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Research Thrusts |
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Engineering Education Innovation
As the world continues to change with globalization and technological advances so must engineering education p...
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Advanced Power System
In the face of an impending energy crisis, the Advanced Power Systems research center is exploring alternative...
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Space Systems
The Space Systems Research group is creating innovative electric propulsion systems to make space travel more ...
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Mechanics of Multi-scale Materials
The Mechanics of Multi-scale Materials research group uncovers the relationships of structures across the full...
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Multi-scale Sensors and Systems
The Multi-scale Sensors and Systems Research Group specializes in the design, fabrication, integration, and te...
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Sustainable Manufacturing and Design
Many of the campus research efforts on sustainability are coordinated by the Sustainable Futures Institute (SF...
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Research Projects
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A New Prospective on Energy Harvesting Nanowires: The Role of Chemistry and Structures of Nanowires |
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Project Date:
9/2009-8/2012 |
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Sponsor:
National Science Foundation
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The research aims to understand the mechanisms by which:
1. Doping elements and chemistry defects
2. Structural properties of nanowires (length, diameter, shape, orientation) affect the piezoelectric-driven electrical output in semiconductor nanowires for energy harvesting systems.
This understanding will shed light and provide solid experimental evidence on one of the most important on-going research debates related to the ability to obtain electrical output from semiconducting-piezoelectric nanowires. Currently, the underlying nanoscale mechanisms by which doping elements, defects, and structure affect the piezoelectric-driven electrical output in nanowires are unknown. The electro-mechanical coupling of ZnO nanotubes will be studied by straining the nanotubes specimens using a first of its kind in-situ force and electrical measurement system (AFM/STM) inside the transmission electron microscope (TEM) where the microstructure of ZnO nanowires can be simultaneously imaged in high resolution. The proposed research provides a unique opportunity to advance scientific knowledge on the mechanisms of mechancial energy harvesting in nanowires, and the ability to clear up existing uncertanties in the field.
The in-situ electrical-mechanical probing of ZnO nanowires inside the TEM will enable research in two unexplored areas:
i. The role of doping elements and defect chemistry
ii. The role of structural properties of nanowires (diameter, length, shape, orientation) on the piezoelectric-driven electrical output, for which data is not yet available in the literature.
The new understanding on the coupling phenomenon is not limited to ZnO nanotubes, and will pave the roadmap for experimental studies on other semiconductor-piezoelectric nanowires (for instance ZnS, GaN, BaTiO3, A1N). The PI has several years of research experience in the area of electron microscopy of materials, and the co-PI is a well-established researcher in the area of nanomaterials synthesis and in particular ZnO nanowires.
The research has the potential to convert mechanical movement energy (such as body movement, muscle stretching, blood pressure), vibration energy (such as acoustic/ultrasonic wave), and hydraulic electric energy, demonstrating a paradigm shift toward the concept of "self-powered" nanodevices. A week demonstration of in-situ nanoscale TEM experiments has been planned for "Explorations in Engineering" and "Women in Engineering" Michigan Tech outreach workshops designed to impact the minority and economically disadvanteaged K-12 students at Upper Peninsula schools. These activities will be used as a case study in a new technical elective course (MEEM5990), which the PI has developed to bring senior undergraduate and graduate students from electrical engineering materials science, physics, chemistry, and mechanical engineering in the classroom. The in-situe videos of microscopy experiments will also be made available to the community via the nanoHUB netowrk.
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