Module overview
- To develop knowledge for materials at the extreme ends of the conductivity range, i.e. insulators and superconductors.
- To develop knowledge of material response to electrical fields, i.e. polarisation and conduction in dielectrics.
- To introduce to the students magnetic materials, their processing techniques and applications.
Linked modules
Pre-requisite: ELEC1206
Aims and Objectives
Learning Outcomes
Subject Specific Intellectual and Research Skills
Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:
- Understand materials structure and properties
- Select suitable materials for engineering applications
- Apply theories related to superconducting materials
Subject Specific Practical Skills
Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:
- Relate structure and composition to material magnetic properties
- Measure electrical properties of materials
Knowledge and Understanding
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
- Appreciate applications and advantages of high temperature superconducting materials
- Explain material response to electric and magnetic fields
- Understand engineering aspects of these materials and the metallurgy involved in the production of special electrical materials
Syllabus
Dielectric material (16)
- Polarisation mechanisms at the microscopic and macroscopic levels, frequency dependence of polarisation, dipole moments, complex permittivity, Arrhenius equation, electronic polarisation,
- Clausius-Mosotti relationship, Maxwell-Wagner interfacial polarisation, dipolar polarisation, Debye equations, Cole-Cole plot.
- Electrical conduction mechanisms, charge injection mechanisms, space charge limited current, hopping conduction process
- Electret materials, triboelectric series.
- Piezo-electricity, ferro-electricity, pyro-electricity
High temperature superconductivity (4)
- Historical development of superconducting materials
- Engineering materials at low temperature, economic benefits, properties of HT c superconductors, Type I and Type II superconductors, Meissner effect, critical current density, Cooper pairs, BSC theory.
Superconducting Applications (4)
- Josephson junction and flux quantisation
- Principle of SQUID operation
- Power apparatus, cables and current limiter, energy storage systems
Metallurgy and magnetic materials (12)
- Importance of phase constitution and crystal orientation in conducting and magnetic materials. Conducting alloy systems and structure
- Soft magnetic materials, iron-silicon alloys, recrystallisation, grain orientated material and properties, iron-nickel alloys, importance of ordering and magnetic annealing, soft ferrites and garnets, powder metallurgy and principles of sintering, magnetic properties and uses and economic factors of magnetic sheet steel.
- Hard magnetic materials, alnico alloys, fine particle magnets, rare earth alloys, barium ferrites, production and uses, comparison of ferrites and alnico alloys
- Storage and recording
Learning and Teaching
Type | Hours |
---|---|
Lecture | 36 |
Revision | 10 |
Preparation for scheduled sessions | 18 |
Tutorial | 12 |
Wider reading or practice | 54 |
Completion of assessment task | 2 |
Follow-up work | 18 |
Total study time | 150 |
Resources & Reading list
Textbooks
Blundell S (2009). Superconductivity: A very short introduction. Oxford University Press.
Anderson J, Leaver K D, Rawlings R D & Alexander J M (1990). Materials Science. Chapman & Hall.
Blythe A (2005). Electrical Properties of Polymers. Cambridge University Press.
Spaldin N, (2003). Magnetic Materials Fundamentals and Device Applications. Cambridge University Press.
Solymar L & Walsh D (1993). Lectures on the Electrical Properties of Materials. OUP.
Assessment
Summative
This is how we’ll formally assess what you have learned in this module.
Method | Percentage contribution |
---|---|
Final Assessment | 100% |
Referral
This is how we’ll assess you if you don’t meet the criteria to pass this module.
Method | Percentage contribution |
---|---|
Set Task | 100% |
Repeat
An internal repeat is where you take all of your modules again, including any you passed. An external repeat is where you only re-take the modules you failed.
Method | Percentage contribution |
---|---|
Set Task | 100% |
Repeat Information
Repeat type: Internal & External