Materials Science & Engineering
Beth Dickey Group – NCSU
Research:
Overall, John’s research involves studying defect chemistry and diffusion kinetics of ceramics used in the creation of capacitors and piezoelectric actuators. Specifically, John examines the effects of humid environments on the electrical properties of industry relevant ceramics using a custom isotope exchange system that he designed and built. Perovskite oxides and potassium sodium niobate (KNN) type materials have been the focus of John’s work thus far. John uses impedance spectroscopy as an analysis method to monitor the conductivity and other electrical characteristics of the samples as they are exposed to humid atmospheres at elevated temperatures. Also, John uses secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS) to determine the kinetics of oxygen and hydrogen incorporation in these materials.
John has experience in ceramics processing and degradation, experimental design, electron microscopy techniques, DC magnetron sputter deposition, and computational diffusion modeling
Expected graduation date: August 2022