Thermophysical Engineering Lab

AboutAbout the lab

Exploring thermoelectric materials and heat transfer phenomena

The Thermophysical Engineering Lab studies the control of material properties through high-pressure torsion, liquid-vapor phase-change heat transfer, and laser-based thermophysical property measurement.
In developing thermoelectric materials, the lab applies high-pressure torsion to silicon, which is highly environmentally friendly, and explores the relationship between the material's nanostructure and how heat and electrons are transported.
The lab also works on the behavior and phase-change heat transfer of microdroplets impinging on solid surfaces, and on thermophysical property measurement by the thermoreflectance method.

ResearchResearch themes

The lab pursues research built on three pillars: control of material properties through high-pressure torsion, liquid-vapor phase-change heat transfer, and laser-based thermophysical property measurement. The research page introduces silicon thermoelectric materials, thermophysical property measurement by the thermoreflectance method, and studies of microdroplets impinging on solid surfaces.

*Illustrative image

Development of silicon thermoelectric materials↗

In collaboration with the materials engineering division, the lab applies high-pressure torsion to silicon to introduce grain refinement, interfaces, and metastable phases, and thereby controls how heat and electrons are transported. The lab found that thermal conductivity can be reduced by more than an order of magnitude and that electronic properties also change.

VoicesStudent voices

Ratings and reviews reflect the experiences of individual current or former students, not the lab's official views. Whether a lab has reviews, or how many, says nothing about the lab itself.

Students who take part in an interview may receive a thank-you gift worth ¥1,000, regardless of what they say.