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| Center for Advanced Materials | ||||||
      
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The Center for Advanced Materials (CAM) addresses research and development of advanced materials and their fundamental science while maintaining a strong applications focus. CAM develops new materials leading to technologies of importance to the nation’s space program in its industry-academia-government partnership, and moves these and other materials advances into the commercial sector for economic and social benefit. CAM applies epitaxial growth techniques to the development of advanced materials to form new micro- and nano-engineered materials and devices of the future, while training the next generation of scientists and engineers. Current research and development projects include high energy density capacitors for extreme environments, mid-IR LASER environmental sensors, single chip-integrated bio-chemical sensors, as well as a number of promising next-generation energy sources... | ||||||
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| Thin Film Solid Oxide Fuel Cells -SOFC | ||||||
| SOFC operate on methane as well as hydrogen at temperatures of 450 – 500 degrees C, have ultra-low mass ( ~ 3kW/kg), power densities greater than 10 Watts/cubic centimeter), and efficiencies greater than 60%. | ||||||
| High Efficiency Rad-Hard Solar Cells | ||||||
| Thin film multi-quantum well solar cells have a multiple junction design capable of overlapping a large portion of the complete solar spectrum, yielding greater than 35% efficiency, and a longer effective life in GEO exposure. Two-junction high efficiency multi-quantum well solar cells will significantly reduce the size and operational costs of future spacecraft designs. | |||||
| High Efficiency Thermophotovoltaics | ||||||
| TPV energy conversion provides high-efficiency, compact, and reliable electric energy from heat. An Infrared-sensitive photovoltaic cell converts the IR emission of a thermal source directly into electricity with > 25% efficiency. Burn box technology integrated with TPV applied to electric vehicle design could benefit from already established fuel distribution infrastructures. | ||||||
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| High Temperature Superconducting Wire | ||||||
| HTS wire has been developed providing up to 500A current capacity in a 5 micrometer thick film on a formable substrate with performance 1000X greater than copper at LN2 temperatures. | ||||||
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| Center for Advanced Materials | ||||||
| 724 Science & Research Building One | ||||||
| Houston, Texas 77204-5004 | ||||||
| 713-743-3621 | ||||||
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