Interfaces play a central role in determining the properties and performance of  multifunctional hybrid materials, from core–shell nanoparticles and nanocomposite films to Li-ions batteries and biomaterials. Their characterization is often challenging because chemical and structural information are confined to only a few nanometers and may involve buried or dynamically generated interfaces.

This seminar will present a correlative surface-analysis methodology combining X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), Auger Electron Spectroscopy and Scanning Auger Microscopy (AES/SAM), and Time-of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (ToF-SIMS). These complementary techniques provide access to quantitative surface composition and chemical states, nanoscale elemental distributions, and molecular information from organic and inorganic components. Combined with advanced cross-section preparation, they also provide direct investigation of buried interfaces and generated interfaces coming from interaction of materials with other entities or during a specific operation.

The potential of this multimodal strategy will be illustrated through different examples and classes of hybrid materials, including core–shell nanoparticles, polymer/metal nanocomposite films, battery electrode materials and nanomaterials/microbes interactions. In this latter domain, materials–bacteria interfaces were investigated at the single-cell level and to monitor enzymatically induced surface transformation triggered by microbial activity