
Fall 2008 Trap the Light Fantastic Solar cells convert sunlight into electricity and are a promising alternative energy source. Indeed, in a recent a survey by R&D Magazine, 74 percent of respondents cited solar photovoltaic energy as the number one area where the United States should focus its energy research and development efforts. A primary reason more research and development is needed is that a typical solar cell only converts about 20 percent of the light energy that falls upon it into electricity. Even increasing that conversion rate by a small amount can vastly increase the usefulness of solar cells as an alternative energy source. IPRT researchers have grown an amorphous silicon solar cell on a patterned area of a silicon wafer about one-square centimeter in size to test the use of photonic crystals to improve the cell's efficiency. One way to boost their efficiency is through “light trapping,” essentially scattering incoming light to increase the chances that the cell will absorb the photons and thus generate more electricity. Today, back reflectors in solar cells are nothing more than metallic coatings that act to reflect and scatter light. “Such reflectors are just not very good,” explains Rana Biswas, a physicist at IPRT's Catron Center for Solar Energy Research, Microelectronics Research Center and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Ames Laboratory. “You lose three to seven percent of the light each time the light bounces off of it.” Biswas is leading a team that has demonstrated a more sophisticated approach to light trapping to significantly increase the efficiency of solar cells. The technology replaces reflective coatings with “photonic crystals” optimized for solar cells. “It’s quite conceivable that you can increase efficiency 10 to 20 percent by capturing hard-to-collect photons,” Biswas says. A proptotpe has also been built with the help of undergraduate students. See complete story.IPRT Tool-Using Robots Imagine working side-by-side with robots in your home or office, in hospitals and outer space. “The future is closer than you might think,” said Alex Stoytchev, a researcher with IPRT's Virtual Reality Applications Center and a professor of electrical and computer engineering. As robots get smarter, their interaction with humans does too, moving from rigid and exacting environments (such as the factory floor) to complex ones that require more intelligent responses. Stoytchev is working to make robots more adaptive and responsive to the surrounding environment. By combining learning methods from artificial intelligence with insights from developmental psychology, Stoytchev is developing the ability of robots to use tools—something innate to human culture. On the factory floor, robots use tools for tasks such as welding, cutting and painting, but a human programmer carefully scripts these operations. As robots increasingly find their way into our everyday lives, they will undoubtedly have to use external objects to improve their reach or increase their physical strength. Stoytchev is working with a robotic arm from Barrett Technologies (shown above), training it to recognize and respond to different kinds of tasks with the tools at hand. For example, the robot could learn to use different stick tools to bring distant objects within reach. This is a small step toward the larger vision of having autonomous tool-using robots in human-inhabited environments. —Contributed by Karen Gulbrandsen, from VRAC's VRTech magazine (PDF). IPRT Quick Action Solves Quality Challenge Sauer-Danfoss is a worldwide leader in the design, manufacture and sale of engineered hydraulic, electric and electronic systems and components. Its Ames, Iowa, plant recently turned to IPRT Company Assistance when it needed fast help with a quality issue in a product being made for a key customer. Sauer was machining parts using castings from an outside supplier. The parts were to be used in hydrostatic transmissions. Some of the castings had flaws that weren’t externally visible, so the company needed a way to separate good castings from bad ones. Rick Lopez of the IPRT Company Assistance nondestructive evaluation group and Dan Barnard from IPRT’s Center for Nondestructive Evaluation worked quickly to develop a manual ultrasonic inspection technique to do the sorting. The accuracy of the nondestructive evaluation was confirmed by destructive testing of sample parts. The technique was used to sort castings before machining as well as to evaluate products awaiting shipping. Jake Auliff, a senior engineer and metallurgist at Sauer-Danfoss, cites the work of Lopez and Barnard. “Due to their help, Sauer-Danfoss was able to keep a very key customer’s production line running smoothly and on-time,” he says. “The NDE test plan that followed resulted in not only reduced labor costs associated with the disassembly of suspect units but helped us to maintain a positive quality image in the eyes of our customers.” IPRT CNDE Hosts 35th Annual Review of Progress in QNDE IPRT's Center for Nondestructive Evaluation organized and hosted the annual Review of Progress in Quantitative NDE held at the University of Illinois Chicago on July 20-25, 2008. This conference featured the interface between current research results in the development of new measurement techniques (theory with experimental confirmation) used to enhance the safety of materials and structures and early engineering applications. It is widely regarded as the most prestigious of all NDE conferences. Over 325 technical papers were presented in both verbal and poster sessions with an attendance of over 350 people. Approximately one-half of the attendees came from overseas. Highlights of the conference include the keynote presentation by Jan Achenbach of Northwestern University, recent winner of the Presidential awards for both Science and Technology. He reviewed the beginnings of the new QNDEtechnology and its emergence into astructural health monitoring technology.	IPRT Company Assistance Has $10 Million Footprint Iowa companies reported over $10 million in benefits resulting from help by IPRT Company Assistance programs in fiscal year 2007. The data comes from a survey of 57 companies assisted by IPRT. IPRT Scientists Turn Waste into Ethanol By combining gasification with high-tech nanoscale porous catalysts, researchers from IPRT and the U.S. Department of Energy's Ames Laboratory hope to create ethanol from a wide range of biomass. The feedstocks include distiller’s grain left over from ethanol production, corn stover from the field, grass, wood pulp, animal waste, and garbage. See Ames Lab news release. IPRT Among ISU’s “150 Contributions” IPRT centers and scientists were noted in several entries in the “150 Contributions: How Iowa State has Changed the World” article in the Summer 2008 issue of Visions, Iowa State’s alumni magazine. In honor of Iowa State’s sesquicentennial, the article summarized 150 of the thousands of contributions made by the university to the state of Iowa, the country and the world. Among the IPRT-related entries: Virtual Reality, Rare Earth Materials, Nondestructive Evaluation, Coal Combustion Monitor, Ramanprobe System and Spacecraft Leaks. In Brief • Lynne Mumm, manager of IPRT's technology commercialization program, is the president of the 2008-09 Professional and Scientific Council at Iowa State University. The council serves as a resource and an advocate for P&S employees. Mumm's plans as president can be found in Inside Iowa State. • VRAC's graduate program in Human Computer Interaction is now offering an online Master's degree program for working professionals. Since the HCI program began five years ago, it has graduated 10 Ph.D., 25 M.S., and 7 professional certificate students. For more information, visit www.hci.iastate.edu. • VRAC's annual Emerging Technologies Conference will be held April 2-3, 2009, with keynote speaker Gregory D. Abowd, Distinguished Professor of Interactive Computing at the Georgia Institute of Technology. The conference also includes technology demonstrations, poster presentations and IgniteIT, an evening of networking and idea sharing. The deadline for submitting an abstract proposal is Dec. 1, 2008.
A plenary talk by John Cantrell of NASA Langley covered advances in nonlinear acoustic science and applications to the detection of fatigue damage in materials, while Francesco Simonetti of Imperial College London described new work in acoustic imaging using evanescent wave phenomena. The conference also hosted its 6th annual competitive Student Poster contest, an activity that is designed to stimulate student interest in graduate NDE studies. Partial support for the conference is provided by the Air Force Research Laboratories, American Society for Nondestructive Testing, U.S. Dept. of Energy's Ames Laboratory, Army Research Laboratory, Federal Aviation Administration, National Aeronautics and Space Administration-LaRC, National Science Foundation Industry/University Cooperative Research Centers. —Contributed by Don Thompson, CNDE IPRT Rising Temps Outside, College Learning Inside Four students successfully completed the 2008 Science Bound PIPELINES Summer Academy at Iowa State University, in which they assisted ISU scientists and professors with research and lab work over the summer. Through presentations and posters, the high school students shared what they learned from research during a symposium in July. The students were China King, who learned about PIPELINES through the Science Bound program at Purdue University; Sharis Steid, who participates in the Science Bound program at Sourthern University A&M College in Baton Rouge; Arshiuna Woods, a pariticpant in the Purdue Science Bound program; and David Macias, a Science Bound student from Des Moines (shown at right). Their research mentors were Malika Jeffries-EL, professor of chemistry; Krishna Rajan, professor of materials science and engineering; LeAnn Faidley, professor of mechanical engineering; and Kaylee Kotz, a graduate student in chemical and biological engineering. Science Bound's PIPELINES program is sponsored by NASA. —By Katie Parr, IPRT Communications Intern IPRT IPRT Gets Own Human Resources Coordinator IPRT now has its own human resources coordinator. Lisa Grzywacz (pronounced gree-vatch) began working with IPRT in August. Her first mission is to help transition IPRT from using the Ames Laboratory human resources system previously used by IPRT to the Iowa State University system. Grzywacz is quite familiar with the ISU system, having worked in the same kind of position at the Parks Library for the last two years. She also has experience in human resources at two hospitals and owned a business for 10 years. Grzywacz says she’s very intrigued by IPRT’s research and the work it does to help companies with new technology. “The people at IPRT have been very friendly and helpful,” she says. Cheryl Sansgaard, IPRT business manager, says, “Bringing an HR coordinator on board has been a long process, and we are excited to have Lisa join our team. Diane Muncrief, Ames Lab HR director, was a tremendous help in this process. We thank her and the Ames Lab HR office for all their help and support during this transition period.” Grzywacz is currently learning about the Ames Lab system from Muncrief. While she says it’s too early to know what changes might be needed in payroll, benefits, timekeeping and other issues, Grzywacz encourages IPRT personnel to contact her at grzywacz@iastate.edu or 294-2785 with any questions. Her office is in 305 TASF.
About IPRT News The Institute for Physical Research and Technology is a network of scientific research centers at Iowa State University. In addition to performing world-class scientific research, IPRT provides technical assistance and contract research services to Iowa companies and offers education programs for students from middle through graduate school. This monthly email newsletter is produced by IPRT Public Affairs for IPRT employees and all interested parties. • To subscribe and contribute news, contact: Robert Mills, IPRT Public Affairs, rmills@iastate.edu, 515-294-1113. • Viiew a Web version here. Iowa State University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, age, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, sex, marital status, disability, or status as a U.S. veteran. Inquiries can be directed to the Director of Equal Opportunity and Diversity, 3210 Beardshear Hall, (515) 294-7612.

Fall 2008

Trap the Light Fantastic

Solar cells convert sunlight into electricity and are a promising alternative energy source. Indeed, in a recent a survey by R&D Magazine, 74 percent of respondents cited solar photovoltaic energy as the number one area where the United States should focus its energy research and development efforts.

A primary reason more research and development is needed is that a typical solar cell only converts about 20 percent of the light energy that falls upon it into electricity. Even [PHOTO: photonic solar cell] increasing that conversion rate by a small amount can vastly increase the usefulness of solar cells as an alternative energy source.

IPRT researchers have grown an amorphous silicon solar cell on a patterned area of a silicon wafer about one-square centimeter in size to test the use of photonic crystals to improve the cell's efficiency.

One way to boost their efficiency is through “light trapping,” essentially scattering incoming light to increase the chances that the cell will absorb the photons and thus generate more electricity. Today, back reflectors in solar cells are nothing more than metallic coatings that act to reflect and scatter light. “Such reflectors are just not very good,” explains Rana Biswas, a physicist at IPRT's Catron Center for Solar Energy Research, Microelectronics Research Center and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Ames Laboratory. “You lose three to seven percent of the light each time the light bounces off of it.”

Biswas is leading a team that has demonstrated a more sophisticated approach to light trapping to significantly increase the efficiency of solar cells. The technology replaces reflective coatings with “photonic crystals” optimized for solar cells. “It’s quite conceivable that you can increase efficiency 10 to 20 percent by capturing hard-to-collect photons,” Biswas says. A proptotpe has also been built with the help of undergraduate students. See complete story.IPRT

Tool-Using Robots

Imagine working side-by-side with robots in your home or office, in hospitals and outer space. “The future is closer than you might think,” said Alex Stoytchev, a researcher with IPRT's Virtual Reality Applications Center and a professor of electrical and computer engineering. As robots get smarter, their interaction with humans does too, moving from rigid and exacting environments (such as the factory floor) to complex ones that require more intelligent responses. Stoytchev is working to make robots more adaptive and responsive to the surrounding environment.

By combining learning methods from artificial intelligence with insights from developmental psychology, Stoytchev is developing the ability of robots to use tools—something innate to human culture. On the factory floor, robots use tools for tasks such as welding, cutting and painting, but a human programmer carefully scripts these operations. As robots increasingly find their way into our everyday lives, they will undoubtedly have to use external objects to improve their reach or increase their physical strength.

Stoytchev is working with a robotic arm from Barrett Technologies (shown above), training it to recognize and respond to different kinds of tasks with the tools at hand. For example, the robot could learn to use different stick tools to bring distant objects within reach. This is a small step toward the larger vision of having autonomous tool-using robots in human-inhabited environments. —Contributed by Karen Gulbrandsen, from VRAC's VRTech magazine (PDF). IPRT

Quick Action Solves Quality Challenge

Sauer-Danfoss is a worldwide leader in the design, manufacture and sale of engineered hydraulic, electric and electronic systems and components. Its Ames, Iowa, plant recently turned to IPRT Company Assistance when it needed fast help with a quality issue in a product being made for a key customer.

Sauer was machining parts using castings from an outside supplier. The parts were to be used in hydrostatic transmissions. Some of the castings had flaws that weren’t externally visible, so the company needed a way to separate good castings from bad ones. Rick Lopez of the IPRT Company Assistance nondestructive evaluation group and Dan Barnard from IPRT’s Center for Nondestructive Evaluation worked quickly to develop a manual ultrasonic inspection technique to do the sorting. The accuracy of the nondestructive evaluation was confirmed by destructive testing of sample parts. The technique was used to sort castings before machining as well as to evaluate products awaiting shipping.

Jake Auliff, a senior engineer and metallurgist at Sauer-Danfoss, cites the work of Lopez and Barnard. “Due to their help, Sauer-Danfoss was able to keep a very key customer’s production line running smoothly and on-time,” he says. “The NDE test plan that followed resulted in not only reduced labor costs associated with the disassembly of suspect units but helped us to maintain a positive quality image in the eyes of our customers.” IPRT

CNDE Hosts 35th Annual Review of
Progress in QNDE

IPRT's Center for Nondestructive Evaluation organized and hosted the annual Review of Progress in Quantitative NDE held at the University of Illinois Chicago on July 20-25, 2008. This conference featured the interface between current research results in the development of new measurement techniques (theory with experimental confirmation) used to enhance the safety of materials and structures and early engineering applications. It is widely regarded as the most prestigious of all NDE conferences. Over 325 technical papers were presented in both verbal and poster sessions with an attendance of over 350 people. Approximately one-half of the attendees came from overseas.

Highlights of the conference include the keynote presentation by Jan Achenbach of Northwestern University, recent winner of the Presidential awards for both Science and Technology. He reviewed the beginnings of the new QNDEtechnology and its emergence into astructural health monitoring technology.

IPRT Company Assistance Has $10 Million Footprint

[CHART: IPRT impact] Iowa companies reported over $10 million in benefits resulting from help by IPRT Company Assistance programs in fiscal year 2007. The data comes from a survey of 57 companies assisted by IPRT.

IPRT Scientists Turn Waste into Ethanol

By combining gasification with high-tech nanoscale porous catalysts, researchers from IPRT and the U.S. Department of Energy's Ames Laboratory hope to create ethanol from a wide range of biomass. The feedstocks include distiller’s grain left over from ethanol production, corn stover from the field, grass, wood pulp, animal waste, and garbage. See Ames Lab news release.

IPRT Among ISU’s
“150 Contributions”

IPRT centers and scientists were noted in several entries in the “150 Contributions: How Iowa State has Changed the World” article in the Summer 2008 issue of Visions, Iowa State’s alumni magazine. In honor of Iowa State’s sesquicentennial, the article summarized 150 of the thousands of contributions made by the university to the state of Iowa, the country and the world.

[IMAGE: Iowa State University Visions magainze cover]

Among the IPRT-related entries: Virtual Reality, Rare Earth Materials, Nondestructive Evaluation, Coal Combustion Monitor, Ramanprobe System and Spacecraft Leaks.

In Brief

• Lynne Mumm, manager of IPRT's technology commercialization program, is the president of the 2008-09 Professional and Scientific Council at Iowa State University. The council serves as a resource and an advocate for P&S employees. Mumm's plans as president can be found in Inside Iowa State.

• VRAC's graduate program in Human Computer Interaction is now offering an online Master's degree program for working professionals. Since the HCI program began five years ago, it has graduated 10 Ph.D., 25 M.S., and 7 professional certificate students. For more information, visit www.hci.iastate.edu.

• VRAC's annual Emerging Technologies Conference will be held April 2-3, 2009, with keynote speaker Gregory D. Abowd, Distinguished Professor of Interactive Computing at the Georgia Institute of Technology. The conference also includes technology demonstrations, poster presentations and IgniteIT, an evening of networking and idea sharing. The deadline for submitting an abstract proposal is Dec. 1, 2008.

A plenary talk by John Cantrell of NASA Langley covered advances in nonlinear acoustic science and applications to the detection of fatigue damage in materials, while Francesco Simonetti of Imperial College London described new work in acoustic imaging using evanescent wave phenomena. The conference also hosted its 6th annual competitive Student Poster contest, an activity that is designed to stimulate student interest in graduate NDE studies. Partial support for the conference is provided by the Air Force Research Laboratories, American Society for Nondestructive Testing, U.S. Dept. of Energy's Ames Laboratory, Army Research Laboratory, Federal Aviation Administration, National Aeronautics and Space Administration-LaRC, National Science Foundation Industry/University Cooperative Research Centers. —Contributed by Don Thompson, CNDE IPRT

Rising Temps Outside, College Learning Inside

[PHOTO: PIPELINES participant David Macias]

Four students successfully completed the 2008 Science Bound PIPELINES Summer Academy at Iowa State University, in which they assisted ISU scientists and professors with research and lab work over the summer. Through presentations and posters, the high school students shared what they learned from research during a symposium in July. The students were China King, who learned about PIPELINES through the Science Bound program at Purdue University; Sharis Steid, who participates in the Science Bound program at Sourthern University A&M College in Baton Rouge; Arshiuna Woods, a pariticpant in the Purdue Science Bound program; and David Macias, a Science Bound student from Des Moines (shown at right). Their research mentors were Malika Jeffries-EL, professor of chemistry; Krishna Rajan, professor of materials science and engineering; LeAnn Faidley, professor of mechanical engineering; and Kaylee Kotz, a graduate student in chemical and biological engineering. Science Bound's PIPELINES program is sponsored by NASA. —By Katie Parr, IPRT Communications Intern IPRT

IPRT Gets Own Human Resources Coordinator

IPRT now has its own human resources coordinator. Lisa Grzywacz (pronounced gree-vatch) began working with IPRT in August. Her first mission is to help transition IPRT from using the Ames Laboratory human resources system previously used by IPRT to the Iowa State University system. Grzywacz is quite familiar with the ISU system, having worked in the same kind of position at the Parks Library for the last two years. She also has experience in human resources at two hospitals and owned a business for 10 years. Grzywacz says she’s very intrigued by IPRT’s research and the work it does to help companies with new technology. “The people at IPRT have been very friendly and helpful,” she says.

Cheryl Sansgaard, IPRT business manager, says, “Bringing an HR coordinator on board has been a long process, and we are excited to have Lisa join our team. Diane Muncrief, Ames Lab HR director, was a tremendous help in this process. We thank her and the Ames Lab HR office for all their help and support during this transition period.”

Grzywacz is currently learning about the Ames Lab system from Muncrief. While she says it’s too early to know what changes might be needed in payroll, benefits, timekeeping and other issues, Grzywacz encourages IPRT personnel to contact her at grzywacz@iastate.edu or 294-2785 with any questions. Her office is in 305 TASF.

About IPRT News

The Institute for Physical Research and Technology is a network of scientific research centers at Iowa State University. In addition to performing world-class scientific research, IPRT provides technical assistance and contract research services to Iowa companies and offers education programs for students from middle through graduate school.

This monthly email newsletter is produced by IPRT Public Affairs for IPRT employees and all interested parties.
• To subscribe and contribute news, contact: Robert Mills, IPRT Public Affairs, rmills@iastate.edu, 515-294-1113.
• Viiew a Web version here.

Iowa State University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, age, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, sex, marital status, disability, or status as a U.S. veteran. Inquiries can be directed to the Director of Equal Opportunity and Diversity, 3210 Beardshear Hall, (515) 294-7612.