Dyes and Pigments as Building Blocks for Novel High Performance Organic Semiconductors. Natural dyes and pigments are well known for their bright colours, photochemical and thermal stability, and cheap cost. Recently, the necessity of high performing materials in the organic electronics has stimulated a renaissance of these historical molecules and their subsequent derivatives into new families of ?-conjugated building blocks used to construct new donor-acceptor semiconductors. The aim of this p ....Dyes and Pigments as Building Blocks for Novel High Performance Organic Semiconductors. Natural dyes and pigments are well known for their bright colours, photochemical and thermal stability, and cheap cost. Recently, the necessity of high performing materials in the organic electronics has stimulated a renaissance of these historical molecules and their subsequent derivatives into new families of ?-conjugated building blocks used to construct new donor-acceptor semiconductors. The aim of this project is to explore various novel dyes, pigments and their derivatives for constructing outstanding materials for future organic electronics.Read moreRead less
Computer-Aided Design of High-Performance Photocatalysts for Solar Hydrogen Production Based on Red Titanium Dioxide. Large-scale generation of energy by solar conversion is critical for future sustainability. This project aims to develop high performance materials to efficiently convert solar energy to hydrogen - a clean fuel. Starting from the newly developed material red titanium dioxide, novel strategies for improved photocatalytic materials will be proposed and evaluated by advanced computa ....Computer-Aided Design of High-Performance Photocatalysts for Solar Hydrogen Production Based on Red Titanium Dioxide. Large-scale generation of energy by solar conversion is critical for future sustainability. This project aims to develop high performance materials to efficiently convert solar energy to hydrogen - a clean fuel. Starting from the newly developed material red titanium dioxide, novel strategies for improved photocatalytic materials will be proposed and evaluated by advanced computational approaches. Key issues for solar-to-hydrogen conversion will be clarified. The materials, knowledge and strategies achieved by this project will dramatically enhance current solar technology and in particular will advance the development of low-cost hydrogen production from water. Read moreRead less
High performance durable perovskite solar cells for space applications . There has been a rapid growth in space exploration and experimentation fuelled by global support. Space hardware needs to be powered by a sustainable source of energy. The use of solar photovoltaics is the preferred choice. As we move into the era of 'commercial space', cost will become paramount necessitating the development of new cost effective photovoltaic technologies. Metal halide perovskite solar cells show the great ....High performance durable perovskite solar cells for space applications . There has been a rapid growth in space exploration and experimentation fuelled by global support. Space hardware needs to be powered by a sustainable source of energy. The use of solar photovoltaics is the preferred choice. As we move into the era of 'commercial space', cost will become paramount necessitating the development of new cost effective photovoltaic technologies. Metal halide perovskite solar cells show the greatest potential. They have a higher power to weight ratio and are significantly cheaper to be manufactured compared to incumbent space cells. This project aims to develop and demonstrate perovskite solar cells to achieve high areal power conversion efficiencies and long operating lifetimes withstanding space environment. Read moreRead less
Nanostructuring and nanocharacterisation of organic semiconductor devices. This research project will utilise new approaches to pattern organic solar cells on the nanoscale to realise improved efficiencies and improved understanding of device operation. It will also develop soft x-ray techniques to probe the nanostructure of organic semiconductor films with increased chemical and interfacial specificity.
Defect control for high-performance green kesterites energy materials. This project will tackle the fundamental challenge of defect control of the quaternary compound kesterite, revolutionizing the way we can understand the hidden defect-evolution process and design accordingly effective defect-control approaches. This will be realized by a systematic approach integrating multiscale materials characterization, process and materials modeling, and linking microscopic local chemical potential and m ....Defect control for high-performance green kesterites energy materials. This project will tackle the fundamental challenge of defect control of the quaternary compound kesterite, revolutionizing the way we can understand the hidden defect-evolution process and design accordingly effective defect-control approaches. This will be realized by a systematic approach integrating multiscale materials characterization, process and materials modeling, and linking microscopic local chemical potential and macroscopic processing conditions, and associated compound properties and device performance to control defects evolution. Successfully achieved, this project will realize full potential of kesterite in photovoltaic and photoelectrochemical applications, and leading to new discoveries in other compound energy materials.Read moreRead less
Nanostructured Upconvertors for Advanced Solar Energy Harvesting. The efficiency of many solar energy conversion processes, such as solar photovoltaic and solar hydrogen, can be improved by management of the solar spectrum. One photon management strategy is up-conversion, whereby two lower energy, unusable photons are conjoined to bring about a higher energy photon. Photochemical up-conversion, where light harvesting and energy-pooling is performed in organic molecules, has been rapidly advanced ....Nanostructured Upconvertors for Advanced Solar Energy Harvesting. The efficiency of many solar energy conversion processes, such as solar photovoltaic and solar hydrogen, can be improved by management of the solar spectrum. One photon management strategy is up-conversion, whereby two lower energy, unusable photons are conjoined to bring about a higher energy photon. Photochemical up-conversion, where light harvesting and energy-pooling is performed in organic molecules, has been rapidly advanced in recent years, and promises to deliver the efficiencies required to find real-world application. This project brings together laser spectroscopy, organic and materials chemistry and nanotechnology to realise efficient up-convertors which will be applied to solar cells and solar fuels.Read moreRead less
Metal Halide Perovskite Metal-organic Framework Crystal-Glass Composites. This project aims to investigate the highly stable and efficient semiconductive composite materials, recently discovered by my group, consisting of metal halide perovskite embedded in metal-organic framework glass. An integrated experimental and computational approach will be used to study the structures and interfacial bonding mechanisms that govern the highly sought-after properties for the composites. Expected outcomes ....Metal Halide Perovskite Metal-organic Framework Crystal-Glass Composites. This project aims to investigate the highly stable and efficient semiconductive composite materials, recently discovered by my group, consisting of metal halide perovskite embedded in metal-organic framework glass. An integrated experimental and computational approach will be used to study the structures and interfacial bonding mechanisms that govern the highly sought-after properties for the composites. Expected outcomes are a new generation of environmentally safe perovskite devices for energy, environmental and health applications, e.g. lighting, displays, X-ray sensing, photocatalysis and photovoltaics. This project will position Australia at the forefront of semiconducting device research and create commercial opportunities. Read moreRead less
Mechanisms and innovative technologies for machining nanoscale multilayered thin film solar panels. This project addresses an important manufacturing bottleneck in the solar energy industry by addressing significant limitations in machining multilayered solar panels. A successful outcome will provide an important breakthrough in machining technology applicable not only to solar panels but other material science applications.
Nanoscale characterisation and manipulation of complex oxide interfaces and topological boundaries. Working at the forefront of complex oxide materials research, this project will explore novel material properties and develop new material application concepts. The project will specifically investigate nanoscale interfaces for potential breakthrough applications in nanoscience.
Rational Design of Novel Multiferroic Materials for Energy Harvesting and Energy Efficiency. Multiferroics are a class of fundamentally complex materials in which several ferroic orders (for example, ferroelectric and ferromagnetic) coexist. The coupling between their electric and magnetic degrees of freedom is controllable via stress and external fields, thus opening the possibility for breakthrough technological developments. By working at the frontier of complex nanostructured oxide materials ....Rational Design of Novel Multiferroic Materials for Energy Harvesting and Energy Efficiency. Multiferroics are a class of fundamentally complex materials in which several ferroic orders (for example, ferroelectric and ferromagnetic) coexist. The coupling between their electric and magnetic degrees of freedom is controllable via stress and external fields, thus opening the possibility for breakthrough technological developments. By working at the frontier of complex nanostructured oxide materials, this project aims to establish the rational basis for systematic design of novel artificially layered multiferroics, develop accurate and computationally affordable methods to simulate these materials under finite-temperature conditions, and exploit this knowledge to devise likely revolutionary photovoltaic, nanoelectronic and energy conversion applications.Read moreRead less