Third-party funded projects

The aim of the project “Nanoflex“ is to develop a novel piezoelectric energy harvester based on (Al,Sc)N nanowires as a lead-free and environmentally friendly alternative to conventional devices. This project, funded equally by German (DFG) and French (ANR) founding agencies, is a lively symbiosis of the scientific disciplines of materials science, physics, chemistry and device engineering.

A major challenge for a sustainable society is to ensure an economical consumption of energy. Electrical energy is a major part of today’s energy consumption and its fraction will continue to grow with increasing electromobility and digitalization of societies worldwide. This project aims to investigate novel semiconductor materials and their applications in power electronics for the development of more efficient high voltage transformers. Such devices are ubiquitously used in the electrical grid as well as electro mobility. By increasing their efficiency this project might constitute a pathway to energy saving and thus provide a significant contribution to a sustainable digital society.

Electronic components and sensors have become an indispensable part of everyday life: mobile phones, televisions and cars all need precise, lightweight, stable and inexpensive electronics. Two-dimensional, ultra-thin (atomically thin) layers are essential for these applications and the controlled manufacture of them is indispensable for the functionality and progress of our digital world. This basic research project looks at a novel manufacturing method for atomically thin, defect-free layer systems using focused ion beams supported by computer-based predictions of their electronic properties, as well as first attempts to implement them in electronic components.

This project aims to provide new experimental insights into the formation and impact of point defects in Ga2O3. We approach this challenge by cross-linking different experimental characterization techniques, such as micro-Raman spectroscopy and time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS), on molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) grown Ga2O3 thin films deposited in well-defined regimes (i.e. metal- or oxygen-rich). We aim to provide concrete guidelines for the synthesis of Ga2O3 on how to avoid or engineer point defects as a means of controlling its functional properties.