Short Course #4 Electrochemical Nanotechnology Stephen Lipka, Instructor
Nanostructured materials are distinguished from conventional polycrystalline materials by the size of the structural units that comprise them: microstructures comprising nanoscale domains in at least one dimension. The ability to control a material’s structure and composition at the nano-level has demonstrated that materials and devices can be fabricated possessing properties intrinsically different from their polycrystalline counterparts. As tailoring of fundamental properties becomes possible at the atomic level, the prospect of developing novel materials and devices with unique functionality becomes feasible.
The aim of this short course is to introduce the student to selected aspects of nano-material synthesis, characterization, and device fabrication as it relates to electrochemical systems. An overview of recent advances in the synthesis, characterization, and properties of nanomaterials will be presented with particular emphasis on experimental methods and strategies to develop functional nanomaterials and devices applicable to the field of electrochemistry. The course reviews the “tools of the trade” available to the nanotechnologist for characterizing and manipulating materials at the atomic level. Strategies for preparing nanomaterials in the form of rods, wires, tubes, and particles and their application in electrochemical devices such as batteries, fuel cells, electrochemical capacitors, electrochemical actuators, and sensors are presented. Fabrication of nanomaterials and architectures using electrochemical directed self-assembly processes is reviewed.
About the Instructor
Stephen Lipka currently heads the electrochemistry program in the Center for Applied Energy Research at the University of Kentucky where a majority of his work involves electrochemical energy storage and conversion. Dr Lipka has held industrial positions at American Cyanamid Chemical Research Division and Physical Sciences, Inc. and was a member of the Ocean Engineering faculty at Florida Atlantic University for 14 years. He holds a BS in materials engineering from Wilkes College and MS and PhD degrees in materials science from the University of Virginia.
