Current Seed Projects

Self-Assembled Nanoscale Matrices for DNA Electrophoresis

PIs: Kevin Dorfman

In this project, we propose to use self-assembled, nanoscale artificial gels in a microfluidic channel to separate long DNA. Fabricating this system will be commensurate with the difficulty in preparing a polyacrylamide gel, a standard method in molecular biology. However, due to the ability to control the order and density of the self-assembled system through kinetic and thermodynamic factors, we will be able to tune the device for separating a particular size range of DNA, reduce dispersion during the separation, and increase the reproducibility. The availability of such a system will greatly accelerate biological research. Based on a nominal separation time of 1 min, the throughput of our device is over 1000 times higher than PFGE, while concomitantly greatly reducing the amount of DNA required per analysis. The devices will be disposable, a major advance over existing nanolithographic devices. read more

Structural and Optical Properties of Nanostructures: Can Chirality Affect the Optical Response of Silicon Nanowires?

PIs: Traian Dumitrica

While the important consequences of chirality on the electronic and optical properties of CNTs are well understood (chiral CNTs are metallic when the metallic wavefunction of graphene is commensurate with the CNT's circumference, and semiconducting otherwise) and exploited, this effect has not been yet explored in NWs. We propose to capitalize on our unique symmetry-adapted methodology to systematically study the way in which a screw dislocation manipulates the Si NW structure and its electronic and optical properties. read more

Measuring Interfacial Molecular Structure in Functional Organic Field-Effect Transistors

PIs: Aaron Massari

Field-effect transistors are at the heart of every digital electronic device, from laptops to digital alarm clocks. Typically, the active material in these transistors is an inorganic semiconductor, such as silicon; however, there is a strong drive to replace these heavy, expensive materials with cheap, lightweight organic semiconductors. During operation, a voltage applied to the gate electrode of an organic field-effect transistor (oFET) (see Figure 1) induces the accumulation of charge carriers (electrons or holes) in a thin volume at the interface of the organic and dielectric materials, called the "accumulation layer".3 At some threshold charge density, electrical current flows between the source and drain electrodes (i.e. the transistor is switched "on"). The mobility of accumulated charge carriers is defined by the molecular structures in this thin interfacial slab of the semiconductor. read more

Control of Oxidation Level in Graphene Oxide by Annealing

PIs: K. Andre Mkhoyan

In this research I propose a detailed experimental exploration of the local atomic bonding between oxygen and carbon atoms in GO and the structural modification of these bonds (including bond breaking) as a function of annealing temperature. This will require measurements as fine as the direct imaging of a single oxygen atom and the structural changes in GO with temperature increase. EELS measurements from the O and C atoms will also be carried out. Electronic transitions in O and C atoms will provide a direct measurement of changes in electron energy levels and local electronic density-of-states for a single O and C atoms as a function of temperature. Finally, the results will be compared and correlated with electronic and mechanical structures of GO films calculated using ab initio DFT-based calculations. The results, when achieved, will be the first-ever direct experimental observation of the modifications of the bonds and bond breaking as a function of temperature at the single-atom-level, and it will be accomplished by direct imaging.read more

Ultra-Smooth Patterned Metals for Plasmonics and Bio-Sensing

PIs: Sang-Hyun Oh, David Norris

Surface plasmons (SPs) are electromagnetic surface waves bound to a metal interface by coupling to the free electron plasma in metals. Due to their evanescent nature, SP waves are not limited by diffraction, and can provide confinement of light on scales much smaller than the free-space wavelength. The possibility of nanofocusing and manipulation of optical fields has generated intense interest in the rapidly developing field of plasmonics for applications ranging from solar cells to bio-sensing. read more

Controlling phenolic radical coupling using engineered protein scaffolds for the synthesis of biodegradable plastics from sustainable phenolic monomers

PIs: Claudia Schmidt-Dannert

Thermosetting phenolic resins made from reacting a phenol with an aldehyde have a long history as plastics (e.g., Bakelite). These resins exhibit high temperature and chemical resistance as well as mechanical strength and are used in numerous applications. Reaction of phenolic compounds (e.g., phenol, cresols, xylenols) with aldehydes (e.g. formaldehyde, furfural) results in a three dimensionally cross-linked polymer. Cross-linking can be controlled to some extent by varying phenol and aldehyde ratios and types. However, better control of the process in terms of being able to control the incorporation of certain substituted phenols, degree of cross-linking/branching and/or different monomer linkages would be desirable to obtain resins with more thermoplastic like properties. read more

View Past Seed projects