Course detail

Selected diagnostic methods, reliability and quality

FEKT-DPC-ET2Acad. year: 2025/2026

Investigations of electrochemical power sources and related systems, potentiostat measurements. Methods for evaluation of activity and lifetime of electrode materials designed for electrochemical power sources.
Methods of scanning electron microscopy, interaction of electrons with solids, signals and their exploitation in diagnostics. Environmental scanning electron microscopy, study of non-conductive materials, phenomena on phase interfaces, dynamical in-situ experiments.
Electron spectroscopy, survey of electron spectroscopy methods. X-ray spectroscopy, energy and wave length dispersive methods.
Methods of X-ray diffractography, powder diffraction spectroscopy. Special diagnostics methods.
Defects of printed circuit boards, influence of material and process factors on their formation. Microscopic methods for defects diagnostics in printed circuit boards.
Reliability and quality, methods of reliability analysis. Quality control processes. Methods and procedures for risk assessment, risk management.

Language of instruction

Czech

Number of ECTS credits

Mode of study

Not applicable.

Entry knowledge

Knowlwedge on level of finished master study program at technical type university.

Rules for evaluation and completion of the course

Written examination from individual parts.

Aims

The aim of the course is to acquaint students with selected methods for evaluation of properties, parameters and structure of some electrotechnic materials and material systems and with dependability, quality, and quality process management.
Knowledge of selected methods used for determination of properties, parameters and structure of electrotechnic materials and material systems in relation to dependability and quality.

Study aids

Not applicable.

Prerequisites and corequisites

Not applicable.

Basic literature

Bard,A.J.:Electroanalytical Chemistry, Marcel Dekker,N.Y.,1970. (EN)
Brett,C.M.A.,Brett,A.M.O.: Electrochemistry, Oxford, 1993. (EN)
Connor,D.J., Sexton,B.A., Smart,R.C.: Surface Analysis Methods in Materials Science, 2003. (EN)
Eckertová,L., Frank,L.: Elektronová mikroskopie a difrakce, Academia, Praha,1996. (CS)
Frank,L., Král,J.: Metody analýzy povrchů, Academia, Praha, 2002. (CS)
Kececioglu,D.: Maintainability, Availability and Operational Readiness Engineering Handbook, Vol.1. Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, 1995. (EN)
Reimer,L.: Scanning electron microscopy, Springer Verlag Berlin,1999. (EN)
Van Zant,P.:Microchip Fabrication. McGraw-Hill New York, 2000. (EN)

Recommended reading

Not applicable.

Classification of course in study plans

  • Programme DPC-EKT Doctoral 0 year of study, summer semester, compulsory-optional
  • Programme DPC-KAM Doctoral 0 year of study, summer semester, compulsory-optional
  • Programme DPC-MET Doctoral 0 year of study, summer semester, compulsory-optional
  • Programme DPC-SEE Doctoral 0 year of study, summer semester, compulsory-optional
  • Programme DPC-TEE Doctoral 0 year of study, summer semester, compulsory-optional
  • Programme DPC-TLI Doctoral 0 year of study, summer semester, compulsory-optional

Type of course unit

 

Seminar

39 hod., optionally

Teacher / Lecturer

Syllabus

1. Familiarization with the content of the course and the organization of the teaching.

2. Thermodynamic principles, equilibrium state, definition of the concepts of enthalpy, Gibbs free energy and entropy with respect to electrochemical mechanisms and chemical current sources.

3. Comparison of equilibrium state and reaction kinetics. Basic electrochemical reactions and their measurement. Depolarization reactions, double layer, oxidation, reduction, Becket series of metals, metal dissolution, passivation, deposition, catalysis, corrosion, Pourbaxi diagram.

4. Potentiostats, galvanostats, pH meters, type I and II electrodes. Electrochemical systems and parasitic effects.

5. Diagnostics of complex electrochemical systems. Methods of cyclic voltammetry (CV), Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS), Electrochemical Quartz Microbalance (EQCM).

6. Overview of Li-ion batteries and comparison with alternative systems. Methods for testing the lifetime of electrode systems - elevated temperature, Rate-Capability etc.

7. Raster Electron Microscopy (REM), basic types of electron sources, electron-solid interactions, signals and their use in materials diagnostics. Signal detection and types of detectors. Slow electron microscopy.

8. Environmental scanning electron microscopy (EREM), advantages and disadvantages of the method compared to REM. Electron-gas interactions, scattering of signal electrons in gas, multiplication of signal electrons in gas and basic types of detectors used in EREM. Dynamic in-situ experiments and their use for testing material properties.

9. Fundamentals of Energy/Wave Dispersive X-Ray Spectroscopy (EDS/WDS) and their application in electron microscopy of materials. Principles of the methods and their comparison with each other. Possible applications for materials diagnostics. Elemental mapping method. EDS in ESEM.

10. Diffraction and introduction to diffraction. X-ray diffraction and X-ray powder diffraction spectroscopy, its instrumentation and applications.

11. X-ray powder diffraction spectroscopy and practical demonstrations - laboratory exercises.

12. Microscopic methods and techniques for printed circuit boards and solder joints. 13. Reliability and quality, methods of reliability analysis. Process quality control. Risk assessment methods and procedures, risk management.