Dr. Brown’s areas of expertise include failure analysis, materials science, electrochemistry, and general materials processing and characterization with an emphasis on nano- and micro- scale fabrication for high-temperature applications. Prior to joining Exponent, he was a Graduate Research Assistant in the Solid Ionics and Electroceramics group at Caltech, where he received his doctoral degree in 2011. Dr. Brown’s thesis work involved the synthesis and testing of various electrode and electrolyte structures for use in Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFCs). This included the fabrication of ceramic thin-films, nanowires, and inverse opals, as well as metallic thin-films and two-dimensional anti-dot networks. He is familiar with a wide range of thermal and chemical stability issues associated with fuel cell systems. He has utilized techniques such as SEM, TEM, AFM, Raman spectroscopy, and XRD to describe functional SOFC materials and their associated microstructures.
Additionally, Dr. Brown has worked at the Nanoscale Materials and Electronics group at UC Irvine developing anodic alumina as a template for controlled ZnO nanowire growth. He has also been a teaching assistant for the Caltech course entitled, “Solid State Electrochemistry for Energy Storage and Conversion.”
Brown EC, Wilke SK, Boyd DA, Goodwin DG, Haile SM. Polymer sphere lithography for solid oxide fuel cells: A route to functional, well-defined electrode structures. Journal of Materials Chemistry 2010; 20:2190–2196.
Fan Z, Dutta D, Chien C, Chen H, Brown EC, Chang P, Lu JG. Electrical and photoconductive properties of vertical ZnO nanowires in high density arrays. Applied Physics Letters 2006; 89:213110.
Presentations
Brown EC, Chueh W, Hao Y, Haile SM. Hierarchical ceria electrode structures for solid oxide fuel cells via electrochemical deposition. Electrochemical Society 218th Meeting, Las Vegas, NV, 2010.
Brown EC. Fuel cells for a sustainable energy future: Is there a role for nano-materials? Japan Science and Technology Agency Surveillance Project at California Institute of Technology, 2009.