SFB 458 - Ionic Motion in Materials with Disordered Structures - From Elementary Steps to Macroscopic Transport

Basic data for this project

Description

Sonderforschungsbereich 458 is devoted to the study of the motion of mobile ions in materials with disordered structures, from elementary steps to macroscopic transport. SFB 458 thus addresses the basic questions of SOLID STATE IONICS, a discipline which has become a rapidly developing branch of materials science and engineering. In the field of SOLID STATE IONICS, interest has lately focused mainly on applications of disordered ion-conducting materials in high-technology devices. The latter include advanced solid-state battery systems, solid oxide fuel cells, chemical sensors, and electrochromic displays. The improvement and optimisation of the materials involved necessitate a thorough understanding of the mechanisms of their ion dynamics and transport. What is more, achieving such an understanding is at the same time a major scientific challenge, representing an important topic of basic research in its own right. Since its establishment on 1st January 2000, SFB 458 has met this challenge and started a comprehensive programme to investigate the structural and dynamic aspects of ionic motion in disordered materials. It has formed an international network of collaborations and has become a unique centre of research. Within the scientific community, it is now playing a key rôle in the common endeavour to unravel the microscopic mechanisms behind the macroscopic transport phenomena.