Public defence in chemistry, M.Sc. (Tech.) Amr Ghazy

Title of the thesis: Photoluminescence and upconversion properties of lanthanide-based atomic and molecular layer deposited thin films

Doctoral student: M.Sc. (Tech.) Amr Ghazy
Opponents: Professor Tero Soukka, University of Turku, Finland and Professor Graziella Malandarino, University of Catania, Italy
Custos: Professor Maarit Karppineni, Aalto University School of Chemical Engineering, Department of Chemistry and Materials Science

ALD for lanthanide luminescence materials

Next-generation applications require novel functional materials to be in a high quality thin film form. Therefore, this doctoral thesis discusses how to utilize atomic layer deposition, which is state-of-the-art technique in thin film deposition, to develop novel photoluminescent thin films based on lanthanide materials. Lanthanide-based materials are of utmost importance for a wide variety of applications, such as bio-imaging, light emitting diodes, and solar cells. 

This doctoral thesis addresses the gap between the current lack of sufficient thin film processes and the applications where luminescent lanthanide thin films can be employed. The combination between lanthanide metals and organic molecules offers a route to manipulate the properties of luminescent thin films. For example, through careful selection of organic molecules, excitation energy of lanthanide based thin films can be shifted from ultraviolet light to visible light. Lanthanide thin films that can be excited with visible light can be used as donor materials for Förster resonance energy transfer mechanism, which is a technique that can be used in biodetection of several viruses, such as covid-19, Zika virus, and hanta virus.

In this thesis, research was not only conducted on synthesis of novel materials, but also on how to integerate such novel thin films to the state-of-the-art target applications. Thus, the results concluded in this thesis bring the research of novel lanthanide-based thin films a step closer to industrial applications.

Thesis available for public display 10 days prior to the defence
Contact information:
M.Sc. (Tech.) Amr Ghazy
[email protected] 
 

Doctoral theses in the School of Chemical Engineering
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