Why is ice slippery? A nano-NMR perspective

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Friedemann Reinhard
• Subject Area: Experimental Condensed Matter Physics ; Physical Chemistry of Solids and Surfaces, Material Characterisation ; Statistical Physics, Nonlinear Dynamics, Complex Systems, Soft and Fluid Matter, Biological Physics
• Term: since 2025
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 564237841

In the past decade diamond quantum sensors have made it possible to perform nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR) on nanometer small samples and thin films. We will harness this ability to study a prominent unsolved question of surface science – pre-melting of water ice at interfaces at temperatures below the bulk melting point. We will employ nano-NMR to obtain evidence that no other method could provide, most notably a local measurement of layer thickness, diffusion, and the molecular orientation in the interface layer, where all these measurements will be obtained simultaneously on a single nanometer small region.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants