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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 181 records · Page 10
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2012

Fabrication of an Absorber-Coupled MKID Detector

Absorber-coupled microwave kinetic inductance detector (MKID) arrays were developed for submillimeter and far-infrared astronomy. These sensors comprise arrays of lambda/2 stepped microwave impedance resonators patterned on a 1.5-mm-thick silicon membrane, which is optimized for optical coupling. The detector elements are supported on a 380-mm-thick micro-machined silicon wafer. The resonators consist of parallel plate aluminum transmission lines coupled to low-impedance Nb microstrip traces of variable length, which set the resonant frequency of each resonator. This allows for multiplexed microwave readout and, consequently, good spatial discrimination between pixels in the array. The transmission lines simultaneously act to absorb optical power and employ an appropriate surface impedance and effective filling fraction. The fabrication techniques demonstrate high-fabrication yield of MKID arrays on large, single-crystal membranes and sub-micron front-to-back alignment of the micro strip circuit. An MKID is a detector that operates upon the principle that a superconducting material s kinetic inductance and surface resistance will change in response to being exposed to radiation with a power density sufficient to break its Cooper pairs. When integrated as part of a resonant circuit, the change in surface impedance will result in a shift in its resonance frequency and a decrease of its quality factor. In this approach, incident power creates quasiparticles inside a superconducting resonator, which is configured to match the impedance of free space in order to absorb the radiation being detected. For this reason MKIDs are attractive for use in large-format focal plane arrays, because they are easily multiplexed in the frequency domain and their fabrication is straightforward. The fabrication process can be summarized in seven steps: (1) Alignment marks are lithographically patterned and etched all the way through a silicon on insulator (SOI) wafer, which consists of a thin silicon membrane bonded to a thick silicon handle wafer. (2) The metal microwave circuitry on the front of the membrane is patterned and etched. (3) The wafer is then temporarily bonded with wafer wax to a Pyrex wafer, with the SOI side abutting the Pyrex. (4) The silicon handle component of the SOI wafer is subsequently etched away so as to expose the membrane backside. (5) The wafer is flipped over, and metal microwave circuitry is patterned and etched on the membrane backside. Furthermore, cuts in the membrane are made so as to define the individual detector array chips. (6) Silicon frames are micromachined and glued to the silicon membrane. (7) The membranes, which are now attached to the frames, are released from the Pyrex wafer via dissolution of the wafer wax in acetone.

Brown, Ari↗
NASA NTRS2018

Process for Fabrication of Superconducting Vias for Electrical Connection to Groundplane in Cryogenic Detectors

Disclosed are systems, methods, and non-transitory computer-readable storage media for fabrication of silicon on insulator (SOI) wafers with a superconductive via for electrical connection to a groundplane. Fabrication of the SOI wafer with a superconductive via can involve depositing a superconducting groundplane onto a substrate with the superconducting groundplane having an oxidizing layer and a non-oxidizing layer. A layer of monocrystalline silicon can be bonded to the superconducting groundplane and a photoresist layer can be applied to the layer of monocrystalline silicon and the SOI wafer can be etched with the oxygen rich etching plasma, resulting in a monocrystalline silicon top layer with a via that exposes the superconducting groundplane. Then, the fabrication can involve depositing a superconducting surface layer to cover the via.

Denis, Kevin L.↗
DOE OSTI2014

A High Temperature Silicon Carbide mosfet Power Module With Integrated Silicon-On-Insulator-Based Gate Drive

Here we present a board-level integrated silicon carbide (SiC) MOSFET power module for high temperature and high power density application. Specifically, a silicon-on-insulator (SOI)-based gate driver capable of operating at 200°C ambient temperature is designed and fabricated. The sourcing and sinking current capability of the gate driver are tested under various ambient temperatures. Also, a 1200 V/100 A SiC MOSFET phase-leg power module is developed utilizing high temperature packaging technologies. The static characteristics, switching performance, and short-circuit behavior of the fabricated power module are fully evaluated at different temperatures. Moreover, a buck converter prototype composed of the SOI gate driver and SiC power module is built for high temperature continuous operation. The converter is operated at different switching frequencies up to 100 kHz, with its junction temperature monitored by a thermosensitive electrical parameter and compared with thermal simulation results. The experimental results from the continuous operation demonstrate the high temperature capability of the power module at a junction temperature greater than 225°C.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2019

Highly resolved Eulerian simulations of fuel spray transients in single and multi-hole injectors: Nozzle flow and near-exit dynamics

In high pressure fuel injectors, needle opening and closing transients cause complex off-design fluid dynamics behaviors that profoundly impact the spray and mixture formation processes. These dynamics are completely different from what is known to occur in steady state conditions. In this study, diesel spray transients have been investigated in single-hole and 3-hole nozzles, encompassing internal and external nozzle flow and including needle motion, performing highly resolved (2.5 μm) computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. We focused on end-of-injection (EOI) and start-of-injection (SOI) processes, in order to provide insights in to the physics. The liquid fuel, vapor and gas species are modeled with a single-fluid multiphase mixture approach, with diffuse interface, and with large eddy simulations (LES) of the turbulence. Occurrence of phase change due to cavitation is accounted for, and the spray dispersion is described with a turbulent dispersion model. Detailed needle motion data and orifice internal surface are available from xray synchrotron source measurements carried out at Argonne National Laboratory, and shared through the Engine Combustion Network (ECN) community. Simulations are compared against x-ray phase contrast imaging and radiography of the internal and near-exit flow, in addition to optical microscopy data of the near-exit sprays. Simulation results are found to agree well with available experimental data, and are able to realistically capture local and global features. The simulations allow to gain insight into the physics of gas ingestion and dribbles at EOI, for different hole diameters, operating conditions and number of holes. At SOI, timing of liquid appearance out of the injector and spray tip penetration are adequately predicted, by using the EOI flow field as in-nozzle initialization, and by prescribing the measured tip needle displacement with an informed effective valve opening point inferred from the x-ray observations. Lastly, the variation of spreading angle over time is also discussed in detail for the multi-hole case, including hole-to-hole variations. Due to real geometry features and asymmetric needle motion with eccentric components, it is found that the three holes exhibit swirling flows of increasing intensity as the lift decreases, causing the near cone angle to open and spread, in a quasi-hollow cone structure. These features are not observed in axial single-hole injectors because of their relative simplicity and intrinsic symmetry.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2026

Slow-Light Mid-IR Silicon Photonic Chips for NO 2 and CH 4 Gas Detection

A compact, chip-scale mid-infrared gas sensor is demonstrated, leveraging a two-dimensional photonic crystal waveguide (PCW) fabricated on a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) platform. The PCW comprises a hexagonal lattice with lattice constant a = 860 nm and hole radius r = 0.22a, incorporating a central line defect of reduced-radius holes (r s = 0.7r) to induce slow-light propagation near the photonic band edge with a group index of approximately 73, thereby enhancing light-matter interaction. The sensor operates at fundamental absorption wavelengths of 3.42 μm for nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ) and 3.40 μm for methane (CH 4 ), utilizing the strongest molecular vibrational transitions for maximum sensitivity. Experimental validation was conducted using dynamically diluted gas mixtures generated by mass flow controllers, with signal acquisition performed by a liquid nitrogen-cooled InSb detector. For NO 2 , the sensor exhibited excellent linear response over 5–25 ppm (part per million) with coefficient of determination R 2 = 0.9934, achieving a detection limit of 210 ppb (part per billion)─representing the first reported silicon photonic-based NO 2 detection. For CH 4 , exposure to 25 ppm resulted in a 6.4% decrease in transmitted intensity, demonstrating multigas sensing capability. The CMOS-compatible fabrication process and compact 3 mm device footprint establish this SOI-PCW platform as a scalable, low-power solution for integrated mid-infrared gas sensing, with significant potential for environmental monitoring and industrial safety applications.

Crystals↗
DOE OSTI2021

Explaining the trends and variability in the United States tornado records using climate teleconnections and shifts in observational practices

The annual frequency of tornadoes during 1950–2018 across the major tornado-impacted states were examined and modeled using anthropogenic and large-scale climate covariates in a hierarchical Bayesian inference framework. Anthropogenic factors include increases in population density and better detection systems since the mid-1990s. Large-scale climate variables include El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO), Southern Oscillation Index (SOI), North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO), Arctic Oscillation (AO), and Atlantic Multi-decadal Oscillation (AMO). The model provides a robust way of estimating the response coefficients by considering pooling of information across groups of states that belong to Tornado Alley, Dixie Alley, and Other States, thereby reducing their uncertainty. The influence of the anthropogenic factors and the large-scale climate variables are modeled in a nested framework to unravel secular trend from cyclical variability. Population density explains the long-term trend in Dixie Alley. The step-increase induced due to the installation of the Doppler Radar systems explains the long-term trend in Tornado Alley. NAO and the interplay between NAO and ENSO explained the interannual to multi-decadal variability in Tornado Alley. PDO and AMO are also contributing to this multi-time scale variability. SOI and AO explain the cyclical variability in Dixie Alley. This improved understanding of the variability and trends in tornadoes should be of immense value to public planners, businesses, and insurance-based risk management agencies.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2019

Electrically tunable effective g-factor of a single hole in a lateral GaAs/AlGaAs quantum dot

Electrical tunability of the $g$-factor of a confined spin is a long-time goal of the spin qubit field. Here we utilize the electric dipole spin resonance (EDSR) to demonstrate it in a gated GaAs double-dot device confining a hole. This tunability is a consequence of the strong spin-orbit interaction (SOI) in the GaAs valence band. The SOI enables a spin-flip interdot tunneling, which, in combination with the simple spin-conserving charge transport leads to the formation of tunable hybrid spin-orbit molecular states. EDSR is used to demonstrate that the gap separating the two lowest energy states changes its character from a charge-like to a spin-like excitation as a function of interdot detuning or magnetic field. In the spin-like regime, the gap can be characterized by the effective $g$-factor, which differs from the bulk value owing to spin-charge hybridization, and can be tuned smoothly and sensitively by gate voltages.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2013

Monolithic pixel detectors in silicon on insulator technology

Silicon On Insulator (SOI) is becoming an attractive technology to fabricate monolithic pixel detectors. The possibility of using the depleted resistive substrate as a drift collection volume and to connect it by means of vias through the buried oxide to the pixel electronic makes this kind of approach interesting both for particle and photon detection. In this paper I report the results obtained in the development of monolithic pixel detectors in an SOI technology by a collaboration between groups from the University and INFN of Padova (Italy) and the LBNL and the SCIPP at UCSC (USA).

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2013

High-Q silicon-on-insulator slot photonic crystal cavity infiltrated by a liquid

We report the experimental realization of a high-Q slot photonic crystal cavity in Silicon-On-Insulator (SOI) configuration infiltrated by a liquid. Loaded Q-factor of 23 000 is measured at telecom wavelength. The intrinsic quality factor inferred from the transmission spectrum is higher than 200 000, which represents a record value for slot photonic crystal cavities on SOI, whereas the maximum of intensity of the cavity is roughly equal to 20% of the light transmitted in the waveguide. This result makes filled slot photonic crystal cavities very promising for silicon-based light emission and ultrafast nonlinear optics.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2013

Maximum magnitude in bias-dependent spin accumulation signals of CoFe/MgO/Si on insulator devices

We study in detail how the bias voltage (V{sub bias}) and interface resistance (RA) depend on the magnitude of spin accumulation signals (|ΔV| or |ΔV|/I, where I is current) as detected by three-terminal Hanle measurements in CoFe/MgO/Si on insulator (SOI) devices with various MgO layer thicknesses and SOI carrier densities. We find the apparent maximum magnitude of spin polarization as a function of V{sub bias} and the correlation between the magnitude of spin accumulation signals and the shape of differential conductance (dI/dV) curves within the framework of the standard spin diffusion model. All of the experimental results can be explained by taking into account the density of states (DOS) in CoFe under the influence of the applied V{sub bias} and the quality of MgO tunnel barrier. These results indicate that it is important to consider the DOS of the ferromagnetic materials under the influence of an applied V{sub bias} and the quality of tunnel barrier when observing large spin accumulation signals in Si.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2014

III-V/Si on silicon-on-insulator platform for hybrid nanoelectronics

The unique properties of SOI wafers enable the integration of heterogeneous materials with distinct functionalities in different layers. In particular, III-V compound semiconductors are very attractive for low-noise and high-speed electronic and photonic components integrated on a single chip. We have developed a CMOS compatible and fully integrated solution for the integration of III-V compound semiconductors with silicon technology for optoelectronic applications. InAs compound semiconductor nanostructures are synthesized in SOI wafers using the combined ion beam implantation and millisecond liquid-phase epitaxial growth. Optoelectronic and microstructural investigations carried out on implanted, annealed, and selectively etched samples confirm the formation of high-quality III-V compound semiconductor nanostructures.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2014

Electron theory of perpendicular magnetic anisotropy of Co-ferrite thin films

We develop an electron theory for the t{sub 2g} electrons of Co{sup 2+} ions to clarify the perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) mechanism of Co-ferrite thin films by considering the spin-orbit interaction (SOI) and crystal-field (CF) potentials induced by the local symmetry around the Co ions and the global tetragonal symmetry of the film. Uniaxial and in-plane MA constants K{sub u} and K{sub 1} at 0 K, respectively, are calculated for various values of SOI and CF. We show that reasonable parameter values explain the observed PMA and that the orbital moment for the in-plane magnetization reduces to nearly half of that of the out-of-plane magnetization.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

Investigation of negative bias temperature instability dependence on fin width of silicon-on-insulator-fin-based field effect transistors

The fin width dependence of negative bias temperature instability (NBTI) of double-gate, fin-based p-type Field Effect Transistors (FinFETs) fabricated on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) wafers was investigated. The NBTI degradation increased as the fin width narrowed. To investigate this phenomenon, simulations of pre-stress conditions were employed to determine any differences in gate oxide field, fin band bending, and electric field profile as a function of the fin width. The simulation results were similar at a given gate stress bias, regardless of the fin width, although the threshold voltage was found to increase with decreasing fin width. Thus, the NBTI fin width dependence could not be explained from the pre-stress conditions. Different physics-based degradation models were evaluated using specific fin-based device structures with different biasing schemes to ascertain an appropriate model that best explains the measured NBTI dependence. A plausible cause is an accumulation of electrons that tunnel from the gate during stress into the floating SOI fin body. As the fin narrows, the sidewall device channel moves in closer proximity to the stored electrons, thereby inducing more band bending at the fin/dielectric interface, resulting in a higher electric field and hole concentration in this region during stress, which leads to more degradation. The data obtained in this work provide direct experimental proof of the effect of electron accumulation on the threshold voltage stability in FinFETs.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Electrical and terahertz magnetospectroscopy studies of laser-patterned micro- and nanostructures on InAs-based heterostructures

Nanostructures fabricated from narrow-gap semiconductors with strong spin-orbit interaction (SOI), such as InAs, can be used to filter momentum modes of electrons and offer the possibility to create and detect spin-polarized currents entirely by electric fields. Here, we present magnetotransport and THz magnetospectroscopy investigations of Hall-bars with back-gates made from in InGaAs/InAlAs quantum well structures with a strained 4 nm InAs-inserted channel. The two-dimensional electron gas is at 53 nm depth and has a carrier density of about 6 × 10{sup 11 }cm{sup −2} and mobility of about 2 × 10{sup 5} cm{sup 2}/Vs, after illumination. Electrical and THz optical transport measurements at low temperatures and in high magnetic fields reveal an effective mass of 0.038m{sub 0} and an anisotropic g-factor of up to 20, larger than for bulk InAs or InAs-based heterostructures. We demonstrate that quasi-one-dimensional channels can be formed by micro-laser lithography. The population of subbands is controlled by in-plane gates. Contrary to previous reports, symmetric and asymmetric in-plane gate voltages applied to quasi-one dimensional channels did not show indications of SOI-induced anomalies in the conductance.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Enhanced spectroscopic gas sensors using in-situ grown carbon nanotubes

In this letter, we present a fully complementary-metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) compatible microelectromechanical system thermopile infrared (IR) detector employing vertically aligned multi-walled carbon nanotubes (CNT) as an advanced nano-engineered radiation absorbing material. The detector was fabricated using a commercial silicon-on-insulator (SOI) process with tungsten metallization, comprising a silicon thermopile and a tungsten resistive micro-heater, both embedded within a dielectric membrane formed by a deep-reactive ion etch following CMOS processing. In-situ CNT growth on the device was achieved by direct thermal chemical vapour deposition using the integrated micro-heater as a micro-reactor. The growth of the CNT absorption layer was verified through scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and Raman spectroscopy. The functional effects of the nanostructured ad-layer were assessed by comparing CNT-coated thermopiles to uncoated thermopiles. Fourier transform IR spectroscopy showed that the radiation absorbing properties of the CNT adlayer significantly enhanced the absorptivity, compared with the uncoated thermopile, across the IR spectrum (3 μm–15.5 μm). This led to a four-fold amplification of the detected infrared signal (4.26 μm) in a CO{sub 2} non-dispersive-IR gas sensor system. The presence of the CNT layer was shown not to degrade the robustness of the uncoated devices, whilst the 50% modulation depth of the detector was only marginally reduced by 1.5 Hz. Moreover, we find that the 50% normalized absorption angular profile is subsequently more collimated by 8°. Our results demonstrate the viability of a CNT-based SOI CMOS IR sensor for low cost air quality monitoring.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Template-assisted selective epitaxy of III–V nanoscale devices for co-planar heterogeneous integration with Si

III–V nanoscale devices were monolithically integrated on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrates by template-assisted selective epitaxy (TASE) using metal organic chemical vapor deposition. Single crystal III–V (InAs, InGaAs, GaAs) nanostructures, such as nanowires, nanostructures containing constrictions, and cross junctions, as well as 3D stacked nanowires were directly obtained by epitaxial filling of lithographically defined oxide templates. The benefit of TASE is exemplified by the straightforward fabrication of nanoscale Hall structures as well as multiple gate field effect transistors (MuG-FETs) grown co-planar to the SOI layer. Hall measurements on InAs nanowire cross junctions revealed an electron mobility of 5400 cm{sup 2}/V s, while the alongside fabricated InAs MuG-FETs with ten 55 nm wide, 23 nm thick, and 390 nm long channels exhibit an on current of 660 μA/μm and a peak transconductance of 1.0 mS/μm at V{sub DS} = 0.5 V. These results demonstrate TASE as a promising fabrication approach for heterogeneous material integration on Si.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Spin transport and accumulation in n{sup +}-Si using Heusler compound Co{sub 2}FeSi/MgO tunnel contacts

We investigate spin transport and accumulation in n{sup +}-Si using Heusler compound Co{sub 2}FeSi/MgO/Si on insulator (SOI) devices. The magnitudes of the non-local four- and three-terminal Hanle effect signals when using Heusler compound Co{sub 2}FeSi/MgO/SOI devices are larger than when using CoFe/MgO/SOI devices, whereas the preparation methods of MgO layers on SOI are exactly same in both devices. Different bias voltage dependencies on the magnitude of spin accumulation signals are also observed between these devices. Especially, Co{sub 2}FeSi/MgO/SOI devices show large spin accumulation signals compared with CoFe/MgO/SOI devices in the low bias voltage region less than ∼1000 mV in which the increase of the spin polarization is expected from the estimation of the density of states in Heusler compound Co{sub 2}FeSi and CoFe under spin extraction conditions. These results indicate that the species of ferromagnetic material definitely affects the magnitude and behavior of the spin signals. The use of highly polarized ferromagnets such as Heusler compounds would be important for improving the spin polarization and the magnitude of spin signals through Si channels.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Hot-carrier-induced linear drain current and threshold voltage degradation for thin layer silicon-on-insulator field P-channel lateral double-diffused metal-oxide-semiconductor

Hot-carrier-induced linear drain current (I{sub dlin}) and threshold voltage (V{sub th}) degradations for the thin layer SOI field p-channel lateral double-diffused MOS (pLDMOS) are investigated. Two competition degradation mechanisms are revealed and the hot-carrier conductance modulation model is proposed. In the channel, hot-hole injection induced positive oxide trapped charge and interface trap gives rise to the V{sub th} increasing and the channel conductance (G{sub ch}) decreasing, then reduces I{sub dlin}. In the p-drift region, hot-electron injection induced negative oxide trapped charge enhances the conductance of drift doping resistance (G{sub d}), and then increases I{sub dlin}. Consequently, the eventual I{sub dlin} degradation is controlled by the competition of the two mechanisms due to conductance modulation in the both regions. Based on the model, it is explained that the measured I{sub dlin} anomalously increases while the V{sub th} is increasing with power law. The thin layer field pLDMOS exhibits more severe V{sub th} instability compared with thick SOI layer structure; as a result, it should be seriously evaluated in actual application in switching circuit.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗