The Trinity Professors were presented with Royal Irish Academy Gold Medals by Senator Malcolm Byrne at a ceremony in the Royal Irish Academy in Dublin.
The intrinsic ability of solid materials to conduct heat is called thermal conductivity (and here is denoted by the symbol κ). It is essential to control the thermal conductivity in functional materials wherever heat transfer plays a key role, such as in thermoelectric devices, "thermal interface" materials for heat management in electronics, biomedical implants and personal protective equipment. Techniques are needed to tailor the thermal conductivity for specific applications. For example, thermoelectric devices require lower thermal conductivity to maximise their efficiency. Such devices offer a way to capture approximately 60-70% of the energy that is converted into unused heat as a secondary by-product of many technological and industrial processes. Consequently, methods to control thermal conductivity are important to improve thermo-electronic devices' efficiency. This thesis focuses on controlling thermal conductivity using chemical doping methods, including embe