EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Plastic Electronic Materials

塑料电子体现了最广泛意义上的未来电子（包括电子，光电和光子结构，设备和系统）的方法，将塑料的低温，多功能制造属性与半导体和金属的功能特性相结合。其核心是先进材料的开发、加工和应用，包括分子电子材料、低温加工金属、金属氧化物和新型混合材料。因此，它构成了一个具有挑战性和广泛的训练场，与广泛的工业和学术界的需求一致。通用领域被广泛认为是一个快速发展的平台技术，具有影响多个应用领域的潜力，包括显示、标牌和照明、大面积电子、能源生产和存储、物流、广告和品牌安全、分布式传感和医疗设备。该领域是一个增长领域，在国内和全球范围内，蓬勃发展的有机（AMOLED）显示和印刷电子行业一直处于领先地位，光子学领域的新兴机会-即创新的固态照明，太阳能（光伏），能源存储和管理现在紧随其后。世界领先的、议程设定的英国学术体育研究，其中大部分由EPSRC赞助，提供了巨大的潜力，这对英国技术部门的发展和增长至关重要。对体育科学家的需求很大：上游的材料、工艺和设备开发；下游的设备制造和广泛的应用创新。尽管这种潜力得到了英国政府和工业界的认可，PE对科学部长David Willet的“八大技术”中确定的先进材料主题做出了重大贡献，但由于缺乏能够将想法付诸应用的训练有素的科学家和工程师，其增长受到严重限制。这一点得到了行业专家的证实，他们认为，一个全面的培训计划对于提供创造一个可持续的英国体育产业所需的科学家和工程师队伍至关重要。PE-CDT的目的是提供必要的培训，以培养高技能的科学家和工程师，使他们能够领导发展并在各个方面促进增长；以材料为中心的创新、翻译和制造。CDT汇集了PE领域的三个领先学术团队：帝国团队，在合成，材料加工，表征，光子学和器件物理方面拥有专业知识；牛津团队，在超快光谱探针，介观和纳米结构复合材料，真空加工和放大方面拥有专业知识；以及QMUL的材料科学家和聚合物技术专家。这个紧凑的联盟涵盖了所有与PE相关的学科，包括材料物理学、光电子学、物理化学、设备工程和建模、设计、合成和加工以及相关的工业经验。该课程抓住了PE的多学科性质，将塑料的低温、多功能制造特性与半导体和金属的功能特性相结合。然而，为了满足PE行业的需求，它还将对基础科学的深刻理解与专业技能的强烈强调结合起来，并促进高质量的跨学科学习，涵盖塑料电子的所有领域。

Plastic Electronics embodies an approach to future electronics in their broadest sense (including electronic, optoelectronic and photonic structures, devices and systems) that combines the low temperature, versatile manufacturing attributes of plastics with the functional properties of semiconductors and metals. At its heart is the development, processing and application of advanced materials encompassing molecular electronic materials, low temperature processed metals, metal oxides and novel hybrids. As such it constitutes a challenging and far-ranging training ground in tune with the needs of a wide spectrum of industry and academia alike. The general area is widely recognised as a rapidly developing platform technology with the potential to impact on multiple application sectors, including displays, signage and lighting, large area electronics, energy generation and storage, logistics, advertising and brand security, distributed sensing and medical devices. The field is a growth area, nationally and globally and the booming organic (AMOLED) display and printed electronics industries have been leading the way, with the emerging opportunities in the photonics area - i.e. innovative solid-state lighting, solar (photovoltaics), energy storage and management now following. The world-leading, agenda-setting UK academic PE research, much of it sponsored by EPSRC, offers enormous potential that is critical for the development and growth of this UK technology sector. PE scientists are greatly in demand: both upstream for materials, process and equipment development; and downstream for device fabrication and wide-ranging applications innovation. Although this potential is recognised by UK government and industry, PE makes a major contribution to the Advanced Materials theme identified in Science Minister David Willet's 'eight great technologies', growth is severely limited by the shortage of trained scientists and engineers capable of carrying ideas forward to application. This is confirmed by industry experts who argue that a comprehensive training programme is essential to deliver the workforce of scientists and engineers needed to create a sustainable UK PE Industry.The aim of the PE-CDT is to provide necessary training to develop highly skilled scientists and engineers, capable both of leading development and of contributing growth in a variety of aspects; materials-focused innovation, translation and manufacturing. The CDT brings together three leading academic teams in the PE area: the Imperial groups, with expertise in the synthesis, materials processing, characterisation, photonics and device physics, the Oxford team with expertise in ultrafast spectroscopes probes, meso and nano-structured composites, vacuum processing and up scaling as well as the material scientists and polymer technologists at QMUL. This compact consortium encompasses all the disciplines relevant to PE, including materials physics, optoelectronics, physical chemistry, device engineering and modelling, design, synthesis and processing as well as relevant industrial experience. The programme captures the essentially multidisciplinary nature of PE combining the low temperature, versatile manufacturing attributes of plastics with the functional properties of semiconductors and metals. Yet, to meet the needs of the PE industry, it also puts in place a deep understanding of basic science along with a strong emphasis on professional skills and promoting interdisciplinary learning of high quality, ranging across all areas of plastic electronics.