1. National Science Foundation Outcome: Unique vertical aligned nanocomposite thin films with multifunctionalities Impact: Highly strained and ordered nanostructured thin films for microelectronics and ferroelectronics, solid oxide fuel cells, and thin film solar cells. Explanation: Prof. Wang is supervising graduate students in conducing pulsed laser depositions of VAN films. The system consists of a vacuum chamber and a high energy laser. Materials World Network: Novel Interface and Strain Control in Epitaxial Nanocomposite Films Xinghang Zhang, Texas Engineering Experiment Station, DMR 1007969 This NSF project explores the growth, structure and physical properties of vertically aligned nanocomposite (VAN) systems in epitaxial thin film form. The VAN thin films exhibit a highly ordered vertical columnar structure with high epitaxial quality. We demonstrate that the strains of the two phases in both out-of-plane and in-plane directions can be tuned by the deposition parameters during growth, e.g. deposition frequency and film composition of the nanocomposite. Using this unique VAN structure, ordered nanoporous structures have been processed. This study suggests a promising avenue in achieving tunable strain in functional oxide thin films by using VSCN structures. This project involves extensive collaboration between Texas A & M University (Dr. Wang) and the University of Cambridge (Dr. Driscoll).

2. National Science Foundation Materials World Network: Novel Interface and Strain Control in Epitaxial Nanocomposite Films Xinghang Zhang, Texas Engineering Experiment Station, DMR 1007969 (a) (d) (a) (b) (c) Thin film VAN structure of LSMO:ZnO has been grown on SI substrates for future spintronics on Si. W. Zhang, H. Wang, et al., ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 5, 3995-3999, 2013.

3. National Science Foundation Materials World Network: Novel Interface and Strain Control in Epitaxial Nanocomposite Films Xinghang Zhang, Texas Engineering Experiment Station, DMR 1007969 Two REU students (Beverly Raposa and Frank Chu) worked in Wang’s thin film lab in summer 2013 for the VAN project. Dr. Wang introduced the thin film concept to a group of REU students who visited the Thin Film lab in August 2013.