X-ray imaging and computer modeling help map electric properties of nanomaterials

said braka 1:47 AM
These materials generate electricity whenever

mechanical pressure is applied to them, and they've helped shape how we use and interact with technology today. Piezoelectric devices can be found everywhere, from consumer electronics like wearable fitness trackers and smart clothing, to medical devices and motors.
Now researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory have developed a new approach for studying  by using ultrafast 3-D X-ray imaging and computer modeling. Their integrated approach, reported in Nano Letters, can help us better understand material behavior and engineer more powerful and energy-efficient technologies.
"Our approach reveals a wealth of information about the underlying mechanisms that regulate the transfer of energy in such materials, as well as how stable these materials are under extreme conditions," said Argonne computational scientist and co-author Subramanian Sankaranarayanan.
"Using experimental data, we make informed models which in turn make predictions at space and time scales that experiments cannot reach," said Mathew Cherukara, the lead author of the study.
The researchers applied their new approach to the study of , a material that can generate electricity when twisted, bent or deformed in other ways. With its desirable piezoelectric and semiconducting properties, zinc oxide has emerged as a promising material for generating electricity in small-scale devices.


Read more at: https://phys.org/news/2017-05-x-ray-imaging-electric-properties-nanomaterials.html#jCp