Department of Physics and Nuclear Engineering

Faculty-Cadet Research on Self-Assembling Molecules (SAMs) at ARL Adelphi, MD: Dr. Paula Fekete and CDT Kaeleigh Warfield of the Department of Physics and Nuclear Engineering, working together on a PH489 individual research project, visited Army Research Laboratories at Adelphi, MD during the week of 15-19 June. The photos show them working in the laboratory’s clean room where ultraviolet light is filtered out to protect sensitive samples. Behind them is a state-of-the-art electron microscope they used to etch their samples. Dr. Madan Dubey, a research scientist at the Sensors and Electron Devices Directorate hosted the visit. Guided by Dr. Sina Najmei, a post doctoral fellow on Dr. Dubey’s team, Dr. Fekete and CDT Warfield were able to produce nanolayers using two different types of self-assembling molecules. To verify that the samples were coated by a nanolayer of SAMs, they used multiple methods of analysis, such as Raman spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Recent developments in physics at the nanoscale brought molecular self-assembly in two dimensions on substrates such as graphene, thallium, silicone oxide, and gold to the forefront of scientific research. The formation of ordered arrays of molecules via self-assembly is a rapid, scalable route towards the realization of nanoscale architectures with tailored properties. This process can be accomplished by undergraduate students at West Point. Dr. Fekete and CDT Warfield are planning to continue their collaboration with Dr. Dubey and his team by creating new samples that may have applications in nanoelectronic devices developed by ARL.