary training on cutting-edge research at the interface of physical chemistry and materials science. The PI will build undergraduate research partnerships and organize summer research workshops among University of South Carolina and Primarily Undergraduate Institutions to promote research and education on chemistry and materials science and help increase the enrollment and retention rate, especially those of female and academically underrepresented minorities, in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) majors in the State of South Carolina. For course development, the PI will develop new lab modules to incorporate cutting-edge nanoscience research into the undergraduate and graduate courses. Outreach activities will be developed to educate teenagers from local middle schools and high schools about nanoscience and nanotechnology through scientific demos at annual South Carolina Science and Engineering Fair and summer research mentorships for high school students and teachers.