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At least 19 records

Excited state dynamics of thulium ions in yttrium aluminum garnets

The processes that take place in the excited states of a trivalent Thulium (Tm) ion in an Yttrium Aluminum Garnet (YAG) crystal, being relevant to the use of this system for laser applications, have been the object of several studies. We have reexamined this system focusing our attention on the dynamics of Tm following its excitation in the H-3(sub 4) level. Under these conditions the system relaxes through a cross-relaxation process. H-3(sub 4) yields F-3(sub 4), H-3(sub 6) yields F-3(sub 4), whose rate depends upon both the concentration of the Tm ion and the temperature of the crystal. The excitation spectrum obtained by monitoring the 1.8 micron emission of Tm (due to the F-3(sub 4) yields H-3(sub 6) transition) indicates an increase in the contribution to this emission from the H-3(sub 4) level relative to the H-3(sub 5) level as the Tm concentration increases; this shows the increased role played by the H-3(sub 4) level in pumping the infrared emission. Correspondingly, the duration of the luminescence originating in the H-3(sub 4) level is shortened as the concentration of Tm increases. The concentration quenching of this lifetime can be fit to a model which assumes that the cross-relaxation is due to a dipole-dipole interaction; from this fit, the intrinsic Tm lifetime in the absence of cross relaxation can be derived. We have used this lifetime to calculate the rate of the cross-relaxation process. We have evaluated this rate as a function of the temperature and found it to be fastest at 77 K. We have also calculated the microscopic interaction parameters for the cross-relaxation process by using two independent experimental features: (1) the time evolution of the emission from the H-3(sub 4) level; and (2) the spectral overlap between the H-3(sub 4) yields F-3(sub 4) emission and the H-3(sub 6) yields F-3(sub 4) absorption. We have also considered the migration of excitation among the Tm ions in the F-3(sub 4) level and calculated the relevant microparameter by the use of the relevant spectral overlap. The data are consistent with the model in which the Tm ions, once excited into the H-3(sub 4) level decay by cross-relaxation to the F-3(sub 4), and then transfer rapidly their energy to other Tm ions.

Armagan, G.

Spectroscopic characterization of dynamical processes for Tm,Ho:YAG lasers

The energy transfer processes in Tm,Ho:YAG lasers were investigated in spectral studies and measurements of the temporal response to pulsed excitation. These processes include the population of the 3H4 pump band of Tm, cross-relaxation in Tm, the transfer of energy from Tm to Ho, and various loss mechanisms. It was found that the Tm cross-relaxation is due to a dipole-dipole interaction between Tm ions and that the rate of this process is a function of temperature and ion concentration.

Armagan, G.

Comparison of spectroscopic properties of Tm and Ho in YAG and YLF crystals

The paper compares the cross-relaxation, energy transfer and loss processes in Tm- and Ho-doped YAG and YLF as a function of temperature, Tm concentration, and excitation power. Significant differences in the behavior of Tm and Tm,Ho in YAG and YLF crystals were found. The cross-relaxation rates of Tm(6 pct) are faster in YLF (about 5 microsec) than YAG (about 10 microsec). The energy transfer rates between Tm and Ho are faster in YLF than YAG. The time it takes for the maximum intensity of 1.7-micron emission to drop 10 percent is 25 microsec for YLF:Tm(6 pct),Ho(0.6 pct) and 65 microsec YAG:Tm(6 pct),Ho(0.5 pct). The losses occurring with increasing pump power for 2.1-micron emission of the above samples are 30 percent less in YLF than YAG. These qualitative differences point to YLF as a valuable 2-micron laser host material.

Armagan, G.

Microwave spectroscopy

Microwave spectroscopy - electric field effects in nuclear magnetic resonance of fluids, expansion of velocity surfaces in spherical harmonics, and electron cross relaxation in dilute ruby

CROSS RELAXATION

Rotational excitation in collisions between two rigid rotors - Alternate angular momentum coupling and pressure broadening of HCl by H2

In order to compute relaxation 'cross sections' for molecule-molecule collisions, it is convenient to employ a coupled angular-momentum representation which differs from that generally used. An explicit expression for collision-induced spectral pressure broadening in this representation is given, and this is used to examine the difference between para- and ortho-H2 for broadening of HCl.

Green, S.

Rotational excitation of symmetric top molecules by collisions with atoms. II - Infinite order sudden approximation

The infinite order sudden (IOS) approximation is extended to rotational excitation of symmetric tops by collisions with atoms. After development of a formalism for 'primitive' or 'one-ended' tops, proper parity-adapted linear combinations describing real rotors are considered and modifications needed for asymmetric rigid rotors are noted. The generalized spectroscopic relaxation cross sections are discussed. IOS calculations for NH3-He and H2CO-He are performed and compared with more accurate calculations, and the IOS approximation is found to provide a reasonably accurate description.

Green, S.

Spectra of circularly polarized radiation from astrophysical OH masers

A striking feature of astrophysical masers is the tendency for either one or the other of the circular polarizations to dominate in the radiation from the strong, widely observed masing transitions of OH at 18 cm. Spectral line profiles are calculated for polarized maser radiation due to the combined effects of a velocity gradient and, as is indicated for these transitions, a Zeeman splitting that is at least comparable with the thermal contributions to the breadths of the spectral lines. The resulting spectral features are similar in appearance, including the presence of large net circular polarization and narrow line breadths, to the commonly observed spectra of OH masers in molecular clouds. The calculations presented here are performed as a function of frequency without making the approximations of a large velocity gradient. Rapid cross relaxation, which has been advocated by others for the OH masers, is assumed.

Nedoluha, Gerald E.

Modeling Cr-to-Tm and Cr-to-Tm-to-Ho energy transfer in YAG crystals

A systematic analysis of energy transfer processes in crystals of YAG doped with varying concentrations of Cr and Tm is described. Both spectral measurements and measurements of the temporal response to pulsed excitation are used to give independent determinations of the microscopic interaction parameter for Cr to Tm transfer. The different factors in influencing the temperature dependence of the Cr to Tm transfer are discussed. The dependence of the Tm cross-relaxation rate on Tm concentration is determined.

Swetits, John J.

The role of matrix material and CCl4 (electron acceptor) on the ionization mechanisms of matrix-isolated naphthalene

The formation mechanisms and optical properties of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) isolated in argon and neon matrices were studied in a systematic manner in an attempt to provide spectroscopic data on PAH ions under conditions relevant to astrophysical applications. The results obtained indicate the strong influence of the matrix material on the competing radiative (fluorescence and phosphorescence) and nonradiative (internal conversion and intersystem crossing) relaxation processes of the trapped molecule.

Salama, F.

Self-, N2- and Ar-broadening and line mixing in HCN and C2H2

Self-, N2- and Ar-broadening coefficients were measured for the stretch-bend infrared combination bands nu-1 + nu-1/2 (4004/cm) of HCN and nu-1 + nu-1/5 (4091/cm) of C2H2, using a tunable difference-frequency laser. At atmospheric pressures, the Q branches of these bands exhibit significant rotational narrowing or line mixing. The broadening coefficients are fit with empirical rotationally inelastic collision rate laws, which are then used to model the line mixing in the overlapped Q-branch profiles. Simple energy gap fitting laws appear to be suitable for the shorter-range intermolecular quadrupole-quadrupole and induction forces, whereas an energy-corrected-sudden scaling law works better for the longer-range dipole-dipole and dipole-quadrupole collision partners. In all cases, the line-coupling coefficients are substantially reduced from the rotationally inelastic rates fit to the broadening coefficients, indicating that 35-70 percent of the broadening may be due to other collisional mechanisms such as cross-relaxation to the degenerate H state vibrational level.

Pine, A. S.

Spectroscopy and excitation dynamics of the trivalent lanthanides Tm(3+) and Ho(3+) in LiYF4

A detailed study of the spectroscopy and excitation dynamics Tm3+ and Ho3+ in yttrium lithium fluoride, LiYF4 (YLF), has been done. Absorption spectroscopy is utilized in the Judd-Ofelt theory to determine radiative transition rates of spontaneous emission. Luminescence spectroscopy is studied under cw diode laser excitation at 785nm. The effect of dopant ion concentration and excitation power on the observed luminescence are considered in these measurements. An analysis of these measurements have been used to determine channels of energy transfer between Tm3+ and Ho3+ ions. The temporal response of Tm and Ho in singly and co-doped YLF to pulsed laser excitation with a Ti:Al2O3 laser and a CoMgF2 laser turned to various wavelengths have also been studied. The energy transfer mechanisms of cross relaxation, upconversion, and resonant energy transfer between Tm3+ and Ho3+ ions have been modeled, and the model parameters extracted by a fitting procedure to the measured temporal response curves. Rate equation approaches to modeling are presented that result in predictions of rate constants for energy transfer processes, as well as more conventional approaches to modeling such as the Forster-Dexter models, which give the interaction strengths in terms of microscopic interaction parameters.

Walsh, Brian M.

Relaxation processes in a turbulent compressible magnetofluid

The compressible extensions of time asymptotic relaxation states of incompressible two-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic turbulence are studied. A polytropic equation of state is used with viscous and resistive dissipation. The incompressible case is known to allow three distinct time asymptotic types of behavior: magnetic energy dominated relaxation, kinetic energy dominated relaxation, and cross helicity dominated relaxation. At low Mach numbers the incompressible scenario is reproducible from the compressible simulations, and compressibility plays only a secondary role. At moderate, but still subsonic, Mach numbers the distinct incompressible processes are still recognizable, but strong compressibility features dominate the high-wave-number regime of several simulations. In particular, the magnetic and kinetic energy dominated simulations display regions of strong acoustic turbulence near the dissipation scale.

Ghosh, S.

Design of Hypervelocity Flow Generator (HFG) and Its Diagnostics

Ground facilities for hypersonic research are a key element for successful development of aerodynamically proven hypervelocity vehicles. Design concepts and diagnostics of a hypervelocity flow generator (HFG) were made as a test platform for hypersonic/hypervelocity spacecraft models at the NASA Langley Research Center. The HFG is a hypersonic flow field generator using optically heated gas which is blown into an 80 cu m vacuum chamber. The vacuum chamber is kept at a stable vacuum pressure with a combination of three large vacuum pumps, while the HFG is in the test mode. The HFG provides a relatively small test section with approximately a 20 cm window. This facility was designed to generate 2.45 km/sec of flow speed, and potentially generate a continuous flow with the nozzle and vacuum system. The window in test section provides a direct view of the shock wave around a model in order to measure temperature, pressure, and density profile within the shock layer. One of the key test goals under this project is to understand why the emission spectra from the standing shockwave plasma predicted by Lora-Loran codes are significantly different from the measured emission spectra from the Flight Investigation Reentry Environment (FIRE II) Flight. The correct estimate of the thermal loading on the leading edge of hypersonic vehicles greatly affects the aerodynamic design, the material selection for the vehicle, and the cooling requirement and can be obtained by the precise modeling of emission spectra from shockwave plasma. However, the estimation of thermal loading is not an easy task due to complex non-equilibrium radiative process within high temperature shock layers that still falls into a category of cold plasma. Direct flight experiments are the most desirable, but not a cost-effective approach. Analysis by computational fluid dynamics (CFD) offers many test flexibilities. However, the CFD codes must be fully tested and validated with experimental data before the codes are effectively used for practical design. Large discrepancies between experiments and codes appear in hypersonic/hypervelocity flow regimes at high altitudes of 60 km ~ 90 km. This HFG facility offers some important parameters for CFD code validation, such as collision cross-sections, relaxation times, reaction rate coefficients and transportation coefficients. The HFG test facility is based on the ejection flow of high temperature gas heated over to 3500 K through a nozzle. The tungsten gas chamber of the HFG is heated up to a desired temperature by a 60 kW optical power beam source. This system consists of an optical power source, a thermal chamber, an expansion nozzle, a test section, and an 80 cu m vacuum tank. 60 kW optical input power is obtained from the 150 kW Vortek arc lamp system (by Vortek Industries, Vancouver, Canada). This optical beam is focused to heat the gas chamber within which a flow media is heated. The maximum achievable temperature of the flow medium reached approximately 3500 K or even higher but is limited by the melting point of the chamber material used. The exhaust velocity through the nozzle was determined by the stagnation temperature and the molecular weight of the working medium at the test section. To provide design parameters, a NASA Chemical Equilibrium with Application (CEA) computer program is used for the simulation of aerothermal data. This CEA program can calculate chemical equilibrium and properties of complex mixtures using shock tube parameters. For nitrogen gas at 2666 K stagnation temperature, the maximum achievable velocity at the test section is approximately 2.45 km/sec which is within the range of the thermal velocity of 8000 K shock layer. Based on the calculation through the CEA program, the design parameters of a HFG were determined and implemented for the test section that includes an expansion nozzle. The installed test section of the experimental facility can sustain a condition of a re-entry vehicle from the Space at an altitude of 60-90 km. After installation of the HFG, the system was fully tested and its operational parameters were measured. An 80 cu m vacuum chamber of HFG was set at 1 torr level to keep a stable downstream condition. The pumping time to reach the minimum vacuum pressure (~ 1 torr) at the test chamber from atmospheric pressure was approximately an hour using Kinney (MBV-14000/MB -1600/KT-300) and Stokes (Model 1772 and 412) pumps. Such a setup condition allowed a continued stable operation of the HFG experiment with flowrates through 1-, 3-, or 5-mm diameters of nozzle throat. The flow characteristics of the HFG for various operating conditions were performed using a focused Schlieren method. At 0.8 torr chamber pressure, a barrel shock was observed at the test section. With a sphere obstacle of 12 mm diameter in the flow, a bow shock (~ 2-mm thickness) was observed by a focused Schlieren visualization method.

Hypervelocity flow

On the factorization and fitting of molecular scattering information

The reported analysis is based on the factored IOS T-matrix. It is shown that line shape measurements may be used over a range of temperatures to evaluate inelastic scattering cross sections. Basic factorization or parameterization relations are derived by considering the wavefunction equations. The parameterization of cross sections is considered, taking into account the differential scattering amplitude and cross section, integral cross sections, phenomenological cross sections for general relaxation processes, and viscosity and diffusion cross sections. Thermal averages and rates are discussed, giving attention to integral cross sections and rates, and general phenomenological cross sections. The results of computational studies are also presented.

Goldflam, R.