Lockheed Martin Advanced Technology Center - Palo Alto Colloquia

The Palo Alto Colloquia are a long-standing tradition of public outreach that deliver information about aerospace research and development news to the local community. All presentations are given on Thursdays at 4:15 p.m. in the Lockheed Martin Advanced Technology Center Auditorium and last about an hour. Refreshments are available at 4:00 p.m. Visitors are welcome. Stop by to find out the latest details about some fascinating science!

May 7th colloquium: Dr. Ricardo Zednik and Dr. Zixiao Pan, Exponent Failure Analysis Associates

Abstract: Nanotechnology has been touching our daily lives for decades, even centuries. Focusing on advanced ceramics, this presentation will place current nanotechnology research in a historical context. For example, perovskite ceramic capacitors are by far the most common electronic part in digital electronics today and are routinely manufactured at the nanoscale.

Nevertheless, these ceramic materials are not very well understood at the nanoscale, and significant questions remain unanswered. Recent advances have drawn extensive attention to the remarkable size-dependency of material properties and unexpected phenomena related to downscaling. Given the ubiquitous nature of this class of materials, an improved understanding is critical for further advances in nanotechnology.