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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 811 records · Page 45
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2019

Surface albedo and reflectance: Review of definitions, angular and spectral effects, and intercomparison of major data sources in support of advanced solar irradiance modeling over the Americas

This study defines albedo and reflectance in the context of solar applications. It examines the main sources of surface albedo data that can be used to help solar irradiance modeling efforts, such as undertaken by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) over the Americas, for instance, per the National Solar Radiation Database (NSRDB). The MODIS-based albedo database, as used as input to derive historical time series of solar irradiance in the current version of the NSRDB, is compared to other sources of global gridded data over the Americas in general and some specific areas in particular. The particular role of snow cover is analyzed. It is found that, in the current MODIS-based NSRDB implementation, snow-impacted areas have been assigned a too high albedo in general because of the lack of consideration for the antagonistic effect of surface roughness, among other factors. Other albedo databases, such as CMSAF, MINES-ParisTech or the ERA5 reanalysis, do not display such high albedos at latitudes above ~40 degrees N. The gap-free and snow-free MODIS MCD43GF product is found affected by a long-term downward trend over some areas and out-of-phase seasonal effects over other areas, in comparison with MERRA-2 reanalysis data in particular. Comparisons with actual albedo measurements at the arid Desert Rock site in Nevada also show that albedo data derived from land surface models are affected by systematic bias. Five albedo databases are intercompared for the area around Ivanpah Playa, California, which has great importance in both remote sensing and solar applications. Various aspects of the proper usage of albedo data in solar radiation modeling are discussed, regarding calculations of both the backscattering process and reflections on a tilted surface: spatial resolution, temporal resolution, angular effects, and spectral effects. An important distinction is made between the use of albedo data at ~4 km resolution for backscattering calculations and at ~10 m resolution for transposition calculations to tilted planes, which might additionally require spectral information for monofacial or bifacial PV applications. It is shown that the tilted calculations usually performed in solar resource assessments are far from realistic in the case of most large-scale PV applications, for which a more suitable methodological approach is described. For such needs, the limitations of the current sources of high-resolution reflectance data are discussed. The impact of surface albedo estimation errors on the estimation of backscattered irradiance over snowy areas is evaluated. It is found non-negligible, and even large under cloudy conditions.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2021

Thermal model to quantify the impact of sub-bandgap reflectance on operating temperature of fielded PV modules

Minimizing module heating is an effective way to increase the lifetime energy output of photovoltaic systems. Maximizing the reflection of light that is unusable for energy conversion is one of the most promising ways to reduce the operating temperature of fielded modules. We derive a model based on a steady-state energy balance to quantify the temperature benefit of cell or module optical modifications aimed at improving reflection of light with photon energies below the photovoltaic cell bandgap energy. This more detailed model is then simplified so that, from outdoor measured data, temperature differences arising from reflectance can be isolated from those arising from irradiance, wind speed, and module standard-test-condition efficiency.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2022

Noncontact Andreev Reflection as a Direct Probe of Superconductivity on the Atomic Scale

Direct detection of superconductivity has long been a key strength of point-contact Andreev reflection. However, its applicability to atomic-scale imaging is limited by the mechanical contact of the Andreev probe. To this end, we present a new method to probe Andreev reflection in a tunnel junction, leveraging tunneling spectroscopy and junction tunability to achieve quantitative detection of Andreev scattering. This method enables unambiguous assignment of superconducting origins of current-carrying excitations, as well as detection of higher order Andreev processes in atomic-scale junctions. Herein, we furthermore revealed distinct sensitivity of Andreev reflection to natural defects, such as step edges, even in classical superconductors. The methodology opens a new path to nano- and atomic-scale imaging of superconducting properties, including disordered superconductors and proximity to phase transitions.

77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2013

Monte Carlo simulation applied in total reflection x-ray fluorescence: Preliminary results

The X-ray Fluorescence (XRF) analysis is a technique for the qualitative and quantitative determination of chemical constituents in a sample. This method is based on detection of the characteristic radiation intensities emitted by the elements of the sample, when properly excited. A variant of this technique is the Total Reflection X-ray Fluorescence (TXRF) that utilizes electromagnetic radiation as excitation source. In total reflection of X-ray, the angle of refraction of the incident beam tends to zero and the refracted beam is tangent to the sample support interface. Thus, there is a minimum angle of incidence at which no refracted beam exists and all incident radiation undergoes total reflection. In this study, we evaluated the influence of the energy variation of the beam of incident x-rays, using the MCNPX code (Monte Carlo NParticle) based on Monte Carlo method.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2013

Optical designs of reflection and refraction collection optics for a JT-60SA core Thomson scattering system

Collection optics for core measurements in a JT-60SA Thomson scattering system were designed. The collection optics will be installed in a limited space and have a wide field of view and wide wavelength range. Two types of the optics are therefore suggested: refraction and reflection types. The reflection system, with a large primary mirror, avoids large chromatic aberrations. Because the size limit of the primary mirror and vignetting due to the secondary mirror affect the total collection throughput, conditions that provide the high throughput are found through an optimization. A refraction system with four lenses forming an Ernostar system is also employed. The use of high-refractive-index glass materials enhances the freedom of the lens curvatures, resulting in suppression of the spherical and coma aberration. Moreover, sufficient throughput can be achieved, even with smaller lenses than that of a previous design given in [H. Tojo, T. Hatae, T. Sakuma, T. Hamano, K. Itami, Y. Aida, S. Suitoh, and D. Fujie, Rev. Sci. Instrum. 81, 10D539 (2010)]. The optical resolutions of the reflection and refraction systems are both sufficient for understanding the spatial structures in plasma. In particular, the spot sizes at the image of the optics are evaluated as ∼0.3 mm and ∼0.4 mm, respectively. The throughput for the two systems, including the pupil size and transmissivity, are also compared. The results show that good measurement accuracy (<10%) even at high electron temperatures (<30 keV) can be expected in the refraction system.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2013

Optical reflectivity improvement by upgrading metallic glass film quality

The effects of atomic-defect and free-volume amounts of metallic glassy film on the optical reflectivity and mechanical properties of the sputtered metallic glass thin films are explored. With a lower Ar working pressure and the proper post-annealing at temperatures slightly lower than the glass-transition temperature T{sub g}, film free volumes and defects would reduce, resulting in better atomic bonding and higher film hardness/modulus, which in turn leads to lower electric resistivity and higher optical reflectivity. Annealing above T{sub g} would induce crystalline structure which would lead to competition with the optical transition of the Drude free electrons and hinder the optical reflectivity in the visible range.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2013

High-frequency nonreciprocal reflection from magnetic films with overlayers

We perform a theoretical study of the nonreciprocal reflection of high-frequency microwave radiation from ferromagnetic films with thin overlayers. Reflection from metallic ferromagnetic films is always near unity and shows no nonreciprocity. In contrast, reflection from a structure which has a dielectric overlayer on top of a film composed of insulated ferromagnetic nanoparticles or nanostructures can show significant nonreciprocity in the 75–80 GHz frequency range, a very high value. This can be important for devices such as isolators or circulators.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2014

An effective medium study of surface plasmon polaritons in nanostructured gratings using attenuated total reflection

Recent work studied surface plasmon resonances in structured materials by the method of attenuated total reflection using a prism on top of a metallic grating. That calculation considered Transverse Magnetic polarized radiation, involved an expansion in 121 Fourier modes, and found a number of interesting features. Many of these features were attributed to localized plasmons or other factors, which arise from a discrete structure. We use a simple effective medium theory to address the same problem, and find many of the same reflection features observed in the more complex calculation, indicating that localization is not an important factor. We also evaluate the possibility of using some of the new features in the reflection spectrum for bio-sensing and find that the sensitivity of the system to small changes in relative permittivity is increased compared to some standard methods.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2014

The enlargement of high reflectance range in ultra-narrow bandpass filter with disordered one-dimensional photonic crystal

The conventional ultra-narrow bandpass filter structure has only a very limited width of high-reflectance range. This study, by introducing disorder into one-dimensional (1D) photonic crystal, attempts to enlarge the width of high-reflectance range while keeping the ultra-narrow bandpass. Enlargement by 46.8% was obtained after theoretical design. Since this structure contains some degree of disorder already, it has a strong tolerance of the variation of layer thicknesses. Unlike studies using conventional periodic structures, theoretical statistical results in this study demonstrate that high quality remains even after allowing for ±5% variation of layer thicknesses. This indicates that only a very low thickness control precision is required in the future and the production difficulty is immensely lowered. To put the construction to test, a structure has been developed and demonstrated by a magnetron reactive sputtering coating system, which agrees with the theoretical result very well. By introducing disorder into the periodic 1D photonic crystal structure, the high-reflectance range is significantly extended by 37%, with an ultra-narrow pass band of 0.8 nm and intensity of 82%.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2014

Broadband and wide-angle negative reflection at a phononic crystal boundary

We have theoretically and experimentally demonstrated the anomalous negative reflection at the boundary of a well-designed two-dimensional phononic crystal. This exotic phenomenon is attributed to the selective enhancement of −1st order diffraction mode with the zero-order diffraction mode being dramatically suppressed. After material and structural optimization, the negative reflection can be maintained in a broadband of frequencies and for a wide incident angle range. Our system can be employed to design Littrow configuration to realize perfect broadband and wide-angle blazing. The study gives a possibility to achieve greater flexibility and stronger effects in manipulating reflected acoustic waves, which has potential applications in underwater communication, medical ultrasonics, etc.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2014

Combination of grazing incidence x-ray fluorescence with x-ray reflectivity in one table-top spectrometer for improved characterization of thin layer and implants on/in silicon wafers

As Grazing Incidence X-ray Fluorescence (GIXRF) analysis does not provide unambiguous results for the characterization of nanometre layers as well as nanometre depth profiles of implants in silicon wafers by its own, the approach of providing additional information using the signal from X-ray Reflectivity (XRR) was tested. As GIXRF already uses an X-ray beam impinging under grazing incidence and the variation of the angle of incidence, a GIXRF spectrometer was adapted with an XRR unit to obtain data from the angle dependent fluorescence radiation as well as data from the reflected beam. A θ-2θ goniometer was simulated by combining a translation and tilt movement of a Silicon Drift detector, which allows detecting the reflected beam over 5 orders of magnitude. HfO{sub 2} layers as well as As implants in Silicon wafers in the nanometre range were characterized using this new setup. A just recently published combined evaluation approach was used for data evaluation.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2015

Dependence of Andreev reflection and Schottky barriers on GaMnAs/Nb interface treatment

We studied the interfacial contact between GaMnAs and superconducting Nb micro-structures both with and without removing the native GaMnAs surface oxide. Our results show that a strong Schottky barrier forms at the interface when the oxide layer is left between Nb and GaMnAs. This barrier can be confused for Andreev Reflection and erroneously used to extract spin polarization. A simple acid etch is shown to remove the oxide film, thus decreasing the interface resistance, removing the Schottky barrier, and causing a clear Andreev reflection effect. One key recommendation for point contact Andreev reflection studies is to push the tip hard enough into contact and verify that the total resistance is not too high.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Probing depth dependent structure and magnetic properties of thin films using polarized neutron reflectivity

Novel properties of materials produced using nanoscale manufacturing processes often arise from interactions across interfaces between dissimilar materials. In order to understand the physical and magnetic properties of such nanostructures, a thorough and detailed structural and magnetic characterization with interface specificity is required. X-ray reflectivity and polarized neutron reflectivity (PNR) are two nondestructive techniques that provide quantitative measures of the chemical and magnetic depth profiles of the films with less than nanometer resolution averaged over the lateral dimensions of the entire sample (typically 100 mm{sup 2}). PNR specifically gives simultaneous structure and magnetic information of the interfaces. Unquestionably, neutron reflectivity has played a decisive role in the development and study of new emergent phenomena at interfaces.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Non-thermal effects on femtosecond laser ablation of polymers extracted from the oscillation of time-resolved reflectivity

The dynamics of femtosecond laser ablation of transparent polymers were examined using time-resolved reflectivity. When these polymers were irradiated by a pump pulse with fluence above the ablation threshold of 0.8–2.0 J/cm{sup 2}, we observed the oscillation of the reflectivity caused by the interference between the reflected probe pulses from the sample surface and the thin layer due to the non-thermal photomechanical effects of spallation. As the fluence of the pump pulse increased, the separation velocity of the thin layer increased from 6 km/s to the asymptotic value of 11 km/s. It is suggested that the velocities are determined by shock-wave velocities of the photo-excited layer.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Probing carrier dynamics of individual layers in a heterostructure using transient reflectivity

We report the wavelength dependent transient reflectivity measurements in AlGaAs-GaAs heterostructures having two-dimensional electron (or hole) gas near the interface. Using a multilayer model for transient reflectivity, we show that the magnitude and sign of contributions from the carriers in two-dimensional electron (or hole) gas and GaAs to the total signal depends on the wavelength. Further, it has been shown that it is possible to study the carrier dynamics in a given layer of a heterostructure by performing transient reflectivity at specific wavelengths.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Measurements of low-energy electron reflection at a plasma boundary

It is demonstrated that low-energy (<3 eV) electron reflection from a solid surface in contact with a low-temperature plasma can have significant variation with time. An uncontaminated, i.e., “clean,” metallic surface (just after heating up to glow) in a plasma environment may have practically no reflection of low-energy incident electrons. However, a contaminated, i.e., “dirty,” surface (in some time after cleaning by heating) that has a few monolayers of absorbent can reflect low-energy incident electrons and therefore significantly affect the net electron current collected by the surface. This effect may significantly change plasma properties and should be taken into account in plasma experiments and models. A diagnostic method is demonstrated for measurements of low-energy electron absorption coefficient in plasmas with a mono-energetic electron group.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2015

A simplified method for generating periodic nanostructures by interference lithography without the use of an anti-reflection coating

Interference lithography has proven to be a useful technique for generating periodic sub-diffraction limited nanostructures. Interference lithography can be implemented by exposing a photoresist polymer to laser light using a two-beam arrangement or more simply a one beam configuration based on a Lloyd's Mirror Interferometer. For typical photoresist layers, an anti-reflection coating must be deposited on the substrate to prevent adverse reflections from cancelling the holographic pattern of the interfering beams. For silicon substrates, such coatings are typically multilayered and complex in composition. By thinning the photoresist layer to a thickness well below the quarter wavelength of the exposing beam, we demonstrate that interference gratings can be generated without an anti-reflection coating on the substrate. We used ammonium dichromate doped polyvinyl alcohol as the positive photoresist because it provides excellent pinhole free layers down to thicknesses of 40 nm, and can be cross-linked by a low-cost single mode 457 nm laser, and can be etched in water. Gratings with a period of 320 nm and depth of 4 nm were realized, as well as a variety of morphologies depending on the photoresist thickness. This simplified interference lithography technique promises to be useful for generating periodic nanostructures with high fidelity and minimal substrate treatments.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2016

Dynamics of spallation during femtosecond laser ablation studied by time-resolved reflectivity with double pump pulses

The dynamics of photomechanical spallation during femtosecond laser ablation of fused silica was studied by time-resolved reflectivity with double pump pulses. Oscillation of reflectivity was caused by interference between the probe pulses reflected at the sample surface and the spallation layer, and was enhanced when the surface was irradiated with the second pump pulse within a time interval, Δτ, of several picoseconds after the first pump pulse. However, as Δτ was increased, the oscillation amplitude decreased with an exponential decay time of 10 ps. The oscillation disappeared when Δτ exceeded 20 ps. This result suggests that the formation time of the spallation layer is approximately 10 ps. A second pump pulse with Δτ shorter than 10 ps excites the bulk sample. The spallation layer that is photo-excited by the first and second pump pulses is separated afterward. In contrast, a pulse with Δτ longer than the formation time excites and breaks up the spallation layer that has already been separated from the bulk. The formation time of the spallation layer, as determined in this experiment, is attributed to the characteristic time of the mechanical equilibration corresponding to the thickness divided by the sound velocity of the photo-excited layer.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗