Lectures for graduate students
Crystal Structures of Energy Materials
This course focuses on the understanding of the basic concept of crystallography. The lecture begins with the introduction of 7 crystal systems and 14 Bravias lattices. Then, based on these model crystal structures, the crystallographic computation on the bond length, bond angle and the interplanar spacings are explained based on metric tensor and matrix. The basic symmetry operations are defined for 2-D crystals and then the point group symmetry and plane groups are determined. The symmetry operations and the point group symmetry are extended for 3-D crystals to define 230 space groups. A commercially available software (VESTA) is utilized for the practice of students on how crystallographic computation and symmetry operation can be executed and how crystal structures are drawn for specific space groups. Finally, several examples of important crystals which are widely used for energy applications are given to emphasize the relevance of crystal structures in their atomic bonding and packing and also the anisotropic materials' properties.
Characterization of Structure and Composition of Energy Materials
This course aims to deliver the working principles and fundamental physical theory of the instruments used for characterization of energy materials. The lecture mainly focuses on the basic theories of microscopy (optical, SEM and TEM), diffraction (X-ray diffraction and electron diffraction) and surface spectroscopy techniques (XPS, SIMS, Auger electron spectroscopy) which are widely used for materials characterization over diverse length scales (sub-atomic to macroscopic) and dimensions (bulk to surface). Upon completion of this course, the students will be familiar with basic principles of sophisticated scientific instruments and the acquired knowledge can be easily extended to other instruments.
Thermodynamics of Energy System
Lecture and study on Principle of Thermodynamics and utilization of thermodynamic data. Law of Thermodynamics, Thermodynamic variables and relations, Thermodynamic Equilibrium, Statistical Thermodynamics, Multicomponent Solid Solution, Phase Equilibrium, Defect Crystals, and Electrochemistry. In particular, understanding energy related materials, devices, and system by thermodynamics will be the core of lectures.
Electron Diffraction of Energy Materials
This course aims to provide physical background and to deepen the understanding of electron diffraction and image formation theory in transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The lecture covers: 1) the diffraction contrast imaging routinely used in conventional TEM and its application to defect analyses, 2) the phase contrast imaging of high-resolution TEM (HRTEM) and its quantitative interpretation based on image simulation techniques.