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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 469 records · Page 26
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2018

Thickness-independent capacitance of vertically aligned liquid-crystalline MXenes

The scalable and sustainable manufacture of thick electrode films with high energy and power densities is critical for the large-scale storage of electrochemical energy for application in transportation and stationary electric grids. Two-dimensional nanomaterials have become the predominant choice of electrode material in the pursuit of high energy and power densities owing to their large surface-area-to-volume ratios and lack of solid-state diffusion. However, traditional electrode fabrication methods often lead to restacking of two-dimensional nanomaterials, which limits ion transport in thick films and results in systems in which the electrochemical performance is highly dependent on the thickness of the film. Strategies for facilitating ion transport—such as increasing the interlayer spacing by intercalation or introducing film porosity by designing nanoarchitectures—result in materials with low volumetric energy storage as well as complex and lengthy ion transport paths that impede performance at high charge–discharge rates. Vertical alignment of two-dimensional flakes enables directional ion transport that can lead to thickness-independent electrochemical performances in thick films. However, so far only limited success has been reported, and the mitigation of performance losses remains a major challenge when working with films of two-dimensional nanomaterials with thicknesses that are near to or exceed the industrial standard of 100 micrometres. Here we demonstrate electrochemical energy storage that is independent of film thickness for vertically aligned two-dimensional titanium carbide (Ti 3 C 2 T x ), a material from the MXene family (two-dimensional carbides and nitrides of transition metals (M), where X stands for carbon or nitrogen). The vertical alignment was achieved by mechanical shearing of a discotic lamellar liquid-crystal phase of Ti 3 C 2 T x . The resulting electrode films show excellent performance that is nearly independent of film thickness up to 200 micrometres, which makes them highly attractive for energy storage applications. In conclusion, the self-assembly approach presented here is scalable and can be extended to other systems that involve directional transport, such as catalysis and filtration.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Vertical full-colour micro-LEDs via 2D materials-based layer transfer

Micro-LEDs (µLEDs) have been explored for augmented and virtual reality display applications that require extremely high pixels per inch and luminance. However, conventional manufacturing processes based on the lateral assembly of red, green and blue (RGB) µLEDs have limitations in enhancing pixel density. Recent demonstrations of vertical µLED displays have attempted to address this issue by stacking freestanding RGB LED membranes and fabricating top-down, but minimization of the lateral dimensions of stacked µLEDs has been difficult. Here we report full-colour, vertically stacked µLEDs that achieve, to our knowledge, the highest array density (5,100 pixels per inch) and the smallest size (4 µm) reported to date. This is enabled by a two-dimensional materials-based layer transfer technique that allows the growth of RGB LEDs of near-submicron thickness on two-dimensional material-coated substrates via remote or van der Waals epitaxy, mechanical release and stacking of LEDs, followed by top-down fabrication. The smallest-ever stack height of around 9 µm is the key enabler for record high µLED array density. We also demonstrate vertical integration of blue µLEDs with silicon membrane transistors for active matrix operation. Furthermore, these results establish routes to creating full-colour µLED displays for augmented and virtual reality, while also offering a generalizable platform for broader classes of three-dimensional integrated devices.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2016

Controllable growth of vertically aligned graphene on C-face SiC

We investigated how to control the growth of vertically aligned graphene on C-face SiC by varying the processing conditions. It is found that, the growth rate scales with the annealing temperature and the graphene height is proportional to the annealing time. Temperature gradient and crystalline quality of the SiC substrates influence their vaporization. The partial vapor pressure is crucial as it can interfere with further vaporization. A growth mechanism is proposed in terms of physical vapor transport. The monolayer character of vertically aligned graphene is verified by Raman and X-ray absorption spectroscopy. With the processed samples, d 0 magnetism is realized and negative magnetoresistance is observed after Cu implantation. We also prove that multiple carriers exist in vertically aligned graphene.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Investigating the vertical distribution of the disk as a function of radial action

As heating processes can broaden the distributions of radial actions and the vertical distributions of the Galactic disks, we investigate the vertical distribution of the Galactic disks as a function of radial action based on Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment (APOGEE) and Gaia data in order to deepen our understanding of the formation and heating history of the Galactic disks. The vertical distributions of the thin and thick Galactic disks defined in the chemical plane were fitted with a simple exponential function with a free parameter of scale height in different radial action ranges. Therefore, we were able to analyze the scale height as a function of radial action for different disk populations. We find that the distributions of radial action for both the thin and thick disks can be approximately described by pseudo-isothermal distributions, which give a statistical measurement for the temperature of the disk as indicated by the mean radial action of the star sample. Estimations of the scale heights in different radial action ranges for these pseudo-isothermal distributions of the disks seem to show fixed relationships between radial action J R and scale height h. We describe these relationships with a two-parameter function of h = √(J R /a)+b, where a and b are free parameters. When testing with a three-parameter function of h = α √(J R /a)+b, we find that this two-parameter function describes the thin disk well, but we note the function should be used with care for the thick disk. When comparing the best-fit relationships between the inner and outer disk for both of the thin and thick disks, we find that the relationships are nearly the same for the thin disks but are different for the thick disks. The inner thick disk shows a nearly flattened relationship, while the outer thick disk presents a gradually increasing relationship. This work highlights an alternative way to unveil the heating history of the disks by investigating the relationship between scale height and radial action, as these relationships encode the formation and heating history of the Galactic disks.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2013

A high-speed vertical optical trap for the mechanical testing of living cells at piconewton forces

Although atomic force microscopy is often the method of choice to probe the mechanical response of (sub)micrometer sized biomaterials, the lowest force that can be reliably controlled is limited to ≈0.1 nN. For soft biological samples, like cells, such forces can already lead to a strain large enough to enter the non-elastic deformation regime. To be able to investigate the response of single cells at lower forces we developed a vertical optical trap. The force can be controlled down to single piconewtons and most of the advantages of atomic force microscopy are maintained, such as the symmetrical application of forces at a wide range of loading rates. Typical consequences of moving the focus in the vertical direction, like the interferometric effect between the bead and the coverslip and a shift of focus, were quantified and found to have negligible effects on our measurements. With a fast responding force feedback loop we can achieve deformation rates as high as 50 μm/s, which allow the investigation of the elastic and viscous components of very soft samples. The potential of the vertical optical trap is demonstrated by measuring the linearity of the response of single cells at very low forces and a high bandwidth of deformation rates.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2013

Strain-induced vertical self-organization of semiconductor quantum dots: A computational study

Atomistic strain simulations based on the valence force field method are employed to study the vertical arrangements of semiconductor quantum dot (QD) multilayers. The effects of the QD shape, dimensions, and materials parameters are systematically investigated, varying independently the following parameters: spacer width H, QD lateral spacing D, base b, and height h, slope of the side facets, elastic properties of the dot and the substrate materials, and lattice mismatch between the dot and the substrate. The transition between vertically aligned and anti-aligned structures is found to be determined mainly by the ratios H/D and b/D, as well as by the strain anisotropy of the substrate and to a lesser extent of the QD. The dependence on the QD height h is significant only for steep side facets and large aspect ratios h/b, and the effects of the lattice mismatch strain and the bulk elastic moduli are found to be negligible. The comparison with experimental data shows an excellent agreement with the results from the simulations, demonstrating that the presented analysis results in precise theoretical predictions for the vertical self-organization regime in a wide range of QD materials systems.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2014

GaAs buffer layer technique for vertical nanowire growth on Si substrate

Gold catalyzed vapor-liquid-solid method is widely applied to III–V nanowire (NW) growth on Si substrate. However, the easy oxidation of Si, possible Si contamination in the NWs, high defect density in the NWs, and high sensitivity of the NW morphology to growth conditions largely limit its controllability. In this work, we developed a buffer layer technique by introducing a GaAs thin film with predefined polarity as a template. It is found that samples grown on these buffer layers all have high vertical NW yields in general, due to the single-orientation of the buffer layers. Low temperature buffer with smoother surface leads to highest yield of vertical NWs, while high temperature (HT) buffer with better crystallinity results in perfect NW quality. The defect-free property we observed here is very promising for optoelectronic device applications based on GaAs NW. Moreover, the buffer layers can eliminate Si contamination by preventing Si-Au alloy formation and by increasing the thickness of the Si diffusion barrier, thus providing more flexibility to vertical NW growth. The buffer layer technique we demonstrated here could be easily extended to other III-V on Si system for electronic and photonic applications.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2014

Electron-electron interaction, weak localization and spin valve effect in vertical-transport graphene devices

We fabricated a vertical structure device, in which graphene is sandwiched between two asymmetric ferromagnetic electrodes. The measurements of electron and spin transport were performed across the combined channels containing the vertical and horizontal components. The presence of electron-electron interaction (EEI) was found not only at low temperatures but also at moderate temperatures up to ∼120 K, and EEI dominates over weak localization (WL) with and without applying magnetic fields perpendicular to the sample plane. Moreover, spin valve effect was observed when magnetic filed is swept at the direction parallel to the sample surface. We attribute the EEI and WL surviving at a relatively high temperature to the effective suppress of phonon scattering in the vertical device structure. The findings open a way for studying quantum correlation at relatively high temperature.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Radial InP/InAsP/InP heterostructure nanowires on patterned Si substrates using self-catalyzed growth for vertical-type optical devices

Radial InP/InAsP/InP heterostructure nanowires (NWs) on SiO{sub 2}-mask-pattered Si substrates were reported using self-catalyzed InP NWs. Self-catalyzed growth was performed using low growth temperatures and high group-III flow rates, and vertical InP NWs were formed on the mask openings. The diameter and tapering of the self-catalyzed InP NWs were controlled by the introduction of HCl and H{sub 2}S gases during the NW growth, and InP NWs that have a straight region with decreased diameter were formed. Radial InP/InAsP/InP quantum wells (QWs) were grown on the sidewall of the vertical InP NWs on Si substrates. Room-temperature photoluminescence of single NWs from the QW was clearly observed, which exhibited the potential of building blocks for vertical-type optical devices on Si substrates.

77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2015

Vertical deformation at western part of Sumatra

This research tries to make advancement in GPS signal processing to estimate the interseismic vertical deformation field at western part of Sumatra Island. The data derived by Continuous Global Positioning System (CGPS) from Badan Informasi Geospasial (BIG) between 2010 and 2012. GPS Analyze at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (GAMIT) software and Global Kalman Filter (GLOBK) software are used to process the GPS signal to estimate the vertical velocities of the CGPS station. In order to minimize noise due to atmospheric delay, Vienna Mapping Function 1 (VMF1) is used as atmospheric parameter model and include daily IONEX file provided by the Center for Orbit Determination in Europe (CODE) as well. It improves GAMIT daily position accuracy up to 0.8 mm. In a second step of processing, the GLOBK is used in order to estimate site positions and velocities in the ITRF08 reference frame. The result shows that the uncertainties of estimated displacement velocity at all CGPS stations are smaller than 1.5 mm/yr. The subsided deformation patterns are seen at the northern and southern part of west Sumatra. The vertical deformation at northern part of west Sumatra indicates postseismic phase associated with the 2010 and 2012 Northern Sumatra earthquakes and also the long-term postseismic associated with the 2004 and 2005 Northern Sumatra earthquakes. The uplifted deformation patterns are seen from Bukit Tinggi to Seblat which indicate a long-term interseismic phase after the 2007 Bengkulu earthquake and 2010 Mentawai earthquake. GANO station shows a subsidence at rate 12.25 mm/yr, indicating the overriding Indo-Australia Plate which is dragged down by the subducting Southeast Asian Plate.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2015

Design, fabrication, and performance analysis of GaN vertical electron transistors with a buried p/n junction

The Current Aperture Vertical Electron Transistor (CAVET) combines the high conductivity of the two dimensional electron gas channel at the AlGaN/GaN heterojunction with better field distribution offered by a vertical design. In this work, CAVETs with buried, conductive p-GaN layers as the current blocking layer are reported. The p-GaN layer was regrown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition and the subsequent channel regrowth was done by ammonia molecular beam epitaxy to maintain the p-GaN conductivity. Transistors with high ON current (10.9 kA/cm{sup 2}) and low ON-resistance (0.4 mΩ cm{sup 2}) are demonstrated. Non-planar selective area regrowth is identified as the limiting factor to transistor breakdown, using planar and non-planar n/p/n structures. Planar n/p/n structures recorded an estimated electric field of 3.1 MV/cm, while non-planar structures showed a much lower breakdown voltage. Lowering the p-GaN regrowth temperature improved breakdown in the non-planar n/p/n structure. Combining high breakdown voltage with high current will enable GaN vertical transistors with high power densities.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2016

Spatial identification of traps in AlGaN/GaN heterostructures by the combination of lateral and vertical electrical stress measurements

We present a methodology and the corresponding experimental results to identify the exact location of the traps that induce hot electron trapping in AlGaN/GaN heterostructures grown on Si substrates. The methodology is based on a combination of lateral and vertical electrical stress measurements employing three ohmic terminals on the test sample structure with different GaN buffer designs. By monitoring the evolution of the lateral current during lateral as well as vertical stress application, we investigate the trapping/detrapping behaviors of the hot electrons and identify that the traps correlated with current degradation are in fact located in the GaN buffer layers. The trap activation energies (0.38–0.39 eV and 0.57–0.59 eV) extracted from either lateral or vertical stress measurements are in good agreement with each other, also confirming the identification. By further comparing the trapping behaviors in two samples with different growth conditions of an unintentionally doped GaN layer, we conclude that the traps are most likely in the unintentionally doped GaN layer but of different origins. It is suggested that the 0.38–0.39 eV trap is related to residual carbon incorporation while the 0.57–0.59 eV trap is correlated with native defects or complexes.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2016

Magnetoresistance effect in Fe{sub 20}Ni{sub 80}/graphene/Fe{sub 20}Ni{sub 80} vertical spin valves

Vertical spin valve devices with junctions of single- and bi-layer graphene interlayers sandwiched with Fe{sub 20}Ni{sub 80} (Permalloy) electrodes were fabricated by exploiting the direct growth of graphene on the Permalloy. The linear current-voltage characteristics indicated that ohmic contacts were realized at the interfaces. The systematic characterization revealed the significant modification of the electronic state of the interfacial graphene layer on the Permalloy surface, which indicates the strong interactions at the interface. The ohmic transport was attributable to the strong interface-interaction. The vertical resistivity of the graphene interlayer and the spin asymmetry coefficient at the graphene/Permalloy interface were obtained to be 0.13 Ω cm and 0.06, respectively. It was found that the strong interface interaction modifies the electronic structure and metallic properties in the vertical spin valve devices with bi-layer graphene as well as single-layer graphene.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2017

Model of vertical plasma motion during the current quench

Tokamak disruptions impair plasma position control, which allows the plasma column to move and hit the wall. These detrimental events enhance thermal and mechanical loads due to halo currents and runaway electron losses. Their fundamental understanding and prevention is one of the high-priority items for ITER. As commonly observed in experiments (see e.g., Refs. 1 and 2), the disruptive plasma tends to move vertically, and the timescale of this motion is rather resistive than Alfvenic. These observations suggest that the plasma column is nearly force-free during its vertical motion. In fact, the force-free constraint is already implemented in disruption simulators (see Ref. 3). In this work, we consider a geometrically simple system that mimics the tokamak plasma surrounded by the conducting structures. Using this model, we highlight the underlying mechanism of the vertical displacement events during the current quench phase of plasma disruption. The same geometrical simplification was recently employed in Ref. 8 but without taking advantage of the force-free approximation. We find that the force-free ansatz makes the description more transparent by immediate elimination of the fast Alfvenic time-scale. This helps to reveal possible violation of ideal MHD stability during slow resistive motion of the plasma.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2018

Algebraic motion of vertically displacing plasmas

In this paper, the vertical motion of a tokamak plasma is analytically modelled during its non-linear phase by a free-moving current-carrying rod inductively coupled to a set of fixed conducting wires or a cylindrical conducting shell. The solutions capture the leading term in a Taylor expansion of the Green's function for the interaction between the plasma column and the surrounding vacuum vessel. The plasma shape and profiles are assumed not to vary during the vertical drifting phase such that the plasma column behaves as a rigid body. In the limit of perfectly conducting structures, the plasma is prevented to come in contact with the wall due to steep effective potential barriers created by the induced Eddy currents. Resistivity in the wall allows the equilibrium point to drift towards the vessel on the slow timescale of flux penetration. The initial exponential motion of the plasma, understood as a resistive vertical instability, is succeeded by a non-linear “sinking” behaviour shown to be algebraic and decelerating. Finally, the acceleration of the plasma column often observed in experiments is thus concluded to originate from an early sharing of toroidal current between the core, the halo plasma, and the wall or from the thermal quench dynamics precipitating loss of plasma current.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2026

Avoidance of disruptions on KSTAR due to vertical displacement events via novel real-time stability assessment

Disruption avoidance via the DECAF approach has been achieved on KSTAR using a novel real-time vertical stability assessment and a multiactuator feedback control strategy. The development of disruption avoidance strategies with reactor-relevant reliability is an urgent activity, enabling future fusion power plants. The stability metric employed is based on a new formulation of a vertical force gradient balance metric evaluated across the poloidal cross section of the plasma, with parameters tuned using historical data. Evaluation of this metric on a validation set of 400 recent KSTAR shots indicates >82% of Vertical displacement events can be avoided via feedback control. Essential to its calculation is the two-dimensional toroidal current density distribution in the plasma. Measurement of this profile faster than fully-converged equilibrium reconstructions can deliver is found to improve forecaster performance and is achieved with a surrogate model that takes as input magnetic diagnostic measurements and outputs the current profile on a basis comprising the top principal components of historical current profiles (from past equilibrium reconstructions). This method solves the non-uniqueness problem typically faced when reconstructing current profiles directly from diagnostics, while improving computational time and accuracy. On average, profiles produced by this model reach coefficients of determination of >0.99 with respect to those from equilibrium reconstructions. The avoidance actuators employed include poloidal field coils and an electron cyclotron current drive system. The multiactuator approach, as shown in this first demonstration, allows disruption avoidance while minimizing impact to operational performance. This ability, along with its flexibility and speed, makes this new approach an attractive option for avoiding these types of disruptions in reactors.

Tobin, Matthew [Columbia Univ., New York, NY (Unit↗
DOE OSTI2026

AlGaN/GaN Core-Shell Nanofin Diodes on Si Substrates for Vertical GaN Electronics

We demonstrate plasma-assisted MBE selective-area growth of GaN/AlGaN core-shell structures on Si(111) as a path to vertical GaN devices. The selective-area growth enables the full vertical and uniform core-shell fin structures to be realized in a continuous growth without breaking vacuum. TEM images and EDS mapping of the core-shell structures show well-aligned crystal structure and sharp heterointerfaces. Dislocation filtering was observed in STEM imaging of the fin structure. P-N junction diodes fabricated with GaN/AlGaN core-shell structures reveal ideality factors as low as 1.5, and the reverse-bias leakage is consistent with trap-assisted space-charge-limited conduction. While practical challenges exist, including material-related leakage, growth-related challenges and optimization, this demonstration of p-n junction by this method may provide a path to vertical Superjunction device concepts in GaN and related materials.

Xiong, Juncheng [University of Notre Dame, IN (Uni↗
DOE OSTI2013

VERTICAL STRUCTURE AND CORONAL POWER OF ACCRETION DISKS POWERED BY MAGNETOROTATIONAL-INSTABILITY TURBULENCE

In this paper, we consider two outstanding intertwined problems in modern high-energy astrophysics: (1) the vertical-thermal structure of an optically thick accretion disk heated by the dissipation of magnetohydrodynamic turbulence driven by the magnetorotational instability (MRI), and (2) determining the fraction of the accretion power released in the corona above the disk. For simplicity, we consider a gas-pressure-dominated disk and assume a constant opacity. We argue that the local turbulent dissipation rate due to the disruption of the MRI channel flows by secondary parasitic instabilities should be uniform across most of the disk, almost up to the disk photosphere. We then obtain a self-consistent analytical solution for the vertical thermal structure of the disk, governed by the balance between the heating by MRI turbulence and the cooling by radiative diffusion. Next, we argue that the coronal power fraction is determined by the competition between the Parker instability, viewed as a parasitic instability feeding off of MRI channel flows, and other parasitic instabilities. We show that the Parker instability inevitably becomes important near the disk surface, leading to a certain lower limit on the coronal power. While most of the analysis in this paper focuses on the case of a disk threaded by an externally imposed vertical magnetic field, we also discuss the zero net flux case, in which the magnetic field is produced by the MRI dynamo itself, and show that most of our arguments and conclusions should be valid in this case as well.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗