Strong Heat Localization in Nanomaterials for Vacuum Nanoelectronics

拟议的研究计划旨在阐明在我的实验室发现的“热阱”效应的物理原理，并将其确立为可再生能源转换和电子领域多种有前途的应用的基础技术。这种现象的显著特征是，热量仍然非常强烈地局限于某些纳米结构导体中，为创造强大的新型热离子和热电（T/T）器件提供了新的范例。******热阱潜在地解决了T/T转换的基本挑战：最小化热流，同时允许电子自由流动。克服这一挑战将提高T/T设备的性能并降低其成本，使其能够扩展到小众应用之外，并在大规模发电中发挥核心作用。******这项开创性的工作迅速将我的研究小组推向了热学复兴领域的前沿。它已经在著名的国际学术和工业场所邀请了18场演讲，并与马克斯普朗克研究所，斯坦福大学和国家研究委员会合作，更多的计划正在计划中。最近，我作为大约15名参与者之一被邀请参加NASA的热学研讨会，为该领域的未来奠定基础，并领导了其中一次会议，并被选为第29届国际真空纳米电子学会议的主席。******提出的研究计划包括一个系统的调查，以揭示热阱效应所涉及的物理机制。为了能够在应用中利用这种效应，这种理解是必需的，它适合五大类：******1)用于经济有效地收集废热和阳光的热离子/热电转换器；***2)紧凑和极其便宜的电子显微镜，使非常高分辨率的成像广泛适用于公众；***3)超高速电子用微型真空管；***4)用于成像和传感的宽带辐射探测器；***5)利用余热进行信息处理的未来声子电路。******我们正在与工业伙伴合作，通过单独的、有针对性的资金来源，寻求其中的一些应用。提出的“发现基金”计划旨在回答所有这些应用所依赖的基本问题，并为它们的成功和快速发展奠定基础。该项目将通过先进技术和清洁能源为加拿大带来显著的社会经济和环境效益。该计划还将提供一个理想的环境，以吸引、培训、激励和留住越来越多的年轻科学家和工程师，他们寻求理解和利用纳米材料的革命性特性。*****

The proposed research program aims to elucidate the physics of the “Heat Trap” effect – which was discovered in my laboratory – and establish it as a foundational technology for multiple promising applications in renewable energy conversion and electronics. The remarkable feature of this phenomenon is that heat remains very strongly localized in certain nanostructured conductors, enabling new paradigms for creating powerful new thermionic and thermoelectric (T/T) devices.******Heat Trap potentially solves the fundamental challenge of T/T conversion: minimizing heat flow while allowing electrons to flow freely. Overcoming this challenge will enhance the performance and reduce the cost of T/T devices, enabling them to expand beyond niche applications and play a central role in large-scale electricity generation.******This groundbreaking work has rapidly propelled my research group to the forefront of the renascent field of thermionics. It has led to 18 invited talks at prestigious international academic and industrial venues as well as collaborations with the Max Planck Institute, Stanford University and the National Research Council, with more being planned. I was recently invited as one of around 15 participants in NASA's Thermionics workshop to set the stage for the future of the field, and led one of the sessions, and was selected as Chair of the 29th International Vacuum Nanoelectronics Conference.******The proposed research program consists of a systematic investigation to unravel the physical mechanisms involved in the Heat Trap effect. This understanding is required in order to be able to exploit this effect for applications, which fit into five broad categories:******1) Thermionic/thermoelectric converters for cost-effective harvesting of waste heat and sunlight;***2) Compact and extremely inexpensive electron microscopes to make very-high-resolution imaging broadly accessible to the general public;***3) Micro vacuum tubes for ultra-high-speed electronics;***4) Broadband radiation detectors for imaging and sensing;***5) Future phononic circuits that exploit waste heat for information processing.******We are pursuing several of these applications with separate, targeted sources of funding and in collaboration with industrial partners. The proposed Discovery Grant program aims to answer fundamental questions that all of these applications depend on, and create a foundation to enable their successful and rapid progress. The program will lead to significant socio-economic and environmental benefits for Canada, associated with advanced technologies and clean energy. The program will also provide an ideal environment to attract, train, inspire, and retain a growing network of young scientists and engineers seeking to understand and exploit the revolutionary properties of nanomaterials.*****