The Metal/Electrolyte Interface - Electric Properties and Structure of Water at Stepped Gold Surfaces

More than 170 years after the scientific foundation of electrochemistry by Faraday our understanding of the interface between solids and electrolytes is still rudimentary. While scanning tunneling microscopy has provided us with atomic level information on the in-situ structure of electrodes comparable information on the liquid side is lacking. For example, nearly all investigations concerning the solid/electrolyte interface begin with the characterization of the interface by voltammograms and measurements of the capacitance.

Superparamagnetic Magnetite Nanoparticles for Optical Modulation/Chopping

Abstract: We demonstrate proof of concept operation of superparamagnetic magnetite nanoparticles and magnetite-TiO2 peapod superstructures for laser intensity optical modulation and chopping. The frequency of the modulation is shown to be twice that of the driving signal and a function of the size of the particles. Specifically, optical modulation with round nanoparticles of sizes 80, 130, 200 nm is compared with optical modulation with magnetite-TiO2 peapod superstructures of sizes of around 1 um.

Design, synthesis, and biological data of endomorphin 1 and 2 analogues

Functional Dendritic Architectures

Polymeric nanostructures have gained broad interest for the targeted delivery of drugs.[1] Dendritic polymers are especially attractive candidates for encapsulating or conjugating diagnostic and therapeutic agents, particularly dendritic polyglycerol because of its low toxicity and high biocompatibility.[2] Furthermore, polyglycerols have also been evaluated for their extremely protein resistant properties on surfaces.[3] For in vivo applications, the selected dendritic nanotransporters will have to be water-soluble and non-toxic.

Optical Spectroscopy and Dynamics of Nanostructures

Optical microscopy incorporated with spectroscopy is a very powerful approach to study nanostructures. In this talk, I will present a few examples of our recent work in this direction. One is optical characterization of single rare-earth ion doped nanoparticles, which show strong near-infared to visible upconverted photoluminescence. The unique characteristics of these nanoparticles suggest that they could serve as ideal single-molecule probes for bio-imaging. Another is on graphene, a two-dimensional (2D) carbon material and the mother of 1D carbon nanotubes.