Nanocomposite thin films for capacitors

We propose to develop new ceramic nanoparticle filled polymer composites for high power capacitors. The new approach combines the leading-edge nanomaterials development and manufacturing at Agiltron, and the plastic engineering technology at the University of Massachusetts, Lowell. We will transfer the high dielectric constant fillers to our new nanodielctrics with extremely improved breakdown strength and extensively lowered dielectric loss. We expect to engineer the surface of the nanoparticles so that it can be homogenously dispersed in a polymer matrix. Our nanocomposites will have a dielectric constant higher than 10, breakdown strength higher than 700MV/m, dielectric loss lower than 0.01, and energy density over 20J/g. Importantly, the loading of ceramic fillers in the nanocomposites will be lower than 50% in volume and our nanodielectric films will be flexible due to the low filler loading, and they can be folded and rolled like plastic sheets to build compact capacitors. The films will be made by extrusion and bilateral stretching. Our novel materials feature high dielectric constant, low loss and high breakdown strength that maximize the energy density. This Phase I will demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed approach.