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Phonon considerations in the reduction of thermal conductivity in phononic crystals

Applied Physics A: Materials Science and Processing

Hopkins, Patrick E.; Phinney, Leslie M.; Rakich, Peter T.; Olsson, Roy H.; El-Kady, I.

Periodic porous structures offer unique material solutions to thermoelectric applications. With recent interest in phonon band gap engineering, these periodic structures can result in reduction of the phonon thermal conductivity due to coherent destruction of phonon modes characteristic in phononic crystals. In this paper, we numerically study phonon transport in periodic porous silicon phononic crystal structures. We develop a model for the thermal conductivity of phononic crystal that accounts for both coherent and incoherent phonon effects, and show that the phonon thermal conductivity is reduced to less than 4% of the bulk value for Si at room temperature. This has substantial impact on thermoelectric applications, where the efficiency of thermoelectric materials is inversely proportional to the thermal conductivity. © 2010 Springer-Verlag.

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TYPE Conference YEAR 2011
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Manipulation of thermal phonons: A phononic crystal route to High-ZT thermoelectrics

Proceedings of SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering

El-Kady, I.; Su, Mehmet F.; Reinke, Charles M.; Hopkins, Patrick E.; Goettler, Drew; Leseman, Zayd C.; Shaner, Eric A.; Olsson, Roy H.

Phononic crystals (PnCs) are acoustic devices composed of a periodic arrangement of scattering centers embedded in a homogeneous background matrix with a lattice spacing on the order of the acoustic wavelength. When properly designed, a superposition of Bragg and Mie resonant scattering in the crystal results in the opening of a frequency gap over which there can be no propagation of elastic waves in the crystal, regardless of direction. In a fashion reminiscent of photonic lattices, PnC patterning results in a controllable redistribution of the phononic density of states. This property makes PnCs a particularly attractive platform for manipulating phonon propagation. In this communication, we discuss the profound physical implications this has on the creation of novel thermal phenomena, including the alteration of the heat capacity and thermal conductivity of materials, resulting in high-ZT materials and highly-efficient thermoelectric cooling and energy harvesting. © 2011 SPIE.

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TYPE Conference YEAR 2011
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Silicon carbide phononic crystal cavities for micromechanical resonators

Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS)

Ziaei-Moayyed, M.; Su, M.F.; Reinke, Charles M.; El-Kady, I.; Olsson, Roy H.

This paper demonstrates silicon carbide phononic crystal cavities for RF and microwave micromechanical resonators. We demonstrate design, fabrication, and characterization of Silicon Carbide/air phononic crystals used as Bragg acoustic mirrors to confine energy in a lateral SiC cavity. Aluminum nitride transducers drive and sense SiC overtone cavities in the 2-3GHz range with fxQ products exceeding 3×1013 in air. This approach enables decoupling of the piezoelectric AlN material from the SiC cavity, resulting in high Q resonators at microwave frequencies. The SiC cavities are fabricated in a CMOS-compatible process, enabling integration with wirelesss communication systems.

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TYPE Conference YEAR 2011
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NanoFIBrication of a two-dimensional phononic crystal in a free standing membrane

El-Kady, I.; Olsson, Roy H.

A two-dimensional phononic crystal (PnC) that can operate in the GHz range is created in a freestanding silicon substrate using NanoFIBrication (using a focused ion beam (FIB) to fabricate nanostructures). First, a simple cubic 6.75 x 6.75 ?m array of vias with 150 nm spacing is generated. After patterning the vias, they are backfilled with void-free tungsten scatterers. Each via has a diameter of 48 nm. Numerical calculations predict this 2D PnC will generate a band gap near 22 GHz. A protective layer of chromium on top of the thin (100 nm) silicon membrane confines the surface damage to the chromium, which can be removed at a later time. Inspection of the underside of the membrane shows the vias flaring out at the exit, which we are dubbing the 'trumpet effect'. The trumpet effect is explained by modeling the lateral damage in a freestanding membrane.

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TYPE Conference YEAR 2010
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Research on micro-sized acoustic bandgap structures

El-Kady, I.; Tuck, Melanie R.; McCormick, Frederick B.

Phononic crystals (or acoustic crystals) are the acoustic wave analogue of photonic crystals. Here a periodic array of scattering inclusions located in a homogeneous host material forbids certain ranges of acoustic frequencies from existence within the crystal, thus creating what are known as acoustic (or phononic) bandgaps. The vast majority of phononic crystal devices reported prior to this LDRD were constructed by hand assembling scattering inclusions in a lossy viscoelastic medium, predominantly air, water or epoxy, resulting in large structures limited to frequencies below 1 MHz. Under this LDRD, phononic crystals and devices were scaled to very (VHF: 30-300 MHz) and ultra (UHF: 300-3000 MHz) high frequencies utilizing finite difference time domain (FDTD) modeling, microfabrication and micromachining technologies. This LDRD developed key breakthroughs in the areas of micro-phononic crystals including physical origins of phononic crystals, advanced FDTD modeling and design techniques, material considerations, microfabrication processes, characterization methods and device structures. Micro-phononic crystal devices realized in low-loss solid materials were emphasized in this work due to their potential applications in radio frequency communications and acoustic imaging for medical ultrasound and nondestructive testing. The results of the advanced modeling, fabrication and integrated transducer designs were that this LDRD produced the 1st measured phononic crystals and phononic crystal devices (waveguides) operating in the VHF (67 MHz) and UHF (937 MHz) frequency bands and established Sandia as a world leader in the area of micro-phononic crystals.

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TYPE SAND Report YEAR 2010
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Controlled synthesis of 3d nanostructures using Proximity-field nanoPatterning lithography and graded temperature ALD

ECS Transactions

Grubbs, Robert K.; Ellis, A.R.; Sanchez, Amelia M.; Wiwi, M.; El-Kady, I.; Bogart, K.H.K.; Su, M.F.; Christodoulou, C.; Taha, M.; Shir, D.L.; Rogers, J.A.

The combination of Proximity-field nanoPatterning (PnP) and graded temperature ALD has enabled the synthesis of robust three dimensional nanostructures. The PnP process uses a simple elastomeric optical phase mask to generate a complex three dimensional interference pattern in photopolymer 1. Once the photopolymer structure has been obtained, it is subsequently used as a template for graded temperature ALD. The graded temperature ALD chemistry is used to coat and lock-in the designed nanostructure without melting the template. This process generates a thermally robust nanostructure for further, higher temperature, ALD surface treatments. The ALD chemistry is performed at various (increasing) temperatures to secure the nanostructure and to reduce the macroscopic stress of the structure as higher temperature depositions are performed. Three methods for nanostructure characterization have been useful in interrogating these structures: quartz crystal microbalance (QCM), optical interference, and focused ion beam scanning electron microscopy (FIB-SEM). This paper will cover the fabrication process for generating PnP nanostructures. Details of the graded temperature ALD chemical process for AI2O3 will be covered. Also, structural characterizations using SEM and optical interference will be used to quantify the degree of deposition and the thermal stability of these interesting structures. © The Electrochemical Society.

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TYPE Conference YEAR 2009
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Mid-infrared quantum dot emitters utilizing planar photonic crystal technology

Shaner, Eric A.; Passmore, Brandon S.; Lyo, S.K.; Cederberg, Jeffrey G.; Subramania, Ganapathi S.; El-Kady, I.

The three-dimensional confinement inherent in InAs self-assembled quantum dots (SAQDs) yields vastly different optical properties compared to one-dimensionally confined quantum well systems. Intersubband transitions in quantum dots can emit light normal to the growth surface, whereas transitions in quantum wells emit only parallel to the surface. This is a key difference that can be exploited to create a variety of quantum dot devices that have no quantum well analog. Two significant problems limit the utilization of the beneficial features of SAQDs as mid-infrared emitters. One is the lack of understanding concerning how to electrically inject carriers into electronic states that allow optical transitions to occur efficiently. Engineering of an injector stage leading into the dot can provide current injection into an upper dot state; however, to increase the likelihood of an optical transition, the lower dot states must be emptied faster than upper states are occupied. The second issue is that SAQDs have significant inhomogeneous broadening due to the random size distribution. While this may not be a problem in the long term, this issue can be circumvented by using planar photonic crystal or plasmonic approaches to provide wavelength selectivity or other useful functionality.

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TYPE SAND Report YEAR 2008
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Emissivity measurements of 3D photonic crystals at high temperatures

Photonics and Nanostructures - Fundamentals and Applications

Luk, T.S.; Mclellan, T.; Subramania, G.; Verley, Jason V.; El-Kady, I.

An accurate methodology is presented to measure photonic crystal emissivity using a direct method. This method addresses the issue of how to separate the emissions from the photonic crystal and the substrate. The method requires measuring two quantities: the total emissivity of the photonic crystal-substrate system, and the emissivity of the substrate alone. Our measurements have an uncertainty of 4% and represent the most accurate measure of a photonic crystal's emissivity. The measured results are compared to, and agree very well with, the independent emitter model. © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

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TYPE Conference YEAR 2008
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Results 51–100 of 123
Results 51–100 of 123