In electronics, the final performance of a small device can only be evaluated under certain conditions. Ming-Ling Yeh and I have been testing the performance of an ammonia sensor based on a CMOS inverter architecture. This type of device contains materials that are affected by oxygen, so we were probing the electronic characteristics in a vacuum where the oxygen level should be close to 0ppm. Electronic sensors for ammonia are of great interest to investigators at the JHU Bloomberg School of Public Health. These sensors are designed to determine the detrimental effects of ammonia on the health of communities surrounding concentrated animal farms. Collaborations like this that involve researchers in seemingly unrelated disciplines like Materials Science and Public Health are leading to some of the most challenging and exciting discoveries in science.
Dr. Noah Tremblay and Ming-Ling Yeh
Dr. Noah Tremblay and graduate student Ming-Ling Yeh in the research group of Prof. Howard Katz are testing sensor circuits for use as environmental monitors at a controlled atmosphere electronic probe station.