Research Infrastructure: MRI: Track #1 Acquisition of a Next-Generation X-ray Photoelectron Spectrometer for Materials Research, Education, and Outreach

固体材料的表面控制着材料与环境的相互作用，例如吸收污染物、制造化学品或在电池电极中储存电能。表面的分子和原子，以及它们如何通过键连接，在很大程度上决定了这些材料的功能。了解这些表面分子和原子可以使材料在各种应用中得到改进。在材料研究部的支持下，该主要研究仪器项目将使俄勒冈大学（UO）能够获得一台x射线光电子光谱仪（XPS）作为共享仪器。它将被学生研究人员、UO和其他地区大学的研究人员以及包括地区工业在内的外部合作伙伴用于研究能源、环境、生物医学和下一代电子产品的重要材料。例如，该仪器将用于了解如何制造更有效的催化剂，用于从水中生产氢燃料，以及如何制造与生物细胞相互作用的塑料材料。该仪器被整合到多个研究生和本科水平的课程中，为学生在高科技行业的职业生涯做好准备。由UO专业人员管理，提供数据收集和分析的指导，并为偶尔需要数据的用户获取数据。该项目支持购买最先进的x射线光电子光谱仪（XPS）。该仪器包括高能x射线源（Ag）、传统软x射线源、原子/簇氩离子组合溅射源、集成拉曼光谱和变温测量台。该仪器被安置在一个多用户设施（CAMCOR -俄勒冈州先进材料表征中心）中，该设施由专家组成，确保工具得到最大程度的利用并得到适当的维护。CAMCOR被俄勒冈大学（UO）的各种研究人员积极使用，横跨太平洋西北地区和全国。在UO和俄勒冈州立大学，该工具加速了化学催化、量子二维材料、生物材料、电池科学和自组装固态异质结构的研究。具体的科学项目包括：将开发一种新的光电化学作图方法，该方法利用催化剂材料元素结合能的空间敏感变化来直接感知光活性半导体吸收剂上的电势变化，从而推动对光化学反应的基本理解。分析了先进碱性膜电解槽中碱性离聚体的降解方式。利用准原位耦合XPS和拉曼光谱研究水电解催化剂的机理。将测量用于机械记忆存储和全机械光检测的二维纳米机电系统中表面化学对耗散的影响。将开发和测量反应性线性聚合物和交联水凝胶网络，这些聚合物和交联水凝胶网络结合生化和化学功能来调节细胞-物质相互作用或药物传递谱。分析了脱碳钢生产中金属电积电极的界面化学性质。研究了先进超锂电池中速冻固体电解质层的化学性质。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Non-Technical Summary The surface of a solid material controls the interactions of the material with its environment, for example in absorbing pollutants, making chemicals, or storing electrical energy in battery electrodes. The molecules and atoms at the surface, and how they are connected through bonds, determine much about how these materials function. Understanding these surface molecules and atoms allows materials to be improved for various applications. With support form the Division of Materials Research, this Major Research Instrumentation project will enable the acquisition of an X-ray Photoelectron Spectrometer (XPS) as a shared instrument at the University of Oregon (UO). It will be used by student researchers, research faculty from UO and other regional universities, and outside partners including regional industry, to study important materials for energy, the environment, biomedicine, and next-generation electronics. For example, the instrument will be used to understand how to create more efficient catalysts for producing hydrogen fuel from water and to create plastic materials that interact with biological cells in controlled ways. The instrument is integrated into multiple graduate and undergraduate-level courses that prepare students for rewarding careers in the high-technology industry. It is managed by expert UO staff, who provide instruction in data collection and analysis, and acquire data for users who need data only occasionally.Technical Summary This project supports the acquisition of a state-of-the-art X-ray Photoelectron Spectrometer (XPS). The instrument includes a high-energy X-ray source (Ag), traditional soft X-ray sources, a combined atomic/cluster argon ion sputtering source, integrated Raman spectroscopy, and a variable-temperature measurement stage. The instrument is housed in a multi-user facility (CAMCOR – Center for Advanced Materials Characterization in Oregon) that is staffed by experts who ensure that the tools are utilized to their fullest extent and maintained properly. CAMCOR is actively used by diverse researchers at the University of Oregon (UO), across the Pacific Northwest, and nationwide. At the UO and at Oregon State University, the tool accelerates work in chemical catalysis, quantum 2D materials, biomaterials, battery science, and self-assembling solid-state heterostructures. Specific science projects include the following: A new photoelectrochemical mapping method will be developed that uses spatially sensitive shifts in the elemental binding energy of catalyst materials to directly sense changes in electric potential on photoactive semiconductor absorbers, thereby driving the fundamental understanding of photochemical reactions. Degradation modes of alkaline ionomers used in advanced alkaline membrane electrolyzers will be analyzed. Mechanisms in water electrolysis catalysts will be studied with quasi-in-situ coupled XPS and Raman spectroscopy. The influence of surface chemistry on dissipation in 2D nanoelectromechanical systems for mechanical memory storage and all-mechanical light detection will be measured. Responsive linear polymers and crosslinked hydrogel networks that incorporate biochemical and chemical functionalities to tune cell-material interactions or drug delivery profiles will be developed and measured. The interfacial chemistry of electrodes associated with metal electrowinning for decarbonizing steel production will be analyzed. The chemical properties of flash-frozen solid-electrolyte layers in advanced beyond-Li batteries will be characterized.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.