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At least 487 records · Page 27
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2021

Polycrystalline SnSe with a thermoelectric figure of merit greater than the single crystal

Abstract Thermoelectric materials generate electric energy from waste heat, with conversion efficiency governed by the dimensionless figure of merit, ZT. Single-crystal tin selenide (SnSe) was discovered to exhibit a high ZT of roughly 2.2–2.6 at 913 K, but more practical and deployable polycrystal versions of the same compound suffer from much poorer overall ZT, thereby thwarting prospects for cost-effective lead-free thermoelectrics. The poor polycrystal bulk performance is attributed to traces of tin oxides covering the surface of SnSe powders, which increases thermal conductivity, reduces electrical conductivity and thereby reduces ZT. Here, we report that hole-doped SnSe polycrystalline samples with reagents carefully purified and tin oxides removed exhibit an ZT of roughly 3.1 at 783 K. Its lattice thermal conductivity is ultralow at roughly 0.07 W m –1 K –1 at 783 K, lower than the single crystals. The path to ultrahigh thermoelectric performance in polycrystalline samples is the proper removal of the deleterious thermally conductive oxides from the surface of SnSe grains. These results could open an era of high-performance practical thermoelectrics from this high-performance material.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2026

Nanoscale Amorphization of Poly(Triarylamine) for Efficient and Stable Inverted Perovskite Photovoltaics

Perovskite solar modules require hole-selective layers that combine efficient charge extraction, interfacial uniformity and scalable processing. Poly(triarylamine) (PTAA) is widely used in high-performance inverted perovskite photovoltaics, but its nanoscale crystallization and aggregation on indium tin oxide can disrupt film continuity, increase interfacial recombination and limit module stability. Here we show that 4-fluorobenzylphosphonic acid (4FBPA) modifies the surface of indium tin oxide to induce nanoscale amorphization of PTAA, forming a uniform sub-10-nm hole-selective layer. The molecule binds to indium tin oxide through a dehydration reaction, tunes the work function and surface free energy of the photoanode, and improves energy-level alignment with PTAA. The resulting amorphous PTAA film shows enhanced conductivity and hole extraction, suppresses non-radiative recombination at the buried interface and promotes more uniform perovskite growth. Inverted perovskite solar cells reach a power conversion efficiency of 26.63%, while blade-coated modules achieve a certified quasi-steady-state efficiency of 23.01%. The modules retain 95.9% of their initial efficiency after 2,600 hours of maximum-power-point operation under 1-sun illumination at 65 +- 5 degrees C in nitrogen. These results identify nanoscale amorphization of polymeric hole-selective layers as a route to efficient and stable inverted perovskite photovoltaics.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2026

Sequential surface synthesis of dispersed sub-nanometer iridium on titanium nitride for acidic water oxidation

Maximizing iridium utilization while maintaining high oxygen evolution reaction (OER) performance remains a persistent challenge in acidic water electrolysis. Immobilizing Ir on conductive, acid-stable supports is promising, yet simultaneously achieving sub-nanometer size, high area coverage, and strong electronic coupling is difficult. Here, we report a sequential surface synthesis on titanium nitride (TiN) that yields uniformly distributed sub-nanometer Ir arrays (∼0.7 nm). Our method uses ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) as a temporal scaffold: it chemisorbs to TiN to install dense chelating sites, captures Ir 3+ ions, and confines Ir cluster growth. A subsequent thermal treatment at 500 °C in a reducing atmosphere removes the ligand shell, while preserving ultrasmall particle size and establishing direct Ir–TiN electronic coupling. The optimized catalyst exhibits mixed Ir 0 /Ir x+ coordination with low charge-transfer resistance (R ct = 19.2 Ω), delivering a mass activity of 342 A g Ir −1 at 1.54 V in acidic electrolyte. In situ X-ray absorption spectroscopy reveals irreversible surface oxidation as the primary stability-limiting factor. This stepwise strategy provides a general framework for supported catalysts that maximize precious metal utilization via sub-nanometer dispersion.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2023

EUV debris mitigation using magnetic nulls

Next generation EUV sources for photolithography use light produced by laser-produced plasmas (LPP) from ablated tin droplets. A major challenge for extending the lifetime of these devices is mitigating damage caused by deposition of tin debris on the sensitive collection mirror. Especially difficult to stop are high energy (up to 10 keV) highly charged tin ions created in the plasma. Existing solutions include the use of stopping gas, electric fields, and magnetic fields. One common configuration consists of a magnetic field perpendicular to the EUV emission direction, but such a system can result in ion populations that are trapped rather than removed. Here we investigate a previously unconsidered mitigation geometry consisting of a magnetic null by performing full-orbit integration of the ion trajectories in an EUV system with realistic dimensions and optimize the coil locations for the null configuration. The magnetic null prevents a fraction of ions from hitting the mirror comparable to that of the perpendicular field, but does not trap any ions due to the chaotic nature of ion trajectories that pass close to the null. This technology can potentially improve LPP-based EUV photolithography system efficiency and lifetime and may allow for a different, more efficient formulation of buffer gas.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2020

Precursor selection in hybrid molecular beam epitaxy of alkaline-earth stannates

One of the challenges of oxide molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) is the synthesis of oxides containing metals with high electronegativity (metals that are hard to oxidize). The use of reactive organometallic precursors can potentially address this issue. To investigate the formation of radicals in MBE, we explored three carefully chosen metal-organic precursors of tin for SnO 2 and BaSnO 3 growth: tetramethyltin (TMT), tetraethyltin (TET), and hexamethylditin (HMDT). All three precursors produced single-crystalline, atomically smooth, and epitaxial SnO 2 (101) films on r-Al 2 O 3 (101¯2) in the presence of oxygen plasma. The study of growth kinetics revealed reaction-limited and flux-limited regimes except for TET, which also exhibited a decrease in the deposition rate with increasing temperature above ~800 °C. Contrary to these similarities, the performance of these precursors was dramatically different for BaSnO 3 growth. TMT and TET were ineffective in supplying adequate tin, whereas HMDT yielded phase-pure, stoichiometric BaSnO 3 films. Significantly, HMDT resulted in phase-pure and stoichiometric BaSnO 3 films even without the use of an oxygen plasma (i.e., with molecular oxygen alone). Furthermore, these results are discussed using the ability of HMDT to form tin radicals and therefore assisting with Sn → Sn 4+ oxidation reaction. Structural and electronic transport properties of films grown using HMDT with and without oxygen plasma are compared. This study provides guideline for the choice of precursors that will enable the synthesis of metal oxides containing hard-to-oxidize metals using reactive radicals in MBE.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Commissioning of dedicated furnace for Nb3Sn coatings of 2.6GHz single cell cavities

We present the results of commissioning a dedicated fur- nace for Nb3Sn coatings of 2.6 GHz single cell cavities. Nb3Sn is a desired coating due to its high critical temper- ature and smaller surface resistance compared to bulk Nb. Usage of Nb3Sn coated cavities will greatly reduce operat- ing costs due to decreased dependance on cryo cooling. Tin is deposited by use of a tin chloride nucleation agent and tin vapor diffusion. Analysis of the resultant coating was performed using SEM/EDS to verify successful formation of Nb3Sn. Witness samples in line of sight of the source were used in order to understand the coating efficacy.

Kulyavtsev, P. A.↗
DOE OSTI2023

Carbon, Nitrogen, and Sulfur Analysis of the Cetama Viognier Standard Reference Material

The Viognier sample was analyzed for C, N, and S concentrations and stable isotope compositions using an Elementar Vario Isotope Cube Elemental Analyzer (EA) that is coupled to an IsoPrime PrecisION IRMS. Powder samples were placed in tin capsules and then loaded onto a rotary autosampler. The autosampler dropped samples into the EA, and samples were combusted at 1175 °C over tungsten oxide in a continuous stream of helium carrier gas. A pulse of oxygen is added to the gas stream resulting in flash combustion of the tin capsule containing the sample, which raises the reaction temperature to approximately 1800 °C for a few seconds. The combustion reaction produces SO 2 , N 2 and CO 2 from any sulfur, nitrogen and carbon present in the sample. The resulting gases were then passed through a reduced copper reactor that was heated to 850 °C, to reduce NO x to N 2 , reduce SO 3 to SO 2 , and trap any volatile halogen compounds on silver wool. Following water removal using an adsorption tube, the N 2 , CO 2 , and SO 2 analyte gases were separated and purified using purge-trap columns. The purified gases were then carried through a thermal conductivity detector. The detector signal was passed to software that calculated elemental abundances based on integrated peak areas. The sample gases were then passed to the IRMS and stable isotope ratios were measured. Raw sample peak areas were corrected by subtracting the average peak area from blanks consisting of empty tin capsules run using the same EA analysis method. Blanks were also run following each replicate to verify that all the material was combusted. The Viognier sample was analyzed in triplicate on two days (target sample masses: 30, 60 and 90 mg). The following standards were analyzed to calibrate EA-IRMS measurements: IAEA-C6, USGS-40, USGS-41, IAEA-S1, and IAEA-S2.

38 RADIATION CHEMISTRY, RADIOCHEMISTRY, AND NUCLEA↗
DOE OSTI2024

Nonprecious Single Atom Catalyst for Methane Pyrolysis

The development of a suitable catalytic system for methane pyrolysis reactions requires a detailed investigation of the activation energy of C-H bonds on catalysts, as well as their stability against sintering and coke formation. In this work, both single-metal Ni atoms and small clusters of Ni atoms deposited on titanium nitride (TiN) plasmonic nanoparticles were characterized for the C-H bond activation of a methane pyrolysis reaction using ab initio spin-polarized density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The present work shows the complete reaction pathway, including energy barriers for C-H bond activation and dehydrogenated fragments, during the methane pyrolysis reaction on catalytic systems. Interestingly, the C-H bond activation barriers were low for both Ni single-atom and Ni-clusters, showing the energy barriers of ~1.10 eV and ~0.88 eV, respectively. Additionally, single-atom Ni-TiN showed weaker binding to adsorbates, and a net endothermic reaction pathway indicated that the single-atom Ni-TiN was expected to resist coke formation on its surface. However, these Ni single-atom catalysts can sinter, aggregate into a small cluster, and form a coke layer from the highly exothermic reaction pathway that the cluster takes despite the facile reaction pathway.

08 HYDROGEN↗
NASA NTRS1971

The measurement of radiation exposure of astronauts by radiochemical techniques

The concentrations of 23 major, minor, and trace elements in the fecal samples from the Apollo 12 and 13 astronauts are reported. Most elemental excretion rates are comparable to rates reported for earlier missions. Exceptions are noted for calcium, iron, and tin. Body calcium and iron losses appear to be reduced during the Apollo 12 and 13 missions such that losses now seem to be insignificant. Refined measurements of tin excretion rates agree with normal dietary intakes. Earlier reported tin values are in error. A new passive dosimetry canister was designed which contains foils of tantalum, copper, titanium, iron, cobalt, aluminum, and scandium. By measuring the concentrations of the various products of nuclear reactions in these metals after space exposure, the characteristics of the incident cosmic particles can be determined.

Brodzinski, R. L.↗
NASA NTRS1972

Proximity effect between superconductivity and normal metals

The SNS junctions were limited to having gold (n) layers of less than 3000 A in order to avoid having the tin (S) films become normal under the influence of the signal current in the gold. The gold layer was alloyed with 10 wt% copper to shorten its electronic mean free path, increasing the tin layer critical current while decreasing the Josephson critical current. It was also found that a previously reported anomalous voltage shift in the presence of I2 is caused by the tin being driven normal. After deposition, the samples were transferred to a conventional cryostat to provide better thermal contact to the films. This reduction of heating in the films produced more linear I-V characteristics and a change in the constant voltage current gain. In order to achieve power gain the SNS device must be operated at lower temperatures were the effects of fluctuations are less and be constructed such that the input resistance is much reduced and the dynamic output resistance increased. A geometry is proposed using a more sophisticated evaporator.

Meissner, H.↗
NASA NTRS1973

Friction, wear, and thermal stability studies of some organotin and organosilicon compounds

Thermal decomposition temperatures were determined for a number of organotin and organosilicon compounds. A ball-on-disk sliding friction apparatus was used to determine the friction and wear characteristics of two representative compounds, (1) 3-tri-n-butylstannyl (diphenyl) and (2) 3-tri-n-butylsilyl (diphenyl). Friction and wear test conditions included a 1-kg load, 25 to 225 C disk temperatures, and a dry air atmosphere. The tin and silicon compounds yielded friction and wear results either lower than or similar to those obtained with a polyphenyl ether and a C-ether. The maximum thermal decomposition temperatures obtained in the silicon and tin series were 358 and 297 C, respectively. Increasing the steric hindrance around the silicon or tin atoms increased the thermal stability. Future work with these compounds will emphasize their use as antiwear additives rather than base fluids.

Jones, W. R., Jr.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Friction and wear of titanium alloys and copper alloys sliding against titanium 6-percent-aluminum - 4-percent-vanadium alloy in air at 430 C

Experiments were conducted to determine the friction and wear characteristics of aluminum bronzes and copper-tin, titanium-tin, and copper-silver alloys sliding against a titanium-6% aluminum-4% vanadium alloy (Ti-6Al-4V). Hemispherically tipped riders of aluminum bronze and the titanium and copper alloys were run against Ti-6Al-4V disks in air at 430 C. The sliding velocity was 13 cm/sec, and the load was 250 g. Results revealed that high tin content titanium and copper alloys underwent significantly less wear and galling than commonly used aluminum bronzes. Also friction force was less erratic than with the aluminum bronzes.

Wisander, D. W.↗
NASA NTRS1977

Method for attaching a fused-quartz mirror to a conductive metal substrate

A fused-quartz mirror is attached to a conductive metal substrate by the following steps: tinning one surface of a fused-quartz mirror with a solder of substantially pure indium; tinning a metallic substrate with an indium eutectic alloy consisting essentially of indium bismuth, lead and tin having a melting point substantially below that of indium; heating the eutectic alloy to a temperature substantially above its melting point, but below that of the solder; floating the mirror into place, and subsequently cooling the alloy to a temperature substantially below its melting point.

Sonnenschein, G.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Studies of liquid metal surfaces using Auger spectroscopy

The surface composition of liquid gallium-tin alloys is studied in an Auger electron spectrometer as a function of bulk composition and temperature. The sessile drop samples are cleaned by argon ion bombardment sputtering of the liquid. This technique produces surfaces that are entirely free of impurities within the sensitivity of the spectrometer and remain so for many days. Tin is found to be strongly adsorbed at the liquid-vacuum interface. Surface concentrations based on Auger measurements are found to be in reasonably good agreement with values calculated from surface tension measurements interpreted in terms of a monolayer depth distribution model for the adsorbed tin.

Hardy, S.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Relationships between mineralization and silicic volcanism in the central Andes

Existing models for the genesis of porphyry copper deposits indicate that they formed in granodioritic stocks located in the infrastructure of andesitic stratovolcanoes. It is noted that sites of porphyry-type subvolcanic tin mineralization in the Eastern Cordillera of Bolivia are distinguished by the absence of such andesitic structures. The surface expression of a typical subvolcanic porphyry tin deposit is thought to be an extrusive dome of quartz latite porphyry, sometimes related to a larger caldera structure. Evidence from the El Salvador porphyry copper deposit in the Eocene magmatic belt in Chile indicates that it too may be more closely related to a silicic volcanic structure than to an andesitic stratovolcano. The dome of La Soufriere, Guadeloupe is offered as a modern analog for the surface expression of subvolcanic mineralization processes, with the phreatic eruptions there indicating the formation of hydrothermal breccia bodies in depths. It is pointed out that the occurrence of mineralized porphyries, millions of years after caldera formation, does not necessarily indicate that tin intrusions and mineralization are not genetically related to the subcaldera pluton, but may be a consequence of the long thermal histories (1-10 million years) of the lowermost parts of large plutons.

Francis, P. W.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Float zone experiments in space

The molten zone/freezing crystal interface system and all the mechanisms were examined. If Marangoni convection produces oscillatory flows in the float zone of semiconductor materials, such as silicon, then it is unlikely that superior quality crystals can be grown in space using this process. The major goals were: (1) to determine the conditions for the onset of Marangoni flows in molten tin, a model system for low Prandtl number molten semiconductor materials; (2) to determine whether the flows can be suppressed by a thin oxide layer; and (3) based on experimental and mathematical analysis, to predict whether oscillatory flows will occur in the float zone silicon geometry in space, and if so, could it be suppressed by thin oxide or nitride films. Techniques were developed to analyze molten tin surfaces in a UHV system in a disk float zone geometry to minimize buoyancy flows. The critical Marangoni number for onset of oscillatory flows was determined to be greater than 4300 on atomically clean molten tin surfaces.

Verhoeven, J. D.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Application of hard coatings to substrates at low temperatures

BIRL, the industrial research laboratory of Northwestern University, has conducted unique and innovative research, under sponsorship from the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), in the application of hard, wear resistant coatings to bearing steels using the high-rate reactive sputtering (HRRS) process that was pioneered by Dr. William Sproul, the principal investigator on this program. Prior to this program, Dr. Sproul had demonstrated that it is possible to apply hard coatings such as titanium nitride (TiN) to alloy steels at low temperatures via the HRRS process without changing the metallurgical properties of the steel. The NASA MSFC program at BIRL had the specific objectives to: apply TiN to 440C stainless steel without changing the metallurgical properties of the steel; prepare rolling contact fatigue (RCF) test samples coated with binary hard coatings of TiN, zirconium nitride (ZrN), hafnium nitride (HfN), chromium nitride (CrN), and molybdenum nitride (MoN), and metal coatings of copper (Cu) and gold (Au); and develop new alloyed hard coatings of titanium aluminum nitride (Ti(0.5)Al(0.5)N), titanium zirconium nitride (Ti(0.5)Zr(0.5)N), and titanium aluminum vanadium nitride.

Sproul, William D.↗