(6kb) Advanced Deposition and Characterization of Thin Films for Electronics and Sustainable Energy

Advances in the deposition of thin films have enabled a wide range of technologies that have changed the way we live. These technologies include integrated circuits (e.g. personal computers and mobile electronics), light emitting diodes (e.g. lighting and displays), optical and protective coatings, and solar cells. In the future, thin films will continue to enable the development of new technologies, especially in electronics and sustainable energy. Two important aspects in the deposition of thin films are (1) control of the deposited material in terms of chemical composition, crystallinity, nanostructure, and morphology, and (2) regulation of the energy levels and charge transport within the deposited materials and at their interfaces.

I am interested in advanced methods for depositing thin films with simultaneous control of the chemical composition and morphology in order to obtain desired functionalities. This includes vapor phase and liquid phase methods such as reactive ballistic deposition, glancing angle deposition, electrochemical anodization, and electrodeposition. Combining these methods allows for the synthesis of multicomponent thin films that are either dense or nanostructured with conformal layering. The deposited materials can be used in microelectronic, nanoelectronic, photovoltaic, electrochemical, and photoelectrochemical devices. I am interested in emerging characterization techniques that quantify the energy levels and charge transport within these materials and at their interfaces. I plan to characterize photovoltaic, electrochemical, and photoelectrochemical thin films using new scanning probe measurement techniques and a consistent laser light source that is variable in wavelength and photon flux.

Research Interests:

I am currently a postdoctoral scholar in the group of Prof. Roel van de Krol in the Institute for Solar Fuels at Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin. My postdoctoral work focuses on the development of complex metal oxide semiconductors and photoelectrode materials for solar water splitting. I completed my Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin in the group of Prof. C. Buddie Mullins where I worked on a wide range of projects with additional guidance from Prof. Allen J. Bard. I synthesized mixed metal oxides (e.g. doped BiVO₄ and CuBi₂O₄) and metal carbides using a variety of methods including vacuum deposition, electrochemical and hydrothermal/solvothermal synthesis, and piezoelectric dispensing. I characterized them using surface science, material science, electrochemistry, and photoelectrochemistry techniques.

Selected Publications:

1. Fuxian Wang, Wilman Septina, Abdelkrim Chemseddine, Fatwa F. Abdi, Dennis Friedrich, Peter Bogdanoff, Roel van de Krol, S. David Tilley, and Sean P. Berglund, Gradient Self-Doped CuBi₂O₄ with Highly Improved Charge Separation,” Am. Chem. Soc. 139, 15094-15103 (2017). http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/jacs.7b07847
2. Fuxian Wang, Abdelkrim Chemseddine, Fatwa Abdi, Roel van de Krol, and Sean P. Berglund, “Spray pyrolysis of CuBi₂O₄ photocathodes: improved solution chemistry for highly homogeneous thin films,” Mater. Chem. A 5, 12838-12847 (2017). http://dx.doi.org/10.1039/C7TA03009F
3. Fatwa Abdi, Sean P. Berglund, “Recent developments in complex metal oxide photoelectrodes,” Phys. D: Appl. Phys. 50, 193002 (22pp) (2017). http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/1361-6463/aa6738
4. Sean P. Berglund, Fatwa F. Abdi, Peter Bogdanoff, Abdelkrim Chemseddine, Dennis Friedrich, and Roel van de Krol, “Comprehensive Evaluation of CuBi₂O₄ as a Photocathode Material for Photoelectrochemical Water Splitting,” Mater. 28, 4231-4242 (2016). http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acs.chemmater.6b00830
5. Sean P. Berglund, Huichao He, William D. Chemelewski, Hugo Celio, Andrei Dolocan, and C. Buddie Mullins. “p-Si/W₂C and p-Si/W₂C/Pt Photocathodes for the Hydrogen Evolution Reaction,” Am. Chem. Soc. 136, 1535-1544 (2014). http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/ja411604k
6. Sean P. Berglund, Heung Chan Lee, Paul D. Núñez, Allen J. Bard, and C. Buddie Mullins, “Screening of transition and post-transition metals to incorporate into copper oxide and copper bismuth oxide for photoelectrochemical hydrogen evolution,” Chem. Chem. Phys. 15, 4554-4565 (2013). http://dx.doi.org/10.1039/C3CP50540E

Teaching Interests:

Teachers and professors have been among the most influential people in my life. I have always admired their commitment to uncovering the truth, mastering specific subjects, and helping others to learn and grow. Teachers play an extremely important role in preparing future generations to think critically and solve new challenges. It would be a great privilege for me to contribute to society as a professor.

My personal journey towards a career as a professor and researcher has been less direct than most. Before studying engineering I studied other fields and after obtaining my B.S. degree in chemical engineering I spent 4.5 years working as a process engineer in the semiconductor industry before returning to academia to obtain my Ph.D. I believe that my experiences have given me a valuable and unique perspective that I can share with students.

As a professor I would like to help students to master fundamental concepts and think rationally about new concepts. In my teaching methods I will emphasize active problem solving to achieve deep learning of science and engineering fundamentals. I will also apply problem solving to non-ideal situations that might be encountered outside of academia. I am interested in teaching a variety of chemical engineering courses from essential core courses to specialty topics such as electrochemistry, photoelectrochemistry, and sustainable energy.

Course Experience:

Chemical Engineering Materials, Transport Phenomena (Heat Transfer, Mass Transfer, and Fluid Mechanics), Introduction to Chemical Practices (General Chemistry Lab), University of Texas at Austin, 2009-2013

Q-Team (Research-Based Learning), Humboldt University, 2016

Directly Supervised Students:

Two Ph.D. student theses, Technical University Berlin, 2016-Present

One M.S. student thesis and one undergraduate student researcher, Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft Berlin, 2015-2016

Four undergraduate researchers, University of Texas at Austin, 2009-2013