Chemical fluctuations in polycrystalline thin-films for photovoltaic devices
Within this project we investigate chemical fluctuations at the nanometre scale in polycrystalline Cu(In,Ga)Se2 and CuInS2 thin-flims used as absorber material in solar cells.
Secondary phase formation as well as chemical fluctuations such as impurity segregation at structural defects like grain boundaries can significantly affect the optoelectronical properties of photovoltaic materials. Within this project we investigate such chemical fluctuations at the nanometre scale in polycrystalline Cu(In,Ga)Se2 and CuInS2 thin-flims used as absorber material in solar cells. We apply combined scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) as well as correlated transmission Kikuchi diffraction (TKD) and atom probe tomography (APT).
Accumulation and diffusion of Na (green) along Cu depleted structural defects (blue) in epitaxial grown CuInSe2 films on GaAs substrate
Mechanistic description of In/Ga interdiffusion. STEM-BF image of a cross section from a Na2Se treated CuInSe2 film grown on GaAs substrate and corresponding Ga, In and Cu elemental maps.
Mechanistic description of In/Ga interdiffusion. STEM-BF image of a cross section from a Na2Se treated CuInSe2 film grown on GaAs substrate and corresponding Ga, In and Cu elemental maps.
Image quality maps from a TKD measurement of an APT needle and corresponding unique color map showing a RHAGB (blue) and ∑3 TB (red). Na & C co-segregation as well as Cu enrichment (blue iso-concentration surface) at the RHAGB. Concentration profile across the RHAGB revealing an atomic redistribution.
Image quality maps from a TKD measurement of an APT needle and corresponding unique color map showing a RHAGB (blue) and ∑3 TB (red). Na & C co-segregation as well as Cu enrichment (blue iso-concentration surface) at the RHAGB. Concentration profile across the RHAGB revealing an atomic redistribution.
International researcher team presents a novel microstructure design strategy for lean medium-manganese steels with optimized properties in the journal Science
In this project we work on correlative atomic structural and compositional investigations on Co and CoNi-based superalloys as a part of SFB/Transregio 103 project “Superalloy Single Crystals”. The task is to image the boron segregation at grain boundaries in the Co-9Al-9W-0.005B alloy.
This project aims to investigate the dynamic hardness of B2-iron aluminides at high strain rates using an in situ nanomechanical tester capable of indentation up to constant strain rates of up to 100000 s−1 and study the microstructure evolution across strain rate range.
This project deals with the phase quantification by nanoindentation and electron back scattered diffraction (EBSD), as well as a detailed analysis of the micromechanical compression behaviour, to understand deformation processes within an industrial produced complex bainitic microstructure.
Within this project, we will use a green laser beam source based selective melting to fabricate full dense copper architectures. The focus will be on identifying the process parameter-microstructure-mechanical property relationships in 3-dimensional copper lattice architectures, under both quasi-static and dynamic loading conditions.
