Physics professor Henry Krakauer was recently awarded a $500,000 grant to continue his research on piezoelectrics, according to a press release from Joe McClain.
p. “[Piezoelectrics are] materials that convert energy from one form to another,” McClain said. According to the press release, piezoelectrics are considered crucial in both military and civilian applications and their uses range from serving as transducers in naval sonar systems to medical uses and automobile parts.
p. The grant was given by the U.S. Department of Defense through the Office of Naval Research as part of the government’s multi-million dollar campaign to increase research of equipment. McClain said that the money will be used to buy and install a new computer cluster at the Center for Piezolelectrics by Design. The computer cluster will be used at the CPD to continue studying piezoelectrics and their applications.
p. According to the CPD’s website, www.cpd.wm.edu, it is a multi-institutional center funded by a grant from the Office of Naval Research that conducts “research into the theoretical prediction and experimental realization of new members of a unique class of materials.”
p. Because piezoelectrics have the ability to convert sound energy into electric energy, they are very useful in naval operations.
p. “Some of the immediate technological challenges being tackled at the CPD will result in increasing the performance, effectiveness and longevity of naval electronics,” McClain said.
p. “[Krakauer’s work] has generated more than $7 million in funding over the last five years for the College,” Dennis Manos, the College’s provost for research said.
p. This important research will continue to be influential as the CPD continues to search for better applications for piezoelectrics. “It will increase the CPD’s computing power tenfold,” McClain said.