Context and project overview

Pollution is one of the biggest challenges that humanity is currently facing. Among the various crisis, there has been a recent emphasis on the PFAS pollution because of its global scale, the harmfulness of the compounds and the lack of mature solution to tackle it.

Imec is currently pioneering an effort at enabling low-cost, high-efficiency electrochemical mineralization of PFAS into harmless products. One of the main challenges associated with the development of solutions for abating PFAS is the really low concentration at which these molecules are present in typical wastewaters, rendering the need for highly sensitive detection methods imperative in order to quantify the extent of the degradation. Electrochemical microdevices such as patterned rotating-ring disk electrodes are an attractive solution to reach these challenging specifications.  

In this context, the goal of the internship will be to use the know-how of imec in the development of micro (nano) technologies to develop rotating-ring disk electrodes specifically designed to monitor in-line the electrochemical degradation of PFAS with very high sensitivity (< 1mmol/s) and direct time resolution.

Scope of work
This is a multi-disciplinary internship/master thesis topic involving both cleanroom microfabrication, material development and characterization and wet-lab electrochemistry:

• Literature review: Develop an in-depth, targeted understanding of electrochemical microdevices to steer the rational design of the solution;
• Design of the microdevice: selection of the electrode materials, method for deposition and patterning;
• Microfabrication: Process micro-electrode arrays (MEAs) in the cleanroom using photolithography and thin-film deposition techniques.
• Electrochemical characterization and testing: Characterize the electrochemical/fluidic behaviour of the device and test its use in the characterization of the reaction outcome for PFAS abatement

Duration: 5 months or more

Work environment

This master thesis/internship provides practical experience at imec Leuven (Belgium), a world-renowned microelectronics research institute, where innovative scientific research is applied to address real-world challenges. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to collaborate with imec professionals and will access advanced laboratory facilities within an international setting.

Candidate profile

• You have a strong interest in experimental work within both cleanroom and wet laboratory environments;
• You have a high ambition to learn and to develop new skills;
• You want to have an impact on societal challenges and/or are interested on the applications of micro/nanotechnologies;

Point of contact: Dr. Jérôme Beaudelot (Jerome.beaudelot@imec.be), Dr. Ewelina Wlazlak (Ewelina.Wlazlak@imec.be)