Engineering Physics Commons^™

Detecting Radium-226 In Submarine Groundwater Discharge, Rashaun Davis

Undergraduate Research Competition

Studies have been done to see if abundance of neutrinos have an effect on the decay rate of radioactive nuclei. Questions regarding the proximity of the sun and the concentration of the flux of neutrinos as a result, have emerged due to there being more counts in the winter when the sun is closer versus there being less counts in the summer when the sun is farther away. Other studies say that the cause of the difference in counts are more local, as in the environmental conditions like temperature and various background radiation that interferes with the counts of the …

Design Of Smart Trashcan, Haoran Song

Senior Theses

A smart trashcan has been designed which can bring convenience to people for throwing their garbage away during the COVID-19 pandemic. A prototype is made from cardboard to demonstrate its function. This trashcan can sense people who are coming and leaving, and it can open and close automatically. The trashcan is powered by solar energy. A solar panel is mounted on top of the trashcan supporter. This design is specifically for use in China.

Deathtrap, Blake Traylor

Vázquez-Valarezo Poetry Award

I could have titled this one "Bad Trip in an Elevator," but that would twist the poem away from its authenticity. You'll have to trust me on this one: this happened. Not in the usual sense, but in that fiction-is-truth-in-a-funhouse-mirror, postmodern Tim O'Brien sense. And hallucinogens were not involved, nor are they encouraged or condoned. (Do with that Wretched Passive Voice what you will.)

If the word "Deathtrap" didn't amuse me so much, I really could have run with the title "Tired." Or maybe "Very Tired" would have been better. And then there are always the big-hitters: "Fatigue," "Exhaustion," "Are …

Investigation Of Trajectory And Control Designs For A Solar Sail To The Moon, Michelle Nadeau

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

NASA’s Artemis program and other government and commercial projects are working toward establishing a sustainable human presence on the moon. This thesis investigates the technical feasibility of a solar sail-based spacecraft (sailcraft) as a low-cost method of delivering cargo or science instruments to the moon and demonstrates how this sailcraft could be controlled to change its orbit. The concept is a low-cost, commercial launch vehicle-deployable, CubeSat-based sailcraft with a square sail, assumed attitude control, and a small payload traversing from low-Earth orbit toward the moon with zero propellant use. In this thesis, methods for sailcraft to increase altitude, the trajectory …

Zn Acceptors In Β-Ga2O3 Crystals, Timothy D. Gustafson, J. Jesenovec, Christopher A. Lenyk, Nancy C. Giles, J. S. Mccloy, M. Mccluskey, Larry E. Halliburton

Faculty Publications

Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) is used to identify and characterize neutral zinc acceptors in Zn-doped β-Ga₂O₃ crystals. Two EPR spectra are observed at low temperatures, one from Zn ions at tetrahedral Ga(1) sites (the Zn⁰_Ga1 acceptor) and one from Zn ions at octahedral Ga(2) sites (the Zn⁰_Ga2 acceptor). These Zn acceptors are small polarons, with the unpaired spin localized in each case on a threefold coordinated oxygen O(I) ion adjacent to the Zn ion. Resolved hyperfine interactions with neighboring ⁶⁹Ga and ⁷¹Ga nuclei allow the EPR spectra from the two acceptors …

Erratum: A Non-Linear Approximate Solution To The Damped Pendulum Derived Using The Method Of Successive Approximations [Georgia Journal Of Science, Vol. 76, No. 2, Article 9], Javier E. Hasbun

Georgia Journal of Science

In an earlier publication [Hill and Hasbun, 2018] considered an approximate solution to the damped pendulum, named the improved modified method of successive approximations (IMMSA), and compared it to an approximation from the work of [Johannessen, 2014]. Here, a correction is made to that comparison due to an error made in calculating Johannessen's approximation.

Correction To "Quantitative Study Of The Energy Changes In Voltage-Controlled Spin Crossover Molecular Thin Films" [The Journal Of Physical Chemistry Letters (2020) 11:19 (8231-8237) Doi: 10.1021/Acs.Jpclett.0c02209], Aaron Mosey, Ashley S. Dale, Guanhua Hao, Alpha N'Diaye, Peter Dowben, Ruihua Cheng

Peter Dowben Publications

In our recent publication, Figure 5 was published without adequate due diligence. The correct TOC Abstract graphic and Figure 5 are contained here in this correction. The correct on to off current ratios are in the range of 4 to 5, not 100 and the signal to noise ratios are far less than previously shown.

Nonvolatile Voltage Controlled Molecular Spin‐State Switching For Memory Applications, Thilini K. Ekanayaka, Guanhua Hao, Aaron Mosey, Ashley S. Dale, Xuanyuan Jiang, Andrew J. Yost, Keshab R. Sapkota, George T. Wang, Jian Zhang, Alpha T. N’Diaye, Andrew Marshall, Ruihua Cheng, Azad Naeemi, Xiaoshan Xu, Peter Dowben

Peter Dowben Publications

Nonvolatile, molecular multiferroic devices have now been demonstrated, but it is worth giving some consideration to the issue of whether such devices could be a competitive alternative for solid-state nonvolatile memory. For the Fe (II) spin crossover complex [Fe{H₂B(pz)₂}₂(bipy)], where pz = tris(pyrazol-1-yl)-borohydride and bipy = 2,20-bipyridine, voltage-controlled isothermal changes in the electronic structure and spin state have been demonstrated and are accompanied by changes in conductance. Higher conductance is seen with [Fe{H₂B(pz)₂}₂(bipy)] in the high spin state, while lower conductance occurs for the low spin state. Plausibly, …

Comparing Radiation Shielding Potential Of Liquid Propellants To Water For Application In Space, John Czaplewski

Master's Theses

The radiation environment in space is a threat that engineers and astronauts need to mitigate as exploration into the solar system expands. Passive shielding involves placing as much material between critical components and the radiation environment as possible. However, with mass and size budgets, it is important to select efficient materials to provide shielding. Currently, NASA and other space agencies plan on using water as a shield against radiation since it is already necessary for human missions. Water has been tested thoroughly and has been proven to be effective. Liquid propellants are needed for every mission and also share similar …

A Comparison Of Sporadic-E Occurrence Rates Using Ionosondes And Gps Radio Occultation Measurements, Rodney A. Carmona Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

Sporadic-E (Es) occurrence rates from Global Position Satellite radio occultation (GPS-RO) measurements have shown to vary by nearly an order of magnitude between studies, motivating a comparison with ground-based measurements. In an attempt to find an accurate GPS-RO technique for detecting Es formation, occurrence rates derived using five previously developed GPS-RO techniques are compared to ionosonde measurements over an eight-year period from 2010-2017. GPS-RO measurements within 170 km of a ionosonde site are used to calculate Es occurrence rates and compared to the ground-truth ionosonde measurements. Each technique is compared individually for each ionosonde site and then combined to determine …

Topological Realizations Of Entangling Quantum Gates, Adrian D. Scheppe

Theses and Dissertations

Topological systems are immune to decoherence and provide a hunting ground for qubits that are fault tolerant. The process of calculating linear operator representations of Majorana fermion exchanges or braids is well known and well documented; however, there is no documented intuition or algorithm which provides the opposite; braids from quantum gates. In this document, all possible linear representations of single, double, triple, and quadruple qubit gates are calculated to find several key patterns which provide crucial insight into the manifestation of qubit gates. A n x n gate will require n + 2 Majoranas with ½n + 1 trivial …

Nonlinear Solution Of The Time Eigenvalue Of A Fast Burst Reactor Using The Finite Volume Method, Stephen H. Baxter

Theses and Dissertations

This effort models fast burst reactors using the one dimensional, one group neutron diffusion equation to solve for the time eigenvalue, a method for which an analytical solution exists against which the numerical results can be verified. An existing solution method is enhanced by the addition of a second order accurate finite volume discretization, which is then used to model two separate fast burst reactors. The results of these models are then compared to the results of previous work, the analytical solution, and existing experimental burst width data for each of the two reactors.

Remote Mesoscopic Signatures Of Induced Magnetic Texture In Graphene, N. Arabchigavkani, R. Somphonsane, H. Ramamoorthy, G. He, J. Nathawat, S. Yin, B. Barut, K. He, M. D. Randle, R. Dixit, K. Sakanashi, N. Aoki, K. Zhang, L. Wang, W. N. Mei, Peter Dowben, J. Fransson, J. P. Bird

Peter Dowben Publications

Mesoscopic conductance fluctuations are a ubiquitous signature of phase-coherent transport in small conductors, exhibiting universal character independent of system details. In this Letter, however, we demonstrate a pronounced breakdown of this universality, due to the interplay of local and remote phenomena in transport. Our experiments are performed in a graphene-based interaction-detection geometry, in which an artificial magnetic texture is induced in the graphene layer by covering a portion of it with a micromagnet. When probing conduction at some distance from this region, the strong influence of remote factors is manifested through the appearance of giant conductance fluctuations, with amplitude much …

On-Chip Silicon Photonic Controllable 2 × 2 Four-Mode Waveguide Switch, Cao Dung Truong, Duy Nguyen Thi Hang, Hengky Chandrahalim, Minh Tuan Trinh

Faculty Publications

Multimode optical switch is a key component of mode division multiplexing in modern high-speed optical signal processing. In this paper, we introduce for the first time a novel 2 × 2 multimode switch design and demonstrate in the proof-of-concept. The device composes of four Y-multijunctions and 2 × 2 multimode interference coupler using silicon-on-insulator material with four controllable phase shifters. The shifters operate using thermo-optic effects utilizing Ti heaters enabling simultaneous switching of the optical signal between the output ports on four quasi-transverse electric modes with the electric power consumption is in order of 22.5 mW and the switching time …

Surface Acoustic Waves Increase Magnetic Domain Wall Velocity, Anil Adhikari, Shireen Adenwalla

Shireen Adenwalla Papers

Domain walls in magnetic thin films are being explored for memory applications and the speed at which they move has acquired increasing importance. Magnetic fields and currents have been shown to drive domain walls with speeds exceeding 500 m/s. We investigate another approach to increase domain wall velocities, using high frequency surface acoustic waves to create standing strain waves in a 3 micron wide strip of magnetic film with perpendicular anisotropy. Our measurements, at a resonant frequency of 248.8 MHz, indicate that domain wall velocities increase substantially, even at relatively low applied voltages. Our findings suggest that the strain wave …

Stellarator Optimization With Poloidal Field Coils, Haley Wilson, Andrew Ware, Aaron Bader, Chris Hegna

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

Stellarators are devices that use magnetic fields to optimize the conditions needed for plasmas to undergo fusion. Unlike tokamaks, stellarators do not rely on a plasma current but can produce a helical magnetic field using only external coils. In a stellarator, the coils surrounding the plasma are called modular coils and those that follow the plasma are called poloidal field coils. Modular coils can be difficult to build if they are too complex. An effort is underway to develop coil conditions that meet both physics and engineering constraints. The FOCUS code was developed to flexibly optimize stellarator coil configurations [C. …

Superresolution Enhancement With Active Convolved Illumination, Anindya Ghoshroy

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

The first two decades of the 21st century witnessed the emergence of “metamaterials”. The prospect of unrestricted control over light-matter interactions was a major contributing factor leading to the realization of new technologies and advancement of existing ones. While the field certainly does not lack innovative applications, widespread commercial deployment may still be several decades away. Fabrication of sophisticated 3d micro and nano structures, specially for telecommunications and optical frequencies will require a significant advancement of current technologies. More importantly, the effects of absorption and scattering losses will require a robust solution since this renders any conceivable application of metamaterials …

Proton Aurora At Mars: Assessing The Characteristics, Variability, And Driving Mechanisms Of A Newly Discovered Phenomenon, Andréa C.G. Hughes

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

The purpose of this doctoral research dissertation is to develop a deeper understanding of the phenomenology, variability and driving processes of proton aurora at Mars. Proton aurora are the most recently discovered of the three types of Martian aurora. Due to Mars’ lack of a global dipole magnetic field, the formation processes of Martian proton aurora are uniquely different than aurora on Earth. Martian proton aurora are expected to form on the planet’s dayside via electron stripping/charge exchange processes between solar wind protons and the neutral hydrogen corona. Herein, I present the results of a study of proton aurora at …

Multiscale Investigation Of Dropwise Condensation On A Smooth Hydrophilic Surface, Shahab Bayani Ahangar

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

The objective of this work is to identify the fundamental mechanism of dropwise condensation on a smooth solid surface by probing the solid-vapor interface during phase-change to evaluate the existence and structure of the thin film and the initial nucleus that develop during condensation. In this work, an automated Surface Plasmon Resonance imaging (SPRi) instrument with the ability to perform imaging in intensity modulation and angular modulation is developed. The SPRi instrument is used to probe (in three dimensions) the adsorbed film that forms on the substrate during dropwise condensation. SPRi with a lateral resolution of ~ 4-10 μm, thickness …

Development Of Synthetic Coal Char Simulant For Microwave Conversion Studies: A Computationally-Driven Approach, Kevin A. Hager

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Recent experimental demonstration of new reaction windows for coal char/methane reactions that are less energy-intensive, provides innovation for modular reactors. However, the correlation of the exact mechanism for the enhancement of these reaction windows is not certain. This study investigates the simplification of these experimental studies by developing a well-characterized coal char simulant. The approach involves using a computational approach to screen macroscopic composition to replicate the dielectric and compositional response of actual char. This study is focused on PRB coal char. A discrete element method (DEM) technique was used to simulate the packing of coal chars to give the …

Evidence Of Increased Radio-Frequency Losses In Cavities From The Fundamental Power Coupler Cold Window, Frank Marhauser, Gianluigi Ciovati

Physics Faculty Publications

High radio-frequency (rf) losses measured for cavities in original Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility (CEBAF) cryomodules, compared to the losses measured in single-cavity tests, have been a long-standing issue related to their performance. We summarize experimental evidence of increased rf losses in CEBAF cavities arising from the fundamental power coupler cold window and waveguide, respectively. Cryogenic rf tests were done on cavities tested in vertical cryostats as well as inside cryomodules in the accelerator tunnel. The cold window metallization losses were assessed by combining numerical results with measured data obtained with an existing cryogenic waveguide resonator setup. The results showed …

Eic Crab Cavity Multipole Analysis, Q. Wu, Y. Luo, B. Xiao, Subashini De Silva, J. A. Mitchell

Physics Faculty Publications

Crab cavities are specialized RF devices designed for colliders targeting high luminosities. It is a straightforward solution to retrieve head-on collision with crossing angle existing to fast separate both beams after collision. The Electron Ion Collider (EIC) has a crossing angle of 25 mrad, and will use local crabbing to minimize the dynamic aperture requirement throughout the rings. The current crab cavity design for the EIC lacks axial symmetry. Therefore, their higher order components of the fundamental deflecting mode have a potential of affecting the long-term beam stability. We present here the multipole analysis and preliminary particle tracking results from …

Hom Damper Design For Bnl Eic 197mhz Crab Cavity, Binping Xiao, Jean R. Delayen, Subashini U. De Silva, Z. Li, R. Rimmer, S. Verdu-Andres, Qiong Wu

Physics Faculty Publications

The interaction region (IR) crab cavity system is a special RF system to compensate the loss of luminosity due to a 25 mrad crossing angle at the interaction point (IP) for Brookhaven National Lab electron ion collider (BNL EIC). There will be six crab cavities, with four 197 MHz crab cavities and two 394 MHz crab cavities, installed on each side of the IP in the proton/ion ring, and one 394 MHz crab cavity on each side of the IP in the electron ring. Both rings share identical 394 MHz crab cavity design to minimize the cost and risk in …

A Proposed Beam-Beam Test Facility Combine, E. Nissen, Geoffrey Krafft, Jean Delayen

Physics Faculty Publications

The COmpact Machine for Beam-beam Interactions in Non-Equilibrium systems (COMBINE) is a proposed, dedicated, beam-beam test facility. The base design would make use of a pair of identical octagonal rings (2.5 meters per side) one rotated 180 degrees from the other, meeting at their common interaction point. These would be fed by an electron gun producing up to 125 keV electrons. The low energy will allow for beam-beam tune shifts commensurate with existing colliders, some linac-ring type systems, and will also allow for an exploration of the predicted effects of gear-changing, which would be performed using a variable pathlength scheme. …

Measurements Of Magnetic Field Penetration In Superconducting Materials For Srf Cavities, Iresha Harshani Senevirathne, Alex Gurevich, Jean R. Delayen, A.-M. Valente-Feliciano

Physics Faculty Publications

Superconducting radiofrequency (SRF) cavities used in particle accelerators operate in the Meissner state. To achieve high accelerating gradients, the cavity material should stay in the Meissner state under high RF magnetic field without penetration of vortices through the cavity wall. The field onset of flux penetration into a superconductor is an important parameter of merit of alternative superconducting materials other than Nb which can enhance the performance of SRF cavities. There is a need for a simple and efficient technique to measure the onset of field penetration into a superconductor directly. We have developed a Hall probe experimental setup for …

Nb3Sn Coating Of Twin Axis Cavity For Srf Applications, J. K. Tiskumara, Jean R. Delayen, G. V. Eremeev, U. Pudasaini, C. E. Reece

Physics Faculty Publications

The twin axis cavity with two identical accelerating beams has been proposed for energy recovery linac (ERL) applications. Nb₃Sn is a superconducting material with a higher critical temperature and a higher critical field as compared to Nb, which promises a lower operating cost due to higher quality factors. Two niobium twin axis cavities were fabricated at JLab and were proposed to be coated with Nb₃Sn. Due to their more complex geometry, the typical coating process used for basic elliptical cavi-ties needs to be improved to coat these cavities. This development advances the current coating system at …

Redesign Of The Jefferson Lab -300 Kv Dc Photo-Gun For High Bunch Charge Operations, S.A.K. Wijethunga, J. Benesch, Jean R. Delayen, C. Hernandez-Garcia, Geoffrey A. Krafft, Gabriel Palacios-Serrano, M.A. Mamun, M. Poelker, R. Suleiman

Physics Faculty Publications

Production of high bunch charge beams for the ElectronIon Collider (EIC) is a challenging task. High bunch charge (a few nC) electron beam studies at Jefferson Lab using an inverted insulator DC high voltage photo-gun showed evidence of space charge limitations starting at 0.3 nC, limiting the maximum delivered bunch charge to 0.7 nC for beam at -225 kV, 75 ps (FWHM) pulse width, and 1.64 mm (rms) laser spot size. The low extracted charge is due to the modest longitudinal electric field (Ez) at the photocathode leading to beam loss at the anode and downstream beam pipe. To reach …

A Hard X-Ray Compton Source At Cbeta, K.E. Deitrick, J. Crone, C. Franck, G.H. Hoffstaetter, Geoffrey A. Krafft, B. D. Muratori, H. L. Owen, Balša Terzić, P. H. Williams

Physics Faculty Publications

Inverse Compton scattering (ICS) holds the potential for future high flux, narrow bandwidth x-ray sources driven by high quality, high repetition rate electron beams. CBETA, the Cornell-BNL Energy recovery linac (ERL) Test Accelerator, is the world’s first superconducting radiofrequency multi-turn ERL, with a maximum energy of 150 MeV, capable of ICS production of x-rays above 400 keV. We present an update on the bypass design and anticipated parameters of a compact ICS source at CBETA. X-ray parameters from the CBETA ICS are compared to those of leading synchrotron radiation facilities, demonstrating that, above a few hundred keV, photon beams produced …

Effect Of A Mean Free Path On Nonlinear Losses Of Trapped Vortices Driven By A Rf Field, Manula Randhika Pathirana Walive Pathiranage, Alex Gurevich

Physics Faculty Publications

We report extensive numerical simulations on nonlinear dynamics of a trapped elastic vortex under rf field, and its dependence on electron mean free path li. Our calculations of the field-dependent residual surface resistance Ri(H) take into account the vortex line tension, the linear Bardeen-Stephen viscous drag and random distributions of pinning centers. We showed that Ri(H) decreases significantly at small fields as the material gets dirtier while showing field independent behavior at higher fields for clean and dirty limit. At low frequencies Ri(H) increases smoothly with the field amplitude at small H and levels off at higher fields. The mean …

Development And Characterization Of Nb₃N/Al₂0₃ Superconducting Multilayers For Particle Accelerators, Chris Sundahl, Junki Makita, Paul B. Welander, Yi-Feng Su, Fumitake Kametani, Lin Xie, Huimin Zhang, Lian Li, Alex Gurevich, Chang-Beom Eom

Physics Faculty Publications

Superconducting radio-frequency (SRF) resonator cavities provide extremely high quality factors > 10¹⁰ at 1-2 GHz and 2 K in large linear accelerators of high-energy particles. The maximum accelerating field of SRF cavities is limited by penetration of vortices into the superconductor. Present state-of-the-art Nb cavities can withstand up to 50 MV/m accelerating gradients and magnetic fields of 200-240 mT which destroy the low-dissipative Meissner state. Achieving higher accelerating gradients requires superconductors with higher thermodynamic critical fields, of which Nb₃Sn has emerged as a leading material for the next generation accelerators. To overcome the problem of low vortex penetration …