International Guest Program
Every year through an international guest programm we will invite internationally recognized researchers in the field of energy materials and systems to FAU. for research visits and to give a colloquium on various research topics related to the IRTG.
Shape memory and Superelastic porous ceramics
Katherine Faber, Caltech, USA (Feb 11)
Some zirconia-based compositions are known to exhibit shape-memory and superelastic effects. This was documented more than 30 years ago for possible use in actuation and energy damping. However, these effects were not successfully realized until the last decade when studies with micron- and sub-micron scale pillars and particles demonstrated that tetragonal-to-monoclinic transformation-induced fracture could be avoided. Inspired by micropillar studies, Prof. Faber will describe a strategy to produce bulk zirconia-based ceramics in which the transformation-generated fracture can be averted.
Lead-free ferroelectric and antiferroelectric niobate ceramics
Jing-Feng Li, Toyota Research Center Tsinghua University, China (Apr 22)
This talk will introduce lead-free niobate-based perovskites including (K,Na)NbO3 and AgNbO3, both of which have been lying at the forefront of functional oxide research. (K,Na)NbO3 (abbreviated as KNN）is a promising lead-free ferroelectric/piezoelectric system, centering on which this talk will give a review about how high-performance piezoceramics have been developed. Based on our recent research about AgNbO3, I will also introduce antiferroelectricity and discuss its underlying connections with high piezoelectricity and dielectric energy storage performance.
Processing Challenges with Alkali-Niobate Based Piezoelectric Ceramics
Barbara Malic, Jozef Stefan Institute, Ljubljana, Slovenia (May 6)
Sodium potassium niobate (K0.5Na0.5NbO3, KNN) based ceramics are one of the groups of lead-free piezoelectrics, which have been intensively studied as possible replacements for highly efficient lead-based perovskite-oxide piezoelectrics. The enhancement of piezoelectric properties is mainly designed by phase boundary engineering. From the chemistry viewpoint such approach results in formulations which contain different cations occupying the same lattice sites, consequently reaching a homogeneous distribution of constituent ions may be difficult. In the lecture solid-state synthesis and sintering of KNN-based ceramics are reviewed and supported by selected case-studies.
TBD:
How are the Electromechanical Properties of Ferroelectrics Interrelated
Prof Andrew Bell, School of Chemical and Processing Engineering, University of Leeds, UK (May 19)
This tutorial provides an insight into how the intrinsic properties of piezoelectrics are interdependent and lead to well-defined trends in properties across large material data sets.
100 Years of Ferroelectricity
Prof Susan Trolier-McKinstry, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Pennsylvania State University, USA (Jun 2)
A century after the discovery of ferroelectricity, this class of materials continues to be an enabling technology in a number of technological areas. This presentation discusses the history of research in ferroelectrics and related phenomena up to the present, highlighting especially important discoveries.
Pyroelectric Materials and IR sensing
Prof Roger Whatmore, Imperial College London, UK (Jun 16)
This talk provides a background on pyroelectrics, including the physics of pyroelectric infra-red sensors and how to choose pyroelectric materials for a given applications. Finally, IR sensor arrays for movement sensors and thermal imaging are discussed.
Pyroelectric Materials for Energy Harvesting
Dr. Brendan Hanrahan, U.S. Army Research Laboratory (Jun 30)
This talk provides an introduction to power generation with pyroelectric materials, including a discussion of application specific considerations for enhancing the energy conversion.
What can I learn about ferroelectrics with Raman spectroscopy
Dr. Marco Deluca, Materials Center Leoben Forschung GmbH, Austria (Jul 14)
This talk gives an introduction to Raman spectroscopy and its use in characterizing ferroelectric materials in terms of phase transitions, crystalline texture, chemical bonding, and disorder and defects.
Additive Manufacturing of Ceramics
Prof. Dr. Paolo Colombo, University of Padova, Italy (Jul 28)
This talk gives an overview of additive manufacturing techniques for the production of 3D ceramic parts, including the advantages and limitations of the various techniques.
Why relaxor-PT single crystals possess giant piezoelectricity?
Prof. Dr. Shujun Zhang, University of Wollongong, Australia (Aug 25)
Prof. Shujun Zhang discusses the mechanisms responsible for the observed giant electromechanical response of relaxor-PT-based single crystals. The concepts of crystal anisotropy, polarization rotation, morphotropic phase boundaries, and local structure heterogeneities are discussed.
Lead-free piezoceramics and what more?
Prof. Dr. Wook Jo, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, South Korea (Sep 8)
Prof. Wook Jo discusses the development of lead-free ferroelectrics as well as limitations to their future improvement and possible methods to increase the piezoelectric response.
The adsorbates on Ferroelectric Surfaces: those long-ignored neighbors
Dr. Neus Domingo, Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Spain (Sep 22)
This presentation introduces adsorbates on ferroelectric surfaces and redox reactions with water and contaminant organic molecules, in addition to the influence of polarization and chemically active sites. Various measurement techniques, such as ambient-pressure X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and force microscopy methods are discussed.
Magneto-optical properties of Perovskite nanocrystals
Prof. Dr. Efrat Lifshitz, Israel Institute of Technology (Sep 29)
Quantifying domain wall contributions to properties using X-rays
Prof. Dr. Jacob Jones, North Carolina State University, USA (Oct 6)
In this presentation, Prof. Jones discusses using diffraction techniques to determine the domain wall motion in ferroelectric materials, in particular the contribution of extrinsic effects on the macroscopic electromechanical properties.
What would it take for renewably based electrosynthesis products to substitute those obtained from petrochemical processes
Prof. Dr. Juan Morante, Institut de Recerca en Energia de Catalunya, Spain (Oct 13)
Calculating macroscopic response from diffraction: Coexisting phases
Dr. Manuel Hinterstein, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany (Oct 20)
This presentation discusses diffraction characterization and analysis techniques to determine extrinsic contributions to the macroscopic electromechanical response from both domain wall motion as well as from coexisting phases. Examples are given from lead-containing as well as lead-free ferroelectric systems.
Mechanics of Ferroelectrics
Prof. Dr. Jürgen Rödel, Technische Universität Darmstadt, Germany (Nov 17)
Ferroelectricity in Perovskite Solar Cells
Alexander Colsmann, Karlsruhe Light Technology Institute, Germany (Dec 1)
Piezoelectric and Dielectric Composites
Ahmad Safari, Glenn Howatt Electroceramics Laboratories (Dec 15)
This presentation introduces the history and concept of composites for piezoelectric and dielectric applications.