Grant: Research Tools and Instruments - Category 1 (<$150,000)

The aim of this proposal is to acquire steady-state spectrophotometric and fluorescence spectrometers for the characterization of nanomaterials with capabilities in the ultraviolet, visible and near infrared range. These two instruments will be used for materials characterization by researchers of the research center NanoQAM, located in UQAM, as well as by a researcher of Ecole de Technologie Supérieure (ETS) and McMaster University. These two instruments are urgently needed because none of the spectrometers available in NanoQAM, and more broadly at UQAM and ETS have capability in the NIR domain, nor do they provide high resolution and high sensitivity necessary to study nanomaterials. Furthermore, the instrument selected for fluorescence measurement is uniquely setup to measure rapidly pholuminescent maps of nanomaterials such as carbon nanotubes, and, to our knowledge, it is not available anywhere else in Canada. These instruments are required for research programs/projects in the area of biomaterials, materials science, energy conversion and carbon based materials. They will be indispensable to develop novel processes to sort and purify carbon nanotubes according to their electronic and structural characteristics, they will also play a crucial role in the development of novel materials for solar cells, and for graphene based sensors. Last, they will provide unique information to unravel protein conformation and how proteins are folded, and from time to time misfolded. Beyond its important impact on the specific research programs described below, acquisition of these two instruments will be pivotal for training efforts in our three institutions. Based on the past utilization of our current TGA, a minimum of 63 HQPs will be using both spectrophotometers every year.