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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.

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At least 811 records · Page 45
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2014

THz time-domain spectroscopy for tokamak plasma diagnostics

The technology is now becoming mature for diagnostics using large portions of the electromagnetic spectrum simultaneously, in the form of THz pulses. THz radiation-based techniques have become feasible for a variety of applications, e.g., spectroscopy, imaging for security, medicine and pharmaceutical industry. In particular, time-domain spectroscopy (TDS) is now being used also for plasma diagnostics in various fields of application. This technique is promising also for plasmas for fusion applications, where plasma characteristics are non-uniform and/or evolve during the discharge This is because THz pulses produced with femtosecond mode-locked lasers conveniently span the spectrum above and below the plasma frequency and, thus, can be used as very sensitive and versatile probes of widely varying plasma parameters. The short pulse duration permits time resolving plasma characteristics while the large frequency span permits a large dynamic range. The focus of this work is to present preliminary experimental and simulation results demonstrating that THz TDS can be realistically adapted as a versatile tokamak plasma diagnostic technique.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2014

Interpreting impedance spectra of organic photovoltaic cells—Extracting charge transit and recombination rates

Impedance spectroscopy has been widely used to extract the electron-hole recombination rate constant in organic photovoltaic cells (OPVs). This technique is typically performed on OPVs held at open-circuit. Under these conditions, the analysis is simplified with recombination as the only pathway for the decay of excess charge carriers; transit provides no net change in the charge density. In this work, we generalize the application and interpretation of impedance spectroscopy for bulk heterojunction OPVs at any operating voltage. This, in conjunction with reverse bias external quantum efficiency measurements, permits the extraction of both recombination and transit rate constants. Using this approach, the transit and recombination rate constants are determined for OPVs with a variety of electron donor-acceptor pairings and compositions. It is found that neither rate constant individually is sufficient to characterize the efficiency of charge collection in an OPV. It is demonstrated that a large recombination rate constant can be accompanied by a large transit rate constant, thus fast recombination is not necessarily detrimental to OPV performance. Extracting the transit and recombination rate constants permits a detailed understanding of how OPV architecture and processing conditions impact the transient behavior of charge carriers, elucidating the origin of optimum device configurations.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2014

Slowing of Femtosecond Laser-Generated Nanoparticles in a Background Gas

The slowing of Pt nanoparticles in argon background gas was characterized by Rayleigh scattering imaging using a plume of nanoparticles generated by femtosecond laser through thin film ablation (fs-TTFA) of 20 nanometers-thick Pt films. The ablation was performed at threshold laser energy fluences for complete film removal to provide a well-defined plume consisting almost entirely of nanoparticles traveling with a narrow velocity distribution, providing a unique system to unambiguously characterize the slowing of nanoparticles during interaction with background gases. Nanoparticles of ~200 nm diameter were found to decelerate in background Ar gas with pressures less than 50 Torr in good agreement with a linear drag model in the Epstein regime. Based on this model, the stopping distance of small nanoparticles in the plume was predicted and tested by particle collection in an off-axis geometry, and size distribution analysis by transmission electron microscopy. These results permit a basis to interpret nanoparticle propagation through background gases in laser ablation plumes that contain mixed components.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Fatigue of extracted lead zirconate titanate multilayer actuators under unipolar high field electric cycling

Testing of large prototype lead zirconate titanate (PZT) stacks presents substantial technical challenges to electronic testing systems, so an alternative approach that uses subunits extracted from prototypes has been pursued. Extracted 10-layer and 20-layer plate specimens were subjected to an electric cycle test under an electric field of 3.0/0.0 kV/mm, 100 Hz to 10{sup 8} cycles. The effects of measurement field level and stack size (number of PZT layers) on the fatigue responses of piezoelectric and dielectric coefficients were observed. On-line monitoring permitted examination of the fatigue response of the PZT stacks. The fatigue rate (based on on-line monitoring) and the fatigue index (based on the conductance spectrum from impedance measurement or small signal measurement) were developed to quantify the fatigue status of the PZT stacks. The controlling fatigue mechanism was analyzed against the fatigue observations. The data presented can serve as input to design optimization of PZT stacks and to operation optimization in critical applications, such as piezoelectric fuel injectors in heavy-duty diesel engines.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

BATMAN beam properties characterization by the beam emission spectroscopy diagnostic

The ITER neutral beam heating systems are based on the production and acceleration of negative ions (H/D) up to 1 MV. The requirements for the beam properties are strict: a low core beam divergence (< 0.4 °) together with a low source pressure (≤ 0.3 Pa) would permit to reduce the ion losses along the beamline, keeping the stripping particle losses below 30%. However, the attainment of such beam properties is not straightforward. At IPP, the negative ion source testbed BATMAN (BAvarian Test MAchine for Negative ions) allows for deepening the knowledge of the determination of the beam properties. One of the diagnostics routinely used to this purpose is the Beam Emission Spectroscopy (BES): the H{sub α} light emitted in the beam is detected and the corresponding spectra are evaluated to estimate the beam divergence and the stripping losses. The BES number of lines of sight in BATMAN has been recently increased: five horizontal lines of sight providing a vertical profile of the beam permit to characterize the negative ion beam properties in relation to the source parameters. Different methods of H{sub α} spectra analysis are here taken into account and compared for the estimation of the beam divergence and the amount of stripping. In particular, to thoroughly study the effect of the space charge compensation on the beam divergence, an additional hydrogen injection line has been added in the tank, which allows for setting different background pressure values (one order of magnitude, from about 0.04 Pa up to the source pressure) in the beam drift region.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2015

Novel pre-alloyed powder processing of modified alnico 8: Correlation of microstructure and magnetic properties

Progress is reviewed on development of an improved near-final bulk magnet fabrication process for alnico 8, as a non-rare earth permanent magnet with promise for sufficient energy density and coercivity for electric drive motors. This study showed that alnico bulk magnets in near-final shape can be made by simple compression molding from spherical high purity gas atomized pre-alloyed powder. Dwell time at peak sintering temperature (1250 °C) greatly affected grain size of the resulting magnet alloys. This microstructure transformation was demonstrated to be useful for gaining partially aligned magnetic properties and boosting energy product. While a route to increased coercivity was not identified by these experiments, manufacturability of bulk alnico magnet alloys in near-final shapes was demonstrated, permitting further processing and alloy modification experiments that can target higher coercivity and better control of grain anisotropy during grain growth.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Approximate models for the ion-kinetic regime in inertial-confinement-fusion capsule implosions

“Reduced” (i.e., simplified or approximate) ion-kinetic (RIK) models in radiation-hydrodynamic simulations permit a useful description of inertial-confinement-fusion (ICF) implosions where kinetic deviations from hydrodynamic behavior are important. For implosions in or near the kinetic regime (i.e., when ion mean free paths are comparable to the capsule size), simulations using a RIK model give a detailed picture of the time- and space-dependent structure of imploding capsules, allow an assessment of the relative importance of various kinetic processes during the implosion, enable explanations of past and current observations, and permit predictions of the results of future experiments. The RIK simulation method described here uses moment-based reduced kinetic models for transport of mass, momentum, and energy by long-mean-free-path ions, a model for the decrease of fusion reactivity owing to the associated modification of the ion distribution function, and a model of hydrodynamic turbulent mixing. The transport models are based on local gradient-diffusion approximations for the transport of moments of the ion distribution functions, with coefficients to impose flux limiting or account for transport modification. After calibration against a reference set of ICF implosions spanning the hydrodynamic-to-kinetic transition, the method has useful, quantifiable predictive ability over a broad range of capsule parameter space. Calibrated RIK simulations show that an important contributor to ion species separation in ICF capsule implosions is the preferential flux of longer-mean-free-path species out of the fuel and into the shell, leaving the fuel relatively enriched in species with shorter mean free paths. Also, the transport of ion thermal energy is enhanced in the kinetic regime, causing the fuel region to have a more uniform, lower ion temperature, extending over a larger volume, than implied by clean simulations. We expect that the success of our simple approach will motivate continued theoretical research into the development of first-principles-based, comprehensive, self-consistent, yet useable models of kinetic multispecies ion behavior in ICF plasmas.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2015

3D printer generated thorax phantom with mobile tumor for radiation dosimetry

This article describes the design, construction, and properties of an anthropomorphic thorax phantom with a moving surrogate tumor. This novel phantom permits detection of dose both inside and outside a moving tumor and within the substitute lung tissue material. A 3D printer generated the thorax shell composed of a chest wall, spinal column, and posterior regions of the phantom. Images of a computed tomography scan of the thorax from a patient with lung cancer provided the template for the 3D printing. The plastic phantom is segmented into two materials representing the muscle and bones, and its geometry closely matches a patient. A surrogate spherical plastic tumor controlled by a 3D linear stage simulates a lung tumor’s trajectory during normal breathing. Sawdust emulates the lung tissue in terms of average and distribution in Hounsfield numbers. The sawdust also provides a forgiving medium that permits tumor motion and sandwiching of radiochromic film inside the mobile surrogate plastic tumor for dosimetry. A custom cork casing shields the film and tumor and eliminates film bending during extended scans. The phantom, lung tissue surrogate, and radiochromic film are exposed to a seven field plan based on an ECLIPSE plan for 6 MV photons from a Trilogy machine delivering 230 cGy to the isocenter. The dose collected in a sagittal plane is compared to the calculated plan. Gamma analysis finds 8.8% and 5.5% gamma failure rates for measurements of large amplitude trajectory and static measurements relative to the large amplitude plan, respectively. These particular gamma analysis results were achieved using parameters of 3% dose and 3 mm, for regions receiving doses >150 cGy. The plan assumes a stationary detection grid unlike the moving radiochromic film and tissues. This difference was experimentally observed and motivated calculated dose distributions that incorporated the phase of the tumor periodic motion. These calculations modestly improve agreement between the measured and intended doses.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2015

Sub-Kelvin magnetic and electrical measurements in a diamond anvil cell with in-situ tunability

We discuss techniques for performing continuous measurements across a wide range of pressure-field-temperature phase space, combining the milli-Kelvin temperatures of a helium dilution refrigerator with that of the giga-Pascal pressures of a diamond anvil cell and the Tesla magnetic fields of a superconducting magnet. With a view towards minimizing remnant magnetic fields and background magnetic susceptibility, we then characterize high-strength superalloy materials for the pressure cell assembly, which allows high fidelity measurements of low-field phenomena such as superconductivity below 100 mK at pressures above 10 GPa. In situ tunability and measurement of the pressure permit experiments over a wide range of pressure, while at the same time making possible precise steps across abrupt phase transitions such as that from insulator to metal.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

Classical calculation of the equilibrium constants for true bound dimers using complete potential energy surface

The present paper aims at deriving classical expressions which permit calculation of the equilibrium constant for weakly interacting molecular pairs using a complete multidimensional potential energy surface. The latter is often available nowadays as a result of the more and more sophisticated and accurate ab initio calculations. The water dimer formation is considered as an example. It is shown that even in case of a rather strongly bound dimer the suggested expression permits obtaining quite reliable estimate for the equilibrium constant. The reliability of our obtained water dimer equilibrium constant is briefly discussed by comparison with the available data based on experimental observations, quantum calculations, and the use of RRHO approximation, provided the latter is restricted to formation of true bound states only.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2016

Novel linear analysis for a gyrotron oscillator based on a spectral approach

With the aim of gaining a better physical insight into linear regimes in gyrotrons, a new linear model was developed. This model is based on a spectral approach for solving the self-consistent system of equations describing the wave-particle interaction in the cavity of a gyrotron oscillator. Taking into account the wall-losses self-consistently and including the main system inhomogeneities in the cavity geometry and in the magnetic field, the model is appropriate to consider real system parameters. The main advantage of the spectral approach, compared with a time-dependent approach, is the possibility to describe all of the stable and unstable modes, respectively, with negative and positive growth rates. This permits to reveal the existence of a new set of eigenmodes, in addition to the usual eigenmodes issued from cold-cavity modes. The proposed model can be used for studying other instabilities such as, for instance, backward waves potentially excited in gyrotron beam tunnels.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2016

Staging of laser-plasma accelerators

We present results of an experiment where two laser-plasma-accelerator stages are coupled at a short distance by a plasma mirror. Stable electron beams from the first stage were used to longitudinally probe the dark-current-free, quasi-linear wakefield excited by the laser of the second stage. Changing the arrival time of the electron beam with respect to the second stage laser pulse allowed reconstruction of the temporal wakefield structure, determination of the plasma density, and inference of the length of the electron beam. The first stage electron beam could be focused by an active plasma lens to a spot size smaller than the transverse wake size at the entrance of the second stage. This permitted electron beam trapping, verified by a 100 MeV energy gain.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2018

Excited state non-adiabatic dynamics of the smallest polyene, trans 1,3-butadiene. I. Time-resolved photoelectron-photoion coincidence spectroscopy

The ultrafast excited state dynamics of the smallest polyene, trans-1,3-butadiene, were studied by femtosecond time-resolved photoelectron-photoion coincidence (TRPEPICO) spectroscopy. The evolution of the excited state wavepacket, created by pumping the bright 1 B u (ππ*) electronic state at its origin of 216 nm, is projected via one- and two-photon ionization at 267 nm onto several ionization continua. The results are interpreted in terms of Koopmans’ correlations and Franck-Condon factors for the excited and cationic states involved. The known predissociative character of the cation excited states is utilized to assign photoelectron bands to specific continua using TRPEPICO spectroscopy. This permits us to report the direct observation of the famously elusive S 1 (2 1 A g ) dark electronic state during the internal conversion of trans 1,3-butadiene. Our phenomenological analysis permits the spectroscopic determination of several important time constants. We report the overall decay lifetimes of the 1 1 B u and 2 1 A g states and observe the re-appearance of the hot ground state molecule. We argue that the apparent dephasing time of the S 2 (1 1 B u ) state, which leads to the extreme breadth of the absorption spectrum, is principally due to large amplitude torsional motion on the 1 B u surface in conjunction with strong non-adiabatic couplings via conical intersections, whereupon nuclear wavepacket revivals to the initial Franck-Condon region become effectively impossible. Lastly, in Paper II [W. J. Glover et al., J. Chem. Phys. 148, 164303 (2018)], ab initio multiple spawning is used for on-the-fly computations of the excited state non-adiabatic wavepacket dynamics and their associated TRPEPICO observables, allowing for direct comparisons of experiment with theory.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2018

A new ultrasonic transducer sample cell for in situ small-angle scattering experiments

Ultrasound irradiation is a commonly used technique for nondestructive diagnostics or targeted destruction. We report on a new versatile sonication device that fits in a variety of standard sample environments for neutron and X-ray scattering instruments. A piezoelectric transducer permits measuring of the time-dependent response of the sample in situ during or after sonication. We use small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) to demonstrate the effect of a time-dependent perturbation on the structure factor of micelles formed from sodium dodecyl sulfate surfactant molecules. We observe a substantial change in the micellar structure during and after exposure to ultrasonic irradiation. We also observe a time-dependent relaxation to the equilibrium values of the unperturbed system. The strength of the perturbation of the structure factor depends systematically on the duration of sonication. The relaxation behavior can be well reproduced after multiple times of sonication. Accumulation of the recorded intensities of the different sonication cycles improves the signal-to-noise ratio and permits reaching very short relaxation times. In addition, we present SANS data for the micellar form factor on alkyl-poly (ethylene oxide) surfactant molecules irradiated by ultrasound. Due to the flexibility of our new in situ sonication device, different experiments can be performed, e.g., to explore molecular potentials in more detail by introducing a systematic time-dependent perturbation.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2018

High-resolution sub-Doppler infrared spectroscopy of atmospherically relevant Criegee precursor CH 2 I radicals: CH 2 stretch vibrations and “charge-sloshing” dynamics

The combination of a pulsed supersonic slit-discharge source and single-mode difference frequency direct absorption infrared spectroscopy permit first high resolution infrared study of the iodomethyl (CH 2 I) radical, with the CH 2 I radical species generated in a slit jet Ne/He discharge and cooled to 16 K in the supersonic expansion. Dual laser beam detection and collisional collimation in the slit expansion yield sub-Doppler linewidths (60 MHz), an absolute frequency calibration of 13 MHz, and absorbance sensitivities within a factor of two of the shot-noise limit. Fully rovibrationally resolved direct absorption spectra of the CH 2 symmetric stretch mode (ν 2 ) are obtained and fitted to a Watson asymmetric top Hamiltonian with electron spin-rotation coupling, providing precision rotational constants and spin-rotation tensor elements for the vibrationally excited state. Assessment of the asymmetric top rotational constants confirms a vibrationally averaged planar geometry in both the ground- and first-excited vibrational levels. Sub-Doppler resolution permits additional nuclear spin hyperfine structures to be observed, with splittings in excellent agreement with microwave measurements on the ground state. Spectroscopic data on CH 2 I facilitate systematic comparison with previous studies of halogen-substituted methyl radicals, with the periodic trends strongly correlated with the electronegativity of the halogen atom. Surprisingly, we do not observe any asymmetric CH 2 stretch transitions, despite S/N ≈ 25:1 on strongest lines in the corresponding symmetric CH 2 stretch manifold. This dramatic reversal of the more typical 3:1 antisymmetric/symmetric CH 2 stretch intensity ratio signals a vibrational transition moment poorly described by simple “bond-dipole” models. Instead, the data suggest that this anomalous intensity ratio arises from “charge sloshing” dynamics in the highly polar carbon-iodine bond, as supported by ab initio electron differential density plots and indeed consistent with observations in other halomethyl radicals and protonated cluster ions.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2018

An evaluation of equilibrium conditions and temperature-dependent speciation in a laser-produced air plasma

A laser-induced air breakdown plasma is a dynamical system and its fundamental parameters change significantly during its lifetime. The temporal evolution of the spectral features from an air plasma shows emission from bremsstrahlung followed by discrete electronic transitions from ions, atoms, and rotational and vibrations bands from molecules. The molecular band emission from air plasma typically appears at times ≳5 μs and persists for 100s of μs. Here, an evaluation is made on the temperature evolution and speciation in a laser-produced air plasma. The air plasmas are generated by focusing 1064 nm, 6 ns pulses from an Nd:YAG laser. High-resolution emission spectra of various molecules such as N 2 , N 2 + , CN, OH, NH, NO are acquired for fits to spectral models. Fitting of atomic and molecular emission features permits tracking of the air spark temperature evolution from 1 to 200 µs. Though the excitation and molecular temperatures show good overlap at times ≲10 μs, the molecular temperatures obtained from different species show a discontinuity at times ~ 30 μs and this is related to shock collapse and subsequent changes in hydrodynamics and chemistry of the plume. The fitting of multiple species in broadband spectra has permitted calculation of the relative concentrations of various molecules as a function of temperature that provides insight into the air spark speciation. Finally, the measured mole fractions from laser-induced air plasma are within a factor of 2 - 6 of the values estimated by speciation model under the assumption of thermal and chemical equilibrium across the temperature ranges studied and probable reasons for the observed deviation are described.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2018

Several levels of theory for description of isotope effects in ozone: Effect of resonance lifetimes and channel couplings

In this study, two levels of theory are developed to determine the role of scattering resonances in the process of ozone formation. At the lower theory level, we compute resonance lifetimes in the simplest possible way, by neglecting all couplings between the diabatic vibrational channels in the problem. This permits to determine the effect of “shape” resonances, trapped behind the centrifugal barrier and populated by quantum tunneling. At the next level of theory, we include couplings between the vibrational channels, which permits to determine the role of Feshbach resonances and interaction of different reaction pathways on the global PES of ozone. Pure shape resonances are found to contribute little to the overall recombination process since they occur rather infrequently in the spectrum, in the vicinity of the top of the centrifugal barrier only. Moreover, the associated isotope effects are found to disagree with experimental data. By contrast, Feshbach-type resonances are found to make dominant contribution to the process. They occur in a broader range of spectrum, and their density of states is much higher. The properties of Feshbach resonances are studied in detail. They explain the isotopic ζ-effect, giving theoretical prediction in good agreement with experiments for both singly and doubly substituted ozone molecules. Importantly, Feshbach resonances also contribute to the isotopic η-effect, moving theoretical predictions in the right direction. Some differences with experimental data remain, which indicates that there may be another additional source of the η-effect.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2019

Suppressed-Doppler slit jet infrared spectroscopy of astrochemically relevant cations: $ν_1$ and $ν_4$ NH stretching modes in NH 3 D +

A suppressed-Doppler (Δν = 180 MHz) infrared spectrum of monodeuterated ammonium ions (NH 3 D + ) has been obtained for the ν 1 (symmetric) and ν 4 (degenerate) N–H stretch bands via direct absorption high resolution IR laser spectroscopy in a planar slit jet discharge expansion. The ion is efficiently generated by H 3 + protonation of NH 2 D in a discharge mixture of H 2 /NH 2 D, with the resulting expansion rapidly cooling the molecular ions into low rotational states. The first high-resolution infrared spectrum of ν 1 is reported, as well as many previously unobserved transitions in the ν 4 rovibrational manifold. Simultaneous observation of both ν 1 and ν 4 permits elucidation of both the vibrational ground and excited state properties of the ion, including rigorous benchmarking of band origins against high-level anharmonic ab initio theory as well as determination of the ν 1 :ν 4 intensity ratio for comparison with bond-dipole model predictions. Ground-state combination differences from this work and earlier studies permit the rotational constants of NH 3 D + to be determined to unprecedented accuracy, the results of which support previous laboratory and astronomical assignment of the 1 0 –0 0 pure rotational transition and should aid future searches for other rotational transitions as well.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗