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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 127 records · Page 7
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2025

Synthesis and characterization of electron beam irradiation-induced damage in polycrystalline metal thin films

High-energy physics research, industrial sterilizing, and material processing depend extensively on electron beam accelerators. Exit windows are crucial components of such electron accelerator systems, maintaining vacuum integrity inside the machine while providing mechanical strength, thermal stability, and radiation resistance at the beam-target interface. In this study, thin metallic films of Ni, Ti, Cr, and V were explored for use in electron beam exit windows, and their properties were compared with the properties of their bulk counterparts. Simulation results of metal foils predicted Ti to exhibit less beam power dissipation compared to Ni. However, Ni possesses superior mechanical and structural properties compared to Ti. The performance of these films under electron beam irradiation was examined by depositing thin layers of these films on silicon and metallic substrates using magnetron sputtering and exposing them to e-beam irradiation in a controlled setup. The deposited films were subjected to a dose of approximately 66 kGy at a beam energy of 10 MeV and characterized prior to and postexposure to the beam using field emission scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, x-ray diffraction (XRD), and nanoindentation. Particular emphasis was given to characteristics like the grain structure, surface morphology, dislocation density, and hardness. XRD patterns revealed irradiation-induced changes in peak intensities, while the crystallinity remained largely unchanged. Nanoindentation results showed that the pristine and irradiated Ti and Ni films were twice as hard when compared to bulk Ti and Ni samples, regardless of the substrate type used (Si or bulk Ti, or Ni). These results emphasize the superior mechanical properties of thin metal films compared to their bulk counterparts. In conclusion, this study advances the optimization of thin film materials for robust and efficient e-beam applications, ensuring improved durability and operational reliability.

AFM↗
DOE OSTI2020

CO 2 –Based Dual–Tone Resists for Electron Beam Lithography

The increasing global environmental and energy crisis has urgently motivated the advancement of sustainable materials. Significant effort has been focused on developing new materials to replace the fossil-based resists in the semiconductor industry based on greener sources such as ice, dry ice, small organic molecules, and proteins. Such resist materials, however, have yet to meet the stringent requirements of high sensitivity, high resolution, reliable repeatability, and good compatibility with the current protocols. To this end, CO 2 -based polycarbonates (CO 2 -PCs) obtained from the copolymerization of CO 2 and epoxides are demonstrated as sustainable dual-tone (positive & negative tone) resists for electron beam lithography. By adjusting the chemical structure, developing agent, and molecular weight, the CO 2 -PCs present high sensitivities to electron beam (1.3/120 μC cm -2 ), narrow critical dimensions (29/58 nm), and moderate line edge roughness (4.6/26.7 nm) for negative and positive resists, respectively. Here, a deep understanding of the exposure mechanism of CO 2 -PC resists is provided on the basis of the Fourier transform infrared, Raman, and electron ionization mass spectroscopy. 2D photonic crystal devices are fabricated using the negative and positive CO 2 -PC resists, respectively, and both devices show distinct colors derived from their well-defined nanostructures, indicating the great practical potential of CO 2 -derived electron beam resists.

nanofabrication↗
DOE OSTI2025

A detailed study of pre-heating effects in electron beam melting powder bed fusion process

Metal-based additive manufacturing processes, such as powder bed fusion with electron beam (PBF-EB) process, also referred to as electron beam melting (EBM), can produce high-density parts with minimal residual stresses due to the uniform and coherent preheating of the powder bed. However, understanding and controlling the multiple stages of preheating is required to enable the production of high-quality, consistent parts of various materials. This work presents a large-scale, multi-layer, three-dimensional numerical analysis focused on studying the preheating stages for predicting thermal history during the PBF-EB process. The model follows a continuous multi-stage cyclic process, that incorporates all the main stages of the PBF-EB process for 316 L stainless steel. This includes the gradual deposition of a new powder layer, the first and second preheating levels of the powder bed, and the energy deposition during melting (excluding the actual melt-pool behavior simulation). The model employs an adaptive time-scaling approach that automatically adjusts the energy deposition for each solution time-increment. This allows for localized changes in time-resolution over an otherwise computationally expensive multi-layer procedure. The material property variations are also taken into account, with an emphasis on the subtle irreversible changes in powder effective thermal conductivity after the two requisite preheating stages of the powder bed. This effect is studied using simplified conductivity models from the literature for partially sintered powder, validated by a dedicated experiment and numerical simulation. The large-scale model is then used to estimate the actual temperatures during first and second preheating levels for 316 L steel, which is not yet fully supported commercially for PBF-EB. Model predictions are corroborated by experiments, using and analyzing IR images, taken at the completion of each layer by the machine’s built-in infrared camera. The current model also incorporates a qualitative assessment for the effects of conductivity change during pre-heating, as well as evaluates the applicability of the time-scaling approach.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Electron beam irradiated foil expansion simulated by a coupled HYDRA/MCNP6 application

Simulating the hydrodynamic evolution of a temporally pulsed electron beam with multiple metal foils requires coupling the nearly monoenergetic, relativistic electron beam to the foil target. This deposition may be effectively calculated by Monte Carlo transport. Once this energy is deposited on a computational mesh representing the foil target, highly developed radiation-hydrodynamic codes, such as HYDRA, can describe the subsequent evolution. Currently, HYDRA does not have an internal Monte Carlo electron transport capability. To partially rectify this deficiency, a PYTHON-based scheme to link MCNP6 to HYDRA has been developed for quadrilateral meshes. Results from a seven-foil tantalum target configuration are presented to demonstrate this capability.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2020

Modular In-Chamber Electron Beam Welding – Process Planning: Welding, Cladding, Inspection, and Manufacturing

Electron beam welding (EBW) is commonly employed by industry today to join relatively thin section components. Industrial sectors which utilize the technology include; automotive, aircraft, aerospace, defense, medical, oil & gas, etc. The ability to produce single pass, thick section (up to 6 inches, 150mm) welds has also been available for more than 40 years; however, the technology has not been deployed for civil nuclear manufacturing and fabrication such as reactor pressure vessels, steam generators, or pressurizers. Instead, thick section joining is performed much in the same manner it has been for decades using submerged arc or gas tungsten arc welding processes. Recent research performed under U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) project DE-NE0008629 has demonstrated that the overall welding time to produce one major reactor pressure vessel (RPV) girth weld can be reduced from weeks to less than 90 minutes, while maintaining exceptional quality and inspection characteristics. The subject project (DE-NE0008846) investigates a modular in-chamber (MIC) EBW approach which allows various RPV sections to be joined within a “modular” chamber. The MIC-EBW approach utilizes individual modules that can be stacked and de-stacked to various heights to enable production girth welds to be performed at a given elevation. This report describes the various processing methodology necessary to complete major girth weldments for the NuScale Power small modular reactor including welding development, manufacturing, production sequence, inspection, and cladding.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Parametric study of high-energy ring-shaped electron beams from a laser wakefield accelerator

Abstract Laser wakefield accelerators commonly produce on-axis, low-divergence, high-energy electron beams. However, a high charge, annular shaped beam can be trapped outside the bubble and accelerated to high energies. Here we present a parametric study on the production of low-energy-spread, ultra-relativistic electron ring beams in a two-stage gas cell. Ring-shaped beams with energies higher than 750 MeV are observed simultaneously with on axis, continuously injected electrons. Often multiple ring shaped beams with different energies are produced and parametric studies to control the generation and properties of these structures were conducted. Particle tracking and particle-in-cell simulations are used to determine properties of these beams and investigate how they are formed and trapped outside the bubble by the wake produced by on-axis injected electrons. These unusual femtosecond duration, high-charge, high-energy, ring electron beams may find use in beam driven plasma wakefield accelerators and radiation sources.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2021

Accurate and confident prediction of electron beam longitudinal properties using spectral virtual diagnostics

Abstract Longitudinal phase space (LPS) provides a critical information about electron beam dynamics for various scientific applications. For example, it can give insight into the high-brightness X-ray radiation from a free electron laser. Existing diagnostics are invasive, and often times cannot operate at the required resolution. In this work we present a machine learning-based Virtual Diagnostic (VD) tool to accurately predict the LPS for every shot using spectral information collected non-destructively from the radiation of relativistic electron beam. We demonstrate the tool’s accuracy for three different case studies with experimental or simulated data. For each case, we introduce a method to increase the confidence in the VD tool. We anticipate that spectral VD would improve the setup and understanding of experimental configurations at DOE’s user facilities as well as data sorting and analysis. The spectral VD can provide confident knowledge of the longitudinal bunch properties at the next generation of high-repetition rate linear accelerators while reducing the load on data storage, readout and streaming requirements.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Advanced Laser-driven Plasma Accelerator Electron-beam Diagnostics with COTR Techniques

A significant advance in laser-driven plasma accelerator (LPA) electron-beam diagnostics has recently been demonstrated based on coherent optical transition radiation (COTR) imaging. We find COTR signal strengths from a microbunched subset of beam exiting the LPA to be several orders of magnitude higher than that of incoherent optical transition radiation (OTR). The transverse sizes are only a few microns as deduced from the point-spread-function-related lobe structure. In addition, the far-field COTR interferometric images obtained on the same shot provide beam-size limits plus divergence and pointing information at the sub-mrad level when compared to a modified analytical model. The integrated image intensities can be used to estimate the microbunching fraction and relatable to the LPA process. Initial results in a collaborative LPA experiment will be reported for electron beam energies of about 215 MeV. A revised configuration is proposed to record energy and ene rgy spread via COTR on the same shot with the interferometer.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2022

An Electron-Beam Ion-Neutralization Diagnostic for the Scorpius Radiography Accelerator

Electron beam spilling onto the beam pipe can produce positive ions that are accelerated inward into the beam body by its space charge. These ions partially neutralize the space charge, thereby causing the beam to be mismatched to the magnetic fields used for transport. A diagnostic of neutralization effects has been used on present accelerators, and in this note the feasibility of its use on a future accelerator is assessed.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2021

The Response of Polarized Protons in Solid Hydrogen-Deuteride(HD) to Electron Beams

Solid frozen-spin polarized targets of hydrogen-deuteride(HD) have been proven advantageous in photon beam experiments, where they exhibit immeasurably long spin-relaxation times(T1). The present research investigates their potential applicability to experiments with minimum-ionizing charged-particle beams. Studies have been conducted with sub-nanoAmp CW currents of 10 MeV electron beams at the newly commissioned Upgraded Injector Test Facility (UITF) at Jefferson Lab (JLab). Since the energy deposition is almost independent of electron beam energy, these UITF experiments provide insight on the expected performance at the GeV energies required in typical JLab experiments. A horizontal in-beam dilution refrigerator equipped with superconducting solenoids has been used to maintain solid HD samples at about 0.1K and 1 Tesla. NMR coils sur rounding the HD target have been used to monitor hydrogen polarization. Thermal equilibrium polarizations of targets not in the frozen-spin state (with intentionally short T1) have been used to deduce the in situ temperature of solid HD while under electron bombardment. The behavior of a 40% H-polarized frozen-spin target has been tracked while exposed to beams under various conditions. Polarization loss has been observed to be approximately proportional to dose, with the target polarization dropping to 1/e of its initial value after about 6 µC cm2 , about 4 ? 1013 beam particles/cm2 . A model for depolarization by beam-associated paramagnetic impurities largely accounts for the data, and suggests that improvements in heat removal could lead to significant increases in the in-beam T1

Wei, Kevin↗
DOE OSTI2020

Perspectives on the generation of electron beams from plasma-based accelerators and their near and long term applications

This article first gives the authors' perspectives on how the field of plasma-based acceleration (PBA) developed and how the current experiments, theory, and simulations are motivated by long term applications of PBA to a future linear collider and an x-ray free electron laser. Here, we then focus on some early applications that will likely emerge from PBA research such as electron beam radiotherapy, directional but incoherent x-ray beams for science and technology, near single cycle continuously tunable infrared pulses for spectroscopy, and non-perturbative quantum electrodynamics enabled by PBA electron beams. In our opinion, these near term applications could be developed within the next decade with a concerted effort by the community.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2022

Conversion of Classical Light Emission from a Nanoparticle‐Strained WSe 2 Monolayer into Quantum Light Emission via Electron Beam Irradiation

Abstract Solid‐state single photon emitters (SPEs) within atomically thin transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) have recently attracted interest as scalable quantum light sources for quantum photonic technologies. Among TMDs, WSe 2 monolayers (MLs) are promising for the deterministic fabrication and engineering of SPEs using local strain fields. The ability to reliably produce isolatable SPEs in WSe 2 is currently impeded by the presence of numerous spectrally overlapping states that occur at strained locations. Here nanoparticle (NP) arrays with precisely defined positions and sizes are employed to deterministically create strain fields in WSe 2 MLs, thus enabling the systematic investigation and control of SPE formation. Using this platform, electron beam irradiation at NP‐strained locations transforms spectrally overlapped sub‐bandgap emission states into isolatable, anti‐bunched quantum emitters. The dependence of the emission spectra of WSe 2 MLs as a function of strain magnitude and exposure time to electron beam irradiation is quantified and provides insight into the mechanism for SPE production. Excitons selectively funnel through strongly coupled sub‐bandgap states introduced by electron beam irradiation, which suppresses spectrally overlapping emission pathways and leads to measurable anti‐bunched behavior. The findings provide a strategy to generate isolatable SPEs in 2D materials with a well‐defined energy range.

2D material↗
DOE OSTI2023

Low-damage electron beam lithography for nanostructures on Bi 2 Te 3 -class topological insulator thin films

Nanostructured topological insulators (TIs) have the potential to impact a wide array of condensed matter physics topics, ranging from Majorana physics to spintronics. However, the most common TI materials, the Bi 2 Se 3 family, are easily damaged during nanofabrication of devices. In this paper, we show that electron beam lithography performed with a 30 or 50 kV accelerating voltage—common for nanopatterning in academic facilities—damages both nonmagnetic TIs and their magnetically doped counterparts at unacceptable levels. We additionally demonstrate that electron beam lithography with a 10 kV accelerating voltage produces minimal damage detectable through low-temperature electronic transport. In conclusion, although reduced accelerating voltages present challenges in creating fine features, we show that with careful choice of processing parameters, particularly the resist, 100 nm features are reliably achievable.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2022

Electron beam heating as a tool for fabricating lattice engineered crystals in glass [Invited]

Laser heating is well-established to impart optical functionality into glass by local modification and crystallization. In this paper, we demonstrate electron beam heating in scanning and transmission microscopes as an alternative for the local crystallization of Sb 2 S 3 in Sb-S-I glasses as a model system. Governed by different absorption physics, the electron beam expands morphological control of crystal cross section relative to laser, producing nanoscale (∼50 nm) single crystal architectures. We also report the effects of accelerating voltage and probe current and characterize the curved lattice of crystals formed in glass with electron diffraction techniques.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2024

Electron beam emittance at operational intensity in fourth-generation synchrotron light sources

For synchrotron light sources, the brightness of user X-ray beams is primarily determined by the electron beam emittance and energy spread at operational intensity. A common feature of fourth-generation synchrotrons is the short length of electron bunches combined with a very small transverse beam size. Consequently, the particle density is much higher than in machines of previous generations, leading to strong collective effects that significantly increase the emittance and limit the achievable brightness at operational beam intensity. In this article, we summarize our studies of the emittance scaled with the beam energy and intensity, taking into account the effects of intrabeam scattering, beam-impedance interaction, and bunch lengthening provided by higher-harmonic RF systems, to identify optimal combinations of machine and beam parameters.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Electron beam echoes in the IOTA ring

This study is a continuation of previous efforts to demonstrate the possibility of electron beam echo generation in the IOTA ring. Transverse beam echoes are conventionally produced by a dipole kick followed by a single quadrupole kick. We seek to use multiple quadrupole kicks over successive turns to generate an echo larger than that from a single kick. We use beam echo theory and simulations to model and predict the expected echo generated by multiple quadrupole kicks. We also run simulated scans over various parameters relevant to the echo to optimize the echo amplitude, including delay time, quadrupole strength, tune split, and pulse number. Effects due to quantum excitation and synchrotron damping (which are particularly relevant with electrons) were also considered in simulation. Results indicate that given sufficient quadrupole kick strength, we should expect to be able to measure electron beam echoes in the IOTA ring.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Electron-beam-based Compton scattering x-ray source for probing high-energy-density physics

The physics basis for an electron-beam-based Compton scattering x-ray source is investigated for single-shot experiments at the major high-energy-density facilities, such as the Omega Laser Facility, National Ignition Facility, and Z pulsed power facility. A source of monoenergetic ( δ ε / ε < 5 % ) 10- to 50-keV x rays can be produced by scattering of a short-pulse optical laser by a 23- to 53-MeV electron beam and collimating the scattered photons. The number and spectrum of scattered photons are calculated as a function of electron packet charge, electron and laser pulse duration, laser intensity, and collision geometry. A source delivering greater than 10 10 photons in a 1-mm-radius spot and 100-ps time resolution is plausible with the available electron gun and laser technology. Applications of this source for x-ray diffraction, x-ray imaging, x-ray absorption fine structure, and x-ray absorption spectroscopy in high-energy-density physics experiments are described, demonstrating significant advancements compared to the present state of the art. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2020

Build orientation, surface roughness, and scan path influence on the microstructure, mechanical properties, and flexural fatigue behavior of Ti–6Al–4V fabricated by electron beam melting

In the present work, microstructure and fatigue behavior of Electron Beam Melted (EBM) Ti–6Al–4V have been systematically studied. Fatigue behavior was investigated using four-point bend tests of rectangular bars with internal features fabricated with different build orientations, scan paths, and surface conditions. Microstructural variations were evaluated by optical microscopy and Vickers micro-hardness indentations, both of which were found to be consistent throughout the build and within ranges reported in the literature. The fatigue performance of the EBM material was comparable to wrought Ti–6Al–4V when the loading direction was parallel to the build direction, but severely limited when loaded perpendicular to the build direction or if surface roughness defects were present. Scanning electron microscopy and interrupted fatigue tests were utilized to characterize fracture surfaces, failure mechanisms, crack initiation, and propagation behavior. Crack initiation sites in the vertically-oriented specimens were identified to be melt-related defects formed by insufficient melting.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗