'Designer defects' - A new approach to functional oxide interfaces. The conventional approach to metal oxide interfaces is 'perfection at all costs' with growth tuned to minimise defects and unwanted chemical intermixing. This project aims to turn this approach on its head by creating interfaces with 'designer defects' that become the critical portion of a functional device. This project proposes that one can promote functionality by making use of new physical properties that arise from the deli ....'Designer defects' - A new approach to functional oxide interfaces. The conventional approach to metal oxide interfaces is 'perfection at all costs' with growth tuned to minimise defects and unwanted chemical intermixing. This project aims to turn this approach on its head by creating interfaces with 'designer defects' that become the critical portion of a functional device. This project proposes that one can promote functionality by making use of new physical properties that arise from the deliberate introduction of structural and electronic mismatches at an interface. Such purposely induced 'designer defects' in epitaxial oxide thin films will allow new properties to be achieved in nanoscale layers. This is expected to lead to a new class of functional materials to be used in sensors and nanoelectronics.Read moreRead less
Novel Carbon Coatings for Exceptional Performance. Carbon coatings are technologically important and have many applications in automotive and biomedical industries worldwide. An example automotive application is as a coating for high performance fuel injectors. Carbon coatings have significant unrealised potential for applications in hostile environments such as those encountered in high performance engineering components and in the human body. This project will develop new types of carbon coat ....Novel Carbon Coatings for Exceptional Performance. Carbon coatings are technologically important and have many applications in automotive and biomedical industries worldwide. An example automotive application is as a coating for high performance fuel injectors. Carbon coatings have significant unrealised potential for applications in hostile environments such as those encountered in high performance engineering components and in the human body. This project will develop new types of carbon coatings with properties and performance tailored to applications in biomedical engineering, energy conversion, automotive engineering, manufacturing and microelectronics. The result will be a range of new carbon coatings with exceptional properties and cost-effective synthesis methods.Read moreRead less
Smart Materials Between Two and Three Dimensions. Shape-memory alloys involving martensitic transformations, are important as smart materials. Both the transformation nucleation and the sample morphology are unsolved issues relevant for these applications. Of particular note are the softening of certain lattice-vibrational frequencies, the development of a tweed-like microstructure on cooling the material and the role of defects, particularly the sample surface, in the transformation process. ....Smart Materials Between Two and Three Dimensions. Shape-memory alloys involving martensitic transformations, are important as smart materials. Both the transformation nucleation and the sample morphology are unsolved issues relevant for these applications. Of particular note are the softening of certain lattice-vibrational frequencies, the development of a tweed-like microstructure on cooling the material and the role of defects, particularly the sample surface, in the transformation process. This project addresses these issues using model materials in thin-film and bulk-crystal forms. Capacitance dilatometry, optical, electron and scanning-probe microscopies, and x-ray techniques, will unlock an understanding of the physical and metallurgical conditions controlling these transformations.Read moreRead less
Designing the Next Generation of High Performance Cutting Tools. In order for Australian manufacturers to improve their global competitiveness in the production of manufactured goods it is essential to have access to cost effective high performance cutting tools. This project seeks to meet this challenge by exploiting new pathways in the development of advanced metallic-based vapour deposited coatings. This new approach will provide a much needed opportunity for value adding in the economically ....Designing the Next Generation of High Performance Cutting Tools. In order for Australian manufacturers to improve their global competitiveness in the production of manufactured goods it is essential to have access to cost effective high performance cutting tools. This project seeks to meet this challenge by exploiting new pathways in the development of advanced metallic-based vapour deposited coatings. This new approach will provide a much needed opportunity for value adding in the economically significant area of tribological coatings for industrial components. The outcomes of this project will directly impact on the ability of Sutton Tools, an Australian owned company, to sustain and expand its export markets while adding more broadly to the competitiveness of Australia's manufacturing industry.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE120100223
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$340,000.00
Summary
Advanced X-ray diffraction facility for high energy and extreme conditions. X-ray powder diffraction is a powerful technique for determining the structure of matter at the atomic scale. This project will establish a new Australian capability for X-ray powder diffraction under extreme conditions that emulate real harsh service environments for advanced functional materials.
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0238381
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$100,000.00
Summary
High Sensitivity Broad Range Digitised Electron Microscopy. To install in a central location at Monash University a digital image plate reader and appropriate recording hardware and software as a multi-user facility for high-resolution electron imaging and diffraction. Imaging plates are, in appearance, like photographic film and are used in the electron microscope in the same way. They are, however, nearly a hundred times more sensitive, have a range a hundred thousand times greater, and, when ....High Sensitivity Broad Range Digitised Electron Microscopy. To install in a central location at Monash University a digital image plate reader and appropriate recording hardware and software as a multi-user facility for high-resolution electron imaging and diffraction. Imaging plates are, in appearance, like photographic film and are used in the electron microscope in the same way. They are, however, nearly a hundred times more sensitive, have a range a hundred thousand times greater, and, when interrogated by a reader, generate a digitised output and can then be used again. We propose to exploit those characteristics in the study of advanced materials, in the investigation of phases changes, and in the characterisation of materials not sufficiently stable in the electron beam to observe by more conventional methods.Read moreRead less
Experimental mapping of electron densities in nano-structured materials. This project aims to map electrons in nano-structured materials using a new technique combining the latest solid-state theory with electron scattering experiments in one of the world’s most advanced electron microscopes. It is expected that by revealing the electronic structure of nano-scale features in bulk materials for the first time, their functions will become fully explainable. Aside from this new capability, other ....Experimental mapping of electron densities in nano-structured materials. This project aims to map electrons in nano-structured materials using a new technique combining the latest solid-state theory with electron scattering experiments in one of the world’s most advanced electron microscopes. It is expected that by revealing the electronic structure of nano-scale features in bulk materials for the first time, their functions will become fully explainable. Aside from this new capability, other expected outcomes include discovering how heat is converted into electricity in thermoelectric materials and how precipitates affect alloy strength. The benefits may include more informed materials design, more efficient thermoelectrics for sustainable energy technologies, and higher strength-to-weight ratio alloys.Read moreRead less
Synthesis and Optimisation of Ultra-Thin Metal Oxide Coatings. Metal oxides are a rich class of materials in terms of their electronic, optical and chemical properties. The emergence of nanotechnology has renewed the drive for miniaturisation and given new urgency to the synthesis of ultra-thin metal oxide films for use in new electronic devices, sensors and functional coatings. This project will generate valuable intellectual property in the form of optimised ultra-thin metal oxide coatings wit ....Synthesis and Optimisation of Ultra-Thin Metal Oxide Coatings. Metal oxides are a rich class of materials in terms of their electronic, optical and chemical properties. The emergence of nanotechnology has renewed the drive for miniaturisation and given new urgency to the synthesis of ultra-thin metal oxide films for use in new electronic devices, sensors and functional coatings. This project will generate valuable intellectual property in the form of optimised ultra-thin metal oxide coatings with properties tailored to meet this rapidly growing set of new applications. The innovative combination of advanced plasma synthesis, high resolution microscopy and accurate theoretical modelling will ensure success. Read moreRead less
Graphene based nanostructures for high performance devices. Graphene sheets are the building blocks of graphite and a huge variety of carbon based nanostructures. Stacked graphene sheets have the unique property of the highest known thermal conductivity. By manipulating graphene sheets into three-dimensional channels and interconnects, vastly increased heat fluxes can be extracted from sensitive nanoscale devices such as microprocessors and micro electro mechanical systems. The potential of stac ....Graphene based nanostructures for high performance devices. Graphene sheets are the building blocks of graphite and a huge variety of carbon based nanostructures. Stacked graphene sheets have the unique property of the highest known thermal conductivity. By manipulating graphene sheets into three-dimensional channels and interconnects, vastly increased heat fluxes can be extracted from sensitive nanoscale devices such as microprocessors and micro electro mechanical systems. The potential of stacks of graphene as electrical contacts and interconnects will also be explored. By combining thermal and electrical functions, graphene will allow more efficient use of the valuable space on future devices. The outcome will be more efficient nanoscale devices to meet ever increasing performance demands.Read moreRead less