SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “tunable”

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.

SourceResearch connectionFrom yearThrough year

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

At least 541 records · Page 30

All sources NASA NTRS DOE OSTI

NASA NTRS1985

Tunable diode laser Stark modulation spectroscopy for rotational assignment of the HNO3 7.5-micron band

The technique of Stark modulation spectroscopy for unraveling and assigning rotationally resolved dense molecular spectra has been employed using a tunable diode laser (TDL) source. Doppler-limited absorption and Stark modulation spectra of the HNO3 7.5-micron band near the 1326/cm band origin are presented with preliminary values of the excited-state rovibrational constants derived from both TDL and Bomem Fourier transform IR spectra.

Webster, C. R.↗

NASA NTRS1986

Tunable solid-state laser technology for applications to scientific and technological experiments from space

Current plans for the Earth Observing System (EOS) include development of a lidar facility to conduct scientific experiments from a polar orbiting platforms. A recommended set of experiments were scoped, which includes techniques of atmospheric backscatter (Lidar), Differential Absorption Lidar (DIAL), altimetry, and retroranging. Preliminary assessments of the resources (power, weight, volume) required by the Eos Lidar Facility were conducted. A research program in tunable solid state laser technology was developed, which includes laser materials development, modeling and experiments on the physics of solid state laser materials, and development of solid state laser transmitters with a strong focus on Eos scientific investigations. Some of the system studies that were conducted which highlight the payoff of solid state laser technology for the Eos scientific investigations will be discussed. Additionally, a summary of some promising research results which have recently emerged from the research program will be presented.

Allario, F.↗

NASA NTRS1986

Airborne Lidar measurements of the atmospheric pressure profile with tunable Alexandrite lasers

The first remote measurements of the atmospheric pressure profile made from an airborne platform are described. The measurements utilize a differential absorption lidar and tunable solid state Alexandrite lasers. The pressure measurement technique uses a high resolution oxygen A band where the absorption is highly pressure sensitive due to collision broadening. Absorption troughs and regions of minimum absorption were used between pairs of stongly absorption lines for these measurements. The trough technique allows the measurement to be greatly desensitized to the effects of laser frequency instabilities. The lidar system was set up to measure pressure with the on-line laser tuned to the absorption trough at 13147.3/cm and with the reference laser tuned to a nonabsorbing frequency near 13170.0/cm. The lidar signal returns were sampled with a 200 range gate (30 vertical resoltion) and averaged over 100 shots.

Korb, C. L.↗

NASA NTRS1986

Multifrequency dial sensing of the atmospheric gaseous constituents using the first and second harmonics of a tunable CO2 laser radiation

The results of field measurements of concentration of some gaseous components of the atmosphere along the paths, in Sofia, Bulgaria, using a gas analyzer based on the use of a CO2 laser radiation frequency-doubled with ZnGeP2 monocrystals are presented. The gas analyzer is a traditional long path absorption meter. Radiation from the tunable CO2 laser of low pressure and from an additional He-Ne laser is directed to a colliminating hundredfold Gregori telescope with a 300 mm diameter of the principal mirror. The dimensions of the mirrors of a retroreflector 500 x 500 mm and a receiving telescope allow one to totally intercept the beam passed through the atmospheric layer under study and back.

Zuev, V. E.↗

NASA NTRS1986

Tunable-diode laser absorption spectrometry

Tunable-diode laser absorption spectrometry (TDLAS) affords a number of advantages for atmospheric measurements. It is a universal method, applicable, in principle, to all gases of atmospheric interest. Because of its extremely high spectral resolution it provides unequivocal identification of the target species, with no interferences from other gases. It provides real-time, in situ measurements with time resolutions better than 1 minute. The sensitivity of the current TDLAS system is marginally capable of measuring HO2. This species exists in the troposphere at concentrations which are up to 2 orders of magnitude higher than those of HO and, in addition, is much less susceptible to removal by the surfaces of the instrument and its sampling system. HO2 is an important HO sub x species in its own right but can also give direct information on the HO concentration by virtue of the rapid partitioning between these two species. The addition of the high-frequency modulation technique to the TDLAS system would ensure its ability to measure HO2 under most atmospheric conditions. The ability of the TDLAS to measure hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) in the ambient atmosphere was also demonstrated. H2O2 measurements give a clear indication of HO sub x mixing ratios and are also important as a photolytic source of HO and as an important oxidant for other atmospheric consitituents such as SO2.

Schiff, H. I.↗

NASA NTRS1987

Precision tunable resonant microwave cavity

A tunable microwave cavity containing ionizable metallic vapor or gases and an apparatus for precisely positioning a microwave coupling tip in the cavity and for precisely adjusting at least one dimension of the cavity are disclosed. With this combined structure, resonance may be achieved with various types of ionizable gases. A coaxial probe extends into a microwave cavity through a tube. One end of the tube is retained in a spherical joint attached in the cavity wall. This allows the coaxial probe to be pivotally rotated. The coaxial probe is slideable within the tube thus allowing the probe to be extended toward or retracted from the center of the cavity.

Nakanishi, Shigeo↗

NASA NTRS1986

Laboratory measurement of the rotational spectrum of the OH radical with tunable far-infrared research

Rotational and fine-structure transitions between the low rotational levels of the OH radical in its X 2Pi state have been observed in absorption in the laboratory. It has thus been possible to measure the frequencies of these transitions directly. The observations were made with tunable far-infrared radiation generated by mixing two chosen CO2 laser frequencies in a metal-insulator-metal diode; the far-infrared difference frequency was radiated from the diode's whisker antenna. The measurements have an accuracy of a few hundred kHz. They both confirm and improve on the best previous estimates, which were obtained by extrapolation of laser magnetic resonance data.

Brown, J. M.↗

NASA NTRS1987

Fast-response, high-precision carbon monoxide sensor using a tunable diode laser absorption technique

A tunable diode laser instrument, denoted as DACOM (Differential Absorption CO Measurement), has been developed to meet the fast-response, high-precision CO measurement needs of the GTE (Global Tropospheric Experiment) program. Under the GTE program, DACOM participated in the three field missions of CITE 1 (Chemical Instrumentation Test and Evaluation 1), a project involving the intercomparison of trace gas measurement techniques. DACOM performance, including analyses of measurement error sources, is discussed for the ground-based mission at Wallops Island, VA (summer 1983), and two missions on the NASA CV-990 (fall 1983 and spring 1984). Examples of fast-response (about 1 s), high-precision (+ or - 1 part per billion by volume, + or - 1.5 percent of reading) airborne data are included to illustrate the capability of this instrument.

Sachse, Glen W.↗

NASA NTRS1987

Tunable diode laser measurements of formaldehyde foreign-gas broadening parameters and line strengths in the 9-11-micron region

A tunable diode laser spectrometer has been used to determine pressure broadening coefficients due to collision with the foreign gases air, H2, O2, and N2 in the nu4 and nu6 bands of H2CO between 9 and 11 microns. Absolute line strengths for twenty-eight transitions have also been determined. The broadening coefficients are very similar to theoretical literature values in the cases of air, N2, and O2. The H2-H2CO values are in good agreement with earlier experimental millimeter-wave results.

Nadler, Shachar↗

NASA NTRS1987

Line mixing in a N2-broadened CO2 Q branch observed with a tunable diode laser

Line-mixing effects have been observed in the infrared Q branch of the (11/1/0,03/1/0)I-00/0/0 band of CO2 at 2076/cm. A tunable diode laser spectrometer was used to record spectra of CO2 broadened by N2 and O2 at total pressures ranging from 100 to 720 torr. The observed absorption coefficients are up to 65 percent lower than those calculated using an isolated Lorentzian line approximation. A simple energy gap scaling law is used to determine the off-diagonal relaxation matrix elements from the known pressure-broadening coefficients. The spectra calculated using these matrix elements reproduces the observed absorption coefficients to within several percent.

Gentry, Bruce↗

NASA NTRS1987

Atmospheric remote sensing of water vapor, HCl and CH4 using a continuously tunable Co:MgF2 laser

A differential-absorption lidar system has been developed which uses a continuously tunable (1.5-2.3 micron) cobalt-doped magnesium fluoride laser as the radiation source. Preliminary atmospheric measurements of water vapor, HCl, and CH4 have been made with this system, including both path-averaged and ranged-resolved DIAL measurements at ranges up to 6 and 3 km, respectively.

Menyuk, Norman↗

NASA NTRS1987

Simultaneous in situ measurements and diurnal variations of NO, NO2, O3, jNO2, CH4, H2O, and CO2 in the 40- to 26-km region using an open path tunable diode laser spectrometer

Simultaneous in situ measurements of temperature, pressure, and the NO, NO2, O3, jNO2, CH4, H2O, and CO2 concentrations were conducted in the 40- to 26-km region of the stratosphere using the JPL Balloon-borne Laser In Situ Sensor, a tunable diode laser absorption spectrometer. The NO, NO2, CH4, H2O, and CO2 concentration measurements generally show good agreement with previous observations, with a tendency for somewhat lower NO2 amounts. Measured O3 concentrations at 38 km agree well with comparable measurements from in situ UV photometers, but at 28 km they are lower by about 10 percent and agree more closely with the solar backscattered UV data. A decline was found in NO2 during the night over a 5-km altitude range, which implies either lower NO2 postsunset profiles, or an NO2 decay rate that is significantly higher than current model predictions that use N2O5 chemistry.

Webster, Christopher R.↗

NASA NTRS1987

Tunable diode laser measurements of absolute linestrengths in the HNO3 band near 5.8 microns

Absolute line strengths of selected lines in the nu 2 band of HNO3 have been measured using a tunable diode laser spectrometer operating in a sweep integration mode. The direct measurement technique has been employed to obtain line intensities at 296 K for 22 isolated lines in the 1720-1725/cm region. The reported line strengths have estimated uncertainties of 4 percent, a significant portion of this uncertainty arising from spectral interference from hot band transitions. From these line-strength measurements, an integrated band intensity of 1375/sq cm per atm at 296 K is inferred.

May, Randy D.↗

NASA NTRS1988

Response function of a tunable diode laser spectrometer from an iterative deconvolution procedure

A deconvolution procedure commonly used for resolution enhancement of spectra has been applied to the determination of the response function of a tunable diode laser spectrometer. The method is sufficiently fast and simple for routine application when correcting for nonnegligible instrumental broadening. Absolute linestrengths of CH4 in the 1327/cm region and line positions of HNO3 in the 1335/cm region, measured with the aid of the deconvolution technique, are reported here.

May, Randy D.↗

NASA NTRS1988

Tunable solid-state lasers - An emerging technology for remote sensing of planetary atmospheres

The present development status and prospective (1990s) performance-improvement evaluation of tunable solid-state laser technology notes recent trends toward spectrum coverage over the 0.20-14.0 microns range, in addition to dramatic increases in efficiency, service life, and reliability. It is judged that the Ti:Al2O3 laser and the AgGaSe2 optical parametric oscillator pumped by a Ho:YAG laser could cover the near-IR and mid-IR regions of the spectrum. Laser diodes operating at 0.78 microns should provide an excellent pump for a Ho:YAG laser.

Barnes, Norman P.↗

NASA NTRS1988

Tunable superlattice p-i-n photodetectors: Characteristics, theory, and applications

Extended measurements and theory on the recently developed monolithic wavelength demultiplexer consisting of voltage-tunable superlattice p-i-n photodetectors in a waveguide configuration are discussed. It is shown that the device is able to demultiplex and detect two optical signals with a wavelength separation of 20 nm directly into different electrical channels at a data rate of 1 Gb/s and with a crosstalk attenuation varying between 20 and 28 dB, depending on the polarization. The minimum acceptable crosstalk attenuation at a data rate of 100 Mb/s is determined to be 10 dB. The feasibility of using the device as a polarization angle sensor for linearly polarized light is also demonstrated. A theory for the emission of photogenerated carriers out of the quantum wells is included, since this is potentially a speed limiting mechanism in these detectors. It is shown that a theory of thermally assisted tunneling by polar optical phonon interaction is able to predict emission times consistent with the observed temporal response.

Larsson, Anders↗

NASA NTRS1988

Tunable diode laser spectral diagnostic studies of a pressure modulator radiometer

The successful application of high-resolution tunable diode laser spectroscopy to the diagnostic measurement of a pressure modulator radiometer (PMR) is reported, and recorded line transmission profiles for a single N2O line at 1272/cm are presented. PMR measurements obtained for mean cell pressures of about 10, 20, and 30 Torr were found to be consistent with theoretical predictions. The validity of single-pressure and two-pressure approximation representations of the mean and modulated PMR transmission spectra has been verified.

May, Randy D.↗

NASA NTRS1989

Calculating Response Of A Tunable-Diode-Laser Spectrometer

Response function calculated from measurements by iterative deconvolution procedure. Report describes measurements made with tunable-diode-laser spectrometer and processing of measurement data to calculate response function. Procedure fast and simple enough to be used to make routine corrections for broadening in diode-laser spectrometers.

May, Randy D.↗