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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 253 records · Page 14
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2021

Spatial profiles of photon chemical potential in near-field thermophotovoltaic cells

Emitted photons stemming from the radiative recombination of electron–hole pairs carry chemical potential in radiative energy converters. This luminescent effect can substantially alter the local net photogeneration in near-field thermophotovoltaic cells. Several assumptions involving the luminescent effect are commonly made in modeling photovoltaic devices; in particular, the photon chemical potential is assumed to be zero or a constant prescribed by the bias voltage. The significance of photon chemical potential depends upon the emitter temperature, the semiconductor properties, and the injection level. Hence, these assumptions are questionable in near-field thermophotovoltaic devices with nanoscale separation distances between the emitter and the cell. In the present work, an iterative solver that combines fluctuational electrodynamics with the drift-diffusion model is developed to tackle the coupled photon and charge transport problem, enabling the determination of the spatial profile of photon chemical potential beyond the detailed balance approach. Here, the difference between the results obtained by allowing the photon chemical potential to vary spatially and by assuming a constant value demonstrates the limitations of the conventional approaches. This study is critically important for performance evaluation of near-field thermophotovoltaic systems with nanoscale vacuum gaps.

30 DIRECT ENERGY CONVERSION↗
DOE OSTI2020

Charge density wave modulation in superconducting BaPb O 3 / BaBi O 3 superlattices

The isotropic, nonmagnetic doped BaBiO 3 superconductors maintain some similarities to high-T c cuprates, while also providing a cleaner system for isolating charge density wave (CDW) physics that commonly competes with superconductivity. Artificial layered superlattices offer the possibility of engineering the interaction between superconductivity and CDW. Here we stabilize a low-temperature, fluctuating short-range CDW order by using artificially layered epitaxial (BaPbO 3 ) 3m /(BaBiO 3 ) m (m = 1-10 unit cells) superlattices that are not present in the optimally doped BaPb 0.75 Bi 0.25 O 3 alloy with the same overall chemical formula. Charge transfer from BaBiO 3 to BaPbO 3 effectively dopes the former and suppresses the long-range CDW; however, as the short-range CDW fluctuations strengthen at low temperatures charge appears to localize and superconductivity is weakened. The monolayer structural control demonstrated here provides compelling implications to access controllable, local density wave orders absent in bulk alloys and manipulate phase competition in unconventional superconductors.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
NASA NTRS1973

Calculation of energy deposition distributions for simple geometries

When high-energy charged particles pass through a thin detector, the ionization energy loss in that detector is subject to fluctuations or straggling which must be considered in interpreting the data. Under many conditions, which depend upon the charge and energy of the incident particle and the detector geometry, the ionization energy lost by the particle is significantly different from the energy deposited in the detector. This problem divides naturally into a calculation of the energy loss that results in excitation and low-energy secondary electrons which do not travel far from their production points, and a calculation of energy loss that results in high-energy secondary electrons which can escape from the detector. The first calculation is performed using a modification of the Vavilov energy loss distribution. A cutoff energy is introduced above which all electrons are ignored and energy transferred to low energy particles is assumed to be equivalent to the energy deposited by them. For the second calculation, the trajectory of the primary particle is considered as a source of secondary high-energy electrons. The electrons from this source are transported using Monte Carlo techniques and multiple scattering theory, and the energy deposited by them in the detector is calculated. The results of the two calculations are then combined to predict the energy deposition distribution. The results of these calculations are used to predict the charge resolution of parallel-plate pulse ionization chambers that are being designed to measure the charge spectrum of heavy nuclei in the galactic cosmic-ray flux.

Watts, J. W., Jr.↗
DOE OSTI2023

Strange hadron collectivity in pPb and PbPb collisions

The collective behavior of K$_{S}^{0}$ and $Λ/ \overline{Λ}$ strange hadrons is studied by measuring the elliptic azimuthal anisotropy ($\mathcal{v}$ 2 ) using the scalar-product and multiparticle correlation methods. Proton-lead (pPb) collisions at a nucleon-nucleon center-of-mass energy $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 8.16 TeV and lead-lead (PbPb) collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV collected by the CMS experiment at the LHC are investigated. Nonflow effects in the pPb collisions are studied by using a subevent cumulant analysis and by excluding events where a jet with transverse momentum greater than 20 GeV is present. The strange hadron $\mathcal{v}$ 2 values extracted in pPb collisions via the four- and six-particle correlation method are found to be nearly identical, suggesting the collective behavior. Comparisons of the pPb and PbPb results for both strange hadrons and charged particles illustrate how event-by-event flow fluctuations depend on the system size.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Vertical gradient freeze growth of detector grade CdZnTeSe single crystals

Here, we report the growth of detector grade Cd 0.9 Zn 0.1 Te 0.97 Se 0.03 (CZTS) single crystals, a recently discovered quaternary semiconductor for room temperature radiation detection, by a vertical gradient freeze (VGF) method. VGF is a comparatively low-temperature growth method and avoids relative motion between the heater and the ampoule containing the precursor materials which minimizes any thermal drift or temperature fluctuations. As a result, CZTS single crystals with superior charge transport properties has been obtained. Growth of detector-grade CZTS single crystals using VGF method has not been reported yet. X-ray spectroscopy based elemental analysis showed that the grown crystals demonstrated the desired stoichiometry required for high resolution radiation detection. Planar detectors fabricated by deposition of gold contacts (~0.07 cm 2 ) demonstrated high bulk resistivity ~10 10 Ω-cm and a very low leakage current density of 2.8 × 10 –8 A/cm 2 at a bias of 100 V when measured at room temperature. The detectors showed excellent radiation response with 100 % charge collection efficiency when exposed to 5486 keV alpha particles. The electron mobility-lifetime (μτ) product was measured to be 3 × 10 –3 cm 2 /V using a single polarity Hecht analysis which is at par with the recently reported values measured in CZTS grown using conventional Bridgman or travelling heater method. The electron mobility has been calculated to be 964 cm 2 V –1 s –1 using a time-of-flight (TOF) method, a substantial improvement over that obtained from conventionally grown CZTS single crystals.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2024

Enhanced Twist-Averaging Technique for Magnetic Metals: Applications Using Quantum Monte Carlo

In this study, we propose an improved twist-averaging (TA) scheme for quantum Monte Carlo methods that use converged Kohn–Sham or Hartree–Fock orbitals as the reference. This TA technique is tailored to sample the Brillouin zone of magnetic metals, although it naturally extends to nonmagnetic (NM) conducting systems. The proposed scheme aims to reproduce the reference magnetization and achieves charge neutrality by construction, thus avoiding the large energy fluctuations and the postprocessing needed to correct the energies. It shows the most robust convergence of total energy and magnetism to the thermodynamic limit (TDL) when compared to four other TA schemes. Diffusion Monte Carlo applications are shown on NM Al and ferromagnetic α-Fe. The cohesive energy of Al in the TDL shows an excellent agreement with the experimental result. Furthermore, the magnetic moments in α-Fe exhibit rapid convergence with an increasing number of twists.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2022

Charge-Density-Wave Thin-Film Devices Printed with Chemically Exfoliated 1T-TaS 2 Ink

In this work, we report on the preparation of inks containing fillers derived from quasi-two-dimensional charge-density-wave materials, their application for inkjet printing, and the evaluation of their electronic properties in printed thin-film form. The inks were prepared by liquid-phase exfoliation of CVT-grown 1T-TaS 2 crystals to produce fillers with nm-scale thickness and μm-scale lateral dimensions. Exfoliated 1T-TaS 2 was dispersed in a mixture of isopropyl alcohol and ethylene glycol to allow fine-tuning of filler particles thermophysical properties for inkjet printing. The temperature-dependent electrical and current fluctuation measurements of printed thin films demonstrated that the charge-density-wave properties of 1T-TaS 2 are preserved after processing. The functionality of the printed thin-film devices can be defined by the nearly commensurate to the commensurate charge-density-wave phase transition of individual exfoliated 1T-TaS 2 filler particles rather than by electron-hopping transport between them. The obtained results are important for the development of printed electronics with diverse functionality achieved by the incorporation of quasi-two-dimensional van der Waals quantum materials.

1T-TaS2↗
NASA NTRS1975

Lunar surface solar wind observations at the Apollo 12 and Apollo 15 sites

The solar wind-lunar magnetic field interaction is examined by comparing Apollo 12 and Apollo 15 solar wind spectrometric data. The instrumentation and data analysis methods are described along with the observations at the Apollo 15 site, and the data from the two sites are compared. The results show no noticeable differences between the properties of the upstream solar wind and the plasma observed at the Apollo 15 site (where the local magnetic field is relatively weak) and strong perturbations in the solar wind at the Apollo 12 site (where the field is relatively strong), which include deceleration, deflection, and heating of solar wind protons, focusing or defocusing of the ion flux, and an increased level of plasma parameter fluctuations. These effects are shown to require a charge-separated electric field above the lunar surface and a scale size of about 5 km for the local magnetic field at the Apollo 12 site and to suggest that local lunar magnetic field regions cause lunar limb compression waves which should be more noticeable for low solar wind dynamic pressures.

Clay, D. R.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Mitigating Band Tailing in Kesterite Solar Absorbers: Ab Initio Quantum Dynamics

Open-circuit voltage deficits are limiting factors in kesterite solar cells. Addressing this issue by suppressing band tailing and nonradiative charge recombination is essential for enhancing the performance. We employ ab initio nonadiabatic molecular dynamics to elucidate the origin of band tailing and charge losses and propose a mitigation strategy. The simulations show that Cu–Zn disorder, associated with antisite defect clusters [Cu Zn +Zn Cu ], is a significant source of band tailing in kesterites, as evidenced by the much larger Urbach energy in disordered than ordered kesterites. Cu–Zn disorder gives rise to new sulfur-centered coordination polyhedra, increases structural inhomogeneity, changes electrostatic potential at sulfur centers, and shifts the S(3p) orbital energy. Differences in the S(3p)/Cu(3d) and S(3p)/Sn(5s) hybridization strengths and the S(3p) orbital energy shift reduce the band gap by 0.37 eV. Furthermore, Cu–Zn disorder enhances vibrational motion of sulfur anions and surrounding cations, increasing band gap fluctuations by 15 meV. The stronger electron–phonon interactions reduce charge carrier lifetimes and limit the kesterite solar cell efficiency. Partial substitution of Zn with Cd facilitates structural ordering and significantly suppresses band tailing, particularly in disordered systems. The improvement can be attributed to the larger atomic radius and mass of Cd, which weakens bonding around the anion, suppresses S-related vibrations within the covalent tetrahedra, and reduces nonadiabatic coupling, thereby increasing charge carrier lifetimes. The reported results establish the key influence of cation disorder on band tailing and reduced charge carrier lifetimes in kesterites and highlight cation disorder engineering as a strategy to achieve high-efficiency kesterite solar cells.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2025

First fluctuation measurements using an Imaging Neutral Particle Analyzer on DIII-D

A recent upgrade to the Imaging Neutral Particle Analyzer (INPA) on DIII-D has allowed for the first fluctuation measurements using an INPA to be taken during a neoclassical tearing mode (NTM). The INPA signal tracked the mode over 150 ms as the mode frequency dropped to zero, capturing both the NTM with poloidal and toroidal mode numbers $m/n=2/1$ and a $3/2$ mode at double the frequency. Analysis shows that the signals originate from charge exchange events near the edge of the plasma, and relative fluctuation amplitudes are greater than 25% for the duration of the NTM. Filtered signals show frequency beating patterns that are phase-space dependent. Simulated signal is dominated by prompt transport from the neutral beams to the INPA sightline, while the contribution from the slowing down distribution is significantly lower. Simulated measurements in the range of pitches that the diagnostic is sensitive to (0.5≤|v∥/v|≤ 0.75) show the signal is dominated by trapped orbits that pass through magnetic islands near the edge of the plasma. Calculations of expected fluctuation levels show that only direct interaction with the NTM can provide the strong relative fluctuation levels seen experimentally. The prompt nature of the orbits and thin radial layer found to contribute to synthetic signals suggest INPA passive data may be used to measure the perturbations of confined orbits on a single pass through a plasma instability.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2022

Higher-order transverse momentum fluctuations in heavy-ion collisions

In relativistic heavy-ion collisions, the event-by-event mean transverse momentum fluctuations are sensitive to overlap area and energy density fluctuations in the initial state. We present a framework to calculate p T fluctuations up to fourth order using standard and subevent methods, which is validated using the HIJING model. We observe a power-law dependence for cumulants of all orders as a function of charged particle multiplicity N ch , consistent with a simple independent source picture. The fluctuation in pp collisions is observed to be larger than for p+Pb, Pb + Pb, and Xe + Xe collisions at the same N ch due to bias in the number of contributing sources. The short-range correlations are greatly suppressed in the subevent method in comparison to calculations based on the standard method. This paper provides a baseline for transverse momentum fluctuations without the presence of final-state effects.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS2012

Electrical Characteristics of Simulated Tornadoes and Dust Devils

It is well known that tornadoes and dust devils have the ability to accumulate significant, visible clouds of debris. Collisions between sand-like debris species produce different electric charges on different types of grains, which convect along different trajectories around the vortex. Thus, significant charge separations and electric currents are possible, which as the vortex fluctuates over time are thought to produce ULF radiation signatures that have been measured in the field. These electric and magnetic fields may contain valuable information about tornado structure and genesis, and may be critical in driving electrochemical processes within dust devils on Mars. In the present work, existing large eddy simulations of debris-laden tornadoes performed at West Virginia University are coupled with a new debris-charging and advection code developed at Goddard Space Flight Center to investigate the detailed (meter-resolution) fluid-dynamic origins of electromagnetic fields within terrestrial vortices. First results are presented, including simulations of the electric and magnetic fields that would be observed by a near-surface, instrument-laden probe during a direct encounter with a tornado.

Zimmerman, Michael I.↗
DOE OSTI2026

Near-infrared noise in intense electron bunches

This article investigates electron bunch density fluctuations in the 1 −10 μ⁢m wavelength range, focusing on their impact on coherent electron cooling (CEC) in hadron storage rings. In this study, we compare the shot-noise model with experimental observations using bandwidth-filtered near-infrared optical transition radiation (OTR) photodiode signals, where the transverse bunch size is much larger than the OTR wavelength of interest. The relativistic electron bunch (𝛾 ≈ 50) parameters are close to those proposed for the coherent electron cooler in the electron-ion collider (EIC) project. Preliminary feasibility experiments were conducted, and the noise factors are presented, supported by particle tracking. No major density fluctuations or effective cooling rate decrease were revealed for EIC CEC design parameters. Additionally, longitudinal-space-charge-induced microbunching for the chicane-compressed bunch was observed with coherent OTR enhancements up to 100 times, providing further calibration of the measurement method.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Kondo interaction of quantum spin Hall edge channels with charge puddles

Under time-reversal symmetry, quantum spin Hall edge channels are protected against elastic backscattering. However, even for samples which exhibit conductance quantization due to the quantum spin Hall effect, reproducible fluctuations shape the quantization plateau when the chemical potential is tuned through the bulk gap. Here, we examine those fluctuations in micron-sized HgTe quantum well devices. By performing temperature- and gate-dependent measurements, we conclude that “charge puddles” in the narrow-gap material have a Kondo-type interaction with the edge channels resulting in the observed conductance fluctuations. Our results provide insight into the underlying mechanisms of scattering in quantum spin Hall edge channels.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
NASA NTRS1981

Energy straggling eliminated as a limitation to charge resolution of transmission detectors

It is pointed out that detectors of the energy loss of penetrating charged particles are widely used for particle identification. These measurements are hampered, however, by fluctuations in the amount of energy deposited within the detector. It is shown that this limitation can be overcome with a new nuclear track detector, CR-39(DOP), and that the charge resolution of this detector exceeds that of any other, including semiconductor diodes.

Tarle, G.↗
DOE OSTI2022

Exploiting Spin Fluctuations for Enhanced Pure Spin Current

We demonstrate the interplay of pure spin current, spin-polarized current, and spin fluctuation in 3d Ni x Cu 1–x . By tuning the compositions of the Ni x Cu 1–x alloys, we separate the effects due to the pure spin current and spin-polarized current. By exploiting the interaction of spin current with spin fluctuation in suitable Ni-Cu alloys, we obtain an unprecedentedly high spin Hall angle of 46%, about 5 times larger than that in Pt, at room temperature. Furthermore, we show that spin-dependent thermal transport via anomalous Nernst effect can serve as a sensitive magnetometer to electrically probe the magnetic phase transitions in thin films with in-plane anisotropy. As a result, the enhancement of spin Hall angle by exploiting spin current fluctuation via composition control makes 3d magnets functional materials in charge-to-spin conversion for spintronic application.

77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY↗
NASA NTRS2016

Evaluation of Methods for Molecular Dynamics Simulation of Ionic Liquid Electric Double Layers

We investigate how systematically increasing the accuracy of various molecular dynamics modeling techniques influences the structure and capacitance of ionic liquid electric double layers (EDLs). The techniques probed concern long-range electrostatic interactions, electrode charging (constant charge versus constant potential conditions), and electrolyte polarizability. Our simulations are performed on a quasi-two-dimensional, or slab-like, model capacitor, which is composed of a polarizable ionic liquid electrolyte, [EMIM][BF4], interfaced between two graphite electrodes. To ensure an accurate representation of EDL differential capacitance, we derive new fluctuation formulas that resolve the differential capacitance as a function of electrode charge or electrode potential. The magnitude of differential capacitance shows sensitivity to different long-range electrostatic summation techniques, while the shape of differential capacitance is affected by charging technique and the polarizability of the electrolyte. For long-range summation techniques, errors in magnitude can be mitigated by employing two-dimensional or corrected three dimensional electrostatic summations, which lead to electric fields that conform to those of a classical electrostatic parallel plate capacitor. With respect to charging, the changes in shape are a result of ions in the Stern layer (i.e. ions at the electrode surface) having a higher electrostatic affinity to constant potential electrodes than to constant charge electrodes. For electrolyte polarizability, shape changes originate from induced dipoles that soften the interaction of Stern layer ions with the electrode. The softening is traced to ion correlations vertical to the electrode surface that induce dipoles that oppose double layer formation. In general, our analysis indicates an accuracy dependent differential capacitance profile that transitions from the characteristic camel shape with coarser representations to a more diffuse profile with finer representations.

Haskins, Justin B.↗