Many technologically important materials rely on nanostructured surfaces to achieve desired functional properties. As nanofabrication capabilities advance, chemically or electronically active materials routinely consist of films only Angstroms in thickness and forming spatially isolated patterns with some lateral dimensions in the low nanometers. Example systems include core-shell structures used in catalyst systems, layered two-dimensional (2D) materials used in nanoelectronics, and self-aligned chemical patterning used for semiconductor manufacturing. This research opportunity focuses on metrology for the chemical characterization of surfaces and interfaces found in heterogeneous thin film and nanoparticle systems. Of particular interest are species distributions on patterned surfaces, nucleation and film formation, and dynamical surface processes occurring during vapor/gas phase chemical processes. Available resources include chemical vapor and atomic layer deposition systems with optical diagnostic tools for thin film growth and surface modification, cleanroom facilities for nanofabrication, and state-of-the-art synchrotron X-ray beamline facilities, operated by NIST at Brookhaven National Laboratory, to perform X-ray absorption near edge spectrometry (XANES) and extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) experiments.