Engineering topics

Carswell, William E.

Publications and source records attributed to Carswell, William E..

5 records

NASA NTRS2002

Vapor transport growth of organic solids in microgravity and unit gravity: some comparisons and results to date

Thin films of an organic nonlinear optical (NLO) material, N, N-dimethyl-p-(2,2-dicyanovinyl) aniline (DCVA), have been grown in space and on the ground by physical vapor transport in an effusive ampoule arrangement. The thin film growth technique developed on the ground is a direct result of information gleaned from experiments in microgravity. This paper covers the results of our experimental investigations for establishing "ideal" terrestrial conditions for deposition of a DCVA film. The active control during the deposition process was exercised by three deposition variables: the material source temperature, the background pressure external to the growth ampoule and the substrate temperature. Successful growth occurred when the difference in temperature between the source material and the copper substrate was 14 degrees C and the background nitrogen pressure was such that the transport was either diffusive or convective. A qualitative diffusion limited boundary was estimated to occur at a pressure of approximately 20 torr. We have probed the DCVA thin films with visible-near infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy, polarized Fourier transform infrared spectrometry, differential interference contrast optical microscopy, and stylus profilometry.

short duration↗

NASA NTRS2001

Ground Based Experiments in Support of Microgravity Research Results-Vapor Growth of Organic Nonlinear Optical Thin Film

This work is specifically focused on explaining previous results obtained for the crystal growth of an organic material in a reduced gravity environment. On STS-59, in April 1994, two experiments were conducted with N,N-dimethyl-p-(2,2-dicyanovinyl) aniline (DCVA), a promising nonlinear optical (NLO) material. The space experiments were set to reproduce laboratory experiments that yielded small, bulk crystals of DCVA. The results of the flight experiment, however, were surprising. Rather than producing a bulk single crystal, the result was the production of two high quality, single crystalline thin films. This result was even more intriguing when it is considered that thin films are more desirable for NLO applications than are bulk single crystals. Repeated attempts on the ground to reproduce these results were fruitless. A second set of flight experiments was conducted on STS-69 in September 1995. This time eight DCVA experiments were flown, with each of seven experiments containing a slight change from the first reference experiment. The reference experiment was programmed with growth conditions identical to those of the STS-59 mission. The slight variations in each of the other seven were an attempt to understand what particular parameter was responsible for the preference of thin film growth over bulk crystal growth in microgravity. Once again the results were surprising. In all eight cases thin films were grown again, albeit with varying quality. So now we were faced with a phenomenon that not only takes place in microgravity, but also is very robust, resisting all attempts to force the growth of bulk single crystals.

Zugrav, M. Ittu↗

NASA NTRS2001

Quench Module Insert Capabilities and Development Test Results

The Quench Module Insert is a directional solidification furnace that will operate in the Materials Science Research Rack (MSRR) on the International Space Station. It will provide high thermal gradient and quench capabilities for processing metals and alloys in microgravity. Numerical analyses and breadboard testing conducted to date show that the QMI can produce an axial temperature gradient approaching 150 C per centimeter in a 1 centimeter diameter aluminum sample with a maximum molten sample temperature of 1100 C. Breadboard testing and analysis have also shown that the quench capabilities of the furnace are sufficient to rapidly solidify at least a 5mm axial portion of a 1 centimeter diameter molten aluminum sample in significantly less than the required 2 seconds and prevent significant backmelt. This paper presents the furnace requirements and capabilities and a status of the associated development testing and analyses.

Carswell, William E.↗

NASA NTRS2000

Quench Module Insert (QMI) and the Diffusion Module Insert (DMI) Furnace Development

The Quench Module Insert (QMI) and the Diffusion Module Insert (DMI) are microgravity furnaces under development at Marshall Space Flight Center. The furnaces are being developed for the first Materials Science Research Rack (MSRR-1) of the Materials Science Research Facility (MSRF), one of the first International Space Station (ISS) scientific payloads. QMI is a Bridgman furnace with quench capability for studying interface behavior during directional solidification of metallic and alloy materials. DMI will be a Bridgman-Stockbarger furnace to study diffusion processes in semiconductors. The design for each insert, both QMI and DMI, is driven by specific science, operations and safety requirements, as well as by constraints arising from resource limitations, such as volume, mass and power. Preliminary QMI analysis and testing indicates that the design meets these requirements.

Crouch, Myscha R.↗

NASA NTRS2000

Polydiacetylene Films Prepared in Microgravity

A diffusive/kinetic rate equation was developed for the growth of polydiacetylene films from solution and compared with a microgravity experiment. The model takes into account both the kinetics of thin film growth and the diffusive transport limitations inherent to microgravity. In order to apply this model, measurements of the density and the ultraviolet extinction coefficient of the films, as well as of the diffusion coefficient of the monomer/solvent system, were made. The thin films grown in microgravity were predicted by the model to grow to a thickness of 0.148 micron, versus 0.150 micron for the ground control films. The flight films grew to 0.102 micron.

Carswell, William E.↗