Plasma and Beam Physics Commons^™

Investigation Of The Chemical Kinetics In An Atmospheric Cold Plasma Towards Co2 Conversion, Daniel Piatek

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

Hydrogenation of carbon dioxide (CO2) to methanol (CH3OH) is a promising route for utilization of excess and residual CO2. The conversion of CO to methanol is a well-developed process but the ability to use CO2 as a feed gas still requires high pressures (30-300 atm) to attain conversion. In this work, the hydrogenation of CO2 is explored using H2O as well as H2 in an atmospheric pressure nonthermal (cold) plasma created with a dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) reactor. Different gas mixtures such as argon (Ar) and helium (He) are used to understand their interactions in the process of CO2 hydrogenation ...

Topics In Gravitational Wave Physics, Aaron David Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

We begin with a brief introduction to gravitational waves. Next we look into the origin of the Chandrasekhar transformations between the different equations found by perturbing a Schwarzschild black hole. Some of the relationships turn out to be Darboux transformations. Then we turn to GW150914, the first detected black hole binary system, to see if the nonlinear memory might be detectable by current and future detectors. Finally, we develop an updated code for computing equatorial extreme mass ratio inspirals which will be open sourced as soon as it has been generalized for arbitrary inclinations.

Hot Electron Chemistry On Bimetallic Plasmonic Nanoparticles, Bryn E. Merrill, Bingjie Zhang, Jerry Larue

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Catalysis provides pathways for efficient and selective chemical reactions through the lowering of energy barriers for desired products. Gold nanoparticles (AuNP) show excellent promise as plasmonic catalysts. Localized surface plasmon resonances are oscillations of the electron bath at the surface of a nanoparticle that generate energetically intense electric fields and rapidly decay into energetically excited electrons. The excited electrons have the potential to destabilize strongly bound oxygen atoms through occupation of accessible anti-bonding orbitals. Tuning the anti-bonding orbitals to make them accessible for occupancy will be achieved by coating the AuNP in a thin layer of another transition metal, such ...

240— Target Characterization Using Rutherford Backscattering Spectroscopy, Matthew G. Klein, Anthony C. Cooper, Jovahn A. Roumell

GREAT Day

Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy (RBS) is a non-destructive ion-beam analytical technique that is used to determine properties of a target such as thickness, areal density, and elemental composition. This scattering is the result of Coulomb forces between the target atoms and the incident particle. The energy spectrum of the scattered ions depends on the atomic number of the target atoms as well as the target thickness.

1d Fluid Model Of Rf-Excited Cold Atmospheric Plasmas In Helium With Air Gas Impurities, Yifan Liu, Dingxin Liu, Jishen Zhang, Bowen Sun, Aijun Yang, Michael G. Kong

Bioelectrics Publications

Cold atmospheric plasmas (CAPs) in helium with air gas impurities (HeþAir for abbreviation) compromise the discharge stability of helium and the chemical reactivity of air, having great prospects for various applications such as plasma biomedicine. However, different kinds of reactive species are produced in HeþAir CAPs but only a few of them could be measured, and the plasma chemistry is so complex that the reported simulation models are simplified to a large extent, such as neglecting the space variation of CAPs by using a 0D model. As a result, much remains unknown for HeþAir CAPs, which hinders the development of ...

Determining Bulk Aerosol Absorption From Off Axis Backscattering Using Rayleigh Beacon Laser Pulses, Julie C. Grossnickle

Theses and Dissertations

Aerosol absorption and scattering can play a key role in degrading high energy laser performance in the form of thermal blooming and beam attenuation. Aerosol absorption properties are not completely understood, and thus affect how we are able to quantify expected high energy laser weapon performance. The Air Force Institute of Technology Center for Directed Energy (AFIT CDE) developed both Laser Environmental Effects Definition and Reference (LEEDR) and the High Energy Laser End-to-End Operational Simulation (HELEEOS) code to characterize atmospheric radiative transfer effects and evaluate expected directed energy weapon system performance. These packages enable modeling of total irradiance at given ...

Laser Shock Peening Pressure Impulse Determination Via Empirical Data-Matching With Optimization Software, Colin C. Engebretsen

Theses and Dissertations

Laser shock peening (LSP) is a form of work hardening by means of laser induced pressure impulse. LSP imparts compressive residual stresses which can improve fatigue life of metallic alloys for structural use. The finite element modeling (FEM) of LSP is typically done by applying an assumed pressure impulse, as useful experimental measurement of this pressure impulse has not been adequately accomplished. This shortfall in the field is a current limitation to the accuracy of FE modeling, and was addressed in the current work. A novel method was tested to determine the pressure impulse shape in time and space by ...

Si Nanocrystal Synthesis Via Double Implantation And Variable Implantation, James M. Gaudet

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Silicon (Si) nanocrystals (nc) precipitated from silicon-implanted silicon oxide (SiO₂) are of interest as a novel light source for illumination, biomedical applications, optical computing, etc. They have some advantages over conventional III-V compound semiconductor nanocrystals produced by colloidal synthesis. They are compatible with Si/SiO₂ based semiconductor processing, are stable, non-toxic at point of synthesis and consumption, and their luminescence falls with the infrared transmission window of biological materials. Unfortunately, synthesis of Si-nc embedded SiO₂ is uneconomical and is not as amenable to precise control of the size distribution of nanocrystals as is the case for III-V ...

Control Of Charged Particle Dynamics And Electron Power Absorption Dynamics Utilizing Voltage Waveform Tailoring In Capacitively Driven Radio-Frequency Plasmas, Steven W. Brandt

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

In this work, experimental measurements and analysis of numerical simulations are performed for capacitively coupled plasmas driven by tailored voltage waveforms under conditions which examine complicating factors present in industrial processes, including the influence of resonance effects, electronegative gases or gas mixtures, and plasma-surface interactions at a changing plasma-surface interface. Furthermore, the influence of different tailored voltage waveforms on the spatio-temporal electron power absorption, the generation of a DC self-bias, and on process relevant plasma parameters like ion energy distribution functions is investigated to provide a more complete understanding of the underlying fundamental plasma physics responsible for sustaining the discharge ...

Interpretations Of Bicoherence In Space & Lab Plasma Dynamics, Gregory Allen Riggs

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

The application of bicoherence analysis to plasma research, particularly in non-linear, coupled-wave regimes, has thus far been significantly belied by poor resolution in time, and/or outright destruction of frequency information. Though the typical power spectrum cloaks the phase-coherency between frequencies, Fourier transforms of higher-order convolutions provide an n-dimensional spectrum which is adept at elucidating n-wave phase coherence. As such, this investigation focuses on the utility of the normalized bispectrum for detection of wave-wave coupling in general, with emphasis on distinct implications within the scope of non-linear plasma physics. Interpretations of bicoherent features are given for time series ...

Investigation Of Mnxni1-Xo Thin Films Using Pulsed Laser Deposition, Md Ashif Anwar

MSU Graduate Theses

The exchange bias (EB) effect, especially in nanomaterials, is highly promising for use in antiferromagnet-based spintronics applications. NiO is a well known antiferromagnetic material with a high Néel temperature (525K) and can exhibit ferromagnetism/ ferrimagnetism by adding other magnetic transition elements. Our previous work has shown that the antiferromagnetic characteristics of conventional NiO insulating nanostructured material can be altered to have substantial ferrimagnetic characteristics by doping NiO with Mn or Co. Pulsed laser deposition (PLD) was used to grow heterostructures comprised of a nanostructured thin NiO film deposited on the surface of a MgO (100) and Al₂O_{3 ...}

A Review Of Ball Lightning Models, Amir Abdallah, Kyle Castleberry, Anyauna Spikes, Khadeem Coumarbatch, Joshua Ballard-Myer, Nick Palmer, Hasitha Mahabaduge

Georgia Journal of Science

Ball lightning is a natural phenomenon that occurs in the atmosphere. However due to its brevity and rarity, its occurrence is not well understood. Three models based on electromagnetic properties are discussed in this paper to explain the rare phenomenon of ball lightning. The first model incorporates the idea of electron bunching, electrons moving with different velocities. This creates a plasma bubble by recombining electrons with ionized gas to form plasma that is stabilized by a standing microwave. The second model explains the idea of streamers being tangled and linked in a magnetic field while stabilized by the conservation of ...

Effect Of Ar(3p54p; 2p)+M -> Ar(3p54s; 1s)+M Branching Ratio On Optically Pumped Rare Gas Laser Performance, Daniel J. Emmons Ii, David E. Weeks

Faculty Publications

Optically pumped rare gas laser performance is analyzed as a function of the Ar(3p⁵4p; 2p) + M → Ar(3p⁵4s; 1s) + M branching ratios. Due to the uncertainty in the branching ratios, a sensitivity study is performed to determine the effect on output and absorbed pump laser intensities. The analysis is performed using a radio frequency dielectric barrier discharge as the source of metastable production for a variety of Argon in Helium mixtures over pressures ranging from 200 to 500 Torr. Peak output laser intensities show a factor of 7 increase as the branching ratio is increased ...

Experimental Testing Of A 3d-Printed Metamaterial Slow Wave Structure For High Power Microwave Generation, Antonio B. De Alleluia

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

A metamaterial (MTM) high power microwave (HPM) vacuum electron device (VED) was developed using 3D printing technology. The specific geometric pattern of the source can produce both negative permittivity and permeability to interact with a relativistic electron beam. The electron beam is generated using a pulsed electron accelerator with a maximum energy of 700 keV and lasting approximately 16 ns. The design of this novel VED consists of a circular waveguide loaded with complementary split-ring resonators in a linear periodic arrangement in which the relativistic beam travels guided by a magnetic field. The electrons interact with the MTM producing electromagnetic ...

Measurement Of Electron Density And Temperature From Laser-Induced Nitrogen Plasma At Elevated Pressure (1–6 Bar), Ashwin P. Rao, Mark Gragston, A Patnaik, Paul Hsu, Michael B. Shattan

Faculty Publications

Laser-induced plasmas experience Stark broadening and shifts of spectral lines carrying spectral signatures of plasma properties. In this paper, we report time-resolved Stark broadening measurements of a nitrogen triplet emission line at 1–6 bar ambient pressure in a pure nitrogen cell. Electron densities are calculated using the Stark broadening for different pressure conditions, which are shown to linearly increase with pressure. Additionally, using a Boltzmann fit for the triplet, the electron temperature is calculated and shown to decrease with increasing pressure. The rate of plasma cooling is observed to increase with pressure. The reported Stark broadening based plasma diagnostics ...

Pulse Power Effects On Transient Plasma Ignition For Combustion, David Wayne Alderman Ii

Electrical & Computer Engineering Theses & Disssertations

Transient plasma ignition (TPI) uses highly non-equilibrium plasmas, driven by less than 100 nanosecond, high-voltage pulses, to initiate combustion. The effects of pulse repetition frequency (PRF) and ultrashort nanosecond rise times on TPI are investigated in this work using lean, stoichiometric, and rich air-fuel mixtures at atmospheric pressure. Experimental data show the transient plasmas driven by ultrashort rise time, high voltage pulses at high PRF’s enhance the combustion of lean or stoichiometric air-methane mixtures in a static chamber. In particular, increasing PRF enhances the combustion performance by means of reduced delay times independent of the equivalence ratio of the ...

Characterization Of Argon And Ar/Cl2 Plasmas Used For The Processing Of Niobium Superconducting Radio-Frequency Cavities, Jeremy J. Peshl

Physics Theses & Dissertations

The plasma processing of superconducting radio-frequency (SRF) cavities has shown significant promise as a complementary or possible replacement for the current wet etch processes. Empirical relationships between the user-controlled external parameters and the effectiveness of Reactive Ion Etching (RIE) for the removal of surface layers of bulk niobium have been previously established. However, a lack of a physical description of the etching discharge, particularly as the external parameters are varied, limits the development of this technology. A full understanding of how these external parameters affect both the amount of material removed and the physical properties of the plasma would aid ...

Nonlinear Characterizing Of A New Titanium Nitride On Aluminum Oxide Metalens, Michael A. Cumming

Theses and Dissertations

A sample metalens generated from Titanium Nitride deposited onto Aluminum Oxide was designed to focus at 10 microns with a beam centered at 800nm, and when analyzed with high intensity illumination was found to have a focal length of 9.650 ±.003µm at an intensity of 16.93[MW/cm² ]. Analyzing this change by comparing it to a Fresnel Lens’ physics shows that for this lens, the effective nonlinear index of refraction is certainly greater than the nonlinear index of just Titanium Nitride itself, at −1.6239 × 10⁻¹⁵[m²/W] compared to the materials −1.3 × 10 ...

Obituary: Anthony Starace (1945-2019)

Anthony F. Starace Publications

Anthony Starace, George Holmes University Professor of physics, died Sept. 5 from complications related to pancreatitis. He was 74.

Starace was born July 24, 1945, in the Queens borough of New York City. He graduated from Stuyvesant High School and earned his bachelor’s degree from Columbia University in 1966 before moving west to the University of Chicago, where he earned his doctorate under adviser Ugo Fano in 1971. It was in Chicago that he met Katherine Fritz of Beatrice, Nebraska, his wife of 51 years.

Following a postdoctoral appointment at Imperial College London, Starace moved to Lincoln as an ...

Numerical Simulation Of Unstable Laser Resonators With A High Gain Medium, Robert L. Lloyd

Theses and Dissertations

This research focused on the numeric simulation of unstable laser resonators with high gain media. In order to accomplish the research, the modes and eigenvalues for various bare cavity resonator were computed followed by modes of a resonator in the presence of gain. Using a Fourier Split Step Method in a Fox and Li iteration scheme, different laser outputs for various laser cavities with gain were computed. Various parameters defining positive branch confocal unstable resonators were chosen corresponding to four studies. The four studies focused on modifying laser cavity Fresnel number, gain medium parameters, gain cell position, and gain cell ...