Daan Hein Alsem

Materials Sciences Division / National Center for Electron Microscopy

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
1 Cyclotron Road MS 72-150
Berkeley, CA 94720
Phone: (510) 495 2455 Fax: (510) 486 5888
E-mail: DHAlsem@lbl.gov

Download Curriculum Vitae (PDF)

Education

•  Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley
• Advisor: Prof. R.O.Ritchie 01/2003 – 12/2006
• Dissertation: Mechanisms for Fatigue and Wear of Polysilicon Structural Thin Films. Special focus on (analytical) electron microscopy techniques. Minors: Mechanical (focus: MEMS) and Electrical Engineering. GPA: 3.96/4.00.
• M.S. in Applied Physics, University of Groningen, The Netherlands (includes B.S.)
• Advisor: Prof. J.Th.M. de Hosson 09/1996 – 08/2002
• Projects: Characterization of magnetic properties of nano-crystalline materials using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and In-situ quantitative characterization of morphological evolution in q = 2 Potts model aluminum thin films.

Research interests

• Mechanical behavior – deformation (elastic/plastic), fracture, fatigue, friction and wear – of materials:
• Micron- and nano-scale (structural) thin films and structures
• Advanced structural and functional materials
• Energy generation/storage research related materials
• Nature-inspired structural materials 
• Developing and using advanced analytical and in-situ transmission electron beam characterization techniques to relate (changes in) microstructure to mechanisms governing physical behavior of functional and structural materials.

 Research experience

• Post-doctoral researcher, Materials Sciences Division / National Center for Electron Microscopy, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, 01/2007 - Present
• Projects:     
• Designing highly toughened bio-inspired hybrid materials
• In-situ TEM study of fracture and fatigue in polysilicon structural films   
• Nano-scale tribology of polysilicon structural films
• TEM study of cyclic torsional fatigue deformation effects in a NiTi shape-memory alloy
• Fatigue crack growth in nano-grained Pt thin films
• In-situ TEM EBIC study of Ag/Si front contacts in silicon solar cells
• Graduate student researcher, Materials Science and Engineering Department at the University of California at Berkeley / Materials Sciences Division at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, 01/2003 – 12/2006
• Visiting research scholar, National Center for Electron Microscopy at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, 03/2002 – 08/2002
• Graduate student researcher, Department of Applied Physics, University of Groningen, The Netherlands, 02/2001 – 08/2002.
• Undergraduate research intern, Department of Applied Physics, University of Groningen, the Netherlands, 01/1999 – 07/1999

• Substitute lecturer for undergraduate course “Mechanical Properties of Engineering Materials”, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, 09/2008 - 11/2008.
• Guest lecturer for graduate course “Tribology”, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, 02/2008.
• Mentor for visiting graduate studentsduring internships in Materials Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 02/2005 - 08/2005 and 09/2007 – 02/2008.
• Graduate student instructor for “Mechanical Properties of Engineering Materials”, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, 08/2006 – 12/2006 (weekly discussion sessions and also taught several main lectures).
• Mentor for high school intern during summer internship in Materials Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 06/2004 - 08/2004.
• University student tutor for junior/senior high school students in courses: physics, mathematics and chemistry, 09/1996 – 06/2001.

Professional services and synergistic activities

• Reviewer for: Acta Materialia, Nanotechnology, Journal of Microelectromechanical Systems, Journal of Materials Science, Journal of Micromechanics and Microengineering, Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics, International Journal of Fracture, Microscopy Research & Technique, Sensors, MRS Proceedings, TMS Proceedings, Department of Energy – Office of Basic Energy Sciences.
• Co-organizer of joint National Center for Electron Microscopy and Molecular Foundry 2008 Users’ Meeting at LBNL November 10-11, 2008.
• Member of National Center for Electron Microscopy User Association Executive Committee at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 02/08 – Present.
• Co-chair of session “Adhesion” at MicroNanoReliability 2007 conference, Berlin, Germany, September 5, 2007.
• Treasurer and co-organizer of Embedded Software Conference (ESCAPE) at the University of Groningen, The Netherlands, October 16-17, 2001.
• Public relations commissioner on the board of the student association for students in Physics, Mathematics and Computer Science (FMF) at the University of Groningen, The Netherlands, 09/1999 – 09/2000.

• Chief-editor and designer of the FMF magazine ‘Periodiek*’ 09/1999 – 10/2000

• Travel scholarships: UC Berkeley Graduate Fellowships Office Conference Travel Grant (07/2007), Groningen University Fund Grant (03/2002 – 08/2002), Marco Polo Fund Grant (03/2002 – 08/2002).
• Royal Dutch Shell Scholarship (‘Shell-studietoelagen beurs’), 08/1996 - 08/2002.

Society memberships

• Materials Research Society (MRS)
• The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society (TMS)
• SPIE

Publications

Refereed journal papers

J13. Designing Highly Toughened Hybrid Composites Through Nature-Inspired Hierarchical Complexity, M.E. Launey, E. Munch, D.H. Alsem, H.B. Barth, E. Saiz, A.P. Tomsia and R.O. Ritchie, Acta Materialia, accepted, March 2009.

J12. Sliding Wear Mechanisms Of Polysilicon Surface Micromachines Operated In High Vacuum, S.J. Timpe, D.H. Alsem, D.A. Hook, M.T. Dugger and K. Komvopoulos, Journal of Microelectromechanical Systems, in press, February 2009.

J11. Wear Mechanisms And Friction Parameters For Sliding Wear Of Micron-Scale Polysilicon Sidewalls, D.H. Alsem, R. van der Hulst, E.A. Stach, M.T. Dugger, J.Th.M. De Hosson and R.O. Ritchie, Journal of Micromechanics and Microengineering, submitted, January 2009.

J10. Tough, Bio-Inspired Hybrid Materials, E. Munch,  M.E. Launey, D.H. Alsem, E. Saiz, A.P. Tomsia, R.O. Ritchie, Science, vol. 322, 2008, pp. 1516-1520.

J9. Micron-Scale Friction And Sliding Wear Of Polycrystalline Silicon Thin Structural Films In Ambient Air, D.H. Alsem, E.A. Stach, M.T. Dugger and R.O. Ritchie, Journal of Microelectromechanical Systems, vol. 17, 2008, pp. 1144-1154.

J8. Further Considerations On The High-Cycle Fatigue Of Micron-Scale Polycrystalline Silicon, D.H. Alsem, C.L. Muhlstein, E.A. Stach and R.O. Ritchie, Scripta Materialia, vol. 59, 2008, pp. 931-935, (Invited paper).

J7. Effect Of Post-Release Sidewall Morphology On The Fracture And Fatigue Properties Of Polycrystalline Silicon Structural Films, D.H. Alsem, B.L. Boyce, E.A. Stach and R.O. Ritchie, Sensors and Actuators A, vol. 147, 2008, pp. 553-560.

J6. Mechanisms For Fatigue Of Micron-Scale Silicon Structural Films, D.H. Alsem, O.N. Pierron, E.A. Stach, C.L. Muhlstein and R.O. Ritchie, Advanced Engineering Materials, vol 9, no 1-2, 2007, pp. 15-30, (Invited review).

J5. Very High-Cycle Fatigue Failure In Micron-Scale Poly-Crystalline Silicon Films: Effects Of Environment And Surface Oxide Thickness, D.H. Alsem, R. Timmerman, B.L. Boyce, E.A. Stach, J.Th.M. de Hosson and R.O. Ritchie, Journal of Applied Physics, vol 101, Jan 2007, pp. 013515.

J4. An Electron Microscopy Study Of Wear In Polysilicon Microelectromechanical Systems In Ambient Air, D.H. Alsem, E.A. Stach, M.T. Dugger, Marius Enachescu and R.O. Ritchie, Thin Solid Films, vol 515, 2007, pp. 3259–3266.

J3. Quantitative Characterization Of The Growth And Morphological Evolution Of Bicrystalline Aluminum Thin Films, D.H. Alsem, J.Th.M. de Hosson and E.A. Stach, Journal of Materials Science, vol 40, 2005, pp. 5033-5036.

J2. Fatigue Failure In Thin-Film Polycrystalline Silicon Is Due To Subcritical Cracking Within The Oxide Layer, D.H. Alsem, E.A. Stach, C.L. Muhlstein and R.O. Ritchie, Applied Physics Letters, vol 86, Jan 2005, pp. 41914-1-3.

J1. Ultra-Soft Magnetic Films Investigated With Lorentz Transmissie Electron Microscopy And Electron Holography, J.Th.M. De Hosson, N.G. Chechenin, D.H. Alsem, T. Vystavel, B.J. Kooi, A.R. Chezan and D.O. Boerma, Microscopy & Microanalysis, vol 8, no 4, Aug 2002, pp.274-87.

Conference papers

C9. Tribological Behavior Of Micron-Scale Polycrystalline Silicon Films In Ambient Air, D.H. Alsem, R. van der Hulst, E.A. Stach, M.T. Dugger, J.Th.M. de Hosson and R.O. Ritchie, Proceedings of SPIE MOEMS-MEMS: Micro- and Nanofabrication - Reliability, Packaging, Testing, and Characterization of MEMS/MOEMS and Nanodevices VIII, San Jose, CA, January 2009 (submitted December 2008).

C8. Effect Of Sidewall Morphology On The Fracture And Fatigue Properties Of Polysilicon Structural Films, D.H. Alsem, B.L. Boyce, E.A. Stach and R.O. Ritchie, Proceedings of the 12^th International Conference on Fracture (ICF 12), Ottawa, Canada, July 2009 (submitted October 2008).

C7. Nano-Scale Tribological Behavior Of Polycrystalline Silicon Structural Films In Ambient Air, D.H. Alsem, R. van der Hulst, E.A. Stach, M.T. Dugger, J.Th.M. de Hosson and R.O. Ritchie, Materials Research Society Spring Meeting Proceedings (T1.4), San Francisco, CA, March 2008.

C6. Wear And Fatigue In Silicon Structural Films For MEMS Applications, D.H. Alsem, R. Timmerman, E.A. Stach, M.T. Dugger and R.O. Ritchie, Proceedings of the European Conference on Fracture 2006 (ECF 16), Alexandroupolis, Greece, July 2006.

C5. Utilizing On-Chip Testing And Electron Microscopy To Obtain A Mechanistic Understanding Of Fatigue And Wear In Polysilicon Structural Films, D.H. Alsem, E.A. Stach, C.L. Muhlstein, M.T. Dugger, and R.O. Ritchie, Materials Research Society Spring Meeting Proceedings (P2.5), San Francisco, CA, April 2004.

C4. Very  High-Cycle Fatigue Of Micron-Scale Polysilicon Films For MEMS, R.O. Ritchie, D.H. Alsem, C.L. Muhlstein and E.A. Stach, Very High Cycle Fatigue, T. Sakai and Y. Ochi, eds., Society of Materials Science, Japan, 2004.

C3. Quantitative Characterization Of Morphological Evolution In Q = 2 Potts Model Aluminum Thin Films, D.H. Alsem, E.A. Stach and J.Th.M. de Hosson, Materials Research Society Fall Meeting Proceedings (W12.1), Boston, MA, December 2002.

C2. Magnetic structures of nano-crystalline FeZr(N) films, T. Vystavel, D.H. Alsem, N.G. Chechenin, A.R. Chezan and J.Th.M. De Hosson, 15th International Congress on Electron Microscopy (ICEM 15) Vol. 1: Physics and Materials (313 - 315), Durban, South Africa, September 2002.

C1. Characterisation Of Magnetic Ripple Structures With Lorentz Microscopy, D.H. Alsem, T. Vystavel, N.G. Chechenin and J.Th.M. de Hosson, Proceedings of the Dutch Microscopy Society Fall Meeting, December 13^th – 14^th 2001, Papendal, The Netherlands, Editor: H.K. Koerten.

Presentations

Invited oral presentations

I2. Correlating Mechanical Properties And Microstructure In Structural Thin Films, D.H. Alsem, International MEMS Workshop at SEMICON West 2008, San Francisco, CA, July 14, 2008.

I1. High-Cycle Fatigue Of Micron-Scale Silicon Structural Films For MEMS Applications, D.H. Alsem, B.L Boyce, E.A. Stach and R.O. Ritchie, MicroNanoReliability, Berlin, Germany, September 2-5, 2007, (Plenary lecture).

Oral presentations

O15. Effect Of Sidewall Morphology On The Fracture And Fatigue Properties Of Polysilicon Structural Films, D.H. Alsem, B.L. Boyce, E.A. Stach and R.O. Ritchie, 12^th International Conference on Fracture (ICF 12), Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, July 2009.

O14. Nanotribology Of Sidewall Contact Interfaces of Polycrystalline Silicon Microdevices Operated In High Vacuum, D.H. Alsem, H. Xiang, K. Komvopoulos and R.O. Ritchie, Materials Research Society Spring Meeting, San Francisco, CA, April 2009.

O13. On The Use Of Analytical Transmission Electron Microscopy To Discern The Role Of Microstructure In Influencing The Physical Mechanisms Of Fatigue And Wear In Micron-Scale Polysilicon, D.H. Alsem, E.A. Stach and R.O. Ritchie, Materials Research Society Spring Meeting, San Francisco, CA, April 2009.

O12. Nano-Scale Tribology Of Polycrystalline Silicon Structural Films In Ambient Air, D.H. Alsem, R. van der Hulst, E.A. Stach, M.T. Dugger, J.Th.M. de Hosson and R.O. Ritchie, 2009 TMS annual meeting, San Francisco, CA, February 2009.

O11. Tribological behavior of micron-scale polycrystalline silicon films in ambient air, D.H. Alsem, R. van der Hulst, E.A. Stach, M.T. Dugger, J.Th.M. de Hosson and R.O. Ritchie, SPIE MOEMS-MEMS: Micro- and Nanofabrication - Reliability, Packaging, Testing, and Characterization of MEMS/MOEMS and Nanodevices VIII, San Jose, CA, January 2009.

O10. Effect Of Sidewall Morphology On The Fracture And Fatigue Properties Of Micron-Scale Polycrystalline Silicon, D.H. Alsem, B.L. Boyce, E.A. Stach and R.O. Ritchie, Materials Research Society Fall Meeting, Boston, MA, December 2008.

O9. Nano-Scale Tribological Behavior Of Polycrystalline Silicon Structural Films In Ambient Air, D.H. Alsem, R. van der Hulst, E.A. Stach, M.T. Dugger, J.Th.M. de Hosson and R.O. Ritchie, Materials Research Society Spring Meeting, San Francisco, CA, March 2008.

O8. Nano-Scale Tribology Of Polycrystalline Silicon Structural Films, D.H. Alsem, E.A. Stach, M.T. Dugger and R.O. Ritchie, Workshop on In-Situ Methods in Nanomechanics, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, August 1-3 2007.

O7. Nano-Scale Wear Mechanisms in Polysilicon for MEMS Applications, D.H. Alsem, E.A. Stach, M.T. Dugger and R.O. Ritchie, Materials Research Society Spring Meeting, San Francisco, CA, April 2007.

O6. Wear And Fatigue In Silicon Structural Films For MEMS Applications, D.H. Alsem, R. Timmerman, E.A. Stach, M.T. Dugger and R.O. Ritchie, European Conference of Fracture (ECF 16), Alexandroupolis, Greece, July 2006.

O5. Fatigue In Polycrystalline Silicon Structural Films - Influence Of Initial Oxide Thickness, D.H.Alsem, R. Timmerman, E.A. Stach, B.L. Boyce, J.Th.M. De Hosson and R.O. Ritchie, Materials Research Society Spring Meeting, San Francisco, CA, April 2006.

O4. Sliding Wear In Polysilicon Microelectromechanical Systems, D.H.Alsem, E.A. Stach, C.L. Muhlstein, M. Enachescu and R.O. Ritchie, Materials Research Society Spring Meeting, San Francisco, CA, March 2005.

O3. An Electron Microscopy Study Of Wear In Polysilicon Microelectromechanical Systems, D.H. Alsem, E.A. Stach, M.T. Dugger, M. Enachescu and R.O. Ritchie, 2005 TMS annual meeting, San Francisco, CA, 2005.

O2. Utilizing On-Chip Testing And Electron Microscopy To Obtain A Mechanistic Understanding Of Fatigue And Wear In Polysilicon Structural Films, D.H. Alsem, E.A. Stach, C.L. Muhlstein, M.T. Dugger and R.O. Ritchie, Materials Research Society Spring Meeting, San Francisco, CA, April 2004.

O1. Combining Micromechanical Testing And Electron Microscopy To Obtain A Mechanistic Understanding Of Fatigue And Wear In Microelectromechanical Systems, D.H. Alsem, E.A. Stach, C.L. Muhlstein, M.T. Dugger and R.O. Ritchie, Deformation and Stresses in Small Volumes, 2004 TMS Annual Meeting, Charlotte, NC, March, 2004.

Contributed oral conference presentations

CO12. Nature-Inspired Structural Materials, R.O. Ritchie, E. Munch, M.E. Launey, D.H Alsem, E. Saiz and A.P Tomsia, Materials Research Society Fall Meeting, Boston, MA, December 2008,  (Invited talk).

CO11. Nature-Inspired Hybrid Structural Materials, R.O. Ritchie, D.H. Alsem, M. Launey, E. Munch, E. Saiz, and A.P. Tomsia, 7^th International Workshops on Interfaces, R.M. Cannon Memorial Workshop, New Materials via Interfacial Control, Santiago, Spain, June 22-26 2008, (Invited talk).

CO10. Nature-Inspired Hybrid Structural Materials, D.H. Alsem, M. Launey, E. Munch, E. Saiz, A.P. Tomsia and R.O. Ritchie, Materials Research Society Spring Meeting, San Francisco, CA, March 2008, (Invited talk).

CO9. Further Considerations On The Mechanisms For Fatigue Failure In Micron-Scale Silicon Structural Films, R.O. Ritchie, D.H. Alsem and E.A. Stach, Materials Science & Technology 2007 Conference, Detroit, MI, September 16-20 2007, (Invited talk).

CO8. An Assessment Of Very High Cycle Fatigue Failure In Micron-Scale Polycrystalline Silicon For MEMS, R.O. Ritchie and D.H. Alsem, Fourth International Very High Cycle Fatigue Conference (VHCF-4), Ann Arbor, MI, August 19-22 2007, (Invited talk).

CO7. A Comprehensive Assessment Of Fatigue Failure In Micron-Scale Silicon Structural Films For MEMS, R.O. Ritchie, D.H. Alsem, International Workshop on Micromaterials, Tokyo, Japan, November 6 2006, (Invited talk).

CO6. A Mechanistic Understanding Of Fatigue In Polysilicon Structural Films, R.O. Ritchie, D.H. Alsem, E.A. Stach and C.L. Muhlstein, 2005 TMS annual meeting, San Francisco, CA, 2005, (Invited talk).

CO5. Very High-Cycle Fatigue Of Micron-Scale Polysilicon Films For MEMS, R.O. Ritchie, D.H. Alsem, C.L. Muhlstein and E.A. Stach, International Conference on Very High Cycle Fatigue (VHCF-3), Japan, 2004, (Invited talk).

CO4. Using The Electron Microscope To Explore Reliability In Microelectromechanical Systems And Nanostructured Materials, E.A. Stach, V. Gopal, M. Jin, D.H. Alsem, M.J. Williamson, A. Minor, V. Radmilovic, C.L Muhlstein, J.W. Morris, Jr., and R.O. Ritchie, Microscopy and Microanalysis 2004, Savannah, GA, August 2004, (Invited talk).

CO3. Magnetic Structure Of Nanocrystalline Of FeZr(N) Films, T. Vystavel, D.H. Alsem, N.G. Chechenin, A.R. Chezan, The  15th International Congress on Electron Microscopy (ICEM 15), Durban, South Africa, September 1-6  2002.

CO2. Characterisation Of Magnetic Properties With Lorentz Microscopy And Electron Holography: A Novel Approach, J.Th.M. de Hosson, D.H. Alsem, T. Vystavel, N.G. Chechenin, 6^th International Conference on Nanostructured Materials (Nano 2002), Orlando, FL, USA, June 16 – 21 2002.

CO1. Relation between Observed Micromagnetic Ripple and FMR Width in Ultrasoft Magnetic Films, N.G. Chechenin, A.R. Chezan, C.B. Craus, T. Vystavel, D.H. Alsem, D.O. Boerma, J.Th.M. de Hosson and L. Niesen, Intermag Europe 2002, IEEE International Magnetics Conference, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, April 28 - May 2 2002.

Poster presentations

P4. Using Electron Microscopy To Correlate Mechanical Behavior And Microstructure Of Micron-Scale Polysilicon, D.H. Alsem, E.A. Stach and R.O. Ritchie, Molecular Foundry and National Center for Electron Microscopy Users’ Meeting 2008, Berkeley, CA, November 2008.

P3. Nature Inspired Model Hybrid Composites, E. Munch, M. E. Launey, D. H. Alsem, U. G. K. Wegst, E. Saiz, A. P. Tomsia and R. O. Ritchie, 7^th International Workshops on Interfaces, R.M. Cannon Memorial Workshop, New Materials via Interfacial Control, Santiago de Compostela, Spain, June 22-26 2008.

P2. Quantitative Characterization Of Morphological Evolution In Q = 2 Potts Model Aluminum Thin Films, D.H. Alsem, E.A. Stach and J. Th. M. De Hosson, Materials Research Society Fall Meeting, Boston, MA, December 2002.

P1. Characterisation of Magnetic Ripple Structures With Lorentz Microscopy, D.H. Alsem, T. Vystavel, N.G. Chechenin, J.Th.M. de Hosson, Dutch Microscopy Society Fall Meeting, Papendal, The Netherlands, December 13 – 14 2001.

Seminars

S8. Fracture, Fatigue And Microstructure Of New Ceramic Structural Materials,  Department of Applied Physics, University of Groningen, De Hosson Group Meeting, Groningen, The Netherlands, January 2009.

S7. Using The Electron Microscope To Correlate Mechanical Properties And Microstructure In Micron- And Nano-Scale Systems, Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg MD, August 2008.

S6. Nano And Micro-Machines, Lawrence Hall of Science, University of California at Berkeley, Nanotechnology Teacher Workshop, Berkeley CA, June 2008. 

S5. Correlating Mechanical Properties And Microstructure In Micron- And Nano-Scale Systems, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia PA, February 2008.

S4. Fatigue Of Micron-Scale Polycrystalline Silicon Structural Films, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of California at Berkeley, Komvopoulos Group Meeting, Berkeley CA, February 2007.

S3. A Mechanistic Understanding Of Wear And Fatigue In Polysilicon Structural Films, Department of Chemical Engineering, University of California at Berkeley, Maboudian Group Meeting, Berkeley CA, June 2005.

S2. A Mechanistic Understanding Of Fatigue And Wear In Polysilicon Structural Films - Utilizing On-Chip Testing And Electron Microscopy, University of Groningen, De Hosson Group Meeting, Groningen, The Netherlands, January 2005.

S1. Combining On-Chip Testing And Electron Microscopy To Obtain A Mechanistic Understanding Of Fatigue And Wear In Microelectromechanical Systems, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, National Center for Electron Microscopy Seminar, Berkeley CA, October 2003.

Ritchie Group
MSD , LBNL
Dept of MSE , UC Berkeley

Last updated 03/19/09