3D Templating of Materials for Enhanced Functionality

Adding three-dimensional structure to a material on the micro- or nano-scale is capable of enhancing or generating new functionality.  I have interests in creating materials systems that benefit from 3D structuring.  Current work uses combinations of colloidal particle synthesis, electrochemistry, and atomic layer deposition to generate 3D structures for use in a variety of applications.  Some structures, like electrochemically etched silicon (Fig. 1A) are being pursued for photoelectrochemical water splitting to generate liquid fuels from solar energy.  Other structures, like colloidal crystal arrays embedded in a hydrogel matrix (Fig. 1B) are being developed for glucose sensing using visible light.  We have recently published work on tungsten inverse opal structures designed for thermophotovoltaics, which absorb broadband solar energy, heat up, and then re-emit black body radiation over a narrow bandwidth (Fig. 1E, see Ref. 1).

Fig. 1: Various 3D structures being investigated. (A) Porous silicon fabricated via metal-assisted etching.  (B) Colloidal crystal array embedded in a hydrogel that is chemically functionalized to bind with glucose. (C)  Silica particles being studied for 3D templating. (D) Tungsten nano-pyramids fabricated for solar absorption. (E) Tungsten inverse opal structure being developed for narrow-bandwidth black-body emission (see Ref. 1).

Related Publications


1. K. A. Arpin, M. D. Losego, A. N. Cloud, H. Ning, J. Mallek, N. P. Sergeant, L. Zhu, Z. Yu, B. Kalanyan, G. N. Parsons, G. S. Girolami, J. R. Abelson, S. Fan, P. V. Braun.  “Three-dimensional self-assembled photonic crystals with high temperature stability for thermal emission modification.”  Nat. Commun.  4 2630 (2013). DOI


2. C. Zhang, M. D. Losego, P. V. Braun, “Hydrogel-based glucose sensors: Effects of phenylboronic acid chemical structure on response.” Chem. Mater. 25 3239 (2013). DOI


3. K. A. Arpin, M. D. Losego, P. V. Braun, “Electrodeposited 3D tungsten photonic crystals with enhanced thermal stability.” Chem. Mater. 23 4783 (2011). DOI

School of Materials Science & Engineering

Last Updated: June 20, 2014

© 2012 M. D. Losego