Sensor Programs (Faculty Mentor: Craig Grimes)

 

The sensor program of Prof. Grimes is supported through two NSF, ECS division, research grants. Under the auspices of the proposed Penn State REU program, Prof. Grimes would supervise one, or possibly two, students each summer on various sensor related projects. Depending upon the interest of the student(s), a considerable variety of projects can be designed. For example, for a student interested in analog circuit design, one project would be the translation of sensor monitoring electronics from a large, rack-mount scale of dimensions to a bread-board, chip-level scale. For the materials oriented student, possible projects include the fabrication of a chemical analyte transduction layer for incorporation with one of the multiple sensor platforms being designed within the research group of Prof. Grimes (see http://www.ee.psu.edu/grimes). For example, one suitable project would be the fabrication of nanoporous Al₂O₃ layers, through the anodization of aluminum, the pores of which would then be back-filled using a TiO₂ sol. The anodized aluminum template is then etched away, with the result being fabrication of TiO₂ nanowires, the properties of which can be measured as a function of gas concentration using an automated impedance spectroscopy testing facility. For the applied physics oriented student, sensor performance can be analyzed as a function of material properties. For example, for the magnetoelastic sensor platform the sensitivity of the sensor is dependent upon the speed of sound in the sensor relative to that in an applied coating. Since the speed of sound in a magnetoelastic sensor can be controlled through application of a biasing dc magnetic field, the result is a sensor the sensitivity of which can be externally controlled as needed.