Near-Field Optical Spectroscopy Centre at Sheffield, NOSC

许多推动创新的新材料的功能，甚至是细菌等活的微系统的功能，都是由它们的纳米级特性定义的，例如局部化学成分、转移和耗散能量和电荷的能力、局部晶体结构和纳米级缺陷、散射和捕获光的能力，或者通过催化等诱导化学反应的能力。了解我们如何延长设备的寿命，例如电池阴极或太阳能电池，也可以通过了解设备中的材料在其操作期间如何在纳米级上变化来获得。长期以来，人们一直致力于开发技术手段，使其能够以纳米分辨率“看到”，如果使用传统的“远场”光学显微镜，由于衍射极限，这是一项不可能完成的任务。如果使用高能电子而不是光，则可以克服光学衍射极限，但是这种电子显微镜可能对所研究的材料和纳米结构造成损害，并且通常需要特殊的样品制备。因此，依赖于弱光学探针的真正非侵入性技术是非常可取的，并且现在已经在最先进的实验仪器中可用。在这个项目中，我们将建立一个基于这种仪器的研究设施，它提供了一套独特的新型光学技术，能够达到10 nm的空间分辨率，比光学衍射极限低50至1000倍。该技术基于原子力显微镜（AFM）中使用的非常尖锐的尖端的光聚焦。这些技术将与AFM提供的强大的纳米级调查方法结合使用。该设施将为谢菲尔德大学和整个英国科学界的世界领先研究提供这个实验平台，研究主题包括人工光合作用，抗菌素抗性，无机和有机半导体，量子和生物启发纳米光子学，二维材料，太阳能电池，固态电池的纳米材料等。所有这些领域的共同点是映射结构，化学和功能特性与纳米级分辨率的挑战;一个挑战，防止进一步突破的理解和创新的技术领域是至关重要的英国的利益，我们将在拟议的纳米光谱设施。

The function of many new materials that drive innovation and even the function of the living micro-systems such as bacteria is defined by their nanoscale properties such as the local chemical composition, ability to transfer and dissipate energy and electrical charge, local crystal structure and nanometre-sized defects, ability to scatter and trap light, or to induce chemical reactions through catalysis and many more. Understanding how we can prolong the life-time of devices, for example a battery cathode or a solar cell, can also be gained from understanding of how the material in the device changes on the nanoscale during its operation. It has long been a drive to develop technical means that allow to 'see' with nanometer resolution, an impossible task if conventional 'far-field' optical microscopy is used, because of the diffraction limit. The optical diffraction limit can be overcome if high energy electrons are used instead of light, but such electron microscopy may be damaging for the studied materials and nano-structures and quite often requires special sample preparation. Truly non-invasive techniques relying on weak optical probes are therefore highly desirable, and have now become available in state-of-the-art experimental instruments. In this project, we will establish a research facility based on such an instrument, which provides a unique suite of novel optical techniques capable of 10 nm spatial resolution, 50 to 1000 times below the optical diffraction limit. The techniques are based on the light focusing with a very sharp tip, used in atomic force microscopy (AFM). Such techniques will operate in conjunction with the powerful nanoscale investigation method provided by AFM. The facility will provide this experimental platform for the world-leading research at the University of Sheffield and the UK scientific community as a whole in topics including artificial photosynthesis, antimicrobial resistance, inorganic and organic semiconductors, quantum and bioinspired nano-photonics, two-dimensional materials, solar cells, photocatalysis and nano-materials for solid state batteries among many others. Common to all these fields is the challenge of mapping structural, chemical and functional properties with nanoscale resolution; a challenge that prevents further breakthroughs in understanding and innovation in the technology areas that are vital to the UK's interests, and which we will address within the proposed nano-spectroscopy facility.