Engineering topics

Pang, S.

Publications and source records attributed to Pang, S..

5 records

DOE OSTI2021

Kiloton-scale xenon detectors for neutrinoless double beta decay and other new physics searches

We report that large detectors employing xenon are a leading technology in existing and planned searches for new physics, including searches for neutrinoless double beta decay (0νββ) and dark matter. While upcoming detectors will employ target masses of a ton or more, further extending gas- or liquid-phase Xe detectors to the kton scale would enable extremely sensitive next-generation searches for rare phenomena. The key challenge to extending this technology to detectors well beyond the ton scale is the acquisition of the Xe itself. We describe the motivation for extending Xe time-projection chambers to the kton scale and possible avenues for Xe acquisition that avoid existing supply chains. If acquisition of Xe in the required quantities is successful, kton-scale detectors of this type could enable a new generation of experiments, including searches for 0νββ at half-life sensitivities as long as 10 30 yr.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

NASA NTRS2011

Airborne Surveys of Snow Depth over Arctic Sea Ice

During the spring of 2009, an ultrawideband microwave radar was deployed as part of Operation IceBridge to provide the first cross-basin surveys of snow thickness over Arctic sea ice. In this paper, we analyze data from three approx 2000 km transects to examine detection issues, the limitations of the current instrument, and the regional variability of the retrieved snow depth. Snow depth is the vertical distance between the air \snow and snow-ice interfaces detected in the radar echograms. Under ideal conditions, the per echogram uncertainty in snow depth retrieval is approx 4 - 5 cm. The finite range resolution of the radar (approx 5 cm) and the relative amplitude of backscatter from the two interfaces limit the direct retrieval of snow depths much below approx 8 cm. Well-defined interfaces are observed over only relatively smooth surfaces within the radar footprint of approx 6.5 m. Sampling is thus restricted to undeformed, level ice. In early April, mean snow depths are 28.5 +/- 16.6 cm and 41.0 +/- 22.2 cm over first-year and multiyear sea ice (MYI), respectively. Regionally, snow thickness is thinner and quite uniform over the large expanse of seasonal ice in the Beaufort Sea, and gets progressively thicker toward the MYI cover north of Ellesmere Island, Greenland, and the Fram Strait. Snow depth over MYI is comparable to that reported in the climatology by Warren et al. Ongoing improvements to the radar system and the utility of these snow depth measurements are discussed.

Kwok, R.↗

NASA NTRS1988

Locating Spaceborne SAR Imagery

TLOCATE computer program developed to determine precise location of arbitrary picture element in digital synthetic-aperture-radar image. Written in FORTRAN 77.

Curlander, J. C.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Performance evaluation of the JPL interim digital SAR processor

The performance of the Interim Digital SAR Processor (IDP) was evaluated. The IDP processor was originally developed for experimental processing of digital SEASAT SAR data. One phase of the system upgrade which features parallel processing in three peripheral array processors, automated estimation for Doppler parameters, and unsupervised image pixel location determination and registration was executed. The method to compensate for the target range curvature effect was improved. A four point interpolation scheme is implemented to replace the nearest neighbor scheme used in the original IDP. The processor still maintains its fast throughput speed. The current performance and capability of the processing modes now available on the IDP system are updated.

Wu, C.↗

NASA NTRS1981

An introduction to the interim digital SAR processor and the characteristics of the associated Seasat SAR imagery

Basic engineering data regarding the Interim Digital SAR Processor (IDP) and the digitally correlated Seasat synthetic aperature radar (SAR) imagery are presented. The correlation function and IDP hardware/software configuration are described, and a preliminary performance assessment presented. The geometric and radiometric characteristics, with special emphasis on those peculiar to the IDP produced imagery, are described.

Wu, C.↗