Polymer fibres: A game changer for THz high-capacity interconnects. The transition to a society with consuming enormous amounts of digital data has accentuated the need for high-speed data links. The project aims to create a novel class of polymer terahertz fibres to replace the current lossy wires that are bandwidth limited. This will be achieved through innovative microstructured fibre designs, cost-effective and scalable fibre fabrication, and integration of terahertz fibre in the next genera ....Polymer fibres: A game changer for THz high-capacity interconnects. The transition to a society with consuming enormous amounts of digital data has accentuated the need for high-speed data links. The project aims to create a novel class of polymer terahertz fibres to replace the current lossy wires that are bandwidth limited. This will be achieved through innovative microstructured fibre designs, cost-effective and scalable fibre fabrication, and integration of terahertz fibre in the next generation communication systems. The project outcomes are expected to put Australia at the forefront of the field of polymer terahertz fibre links, which will be a game changer for industries that require reliable and high-speed connections including telecom, automotive, space, datacentres, and image processing.
Read moreRead less
Pumping up the volume on sound-light interactions. This project aims to create a new class of integrated microwave information processors on a single optical chip. Using electro-acoustic coupling in semiconductors, we expect to reduce optical power requirements hundredfold, enabling the emergence of practically deployable processors using ordinary telecom lasers. The expected project outcomes are inexpensive, compact, stable and energy efficient microwave photonic processors, a key requirement f ....Pumping up the volume on sound-light interactions. This project aims to create a new class of integrated microwave information processors on a single optical chip. Using electro-acoustic coupling in semiconductors, we expect to reduce optical power requirements hundredfold, enabling the emergence of practically deployable processors using ordinary telecom lasers. The expected project outcomes are inexpensive, compact, stable and energy efficient microwave photonic processors, a key requirement for reference standards and precision measurements of time and frequency. This technology has the potential to create a multitude of opportunities for commercial development in the fields of defence, information security, autonomous vehicles, sensing, and ultra-high bandwidth mobile communications.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE200100071
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$535,000.00
Summary
Photonic Chip Integration Facility. This project will create a Photonic Chip Integration Facility responding to newly emerging global trends towards low loss waveguides and wider coverage of the optical spectrum.
The tool will grow ultrahigh quality silicon nitride and oxide thin films in a manner that is compatible with electronics and other delicate materials, balancing flexibility for materials exploration with reliability and repeatability required for photonic chip systems research. The pr ....Photonic Chip Integration Facility. This project will create a Photonic Chip Integration Facility responding to newly emerging global trends towards low loss waveguides and wider coverage of the optical spectrum.
The tool will grow ultrahigh quality silicon nitride and oxide thin films in a manner that is compatible with electronics and other delicate materials, balancing flexibility for materials exploration with reliability and repeatability required for photonic chip systems research. The proposed facility will support Australian researchers from diverse disciplines spanning broadband networks, sensing, quantum technology, materials science, and beyond while providing a clear path for translating discoveries out of the lab towards scale up industrial manufacture
Read moreRead less
A novel design approach for sustainable and resilient railway formations. The project aims to validate a novel design approach for more sustainable and resilient railway formations. The railway network underpins the Australian economy and its maintenance costs tens of millions of dollars every year. This cost will increase with the growing frequency and intensity of climatic events. The research will advance the knowledge on the effect of water on the performance of railway formations and will d ....A novel design approach for sustainable and resilient railway formations. The project aims to validate a novel design approach for more sustainable and resilient railway formations. The railway network underpins the Australian economy and its maintenance costs tens of millions of dollars every year. This cost will increase with the growing frequency and intensity of climatic events. The research will advance the knowledge on the effect of water on the performance of railway formations and will deliver a novel design tool for end-users that will allow engineers to recycle fouled ballast in formations . The project will yield significant financial benefits for Australia, will strengthen links between Academia and industry partners, and will address environmental and sustainability issues linked to fouled ballast.
Read moreRead less
Structural Fuses for Safer and More Economical Bridge Construction. This project aims to develop a novel structural system leading to more economical concrete bridge construction by utilising a customised structural fuse. A significant margin of safety is required in structural design to account for accidental over-loading and to reduce the risk of structural collapse. Such a margin leads to more material usage. Incorporation of a fuse into the structure that is triggered upon over-loading will ....Structural Fuses for Safer and More Economical Bridge Construction. This project aims to develop a novel structural system leading to more economical concrete bridge construction by utilising a customised structural fuse. A significant margin of safety is required in structural design to account for accidental over-loading and to reduce the risk of structural collapse. Such a margin leads to more material usage. Incorporation of a fuse into the structure that is triggered upon over-loading will cause a safer failure mode and prohibit further increase of loading, both of which result in a reduced structure without undermining safety. The project is expected to advance structural theory, and also provide significant benefits to the construction industry via cost reduction and more eco-friendly constructions.Read moreRead less
Photonic chip inertial movement sensors. This project aims to create a new class of optical inertial movement sensors using integrated photonic chip technology. By replacing optical fibre coils with compact waveguides, integrating light sources on-chip and by harnessing smart sensing approaches, we intend to reduce the required power from watts to milliwatts and reduce the dimensions from meters to centimetres. The expected project outcomes are sensors with military grade precision but with the ....Photonic chip inertial movement sensors. This project aims to create a new class of optical inertial movement sensors using integrated photonic chip technology. By replacing optical fibre coils with compact waveguides, integrating light sources on-chip and by harnessing smart sensing approaches, we intend to reduce the required power from watts to milliwatts and reduce the dimensions from meters to centimetres. The expected project outcomes are sensors with military grade precision but with the size, cost and manufacturability of consumer electronics. This technology will fill a strategic gap in the movement sensor market enabling applications ranging from robotic infrastructure monitoring, manufacture and surgery to guiding satellites and other space craft.Read moreRead less
ARC Centre of Excellence in Optical Microcombs for Breakthrough Science. ARC Centre of Excellence in Optical Microcombs for Breakthrough Science. This Centre aims to explore the society wide transformations that will flow from optical frequency combs - thousands of highly pure light signals precisely spaced across the entire optical spectrum - by leveraging and building upon the latest breakthroughs in physics, materials science and nanofabrication. It expects to generate a wide new base of know ....ARC Centre of Excellence in Optical Microcombs for Breakthrough Science. ARC Centre of Excellence in Optical Microcombs for Breakthrough Science. This Centre aims to explore the society wide transformations that will flow from optical frequency combs - thousands of highly pure light signals precisely spaced across the entire optical spectrum - by leveraging and building upon the latest breakthroughs in physics, materials science and nanofabrication. It expects to generate a wide new base of knowledge in fields as diverse as astronomy, spectroscopy, chemical sensors, and precision measurement. Expected outcomes include the capability to realise complete comb systems on a chip the size of a fingernail, tailored to specific applications, with significant benefits spanning from imaging live cells to autonomous vehicles, satellite communications, and the search for exoplanets.Read moreRead less
Novel test and design methods for base course reinforced flexible pavements. This project aims to develop the mechanics of geosynthetic-reinforced flexible pavements as an urgent need for the Australian pavement industry to build more sustainable and economical roads. Novel laboratory test apparatus and in-situ test programs, and mathematical models will be developed, for the first time, to capture the responses of reinforced base courses in a complete and optimised way to determine the paramete ....Novel test and design methods for base course reinforced flexible pavements. This project aims to develop the mechanics of geosynthetic-reinforced flexible pavements as an urgent need for the Australian pavement industry to build more sustainable and economical roads. Novel laboratory test apparatus and in-situ test programs, and mathematical models will be developed, for the first time, to capture the responses of reinforced base courses in a complete and optimised way to determine the parameters for pavement design and performance evaluation. The outcomes will enable reliable prediction of reinforced pavement behaviour, leading to better-performing geosynthetic products and more resilient pavements, reduced material usage and damage in pavements, and less environmental impact and maintenance cost.Read moreRead less
Action selection in insects: how a microbrain knows what to do. Identifying what to do demands integrating sensory information with our current physiological state and memory of past experience to select the best possible action. This is the action selection problem. Our project aims to discover how tiny insect brains solve this fundamental problem. The project combines neural recordings from animals exploring virtual reality, behavioural analyses and computational modelling. The expected outco ....Action selection in insects: how a microbrain knows what to do. Identifying what to do demands integrating sensory information with our current physiological state and memory of past experience to select the best possible action. This is the action selection problem. Our project aims to discover how tiny insect brains solve this fundamental problem. The project combines neural recordings from animals exploring virtual reality, behavioural analyses and computational modelling. The expected outcome is a new understanding of the brain as an effective behavioural control system. This will benefit systems and comparative neuroscience. Our findings may also inspire solutions for robotic systems that must operate autonomously in remote and challenging environments such as disaster relief or exploration.Read moreRead less