Thermal conductivity measurements of thin films by non-contact scanning thermal microscopy under ambient conditions

Realizing the Accurate Measurements of Thermal Conductivity over a Wide Range by Scanning Thermal Microscopy Combined with Quantitative Prediction of Thermal Contact Resistance

Quantitative thermal performance measurements and thermal management at the micro-/nano scale are becoming increasingly important as the size of electronic components shrinks. Scanning thermal microscopy (SThM) is an emerging method with high spatial resolution that accurately reflects changes in local thermal signals based on a thermally sensitive probe. However, because of the unclear thermal resistance at the probe-sample interface, quantitative characterization of thermal conductivity for different kinds of materials still remains limited. In this paper, the heat transfer process considering the thermal contact resistance between the probe and sample surface is analyzed using finite element simulation and thermal resistance network model. On this basis, a mathematical empirical function is developed applicable to a variety of material systems, which depicts the relationship between the thermal conductivity of the sample and the probe temperature. The proposed model is verified by measuring ten materials with a wide thermal conductivity range, and then further validated by two materials with unknown thermal conductivity. In conclusion, this work provides the prospect of achieving quantitative characterization of thermal conductivity over a wide range and further enables the mapping of local thermal conductivity to microstructures or phases of materials.

Linking Interfacial Bonding and Thermal Conductivity in Molecularly-Confined Polymer-Glass Nanocomposites with Ultra-High Interfacial Density

Thermal transport in polymer nanocomposites becomes dependent on the interfacial thermal conductance due to the ultra-high density of the internal interfaces when the polymer and filler domains are intimately mixed at the nanoscale. However, there is a lack of experimental measurements that can link the thermal conductance across the interfaces to the chemistry and bonding between the polymer molecules and the glass surface. Characterizing the thermal properties of amorphous composites are a particular challenge as their low intrinsic thermal conductivity leads to poor measurement sensitivity of the interfacial thermal conductance. To address this issue here, polymers are confined in porous organosilicates with high interfacial densities, stable composite structure, and varying surface chemistries. The thermal conductivities and fracture energies of the composites are measured with frequency dependent time-domain thermoreflectance (TDTR) and thin-film fracture testing, respectively. Effective medium theory (EMT) along with finite element analysis (FEA) is then used to uniquely extract the thermal boundary conductance (TBC) from the measured thermal conductivity of the composites. Changes in TBC are then linked to the hydrogen bonding between the polymer and organosilicate as quantified by Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) and X-ray photoelectron (XPS) spectroscopy. This platform for analysis is a new paradigm in the experimental investigation of heat flow across constituent domains.

Wearable Surface-Lighting Micro-Light-Emitting Diode Patch for Melanogenesis Inhibition

Wearable light-emitting diode (LED)-based phototherapeutic devices have recently attracted attention as skin care tools for wrinkles, acne, and hyperpigmentation. However, the therapeutic effectiveness and safety of LED stimulators are still controversial due to their inefficient light transfer, high heat generation, and non-uniform spot irradiation. Here, a wearable surface-lighting micro-LED (SµLED) photostimulator is reported for skin care and cosmetic applications. The SµLEDs, consisting of a light diffusion layer (LDL), 900 thin film µLEDs, and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), achieve uniform surface-lighting in 2 × 2 cm² -sized area with 100% emission yields. The SµLEDs maximize photostimulation effectiveness on the skin surface by uniform irradiation, high flexibility, and thermal stability. The SµLED's effect on melanogenesis inhibition is evaluated via in vitro and in vivo experiments to human skin equivalents (HSEs) and mouse dorsal skin, respectively. The anti-melanogenic effect of SµLEDs is confirmed by significantly reduced levels of melanin contents, melan-A, tyrosinase, and microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF), compared to a conventional LED (CLED) stimulator.

Nanoscale thermometry under ambient conditions via scanning thermal microscopy with 3D scanning differential method

Local temperature measurement with high resolution and accuracy is a key challenge in nowadays science and technologies at nanoscale. Quantitative characterization on temperature with sub-100 nm resolution is of significance for understanding the physical mechanisms of phonon transport and energy dissipation in nanoelectronics, optoelectronics, and thermoelectric devices. Scanning thermal microscopy (SThM) has been proved to be a versatile method for nanoscale thermometry. In particular, 2D profiling of the temperature field on the order of 10 nm and 10 mK has already been achieved by SThM with modulation techniques in ultrahigh vacuum to exclude the parasitic heat flow between air and the cantilever. However, few attempts have been made to truly realize 2D profiling of temperature quantitatively under ambient conditions, which is more relevant to realistic applications. Here, a 3D scanning differential method is developed to map the 2D temperature field of an operating nanodevice under ambient environment. Our method suppresses the thermal drift and the parasitic heat flow between air and the cantilever by consecutively measuring the temperatures in thermal contact and nonthermal contact scenarios rather than in a double-scan manner. The local 2D temperature field of a self-heating metal line with current crowding by a narrowing channel is mapped quantitatively by a sectional calibration with a statistic null-point method and a pixel-by-pixel correction with iterative calculation. Furthermore, we propose a figure of merit to evaluate the performance of thermocouple probes on temperature field profiling. The development of nanoscale thermometry under ambient environment would facilitate thermal manipulation on nanomaterials and nanodevices under practical conditions.

Engineering thermoelectric and mechanical properties by nanoporosity in calcium cobaltate films from reactions of Ca(OH)2/Co3O4 multilayers

Controlling nanoporosity to favorably alter multiple properties in layered crystalline inorganic thin films is a challenge. Here, we demonstrate that the thermoelectric and mechanical properties of Ca₃Co₄O₉ films can be engineered through nanoporosity control by annealing multiple Ca(OH)₂/Co₃O₄ reactant bilayers with characteristic bilayer thicknesses (b _t ). Our results show that doubling b _t , e.g., from 12 to 26 nm, more than triples the average pore size from ∼120 nm to ∼400 nm and increases the pore fraction from 3% to 17.1%. The higher porosity film exhibits not only a 50% higher electrical conductivity of σ ∼ 90 S cm^-1 and a high Seebeck coefficient of α ∼ 135 μV K^-1, but also a thermal conductivity as low as κ ∼ 0.87 W m^-1 K^-1. The nanoporous Ca₃Co₄O₉ films exhibit greater mechanical compliance and resilience to bending than the bulk. These results indicate that annealing reactant multilayers with controlled thicknesses is an attractive way to engineer nanoporosity and realize mechanically flexible oxide-based thermoelectric materials.

Visualization of Thermal Transport Properties of Self-Assembled Monolayers on Au(111) by Contact and Noncontact Scanning Thermal Microscopy

Thermal transport properties of patterned binary self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) on Au(111) were examined using scanning thermal microscopy (SThM) with both contact and noncontact methods. We fabricated two-dimensional (2D) patterns with two separate domains of n-hexadecanethiol/benzenethiol, benzenethiol/n-butanethiol, or n-hexadecanethiol/n-butanethiol. In the experimental setup, the efficiency of thermal transport from a SThM tip to the SAM surface can be evaluated in terms of the temperature change at the SThM tip. In the contact regime, where a SThM tip physically contacts the SAM surface, direct thermal transport through the SAM and radiation-based thermal transport through the space where SAMs exist may contribute to a drop in temperature at the tip. In the noncontact regime, thermal transport relies on radiation-based heat dissipation from the heated tip to the SAMs. 2D mapping of the spatial temperature distribution on SAMs reflects the difference in thermal transport properties of the two SAM domains. We found that the contact method is effective for visualizing the temperature contrast, which reflects the thermal transport properties of the constituent molecules when the domains of the SAMs have a similar height, while the noncontact method allows visualization of the temperature distribution, which is related to the height of each domain of the SAMs, rather than the chemical structures of the constituent molecules. Combination of contact and noncontact SThM enables 2D imaging of thermal transport properties and topographic imaging simultaneously and represents a new technique for investigating the thermal properties of materials surfaces, which is essential for nanoscale thermal management.