Why Nanoparticles and Nanotechnology ?

Nanotechnology is a recent, revolutionary development in Science and Engineering. It aims at manipulating atoms, molecules, and nanometer-sized particles containing a few hundred to thousands of atoms with the goal of creating new materials, devices, or even molecular machines. Nanotechnology is widely considered to be one of the main forces driving the next major industrial and social revolution of the 21^st century. It will likely impact virtually all areas of the physical sciences, biological sciences, and health sciences.

Nanoparticle research seeks to exploit the strong size dependence of the physical and chemical properties of nanometer-sized particles. Properties are usually significantly different from those of isolated atoms or molecules and from bulk material. This opens up the opportunity, for instance, to create materials and devices with entirely new properties.

RESEARCH ACTIVITIES: Please go our laboratories publication link to see the list of publications and PDF files.

MISSION: Understand from a fundamental standpoint the role of physical/chemical phenomena in the formation and growth of nanoscale materials

Our research laboratory has several thrusts:

• Synthesis and Science of Nanostructured and Aerosol Materials
• Develop new synthesis methods to make nanoparticles with interesting and in some cases unique properties using thermal, flame, and plasma reactors.
• Embedding magnetic nanoparticles in a nonmagnetic host particle for new classes of magnetic materials ( superparamagnet);
• Formation of ultra-high surface area nanoparticles;
• Formation of new classes of materials with high energy release.

• Develop new types of thin film deposition methods.
• High rate thermal plasmas for deposition of refractory materials ( SIC, BC, etc);
• Use of new gas-phase chemistries for deposition of porous refractory thin films.

• Develop and apply molecular based modeling tools for understanding gas-to-particle conversion and nanoparticle properties
• Use of molecular dynamics and Monte Carlo methods to understand properties and reactivity of nanoparticles.
• Use of detailed chemical kinetics and CFD to study particle formation in microelectronics fabrication reactors.

• Development of new instrumentation for the characterization of reacting flows and nanoparticles.
• Development of new single-particle mass spectrometric methods to characterize the composition of individual nanoparticles.
• Development of on-line real time methods to study the reactivity of nanoparticles e.g. oxidation of soot, combustion of metal nanoparticles.
• Development of molecular-beam mass-spectrometry to characterize plasma processes leading to thin film formation.
• Laser based optical tools for reacting flow imaging

• Micro and Meso scale combustion
• Development of the science and engineering base for evaluating the feasibility of staining combustion and retrieving useful work from engines operating at small scales.