Thu 05 Jun 14:00: Materials RIG Seminar: Professor Sally Brooker
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- Speaker: Prof. Sally Brooker, University of Otago
- Thursday 05 June 2025, 14:00-15:00
- Venue: Dept. of Chemistry, Unilever Lecture Theatre.
- Series: Materials Chemistry Research Interest Group; organiser: Sharon Connor.
Fri 28 Feb 14:00: Lewis Lectures 2025 - Lecture II - "Tales of the Unexpected: New Perspectives on Electrochemistry at Carbon Electrodes and Membranes"
A wide variety of carbon materials are used in electrochemistry, with diverse applications that include (bio)electroanalysis and sensors, batteries and fuel cells, and membranes. The family of carbon materials is broad, spanning sp2 and sp3 materials, and includes 1D carbon nanotubes, 2D graphene (and non-carbon analogues) and 3D graphite and conducting diamond, along with amorphous carbon and various composites. The electronic properties of each of these materials are further influenced by local structure and defects, method of preparation, and (for 1-D and 2-D materials) the conducting support, the number of layers, and their arrangement. Ultimately, all of these factors can influence interfacial charge transfer and electrochemistry. In this lecture, I shall discuss our work in this area, which has established a new paradigm for structure-activity across a wide range of carbon materials and electrochemical processes. We combine high resolution electrochemical imaging data with information from other microscopy and spectroscopy techniques applied to the same area of an electrode surface, in a correlative-electrochemical microscopy approach, to produce highly resolved and unambiguous pictures of electrode activity at the nanoscale. The new models of electrochemistry offer surprises, overturn longstanding dogma, unify observations across length scales, and provide a foundation for future rational applications of carbon electrodes.
- Speaker: Prof. Patrick Unwin, University of Warwick
- Friday 28 February 2025, 14:00-15:00
- Venue: Dept of Chemistry, Wolfson Lecture Theatre .
- Series: Materials Chemistry Research Interest Group; organiser: Sharon Connor.
Thu 27 Feb 14:00: Lewis Lectures 2025 - Lecture I - New Ways of Seeing Electrochemistry
Electrochemistry is an important, complex and beautiful subject, and a fascinating scientific area to explore! Electrochemical processes and electrified interfaces are at the heart of living systems, batteries, fuel cells and electrolyzers. Electrochemical devices are found in diagnostic and sensor platforms, from measuring glucose in blood, to trace gases in air, and for new generation DNA /RNA sequencing. And there is still much more to learn about electrochemistry. From the earliest days, electrochemists sought to visualise processes at electrochemical interfaces, and this remains true today; there is an increasing variety of microscopy techniques that have been developed to investigate electrodes and electrified interfaces in-situ and operando. In this lecture, I will concentrate on the main scanned electrochemical probe microscopes that find increasing use in labs around the world. I shall provide a personal perspective on the development of these techniques, their capabilities and highlight key applications, from materials chemistry to biophysical processes at living cells. A major focus of the lecture will be scanning electrochemical cell microscopy (SECCM) and its role at the centre of a multimicroscopy strategy that can be used to dissect structure-activity at the nanoscale in unprecedented detail. Key discoveries from SECCM in fundamental electrochemistry, (electro)catalysis, corrosion, and charge storage will be highlighted, and I shall outline future directions for this technique and its role in a new era of high throughput nanoscale electrochemistry.
- Speaker: Prof. Patrick Unwin, University of Warwick
- Thursday 27 February 2025, 14:00-15:00
- Venue: Dept of Chemistry, Wolfson Lecture Theatre .
- Series: Materials Chemistry Research Interest Group; organiser: Sharon Connor.
Thu 20 Feb 14:00: RSC Prizewinner Seminar - "Linking structure and properties in complex quantum materials"
Complex quantum materials are at the forefront of both the drive to understand the fundamentals of physics and chemistry and the quest to find the basis of new quantum technologies. Such materials host exotic phenomena such as quantum spin liquid, spin-orbit driven Mott insulator and topological semimetal states. Often these phases arise from a delicate balance of competing interactions and precise details of structural symmetries and subtle distortions must be resolved to enable effective partnership with theory. However, to succeed in elucidating these structure-property relationships, additional materials chemistry challenges such as the effects of disorder, non-stoichiometry, and lack of reproducibility of synthesis must regularly be tackled. I will outline recent examples of our investigations in this arena and present an outlook to enabling the design of the next generation of quantum materials.
The talk will be followed by a special careers session where Dr Gibbs will give a summary of her career journey and take any questions.
- Speaker: Dr Alexandra Gibbs - University of St Andrews
- Thursday 20 February 2025, 14:00-15:00
- Venue: Dept of Chemistry, Wolfson Lecture Theatre .
- Series: Materials Chemistry Research Interest Group; organiser: Sharon Connor.