Space development of the HDLT Australian Plasma Thruster. The collaboration between the ANU research group and ASTRIUM/EADS, the largest European aerospace company, is a unique opportunity for Australia to capitalize on the new discovery of the Helicon Double Layer Thruster made at the ANU. This will allow the Australian space community to stay abreast of international developments in space propulsion and to be with the for-runners of this new technology.
ANU will have direct access to ASTRIUM ....Space development of the HDLT Australian Plasma Thruster. The collaboration between the ANU research group and ASTRIUM/EADS, the largest European aerospace company, is a unique opportunity for Australia to capitalize on the new discovery of the Helicon Double Layer Thruster made at the ANU. This will allow the Australian space community to stay abreast of international developments in space propulsion and to be with the for-runners of this new technology.
ANU will have direct access to ASTRIUM/EADS via the relationships developed in this project putting Australia in the enviable position of being an insider in future space developments concerning plasma thrusters and space technology in general.Read moreRead less
Minimising charge carrier recombination at silicon surfaces with improved dielectric coatings. The project will help to develop a vibrant PV industry in Australia, creating substantial employment opportunities. Spark Solar - one of the project partners - is the first dedicated PV manufacturer in Australia. There is a large and rapidly expanding overseas export market for solar panels. In addition, the large scale deployment of photovoltaic systems will help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and ....Minimising charge carrier recombination at silicon surfaces with improved dielectric coatings. The project will help to develop a vibrant PV industry in Australia, creating substantial employment opportunities. Spark Solar - one of the project partners - is the first dedicated PV manufacturer in Australia. There is a large and rapidly expanding overseas export market for solar panels. In addition, the large scale deployment of photovoltaic systems will help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and thus mitigate the magnitude and severity of the effects of global warming. Read moreRead less
A new nano-sensor technology for the detection and identification of residual vapours of explosives, drugs and chemicals in the air. Fighting terrorism and crime is one of the most important and difficult tasks that requires substantial human and technological resources. This project will help to address this enormous problem by developing a new optical sensor technology for the detection and identification of traces of chemicals, explosives, drugs and biological agents. It will develop a labora ....A new nano-sensor technology for the detection and identification of residual vapours of explosives, drugs and chemicals in the air. Fighting terrorism and crime is one of the most important and difficult tasks that requires substantial human and technological resources. This project will help to address this enormous problem by developing a new optical sensor technology for the detection and identification of traces of chemicals, explosives, drugs and biological agents. It will develop a laboratory prototype of this sensor that is expected to have superior sensitivity and operational capabilities. Thus it will noticeably contribute to practical law enforcement, air quality and environmental monitoring, counter-terrorism, air safety, border security and customs service. It will also lead to further development of nano-optics and nanotechnology in Australia. Read moreRead less
Switching mechanisms in nonvolatile resistive memory using high-k dielectrics. Growth in the use of portable electronic devices, such as cameras, phones and MP3 players has resulted in an increased demand for low-power, high-density, non-volatile memory (NVM). One class of such memories aims to use resistance changes in thin dielectric films as a means of storing information. This project aims to develop a better understanding of these devices and to develop new and innovative processes for co ....Switching mechanisms in nonvolatile resistive memory using high-k dielectrics. Growth in the use of portable electronic devices, such as cameras, phones and MP3 players has resulted in an increased demand for low-power, high-density, non-volatile memory (NVM). One class of such memories aims to use resistance changes in thin dielectric films as a means of storing information. This project aims to develop a better understanding of these devices and to develop new and innovative processes for controlling data storage. The project is based on collaboration between researchers at the ANU and Silanna, an Australian start-up company aiming to develop and commercialise such technology.Read moreRead less
Technologies for advanced optical fibre sensors. This project is to create a significantly better technology for exploration of oil and gas reserves under the ocean. Based on lasers and fibre optics, it leverages Australia's prodigious photonics expertise and couples it with Australia's established and well-regarded resource industry. Successful completion will enable better utilization of this country's natural resources, in particular oil and gas reserves, whilst also creating a high technolog ....Technologies for advanced optical fibre sensors. This project is to create a significantly better technology for exploration of oil and gas reserves under the ocean. Based on lasers and fibre optics, it leverages Australia's prodigious photonics expertise and couples it with Australia's established and well-regarded resource industry. Successful completion will enable better utilization of this country's natural resources, in particular oil and gas reserves, whilst also creating a high technology export, given the size of the world marine survey market (US$4 billion). Better energy exploration technologies are vital to Australia and, indeed the world, as energy supply dwindles and the increased energy costs begin to impact negatively on economic growth.Read moreRead less
Enhancing the Understanding and Performance of Passivating TiO2 Coatings for Photovoltaic Devices. Titanium dioxide (TiO2) has been widely used as an antireflection coating in the silicon (Si) photovoltaics industry as it exhibits excellent optical properties and low deposition cost. However, recently manufacturers have been turning to alternatives such as hydrogenated silicon nitride coatings that exhibit greatly improved electronic properties, but cost 4 - 10 times more to deposit. This proj ....Enhancing the Understanding and Performance of Passivating TiO2 Coatings for Photovoltaic Devices. Titanium dioxide (TiO2) has been widely used as an antireflection coating in the silicon (Si) photovoltaics industry as it exhibits excellent optical properties and low deposition cost. However, recently manufacturers have been turning to alternatives such as hydrogenated silicon nitride coatings that exhibit greatly improved electronic properties, but cost 4 - 10 times more to deposit. This project seeks to understand the fundamental limitations behind the poor surface passivation afforded by TiO2 to a Si wafer, and subsequently develop a passivating TiO2 coating that can reduce the cost of electricity generated by Si solar cells.Read moreRead less
Development of Optimised Processes for Manufacturing Melamine-Urea-Formaldehyde Type Resins, and Improved Resins and Reconstituted Wood Products Derived from Resins. Melamine-urea-formaldehyde resins are used to manufacture water-resistant particleboards, papers and laminates. This project is expected to provide more efficient processes for the industrial preparation of these resins, and improved resins and reconstituted wood products derived from the resins. Methods will be developed to assess ....Development of Optimised Processes for Manufacturing Melamine-Urea-Formaldehyde Type Resins, and Improved Resins and Reconstituted Wood Products Derived from Resins. Melamine-urea-formaldehyde resins are used to manufacture water-resistant particleboards, papers and laminates. This project is expected to provide more efficient processes for the industrial preparation of these resins, and improved resins and reconstituted wood products derived from the resins. Methods will be developed to assess the structure of the resins, in order to relate resin synthesis with structure and function, and therefore optimise performance as well as simplify the manufacturing process. Potential replacements for melamine will be prepared and evaluated. It is anticipated that these will confer particular properties on the resins and the wood products, such as strength and durability.Read moreRead less
Developing a Socio-Economic Model of the Australian Pharmaceutical Market: an Advanced Decision Support Tool. While current tensions arising from rapid increases in expenditures on pharmaceuticals are likely to become more prominent in future, decision support tools to help policy makers respond to these issues in the most socially and economically efficient way are scarce. Our proposal aims to fill this gap, by gradually extending a prototype model concerning subsidised prescribed pharmaceutica ....Developing a Socio-Economic Model of the Australian Pharmaceutical Market: an Advanced Decision Support Tool. While current tensions arising from rapid increases in expenditures on pharmaceuticals are likely to become more prominent in future, decision support tools to help policy makers respond to these issues in the most socially and economically efficient way are scarce. Our proposal aims to fill this gap, by gradually extending a prototype model concerning subsidised prescribed pharmaceuticals into a complex economic model of the total Australian pharmaceutical market. The new model will be able to project the impact of policy and other changes affecting all pharmaceuticals, as well as their distributional impact on patients. Expenditures by government and patients, as well as sales by industry, will be separately identified; the effects of the introduction of new drugs monitored; and the benefits of using pharmaceuticals estimated in terms of their impact on the health of Australians.Read moreRead less
Efficient photovoltaic concentrator receivers utilising commercial non-concentrator solar cells. The development of low-cost photovoltaic concentrator systems will allow the large scale depoyment of these systems, both in Australia and overseas. The current size of this market is several hundred MW of electricity per year, and growing rapidly. This will have both environmental benefits (though reduced greenhouse gas emissions)as well as economic and social benefits - through the creation of empo ....Efficient photovoltaic concentrator receivers utilising commercial non-concentrator solar cells. The development of low-cost photovoltaic concentrator systems will allow the large scale depoyment of these systems, both in Australia and overseas. The current size of this market is several hundred MW of electricity per year, and growing rapidly. This will have both environmental benefits (though reduced greenhouse gas emissions)as well as economic and social benefits - through the creation of empoyment opportunities in PV manufacturing and the generation of export earnings. It could be of particular benefit to remote communities requiring reliable, low cost off-grid power generation.Read moreRead less
Short-pulse laser cleaning for Australian heritage conservation. Conserving heritage objects is a demanding discipline, requiring a suite of techniques for different problems. Overseas, laser cleaning using long pulse techniques leaves microscopic damage as discrete chunks of material are removed, and is unsuitable for many materials. We have developed a short pulse laser process which can remove material molecule-by-molecule in a controlled fashion, and which can be readily halted once the fi ....Short-pulse laser cleaning for Australian heritage conservation. Conserving heritage objects is a demanding discipline, requiring a suite of techniques for different problems. Overseas, laser cleaning using long pulse techniques leaves microscopic damage as discrete chunks of material are removed, and is unsuitable for many materials. We have developed a short pulse laser process which can remove material molecule-by-molecule in a controlled fashion, and which can be readily halted once the final finish is achieved. We will research this technique for application to unique Australian heritage materials that are important to the specific conservation needs of the Australian War Memorial, the RAAF, Navy and Army Museums, Artlab Australia, and the Art Gallery of NSW.Read moreRead less