Designing functional and active substrates based on nanoscale heterostructures

The National Science Foundation Division of Chemistry awarded Northwestern University $560,000 on January 15, 2027, under the Mathematical and Physical Sciences program (CFDA 47.049) to design functional and active substrates based on nanoscale heterostructures.

Professor Teri W. Odom is developing methods to prepare responsive substrates by combining top-down nanofabrication with bottom-up chemistry to position metallic and semiconducting nanomaterials with precision down to 1 nanometer. Nanoparticle seeds supported on these substrates will serve as templates to grow anisotropic metallic and semiconducting features, creating new classes of heterostructures for advances in light-matter interactions and electrochemical processes. The work aims to enable next-generation electrochemical devices, microelectronics, and sensor designs for energy and health applications while reducing manufacturing and processing times. The project includes educational outreach, offering middle-school and high-school students the opportunity to prepare functional nanoscale structures using scalable patterning methods.

Work is performed at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, with a period of performance from January 15, 2027, through December 31, 2029. No sub-awards are planned for this award.

Abstract

Professor teri W. Odom of northwestern university is studying the design of smart substrates whose properties are determined by the unique placement of metallic and semiconducting nanomaterials. By first defining nanoparticle building blocks by top-down nanofabrication and then carrying out bottom-up chemistry, new combinations of nanomaterials can be made that could not be made otherwise. Such responsive substrates can enable advances in next-generation electrochemical devices, microelectronics, and sensor designs that are critical for energy and health applications. Moreover, the studies can result in reduced manufacturing and processing times while also producing multi-faceted and sophisticated substrate properties. Middle-school and high-school students will have the opportunity to prepare functional substrates with nanoscale structures using scalable patterning methods. Professor teri W. Odom of northwestern university is developing methods to prepare functional and active substrates based on nanoscale heterostructures. Nanoparticle seeds supported on responsive substrates will function as templates to grow anisotropic metallic and semiconducting features with precision down to 1 NM. This materials-modular platform will exploit the effects of substrates as structural supports as well as conducting surfaces to realize new classes of heterostructures that can advance fundamental insight in light-matter interactions and electrochemical processes. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.- subawards are not planned for this award.