This study investigated the low temperature sintering with various templates of Bi-based lead-free piezoelectric ceramics. The effects of using CuO-coated Na_0.5Bi_4.5Ti₄O₁₅ templates on the sintering behavior as well as the dielectric, ferroelectric, and piezoelectric properties of Bi_1/2(Na_0.78K_0.22)_1/2TiO₃ (BNKT) ceramics have been examined. In comparison with the specimens sintered with the Na_0.5Bi_4.5Ti₄O₁₅ templates without CuO coating, those sintered with the CuO-coated Na_0.5Bi_4.5Ti₄O₁₅ templates showed larger template sizes as well as a larger electric field induced strain (S_max/E_max) of 422 pm/V after sintering at temperatures as low as 975℃. These results are promising for low-cost multilayer ceramic actuator applications.

Modern thin film deposition processes require high deposition rates, low costs, and high-quality films. Atmospheric pressure plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (AP-PECVD) meets these requirements. AP-PECVD causes little damage on thin film deposition surfaces compared to conventional PECVD. Moreover, a higher deposition rate is expected due to the surface heating effect of atomic hydrogens in AP-PECVD. In this study, polycrystalline silicon thin film was deposited at a low temperature of 100℃ and then AP-PECVD experiments were performed with various plasma powers and hydrogen gas flow rates. A deposition rate of 15.2 nm/s was obtained at the VHF power of 400 W. In addition, a metal foam showerhead was employed for uniform gas supply, which provided a significant improvement in the thickness uniformity.

In this study, a pressure sensor for each displacement was fabricated based on the silicon-based pressure sensor obtained through simulation results. Wires were bonded to the pressure sensor, and a piezoresistive pressure sensor was inserted into the printed circuit board (PCB) base by directly connecting a micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) sensor and a readout integrated circuit (ROIC) for signal processing. In addition, to prevent exposure, a non-conductive liquid silicone was injected into the sensor and the entire ROIC using a pipette. The packaging proceeded to block from the outside. Performing such packaging, comparing simple contact with strong contact, and confirming that the measured pulse wavelength appears accurately.

In this study, image analysis and surface roughness measurements using an optical microscope are presented as a method to quantitatively evaluate the results of screen printing. Using this method, the squeegee speed, which is the printing process condition, and the printability of the electrode according to the screen mesh were evaluated. Increasing the squeegee speed in the printing process acts as a process element that increases the line width precision of the printed electrode and lowers the surface roughness of the printed surface. Furthermore, the edge roughness, which indicates the clarity of printing, was not significantly affected by the speed of the squeegee during printing. The print thickness increases in proportion to the squeegee speed, but is largely dependent on the screen thickness.

Focused electron beams with high energy acceleration are versatile probes. Focused electron beams can be used for high-resolution imaging and multi-mode nanofabrication, in combination with, molecular precursor delivery, in an electron microscopy environment. A high degree of control with atomic-to-microscale resolution, a focused electron beam allows for precise engineering of a graphene-based field-effect transistor (FET). In this study, the effect of electron irradiation on a graphene FET was systematically investigated. A separate evaluation of the electron beam induced transport properties at the graphene channel and the graphene-metal contacts was conducted. This provided on-demand strategies for tuning transfer characteristics of graphene FETs by focused electron beam irradiation.

As packaging processes for atomic gyroscope vapor cells, the glass tube tip-off process, anodic bonding, and paste sealing have been widely studied. However, there are stability issues in the alkali metal which are caused by impurity elements and leakage during high-temperature processes. In this study, we investigated the applicability of a vapor cell low-temperature packaging process by depositing Au on a Pyrex cell in addition to forming an Au-Sn thin film on a cap to cover the cell, followed by laser irradiation of the Au/Au-Sn interface. The mechanism of the thin film bonding was evaluated by XRD, while the packaging reliability of an Ne gas-filled vapor cell was characterized by variation of plasma discharge behavior with time. Furthermore, we confirmed that the Rb alkaline metal inside the vapor cell showed no color change, indicating no oxidation occurred during the process.

In this study, TiN-coated cBN (cubic-structure boron nitride) powders were successfully synthesized by a sol-gel method using titanium (IV) isopropoxide (TTIP) and by controlling the heat treatment conditions. After the sol-gel process, amorphous nano-sized TiOx was uniformly coated on the surface of cBN powder particles. The obtained TiOx-coated cBN powders were heated at 1,000~1,300℃ for 1 or 6 h in a flow of 95%N2-5%H2 mixed gas. With increasing temperature, the chemical composition of the TiOx coating layer changed in the order of TiO₂→Ti₆O₁₁→Ti₄O₇→TiN due to reduction of the Ti ions. The TiN coating layer was observable in the samples heated at 1,200℃ and appeared as the main phase in the sample heated at 1,300℃. The resulting thickness of the TiN coating layer of the sample heated at 1,300℃ was approximately 45~50 nm.

Over the past decade, small robots have been of particular interest in the engineering field. Among the various types of small robots, biomimetic robots, which mimic animals and insects, have been developed for special activities in areas where humans cannot physically access. The optimal motion of a walking robot can be determined by the characteristics of the traversed surface (e.g., roughness, curvature, slope, materials, etc.). This study proposes three types of piezoelectric structures using different driving mechanisms, depending on the application range of the small walking robots. Dynamic modeling using computer-aided engineering optimized the shape of the robot to maximize its moving characteristics, and the results were also verified through its fabrication and experimentation. Three types of robots, named by their actuator shapes as I, π, & T-shape, were proposed regarding application for small scale ambulatory robots to different terrain conditions. Among these, the T-shaped robots were shown to have a wide range of speeds (from 2 mm/s up to 255 mm/s) and good carrying capacity (up to 10 g at 50 mm/s) through driving experiments. Based on this study, we proposed possible application areas for the three types of walking robot actuators.

In this study, the drift current characteristics of charged particles are analyzed for panels fabricated by varying the waveform biasing of the active particle loading method (APLM), which is a method driven by the electrophoretic principle of loading charged particles into a cell of a barrier rib-type electronic paper. We prepare 3 panels using APLM and 1 panel without APLM. The waveform of APLM uses square wave and ramp wave, and the step voltage wave is applied to the driving voltage. The drift currents measured from the square wave and ramp wave with the same period applied by APLM are 4.872 μC and 5.464 μC, respectively, and the ramp wave is shown to be relatively advantageous for loading charged particles that have a large q/m. The time–current curve results confirm that the abrupt movement of charged particles is occurring. When the step form wave signal with a short time of 1s is first applied, initial large movement of the charged particles is confirmed to occur in all samples, which is understood as the effect of applying the voltage necessary to remove the imaging force. The results of this study are expected to improve the loading of charged particles into the electronic paper cell, driven by the electrophoretic principle and optimization of the driving conditions.

A series of phosphors, SrWO₄:5 mol% Dy³⁺, SrWO₄:5 mol% Sm³⁺, and SrWO₄:5 mol% Dy³⁺:x Sm³⁺ (x＝1~15 mol%), were prepared using a facile co-precipitation. The crystal structure, morphology, photoluminescence properties, and application in anti-counterfeiting fields were investigated. The crystalline structures of the prepared phosphors were found to be tetragonal systems with the dominant peak occurring at the (112) plane. The excitation spectra of the Dy³⁺ singly-doped SrWO₄ phosphors were composed of an intense charge-transfer band centered at 246 nm in the range of 210~270 nm and two weak peaks at 351 nm and 387 nm due to the ⁶H_15/2→⁶P_7/2 and ⁶H_15/2→⁴I_13/2 transitions of Dy³⁺ ions, respectively. The wavelength of 246 nm was optimum for exciting the luminescence of Dy³⁺ and Sm³⁺ co-doped SrWO₄ phosphors. The emission spectra consisted of two intense blue and yellow emission bands at 480 nm and 573 nm corresponding to the ⁴F_9/2→⁶H_15/2 and ⁴F_9/2→⁶H_13/2 transitions of Dy³⁺, and two strong emission peaks at 599 nm and 643 nm originating from the ⁴G_5/2→⁶H_7/2 and ⁴G_5/2→⁶H_9/2 transitions of Sm³⁺, respectively. As the concentration of Sm³⁺ ions increased, the emission intensities of Dy³⁺ rapidly decreased, while the emission intensities of Sm³⁺ gradually increased. These results suggest that the color of the emission light can be tuned from yellow to white by changing the concentration of Sm³⁺ ions at a fixed 5 mol% Dy³⁺. Furthermore, the fluorescent security inks were synthesized for use in anti-counterfeiting applications.

In this paper, we study the correlation between the crystallinity of semiconductive compounds for eco-friendly power cables and the dispersive properties of carbon black. The crystal structure of the polymer material is advantageous for mechanical properties and heat-resistance. However, the polymer acts as an inhibitor to the dispersibility of carbon black. The purpose of this study is to develop a TPE semiconductive compound technology. The high heat resistance and ultra-smoothness characteristics which are required for high voltage and ultra-high voltage cables should be satisfied by designing and optimizing the structure of a non-crosslinking-type eco-friendly TPE semiconductive compound. The application of excess TPE resin was found to not only inhibit the processability in the compounding process, but also reduced the dispersion properties of carbon black due to higher crystallinity. After the crystallinity of the compound was identified through DSC analysis, it was compared with the related dispersion characteristics. Through this analysis and comparison, we designed the optimal structure of the eco-friendly TPE semiconductive compound.

In this study, the following results were obtained by analysis of electric properties with FT-IR, DSC, XRD, and SEM, in the range of temperature 30~160℃ and frequency 0.1~200 kHz, when filling agent (0~100 phr) and silicone oil (0~12 phr) were added to raw silicone rubber. In the case of 100 phr mixed samples, the relative dielectric constant εr gradually decreased from 4.3 to 3.96 as frequency increased, and the dielectric loss tan δ decreased to 0.01 at 300 Hz, then increased to 0.022 at 30 kHz, then decreased to 200 kHz. The FT-IR analysis identified the same binding structure according to the chemical composition of added silica (SiO₂). Through DSC analysis, we could determine the change of heat quantity and the glass transition temperature of each specimen. In the XRD analysis, it was found that the images SiO₂, TiO₂, and Fe₂O₃ appeared for specimens with 0%, 50% and 100% filling agent. Finally, the SEM analysis confirmed that particles of 0.5 to 1.5 μm size with silica (SiO₂) mixing were dispersed evenly.

In this study, we introduce a Na β″-alumina composite thick film as a solid electrolyte, to reduce the resistance of electrolyte for a Na/S battery. An alumina/zirconia composite material was used to enhance the mechanical properties of the electrolyte. A solid electrolyte of about 40 μm thick was successfully fabricated through the conversion and tape-casting methods. In order to investigate the effect of the surface treatment process of the solid electrolyte on the battery performance, the electrolyte was polished by dry and wet processes, respectively, and then the Na/S batteries were prepared for analyzing the battery characteristics. The battery with the dry process performed much better than the battery made with the wet process. As a result, the battery manufactured by the dry process showed excellent performance. Therefore, it is confirmed that the surface treatment process of the solid electrolyte has an important effect on the battery capacity and coulombic efficiency, as well as the interface reaction.

This study tested the electrical, structural, and thermal safety of LED lighting products, available on the market. Five recessed LED systems, 20 W each, and five fixed LED systems, 25 W each, were selected. Dielectric strength tests, live part electric shock protection tests, and thermal tests were conducted on the LEDs. These were key tests for user safety, according to the specification of the safety criteria for electric products, KC 60598-1, South Korea. In addition, the wiring temperature of UL1007, 60227 IEC 08, and UTP cables, was measured. The results of the study gave an in-depth examination of the safety of LED lighting systems for users.

In this research, we evaluated the electrical properties of polycrystalline-gallium-oxide (Ga₂O₃) thin films grown by mist-CVD. A 500~800 nm-thick Ga₂O₃ film was used as a channel in a fabricated bottom-gate MOSFET device. The phase stability of the β-phase Ga₂O₃ layer was enhanced by an annealing treatment. A Ti/Al metal stack served as source and drain electrodes. Maximum drain current (I_D) exceeded 1 mA at a drain voltage (VD) of 20 V. Electron mobility of the β-Ga₂O₃ channel was determined from maximum transconductance (gm), as approximately, 1.39 cm²/Vs. Reasonable device characteristics were demonstrated, from measurement of drain current-gate voltage, for mist-CVD-grown Ga₂O³ thin films.