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This dissertation examines the response of piezoelectric material strain to electron flux influence. A plate of PZT5h is prepared as the specimen. The positive electrode is removed, and the negative electrode is connected to a power amplifier. Sixteen strain gages are attached as the strain sensor. The specimen is placed in a vacuum chamber, then the positive side is illuminated by electron beam. The characteristic of the static strain response is predicted by deriving the equation strain/deflection of the plate. Two methods are used, the Electro-Mechanical Equations and numerical analysis using Finite Element Method. The settings of the electron gun system (energy and emission current), along with the electric potential of the negative electrode (back-pressure), are varied to examine piezoelectric material responses under various conditions. Several material characteristics are examined: current flow to and from the material, time response of material strain, charge and strain distribution, and blooming. Results from these experiments suggest several conditions control the strain development in piezoelectric material. The current flow and strain on the material is stable if the backpressure voltage is positive. As a comparison, the current flow is small and the strain drifts down if the backpressure voltage is significantly negative. The material needs only 1 second to follow a positive step in backpressure voltage, but needs almost 1 minute to respond to a negative step backpressure change. This phenomenon is a result of secondary electron emission change and the energy transfer from the primary electrons to the local electrons on the material. The time needed to achieve steady state condition is also a dependent of emission current. After a period of time the primary electron incidence induces strain throughout the 7.5-cm-by-5-cm plate despite the fact that the beam diameter is only 1 cm2. One possibility is blooming due to electron movement under intense electric fields in the dielectric material.

As sources of energy are becoming more scarce and expensive, energy harvesting is receiving more global interest and is currently a growing field. Energy harvesting is the process of converting ambient energy, such as vibration, to electrical energy that can power a multitude of applications. Vibration energy is the by-product of everyday life; it is generated from any perceivable activity. While typically viewed as noise, there is a strong potential for harvesting this energy and deploying it to useful applications. The focus of this thesis will be using vibration as the ambient source of energy. Hybrid energy harvesters employ more than one of the harvesting technologies. In this thesis, two hybrid harvesters that utilize piezoelectric, magnetostrictive, and electromagnetic technologies are designed, modelled, and tested. Both of these harvesters have beams that are spiral in shape. The use of the spiral geometry allows the system to have a lower natural frequency as opposed to the traditional cantilever beam, while still maintaining a high volume of active material. The first harvester that is discussed is the P-MSM harvester. It utilizes piezoelectric and magnetostrictive material. Both materials are configured in a spiral beam geometry and allowed to resonate independently. The resonance frequency of these two materials is designed to create wideband energy harvesting. This allows the harvester to be operating efficiently even if the ambient vibration shifts a small amount. The second harvester that is discussed is the P-MAG harvester. It utilizes piezoelectric and electromagnetic technologies. It also incorporates a spiral geometry for the piezoelectric layers and includes a magnet attached at the centre. The magnet is placed in the centre of the spiral to reduce the natural frequency of the system and to also actively contribute to the harvesting. This harvester has two sources operating at the same resonant frequency, which allows it to have a larger power output than if the sources were separated. Finally, finite element analysis was used to model both harvesters. ANSYS was used for the piezoelectric material and COMSOL was used for the electromagnetic material. The results are compared to the experimental and are in good agreement.

Approved for public release; distribution unlimited. / Current solar cell technology suffers low efficiencies in the commercial sector and cost prohibitive technology at higher efficiencies. This thesis investigates the possibility of a novel, alternate, avenue for the creation of solar power, which has the potential to be both cost effective and highly efficient. The approach converts solar energy into electrical energy via a MEMS device that utilizes spectrum-insensitive thermal absorption combined with power generation via the piezoelectric effect. The thesis investigates the underlying physics, materials needed, design requirements, computer modeling, optimization, and microfabrication process in the creation of such a device.

This thesis deals with the design and experimental validation of Deformable Mirror Electronics (DME) for Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) Adaptive Optics (AO) applications. Modern ground based telescopes achieve their best possible imaging resolution through the application of AO. However, due to the fundamental diffraction of optical elements, the next generation of ELTs will employ primary mirrors of an increasingly large diameter as the final means of improving imaging resolution further. The corresponding increase in diameter and actuator count of the Deformable Mirrors (DMs) in these systems has led to the rapid development of high order DM technology. A significant challenge to operating these multi-thousand channel DMs is related to the DM Electronics (DME), which are required to be highly efficient so-as to operate within practical budgetary constraints. This thesis develops a DME reference design based on the requirements for the Thirty Meter Telescope’s next generation AO system, the Narrow Field Infrared Adaptive Optics System (NFIRAOS), which operates two DMs with a total of 7673 piezoelectric actuators. The basis of the DME is the DM actuator driver, which has been developed to be suitable for very high order reproduction by optimization of its size, power, cost and reliability. A complication is that the piezoelectric actuators in NFIRAOS DMs require high voltage drive signals of ±400 V to obtain the rated stroke and must be current limited to avoid damage. Candidate amplifiers are evaluated in simulation and hardware based on a combination of performance, physical and functional criteria; with the most suitable circuit chosen for a multi-channel prototype implementation and testing with a DM breadboard prototype. The development and optimization of an amplifier capable of meeting NFIRAOS performance criteria and budgetary constraints is demonstrated. / Graduate / 0544 / 0606

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Manufacturers face the challenge of enhancing fuel efficiency, engine performance, and reducing harmful emissions. Novel fuel injection technologies can assist in meeting such demands. This dissertation summarizes the stages in the design, prototyping and experimental analysis of a direct-acting piezoelectric fuel injector concept. In the proposed design, a piezoelectric stack actuator is used to directly control the injection of fuel in order to enhance the injection characteristics by utilizing the fast response time of the actuator. The direct-acting concept was implemented by developing a motion inverter in the form of a disc that reverses the direction of the input and allows the actuator to directly control injections. Tests with input signals similar to those used in diesel engines confirmed the theoretical calculations and verified the prototype’s performance. This design can control the quantity of injected fuel more precisely than currently available commercial injectors.

The performance of smart structures depends on the dynamic electromechanical behavior of piezoelectric sensors/actuators and the bonding condition along the interface. This thesis contents a theoretical study of the coupled electromechanical characteristics of a surface-bonded piezoelectric sensor with interfacial debonding, which is subjected to high frequency mechanical loads. A one dimensional sensor model is proposed. Analytical solutions based on the integral equation method are provided. Numerical simulation is conducted to evaluate the effects of different parameters upon the dynamic load transfer between the sensor and the host medium. The results indicate that, the material combination, the sensor geometry, and the loading frequency, affect the load transfer significantly. The analytical solution of the elastic wave field in the host medium is obtained and used to evaluate the effects of different parameters upon the resulting wave field. The theoretical solution demonstrates the basic properties of wave propagation under current loading conditions.

Thesis (M. Phil.)--University of Hong Kong, 2008. / Also available in print.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--School of Aerospace, Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, University of Sydney, 2005. / Bibliography: leaves R1-R20.