Laser Applications, Materials and Plasmas (LAMP)

LAMP Research

Faculty in the LAMP (Laser Applications, Materials, and Plasmas) area conduct research in several interrelated areas.

Laser related research in Azer Yalin's group concerns laser diagnostics of plasmas and gaseous environments and related laser applications.  For example, cavity ring-down spectroscopy (CRDS), an ultra-sensitive absorption technique, is used to study sputtering for process control and electric propulsion applications.  Other current projects include laser ignition of gas engines, applied sputtering studies, ultraviolet CRDS using prism cavities, and photonic crystal fibers for high-power pulse delivery.

Materials related research is conducted by several faculty members.  Mani Manivannan’s group is building a better hybrid car battery that is more powerful, requires less frequent recharging, and contains all the safety that drivers want. The key technology driver is provided by new and improved human-made materials having high energy density and high power capability, affordability, and inherent safety because the material itself is fundamentally and intrinsically safe. 

W.  Sampath’s effort is focused on research and development related to CdTe thin-film photovoltaic (PV) solar cells.  His team has been successful in developing many innovations to improve the manufacturing efficiency and enable the mass production of PV modules. These innovations encompass production processes, production hardware and PV modules design. These PV manufacturing technologies are demonstrated on an automated, working prototype.

Materials related research interests of Susan James, Ketul Popat, Christian Puttlitz, and Xianghong Qian are described in their links below as well as on the Biomedical Engineering page, while Don Radford’s activities are described in the link below and on the Motorsport Engineering page.

Plasma related research is conducted in Azer Yalin’s group and in John Williams’ group.  John Williams is director of the EPPE Lab (Electric Propulsion and Plasma Engineering Laboratory).  Research in the EPPE Lab focuses on topics including modeling of erosion phenomena on ion thruster components such as ion extraction grids and hollow cathodes, as well as experimental evaluation of plasma and ion beam interactions with materials for both aerospace and terrestrial applications.

 

Research Areas

Research Resources