IEE Seminar: A Thermodynamic Perspective on the Features and Challenges of Advanced Metal Manufacturing

Concern over CO2 production has renewed demand for research into low-carbon solutions for the reduction and separation of metals from ore. Overlooked in the focus on low-carbon extractive metallurgy are the subsequent processing steps necessary to melt, alloy, and refine metallurgical ingots from feedstock. Changes in ore-body composition, redesigned extraction processes that yield unique impurity challenges, and tightening application-driven demands on microstructure and atomic segregation all present technical challenges for the secondary remelting and refining industry.

IEE Seminar: Low Phase Noise RF and Microwave Circuits For Electronic-Photonic Synthesizers

Microwave signals with low phase and timing noise are critical for multiple fields of wide scientific, technological, and societal impact. This includes the areas of precision timekeeping, navigation, communications and radar-based sensing. Conventional high-performance electrical oscillators rely on a resonator to achieve low-phase noise performance; however, the quality factor of the resonator limits the purity of the signal generated by these oscillators. 

A talk and community discussion - Energy Equity for All: What do Central Coast Workers and Communities Need to Thrive?

J. Mijin Cha is an assistant professor of environmental studies at UC Santa Cruz.

She is also a fellow at Cornell University's Climate Jobs Institute, on the advisory board of the UCSC Center for Labor and Community, and a fellow at the Climate and Community Institute. Her research looks at the intersection of inequality and the climate crisis and how to advance a "just transition," where the energy transition is leveraged to advance a more just future. Dr. Cha is on the board of Greenpeace USA Fund and a member of the California Bar.

IEE Seminar: Improving Day-Ahead Energy Forecasts for Power System Operations with Open-source Data and Machine Learning

Increasing shares of wind and solar generation and rising electricity demand introduce uncertainty in power system operations. Improving short-term day-ahead forecasts of renewable energy generation and demand is critical for system operators to reduce the risk of forecasting errors, coordinate operations of the electricity market, and minimize the cost of maintaining the power system reliability. In this seminar, we will introduce the concepts of power systems markets.

A Distinguished Lecture by Bruce E. Logan: "How to Effectively Communicate Energy Use and Carbon Emissions to Experts and the Public"

Addressing climate change is a major challenge, but many people struggle to understand how their energy use translates into CO2 emissions. Part of the issue is the use of varied energy units—Calories for food, gallons for gasoline, and kilowatt-hours for electricity—making comparisons difficult.

Monolithic Integration of III-Nitrides Optoelectronics for Smart Applications

The Ill-nitride family (AIN, GaN, InN, and their alloys) is a key semiconductor group, extensively studied over the past two decades for optoelectronics (e.g., LEDs, lasers, photodetectors). InGaN-based light emitters have revolutionized energy-efficient, eco-friendly solid-state lighting and lasing technologies. By alloying GaN with AIN, AlGaN ternary alloys with tunable direct bandgaps (3.4 eV to 6.1 eV) enable a wide UV spectral range (360 nm to 210 nm).

Novim, UCSB and Santa Barbara County: NATURAL GAS – COSTS/BENEFITS

On Thursday, September 19 2024, Novim along with our co-sponsors, the Bren School of Environmental Management at UCSB and the UCSB Institute for Energy and Efficiency presented a forum on the issue of eliminating natural gas from the county energy mix.  This forum, hosted by the UCSB Institute for Energy and Efficiency at Campbell Hall, presented acclaimed experts in the area, along with representatives of the City and County of Santa Barbara for a free informational dialog.