Researchers use various traditional techniques (e.g., scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy and electron backscatter diffraction) to capture microstructural evolution in nuclear fuels and materials. However, these surface-based methods do not accurately capture the complex microstructure of the fuel. We utilize new tomography-based techniques on nuclear fuels which yield information on grains, fission products and porosity structure in 3D. This data can be used as input to new phase-field models to predict fuel performance in a reactor.
Faculty
Ph.D., 2012, Texas A&M University
Research Interests: Nuclear Fuels and Materials, with emphasis on characterization and property evaluation; Mechanical and Thermal properties of materials; Reactor Irradiation; Radiation damage in materials; Ion Implantation; Kinetics; Composites; Nanostructured materials; Multi-Scale simulation of nuclear fuel.
Lab Website: MAterials for Nuclear Advancement and Technology in Extreme Environments (MANATEE) Group
Ph.D., 2017, University of California, Santa Barbara
Research Interests: Energy Storage Materials, Lithium-ion Batteries, Structure-Property Relationships, X-ray Diffraction, Pair Distribution Function Analysis
Lab Website: Butala Research Group
Ph. D., 1987, University of California, Berkeley
Research Interests: Semiconductor Processing and electron microscopy characterization; Ion implantation of Si, Ge and compound semiconductors; Li ion battery anode and cathode development
Lab Website: Swamp Group
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Ph.D., 2015, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Research Interests: Advanced electron microscopy techniques, Quantitative analysis of electron microscopy data, Digital image processing, Understanding materials properties at the atomic scale, Functional oxides and semiconductors
Lab Website: Kim Electron Microscopy Group
Ph.D., 2016, University of California Santa Barbara
Research Interests: Fundamentals of Structural Evolution in Crystalline Materials, Advanced Electron Microscopy Techniques, Recovery and Crystallization, Deformation Mechanisms and Texture Development
Lab Website: Metallic Orientation, aNisotropy, and microSTructure Engineering Research (MONSTER) Group
Ph.D., McGill University, 2017
Research Interests: Engineering Education; Material Characterization; Non-destructive Evaluation (Electromagnetic Measurements); Structure-Property Relationship; Micromagnetics