Nanoseminar in Physics

IN PRESENCE EVENT- REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED HERE

Speaker: Prof. Andrea Baldi, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Netherlands

Abstract: Metal nanoparticles strongly absorb light thanks to light-driven oscillations of their free electrons called plasmon resonances. The decay of these resonances can be used to drive chemical reactions via photothermal heating of the surrounding environment. In this talk, I will cover fundamental aspects of plasmonics and show two examples from our group’s work on how the spatial and temporal control of plasmonic photothermal effects can drive nanomaterial synthesis [1] and heterogeneous catalysis [2].

References: [1] R. Kamarudheen, G. Kumari & A. Baldi, Plasmon-driven synthesis of individual metal@semiconductor core@shell nanoparticles, Nature Communications 2020, 11:3957 [2] A. Baldi & S. H. C. Askes, Pulsed Photothermal Heterogeneous Catalysis, ACS Catalysis 2023, 13, 5, 3419–3432

Short Bio: Andrea Baldi received his master’s in chemistry from the University of Rome “La Sapienza” and his PhD in Condensed Matter Physics from the VU University Amsterdam. During his PhD he studied the properties of metal hydride thin films for hydrogen storage and smart windows applications. In 2011 he won the Young Energy Scientist (YES!) Fellowship from the Dutch physics institute (FOM), which funded his tenure as a postdoctoral scholar at Stanford University. Here, he developed imaging and spectroscopic techniques to study individual nanoparticles for applications in energy conversion and storage. Since 2015 he has returned to the Netherlands, initially as a tenure-track senior scientist at the Dutch Institute for Fundamental Energy Research (DIFFER) in Eindhoven, where he led his research group on Nanomaterials for Energy Applications. In 2017 he won a NWO Vidi grant from the Dutch Research Organisation (NWO) to study plasmon-activated catalysis. On March 1st, 2020, he joined the Physics and Astronomy department at the VU University Amsterdam as an associate professor, leading a group focusing on plasmonic photochemistry. In June 2023 he was awarded an NWO grant to investigate selective plasmonic photoreduction of CO2 into added-value products.

Hosted by Dr Cristian Rodríguez, UAB Senior Researcher at Thermal Properties of Nanoscale Materials Group.

A coffee service will be available at the room for attendees.