Diamond glass: An all-carbon technology for neural networks and biosensing. This project aims to use plasma deposition to synthesise diamond glass with the highest purity and the most diamond-like character so that it meets the strict requirements for emerging device applications. The extreme properties of diamond glass arise from the diamond-like bonding of the majority of its atoms. This amorphous, wide bandgap semiconductor is also the hardest known glass. The maximum diamond-like content pos ....Diamond glass: An all-carbon technology for neural networks and biosensing. This project aims to use plasma deposition to synthesise diamond glass with the highest purity and the most diamond-like character so that it meets the strict requirements for emerging device applications. The extreme properties of diamond glass arise from the diamond-like bonding of the majority of its atoms. This amorphous, wide bandgap semiconductor is also the hardest known glass. The maximum diamond-like content possible in diamond glass coatings is unknown, so determining its ultimate performance is difficult. Expected applications include medical diagnostics, non-volatile memories and programmable chips.Read moreRead less
Integrity analysis of advanced composites after lightning strike. Lightning strike presents a great threat to various engineered structures made of fibre-reinforced polymer composites. This project aims to develop fundamentals for a framework of integrity analysis for such composites after lightning strike. This involves mechanistic models for coupled electrical-thermal-mechanical analysis and experimental characterisation, addressing intensive resistant-heat generation, pyrolysis of matrices an ....Integrity analysis of advanced composites after lightning strike. Lightning strike presents a great threat to various engineered structures made of fibre-reinforced polymer composites. This project aims to develop fundamentals for a framework of integrity analysis for such composites after lightning strike. This involves mechanistic models for coupled electrical-thermal-mechanical analysis and experimental characterisation, addressing intensive resistant-heat generation, pyrolysis of matrices and ablation of fibres, pore gas explosion, shock stresses and prediction of residual strength. The expected outcomes of the project are critical for the development of procedures for enhanced structural integrity assessment, driving down maintenance costs and extending the life-span of engineered composite structures.Read moreRead less
Improving the ductility of amorphous alloys via severe plastic deformation. Amorphous alloys are the strongest metallic materials. However, the brittle nature of the materials has significantly limited their applicability in reliability-critical structural applications. Despite significant worldwide efforts, improvement of the ductility has been limited to amorphous alloys with only a few specific compositions. This project aims to develop a universal approach to substantially enhancing the duct ....Improving the ductility of amorphous alloys via severe plastic deformation. Amorphous alloys are the strongest metallic materials. However, the brittle nature of the materials has significantly limited their applicability in reliability-critical structural applications. Despite significant worldwide efforts, improvement of the ductility has been limited to amorphous alloys with only a few specific compositions. This project aims to develop a universal approach to substantially enhancing the ductility of amorphous alloys through the application of severe plastic deformation, to explore the effect of severe plastic deformation on structure, and to reveal the fundamental mechanisms of the mechanical behaviour of amorphous alloys. The results are expected to enable structural design of amorphous alloys with excellent ductility.Read moreRead less
Bioinspired Flexible Haptic Memory Materials for Artificial Sensory Nerves. This project aims to develop next generation haptic memory materials for the applications of artificial sensory nerves, which can precisely detect, process and respond to mechanical stimuli. The project expects to achieve this aim by mimicking the functions of biological haptic memory system and integrating highly sensitive tactile sensors and synaptic devices into artificial sensory nerves. The anticipated outcomes wil ....Bioinspired Flexible Haptic Memory Materials for Artificial Sensory Nerves. This project aims to develop next generation haptic memory materials for the applications of artificial sensory nerves, which can precisely detect, process and respond to mechanical stimuli. The project expects to achieve this aim by mimicking the functions of biological haptic memory system and integrating highly sensitive tactile sensors and synaptic devices into artificial sensory nerves. The anticipated outcomes will be new electronic materials for a wide range of end uses in next-generation flexible sensor technologies including healthcare monitoring devices, intelligent soft robotic systems and neural prosthetics.Read moreRead less
Novel multiscale fibre composites for cryogenic space technologies. This project aims to develop new composite materials technologies for cryogenic space applications. Multifunctional nanomaterials with negative thermal expansion properties will be developed to simultaneously reduce thermal stress and improve fracture toughness, suppressing microcracking of fibre composites observed in current materials at cryogenic temperatures. New interleaves will be developed to act as gas barriers and provi ....Novel multiscale fibre composites for cryogenic space technologies. This project aims to develop new composite materials technologies for cryogenic space applications. Multifunctional nanomaterials with negative thermal expansion properties will be developed to simultaneously reduce thermal stress and improve fracture toughness, suppressing microcracking of fibre composites observed in current materials at cryogenic temperatures. New interleaves will be developed to act as gas barriers and provide strength. The composites will provide a new lightweight solution for storing cryogenic propellants such as liquid hydrogen and oxygen, for the next generation re-usable spacecraft. The outcomes of this project will enable Australian companies to produce and export specialised, high-performance composite products.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE170100053
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$375,000.00
Summary
Quantitatively probing the nanoscale plasticity of a single grain boundary. This project aims to study grain boundaries, which are important in the mechanical behaviour of nanomaterials. However, the exact contribution of individual grain boundaries to mechanical properties is not well understood, affecting advanced materials design. This project will use in-situ deformation transmission electron microscopy techniques to reveal how individual grain boundaries deform and interact with dislocation ....Quantitatively probing the nanoscale plasticity of a single grain boundary. This project aims to study grain boundaries, which are important in the mechanical behaviour of nanomaterials. However, the exact contribution of individual grain boundaries to mechanical properties is not well understood, affecting advanced materials design. This project will use in-situ deformation transmission electron microscopy techniques to reveal how individual grain boundaries deform and interact with dislocations, and to link directly the structures and orientation of individual grain boundaries with mechanical behaviours. Expected results are better structural design of advanced metallic nanomaterials with superior mechanical performance.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE150100001
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$410,000.00
Summary
Collaborative advanced spectroscopy facility for materials and devices. Collaborative advanced spectroscopy facility for materials and devices: This project aims to enable advancements in electronics, photonics, biomedicine, and sensing through a collaborative, open access facility for advanced optical and chemical spectroscopy of thin films, materials, and devices. The intended capabilities include high-speed, precise and state-of-the-art spectroscopy tools which enable in situ characterisation ....Collaborative advanced spectroscopy facility for materials and devices. Collaborative advanced spectroscopy facility for materials and devices: This project aims to enable advancements in electronics, photonics, biomedicine, and sensing through a collaborative, open access facility for advanced optical and chemical spectroscopy of thin films, materials, and devices. The intended capabilities include high-speed, precise and state-of-the-art spectroscopy tools which enable in situ characterisation at sub-micron scales and cryogenic temperatures, under bio-simulated environments, down to single pixel resolution, with parallel imaging and spectroscopy, and of fluids and biomaterials. The instrumentation will include cryogenic sub-micron photoluminescence and micro-Raman spectroscopy, single pixel optical and dark field spectroscopy, continuous wave terahertz time-domain spectroscopy, wide wavelength microscopic spectroscopy, and temperature-jump kinetics spectroscopy. It is expected that these complementary instruments will accelerate research in materials and devices for plasmonics, nanoelectronics, biomedicine, biochemistry, security, and forensic science.Read moreRead less
Metal-air batteries with improved rate capability and safety for hearing applications. Hearing impairment affects on average 20% of the adult population in western society, with the impact being as high as 50% in older adults. Effective hearing devices require a significant amount of power, supplied by a battery, to support their function. Current batteries require very frequent replacement and represent a significant impediment to advances in the technology. This project will develop improved ....Metal-air batteries with improved rate capability and safety for hearing applications. Hearing impairment affects on average 20% of the adult population in western society, with the impact being as high as 50% in older adults. Effective hearing devices require a significant amount of power, supplied by a battery, to support their function. Current batteries require very frequent replacement and represent a significant impediment to advances in the technology. This project will develop improved energy and power density batteries which will lead to immediate implementation of more powerful signal processing algorithms, making hearing aids much more effective and appealing to the user. This, in turn, will improve recipient compliance and thus the quality of life for those with severe hearing impairment. Read moreRead less
The effect of structure and size on the mechanical behaviour of III-V semiconductor nanowires. The project aims to apply in-situ deformation transmission electron microscopy to investigate the mechanical behaviour of compound semiconductor nanowires and the effect of structure and geometry on the behaviour. The results will uncover the fundamental mechanical properties of nanowires and will guide the design of nanowire-based devices.