Rare isotopes as tracers of prosthesis debris. The incidence of knee replacement surgery in Australia is 30,000 per year. Limited by wear debris, the lifespan of knee implants is only 10-15 years and can be much shorter. Due to increasing life expectancy, many patients need several surgical procedures. As a multi-disciplinary team of materials-, isotope-tracing- and medical-experts, we aim to understand and monitor wear debris in prostheses. Knee replacement surgery alone imposes a high burden o ....Rare isotopes as tracers of prosthesis debris. The incidence of knee replacement surgery in Australia is 30,000 per year. Limited by wear debris, the lifespan of knee implants is only 10-15 years and can be much shorter. Due to increasing life expectancy, many patients need several surgical procedures. As a multi-disciplinary team of materials-, isotope-tracing- and medical-experts, we aim to understand and monitor wear debris in prostheses. Knee replacement surgery alone imposes a high burden of annually half a billion dollars on the Australian health budget. Controlling and reducing wear debris in prosthesis joints would reduce these costs and improve patients' quality of life.Read moreRead less
Scaling-up microstructured fibres for terahertz radiation. Terahertz radiation is the last region of the electromagnetic spectrum to be fully utilised. Many applications have been identified but their practicality has been limited by a lack of low-loss flexible waveguides. The waveguides to be developed in this project will build on Australia's existing international lead and investments in photonics as well as extend the dynamic field of microstructured optical fibres, indentified as the 'futur ....Scaling-up microstructured fibres for terahertz radiation. Terahertz radiation is the last region of the electromagnetic spectrum to be fully utilised. Many applications have been identified but their practicality has been limited by a lack of low-loss flexible waveguides. The waveguides to be developed in this project will build on Australia's existing international lead and investments in photonics as well as extend the dynamic field of microstructured optical fibres, indentified as the 'future' of optical fibres. Low-loss flexible waveguides will enable imaging and spectroscopy applications that can reveal and object's internal structure and composition. This will have immediate applications in security, quality control, medical imaging and other safety or industrial applications.Read moreRead less
Fibre Optic Dosimeters for Medical and Environmental Applications. We will develop fibre optic dosimeters for environmental monitoring and radiation therapy. A novel approach using refractive index gradients will be used to capture scintillator light while rejecting noise. New knowledge will be gained of the mechanisms of radiation damage in scintillators and glasses. The small, flexible, accurate fibre optic dosimeters will be equivalent in absorbing characteristics to human tissue, making them ....Fibre Optic Dosimeters for Medical and Environmental Applications. We will develop fibre optic dosimeters for environmental monitoring and radiation therapy. A novel approach using refractive index gradients will be used to capture scintillator light while rejecting noise. New knowledge will be gained of the mechanisms of radiation damage in scintillators and glasses. The small, flexible, accurate fibre optic dosimeters will be equivalent in absorbing characteristics to human tissue, making them superior to all currently available dosimeters. Fibre optic dosimeters will enable new adaptive radiotherapy techniques and provide quality assurance of dose delivery in radiotherapy. Their multiplexing capability will lead to applications in monitoring of workplaces and aerospace environments.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0668257
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,200,000.00
Summary
Combinatorial Deposition and Characterisation Facility for New Alloy Thin Film Materials. Australia's competitive edge in materials research is key to maintaining our economic prosperity. Infrastructure that enables our researchers to synthesize novel materials with precise control over composition and structure is crucial to maintaining our strengths in this field. The proposed infrastructure will accelerate progress on the preparation and characterisation of new alloy and nanostructured materi ....Combinatorial Deposition and Characterisation Facility for New Alloy Thin Film Materials. Australia's competitive edge in materials research is key to maintaining our economic prosperity. Infrastructure that enables our researchers to synthesize novel materials with precise control over composition and structure is crucial to maintaining our strengths in this field. The proposed infrastructure will accelerate progress on the preparation and characterisation of new alloy and nanostructured materials and will pay dividends by providing early access to the best materials. This will give our energy technology, biomedical engineering, tooling, electronics and mining industries a competitive edge. Access to this new generation equipment will enhance our pool of highly skilled materials technologists.Read moreRead less
Raman conversion in diamond: Next generation long and far infrared and terahertz lasers. Through the creation of practical and powerful long wave infrared and terahertz lasers, this project will enable more rapid progress in many fields of science and technology, and in important medical, environmental and safeguarding applications of national priority. Australia also stands to benefit economically via commercialization of diamond-based Raman lasers and instruments into the market. The project w ....Raman conversion in diamond: Next generation long and far infrared and terahertz lasers. Through the creation of practical and powerful long wave infrared and terahertz lasers, this project will enable more rapid progress in many fields of science and technology, and in important medical, environmental and safeguarding applications of national priority. Australia also stands to benefit economically via commercialization of diamond-based Raman lasers and instruments into the market. The project will produce highly-trained researchers and students in the theory, design and development of diamond sources, enhance Australia's existing strengths in waveguide optics and photonics, and place Australia at the forefront of research in long-wave infrared and terahertz science.Read moreRead less
Improving optical data storage and micromachining technology through better modelling and characterisation of their laser beams. The laser sources generally do not have simple (Gaussian) distributions. The applicant has recently developed a model, describing free propagation of complex (non-Gaussian) laser beams. This project seeks to develop a comprehending model for laser beams propagation through complex optical systems. The effects of various optical elements will be defined employing a no ....Improving optical data storage and micromachining technology through better modelling and characterisation of their laser beams. The laser sources generally do not have simple (Gaussian) distributions. The applicant has recently developed a model, describing free propagation of complex (non-Gaussian) laser beams. This project seeks to develop a comprehending model for laser beams propagation through complex optical systems. The effects of various optical elements will be defined employing a novel method known as SAFE (Stable Aggregate of Flexible Elements) which is a compromise between geometrical and physical optics. Applying this model to micromachining and optical data storage (ODS), which need high beam quality (low divergence and good focussibility), enable accurate predictive capability critical to the optimisation of micromachining and ODS designs.Read moreRead less
Ultrafast photonic hammer: A new strategy to synthesise super-dense super-hard nanomaterials. We will develop a new way for laboratory synthesis of new classes of super-hard and super-dense materials at and above the extremely high temperature and density range currently accessible only in nuclear explosions. The ability of ultra-fast laser-induced phase transformations will be exploited aiming to form materials with exotic properties, which are theoretically predicted, but has not experimental ....Ultrafast photonic hammer: A new strategy to synthesise super-dense super-hard nanomaterials. We will develop a new way for laboratory synthesis of new classes of super-hard and super-dense materials at and above the extremely high temperature and density range currently accessible only in nuclear explosions. The ability of ultra-fast laser-induced phase transformations will be exploited aiming to form materials with exotic properties, which are theoretically predicted, but has not experimentally confirmed yet. Our new approach will have a profound interdisciplinary impact. The project will deliver underpinning knowledge, foremost practical expertise, and the prominent training of young researchers to secure Australia's international position among the leaders in the rapidly growing and competitive field of nanotechnology.Read moreRead less
Electron Emission from Diamond. Israel is emerging as an international hub of technology with one of the highest rates of R&D in the world. This collaborative project will access one of the world leading experts in diamond science and technology, Professor Alon Hoffman, to exploit the remarkable properties of diamond for a new generation of detectors and devices. Success in this project can lay the groundwork for tapping into the successful record of advanced technologies and venture capital fun ....Electron Emission from Diamond. Israel is emerging as an international hub of technology with one of the highest rates of R&D in the world. This collaborative project will access one of the world leading experts in diamond science and technology, Professor Alon Hoffman, to exploit the remarkable properties of diamond for a new generation of detectors and devices. Success in this project can lay the groundwork for tapping into the successful record of advanced technologies and venture capital funding that abound in Israel today. Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0989759
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$360,000.00
Summary
Australian Access to and Operation of Advanced Synchrotron Radiation Facilities at the Photon Factory. The primary national benefit of this application will be continued access by peer review for Australian scientists to the advanced synchrotron-radiation capabilities of the Australian National Beamline Facility and other complementary beamlines at the Photon Factory, Japan. This proposal is consistent with the National Research Priorities of An Environmentally Sustainable Australia, Promoting a ....Australian Access to and Operation of Advanced Synchrotron Radiation Facilities at the Photon Factory. The primary national benefit of this application will be continued access by peer review for Australian scientists to the advanced synchrotron-radiation capabilities of the Australian National Beamline Facility and other complementary beamlines at the Photon Factory, Japan. This proposal is consistent with the National Research Priorities of An Environmentally Sustainable Australia, Promoting and Maintaining Good Health and Frontier Technologies for Building and Transforming Australian Industries and will generate science to support and stimulate domestic industry, enhance the domestic knowledge base and international research profile, train students and future synchrotron scientists and foster domestic and international collaborations.Read moreRead less
Nanoclusters with Extraordinary Properties Made out of Ordinary Materials. Ultrafast laser deposition - a process pioneered by the Applicants - has already demonstrated record yields in the production of carbon-based nano-clustered materials with better control over the size of the nano-particles than any other process. This project aims to improve fundamental understanding of the ultra-fast laser deposition method of nano-fabrication through theoretical and experimental studies, which accurate ....Nanoclusters with Extraordinary Properties Made out of Ordinary Materials. Ultrafast laser deposition - a process pioneered by the Applicants - has already demonstrated record yields in the production of carbon-based nano-clustered materials with better control over the size of the nano-particles than any other process. This project aims to improve fundamental understanding of the ultra-fast laser deposition method of nano-fabrication through theoretical and experimental studies, which accurately correlate the ablation conditions to the structural, electronic, magnetic and optical properties of resulting nano-particles. The results will be applied to efficiently produce nano-clustered materials with tuneable properties for a wide range of new technologies such as spintronics, biophotonics, and nanoclinics.Read moreRead less