Advanced Carbon Nanotechnology Project (ACNP)
The Advanced Carbon Nanotechnology Program (ACNP) formed by
four
research institutions and an industry research partner
will conduct research and development toward practical applications of
carbon-based nanostructured materials and devices that will
result in breakthrough technologies beneficial to the US national
defense. The three thrust areas on which ACNP will focus are 1)advanced chemical and biological sensors and devices; 2) novel highly
efficient energy conversion devices; 3) advanced electronic
devices and special function displays.
Specifically, diamond/carbon nanostructures will be developed for
biological and chemical sensors and devices that include carbon
derived nanotubes, electrodes and microtips for detection of toxic
chemical agents in a liquid medium and explosive chemical species
in air. Within the second thrust area, a new energy conversion source
utilizing thermal-electric energy conversion devices based on
diamond/carbon vacuum field emitter nanostructures will be developed to
achieve novel power/cooling systems with high conversion
efficiency, cleanliness, environmental friendliness and battlefield
ergometrics. The third thrust area will include development of
carbon derived cold cathode electron emitters and gated field emission
devices with high reliability, robustness, high performance and
efficiency, and high emitting current for high-power high-RF advanced
electronics, pulsed power source, miniature light-weighted novel microwave tube
technology such as the traveling wave tube, and
radiation-temperature-immune high power microwave vacuum
integrated amplifiers and logic gates thereby significantly reducing the
weight, power and size of systems. The technology for
IR-emission displays will be developed for use in IR imaging/sensing
equipment. Three different approaches will be investigated for
these sources: alternating current thin film electroluminescent
displays, polymer light emitting displays, and diamond micro-resistor
arrays. In addition to application in IR displays, these IR emitting
materials may be useful for medical, biological and chemical
applications.
The multidisciplinary and collaborative research and development program
will be led by Vanderbilt University that will provide
overall program coordination and develop advanced carbon-derived field
emission devices. Efforts of the University of Kentucky will
be focused on biological and chemical sensing, North Carolina State
University will develop energy conversion devices, the University
of Florida will work on implementation of IR and related displays and
the International Technology Center will develop nanocarbon
structures for applications in biological and electronic devices. ITC
will also identify and work with industry partners to transition the
technologies into advanced development programs and/or manufacturing.
While every team member is responsible for a particular
research topic, close collaboration between team members with unique
expertise in different thrust areas will be crucial for the success
of the program. The program also ensures strong interaction generally
with US industry and government laboratories and specifically
with the Sensors and Electron Devices Directorate of the Army Research
Laboratory to achieve the mission. The consortium also
provides training and education for students/researchers to meet the
above challenges.