Chemistry in Pictures: 2-D aquarium

Fatemeh Ostadhossein, a bioengineering graduate student at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, created this scene as part of her research into two-dimensional materials. She works with HfS₂, which has tunable conductivity, to determine if the material can serve as an alternative to highly conductive graphene in electronics, catalysis, and energy storage and conversion applications. For example, HfS₂ nanosheets could provide a catalytic surface for solar water splitting that sustainably produces hydrogen fuel. Ostadhossein used chemical exfoliation and grinding to create sheets of HfS₂ less than 100 nm thick, which she then dispersed in water and dried. She captured this image with a scanning electron microscope and colorized it.

Submitted by Fatemeh Ostadhossein

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