Research Projects

Objective: The objective of this project is to combine the properties of inorganic piezoelectric ceramics and electroactive polymers/molecular ferroelectrics, and develop new flexible piezoelectric ceramic-polymer composite materials for self-powered electronics, adopting easy, low cost synthesis techniques, along with exploring the possibilities for designing and testing of a laboratory prototype. Piezoelectric ceramics, though possess excellent qualities for transducer applications, fall short in their mechanical properties and lower dielectric breakdown strength

Summary: The objective of this project is to combine the properties of inorganic piezoelectric ceramics and electroactive polymers/molecular ferroelectrics, and develop new flexible piezoelectric ceramic-polymer composite materials for self-powered electronics, adopting easy, low cost synthesis techniques, along with exploring the possibilities for designing and testing of a laboratory prototype. Piezoelectric ceramics, though possess excellent qualities for transducer applications, fall short in their mechanical properties and lower dielectric breakdown strength. On the other hand, electroactive polymers possess good viscoelastic mechanical properties, but their electromechanical coupling is weak. We aim to bring together the best of both worlds and design flexible piezoelectric materials and prototype modules to capture ambient vibrations using a suitable mechanical-to-electrical energy converter or nanogenerator thereby moving closer towards battery-less autonomous, selfpowered sensor systems and networks with flexible and foldable power sources. Adopting easy/low cost synthesis techniques for material development and process optimization to enhance the performance of piezoelectric-ceramic-polymer composite materials will be aimed at. Attempts will be made for designing and testing of prototype transducers with various piezocomposites to achieve better output responses.