Guest Seminar - Optical Nanoscopy of Dynamic Disorder in Energy Materials
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(Photo)electrochemical systems are central to a wide range of emerging technologies that seek to address some of the most urgent global challenges in sustainable energy, climate mitigation, and clean water production. Progress in these areas depends critically on the ability to understand how charge transfer, chemical transformation, and structural evolution unfold across heterogeneous interfaces and dynamic material landscapes. In this talk, I will present our efforts to develop and apply advanced optical functional imaging platforms to interrogate materials dynamics and heterogeneity in (photo)electrochemical systems. By moving beyond conventional bulk and ensemble-averaged measurements, these approaches enable direct observation of electrochemical and photochemical processes at the single-entity level, revealing mechanistic details that would otherwise remain hidden. I will highlight two representative examples. First, I will discuss our work on the optical nanoscopy of spatiotemporal metal stripping cooperativity at single-ion and subparticle resolution, which provides an unprecedented view of localized reaction dynamics and cooperative behavior during electrochemical transformation. Second, I will present single-particle imaging studies that uncover the efficiency of reverse electron transfer between electroactive microbes and shaped semiconductors, offering new insight into interfacial electron-transfer pathways in bio-photoelectrochemical systems. Together, these studies demonstrate how single-entity optical imaging can uncover the dynamic heterogeneities and interfacial complexities that govern (photo)electrochemical function, and how such insights may guide the rational design of next-generation energy and environmental materials.
Dr. Xianwen Mao is an assistant professor of Materials Science and Engineering with Presidential Young Professorship at National University of Singapore. Dr. Xianwen Mao earned a Bachelor’s degree in Polymer Materials and Engineering from Tsinghua University and a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He later conducted postdoctoral research in the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology at Cornell University. Dr. Mao’s research focuses on operando imaging-guided materials design for emerging technologies. As the first or corresponding author, he has published original research papers in leading journals such as Nature Materials, Nature Catalysis and Nature Chemistry. His contributions to the field have been recognized with multiple awards, including the Materials Research Society (MRS) Postdoctoral Award, Materials Today Energy Rising Star Award, and Journal of Materials Chemistry A Emerging Investigator Award.
Dr. Mao has a strong interest in interdisciplinary collaboration and technology translation. He holds a minor in Finance and Economics from the MIT Sloan School of Management. He also gained industry experience during internships at Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics (Italy) and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (US). Dr. Mao has filed a number of patents, and his work has been frequently highlighted in major media outlets such as The New York Times and Chemical & Engineering News. He has also received recognition for his entrepreneurial initiatives, including the Harvard-MIT Case Competition Award, the MIT Water Innovation Prize, and the Veraqua Prize. Passionate about teaching and education, Dr. Mao teaches both his core expertise in emerging technologies and the integration of business and technology. He has received the NUS CDE College Educator Award for his course on renewable energy and emerging technologies, and he co-teaches executive education programs at NUS Business School.