Grant: Discovery Grants Program - Individual

Chemiluminescence (CL) is the emission of light that occurs as a result of certain chemical reactions. A commercial 12 hour-long glow stick is a typical CL example. Electrochemiluminescence (ECL) is the light emission process in which applied electricity generates chemicals in a solution to react and produce light.     Here, my team will prepare and optimize three different types of nanomaterials, metallic nanoclusters (MNCs), graphene quantum dot (GQDs) and perovskite nanocrystals (PNCs) for their CL and ECL properties.     My Discovery Grant proposal will focus on four novel research objectives:     Objective 1 focuses on the synthesis, characterization and luminescence-structure correlations of the three types of nanomaterials. We will also explore molecularly imprinted (MI) technology.     Objective 2 will investigate the ECL and CL properties of the three types of nanomaterials. Light emission colors and emission efficiencies will be determined.     Objective 3 will explore CL and ECL detections of some biomolecules such as DNA, and certain genes. The platforms for antigen analyses called immunoassays will be explored. MI ECL and CL sensors will be constructed so that only the target species will be detected to greatly enhance the selectivity and specificity.     Objective 4 will focus on using CL and/or ECL for imaging individual reactions. How fast the individual CL or ECL reaction (reaction rate constant or kinetics) proceeds will be determined by counting single photons.     The fundamental and applied research activities are innovative and will provide excellent research training opportunities for highly qualified personnel (HQP). HQP will be trained on both scientific and transferable skills such as problem-solving, time management and respectful communication to ensure their competitiveness in future careers. Equity, diversity, and inclusion will be integrated into the HQP recruitment and training process.