The University of Osaka · Materials Science
Professor Kazu Suenaga's research lab specializes in the atomic-scale characterization of advanced nanomaterials, with a focus on carbon-based nanostructures such as carbon nanotubes, fullerenes, and boron nitride hybrids. The lab pioneers cutting-edge electron microscopy and spectroscopy techniques—particularly electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) at the single-atom level—to visualize and identify individual atoms and their dynamic behaviors within nanostructures. Their work reveals fundamental mechanisms of nanotube growth, molecular motion, and interfacial interactions at the nanoscale, providing critical insights for next-generation nanodevices and materials. The lab's innovative approach bridges materials synthesis with ultra-high-resolution analytical imaging, enabling unprecedented observation of atomic and molecular phenomena in confined environments.
Figures are computed from collected data and may differ slightly.
Polyhedral and tubular graphitic nanoparticles made of carbon layers and boron nitride (BN) layers have been synthesized. These particles were observed in the soot collected on the anode deposit formed by arcing a hafnium diboride rod with graphite in a nitrogen atmosphere. Elemental profiles with subnanometer-scale resolution revealed a strong phase separation between BN layers and carbon layers along the radial direction. Most of these tubes have a sandwich structure with carbon layers both in
Electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) is widely used to identify elemental compositions of materials studied by microscopy. We demonstrate that the sensitivity and spatial resolution of EELS can be extended to the single-atom limit. A chemical map for gadolinium (Gd) clearly reveals the distribution of Gd atoms inside a single chain of metallofullerene molecules (Gd@C82) generated within a single-wall carbon nanotube. This characterization technique thus provides the "eyes" to see and identif
High-resolution transmission electron microscopy revealed nearly atomically precise images of stepping conformational change and translational motion of single hydrocarbon molecules confined in carbon nanotubes. One or two C12 or C22 alkyl chains were tethered to a carborane end group and then embedded in the nanotubes. Images of the hydrocarbon chains interacting with each other and with a graphitic surface provide information on three-dimensional structures and dynamic molecular interactions t
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