2021 Research Projects
Projects are posted below; new projects will continue to be posted. To learn more about the type of research conducted by undergraduates, view the archived symposium booklets and search the past SURF projects.
This is a list of research projects that may have opportunities for undergraduate students. Please note that it is not a complete list of every SURF project. Undergraduates will discover other projects when talking directly to Purdue faculty.
You can browse all the projects on the list or view only projects in the following categories:
Nanotechnology (12)
Advanced Textile based Wearable Devices
More information: https://www.tianliresearch.com/
Bio-inspired Radiative Cooling Nanocomposites
In this SURF project, we look for a self-motivated student to work with our PhD students. The student will first synthesize bio-inspired nanocomposites via some wet chemistry and/or nanoscale 3D printing methods. The optical, mechanical, and other relevant properties will then be characterized with spectrometers and specialized equipment, with a particular focus on the effect of different particle alignment/processing techniques on the optical and mechanical properties. Field testing will be performed to measure the cooling performance of the materials and devices. The work is expected to results in journal paper(s) of high quality. Students who make substantial contributions to the work can expect to be co-authors of the paper(s).
More information: https://engineering.purdue.edu/NANOENERGY/
Describing the collective motion of dislocations in metals
We have two projects available, please apply for this position if you are interested in either one.
• One project will involve simulating dislocations in face centered cubic metals to extract statistical information about how they form junctions. This junctions are the physical basis of work-hardening, and this statistical information will allow us to incorporate junctions into the density-based, fluid-like model.
• Another project will involve simulating x-ray diffraction patterns in face-centered cubic metals containing dislocations in order to identify signals relevant to the fluid-like properties of the dislocations. Basic machine learning techniques will be used to identify these signals. No experience with x-ray diffraction or machine learning is needed. These results will allow experimentalists at our national labs to measure the fluid-like properties of dislocations in a lab rather than through simulations.
More information: Not yet
Development of an anti-deterrent formulation against opioid abuse
Efficient and renewable water treatment
More information: www.warsinger.com
High Performance Halide Perovskite Solar Cells
In the past few years, perovskite solar cell technology has made significant progress, improving in efficiency to ~25%, while maintaining attractive economics due to the use of inexpensive soluble materials coupled with ultra low-cost deposition technologies. However, the real applications of these devices requires new breakthroughs in device performance, large-scale manufacturing, and improved stability. Among these, stability and degradation are among the most significant challenges for perovskite technologies. Perovskite absorber layer and organic charge transport materials can be sensitive to water, oxygen, high temperatures, ultraviolet light, and even electric field, all of which will be encountered during operation. To address these issues, significant efforts have been made, including mixed dimensionality and surface passivation; alternative absorber materials and formulations, new charge transport layers, and advanced encapsulation techniques, etc. Now, T80 lifetimes (i.e., the length of time in operation until measured output power is 80% of original output power) of over 1,000 hours have been demonstrated. However, it is still far below the industry required 20 years lifetime, indicating the ineffectiveness of current approaches. To make this advance, non-incremental and fundamentally new strategies are required to improve the intrinsic stability of perovskite active materials.
In this project, we propose a new paradigm to develop intrinsically robust perovskite active layers through the incorporation of multi-functional semiconducting conjugated ligands. In preliminary work, we have demonstrated that semiconducting ligands can spontaneously organize within the active layer to passivate defects and restrict halide diffusion, resulting in dramatic improvements in moisture and oxygen tolerance, reduced phase segregation, and increased thermal stability. Combining a team with expertise spanning the gamut of materials synthesis, computational materials design, and device engineering, we will develop a suite of multi-functional semiconducting ligands capable of improving the intrinsic stability perovskite materials while preserving and even enhancing their electronic properties. Through this strategy, we aim to achieve over 25% cell efficiency with operational stability over 20 years for future commercial use.
More information: https://letiandougroup.com/
Mass spectrometry of biomolecules and nanoclusters
More information: https://www.chem.purdue.edu/jlaskin/
Modeling High Efficiency Thermophotovoltaic Systems
In this project, the student will develop/upgrade a GUI-based tool to calculate the emittance spectrum and efficiency of a multilayer structure based TPV device. The tool is hosted and run through nanoHUB.org - an open-access science gateway for cloud-based simulation tools and resources in nanoscale science and technology. The student will also work with graduate students and use this tool to study how to improve the TPV efficiency based on physical models.
Nanostructural Evaluation of Human Bone Under Applied Loading
Printable functional filaments and sensor for biomedical devices
Design and characterize a novel 3D printable filament imbued with an antibacterial and piezoelectric electrical stimulating agent. This mesh should be biocompatible, flexible, and biodegradable over a period of years.
A second part of project will be focused on printing low-cost biosensors for detecting COVID-19 virus.
Simulations of nanofluid flow in inkjet 3D printing
In this SURF project, we look for a self-motivated student to work with our PhD students. By the end of this project the student will get familiarized with Finite Element Method (FEM), simple cluster commands and various computational tools, like COMSOL Multiphysics or ANSYS. The work is expected to result in journal paper(s) of high quality. Students who make substantial contributions to the work can expect to be co-authors of the paper(s).
More information: https://engineering.purdue.edu/NANOENERGY/
SoCET: System on Chip Extension Technologies
The technical objective of the SoC Team is to create and keep improving on an SoC design that we can then customize for special application and research needs. The team's major project is that of creating an SoC that is optimized for very small scale and low power machine learning applications, but there are numerous problems one can work on including modelling of a secure SoC architecture, design of chiplets, FPGA prototyping, extending a RISCV open source processor design, testing of recent chips designed by SoCET, analog circuit design, and using industry grade design verification techniques.
More information: https://engineering.purdue.edu/SoC-Team