Influence of Thermal Treatment on Electrical and Physical Properties of Coated Ceramics

Technical dielectric materials and ceramics are used in many different high technology industrial areas and especially for spacecraft applications. On satellites, these materials are subjected to extreme conditions due to the space plasma environment. To survive, these ceramic insulators must have exceptional electrical and thermal properties. Boron Nitride (BN) and Aluminum Oxide (Al 2O3) are used in particular because they combine good electrical insulation and high thermal conductivity. However, BN and Al2O3 used in spacecraft interiors are exposed to critical radiation demands, where these insulators are irradiated by electrons with high energies and flux. Charged particles are trapped in the ceramics, producing high electric fields. Subsequently, internal disturbances and electrical breakdowns can occur. Over time, these phenomena may cause degradation or failure of various components and embedded systems. Consequently, this study endeavors to understand the physical mechanisms which occur in these ceramics materials under electron irradiation. These dielectrics materials have been characterized at ONERA Toulouse (DESP) in the CEDRE (Chambre d’Etude De Revêtement Electrisés) irradiation chamber. A parametric study was performed to assess the influence of incident energy and flux, temperature, coating s, annealing, and ionizing dose on the charging and relaxation kinetics of BN and Al2O3. Surface and thermal treatments were found to limit BN’s charging. Dedicated treatments enhanced charge transport. To identify the effect of thermal annealing on electrical behavior in these materials, a thorough study of electron trapping processes was performed using cathodoluminescence in the Electron Emission Test facility at Utah State University. These tests explored differences in the nature and density of defect states. Together, these investigations determined correlations between chemical, structural and physical properties for each insulator’s configurations. Further, we observed degradation of coatings and an evolution of the concentration of their chemical defects. Contamination and ageing effects were identified on the rough material surfaces of ceramics exposed under a critical electron flux. Therefore, treatments applied to optimize electrical properties were found to be ineffective, especially for long-term charging mitigation. We will discuss these results and compare them for each ceramic configuration. The goal of this investigation is to understand the predominant physical mechanisms and main structural and chemical differences between these ceramic configurations in order to perform an exhaustive correlation between the properties. In future studies, we propose to define a defect-based model which can be used to optimize a material to limit both its charging and degradation over the time

Gendered self-views across 62 countries: a test of competing models

Social role theory posits that binary gender gaps in agency and communion should be larger in less egalitarian countries, reflecting these countries’ more pronounced sex-based power divisions. Conversely, evolutionary and self-construal theorists suggest that gender gaps in agency and communion should be larger in more egalitarian countries, reflecting the greater autonomy support and flexible self-construction processes present in these countries. Using data from 62 countries (N = 28,640), we examine binary gender gaps in agentic and communal self-views as a function of country-level objective gender equality (the Global Gender Gap Index) and subjective distributions of social power (the Power Distance Index). Findings show that in more egalitarian countries, gender gaps in agency are smaller and gender gaps in communality are larger. These patterns are driven primarily by cross-country differences in men’s self-views and by the Power Distance Index (PDI) more robustly than the Global Gender Gap Index (GGGI). We consider possible causes and implications of these findings

Psychometric Properties and Correlates of Precarious Manhood Beliefs in 62 Nations

Precarious manhood beliefs portray manhood, relative to womanhood, as a social status that is hard to earn, easy to lose, and proven via public action. Here, we present cross-cultural data on a brief measure of precarious manhood beliefs (the Precarious Manhood Beliefs scale [PMB]) that covaries meaningfully with other cross-culturally validated gender ideologies and with country-level indices of gender equality and human development. Using data from university samples in 62 countries across 13 world regions (N = 33,417), we demonstrate: (1) the psychometric isomorphism of the PMB (i.e., its comparability in meaning and statistical properties across the individual and country levels); (2) the PMB’s distinctness from, and associations with, ambivalent sexism and ambivalence toward men; and (3) associations of the PMB with nation-level gender equality and human development. Findings are discussed in terms of their statistical and theoretical implications for understanding widely-held beliefs about the precariousness of the male gender role

Etude des propriétés physiques et électriques de matériaux céramiques utilisés en application spatiale

Dielectric materials used on satellites are subject to radiative and thermal extreme stresses which may lead to disturbances on board instrumentation. The application efficiency can then decrease significantly due to charging and aging effects of used ceramics. With the aim to understand and predict these phenomena, the mechanisms investigation of charges transport and electrical aging on these ceramics is of high importance. The scientific approach of this study was to define a protocol and an experimental method which allows characterising the electrical and physico-chemical behaviours of raw boron nitride and coated with a thin coating of alumina. For this purpose, a parametric study was performed in the irradiation chamber, named CEDRE (at ONERA Toulouse) in order to assess the influence of some parameters such as, incident energy, primary electron flux, temperature, ionising dose, on charging, relaxation and electrical aging kinetics of these industrial ceramics. This study demonstrated that it is possible to greatly limit the dielectrics charging thanks to the use of a ceramic coating and suitable annealing thermal treatment. Indeed, the high secondary electron emission of alumina and the increase of surface conductivity generated by the annealing thermal treatment partly govern the low surface potential of coated boron nitride. Some alumina coating were subsequently elaborated through PVD-RF and then characterised in the irradiation chamber in order to identify the preparation parameters which allow optimising the electrical properties of system. It was shown that the optimisation of the roughness and the coating thickness limits the surface potential of ceramics. An experimental study was conducted in the frame of an international collaboration with the Materials Physics Group of the Utah State University (Logan, USA), in order to investigate the influence of nature and densities of electron defects on the electrical properties of different ceramics. The cathodoluminescence method was used and brought to light the origin of total conductivity difference between materials, raw, coated and annealed. A new method to measure the surface potential under continuous electron irradiation was developed and then validated. A partial discharges mechanism was identified on surface of annealed samples with this optimised device. Ageing processes of the irradiated materials was also studied in the irradiation chamber to reproduce the observed degradation in orbit over the long time. It was demonstrated that the charging of annealed coated materials is noticeable when the sample receive a critical ionising dose. Several physico-chemical characterisations were thus performed at CIRIMAT in order to study the evolution of structural and chemical properties of ceramics. This evolution was correlated with that of electrical properties after deterioration under critical electron irradiation. The contamination and deterioration mechanisms of coated ceramics are responsible of the electrical aging observed experimentally. Finally, these thorough experimental characterisations allowed the development of physical model for the description of the different mechanisms involved on irradiated ceramics and coating

Gendered Self-Views Across 62 Countries: A Test of Competing Models

Social role theory posits that binary gender gaps in agency and communion should be larger in less egalitarian countries, reflecting these countries' more pronounced sex-based power divisions. Conversely, evolutionary and self-construal theorists suggest that gender gaps in agency and communion should be larger in more egalitarian countries, reflecting the greater autonomy support and flexible self-construction processes present in these countries. Using data from 62 countries (N = 28,640), we examine binary gender gaps in agentic and communal self-views as a function of country-level objective gender equality (the Global Gender Gap Index) and subjective distributions of social power (the Power Distance Index). Findings show that in more egalitarian countries, gender gaps in agency are smaller and gender gaps in communality are larger. These patterns are driven primarily by cross-country differences in men's self-views and by the Power Distance Index (PDI) more robustly than the Global Gender Gap Index (GGGI). We consider possible causes and implications of these findings

Gendered Self-Views Across 62 Countries: A Test of Competing Models

Social role theory posits that binary gender gaps in agency and communion should be larger in less egalitarian countries, reflecting these countries’ more pronounced sex-based power divisions. Conversely, evolutionary and self-construal theorists suggest that gender gaps in agency and communion should be larger in more egalitarian countries, reflecting the greater autonomy support and flexible self-construction processes present in these countries. Using data from 62 countries ( N = 28,640), we examine binary gender gaps in agentic and communal self-views as a function of country-level objective gender equality (the Global Gender Gap Index) and subjective distributions of social power (the Power Distance Index). Findings show that in more egalitarian countries, gender gaps in agency are smaller and gender gaps in communality are larger. These patterns are driven primarily by cross-country differences in men’s self-views and by the Power Distance Index (PDI) more robustly than the Global Gender Gap Index (GGGI). We consider possible causes and implications of these findings.</p