Michael Naguib is visiting HZB as a Humboldt Research Awardee
The US scientist received funding to research novel nanomaterials for energy and environmental applications
Professor Michael Naguib, from Tulane University in the USA, is one of the discoverers of a new class of 2D materials: MXenes are characterised by a puff pastry-like structure and have many applications, such as in the production of green hydrogen or as storage media for electrical energy. During his Humboldt Research Award in 2025, Professor Naguib is working with Prof Volker Presser at the Leibniz Institute for New Materials in Saarbrücken and with Dr Tristan Petit at HZB.
Michael Naguib, Ph.D., is an Ken & Ruth Arnold Early Career Professor in Science and Engineering at Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. He is a leading expert in the field of two-dimensional materials. His research group at Tulane University focuses on the synthesis and characterization of novel nanomaterials, including MXenes and Transition Metal Carbo-chalcogenides, for energy and environmental applications.
He completed his doctorate in 2014 at Drexel University, where he was involved in the discovery of a new class of materials. At that time, he tested MAX phases (layered ceramics) as electrode materials for lithium batteries. To create more space for the lithium ions, he used an acid and discovered that the “A” layers in the MAX phases had been selectively removed, transforming the remaining MX layers into a structure that, under a scanning electron microscope, resembled puff pastry: MXene.
To date, a wide range of MXenes have been synthesised. Their applications are also highly diverse: MXenes can be used as electrodes for energy storage devices, in catalysis and as sensors for medical applications. ‘I am delighted to deepen our collaboration with Tristan Petit and his team at HZB,’ says Naguib. ‘We will be discussing several fundamental questions regarding our novel materials and preparing a series of experiments to conduct at BESSY II to help us answering these questions.’
More information on Humboldt Research Award
Contact:
Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie
Young Investigator Group Nanoscale Solid-Liquid Interfaces
CE-NSLI-office(at)helmholtz-berlin.de
www.helmholtz-berlin.de
Source: HZB, 16 June 2025