Results for “experimental platform” — Page 29

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Near-term Persistent Platform Orbital Testbed: Three Candidate Architecture Options

On-orbit Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing (OSAM) will revolutionize the space industry by transforming the concept of operations of space systems and enabling new, radically different system implementations. These new implementations will benefit from a novel persistent asset design paradigm which focuses on evolvable designs that are tailored to the operational environment, not the launch environment. In addition, the ability to launch sub-systems independently enable future persistent assets to economically expand in capability and size, achieving cost effective and productive operations lasting for decades like terrestrial observatories. With few exceptions (International Space Station, Hubble Space Telescope, Mission Extension Vehicle customers), current space systems are not visited once they are operational. Leveraging emerging low cost commercial launch provides the ability to repeatedly and routinely revisit space systems. Thus, revolutionary new approaches for space system design are possible, creating completely new opportunities for small businesses and accelerating the growth of already established space industries. To usher in the revolutionary new operational paradigm, two things are needed. First, to build confidence in the technology and new paradigm, there must be a leading example, a bellwether persistent asset, that demonstrates the reliability and maturity of the new persistent asset paradigm (where repeated visits are common). Second, in order to rapidly advance and validate OSAM capabilities, an efficient means is required to conduct tests in the space environment. A persistent platform testbed satisfies both these needs. The space environment exhibits a plethora of characteristics that are difficult and costly to accurately simulate for a full system in a terrestrial laboratory, such as near zero gravity, a wide range of ionizing radiation types, atomic oxygen, and micro-meteoroids and space debris traveling at high velocity. In addition, since persistent assets range in mass from a few grams to several metric tons, it is difficult to accurately simulate interactions between these systems and visiting vehicles (that also exhibit a wide range of varying masses and capabilities). These interactions include the transmission of forces and/or exchanging mass (in the form of instruments, fuel, robotic assets, etc.). Thus, a rapid, versatile and cost efficient in-space testing capability that includes a persistent test platform and a surrounding in-space test zone is needed to mature technologies through experimentation. The testbed can provide common services, such as: power, thermal control, vibration isolation, data transmission between experiments and terrestrial experimenters, station-keeping, pointing, and robotic agents that can be leveraged by customer experiments. The onboard robotic agents can be used to provide payload handling services, such as: assembly, change out or upgrade, relocation, connecting/disconnecting utilities, inspection, repair or servicing, etc. Since the persistent platform cost will be amortized over many hosted payloads, its services can eventually be offered at a price much lower than if one were to design a unique and dedicated spacecraft and mission for those few experiments. The key to achieving an effective testbed is providing efficient cost effective access and infrastructure to a variety of commercial, academic and government customers coupled with extensibility, in the capability of an individual persistent platform test bed or replication of the test bed in a different operational regime. Three potential options for implementing a test bed were developed and evaluated in this study.

Persistent Platform↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Near-term Persistent Platform Orbital Testbed: Three Candidate Architecture Options

On-orbit Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing (OSAM) will revolutionize the space industry by transforming the concept of operations of space systems and enabling new, radically different system implementations. These new implementations will benefit from a novel persistent asset design paradigm which focuses on evolvable designs that are tailored to the operational environment, not the launch environment. In addition, the ability to launch sub-systems independently enable future persistent assets to economically expand in capability and size, achieving cost effective and productive operations lasting for decades like terrestrial observatories. With few exceptions (International Space Station, Hubble Space Telescope, Mission Extension Vehicle customers), current space systems are not visited once they are operational. Leveraging emerging low cost commercial launch provides the ability to repeatedly and routinely revisit space systems. Thus, revolutionary new approaches for space system design are possible, creating completely new opportunities for small businesses and accelerating the growth of already established space industries. To usher in the revolutionary new operational paradigm, two things are needed. First, to build confidence in the technology and new paradigm, there must be a leading example, a bellwether persistent asset, that demonstrates the reliability and maturity of the new persistent asset paradigm (where repeated visits are common). Second, in order to rapidly advance and validate OSAM capabilities, an efficient means is required to conduct tests in the space environment. A persistent platform testbed satisfies both these needs. The space environment exhibits a plethora of characteristics that are difficult and costly to accurately simulate for a full system in a terrestrial laboratory, such as near zero gravity, a wide range of ionizing radiation types, atomic oxygen, and micro-meteoroids and space debris traveling at high velocity. In addition, since persistent assets range in mass from a few grams to several metric tons, it is difficult to accurately simulate interactions between these systems and visiting vehicles (that also exhibit a wide range of varying masses and capabilities). These interactions include the transmission of forces and/or exchanging mass (in the form of instruments, fuel, robotic assets, etc.). Thus, a rapid, versatile and cost efficient in-space testing capability that includes a persistent test platform and a surrounding in-space test zone is needed to mature technologies through experimentation. The testbed can provide common services, such as: power, thermal control, vibration isolation, data transmission between experiments and terrestrial experimenters, station-keeping, pointing, and robotic agents that can be leveraged by customer experiments. The onboard robotic agents can be used to provide payload handling services, such as: assembly, change out or upgrade, relocation, connecting/disconnecting utilities, inspection, repair or servicing, etc. Since the persistent platform cost will be amortized over many hosted payloads, its services can eventually be offered at a price much lower than if one were to design a unique and dedicated spacecraft and mission for those few experiments. The key to achieving an effective testbed is providing efficient cost effective access and infrastructure to a variety of commercial, academic and government customers coupled with extensibility, in the capability of an individual persistent platform test bed or replication of the test bed in a different operational regime. Three potential options for implementing a test bed were developed and evaluated in this study.

Persistent Platform↗

DOE OSTI2023

Emergent Z 2 Gauge Theories and Topological Excitations in Rydberg Atom Arrays

Strongly interacting arrays of Rydberg atoms provide versatile platforms for exploring exotic many-body phases and dynamics of correlated quantum systems. Motivated by recent experimental advances, we show that the combination of Rydberg interactions and appropriate lattice geometries naturally leads to emergent Z 2 gauge theories endowed with matter fields. Based on this mapping, we describe how Rydberg platforms could realize two distinct classes of topological Z 2 quantum spin liquids, which differ in their patterns of translational symmetry fractionalization. Additionally, we also discuss the natures of the fractionalized excitations of these Z 2 spin liquid states using both fermionic and bosonic parton theories and illustrate their rich interplay with proximate solid phases.

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2023

Sustainable materials acceleration platform reveals stable and efficient wide-bandgap metal halide perovskite alloys

The vast chemical space of emerging semiconductors, like metal halide perovskites, and their varied requirements for semiconductor applications have rendered trial-and-error environmentally unsustainable. Here, in this work, we demonstrate RoboMapper, a materials acceleration platform (MAP), that achieves 10-fold research acceleration by formulating and palletizing semiconductors on a chip, thereby allowing high-throughput (HT) measurements to generate quantitative structure-property relationships (QSPRs) considerably more efficiently and sustainably. We leverage the RoboMapper to construct QSPR maps for the mixed ion FA 1-y Cs y Pb(I 1-x Br x ) 3 halide perovskite in terms of structure, bandgap, and photostability with respect to its composition. We identify wide-bandgap alloys suitable for perovskite-Si hybrid tandem solar cells exhibiting a pure cubic perovskite phase with favorable defect chemistry while achieving superior stability at the target bandgap of ~1.7 eV. RoboMapper’s palletization strategy reduces environmental impacts of data generation in materials research by more than an order of magnitude, paving the way for sustainable data-driven materials research.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

NASA NTRS1977

Measures of pilot performance during V/TOL aircraft landings on ships at sea

Simulation experiments to determine the feasibility of landing V/TOL aircraft on ships at sea were studied. The motion and attitude of the aircraft relative to the landing platform was known at the instant of touchdown. The success of these experiments depended on the ability of the experimenter to measure the pilot's performance during the landing maneuver. To facilitate these measurements, the equations describing the motion of the aircraft and its attitude relative to the landing platform are presented in a form which is suitable for simulation purposes.

Howard, J. C.↗

DOE OSTI2022

Toward an integrated platform for characterizing laser-driven, isochorically heated plasmas with 1 µm spatial resolution

Warm dense matter is a region of phase space that is of high interest to multiple scientific communities ranging from astrophysics to inertial confinement fusion. Further understanding of the conditions and properties of this complex state of matter necessitates experimental benchmarking of the current theoretical models. We discuss the development of an x-ray radiography platform designed to measure warm dense matter transport properties at large laser facilities such as the OMEGA Laser Facility. Our platform, Fresnel Diffractive Radiography, allows for high spatial resolution imaging of isochorically heated targets, resulting in notable diffractive effects at sharp density gradients that are influenced by transport properties such as thermal conductivity. We discuss initial results, highlighting the capabilities of the platform in measuring diffractive features with micron-level spatial resolution.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

NASA NTRS1993

Orbit determination error analysis and comparison of station-keeping costs for Lissajous and halo-type libration point orbits and sensitivity analysis using experimental design techniques

Spacecraft in orbit near libration point L1 in the Sun-Earth system are excellent platforms for research concerning solar effects on the terrestrial environment. One spacecraft mission launched in 1978 used an L1 orbit for nearly 4 years, and future L1 orbital missions are also being planned. Orbit determination and station-keeping are, however, required for these orbits. In particular, orbit determination error analysis may be used to compute the state uncertainty after a predetermined tracking period; the predicted state uncertainty levels then will impact the control costs computed in station-keeping simulations. Error sources, such as solar radiation pressure and planetary mass uncertainties, are also incorporated. For future missions, there may be some flexibility in the type and size of the spacecraft's nominal trajectory, but different orbits may produce varying error analysis and station-keeping results. The nominal path, for instance, can be (nearly) periodic or distinctly quasi-periodic. A periodic 'halo' orbit may be constructed to be significantly larger than a quasi-periodic 'Lissajous' path; both may meet mission requirements, but perhaps the required control costs for these orbits are probably different. Also for this spacecraft tracking and control simulation problem, experimental design methods can be used to determine the most significant uncertainties. That is, these methods can determine the error sources in the tracking and control problem that most impact the control cost (output); it also produces an equation that gives the approximate functional relationship between the error inputs and the output.

Gordon, Steven C.↗

DOE OSTI2025

Cooperative effects in thin dielectric layers: Long-range Dicke superradiance

The realization and control of collective quantum effects so far have predominantly focused on cold atomic ensembles. Quantum photonic platforms, with their engineered Green's functions and integration capability of advanced solid-state quantum emitters, provide opportunities to explore regimes of light-matter interaction beyond the scope of atomic systems. In this work, we demonstrate that embedding quantum emitters within a thin dielectric layer fundamentally alters their collective radiative behavior. The optical modes in the dielectric layer mediate long-range dipole-dipole interactions between emitters, enabling both total and directional superradiance between emitters separated by several wavelengths. Crucially, this mechanism supports Dicke superradiance even in parameter regimes where standard settings fail to support an interaction, unveiling a dimensionality-driven enhancement of cooperative effects. By bridging many-body quantum optics and photonic engineering, our work reveals a distinct interplay between surrounding dimensionality and collective quantum dynamics. Experimental realization of these predictions, readily achievable in solid-state quantum optics platforms, paves the way for scalable, directional quantum light sources and frontiers in many-body quantum optics.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

DOE OSTI2021

The Tracking Machine Learning challenge : Throughput phase

This paper reports on the second "Throughput" phase of the Tracking Machine Learning (TrackML) challenge on the Codalab platform. As in the first "Accuracy" phase, the participants had to solve a difficult experimental problem linked to tracking accurately the trajectory of particles as e.g. created at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC): given O($10^5$) points, the participants had to connect them into O($10^4$) individual groups that represent the particle trajectories which are approximated helical. While in the first phase only the accuracy mattered, the goal of this second phase was a compromise between the accuracy and the speed of inference. Both were measured on the Codalab platform where the participants had to upload their software. The best three participants had solutions with good accuracy and speed an order of magnitude faster than the state of the art when the challenge was designed. Although the core algorithms were less diverse than in the first phase, a diversity of techniques have been used and are described in this paper. The performance of the algorithms are analysed in depth and lessons derived.

Amrouche, Sabrina↗

NASA NTRS2015

Comparison of Computational and Experimental Microphone Array Results for an 18%-Scale Aircraft Model

An 18%-scale, semi-span model is used as a platform for examining the efficacy of microphone array processing using synthetic data from numerical simulations. Two hybrid RANS/LES codes coupled with Ffowcs Williams-Hawkings solvers are used to calculate 97 microphone signals at the locations of an array employed in the NASA LaRC 14x22 tunnel. Conventional, DAMAS, and CLEAN-SC array processing is applied in an identical fashion to the experimental and computational results for three different configurations involving deploying and retracting the main landing gear and a part span flap. Despite the short time records of the numerical signals, the beamform maps are able to isolate the noise sources, and the appearance of the DAMAS synthetic array maps is generally better than those from the experimental data. The experimental CLEAN-SC maps are similar in quality to those from the simulations indicating that CLEAN-SC may have less sensitivity to background noise. The spectrum obtained from DAMAS processing of synthetic array data is nearly identical to the spectrum of the center microphone of the array, indicating that for this problem array processing of synthetic data does not improve spectral comparisons with experiment. However, the beamform maps do provide an additional means of comparison that can reveal differences that cannot be ascertained from spectra alone.

Lockard, David P.↗

DOE OSTI2023

Quo Vadis, Borophene?

The materials-by-design paradigm is based on synergistic efforts involving advanced computation, synthesis and characterization to ensure properties meet various technological needs within a cost-effective framework. However, starting from the elements of the periodic table to achieving useful devices is a daunting road. Borophene, a two-dimensional (2D) allotrope of boron, is envisaged to play a role in this exciting area due to its extraordinarily rich polymorphism. The multitude of potentially stable structures, several of them already realized experimentally, differentiates borophene from all other mono-elemental 'X-enes'. The possibility of harnessing this unique characteristic fuels hopes for achieving 'ondemand' crystallographic arrangements making borophene a candidate platform for various electronics, energy sciences and biology applications. Furthermore, despite the scarcity of data on intrinsic electronic properties, the experimentally confirmed polymorphisms, the recent synthesis of bilayers and the first steps towards transferring borophene on device-compatible substrates are important milestones in borophene research.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

DOE OSTI2020

Performance and wake flow characterization of a 1:8.7-scale reference USDOE MHKF1 hydrokinetic turbine to establish a verification and validation test database

As hydrokinetic turbine technologies continue to advance towards commercialization, public datasets on the performance characteristics for these devices and their flow field effects are invaluable to advance our understanding of these technologies and to validate analytical and numerical models. The Applied Research Laboratory at The Pennsylvania State University (ARL Penn State) collaborated with Sandia National Laboratories and the University of California at Davis to design, fabricate (at a 1:8.7 scale), and experimentally test a novel hydrokinetic turbine rotor design to provide an open platform and dataset for further study and development. The water tunnel test of this three-bladed, horizontal-axis rotor recorded power production, blade loading, the near-wake flow, cavitation effects, and noise generation. These state-of-the-art measurements demonstrate much of the complex physics associated with the flow through an unducted, horizontal-axis turbine, and they elucidate the performance characteristics and flow field effects at an unprecedented fidelity, accuracy and resolution. Measurements of powering coefficients (power, torque and thrust) as a function of tip-speed-ratio were performed. The dataset also includes unsteady measurements of driveshaft loading, blade strain, tower pressures, and radiated noise. Detailed flow mapping using laser Doppler velocimetry, and planar and stereo particle image velocimetry includes measurements of mean velocity and Reynolds stresses. Although the wake measurements are limited to less than half a diameter, they reveal the complex flow patterns in the near-wake structure of the rotor. The full database, available at the United States Department of Energy’s marine and hydrokinetic data repository, includes tunnel and model Computer Aided Design geometry files and inflow data sufficient for a “Model-the-Test” computational Verification and Validation study.

13 HYDRO ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2024

An open-source data storage and visualization platform for collaborative qubit control

Developing collaborative research platforms for quantum bit control is crucial for driving innovation in the field, as they enable the exchange of ideas, data, and implementation to achieve more impactful outcomes. Furthermore, considering the high costs associated with quantum experimental setups, collaborative environments are vital for maximizing resource utilization efficiently. However, the lack of dedicated data management platforms presents a significant obstacle to progress, highlighting the necessity for essential assistive tools tailored for this purpose. Current qubit control systems are unable to handle complicated management of extensive calibration data and do not support effectively visualizing intricate quantum experiment outcomes. In this paper, we introduce Qubit Control Storage and Visualization ( QubiCSV ), a platform specifically designed to meet the demands of quantum computing research, focusing on the storage and analysis of calibration and characterization data in qubit control systems. As an open-source tool, QubiCSV facilitates efficient data management of quantum computing, providing data versioning capabilities for data storage and allowing researchers and programmers to interact with qubits in real time. The insightful visualization are developed to interpret complex quantum experiments and optimize qubit performance. QubiCSV not only streamlines the handling of qubit control system data but also improves the user experience with intuitive visualization features, making it a valuable asset for researchers in the quantum computing domain.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

DOE OSTI2022

Anion diffusion in two-dimensional halide perovskites

Commercialization of halide perovskites in the semiconductor industry is hindered by their short-term stability. The instability of perovskites is closely interlinked with ionic diffusion. Historically, attempts to study diffusion in 2D perovskites mostly utilized electrical characterizations, but these characterizations pose a challenge in deconvoluting the impact of device architecture, interlayers, and ionic species. In this Perspective, we focus our attention on simple optical characterizations employed in the literature to investigate halide diffusion in 2D perovskites using lateral and vertical heterostructure platforms. We review the various synthesis techniques used for fabrication of halide perovskite heterostructures and discuss the qualitative and quantitative diffusion studies performed using these platforms. We discuss the numerical methods used to validate and supplement the experimental halide diffusion kinetics. Finally, we highlight the need to conduct further research on the impact of device operating conditions, lattice structure, and vacancy concentration on halide diffusion. Through this Perspective, we aim to emphasize the need of developing a comprehensive understanding of halide diffusion in perovskites for their successful deployment in optoelectronics.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

DOE OSTI2022

Design of a high-resolution Rayleigh-Taylor experiment with the Crystal Backlighter Imager on the National Ignition Facility

The Rayleigh-Taylor (RT) instability affects a vast range of High Energy Density (HED) length scales, spanning from supernova explosions (10 13 m) to inertial confinement fusion (10 -6 m). In inertial confinement fusion, the RT instability is known to induce mixing or turbulent transition, which in turn cools the hot spot and hinders ignition. The fine-scale features of the RT instability, which are difficult to image in HED physics, may help determine if the system is mixing or is transitioning to turbulence. Earlier diagnostics lacked the spatial and temporal resolution necessary to diagnose the dynamics that occur along the RT structure. A recently developed diagnostic, the Crystal Backlighter Imager (CBI), [1,2] can now produce an x-ray radiograph capable of resolving the fine-scale features expected in these RT unstable systems. This paper describes an experimental design that adapts a well-characterized National Ignition Facility (NIF) platform to accommodate the CBI diagnostic. Simulations and synthetic radiographs highlight the resolution capabilities of the CBI in comparison to previous diagnostics. Furthermore, the improved resolution of the system can provide new observations to study the RT instability's involvement in mixing and the transition to turbulence in the HED regime.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

DOE OSTI2026

Defect-induced displacement of topological surface state in quantum magnet MnBi2Te4

The topological magnet MnBi2⁢Te4 (MBT), with gapped topological surface state, is an attractive platform for realizing quantum anomalous Hall and axion insulator states. However, the experimentally observed surface state gaps fail to meet theoretical predictions, although the exact mechanism behind the gap suppression has been debated. Recent theoretical studies suggest that intrinsic antisite defects push the topological surface state away from the MBT surface, closing its gap and making it less accessible to scanning probe experiments. Here, we report on the local effect of defects on the MBT surface states and demonstrate that high defect concentrations lead to a displacement of the surface states well into the MBT crystal, validating the theorized mechanism. The local and global influence of antisite defects on the topological surface states are studied with samples of varying defect densities by combining scanning tunneling microscopy, angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, and density functional theory. Our findings identify a combination of increased defect density and reduced defect spacing as the primary factors underlying the displacement of the surface states and suppression of surface gap, guiding further development of topological quantum materials.

Lupke, Felix [Carnegie Mellon University (CMU)]↗

DOE OSTI2026

Characterizing degraded visual environments with scanning lenses to improve contrast recovery

Atmospheric aerosols, such as fog and smoke, degrade optical signals via the scattering and absorption of light, making it difficult to recover information from the surrounding environment. Here, we present a technique that measures the angular distribution of light in scattering environments to help recover these degraded optical signals. This is done by passing a collimated beam through the aerosol environment and collecting the scattered and unscattered light with an f-theta scan lens. The lens transforms the angular distribution of the scattered light into the linear domain, mapping the collected light onto a detector. The measured angular scattering distribution is then used to estimate the point spread function of the environment at an arbitrary stand-off distance. This point spread function can be used to deconvolve images blurred by the aerosol environment in which the angular scattering distribution was initially measured. With this approach, we demonstrate improvements in the effective resolution of deblurred images up to 26% over a 120-cm stand-off distance. Experimentation was performed in the Sandia National Laboratories tabletop fog chamber, a platform that generates aerosol environments analogous to real-world fogs. We intend to leverage this technique in future work to develop a low-SWaP system for the in situ characterization of aerosol environments.

Aerosols↗

NASA NTRS1984

Satellite discrimination of snow/cloud surfaces

Differentiation between cloud cover and snow surfaces using remotely sensed data is complicated by the similarity of their radiative temperatures, and also by their similar reflectances at visible wavelengths. A method of cloud analysis over snow-covered regions is presented, using 1.51-1.63 micron data from an experimental sensor on board a U.S. Air Force Defense Meteorological Satellite Program platform. At these wavelengths, snow appears relatively 'black' while clouds are highly reflective. The spatial structure of the 1.51-1.63 micron reflectivity fields over a continuous snow surface are examined. Plots of mean reflectance against coefficients of variation for 4 x 4 pixel areas reveals a cluster of points have low reflectivity and low variability, corresponding to snow-covered (cloud free) areas, and a similar cluster with high reflectances corresponding to 100 per cent cloud cover. For the case of a single layered cloud, the radiances associated with partially filled fields of view are also inferred.

Crane, R. G.↗