Le sujet de cette thèse concerne les applications hautes températures, où les moteurs doivent être capables de fonctionner à 400°C pendant 2 heures, selon la norme en vigueur. Il convient dans ce type d’applications de disposer de matériaux assez stables pour que leurs propriétés isolantes restent inchangées, ce qui est le cas du fil émaillé PolyImide (PI). Ce fil émaillé pose néanmoins des problèmes économiques et de fournisseurs, d’où la nécessité de trouver d’autres alternatives. Ce travail de thèse a eu pour but de mettre au point et valider des techniques d’analyses (ATG / ATM / ATR-FTIR / DRS) adaptées au fil émaillé, et ce jusqu’à 400°C. Le PEI présente des propriétés insuffisantes pour ce type d’application car il se dégrade avant 350°C et perd ses propriétés d’isolation électrique. Le PAI est un matériau qui ne se dégrade que peu avant 400°C, et présente des caractéristiques électriques (propriétés diélectriques et de conduction) déjà plus proche du PolyImide. Nous avons pu établir la comparaison de deux PAI dont l’un est conventionnel et l’autre est un nanocomposite à base d’alumine. Ce dernier PAI est plus stable en température mais ne semble pas avoir de propriétés électriques très supérieures. Pour confronter les résultats expérimentaux obtenus dans des conditions particulières aux conditions réelles d’utilisation, des moteurs avec ces fils émaillés ont été fabriqués. Les moteurs équipés des fils PEI/PAI (fil standard) et PAI sont défaillants après 40 minutes au lieu de 2h, contrairement aux moteurs équipés de fil PI. La dégradation du PEI et le fluage du PAI, caractérisé au-delà de sa Tg (280°C), peuvent être la cause des dysfonctionnements de ces moteurs / This work is related to the high temperature application where motors have to withstand severe conditions - 400°C during 2 hours - according to the standard. Electrical insulation becomes a serious challenge for such application where materials have to remain stable, which is the case of PolyImide enameled wire. Other alternatives have to be found because this is a very expensive material with a small number of suppliers. The thermal, structural, mechanical and electrical properties of these systems have been investigated in-situ until 400°C by thermogravimetric analysis, ATR-FTIR microscopy, thermomechanical analysis, dielectric spectroscopy and DC voltage experiments. Dielectric spectroscopy has indicated a loss of insulating properties during the thermal cycle especially for PEI-containing enamels that degrades before 350°C. PAI enameled wires degrade just before 400°C, and electrical properties (dielectric properties and conductivity) are closer to PI‘s in this temperature range. A comparison between a conventional PAI and a PAI filled with nanoparticules of aluminium oxide has been made. The nanocomposite is thermally more stable but does not show better electrical behavior. To correlate all these results to the real test conditions (combined thermal, electrical and mechanical stresses), electrical motors have been fabricated using the enameled wires said before. They all breakdown after 40 minutes running, except motors made with PI enameled wires. The degradation of PEI ad the creeping of PAI up to its Tg (280°C) can explain the breakdown of these motors

Ce travail de thèse se situe dans le concept général de contrôler, améliorer et optimiser la performance électrique des matériaux composites par l'analyse systématique de la réponse diélectrique globale des matériaux composites pour différentes morphologies. Pour mener à des informations complètes, une corrélation entre trois approches indépendants a été réalisée: des simulations numériques, des calculs analytiques et des mesures diélectriques (spectromètre diélectrique de type Novo-contrôle). D'abord on a établie des lois d'échelles et la contribution originale de cette thèse est de réussir à mettre des lois d'échelle universelle pour la réponse diélectrique globales des matériaux composites qui sont censés de servir à la base pour les actuelles et futures études sur les propriétés électriques et diélectriques des matériaux composites. Comme application, ces lois d'échelles que nous avons dérivées nous ont permis de développer des applications, tel que la conception des matériaux multicouches à haute permittivité et faible pertes diélectriques au service des applications dans des domaines de stockage d'énergie, en ajustant les valeurs de conductivité et les fractions de volume des phases constituantes. Cet approche a été menée sur des composites en structure bicouches constitués d'une superposition de couches de polymères ayant des conductivités différentes. Et en plus, ces lois d'échelles ont été à la base pour la découverte pour la première fois, d'un critère de discrimination entre deux types différent de polarisation électriques: la polarisation interfaciale de type MWS et la polarisation d'électrode. Aussi, on a dérivé une nouvelle formule qui est valable à la fois pour la polarisation d'électrode et les effets de la polarisation interfaciale. Elle permet non seulement d'estimer l'épaisseur des couches interfaciales formées à l'électrode en raison des effets de polarisation mais aussi à développer une nouvelle méthode de mesure de la conductivité des matériaux sans contact direct qui a servi pour des mesures couplées diélectrique – mécanique / This research is significant in that it not only develops a generalized approach for modeling the electrical properties of multiphase composite materials but also introduces novel experimental applications in the domain of dielectric properties of composite materials. In order to get complete information: numerical simulations, analytical calculations and dielectric measurements by means of Broadband Dielectric Spectroscopy (BDS) were carried out in this study. First, we derived the scaling laws through a systematically study of global dielectric response of composite materials with different morphology and the original contribution of this thesis is to succeed to derive a universal scaling laws for the global dielectric response of composite materials. Based on these scaling laws three achievements are taken place: designing layered polymer materials with high values of permittivity and low dielectric losses, by adjusting the values of conductivity and the volume fraction of the constituent phases. Also, we discover a new discrimination criterion for electrical polarizations at external and internal interfaces: electrode polarization vs. (MWS) interfacial polarization effects in dielectric spectra of materials. This work opens the general perspective of finding discrimination criteria for different types of electrical polarization, which will represent a useful tool in disseminating the nature of different contributions appearing in the dielectric spectra of materials. Based on our analysis, we derive a new formula. This formula is valid for both electrode polarization and interfacial polarization effects. It allows one to determine the conductivity value from the frequency position of the Maxwell-Wagner-Sillars peak. Measurements of the conductivity values of samples without a direct contact are done. An excellent agreement between experiment and calculations is obtained. This results offer the opportunity to develop a new coupled electrical-mechanical approach, by electrical measurements performed during mechanical stretching

The interplay of experiments and theory is essential to deepen our understanding of magnetization dynamics. This thesis aims to serve as a bridge between these two aspects by establishing a mathematical framework that enables the computation of optical observable quantities based on theoretical models. The equations are cast in a matrix representation that is well-suited for performing numerical simulations. Additionally, the generality of these methods enables their application to layered media with any geometry, regardless of whether they possess magnetic properties or not. Furthermore, it explores the various perspectives and physical mechanisms involved in magneto-optic measurements to provide the reader with a self consistent introduction to the subject matter. Numerical calculations are presented for bulk Fe, alternating layers of Fe/Au and Ni with a MgO coating and a SiO substrate for different energies, angle of incident and magnetization direction. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of the method in predicting measurable outcomes from theoretical considerations and enables the analysis of optimal experimental configurations. / Samverkan mellan experiment och teori är avgörande för fördjupa vår förståelse av magnetiska system och deras dynamik. Målet med denna uppsats är att etablera en koppling mellan dessa två aspekter genom att formulera ett matematiskt ramverk som möjliggör beräkningar av optiska observerbara storheter baserat på teoretiska modeller. Ekvationerna formuleras med matriser vilket är väl lämpat för att utföra numeriska simuleringar. Dessutom möjliggör metodens generella natur tillämpning på skiktade material av godtycklig geometri, oavsett om de har magnetiska egenskaper eller inte. Vidare utforskar uppsatsen olika perspektiv och fysikaliska mekanismer som är involverade i magneto-optiska mätningar för att ge läsaren en självständig introduktion till ämnet. Numeriska beräkningar presenteras för bulkjärn, växlande lager av Fe/Au och Ni med en MgO-beläggning och ett SiO-substrat för olika energier, infallsvinkel och magnetiseringsriktning. Resultaten visar på metodens förmåga att förutsäga mätbara resultat baserat på teoretiska överväganden och tillåter analys av optimala experimentella uppställningar.

In this work dielectric properties of the poly(ethylene-co-butyl acrylate)filled with alumina nanoparticles are evaluated. These nanocomposite materialswere manufactured at the department of Fibre and Polymer Technology,KTH.This study is limited to the properties of general importance for the AC applications.The dielectric permittivity of the nanocomposite materials wasstudied as a function of filler size, filler content, coating, temperature and airhumidity used for conditioning of the samples. The ultimate goal with thisproject is to describe the influence of material composition, temperature andair humidity on the dielectric properties and model these dependencies.In this thesis the experimental setup for voltage endurance testing of thenanocomposites, namely studying applied voltage frequency dependence ofpartial discharges in electrical trees, with a possibility of following electricaltreeing optically, was developed and described.The dielectric spectroscopy measurements were performed on thoroughly driednanocomposites - so-called dry DS study. It was shown that the experimentaldata can be fitted with Havriliak-Negami approximation, which justifiesthe correctness of the measurement results. It has been shown that addingnanoparticles to the EBA matrix changes the low frequency dispersion significantlyfor the dried samples. It was also indicated that the particle coatingused has very low impact on the resulting permittivity of the thoroughly driedsamples. From the dry DS studies it was suggested that the main cause ofthe scattering in data between the dry samples is most likely the influenceof the material inhomogeneity and possibly the moisture absorption. Thisleads to a possibility of using dielectric spectroscopy as a tool for probing thedispersion of nanoparticles in the polymer matrix.The dielectric spectroscopy measurements were also carried out on the nanocompositesconditioned in the environments with different humidity levels of air inorder to study the influence of absorbed water on the dielectric permittivity- so-called wet DS study. From the wet study it was shown that for the wetsamples the amplitude of the loss peak is defined by the filler size, filler contentand coating used; while its position in frequency domain is determinedby the coating and the humidity level used for conditioning. / QC 20110315

Dielectric insulation are constantly exposed to various stresses, while also being expected to last for long periods of time. Naturally, they degrade with use and in demanding operational environments, this degradation phenomena can be accelerated, leading to costly consequences. With the constant evolution within the vehicle industry, high standards are established. For ignition coils, one of the challenges lies in achieving high performance, with the trade-off being a reduced insulation space. Furthermore, the operation of ignition coils at elevated temperatures could affect the insulation and its capabilities. Thus, it is important to investigate how the dielectric strength of an insulation behaves under these increased temperature conditions and constrained operational space, both in the short and long term. In this master thesis, the primary objective was to ascertain whether the oil would maintain its dielectric strength under prolonged elevated temperatures. The transformer liquid MIDEL 7131 was examined and assessed, through breakdown voltage tests from room temperature and up to temperatures of 140◦C. Subsequently analysing the results using descriptive statistics, employing both Gaussian and Weibull distributions. The observations from these measurements provide more data to the field of liquid dielectrics and allow a better understanding of how the condition and operating environment could affect the dielectric capabilities of transformer oils, with a specific focus on MIDEL 7131. / Dielektrisk insulation utsätts ständigt för diverse påkänningar, samtidigt som dem förväntas vara i drift under en lång tid. Naturligtvis degraderas isolationen efter användning och under krävande arbetsmiljöer, kan denna degradering fenomen acceleras, vilket kan leda till dyra konsekvenser. Med den ständiga utvecklingen inom fordonindustrin, etableras höga standarder. För tändstift, är en av svårigheterna att uppnå hög prestanda, i utbyte mot reducerad insulation utrymme. Dessutom är det möjligt att tändstift i drift under höga temperaturer kan påverka insulationen samt sina förmågor. Det är därför viktigt att undersöka hur dielektrisk styrka hos insulation beter sig vid höga temperaturer och minskat utrymme, både i korta perioder samt i långa. I detta master arbete, var det primära målet att fastställa om oljan skulle upprätthålla sin dielektriska hållfastighet under långa perioder vid höga temperaturer. Transformator oljan MIDEL 7131 undersöktes samt analyserades, genom bland annat tester av genombrottspänningar vid rumstemperatur upp till 140 ◦C. Därefter analyserades resultaten genom Normal- och Weibull fördelning. Observationerna från mätningarna tillhandahåller med mer data till flytande dielektrika området och ger en bättre förståelse om hur tillstånd samt driftmiljö kan påverka den dielektriska hållfastigheten av transformatorolja, med speciell fokus på MIDEL 7131.

Elektroakustische Systeme wie Lautsprecher, die elektrische Signale in akustische Signale umwandeln, sind heute Eckpfeiler der Kommunikation. Von Mikrotreibern in Kopfhörern und Smartphones über Audiosysteme in Fahrzeugen und Wohnzimmern bis hin zu großen Beschallungsanlagen in öffentlichen Räumen, Kinos und Konzerten sowie zahlreichen technischen Anwendungen sind sie heute ein allgegenwärtiger Bestandteil des täglichen Lebens. Die gängigsten Lautsprechertechnologien basieren auf elektrodynamischen Wandlern. Seit der ersten Patentierung vor 145 Jahren wurden diese, die notwendige Leistungselektronik sowie die Methoden zur Auslegung und Systembeschreibung im Klein- und Großsignalbereich kontinuierlich weiterentwickelt. Die Forschung befasst sich aber auch ständig mit alternativen Technologien, die Vorteile gegenüber konventionellen Antrieben haben können. In diesem Zusammenhang haben dielektrische Elastomere (DE) in den letzten 25 Jahren zunehmend an Aufmerksamkeit gewonnen. Sie versprechen u.a. einen höheren Wirkungsgrad, neuartige Konstruktionen und eine erhebliche Gewichtsreduktion. Zudem können sie aus kostengünstigen Ausgangsmaterialien ohne den Einsatz von Seltenen Erden oder ferroelektrischen Materialien hergestellt werden, was die Abhängigkeit von Rohstoffimporten verringert und neue Anwendungsfelder eröffnet. Trotz sehr aktiver Forschung und Entwicklung bei Materialien, Design und Herstellung gibt es bisher nur wenige kommerziell verfügbare Aktuatoranwendungen. Eine grundlegende Voraussetzung für die Etablierung einer Technologie sind standardisierte und nachvollziehbare Methoden zur prädiktiven Systembeschreibung und zum rechnergestützten Systementwurf. Diese sind für DE in dynamischen Anwendungen noch nicht verfügbar. In dieser Arbeit wird die etablierte Entwurfsmethodik zur prädiktiven Beschreibung kleinsignaliger dynamischer Systeme mit elektromechanischen und akustischen Netzwerken auf dielektrische Elastomere erweitert. Das Kernelement ist die Ableitung der elektromechanischen Wandlermodelle für DE-Längs- und Dickenoszillatoren. Basierend auf dieser Systembeschreibung, werden Auslegungskriterien für DE-basierte Schallquellen aufgestellt. Der Fokus liegt dabei auf der praktischen Anwendbarkeit und der Generierung von technologischen Vorteilen gegenüber elektrodynamischen Wandlern. Aus diesen Kriterien werden neuartige Wandlerkonzepte in Form von rollenaktorgetriebenen Lautsprechermembranen und unimorphen Membranen entwickelt, analysiert und als Demonstratoren realisiert. Darüber hinaus wird die Leistungselektronik untersucht, auf deren Basis Schaltungen zur Durchführung messtechnischer Untersuchungen und zum Betrieb der Demonstratoren entwickelt und realisiert wurden. Ziel der Arbeit ist es, Anwendungsentwicklern mit der vorgestellten Entwurfsmethodik einen besseren Zugang zur Technologie zu ermöglichen und so zur Entwicklung von DE-basierten Schallquellen im Speziellen und dynamischen DE-Aktoren im Allgemeinen beizutragen.:1 Introduction 1 2 Fundamentals of Dielectric Elastomers 5 3 Electromechanical Network Model of Dielectric Elastomers 9 3.1 Transducer Network Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 3.1.1 Electrostatic Forces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 3.1.2 Simulative-experimental Validation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 3.1.3 Mechanical Interactions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 3.1.4 Determination of the Parameters at the Operating Point . . . . . . . . . 19 3.1.5 Electromechanical Transducer Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 3.2 Electrical Behavior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 3.3 Operating Voltage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 3.4 Mechanical Behavior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 4 Power Electronics 37 4.1 Fundamental Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 4.2 Alternative Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 4.2.1 Adapted Circuit Designs for Capacitive Loads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 4.2.2 Summing Circuits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 4.3 Realization of Power Electronics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 4.3.1 Coupling Capacitance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 4.3.2 Branch to Discharge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 4.3.3 Charging Resistor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 4.3.4 Additional Extensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 4.3.5 Implemented Power Electronics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 5 Design of DE Loudspeakers 49 5.1 State of the Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 5.1.1 Membrane and Bubble-Loudspeakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 5.1.2 Annular Membrane Actuators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 5.1.3 Preformed Membranes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 5.1.4 Thickness Oscillators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 5.2 Fundamental Design Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 5.3 Proposed Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 6 DE-Roll Actuator based Loudspeaker Driver 61 6.1 Fundamentals of DERA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 6.2 Stability Criteria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63 6.3 Model Computation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 6.3.1 Fundamental Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 6.4 Construction and Assembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 6.4.1 PolyPower Actuators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 VTable of Contents 6.4.2 Elastosil Actuator Manufacturing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 6.4.3 Overview of Manufactured Actuators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 6.5 Measurement Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 6.5.1 Static Function Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 6.5.2 Electrical Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81 6.5.3 Dynamic Electromechanical Measurements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 6.6 Electromechanical Test Results and Model Updating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 6.7 Radial Actuation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 6.8 Acoustic Extension . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90 6.8.1 Acoustic Configurations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 6.8.2 Selection of loudspeaker diaphragm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92 6.8.3 Loudspeaker in Closed Cabinet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 6.8.4 Loudspeaker in Vented Cabinet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98 6.8.5 Bending Wave Transducer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 6.9 Acoustic Measurements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 6.10 Demonstrator Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 6.11 Considerations towards Large-Signal Behaviour . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112 7 Dielectric Elastomer Unimorph Membrane 115 7.1 Membrane Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116 7.2 Model-based Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117 7.3 Headphones demonstrator construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119 7.4 Measurements and Tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121 8 Summary and Outlook 129 Appendix 133 A ANSYS APDL simulation code for DE elementary cell model . . . . . . . . . . . . 136 B Additional comparisons of measurement and simulation data . . . . . . . . . . 138 / Electroacoustic systems such as loudspeakers, which convert electrical signals into acoustic signals, are nowadays cornerstones of communication. From microdrivers in headphones and smartphones, to audio systems in vehicles and living rooms, to large sound reinforcement systems in public spaces, cinemas and concerts, as well as numerous technical applications, they are nowadays a ubiquitous part of everyday life. The most common loudspeaker technologies are based on electrodynamic transducers. Since the first patent 145 years ago, they, the necessary power electronics as well as the methods for design and system description in the small- and large- signal range have been continuously developed. However, research is also constantly looking at alternative technologies that may have advantages over conventional drives. In this context, dielectric elastomers (DE) have gained increasing attention over the past 25 years. They promise, among other things, higher efficiency, novel designs and considerable weight reduction. Moreover, they can be manufactured from inexpensive starting materials without the use of rare-earths elements or ferroelectric materials, which reduces the dependence on raw materials imports and opens up new fields of application. Despite very active research and development of materials, designs and fabrication, there are only few commercially available actuator applications so far. A fundamental requirement for the establishment of a technology are standardized and comprehensible methods for predictive system description and for computer-aided system design. These are not yet available for DE in dynamic applications. In this work, the established design methodology for the predictive description of smallsignal dynamic systems using electromechanical and acoustic networks is being extended to dielectric elastomers. The core element is the derivation of the electromechanical transducer models for DE longitudinal and thickness oszillators. Based on this system description, design criteria for DE based sound sources are established. The focus lies on practical applicability and the generation of technological advantages compared to electrodynamic transducers. From these criteria, novel transducer concepts in the form of roll actuator driven loudspeaker diaphragms and unimorph membranes are developed, analyzed and realized as demonstrators. In addition, the power electronics are examined, on the basis of which circuits for carrying out metrological investigations and for operating the demonstrators were developed and implemented. The goal of the work is to provide application developers with better access to the technology using the presented design methodology and thus contribute to the development of DE-based sound sources in particular and dynamic DE actuators in general.:1 Introduction 1 2 Fundamentals of Dielectric Elastomers 5 3 Electromechanical Network Model of Dielectric Elastomers 9 3.1 Transducer Network Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 3.1.1 Electrostatic Forces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 3.1.2 Simulative-experimental Validation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 3.1.3 Mechanical Interactions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 3.1.4 Determination of the Parameters at the Operating Point . . . . . . . . . 19 3.1.5 Electromechanical Transducer Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 3.2 Electrical Behavior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 3.3 Operating Voltage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 3.4 Mechanical Behavior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 4 Power Electronics 37 4.1 Fundamental Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 4.2 Alternative Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 4.2.1 Adapted Circuit Designs for Capacitive Loads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 4.2.2 Summing Circuits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 4.3 Realization of Power Electronics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 4.3.1 Coupling Capacitance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 4.3.2 Branch to Discharge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 4.3.3 Charging Resistor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 4.3.4 Additional Extensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 4.3.5 Implemented Power Electronics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 5 Design of DE Loudspeakers 49 5.1 State of the Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 5.1.1 Membrane and Bubble-Loudspeakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 5.1.2 Annular Membrane Actuators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 5.1.3 Preformed Membranes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 5.1.4 Thickness Oscillators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 5.2 Fundamental Design Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 5.3 Proposed Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 6 DE-Roll Actuator based Loudspeaker Driver 61 6.1 Fundamentals of DERA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 6.2 Stability Criteria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63 6.3 Model Computation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 6.3.1 Fundamental Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 6.4 Construction and Assembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 6.4.1 PolyPower Actuators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 VTable of Contents 6.4.2 Elastosil Actuator Manufacturing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 6.4.3 Overview of Manufactured Actuators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 6.5 Measurement Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 6.5.1 Static Function Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 6.5.2 Electrical Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81 6.5.3 Dynamic Electromechanical Measurements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 6.6 Electromechanical Test Results and Model Updating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 6.7 Radial Actuation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 6.8 Acoustic Extension . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90 6.8.1 Acoustic Configurations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 6.8.2 Selection of loudspeaker diaphragm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92 6.8.3 Loudspeaker in Closed Cabinet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 6.8.4 Loudspeaker in Vented Cabinet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98 6.8.5 Bending Wave Transducer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 6.9 Acoustic Measurements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 6.10 Demonstrator Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 6.11 Considerations towards Large-Signal Behaviour . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112 7 Dielectric Elastomer Unimorph Membrane 115 7.1 Membrane Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116 7.2 Model-based Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117 7.3 Headphones demonstrator construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119 7.4 Measurements and Tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121 8 Summary and Outlook 129 Appendix 133 A ANSYS APDL simulation code for DE elementary cell model . . . . . . . . . . . . 136 B Additional comparisons of measurement and simulation data . . . . . . . . . . 138

In this thesis, power system transients are considered as an opportunity for development of on-line diagnostics of power components and specifically the insulation systems of power transformers and bushings. A new technique for on-line dielectric response measurement of power transformer bushings is proposed which utilizes natural transients in the power system, such as lightning and switching surges, as stimuli. Laboratory investigations are done on implementation of the proposed technique. Measurement considerations, data acquisition and processing involved in achievement of reasonable accuracy in the Dielectric Response (DR) are presented. Capability of the technique in tracking of the degradation signatures such as moisture content in the insulation has been evaluated and it has shown a good level of accuracy by being compared to the Frequency Domain Spectroscopy (FDS).  The proposed technique is tested on the service-aged 150 kV bushings and feasibility of the technique for monitoring of dielectric properties of power transformer bushings has been assessed; the results are promising for the technique to be used in the real application.  Partial Discharges (PD) behavior under transients has been also studied for different materials in this project. PD behavior of different defects, at different insulation condition, responding to the overvoltage transients in form of superimposed impulses on ac voltages was investigated and it was perceived how their distinctive response and the interpretation of  that, can be useful for their identification. Besides the conventional materials, surface ac PD properties of modified paper with silica and zinc oxide nanoparticles under the superimposed impulses have been assessed in this project. Proper type and optimum concentration level of nanoparticles in the paper are the factors that lead to the improvement of PD behavior in the modified paper under overvoltage transients. / <p>QC 20160525</p>

An alternative indirect integration regime of porous low-k materials was investigated. Based on a single Damascene structure the intra level dielectric SiO2 or damaged ULK was removed by using HF:H2O solutions to create free standing metal lines. The free spaces between the metal lines were refilled with a spin-on process of a low-k material. The persistence of barrier materials and copper against HF solutions, the gap fill behavior of the used spin on glass on different structure sizes and the main challenges which have to solve in the future are shown in this study.

Thin films are an enabling technology for a wide range of applications, from microprocessors to diffusion barriers. Nanolaminate thin films combine two (or more) materials in a layered structure to achieve performance that neither film could provide on its own. Atomic layer deposition (ALD) is a chemical vapor deposition technique in which film growth occurs through self limiting surface reactions. The atomic scale control of ALD is well suited for producing nanolaminate thin films. In this thesis, ALD of two nanolaminate systems will be investigated: Al₂O₃-Ta₂O₅ and ZnO-SnO₂. Al₂O₃ and Ta₂O₅ are high κ dielectrics that find application as gate oxides for field effect devices such as metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors and thin film transistors. Al₂O₃-Ta₂O₅ nanolaminate films of a fixed composition and total thickness, but with varied laminate structures, were produced to explore the influence of layer thickness on dielectric behavior. Layer thickness was found to have little impact on the dielectric constant but a strong impact on the leakage current. Thick layered nanolaminates (with 2.5 to 10 nm layers) performed better than either pure material. Showing structure provides a means of tailoring nanolaminate properties. ZnSnO is an amorphous oxide semiconductor used to make transparent TFTs. Although ALD is naturally suited to the production of nanolaminates, the deposition of homogenous ternary compounds is still uncommon. For very thin depositions, nucleation behavior can dominate, resulting in ALD growth rates different than for thicker films. Initial work on ALD of the ZnO-SnO₂ system is presented, focusing on nucleation and growth of each material on the other. It was found that both ZnO and SnO₂ inhibit the growth of one another and a method was developed to characterize the average growth rate for few cycle depositions. / Graduation date: 2011

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