The author reports an experimental study of electrical and thermal transport in reduced graphene oxide (RGO)/polystyrene (PS) composites. The electrical conductivity ($σ$) of RGO/PS composites with different RGO concentrations at room temperature shows a percolation behavior with the percolation threshold of ~ 0.25 vol.%. Their temperature-dependent electrical conductivity follows Efros-Shklovskii (ES) variable range hopping (VRH) conduction in the temperature range of 30 to 300 K. The thermal conductivity ($κ$) of composites is enhanced by ~ 90 % as the concentration is increased from 0 to 10 vol.%. The thermal conductivity of composites approximately linearly increases with increasing temperature from 150 to 300 K. Composites with a higher concentration show a stronger temperature dependence in the thermal conductivity.
We have experimentally demonstrated thermal rectification as bulk effect. According to a theoretical design of a thermal rectifier, we have prepared an oxide thermal rectifier made of two cobalt oxides with different thermal conductivities, and have made an experimental system to detect the thermal rectification. The rectifying coefficient of the device is found to be 1.43, which is in good agreement with the numerical calculation.
Management of heat during charging and discharging of Li-ion batteries is critical for their safety, reliability, and performance. Understanding the thermal conductivity of the materials comprising batteries is crucial for controlling the temperature and temperature distribution in batteries. This work provides systemic quantitative measurements of the thermal conductivity of three important classes of solid electrolytes (oxides, sulfides, and halides) over the temperature range 150-350 K. Studies include the oxides Li1.5Al0.5Ge1.5(PO4)3 and Li6.4La3Zr1.4Ta0.6O12, sulfides Li2S-P2S5, Li6PS5Cl,…
Directed self-assembly of block copolymer polystyrene-b-polyethylene oxide (PS-b-PEO) thin film was achieved by one-pot methodology of solvent vapour assisted nanoimprint lithography (SAIL).
We report a method to obtain insights into lower thermal conductivity of β-Ga2O3 thin films grown by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) on c-plane sapphire and 4H-SiC substrates. We compare experimental values against the numerical predictions to decipher the effect of boundary scattering and defects in thin-films. We used time domain thermoreflectance (TDTR) to perform the experiments, density functional theory and the Boltzmann transport equation for thermal conductivity calculations, and the diffuse mismatch model for TBC predictions. The experimental thermal conductivities were approximately 3 t…
At millimeter dimension or less, the conventional bonding technology in electronic assembly relies heavily on reflow soldering and suffers from severe performance and reliability degradation. Meanwhile, the traditional high temperature bonding process (easily reach 220 oC) tends to result in undesired thermal damage and residual stress at the bonding interface. It is therefore a major challenge to find a means to preparing room-temperature connectors or fasteners with good mechanical and electrical bonding. Very recently, composite nanowire have been used to fabricate room-temperature fastener…
The thermal conductivities of beta-Ga2O3 single crystals along four different crystal directions were measured in the temperature range of 80-495K using the time domain thermoreflectance (TDTR) method. A large anisotropy was found. At room temperature, the [010] direction has the highest thermal conductivity of 27.0+/-2.0 W/mK, while that along the [100] direction has the lowest value of 10.9+/-1.0 W/mK. At high temperatures, the thermal conductivity follows a ~1/T relationship characteristic of Umklapp phonon scattering, indicating phonon-dominated heat transport in the \b{eta}-Ga2O3 crystal.…
We present an ab initio study of the (001) interfaces between two insulating perovskites, the polar LaAlO3 and the nonpolar SrTiO3. We observe an insulating-to-metallic transition above a critical LaAlO3 thickness. We explain that the high conductivity observed at the TiO2 /LaO interface and the lack of similar conductivity at the SrO/AlO2 interface are inherent in the atomic geometry of the system. A large interfacial hopping matrix element between cations causes the formation of a bound electron state at the TiO2 /LaO interface. This mechanism for the formation of interfacial bound states su…
The anisotropy of low energy (0$\sim$5eV) optical excitations in strongly correlated transition-metal oxides is closely related to the spin and orbital orderings. The recent successes of LDA+$U$ method in describing the magnetic and electronic structures enable us to calculate the optical conductivity from first-principles. The LaVO$_3$ and YVO$_3$, both of which have $3d^2$ configuration and have various spin and orbital ordered phases at low temperature, show distinct anisotropy in the optical spectra. The effects of spin and orbital ordering on the anisotropy are studied in detail based on …
Using fluorite oxides as an example, this study broadens high-entropy ceramics (HECs) to compositionally-complex ceramics (CCCs) or multi-principal cation ceramics (MPCCs) to include medium-entropy and/or non-equimolar compositions. Nine compositions of compositionally-complex fluorite oxides (CCFOs) with the general formula of (Hf1/3Zr1/3Ce1/3)1-x(Y1/2X1/2)xO2-delta (X = Yb, Ca, and Gd; x = 0.4, 0.148, and 0.058) are fabricated. The phase stability, mechanical properties, and thermal conductivities are measured. Compared with yttria-stabilized zirconia, these CCFOs exhibit increased cubic pha…
Using finite-temperature phonon calculations and machine-learning methods, we calculate the mechanical stability of about 400 semiconducting oxides and fluorides with cubic perovskite structures at 0 K, 300 K and 1000 K. We find 92 mechanically stable compounds at high temperatures -- including 36 not mentioned in the literature so far -- for which we calculate the thermal conductivity. We demonstrate that the thermal conductivity is generally smaller in fluorides than in oxides, largely due to a lower ionic charge, and describe simple structural descriptors that are correlated with its magnit…
SrMoO$_3$ is a promising material for its excellent electrical conductivity, but growing high-quality thin films remains a challenge. Here we synthesized epitaxial films of SrMoO$_3$ using the molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) technique under a low oxygen-flow rate. Introduction of SrTiO$_3$ buffer layers of 4--8 unit cells between the film and the (001)-oriented SrTiO$_3$ or KTaO$_3$ substrate was crucial to remove impurities and/or roughness of the film surface. The obtained film shows improved electrical conductivities as compared with films obtained by other techniques. The high quality of the …
Spin-dependent charge transport in magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs) can be manipulated by a temperature gradient, which can be utilized for spintronic and spin caloritronic applications. Evaluation of the thermally induced phenomena requires knowledge of the temperature differences across the oxide tunnel barrier adjacent to the ferromagnetic (FM) leads. However, it is challenging to accurately measure thermal properties of an oxide tunnel barrier consisting of only a few atomic layers. In this work, we experimentally interrogate the temperature evolutions in Ru/oxide/FM/seed/MgO (oxide=MgO, M…
Hematite Fe$_2$O$_3$ seed layers are shown to constitute a pathway to prepare highly conductive transparent tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) thin films by room temperature magnetron sputtering. Conductivities of up to $σ= 3300\,{\rm S/cm}$ are observed. The improved conductivity is not restricted to the interface but related to an enhanced crystallization of the films, which proceeds in the rhombohedral phase.
Unraveling impacts of polycrystalline microstructures on ionic conductivity of ceramic electrolytes by computational homogenization and machine learning
ZnO is a promising candidate as an environment friendly thermoelectric (TE) material. However, the poor TE figure of merit (zT) needs to be addressed to achieve significant TE efficiency for commercial applications. Here we demonstrate that selective enhancement in phonon scattering leads to increase in zT of RGO encapsulated Al-doped ZnO core shell nanohybrids, synthesized via a facile and scalable method. The incorporation of 1 at% Al with 1.5 wt% RGO into ZnO (AGZO) has been found to show significant enhancement in zT (=0.52 at 1100 K) which is an order of magnitude larger compared to that …
In this work, the study of thermal conductivity before and after in-situ ring-opening polymerization of cyclic butylene terephthalate into poly (butylene terephthalate) in presence of graphene-related materials (GRM) is addressed, to gain insight in the modification of nanocomposites morphology upon polymerization. Five types of GRM were used: one type of graphite nanoplatelets, two different grades of reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and the same rGO grades after thermal annealing for 1 hour at 1700°C under vacuum to reduce their defectiveness. Polymerization of CBT into pCBT, morphology and nano…
In this work, electrically and thermally conductive poly (butylene terephthalate) nanocomposites were prepared by in-situ ring-opening polymerization of cyclic butylene terephthalate (CBT) in presence of a tin-based catalyst. One type of graphite nanoplatelets (GNP) and two different grades of reduced graphene oxide (rGO) were used. Furthermore, high temperature annealing treatment under vacuum at 1700°C was carried out on both RGO to reduce their defectiveness and study the correlation between the electrical/thermal properties of the nanocomposites and the nanoflakes structure/defectiveness. …
The semiconducting oxide $β$-Gallium Oxide ($β$-Ga$_{2}$O$_{3}$) possesses a monoclinic unit cell whose low symmetry generally leads to anisotropic physical properties. For example, its electrical conductivity is generally described by a polar symmetrical tensor of second rank consisting of four independent components. Using van der Pauw measurements in a well-defined square geometry on differently-oriented high-quality bulk samples and the comparison to finite element simulations we precisely determine the ratio of all elements of the $β$-Ga$_{2}$O$_{3}$ 3-dimensional electrical conductivity …
In the pursuit of urgently-needed, energy dense solid-state batteries for electric vehicle and portable electronics applications, halide solid electrolytes offer a promising path forward with exceptional compatibility against high-voltage oxide electrodes, tunable ionic conductivities, and facile processing. For this family of compounds, synthesis protocols strongly affect cation site disorder and modulate Li+ mobility. In this work, we reveal the presence of a high concentration of stacking faults in the superionic conductor Li3YCl6 and demonstrate a method of controlling its Li+ conductivity…
A Hierarchical Synergistic Deep Learning Framework Integrating Composition, Structure, and Ionic Transport for Solid-State Electrolyte Discovery
Zhongguancun Academy（中关村学院）；Zhongguancun Institute of Artificial Intelligence（中关村人工智能研究院）；School of Materials Science and Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University（上海交通大学材料科学与工程学院）；Kairos Materials（凯罗斯材料公司）；State Key Laboratory of Materials for Advanced Nuclear Energy & School of Materials Science and Engineering, Shanghai University（上海大学先进核能材料国家重点实验室及材料科学与工程学院）
It is challenging to characterize thermal conductivity of materials with strong anisotropy. In this work, we extend the time-domain thermoreflectance (TDTR) method with a variable spot size approach to simultaneously measure the in-plane (Kr) and the through-plane (Kz) thermal conductivity of materials with strong anisotropy. We first determine Kz from the measurement using a larger spot size, when the heat flow is mainly one-dimensional along the through-plane direction, and the measured signals are sensitive to only Kz. We then extract the in-plane thermal conductivity Kr from a second measu…
