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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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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2009

Nanotunneling Junction-based Hyperspectal Polarimetric Photodetector and Detection Method

A photodetector, detector array, and method of operation thereof in which nanojunctions are formed by crossing layers of nanowires. The crossing nanowires are separated by a few nm thick electrical barrier layer which allows tunneling. Each nanojunction is coupled to a slot antenna for efficient and frequency-selective coupling to photo signals. The nanojunctions formed at the intersection of the crossing wires defines a vertical tunneling diode that rectifies the AC signal from a coupled antenna and generates a DC signal suitable for reforming a video image. The nanojunction sensor allows multi/hyper spectral imaging of radiation within a spectral band ranging from terahertz to visible light, and including infrared (IR) radiation. This new detection approach also offers unprecedented speed, sensitivity and fidelity at room temperature.

Son, Kyung-ah↗
NASA NTRS2003

Hot Views on Cold Crystals: The Application of Thermal Imaging in Cryocrystallography

We have used thermal imaging techniques to visualize the cryocooling processes of macromolecular crystals. Cryocooling is a common technique used for structural data collection to reduce radiation damage in intense X-ray beams and decrease the thermal motion of the atoms. From the thermal images it was clear that during cryocooling a cold wave progresses through a crystal starting at the face closest to the origin of the cold stream and ending at the point furthest away. As an extension to this work, we used thermal imaging to study small crystals, held in a cryo-loop, in the presence of vitrified mother liquor. The different infrared transmission and reflectance properties of the crystal in comparison to the mother liquor surrounding it are thought to be the parameter that produces the contrast that makes the crystal visible. An application of this technology may be the determination of the exact location of small crystals in a cryo-loop for automated structural genomics studies. Data from initial tests in support of application development was recorded for lysozyme crystals and for bFGF/dna complex crystals, which were cryocooled and imaged in large loops, both with visible light and with infrared radiation. The crystals were clearly distinguished from the vitrified solution in the infrared spectrum, while in the case of the bFGF/dna complex the illumination had to be carefully manipulated to make the crystal visible in the visible spectrum. These results suggest that the thermal imaging may be more sensitive than visual imaging for automated location of small crystals. However, further work on small crystals robotically mounted at SSRL did not clearly visualize those crystals. The depth of field of the camera proved to be limiting and a different cooling geometry was used, compared to the previous, successful experiments. Analysis to exploit multiple images to improve depth of field and experimental work to understand cooling geometry effects is ongoing. These results will be presented along with advantages and disadvantages of the technique and a discussion of how it might be applied.

Snell, Eddie↗
NASA NTRS2003

Hot Views on Cold Crystals: The Application of Thermal Imaging in Cryocrystallography

In the past we have used thermal imaging techniques to visualize the cryocooling processes of macromolecular crystals. From these images it was clear that a cold wave progresses through a crystal starting at the face closest to the origin of the cold stream and ending at the point furthest away. During these studies we used large volume crystals, which were clearly distinguished from the loop holding them. These large crystals, originally grown for neutron diffraction studies, were chosen deliberately to enhance the imaging. As an extension to this work, we used thermal imaging to study small crystals, held in a cryo- loop, in the presence of vitrified mother liquor. The different infrared transmission and reflectance properties of the crystal in comparison to the mother liquor surrounding it are thought to be the parameter that produces the contrast that makes the crystal visible. An application of this technology may be the determination of the exact location of small crystals in a cryo-loop. Data from initial tests in support of application development was recorded for lysozyme crystals and for bFGF/dna complex crystals, which were cryo-cooled and imaged in large loops, both with visible light and with infrared radiation. The crystals were clearly distinguished from the vitrified solution in the infrared spectrum, while in the case of the bFGF/dna complex the illumination had to be carefully manipulated to make the crystal visible in the visible spectrum. These results suggest that the thermal imaging may be more sensitive than visual imaging for automated location of small crystals. However, further work on small crystals robotically mounted at SSRL did not clearly visualize those crystals. The depth of field of the camera proved to be limiting and a different cooling geometry was used, compared to the previous, successful experiments. Analysis to exploit multiple images to improve depth of field and experimental work to understand cooling geometry effects is ongoing. These results will be presented along with advantages and disadvantages of the technique and a discussion of how it might be applied .

Snell, Eddie H.↗
NASA NTRS2003

Hot Views on Cold Crystals: The Application of Thermal Imaging in Cryo-crystallography

In the past we have used thermal imaging techniques to visualize the cryocooling processes of macromolecular crystals. From these images it was clear that a cold wave progresses through a crystal starting at the face closest to the origin of the cold stream and ending at the point furthest away. During these studies we used large volume crystals, which were clearly distinguished from the loop holding them. These large crystals, originally grown for neutron diffraction studies, were chosen deliberately to enhance the imaging. As an extension to this work, we present used thermal imaging to study small crystals, held in a cryo-loop, in the presence of vitrified mother liquor. The different infrared transmission and reflectance properties of the crystal in comparison to the mother liquor surrounding it are thought to be the parameter that produces the contrast that makes the crystal visible. An application of this technology may be the determination of the exact location of small crystals in a cryo-loop. Data from initial tests in support of application development was recorded for lysozyme crystals and for bFGF/dna complex crystals, which were cryo-cooled and imaged in large loops, both with visible light and with infrared radiation. The crystals were clearly distinguished from the vitrified solution in the infrared spectrum, while in the case of the bFGF/dna complex the illumination had to be carefully manipulated to make the crystal visible in the visible spectrum. These results suggest that the thermal imaging may be more sensitive than visual imaging for automated location of small crystals. However, further work on small crystals robotically mounted at SSRL did not clearly visualize those crystals. The depth of field of the camera proved to be limiting and a different cooling geometry was used, compared to the previous, successful experiments. Analysis to exploit multiple images to improve depth of field and experimental work to understand cooling geometry effects is ongoing. These results will be presented along with advantages and disadvantages of the technique and a discussion of how it might be applied.

Snell, E. H.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Atmospheric Aerosols

Aerosols, defined as particles and droplets suspended in air, are always present in the atmosphere. They are part of the earth-atmosphere climate system, because they interact with both incoming solar and outgoing terrestrial radiation. They do this directly through scattering and absorption, and indirectly through effects on clouds. Submicrometer aerosols usually predominate in terms of number of particles per unit volume of air. They have dimensions close to the wavelengths of visible light, and thus scatter radiation from the sun very effectively. They are produced in the atmosphere by chemical reactions of sulfur-, nitrogen- and carbon-containing gases of both natural and anthropogenic origins. Light absorption is dominated by particles containing elemental carbon (soot), produced by incomplete combustion of fossil fuels and by biomass burning. Light-scattering dominates globally, although absorption can be significant at high latitudes, particularly over highly reflective snow- or ice-covered surfaces. Other aerosol substances that may be locally important are those from volcanic eruptions, wildfires and windblown dust.

Pueschel, R. F.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Picosecond kinetics of excited state decay processes in internally hydrogen-bonded polymer photostabilizers

A construction of economically practical solar energy conversion devices could be based on the employment of inexpensive, visible-radiation transparent, durable, light-fast materials. Difficulties arise in connection with the availability of such materials. Plastics which are not particularly susceptible to solar ultraviolet degradation are, in general, expensive, while less expensive optically transparent films are susceptible to deterioration when exposed to solar radiation. However, techniques are known for protecting polymers from photochemical degradation. According to these techniques, the composition or structure of polymeric material is modified by incorporation of photostabilizers. Two classes of ultraviolet absorbers are used as commercial photostabilizers. These classes include 2-hydroxybenzophenone (HB) and 2-(2-prime -hydroxyphenyl)benzotriazole (HPB). The present investigation is concerned with the results of spectroscopic and kinetics measurements related to the study of the mechanism of excited-state relaxation of polymer photostabilizers in the class HB and HPB.

Huston, A. L.↗
NASA NTRS2009

Circuits Enhance Scientific Instruments and Safety Devices

Since its founding in 1958, NASA has pioneered the use of different frequencies on the electromagnetic spectrum - including X-ray, microwave, and infrared wavelengths - to gather information about distant celestial bodies. During the 1962 Mariner 2 mission, NASA used microwave radiometers that operated in the range of 15-23 gigahertz (GHz) to assess the surface temperature of Venus and to determine the percentage of water vapor in its atmosphere. Today, there is another area on the spectrum proving uniquely useful to scientists: the terahertz (THz) range, spanning from about 100 GHz-10,000 GHz. (1 THz equals approximately 1,000 GHz.) Terahertz frequencies span the lesser-known gap on the electromagnetic spectrum between microwave radiation and infrared (and visible) light, falling within the spectral range where most simple molecules resonate. This molecular resonance makes terahertz particularly useful for chemical spectroscopy and the remote sensing of specific molecules. In the 1990s, NASA began using frequencies above 300 GHz (more than an order of magnitude higher than the instrumentation on Mariner 2) to perform spectral analysis of molecular clouds and planetary atmospheres. Instruments using these higher frequencies have included the Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) on the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS), deployed from 1991-2001, and the Microwave Instrument for the Rosetta Orbiter (MIRO), launched in 2004. With UARS-MLS, NASA used advanced terahertz receivers to measure the emission signatures from atmospheric molecules, providing researchers with valuable data about the changes in the Earth s protective ozone layer. MIRO, set to rendezvous with the comet 67P Churyumov-Gerasimenko in 2014, will use terahertz instrumentation to analyze the comet s dust and gases. Although NASA has been a driving force behind the development of terahertz technology, scientific equipment for terahertz research - including transmitters, receivers, and basic test and measurement equipment - is not widely available, making scientific experiments in this range between traditional electronics and quantum photonics more costly and greatly limiting commercial development in the field. Given NASA s interest in studying distant bodies in space as well as in improving life on Earth, the Agency has collaborated with private industry to develop terahertz technologies.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS2003

Microelectromechanical Systems (MEMS) Broadband Light Source Developed

A miniature, low-power broadband light source has been developed for aerospace applications, including calibrating spectrometers and powering miniature optical sensors. The initial motivation for this research was based on flight tests of a Fabry-Perot fiberoptic temperature sensor system used to detect aircraft engine exhaust gas temperature. Although the feasibility of the sensor system was proven, the commercial light source optically powering the device was identified as a critical component requiring improvement. Problems with the light source included a long stabilization time (approximately 1 hr), a large amount of heat generation, and a large input electrical power (6.5 W). Thus, we developed a new light source to enable the use of broadband optical sensors in aerospace applications. Semiconductor chip-based light sources, such as lasers and light-emitting diodes, have a relatively narrow range of emission wavelengths in comparison to incandescent sources. Incandescent light sources emit broadband radiation from visible to infrared wavelengths; the intensity at each wavelength is determined by the filament temperature and the materials chosen for the filament and the lamp window. However, present commercial incandescent light sources are large in size and inefficient, requiring several watts of electrical power to obtain the desired optical power, and they emit a large percentage of the input power as heat that must be dissipated. The miniature light source, developed jointly by the NASA Glenn Research Center, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and the Lighting Innovations Institute, requires one-fifth the electrical input power of some commercial light sources, while providing similar output light power that is easily coupled to an optical fiber. Furthermore, it is small, rugged, and lightweight. Microfabrication technology was used to reduce the size, weight, power consumption, and potential cost-parameters critical to future aerospace applications. This chip-based light source has the potential for monolithic fabrication with on-chip drive electronics. Other uses for these light sources are in systems for vehicle navigation, remote sensing applications such as monitoring bridges for stress, calibration sources for spectrometers, light sources for space sensors, display lighting, addressable arrays, and industrial plant monitoring. Two methods for filament fabrication are being developed: wet-chemical etching and laser ablation. Both yield a 25-mm-thick tungsten spiral filament. The proof-of-concept filament shown was fabricated with the wet etch method. Then it was tested by heating it in a vacuum chamber using about 1.25 W of electrical power; it generated bright, blackbody radiation at approximately 2650 K. The filament was packaged in Glenn's clean-room facilities. This design uses three chips vacuum-sealed with glass tape. The bottom chip consists of a reflective film deposited on silicon, the middle chip contains a tungsten filament bonded to silicon, and the top layer is a transparent window. Lifetime testing on the package will begin shortly. The emitted optical power is expected to be approximately 1.0 W with the spectral peak at 1.1 mm.

Tuma, Margaret L.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Solar energy trap

An apparatus is described for trapping solar energy for heating a fluid that could be subsequently used in turbines and similar devices. The apparatus includes an elongated vertical light pipe having an open end through which the visible spectrum of electromagnetic radiation from the sun passes to strike a tubular absorber. The light pipe has a coated interior surface of a low absorptivity and a high reflectivity at the visible wavelengths and a high absorptivity/emissivity ratio at infrared wavelengths. The tubular absorber has a coating on the surface for absorbing visible wavelengths to heat the fluid passing through. Infrared wave lengths are radiated from the tubular absorber back into the light pipe for heating fluid passing through a tubular coil wound around it.

Brantley, L. W., Jr.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Probing the optical properties and toxicological profile of zinc tungstate nanorods

Zinc tungstate is a semiconductor known for its favorable photocatalytic, photoluminescence, and scintillation properties, coupled with its relatively low cost, reduced toxicity, and high stability in biological and catalytic environments. In particular, zinc tungstate evinces scintillation properties, namely the ability to emit visible light upon absorption of energetic radiation such as x rays, which has led to applications not only as radiation detectors but also for biomedical applications involving the delivery of optical light to deep tissue, such as photodynamic therapy and optogenetics. Here, we report on the synthesis of zinc tungstate nanorods generated via an optimized but facile method, which allows for synthetic control over the aspect ratio of the as-synthesized anisotropic motifs via rational variation of the solution pH. Additionally, we investigate the effect of aspect ratio on their resulting photoluminescent and radioluminescent properties. We further demonstrate the potential of these zinc tungstate nanorods for biomedical applications, such as photodynamic therapy for cancer treatment, by analyzing their toxicological profile within cell lines and neurons.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
NASA NTRS1992

Measurements of an intensified CCD detector for the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory

An engineering model intensified CCD detector for the SOHO Coronal Diagnostics Spectrometer has been built and tested at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. A windowless MCP intensifier tube converts EUV radiation (30-65 nm) into visible light, which is focused via a lens system onto a Tektronix 1024 x 1024 CCD. Tests have been made of this engineering model to determine the following characteristics: quantum efficiency, resolution, throughput, linearity, statistical variation, readout noise, scattering, and flat-field response. In almost all respects, the detector performed as expected. This detector has been delivered, and work is underway on the flight detector.

Thompson, William T.↗
NASA NTRS1996

Leaf Area Influence on Surface Layer in a Deciduous Forest: Site Description - Part I

A study over a deciduous forest located in middle Massachusetts (USA) has been performed to examine the role of leaves in the forest-atmosphere interaction. Due to the seasonal presence of leaves, a deciduous forest is a 'good laboratory' to study this interaction. In this first part, a description of a 30 m micrometeorological tower as well a qualitative description of some meteorological parameters are presented. The presence of leaves affects the forest in several ways. There is a decrease of upward PAR (Photosynthetically Active Radiation) due to absorption of visible light in the canopy. Water vapor concentration increases, and the CO2 concentration decreases in the surface layer as the canopy starts to be foliated. The physical presence of the leaves is felt in other quantities such as the global albedo and the subcanopy environment.

Sakai, Ricardo K.↗
NASA NTRS1995

Technology for Space Optical Interferometry

The Micro-Precision Control/Structure Interaction (CSI) program at JPL is chartered to develop the structures and control technology needed for sub-micron level stabilization of future optical space systems. The extreme dimensional stability required for such systems derives from the need to maintain the alignment and figure of critical optical elements to a small fraction (typically 1/20th to 1/50th) of the wavelength of detected radiation (about 0.5 micron for visible light, 0.1 micron for ultraviolet light). This requirement is common to a broad class of optical sysetms. The challenge for CSI arises when such systems become large, with spatially distributed optical elements mounted on lightweight, flexible structure. This paper will present an overview of the approach that is being taken by JPL's CSI program to address this challenge. In particular, the paper will discuss the application of CSI technology to a specific example of a future large optical space mission. Experimental demonstration of the technology on ground-based testbeds will also be presented.

structures↗
NASA NTRS1979

Chemical and physical microenvironments at the Viking landing sites

Physical and chemical considerations permit the division of the near-surface regolith on Mars into at least six zones of distinct microenvironments. The zones are euphotic, duricrust/peds, tempofrost, permafrost, endolithic, and interfacial/transitional. Microenvironments vary significantly in temperature extremes, mean temperature, salt content, relative pressure of water vapor, UV and visible light irradiance, and exposure to ionizing radiation events (100 Mrad) and oxidative molecular species. From what is known of the chemistry of the atmosphere and regolith fines (soil), limits upon the aqueous chemistry of soil pastes may be estimated. Heat of wetting could reach 45 cal/g dry soil; initial pH is indeterminate between 1 and 10; ionic strength and salinity are predicted to be extremely high; freezing point depression is inadequate to provide quantities of liquid water except in special cases. The prospects for biotic survival are grim by terrestrial standards, but the extremes of biological resiliency are inaccessible to evaluation. Second-generation in situ experiments which will better define Martian microenvironments are clearly possible. Antarctic dry valleys are approximations to Martian conditions, but deviate significantly by at least half-a-dozen criteria.

Clark, B. C.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Kinetics for phototropic curvature by etiolated seedlings of Arabidopsis thaliana

An infrared-imaging system has been used to study the influence of gravity on the kinetics of first positive phototropism. The development of phototropic curvature of etiolated seedlings of Arabidopsis thaliana was measured in the absence of visible radiation. Following a pulse of blue light, stationary seedlings curved to a maximum of approximately 16 degrees about 80 minutes after stimulation. The seedlings then curved upward again or straightened by about 6 degrees during the subsequent 100 minutes. Seedlings rotated on a clinostat reached a similar maximum curvature following photostimulation. These seedlings maintained that curvature for 30 to 40 minutes before subsequently straightening to the same extent as the stationary seedlings. It is concluded that straightening is not a consequence of gravitropism, although gravity has some effect on the phototropism kinetics.

NASA Program Space Biology↗
NASA NTRS1991

Laser discrimination by stimulated emission of a phosphor

A method for discriminating sources of UV, near infrared, and far infrared laser radiation was discovered. This technology is based on the use of a single magnesium sulfide phosphor doubly doped with rare earth ions, which is thermally/optically stimulated to generate colors correlatable to the incident laser radiation. The phosphor, after initial charging by visible light, exhibits green stimulated luminescence when exposed to a near infrared source (Nd: YAG laser). On exposure to far infrared sources (CO2 laser) the phosphor emission changes to orange color. A UV laser produces both an orange red as well as green color. A device using this phosphor is useful for detecting the laser and for discriminating between the near infrared, far infrared, and UV lasers. The technology is also capable of infrared laser diode beam profiling since the radiation source leaves an imprint on the phosphor that can be photographed. Continued development of the technology offers potential for discrimination between even smaller bandwidths within the infrared spectrum, a possible aid to communication or wavemixing devices that need to rapidly identify and process optical signals.

Mathur, V. K.↗
NASA NTRS2006

Nanophase Iron Oxides as an Ultraviolet Sunscreen for Ancient Photosynthetic Microbes: A Possible Link Between Early Organisms, Banded-Iron Formations, and the Oxygenation of the Atmosphere

We propose that nanophase iron oxide-bearing materials provided important niches for ancient photosynthetic microbes on the early Earth that ultimately led to the oxygenation of the Earth s atmosphere and the formation of iron oxide deposits. Atmospheric oxygen and ozone attenuate UV radiation on the Earth today providing substantial protection for photosynthetic organisms. With ultraviolet radiation fluxes likely to have been even higher on the early Earth than today, accessing solar radiation was particularly risky for early organisms. Yet, we know that photosynthesis arose then and played a critical role in subsequent evolution. Of primary importance was protection at approx.250-290 nm, where peak nucleic acid (approx.260 nm) and protein (approx.280 nm) absorptions occur. Nanophase ferric oxide/oxyhydroxide minerals absorb, and thus block, the lethal UV radiation, while transmitting light through much of the visible and near-infrared regions of interest to photosynthesis (400 to 1100 nm). Further, they were available in early environments, and are synthesized by many organisms. Based on ferric oxide/oxyhydroxide spectral properties, likely geologic processes, and the results of experiments with the photosynthetic organisms, Euglena sp. and Chlumydomonus reinhardtii, we propose a scenario where photosynthesis, and ultimately the oxygenation of the atmosphere, depended on the protection of early microbes by nanophase ferric oxides/oxyhydroxides. The results of this study are also applicable to other potentially habitable iron-bearing planetary bodies because of the evolutionary pressure to utilize solar radiation when available as an energy source.

Bishop, Janice L.↗