Dr. Aravind Vijayaraghavan's Nanofunctional Materials Group
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Summary of Nanofunc Group Research Areas (click to enlarge)
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Ongoing research activities
Graphene-based Electromechanical Biosensors
  • Graphene-based chip for the quartz-crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM-D) technique.
  • Studying the adsorption and binding dynamics of biomolecules (phospholipids, proteins, etc.) on various graphene masterials (graphene oxide, reduced graphene oxide, etc.)
  • Graphene-QCM based immunoassays (antibody tests)
  • Open-source custom QCM system for point-of-care diagnostics.
Graphene Nano-Electro-Mechenical Systems (MEMS) and Sensors
  • Mechanical and electronic properties of graphene-polymer heterostructure membrannes.
  • Strained transfer for pre-tensioned suspended graphene membrannes.
  • MEMS pressure sensor using graphene membrannes.
  • MEMS touch interface using graphene membrannes.
  • MEMS microphones using graphene membrannes.
  • Readout circuit design and sensor packaging.
Graphene dispersions: production, formulations and characterisations
  • Large-scale synthesis of graphene oxide and reduced (r)GO
  • Non-covalent stabilisers for reduced graphene oxide and graphene nanoplatelet aqueous dispersions
  • Graphene-based aqueous printable inks
  • Biocompatible graphene formulations
  • Polymer-stabilised graphene formulations
  • Nanoscale infrared spectroscopy characterisation of functionalised graphene sheets
Graphene-enhanced polymer composites
  • Graphene enhanced natural rubber latex and water-bourne polyurethane composites
  • Dip-moulded thin-film composites
  • Graphene enhanced solid natural and synthetic rubber composites
  • Graphene-enhanced thermoplastic polymer composites
  • Real-world applications of graphene enhanced polymer composites
Graphene bio-mimetic sensors
  • Self-assembled biomimetic phospholipid membrannes on graphene
  • Dip-pen nanolithograpy (DPN) and micro-cantilever spotting (uCS) for nanoscale functionalisation of graphene
  • Quartz-crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM-D) to monitor chemical interactions on graphene surfaces
  • Covalent and non-covalent biochemistry on graphene
Graphene based liquid crystals
  • Graphene and lyotropic liquid crystals (e.g. CTAB) hybrid systems
  • Graphene-doped thermotropic liquid crystals
  • Lyoytopic phases in graphene oxide and stabilised graphene
  • Shear-induced flow and textures in graphene liquid crystals
  • Shear-induced polarised light microscopy (SIPLI)
Nano-carbon photonics, plasmonics and optoelectronics
  • Graphene, carbon nanotubes and molecules coupled to plasmonic antennas
  • Raman spectroscopy to investigate plasmonic coupling
  • Graphene oxide surface passivation of silicon solar cells
  • Coupling graphene with silicon waveguides
  • Scattering scanning near-field optical microscopy (sSNOM) of 2D materials
Graphene scaffolds for regenerative medicine
  • Peptide-graphene composite hydrogel scaffolds
  • Functionalised graphene coatings for nerve conduits
  • Biopolymer-graphene composite hydrogel scaffolds for musculo-skeletal regeneration

Previous research topics

Exfoliation, Growth and Electronic Devices of Graphene

  • Layer-controlled exfoliation of graphene from graphite - large-scale production of bi-layer and tri-layer graphene.
  • Dielectrphoretic assembly of high-density arrays of individual graphene devices from solution in NMP.
  • Devices characterized by SEM, AFM, Raman and electron transport measurements.
  • As is the case with nanotubes, the assembly is self-limiting to one graphene flake per device.
  • Graphene nano-ribbons are aligned in the desired direction between the electrodes during deposition.

Large-scale Assembly of Sorted Single-Wall Carbon Nanotubes

  • This work is directed at integrating and assembling single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) into functional devices using a bottom-up method called Dielectrophoresis (DEP).
  • Important results:
    1. DEP is self-limiting to one SWCNT per device under certain conditions, but can also be used for making thin-films or ensembles of SWCNTs under other conditions.
    2. DEP can selectively deposit metallic SWCNTs at high frequencies.
    3. DEP is scalable. Ultra-high integration densities (> 1 million devices per sq. cm) has been demonstrated
    4. DEP can be combined with SWCNT sorting to make arrays of single-chirality or semiconducting SWCNT devices.

Applications of Chirality-sorted Single-wall Carbon Nanotube Devices

  • Hydrogen sensing
    - Optimum band-gap for H2 sensing is ~1 eV (1.4 nm diameter)
    - ppm sensitivity at room temperature and ambient atmosphere
    - Pulsed gate voltage needed for long-term stable operation

Voltage-Contrast Scanning Electron Micropscopy

  • VC-SEM is a new visual, parallel electronic characterization technique with nanoscale resolution.
  • VC-SEM can be used for:
    1. Distinguishing metallic and semiconducting SWCNTs in device configuration using SEM.
    2. Statistical analysis of large-scale arrays of SWCNT devices.

    3. Locating and characterizing electronically-active defects in individual SWCNTs.
    4. In-situ characterization of defect creation and annealing (defect engineering) (see next section).

    5. Imaging conduction percolation pathways in SWCNT networks

Single-wall Carbon Nanotube based Electronic Devices

Manchester research links

  • Graphene@Manchester
  • School of Materials
  • Sir Henry Royce Advanced Materials Institute
  • Manchester Regenerative Medicine Network

Current collaborations

University of Manchester
  • Prof. Alberto Saiani
  • Prof. Steve Yeates
  • Dr. Peter Quayle
  • Dr. Steve Edmondson
  • Prof. Costas Soutis
  • Dr. Matthieu Gresil
  • Dr. Ingo Dierking
  • Dr. Adam Reid
  • Prof. Sue Kimber
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology
  • Dr. Dr. Michael Hirtz
  • Prof. Ralph Krupke
  • Dr. Frank Hennrich
Freie Universität Berlin
  • Prof. Stephanie Reich
Oxford University
  • Prof. Mark Sansom
The University of Sheffield
  • Dr Oleksandr Mykhaylyk
Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais
  • Prof. Ado Jorio
University of Melbourne
  • Prof. Amanda Ellis
University College London
  • Prof. Peter Coveney
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