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Center for Atomically Thin Multifunctional Coatings (ATOMIC)

Center Overview

The Center for Atomically Thin Multifunctional Coatings (ATOMIC) focuses on the design and development of cutting-edge coatings based on two-dimensional layered materials. ATOMIC brings together researchers, students, faculty, industry, and national labs to advance the understanding and application of these materials.

Two-dimensional (2D) materials, such as graphene, hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN), and transition metal dichalcogenides, possess tunable mechanical, electronic, and optical properties. These properties can be tailored to address critical scientific and technological challenges while enabling multifunctionality.

ATOMIC's work targets a range of applications, including corrosion, oxidation, abrasion, friction, wear reduction, and energy storage and harvesting, as well as the scalable synthesis and deposition of novel multifunctional coatings.

Universities

Pennsylvania State University
Boise State University
Rice University

View Center Website

Center Personnel

Jun Lou
Site Director (Rice University)
+1 713 348 4820
jlou@rice.edu

Mauricio Terrones
Center Director
+1 814 865 1372
mut11@psu.edu

David Estrada
Site Director (Boise State University)

daveestrada@boisestate.edu

Research Focus

In its research on atomically thin materials, ATOMIC focuses on these areas:

Electronics and sensing. From "More than Moore" to food contamination sensing, 2D materials are gaining traction in next-generation applications. High K innate dielectrics for 2D semiconductor devices, atomic layer deposition of conformal crystalline 2D materials, and on-demand tunable sensing are all current projects.
Energy conversion and storage. The high surface area that 2D materials exhibit makes them ideal for energy applications.
Protective coatings. The material h-BN shows excellent performance in extreme environments, and its high thermal conductivity also make it attractive for heat dissipation applications. Low-temperature synthesis, functionalization, and deposition of h-BN are being investigated.
Other applications. New applications of 2D materials are under investigation.

Awards

2113864

I/UCRC Phase II: The Pennsylvania State University: Center for Atomically Thin Multifunctional Coatings (ATOMIC)

Phase II of the Center for Atomically Thin Multifunctional Coatings (ATOMIC) is devoted to advancing the design and development of coatings based on two-dimensional (2D) materials. In ATOMIC Phase II, the center is expanded to three sites located at Pennsylvania State University, Rice University, and Boise State University. The joint research efforts will concentrate on addressing key societal and industrial problems in areas of U.S. national interest that can be mitigated through advanced multifunctional coatings, such as infrastructure protection, internet of things (IoT) sensing, electronics, energy harvesting/storage, autonomous systems, and biological threat reduction. Because of the aligned partnership among academia, government, and industry, ATOMIC seeks to impact the education and training of students, particularly those who are underrepresented minorities. To encourage young people to pursue science-technology research degrees, the center will jointly conduct activities, such as the Penn State Learning Factory, where students focus on an industrially-defined engineering problem for their senior project and leverage ongoing NSF programs such as the Research Experiences for Undergraduates and Teachers. ATOMIC will leverage Penn State's Innovation Park, which will serve as a hub for fostering academic-industry partnerships, and technology translation efforts.

Phase II builds on the robust foundation of scientific innovation in 2D materials at Penn State and Rice University and expands it into scalable 2D materials printing enabled by Boise State University. Penn State and Rice have successfully employed fundamental research programs in novel 2D materials, such as graphene, hexagonal boron nitride (hBN), MoS2, WS2, and WSxSe1-x; and Boise State has joined with experience nanomaterial ink development and controlled precision printing such as inkjet, plasma jet, aerosol jet, and micro-dispensing. This combination of expertise will ensure relevant pre-competitive research of interest to the industrial members in areas related to large-scale production processes, electronics, sensing, energy and protection. In particular, Penn State will lead research efforts in the areas of thin film deposition via metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD), solvothermal and electrochemical deposition, device and sensor integration, and benchmarking the optical, electronic, and sensing performance of 2D layers. Furthermore, Penn State will synergistically work with Rice and Boise State on atomic layer deposition, liquid exfoliation, device and sensor fabrication, modelling, and advanced characterization, using state-of-the-art facilities for materials processing, clean rooms for nanofabrication and unique characterization instruments.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. Read More >

2113882

IUCRC Phase II Rice University: Center for Atomically Thin Multifunctional Coatings (ATOMIC)

This Phase II proposal seeks to continue and expand the Center for Atomically Thin Multifunctional Coatings (ATOMIC), devoted to the design and development of advanced coatings based on two-dimensional (2D) materials. ATOMIC Phase II will synergistically integrate students, faculty, and staff from Pennsylvania State University, Rice University, and Boise State University to advance coating science across multiple technology readiness levels. Research performed at Rice will focus on multifunctional hexagonal boron nitride(hBN) coatings, photocatalytic coatings, printed nano-antennas, and advanced microscopy characterization of 2D materials. Because of the aligned partnership among academia, government, and industry, ATOMIC phase II will seeks to impact the education and training of students, particularly those who are underrepresented minorities. To encourage young people to pursue science-technology research degrees, the center will jointly conduct outreach activities and leverage ongoing NSF Engineering Research Centers (REU), Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) and Research Experiences for Teachers (RET) programs at Rice. ATOMIC will leverage the Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship to foster academic-industry relationships and enhance the transfer of knowledge from the Universities to the marketplace.

Two-dimensional (2D) materials exhibit a variety of unique properties, different from bulk phases, that will enhance the performance of existing coating technologies. Phase I of ATOMIC laid the foundation for demonstrating these ultrathin materials with improved performance in corrosion resistance, extreme environmental tolerance, energy harvesting/storage, biocompatibility, and enhanced molecular sensitivity. ATOMIC Phase II plans to build on the foundation of scientific innovation in 2D materials at Penn State and Rice University and expand it into scalable 2D materials printing enabled by the addition of Boise State University. Penn State and Rice have successfully employed fundamental research programs in novel 2D materials, such as graphene, hBN, MoS2, and WS2; and Boise State has joined with experience in nanomaterial ink development and controlled precision printing such as inkjet, plasma jet, aerosol jet, and micro-dispensing. The joint research efforts chosen and designed by ATOMIC will concentrate on addressing key societal and industrial problems in areas of U.S. national interest that can be mitigated through advanced multifunctional coatings, such as infrastructure protection, internet of things (IoT) sensing, electronics, energy harvesting/storage, autonomous systems, and biological threat reduction.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. Read More >

2113873

IUCRC Phase II Boise State University: Center for Atomically Thin Multifunctional Coatings (ATOMIC)

The Center for Atomically Thin Multifunctional Coatings (ATOMIC) investigates the fundamental science of 2-dimensional (2D) material systems to enable a wide range of industrial and defense related applications. Phase II of the ATOMIC IUCRC adds a new site to the ATOMIC Center at Boise State University, thus extending the geographical reach of ATOMIC into the Pacific Northwest. A large focus of the work at the Boise State site is related to the fundamental chemistry needed to accelerate industry-scale synthesis of 2D materials via atomic layer deposition and large volume synthesis of 2D material inks for additive electronics manufacturing via inkjet, aerosol jet, plasma jet, and micro dispense/extrusion-based printing. The partnerships between ATOMIC universities, the industry members, and government partners are designed to serve the national interest by promoting the progress of 2D materials in science and engineering. Undergraduate and graduate students will have the opportunity to engage in research projects across all three sites, interacting with a diverse range of faculty and industry partners.

Phase II builds on the robust foundation of scientific innovation in 2D materials at Penn State and Rice University and expands it into scalable 2D materials printing enabled by the addition of Boise State University. Penn State and Rice have successfully pioneered fundamental research programs in novel 2D materials, such as graphene, hBN, MoS2, and WS2; and Boise State has excelled in the area of nanomaterial ink development and controlled precision printing such as inkjet, plasma jet, aerosol jet, and micro-dispensing. This combination of expertise will ensure relevant pre-competitive research of interest to the industrial members in areas related to large-scale production processes, electronics, sensing, energy, and protection. The joint research efforts chosen and designed by ATOMIC will concentrate on addressing key societal and industrial problems in areas of U.S. national interest that can be mitigated through advanced multifunctional coatings, such as infrastructure protection, internet of things (IoT) sensing, electronics, energy harvesting/storage, autonomous systems, and biological threat reduction. Student-centric activities include transformational and applied research, developing intellectual property, low-cost nano-manufacturing and industry internship opportunities.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. Read More >

Member Organizations

IUCRC affiliated member organizations are displayed as submitted by the Center. Non-federal organizations are not selected, approved, or otherwise endorsed by the U.S. National Science Foundation.

The opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed are those of the Center author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. National Science Foundation.