Tags: Materials Chemistry and Nanoscience Seminar


Literature Seminar: Luyao Zhao


Gold Nanoparticles for Cancer Theranostics

The use of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) for cancer theranostics—combining diagnosis and therapy into a single system—has been one of the most promising nanoplatforms. Their tunable optical and surface features make it possible to transform light into heat for photothermal treatment, generate reactive oxygen species for photodynamic therapy, and carry chemotherapeutics or antibodies for immunotherapy. This course will entail the fabrication of…


Structural & Strain Engineering of 1-D Copper Halide Scintillators

Scintillators are widely known and used in various fields such as radiation detection, industry inspection, and specifically for their applications in the medical imaging field. Current scintillators such as Cs:TI possess promising features but have several drawbacks: the use of toxic elements, limited stability, time-consuming preparation processes, etc. With these issues, the advancement of X-ray imaging technologies demands scintillators that…


Chemical Approaches to Scaffold Creation for Tissue Engineering

Tissue-imitating scaffolds play an important role not only in tissue-engineering research but also in actual medical aplications. For example for treatment of severe burns. When seeded with mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), such a MSCs/scaffold system can significantly accelerate healing, reduce fibrosis and scarring, promote angiogenesis and keratinization, and reduce inflammation [1-5]. Such scaffolds can also be seeded with dermal cells (dermal…


Thin Film Heterostructures for Spintronic Applications

Spintronics are a class of electronics that utilize the intrinsic spin of electrons rather than the flow of charge through a circuit. As a result, they are more energy efficient and faster than conventional electronics and are critical in advancing quantum computing, information sciences, and wearable technologies. Current spintronic designs are composed of heterostructures of stacked thin films of ferromagnetic materials in combination with…


Cellulose Acetate as a Versatile Biopolymer

Plastic plays an important role in modern life, but it also brings sustainability challenges due to its persistence in the environment and the lack of green end-of-life options. Researchers have been actively working on new strategies to mitigate these concerns and produce sustainable alternatives for specifically single-use applications. Cellulose acetate, a cellulose-derived monomer, has emerged as a promising alternative. It offers tunable…


Biobased Synthetic Alternatives to Natural Rubber

Natural rubber is influenced and limited by the latitude and climate by which it is grown. Therefore, the demand for synthetic rubber has grown exponentially. Due to rising environmental and health concerns related to rubber, biobased and sustainable alternatives are necessary. This presentation explores the current mitigation strategies to combat conventionally used synthetic rubbers. Specifically, focus will be…


Sulfide-based Nanomaterials at Energy-Environment Nexus

The accelerating global demand for energy and rapid industrialization present pressing challenges to environmental sustainability and energy security. Developing advanced functional materials is crucial to addressing these challenges. Our research group explores the design and synthesis of inorganic materials that can contribute solutions in two critical areas: environmental remediation and energy storage. A central focus of our work is metal…


Revealing Thermally-Induced Nanoscale Behavior in Low-Dimensional Quantum Materials Through in Situ Scanning Transmission Electron Microscopy

Low-dimensional quantum materials are under considerable investigation for exploiting their unique properties within functional devices. While these materials have been extensively studied for their properties and applications, notable gaps in terms of their thermal stability and behavior remain, particularly with respect to typical device fabrication temperatures. In this presentation, I will address these gaps and discuss the dynamic…


Improving the Stability of Perovskite Solar Cells:
Recent Developments and Future Prospects

Lead halide perovskite nanocrystal (PNC) materials have garnered much attention lately because of their fascinating optical and optoelectronic characteristics. These characteristics make them excellent candidates for photovoltaic applications with high power conversion efficiencies for solar cell applications. However, degradation during thermal treatment and poor stability against moisture and UV light are common problems for PNCs. Hence, for…
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