Alumni Association
Professor Peter Weightman (University of Liverpool)
03 April 2013
Joint Research Project (updated case study)
Project title: Dynamics of Amino Acid Molecules on Solid Surfaces
Japanese lead scientist: Professor Masatoshi Tanaka, Department of Physics, Faculty of Engineering, Yokohama National University
UK Counterpart: Professor Peter Weightman, Physics Department and Surface Science Research Centre, University of Liverpool
Project duration: April 2011 to 2013
Description of the project
This
project is aimed at determining the electronic structures of amino acid and
related molecules on solid surfaces, especially at solid-liquid interfaces, and
analyzing the dynamics of these molecules. An understanding of the electronic
states and dynamics of adsorbed biomolecules in their active condition will
contribute to the development of biosensors, biocompatible materials and medical
devices.
The
occupied and unoccupied states of the molecules are determined by high-resolution core and valence
photoelectron spectroscopy using synchrotron radiation (SRPES) and
two-photon photoelectron spectroscopy (2PPE), respectively. Relaxation dynamics
in the excited states is observed by 2PPE. Molecular orientations and electronic states of the molecules depending
on the charge state are determined by surface reflectance spectroscopy (SRS).
Dynamics of
the changes of the structure and electronic states caused by the changes of pH
and applied potential are also investigated by real-time SRS.
Duration of the project
The project ran from April 2011 to March 2013
Departments and institutions involved
Department of Physics, Faculty of Engineering, Yokohama National
University
Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Faculty of
Science and Engineering, Saga University
Nanoelectronics Research Institute, Advanced Industrial Science
and Technology (AIST)
How collaboration started
The Synchrotron Light Application Center of Saga University whose
director was Prof. Kamada concluded a cooperation agreement with University of
Liverpool in 2007.
Prof. Weightman joined the Grant-in-Aid
for Scientific Research project (Japan Society for the Promotion of Science)
whose leader was Prof. Tanaka in 2008.
Amount of money awarded
5,000,000 JPY
Matching funding from the UK
The UK side of the project was supported
by the Department of Physics of the University of Liverpool, the Cockcroft
Institute at Daresbury laboratory and the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences
Research Council. This provided funding the reflection anisotropy spectroscopy
and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy laboratories in the Physics
Department and the development of a
scanning near field microscope on the ALICE accelerator at Daresbury
laboratory.
How participants benefitted from the scheme
The collaboration between the University of Liverpool and Japanese
team members had already begun before the start of this project so it was
possible to make rapid progress on the main aim of the project which was to to
promote the exchange of researchers and establish a sustained network between University of Liverpool and the Japanese team.
During the duration of the project, eight people visited the UK
and stayed there for 95 days in total. They learned
experimental skills and did research together in the University of Liverpool. Some of them presented the
results of the joint research in the 29 th European Conference on
Surface Science held in Edinburgh in 2012. Prof Weightman also gave an invited
talk at the March 2013 conference on synchrotron radiation in Tosu and was able
to visit the Saga synchrotron.
Collaborative developments since the project finished and future
plans.
We focused on the amino acid cysteine during
this project. We plan to extend this work to the study of other amino acids and
related molecules using the same methodology. Research collaboration between University
of Liverpool and Japan team members will be therefore continued. Moreover we
are developing a new method to observe the behavior of molecules at the
solid-liquid interface and the collaboration for this development will be also
continued. We have not yet considered whether or not we apply to JSPS Bilateral
Joint Projects again.
