CRIF:MU Construction of a Spectometer for Ultrafast Absorption and Emission Studies of Nanostructures

University Of Notre Dame, Notre Dame IN

Investigators

Abstract

With this award from the Chemistry Research Instrumentation and Facilities: Departmental Multi-User Instrumentation program (CRIF:MU), Professors A. Graham Lappin, Gregory V. Hartland, Libai Huang, Prashant V. Kamat and Masaru K. Kuno of the University of Notre Dame will construct a laser spectrometer system and use it for ultrafast absorption and emission studies of single nanostructures including investigations of the photophysics of carbon nanotubes and studies of materials with low fluorescence quantum yields, such as semiconductor nanowires, CdTe NWs, and even non-fluorescent materials, such as metallic nanowires. Ultrafast spectrometers use modern laser technology to study molecular phenomena on very short time scales such as femtoseconds. Very fundamental processes in chemistry, biology and materials science (e.g., bond breaking and formation, electron transfer, molecular dynamics and others) occur on ultrafast time scales. This acquisition will exploit the versatility of the instrument in the growing field of ultrafast spectroscopy applied to nanomaterials. Fundamental research will be performed by graduate students, select undergraduates, and postdocs as part of their academic experience. This will provide training and experience in the growing field of ultrafast methodology with state of the art instrumentation.