Magneto-electrostatically contained plasma ion thruster.
Electrostatic electron bombardment ion thrustor with magnetoelectrostatically contained plasma
Moore, R. D.↗
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Potential biomedical applications of ion beam technology
Electron bombardment ion thrusters used as ion sources have demonstrated a unique capability to vary the surface morphology of surgical implant materials. The microscopically rough surface texture produced by ion beam sputtering of these materials may result in improvements in the biological response and/or performance of implanted devices. Control of surface roughness may result in improved attachment of the implant to soft tissue, hard tissue, bone cement, or components deposited from blood. Potential biomedical applications of ion beam texturing discussed include: vascular prostheses, artificial heart pump diaphragms, pacemaker fixation, percutaneous connectors, orthopedic pros-thesis fixtion, and dental implants.
Banks, B. A.↗
Potential biomedical applications of ion beam technology
Electron bombardment ion thrusters used as ion sources have demonstrated a unique capability to vary the surface morphology of surgical implant materials. The microscopically rough surface texture produced by ion beam sputtering of these materials may result in improvements in the biological response and/or performance of implanted devices. Control of surface roughness may result in improved attachment of the implant to soft tissue, hard tissue, bone cement, or components deposited from blood. Potential biomedical applications of ion beam texturing discussed include: vascular prostheses, artificial heart pump diaphragms, pacemaker fixation, percutaneous connectors, orthopedic prosthesis fixation, and dental implants.
Banks, B. A.↗
ESCA studies on solar-wind reduction mechanisms
In a continuing study of solar-wind darkening on the lunar surface, ESCA techniques have been used to examine surface reduction and optical darkening by ion bombardment. Experimental results on transition metal fluorides have shown that ion-bombardment reduction is (a) accompanied by the loss of anion species, (b) relatively independent of the incident ion mass, and (c) not simply related to physical sputtering itself. The reduction mechanism may be more chemical in nature and the rate may be determined primarily by the transition metal ion
Yin, L.↗
ION ROCKET WITH A PERMANENT MAGNET
Electron bombardment ion rocket with a permanent magnet circuit described
ELECTRON BOMBARDMENT↗
Polar frost formation on Ganymede
Voyager photographs have shown the presence of polar frost on Ganymede, a satellite of Jupiter. A number of models have been proposed for the formation of this feature. The models are based on the transport of material from the equatorial to the polar regions. The present paper is concerned with a model regarding the origin and appearance of the Ganymede caps which does not depend on such a transport. The model is based on observations of the surficial changes produced by ion bombardment. It is pointed out that experiments on ion and electron bombardment of water ice at low temperatures have shown that these particles sputter significant quantities of water molecules. In addition, they also change the visual characteristics of the surface significantly. Ion bombardment competing with thermal reprocessing may be sufficient to explain the latitudinal differences observed on Ganymede.
Johnson, R. E.↗
The interstellar 4.62 micron band
We present new 4.5-5.1 micron (2210-1970 cm-1) spectra of embedded protostars, W33 A, AFGL 961 E, AFGL 2136, NGC 7538 IRS 9, and Mon R2 IRS 2, which contain a broad absorption feature located near 4.62 micron (2165 cm-1), commonly referred to in the literature as the "X-C triple bond N" band. The observed peak positions and widths of the interstellar band agree to within 2.5 cm-1 and 5 cm-1, respectively. The strengths of the interstellar 4.62 micrometers band and the ice absorption features in these spectra are not correlated, which suggests a diversity of environmental conditions for the ices we are observing. We explore several possible carriers of the interstellar band and review possible production pathways through far-ultraviolet photolysis (FUV), ion bombardment of interstellar ice analog mixtures, and acid-base reactions. Good fits to the interstellar spectra are obtained with an organic residue produced through ion bombardment of nitrogen-containing ices or with the OCN- ion produced either through acid-base reactions or FUV photolysis of NH3-containing ices.
NASA Center ARC↗
Electric thruster models for multimegawatt nuclear electric propulsion mission design
Three types of electric thrusters currently under development at JPL have potential to support future missions which utilize multimegawatt nuclear electric propulsion. These electric thrusters are the electron bombardment ion thruster, the magnetoplasmadynamic (MPD) thruster, and the electron-cyclotron-resonance (ECR) thruster. The electron bombardment ion thruster is a relatively mature technology which has been developed for operation at kilowatt power levels but will require new development for application in the multimegawatt regime. The MPD engine represents a technology which may be very well suited to steady-state multimegawatt applications but which has been limited to sub-scale (100's of kW) and pulsed (MW) testing thus far. The ECR plasma engine represents a class of very promising new concepts which are still in the basic research phase of development, but which may possess important fundamental advantages over other electric thruster technologies. Models of these thrusters are described and used to make projections of thrusters specific mass, efficiency, and power handling capacity for operation in the multimegawatt regime.
Leifer, Stephanie D.↗
STUDIES OF A GAS DISCHARGE CESIUM ION SOURCE
Investigation of electron-bombardment ion source which employs cesium as an expellant
ELECTRON BOMBARDMENT↗
Ion-beam-induced atomic mixing
Calculations based on the diffusion model are presented of atomic mixing by ion bombardment. This mixing is assumed to have its basis, as does sputtering, in the collision cascades generated by the primary beam. Sharp interfaces within a target are seen to be smoothed by ion bombardment. Mixing may place fundamental limits on the resolution of ion microprobes.
Haff, P. K.↗
Electrical contacts to ion cleaned n-type gallium arsenide.
The electrical current through silver contacts evaporated onto n-type gallium arsenide is reported as a function of surface treatment. Contacts to untreated gallium arsenide exhibit the expected high resistance. Surface cleaning by argon ion bombardment reduces the resistance by three orders of magnitude. The electrical resistance beyond 850 eV increases rapidly with ion bombardment energy. The resistance minimum at 850 eV is explained semiquantitatively in terms of a balance between cleaning and surface damage.
Walker, G. H.↗
Laboratory studies of Kapton degradation in an oxygen ion beam
Results are presented from a preliminary laboratory investigation of the degradation of the widely used polyimide Kapton under oxygen ion bombardment. Recent space shuttle flights have shown that Kapton and some other materials exposed to the apparent ram flow of residual atmosphere (at orbital velocity in low Earth orbit) lose mass and change their optical properties. It was hypothesized that these changes are caused by chemical interaction with atomic oxygen, aided by the 5-eV impact energy of atmospheric oxygen atoms in the ram. The reaction rate under O(+) bombardment seemed to be independent of incident energy over a wide range of energies. Although the flux of thermal ions in this experiment was much greater than the accelerated flux, the observed Kapton degradation was limited to the beam area and ram flow direction. This is consistent with an activation energy above the thermal energies but well below the beam energies. The results reproduce well the material loss, optical changes, SEM surface structure, and ram directionality of the samples returned by the shuttle. These factors, along with the lack of degradation under argon ion bombardment, are convincing evidence for ram flow oxidation as the mechanism of degradation.
Ferguson, D. C.↗
Interaction of low-energy implanted atomic H with slow and fast diffusing metallic impurities in Si
The interaction of hydrogen, injected into silicon using low-energy ion bombardment, with slow (Ti and V) and fast (Cr and Au) diffusing impurities was investigated. It was found that this H ion bombardment of the Si surface was effective in reducing the electrically active concentration of only the fast diffusing impurities. The results are explained by damage enhanced diffusivity and surface gettering of the fast diffusing impurities.
Singh, R.↗
Electrostatic ion rocket engine Patent
Electron bombardment ion rocket engine with improved propellant introduction system
Kaufman, H. R.↗
R-O-C(triple bond)N species produced by ion irradiation of ice mixtures: comparison with astronomical observations
We have investigated the effects induced by ion bombardment of mixtures containing nitrogen-bearing compounds at low temperatures. The results show the formation of a band at 2080 cm-1 in binary mixtures, NH3:CH4 and N2:CH4, which we attribute to HCN embedded in the organic residue formed by ion irradiation. In addition to this band, ternary mixtures containing an oxygen-bearing species (i.e., H2O) form a compound with a prominent absorption band at about 2165 cm-1 (4.62 microns). We ascribe this band to a nitrile compound containing O that is bonded to the organic residue. A detailed comparison of the laboratory results with astronomical data of the 4.62 microns absorption band in protostellar spectra shows good agreement in peak position and profile. Our experimental studies show that N2, which is a more likely interstellar ice component than NH3, can be the molecular progenitor of the carrier of the interstellar band. This is an alternative to the pathway by which UV photolysis of NH3-containing ices produces the 4.62 microns band and implies that ion bombardment may well play an important role in the evolution of interstellar ices. Here, we discuss the implications of our studies for the chemical route by which the carrier of the 4.62 microns band is formed in these laboratory experiments.
NASA Discipline Exobiology↗
Surface blistering of metals due to low energy hydrogen bombardment.
Surface blistering of metals due to low energy hydrogen ion bombardment, determining solar absorptance change in gold-plated specimens
VAPOR DEPOSITION↗
Grid-Assisted Direct-Current Magnetron Sputtering of Titanium: Plasma Discharge Diagnostics
Grid-assisted magnetron sputtering is attractive for the deposition of ultrathick Be coatings in inertial confinement fusion (ICF) applications because it offers improved control over the plasma. Here, we investigate the plasma discharge characteristics of grid-assisted direct current magnetron sputtering with Ti as a surrogate sputter target material instead of Be. We map the magnetic field of our magnetron source assembly, study the current-voltage characteristics of both the source and the substrate, and measure the energy distributions of ions bombarding the film surface during growth. The results reveal a slightly asymmetric magnetic field of the magnetron source array and strong dependencies of the plasma discharge characteristics on both the grid and the substrate voltages. Positive grid voltage increases both target and substrate currents, increases the plasma potential, and broadens the energy distributions of ions bombarding the substrate. Grid biasing effects on the plasma discharge characteristics and substrate current can be attributed to corresponding changes to the plasma potential, while substrate biasing effects are more complex and nonlinear. Furthermore, these results demonstrate that grid-assisted deposition offers additional flexibility in controlling the deposition process for tuning properties of ultrathick films for ICF applications.
ICF targets↗
Size and shape dependence of CO adsorption sites on sapphire supported Fe microcrystals
The surface structure and stoichiometry of alumina substrates, as well as the size, growth characteristics, and shape of Fe deposits on sapphire substrates have been investigated by low energy electron diffraction (LEED), Auger electron spectroscopy, electron energy loss spectroscopy, and X-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS), as well as work function measurements, in conjunction with transition electron microscopy observations. The substrates used in this work were the following: (1) new, clean Al2O3; (2) same surface amorphized by Ar ion bombardment; (3) same surface regenerated by 650 C annealing; (4) amorphous alumina films on Ta slab; and (5) polycrystal alumina films, obtained by heating amorphous films to 600 C. Substrate cleaning was found to be most effective in producing a reproducible surface upon oxygen RF plasma treatment. The Fe nucleation and growth process was found to depend strongly on the type of substrate surface and deposition conditions. Ar ion bombardment under beam flooding, and subsequent annealing at 650 C was found an effective means to restore the original Al2O3 (1102) surface for renewed Fe deposition.
Papageorgopoulos, C.↗