Fabrication and Characterization of Micro- and Nano-structured Materials Systems

这项建议涉及复杂材料结构的制造和综合表征，包括但不限于用于光子学应用的硅基系统。我们的目标是：(A)有助于更好地了解原子过程，这些过程决定了对某些应用至关重要的性能；(B)有助于优化光子应用的材料和结构，以及(C)在先进材料科学和最先进的制造技术之间提供强有力的直接联系。 拟议的研究计划建立在当前和以前研究项目已证明的成功的基础上，并将进一步加强我们在硅光子学和有机发光材料和器件方面的工作。硅光子学是国际上热衷的领域，具有潜在的巨大经济效益。在过去的几年里，我们已经展示了我们设计和制造硅基材料系统的能力，这些系统通过纳米晶体和/或团簇和/或通过稀土掺杂来发光，分别在绿色、蓝色和红色处产生强烈的发光。从实用的角度来看，最令人兴奋的是发射波长和/或白光产生的可调谐潜力。尽管这些结果在技术层面上是可以重现的，但仍然需要更好地理解潜在的微物理。类似的情况--尽管是在更狭义的应用领域--可以支持继续开发用于蓝色和白色OLED的新型有机材料架构。 这些材料体系的共同之处在于其物理和化学组成的复杂性以及掺入杂质和/或缺陷的倾向，所有这些都决定了光学和电子性能。我们将特别强调协同使用补充分析工具，以便能够将微观和/或结构特征与所研究系统的光学和/或电子性质联系起来。这方面的关键设施之一将是麦克马斯特强流正电子束设备(MIPBF)，该设备在2009年CFI竞赛中获得资金，将于2014年底投入使用。MIPBF包括世界上最强的正电子源之一，这将为两个实验站提供装备，分别对材料中的开放体积缺陷和基于正电子的表面表征进行正电子寿命和多普勒展宽研究。MIPBF将在加拿大独一无二，是为数不多的在全球运营的设施之一，并将极大地增加麦克马斯特现有的合作设施，如加拿大电子显微镜中心(CCEM)、布罗克豪斯材料研究所(BIMR)和新兴设备技术中心(CEDT)。在校外，我们将继续使用伦敦西方大学的离子束分析设施，以及位于肯塔基州萨斯卡通的加拿大光源(CLS)同步加速器实验室的独特设施。 在这两项研究中，广泛的制造能力与基于同步加速器的X射线研究、电子显微镜、正电子湮没光谱和光学表征的结合使我们的工作有别于许多此类系统的传统研究。拟议的研究计划将为HQP提供充分的机会，在一个多学科和国际合作的环境中，接受最先进的制造和表征工具的培训并使用这些工具。当涉及到在学术界、研究机构或创新公司的就业时，这样的经历往往是与众不同的因素。

This proposal is concerned with the fabrication and comprehensive characterization of complex materials structures, including - but not limited to - silicon-based systems for photonics applications. It is our aim to (a) contribute to a better understanding of the atomistic processes that determine properties that are critical to certain applications, (b) contribute to the optimization of materials and structures for photonic and - to a lesser extent - electronic applications, and (c) provide a strong and direct link between advanced materials science and state-of-the-art fabrication technology. The proposed research program builds on the demonstrated successes of current and previous research projects and will further intensify our work in silicon photonics and organic light emitting materials and devices. Silicon photonics is an internationally hotly pursued field, with potentially massive economic benefits. Over the past few years, we have demonstrated our ability to design and fabricate silicon-based materials systems that emit light via nano-crystals and/or -clusters and/or through rare-earth doping, leading to strong emission in the green, blue, and red, respectively. Most exciting form a practical perspective is the potential for tunability of the emission wavelength and/or the generation of white light. Even though these results are reproducible at the technological level, much better understanding of the underlying microphysics is still required. A similar case – albeit in a more narrowly defined application space - can be made in favour of continued development of novel organic materials architectures for blue and white OLEDs. Common to these materials systems is the complexity of their physical and chemical make-up and the tendency to incorporate impurities and/or defects, all of which determine the optical and electronic properties. We will place particular emphasis on synergistic use of complementary analytical tools to be able to link microscopic and/or structural features to optical and/or electronic properties of the investigated systems. One of the key facilities in that regard will be the McMaster Intense Positron Beam Facility (MIPBF), which was funded in the 2009 CFI competition and will be operational in late 2014. MIPBF includes one of the world’s most intense sources of positrons, which will supply two experimental stations equipped to perform positron lifetime and Doppler-broadening studies of open-volume defects in materials and positron-based surface characterization, respectively.The MIPBF will be unique in Canada, one of only a few operating worldwide, and will greatly add to the collaborative facilities already in existence at McMaster, such as the Canadian Centre for Electron Microscopy (CCEM), the Brockhouse Institute for Materials Research (BIMR), and the Centre for Emerging Device Technologies (CEDT). Off campus, we will continue to use the ion beam analytical facilities at Western University in London, ON and the unique facilities at the Canadian Light Source (CLS) synchrotron laboratory in Saskatoon, SK. In both research thrusts, the combination of wide-ranging fabrication capabilities with synchrotron-based X-ray studies, electron microscopy, positron annihilation spectroscopy, and optical characterization sets our work apart from many conventional studies of such systems. The proposed research program will provide ample opportunity for HQP to be trained in and work with state-of-the-art fabrication and characterization tools, in a multi-disciplinary and internationally collaborative environment. Such experience often is the differentiating factor when it comes to employment in academia, research institutes, or innovative companies.