ERC CoG granted to Bernhard C. Bayer

We are very grateful and happy about the recently granted ERC Consolidator project "HighEntropy2D" to PI Bernhard C. Bayer!
We are very much looking forward to realising two-dimensional high entropy alloys and ceramics in the course of this project!

Huge thanks to our future collaboration partners on various aspects of this project incl. Paul Mayrhofer (TU Wien), Jani Kotakoski (Uni Wien), Georg Madsen (TU Wien), and Thomas Müller (TU Wien)!

Also many thanks to my awesome 2D+ team (present & past) and for the ongoing support by TU Wien, the Institute of Materials Chemistry and the Research Division Molecular Materials Chemistry (Dominik Eder)!

 

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Research Statement

Our research interests are synthesis, integration and characterisation of low-dimensional nanomaterials with a particular focus on two-dimensional (2D) materials.

Illustration of the Research Statements

© Bernhard Bayer

Our research approach.

Using advanced in-situ and high-resolution materials characterisation techniques, we develop rational synthesis and integration protocols for carbon (graphene, carbon nanotubes) and related inorganic nanomaterials (hexagonal Boron-Nitride, transition metal dichalcogenides, pnictogens). Key techniques for nanomaterials synthesis are chemical vapour deposition (CVD) and, since recently, also liquid-phase-exfoliation (LPE). For materials characterisation we in particular employ a unique combination of spectroscopic and diffractive in-situ techniques during realistic synthesis and processing conditions (in-situ x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and x-ray diffractometry (XRD)) coupled with high-resolution (scanning) transmission electron microscopy ((S)TEM).

Illustration of an Indium Nanocluster.

Si anchored single In atoms and few-atom In clusters on graphene. ACS Nano (2021) Link: doi.org/10.1021/acsnano.1c03535

We thereby aim to facilitate industrially-scalable, controlled growth of low-dimensional nanomaterials and enable their controlled device integration with other functional materials such as metals, metal-oxides and organics. This contributes to realisation of a wide range of nanomaterials applications including low-cost, transparent, flexible electronics, efficient low-cost energy harvesting/storage/conversion devices and ultrathin functional coatings of structural materials.

Illustration of in-situ studies of graphene CVD from copper catalysts

© Bernard Bayer

In-situ studies of graphene CVD from copper catalysts. Nano Lett. (2013) Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/nl4023572

2D Bismuthoxycarbonate as photocatalyst for production of green hydrogen from water splitting

2D Bismuthoxycarbonate as photocatalyst for production of green hydrogen from water splitting. Adv. Sustain. Syst. (2022) Link: https://arxiv.org/abs/2105.09885

Funding

We are very grateful to several funding agencies for supporting our work as well as to many industrial and academic partners. For a detailed overview of funded projects please see the Funding page.

To date Assistant Prof. Dr. Bayer has acquired a total of ~3.5M EUR third-party funding as principal investigator (PI) incl. from ERC (European Research Council),  FFG (Österreichische Forschungsförderungsgesellschaft/Austrian Research Promotion Agency), European Commission/Marie-Sklodowska-Curie-Actions and OeAD (Agentur für Bildung und Internationalisierung).

Zusammenstellung mehrerer Logos: OEAD, FFG, Europäische Kommission.

Our funding agencies.

Direct visualization of local deformations in suspended few-layer graphene membranes by coupled in situ atomic force (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM).

© Bernhard Bayer

Direct visualization of local deformations in suspended few-layer graphene membranes by coupled in situ atomic force (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Appl. Phys. Lett. (2021) Link: https://dx.doi.org/10.1063/5.0040522

Team and PI

For an overview of present and alumni team members please see our Team and PI page.

Our research efforts are led by junior research group leader Assistant Prof. Dr. Bernhard C. Bayer. After a PhD and a College Research Fellowship at the University of Cambridge, UK and a Marie-Sklodowska-Curie-Fellowship at the University of Vienna, Austria, Prof. Bayer joined TU Wien’s Institute of Materials Chemistry to build up the 2D+ Materials (Nanomaterials Synthesis and Integration) junior research group. For more information on Assistant Prof. Dr. Bayer’s CV see the Team and PI page.

Nanobayer-Team

Publications, opens an external URL in a new window

We have to date published ~70 peer-reviewed international journal publications including ACS Nano, Adv. Funct. Mater., Appl. Phys. Lett., J. Phys. Chem. C, Chem. Mater. and Nano Lett. with >4600 citations and an h-index of 38 (Google-Scholar).

For an up-to-date publication list please visit Assistant Prof. Dr. Bayer’s Google Scholar Profile: http://scholar.google.at/citations?user=zbm4vKoAAAAJ, opens an external URL in a new window

For latest news on publications please follow us on X/Twitter (@nanobayer): https://twitter.com/nanobayer, opens an external URL in a new window

Atomically resolved in-situ scanning transmission electron microscopy of crystallisation of molybdenum disulfide.

Atomically resolved in-situ scanning transmission electron microscopy of crystallisation of molybdenum disulfide. ACS Nano (2018) Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acsnano.8b04945

Join us!

We are continuously seeking interns, Bachelor, Master and PhD candidates, with backgrounds in Chemistry, Materials Science, Physics and Engineering.

At all levels we aim for rewarding learning-through-research projects with exposure to a wide range of synthesis and complementary characterisation techniques as well as application performance screening of the newly synthesised materials. From undergraduate level onwards it is key for us that every new team member’s work is contributing to the forefront of nanomaterials research, thus often resulting in published work even from shorter internships or Bachelor theses (recent example: Nicole Rosza’s Bachelor work contributing to https://doi.org/10.1002/adsu.202100326, opens an external URL in a new window).

Currently we have in particular plenty of interesting opportunities for Master and Bachelor theses. Please do not hesitate to get in touch (bernhard.bayer-skoff@tuwien.ac.at)!

 

“Quasi-in-situ” observations of fabrication of indium/indium oxide on graphene heterostructures.

“Quasi-in-situ” observations of fabrication of indium/indium oxide on graphene heterostructures. Adv. Funct. Mater. (2020) Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202003300