SBIR-STTR Award

Full Spectrum Zinc Oxide Nanowire Sensors by MOCVD
Award last edited on: 11/8/2018

Sponsored Program
STTR
Awarding Agency
DOD : Navy
Total Award Amount
$600,000
Award Phase
2
Solicitation Topic Code
N09-T004
Principal Investigator
Bruce I Willner

Company Information

Structured Materials Industries Inc (AKA: Nanopowders Enterprises~SMI)

201 Circle Drive North Units 102-103
Piscataway, NJ 08854
   (732) 302-9274
   sales@structuredmaterials.com
   www.smicvd.com

Research Institution

Drexel University

Phase I

Contract Number: N68335-09-C-0350
Start Date: 7/16/2009    Completed: 2/16/2010
Phase I year
2009
Phase I Amount
$100,000
Structured Materials Industries and Drexel University propose to develop an electrically contacted aligned zinc oxide nanowire array for highly efficient, broad spectrum focal plane arrays. The properties of ZnO make it a very promising material for optoelectronic devices. In particular, the wide bandgap (3.37eV) and large exciton binding energy (60meV), and the ability to fabricate stable, uniform ZnO nanowires make the material attractive as a sensor material. A ZnO nanowire focal plane array has great potential as a highly sensitive, low noise imager capable of operation over a broad wavelength range. The wide bandgap of ZnO will produce very little thermal noise. A dense array of nanowires, properly designed, will produce a very large absorption cross section for the design wavelength range. The precise control of nanowire deposition, including composition and diameter provides the ability to precisely tune the structures for particular wavelength ranges and objectives. Further, sensitizers (molecular or nanoparticle) on the surface of the nanowires may be used to tune the optoelectronic response further. All these factors lead to a high performance, broad wavelength imager.

Benefit:
The primary market for this technology will be military, for remote monitoring and for detection of hostile actions. There may be further markets available to the imager in industrial settings and, with some modifications, for specialized applications like solar blind imaging. The technology to produce large arrays of electrically contacted, highly uniform nanowires also has other applications. One application of great interest is chemical sensing. By bonding specific receptors to the ZnO nanowires, highly sensitive and highly specialized chemical sensors may be fabricated. This technology may be used for gas and chemical sensors for industry as well as for military and homeland security applications.

Keywords:
focal plane array, focal plane array, UV imager, zinc oxide, broad spectrum imager, nanowires

Phase II

Contract Number: N68335-11-C-0040
Start Date: 10/4/2010    Completed: 4/4/2012
Phase II year
2011
Phase II Amount
$500,000
Structured Materials Industries, Inc. (SMI) with its partner, Drexel University, propose to build upon our Phase I success and continue the development of electrically contacted zinc oxide nanowire (NW) arrays for highly efficient solar blind UV sensors, and implement them in a packaged prototype product. The properties of ZnO make it a very promising material for optoelectronic devices. In particular, the wide bandgap (3.37eV) and large exciton binding energy (60meV), and the ability to fabricate stable, uniform ZnO nanowires make the material attractive as a sensor material. A ZnO nanowire focal plane array has great potential as a highly sensitive, low noise imager capable of operation over a broad wavelength range. The wide bandgap of ZnO will produce very little thermal noise. A dense array of nanowires, properly designed, will produce a very large absorption cross section for the design wavelength range. The precise control of nanowire deposition, including composition and diameter provides the ability to adapt the structures for particular objectives. Further, sensitizers (molecular or nanoparticle) on the surface of the nanowires may be used to tune the optoelectronic response further. The unique material system allows fabrication processes compatible with silicon IC technology, providing high quality, low-cost devices.

Benefit:
The primary market for this technology will be military, for remote monitoring and for detection of hostile actions. There are further markets available to the imager in industrial settings and elsewhere for solar blind imaging. Other uses include hydrogen and natural gas fire detection, electrical corona discharge detection, and monitoring some industrial manufacturing processes. The technology may also prove highly useful for chemical sensing with further development.

Keywords:
Multi-spectral, ultraviolet, zinc oxide, Nanowire, Solar blind, ultraviolet detector, Imager, focal plane array