Advanced Imaging Group

Crystallization tracked atom by atom

A never-before-seen view of nucleation has been gained and atomic motion is captured for the first time.
Nature,570, 500-503, (2019).

Pinpointing atom locations and chemical order

3-D location and identity of all the atoms in nanoparticles being determined precisely.
Nature, 542, 75–79, (2017).

Atomic structure of a glass imaged at last

The positions of all the atoms in a glass-forming alloy sample have been measured experimentally.
Nature, 592, 60-64, (2021).

Atoms are the basic building blocks of materials. The three-dimensional (3D) arrangement of atoms determines the physical properties of matter. To understand material properties and functionality at the most fundamental level, one must know the 3D positions of atoms with high precision. However, perfect crystals are rare in nature. The properties of many materials depend on vacancies, defects, surface reconstructions, grain boundaries, stacking faults, dislocations and disorder. Those atomic arrangements are not accessible to crystallography. More importantly, non-crystalline structures can evolve into different structures under external stimuli, but their atomic-scale dynamics are currently poorly understood. Our research interests entail using and developing advanced electron microscopy, particularly atomic resolution electron tomography, to solve traditionally intractable problems in physics, chemistry and materials science.

Advanced Imaging Group, College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Peking University, Beijing, China
Contact: Phone: +86-10-6275-0956 & Email: jhzhou@pku.edu.cn

Crystallization tracked atom by atom

Pinpointing atom locations and chemical order

Atomic structure of a glass imaged at last

About Our Group