NWO XS grant awarded to Wiebke Albrecht

AMOLF group leader Wiebke Albrecht has been awarded an NWO XS grant for the project “Mapping nanoscale heat generation and dissipation around plasmonic nanoparticles.”

In this project, Wiebke will collaborate with postdoctoral researcher Sergio Rey Puentes to develop a new method for directly measuring how heat is generated and spreads at the nanoscale around tiny particles that respond strongly to light (so-called plasmonic nanoparticles).

The method combines in situ laser experiments inside an electron microscope with a technique called cathodoluminescence-based thermometry, which uses special light-emitting atoms (rare-earth ions) to measure temperature. This allows researchers to quantitatively map temperature at very small scales, both in space (down to nanometers, a billionth of a meter) and in time (down to picoseconds, a trillionth of a second).

This work addresses a key challenge in nanoscience: it is currently very difficult to measure temperature changes directly at such small scales and locations. The results will help us better understand how heat moves at the nanoscale and support the design of more efficient nanoscale heating systems.

The impact spans multiple fields, including improved light-driven catalysis, targeted biomedical therapies, and more efficient electronic and energy devices, where controlling heat at the nanoscale is essential.

If you want to learn more, visit Hybrid Nanosystems on our website.