79 nanotimes EU-Projects

German KIT Intensifies Printable Organic Solar Cell Research

A group of researchers headed by Dr. Alexander Colsmann at the Light Technology Institute (LTI, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, KIT) will start work this month. The project is scheduled for a duration of four years and aims at enhancing the efficiency of organic solar cells to more than 10%. For this purpose, the researchers use tandem architectures combining solar cells of complementary absorption spectra. The Federal Ministry of Education and Research has granted funding of EUR4.25 million. In this project the KIT researchers are supported by the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Polymer Research (IAP), Potsdam, represented by Dr. Hartmut Krüger, and the University of Queensland/Australia, represented by Professor Paul Burn, who supply new materials for organic solar cells. Merck KGaA is the industry advisor of the project.

http://www.kit.edu/en/

Cost-Effective, High Quality CNTs

Single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) are a new type of 1-dimensional (1D) structures that have received growing attention. While experimental data and modelling have led to better understanding of SWNT characteristics and behaviours, techniques are required for cost-effective fabrication and successful integration of SWNTs into microelectronic products.

As such, European researchers initiated the "Spark ablation for nanotube growth" (SPANG) project to develop cost-effective methods to synthesise high quality SWNTs and to evaluate their use in printed circuit boards (PCBs). Numerous methods are available for producing SWNTs. While chemical vapour deposition and the carbon arc method are relatively inexpensive, they produce defective material affecting electrical and mechanical properties of the SWNTs. Researchers set out to compare the quality of nanotubes produced by three different techniques. Laser ablation produces long nearly defect-free SWNTs. Although good control over process parameters is achieved, throughput is low and lasers are expensive. Channel spark ablation allows similar control and product quality but with lower cost. The arc-jet method facilitates control similar to laser ablation but with the important benefit of enabling continuous as opposed to batch processing.

SPANG investigators compared SWNTs produced by the three methods using a variety of technologies including electron microscopy, optical absorption and X-ray diffraction. Extensive standardisation work was done to facilitate quality control.

In addition, investigators studied the use of nanotube networks in lead resistors and capacitors of PCBs.

Contact: Dr. Siegmar Roth, Max-Planck-Society, Phone:  +49-711-689-1434:

http://www.fkf.mpg.de/en

http://www2.fkf.mpg.de/klitzing/research_groups/research_groups.php