Nanoscale chemical analysis of polymers and functional surfaces.

Understanding how the properties of organic and bio-organic molecules correlate to conformational, mechanical and chemical properties of supramolecular assemblies and polymers is still a fundamental challenge in material science and surface chemistry. Conventional analytical methods for unravelling properties of polymers suffer from limited spatial resolution, depth sensitivity and often operation in non-ideal conditions, such as in vacuum. During this PhD, I will leverage the combination of chemical analysis power of infrared spectroscopy (IR) and high-resolution imaging power of atomic force microscopy (AFM, ~ 1nm) into an innovative technique terming infrared Nanospectroscopy (AFM-IR). I will focus on bridging the gap between the up-to-date high-sensitivity and high-resolution nanoscale chemical analytical techniques, such as AFM-IR, to obtain a nanoscale chemical characterization of polymer and functional surfaces in chemistry and materials research. I will for the first time resolve the correlation between the chemistry of single organic molecules and morphological, mechanical, chemical properties and axial chiral structure of the supramolecular assembled polymers. Finally, I will unravel the molecular mechanism leading polymer-modified surfaces to deliver complex functions as coating materials or biosensors.