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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
DOE OSTI2026

Nanoarchitectonic Semiconductor–Bio Hybrid Systems with Enhanced Charge Transfer for Hydrogen Peroxide Production

Nanoarchitectonics offers a systematic approach to creating an artificial framework by integrating different multiscale components such as semiconductor lattices and biological substances. However, most nanoarchitectonic abiotic-biotic hybrid systems have intrinsic limitations in imparting nonequilibrium biological features into semiconductor lattices at the nanoscale. Here, in this study, we report a new nanoarchitectonic system integrating bismuth oxychloride (BiOCl) nanosheets with purple membrane (PM) patches. PM is an archaeal subcellular fraction capable of unidirectionally transferring photogenerated charge carriers to its surroundings at the nanoscale independent of archaeal metabolism and retaining this dynamic functionality after isolation from living archaea. Microscopy, spectroscopy, electrochemical, and synchrotron X-ray scattering analyses verify that the nanoarchitectonic hybridization between BiOCl and PM generates a vertical heterostructure, thereby enhancing photogenerated charge-carrier dynamics and enabling the associated photocatalytic capacity. The resulting PM-BiOCl hybrid nanosheets efficiently convert dioxygen into hydrogen peroxide through a two-electron and two-proton transfer process under ambient conditions while simultaneously converting ethylene glycol into value-added chemicals. This study presents a nanoarchitectonic approach that leverages the photogenerated charge-carrier dynamics of the archaeal subcellular fractions to modulate the optoelectronic and catalytic capacity limitations of semiconductors.

catalysis↗
DOE OSTI2024

Overcoming the doping limit in GaAs by ion implantation and pulsed laser melting

Most semiconductors exhibit a saturation of free carriers when heavily doped with extrinsic dopants. This carrier saturation or “doping limit” is known to be related to the formation of native compensating defects, which, in turn, depends on the energy positions of their conduction band minimum and valence band maximum. Here, we carried out a systematic study on the n-type doping limit of GaAs via ion implantation and showed that this doping limitation can be alleviated by the transient process of pulsed laser melting (PLM). For n-type doping, both group VI (S) and amphoteric group IV (Si and Ge) dopants were implanted in GaAs. For comparison, p-type doping was also studied using Zn as the acceptor. Implanted dopants were activated by the PLM method, and the results are compared to rapid thermal annealing (RTA). Our results reveal that for all n-type dopants, while implantation followed by the RTA results in a similar saturation electron concentration of 2–3 × 10 18 cm –3 , the transient PLM process is capable of trapping high concentration of dopants in the substitutional site, giving rise to a carrier concentration of >10 19 cm –3 , exceeding the doping limit of GaAs. However, due to scatterings from point defects generated during PLM, the mobility of n-type GaAs after PLM is low (~80–260 cm 2 /V s). Subsequent RTA after PLM (PLM + RTA) is able to remove these point defects and recover the mobility to ~1000–2000 cm2/V s. The carrier concentrations of these PLM + RTA samples are reduced but are still a factor of 3 higher than RTA only GaAs. This can be understood as the dopants are already incorporated in the substitutional site after PLM; they are less likely to be “deactivated” by subsequent RTA. This work is significant to the understanding of doping mechanisms in semiconductors and provides a means for device applications, which require materials with ultra-high doping.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2020

PERC silicon PV infrared to ultraviolet optical model

Here, optical modeling of aluminum back surface field (Al-BSF) and passivated emitter and rear contact (PERC) silicon wafer solar cells are extended into the infrared wavelength range (300–2500 nm). The model incorporates ray tracing to account for pyramidal texture of the front silicon surface, free carrier absorption in the front emitter; bulk silicon wafer, BSF; and Lambertian scattering at the silicon back contact. Total reflectance of pyramidal textured cells with different contact geometries with and without encapsulation are simulated. Simulated reflectance and short circuit current density match well with experimental values. These physics-based optical models serve as input for evaluating optical and thermal management strategies for silicon wafer solar cells.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2021

The Transport Properties of Quasi–One-Dimensional Ba 3 Co 2 O 6 (CO 3 ) 0.7

We have performed combined elastic neutron diffuse, electrical transport, specific heat, and thermal conductivity measurements on the quasi–one-dimensional Ba 3 Co 2 O 6 (CO 3 ) 0.7 single crystal to characterize its transport properties. A modulated superstructure of polyatomic CO 3 2- is formed, which not only interferes the electronic properties of this compound, but also reduces the thermal conductivity along the c-axis. Furthermore, a large magnetic entropy is observed to be contributed to the heat conduction. Our investigations reveal the influence of both structural and magnetic effects on its transport properties and suggest a theoretical improvement on the thermoelectric materials by building up superlattice with conducting ionic group.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2023

High-frequency phonons drive large phonon-drag thermopower in semiconductors at high carrier density

It has been well established that (i) the thermopower of semiconductors can be enhanced through a phe- nomenon known as the drag effect, and (ii) the drag enhancement involves only low-frequency acoustic phonons and benefits from low electron densities and low temperatures. Using first-principles calculations we show that large drag enhancements to the thermopower are possible at high carrier density even at room temperature and arise from high-frequency acoustic phonons. A fascinating example is cubic boron arsenide (BAs) for which the calculated room temperature drag enhancement of the thermopower exceeds an order of magnitude at a high hole density of 10 21 cm –3 . This remarkable behavior stems from the simultaneously weak phonon-phonon and phonon-hole scattering of the high-frequency phonons in BAs that become drag active at high carrier densities through electron-phonon interactions. Furthermore, this work advances our understanding of coupled electron-phonon nanoscale transport and introduces an unexpected paradigm for achieving large thermopowers.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Probing the polar-nonpolar oxide interfaces using resonant x-ray standing wave techniques

Transition metal (TM) oxide heterostructure superlattices have attracted great attention in research communities because of their emergent interfacial phenomena that do not exist in the bulk form. In order to understand the mechanisms that cause these phenomena, it is important to use depth-resolved spectroscopies to study the electronic structure across the buried oxide interfaces. In this review, we focus on the recent applications of standing wave (SW) photoemission (SW-XPS) and resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (SW-RIXS) spectroscopy to study the depth profiles of electronic structure or carriers around the polar-nonpolar oxide interfaces. Here, using the incident photon energies near the TM x-ray absorption resonance, the created SW excitation can enhance the spectral response and certain electronic transitions, providing important insight into the interfacial electronic structure in the energy and real space regimes. Following the background introductions, we describe two SW experiments and demonstrate that the combination of SW-XPS and SW-RIXS has the potential to obtain the depth distribution of electronic/orbital states around the buried interfaces with Angstrom precision.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Autoionization and Dressing of Excited Excitons by Free Carriers in Monolayer WSe 2

We experimentally demonstrate dressing of the excited exciton states by a continuously tunable Fermi sea of free charge carriers in a monolayer semiconductor. It represents an unusual scenario of two-particle excitations of charged excitons previously inaccessible in conventional material systems. We identify excited state trions, accurately determine their binding energies in the zero-density limit for both electron- and hole-doped regimes, and observe emerging many-body phenomena at elevated doping. Combining experiment and theory we gain access to the intra-exciton coupling facilitated by the interaction with free charge carriers. We provide evidence for a process of autoionization for quasiparticles, a unique scattering pathway available for excited states in atomic systems. Finally, we demonstrate a complete transfer of the optical transition strength from the excited excitons to dressed Fermi-polaron states as well as the associated light emission from their nonequilibrium populations.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2021

Switching of the electron-phonon interaction in 1 T –VSe 2 assisted by hot carriers

We apply an intense infrared laser pulse in order to perturb the electronic and vibrational states in the three-dimensional charge density wave material 1T-VSe 2 . Ultrafast snapshots of the light-induced hot carrier dynamics and nonequilibrium quasiparticle spectral function are collected using time- and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy. Furthermore, the hot carrier temperature and time-dependent electronic self-energy are extracted from the time-dependent spectral function, revealing that incoherent electron-phonon interactions heat the lattice above the charge density wave critical temperature on a timescale of (200 ± 40) fs. Density functional perturbation theory calculations establish that the presence of hot carriers alters the overall phonon dispersion and quenches efficient low-energy acoustic phonon scattering channels, which results in a new quasiequilibrium state that is experimentally observed.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
NASA NTRS1989

A non-Markovian model of avalanche gain statistics for a solid-state photomultiplier

A solid-state photomultiplier (SSPM) capable of continously detecting individual photons of wavelength between 0.4 and 28 microns has recently been disclosed (Petroff et al., 1987). The initial response of the SSPM to single photon is a fast, high-amplitude current pulse of between 10,000 and 100,000 electrons. A phenomenological model of the SSPM avalanche process is presented which successfully predicts the shape of the observed pulse-amplitude distribution by including small history-dependent effects on the carrier transport. The model clarifies the consequences of the electric field strength and the scattering of the electrons for the development of the avalanche in the SSPM.

Laviolette, Randall A.↗
DOE OSTI2021

Phonon- and defect-limited electron and hole mobility of diamond and cubic boron nitride: A critical comparison

Diamond and cBN are two of the most promising ultra-wide bandgap semiconductors for applications in high-power high-frequency electronic devices. Despite extensive studies on carrier transport in these materials, there are large discrepancies in their reported carrier mobilities. In this work, we investigate the phonon- and dopant-limited electron and hole mobilities of cBN and diamond with atomistic first-principles calculations in order to understand their fundamental upper bounds to carrier transport. Our results show that although the phonon-limited electron mobilities are comparable between cBN and diamond, the hole mobility is significantly lower in cBN due to its heavier hole effective mass. Moreover, although lattice scattering dominates the mobility at low doping, neutral impurity scattering becomes the dominant scattering mechanism at higher dopant concentrations due to the high dopant ionization energies. Our analysis provides critical insights and reveals the intrinsic upper limits to the carrier mobilities of diamond and cBN as a function of doping and temperature for applications in high-power electronic devices.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Sub‐Nanosecond Reconfiguration of Ferroelectric Domains in Bismuth Ferrite

Abstract Domain switching is crucial for achieving desired functions in ferroic materials that are used in various applications. Fast control of domains at sub‐nanosecond timescales remains a challenge despite its potential for high‐speed operation in random‐access memories, photonic, and nanoelectronic devices. Here, ultrafast laser excitation is shown to transiently melt and reconfigure ferroelectric stripe domains in multiferroic bismuth ferrite on a timescale faster than 100 picoseconds. This dynamic behavior is visualized by picosecond‐ and nanometer‐resolved X‐ray diffraction and time‐resolved X‐ray diffuse scattering. The disordering of stripe domains is attributed to the screening of depolarization fields by photogenerated carriers resulting in the formation of charged domain walls, as supported by phase‐field simulations. Furthermore, the recovery of disordered domains exhibits subdiffusive growth on nanosecond timescales, with a non‐equilibrium domain velocity reaching up to 10 m s −1 . These findings present a new approach to image and manipulate ferroelectric domains on sub‐nanosecond timescales, which can be further extended into other complex photoferroic systems to modulate their electronic, optical, and magnetic properties beyond gigahertz frequencies. This approach could pave the way for high‐speed ferroelectric data storage and computing, and, more broadly, defines new approaches for visualizing the non‐equilibrium dynamics of heterogeneous and disordered materials.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Phenethylammonium Functionalization Enhances Near-Surface Carrier Diffusion in Hybrid Perovskites

Understanding semiconductor surface properties and manipulating them chemically are critical for improving their performance in optoelectronic devices. Hybrid halide perovskites have emerged as an exciting class of highly efficient solar materials; however, their device performance could be limited by undesirable surface properties that impede carrier transport and induce recombination. Here we show that surface functionalization of methylammonium lead iodide (MAPbI 3 ) perovskite with phenethylammonium iodide (PEAI), a commonly employed spacer cation in two-dimensional perovskites, can enhance carrier diffusion in the near-surface regions and reduce defect density by more than one order of magnitude. Using transient transmission and reflection microscopy, we selectively imaged the transport of the carriers near the (001) surface and the bulk carriers in single-crystal MAPbI 3 microplates. The surface functionalization increases the diffusion coefficient of the carriers in a 40-nm subsurface region from ~ 0.6 cm 2 s -1 to ~ 1 cm 2 s -1 , similar to the value for bulk carriers. These results suggest the PEA ligands are effective in suppressing surface defect and phonon scattering and shed light on the mechanisms for enhancing photophysical properties and improving solar cell efficiency.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
NASA NTRS1986

An analysis of bi-directional use of frequencies for satellite communications

The bi-directional use of frequencies allocated for space communications has the potential to double the orbit/spectrum capacity available. The technical feasibility of reverse band use (RBU) at C-band (4 GHz uplinks and 6 GHz downlinks) is studied. The analysis identifies the constraints under which both forward and reverse band use satellite systems can share the same frequencies with terrestrial, line of sight transmission systems. The results of the analysis show that RBU satellite systems can be similarly sized to forward band use (FBU) satellite systems. In addition, the orbital separation requirements between RBU and FBU satellite systems are examined. The analysis shows that a carrier to interference ratio of 45 dB can be maintianed between RBU and FBU satellites separated by less than 0.5 deg., and that a carrier to interference ratio of 42 dB can be maintained in the antipodal case. Rain scatter propagation analysis shows that RBU and FBU Earth stations require separation distances fo less than 10 km at a rain rate of 13.5 mm/hr escalating to less than 100 km at a rain rate of 178 mm/hr for Earth station antennas in the 3 to 10 m range.

Whyte, W. A., Jr.↗
NASA NTRS1986

An analysis of bidirectional use of frequencies for satellite communications

The bi-directional use of frequencies allocated for space communications has the potential to double the orbit/spectrum capacity available. The technical feasibility of reverse band use (RBU) at C-band (4 GHz uplinks and 6 GHz downlinks) is studied. The analysis identifies the constraints under which both forward and reverse band use satellite systems can share the same frequencies with terrestrial, line of sight transmission systems. The results of the analysis show that RBU satellite systems can be similarly sized to forward band use (FBU) satellite systems. In addition, the orbital separation requirements between RBU and FBU satellite systems are examined. The analysis shows that a carrier to interference ratio of 45 dB can be maintained between RBU and FBU satellites separated by less than 0.5 deg., and that a carrier to interference ratio of 42 dB can be maintained in the antipodal case. Rain scatter propagation analysis shows that RBU and FBU earth stations require separation distances of less than 10 km at a rain rate of 13.5 mm/hr escalating to less than 100 km at a rain rate of 178 mm/hr for earth station antennas in the 3 to 10 m range.

Whyte, W. A., Jr.↗
NASA NTRS1986

An analysis of bi-directional use of frequencies for satellite communications

The bi-directional use of frequencies allocated for space communications has the potential to double the orbit/spectrum capacity available. The technical feasibility of reverse band use (RBU) at C-band (4 GHz uplinks and 6 GHz downlinks) is studied. The analysis identifies the constraints under which both forward and reverse band use satellite systems can share the same frequencies with terrestrial, line of sight transmission systems. The results of the analysis show that RBU satellite systems can be similarly sized to forward band use (FBU) satellite systems. In addition, the orbital separation requirements between RBU and FBU satellite systems are examined. The analysis shows that a carrier to interference ratio of 45 dB can be maintained between RBU and FBU satellites separated by less than 0.5 deg, and that A carrier to interference ratio of 42 dB can be maintained in the antipodal case. Rain scatter propagation analysis shows that RBU and FBU earth stations require separation distances of less than 10 km at a rain rate of 13.5 mm/hr escalating to less than 100 km at a rain rate of 178 mm/hr for earth station antennas in the 3 to 10 m range.

Whyte, W. A., Jr.↗
DOE OSTI2022

Impact of dopant-induced band tails on optical spectra, charge carrier transport, and dynamics in single-crystal CdTe

Abstract Cadmium telluride (CdTe) semiconductors are used in thin-film photovoltaics, detectors, and other optoelectronic applications. For all technologies, higher efficiency and sensitivity are achieved with reduced charge carrier recombination. In this study, we use state-of-the-art CdTe single crystals and electro-optical measurements to develop a detailed understanding of recombination rate dependence on excitation and temperature in CdTe. We study recombination and carrier dynamics in high-resistivity (undoped) and arsenic (As)-doped CdTe by employing absorption, the Hall effect, time-resolved photoluminescence, and pump-probe in the 80–600 K temperature range. We report extraordinarily long lifetimes (30 µs) at low temperatures in bulk undoped CdTe. Temperature dependencies of carrier density and mobility reveal ionization of the main acceptors and donors as well as dominant scattering by ionized impurities. We also distinguish different recombination defects. In particular, shallow As Te and deep V Cd −As Cd acceptors were responsible for p-type conductivity. AX donors were responsible for electron capture, while nonradiative recombination centers (V Cd −As Te , As 2 precipitates), and native defects (V Cd −Te Cd ) were found to be dominant in p-type and n-type CdTe, respectively. Bimolecular and surface recombination rate temperature dependencies were also revealed, with bimolecular coefficient T −3/2 temperature dependence and 170 meV effective surface barrier, leading to an increase in surface recombination velocity at high temperatures and excitations. The results of this study allowed us to conclude that enhanced crucible rotation growth of As-doped CdTe is advantageous to As activation, leading to longer lifetimes and larger mobilities and open-circuit voltages due to lower absorption and trapping.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2025

AI‐Accelerated Optimization of Self‐Assembled Organic Mixed Ionic‐Electronic Conductors (OMIEC) (Final Report)

This document describes research activities, products and outcomes of a DOE-funded program to help accelerate development of Organic Mixed Ionic Electronic Conductors (OMIECs) using neutron scattering and high-throughput experimentation. OMIECs are organic materials that conduct both ionic and electronic charge carriers. For these new OMIEC materials, self-assembling ion-conducting block copolymers (BCPs) are used as a structural template for electronic conducting polymers. This forms OMIECs with long-range structural order that can help facilitate long-range electronic transport. The conductive properties of OMIECs are closely associated with their structure, which is affected by solution conditions and polymer macromolecular designs. Thus high-throughput experimentation has been implemented to explore this large design space effectively. The BCP-CP OMIEC systems explored are composed of ion-conducting diblock or triblock copolymers containing polyethylene oxide (PEO), di(ethylene glycol) ethyl ether acrylate (DEGEEA) or poly(ethylene glycol) methyl ether acrylate) (PEGMEA) hydrophilic blocks. These blocks will be coupled with either polypropylene oxide (PPO) or polyheptafluorobutyl acrylate (PHFBA) hydrophobic blocks to drive assembly. The electronic conducting component consists of several different types of conjugated polymers. Small angle scattering of neutrons and X-rays (SANS/SAXS) as well as electrochemical analysis have been coupled with modern algorithms for autonomous research using artificial intelligence (AI).

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Effects of strain, disorder, and Coulomb screening on free-carrier mobility in doped cadmium oxide

Here, the interplay of stress, disorder, and Coulomb screening dictating the mobility of doped cadmium oxide (CdO) is examined using Raman spectroscopy to identify the mechanisms driving dopant incorporation and scattering within this emerging infrared optical material. Specifically, multi-wavelength Raman and UV-vis spectroscopies are combined with electrical Hall measurements on a series of yttrium (X = Y) and indium (X = In) doped X:CdO thin-films. Hall measurements confirm n-type doping and establish carrier concentrations and mobilities. Spectral fitting along the low-frequency Raman combination bands, especially the TA+TO(X) mode, reveals that the evolution of strain and disorder within the lattice as a function of dopant concentration is strongly correlated with mobility. Coupling between the electronic and lattice environments was examined through analysis of first- and second-order longitudinal–optical phonon–plasmon coupled modes that monotonically decrease in energy and asymmetrically broaden with increasing dopant concentration. By fitting these trends to an impurity-induced Fröhlich model for the Raman scattering intensity, exciton–phonon and exciton–impurity coupling factors are quantified. These coupling factors indicate a continual decrease in the amount of ionized impurity scattering with increasing dopant concentration and are not as well correlated with mobility. This shows that lattice strain and disorder are the primary determining factors for mobility in donor-doped CdO. In aggregate, the study confirms previously postulated defect equilibrium arguments for dopant incorporation in CdO while at the same time identifying paths for its further refinement.

42 ENGINEERING↗