Materials Research Laboratory - MIT MRL

MATERIALS DAY SPEAKERS

Welcome & Introduction Carl V. Thompson Professor and Director Materials Research Laboratory Biography	Application of advanced microscopy to industrial problems: New tools give new insights Matthew Kulzick Senior Research Chemist BP Amoco Chemical Company Abstract and Bio	Imaging and controlling nanoscale crystal growth in the transmission electron microscope Frances M. Ross Professor Materials Science & Eng., MIT Abstract & Bio	An electron walks into a bar... Electron microscopy beyond imaging Sylvija Gradecak Professor Materials Science & Eng., MIT Abstract & Bio
Compact synchrotron radiation sources enabling advanced x-ray imaging and diffraction methods in a laboratory setting David E. Moncton Director Nuclear Reactor Laboratory, MIT Abstract & Bio	Nanoscale insights for macroscale solutions: Exploring novel damage-resistance mechanisms in metals Cem Tasan Assistant Professor Materials Science & Eng., MIT Abstract & Bio	Accelerating the pace of materials characterization at the atomic scale: from machine learning to novel detectors James LeBeau Associate Director Analytical Instrumentation Facility, NCSU Abstract & Bio	Using quantum mechanics to hack the electron microscope Karl Berggren Professor Electrical Eng. & Computer Science, MIT Abstract & Bio

Matthew Kulzick

Dr. Matthew Kulzick
Senior Research Chemist
BP Amoco Chemical Company

Keynote:
Application of advanced microscopy to industrial problems: New tools give new insights

Abstract

Dr Kulzick will highlight a range of applications where advanced electron microscopy methods are being used by BP to develop deeper insight into challenging systems. These will include examples in catalysis, asphaltene agglomeration, separation science, and corrosion. These examples have been developed through BP’s International Center for Advanced Materials or ICAM working with researchers at University of Manchester and University of Illinois at Champaign Urbana. The goal of the talk is to illustrate how recent advances in electron microscopy are allowing industrially relevant systems to be studied in detail at nanoscale and the criticality of industry-academic collaboration to advance this type of understanding.

Biography

Dr. Kulzick joined BP Amoco Chemical Company in 1984 after receiving his PhD in Inorganic Chemistry from the University of California in Berkeley where he worked with Prof. E. Meutterties on synthetic organometallic chemistry. He has a BS in chemistry from University of Wisconsin. In industry, he has worked in a wide range of areas including catalysis, polymer science, coating development, and active barrier packaging. In 2003, he was asked to rebuild the inorganic characterization capability of BP Amoco Petrochemical’s after the divestiture of its Olefins and Derivatives division. This led to over $2MM in investment and the modernization of BP’s capabilities and methods in elemental analysis, catalyst characterization, X-ray spectroscopy, and microscopy. He now uses these tools to solve problems of interest to BP and consults across BP in these areas. Research highlights include the successful commercialization of Amosorb active barrier additives, development of low viscosity polyester powder coating resins for MDF, development of measurement and QC systems for national QC assurance for low sulfur diesel fuel quality, and, working with Nestor Zaluzec, Grace Burke, and Protochips, the development of the first EDS capable in situ gas and liquid cell technology for TEM/STEM. Dr. Kulzick also coordinates BP research at the Advanced Photon Source at Argonne National Laboratory and. serves as a member of the advisory committee for the Center for Functional Nanomaterials at Brookhaven National Laboratory.

Frances Ross

Frances M. Ross
Professor
Department of Materials Science & Engineering, MIT

Imaging and controlling nanoscale crystal growth in the transmission electron microscope

Abstract

Building functional nanostructures with atomic level precision requires a detailed understanding of materials growth and the physics of self-assembly at the nanoscale. In situ imaging in the transmission electron microscope can provide unique information by measuring individual nanostructures while they grow. Here we describe examples in which in situ electron microscopy helps explore growth mechanisms and suggests strategies to build new types of structure. We will show nanocrystal epitaxy on graphene, electrochemical deposition processes in aqueous solutions and the formation of semiconductor structures from catalytic droplets. We conclude with a perspective on the exciting recent advances in electron microscopy and how these developments will impact in situ experiments in the future.

Biography

Frances M. Ross received her B.A. in Physics and Ph.D. in Materials Science from Cambridge University. Her postdoc was at A.T.&T. Bell Laboratories, using in situ electron microscopy to study silicon oxidation and dislocation dynamics. She joined the National Center for Electron Microscopy, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, where she imaged anodic etching of Si. She then moved to the IBM T. J. Watson Research Center where she built a program around a microscope with deposition and focused ion beam capabilities and developed liquid cell microscopy to image electrochemical processes. She recently joined the faculty at the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, MIT. Her interests include nanostructure self-assembly, liquid cell microscopy, epitaxy and electrochemical processes. She has been a Visiting Scientist at Lund University and an Adjunct Professor at Arizona State University. She received the UK Institute of Physics Boys Medal, the MSA Burton Medal and MRS Outstanding Young Investigator and Innovation in Materials Characterization Awards, holds an Honorary Doctorate from Lund, and is a Fellow of APS, AAAS, MRS, MSA, RMS and AVS.

Silvija Gradecak Sylvija Gradecak
Professor
Departments of Materials Science & Engineering, MIT

An electron walks into a bar... Electron microscopy beyond imaging

Abstract

Electron microscopy techniques play a critical role in understanding structure on the nanoscale; due to recent advances in electron optics and computational tools required to operate the equipment and analyze results, the last decade has been the most exciting period of electron microscopy since the first transmission electron microscope (TEM) was build by Ernst Ruska in 1933. The atomic-scale study of interfaces and surfaces, imaging of individual dopant atoms in crystals, or detection of phonons are just some of the recent scientific breakthroughs enabled by electron microscopy. These previously unmanageable experiments have opened up new fields at the forefront of materials science, physics and beyond.
In addition to improved resolution, the recent hardware advances have also shifted the focus on new and advanced spectroscopic techniques beyond imaging. Due to a range of complex elastic and inelastic scattering events between high-energy electrons and atoms within a material, multiple signals – including x-rays, light, current etc. – are generated inside an electron microscope. In this talk, I will cover several recent examples in which we used MIT-unique electron microscopy methods to collect a range of signals to gain a comprehensive picture of the material’s physical properties. Examples include GaN-based light emitting diodes and organic-inorganic perovskite solar cells (PSCs). We used electrons inside an electron microscope to mimic conditions of an operating solar cell device. This process enabled us to directly study changes within the material when exposed to electrons. By using cathodoluminescence and electron beam induced current, we observed point defect migration in PSC devices, but also demonstrated that it can be inhibited by growth of large grain perovskite materials.

Biography

Silvija Gradečak is a (Full) Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at MIT. After receiving her M.S. in Physics from the University of Zagreb in 1999, she obtained her PhD in Physics at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne and subsequently was awarded the Swiss National Science Foundation Fellowship for Prospective Researchers. After spending 2 years as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Harvard University, Prof. Gradečak joined MIT faculty in September 2006. Prof. Gradečak’s interdisciplinary research program is based on synthesis of materials with confined dimensions – including two dimensional films, one dimensional nanowires/nanotubes, and zero dimensional nanocrystals – and their assembly into functional devices for applications in nanophotonics, nanoelectronics, and in energy harvesting and conversion. To address some of the key challenges in the field of nanomaterials, she combines a set of unique synthesis and characterization techniques with robust material models and device fabrication. Prof. Gradečak received several awards including NSF CAREER Award, 3M Innovation Award, Inaugural 2012 Nano Letters Young Investigator Lectureship, and Graduate Materials Council Outstanding Teaching Award.

David Moncton David E. Moncton
Director
Nuclear Reactor Laboratory, MIT

Compact synchrotron radiation sources enabling advanced x-ray imaging and diffraction methods in a laboratory setting

Abstract

X-rays are the most important probe for determining the structure of materials from the atomic to the macroscopic scale. Over recent decades, the availability of large-scale synchrotron radiation sources has transformed x-ray diffraction and imaging technologies by providing x-ray beams which are ten or more orders of magnitude more brilliant than typical laboratory-scale x-ray tubes. The existence of only a few remotely located synchrotron facilities, the fact that laboratory-scale sources have not improved significantly, and the large gap in their capability compared with synchrotron sources, has greatly limited the impact of x-ray studies of materials. Having been the founding director of the major US synchrotron facility, the Advanced Photon Source at Argonne National Laboratory, I am well aware of the extraordinary capabilities of the large-scale facilities, as well as the limitations many researchers face in trying to carry out x-ray research within the remote user-facility paradigm. In this talk I will describe the technical opportunities currently being pursued to bring synchrotron radiation capabilities to a laboratory-scale environment. Inverse Compton scattering, in which a laser field replaces the undulator in a conventional synchrotron, allows electrons of much lower energy to produce high-brilliance x-ray beams. As a result, a machine of compact footprint and modest cost can provide x-rays for applications which are not convenient or are actually impossible at a large remote synchrotron user facility. Such technologies could have major impact in university and industrial laboratories.

Biography

David Moncton is director of the MIT Nuclear Reactor Laboratory and Adjunct Professor of Physics. From 1987 until September 2001, he was the Associate Laboratory Director responsible for the Advanced Photon Source project at Argonne National Laboratory. He directed the design, construction, and operation of the $800 million national user facility, which produces the nation's most brilliant x-ray beams for materials research. From 1999 to 2001, he was Executive Director for the Spallation Neutron Source project, a $1.4 billion user facility operated by Oak Ridge National Laboratory. During this period Moncton transformed the design and management systems, and initiated on-site construction. Now fully operational, the SNS is the world’s most advanced neutron source.

Moncton's research interests lie in two primary categories: (1) x-ray and neutron scattering studies of novel states of matter, and (2) the development of new facility concepts and experimental techniques for producing and using photon and neutron beams. In 1985, his magnetic x-ray diffraction work was named the Outstanding Scientific Accomplishment in Solid State Physics in the Department of Energy's Materials Research Competition. He received the Department of Energy's Ernest Orlando Lawrence Memorial Award in 1987 for his development of high-resolution synchrotron x-ray scattering techniques and their applications.

Moncton served on a study group of the American Physical Society on Boost Phase Intercept for National Missile Defense, which won the 2005 APS Leo Szilard Award. He was a recipient of Argonne’s Compton Award in 2013 for development of top-up operation of synchrotron storage rings. He is a Fellow of the American Physical Society, and a Fellow of the Neutron Scattering Society of America. Before joining Argonne, Moncton was a senior research associate at Exxon Research, a group leader at Brookhaven National Laboratory and a member of the technical staff at Bell Laboratories. He holds a B.S. in engineering from Cornell University, and an M.S. and PhD in physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Cem Tasan
Assistant Professor
Department of Materials Science & Engineering, MIT

Nanoscale insights for macroscale solutions: Exploring novel damage-resistance mechanisms in metals

Abstract

To design metals that have improved property combinations, nanoscale insights of transformation, elasticity, plasticity, damage micro-mechanisms are needed. To this end, we develop various in-situ characterization tools and methods, and use the improved understanding we gain to design new steels, high entropy alloys, titanium alloys.

Biography

Prof. C. Cem Tasan is the Thomas B. King Career Development Professor of Metallurgy, in the Dept. of Materials Science and Engineering at MIT. He received his BSc and MSc degrees from the Metallurgical and Materials Engineering Dept. of METU, Ankara/Turkey. He then moved to Eindhoven/Netherlands, to carry out his PhD within the group of Prof. Marc Geers in the Mechanical Engineering Dept. of Eindhoven University of Technology. Following his PhD degree in 2010 he moved to Dusseldorf/Germany, for a 2-year post-doc position with Prof. Dierk Raabe in Max-Planck-Institut fur Eisenforschung (MPIE). He was then appointed in MPIE as a Group Leader, leading the Adaptive Structural Materials group until joining MIT in January 2016. Prof. Tasan’s research explores the boundaries of physical metallurgy, solid mechanics, and in-situ microscopy, in order to provide environment-friendly metals solutions.

James LeBeau

James LeBeau
Associate Director
Analytical Instrumentation Facility, NCSU

Accelerating the pace of materials characterization at the atomic scale: from machine learning to novel detectors

Abstract

In this talk, I will highlight a number of scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) developments that have provided new insights into material properties and have the potential to dramatically accelerate materials characterization. While STEM provides direct imaging of atomic structure, accurate and precise measurements had been prevented by sample drift and scan distortion. To address this limitation, I will discuss our revolving STEM (RevSTEM) solution. The method achieves sub-0.1% accuracy and picometer level precision and enables the direct analysis of local structure without significant computational overhead. Case studies will be presented to demonstrate the capabilities of this technique to accurately characterize the atomic structure of bulk, thin film, and nano materials. I will also discuss our work on implementing artificial intelligence to realize the self-driving electron microscopy. Towards this objective, I will show how we use convolutional neural networks (CNN), which are integral to self-driving cars and face detection, to measure and identify areas of interest in real-time at the microscope. For example, local specimen thickness and tilt can be determined and used to guide the microscope to optimum conditions needed for atomic resolution imaging. Our trained CNN is found to be highly accurate and precise, to within 1-2 nm, fully automatic, and orders of magnitude faster than other approaches.

Biography

James LeBeau is Associate Professor of Materials Science & Engineering at North Carolina State University. He will be joining the Department of Materials Science & Engineering at MIT in Winter 2019. James earned his B.S. in Materials Science & Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 2006 and his Ph.D. from the University of California Santa Barbara in 2010. He joined the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at North Carolina State University as a faculty member in January 2011 and was promoted to Associate Professor in 2016. His research focuses on applying and developing (scanning) transmission electron microscopy techniques to determine the atomic structure and chemistry of defects/interfaces and connect these to properties of materials for power electronics, dielectrics, and optical applications. He has published over 80 peer reviewed articles and has received a US patent for his unique imaging method. For his research, he has been recognized with numerous awards including the NSF CAREER award, an AFOSR Young Investigator grant, a MAS Distinguished Scholar award, the Birks Award, and the MAS K.F.J Heinrich award.

Karl Berggren

Karl Berggren
Professor
Department of Electrical Engineering & Computer Science, MIT

Using quantum mechanics to hack the electron microscope

Abstract

When an electron enters a material, it can either deposit energy directly through coulombic interaction with the particles in the substrate, or indirectly by emitting plasmons and secondary electrons. Both of these processes are responsible for radiolytic damage to samples. They also induce collapse of the quantum-mechanical wavefunction of the electron through coupling to an effective bath of phonon and coupled electron states in the material. Typically, the resulting damage makes nanometer-length-scale imaging of sensitive biological specimens in-vivo impossible.

Recently, quantum non-demolition techniques have been proposed that may permit sensing of a sample state without collapse of the electron wavefunction (and the con-commensurate damage) in certain conditions. By demonstrating a coherent electron resonator in which these quantum non-demolition techniques are used, we hope to develop tools and techniques for engineering the wavefunction of electrons in free space. We will also discuss the possibility that a quantum-electron microscope might one day permit nanometer-length-scale imaging of live biological specimens. Finally, we will touch on electron-exposure mechanisms at play in sub-10-nanometer lithography that help illustrate the damage mechanisms existing in radiolytic samples at this length scale.

Biography

Prof. Berggren is Professor of Electrical Engineering at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, where he heads the Quantum Nanostructures and Nanofabrication Group. He is also Director of the Nanostructures Laboratory in the Research Laboratory of Electronics and is a core faculty member in the Microsystems Technology Laboratory (MTL). From December of 1996 to September of 2003, Prof. Berggren served as a staff member at MIT Lincoln Laboratory in Lexington, Massachusetts, and from 2010 to 2011, was on sabbatical at the Technical University of Delft in the Netherlands. Prof. Berggren is a fellow of AAAS, fellow of IEEE and a fellow of the International Society for Nanomanufacturing. He is a Kavli fellow, and a recipient of the 2015 Paul T. Forman Team Engineering Award from the Optical Society of America. In 2016, he received a Bose Fellowship and was also a recipient of the EECS Department's Frank Quick Innovation Fellowship. He is currently the section editor for patterning and nanofabrication of the IOP Nanotechnology journal, and also serves on the editorial board of the IOP Nano Futures journal. He was the program chair of the 2014 Electron, Ion, Photon Beams and Nanofabrication Conference. From 2008 to 2014 he was an elected member of the board of the Applied Superconductivity Conference. Prof. Berggren has served as a consultant to a number of industrial, academic, and government organizations, and continues an active independent consulting practice.

Carl V. Thompson
Director
Materials Research Laboratory
Stavros Salapatas Professor of Materials Science & Engineering, MIT

Biography

Professor Thompson received an S.B. in Materials Science and Engineering from MIT and an S.M. and Ph.D. in Applied Physics from Harvard University. He was an IBM postdoctoral fellow in the Research Laboratory of Electronics at MIT in 1982 and joined the faculty of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering in 1983. Prof. Thompson was an SERC Fellow at Cambridge University from 1990 - 1991, a Humboldt Senior Scientist awardee at the Max Planck Institute for Metallurgy in Stuttgart Germany from 1997 - 1998, and a visiting scientist at the Institute for Applied Materials at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in 2012. He served as the president of the Materials Research Society in 1996 and served on the MRS council from 1991 - 1997. He has also been active in MIT’s programs in Singapore since 1998, including serving for 12 years as the co-Chair of the Program for Advanced Materials for Micro- and Nano-Systems of the Singapore-MIT Alliance. He was the Director of MIT’s Materials Processing Center from 2008 - 2017 and is currently the Director of MIT’s Materials Research Laboratory and Co-Director of the Skoltech Center for Electrochemical Energy Storage.
Professor Thompson worked briefly for U.S. Steel and General Electric and has been a consultant for over 30 companies including DEC, IBM and Intel and other microelectronics companies as well as smaller enterprises based on microelectromechanical devices and systems. He has also worked with a number of legal firms. His group has collaborated in research with IBM, Intel, AMD, TI, Motorola, and Sematech.
Professor Thompson’s research interests include structure evolution during processing of thin films and nanostructures, and incorporation of thin films and nanostructures into electronic, microelectromechanical and electrochemical devices and systems. Specific research topics include control of structure in single crystal and polycrystalline films and nanostructures; stress development, evolution and control in polycrystalline films and nanostructures; morphological evolution and stability of films and nanostructures, including templating of morphological instabilities as method for pattern formation; fabrication of thin film batteries using CMOS compatible materials and processes; and characterization and modeling of the reliability of IC interconnects and GaN-based HEMTs and LEDs.

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