Bioelectrochemistry of Surfaces and Interfaces

该研究计划旨在提供新型电子设备，在表面使用纳米材料和聚合物来改善性能和特性。电化学在导电电活性聚合物的制备和表征中起着重要的作用。电化学技术特别适合于这些化合物的受控合成和用于调整明确定义的氧化态。第一个目标是研究的假设，共轭聚合物的电活性显着影响的纳米复合材料中的金属纳米粒子的表面等离子体，并可以通过电化学开关调制。第二个目标是研究这样的假设，即当金属纳米颗粒物理聚结以形成较大的颗粒时，它们的平均相互作用距离减小，使得它们的表面等离子体激元在与导电聚合物紧密相互作用时相互作用。作为一个长期目标，该研究计划将提供一个系统的方法和配方，以开发新的纳米复合材料改性表面和界面。在这项研究计划中，重点在于开发在各种表面（碳，氧化铟锡（ITO），高取向热解石墨（HOPG），硼掺杂金刚石等）上制造的新型电化学和等离子体传感器。将使用具有纳米材料如碳纳米管、石墨烯和金属纳米颗粒的CEP进行修饰。对于电化学生物传感器的发展，纳米复合材料将被用作活性，传感或催化层;也作为捕获生物分子和纳米材料的基质。某些金属纳米颗粒与共轭聚合物表现出优异的协同性能。尽管进行了大量的研究，导电聚合物和螯合纳米材料之间的潜在协同效应的一些基本性质还没有得到很好的理解。这些包括与金属纳米颗粒缔合后聚合物的增强的导电性，以及在电化学切换期间金属纳米颗粒的受驱动的集体电子振荡特性（局部表面等离子体共振，LSPR）。这项研究计划预计将在提高使用纳米材料和导电聚合物的新型表面的稳定性和性能方面产生重要影响，促进下一代生物传感器和化学传感器的开发。该研究计划融合了电化学、传感器、纳米技术和设备制造，为HQP提供了极好的培训机会。在5年的时间里，研究生，硕士和博士，将接受最先进的技术和R的出色培训，从而为加拿大的经济财富和生活做出积极贡献。

The research program aims to provide novel electronic devices with improved performance and characteristics using nanomaterials and polymers on surfaces. Electrochemistry has played a significant role in the preparation and characterization of the conducting electro-active polymers (CEPs). Electrochemical techniques are especially well suited to the controlled synthesis of these compounds and for the tuning of a well-defined oxidation state. First objective is to investigate the hypothesis that electro-activity of conjugated polymers is significantly influenced by the surface plasmons of metal nanoparticles in the nanocomposite, and can be modulated via electrochemical switching. A second objective is to investigate the hypothesis that as metal nanoparticles physically coalesce to form larger particles, their mean interaction distance reduces such that their surface plasmons interact upon close interaction with the conducting polymer. As a long-term objective, the research program will provide a systematic approach and recipes to develop novel nanocomposite-modified surfaces and interfaces. In this research program, the focus lies on the development of novel electrochemical and plasmonic sensors fabricated on various surfaces (carbon, indium tin oxide (ITO), highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG), boron-doped diamond, etc.) that will be modified using CEPs with nanomaterials such as carbon nanotubes, graphene, and metal nanoparticles. For the development of electrochemical biosensors, nanocomposites will be used as active, sensing, or catalytic layers; also as matrices entrapping biomolecules and nanomaterials. Certain metal nanoparticles exhibit excellent synergistic properties with conjugated polymers. Despite intense studies, some fundamental properties of the potential synergistic effects between the conducting polymers and the sequestered nanomaterials are not well understood. These include enhanced conductivity of the polymer after association with the metal nanoparticles, and the driven collective electron oscillation characteristics (localized surface plasmon resonance, LSPR) of the metal nanoparticles during electrochemical switching. This research program is expected to have important implications in improving the stability and performance of novel surfaces using nanomaterials and conducting polymers facilitating the development of next-generation biosensors and chemical sensors. The research program, with its blend of electrochemistry, sensors, nanotechnology, and device fabrication provides excellent HQP training opportunities. During the 5 year period graduate students, MSc and PhD, will be excellently trained on state-of-the-art technology and R therefore contributing actively to Canada's economic wealth and life.