Nina Balke

Prof. Nina Balke is an Associate Professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at North Carolina State University, specializing in atomic force microscopy (AFM) to study nanoscale functionality in energy storage and functional materials. Her research bridges electromechanical coupling, ionic transport, and solid-liquid interface dynamics to enhance technologies like batteries, supercapacitors, and neuromorphic devices.

• Education:
  • Ph.D., Materials Science, Technical University Darmstadt (2006)
  • Diploma, Materials Science, Technical University Darmstadt (2003)

Research Focus: Balke's group develops in situ/operando AFM techniques to probe local electrochemical processes, polarization transitions, and strain-charge coupling in materials such as CuInP2S6, WO3, and MXenes. Key areas include:

• Structure and dynamics of electrical double layers in ionic liquids
• Local ionic transport mechanisms in battery electrodes
• Polarization control in van der Waals materials

Scientific Contributions: Highlights include mapping strain-charge coupling in Ti3C2 MXene, elucidating electro-chemo-mechanical heterogeneity in WO3, and imaging topological defects in ionic liquids. Her work integrates AFM with theory to quantify nanoscale electromechanical properties.

Awards:

• Feodor-Lynen Fellowship (Alexander von Humboldt Foundation)

Collaborations & Team: Balke collaborates across disciplines, advising graduate researchers like Tania Proksch and alumni such as Steven Baro (Ph.D., 2024). Her lab emphasizes multi-modal characterization, linking AFM findings to X-ray studies and computational models.