PhD student on ID26

The European Synchrotron, the ESRF, is an international research centre based in Grenoble, France.

Through its innovative engineering, pioneering scientific vision and a strong commitment from its 700 staff members, the ESRF is recognised as one of the top research facilities worldwide. Its particle accelerator produces intense X-ray beams that are used by thousands of scientists each year for experiments in diverse fields such as biology, medicine, environmental sciences, cultural heritage, materials science, and physics.

Supported by 21 countries, the ESRF is an equal opportunity employer and encourages diversity.

Thesis topic: Electrochemical conversion of CO2 into added value products via highly selective bimetallic materials and innovative process design

The ECOMATES training programme consists of cutting-edge research projects executed by ten Doctoral Candidates (DCs) recruited across the different institutions of the training network. The DCs will develop innovative scientific and technical skills, but also follow complementary and interdisciplinary skills courses, both at a local and network-wide level. International and intersectoral (academia/industry) secondment across the partners in the network will be an important part of DC’s training activity. The project at the ESRF is mainly carried out at beamlines ID26 and ID16b. It concerns the study of the electronic structure (oxidation and spin state, local coordination) and elemental distribution of Cu/M electrocatalysts fabricated within the network by means of nano X-ray fluorescence analysis and X-ray absorption and emission (photon-in/photon-out) spectroscopy. Characterization of different bimetallic systems and stoichiometries will shed light on the key parameters determining the best catalysts. This project includes the development of novel X-ray instrumentation and data analysis methods. The expected outcome of this work is (i) Determine stoichiometry and chemical changes in the Cu/M bimetallic compounds under simulated working conditions; (ii) Understand relations between the electronic structure-composition and the catalytic properties of Cu/M layers; (iii) Define adequate protocols for in-situ characterization and nano-characterization of Cu/M bimetallic layers. The doctoral candidate will be enrolled in the PhD school of the University of Grenoble Alpes, supervised by Dr. Pieter Glatzel and co-Supervised by Dr. Julie Villanova and Dr. Frederic Maillard. Part of the activity will be carried out during secondment periods at POLITO in Turin, Italy, to learn about the fabrication process and sample preparation for its characterization at the ESRF, at ENVIPARK to learn about catalysts electrochemical characterization and at ADVENT for a training on membranes for CO₂RR processes.

Further information may be obtained from Pieter Glatzel (tel.: +33 (0)4 76 88 29 68, email: glatzel@esrf.fr)