Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “quantum measurement”

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 721 records · Page 40
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2020

Nonadiabatic coupling of the dynamical structure to the superconductivity in YSr 2 Cu 2.75 Mo 0.25 O 7.54 and Sr 2 CuO 3.3

A crucial issue in cuprates is the extent and mechanism of the coupling of the lattice to the electrons and the superconductivity. Here we report Cu K edge extended X-ray absorption fine structure measurements elucidating the internal quantum tunneling polaron (iqtp) component of the dynamical structure in two heavily overdoped superconducting cuprate compounds, tetragonal YSr 2 Cu 2.75 Mo 0.25 O 7.54 with superconducting critical temperature, T c = 84 K and hole density p = 0.3 to 0.5 per planar Cu, and the tetragonal phase of Sr 2 CuO 3.3 with T c = 95 K and p = 0.6. In YSr 2 Cu 2.75 Mo 0.25 O 7.54 changes in the Cu-apical O two-site distribution reflect a sequential renormalization of the double-well potential of this site beginning at T c , with the energy difference between the two minima increasing by ~6 meV between T c and 52 K. Sr 2 CuO 3.3 undergoes a radically larger transformation at T c , >1-Å displacements of the apical O atoms. The principal feature of the dynamical structure underlying these transformations is the strongly anharmonic oscillation of the apical O atoms in a double-well potential that results in the observation of two distinct O sites whose Cu–O distances indicate different bonding modes and valence-charge distributions. The coupling of the superconductivity to the iqtp that originates in this nonadiabatic coupling between the electrons and lattice demonstrates an important role for the dynamical structure whereby pairing occurs even in a system where displacements of the atoms that are part of the transition are sufficiently large to alter the Fermi surface. The synchronization and dynamic coherence of the iqtps resulting from the strong interactions within a crystal would be expected to influence this process.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2025

Conveyor-belt magneto-optical trapping of molecules

Abstract Laser cooling is used to produce ultracold atoms and molecules for quantum science and precision measurement applications. Molecules are more challenging to cool than atoms due to their vibrational and rotational internal degrees of freedom. Molecular rotations lead to the use of type-II transitions ( F ⩾ F ′ ) for magneto-optical trapping (MOT). When typical red detuned light frequencies are applied to these transitions, sub-Doppler heating is induced, resulting in higher temperatures and larger molecular cloud sizes than realized with the type-I MOTs most often used with atoms. To improve type-II MOTs, Jarvis et al (2018 Phys. Rev. Lett. 120 083201) proposed a blue-detuned MOT to be applied after initial cooling and capture with a red-detuned MOT. This was successfully implemented (Burau et al 2023 Phys. Rev. Lett. 130 193401; Jorapur et al 2024 Phys. Rev. Lett. 132 163403; Li et al 2024 Phys. Rev. Lett. 132 233402), realizing colder and denser molecular samples. Very recently, Hallas et al (2024 arXiv:2404.03636) demonstrated a blue-detuned MOT with a ‘1+2’ configuration that resulted in even stronger compression of the molecular cloud. Here, we describe and characterize theoretically the conveyor-belt mechanism that underlies this observed enhanced compression. We perform numerical simulations of the conveyor-belt mechanism using both stochastic Schrödinger equation and optical Bloch equation approaches. We investigate the conveyor-belt MOT characteristics in relation to laser parameters, g -factors and the structure of the molecule, and find that conveyor-belt trapping should be applicable to a wide range of laser-coolable molecules.

Li, Grace K. (ORCID:0000000277223355)↗
DOE OSTI2025

A Flux-Tunable cavity for Dark matter detection

Developing a dark matter detector with wide mass tunability is an immensely desirable property, yet it is challenging due to maintaining strong sensitivity. Resonant cavities for dark matter detection have traditionally employed mechanical tuning, moving parts around to change electromagnetic boundary conditions. However, these cavities have proven challenging to operate in sub-Kelvin cryogenic environments due to differential thermal contraction, low heat capacities, and low thermal conductivities. Instead, we develop an electronically tunable cavity architecture by coupling a superconducting 3D microwave cavity with a DC flux tunable SQUID. With a flux delivery system engineered to maintain high coherence in the cavity, we perform a hidden-photon dark matter search below the quantum-limited threshold. A microwave photon counting technique is employed through repeated quantum non-demolition measurements using a transmon qubit. With this device, we perform a hidden-photon search and constrain the kinetic mixing angle to ${\varepsilon}< 8.2\times 10^{-15}$ in a tunable band from 5.672 GHz to 5.694 GHz. By coupling multimode tunable cavities to the transmon, wider hidden-photon searching ranges are possible.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Fixed-phase diffusion Monte Carlo study of activation gap and skyrmion excitations of a ν = 1 system in the presence of charged impurities

The discrepancy between the theoretically calculated and experimentally measured activation gaps in quantum Hall effect has long been a puzzle. We revisit this issue in the context of the v = 1 quantum Hall state, while also incorporating the skyrmion physics. We find that the finite width and the Landau level mixing effects are not sufficient to explain the observed activation gap. We further show that the presence of charged impurities located adjacent to the quantum well can cause a significant reduction in the activation gap, while also causing a suppression of the skyrmion size.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2025

Spin squeezing of macroscopic nuclear spin ensembles

Spin squeezing has been explored in atomic systems as a tool for quantum sensing, improving experimental sensitivity beyond the spin standard quantum limit for certain measurements. To optimize absolute metrological sensitivity, it is beneficial to consider macroscopic spin ensembles, such as nuclear spins in solids and liquids. Coupling a macroscopic spin ensemble to a parametrically-modulated resonant circuit can create collective spin squeezing by generating spin correlations mediated by the circuit. We analyze the squeezing dynamics in the presence of decoherence and finite spin polarization, showing that achieving 7 dB spin squeezing is feasible in several nuclear spin systems. The metrological benefit of squeezing a macroscopic spin ensemble lies in the suppression of technical noise sources in the spin detection system relative to the spin projection noise. This expands the experimental sensitivity bandwidth when searching for signals of unknown frequency and can improve the resonant signal-to-noise ratio. Squeezing macroscopic spin ensembles may prove to be a useful technique for fundamental physics experiments aimed at detecting spin interactions with oscillating background fields, such as ultralight dark matter. Published by the American Physical Society 2025

Boyers, Eric↗
DOE OSTI2022

Search for the Chiral Magnetic Effect via Charge-Dependent Azimuthal Correlations Relative to Spectator and Participant Planes in Au + Au Collisions at s N N = 200 GeV

The chiral magnetic effect (CME) refers to charge separation along a strong magnetic field due to imbalanced chirality of quarks in local parity and charge-parity violating domains in quantum chromodynamics. The experimental measurement of the charge separation is made difficult by the presence of a major background from elliptic azimuthal anisotropy. This background and the CME signal have different sensitivities to the spectator and participant planes, and could thus be determined by measurements with respect to these planes. We report such measurements in Au+Au collisions at a nucleon-nucleon center-of-mass energy of 200 GeV at the Relativistic Heavy-Ion Collider. It is found that the charge separation, with the flow background removed, is consistent with zero in peripheral (large impact parameter) collisions. Some indication of finite CME signals is seen with a significance of 1–3 standard deviations in mid-central (intermediate impact parameter) collisions. Furthermore, significant residual background effects may, however, still be present.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2025

Optimization of X-ray event screening using ground and in-orbit data for the Resolve instrument onboard the XRISM satellite

The X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM) satellite was successfully launched and put into a low-Earth orbit on September 6, 2023 (UT). The Resolve instrument onboard XRISM hosts an X-ray microcalorimeter detector, which was designed to achieve a high-resolution ( ≤ 7 eV FWHM at 6 keV), high-throughput, and non-dispersive spectroscopy over a wide energy range. It also excels in a low background with a requirement of < 2 × 10 -3 s -1 keV -1 (0.3 to 12.0 keV), which is equivalent to only one background event per spectral bin per 100-ks exposure. Event screening to discriminate X-ray events from background is a key to meeting the requirement. We present the result of the Resolve event screening using data sets recorded on the ground and in orbit based on the heritage of the preceding X-ray microcalorimeter missions, in particular, the Soft X-ray Spectrometer onboard ASTRO-H. We optimize and evaluate 19 screening items of three types based on (1) the event pulse shape, (2) relative arrival times among multiple events, and (3) good time intervals. We show that the initial screening, which is applied for science data products in the performance verification phase, reduces the background rate to 1.8 × 10 -3 s -1 keV -1 meeting the requirement. We further evaluate the additional screening utilizing the correlation among some pulse shape properties of X-ray events and show that it further reduces the background rate, particularly in the < 2 keV band. Over 0.3 to 12 keV, the background rate becomes 1.0 × 10 -3 s -1 keV -1 .

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2025

Resolve instrument onboard the X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission

We present an overview of the design and in-flight performance of the Resolve soft X-ray spectrometer on the X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission that was successfully launched on September 7, 2023, on a JAXA H-IIA rocket from the Tanegashima Space Center of Japan. The instrument has a 36-pixel array of microcalorimeters, 35 of which are at the focus of a high-throughput grazing-incidence X-ray mirror. The instrument has achieved its required operational base temperature of 0.05 K and a spectral resolution of 4.5 eV (FWHM) at 6 keV. The cooling chain was designed to provide a lifetime of at least 3 years in orbit and operate with and without liquid helium to provide redundancy and the longest operational lifetime for the instrument. Early indications are that the cryogen lifetime may reach 6 years with a cryogen-free mode thereafter. A series of onboard X-ray calibration sources produces energy scale calibration lines simultaneously while observing celestial sources. The overall design and in-flight performance of Resolve are described.

Astronomy and AstroPhysics↗
DOE OSTI2022

Anomalous transport in high-mobility superconducting SrTiO 3 thin films

The study of subtle effects on transport in semiconductors requires high-quality epitaxial structures with low defect density. Using hybrid molecular beam epitaxy (MBE), SrTiO 3 films with a low-temperature mobility exceeding 42,000 cm 2 V -1 s -1 at a low carrier density of 3 × 10 17 cm -3 were achieved. A sudden and sharp decrease in residual resistivity accompanied by an enhancement in the superconducting transition temperature were observed across the second Lifshitz transition where the third band becomes occupied, revealing dominant intraband scattering. These films further revealed an anomalous behavior in the Hall carrier density as a consequence of the antiferrodistortive (AFD) transition and the temperature dependence of the Hall scattering factor. Using hybrid MBE growth, phenomenological modeling, temperature-dependent transport measurements, and scanning superconducting quantum interference device imaging, we provide critical insights into the important role of inter- versus intraband scattering and of AFD domain walls on normal-state and superconducting properties of SrTiO 3 .

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2021

Solvent molecules form surface redox mediators in situ and cocatalyze O 2 reduction on Pd

Solvent molecules influence the reactions of molecular hydrogen and oxygen on palladium nanoparticles. Organic solvents activate to form reactive surface intermediates that mediate oxygen reduction through pathways distinct from reactions in pure water. Kinetic measurements and ab initio quantum chemical calculations indicate that methanol and water cocatalyze oxygen reduction by facilitating proton-electron transfer reactions. Methanol generates hydroxymethyl intermediates on palladium surfaces that efficiently transfer protons and electrons to oxygen to form hydrogen peroxide and formaldehyde. Formaldehyde subsequently oxidizes hydrogen to regenerate hydroxymethyl. Water, on the other hand, heterolytically oxidizes hydrogen to produce hydronium ions and electrons that reduce oxygen. These findings suggest that reactions of solvent molecules at solid-liquid interfaces can generate redox mediators in situ and provide opportunities to substantially increase rates and selectivities for catalytic reactions.

Adams, Jason S.↗
DOE OSTI2020

Spatially resolved characterization of optical and recombination losses for different industrial silicon solar cell architectures

In this work, spatially resolved characterization methods are used to identify loss mechanisms for common p -type silicon solar cell architectures, including multicrystalline aluminum back surface field (Al-BSF), monocrystalline Al-BSF, monocrystalline passivated emitter and rear cells (PERC), and bifacial monocrystalline PERC. The characterization methods used in this work include suns-V OC , photoluminescence imaging, and spatially resolved external quantum efficiency and reflectance measurements. The optical and recombination losses are driven by the material properties, cell processing conditions, and device architecture. These losses are quantified and categorized in terms of underlying mechanisms (e.g., front reflectance, escape reflectance, front recombination, and parasitic optical absorption and recombination in the bulk and rear). The ability to create images of these loss parameters can be used to gain more insight into the materials and manufacturing processes used to produce solar cells, and examples are given in this work to illustrate how these images can help reveal the origin of defects.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2022

Influence of Superlattice Structure on V-Defect Distribution, External Quantum Efficiency and Electroluminescence for Red InGaN Based µLEDs on Silicon

Achieving high quantum efficiency in long-wavelength LEDs has posed a significant challenge to the solid-state lighting and display industries. In this article, we use V-defect engineering as a technique to achieve higher efficiencies in red InGaN LEDs on (111) Si through lateral injection. We investigate the effects of superlattice structure on the V-defect distribution, the electroluminescence properties, and the external quantum efficiency. Increasing the relative thickness of In in the InGaN/GaN superlattice and the total superlattice thickness correlate with a reduction of active region defects and increased external quantum efficiencies. The highest measured on-chip EQE was 0.15% and based on Monte-Carlo ray tracing simulations for light extraction we project this would correspond to a flip-chip EQE of ~2.5%.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
NASA NTRS1990

Photoelectron energy spectra of opaque photocathodes in the extreme and far ultraviolet

Measurements of the EUV quantum detection efficiency (QDE) of opaque RbBr, CsBr, and KBr photocathodes are described and investigations of their photoemission characteristics over the 44-1560 A wavelength range are reported. The results show that high QDEs can be obtained in the EUV. Narrow QDE peaks at soft X-ray wavelengths occur at slightly different wavelengths for each of the materials studied. The long-wavelength thresholds vary according to the material band gap. Data on the photoemission from the photocathode layer on the microchannel plate interchannel web area are used to determine the number and energy distribution of the emitted photoelelectrons as a function of wavelength.

Siegmund, Oswald H. W.↗
NASA NTRS1995

In situ phytoplankton absorption, fluorescence emission, and particulate backscattering spectra determined from reflectance

An inverse model was developed to extract the absortion and scattering (elastic and inelastic) properties of oceanic constituents from surface spectral reflectance measurements. In particular, phytoplankton spectral absorption coefficients, solar-stimulated chlorophyll a fluorescence spectra, and particle backscattering spectra were modeled. The model was tested on 35 reflectance spectra obtained from irradiance measurements in optically diverse ocean waters (0.07 to 25.35 mg/cu m range in surface chlorophyll a concentrations). The universality of the model was demonstrated by the accurate estimation of the spectral phytoplankton absorption coefficents over a range of 3 orders of magnitude (rho = 0.94 at 500 nm). Under most oceanic conditions (chlorophyll a less than 3 mg/cu m) the percent difference between measured and modeled phytoplankton absorption coefficents was less than 35%. Spectral variations in measured phytoplankton absorption spectra were well predicted by the inverse model. Modeled volume fluorescence was weakly correlated with measured chl a; fluorescence quantum yield varied from 0.008 to 0.09 as a function of environment and incident irradiance. Modeled particle backscattering coefficients were linearly related to total particle cross section over a twentyfold range in backscattering coefficents (rho = 0.996, n = 12).

Roesler, Collin S.↗
NASA NTRS2003

Low Temperature SQUID for NDE Applications

We have developed a low temperature SuperConducting Quantum Interference Device - SQUID measurement system for detection of defects deep under the surface of aluminum structures using eddy current techniques. The system uses a two dimensional planar inducer with two different excitation frequencies to induce a current in the sample. We have developed a data analysis software program that enabled us to distinguish between round defects (holes), straight defects (slots) and slots close to holes simulating cracks starting from rivets in aluminum structures. We were able to detect defects that are 8mm below the surface. We have also measured the change in phase of the detected signal as a function of depth of the defect. This relationship can be used to determine the depth of hidden flaws. Using this analysis software with the high temperature SQUID system at NASA Langley we were able to detect slots close to holes in layered aluminum sample.

Wincheski, Buzz↗