James Beattie

• BEng (Hons) Electrical & Electronic Engineering
• Quantum mechanical analysis of changing surface elements on silicon carbide at extreme temperatures

Electronics that must continue to work at temperatures above which silicon chips fail may be constructed using semiconductors such as silicon carbide.  Although SiC has advantages over silicon at high-temperatures, in comparison to silicon our understanding of SiC is very incomplete.

A specific area of great importance is the impact of the surface, where hydrogen, oxygen, fluorine and other halogens modify the electrical and electronic properties of the SiC.  Key properties critical for electronic can be determined using the quantum-mechanically based software, AIMPRO, developed in Newcastle University,  and this computational investigation forms the core of this project.

Project Supervisor: Dr Jonathan Goss, School of Electrical & Electronic Engineering
 
Funding Source: Newcastle University