I-Corps: Liquid-Metal Optically Reflective Coatings for Deformable Mirrors

这个i-Corps项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力可能包括任何需要镜子的应用程序。镀膜技术降低了镜面生产成本，使镜面薄膜能够在更大面积和更多种类的表面上镀膜。一些可能的应用实例包括用于发电或工业过程的太阳能热加热。在这些应用中使用反射镜可以使用清洁的可再生能源。这项研究开发的技术是一种光学反射涂层，使用在室温下是液体的金属。这种金属是一种低毒的镓基合金，可以喷涂到表面形成镜面。这种镀膜技术比目前制造反射镜的方法更简单，可以覆盖更大的表面和更多种类的材料。初步样机表明，液态金属镜膜的光学反射率高于铝镜膜。这种液态金属的创新应用与简单的涂层技术一起，廉价、简单，可以使用移动涂层单元在现场应用，节省时间和金钱。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project potentially includes any application that requires mirrors. The coating technology reduces mirror production costs and enables the coating of mirror films over a large area and an increased variety of surfaces. Some examples of possible applications include solar thermal heating for power generation or industrial processes. The use of mirrors in these applications enables the use of clean, renewable energy.The technology developed from this research is an an optically reflective coating using a metal that is liquid at room temperature. The metal is a low-toxicity gallium-based alloy that can be sprayed onto surfaces to form mirrors. The coating technique is simpler than current methods of manufacturing mirrors, allowing the coating of larger surfaces and the coating of a greater variety of materials. An initial prototype shows that the liquid-metal mirror coating has a higher optical reflectivity than that of aluminum. This innovative application of liquid metal along with the simple coating technique is inexpensive, simple, and can be applied on-site using mobile coating units, saving time and money.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.