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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 289 records · Page 16
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2016

Ultrafast spontaneous emission modulation of graphene quantum dots interacting with Ag nanoparticles in solution

We investigated the strong interaction between graphene quantum dots and silver nanoparticles in solution using time-resolved photoluminescence techniques. In solution, the silver nanoparticles are surrounded by graphene quantum dots and interacted with graphene quantum dots through exciton-plasmon coupling. An ultrafast spontaneous emission process (lifetime 27 ps) was observed in such a mixed solution. This ultrafast lifetime corresponds to the emission rate exceeding 35 GHz, with the purcell enhancement by a factor of ∼12. These experiment results pave the way for the realization of future high speed light sources applications.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2018

Superconducting Heterostructures Interlayered with a Material with Strong Spin–Orbit Interaction

Abstract—Superconducting heterostructures interlayered with a material with strong spin–orbit interaction are studied. As materials with strong spin–orbit interaction, we choose strontium iridates featuring the Ruddlesden–Popper structure (Sr{sub n} {sub + 1}Ir{sub n}O{sub 3n} {sub + 1}; n = 1, 2, ∞): paramagnetic metal SrIrO{sub 3} and magnetic insulator Sr{sub 2}IrO{sub 4}. Using laser ablation, epitaxial films of these materials are obtained, as well as heterostructures based on epitaxial films of cuprate superconducting YBa{sub 2}Cu{sub 3}O{sub x}. For electrical measurements, mesa-structures of micrometer sizes with top electrodes made of Au/Nb bilayer are fabricated.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2016

Unsteady laminar flow with convective heat transfer through a rotating curved square duct with small curvature

Unsteady laminar flow with convective heat transfer through a curved square duct rotating at a constant angular velocity about the center of curvature is investigated numerically by using a spectral method, and covering a wide range of the Taylor number −300≤Tr≤1000 for the Dean number Dn = 1000. A temperature difference is applied across the vertical sidewalls for the Grashof number Gr = 100, where the outer wall is heated and the inner wall cooled, the top and bottom walls being adiabatic. Flow characteristics are investigated with the effects of rotational parameter, Tr, and the pressure-driven parameter, Dn, for the constant curvature 0.001. Time evolution calculations as well as their phase spaces show that the unsteady flow undergoes through various flow instabilities in the scenario ‘multi-periodic → chaotic → steady-state → periodic → multi-periodic → chaotic’, if Tr is increased in the positive direction. For negative rotation, however, time evolution calculations show that the flow undergoes in the scenario ‘multi-periodic → periodic → steady-state’, if Tr is increased in the negative direction. Typical contours of secondary flow patterns and temperature profiles are obtained at several values of Tr, and it is found that the unsteady flow consists of two- to six-vortex solutions if the duct rotation is involved. External heating is shown to generate a significant temperature gradient at the outer wall of the duct. This study also shows that there is a strong interaction between the heating-induced buoyancy force and the centrifugal-Coriolis instability in the curved channel that stimulates fluid mixing and consequently enhances heat transfer in the fluid.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2019

Observation of Rydberg exciton polaritons and their condensate in a perovskite cavity

The condensation of half-light half-matter exciton polaritons in semiconductor optical cavities is a striking example of macroscopic quantum coherence in a solid-state platform. Quantum coherence is possible only when there are strong interactions between the exciton polaritons provided by their excitonic constituents. Rydberg excitons with high principal value exhibit strong dipole–dipole interactions in cold atoms. However, polaritons with the excitonic constituent that is an excited state, namely Rydberg exciton polaritons (REPs), have not yet been experimentally observed. Here, we observe the formation of REPs in a single crystal CsPbBr 3 perovskite cavity without any external fields. These polaritons exhibit strong nonlinear behavior that leads to a coherent polariton condensate with a prominent blue shift. Furthermore, the REPs in CsPbBr 3 are highly anisotropic and have a large extinction ratio, arising from the perovskite’s orthorhombic crystal structure. Our observation not only sheds light on the importance of many-body physics in coherent polariton systems involving higher-order excited states, but also paves the way for exploring these coherent interactions for solid-state quantum optical information processing.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2021

Quantum simulation: From spin models to gauge-gravity correspondence

Quantum many-body systems with coherent and controllable interactions enable the realization of novel quantum materials, the quantum simulation of problems that cannot be simulated on classical computers, computational systems that are exponentially faster than existing classical algorithms, and the direct investigation of the conjectured duality between gravitational theories and quantum field theories. This project focusses on quantum phase transitions in strongly interacting many-body spin systems, and in particular on the dynamical evolution near the critical point and across the phase transition. The dynamics of a large quantum system containing more than 50 qubits is investigated in various critical regimes. In particular, the Kibble-Zurek transition has been characterized and critical exponents have been measured. Furthermore, quantum many-body scars have been observed and characterized for the first time. We are investigating the Kibble-Zurek mechanism in the quantum phase transition in one dimension from a disordered system to a system with ordering induced by Rydberg interactions between neighboring atoms. The Kibble-Zurek mechanism describes the formation of topological defects as a system evolves across a phase transitions, and is expected to apply to a large number of problems, including cosmology, where it should describe the structure of domain formation in the early universe.

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Concentration-dependent ion correlations impact the electrochemical behavior of calcium battery electrolytes.

Ion interactions strongly determine the solvation environments of multivalent electrolytes even at concentrations below that required for practical battery-based energy storage. This statement is particularly true of electrolytes utilizing ethereal solvents due to their low dielectric constants. These solvents are among the most commonly used for multivalent batteries based on reactive metals (Mg, Ca) due to their reductive stability. Recent developments in multivalent electrolyte design have produced a variety of new salts for Mg2+ and Ca2+ that test the limits of weak coordination strength and oxidative stability. Such electrolytes have great potential for enabling full-cell cycling of batteries based on these working ions. However, the ion interactions in these electrolytes exhibit significant and non-intuitive concentration relationships. In this work, we investigate a promising exemplar, calcium tetrakis(hexafluoroisopropoxy)borate (Ca(BHFIP)(2)), in the ethereal solvents 1,2-dimethoxyethane (DME) and tetrahydrofuran (THF) across a concentration range of several orders of magnitude. Surprisingly, we find that effective salt dissociation is lower at relatively dilute concentrations (e.g. 0.01 M) than at higher concentrations (e.g. 0.2 M). Combined experimental and computational dielectric and X-ray spectroscopic analyses of the changes occurring in the Ca2+ solvation environment across these concentration regimes reveals a progressive transition from well-defined solvent-separated ion pairs to de-correlated free ions. This transition in ion correlation results in improvements in both conductivity and calcium cycling stability with increased salt concentration. Comparison with previous findings involving more strongly associating salts highlights the generality of this phenomenon, leading to important insight into controlling ion interactions in ether-based multivalent battery electrolytes.

Hahn, Nathan T.↗
DOE OSTI2023

Going off topics to demix quark and gluon jets in α S extractions

Quantum chromodynamics is the theory of the strong interaction between quarks and gluons; the coupling strength of the interaction, α S , is the least precisely-known of all interactions in nature. An extraction of the strong coupling from the radiation pattern within jets would provide a complementary approach to conventional extractions from jet production rates and hadronic event shapes, and would be a key achievement of jet substructure at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). Presently, the relative fraction of quark and gluon jets in a sample is the limiting factor in such extractions, as this fraction is degenerate with the value of αS for the most well-understood observables. To overcome this limitation, we apply recently proposed techniques to statistically demix multiple mixtures of jets and obtain purified quark and gluon distributions based on an operational definiton. We illustrate that studying quark and gluon jet substructure separately can significantly improve the sensitivity of such extractions of the strong coupling. We also discuss how using machine learning techniques or infrared- and collinear-unsafe information can improve the demixing performance without the loss of theoretical control. While theoretical research is required to connect the extract topics with the quark and gluon objects in cross section calculations, our study illustrates the potential of demixing to reduce the dominant uncertainty for the α S extraction from jet substructure at the LHC.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Interactions of laser-driven tin ejecta microjets over phase transition boundaries

Ejecta microjets offer an experimental methodology to study high-speed particle laden-flow interactions, as microjets consist of millions of particulates traveling at velocities of several kilometers per second and are easily generated by most common shock drives. Previous experiments on the OMEGA Extended Performance laser found that collisions between two counter-propagating laser-driven tin ejecta microjets varied as a function of drive pressure; jets generated near shock pressures of 10 GPa passed through each other without interacting, whereas jets generated at shock pressures of over 100 GPa interacted strongly, forming a cloud around the center interaction point. In this paper, we present a more systematic scan of tin ejecta microjet collisions over intermediate pressure regimes to identify how and at what shock pressure interaction behavior onsets. Radiographs of interacting microjets at five different laser drive energies qualitatively demonstrate that interaction behavior onsets slowly as a function of laser drive energy. Quantitative mass and density metrics from each radiograph provide trends on jet characteristics and collisional mass dispersion. It is observed that jetting mass, jet densities, and mass dispersion increase with increasing drive pressures and that the increased jet density at the higher drive energies may account for the increased mass dispersion. This work provides an important step in the understanding of tin ejecta microjet collisions and paves the way for future studies on the physics dominating high-speed particle-laden flow interactions.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
NASA NTRS1989

Pluto's interaction with the solar wind

If Pluto's atmospheric escape rate is significantly greater than 1.5 x 10 to the 27th molecules/s then the interaction with the tenuous solar wind at 30 A.U. will be like that of a comet. There will be extensive ion pick-up upstream and the size of the interaction region will vary directly with variations in the solar wind flux. If the escape flux is much less, then one expects that the solar wind will be deflected around Pluto's ionosphere in a Venus-like interaction. In either case, the weak interplanetary magnetic field at 30 A.U. results in very large gyroradii for the picked-up ions and a thick bow shock, necessitating a kinetic treatment of the interaction. Strong variations in the size of the interaction region are expected on time scales of days due to changes in the solar wind.

Bagenal, Fran↗
NASA NTRS2007

Mobile Element Studies in Rocks (RAT) from Columbia Hills/West Spur at Gusev

Using elemental abundances determined by SPIRIT APX spectrometer on rocks and soils at Gusev Plains and Columbia Hills/ West Spur regions, the Athena Team discussed the aqueous geochemical implications at these sites on Mars. They suggested that these rocks were exposed to variable degrees of aqueous alteration (low to high) at Gusev crater. Earlier, we developed analytical procedures for studying aqueous geochemical behavior of fluids on rocks at Meridiani. In the present study, we apply these methods to rocks at Columbia Hills/West Spur in order to understand the significance of the Gusev rock results in reference to aqueous geochemical processes on Mars . The data analysis procedure is based on treating SO3 ("a") and Cl ("b") as two variables and tracking the relationship between "a" and "b" when the fluids undergo evaporation. This process of evaporation leads to concentration changes in these two elements finally producing salt assemblages on Martian rocks. In some cases on plotting "a"/ "b" versus "b" in salt assemblages, they yield a hyperbolic distribution. The relationship is transformed into a straight line when "a"/"b" is again plotted against 1/"b" in the system. Earlier, we used this procedure in the case of Merdiani rock abrasion tool (RAT) rocks and in this study, we discuss the application of this procedure to Gusev rocks. This study shows that the Gusev Plains rocks were exposed to low SO3/Cl solutions (sulfate-poor) for short period of time (weak interaction), whereas solutions with high SO3/Cl ratios (sulfate-rich) seem to have pervasively interacted with Columbia Hills/ West Spur rocks (strong interaction) at Gusev crater. Our conclusions seem to be consistent with the Mossbauer results given for these rocks

Rao, M. N.↗
DOE OSTI2016

Kaon decay studies at CERN SPS in the last decades

This review summarizes the kaon experimental results obtained in the last 15 years on the basis of data collected on the SPS in CERN with a participance of JINR physicists. These results contribute essentially into the Standard Model checks and search for its extension, fundamental symmetry violations and low energy strong interactions theory development. A progress in the experimental technique and prospects for the future results are also discussed.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Effect of boundary conditions on fluctuations of the Bose condensate of interacting atoms

For a gas of trapped interacting atoms forming a Bose condensate, we demonstrate a possibility of a significant influence of the boundary conditions on the statistics of the number of particles in the fundamental mode of the system. The analysis is carried out in the Bogoliubov – Popov low-temperature approximation for model homogeneous cubic traps with periodic or combined periodic and zero boundary conditions. It is shown that the effect of the boundary conditions does not weaken even in the region of parameters corresponding to the relatively strong interaction in the Thomas – Fermi asymptotic case, and does not disappear when proceeding to the thermodynamic limit. (paper)

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2021

The crystal structure of a new calcium aluminate phase containing formate

A new calcium aluminate phase containing formate ions was synthesized and its crystal structure determined. This new phase is indicated as M-phase and was firstly observed in Portland cement pastes hydrated in presence of Ca-formate and in excess of water. The crystal structure of the M-phase was successfully solved in the R-3 space group of the trigonal system on the basis of synchrotron X-ray single crystal diffraction data. The structural model was confirmed by Rietveld refinement of the powder diffraction data acquired on the synthesized pure sample. The crystal structure of the M-phase is similar to that of ettringite, being characterized by columns of AlO{sub 6} octahedra alternating with groups of three edge-sharing CaO{sub 7} polyhedra. The formate ions (HCOO){sup −} share two oxygens with Ca polyhedra and are located in the interspace between the columns. The crystal structure of the M-phase testifies the strong interaction occurring between small organic molecules as formate and the calcium aluminate components of Portland cement.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2024

Doped moiré magnets: Renormalized flat bands and excitonic phases

Here, we explore the phase diagram of a twisted bilayer of strongly interacting electrons on a honeycomb lattice close to half filling using the slave-boson mean-field theory. Our analysis indicates that a variety of new phases can be realized as a function of chemical doping and twist angle. In particular, we find a nonmagnetic excitonic insulating phase that breaks the translational symmetry of the underlying moiré pattern. This phase results from the interplay of strong Coulomb interactions and the twist angle. In addition, we show that the features of the renormalized dispersion, such as the magic angles, depend significantly on the interactions. Our results highlight the rich physics arising in doped moiré superlattices of Mott insulators.

flat bands↗
DOE OSTI2016

Intensity-dependent nonlinearity of the lateral photoconductivity in InGaAs/GaAs dot-chain structures

Photoelectric properties of laterally correlated multilayer InGaAs/GaAs quantum dots (QDs) heterostructures are studied. The response of the photocurrent to increasing excitation intensity is found to be nonlinear and varying with excitation energy. The structures are photosensitive in a wide range of photon energies above 0.6 eV. The spectral dependence of the photoconductivity (PC) is caused by strong interaction between the bulk GaAs and the lower energy states of the wetting layer, the QDs, as well as the defect states in the GaAs band gap. In particular, a mechanism for the participation of deep electron trap levels in the photocurrent is clarified. These structures also demonstrate a high sensitivity of up to 10 A/W at low excitation intensities. However, at higher excitation intensities, the sensitivity reduces exhibiting a strong spectral dependence at the same time. The observed sublinear PC dependence on excitation power results from a direct electron-hole recombination both in the QDs and in GaAs host. The solution of rate equations included the contributions of QD ground and exited states, bulk GaAs states and the states of defects within the GaAs bandgap describes well the experimental data.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2017

On thermal corrections to near-threshold annihilation

We consider non-relativistic ''dark'' particles interacting through gauge boson exchange. At finite temperature, gauge exchange is modified in many ways: virtual corrections lead to Debye screening; real corrections amount to frequent scatterings of the heavy particles on light plasma constituents; mixing angles change. In a certain temperature and energy range, these effects are of order unity. Taking them into account in a resummed form, we estimate the near-threshold spectrum of kinetically equilibrated annihilating TeV scale particles. Weakly bound states are shown to 'melt' below freeze-out, whereas with attractive strong interactions, relevant e.g. for gluinos, bound states boost the annihilation rate by a factor 4 ... 80 with respect to the Sommerfeld estimate, thereby perhaps helping to avoid overclosure of the universe. Modestly non-degenerate dark sector masses and a way to combine the contributions of channels with different gauge and spin structures are also discussed.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1985

Numerical investigation of internal high-speed viscous flows using a parabolic technique

A feasibility study has been conducted to assess the applicability of an existing parabolic analysis (ADD-Axisymmetric Diffuser Duct), developed previously for subsonic viscous internal flows, to mixed supersonic/subsonic flows with heat addition simulating a SCRAMJET combustor. A study was conducted with the ADD code modified to include additional convection effects in the normal momentum equation when supersonic expansion and compression waves are present. A set of test problems with weak shock and expansion waves have been analyzed with this modified ADD method and stable and accurate solutions were demonstrated provided the streamwise step size was maintained at levels larger than the boundary layer displacement thickness. Calculations made with further reductions in step size encountered departure solutions consistent with strong interaction theory. Calculations were also performed for a flow field with a flame front in which a specific heat release was imposed to simulate a SCRAMJET combustor. In this case the flame front generated relatively thick shear layers which aggravated the departure solution problem. Qualitatively correct results were obtained for these cases using a marching technique with the convective terms in the normal momentum equation suppressed. It is concluded from the present study that for the class of problems where strong viscous/inviscid interactions are present a global iteration procedure is required.

Anderson, O. L.↗
DOE OSTI2016

Solvation of carbonaceous molecules by para-H{sub 2} and ortho-D{sub 2} clusters. I. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

This work theoretically examines the progressive coating of planar polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) molecules ranging from benzene to circumcoronene (C{sub 54}H{sub 18}) by para-hydrogen and ortho-deuterium. The coarse-grained Silvera-Goldman potential has been extended to model the interactions between hydrogen molecules and individual atoms of the PAH and parametrized against quantum chemical calculations for benzene-H{sub 2}. Path-integral molecular dynamics simulations at 2 K were performed for increasingly large amounts of hydrogen coating the PAH up to the first solvation shell and beyond. From the simulations, various properties were determined such as the size of the first shell and its thickness as well as the solvation energy. The degree of delocalization was notably quantified from an energy landscape perspective, by monitoring the fluctuations among inherent structures sampled by the trajectories. Our results generally demonstrate a high degree of localization owing to relatively strong interactions between hydrogen and the PAH, and qualitatively minor isotopic effects. In the limit of large hydrogen amounts, the shell size and solvation energy both follow approximate linear relations with the numbers of carbon and hydrogen in the PAH.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗