General Information
NameProf. Sidney Lang
DepartmentDepartment of Chemical Engineering
Emaillang@bgumail.bgu.ac.il
Academic RankProfessor
FunctionProfessor Emeritus, Department of Chemical Engineering


Education

 Ph.D.: 1962, University of California at Berkeley; Profes-sor 1976.
   

Research Interests

 Properties and applications of piezoelectric, pyroelectric and ferroelectric materials. Electrical properties of biological materials. Measurement of biological parameters by means of piezoelectric and pyroelectric techniques. Editorial activities related to appointment as AssociateEditor of the journals Ferroelectrics, Ferroelectrics Letters and IEEE Transactions on Ultrasonics, Ferroelectrics and Frequency Control.
   

Research Projects

 Development andapplication of the Laser Intensity Modulation Method (LIMM) for determination of polarization distributions in ferroelectricmaterials. Measurements of themal diffusivity of thin films. Study of calcite crystals in the pineal gland of the human brain. Preparation and semi-annual publication in thejournal Ferroelectrics of literature guides to pyroelectricity and piezoelectricity, funding:Taylor & Francis Publications. Use of piezo electric transducers for measurementof biological properties.
   

Research Abstract

 Piezoelectricity and pyroelectricity literature guides: An ex-haustive search ofthe world literature on these topics is madeand published semiannually as an indexedbibliography in the journal Ferroelectrics. Laser Intensity Modulation Method (LIMM): Measurement of spatial distributionof polarization or space charge in bulk or in surface regions of ferroelectric single crystals, ceramics or polymers. Techniques developed which are now in use in more than seven different countries. The method is being extended at present to studies of glass-ceramics and of thin-film ceramic layers. Ferroelectricity and pyroelectricity in collagenous materials: Biological tissuesincluding bone and tendon exhibitpiezoelec-tricity and pyroelectricity probablydue to the proteins of which they are partiallyor wholly composed. Studies are in progressto determine the molecular origin of theeffects and their possible bio logicalsignificance. Second harmonic generationused to show noncentrosymmetry andprobable piezo electric effect in crystalsfound in the pineal gland of the brain.