Nanomaterials from Low-Temperature Plasmas
Low-temperature plasmas are of interest for the growth and modification of materials to confer enhanced quality and functionality that would be inaccessible by conventional processing techniques. These plasmas are kept in thermal non-equilibrium, such that the heavy species (ions and neutrals) stay close to room temperature, while electrons reach temperatures in excess of 10,000 K. This non-equilibrium environment is thermally gentle yet possesses high chemical reactivity driven by energetic electrons. I will discuss my work developing a plasma reactor that leverages this uniquely reactive environment to synthesize novel layered nanomaterials for optoelectronic applications. I will also outline my planned work to use low-temperature plasmas to access non-equilibrium material states for nanoporous structural materials. This seminar will introduce plasmas as a tool used ubiquitously throughout the semiconductor processing industry and will demonstrate these low-temperature plasmas as an exciting instrument for designing the next generation of functional nanomaterials.