Breaking the barriers in surface science

Graphene-capped micro-reactors

Much of our existing fundamental understanding of the surfaces involved in heterogeneous catalysis and in electrochemistry relies on studies of model single crystals using surface-sensitive techniques that typically require rarefied vacuum conditions, and often cryogenic temperatures. However, to truly understand how these surfaces operate under process conditions requires working with more complex materials such as nanoparticles and ambient conditions, respectively referred to as the 'material gap' and 'pressure gap'. In our group, we aim to simultaneously bridge both of these gaps using specially designed micro-reactors. This project builds on our unique expertise in manipulating graphene. 

 

Selected papers:

B. Shalom, M. A. Andrés, Y. Yu, A. R. Head, B. Eren. Electrochemically Controlled Solid Liquid Interfaces Probed with Lab-based X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy. Electrochem. Comm. 2022, 142, 107375.

S. Khatun, M. A. Andrés, S. R. Cohen, I. Pinkas, I. Kaplan-Ashiri, O. Brontvein, I. Rosenhek-Goldian, R. S. Weatherup, B. Eren. Electronic Interactions and Stability Issues at the Copper-graphene Interface in Air and in Alkaline Solution under Electrochemical Control. Electrochim. Acta. 2022, 431, 141145.

S. Khatun, S. R. Cohen, S. Shor Peled, I. Rosenhek-Goldian, R. S. Weatherup, B. Eren. Observing Electrochemical Reactions on Suspended Graphene: An Operando Kelvin Probe Force Microscopy Approach. Adv. Mater. Interfaces 2021, 8, 2100662. 

 

Combined spectroscopy and diffraction experiments

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