Maximum thickness of amorphous NiZr interlayers formed by a solid-state reaction technique

Formation of the equilibrium intermetallic compound NiZr in sputter deposited Ni/Zr diffusion couples is suppressed by the formation of a metastable amorphous NiZr alloy until a critical thickness of the amorphous NiZr interlayer is reached. The temperature dependence of this critical thickness is studied experimentally. A phenomenological model based on the premise of interfacial heterogeneous nucleation is proposed to understand the evolution of Ni/Zr diffusion couples

Measurements of ocean wave spectra and modulation transfer function with the airborne two frequency scatterometer

The directional spectrum and the microwave modulation transfer function of ocean waves can be measured with the airborne two frequency scatterometer technique. Similar to tower based observations, the aircraft measurements of the Modulation Transfer Function (MTF) show that it is strongly affected by both wind speed and sea state. Also detected are small differences in the magnitudes of the MTF between downwind and upwind radar look directions, and variations with ocean wavenumber. The MTF inferred from the two frequency radar is larger than that measured using single frequency, wave orbital velocity techniques such as tower based radars or ROWS measurements from low altitude aircraft. Possible reasons for this are discussed. The ability to measure the ocean directional spectrum with the two frequency scatterometer, with supporting MTF data, is demonstrated

Microwave switching power divider

A pair of parallel, spaced-apart circular ground planes define a microwave cavity with multi-port microwave power distributing switching circuitry formed on opposite sides of a thin circular dielectric substrate disposed between the ground planes. The power distributing circuitry includes a conductive disk located at the center of the substrate and connected to a source of microwave energy. A high speed, low insertion loss switching diode and a dc blocking capacitor are connected in series between the outer end of a transmission line and an output port. A high impedance, microwave blocking dc bias choke is connected between each switching diode and a source of switching current. The switching source forward biases the diodes to couple microwave energy from the conductive disk to selected output ports and, to associated antenna elements connected to the output ports to form a synthesized antenna pattern

Laboratory studies of the interaction of ions with condensed gases: Planetary applications

The work described is concerned with laboratory studies of the processes that produce the ejection of molecules from the surfaces of condensed gas solids, the change in the chemistry of the surface materials, and the relationship of these results to processes occurring in the solar system. Included is a discussion of the experimental techniques employed in making these laboratory measurements

A conceptual approach for noncontact calorimetry in space

A concept is developed and described which allows to measure the heat capacity and the effective thermal conductivity of stable and undercooled liquid metals and alloys in an electromagnetic levitation apparatus. We propose to use an ac pulse heating method which is used nowadays as a standard technique for precision measurement of low temperature heat capacities. The ideal process parameters including the drop diameter D, temperature T, and frequency of measurement ω can be optimized when the following relations hold for the external and internal relaxation time constants τ_1 and τ_2, respectively: ωτ_1≳10 and ωτ_2<0.1. Then heat capacity data can be obtained with an accuracy of better than 1% with D about 5 to 10 mm, T between 1200 and 1800 K and ω between 0.1 and 1 Hz for typical metals and alloys

Enhanced superconductivity and lattice instability in Nb-Rh alloys

Superconductivity with transition temperature above 10 °K has been observed in a new Nb-Rh intermediate phase. The new metastable phase is obtained by liquid quenching the binary alloy or by the addition of a small percentage of carbon to form a stable ternary alloy

Advanced 2-frequency ocean sensing radar using high resolution antenna beams

The opportunity to use a large space antenna system for remote sensing applications permits the creation of an advanced ocean sensing radar that combines the abilities of previously developed techniques. The 15 meter antenna will permit much higher angular and spatial resolution at the surface that will lead to techniques of observing ocean wave heights and the directional spectrum that had not previously been feasible from space. At the same time, sensors to measure ocean surface winds can be in operation and the data from both can be combined to increase the accuracy of each individual sensor. The existing capabilities and sensor techniques with typical data characteristics for the individual measurement of sea surface quantities are outlined

Thermal stability and grain growth behavior of mechanically alloyed nanocrystalline Fe-Cu alloys

X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, and differential scanning calorimetry were used to study the thermal stability of highly supersaturated nanocrystalline FexCu100−x alloys (10~80. For 60<=x<=80 fcc and bcc phases coexist. Heating to elevated temperatures leads to structural relaxation, phase separation, and grain growth of the metastable nanocrystalline solid solutions. Single-phase fcc and bcc alloys undergo significant strain release but no appreciable grain growth prior to phase separation. After phase separation pronounced grain growth sets in. In contrast, samples in the two-phase region show some grain growth and significant chemical redistribution even at low temperatures. The phase separation of single-phase fcc and bcc alloys proceeds via different mechanisms: fcc solid solutions decompose by forming small Fe precipitates, while demixing in bcc alloys starts by segregation of Cu atoms to bcc grain boundaries before nucleation of Cu precipitates. These results show that the stability and grain growth behavior of nanocrystalline alloys is strongly affected by the microstructure of the material

Lattice distortions in YBa2Cu3O7–delta thin films grown in situ by sequential ion beam sputtering

We have analyzed epitaxial, c-axis oriented YBa2Cu3O7–delta thin films grown in situ by sequential ion-beam sputtering on (100) SiTiO3 and (100) MgO substrates. X-ray diffraction studies showed the presence of both homogeneous and inhomogeneous lattice distortions along the c-direction. The c-axis lattice parameters ranged from 11.72 to 12.00 Å. The broadening of the (00l) Bragg peaks in excess of the broadening due to finite film thickness was found to be due to inhomogeneous lattice distortions. The overall trend in the data shows an increase of the inhomogeneous strains with the enlargement of the c-axis lattice parameter. The inhomogeneous lattice distortions are interpreted as fluctuations in the c-axis lattice parameter. The resistive transitions were found to be correlated to the lattice distortions. We show correlations between the midpoint Tc and the c-axis lattice parameter and between the transition widths and the inhomogeneous lattice distortions