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The performance of the double-pulsed CuCl laser is improved by a decrease in the inductance of the dissociation pulse circuit. Higher efficiency is obtained due to a larger ground-state copper atom population and lower optimum dissociation energy.
The conductivity of CuCl containing Al2O3 of 0.06, 0.3, 1, 3, 8, and 15 micron sized particles was measured between 25 and 390 C. Conductivity was enhanced for the 0.06 and 0.3 sized Al2O3 particles for temperatures below approximately 250 C. The maximum enhancement occurred at 10 m/o of 0.06 micron Al2O3 at 25 C. Uncertain degrees of agglomeration as well as the grain size of the matrix were found to be significant.
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Experimental characteristics of a continuously pulsed copper halide laser with a cable-capacitor Blumlein discharge circuit are reported. Quartz laser tubes 1 m in length and 1.5 and 2.5 cm in diameter were employed to study the effects of the electrical circuit, lasant, and buffer gas on laser performance. Measured properties of the Blumlein circuit are compared with an analytic solution for an idealized circuit. Both CuCl and CuBr with neon and helium buffer gas were studied. A maximum average power of 12.5 W was obtained with a 1.5 nF capacitor charged to 8 kV and discharged at 31 kHz with CuCl and neon buffer gas at 0.7 kPa in a 2.5-cm-diam tube. A maximum efficiency of 0.72 percent was obtained at 9 W average power. Measurements of the radial distribution of the power in the laser beam and the variation of laser power at 510.6 and 578.2 nm with halide vapor density are also reported. Double and continuously pulsed laser characteristics are compared, and the role of copper metastable level atoms in limiting the laser pulse energy density is discussed.
Development, fabrication and applications of CdS solar cells are reviewed in detail. The suitability of CdS cells for large solar panels and microcircuitry, and their low cost, are emphasized. Developments are reviewed by manufacturer-developer. Vapor phase deposition of thin-film solar cells, doping and co-evaporation, sputtering, chemical spray, and sintered layers are reviewed, in addition to spray deposition, monograin layer structures, and silk screening. Formation of junctions by electroplating, evaporation, brushing, CuCl dip, and chemiplating are discussed, along with counterelectrode fabrication, VPD film structures, the Cu2S barrier layer, and various photovoltaic effects (contact photovoltage, light intensity variation, optical enhancement), and various other CdS topics.
Addition of small amounts of hydrogen chloride to the buffer gas of a double-pulse CuCl laser causes an increase in the production of copper atoms in the ground state. A maximum laser energy increase of 15% was observed and the span of delay times for which laser action occurred increased.
The laser energy at optimum time delay of a double-pulsed CuCl laser was experimentally determined to be a logarithmic function of the initial current rise of the pumping pulse over the total circuit inductance range 1 to 12 microhenrys. The minimum delay was found to decrease with initial current rise, which implies that faster rising current pulses are more efficient at pumping copper atoms from the ground state to the upper laser level because lasing threshold occurs with a higher population in the lower laser level.
By use of low-inductance (0.5micro H) discharge circuits, pulses of 9.6 mJ were obtained from a double-pulsed CuCl laser. An oscillator-amplifier configuration produced a pulse energy of 11 mJ. Scaling studies indicate that additional increases in the laser energy could be obtained by increasing the discharge voltage above 20 kV and/or by increasing the laser-tube dimensions.
Diamond cells were constructed for use to 1 Mbar. A refrigerator for cooling diamond cells was adapted for studies between 15 and 300 K. A cryostat for superconductivity studies between 1.5 to 300 K was constructed. Optical equipment was constructed for fluorescence, transmission, and reflectance studies. X-ray equipment was adapted for use with diamond cells. Experimental techniques were developed for X-ray diffraction studies using synchrotron radiation. AC susceptibility techniques were developed for detecting superconducting transitions. The following materials were studied: compressed solidified gases (Xe, Ar), semiconductors (Ge, Si, GaAs), superconductors (Nb3Ge, Nb3Si, Nb3As, CuCl), molecular crystals (I).
Optical bistability and its potential for optical signal processing and communications are reviewed. Recent experimental results in semiconductor optical bistability are presented. In particular, optical bistability in GaAs-AlGaAs superlattices and CuCl, ZnS, and ZnSe is discussed.
The reaction of the surfaces of the new high-temperature superconductor YBa2Cu3O(7-x) with nonaqueous halogen solutions is investigated, and the species formed in the reactions are identified. Treatment of films with HF/EtOH (EtOH = HI in absolute ethanol) results in the formation of an oxyfluoride with Y:Ba:Cu relative concentrations of 1:4:3. Results of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy of HF-treated films are consistent with the formation of CuF, a compound which does not exist in bulk form. Treatment of films with HCl/EtOH results primarily in the formation of BaCl2, with smaller amounts of YCl3, CuCl, and CuCl2. Treatment with Br2/EtOH or HBr/EtOH results in the formation of YBr3, BaBr2, and CuBr with relative concentrations of 1:4:3.
The high vapor pressure of volatile metal halides and chalcogenides (e.g., of Cu, Zn, Sn, Pb, As, Sb, Bi) at typical Venus surface temperatures, coupled with the altitude-dependent temperature gradient of approximately 8.5 K/km, is calculated to transport volatile metal vapors to the highlands of Venus, where condensation and accumulation will occur. The predicted geochemistry of volatile metals on Venus is supported by observations of CuCl in volcanic gases at Kilauea and Nyiragongo, and large enrichments of these and other volatile elements in terrestrial volcanic aerosols. A one-dimensional finite difference vapor transport model shows the diffusive migration of a thickness of 0.01 to greater than 10 microns/yr of moderately to highly volatile phases (e.g., metal halides and chalcogenides) from the hot lowlands (740 K) to the cold highlands (660 K) on Venus. The diffusive transport of volatile phases on Venus may explain the observed low emissivity of the Venusian highlands, hazes at 6-km altitude observed by two Pioneer Venus entry probes, and the Pioneer Venus entry probe anomalies at 12.5 km.
A synthesis route has been developed for the commercial manufacture of single- source precursors of chalcopyrite semiconductor absorber layers of thin-film solar photovoltaic cells. A closely related class of single-source precursors of these semiconductors, and their synthesis routes, were reported in "Improved Single-Source Precursors for Solar-Cell Absorbers" (LEW-17445-1), NASA Tech Briefs, Vol. 31, No. 6 (June 2007), page 56. The present synthesis route is better suited to commercialization because it is simpler and involves the use of commercially available agents, yet offers the flexibility needed for synthesis of a variety of precursors. A single-source precursor of the type of interest here is denoted by the general formula L2M'(mu-ER)2M(ER)2, where L signifies a Lewis base; M signifies Al, In, or Ga; M' signifies Ag or Cu; R signifies an alkyl, aryl, silyl, or perfluorocarbon group; E signifies O, S, Se, or Te; and mu signifies a bridging ligand. This compound can be synthesized in a "one-pot" procedure from ingredients that are readily available from almost any chemical supplier. In a demonstration, the following synthesis was performed: Under anaerobic conditions, InCl3 was reacted with sodium ethanethiolate in methanol in a 1:4 molar ratio to afford the ionic stable intermediate compound Na+[In(SEt)4]- (where Et signifies ethyl group). After approximately 15 minutes, a heterogeneous solution of CuCl and the Lewis base PPh3 (where Ph signifies phenyl) in a 1:2 ratio in a mixture of CH3CN and CH2Cl2 was added directly to the freshly prepared Na+[In(SEt)4]-. After 24 hours, the reaction was essentially complete. The methanolic solution was concentrated, then the product was extracted with CH2Cl2, then the product was washed with dry ether and pentane. The product in its final form was a creamy white solid. Spectroscopic and elemental analysis confirmed that the product was (PPh3)2Cu(mu-SEt)2In(mu-SEt)2, which is known to be a precursor of the ternary semiconductor CuInS2.