Ferroelectric Nanoconfined Water
Postdoc Thiago Alonso Sousa
Overview
The structure, chemistry, and overall properties of water are strongly dependent on its degree of confinement. Yet poorly understood, the properties of nanoconfined water can be substantially different from bulk. The rich phenomenology behind water under extreme confinement suggests that this system could be engineered for technological applications in nanofluidics, electrolyte materials and water desalination, for instance.
One-dimensional graphene edges constitute a testbed for the highest possible degree of nanoscale confinement of water. Following this concept, you will take advantage of an alternative for confining water at the one-dimensional (1D) edge of graphene for studies related to ferroelectricity. As previously described by our group, the water molecules confined at graphene edges change orientation when subject to an external electric field (ferroelectricity), leading to perceptible alterations in the charge carrier concentration of graphene.
Objectives
In this project, you will conduct a series of experiments to determine the microscopic mechanism involved in the ferroelectricity of water and compare with theoretical calculation. More precisely, you will study the dependence of the ordering states of water on the temperature and electric field, aiming at the detection of sudden or gradual phase transitions from this 1D state to a variety of possible molecular phases.
Reference
1. Nano Lett. 2018, 18, 8, 4675–4683