Unprecedented visualization of interfacial phenomena and carrier dynamics in energy materials

This Focus Group “Unprecedented visualization of interfacial phenomena and carrier dynamics in energy materials" consists of Hans Fischer Senior Fellow Prof. Sossina M. Haile (Northwestern University) and her hosts Prof. Jennifer L.M. Rupp (TUM School of Natural Sciences) and Prof. Dominik Bucher (TUM School of Natural Sciences).

Ceria and its doped derivates play a pivotal role in a wide range of processes and devices, many of which are essential for a sustainable energy future. Despite its use in these applications, critical aspects of the surface and interfacial chemistry of ceria remain unresolved. Through this collaboration, we explore opportunities to harness quantum sensing via nitrogen vacancy (NV) diamonds to detect the presence and dynamics of relevant species including protons, oxygen vacancies, and reduced cerium ions in model thin films. For the study of internal interfaces (grain boundaries), we evaluate nanocrystalline ceria films directly on NV-diamond substrates and use widefield imaging and NV-NMR spectroscopy to interrogate the defect state in the film. For the study of external surfaces, we grow single-crystal epitaxial films on lattice-matched single-crystal substrates and utilize scanning probe NV to detect the species on the film surface. This research contributes to proof-of-principle studies to explore critical method development on quantum sensing opportunities in solid-state ionic/protonic material model structures.

 

TUM-IAS funded doctoral candidate:
Lukas Schrödinger, Electrochemical Materials