Complex Nanoparticle Systems and High-Throughput Microscopy
(Supported by NSF-EECS, DOE-BES, NIH-CCNE, AFOSR-MURI, ANL, Industry)
Complex nanoparticles such as polyphasic or high-entropy alloy systems present interesting challenges and opportunities for materials synthesis and characterization, as their unique structures frequently result in unprecedented properties.
Establishing the structure-property relationships in such complex systems requires significant technique developments, as their highly disordered structures defy most traditional characterization methods. Yet, such systems have great promise for discovering new properties: For instance, their unique surface composition and coordination, as well as the resulting electronic structure, can enable unprecedented catalytic activity and selectivity in a material. Additionally, their complex crystal structures and interfaces can affect their mechanical and transport properties in unexpected ways.
The number of possible materials systems to study far outpaces any traditional experimental workflow; therefore, we are developing automated electron microscopy systems for structural materials characterization by augmenting advanced characterization methods with machine learning and AI models. This will enable us to efficiently traverse the vast space of unknown materials and greatly accelerate their discovery.
Representative Publications:
- Du, J. S.; He, K.; Xu, Y.; Wahl, C. B.; Xu, D. D.; Dravid, V. P.; Mirkin, C. A., Galvanic Transformation Dynamics in Heterostructured Nanoparticles. Adv. Funct. Mater. 2021, n/a (n/a), 2105866
- Du, J. S.; Shin, D.; Stanev, T. K.; Musumeci, C.; Xie, Z.; Huang, Z.; Lai, M.; Sun, L.; Zhou, W.; Stern, N. P.; Dravid, V. P.; Mirkin, C. A., Halide perovskite nanocrystal arrays: Multiplexed synthesis and size-dependent emission. Science Advances 2020, 6 (39), eabc4959.
- Chen, P.-C.; Liu, Y.; Du, J. S.; Meckes, B.; Dravid, V. P.; Mirkin, C. A., Chain-End Functionalized Polymers for the Controlled Synthesis of Sub-2 nm Particles. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2020, 142 (16), 7350-7355.
- Chen, P.-C.; Liu, M.; Du, J. S.; Meckes, B.; Wang, S.; Lin, H.; Dravid, V. P.; Wolverton, C.; Mirkin, C. A., Interface and heterostructure design in polyelemental nanoparticles. Science 2019, 363 (6430), 959-964.
- Du, J. S.; Chen, P.-C.; Meckes, B.; Kluender, E. J.; Xie, Z.; Dravid, V. P.; Mirkin, C. A., Windowless Observation of Evaporation-Induced Coarsening of Au–Pt Nanoparticles in Polymer Nanoreactors. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2018, 140 (23), 7213-7221.
- Chen, P.-C.; Du, J. S.; Meckes, B.; Huang, L.; Xie, Z.; Hedrick, J. L.; Dravid, V. P.; Mirkin, C. A., Structural Evolution of Three-Component Nanoparticles in Polymer Nanoreactors. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2017, 139 (29), 9876-9884.
- Du, J. S.; Chen, P.-C.; Meckes, B.; Xie, Z.; Zhu, J.; Liu, Y.; Dravid, V. P.; Mirkin, C. A., The Structural Fate of Individual Multicomponent Metal-Oxide Nanoparticles in Polymer Nanoreactors. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2017, 56 (26), 7625-7629.
- Chen, P.-C.; Liu, X.; Hedrick, J. L.; Xie, Z.; Wang, S.; Lin, Q.-Y.; Hersam, M. C.; Dravid, V. P.; Mirkin, C. A., Polyelemental nanoparticle libraries. Science 2016, 352 (6293), 1565-1569.