Publications related to Ionic transport phenomena in nanofluidics: Experimental and theoretical study of the exclusion-enrichment effect on a chip

Second harmonic scattering of nanoparticles: A journey into the electrical double layer

In aqueous solutions, a charged surface causes the redistribution of nearby ions. The ion layers formed are known as the electrical double layer (EDL), and are widespread in many systems involving electrochemistry, colloidal science, biomedicine, and energ ...

EPFL2024

Contrasting Views of the Electric Double Layer in Electrochemical CO2 Reduction: Continuum Models vs Molecular Dynamics

Sophia Haussener, Evan Fair Johnson

In the field of electrochemical CO2 reduction, both continuum models and molecular dynamics (MD) models have been used to understand the electric double layer (EDL). MD often focuses on the region within a few nm of the electrode, while continuum models ca ...

Amer Chemical Soc2024

Processing factors affecting roughness, optical and mechanical properties of nanocellulose films for optoelectronics

Tiffany Abitbol

This work aims to understand how nanocellulose (NC) processing can modify the key characteristics of NC films to align with the main requirements for high-performance optoelectronics. The performance of these devices relies heavily on the light transmittan ...

Elsevier Sci Ltd2024

Size dependence of second-harmonic scattering from nanoparticles: Disentangling surface and electrostatic contributions

Arianna Marchioro, Sylvie Roke, Bingxin Chu

Polarimetric angle-resolved second-harmonic scattering (AR-SHS) is an all-optical tool enabling the study of unlabeled interfaces of nano-sized particles in an aqueous solution. As the second harmonic signal is modulated by interference between nonlinear c ...

AIP Publishing2023

Effect of a temperature gradient on the screening properties of ionic fluids

Andrea Grisafi, Federico Grasselli

The electrostatic screening properties of ionic fluids are of paramount importance in countless physical processes. Yet the screening behavior of ionic conductors out of thermal equilibrium has to date mainly been studied in the context of thermoelectric p ...

AMER PHYSICAL SOC2023

Surface Charge Boundary Condition Often Misused in CO2 Reduction Models

Sophia Haussener, Etienne Boutin, Evan Fair Johnson

The Poisson-Nernst-Planck equations have been used to model species transport in electrochemical CO2 reduction, where the surface charge boundary condition accounts for the potential drop across the Stern layer. A direct comparison of the published models ...

AMER CHEMICAL SOC2023

Evolution of the electrical double layer with electrolyte concentration probed by second harmonic scattering

Arianna Marchioro, Sylvie Roke, Bingxin Chu, Marie Bischoff

Investigating the electrical double layer (EDL) structure has been a long-standing challenge and has seen the emergence of several sophisticated techniques able to probe selectively the few molecular layers of a solid/water interface. While a qualitative e ...

ROYAL SOC CHEMISTRY2023

Protein Dielectrophoresis with Gradient Array of Conductive Electrodes Sheds New Light on Empirical Theory

Olivier Martin, Siarhei Zavatski

Dielectrophoresis (DEP) is a versatile tool for the precise microscale manipulation of a broad range of substances. To unleash the full potential of DEP for the manipulation of complex molecular-sized particulates such as proteins requires the development ...

AMER CHEMICAL SOC2023

Effects of thermal, mechanical, and electrostatic perturbations on lipid membrane hydration investigated by second harmonic imaging

Seonwoo Lee

Hydrated lipid bilayer membranes are crucial components of cells and organelles, serving as the outer boundary that separates the cellular components from the extracellular environment. Lipid membranes regulate their structures and functions by dynamically ...

EPFL2023

The Three-Phase Contact Potential Difference Modulates the Water Surface Charge

Aleksandra Radenovic, Andrei Kiselev, Roman Doronin, Vasily Artemov

The surface charge of an open water surface is crucialfor solvationphenomena and interfacial processes in aqueous systems. However, themagnitude of the charge is controversial, and the physical mechanismof charging remains incompletely understood. Here we ...

AMER CHEMICAL SOC2023

Deriving Major Ion Concentrations at High Resolution from Continuous Electrical Conductivity Measurements in Karst Systems

Paolo Benettin

Time series of hydrochemical parameters support the investigation of dominant karst hydrological processes and conceptual model structures. Nevertheless, high costs for sample collection and analyses cause hydrochemical data to be rarely available at a suf ...

SPRINGER INTERNATIONAL PUBLISHING AG2023

Electrokinetic, electrochemical, and electrostatic surface potentials of the pristine water liquid-vapor interface

Philip Robin Loche

Although conceptually simple, the air-water interface displays rich behavior and is subject to intense experimental and theoretical investigations. Different definitions of the electrostatic surface potential as well as different calculation methods, each ...

AIP Publishing2022

Molecular insights into the electrical double layer of colloidal oxide particles obtained through second harmonic scattering

Marie Bischoff

Photocatalytic applications play an essential role in the search for alternative energy sources and environmental decontamination techniques. It is of fundamental interest to understand on a molecular level the aqueous solid/liquid interface, where photoca ...

EPFL2022

Nanoscale modelling of ionic transport in the porous C-S-H network

Khalil Ferjaoui

To reduce the CO2 footprint of construction materials, concrete producers blend their cement with Supplementary Cementitious Materials (SCMs). SCMs such as fly ash or blast furnace slag are mostly the byproducts of other industries. And while SCMs are chos ...

EPFL2022

On the durability of surgical masks after simulated handling and wear

Véronique Michaud, Vincent Marc Varanges, Jian Wang, Baris Çaglar, Yann Albert Gérard Lebaupin, René M. Rossi

After the spread of COVID-19, surgical masks became highly recommended to the public. They tend to be handled and used multiple times, which may impact their performance. To evaluate this risk, surgical masks of Type IIR were submitted to four simulated tr ...

Nature Research2022

Charge transfer across C-H center dot center dot center dot O hydrogen bonds stabilizes oil droplets in water

Sylvie Roke, Saranya Pullanchery Sankara Narayanan, Sergey Kulik, Benjamin Rehl

The hydrophobic-water interface plays a key role in biological interactions. However, both the hydrophobic-water interfacial molecular structure and the origin of the negative zeta potential of hydrophobic droplets in water are heavily contested. We report ...

American Association for the Advancement of Science2021

Dielectric elastomer actuator

Yves Perriard, Yoan René Cyrille Civet, Jonathan André Jean-Marie Chavanne, Morgan Almanza

A dielectric elastomer actuator (1) comprising: a plurality of polymer layer (2);a plurality of stretchable electrode layers (3), each polymer layer (2) being sandwiched between two electrode layers (3) so as to control the electric field within the polyme ...

2021

Molecular ordering effects in bulk and at lipid/water nanoscopic interfaces: A story of water, light, and order

Nathan Dupertuis

Water is ubiquitous on Earth, playing a critical role for a plethora of structures, processes and chemical reactions in nature. Its unique physicochemical properties originate mainly from its hydrogen bond network. Despite its recognized importance, many a ...

EPFL2021

Discrete Helmholtz charge distribution at liquid-liquid interfaces: Electrocapillarity, capacitance and non-linear spectroscopy studies

Hubert Girault, Grégoire Clément Gschwend

The structure of the polarised interface between two immiscible electrolyte solutions (ITIES) has usually been deduced from electrocapillarity and capacitance measurements. However, these two methods only offer an indirect access to the surface change dens ...

ELSEVIER SCIENCE SA2020

How to polarise an interface with ions: the discrete Helmholtz model

Hubert Girault, Astrid Johana Olaya Avendano, Grégoire Clément Gschwend

The distribution of electrolytes in an electric field usually relies on theories based on the Poisson-Boltzmann formalism. These models predict that, in the case of a metallic electrode, ionic charges screen the electrode potential, leading to concentratio ...

2020