Dr. Xun Cao
Associate Professor, State key lab of high performance ceramics and superfine microstructure, shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Chinese Academy of Science, China.

Speech title: Thermochromic Properties of VO2 Thin Films and Applications in Energy-saving Project

Abstract: As one of typical metal-insulator-transition (MIT) oxides, vanadium dioxide (VO2) has been widely investigated for many potential applications such as smart windows, sensors, IR uncooled bolometers, and laser protections. Thermochromic window coatings offer some possibilities to achieve energy efficiency in window. In this presentation, I will sort out the urgent problems and critical obstacles which we are facing on the present VO2 research for smart window applications. First, the VO2 films without impurity can be fabricated by different methods including sputtering deposition, sol-gel synthesis, and pulsed laser deposition. Second, it is a big challenge to get a high-quality VO2 films with good performance of proper phase-change transition temperature, high visible luminance transmittance, high solar modulation ratio, as well as good durability at a relative low growth temperature. Third, the mechanism of the MIT in VO2 materials is also very interesting. Realizing control of properties of VO2 by defects modulation is an efficient route for understanding the nature of MIT and developing novel functional devices for practical applications.