Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0560716
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$864,610.00
Summary
A National T-ray Facility. T-rays are between microwaves and infrared on the electromagnetic spectrum. Recently, advances in femtosecond lasers enabled access to T-ray frequencies, producing an important new imaging modality for non-invasive sensing of materials and structures. Internationally, T-rays represent a rich new science leading to advanced forms of biophotonics, biomedical imaging and spectroscopy. Non-invasive T-ray diagnostics of nano- and bio-materials are being hotly pursued. The o ....A National T-ray Facility. T-rays are between microwaves and infrared on the electromagnetic spectrum. Recently, advances in femtosecond lasers enabled access to T-ray frequencies, producing an important new imaging modality for non-invasive sensing of materials and structures. Internationally, T-rays represent a rich new science leading to advanced forms of biophotonics, biomedical imaging and spectroscopy. Non-invasive T-ray diagnostics of nano- and bio-materials are being hotly pursued. The outcome will be a strategically important Australian T-ray facility that will provide immediate and transparent nationwide access. Historically, industry is transformed every time a new part of the electromagnetic spectrum becomes accessible - T-rays are the next frontier.Read moreRead less
A multiplex microscope platform to define molecular events in fluid systems. This project aims to develop a novel microscopy platform that will enable the visualisation and quantification of molecular events occurring under fluid shear stress. The project will generate new knowledge in platelet biology that will allow characterisation and prediction of key molecular and morphological changes occurring across a blood thrombus under flowing conditions as found in the blood vessels. These new tools ....A multiplex microscope platform to define molecular events in fluid systems. This project aims to develop a novel microscopy platform that will enable the visualisation and quantification of molecular events occurring under fluid shear stress. The project will generate new knowledge in platelet biology that will allow characterisation and prediction of key molecular and morphological changes occurring across a blood thrombus under flowing conditions as found in the blood vessels. These new tools and the imaging platform will have applications for researchers wishing to visualise small and rapid molecular events in four dimensions (length, width, height and across time) under fluid shear stress, which is applicable across a range of industries. The project expects to deliver the next generation of intravital microscopes that can visualise and quantify events in a challenging flow environment.Read moreRead less
DROP DEFORMATION IN CONFINED MICROFLUIDIC GEOMETRIES. Increasingly, high technology applications in biotechnology and microtechnology industries need to process complex (non-Newtonian) fluids with dispersed particles/droplets in channels as small as several microns (microfluidics). A computational fluid dynamic model of non-Newtonian droplet deformation in microfluidic geometries will be developed, and validated using experimental measurements of the flow field in this project. The aim is to und ....DROP DEFORMATION IN CONFINED MICROFLUIDIC GEOMETRIES. Increasingly, high technology applications in biotechnology and microtechnology industries need to process complex (non-Newtonian) fluids with dispersed particles/droplets in channels as small as several microns (microfluidics). A computational fluid dynamic model of non-Newtonian droplet deformation in microfluidic geometries will be developed, and validated using experimental measurements of the flow field in this project. The aim is to understand and quantify factors influencing droplet deformation. Coupling non-Newtonian characteristics with microfluidic geometries will allow the continuous manufacture of micro-particles of specified size and shape for existing and new applications, and will provide guidance for further extending the process to nano-particle manufacture.Read moreRead less
Residential Air Conditioning, Comfort and Demand Response in Australia. Rapid growth in residential air conditioning (AC) ownership will potentially undermine national energy efficiency and greenhouse reduction targets. Furthermore, residential AC is placing a strain on the national electricity system, especially during heat waves when electricity demand peaks. These AC-driven peak loads occur occasionally each summer, but increasing grid capacity to meet them represents a grossly inefficient in ....Residential Air Conditioning, Comfort and Demand Response in Australia. Rapid growth in residential air conditioning (AC) ownership will potentially undermine national energy efficiency and greenhouse reduction targets. Furthermore, residential AC is placing a strain on the national electricity system, especially during heat waves when electricity demand peaks. These AC-driven peak loads occur occasionally each summer, but increasing grid capacity to meet them represents a grossly inefficient infrastructure investment. This project will generate Australia's most comprehensive data set on exactly how, when, where, and why residential AC systems are being used. The outcomes will provide a solid platform on which national electricity demand management and AC greenhouse-gas mitigation strategies can be designed.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE160100843
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$330,000.00
Summary
Regulating gene delivery with light. This project seeks to deliver the capacity to remotely deliver molecules into specific cells without the need for invasive or viral procedures. Individual genetic predisposition to disease forms a key part of personalised medicine that requires the accurate delivery of drugs or genes. This project aims to develop a new multimodality microscopy that can investigate and optimise light delivery of macromolecules into living cells at high specificity and across a ....Regulating gene delivery with light. This project seeks to deliver the capacity to remotely deliver molecules into specific cells without the need for invasive or viral procedures. Individual genetic predisposition to disease forms a key part of personalised medicine that requires the accurate delivery of drugs or genes. This project aims to develop a new multimodality microscopy that can investigate and optimise light delivery of macromolecules into living cells at high specificity and across a multitude of cells. The expected outcome of this project is a new form of in vivo molecular delivery system using light.Read moreRead less
Development of microwave tomography techniques and inverse methods for biomedical imaging applications. Microwave tomography is a rapidly emerging imaging technology with highly significant applications in industry and medicine. In particular, given its sensitivity to differences between normal and malignant breast tissue, non-invasive microwave imaging has been the subject of intense research interest in the last ten years. In collaboration with workers at Chalmers University in Sweden, we wi ....Development of microwave tomography techniques and inverse methods for biomedical imaging applications. Microwave tomography is a rapidly emerging imaging technology with highly significant applications in industry and medicine. In particular, given its sensitivity to differences between normal and malignant breast tissue, non-invasive microwave imaging has been the subject of intense research interest in the last ten years. In collaboration with workers at Chalmers University in Sweden, we will develop and evaluate a scanning microwave imaging tomographic system with a number of potential industrial and biomedical applications. This appears to be a new Australian initiative.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE130101402
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$375,000.00
Summary
Advanced laser micromachining with femtosecond vector beams. This project is aimed at developing a new method for ultra-precision laser micromachining and dissection of biological tissues using femtosecond vector beams. The capability of these unconventional laser beams to process different materials with unsurpassed precision and efficiency offers significant economic and clinical benefits.
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0453879
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$184,163.00
Summary
Electron beam induced deposition and ablation nanofabrication facility. Electron beam induced deposition and ablation(EBIDA) is rapidly emerging as a new technology capable of fabricating three-dimensional nanostructures on nearly any substrate with very high precision. This proposal aims to establish a nanoscale EBIDA facility by integrating a specialized nanolithography attachment with an existing state-of-the-art 1nm resolution high current variable pressure scanning electron microscope. This ....Electron beam induced deposition and ablation nanofabrication facility. Electron beam induced deposition and ablation(EBIDA) is rapidly emerging as a new technology capable of fabricating three-dimensional nanostructures on nearly any substrate with very high precision. This proposal aims to establish a nanoscale EBIDA facility by integrating a specialized nanolithography attachment with an existing state-of-the-art 1nm resolution high current variable pressure scanning electron microscope. This combination of instrumentation will enable the high-speed production of conductive and insulating structures with 1-to-10nm dimensions. The unique facility will be used to manufacture and prototype novel nanoscale devices and structures and will enable measurement of their physical and chemical properties.Read moreRead less
Enhancing the Understanding and Performance of Passivating TiO2 Coatings for Photovoltaic Devices. Titanium dioxide (TiO2) has been widely used as an antireflection coating in the silicon (Si) photovoltaics industry as it exhibits excellent optical properties and low deposition cost. However, recently manufacturers have been turning to alternatives such as hydrogenated silicon nitride coatings that exhibit greatly improved electronic properties, but cost 4 - 10 times more to deposit. This proj ....Enhancing the Understanding and Performance of Passivating TiO2 Coatings for Photovoltaic Devices. Titanium dioxide (TiO2) has been widely used as an antireflection coating in the silicon (Si) photovoltaics industry as it exhibits excellent optical properties and low deposition cost. However, recently manufacturers have been turning to alternatives such as hydrogenated silicon nitride coatings that exhibit greatly improved electronic properties, but cost 4 - 10 times more to deposit. This project seeks to understand the fundamental limitations behind the poor surface passivation afforded by TiO2 to a Si wafer, and subsequently develop a passivating TiO2 coating that can reduce the cost of electricity generated by Si solar cells.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0453911
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$391,529.00
Summary
Microwave Antenna Testing Facility for Far-Field and Spherical Near-Field Measurements. The proposed facility is for testing broad-beam microwave antennas (1 GHz - 18 GHz), designed and developed by collaborators for several research and commercial projects. These antennas are important in telecommunications, defence and biomedical applications. While facilitating timely pattern measurements of antenna prototypes, it will open new opportunities in antenna experimentation. This facility will enha ....Microwave Antenna Testing Facility for Far-Field and Spherical Near-Field Measurements. The proposed facility is for testing broad-beam microwave antennas (1 GHz - 18 GHz), designed and developed by collaborators for several research and commercial projects. These antennas are important in telecommunications, defence and biomedical applications. While facilitating timely pattern measurements of antenna prototypes, it will open new opportunities in antenna experimentation. This facility will enhance collaborators' highly acclaimed theoretical research by providing experimental results for theory validation. Near-field patterns available from the facility will advance our knowledge on complicated antennas. This will generate researchers skilled in state-of-the art antenna measurements, and will help develop competitive Australian industries in this frontier technology.Read moreRead less