​Link to join Webinar
https://kaust.zoom.us/j/99351224955

ABSTRACT: Advances in machine learning and artificial intelligence has been mainly from the architecture and software levels, with the basic building blocks still being CMOS transistors. This causes the hardware to be bulky and power-hungry. We are developing neuromorphic devices functioning similar to the neurons and synapses of the human brain, which can serve as the basic building blocks of neural network hardware, making the systems energy-efficient, scalable and compact. In this talk, Roy will discuss her use of novel semiconducting two-dimensional materials to make artificial neurons and synapses which can perform pattern recognition. She will also discuss her efforts in developing optoelectronic synapses using 2D materials.


BIOGRAPHY: Dr. Tania Roy is an Assistant Professor at NanoScience Technology Center and Department of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Central Florida. Her current research interests lie in developing hardware for artificial intelligence applications using novel functional materials including two-dimensional materials. She also works on energy-harvesting devices, particularly advanced photon management systems in ultra-thin solar cells. She won the NSF CAREER award in 2019 and the UCF Luminary award in 2021. Prior to joining UCF in 2016, Roy was a postdoctoral researcher at University of California, Berkeley and Georgia Institute of Technology. She obtained her PhD and MS degree in Electrical Engineering from Vanderbilt University.

MORE INFORMATION

• CONTACTMazen E. Mero

ZOOM LINK:  https://kaust.zoom.us/j/92999566907

​Abstract:  Supramolecular chemistry is intrinsically a dynamic chemistry in view of the lability of the non-covalent interactions connecting the molecular components of a supramolecular entity and its resulting ability to exchange components. Similarly, dynamic covalent chemistry concerns molecular entities containing covalent bonds that may form and break reversibility, so as to allow a continuous modification in constitution by reorganization and exchange of building blocks. These features define a Constitutional Dynamic Chemistry (CDC) on both the molecular and supramolecular levels.

One may define constitutional dynamic materials, as materials whose components are linked through reversible covalent or non-covalent connections and which may thus undergo constitutional variation, i.e. change in constitution by assembly/deassembly processes in a given set of conditions. Because of their intrinsic ability to exchange, incorporate and rearrange their components, they may in principle select them in response to external stimuli or environmental factors and therefore behave as adaptive materials of either molecular or supramolecular nature.

Applying these considerations to polymer chemistry leads to the definition of constitutionally dynamic polymers, DYNAMERS, of both molecular and supramolecular types, possessing the capacity of adaptation by association/growth/dissociation sequences.  Supramolecular materials, in particular supramolecular polymers may be generated by the polyassociation of components/monomers interconnected through complementary recognition groups. Dynamic covalent polymers result from polycondensation via reversible chemical reactions. They may undergo modifications of their properties (mechanical, optical, etc.) via incorporation, exchange and recombination of their monomeric components. These features give access to higher levels of behavior such as healing and adaptability in response to external stimuli (heat, light, medium, chemical additives, etc.).                            

CDC introduces a paradigm shift into the chemistry of materials and opens new perspectives in materials science. A rich variety of novel architectures, processes and properties may be expected to result from the blending of supramolecular and molecular dynamic chemistry with materials chemistry, opening perspectives towards adaptive materials and technologies.
     
General References

    J.-M. Lehn, Dynamic combinatorial chemistry and virtual combinatorial libraries, Chem. Eur. J., 1999, 5, 2455.
    J.-M. Lehn, From supramolecular chemistry towards constitutional dynamic chemistry and adaptive chemistry, Chem. Soc. Rev., 2007, 36, 151.
    J.-M. Lehn, "Dynamers: Dynamic molecular and supramolecular polymers", Aust. J. Chem. 2010, 63,      611-623.
    J.-M. Lehn, Chapter 1, in Constitutional Dynamic Chemistry, ed. M. Barboiu, Topics Curr. Chem, 2012, 322, 1-32.
    J.-M. Lehn, “Dynamers: From Supramolecular Polymers to Adaptive Dynamic Polymers”, in Adv. Polym. Sci., 2013, 261, 155-172.
    Lehn, J.-M., Perspectives in Chemistry – Steps towards Complex Matter,  Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., 2013, 52, 2836-2850.
    Lehn, J.-M., Perspectives in Chemistry – Aspects of Adaptive Chemistry and Materials, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., 2015, 54, 3276-3289.

Biography:  Jean-Marie Lehn became Professor of Chemistry at the Université Louis Pasteur in Strasbourg in 1970 and from 1979 to 2010 he was Professor at the Collège de France in Paris. He is presently Professor at the University of Strasbourg Institute for Advanced Study (USIAS). He shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1987 (with Donald Cram and Charles Pedersen) for his studies on the chemical basis of “molecular recognition” (i.e. the way in which a receptor molecule recognizes and selectively binds a substrate), which also plays a fundamental role in biological processes.

 Over the years his work led him to the definition of a new field of chemistry, which he has proposed calling “supramolecular chemistry” as it deals with the complex entities formed by the association of two or more chemical species held together by non-covalent intermolecular forces, whereas molecular chemistry concerns the entities constructed from atoms linked by covalent bonds. Subsequently his work developed into the chemistry of self-organization processes, based on the design of "programmed" chemical systems that undergo spontaneous assembly of suitable components into well-defined supramolecular species, directed by the supramolecular processing of molecular information.  More recently, the implementation of dynamic features and of selection in both molecular and supramolecular chemistry led to the development of “constitutional dynamic chemistry”, concerning entities able to undergo reorganization in response to external stimuli, thus leading to the emergence of an “adaptive and evolutive chemistry” towards a chemistry of complex matter.

Author of more than 1000 scientific publications, Lehn is a member of many academies and institutions. He has received numerous international honours and awards.

MORE INFORMATION

• CONTACTLinda J. Sapolu
• EMAILLinda.Sapolu@kaust.edu.sa

Abstract:

Fouling is a common phenomenon on those objects submerged in seawater due to the deposit and growth of microorganism in the sea. For boat and yacht, antifouling paints are applied so as to avoid fouling on the hull under water. Common practice uses paint containing either tributyltin (TBT) or heavy metals both of which are toxic and kill the microorganisms exhibiting an anti-fouling effect. As such TBT was banned but heavy metals are still allowed in antifouling paints that can be as high as or higher than 30% in mass. The toxic additives pollute our marine environment as well as affect the food-chain. The first part of the talk will describe general methods of fouling protection and their limitations. Then, a newly developed nano-sized photocatalyst was introduced, which can effectively control the growth of microorganisms on the hull of yachts. Regular removal of the deposited microorganisms can be avoided, saving the maintenance cost and improving the fuel efficiency of the yachts. Laboratory and field tests have been conducted and the results will be presented. The prospects of this technology to control antifouling on other marine structures will be discussed at the end of the talk.

Bio:

Prof. Dennis Y.C. Leung received his BEng (1982) and PhD (1988) from the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Hong Kong.  He had worked with the Hongkong Electric Co., Ltd. for five years before joining the University of Hong Kong in 1993. Professor Leung is now a full professor and Head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering specializing in environmental pollution control and renewable & clean energy development. He has published more than 450 articles in this area including 310+ peer reviewed top SCI journal papers.  His current h-index is 75 and total citations are 32000+. He is one of the top 1% highly cited scientists in the world in energy field since 2010 and named as a Highly Cited Researcher by Clarivate Analytics for the past four years from 2017 to 2020.  Prof. Leung has delivered more than 70 keynote and invited lectures in many conferences.

Prof. Leung is a chartered engineer, a fellow of the IMechE, Energy Institute and HKIE. He was also the Past Chairman of the Institute of Energy (HK Branch), and currently serves as an editorial board member of a number of journals including Applied Energy, Energy Conversion and Management, Applied Sciences, and Associate Editor of Progress in Energy. Prof. Leung also serves as a board member of the NAMI Centre and Hong Kong Institution of Science, chairman and member of a few committees of the HKSAR government and government's appeal board panels related to sustainable energy and environment. 

Registration link to join the seminar:

https://kaust.zoom.us/j/93661550863

MORE INFORMATION

• CONTACTEmmanuelle Sougrat

​Please click this link to join the webinar:

 https://kaust.zoom.us/j/93861716412

Abstract: "The Netherlands is faced with an important choice: do we put off making our energy systems more sustainable or do we speed up the energy transition?". So begins a plea by five CEOs of major Dutch companies in the Volkskrant of 26 October 2016. In the meantime, we are about five years further on. Where do we stand? I will tell you about the contribution of researchers in the Power & Flow group to the energy transition. In particular, I will discuss the role of flow processes of bubbles and powders in the processes required for sustainable energy supply.

Bibliography: Niels Deen is a Full Professor and Chair of the Power & Flow group in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e). Niels’ expertise is largely in the areas of process technology, multiphase reactors, computational fluid dynamics and experimental fluid dynamics. His research is concerned with the development of computational and experimental techniques for the study of multiphase reactors. This includes multiphase flow modeling of intensified contacting in bubble column reactors and multiphase processes in fluidized beds. Typical applications of this research include the automotive, food and chemical industries. One especially interesting potential application is metal fuels - metallic powders of order 10 µm - that are combusted/regenerated in a closed cycle and as such present a very attractive recyclable zero-carbon fuel option.

MORE INFORMATION

• CONTACTFawwaz Elahi
• EMAILfawwaz.elahi@kaust.edu.sa

​Abstract: "The corrosion of buried metals affects geosystems that range from pipelines and nuclear waste disposal to reinforced concrete and archeology. Associated costs exceed 1 trillion dollars per year worldwide, yet current classification methods for soil corrosivity have limited predictive capacity. This study -triggered by the recent development of the Revised Soil Classification System RSCS- seeks to identify the critical soil and environment properties that can improve the prediction of buried metal corrosion.
The experimental studies conducted as part of this research recognize the inherently electro-chemo-transport coupled nature of buried metal corrosion and places emphasis on phenomena that have been inadequately captured in previous studies, such as the effect of soil texture and fines plasticity, partial saturation, moisture cycles, and conditions in Sabkha environments. The comprehensive experimental program involves detailed protocols for specimen preparation, advanced visualization (X-ray micro-CT), corrosion residual characterization (XRD), and detailed image analyses of extracted coupons. Experiments include both laboratory mixtures and a wide range of field specimens gathered throughout Saudi Arabia; furthermore, field observations expand soil assessment to native environmental conditions. Theoretical analyses based on mass conservation and electrochemical phenomena complement the experimental study.
Experimental and analytical results lead to new soil corrosivity assessment guidelines. Results show the relevance of the sediment pore fluid saturation, sediment texture, air and water connectivity, active corroding areas, the effect of environmental cycles on buried metal corrosion and evolving backfill contamination". 

Zoom link: https://kaust.zoom.us/j/97540847472

MORE INFORMATION

• CONTACTGloria M. Castro Quintero

​Link to join Webinar
https://kaust.zoom.us/j/95447473634

ABSTRACT: One of the greatest challenges of modern society is related to energy consumption, dissipation and waste. A prominent example is that of integrated electronics, where power dissipation issues have become one of its greatest challenges. In this talk, I will discuss how to characterize energy dissipation in electronics, like heating in transistors based on 2D materials or in the conductive filaments of resistive random-access memories (RRAM), using spatially resolved thermometry. As the size of materials and devices shrinks to nanometer, atomic, or even quantum scale, it is more challenging to characterize their thermal properties reliably. Scanning thermal microscopy (SThM) is an emerging method to obtain local thermal information of electronic devices by controlling and monitoring probe–sample thermal exchange processes. Gaining thermal insights of our electronics is essential to design energy efficient circuits and understand and optimize ultra-dense data storage.

Figure 1. Thermal measurements of conductive filaments in RRAM memory devices.

BIOGRAPHY: Miguel Muñoz Rojo received his PhD (2015) in Condensed Matter Physics & Nanotechnology from the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) and M.S./B.S. in Physics from the Autonomous University of Madrid. He obtained a JAE pre-doctoral Fellowship from CSIC to study during his PhD how the reduction of dimensionality affects the transport properties of organic and inorganic thermoelectric materials. During this period of time, he carried out scientific stays at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (New York, USA), the University of Bordeaux (France) and the University of California Berkeley (USA). In 2012, he participated in the 62nd Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting in Physics after qualifying in an international competition among young talent scientists. From 2016 to 2018, he became a postdoctoral researcher at Stanford University, studying two dimensional (2D) materials and devices based on them for thermal, electrical, and thermoelectric applications. From 2018 to 2021, he was a Tenure Track Assistant Professor at the University of Twente. He was successful in obtaining funding for his research in the field of thermal conversion and management processes with national and international partners. He is now a permanent researcher at the National Research Council of Spain (CSIC) working at the institute of Micro and Nanotechnology of Madrid (IMN) within the group FINDER. He leads the area of advanced thermal management within this group. His research focuses on thermal management, energy harvesting, nano- and micro-scale thermometry and thermal sensing.

MORE INFORMATION

• CONTACTMazen E. Mero