Computing already consumes 4–6% of global energy, and much of that vanishes as waste heat that can damage components and drive up cooling costs. This project builds tiny thermal switches—materials that can turn heat flow on and off with an electrical signal—to manage that heat at the nanoscale. The problem is that as transistors shrink and pack closer together, conventional cooling methods struggle to keep up. The researchers are using oxide ferroelectrics, a class of material whose internal structure can be rearranged by voltage, to either block or channel heat. They will measure how naturally occurring boundaries within these materials scatter heat vibrations, engineer a “heat mirror” that reflects thermal waves at low temperatures, and explore whether electrically conducting domain walls can act as heat conduits. They will also test antiferroelectrics, which change phase under an electric field, as another switching mechanism. If successful, the work could lead to active thermal management in microchips, reducing overheating, improving energy efficiency, and cutting the environmental cost of data centres and AI systems. The research is fundamental—it combines direct thermal measurements with microstructure imaging—but it targets a concrete engineering bottleneck that affects every device that computes.
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Global demand for more powerful and energy-efficient computing continues to escalate, driven by exponential growth of data storage needs, adoption of cloud computing, and advancing AI technologies. In 2020, it was estimated that 4-6% of the global energy supply was used by ICT devices and the trend is increasing [1]. A considerable portion of this energy is dissipated as waste heat, which if not properly managed, can lead to overheating, reduced performance, and even failure of components. Moreover, inefficient thermal management contributes to higher operational costs and environmental impact due to increased cooling requirements. As modern electronics become smaller and more densely packed with powerful transistors, the issue of thermal management becomes increasingly important. Addressing this issue is a tremendous technological challenge, with a need for innovation in thermal management at the level of nanoscale components. Creating an effective thermal switch, where transmission of heat can be controlled with electrical signals, could have dramatic implications for the thermal management demands of next generation microelectronics. In this regard, oxide ferroelectrics present an exciting opportunity: these are materials that can exhibit tuneable thermal conductivity through voltage control of polar domain microstructure. This family of materials also offers promising characteristics such as sub-nanosecond switching speeds, low power consumption, and chemical stability. This aim of this project is to explore how heat flow can be controlled using oxide ferroelectrics, enabled by fundamental studies that combine microstructure visualisation with direct thermal transport measurements. The project objectives explore different aspects of natural and artificially controlled microstructure that can affect heat flow in ferroelectric materials and the closely related family of antiferroelectrics: (i) Naturally occurring domain wall microstructure can disrupt thermal vibrations, therefore reducing thermal conductivity. We will measure heat flow in nanostructured ferroelectric samples, using prototype microbridge devices to advance our understanding of their thermal properties. (ii) At low temperatures, we will take this further to create a completely new type of “heat mirror” by engineering thermal wave reflections by domain walls in order to maximise thermal conductivity changes. (iii) The electrical properties of ‘artificial’ conducting domain walls can potentially be used to channel heat, offering a route to enhance heat flow conduits using domain walls. (iv) Field-driven phase changes in antiferroelectrics offer another exciting route for effective thermal switching and this mechanism will be explored in various material systems with complex phase diagrams. (v) We will build on our Scanning Thermal Microscopy capabilities to explore the influence of microstructure on solid-state cooling in electrocaloric materials and on self-heating in domain wall devices. This facility will further our understanding of nanoscale thermal transport, supporting the development of advanced thermal management technologies. Overall, oxide ferroelectrics are exciting candidates for use as active elements in tuneable thermal devices, with the potential to either enhance or restrict heat flow. It is envisaged that this research will not only contribute to academic knowledge but could also inspire innovative approaches for managing excess heat in commercial technologies, addressing one of the most pressing challenges in energy efficiency today. [1] “Energy Consumption of ICT”, UK Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology, 2022, POST Report 677.
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