1- Project (November 2020 - October 2021)

Rational design of hybrid nanoadsorbants for removal of organic contaminants

About the project :

This project is a collaboration with College of Natural and Health Sciences, Zayed University, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates . The aim of the project was to develop an innovative nanocomposite materials based on surface modification of nano-ZrO2 optimized from Bronsted acid–base surface reactions. This surface modification was carried out by direct grafting of suitable phosphonic acids bearing a vinylic or phenylic substituent in aqueous solution. Then, the as-prepared materials were optimized and investigated for the adsorption of a mixture of 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in an aqueous solution.

Published paper : Design of Hybrid PAH Nanoadsorbents by Surface Functionalization of ZrO2 Nanoparticles with Phosphonic Acids, N. Bou Orm, T. Gréa, M. Hamandi, A. Lambert, F. Lafay, E. Vulliet, S. Daniele, Nanomaterials 2021, 11, 952, https://doi.org/10.3390/nano11040952

 

2- Project (January 2022 - July 2023)

Scalable Tunneling Diodes based on 2D materials

About the project :

This project is part of the ANR UNNE2D which gathers 4 academic laboratories (IEMN UMR CNRS 8520, CINTRA UMI CNRS 3288, C2N UMR CNRS 9001 and our laboratory CP2M). The TUNNE2D project aims at assessing the capabilities of TMDs for tunneling devices. To this end, tunneling diodes will be fabricated at wafer scale using scalable growth techniques as well as device processing and fully characterized at low and high frequency.

https://anr.fr/Projet-ANR-21-CE24-0030

My work is the design of single source precursors (SSPs) containing the chosen metal element (W, Zr, Ta) ligated to selenium are developed. Novel molecular precursors are synthesized. The resulting complexes are characterized at the molecular level by multinuclear NMR, FTIR, and single crystal X-ray diffraction. Their thermal behavior including volatility, thermal stability and reactivity is the subject of particular attention by thermogravimetric analysis coupled with infrared and mass spectrometry. In order to have volatile and thermally stable molecular precursors for easy transport but also reactive on the substrate surface, we are optimizing the nature of the R groups. The optimized SSPs will then be used by partner IEMN for the UHV growth of TMD layers and heterostructures.