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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 91 records · Page 5
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2001

The Development of Surface Roughness and Implications for Cellular Attachment in Biomedical Applications

The application of a microscopic surface texture produced by ion beam sputter texturing to the surfaces of polymer implants has been shown to result in significant increases in cellular attachment compared to smooth surface implants in animal studies. A collaborative program between NASA Glenn Research Center and the Cleveland Clinic Foundation has been established to evaluate the potential for improving osteoblast attachment to surfaces that have been microscopically roughened by atomic oxygen texturing. The range of surface textures that are feasible depends upon both the texturing process and the duration of treatment. To determine whether surface texture saturates or continues to increase with treatment duration, an effort was conducted to examine the development of surface textures produced by various physical and chemical erosion processes. Both experimental tests and computational modeling were performed to explore the growth of surface texture with treatment time. Surface texturing by means of abrasive grit blasting of glass, stainless steel, and polymethylmethacry I ate surfaces was examined to measure the growth in roughness with grit blasting duration by surface profilometry measurements. Laboratory tests and computational modeling was also conducted to examine the development of texture on Aclar(R) (chlorotfifluoroethylene) and Kapton(R) polyimide, respectively. For the atomic oxygen texturing tests of Aclar(R), atomic force microscopy was used to measure the development of texture with atomic oxygen fluence. The results of all the testing and computational modeling support the premise that development of surface roughness obeys Poisson statistics. The results indicate that surface roughness does not saturate but increases as the square root of the treatment time.

Banks, Bruce↗
NASA NTRS1999

An overview of vertebrate mineralization with emphasis on collagen-mineral interaction

The nucleation, growth, and development of mineral crystals through their interaction principally with collagen in normal bone and calcifying tendon have been elaborated by applying a number of different techniques for analysis of the inorganic and organic constituents of these tissues. The methods have included conventional and high voltage electron microscopy, electron diffraction, microscopic tomography and 3D image reconstruction, and atomic force microscopy. This summary presents results of these studies that have now characterized the size, shape, and aspects of the chemical nature of the crystals as well as their orientation, alignment, location, and distribution with respect to collagen. These data have provided the means for understanding more completely the formation and strength of the collagen-mineral composite present in most vertebrate calcifying tissues and, from that information, a basis for the adaptation of such tissues under mechanical constraints. In the context of the latter point, other data are given showing effects on collagen in bone cell cultures subjected to the unloading parameters of spaceflight. Implications of these results may be particularly relevant to explaining loss of bone by humans and other vertebrate animals during missions in space, during situations of extended fracture healing, long-term bedrest, physical immobilization, and related conditions. In a broader sense, the data speak to the response of bone and mineralized vertebrate tissues to changes in gravitational loading and applied mechanical forces in general.

Non-NASA Center↗
NASA NTRS2000

The Effect of Low Earth Orbit Atomic Oxygen Exposure on Phenylphosphine Oxide-Containing Polymers

Thin films of phenylphosphine oxide-containing polymers were exposed to low Earth orbit aboard a space shuttle flight (STS-85) as part of flight experiment designated Evaluation of Space Environment and Effects on Materials (ESEM). This flight experiment was a cooperative effort between the NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) and the National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA). The thin film samples described herein were part of an atomic oxygen exposure experiment (AOE) and were exposed to primarily atomic oxygen (~1 X 1019 atoms/cm2). The thin film samples consisted of three phosphine oxide containing polymers (arylene ether, benzimidazole and imide). Based on post-flight analyses using atomic force microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and weight loss data, it was found that atomic oxygen exposure of these materials efficiently produces a phosphate layer at the surface of the samples. This layer provides a barrier towards further attack by AO. Consequently, these materials do not exhibit linear erosion rates which is in contrast with most organic polymers. Qualitatively, the results obtained from these analyses compare favorably with those obtained from samples exposed to atomic oxygen and or oxygen plasma in ground based exposure experiments. The results of the low Earth orbit atomic oxygen exposure on these materials will be compared with those of ground based exposure to AO.

Connell, John W.↗
NASA NTRS2001

Inexpensive Method for Growing Unidirectional Oriented Materials Using Friction-Transferred Poly(tetrafluoroethylene) Substrates

In recent years, there has been an increasing interest in properties of unidirectional materials grown on highly oriented polymer surfaces such as the poly(tetrafluoroethylene) (PTFE) films coated onto smooth glass surfaces. In this technique, a thin PTFE film is deposited by sliding or rubbing a Teflon bar over a heated glass surface at a specific temperature. Depending on the pressure, temperature and sliding rate the thickness of deposited layers can be varied from 30 A to 150 A. The PTFE-coated substrate is simple yet surprising versatile for oriented growth of many organic, inorganic and polymer. The significant aspect of PTFE films is their unusual ability to molecularly align a wide variety of materials grown onto them from solution, melt or vapor phase deposition, at temperature below the melting point of PTFE (approx. 340 C). The PTFE structure may be derived, in part, from the multitude of ridges forming in the film and these ridges can presumably provide effective nucleation sites to induce the unidirectional growth of variety of materials. Electron diffraction studies of these films revealed that the PTFE macromolecules are oriented parallel to each other along the sliding direction. Direct observation of the film thickness, molecular structure and individual fluorine atoms from these highly oriented films were achieved using atomic force microscopy (AFM). In this paper, we also report the first direct observation of individual fluorine atoms, and the measurement of the fluorine-helix and carbon-helix radii to be 1.70 A and 0.54 A, respectively.

Lee, Jonathan A.↗
NASA NTRS1997

Characterizing Surfaces of the Wide Bandgap Semiconductor Ilmenite with Scanning Probe Microcopies

Ilmenite (FeTiO3) is a wide bandgap semiconductor with an energy gap of about 2.5eV. Initial radiation studies indicate that ilmenite has properties suited for radiation tolerant applications, as well as a variety of other electronic applications. Two scanning probe microscopy methods have been used to characterize the surface of samples taken from Czochralski grown single crystals. The two methods, atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), are based on different physical principles and therefore provide different information about the samples. AFM provides a direct, three-dimensional image of the surface of the samples, while STM give a convolution of topographic and electronic properties of the surface. We will discuss the differences between the methods and present preliminary data of each method for ilmenite samples.

Wilkins, R.↗
NASA NTRS2001

Carbon Nanotube Tip Probes: Stability and Lateral Resolution in Scanning Probe Microscopy and Application to Surface Science to Semiconductors

In this paper we present results on the stability and lateral resolution capability of carbon nanotube (CNT) scanning probes as applied to atomic force microscopy (AFM). Surface topography images of ultra-thin films (2-5 nm thickness) obtained with AFM are used to illustrate the lateral resolution capability of single-walled carbon nanotube probes. Images of metal films prepared by ion beam sputtering exhibit grain sizes ranging from greater than 10 nm to as small as approximately 2 nm for gold and iridium respectively. In addition, imaging stability and lifetime of multi-walled carbon nanotube scanning probes are studied on a relatively hard surface of silicon nitride (Si3N4). AFM images Of Si3N4 surface collected after more than 15 hrs of continuous scanning show no detectable degradation in lateral resolution. These results indicate the general feasibility of CNT tips and scanning probe microscopy for examining nanometer-scale surface features of deposited metals as well as non-conductive thin films. AFM coupled with CNT tips offers a simple and nondestructive technique for probing a variety of surfaces, and has immense potential as a surface characterization tool in integrated circuit manufacturing.

Nguyen, Cattien V.↗
NASA NTRS2002

Techniques for Measuring Low Earth Orbital Atomic Oxygen Erosion of Polymers

Polymers such as polyimide Kapton and Teflon FEP (fluorinated ethylene propylene) are commonly used spacecraft materials due to their desirable properties such as flexibility, low density, and in the case of FEP, a low solar absorptance and high thermal emittance. Polymers on the exterior of spacecraft in the low Earth orbit (LEO) environment are exposed to energetic atomic oxygen. Atomic oxygen reaction with polymers causes erosion, which is a threat to spacecraft durability. It is therefore important to understand the atomic oxygen erosion yield (E, the volume loss per incident oxygen atom) of polymers being considered in spacecraft design. The most common technique for determining E is through mass loss measurements. For limited duration exposure experiments, such as shuttle experiments, where the atomic oxygen fluence is often so low that mass loss measurements can not produce acceptable uncertainties, recession measurements based on atomic force microscopy analyses can be used. Equally necessary to knowing the mass loss or recession depth for determining the erosion yield of polymers is the knowledge of the atomic oxygen fluence that the polymers were exposed to in space. This paper discusses the procedures and relevant issues for mass loss and recession depth measurements for passive atomic oxygen erosion yield characterization of polymers, along with techniques for active atomic oxygen fluence and erosion characterization. One active atomic oxygen erosion technique discussed is a new technique based on optical measurements. Details including the use of both semi-transparent and opaque polymers for active erosion measurement are reviewed.

deGroh, Kim K.↗
NASA NTRS1999

A Space Experiment to Measure the Atomic Oxygen Erosion of Polymers and Demonstrate a Technique to Identify Sources of Silicone Contamination

A low Earth orbital space experiment entitled, "Polymers Erosion And Contamination Experiment", (PEACE) has been designed as a Get-Away Special (GAS Can) experiment to be accommodated as a Shuttle in-bay environmental exposure experiment. The first objective is to measure the atomic oxygen erosion yields of approximately 40 different polymeric materials by mass loss and erosion measurements using atomic force microscopy. The second objective is to evaluate the capability of identifying sources of silicone contamination through the use of a pin-hole contamination camera which utilizes environmental atomic oxygen to produce a contaminant source image on an optical substrate.

Banks, Bruce A.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Low earth simulation and materials characterization

Oxygen plasma ashers and an electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) sources are currently being used for low Earth orbit (LEO) simulation. The suitability of each of these simulation techniques is considered. Thin film coatings are characterized by optical techniques, including variable-angle spectroscopic ellipsometry, optical spectrophotometry, and laser light scatterometry. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) has been used to characterize the surface morphology of thin aluminum films as a function of substrate temperature during deposition. Results on diamondlike carbon (DLC) films show that DLC degrades with simulated atomic oxygen (AO) exposure at a rate comparable to Kapton polyimide. Since DLC is not as susceptible as Kapton to environmental factors such as moisture absorption, it could potentially provide more accurate measurements of AO fluence on short space flights.

Synowicki, R. A.↗
NASA NTRS2018

Light Microscopy Module Biophysics - 4 (LMM-B4)

Compare incorporation of protein aggregates into growing protein crystals on ISS (International Space Station) and on Earth. Measure growth rates in 1g (1 gravity) versus microgravity (micro-g) for different size aggregates of proteins. Compare the defect density and crystal quality via fluorescent-based atomic force microscopy and X-ray diffraction quality of crystals grown at different rates in a 1g environment.

Penn, Benjamin G.↗
NASA NTRS2003

Nucleation Behavior of Oxygen-Acetylene Torch-Produced Diamond Films

A mechanism is presented for the nucleation of diamond in the combustion flame environment. A series of six experiments and two associated simulations provide results from which the mechanism was derived. A substantial portion of the prior literature was reviewed and the data and conclusions from the previous experimenters were found to support the proposed mechanism. The nucleation mechanism builds on the work of previous researchers but presents an approach to nucleation in a detail and direction not fully presented heretofore. This work identifies the gas phase as the controlling environment for the initial formation steps leading to nucleation. The developed mechanism explains some of the difficulty which has been found in producing single crystal epitaxial films. An experiment which modified the initial gas phase precursor using methane and carbon monoxide is presented. Addition of methane into the precursor gases was found to be responsible for pillaring of the films. Atomic force microscopy surface roughness data provides a reasonable look at suppression of nucleation by carbon monoxide. Surface finish data was taken on crystals which were open to the nucleation environment and generally parallel to the substrate surface. The test surfaces were measured as an independent measure of the instantaneous nucleation environent. A gas flow and substrate experiment changed the conditions on the surface of the sample by increasing the gas flow rate while remaining on a consistent point of the atomic constituent diagram, and by changing the carbide potential of the substrate. Two tip modification experiments looked at the behavior of gas phase nucleation by modifying the shape and behavior of the flame plasma in which the diamond nucleation is suspected to occur. Diamond nucleation and growth was additionally examined using a high-velocity oxygen fuel gun and C3H6 as the fuel gas phase precursor with addition of carbon monoxide gas 01 addition of liquid toluene.

Roberts, F. E.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Atomic Oxygen (ATOX) simulation of Teflon FEP and Kapton H surfaces using a high intensity, low energy, mass selected, ion beam facility

A high intensity (greater than 10(exp 15) ions/sq cm) low energy (down to 5 eV) mass selected ion beam (MSIB) facility was used to study the effects of ATOX on two polymers commonly used for space applications (Kapton H and Teflon FEP). The polymers were exposed to O(+) and Ne(+) fluences on 10(exp 15) - 10(exp 19) ions/sq cm, using 30eV ions. A variety of analytical methods were used to analyze the eroded surfaces including: (1) atomic force microscopy (AFM) for morphology measurements; (2) total mass loss measurements using a microbalance; (3) surface chemical composition using x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and (4) residual gas analysis (RGA) of the released gases during bombardment. The relative significance of the collisional and chemical degradation processes was evaluated by comparing the effects of Ne(+) and O(+) bombardment. For 30 eV ions it was found that the Kapton is eroded via chemical mechanisms while Teflon FEP is eroded via collisional mechanisms. AFM analysis was found very powerful in revealing the evolution of the damage from its initial atomic scale (roughness of approx. 1 nm) to its final microscopic scale (roughness greater than 1 micron). Both the surface morphology and the average roughness of the bombarded surfaces (averaged over 1 micron x 1 micron images by the system's computer) were determined for each sample. For 30 eV a non linear increase of the Kapton roughness with the O(+) fluence was discovered (a slow increase rate for fluences phi less than 5 x 10(exp 17) O(+)/sq cm, and a rapid increase rate for phi greater than 5 x 10(exp 17) O(+)/sq cm). Comparative studies on the same materials exposed to RF and DC oxygen plasmas indicate that the specific details of the erosion depend on the simulation facility emphasizing the advantages of the ion beam facility.

Vered, R.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Atomic probe microscopy of 3C SiC films grown on 6H SiC substrates

The surface of 3C SiC films grown on 6H SiC substrates has been studied by atomic probe microscopy in air. Atomic-scale images of the 3C SiC surface have been obtained by STM which confirm the 111 line type orientation of the cubic 3C layer grown on the 0001 plane type surface of the hexagonal 6H substrate. The nearest-neighbor atomic spacing for the 3C layer has been measured to be 3.29 +/- 0.2 A, which is within 7 percent of the bulk value. Shallow terraces in the 3C layer have been observed by STM to separate regions of very smooth growth in the vicinity of the 3C nucleation point from considerably rougher 3C surface regions. These terraces are oriented at right angles to the growth direction. Atomic force microscopy has been used to study etch pits present on the 6H substrate due to high temperature HCl cleaning prior to CVD growth of the 3C layer. The etch pits have hexagonal symmetry and vary in depth from 50 nm to 1 micron.

Steckl, A. J.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Surface morphology of molecular-beam epitaxially grown Si(1-x)Ge(x) layers on (100) and (110) Si

The surface morphology and dislocation structure of Si(1-x)Ge(x) layers grown on (100) and (110) Si substrates have been investigated using atomic force microscopy, and scanning and transmission electron microscopy. The layers, which have up to a 1.2 percent lattice mismatch with the substrates, were grown by molecular-beam epitaxy at 550 C at thicknesses above those required for the introduction of dislocations. Si(1-x)Ge(x) layers grown on (100) show a crosshatch morphology which is correlated to the underlying misfit dislocation network. Annealing greatly enhances the surface roughness producing a partial islanding growing on the preexisting crosshatch morphology. On the (110) substrates no annealing is necessary to produce a roughened surface. The roughened surface morphology is analyzed as a strain-reducing growth mode which enables partial relaxation of the near-surface atomic planes.

Pike, W. T.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Atomic force microscope studies of fullerene films - Highly stable C60 fcc (311) free surfaces

Atomic force microscopy and X-ray diffractometry were used to study 1500 A-thick films of pure C60 grown by sublimation in ultrahigh vacuum onto a CaF2 (111) substrte. Topographs of the films did not reveal the expected close-packed structures, but they showed instead large regions that correspond to a face-centered cubic (311) surface and distortions of this surface. The open (311) structure may have a relatively low free energy because the low packing density contributes to a high entropy of the exposed surface.

Snyder, Eric J.↗
NASA NTRS1992

X-ray scattering measurements from thin foil X-ray mirrors

Thin foil X-ray mirrors are to be used as the reflecting elements in the telescopes of the X-ray satellites Spectrum-X-Gamma (SRG) and ASTRO-D. High resolution X-ray scattering measurements from the Au coated and dip-lacquered Al foils are presented. These were obtained from SRG mirrors positioned in a test quadrant of the telescope structure and from ASTRO-D foils held in a simple fixture. The X-ray data is compared with laser data and other surface structure data such as STM, atomic force microscopy (AFM), TEM, and electron micrography. The data obtained at Cu K-alpha(1), (8.05 keV) from all the mirrors produced on Al foils shows a scatter which limits the obtainable half-power width to above 1.5 arcmin. Mirrors based on electroformed Ni foils, however, show local regions with a factor of 4 better performance, and they are being developed for future applications.

Christensen, F. E.↗
NASA NTRS1995

Effects of low earth orbit on the optical performance of multi-layer enhanced high reflectance mirrors

Two mirror designs developed for space applications were flown along with a standard mid-infrared design on the leading and trailing edges of the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF). Preliminary observations of induced changes in optical performance of ZnS-coated mirrors and impact-related microstructural and microchemical effects are described in the proceedings of the First LDEF Post-Retrieval Symposium. In this paper, effects of the induced environment and meteoroid/debris impacts on mirror performance are described in more detail. Also, an analysis of reflectance spectra using the results of Auger and secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS) profiling measurements are used to identify an optical-degradation mechanism for the ZnS-coated mirrors. Structural damage associated with a high-velocity impact on a (Si/Al2O3)-coated mirror was imaged optically and with scanning electron and atomic force microscopy (SEM and AFM). Scanning Auger and SIMS analysis provided chemical mapping of selected impact sites. The impact data suggest design and fabrication modifications for obtaining improved mechanical performance using a design variation identified in preflight laboratory simulations. Auger surface profile and SIMS imaging data verified the conclusion that secondary impacts are the source of contamination associated with the dendrites grown on the leading-edge ZnS-coated test samples. It was also found that dendrites can be grown in the laboratory by irradiating contaminated sites on a trailing-edge ZnS-coated sample with a rastered electron beam. These results suggest a mechanism for dendrite growth.

Donovan, Terence↗