APPLIED PHYSICS GRADUATE PROGRAMJoint PhD Program Between Weinberg College and Mccormick School of Engineering

Research Interests

Professor Laurence D. Marks, Ph.D. is a Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at Northwestern University. His most highly cited work is the discovery of a type of nanoparticle which has become known as the Marks Decahedron. He pioneered the use of HREM to study the structure of nanoparticles, the use of direct methods for surfaces with either electron or x-ray diffraction data, in-situ methods for tribology inside electron microscopes, fast methods of obtaining optical and structural measurements from single nanoparticles and most recently a new class of fixed-point algorithms for DFT calculations. His research interests include transmission electron microscopy, density functional theory methods, direct methods for inversion of diffraction data, surface science particularly of oxides, tribology and hip replacements as well as nanoparticle structure, growth and plasmonic properties. He is the author or co-author of approximately 380 refereed publications.

Significant Recognition

• ICSOS Surface Structure Prize, 2017
• Warren Award of the American Crystallographic Association, 2015
• Astore Lectureship, 2015
• Fellow, American Physical Society, 2002
• Burton Medal from the Electron Microscopy Society of America for achievements in electron microscopy by a young researcher, 1989
• Sloan Foundation Fellowship, 1987

Selected Publications

1. Electronic structure of lanthanide scandates. Mizzi, C.A., P. Koirala, and L.D. Marks, Physical Review Materials, 2018. 2(2), 025001.
2. Competitive Chloride Chemisorption Disrupts Hydrogen Bonding Networks: DFT, Crystallography, Thermodynamics, and Morphological Consequences. Marks, L., Corrosion, 2018. 74(3), 295-311.
3. Kinetic Growth Regimes of Hydrothermally Synthesized Potassium Tantalate Nanoparticles. Ly, T., J. Wen, and L.D. Marks, Nano Lett, 2018.
4. In situ observations of graphitic staples in crumpled graphene. Lin, A.Y.W., X.-x. Yu, A. Dato, G. Krauss, and L.D. Marks, Carbon, 2018. 132, 760-765.
5. Direct Observation of Large Flexoelectric Bending at the Nanoscale in Lanthanide Scandates. Koirala, P., C.A. Mizzi, and L.D. Marks, Nano Lett, 2018. 18(6), 3850-3856.
6. Morphology and CO Oxidation Activity of Pd Nanoparticles on SrTiO3 Nanopolyhedra. Chen, B.-R., L.A. Crosby, C. George, R.M. Kennedy, N.M. Schweitzer, J. Wen, R.P. Van Duyne, P.C. Stair, K.R. Poeppelmeier, L.D. Marks, and M.J. Bedzyk, ACS Catalysis, 2018, 4751-4760.
7. Blaha, P., K. Schwarz, G.K.H. Madsen, D. Kvasnicka, J. Luitz, R. Laskowsji, F. Tran, and L.D. Marks, An Augmented Plane Wave + Local Orbitals Program for Calculating Crystal Properties. 2018: Techn. Universitat Wien, Austria.