Researchers Devise New Way to Measure Temperature of Ultra-Thin Materials
Graduate student Xuan Hu is the first author of a paper currently being featured as an Editor's Suggestion in the journal Physical Review Letters (PRL). The paper, Mapping Thermal Expansion Coefficients in Freestanding 2D Materials at the Nanometer Scale, presents a new method to capture precise temperature measurements in two-dimensional materials. These ultra-thin materials, known as transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) hold a world of potential for applications such as computer microprocessors or energy dense batteries. But because TMDs are so small and thin, existing heat measurement technologies don't work on them. Now, a cross-disciplinary team from the Department of Physics and the College of Engineering has figured out how electron microscope technology can be used to measure temperature and predict behavior when TMDs undergo heat fluctuations. The new measurement technique clears a path for the creation of smaller, more powerful electronic devices that won't overheat.
In addition to Hu, the research team and paper authorship includes Professor Robert Klie, Professor Serdar Ogut, and Postdoctoral Research Associate Jakob Jokisaari (UIC Department of Physics); and Poya Yasaei and Professor Amin Salehi-Khojin (UIC Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering).
Read more about the team's work at UIC News: Measuring the Temperature of Two-Dimensional Materials at the Atomic Level