Kam Tong Leung
Biography
Tong Leung's laboratory is one of the very few multidisciplinary laboratories in Canada. His mission is to develop a basic understanding of radiation-matter interactions for applications in the research and design of new molecular and nanoscale materials.
The laboratory is fully equipped with several electron impact and surface science systems for studying novel processes on silicon single-crystal surfaces, and novel nanostructured materials. The laboratory also houses the premier materials research facility, Waterloo Advanced Technology Lab (WATLab), in Canada's Technology Triangle, equipped with a wide range of state-of-the-art surface and nanomaterials research tools in microscopy (HR-XRD, SEM, EDX, OIM, AFM,VT-SPM, HIM), spectromicroscopy (Imaging ESCA, SAM, UPS, SIMS, Auger Microprobe, optical microscopy fleet), fabrication (ECD, CVD, MBE, PLD), lithography (EBL,Nanoman, IBL), and rapid prototyping (for bottom-up device manufacturing) for conducting exploratory studies in all emerging areas of nanotechnology and nanosciences.
As the home of one of the very few helium ion microscopes and ion beam lithography systems in the world, WATLab offers sub-nanometer surface imaging and novel rapid prototyping capability second to none in the world.
Research Interests
Green energy: solar cells and hydrogen generation
Biosensing and environmental remediation using hybrid nanomaterials
Surface chemical physics
Ultra-large scale computational chemistry
Bionanotechnology and Biosensors
Synthetic Chemistry and Catalysis
Nanomaterials
Education
1984, PhD, Chemistry, University of British Columbia, Canada
1980, BSc, Combined Honours in Physics and Chemistry, University of British Columbia, Canada
Awards
2014, Award of Excellence in Graduate Supervision
2006, Outstanding Performance Award, Faculty of Science, University of Waterloo
1997, Noranda Lecture Award
1997, Fellow of The Chemical Institute of Canada
1984-1986, NSERC-NATO Postdoctoral Fellowship
1984-1986, Killam Memorial Postdoctoral Fellowship
1982-1984, NSERC Postgraduate Scholarship, University Graduate Scholarship
1981-1982, F.J. Nicholson Scholarship
1980-1981, NSERC Undergraduate University Summer Research Award
Service
2010-present, Scientific Co-Director, Quantum-Nano Centre (QNC) Fabrication Lab, University of Waterloo
2010-present, Director of Operation, QNC Metrology, University of Waterloo
1999-present, Director, Waterloo Advanced Technology Laboratory (WATLab), University of Waterloo
1997-present, Member of the Editorial Board, The Journal of Electron Spectroscopy and Related Phenomena, Elsevier Science
2011-2014, Associate Editor, Materials Express, American Scientific Publishers
2011, Special Issue Editor, VUVX-2010 Conference Proceedings in "Special Issue: Advances in Vacuum Ultraviolet and X-ray Physics", J. Electron Spectrosc. Relat. Phenomen. Vol. 184, No. 3-6 (2011)
2010, Member of the Organizing Committee, 37th International Conference on Vacuum Ultraviolet and X-ray Physics (VUVX-2010), Vancouver, Canada
Affiliations and Volunteer Work
Member, The Water Institute
Member, Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology
Director, Waterloo Advanced Technology Laboratory (WATLab)
Teaching*
- CHEM 254 - Introductory Chemical Thermodynamics
- Taught in 2021, 2022, 2024, 2025
- CHEM 750 - Selected Topics in Physical Chemistry
- Taught in 2020, 2021, 2022, 2024, 2025
- MNS 102 - Techniques for Materials and Nanosciences
- Taught in 2020, 2025
* Only courses taught in the past 5 years are displayed.
Selected/Recent Publications
Md Anisur Rahman, Joseph P. Thomas, Kam Tong Leung, Adv. Energy Mater. 8 (2018) 1701234 (14pp). “A Delaminated Defect-rich ZrO2 Hierarchical Nanowire Photocathode for Efficient Photoelectrochemical Hydrogen Evolution”.
A. C. F. Santos, W. C. Stolte, G. G. B. de Souza, M. M. Sant'Anna, K. T. Leung, Frontiers in Nuclear and Particle Physics 1 (2018) 119-34. “Inner Shell Ionization and Excitation of CCl4 and its Relation to Electron Scattering”.
Jung-Soo Kang, Youngku Sohn, Debabrata Pradhan, Kam Tong Leung, Langmuir 34 (2018) 2849-55. “Bimetallic Au@M (M = Ag, Pd, Fe, and Cu) Nanoarchitectures Mediated by 1,4- Phenylene Diisocyanide Functionalization”.
F.R. Rahsepar, K. T. Leung, J. Phys. Chem. C 122 (2018) 16113-21. “Biohybridization of Supported Gold Nanoassemblies on Silicon”.
L. Yan, X. Gao, J.P. Thomas, J. Ngai, H. Altounian, K. T. Leung, Y. Meng, Y. Li, Sustainable Energy Fuels, 2 (2018) 1574-81. “Ionically cross-linked PEDOT:PSS as a multifunctional conductive binder for high-performance lithium–sulfur batteries”.
Jung-Soo Kang, A-Ri Ham, Jun-Gill Kang, Kam Tong Leung, Langmuir 34 (2018) 9774-80. “White and Tunable Emission from and Rhodamine B Detection by Modified Zinc Oxide Nanowalls”.
K. J. Sankaran, S. Deshmukh, S. Korneychuk, C. J. Yeh, J. P. Thomas, S. Drijkoningen, P. Pobedinskas, M. K. V. Bael, J.Verbeeck, K. C. Leou, K. T. Leung, S. S. Roy, I. N. Lin, K. Haenen. MRS Communications 8 (2018) 1311–1320. “Fabrication, microstructure, and enhanced thermionic electron emission properties of vertically aligned nitrogen-doped nanocrystalline diamond nanorods”.
K. J. Sankaran, C. J. Yeh, S. Kunuku, J. P. Thomas, P. Pobedinskas, S. Drijkoningen, B. Sundaravel, K. C. Leou, K. T. Leung, M. K. V. Bael, M. Schreck, I. N. Lin, K. Haenen. ACS Omega, 3 (2018), 9956–9965. “Microstructural Effect on the Enhancement of Field Electron Emission Properties of Nanocrystalline Diamond Films by Li-Ion Implantation and Annealing Processes”.
J.P. Thomas, Md. A. Rahman, S. Srivastava, J.S Kang, D. McGillivray, M. Abd-Ellah, N.F Heinig, K.T. Leung, ACS Nano 12 (2018) 9495-9503. “Highly Conducting Hybrid SilverNanowire-Embedded PEDOT:PSS for High-Efficiency Planar-Silicon/Organic Heterojunction Solar Cells”.
J.-S. Kang, J.-G. Kang, Y. Sohn, K.T. Leung, ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 10 (2018) 44768- 44775. “Blue-Light-Emitting Photostable Hybrid Films for High-Efficiency Large-Area Light Converter and Photonic Applications”.
R. Barik, N. Moghimi, K. T. Leung, M. Mohapatra Ionics (2018). “Effect of synthesis parameters on tuning of phase and shape of hierarchical iron oxides and selective application as supercapacitor”.