Professor Franz Geiger of Northwestern University was awarded a $537,000 Project Grant from the National Science Foundation's Mathematical and Physical Sciences program (CFDA 47.049) to study electrostatic structure and dynamics at electrode-electrolyte interfaces using nonlinear optics techniques. The three-year award, issued on May 1, 2022, supports the use of laser methods like heterodyne-detected second harmonic generation to directly observe the arrangement of water molecules and ions near metal surfaces in solutions. This could provide fundamental insights to advance clean energy, energy storage, and environmental remediation technologies. The project also creates research opportunities for students and integrates the work into a local high school chemistry curriculum through a science ambassadorship program. Results from this work aim to improve century-old models of electrode processes by quantifying coulombic and non-coulombic contributions to interfacial potential drops and gaining understanding of interfacial water and ion structures under various stimuli.
Generated 1/6/24, 7:45 PM