About this role
Work Activities Plasmonic nanoparticles exhibit diverse effects under light exposure, such as enhancing electric fields and forming short-lived charged species, with applications in nanomedicine and photocatalysis. Here, you will investigate plasmonic nanoparticles for next-generation electrocatalytic reactors by using scanning electrochemical microscopy. This technique is a new type of scanning probe microscopy that can help understand the working mechanism in plasmonic chemistry. Qualifications We can only offer the project if: - you are currently enrolled in a Master's program in physics, chemistry, materials science, or a related field and - you have an EU member state nationality or - you don't hold an EU nationality, but you are enrolled at a university in the Netherlands. The internship has to be a mandatory part of your curriculum, for instance, as a MSc thesis. We expect you to be available for at least 5 months, although longer is preferable. Work environment AMOLF is a part of NWO-I and initiate and performs leading fundamental research on the physics of complex forms of matter, and to create new functional materials, in partnership with academia and industry. The institute is located at Amsterdam Science Park and currently employs about 140 researchers and 80 support employees. www.amolf.nl Current photovoltaic technologies require the use of highly pure materials, where the purification process is very energy intensive. In the group, we investigate how the same conversion efficiency can be obtained with lower quality material by introducing nanophotonic concepts and rational light management strategies. We develop new fabrication pathways for photovoltaic absorber and contact layers within the framework of circular chemistry, that minimize raw material usage and less energy-intensive systems. In parallel, we are interested in the (in)direct storage of solar energy. In particular, we focus on underpinning the ke...