Cristina H. Amon

Broadband phonon mean free path contributions to thermal conductivity measured using frequency domain thermoreflectance

Non-metallic crystalline materials conduct heat by the transport of quantized atomic lattice vibrations called phonons. Thermal conductivity depends on how far phonons travel between scattering events-their mean free paths. Due to the breadth of the phonon mean free path spectrum, nanostructuring materials can reduce thermal conductivity from bulk by scattering long mean free path phonons, whereas short mean free path phonons are unaffected. Here we use a breakdown in diffusive phonon transport generated by high-frequency surface temperature modulation to identify the mean free path-dependent contributions of phonons to thermal conductivity in crystalline and amorphous silicon. Our measurements probe a broad range of mean free paths in crystalline silicon spanning 0.3-8.0 μm at a temperature of 311 K and show that 40±5% of its thermal conductivity comes from phonons with mean free path >1 μm. In a 500 nm thick amorphous silicon film, despite atomic disorder, we identify propagating phonon-like modes that contribute >35±7% to thermal conductivity at a temperature of 306 K.

Submicron Heat Transport Model in Silicon Accounting for Phonon Dispersion and Polarization

In recent years, the Boltzmann transport equation (BTE) has begun to be used for predicting thermal transport in dielectrics and semiconductors at the submicron scale. However, most published studies make a gray assumption and do not account for either dispersion or polarization. In this study, we propose a model based on the BTE, accounting for transverse acoustic and longitudinal acoustic phonons as well as optical phonons. This model incorporates realistic phonon dispersion curves for silicon. The interactions among the different phonon branches and different phonon frequencies are considered, and the proposed model satisfies energy conservation. Frequency-dependent relaxation times, obtained from perturbation theory, and accounting for phonon interaction rules, are used. In the present study, the BTE is numerically solved using a structured finite volume approach. For a problem involving a film with two boundaries at different temperatures, the numerical results match the analogous exact solutions from radiative transport literature for various acoustic thicknesses. For the same problem, the transient thermal response in the acoustically thick limit matches results from the solution to the parabolic Fourier diffusion equation. In the acoustically thick limit, the bulk experimental value of thermal conductivity of silicon at different temperatures is recovered from the model. Experimental in-plane thermal conductivity data for silicon thin films over a wide range of temperatures are also matched satisfactorily.

An engineering design methodology with multistage Bayesian surrogates and optimal sampling

This paper presents an adaptive, surrogate-based, engineering design methodology for the efficient use of numerical simulations of physical models. These surrogates are nonlinear regression models fitted with data obtained from deterministic numerical simulations using optimal sampling. A multistage Bayesian procedure is followed in the formulation of surrogates to support the evolutionary nature of engineering design. Information from computer simulations of different levels of accuracy and detail is integrated, updating surrogates sequentially to improve their accuracy. Data-adaptive optimal sampling is conducted by minimizing the sum of the eigenvalues of the prior covariance matrix. Metrics to quantify prediction errors are proposed and tested to evaluate surrogate accuracy given cost and time constraints. The proposed methodology is tested with a known analytical function to illustrate accuracy and cost tradeoffs. This methodology is then applied to the thermal design of embedded electronic packages with five design parameters. Temperature distributions of embedded electronic chip configurations are calculated using spectral element direct numerical simulations. Surrogates, built from 30 simulations in two stages, are used to predict responses of new design combinations and to minimize the maximum chip temperature.

Bioprinting of growth factors onto aligned sub-micron fibrous scaffolds for simultaneous control of cell differentiation and alignment

The capability to spatially control stem cell orientation and differentiation simultaneously using a combination of geometric cues that mimic structural aspects of native extracellular matrix (ECM) and biochemical cues such as ECM-bound growth factors (GFs) is important for understanding the organization and function of musculoskeletal tissues. Herein, oriented sub-micron fibers, which are morphologically similar to musculoskeletal ECM, were spatially patterned with GFs using an inkjet-based bioprinter to create geometric and biochemical cues that direct musculoskeletal cell alignment and differentiation in vitro in registration with fiber orientation and printed patterns, respectively. Sub-micron polystyrene fibers (diameter ~ 655 nm) were fabricated using a Spinneret-based Tunable Engineered Parameters (STEP) technique and coated with serum or fibrin. The fibers were subsequently patterned with tendon-promoting fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF-2) or bone-promoting bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2) prior to seeding with mouse C2C12 myoblasts or C3H10T1/2 mesenchymal fibroblasts. Unprinted regions of STEP fibers showed myocyte differentiation while printed FGF-2 and BMP-2 patterns promoted tenocyte and osteoblast fates, respectively, and inhibited myocyte differentiation. Additionally, cells aligned along the fiber length. Functionalizing oriented sub-micron fibers with printed GFs provides instructive cues to spatially control cell fate and alignment to mimic native tissue organization and may have applications in regenerative medicine.

The effect of asymmetry in abdominal aortic aneurysms under physiologically realistic pulsatile flow conditions

In the abdominal segment of the human aorta under a patients average resting conditions, pulsatile blood flow exhibits complex laminar patterns with secondary flows induced by adjacent branches and irregular vessel geometries. The flow dynamics becomes more complex when there is a pathological condition that causes changes in the normal structural composition of the vessel wall, for example, in the presence of an aneurysm. This work examines the hemodynamics of pulsatile blood flow in hypothetical three-dimensional models of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs). Numerical predictions of blood flow patterns and hemodynamic stresses in AAAs are performed in single-aneurysm, asymmetric, rigid wall models using the finite element method. We characterize pulsatile flow dynamics in AAAs for average resting conditions by means of identifying regions of disturbed flow and quantifying the disturbance by evaluating flow-induced stresses at the aneurysm wall, specifically wall pressure and wall shear stress. Physiologically realistic abdominal aortic blood flow is simulated under pulsatile conditions for the range of time-average Reynolds numbers 50 < or = Rem < or = 300, corresponding to a range of peak Reynolds numbers 262.5 < or = Repeak < or = 1575. The vortex dynamics induced by pulsatile flow in AAAs is depicted by a sequence of four different flow phases in one period of the cardiac pulse. Peak wall shear stress and peak wall pressure are reported as a function of the time-average Reynolds number and aneurysm asymmetry. The effect of asymmetry in hypothetically shaped AAAs is to increase the maximum wall shear stress at peak flow and to induce the appearance of secondary flows in late diastole.

Drawing suspended polymer micro-/nanofibers using glass micropipettes

This letter proposes a method for fabricating suspended micro-/nanoscale polymer fibers continuously, in which polymeric micro-/nanofibers are formed by drawing and solidification of a viscous liquid polymer solution which is pumped through a glass micropipette. By controlling the drawing parameters, this method is demonstrated to form networks of suspended fibers having amorphous internal structure and uniform diameters from micrometers down to sub-50-nm for different molecular weights of polystyrene dissolved in xylene.

PCM thermal control unit for portable electronic devices: experimental and numerical studies

This paper investigates the effectiveness of a thermal control unit (TCU) for portable electronic devices by performing experimental and numerical analyses. The TCU objective is to improve thermal management of electronic devices when their operating time is limited to a few hours. It is composed of an organic phase change material (PCM) and a thermal conductivity enhancer (TCE). To overcome the relatively low thermal conductivity of the PCM, a TCE is incorporated into the PCM to boost its conductivity. The TCU structure is complex, and modeling an electronic device with it requires time and effort. Hence, this research develops approximate, yet effective, solutions for modeling the TCU, which employ effective thermo-physical properties. The TCU component properties are averaged and a single TCU material is considered. This approach is evaluated by comparing the numerical predictions with the experimental results. The numerical model is then used to study the effect of important parameters that are experimentally expensive to examine, such as the PCM latent heat, Stefan number, and heat source power. It is shown that the TCU can provide a reliable solution to portable electronic devices, which avoids overheating and thermally-induced fatigue, as well as a solution which satisfies the ergonomic requirement.

In-plane phonon transport in thin films

The in-plane phonon thermal conductivities of argon and silicon thin films are predicted from the Boltzmann transport equation under the relaxation time approximation. We model the thin films using bulk phonon properties obtained from harmonic and anharmonic lattice dynamics calculations. The input required for the lattice dynamics calculations is obtained from interatomic potentials: Lennard-Jones for argon and Stillinger–Weber for silicon. The effect of the boundaries is included by considering only phonons with wavelengths that fit within the film and adjusting the relaxation times to account for mode-dependent, diffuse boundary scattering. Our model does not rely on the isotropic approximation or any fitting parameters. For argon films thicker than 4.3 nm and silicon films thicker than 17.4 nm, the use of bulk phonon properties is found to be appropriate and the predicted reduction in the in-plane thermal conductivity is in good agreement with results obtained from molecular dynamics simulation and ex...

MEMS-enabled thermal management of high-heat-flux devices EDIFICE: embedded droplet impingement for integrated cooling of electronics

Abstract This paper reports the development of embedded droplet impingement for integrated cooling of electronics (EDIFICE). The EDIFICE project seeks to develop an integrated droplet impingement cooling device for removing chip heat fluxes in the range 70–100 W/cm2, employing latent heat of vaporization of dielectric fluids (50–100 μm droplets) to achieve these high heat removal rates. Micro-manufacturing and micro electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) will be discussed as enabling technologies for innovative cooling schemes recently proposed. A novel feature to enable adaptive on-demand cooling is MEMS sensing (on-chip temperature, remote IR temperature and ultrasonic dielectric film thickness) and MEMS actuation. EDIFICE will be integrated within the electronics package and fabricated using advanced micro-manufacturing technology (e.g., deep reactive ion etching (DRIE) and complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) CMU-MEMS). The development of EDIFICE involves modeling, CFD simulations, and physical experimentation on test beds. In this study, numerical simulations are performed to investigate EDIFICE jet impingement cooling with a dielectric coolant and the influence of several parameters such as jet diameter, jet velocity, and latent heat effects. This paper also presents flow visualization of micro-jet break-up, induced by MEMS micro-nozzles of irregular shapes and flow swirling to generate droplets with desirable dispersion. To enhance liquid spreading on the impingement surface and to create a thin film for effective evaporation, MEMS micro-structured surfaces are fabricated. All of these components are made from silicon and enabled by integrated-MEMS process technologies.

Residual stress-induced warping in direct metal solid freeform fabrication

Tolerance loss due to residual stress-induced warping is a major concern in solid freeform fabrication (SFF) processes, particularly those which involve direct deposition of molten metals. An understanding of how residual stresses develop and how they lead to tolerance loss is a key issue in advancing these processes. In this paper, results are presented from warping experiments on plate-shaped specimens created by two direct metal deposition methods, which are utilized by a particular SFF process termed shape deposition manufacturing (SDM). Results from these experiments give insight into the differences between the two deposition methods, the role of preheating and insulating conditions during manufacture and the influence of deposition path on magnitudes and distributions of warping displacements. Results are then compared to numerical predictions from both one and two-dimensional residual stress models, which are applicable to SDM and similar direct metal deposition processes. Results from the experiments and numerical models suggest that a combination of initial substrate preheating and part insulation can be applied to SDM and similar SFF processes to limit warping deflections, which is substantially simpler than active control of part temperatures during manufacture. Results also suggest that 3-D mechanical constraints are important in achieving precise control of warping behavior in SFF processes.