Thermal Homeostasis using Nanophotonic Phase-Change Materials

标题：使用纳米级光子相变材料的热自我调节非-技术描述：人类、哺乳动物和鸟类能够将他们的体温保持在恒定值。能够调节自身温度或保持热平衡的工程材料，将在节能和热控制方面带来变革性的进步。这项工作的目标是使用纳米结构的相变材料来实现这一目标。整合到研究中的教育活动将培训本科生和研究生掌握一系列对科学和工程职业有用的技能。学生将获得计算机模拟、微制造和测量方面的实践经验。无论是在业界还是学术界，这些技能都将对研发职业有帮助。公众推广活动项目将建立公众对研究事业的理解和欣赏。将使用照片纪录片技术展示实验室研究的实践，包括妇女和少数民族研究人员的工作。该推广计划将通过一个互动研讨会扩大规模，在该研讨会上，高中、本科生和研究生研究人员将为社交媒体推出他们自己的照片纪录片平台。技术描述：拟议的工作将通过控制光吸收和热发射来探索热稳态的极限。相变材料，如二氧化钒，其光学性质在其相变温度下会发生显著变化。此外，纳米光子材料，如光子晶体和超材料，可以很好地控制热发射特性。这增加了设计其吸收和发射光谱随温度自动调整的材料的可能性，以最大限度地减少由于变化的热负荷而经历的温度变化。我们的技术方法将包括基础理论、材料设计和实验。我们将使用分析模型来了解具有工程热辐射剖面的材料中被动温度自我调节的基本限制。然后，我们将使用精确的电磁模型来设计具有所需热辐射分布的纳米结构材料。我们将使用纳米制造方法来制备这些新材料，并通过实验测试它们的辐射/发射性能。然后我们将测试材料自我调节温度的能力。这项研究的结果将是对不同热负荷环境下的材料设计有更好的理解。因此，它将适用于一系列应用领域，包括电子、建筑热管理和天基系统。我们所获得的科学知识可能会导致新的材料设计和制造方法。

Title: Thermal Self-Regulation using Nanoscale Photonic Phase-Change MaterialsNon-Technical Description: Humans, mammals, and birds are able to maintain their body temperatures at a constant value. Engineered materials that could regulate their own temperature, or maintain thermal homeostasis, would lead to transformative advances in energy savings and thermal control. The objective of this work is to use nanostructured, phase-change materials to achieve this goal. Educational activities integrated into the research will train undergraduate and graduate students in a range of skills useful for careers in science and engineering. The students will gain hands-on experience with computer simulation, microfabrication, and measurement. These skills will be useful for R&D careers in either industry or academia. Public outreach activities project will build understanding and appreciation of research careers among the general public. Photo-documentary techniques will be used to show the practice of lab research, including the work of women and minority researchers. The outreach program will be scaled up through an interactive workshop in which high school, undergraduate and graduate researchers will launch their own photo-documentary platforms for social media.Technical Description: The proposed work will explore the limits of thermal homeostasis via control over light absorption and thermal emission. Phase-change materials such as vanadium dioxide have optical properties that change dramatically at their phase transition temperature. Moreover, nano-photonic materials such as photonic crystals and metamaterials allow fine control over the thermal emission properties. This raises the possibility of designing materials whose absorption and emission spectra that self-adjust with temperature to minimize the temperature variation that they experience due to a changing heat load. Our technical approach will encompass fundamental theory, materials design, and experiment. We will use analytical models to understand the fundamental limits on passive temperature self-regulation in materials with engineered thermal radiation profiles. We will then use accurate electromagnetic models to design nanostructured materials with the desired thermal radiation profiles. We will make these novel materials using nanofabrication methods and test their radiative/emission properties experimentally. We will then test the material's ability to self-regulate their temperature. The outcome of this research will be an improved understanding of materials design for environments with varying heat loads. It will thus apply to a range of application areas, including electronics, building thermal management, and space-based systems. The scientific knowledge we gain will potentially lead to new methods for materials design and manufacturing.