Special Seminar: Engineering Quantum Materials for Enhanced Safety and Performance in Solid Battery Electrolytes 

In the face of escalating smartphone usage, with a 2024 consumer report citing that 97% of U.S. individuals own at least one, the challenge of battery overheating has become prevalent. My doctoral studies present a groundbreaking approach to this issue by engineering a quantum material as a solid electrolyte with superior ionic mobility at optimal operational temperatures. Utilizing wet chemistry, I synthesized quantum dots to create copper chalcogenides with superionic conductivity, thereby enhancing battery safety and performance. My postdoctoral work extended these findings, exploring reduced-dimensional quantum wells and transitioning from cadmium-based to copper chalcogenides, leveraging copper’s recyclability. My current research also delves into high-pressure x-ray studies performed at synchrotrons, uncovering new material phases, and enhancing electrolyte stability. In a parallel avenue, I investigated perovskite-based solar batteries, aiming for efficiency improvements through innovative synthesis and material assembly. In this talk. I will discuss how to effectively utilize atomically precise material engineering towards the discovery of energy materials meant for high-priority energy storage applications. My group’s vision includes developing nonflammable solid electrolytes with ultrahigh ionic transport properties from earth abundant elements, optimizing colloidal wet chemical syntheses via machine learning, and advancing the fundamental understanding of ionic transport in inorganic solid electrolytes.