Dr. Marijn van Huis is universitair hoofddocent in de Soft Condensed Matter groep van het Debye Institute for Nanomaterials Science. Hij is expert op het gebied van transmissie electronenmicroscopie (TEM) en density functional theory (DFT) berekeningen, en past deze experimentele en theoretische methodes toe op nanodeeltjes en nanokristallen die bijzondere eigenschappen hebben. Volg de link voor een overzicht van het ERC Consolidator grant programma NANO-INSITU. Dr. van Huis leidt een kleine onderzoekseenheid die gericht is op het onthullen van de atomaire structuur van nanomaterialen, gebruik makend van zowel experimentele als simulatie-methoden.
Research interests
Heterogeneous nanostructures are novel materials with outstanding, and often tuneable, physical and chemical properties. These nanoparticles are synthesized under wet chemical conditions and undergo structural and chemical transformations upon heating at low temperature, upon irradiation with light or electrons, or upon exposure to gases or liquids. Currently, these effects are not well understood. It is my goal to identify and develop physical mechanisms that can be employed for the manipulation of heterogeneous nanostructures inside and outside the solution in which they are synthesized. For that purpose, we perform experiments inside the transmission electron microscope (TEM), so-called in-situ TEM. Through recently developed ground-breaking technology, transitions at elevated temperatures can now be imaged with atomic resolution and in real time, and it has also become possible to monitor changes in liquids (chemical transformations, self-assembly of nanoparticles) using Liquid Cell TEM methodology.
In conjunction with the experiments, detailed quantum mechanical and semi-empirical atomistic simulations are conducted to unravel the energetics of the atomic-scale reconstruction mechanisms. In particular density functional theory (DFT) calculations on defects, surfaces, and 2D materials provide valuable insight into their equilibrium structure, energetics, and electronic and magnetic properties. I strongly feel that experiment and theory need to be combined in an adequate way in order to establish structure-property relationships and to identify the relevant driving forces for the transformations. Understanding of these nanoscale transformations will enable finding and designing new types of nanostructures with novel functionalities that can help in the transition towards a more sustainable society.
Cover story of J Chem Phys: MD simulation of the black-yellow transition in CsPbI3 perovskites (J. Liu et al., J. Phys. Chem. 161 (2024) 174705).
Atomically thin Zr nanosheets in graphene, created and analysed with atomic-resolution STEM (R.G. Mendes et al, Adv. Funct. Mater. (2024) 2412889)
'News and Views' in Nature Synthesis: Knocking out Metal Atoms. URL: https://rdcu.be/dExZy.
Selective vertical and horizontal growth of 2D WS2 revealed by in-situ TEM (Gavhane et al., Adv. Funct. Mater. 32 (2022) 202106450).
Liquid Cell TEM investigation of core-shell interactions in nano-rattles (T.A.J. Welling et al., ACS Nano 15 (2021) 11137-11149).
Transformation of Co3O4 nanoparticles to CoO monitored by in-situ TEM and predicted ferromagnetism at their interface (X. Chen et al., J. Mater. Chem. C 9 (2021) 5662-5675)
Sequence of Transformations in 2D CoSe2 revealed by in-situ TEM (D.S. Gavhane et al, npj 2D Mater. Appl. 5 (2021) 24)
Ab initio MD study of 2D metal oxides (H. van Gog et al., npj 2D Mater. Appl. 3 (2019) 18).
DFT study on single metal atoms and small metal clusters on CdS surfaces (S.S. Gupta and M.A. van Huis, J. Phys. Chem. C 123 (2019) 9298-9310).
Simulation of cation exchange in a PbS nanocrystal (Z. Fan et al., Nature Communications 7 (2016) 11503).
Cation exchange in PbSe-CdSe nanostructures recorded in-situ in the TEM (A.O. Yalcin et al, Nano Lett. 14 (2014) 3661-3667)
Chemical mapping (STEM-EDS) of CdS nanorods with Au tips (top) which after electron irradiation transform to AuS/Cd core/shell nanostructures (M.A. van Huis et al., Nano Lett 11 (2011) 4555-4561).
The MEMS microheater that is mounted on a TEM specimen holder to achieve atomic resolution even at temperatures of 1000 K (M.A. van Huis et al, Adv. Mater 21 (2009) 4992-4995).
Thermal ripening of various CdSe/Au nanorod/nanodot configurations (A. Figuerola, M.A. van Huis, et al., Nano Lett 10 (2010) 418-421).
Cover of the Nanotechnology Magazine (A.O. Yalcin et al., Nanotechnology 25 (2014) 055601).