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Results for “Impedance matching”

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 217 records · Page 12
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2017

A Ka-Band (26 GHz) Circularly Polarized 2x2 Microstrip Patch Sub-Array with Compact Feed

A Ka-Band (26 gigahertz) 2 by 2 sub-array with square-shaped microstrip patch antenna elements having two truncated corners for circular polarization (CP) is presented. In addition, the layout for a new compact microstrip feed network for the sub-array is also presented. The compact feed network offers a footprint size reduction of near 60 percent over traditional sub-array at 26 gigahertz. Experimental data indicates that a truncation amount a equals 0.741 millimeters for an isolated patch element results in a return loss (S (sub II)) of minus 35 decibels at 26.3 gigahertz. Furthermore, the measured S (sub II) for the proof-of-concept sub-array with the above elements is better than minus 10.0 decibels at 27.7 gigahertz. However, the impedance match and the operating frequency can be fine-tuned to 26 gigahertz by adjusting the feed network dimensions. Lastly, good agreement is observed between the measured and simulated S (sub II) for the subarray for both right hand and left hand CP. The goal of this effort is utilize the above sub-array as a building block for a larger N by N element array, which would serve as a feed for a reflector antenna for satellite communications.

Microstrip↗
NASA NTRS1995

Vibration Method for Tracking the Resonant Mode and Impedance of a Microwave Cavity

There has been a concerted effort to improve the microwave heating technique for processing materials at high temperature. Improved optimization of the energy transfer from a microwave source to the material being processed is required. A vibration technique is pre- sented to continuously maintain a mode resonance and impedance match between a constant frequency magnetron source and a resonant cavity.

microwave↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Cognitive Tapered Slot Circular Array Antenna for Lunar Surface Communications

In this paper, we present the design of a cognitive tapered slot circular array (TSCA) antenna with multiple electronically switched sector beams for lunar surface communication. The circular array is capable of sensing the frequency, power, and direction of arrival of the RF signals. The design of the TSCA builds on our prior work on the development of a single TSA element with a balanced microstrip/coax feed. The measured return loss of the single TSA element shows wide bandwidth with good impedance match across the 5 to 35 GHz frequency range. Additionally, the single TSA has good radiation patterns. The single TSA serves as the building block for a four-element TSCA with multiple electronically switched sector beams for sensing and communications.

Cognitive communications↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Cognitive Tapered Slot Circular Array Antenna for Lunar Surface Communications

In this paper, we present the design of a cognitive tapered slot circular array (TSCA) antenna with multiple electronically switched sector beams for lunar surface communication. The circular array is capable of sensing the frequency, power, and direction of arrival of the RF signals. The design of the TSCA builds on our prior work on the development of a single TSA element with a balanced microstrip/coax feed. The measured return loss of the single TSA element shows wide bandwidth with good impedance match across the 5 to 35 GHz frequency range. Additionally, the single TSA has good radiation patterns. The single TSA serves as the building block for a four-element TSCA with multiple electronically switched sector beams for sensing and communications.

Antenna↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Technology Developments for FIR Bolometric Detector Focal Plane Assemblies

A discussion of recent technology developments for far-infrared bolometric detector focal plane assemblies is provided. Some of the developments include strategies for fabricating high filling fraction background limited-transition edge sensor bolometric detectors, impedance-matched absorber coatings, a micromachined blackbody source, and the capability to fabricate indium bumps on non-planar substrates.

Detectors↗
DOE OSTI2022

Fixed gap capacitive power transfer coupling for wound field synchronous machines

An electrical rotating machine, such as a generator or motor, communicates power from a stationary location to the rotating rotor of the rotating machine via opposed pairs of capacitor plates, one plate of each pair rotating with the rotor and one plate of each pair fixed not to rotate. Larger plate gaps suitable for mechanically rigid plates are possible through high-voltage and high-frequency AC signals managed by using a dielectric support design for the capacitor plates minimizing dielectric loss and/or impedance matching on the rotor.

Hagen, Skyler S.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Link Budget Analysis of Interrogation of Surface Acoustic Wave Sensors in Metallic Tubular Structures

We report on loss mechanisms contributing to the link budget for interrogation of Surface Acoustic Wave (SAW) devices in metallic tubular structures. Impedance matching losses associated with a SAW device are minimized by design optimization and antenna coupling losses, and resulting propagation losses are measured in metallic tubular structures enabling prediction of interrogation distances with various antenna configurations.

Pingree, Richard↗
DOE OSTI2024

Link Budget Analysis of Interrogation of Surface Acoustic Wave Sensors in Metallic Tubular Structures

For presentation at, and publication in the proceedings of, the National Radio Science Meeting, Boulder, CO, January 9-13, 2024.In this paper, we report on loss mechanisms contributing to the link budget for interrogation of Surface Acoustic Wave (SAW) devices in metallic tubular structures. Impedance matching losses associated with a SAW device are minimized by design optimization and antenna coupling losses and resulting propagation losses are measured in metallic tubular structures enabling prediction of interrogation distances with various antenna configurations.

Pingree, Rick↗
DOE OSTI2026

Test cavity and Iris-to-Coax transition for tuning and high-power verification of SNS DTL iris couplers

The Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) Drift Tube Linac (DTL) employs iris couplers to efficiently deliver RF power into the accelerating structure. To support the development, tuning, and high‑power conditioning of these couplers prior to installation in the actual DTLs, a dedicated test cavity and an iris‑to‑coaxial transition structure have been designed. This work presents the electromagnetic design, simulation, and optimization of the test setup, enabling precise characterization of the iris coupler’s performance. The transition structure allows for tuning of the iris opening dimensions without requiring a waveguide taper or full‑size waveguide transitions, while maintaining impedance matching between the coaxial feed and the iris geometry to minimize reflection and power loss. During low‑power tests, the iris opening di-mensions can be evaluated using the iris‑to‑coax transi-tion attached to the test cavity. For high‑power condi-tioning, full‑size waveguides with ceramic vacuum win-dows are connected to the test cavity to replicate opera-tional conditions. Key design parameters were optimized using computer-aided simulation, and sensitivity studies were conducted to assess the impact of mechanical toler-ances on RF performance. The resulting test platform provides a reliable and efficient means for tuning and validating iris couplers, contributing to improved opera-tional stability in the SNS DTL.

Lee, Sung-Woo [ORNL] (ORCID:000000030915835X)↗
DOE OSTI2022

Balancing Impedance and Controllability in Response Reconstruction

One concept in smart dynamic testing is to match the impedance that a component experiences between test and the environment of interest, but this begs the question: how much of an impedance match is needed and could there be too much? In a prior work, the authors performed MIMO testing with a small component connected to various assemblies, each of which had a differing degree of similarity to the actual flight boundary conditions. The results showed that the fidelity of the response at locations away from the control accelerometers was highly sensitive to the impedance. This work presents further case studies to explore these ideas. Subsequent tests are presented for an assembly that presumably matched the impedance even better, and which was also much more flexible, and the results obtained are even worse than when no attention was given to the impedance. Hence, the work presented here suggests that one should seek a balance between 1.) matching the impedance and 2.) improving the controllability of the component of interest. The concepts are explored using both test data of a benchmark component, for which the environment of interest was recorded as the component flew on a sounding rocket.

Shaker Test, Operational Vibration Environment, Su↗
NASA NTRS1994

Acoustic calibration apparatus for calibrating plethysmographic acoustic pressure sensors

An apparatus for calibrating an acoustic sensor is described. The apparatus includes a transmission material having an acoustic impedance approximately matching the acoustic impedance of the actual acoustic medium existing when the acoustic sensor is applied in actual in-service conditions. An elastic container holds the transmission material. A first sensor is coupled to the container at a first location on the container and a second sensor coupled to the container at a second location on the container, the second location being different from the first location. A sound producing device is coupled to the container and transmits acoustic signals inside the container.

Zuckerwar, Allan J.↗
NASA NTRS1995

Acoustic calibration apparatus for calibrating plethysmographic acoustic pressure sensors

An apparatus for calibrating an acoustic sensor is described. The apparatus includes a transmission material having an acoustic impedance approximately matching the acoustic impedance of the actual acoustic medium existing when the acoustic sensor is applied in actual in-service conditions. An elastic container holds the transmission material. A first sensor is coupled to the container at a first location on the container and a second sensor coupled to the container at a second location on the container, the second location being different from the first location. A sound producing device is coupled to the container and transmits acoustic signals inside the container.

Zuckerwar, Allan J.↗
NASA NTRS2011

Ultra-Sensitive Transition-Edge Sensors (TESs) for Far-IR/Submm Space-Borne Spectroscopy

We have built surface micromachined thin-film metallized Si(x)N(y) optical absorbers for transition-edge sensors (TESs) suitable for the Background - Limited far-IR/Submm Spectrograph (BLISS). BLISS is a broadband (38 micrometers - 433 micrometers), grating spectrometer consisting of five wavebands each with a modest resolution of R (is) approx. 1000. Because BLISS requires the effective noise equivalent power (NEP) of the TES to be below 10 (exp 19) W/Hz(exp 1/2), our TESs consist of four long (1000 micrometers), narrow (0.4 micrometers ), and thin (0.25 micrometers ) Si(x) N(y) support beams that reduce the thermal conductance G between the substrate and the optical absorber. To reduce the heat capacity of the absorber and make the response time tau fast enough for BLISS, our absorbers are patterned into a mesh geometry with a fill factor of less than 10%. We use a bilayer of Ti/Au to make the effective impedance of the absorber match the impedance of the incoming radiation for each band. Measurements of the response time of the metallized absorbers to heat pulses show that their heat capacity exceeds the predictions of the Debye model. Our results are suggestive that the surface of the low pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD) Si(x)N(y) used in the absorbers' construction is the source of microstates that dominate the heat capacity.

far-IR spectrometer↗
NASA NTRS2003

High-Performance Solid-State W-Band Power Amplifiers

The figure shows one of four solid-state power amplifiers, each capable of generating an output power greater than or equal to 240 mW over one of four overlapping frequency bands from 71 to 106 GHz. (The bands are 71 to 84, 80 to 92, 88 to 99, and 89 to 106 GHz.) The amplifiers are designed for optimum performance at a temperature of 130 K. These amplifiers were developed specifically for incorporation into frequency-multiplier chains in local oscillators in a low-noise, far-infrared receiving instrument to be launched into outer space to make astrophysical observations. The designs of these amplifiers may also be of interest to designers and manufacturers of terrestrial W-band communication and radar systems. Each amplifier includes a set of six high-electron-mobility transistor (HEMT) GaAs monolithic microwave integrated-circuit (MMIC) chips, microstrip cavities, and other components packaged in a housing made from A-40 silicon-aluminum alloy. This alloy was chosen because, for the original intended spacecraft application, it offers an acceptable compromise among the partially competing requirements for high thermal conductivity, low mass, and low thermal expansion. Problems that were solved in designing the amplifiers included designing connectors and packages to fit the available space; designing microstrip signal-power splitters and combiners; matching of impedances across the frequency bands; matching of the electrical characteristics of those chips installed in parallel power-combining arms; control and levelling of output power across the bands; and designing the MMICs, microstrips, and microstrip cavities to suppress tendencies toward oscillation in several modes, both inside and outside the desired frequency bands.

Gaier, Todd↗
NASA NTRS2008

24-Way Radial Power Combiner/Divider for 31 to 36 GHz

The figure shows a prototype radial power-combining waveguide structure, capable of operation at frequencies from 31 to 36 GHz, that features an unusually large number (N = 24) of combining (input) ports. The combination of wide-band operation and large N is achieved by incorporating several enhancements over a basic radial power-combiner design. In addition, the structure can be operated as a power divider by reversing the roles of the input and output ports. In this structure, full-height waveguides at the combining ports are matched in impedance to reduced-height radial waveguides inside the combiner base. This match is effected by impedance-transforming stepped waveguide sections. This matching scheme is essential to achievement of large N because N is limited by the height of the waveguides in the base. Power is coupled from the 24 reduced- height radial waveguides into the TE01 mode of a circular waveguide in the base with the help of a matching post at the bottom of the base. ( TE signifies transverse electric, the first subscript is the azimuthal mode number, and the second subscript is the radial mode number.) More specifically, the matching post matches the reflections from the walls of the 24 reduced-height waveguides and enables the base design to exceed the bandwidth requirement. After propagating along the circular waveguide, the combined power is coupled, via a mode transducer, to a rectangular waveguide output port. The mode transducer is divided into three sections, each sized and shaped as part of an overall design to satisfy the mode-conversion and output-coupling requirements while enabling the circular waveguide to be wide enough for combining the 24 inputs over the frequency range of 31 to 36 GHz. During the design process, it was found that two different rectangular waveguide outputs could be accommodated through modification of only the first section of the mode converter, thereby enabling operation in multiple frequency ranges.

Epp, Larry↗
NASA NTRS2007

Distributed Antenna-Coupled TES for FIR Detectors Arrays

We describe a new architecture for a superconducting detector for the submillimeter and far-infrared. This detector uses a distributed hot-electron transition edge sensor (TES) to collect the power from a focal-plane-filling slot antenna array. The sensors lay directly across the slots of the antenna and match the antenna impedance of about 30 ohms. Each pixel contains many sensors that are wired in parallel as a single distributed TES, which results in a low impedance that readily matches to a multiplexed SQUID readout These detectors are inherently polarization sensitive, with very low cross-polarization response, but can also be configured to sum both polarizations. The dual-polarization design can have a bandwidth of 50The use of electron-phonon decoupling eliminates the need for micro-machining, making the focal plane much easier to fabricate than with absorber-coupled, mechanically isolated pixels. We discuss applications of these detectors and a hybridization scheme compatible with arrays of tens of thousands of pixels.

antenna↗
NASA NTRS2005

Control Software for a High-Performance Telerobot

A computer program for controlling a high-performance, force-reflecting telerobot has been developed. The goal in designing a telerobot-control system is to make the velocity of the slave match the master velocity, and the environmental force on the master match the force on the slave. Instability can arise from even small delays in propagation of signals between master and slave units. The present software, based on an impedance-shaping algorithm, ensures stability even in the presence of long delays. It implements a real-time algorithm that processes position and force measurements from the master and slave and represents the master/slave communication link as a transmission line. The algorithm also uses the history of the control force and the slave motion to estimate the impedance of the environment. The estimate of the impedance of the environment is used to shape the controlled slave impedance to match the transmission-line impedance. The estimate of the environmental impedance is used to match the master and transmission-line impedances and to estimate the slave/environment force in order to present that force immediately to the operator via the master unit.

Kline-Schoder, Robert J.↗
DOE OSTI2026

Theory and simulation of gap distance transitions in planar magnetically insulated transmission lines

Magnetically insulated transmission lines (MITLs) are critical components for efficiently transporting power from pulsed power sources to a diverse range of loads, including magneto-inertial confinement fusion and radiation production. This study investigates the behavior of planar MITLs, taking into account the source voltage and source and load impedances, using two-dimensional theory and simulations. Self-limited behavior, where the MITL operating impedance (voltage divided by current) is insensitive to the value of load impedance, is extended to small-to-large gap distance MITL transitions. Load-limited behavior, in which the load impedance is below the self-limited impedance, causes the MITL operating impedance to adjust to match the load impedance and can be extended to describe large-to-small transitions. In both cases, the operating impedance of the larger MITL section changes to match the self-limited operating impedance of the smaller section. This behavior extends to multiple transitions and to both low and high impedance loads. Assuming equilibration occurs (pulse duration larger than MITL transit time), the entire MITL operating impedance becomes the self-limited impedance of the smallest-gap MITL section or the load impedance, whichever is lower.

Darr, Adam M. [Sandia National Laboratories (SNL-N↗