SEARCH · Search NASA
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.
Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.
A general technique, called decoding with multipliers, is presented that can be used to decode any linear code. The technique is applied to the (48,24) quadratic residue code and yields the first known practical decoding algorithm for this powerful code.
Variation of the quantum efficiency of a channel electron multiplier (CEM) in the wavelength range from 1200 to 2536 A is studied. Emphasis is on measurement of CEM sensitivity longward of 1500 A. Results indicate an overall rapid decrease in quantum efficiency with increasing wavelength, with little evidence for a possible change in slope in the range from 2000 to 2500 A. The lowest efficiency measured is 4.5 + or -2.5 times 10 to the minus ninth count/photon at 2536 A. These efficiencies should ensure that unwanted radiation longward of 1500 A can be effectively removed from the bandpass of the instrument.
Detection efficiencies of channel electron multipliers (CEM) with opaque MgF2 photocathodes obtained in the extreme ultraviolet (XUV), 44 A to 990 A, are reported. A stable highly efficient response is reported for that interval, with no adverse effects on CEM performance. Efficiencies twice those of uncoated CEMs are obtained for 50 A to 350 A. The Mullard B419BL and Galileo 4510WL single-stage cone-cathode CEMs were used in the experiments. A rare-gas double ionization chamber was employed as absolute standard detector for 406 A to 990 A, and a flow Geiger counter filled with 96% argon and 4% isobutane for 44 A to 256 A. Absolute detection efficiencies are 10% higher from 67 A to 990 A when photocathodes are illuminated at an angle of incidence 45 deg. The photocathodes suffered no loss of response in storage (in vacuum or air) after an initial aging period. Effects of scattered UV radiation are greatly reduced when MgF2-coated CEMs are used in the XUV.
The results of an experimental study of a biconical quasi-optical Schottky barrier diode mount design which could be used for mixing and multiplying in the frequency range 200-1000 Ghz are reported. The biconical mount is described and characteristics measured at 185 Ghz are presented. The use of the mount for quasi-optical frequency doubling from 56 to 112 Ghz is described and efficiency estimates given.
A photoelectron counting detector utilizing a 128-element linear self-scanned anode array to collect the output of a dual microchannel plate electron multiplier is described. The operation of the detector, its spatial resolution and detection efficiency, and radiation behavior are discussed. The low-noise detector was developed for the Mariner Jupiter/Saturn mission UV spectrometer, and offers a large dynamic range and count rate of 0.003 per anode-sec. It can measure simultaneously two spatially separated signals differing by more than six orders of magnitude in count rate.
A method for the regulation of a capacitor diode voltage multiplier dc-dc converter has been developed which has only minor penalties in weight and efficiency. An auxiliary inductor is used, which only handles a fraction of the total power, to control the output voltage through a pulse width modulation method in a buck boost circuit.
A 1-kW capacitor-diode voltage multiplier (CDVM) was designed, fabricated and tested to demonstrate the power of feasibility of high power CDVM's and to verify the analytical techniques that had been used to predict the performance characteristics of a 6-kw CDVM. High efficiency (96.2%), a low ratio of component weight to power (0.55 kg/kW), and low output ripple voltage (less than 1%, peak to peak) were obtained during the operation of a 1-kW CDVM various input line, load current, and load fault conditions.
A 1 kW solar array and capacitor-diode voltage multiplier converter (S/A-CDVM) was successfully integrated with a 30 cm diameter mercury ion thruster system to provide ion beam power. Measurements were made to compare steady state and transient response performance of a conventional bridge converter with the S/A-CDVM converter used for the ion beam supply. The ability to recover from screen to accelerator arcs and promptly re-establish stable thruster performance was demonstrated. Solar array transient response to thruster arcing was measured.
Voltage multiplier techniques are extended at medium power levels to larger multiplication ratios. A series of dc-dc converters were built, with from 20 to 45 stages and with power levels up to 100 watts. Maximum output voltages were about 10,000 volts.
In the present paper, the line strengths, collision strengths, and rate coefficients are calculated for a variety of transitions in multiply charged silicon ions from Si(VI) to Si(XIV). The line strengths are obtained by using Clementi wave functions for the ground-state configuration, and excited-state wave functions generated by a semiempirical method. The collision strengths are calculated in an LS coupling scheme in the distorted-wave approximation, neglecting exchange except for the helium-like transitions. These results are then integrated over a Maxwellian velocity distribution function to yield rate coefficients. The rates are presented graphically and also in terms of a two-parameter fit.
A 1 kW Solar Array and Capacitor-Diode Voltage Multiplier Converter (S/A-CDVM) has been successfully integrated with a 30 cm-diameter mercury ion thruster system to provide ion beam power. Measurements were made to compare steady state and transient response performance of a conventional bridge converter with the S/A-CDVM converter used for the ion beam supply. The ability to recover from screen to accelerator arcs and promptly re-establish stable thruster performance was demonstrated. Solar array transient response to thruster arcing was also measured.
Voltage multiplier techniques were extended at medium power levels to larger multiplication ratios. A series of DC-DC converters were built, with from 20 to 45 stages and with power levels up to 100 watts. Maximum output voltages were about 10,000 volts.
The paper describes a new type of continuous channel multiplier (CEM) fabricated from a low-resistance glass to produce a high-conductivity channel section and thereby obtain a high count-rate capability. The flat-cone cathode configuration of the CEM is specifically designed for the detection of astigmatic exit images from grazing-incidence spectrometers at the optimum angle of illumination for high detection efficiencies at XUV wavelengths. Typical operating voltages are in the range of 2500-2900 V with stable counting plateau slopes in the range 3-6% per 100-V increment. The modal gain at 2800 V was typically in the range (50-80) million. The modal gain falls off at count rates in excess of about 20,000 per sec. The detection efficiency remains essentially constant to count rates in excess of 2 million per sec. Higher detection efficiencies (better than 20%) are obtained by coating the CEM with MgF2. In life tests of coated CEMs, no measurable change in detection efficiency was measured to a total accumulated signal of 2 times 10 to the 11th power counts.
Low-power step-recovery-diode frequency multiplier generates 361-MHz signal. Diode conducts when ac waveform is positive at its upper terminal. When voltage is negative, diode continues to conduct stored charge in its junction.
Sequential processing technique improves accuracy when CCD-array signals are multiplied by weighting function to remove offsets. System uses two schemes to cancel undesired output contributions arising from prerequisite biases. First is spontaneous cancellation by multiple "nominally identical" devices; second is sequential cancellation where same devices are used repeatedly to form multiple products. Single device then successively subtracts products, eliminating effects of MOS-array threshold nonuniformities.
The paper deals with the effects of kinetics on mineral/melt partitioning and on fractional crystallization for a Luna-24 ferrobasalt. The composition is nearly multiply saturated under lunar surface conditions, making it possible to study the response of several mineral phases to kinetic factors during cooling. The differential suppression of the temperature of appearance of olivine, clinopyroxene, and plagioclase causes changes in the liquid line of descent. The course of liquid line of descent is mapped as a function of the cooling rate, and the partitioning of elements between pyroxene/liquid and olivine/liquid is examined.
Real time processing capabilities in the context of reconnaissance sensors, two dimensional beamforming, etc. are addressed. Matrix-matrix multiplier concepts using incoherent light are studied.
An optimization technique using the Lagrange Multiplier Method is proposed to facilitate design of switching power converter systems. The essence of the optimization is to identify the optimal battery voltage level and switching frequency along with the detailed converter design so that the total system weight including the battery and the packaged converter is minimized, and concurrently all specified power circuit performances are satisfied.