RQMP Research Seminar

Nanoscale processes investigated from the thermal point of view

François Schiettekatte

Université de Montréal

Présentation en français / Slides in English

A quantity seldomly measured during nanoscale processes it the heat released or required by a process, and yet it reveals key information as it measures directly how the free energy of the system evolves. Nanocalorimetry is a technique where very thin layers on a membrane are deposited or modified and are scanned in temperature, here at up to 1 million degrees per second, transforming small amounts of heat into measurable power. The technique can be applied in situ, avoiding exposition to ambient or allowing to start the measurement at low temperature. In this presentation, we review some applications of the technique, from the melting point and Curie temperature depression in nanostructures to the defect relaxation in ion-implanted silicon, to solid-state reactions in ultra-thin films, and the glass transition in thin soft glasses.