Enabling technology unlocking full potential of high bandgap chalcopyrite . This project is aimed at solving the fundamental challenges of high bandgap chalcopyrite light-harvesting material to unlock its full potential as the top cell for photovoltaic tandem cell and the photocathode for photoelectrochemical applications. This will be realised by dynamic optimisation of its performance in photovoltaic solar cell device through understanding of its defects origins, enabling defects controlling t ....Enabling technology unlocking full potential of high bandgap chalcopyrite . This project is aimed at solving the fundamental challenges of high bandgap chalcopyrite light-harvesting material to unlock its full potential as the top cell for photovoltaic tandem cell and the photocathode for photoelectrochemical applications. This will be realised by dynamic optimisation of its performance in photovoltaic solar cell device through understanding of its defects origins, enabling defects controlling technologies, and microscopic carrier loss mechanism analysis via systematic macro-to-micro characterisations combined with 3D device simulation. The project completion will reinforce the next-generation tandem cell and photoelectrochemical technologies with the efficient, stable, RoHS-compliant and thin chalcopyrite devices.Read moreRead less
Nitride materials: In the “bond ionicity Goldilocks zone” for solar energy. Progress towards commercial devices for solar-driven hydrogen generation as well as in-situ electricity generation for vehicles is currently hampered by a lack of earth-abundant, stable, non-toxic semiconductor materials that can be fabricated by scalable methods. This project aims to develop the first scalable solution synthesis methods for a new class of earth-abundant Zn-based nitride semiconductor nanocrystals that h ....Nitride materials: In the “bond ionicity Goldilocks zone” for solar energy. Progress towards commercial devices for solar-driven hydrogen generation as well as in-situ electricity generation for vehicles is currently hampered by a lack of earth-abundant, stable, non-toxic semiconductor materials that can be fabricated by scalable methods. This project aims to develop the first scalable solution synthesis methods for a new class of earth-abundant Zn-based nitride semiconductor nanocrystals that have favourable bond ionicity and establish their optoelectronic properties for renewable energy devices for the first time. Flexible solution processing methods will be exploited to tune surface composition, remove defects and create devices to achieve optimised performance in these challenging new nitride material systems.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE230100382
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$449,154.00
Summary
Charge and Energy Transfer Processes at Inorganic-Organic Interfaces . The integration of functional molecular materials with inorganic systems remains an outstanding hurdle to achieve durable, highly efficient optoelectronic devices. This project aims to develop and understand this new class of devices, with a focus on directional energy transfer processes across hybrid interfaces. This project expects to generate new knowledge in photovoltaics (PV) and for organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) ....Charge and Energy Transfer Processes at Inorganic-Organic Interfaces . The integration of functional molecular materials with inorganic systems remains an outstanding hurdle to achieve durable, highly efficient optoelectronic devices. This project aims to develop and understand this new class of devices, with a focus on directional energy transfer processes across hybrid interfaces. This project expects to generate new knowledge in photovoltaics (PV) and for organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) by studying triplet transfer in two model systems. The first will be a step towards the development of advanced PV devices using down-conversion to push solar cells beyond the efficiency barrier. The second will demonstrate inorganic-organic solid state up-conversion for next generation OLEDs with improved stability.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE240100625
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$446,700.00
Summary
Integrated slab-mode beam engineering for handheld terahertz systems. Current dominant system architectures for terahertz waves are adapted from other ranges, leading to critical bottlenecks. This project will address this with a new integration platform that is tailored to the particular needs of terahertz waves. This requires advances in the emerging field of micro-scale integrated optics, combined with antenna-theory principles, semiconductor science, and advanced microfabrication to incorpor ....Integrated slab-mode beam engineering for handheld terahertz systems. Current dominant system architectures for terahertz waves are adapted from other ranges, leading to critical bottlenecks. This project will address this with a new integration platform that is tailored to the particular needs of terahertz waves. This requires advances in the emerging field of micro-scale integrated optics, combined with antenna-theory principles, semiconductor science, and advanced microfabrication to incorporate active devices. Novel spatially-dependent dispersion engineering techniques will also be pioneered for phased-array-free beamforming. This will enable a broad variety of all-in-one handheld systems for practical applications of terahertz waves such as noninvasive standoff sensing and self-aligning wireless links.Read moreRead less
Leaky Dielectric Platform for Integrated Terahertz Components. This project aims to realise integrated terahertz components including programmable filters, compact spectrometers, frequency-scanning antennas, and broadband/broadside high-gain antennas. These components are crucial in emerging terahertz integration for field applications and will supersede decades-old bulky free-space terahertz counterparts. Silicon will be a key material for all of these terahertz structures to achieve tunability ....Leaky Dielectric Platform for Integrated Terahertz Components. This project aims to realise integrated terahertz components including programmable filters, compact spectrometers, frequency-scanning antennas, and broadband/broadside high-gain antennas. These components are crucial in emerging terahertz integration for field applications and will supersede decades-old bulky free-space terahertz counterparts. Silicon will be a key material for all of these terahertz structures to achieve tunability and highest efficiency. Effective medium theory will enable performance, functionality, integrability, and structural simplicity. The expected outcomes are building blocks towards high-speed 6G infrastructure and high-resolution stand-off sensing to reap economic benefits at the dawn of terahertz engineering.Read moreRead less
Thermal Optimisation of Gigascale Solar Photovoltaics. Large-scale solar photovoltaics are critical to decarbonising the global economy. Sun Cable is developing the world’s largest solar farm in the Northern Territory, and is considering deploying the 5B MAV solar array. At this scale, temperature-induced panel efficiency losses represent a major challenge that must be overcome through thermal performance optimisation. We will build sophisticated multiscale models to simulate and understand the ....Thermal Optimisation of Gigascale Solar Photovoltaics. Large-scale solar photovoltaics are critical to decarbonising the global economy. Sun Cable is developing the world’s largest solar farm in the Northern Territory, and is considering deploying the 5B MAV solar array. At this scale, temperature-induced panel efficiency losses represent a major challenge that must be overcome through thermal performance optimisation. We will build sophisticated multiscale models to simulate and understand the multiple interacting phenomena that cause panel heating, for the first time. This project will create the tools and know-how to optimise array design and solar farm development, delivering major efficiency gains and enhancing the viability of future gigascale solar projects.Read moreRead less
Unlocking exceptional properties through pressure-induced phase transitions. The aim of this project is to produce novel hybrid boron nitride materials by utilizing advanced green techniques of mechanochemistry and high-pressure methods to achieve a phase transition from hexagonal to wurtzite structure. The development of these materials is critical in tackling contemporary environmental and technological issues, particularly those linked to cooling systems in electronic devices and batteries. T ....Unlocking exceptional properties through pressure-induced phase transitions. The aim of this project is to produce novel hybrid boron nitride materials by utilizing advanced green techniques of mechanochemistry and high-pressure methods to achieve a phase transition from hexagonal to wurtzite structure. The development of these materials is critical in tackling contemporary environmental and technological issues, particularly those linked to cooling systems in electronic devices and batteries. The outcome of this study will be new nanomaterials with exceptional mechanical, thermal, and electronic properties, as well as new insights into mechanical-force induced green chemistry and an environmentally friendly synthesis process, and help with heat management, energy preservation, and advanced manufacturing.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE240100130
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,300,000.00
Summary
Thermophysical Property Analysers for Materials under Extreme Environments. The development of new materials with properties specifically tailored to withstand the extreme environments begins with understanding the physical nature of the processes involved, including the properties of atoms and molecules extending from the nanoscale to the collective behaviour at the macroscale. This relies on the knowledge achieved with new capabilities of analytical tools to open new avenues for developing the ....Thermophysical Property Analysers for Materials under Extreme Environments. The development of new materials with properties specifically tailored to withstand the extreme environments begins with understanding the physical nature of the processes involved, including the properties of atoms and molecules extending from the nanoscale to the collective behaviour at the macroscale. This relies on the knowledge achieved with new capabilities of analytical tools to open new avenues for developing the materials. This project aims to strengthen Australian research activities in the development of advanced materials for energy, defence and space, and advanced manufacturing technologies through establishing a high temperature, high pressure and high force materials characterisation suite for extreme environments at UNSW.Read moreRead less
Novel devices for spatial light transformation. The aim of this project is to develop new optical instrumentation for spatially transforming light. This research expects to find solutions to problems that have thus far been out of reach by replacing what would traditionally be a human optical systems designer with computer algorithms. The expected outcomes include the development of three new devices as well as a set of design, fabrication and characterisation procedures that offer higher perfor ....Novel devices for spatial light transformation. The aim of this project is to develop new optical instrumentation for spatially transforming light. This research expects to find solutions to problems that have thus far been out of reach by replacing what would traditionally be a human optical systems designer with computer algorithms. The expected outcomes include the development of three new devices as well as a set of design, fabrication and characterisation procedures that offer higher performance, increased robustness and scalability. This should improve accessibility of this technology and provide benefits to a wide range of applications, including astronomical and biomedical imaging, telecommunications, as well as quantum and classical optical signal processing.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE240100627
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$436,250.00
Summary
Topological phonons in solids. This project aims to create a complete list of possible topological phonons in time-reversal-invariant systems via symmetry analysis, to determine ideal topological phononic materials, and to study topological phonon-related properties and possible applications. The significant outcomes of this project will be the generation of new knowledge that will help conclude the search for novel topological phonons and the prediction of novel topological phononic materials b ....Topological phonons in solids. This project aims to create a complete list of possible topological phonons in time-reversal-invariant systems via symmetry analysis, to determine ideal topological phononic materials, and to study topological phonon-related properties and possible applications. The significant outcomes of this project will be the generation of new knowledge that will help conclude the search for novel topological phonons and the prediction of novel topological phononic materials based on the complete classification list of topological phonons. The outcomes of this project should unlock the physics of the exotic topological phonons and lay a solid foundation for applying topological phononic materials based on their unprecedented properties.Read moreRead less