Characterization of Smart Materials

This chapter presents various characterization procedures for smart materials for microwave and millimeter‐wave sensing. The X‐ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy (RS), secondary ion mass spectrometer (SIMS), spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and Fourier‐transform infrared reflection (FTIR) techniques are used for structural characterization of smart materials. This structural characterization of smart materials is required for material identification, verification, and to understand the definitive structural information in order to develop various smart materials for microwave sensing. The SE, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) techniques are used for surface characterization of smart materials. These surface characterizations are used to understand the topographic information in order to develop various smart materials for microwave sensing. The ultraviolet‐visible (UV‐Vis) provides information about the transmittance, reflection, absorption coefficient, band gap, and so on in thin films. The electrical conductivity measurement is used for a dielectric/ semiconductor material for microwave sensing.