The equipment listed below is owned and maintained by the Fakhraai Research Group, unless otherwise noted. Access to equipment in the Fakhraai Research Group requires pre-approval of Professor Fakhraai.

Bruker AFM:

 The group owns a Bruker Dimension Icon AFM which offers different function modes: (1) Primary Imaging Modes: Contact, Tapping, and Peakforce Tapping; (2)Nanomechanical Modes: Nanoscale dynamic mechanical analysis (nDMA), Peakforce Quantitative Nanomechanics (QNM), Indentation, and Contact Resonance; (3)Nanoelectrochemical Modes: Peakforce Scanning Electrochemical Microscopy (SECM). This AFM also has a temperature controller and fluid flow cell accessories.

Woollam Ellipsometer:

The Fakhraai group owns two a Woollam M2000 spectroscopic ellipsometers with  spectroscopic wavelength range of 400-1700nm. This ellipsometers are capable of measurements at variable angles and one is equipped with automatic scanning stage. The group also has a Linkam ellipsometry stage that allows temperature and environmental control of the samples, and measurements of the glass transition temperature.

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Linkam Ellipsometer Stage:

The THMS 600 stage is capable of cooling and heating at 150K/min in a temperature range of -196 to 600C. This allows accurate measurements of the glass transition temperature and crystallization of a wide range of samples.

Agilent AFM:

The group also owns an Agilent 5500 AFM with two closed loop scanners, one high resolution scanner and various environmental sample stages with temperature and liquid imaging capability. The scanners can be used separately either as a dedicated AFM-Raman system or a stand-alone AFM that is mounted on a vibration isolation table. See an introduction to our group’s work with the AFM here!

Olympus IX81 TIRF Microscope:

The automatic inverted microscope is integrated into an AFM-Raman spectroscopy setup. The total internal reflection fluorescence imaging capability allows single molecule level imaging resolution.

Andor Spectrometer and EMCCD:

The Andor spectrometer is also integrated into the AFM-Raman setup. The EMCCD array allows high resolution Raman spectroscopy. The combination of the spectrometer and AFM allows us to perform tip enhanced Raman imaging on various samples.

Linkam Peltier Stage:

Capable of adjusting temperature from -20 to 100C and can be mounted on the inverted microscope.

Q2000 Differential Scanning Calorimeter:

Fakhraai lab hosts and maintains a shared DSC instrument obtained through a University of Pennsylvania research fundation grant. This instrument is used to obtain the bulk Tg values of molecules.

Olympus BX51 Microscope:

The upright microscope has polarization, dark and bright field and DIC imaging capabilities. Combined with a Linkam heating stage, studies of crystallization and morphology of various glassy samples are possible.

Jasco UV-Vis:

The Fakhraai group shares a UV-vis instrument with the Chenoweth group in the department of chemistry. This UV-vis instrument has temperature control capability.

UHV Chamber:

The group has recently finished the design and implementation of a custom made ultra-high vacuum chamber with a base pressure of 3*10-8 torr. This instrument will be used to do physical vapor deposition of Se.

UHV Chamber-PLUS:

The group built a second UHV chamber, with a base pressure on the order of 10^-7 torr, for use exclusively with organic compounds. The chamber includes two evaporators for doing co-depositions, a QCM for monitoring the rate, as well as arms at 70 degrees allowing for in situ ellipsometry. Once complete, the lid will have three samples stages with separate temperature controls, allowing for deposition of temperature gradient samples.