Power on: SU professor and team work on solar energy technology

Shelves of beakers line the walls, dozens of samples stand waiting to be prepped for testing and caddies of pipettes sit on nearly every countertop. At first glance, Mathew Maye's laboratory looks like a typical lab.

But Maye's research group runs no ordinary science lab. On the fourth floor at the Center of Science and Technology in the Life Sciences Complex, Maye, an assistant professor in chemistry, and several Syracuse University undergraduate, and graduate, students are on the verge of discovering new technology and resources for capturing solar energy.

"We're using a little bit of a different chemistry than you will learn maybe in a general chemistry or an organic chemistry," Maye said. "Because we're using metals and different semi-metals, we have much different properties that we can play with instead of traditional chemistry properties."

These small pieces of metals - nanomaterials - can be used in things like solar cell technology, fuel cells and other energy-related devices. If the team is successful, their research could potentially play a large role in the pursuit for the nation's energy independence.

"We're trying to make these nanomaterials in very cheap, reproducible chemistry synthetic methods," Maye said.

But as with any scientific research, Maye said there are always obstacles in the system and limits to what types of research can be done on the SU campus.

Maye's primary research point - quantum dots - require detailed analysis that SU simply does not have the equipment for. However, a recent partnership between the university and Brookhaven National Laboratory in Upton, N.Y., will allow Maye and the rest of the research team to use Brookhaven's advanced technology to study these nanomaterials.

"We could certainly go ahead without the collaboration, but really it's beneficial for both ourselves to be able to understand our materials better, but also to introduce our materials to the researchers there," Maye said. "So maybe they can think about more creative things or different things to do with our materials than even we can think about."

Unlike SU, Brookhaven is equipped with electron microscopes. The microscopes work similar to those in the average high school classroom, but instead of using visible light to visualize surfaces, the Brookhaven microscopes use electrons. The electrons allow Maye and his students to see their particles down to the nanoscale. They can see individual proteins, individual atoms and even a single piece of DNA, Maye said.

Maye and his students were scheduled to visit Brookhaven in August, but the trip was postponed until an undetermined time due to the elaborate preparation of samples.

"It can take a long time," said Amber Sexton, a senior chemistry major. "Usually heating only takes five minutes but your stock solution sometimes takes longer. And sometimes you'll get a perfect solution and then you'll try to re-produce it and it doesn't work at all."

The laboratory is filled with trials and errors. Maye said while the overall goal of renewable energy may seem overwhelming at times, the students are constantly making small goals to work toward the big picture.

"If you came back last week before I covered my hood, this whole thing was covered with samples," said Corey Hine, a second-year graduate student in chemistry, pointing to his workstation.

"There are a lot of different variables you could change when you're making them so we could easily compare it to cooking," Hines said. "I mean, if you're trying to make the ultimate cake and you don't have instructions, there are a lot of different things that you could change."

Within the next year, Maye said he hopes to see big results and possible patents from the group's research. But even with a bright future ahead, Maye said more than anything, he looks at his work as an opportunity to pass on his love for science to his students.

"This is really what I'm trying to instill and to provide for the students in the lab: to have a great undergraduate research experience, to publish some papers and to learn many different techniques," Maye said.

sirodrig@syr.edu