MSPA-MPS: Experimental design for achieving consistent and high yield in the controlled synthesis of nanostructures

Georgia Tech Research Corporation, Atlanta GA

Investigators

Abstract

Nanostructures, by virtue of their novel physical, chemical and biological properties, are building blocks in nanoscience and nanotechnology. To meet the needs of large scale, controlled and designed synthesis of nanostructures, it is critical to systematically find experimental conditions under which the desired nanostructures are synthesized reproducibly, at large quantity and with controlled morphology. This project aims at an extensive application of statistical design for achieving the above goal. The problems encountered in the synthesis of nanostructures pose challenges that cannot be solved by existing experimental design techniques. Therefore, the primary objective of this research is to develop and apply novel experimental design techniques in order to find optimum and robust processing conditions for growing pure and high-quality nanostructures under time and cost constraints. Based on the collaboration carried out in the last two years between the two groups, the investigators study a novel technique called minimum energy design that is suitable for guiding experiments in controlled nanostructure synthesis. A unique feature of this technique lies in the fact that it originates from a combination of statistical theory and fundamental laws of physics. It has the potential to become important in both statistical and nanomaterial research. The proposed methods will be developed and validated using the synthesis of nanostructures grown in two different materials: Zinc Oxide (ZnO) and Cadmium Selenide (CdSe). Specifically, the focus is on the synthesis of nanowires. Nanowires have the potential to impact numerous areas ranging from electronics, photonics, optoelectronics to life sciences and health care. In particular, ZnO and CdSe nanowires have tremendous potential of being used in the manufacturing of path breaking nanodevices. Thus the improvement that can be achieved in the synthesis of nanowires by using the proposed technique may create a significant impact in nanotechnology. The progress already made in synthesizing ZnO and CdSe nanowires provides a sound platform to launch the new research project. With this research project, the issues of yield, quality, purity and robustness of nanomaterial production can all be resolved by applying different variants of the minimum-energy design, which is tailor-made to suit the specific phenomena associated with the growth of nanostructures. This is likely to be an early instance of the integration of statistical design with nanomaterial synthesis, thus opening a new path for nanomaterials manufacturing. Scientifically, this research can facilitate fundamental understanding about the growth mechanisms and kinetics of different nanostructures. Industrially, this research can lead to a commercialized supply of nanostructure with custom desired features. By applying the unique and novel ZnO nanostructures as nanodevice building blocks, this project will also advance micro sensor systems and improve their sensitivity, stability, selectivity, power consumption, and response speed. These advancements can have huge impacts on energy, homeland security and environmental monitoring. From the statistical point of view, the minimum energy algorithm is a novel approach to generate designs that are model independent, can quickly ?carve out? regions with no observable nanostructure morphology, allow for the exploration of complex response surfaces, and can be used for sequential experimentation. Owing to its origination from physical laws, it should be appealing and comprehensible to a broad spectrum of scientific researchers.