Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “developable planes”

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.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 505 records · Page 28

Single-Crystal X-Ray Spectropolarimeter

X-ray spectropolarimetry is a diagnostics technique suitable for measuring intense electron beams and strong magnetic fields in hot, dense plasmas. To increase the accuracy achievable, we investigated the possibility of measuring both orthogonal components of linear polarization simultaneously using a single crystal. We demonstrated experimentally for the first time that crystals with cubic symmetry can be used as polarizing beam splitters. We also found that the polarization-splitting planes in cubic crystals can be accessed in two crystal orientations, a property that can be used to decrease the clutter in polarized spectra. In parallel, we developed a ray-tracing code and are working to add the crystal reflectivity to instrument modeling codes, to help us interpret the spectra and to design spectroscopic and spectropolarimetric instruments. This work is motivated by the need to perform measurements of important quantities in difficult experimental conditions, such as the axial magnetic field at stagnation in magnetized liner inertial fusion loads.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

A High Voltage Distribution System for the Mu2e Electron Tracker

This paper describes the design and development of a High Voltage distribution system (Smart Switch - SS) which distributes one input high voltage (HV) into six High Voltage channels (HVDS) of a straw detector plane. The SS independently sets, controls, and monitors the HV to each individual channel of a straw-detector plane in the Mu2E Electron Tracking Detector. Each straw plane is composed of three 120 deg crescent-shaped panels, and each panel is composed of 96 straw-tube detectors. Each output channel of the SS has independent, ON-OFF, current and HV monitoring, as well as filtration, isolation, and a crowbar to provide overcurrent protection for in that channel. The inter-communication system is based on TCP/IP protocol using a Raspberry Pi. The HVDS meets all required specifications including long term stability, accurate monitoring of the HV and current, and overcurrent trip. The performance of the HVDS was found to be comparable to, if not better than, commercial HV power supplies.

42 ENGINEERING↗

The Development of a Finite Volume Method for Modeling Sound in Coastal Ocean Environment

: As the rapid growth of marine renewable energy and off-shore wind energy, there have been concerns that the noises generated from construction and operation of the devices may interfere marine animals’ communication. In this research, a underwater sound model is developed to simulate sound prorogation generated by marine-hydrokinetic energy (MHK) devices or offshore wind (OSW) energy platforms. Finite volume and finite difference methods are developed to solve the 3D Helmholtz equation of sound propagation in the coastal environment. For finite volume method, the grid system consists of triangular grids in horizontal plane and sigma-layers in vertical dimension. A 3D sparse matrix solver with complex coefficients is formed for solving the resulting acoustic pressure field. The Complex Shifted Laplacian Preconditioner (CSLP) method is applied to efficiently solve the matrix system iteratively with MPI parallelization using a high performance cluster. The sound model is then coupled with the Finite Volume Community Ocean Model (FVCOM) for simulating sound propagation generated by human activities in a range-dependent setting, such as offshore wind energy platform constructions and tidal stream turbines. As a proof of concept, initial validation of the finite difference solver is presented for two coastal wedge problems. Validation of finite volume method will be reported separately.

Coastal↗

Design and Construction of a High-Resolution Hodoscope for the GlueX Experiment with High-Statistics Analysis of the p0, ¿, and ¿1 Photoproduction Cross Sections from the RadPhi Experiment

Differential cross sections for forward-angle photoproduction of p0, ¿, and ¿ 1 pseudoscalar mesons were measured using data from the RadPhi experiment conducted in Hall B at Jef ferson Lab. RadPhi utilized a tagged bremsstrahlung photon beam incident on a stationary 9Be target, with a detector system configured to trigger on a recoil proton in coincidence with multiple neutral showers in the calorimeter. Events were reconstructed and subjected to kinematic constraints, with background suppressed via sideband subtraction guided by Monte Carlo modeling of background contributions. Cross sections were extracted over the photon energy range 4.4– 5.4 GeV and binned in invariant momentum transfer t, providing measurements from one of the first high-statistics experiments of forward ¿ and ¿1 pro duction from a nuclear target at these energies. Acceptance corrections were applied using a detailed GEANT-based simulation of the detector geometry and response. The resulting cross sections are consistent with 2020 CLAS results, when scaled by the number of protons in beryllium, and show broad agreement with other data and theoretical models. In parallel, a high-resolution photon tagger detector, the Tagger Microscope (TAGM), was designed, constructed, and commissioned for the GlueX experiment in Hall D at Jefferson Lab. The TAGM was developed to provide high-rate tagging capability in the coherent bremsstrahlung peak by detecting post-bremsstrahlung electrons across a one GeV range along the focal plane of the tagging spectrometer. The detector consists of a 5ˆ102 array of 2ˆ2 mm2 square BCF-20 plastic scintillating fibers thermally fused to BCF-98 light guide fibers optically coupled to silicon photomultipliers. These fibers are mounted in a precision machined framework enabling fine positional adjustments to maintain precise alignment with post-bremsstrahlung electron trajectories, while ensuring mechanical rigidity, thermal stability, optical isolation, minimal inactive area, and radiation shielding for electronics. The construction effort involved extensive testing of fiber quality, light transmission, thermal fusing, radiation hardness, and defect analysis using SEM and EDX techniques. Following its installation and commissioning, the TAGM became a critical component of the GlueX beamline, enabling high-rate tagging essential for studies of hybrid mesons and gluonic ex citations.

McIntyre, James [Univ. of Connecticut, Storrs, CT ↗

High Efficiency, Inexpensive Thin Film III-V Photovoltaics using Single-Crystalline-Like, Flexible Substrates

An innovative, non-mainstream approach has been developed to fabricate inexpensive GaAs solar cells directly on epi-ready flexible metal substrates. Using templates made by ion beam assisted deposition (IBAD) and epitaxial germanium films made by Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition (PECVD), epitaxial GaAs films with high opto-electronic and structural quality have been grown on metal substrates using metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD). Crystallographic out-of-plane and in-plane texture spread less than 1 degree full-width-at-half-maximum (FWHM) was achieved in undoped, n-type and p-type GaAs films as well as in AlGaAs films on metal substrates. Electron mobility of >1300 cm 2 /V-s was attained in GaAs:Si n-type films. Also, hole mobility of >100 cm 2 /V-s was measured in GaAs:Zn films. Consistent doping was obtained in GaAs:Si (10 15 -10 18 cm -3 ), and GaAs:Zn films (10 17 -10 19 cm -3 ), necessary for the active device layers of a GaAs solar cell. Defect reduction techniques (thermal cycling, superlattice structures) were implemented to reduce defect density in GaAs films from 1 × 10 9 cm -2 to 9 × 10 7 cm -2 . Lifetime of 2.3 ns was obtained in AlGaAs/GaAs double-heterostructure device. Solar cells were fabricated based on designs using 1-dimensional and 2-dimensional simulations tailored to the specific properties of the GaAs films on metal substrates. All device fabrication processes (lithography, anti-reflection coating (ARC), device isolation and mesa formation and ohmic metal electrode formation) suitable for III-V solar cell fabrication on metal substrates were fully developed. A bi-layered ARC using ZnS and MgF 2 was used to minimize the reflection over wide range of spectrum. When this ARC was applied after removal of the parasitic absorption layer, the conversion efficiencies were improved up to 11.1% with V oc = ~0.621 V, J sc = ~24.5 mA/cm 2 , and FF = ~0.735. Yet another accomplishment in this project was the development of all electrically-conducting architecture for GaAs solar cells on metal substrates. Biaxial-texture was successfully achieved in all electrically-conducting buffer layer on metal substrate in structure based on IBAD TiN instead of IBAD MgO. The all electrically-conducting Ge/NiSi 2 /TiN/IBAD-TiN/Hastelloy substrate was used to fabricate back contacts for vertically conducting solar cell structures on metal substrates. A metallic resistivity as low as 4.17 μΩ•cm was obtained. A significant improvement of the texture of the Ge template was achieved using a Ag buffer layer between the TiN films. Epitaxial GaAs was successfully grown on the all-electrically-conducting buffer architecture. A Liquid Phase Epitaxy (LPE) method to drastically increase grain size of epitaxial Ge while maintaining the single-crystalline-like texture. Grain size up to 35 µm was achieved in LPE Ge grown on sputtered Ge with a grain size of ~ 1 µm on IBAD template on metal substrate. Epitaxial GaAs was grown on LPE Ge, with an out-of-plane texture of 0.34° compared to 0.98° in GaAs grown on sputter deposited Ge. A model was developed to simulate the effect of grain boundaries as a function of grain size of GaAs films on metal substrates. This model showed that even the very low angle grain boundaries (<1º misorientation) of our GaAs films led to decrease in Voc. Hydrogen plasma passivation treatment is being developed to improve open circuit voltage and the conversion efficiency of GaAs solar cells on flexible substrate.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Mathematical modeling of novel porous transport layer architectures for proton exchange membrane electrolysis cells

Thin foil based porous transport layers (PTLs) that contain highly structured pore arrays have shown promise as anode PTLs in proton exchange membrane electrolysis cells. These novel PTLs, fabricated with advanced manufacturing techniques, produce thin, tunable, multifunctional layers with reduced flow and interfacial resistances and high thermal and electric conductivities. To further optimize their design, it is important to understand their fundamental impact on the transport of protons, electrons, and liquid/vapor mixtures in the electrode. In this work, we develop a two-dimensional multiphysics model to simulate the coupled electrochemistry and multiphase transport in an electrolysis cell operated with the novel PTL architecture. The results show that larger pores improve access of water to the anode catalyst layer, which is beneficial for both the oxygen evolution reaction and membrane hydration. Larger pore sizes also improve oxygen gas transport from the catalyst layer, because generated oxygen gas is forced to travel in-plane through the anode catalyst layer until it reaches a pore opening that is connected to a channel. The discussed results confirm that the proposed thin foil based PTLs are fundamentally different from conventional PTLs, such as felts or layered meshes. The model developed in this work also provides generalizable insight into fundamental PEMEC phenomena, such as the competition between liquid and gas phase transport, membrane hydration and water management, and nonuniform electrochemical reactions, which are processes relevant to all PEMEC designs.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗

Performance Analysis of Transposition Models Simulating Solar Radiation on Inclined Surfaces: Preprint

Transposition models are widely used in the solar energy industry to simulate solar radiation on inclined photovoltaic (PV) panels. These transposition models have been developed using various assumptions about the distribution of the diffuse radiation, and most of the parameterizations in these models have been developed using hourly ground data sets. Numerous studies have compared the performance of transposition models, but this paper aims to understand the quantitative uncertainty in the state-of-the-art transposition models and the sources leading to the uncertainty using high-resolution ground measurements in the plane of array. Our results suggest that the amount of aerosol optical depth can affect the accuracy of isotropic models. The choice of empirical coefficients and the use of decomposition models can both result in uncertainty in the output from the transposition models. It is expected that the results of this study will ultimately lead to improvements of the parameterizations as well as the development of improved physical models.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

NuGraph2: A Graph Neural Network for Neutrino Event Reconstruction

Neutrino experiments are set to probe some of the most important open questions in physics, from CP violation and the nature of dark matter. The technology of choice for many of these experiments is the liquid argon time projection chamber (LArTPC). In current LArTPC experiments, reconstruction performance often represents a limiting factor for the sensitivity. New developments are therefore needed to unlock the full potential of LArTPC experiments. NuGraph2 is a state of the art Graph Neural Network for reconstruction of data in LArTPC experiments [https://arxiv.org/abs/2403.11872]. NuGraph2 utilizes a heterogeneous graph structure, with separate subgraphs of 2D nodes (hits in each plane) connected across planes via 3D nodes (space points). The model provides a consistent description of the neutrino interaction across all planes. NuGraph2 is a multi-purpose network, with a common message-passing attention engine connected to multiple decoders with different classification or regression tasks. These include the classification of detector hits according to the particle type that produced them (semantic segmentation) and the separation of hits from the neutrino interaction from hits due to noise or cosmic-ray background. Additional decoders are being developed, performing tasks such as the regression of the neutrino interaction vertex position. Performance results will be presented based on publicly available samples from MicroBooNE. These include both physics performance metrics, achieving 95% accuracy for semantic segmentation and 98% classification of neutrino hits, as well as computational metrics for training and for inference on CPU or GPU. The status of the NuGraph integration in the LArSoft software framework will be presented, as well as initial studies about model interpretability and injection of domain knowledge.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Compensation of heat load deformations using adaptive optics for the ALS upgrade: a wave optics study

In this paper, a realistic wave optics simulation method has been developed to study how wavefront distortions originating from heat load deformations can be corrected using adaptive X-ray optics. Several planned soft X-ray and tender X-ray insertion-device beamlines in the Advanced Light Source upgrade rely on a common design principle. A flat, first mirror intercepts the white beam; vertical focusing is provided by a variable-line-space monochromator; and horizontal focusing comes from a single, pre-figured, adaptive mirror. A variety of scenarios to cope with thermal distortion in the first mirror are studied by finite-element analysis. The degradation of the intensity distribution at the focal plane is analyzed and the adaptive optics that correct it is modeled. The range of correctable wavefront errors across the operating range of the beamlines is reported in terms of mirror curvature and spatial frequencies. The software developed is a one-dimensional wavefront propagation package made available in the OASYS suite, an adaptable, customizable and efficient beamline modeling platform.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Residual-stress-induced grain growth of twinned grains and its effect on formability of magnesium alloy sheet at room temperature

A magnesium alloy sheet was subjected to in-plane compression along with a vertical load to avoid buckling during compression. Pre-compressed specimens machined from the sheet were annealed at different temperatures and the changes in microstructure and texture were observed using electron back scattered diffraction (EBSD). Twinned grains preferentially grew during annealing at 300 °C, so that a strong texture with the < 0001 > direction parallel to the transverse direction developed. EBSD analysis confirmed that the friction caused by the vertical load induced inhomogeneous distribution of residual stress, which acted as an additional driving force for preferential grain growth of twinned grain during annealing. The annealed specimen showed excellent formability. - Highlights: • A magnesium alloy sheet subjected to in-plane compression under a vertical load • The vertical load induced inhomogeneous distribution of the residual stress. • The residual stress acted as an additional driving force for grain growth. • The annealed specimen with strong non-basal texture showed excellent formability.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Fast solvers for tokamak fluid models with PETSc

Multigrid (MG) is widely recognized as a highly effective solver for the model problem, the Laplacian, but textbook MG fails on most problems of interest. MG methods have been applied to complex, real-world applications with careful consideration of the physical model and discretization. In this work we develop the first step in applying MG methods to science and engineering relevant magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) tokamak models in the M3D-C1 (https://m3dc1.pppl.gov) fusion energy science code. The semi-implicit time integrator in M3D-C1 is composed of many linear solves. The implicit advance of the momentum equation is the most challenging and is the focus of this work. The current production solver in M3D-C1 is a block Jacobi (BJ) preconditioner within a Krylov solver, where blocks group degrees of freedom on planes of constant toroidal coordinate. BJ convergence degrades as the number of planes increases due to the spectral properties of the matrix preconditioned with BJ. The partially magnetic field-aligned, regular toroidal grid structure in M3D-C1 is amenable to semi-coarsening geometric MG in the toroidal direction. This paper develops such a solver and demonstrates competitive performance on a runaway electron model of a SPARC (https://cfs.energy/technology/sparc) disruption, and superior robustness on a stellarator model on which the BJ solver fails to converge.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Ordering effects on deformation substructures and strain hardening behavior of a CrCoNi based medium entropy alloy

Here, a CrCoNi based medium entropy alloy with small additions of Ti, Al and Nb (denoted as (CrCoNi) 93 Al 4 Ti 2 Nb) in the as-quenched condition, exhibits tensile properties comparable to those of the equiatomic CrCoNi alloy at room temperature. Dark field transmission electron microscopy (TEM), atomic resolution high-angle annular dark-field scanning transmission electron microscopy (HAADF-STEM) together with atom probe tomography (APT) show that spatially-localized long range ordering (LRO) L1 2 domains exist in this alloy. The evolution of deformation substructure with plastic deformation in this alloy was characterized using electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD), electron channeling contrast imaging (ECCI) and STEM based techniques including the recently developed weak beam dark field STEM imaging. Plastic deformation occurs by the slip of a/2<110>dislocations, which are narrowly dissociated into Shockley partial dislocations on {111} slip planes. Their dissociation distances in the (CrCoNi) 93 Al 4 Ti 2 Nb alloy are much smaller than the widths of the corresponding partials in the equiatomic CrCoNi alloy due to one or more of the minor alloying elements (Al, Ti, Nb). Dislocation slip in this alloy has a pronounced planar character. The leading dislocations in slip bands glide as pairs due to the existence of LRO domains. Multipoles were formed through the slip of dislocations with opposite signs on adjacent {111} slip planes. Those multipoles serve as building blocks for the formation of subgrain structures consisting of fine slip bands. The distances between slip bands were continuously refined during plastic deformation and dynamic refinement of slip bands plays a crucial role in strain hardening. The effects of LRO domains on planar dislocation slip, the deactivation of deformation twinning and strain hardening of this alloy are discussed.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Dual-scale folding in cutting of commercially pure aluminum alloys

We examine a, hitherto, little-studied and curious machining chip morphology, with tell-tale signs of folding at two different length scales, that is common in cutting of certain ductile and highly strain-hardening metals like soft aluminum alloys, tantalum and niobium. This chip morphology does not appear in the usual catalogues of common chip types. The mechanics of formation of the “dual-scale folded chip” is studied in model material systems of commercially pure aluminum alloys (AA 1100 and AA 8040), that prominently exhibit this chip morphology. The flow, folding and associated plastic instabilities are investigated using micro/macro structure observations of the chip in a plane-strain cutting framework, with high-speed in situ imaging and image analysis of material flow; and force measurements. The smaller-scale folding is shown to develop in the primary deformation zone while the larger-scale folding occurs as the chip traverses the rake face of the tool. The resulting chip is composed of irregularly-spaced large folds, superimposed onto which are the quasi periodic small folds. The representative wavelengths of the two folds differ on average by an order of magnitude, 0.1 mm vs. 2 mm. The observations reveal a direct coupling between the material flow and chip morphology, and how specific attributes of the dual-scale folded chip arise from the flow mechanism. Plastic buckling is found to play a key role in the folding at both length scales. The small-scale folds are characteristic of a sinuous plastic flow mode, while the large-scale folding is characterized by buckling and stick-slip along the tool rake face, triggered by adhesive pinning of the chip to the tool. Important consequences of the dualscale folding are very large cutting forces, and force oscillations of large amplitude, despite the alloys being very soft, only ~ 25 HV. Here, the dual-scale folding is why many of these alloys are classified as “gummy” to machine. Since the dual-scale folded chip is associated with large cutting forces and poor surface quality, there is much to be gained by disrupting this flow type in practical machining applications. Methods for controlling the folding to improve machining performance with the gummy alloys are briefly discussed.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Molecular dynamics simulations of cesium adsorption on illite nanoparticles

Here we present that the charged surfaces of micaceous minerals, especially illite, regulate the mobility of the major radioisotopes of Cs ( 134 Cs, 135 Cs, 137 Cs) in the geosphere. Despite the long history of Cs adsorption studies, the nature of the illite surface sites remains incompletely understood. To address this problem, we present atomistic simulations of Cs competition with Na for three candidate illite adsorption sites – edge, basal plane, and interlayer. Our simulation results are broadly consistent with affinities and selectivities that have been inferred from surface complexation models. Cation exchange on the basal planes is thermodynamically ideal, but exchange on edge surfaces and within interlayers shows complex, thermodynamically non-ideal behavior. The basal planes are weakly Cs-selective, while edges and interlayers have much higher affinity for Cs. The dynamics of Na-Cs exchange are rapid for both cations on the basal planes, but considerably slower for Cs localized on edge surfaces. Lastly, in addition to new insights into Cs adsorption and exchange with Na on illite, we report the development of a methodology capable of simulating fully-flexible clay mineral nanoparticles with stable edge surfaces using a well-tested interatomic potential model.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Crystal structure and monoclinic distortion of glaserite-type Ba{sub 3}MnSi{sub 2}O{sub 8}

Highlights: • Glaserite-type Ba{sub 3}MnSi{sub 2}O{sub 8} is hexagonal P-3m1 at room temperature. • Below ~ 250 K the structure undergoes transition to monoclinic C2/c. • The transition is driven by in-plane displacement of the apical oxygen atoms. • No magnetic transition was observed down to 1.6 K but expected at lower temperature. - Abstract: Crystal structure and magnetic properties of glaserite-type Ba{sub 3}MnSi{sub 2}O{sub 8} were investigated using variable temperature neutron powder diffraction and magnetometry. At room temperature the composition is hexagonal and the crystal structure is best described by the P-3m1 space group (a~ 5.7 Å, c~ 7.3 Å) with the apical oxygen atom modelled on a split site. On cooling below ~ 250 K the structure undergoes a phase transition into a monoclinic C2/c form (√3a{sub hex}, a{sub hex}, 2c{sub hex}, β~ 90°). Analysing diffraction data in terms of symmetry-adapted distortion modes suggests that the transition is primarily driven by increasing in-plane displacements of O1, which in turn results in the coupled tilting of [SiO{sub 4}] and [MnO{sub 6}] octahedra and in-plane displacements of Ba1 atoms. Magnetic susceptibility measurements and neutron powder diffraction data show no evidence for long-range magnetic ordering down to 1.6 K, although the development of magnetic diffuse scattering suggests that a magnetic transition may take place at lower temperature.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Picosecond Ultrasonics in Magnetic Topological Insulator MnBi 2 Te 4

MnBi 2 Te 4 is a magnetic topological insulator with layered A-type antiferromagnetic order. It exhibits a rich layer- and magnetic-state dependent topological phase diagram; however, much about the coupling between spin, charge, and lattice remains to be explored. Here, in this work, we report that MnBi 2 Te 4 is an excellent acoustic phonon cavity by realizing phonon frequency combs using picosecond ultrasonics. With the generated acoustic phonon wavepackets, we demonstrate that the timing and phase of acoustic echoes can be used to detect the presence of stacking faults between van der Waals layers buried deep within the crystal. Furthermore, by implementing this nondestructive ultrafast optical measurement in conjunction with time-resolved magneto-optical Kerr effect experiments, we uncover that out-of-plane vibrations in MnBi 2 Te 4 do not couple to the magnetic order, i.e. there is no appreciable magnetostriction. Our work points out how a well-developed technique can probe the structural defects and phonon pulse engineering in layered topological insulators.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Communication: Two types of flat-planes conditions in density functional theory

Using results from atomic spectroscopy, we show that there are two types of flat-planes conditions. The first type of flat-planes condition occurs when the energy as a function of the number of electrons of each spin, N{sub α} and N{sub β}, has a derivative discontinuity on a line segment where the number of electrons, N{sub α} + N{sub β}, is an integer. The second type of flat-planes condition occurs when the energy has a derivative discontinuity on a line segment where the spin polarization, N{sub α} – N{sub β}, is an integer, but does not have a discontinuity associated with an integer number of electrons. Type 2 flat planes are rare—we observed just 15 type 2 flat-planes conditions out of the 4884 cases we tested—but their mere existence has implications for the design of exchange-correlation energy density functionals. To facilitate the development of functionals that have the correct behavior with respect to both fractional number of electrons and fractional spin polarization, we present a dataset for the chromium atom and its ions that can be used to test new functionals.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Light-sheet microscopy by confocal line scanning of dual-Bessel beams

Here, we have developed a light-sheet microscope that uses confocal scanning of dual-Bessel beams for illumination. A digital micromirror device (DMD) is placed in the intermediate image plane of the objective used to collect fluorescence and is programmed with two lines of pixels in the “on” state such that the DMD functions as a spatial filter to reject the out-of-focus background generated by the side-lobes of the Bessel beams. The optical sectioning and out-of-focus background rejection capabilities of this microscope were demonstrated by imaging of fluorescently stained actin in human A431 cells. The dual-Bessel beam system enables twice as many photons to be detected per imaging scan, which is useful for low light applications (e.g., single-molecule localization) or imaging at high speed with a superior signal to noise. While demonstrated for two Bessel beams, this approach is scalable to a larger number of beams.

confocal microscopy↗