GOALI: Fabrication and Characterization of Controlled Microstructure Glass Composites for Electromagnetic Applications

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NON-TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION: This project is a collaborative effort between Advanced Composite Materials LLC (ACM) and the Georgia Institute of Technology. The main goal of this project is to develop a fabrication method - material combination necessary to make high temperature resistant conductive coatings that could be used for a variety of electronic applications. While the industrial partner is focused on using silicon carbide (SiC)-based materials as microwave oven cooking inserts, the methodology being developed in this project will be useful for all types of glass composites. The final composite properties will depend on the properties of the additives used, which could make them useful for many industrial applications in fields such as electronics, communications, military and defense, industrial heating, and other novel household heating and cooking appliances. In addition to supporting several graduate and undergraduate researchers, the project includes support of high school teachers and/or faculty members from non-research or minority-serving institutions during the summer months, with the purpose of increasing their understanding in this exciting area of research. TECHNICAL DETAILS: The main aim of this project is to fabricate conductive glass composites with different filler content and varying thicknesses with optimal properties. One of the goals is to determine the ideal thickness and the lowest filler content possible that will permit the fabrication of transparent conductive glassy coatings that could be deposited onto a variety of substrate types. The wide availability of many different filler materials in nanosized form, combined with recent developments in the fast sintering of ceramic materials, and a more detailed understanding of how to control percolation, makes this a propitious time to carry out this project. Bulk consolidation methods that are being used include hot-pressing, pressureless sintering and electric field assisted sintering. Thin film formation methods being used include spin coating and screen printing. The thin and thick glass composite specimens are being characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) and X-ray microtomography. The dc and ac resistivity as well as the broadband dielectric, optical and magnetic properties are being measured. Modeling of the processing-structure-property relationships as a function of thickness, glass type, filler type and consolidation method is expected to reveal a better understanding of how to control the electromagnetic properties of these types of materials. Two doctoral students and several masters and/or undergraduate research students are working on this project; this training contributes to the future workforce in this cutting-edge field.