Synthesis and design of silicide intermetallic materials

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Petrovic, J.J.; Castro, R.G.; Butt, D.P. [Los Alamos National Lab., NM (United States)] [and others

1997-04-01

The overall objective of this program is to develop structural silicide-based materials with optimum combinations of elevated temperature strength/creep resistance, low temperature fracture toughness, and high temperature oxidation and corrosion resistance for applications of importance to the U.S. processing industry. A further objective is to develop silicide-based prototype industrial components. The ultimate aim of the program is to work with industry to transfer the structural silicide materials technology to the private sector in order to promote international competitiveness in the area of advanced high temperature materials and important applications in major energy-intensive U.S. processing industries. The program presently has a number of developing industrial connections, including a CRADA with Schuller International Inc. targeted at the area of MoSi{sub 2}-based high temperature materials and components for fiberglass melting and processing applications. The authors are also developing an interaction with the Institute of Gas Technology (IGT) to develop silicides for high temperature radiant gas burner applications, for the glass and other industries. Current experimental emphasis is on the development and characterization of MoSi{sub 2}-Si{sub 3}N{sub 4} and MoSi{sub 2}-SiC composites, the plasma spraying of MoSi{sub 2}-based materials, and the joining of MoSi{sub 2} materials to metals.

Analysis Of Core Management For The Transition Cores Of RSG-GAS Reactor To Full-Silicide Core

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Malem Sembiring, Tagor; Suparlina, Lily; Tukiran

2001-01-01

The core conversion of RSG-GAS reactor from oxide to silicide core with meat density of 2.96 g U/cc is still doing. At the end of 2000, the reactor has been operated for 3 transition cores which is the mixed core of oxide-silicide. Based on previous work, the calculated core parameter for the cores were obtained and it is needed 10 transition cores to achieve a full-silicide core. The objective of this work is to acquire the effect of the increment of the number of silicide fuel on the core parameters such as excess reactivity and shutdown margin. The measurement of the core parameters was carried out using the method of compensation of couple control rods. The experiment shows that the excess reactivity trends lower with the increment of the number of silicide fuel in the core. However, the shutdown margin is not change with the increment of the number of silicide fuel. Therefore, the transition cores can be operated safety to a full-silicide core

Vertically grown multiwalled carbon nanotube anode and nickel silicide integrated high performance microsized (1.25 μl) microbial fuel cell

KAUST Repository

Mink, Justine E.

2012-02-08

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) are an environmentally friendly method for water purification and self-sustained electricity generation using microorganisms. Microsized MFCs can also be a useful power source for lab-on-a-chip and similar integrated devices. We fabricated a 1.25 μL microsized MFC containing an anode of vertically aligned, forest type multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) with a nickel silicide (NiSi) contact area that produced 197 mA/m 2 of current density and 392 mW/m 3 of power density. The MWCNTs increased the anode surface-to-volume ratio, which improved the ability of the microorganisms to couple and transfer electrons to the anode. The use of nickel silicide also helped to boost the output current by providing a low resistance contact area to more efficiently shuttle electrons from the anode out of the device. © 2012 American Chemical Society.

NMOS contact resistance reduction with selenium implant into NiPt silicide

Science.gov (United States)

Rao, K. V.; Khaja, F. A.; Ni, C. N.; Muthukrishnan, S.; Darlark, A.; Lei, J.; Peidous, I.; Brand, A.; Henry, T.; Variam, N.; Erokhin, Y.

2012-11-01

A 25% reduction in NMOS contact resistance (Rc) was achieved by Selenium implantation into NiPt silicide film in VIISta Trident high-current single-wafer implanter. The Trident implanter is designed for shallow high-dose implants with high beam currents to maintain high throughput (for low CoO), with improved micro-uniformity and no energy contamination. The integration of Se implant was realized using a test chip dedicated to investigating silicide/junction related electrical properties and testable after silicidation. The silicide module processes were optimized, including the pre-clean (prior to RF PVD NiPt dep) and pre- and post-implant anneals. A 270°C soak anneal was used for RTP1, whereas a msec laser anneal was employed for RTP2 with sufficient process window (800-850°C), while maintaining excellent junction characteristics without Rs degradation.

Morphology of Si/tungsten-silicides/Si interlayers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Theodore, N.; Secco d'Aragona, F.; Blackstone, S.

1992-01-01

Tungsten and tungsten-silicides are of interest for semiconductor technology because of their refractory nature, low electrical-resistivity and high electromigration-resistance. This paper presents the first formation of buried tungsten-silicide layers in silicon, by proximity adhesion. The interlayers, created by a combination of chemical vapor-deposition (CVD) and proximity-adhesion were studied using transmission electron-microscopy (TEM). The behavior of the layers in the presence and absence of an adjacent silicon-dioxide interlayer was also investigated. Buried silicide layers were successfully formed with or without the adjacent silicon-dioxide. The silicide formed continuous layers with single grains encompassing the width of the interlayer. Individual grains were globular, with cusps at grain boundaries. This caused interlayer-thicknesses to be non-uniform, with lower thickness values being present at the cusps. Occasional voids were observed at grain-boundary cusps. The voids were smaller and less frequent in the presence of an adjacent oxide-layer, due to flow of the oxide during proximity adhesion. Electron-diffraction revealed a predominance of tungsten-disilicide in the interlayers, with some free tungsten being present. Stresses in the silicide layers caused occasional glide dislocations to propagate into the silicon substrate beneath the interlayers. The dislocations propagate only ∼100 nm into the substrate and therefore should not be detrimental to use of the buried layers. Occasional precipitates were observed at the end of glide-loops. These possibly arise due to excess tungsten from the interlayer diffusion down the glide dislocation to finally precipitate out as tungsten-silicide

Thermal expansion and elastic moduli of the silicide based intermetallic alloys Ti5Si3(X) and Nb5Si3

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, L.; Wu, J.

1997-01-01

Silicides are among those potential candidates for high temperature application because of their high melting temperature, low density and good oxidation resistance. Recent interest is focused on molybdenum silicides and titanium silicides. Extensive investigation has been carried out on MoSi 2 , yet comparatively less work was performed on titanium silicides such as Ti 5 Si 3 and Ti 3 and TiSi 2 which are of lower density than MoSi 2 . Fundamental understanding of the titanium silicides' properties for further evaluation their potential for practical application are thus needed. The thermal expansion coefficients and elastic moduli of intermetallic compounds are two properties important for evaluation as a first step. The thermal expansion determines the possible stress that might arise during cooling for these high melting point compounds, which is crucial to the preparation of defect free specimens; and the elastic moduli are usually reflections of the cohesion in crystal. In Frommeyer's work and some works afterwards, the coefficients of thermal expansion were measured on both polycrystalline and single crystal Ti 5 Si 3 . The elastic modulus of polycrystalline Ti 5 Si 3 was measured by Frommeyer and Rosenkranz. However, in the above works, the referred Ti 5 Si 3 was the binary one, no alloying effect has been reported on this matter. Moreover, the above parameters (coefficient of thermal expansion and elastic modulus) of Nb 5 Si 3 remain unreported so far. In this paper, the authors try to extend the knowledge of alloyed Ti 5 Si 3 compounds with Nb and Cr additions. Results on the coefficients of thermal expansion and elastic moduli of Ti 5 Si 3 compounds and Nb 5 Si 3 are presented and the discussion is focused on the alloying effect

Evaluation of In-Core Fuel Management for the Transition Cores of RSG-GAS Reactor to Full-Silicide Core

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

S, Tukiran; MS, Tagor; P, Surian

2003-01-01

The core conversion of RSG-GAS reactor from oxide to silicide core with meat density of 2.96 gU/cc has been done. The core-of RSG-GAS reactor has been operated full core of silicide fuels which is started with the mixed core of oxide-silicide start from core 36. Based on previous work, the calculated core parameter for the cores were obtained and it is needed 9 transition cores (core 36 - 44) to achieve a full-silicide core (core 45). The objective of this work is to acquire the effect of the increment of the number of silicide fuel on the core parameters. Conversion core was achieved by transition cores mixed oxide-silicide fuels. Each transition core is calculated and measured core parameter such as, excess reactivity and shutdown margin. Calculation done by Batan-EQUIL-2D code and measurement of the core parameters was carried out using the method of compensation of couple control rods. The results of calculation and experiment shows that the excess reactivity trends lower with the increment of the number of silicide fuel in the core. However, the shutdown margin is not change with the increment of the number of silicide fuel. Therefore, the transition cores can be operated safely to a full-silicide core

Si-Ge Nano-Structured with Tungsten Silicide Inclusions

Science.gov (United States)

Mackey, Jon; Sehirlioglu, Alp; Dynys, Fred

2014-01-01

Traditional silicon germanium high temperature thermoelectrics have potential for improvements in figure of merit via nano-structuring with a silicide phase. A second phase of nano-sized silicides can theoretically reduce the lattice component of thermal conductivity without significantly reducing the electrical conductivity. However, experimentally achieving such improvements in line with the theory is complicated by factors such as control of silicide size during sintering, dopant segregation, matrix homogeneity, and sintering kinetics. Samples are prepared using powder metallurgy techniques; including mechanochemical alloying via ball milling and spark plasma sintering for densification. In addition to microstructural development, thermal stability of thermoelectric transport properties are reported, as well as couple and device level characterization.

High U-density nuclear fuel development with application of centrifugal atomization technology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Chang Kyu; Kim, Ki Hwan; Lee, Don Bae

1997-01-01

In order to simplify the preparation process and improve the properties of uranium silicide fuels prepared by mechanical comminution, a fuel fabrication process applying rotating-disk centrifugal atomization technology was invented in KAERI in 1989. The major characteristic of atomized U 3 Si and U 3 Si 2 powders have been examined. The out-pile properties, including the thermal compatibility between atomized particle and aluminum matrix in uranium silicide dispersion fuels, have generally showed a superiority to the comminuted fuels. Moreover, the RERTR (reduced enrichment for research and test reactors) program, which recently begins to develop very-high-density uranium alloy fuels, including U-Mo fuels, requires the centrifugal atomization process to overcome the contaminations of impurities and the difficulties of the comminution process. In addition, a cooperation with ANL in the U.S. has been performed to develop high-density fuels with an application of atomization technology since December 1996. If the microplate and miniplate irradiation tests of atomized fuels, which have been performed with ANL, demonstrated the stability and improvement of in-reactor behaviors, nuclear fuel fabrication technology by centrifugal atomization could be most-promising to the production method of very-high-uranium-loading fuels. (author). 22 refs., 2 tabs., 12 figs

Evaluation of the oxide and silicide fuels reactivity in the RSG-GAS core

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

S, Tukiran; M S, Tagor; S, Lily; Pinem, S.

2000-01-01

Fuel exchange of The RSG-GAS reactor core from uranium oxide to uranium silicide in the same loading, density, and enrichment, that is, 250 gr, 2.98 gr/cm 3 , and 19.75 % respectively, will be performed in-step wise. In every cycle of exchange with 5/l mode, it is needed to evaluate the parameter of reactor core operation. One of the important operation parameters is fuel reactivity that gives effect to the core reactivity. The experiment was performed at core no. 36, BOC, low power which exist 2 silicide fuels. The evaluation was done based on the RSG-GAS control rod calibration consisting of 40 fuels and 8 control rod.s. From 40 fuels in the core, there are 2 silicide fuels, RI-225/A-9 and RI-224/C-3. For inserting 2 silicide fuels, the reactivity effect to the core must be know. To know this effect , it was performed fuels reactivity experiment, which based on control rod calibration. But in this case the RSG-GAS has no other fresh oxide fuel so that configuration of the RSG-GAS core was rearranged by taking out the both silicide fuels and this configuration is used as reference core. Then silicide fuel RI-224 was inserted to position F-3 replacing the fresh oxide fuel RI-260 so the different reactivity of the fuels is obtained. The experiment result showed that the fuel reactivity change is in amount of 12.85 cent (0.098 % ) The experiment result was compared to the calculation result, using IAFUEL code which amount to 13.49 cent (0.103 %) The result showed that the reactivity change of oxide to silicide fuel is small so that the fuel exchange from uranium oxide to uranium silicide in the first step can be done without any significant change of the operation parameter

Mechanoactivation of chromium silicide formation in the SiC-Cr-Si system

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vlasova M.

2002-01-01

Full Text Available The processes of simultaneous grinding of the components of a SiC-Cr-Si mixture and further temperature treatment in the temperature range 1073-1793 K were studied by X-ray phase analysis, IR spectroscopy, electron microscopy, and X-ray microanalysis. It was established that, during grinding of the mixture, chromium silicides form. A temperature treatment completes the process. Silicide formation proceeds within the framework of the diffusion of silicon into chromium. In the presence of SiO2 in the mixture, silicide formation occurs also as a result of the reduction of silica by silicon and silicon carbide. The sintering of synthesized composite SiC-chromium silicides powders at a high temperature under a high pressure (T = 2073 K, P = 5 GPa is accompanied by the destruction of cc-SiC particles, the cc/3 transition in silicon carbide and deformation distortions of the lattices of chromium silicides.

Advances and highlights of the CNEA qualification program as high density fuel manufacturer for research reactors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Adelfang, P.; Alvarez, L.; Boero, N.; Calabrese, R.; Echenique, P.; Markiewicz, M.; Pasqualini, E.; Ruggirello, G.; Taboada, H. [Unidad de Actividad Combustibles Nucleares Comision Nacional de Energia Atomica (CNE4), Avda. del Libertador, 8250 C1429BNO Buenos Aires (Argentina)

2002-07-01

One of the main objectives of CNEA regarding the fuel for research reactors is the development and qualification of the manufacturing of LEU high-density fuels. The qualification programs for both types of fuels, Silicide fuel and U- x Mo fuel, are similar. They include the following activities: development and set up of the fissile compound manufacturing technology, set up of fuel plate manufacturing, fabrication and irradiation of mini plates and plates, design and fabrication of fuel assembly prototypes for irradiation, post-irradiation examination and feedback for manufacturing improvements. This paper describes the different activities performed within each program during the last year and the main advances and achievements of the programs within this period. The main achievements may be summarized in the following activities: Continuation of the irradiation of the first silicide fuel element in the R A3. Completion of the manufacturing of the second silicide fuel element, licensing and beginning of its irradiation in the R A3. Development of the HMD Process to manufacture U-Mo powder (pUMA project). Set up of fuel plates manufacturing at industrial level using U-Mo powder. Preliminary studies and the design for the irradiation of mini plates, plates and full scale fuel elements with U-Mo and 7 g U/cm{sup 3}. PIE destructive studies for the P-04 silicide fuel prototype (accurate burnup determination through chemical analysis, metallography and SEM of samples from the irradiated fuel plates). Improvement and development of new characterization techniques for high density fuel plates quality control including US testing and densitometric analysis of X-ray examinations. The results obtained in this period are encouraging and also allow to foresee a wider participation of CNEA in the international effort to qualify U-Mo as a new material for the manufacturing of research reactor fuels. (author)

Advances and highlights of the CNEA qualification program as high density fuel manufacturer for research reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Adelfang, P.; Alvarez, L.; Boero, N.; Calabrese, R.; Echenique, P.; Markiewicz, M.; Pasqualini, E.; Ruggirello, G.; Taboada, H.

2002-01-01

One of the main objectives of CNEA regarding the fuel for research reactors is the development and qualification of the manufacturing of LEU high-density fuels. The qualification programs for both types of fuels, Silicide fuel and U- x Mo fuel, are similar. They include the following activities: development and set up of the fissile compound manufacturing technology, set up of fuel plate manufacturing, fabrication and irradiation of mini plates and plates, design and fabrication of fuel assembly prototypes for irradiation, post-irradiation examination and feedback for manufacturing improvements. This paper describes the different activities performed within each program during the last year and the main advances and achievements of the programs within this period. The main achievements may be summarized in the following activities: Continuation of the irradiation of the first silicide fuel element in the R A3. Completion of the manufacturing of the second silicide fuel element, licensing and beginning of its irradiation in the R A3. Development of the HMD Process to manufacture U-Mo powder (pUMA project). Set up of fuel plates manufacturing at industrial level using U-Mo powder. Preliminary studies and the design for the irradiation of mini plates, plates and full scale fuel elements with U-Mo and 7 g U/cm 3 . PIE destructive studies for the P-04 silicide fuel prototype (accurate burnup determination through chemical analysis, metallography and SEM of samples from the irradiated fuel plates). Improvement and development of new characterization techniques for high density fuel plates quality control including US testing and densitometric analysis of X-ray examinations. The results obtained in this period are encouraging and also allow to foresee a wider participation of CNEA in the international effort to qualify U-Mo as a new material for the manufacturing of research reactor fuels. (author)

Development of Silicide Coating on Molybdenum Alloy Cladding

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lim, Woojin; Ryu, Ho Jin

2015-01-01

The molybdenum alloy is considered as one of the accident tolerant fuel (ATF) cladding materials due to its high temperature mechanical properties. However, molybdenum has a weak oxidation resistance at elevated temperatures. To modify the oxidation resistance of molybdenum cladding, silicide coating on the cladding is considered. Molybdenum silicide layers are oxidized to SiO 2 in an oxidation atmosphere. The SiO 2 protective layer isolates the substrate from the oxidizing atmosphere. Pack cementation deposition technique is widely adopted for silicide coating for molybdenum alloys due to its simple procedure, homogeneous coating quality and chemical compatibility. In this study, the pack cementation method was conducted to develop molybdenum silicide layers on molybdenum alloys. It was found that the Mo 3 Si layer was deposited on substrate instead of MoSi 2 because of short holding time. It means that through the extension of holding time, MoSi 2 layer can be formed on molybdenum substrate to enhance the oxidation resistance of molybdenum. The accident tolerant fuel (ATF) concept is to delay the process following an accident by reducing the oxidation rate at high temperatures and to delay swelling and rupture of fuel claddings. The current research for Atf can be categorized into three groups: First, modification of existing zirconium-based alloy cladding by improving the high temperature oxidation resistance and strength. Second, replacing Zirconium based alloys with alternative metallic materials such as refractory elements with high temperature oxidation resistance and strength. Third, designing alternative fuel structures using ceramic and composite systems

Kinetics of nickel silicide growth in silicon nanowires: From linear to square root growth

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yaish, Y. E.; Beregovsky, M.; Katsman, A.; Cohen, G. M.

2011-01-01

The common practice for nickel silicide formation in silicon nanowires (SiNWs) relies on axial growth of silicide along the wire that is initiated from nickel reservoirs at the source and drain contacts. In the present work the silicide intrusions were studied for various parameters including wire diameter (25-50 nm), annealing time (15-120 s), annealing temperature (300-440 deg. C), and the quality of the initial Ni/Si interface. The silicide formation was investigated by high-resolution scanning electron microscopy, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and atomic force microscopy. The main part of the intrusion formed at 420 deg. C consists of monosilicide NiSi, as was confirmed by energy dispersive spectroscopy STEM, selected area diffraction TEM, and electrical resistance measurements of fully silicided SiNWs. The kinetics of nickel silicide axial growth in the SiNWs was analyzed in the framework of a diffusion model through constrictions. The model calculates the time dependence of the intrusion length, L, and predicts crossover from linear to square root time dependency for different wire parameters, as confirmed by the experimental data.

Qualification of high-density fuel manufacturing for research reactors at CNEA

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Adelfang, P.; Alvarez, L.; Boero, N.; Calabrese, R.; De La Fuente, M.; Echenique, P.; Markiewicz, M.; Pasqualini, E.; Ruggirello, G.; Taboada, H. [CNEA, Buenos Aires (Argentina)

2001-07-01

CNEA, the National Atomic Energy Commission of Argentina, is at the present a qualified supplier of uranium oxide fuel for research reactors. A new objective in this field is to develop and qualify the manufacturing of LEU high-density fuel for this type of reactors. According with the international trend Silicide fuel and U-xMo fuel are included in our program as the most suitable options. The facilities to complete the qualification of high-density MTR fuels, like the manufacturing plant installations, the reactor, the pool side fuel examination station and the hot cells are fully operational and equipped to perform all the activities required within the program. The programs for both type of fuels include similar activities: development and set up of the fuel material manufacturing technology, set up of fuel plate manufacturing, fabrication and irradiation of miniplates, fabrication and irradiation of full scale fuel elements, post-irradiation examination and feedback for manufacturing improvements. For silicide fuels most of these steps have already been completed. For U-xMo fuel the activities also include the development of alternative ways to obtain U-xMo powder, feasibility studies for large-scale manufacturing and the economical assessment. Set up of U-xMo fuel plate manufacturing is also well advanced and the fabrication of the first full scale prototype is foreseen during this year. (author)

Gas cluster ion beam assisted NiPt germano-silicide formation on SiGe

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ozcan, Ahmet S., E-mail: asozcan@us.ibm.com [IBM Almaden Research Center, 650 Harry Road, San Jose, California 95120 (United States); Lavoie, Christian; Jordan-Sweet, Jean [IBM T. J. Watson Research Center, 1101 Kitchawan Road, Yorktown Heights, New York 10598 (United States); Alptekin, Emre; Zhu, Frank [IBM Semiconductor Research and Development Center, 2070 Route 52, Hopewell Junction, New York 12533 (United States); Leith, Allen; Pfeifer, Brian D.; LaRose, J. D.; Russell, N. M. [TEL Epion Inc., 900 Middlesex Turnpike, Bldg. 6, Billerica, Massachusetts 01821 (United States)

2016-04-21

We report the formation of very uniform and smooth Ni(Pt)Si on epitaxially grown SiGe using Si gas cluster ion beam treatment after metal-rich silicide formation. The gas cluster ion implantation process was optimized to infuse Si into the metal-rich silicide layer and lowered the NiSi nucleation temperature significantly according to in situ X-ray diffraction measurements. This novel method which leads to more uniform films can also be used to control silicide depth in ultra-shallow junctions, especially for high Ge containing devices, where silicidation is problematic as it leads to much rougher interfaces.

The Accident Analysis Due to Reactivity Insertion of RSG GAS 3.55 g U/cc Silicide Core

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Endiah Puji-Hastuti; Surbakti, Tukiran

2004-01-01

The fuels of RSG-GAS reactor was changed from uranium oxide with 250 g U of loading or 2.96 g U/cc of fuel loading to uranium silicide with the same loading. The silicide fuels can be used in higher density, staying longer in the reactor core and hence having a longer cycle length. The silicide fuel in RSG-GAS core was made up in step-wise by using mixed up core Firstly, it was used silicide fuel with 250 g U of loading and then, silicide fuel with 300 g U of loading (3.55 g U/cc of fuel loading). In every step-wise of fuel loading, it must be analyzed its safety margin. In this occasion, the reactivity accident of RSG-GAS core with 300 g U of silicide fuel loading is analyzed. The calculation was done using EUREKA-2/RR code available at P2TRR. The calculation was done by reactivity insertion at start up and power rangers. The worst case accident is transient due to control rod with drawl failure at start up by means of lowest initial power (0.1 W), either in power range. From all cases which have been done, the results of analysis showed that there is no anomaly and safety margin break at RSG-GAS core with 300 g U silicide fuel loading. (author)

BASIC program to compute uranium density and void volume fraction in laboratory-scale uranium silicide aluminum dispersion plate-type fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ugajin, Mitsuhiro

1991-05-01

BASIC program simple and easy to operate has been developed to compute uranium density and void volume fraction for laboratory-scale uranium silicide aluminum dispersion plate-type fuel, so called miniplate. An example of the result of calculation is given in order to demonstrate how the calculated void fraction correlates with the microstructural distribution of the void in a miniplate prepared in our laboratory. The program is also able to constitute data base on important parameters for miniplates from experimentally-determined values of density, weight of each constituent and dimensions of miniplates. Utility programs pertinent to the development of the BASIC program are also given which run in the popular MS-DOS environment. All the source lists are attached and brief description for each program is made. (author)

Mechanochemical synthesis and spark plasma sintering of the cerium silicides

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Alanko, Gordon A.; Jaques, Brian; Bateman, Allyssa [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, College of Engineering, Boise State University, 1910 University Drive, Boise, ID 83725 (United States); Butt, Darryl P., E-mail: darrylbutt@boisestate.edu [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, College of Engineering, Boise State University, 1910 University Drive, Boise, ID 83725 (United States); Center for Advanced Energy Studies, 995 University Boulevard, Idaho Falls, ID 83401 (United States)

2014-12-15

Highlights: • Ce{sub 5}Si{sub 3}, Ce{sub 3}Si{sub 2}, CeSi, CeSi{sub 2−x} and CeSi{sub 2} were mechanochemically synthesized. • Temperature and pressure were monitored to investigate reaction progress. • All syntheses proceeded through a MSR event followed by rapid solid-state diffusion. • Milling time before MSR correlates well with effective heat of formation. • Some synthesized material was densified by spark plasma sintering. - Abstract: The cerium silicides, Ce{sub 5}Si{sub 3}, Ce{sub 3}Si{sub 2}, CeSi, CeSi{sub 2−y}, and CeSi{sub 2−x}, have been prepared from the elements by mechanochemical processing in a planetary ball mill. Preparation of the cerium silicide Ce{sub 5}Si{sub 4} was unsuccessfully attempted and potential reasons for this are discussed. Temperature and pressure of the milling vial were monitored in situ to gain insight into the mechanochemical reaction kinetics, which include a mechanically-induced self-propagating reaction (MSR). Some prepared powders were consolidated by spark plasma sintering to high density. Starting materials, as-milled powders, and consolidated samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and energy dispersive spectroscopy. The results obtained help elucidate key questions in mechanochemical processing of intermetallics, showing first phase formation similar to thin films, MSR ignition times that are composition- and milling speed-dependent, and sensitivity of stable compound formation on the impact pressure. The results demonstrate mechanochemical synthesis as a viable technique for rare earth silicides.

Evaluation Of Oxide And Silicide Mixed Fuels Of The RSG-GAS Core

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tukiran; Sembiring, Tagor Malem; Suparlina, Lily

2000-01-01

Fuel exchange of the RSG-GAS reactor core from uranium oxide to uranium silicide in the same loading, density, and enrichment, that is 250 gr, 2.98 gr/cm 3 , and 19.75%, respectively, will be performed in-step wise. In every cycle of exchange with 5/1 mode, it is needed to evaluate the parameter of reactor core operation. The parameters of the reactor operation observed are criticality mass of fuels, reactivity balance, and fuel reactivity that give effect to the reactor operation. The evaluation was done at beginning of cycle of the first and second transition core with compared between experiment and calculation results. The experiments were performed at transition core I and II, BOC, and low power. At transition core I, there are 2 silicide fuels (RI-224 and R1-225) in the core and then, added five silicide fuels (R1-226, R1-252, R1-263, and R1-264) to the core, so that there are seven silicide fuels in the transition core II. The evaluation was done based on the experiment of criticality, control rod calibration, fuel reactivity of the RSG-GAS transition core. For inserting 2 silicide fuels in the transition core I dan 7 fuels in the transition core II, the operation of RSG-GAS core fulfilled the safety margin and the parameter of reactor operation change is not occur drastically in experiment and calculation results. So that, the reactor was operated during 36 days at 15 MW, 540 MWD at the first transition core. The general result showed that the parameter of reactor operation change is small so that the fuel exchange from uranium oxide to uranium silicide in the next step can be done

Fuel-cycle cost comparisons with oxide and silicide fuels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matos, J.E.; Freese, K.E.

1982-01-01

This paper addresses fuel cycle cost comparisons for a generic 10 MW reactor with HEU aluminide fuel and with LEU oxide and silicide fuels in several fuel element geometries. The intention of this study is to provide a consistent assessment of various design options from a cost point of view. Fuel cycle cost benefits could result if a number of reactors were to utilize fuel elements with the same number or different numbers of the same standard fuel plate. Data are presented to quantify these potential cost benefits. This analysis shows that there are a number of fuel element designs using LEU oxide or silicide fuels that have either the same or lower total fuel cycle costs than the HEU design. Use of these fuels with the uranium densities considered requires that they are successfully demonstrated and licensed

Formation of copper silicides by high dose metal vapor vacuum arc ion implantation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rong Chun; Zhang Jizhong; Li Wenzhi

2003-01-01

Si(1 1 1) was implanted by copper ions with different doses and copper distribution in silicon matrix was obtained. The as-implanted samples were annealed at 300 and 540 deg. C, respectively. Formation of copper silicides in as-implanted and annealed samples were studied. Thermodynamics and kinetics of the reaction were found to be different from reaction at copper-silicon interface that was applied in conventional studies of copper-silicon interaction. The defects in silicon induced by implantation and formation of copper silicides were recognized by Si(2 2 2) X-ray diffraction (XRD)

Development of high uranium-density fuels for use in research reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ugajin, Mitsuhiro; Akabori, Mitsuo; Itoh, Akinori

1996-01-01

The uranium silicide U 3 Si 2 possesses uranium density 11.3 gU/cm 3 with a congruent melting point of 1665degC, and is now successfully in use as a research reactor fuel. Another uranium silicide U 3 Si and U 6 Me-type uranium alloys (Me=Fe,Mn,Ni) have been chosen as new fuel materials because of the higher uranium densities 14.9 and 17.0 gU/cm 3 , respectively. Experiments were carried out to fabricate miniature aluminum-dispersion plate-type and aluminum-clad disk-type fuels by using the conventional picture-frame method and a hot-pressing technique, respectively. These included the above-mentioned new fuel materials as well as U 3 Si 2 . Totally 14 miniplates with uranium densities from 4.0 to 6.3 gU/cm 3 of fuel meat were prepared together with 28 disk-type fuel containing structurally-modified U 3 Si, and subjected to the neutron irradiation in JMTR (Japan Materials Testing Reactor). Some results of postirradiation examinations are presented. (author)

Silicide/Silicon Heterointerfaces, Reaction Kinetics and Ultra-short Channel Devices

Science.gov (United States)

Tang, Wei

Nickel silicide is one of the electrical contact materials widely used on very large scale integration (VLSI) of Si devices in microelectronic industry. This is because the silicide/silicon interface can be formed in a highly controlled manner to ensure reproducibility of optimal structural and electrical properties of the metal-Si contacts. These advantages can be inherited to Si nanowire (NW) field-effect transistors (FET) device. Due to the technological importance of nickel silicides, fundamental materials science of nickel silicides formation (Ni-Si reaction), especially in nanoscale, has raised wide interest and stimulate new insights and understandings. In this dissertation, in-situ transmission electron microscopy (TEM) in combination with FET device characterization will be demonstrated as useful tools in nano-device fabrication as well as in gaining insights into the process of nickel silicide formation. The shortest transistor channel length (17 nm) fabricated on a vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) grown silicon nanowire (NW) has been demonstrated by controlled reaction with Ni leads on an in-situ transmission electron microscope (TEM) heating stage at a moderate temperature of 400 ºC. NiSi2 is the leading phase, and the silicide-silicon interface is an atomically sharp type-A interface. At such channel lengths, high maximum on-currents of 890 (microA/microm) and a maximum transconductance of 430 (microS/microm) were obtained, which pushes forward the performance of bottom-up Si NW Schottky barrier field-effect transistors (SB-FETs). Through accurate control over the silicidation reaction, we provide a systematic study of channel length dependent carrier transport in a large number of SB-FETs with channel lengths in the range of (17 nm -- 3.6 microm). Our device results corroborate with our transport simulations and reveal a characteristic type of short channel effects in SB-FETs, both in on- and off-state, which is different from that in conventional MOSFETs

Silicide Schottky Contacts to Silicon: Screened Pinning at Defect Levels

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Drummond, T.J.

1999-03-11

Silicide Schottky contacts can be as large as 0.955 eV (E{sub v} + 0.165 eV) on n-type silicon and as large as 1.05 eV (E{sub c} {minus} 0.07 eV) on p-type silicon. Current models of Schottky barrier formation do not provide a satisfactory explanation of occurrence of this wide variation. A model for understanding Schottky contacts via screened pinning at defect levels is presented. In the present paper it is shown that most transition metal silicides are pinned approximately 0.48 eV above the valence band by interstitial Si clusters. Rare earth disilicides pin close to the divacancy acceptor level 0.41 eV below the conduction band edge while high work function silicides of Ir and Pt pin close to the divacancy donor level 0.21 eV above the valence band edge. Selection of a particular defect pinning level depends strongly on the relative positions of the silicide work function and the defect energy level on an absolute energy scale.

Oxidation behavior of molybdenum silicides and their composites

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Natesan, K.; Deevi, S. C.

2000-01-01

A key materials issue associated with the future of high-temperature structural silicides is the resistance of these materials to oxidation at low temperatures. Oxidation tests were conducted on Mo-based silicides over a wide temperature range to evaluate the effects of alloy composition and temperature on the protective scaling characteristics and testing regime for the materials. The study included Mo 5 Si 3 alloys that contained several concentrations of B. In addition, oxidation characteristics of MoSi 2 -Si 3 N 4 composites that contained 20--80 vol.% Si 3 N 4 were evaluated at 500--1,400 C

TiSi2 integrity within a doped silicide process step

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Crean, G.M.; Cole, P.D.; Stoemenos, J.

1993-01-01

Degradation of arsenic implanted titanium silicide (TiSi 2 ) thin films as a result of thermal processing for shallow junction formation is investigated. Significant arsenic diffusion from the silicide overlayer into the silicon substrate has been detected by Rutherford Backscattering Spectrometry at drive-in temperatures > 1,050 C. Cross-sectional transmission electron micrographs have shown the silicide film become increasingly non-uniform as the thermal budget increases, ultimately leading to discontinuities forming in the silicide film. This observed degradation of the titanium silicide film is also supported by sheet resistance measurements which show the film to degrade significantly above a threshold thermal budget

Subsurface contributions in epitaxial rare-earth silicides

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Luebben, Olaf; Shvets, Igor V. [Centre for Research on Adaptive Nanostructures and Nanodevices (CRANN), School of Physics, Trinity College, Dublin (Ireland); Cerda, Jorge I. [Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Madrid, ICMM-CSIC, Cantoblanco, Madrid (Spain); Chaika, Alexander N. [Institute of Solid State Physics, RAS, Chernogolovka (Russian Federation)

2015-07-01

Metallic thin films of heavy rare-earth silicides epitaxially grown on Si(111) substrates have been widely studied in recent years because of their appealing properties: unusually low values of the Schottky barrier height, an abrupt interface, and a small lattice mismatch. Previous studies also showed that these silicides present very similar atomic and electronic structures. Here, we examine one of these silicides (Gd{sub 3}Si{sub 5}) using scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) image simulations that go beyond the Tersoff-Hamann approach. These simulations strongly indicate an unusual STM depth sensitivity for this system.

Further data of silicide fuel for the LEU conversion of JMTR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saito, M.; Futamura, Y.; Nakata, H.; Ando, H.; Sakurai, F.; Ooka, N.; Sakakura, A.; Ugajin, M.; Shirai, E.

1990-01-01

Silicide fuel data for the safety assessment of the JMTR LEU fuel conversion are being measured. The data include fission product release, thermal properties, behaviour under accident conditions, and metallurgical characteristics. The methods used in the experiments are discussed. Results of fission products release at high temperature are described. The release of iodine from the silicide fuel is considerably lower than for U-Al alloy fuel

Microstructure of the irradiated U 3Si 2/Al silicide dispersion fuel

Science.gov (United States)

Gan, J.; Keiser, D. D.; Miller, B. D.; Jue, J.-F.; Robinson, A. B.; Madden, J. W.; Medvedev, P. G.; Wachs, D. M.

2011-12-01

The silicide dispersion fuel of U 3Si 2/Al is recognized as the best performance fuel for many nuclear research and test reactors with up to 4.8 gU/cm 3 fuel loading. An irradiated U 3Si 2/Al dispersion fuel ( 235U ˜ 75%) from the high-flux side of a fuel plate (U0R040) from the Reduced Enrichment for Research and Test Reactors (RERTR)-8 test was characterized using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The fuel was irradiated in the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) for 105 days. The average irradiation temperature and fission density of the U 3Si 2 fuel particles for the TEM sample are estimated to be approximately 110 °C and 5.4 × 10 27 f/m 3. The characterization was performed using a 200-kV TEM. The U/Si ratio for the fuel particle and (Si + Al)/U for the fuel-matrix-interaction layer are approximately 1.1 and 4-10, respectively. The estimated average diameter, number density and volume fraction for small bubbles (<1 μm) in the fuel particle are ˜94 nm, 1.05 × 10 20 m -3 and ˜11%, respectively. The results and their implication on the performance of the U 3Si 2/Al silicide dispersion fuel are discussed.

Uranium silicide activities at Babcock and Wilcox

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Noel, W.W.; Freim, J.B.

1983-01-01

Babcock and Wilcox, Naval Nuclear Fuel Division (NNFD) in conjunction with Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) is actively involved in the Reduced Enrichment Research Test Reactor (RERTR) Program to produce low enriched fuel elements for research reactors. B and W and ANL have undertaken a joint effort in which NNFD will fabricate two low enriched uranium (LEU), Oak Ridge Reactor (ORR) elements with uranium silicide fuel furnished by ANL. These elements are being fabricated for irradiation testing at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Concurrently with this program, NNFD is developing and implementing the uranium silicide and uranium aluminide fuel fabrication technology. NNFD is fabricating the uranium silicide ORR elements in a two-phase program, Development and Production. To summarize: 1. Full size fuel plates can be made with U 3 SiAl but the fabricator must prevent oxidation of the compact prior to hot roll bonding; 2. Providing the ANL U 3 Si x irradiation results are successful, NNFD plans to provide two ORR elements during February 1983; 3. NNFD is developing and implementing U 3 Si x and UAI x fuel fabrication technology to be operational in 1983; 4. NNFD can supply U 3 O 8 high enriched uranium (HEU) or low enriched uranium (LEU) research reactor elements; 5. NNFD is capable of providing high quality, cost competitive LEU or HEU research reactor elements to meet the needs of the customer

Analysis of gamma dose for 4,8 gU/cm3 density silicide core at the RSG-GAS reactor using MCNP code

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ardani

2011-01-01

Radiation safety analysis should be done following of substitution of fuel density of 2.96 gU/cc to density of 4,8 gU/cc silicide fuels for the RSG-GAS reactor. MCNP-5 code has been used to perform gamma dose calculation of the RSG-GAS reactor. Gamma radiation source at reactor consists of capture gamma rays, prompt fission gamma rays, and gamma rays of decay of fission and activation products. The strength of the prompt fission gamma rays is obtained by gamma releases of fission process of U-235 and reactor power of 30 MWt., during 46,6 days operation. Radiation dose is calculated at the experimental hall by detection point at the surface of outer of biological shielding and the operation hall by detection point at the top of the pool. The calculation is conducted at reactor on the normal operation and on the worst postulated accident causing the water level at the pool decreases. Calculation result shows that the biggest source strength of gamma rays come from the decay process. The highest calculated dose at the experiment hall is 4,07x10 -3 μSv/h, far from the maximum external dose permitted 25 μSv/h. The highest calculated dose at the operation hall is 19.98 μSv/h. Even though the calculated dose is still acceptable but this is close to the maximum permitted dose for worker. It concluded that loading of 4,8 gU/cc silicide fuel for the RSG-GAS still safe. (author)

X-ray-emission studies of chemical bonding in transition-metal silicides

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Weijs, P.J.W.; Leuken, H. van; Groot, R.A. de; Fuggle, J.C.; Reiter, S.; Wiech, G.; Buschow, K.H.J.

1991-01-01

We present Si L2,3 emission-band spectra of a series of 3d and 4d transition-metal (TM) silicides, together wtih Si K emission-band spectra of four 3d TM disilicides. The data are compared with augmented-spherical-wave density-of-states (DOS) calculations, and good agreement is found. The trends we

Exploitation of a self-limiting process for reproducible formation of ultrathin Ni1-xPtx silicide films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Zhen; Zhu Yu; Rossnagel, Steve; Murray, Conal; Jordan-Sweet, Jean; Yang, Bin; Gaudet, Simon; Desjardins, Patrick; Kellock, Andrew J.; Ozcan, Ahmet; Zhang Shili; Lavoie, Christian

2010-01-01

This letter reports on a process scheme to obtain highly reproducible Ni 1-x Pt x silicide films of 3-6 nm thickness formed on a Si(100) substrate. Such ultrathin silicide films are readily attained by sputter deposition of metal films, metal stripping in wet chemicals, and final silicidation by rapid thermal processing. This process sequence warrants an invariant amount of metal intermixed with Si in the substrate surface region independent of the initial metal thickness, thereby leading to a self-limiting formation of ultrathin silicide films. The crystallographic structure, thickness, uniformity, and morphological stability of the final silicide films depend sensitively on the initial Pt fraction.

Development of high uranium-density fuels for use in research reactors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ugajin, Mitsuhiro; Akabori, Mitsuo; Itoh, Akinori [Japan Atomic Energy Research Inst., Tokai, Ibaraki (Japan). Tokai Research Establishment

1996-02-01

The uranium silicide U{sub 3}Si{sub 2} possesses uranium density 11.3 gU/cm{sup 3} with a congruent melting point of 1665degC, and is now successfully in use as a research reactor fuel. Another uranium silicide U{sub 3}Si and U{sub 6}Me-type uranium alloys (Me=Fe,Mn,Ni) have been chosen as new fuel materials because of the higher uranium densities 14.9 and 17.0 gU/cm{sup 3}, respectively. Experiments were carried out to fabricate miniature aluminum-dispersion plate-type and aluminum-clad disk-type fuels by using the conventional picture-frame method and a hot-pressing technique, respectively. These included the above-mentioned new fuel materials as well as U{sub 3}Si{sub 2}. Totally 14 miniplates with uranium densities from 4.0 to 6.3 gU/cm{sup 3} of fuel meat were prepared together with 28 disk-type fuel containing structurally-modified U{sub 3}Si, and subjected to the neutron irradiation in JMTR (Japan Materials Testing Reactor). Some results of postirradiation examinations are presented. (author)

Post-pulse detail metallographic examinations of low-enriched uranium silicide plate-type miniature fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yanagisawa, Kazuaki

1991-10-01

Pulse irradiation at Nuclear Safety Research Reactor (NSRR) was performed using low-enriched (19.89 w% 235 U) unirradiated silicide plate-type miniature fuel which had a density of 4.8 gU/cm 3 . Experimental aims are to understand the dimensional stability and to clarify the failure threshold of the silicide plate-type miniature fuel under power transient conditions through post-pulse detail metallographic examinations. A silicide plate-type miniature fuel was loaded into an irradiation capsule and irradiated by a single pulse. Deposited energies given in the experiments were 62, 77, 116 and 154 cal/g·fuel, which lead to corresponding peak fuel plate temperatures, 201 ± 28degC, 187 ± 10degC, 418 ± 74degC and 871 ± 74degC, respectively. Below 400degC, reliability and dimensional stability of the silicide plate fuel was sustained, and the silicide plate fuel was intact. Up to 540degC, wall-through intergranular crackings occurred in the Al-3%Mg alloy cladding. With the increase of the temperature, the melting of the aluminum cladding followed by recrystallization, the denudation of fuel core and the plate-through intergranular cracking were observed. With the increase of the temperature beyond 400degC, the bowing of fuel plate became significant. Above the temperature of 640degC molten aluminum partially reacted with the fuel core, partially flowed downward under the influence of surface tension and gravity, and partially formed agglomerations. Judging from these experimental observations, the fuel-plate above 400degC tends to reduce its dimensional stability. Despite of the apparent silicide fuel-plate failure, neither generation of pressure pulse nor that of mechanical energy occurred at all. (J.P.N.)

Room temperature ferromagnetic gadolinium silicide nanoparticles

Science.gov (United States)

Hadimani, Magundappa Ravi L.; Gupta, Shalabh; Harstad, Shane; Pecharsky, Vitalij; Jiles, David C.

2018-03-06

A particle usable as T1 and T2 contrast agents is provided. The particle is a gadolinium silicide (Gd5Si4) particle that is ferromagnetic at temperatures up to 290 K and is less than 2 .mu.m in diameter. An MRI contrast agent that includes a plurality of gadolinium silicide (Gd.sub.5Si.sub.4) particles that are less than 1 .mu.m in diameter is also provided. A method for creating gadolinium silicide (Gd5Si4) particles is also provided. The method includes the steps of providing a Gd5Si4 bulk alloy; grinding the Gd5Si4 bulk alloy into a powder; and milling the Gd5Si4 bulk alloy powder for a time of approximately 20 minutes or less.

Core-hole effects in the x-ray-absorption spectra of transition-metal silicides

NARCIS (Netherlands)

WEIJS, PJW; CZYZYK, MT; VANACKER, JF; SPEIER, W; GOEDKOOP, JB; VANLEUKEN, H; HENDRIX, HJM; DEGROOT, RA; VANDERLAAN, G; BUSCHOW, KHJ; WIECH, G; FUGGLE, JC

1990-01-01

We report systematic differences between the shape of the Si K x-ray-absorption spectra of transition-metal silicides and broadened partial densities of Si p states. We use a variety of calculations to show that the origin of these discrepancies is the core-hole potential appropriate to the final

Palladium silicide - a new contact for semiconductor radiation detectors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Totterdell, D.H.J.

1981-11-01

Silicide layers can be used as low resistance contacts in semiconductor devices. The formation of a metal rich palladium silicide Pd 2 Si is discussed. A palladium film 100A thick is deposited at 300 0 C and the resulting silicide layer used as an ohmic contact in an n + p silicon detector. This rugged contact has electrical characteristics comparable with existing evaporated gold contacts and enables the use of more reproducible bonding techniques. (author)

A study of CoSix silicide formed by recoil implantation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kwok, H.L.

1989-01-01

This work investigated the formation of CoSi x silicides on n-Si by recoil implantation through a thin cobalt layer using an inert gas ion beam. The results suggest the formation of a very shallow (35 to 45 nm) silicide surface layer under the specific conditions of preparation. The surface layer resistivity was comparable to values reported for Co 2 Si and CoSi, although below the surface, the resistivity decreased. This appeared to suggest a change-over from cobalt-rich silicides near the surface to a more conducting silicide (CoSi 2 ) at the interface. (author)

Characterization of uranium silicide powder using XRD

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Garcia, Rafael H.L.; Saliba-Silva, Adonis M.; Carvalho, Elita F.U.; Lima, Nelson B.; Ichikawa, Rodrigo U.; Martinez, Luiz G.

2013-01-01

Uranium silicide (U 3 Si 2 ) is an intermetallic used as nuclear fuel in most modern MTR - Materials Test Reactor. Dispersed in aluminum, this fuel allows high uranium densities, up to 4.8 gU/cm 3 . At IPEN, the fabrication of fuel elements based on U 3 Si 2 for the IEA-R1 reactor is carried out in the Nuclear Fuel Center (CCN), by vacuum induction melting of uranium and silicon, followed by grinding. Before employed in a nuclear reactor, U 3 Si 2 must be submitted to a strict quality control, which includes granulometry, density, X-ray radiography for dispersion homogeneity, chemical and crystallographic characterization. Concerning phase composition for a qualified fuel, the fraction of U 3 Si 2 should be higher than 80wt.%. Aiming at the development of a routine methodology for quantification of phases via analysis of XRD data using the Rietved method, six samples from two production baths of CCN were submitted to X-ray diffraction. The data were analyzed using software GSAS and line profile analysis methods. The results suggest that fusion product have preferred orientation and grinding step is important for a better refinement. (author)

Morphological and electrical properties of self-assembled iron silicide nanoparticles on Si(0 0 1) and Si(1 1 1) substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Molnár, G.; Dózsa, L.; Erdélyi, R.; Vértesy, Z.; Osváth, Z.

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Epitaxial iron silicide nanostructures were grown on Si(1 1 1) and Si(0 0 1) substrates. • The size and shape of the particles are the function of the thickness and annealing. • The local current–voltage characteristics were measured by conductive AFM. • The different size and shape nanoparticles show similar I–V characteristics. • The tip current is dominated in few nm size sites, visible in the AFM phase image. - Abstract: Epitaxial iron silicide nanostructures are grown by solid phase epitaxy on Si(0 0 1) and Si(1 1 1), and by reactive deposition epitaxy on Si(0 0 1) substrates. The formation process is monitored by reflection high-energy electron diffraction. The morphology, size, and electrical properties of the nanoparticles are investigated by scanning electron microscopy, by electrically active scanning probe microscopy, and by confocal Raman spectroscopy. The results show that the shape, size, orientation, and density of the nanoobjects can be tuned by self-assembly, controlled by the lattice misfit between the substrates and iron silicides. The size distribution and shape of the grown nanoparticles depend on the substrate orientation, on the initial thickness of the evaporated iron, on the temperature and time of the annealing, and on the preparation method. The so-called Ostwald ripening phenomena, which state that the bigger objects develop at the expense of smaller ones, controls the density of the nanoparticles. Raman spectra show the bigger objects do not contain β-FeSi 2 phase. The different shape nanoparticles exhibit small, about 100 mV barrier compared to the surrounding silicon. The local leakage current of the samples measured by conductive AFM using a Pt coated Si tip is localized in a few nanometers size sites, and the sites which we assume are very small silicide nanoparticles or point defects.

Room temperature ferromagnetic gadolinium silicide nanoparticles

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hadimani, Magundappa Ravi L.; Gupta, Shalabh; Harstad, Shane; Pecharsky, Vitalij; Jiles, David C.

2018-03-06

A particle usable as T₁ and T₂ contrast agents is provided. The particle is a gadolinium silicide (Gd₅Si₄) particle that is ferromagnetic at temperatures up to 290 K and is less than 2 .mu.m in diameter. An MRI contrast agent that includes a plurality of gadolinium silicide (Gd.sub.5Si.sub.4) particles that are less than 1 .mu.m in diameter is also provided. A method for creating gadolinium silicide (Gd₅Si₄) particles is also provided. The method includes the steps of providing a Gd₅Si₄ bulk alloy; grinding the Gd₅Si₄ bulk alloy into a powder; and milling the Gd₅Si₄ bulk alloy powder for a time of approximately 20 minutes or less.

Ytterbium silicide (YbSi{sub 2}). A promising thermoelectric material with a high power factor at room temperature

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tanusilp, Sora-at; Ohishi, Yuji; Muta, Hiroaki [Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka (Japan); Yamanaka, Shinsuke [Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka (Japan); Research Institute of Nuclear Engineering, University of Fukui, Tsuruga (Japan); Nishide, Akinori [Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka (Japan); Center for Exploratory Research, Research and Development Group, Hitachi, Ltd., Kokubunji, Tokyo (Japan); Hayakawa, Jun [Center for Exploratory Research, Research and Development Group, Hitachi, Ltd., Kokubunji, Tokyo (Japan); Kurosaki, Ken [Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka (Japan); Research Institute of Nuclear Engineering, University of Fukui, Tsuruga (Japan); JST, PRESTO, Kawaguchi, Saitama (Japan)

2018-02-15

Metal silicide-based thermoelectric (TE) materials have attracted attention in the past two decades, because they are less toxic, with low production cost and high chemical stability. Here, we study the TE properties of ytterbium silicide YbSi{sub 2} with a specific layered structure and the mixed valence state of Yb{sup 2+} and Yb{sup 3+}. YbSi{sub 2} exhibits large Seebeck coefficient, S, accompanied by high electrical conductivity, σ, leading to high power factor, S{sup 2}σ, of 2.2 mW m{sup -1} K{sup -2} at room temperature, which is comparable to those of state-of-the-art TE materials such as Bi{sub 2}Te{sub 3} and PbTe. Moreover, YbSi{sub 2} exhibits high Grueneisen parameter of 1.57, which leads to relatively low lattice thermal conductivity, κ{sub lat}, of 3.0 W m{sup -1} K{sup -1} at room temperature. The present study reveals that YbSi{sub 2} can be a good candidate of TE materials working near room temperature. (copyright 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

High-temperature oxidation of silicide-aluminide layer on the TiAl6V4 alloy prepared by liquid-phase siliconizing

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Kubatík, Tomáš František

2016-01-01

Roč. 50, č. 2 (2016), s. 257-261 ISSN 1580-2949 Institutional support: RVO:61389021 Keywords : TiAl6V4 * silicides * high-temperature oxidation * liquid-phase silicon izing Subject RIV: JG - Metallurgy Impact factor: 0.436, year: 2016

Neutronic study on conversion of SAFARI-1 to LEU silicide fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ball, G.; Pond, R.; Hanan, N.; Matos, J.

1995-01-01

This paper marks the initial study into the technical and economic feasibility of converting the SAFARI-1 reactor in South Africa to LEU silicide fuel. Several MTR assembly geometries and LEU uranium densities have been studied and compared with MEU and HEU fuels. Two factors of primary importance for conversion of SAFARI-1 to LEU fuel are the economy of the fuel cycle and the performance of the incore and excore irradiation positions

Fuel cycle cost comparisons with oxide and silicide fuels

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Matos, J E; Freese, K E [RERTR Program, Argonne National Laboratory (United States)

1983-09-01

This paper addresses fuel cycle cost comparisons for a generic 10 MW reactor with HEU aluminide fuel and with LEU oxide and silicide fuels in several fuel element geometries. The intention of this study is to provide a consistent assessment of various design options from a cost point of view. The status of the development and demonstration of the oxide and silicide fuels are presented in several papers in these proceedings. Routine utilization of these fuels with the uranium densities considered here requires that they are successfully demonstrated and licensed. Thermal-hydraulic safety margins, shutdown margins, mixed cores, and transient analyses are not addressed here, but analyses of these safety issues are in progress for a limited number of the most promising design options. Fuel cycle cost benefits could result if a number of reactors were to utilize fuel elements with the same number or different numbers of the same standard fuel plate. Data is presented to quantify these potential cost benefits. This analysis shows that there are a number of fuel element designs using LEU oxide or silicide fuels that have either the same or lower total fuel cycle costs than the HEU design. Use of these fuels with the uranium densities considered requires that they are successfully demonstrated and licensed. All safety criteria for the reactor with these fuel element designs need to be satisfied as well. With LEU oxide fuel, 31 g U/cm{sup 3} 1 and 0.76 mm--thick fuel meat, elements with 18-22 plates 320-391 g {sup 235}U) result in the same or lower total costs than with the HEU element 23 plates, 280 g {sup 235}U). Higher LEU loadings (more plates per element) are needed for larger excess reactivity requirements. However, there is little cost advantage to using more than 20 of these plates per element. Increasing the fuel meat thickness from 0.76 mm to 1.0 mm with 3.1 g U/cm{sup 3} in the design with 20 plates per element could result in significant cost reductions if the

Silicide induced surface defects in FePt nanoparticle fcc-to-fct thermally activated phase transition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Shu; Lee, Stephen L.; André, Pascal

2016-01-01

Magnetic nanoparticles (MnPs) are relevant to a wide range of applications including high density information storage and magnetic resonance imaging to name but a few. Among the materials available to prepare MnPs, FePt is attracting growing attention. However, to harvest the strongest magnetic properties of FePt MnPs, a thermal annealing is often required to convert face-centered cubic as synthesized nPs into its tetragonal phase. Rarely addressed are the potential side effects of such treatments on the magnetic properties. In this study, we focus on the impact of silica shells often used in strategies aiming at overcoming MnP coalescence during the thermal annealing. While we show that this shell does prevent sintering, and that fcc-to-fct conversion does occur, we also reveal the formation of silicide, which can prevent the stronger magnetic properties of fct-FePt MnPs from being fully realised. This report therefore sheds lights on poorly investigated and understood interfacial phenomena occurring during the thermal annealing of MnPs and, by doing so, also highlights the benefits of developing new strategies to avoid silicide formation.

Silicide induced surface defects in FePt nanoparticle fcc-to-fct thermally activated phase transition

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chen, Shu; Lee, Stephen L. [School of Physics and Astronomy, SUPA, University of St Andrews, St Andrews KY16 9SS (United Kingdom); André, Pascal, E-mail: pjpandre@riken.jp [School of Physics and Astronomy, SUPA, University of St Andrews, St Andrews KY16 9SS (United Kingdom); RIKEN, Wako 351-0198 (Japan); Department of Physics, CNRS-Ewha International Research Center (CERC), Ewha W. University, Seoul 120-750 (Korea, Republic of)

2016-11-01

Magnetic nanoparticles (MnPs) are relevant to a wide range of applications including high density information storage and magnetic resonance imaging to name but a few. Among the materials available to prepare MnPs, FePt is attracting growing attention. However, to harvest the strongest magnetic properties of FePt MnPs, a thermal annealing is often required to convert face-centered cubic as synthesized nPs into its tetragonal phase. Rarely addressed are the potential side effects of such treatments on the magnetic properties. In this study, we focus on the impact of silica shells often used in strategies aiming at overcoming MnP coalescence during the thermal annealing. While we show that this shell does prevent sintering, and that fcc-to-fct conversion does occur, we also reveal the formation of silicide, which can prevent the stronger magnetic properties of fct-FePt MnPs from being fully realised. This report therefore sheds lights on poorly investigated and understood interfacial phenomena occurring during the thermal annealing of MnPs and, by doing so, also highlights the benefits of developing new strategies to avoid silicide formation.

Magnesium silicide production and silane synthesis on its basis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Taurbaev, T.I.; Mukashev, F.A.; Manakov, S.M.; Francev, U.V.; Kalblanbekov, B.M.; Akhter, P.; Abbas, M.; Hussain, A.

2003-01-01

We had developed an alternative method of production of magnesium silicide with use of ferroalloys of silicon. Magnesium silicide is raw material for silane synthesis. The essence of the method consist of sintering FS -75 (ferrosilicium with 75 % of silicon and 25 % of iron, made by ferroalloy factories) with metal magnesium at temperature of 650 deg. C. The X-ray analysis has shown formation of magnesium silicide. That is further used for synthesis of silane. The output of silane is 60 % in respect of the contents of silicon. After removing the water vapors the mass-spectrometer analysis has estimated the purity of silane as 99.95 % with no detection of phosphine and diborane. (author)

Nanoscale investigation of the interface situation of plated nickel and thermally formed nickel silicide for silicon solar cell metallization

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mondon, A., E-mail: andrew.mondon@ise.fraunhofer.de [Fraunhofer ISE, Heidenhofst. 2, D-79110 Freiburg (Germany); Wang, D. [Karlsruhe Nano Micro Facility (KNMF), H.-von-Helmholz-Platz 1, D-76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen (Germany); Zuschlag, A. [Universität Konstanz FB Physik, Jacob-Burckhardt-Str. 27, D-78464 Konstanz (Germany); Bartsch, J.; Glatthaar, M.; Glunz, S.W. [Fraunhofer ISE, Heidenhofst. 2, D-79110 Freiburg (Germany)

2014-12-30

Highlights: • Adhesion of metallization of fully plated nickel–copper contacts on silicon solar cells can be achieved by formation of nickel silicide at the cost of degraded cell performance. • Understanding of silicide growth mechanisms and controlled growth may lead to high performance together with excellent adhesion. • Silicide formation is well known from CMOS production from PVD-Ni on flat surfaces. Yet the deposition methods and therefore layer characteristics and the surface topography are different for plated metallization. • TEM analysis is performed for differently processed samples. • A nickel silicide growth model is created for plated Ni on textured silicon solar cells. - Abstract: In the context of nickel silicide formation from plated nickel layers for solar cell metallization, there are several open questions regarding contact adhesion and electrical properties. Nanoscale characterization by transmission electron microscopy has been employed to support these investigations. Interfacial oxides and silicide phases were investigated on differently prepared samples by different analytical methods associated with transmission electron microscopy analysis. Processing variations included the pre-treatment of samples before nickel plating, the used plating solution and the thermal budget for the nickel–silicon solid-state reaction. It was shown that interface oxides of only few nm thickness on both silicon and nickel silicide are present on the samples, depending on the chosen process sequence, which have been shown to play an important role in adhesion of nickel on silicide in an earlier publication. From sample pretreatment variations, conclusions about the role of an interfacial oxide in silicide formation and its influence on phase formation were drawn. Such an oxide layer hinders silicide formation except for pinhole sites. This reduces the availability of Ni and causes a silicide with low Ni content to form. Without an interfacial oxide

Thermal stability of Ni-Pt-Ta alloy silicides on epi-Si1-xCx

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yoo, Jung-Ho; Chang, Hyun-Jin; Min, Byoung-Gi; Ko, Dae-Hong; Cho, Mann-Ho; Sohn, Hyunchul; Lee, Tae-Wan

2008-01-01

We investigated the silicide formation in Ni/epi-Si 1-x C x systems. Ni-Pt and Ni-Pt-Ta films were deposited on epi-Si 1-x C x /Si substrates by DC magnetron sputtering and processed at various temperatures. The sheet resistance of the silicide from the Ni alloy/epi-Si 1-x C x systems was maintained at low values compared to that from Ni/Si systems. By TEM and EDS analyses, we confirmed the presence of a Pt alloy layer at the top of the Ni-silicide layer. The stability of the silicide layer in the Ni alloy/epi-Si 1-x C x system is explained by not only the Pt rich layer on the top of the Ni-silicide layer, but also by the presence of a small amount of Pt in the Ni-silicide layer or at the grain boundaries. And both the thermal stability and the morphology of silicide were greatly improved by the addition of Ta in Ni-Pt films

Reprocessing of LEU silicide fuel at Dounreay

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cartwright, P.

1996-01-01

UKAEA have recently reprocessed two LEU silicide fuel elements in their MTR fuel reprocessing plant at Dounreay. The reprocessing was undertaken to demonstrate UKAEA's commitment to the world-wide research reactor communities future needs. Reprocessing of LEU silicide fuel is seen as a waste treatment process, resulting in the production of a liquid feed suitable for conditioning in a stable form of disposal. The uranium product from the reprocessing can be used as a blending feed with the HEU to produce LEU for use in the MTR cycle. (author)

Thermoelectric characteristics of Pt-silicide/silicon multi-layer structured p-type silicon

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choi, Wonchul; Jun, Dongseok; Kim, Soojung; Shin, Mincheol; Jang, Moongyu

2015-01-01

Electric and thermoelectric properties of silicide/silicon multi-layer structured devices were investigated with the variation of silicide/silicon heterojunction numbers from 3 to 12 layers. For the fabrication of silicide/silicon multi-layered structure, platinum and silicon layers are repeatedly sputtered on the (100) silicon bulk substrate and rapid thermal annealing is carried out for the silicidation. The manufactured devices show ohmic current–voltage (I–V) characteristics. The Seebeck coefficient of bulk Si is evaluated as 195.8 ± 15.3 μV/K at 300 K, whereas the 12 layered silicide/silicon multi-layer structured device is evaluated as 201.8 ± 9.1 μV/K. As the temperature increases to 400 K, the Seebeck coefficient increases to 237.2 ± 4.7 μV/K and 277.0 ± 1.1 μV/K for bulk and 12 layered devices, respectively. The increase of Seebeck coefficient in multi-layered structure is mainly attributed to the electron filtering effect due to the Schottky barrier at Pt-silicide/silicon interface. At 400 K, the thermal conductivity is reduced by about half of magnitude compared to bulk in multi-layered device which shows the efficient suppression of phonon propagation by using Pt-silicide/silicon hetero-junctions. - Highlights: • Silicide/silicon multi-layer structured is proposed for thermoelectric devices. • Electric and thermoelectric properties with the number of layer are investigated. • An increase of Seebeck coefficient is mainly attributed the Schottky barrier. • Phonon propagation is suppressed with the existence of Schottky barrier. • Thermal conductivity is reduced due to the suppression of phonon propagation

Technology CAD of silicided Schottky barrier MOSFET for elevated source-drain engineering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saha, A.R.; Chattopadhyay, S.; Bose, C.; Maiti, C.K.

2005-01-01

Technology CAD has been used to study the performance of a silicided Schottky barrier (SB) MOSFET with gate, source and drain contacts realized with nickel-silicide. Elevated source-drain structures have been used towards the S/D engineering of CMOS devices. A full process-to-device simulation has been employed to predict the performance of sub-micron SB n-MOSFETs for the first time. A model for the diffusion and alloy growth kinetics has been incorporated in SILVACO-ATLAS and ATHENA to explore the processing and design parameter space for the Ni-silicided MOSFETs. The temperature and concentration dependent diffusion model for NiSi have been developed and necessary material parameters for nickel-silicide and epitaxial-Si have been incorporated through the C-interpreter function. Two-dimensional (2D) process-to-device simulations have also been used to study the dc and ac (RF) performance of silicided Schottky barrier (SB) n-MOSFETs. The extracted sheet resistivity, as a function of annealing temperature of the silicided S/D contacts, is found to be lower than the conventional contacts currently in use. It is also shown that the Technology CAD has the full capability to predict the possible dc and ac performance enhancement of a MOSFET with elevated S/D structures. While the simulated dc performance shows a clear enhancement, the RF analyses show no performance degradation in the cut-off frequency/propagation delay and also improve the ac performance due to the incorporation of silicide contacts in the S/D region

Technology CAD of silicided Schottky barrier MOSFET for elevated source-drain engineering

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Saha, A.R. [Department of Electronics and ECE, IIT, Kharagpur 721302 (India)]. E-mail: ars.iitkgp@gmail.com; Chattopadhyay, S. [Department of Electronics and ECE, IIT, Kharagpur 721302 (India); School of Electrical, Electronics and Computer Engineering, University of Newcastle, Newcastle upon Tyne (United Kingdom); Bose, C. [Department of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering, Jadavpur University, Calcutta 700032 (India); Maiti, C.K. [Department of Electronics and ECE, IIT, Kharagpur 721302 (India)

2005-12-05

Technology CAD has been used to study the performance of a silicided Schottky barrier (SB) MOSFET with gate, source and drain contacts realized with nickel-silicide. Elevated source-drain structures have been used towards the S/D engineering of CMOS devices. A full process-to-device simulation has been employed to predict the performance of sub-micron SB n-MOSFETs for the first time. A model for the diffusion and alloy growth kinetics has been incorporated in SILVACO-ATLAS and ATHENA to explore the processing and design parameter space for the Ni-silicided MOSFETs. The temperature and concentration dependent diffusion model for NiSi have been developed and necessary material parameters for nickel-silicide and epitaxial-Si have been incorporated through the C-interpreter function. Two-dimensional (2D) process-to-device simulations have also been used to study the dc and ac (RF) performance of silicided Schottky barrier (SB) n-MOSFETs. The extracted sheet resistivity, as a function of annealing temperature of the silicided S/D contacts, is found to be lower than the conventional contacts currently in use. It is also shown that the Technology CAD has the full capability to predict the possible dc and ac performance enhancement of a MOSFET with elevated S/D structures. While the simulated dc performance shows a clear enhancement, the RF analyses show no performance degradation in the cut-off frequency/propagation delay and also improve the ac performance due to the incorporation of silicide contacts in the S/D region.

Secondary neutral mass spectrometry depth profile analysis of silicides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beckmann, P.; Kopnarski, M.; Oechsner, H.

1985-01-01

The Direct Bombardment Mode (DBM) of Secondary Neutral Mass Spectrometry (SNMS) has been applied for depth profile analysis of two different multilayer systems containing metal silicides. Due to the extremely high depth resolution obtained with low energy SNMS structural details down to only a few atomic distances are detected. Stoichiometric information on internal oxides and implanted material is supplied by the high quantificability of SNMS. (Author)

Neutronic Analysis and Radiological Safety of RSG-GAS Reactor on 300 Grams Uranium Silicide Core

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pande Made Udiyani; Lily Suparlina; Rokhmadi

2007-01-01

As starting of usage silicide U 250 g fuel element in the core of RSG-GAS and will be continued with usage of silicide U 300 g fuel element, hence done beforehand neutronic analyse and radiological safety of RSG-GAS. Calculation done by ORIGEN2.1 code to calculate source term, and also by PC-COSYMA code to calculate radiological safety of radioactive dispersion from RSG-GAS. Calculation of radioactive dispersion done at condition of reactor is postulated be happened an accident of LOCA causing one fuel element to melt. Neutronic analysis indicate that silicide U 250 g full core shall to be operated beforehand during 625 MWD before converted to silicide U 300 g core. During operation of transition core with mixture of silicide U 250 g and 300 g, all parameter fulfill criterion of safety Designed Balance core of silicide U 300 g will be reached at the time of fifth full core. Result of calculation indicate that through mixture core of silicide U 250 and 300 g proposed can form silicide U 300 g balance core of reactor RSG-GAS safely. Calculation of radiology safety by deterministic for silicide U 300 g balance core, and accident postulation which is equal to core of silicide U 250 g yield output in the form of radiation activity (radionuclide concentration in the air and deposition on the ground), radiation dose (collective and individual), radiation effect (short- and long-range), which accepted by society in each perceived sector. Result of calculation indicated that dose accepted by society is not pass permitted boundary for public society if happened accident. (author)

Influence of IR-laser irradiation on α-SiC-chromium silicides ceramics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vlasova, M.; Marquez Aguilar, P.A.; Resendiz-Gonzalez, M.C.; Kakazey, M.; Bykov, A.; Gonzalez Morales, I.

2005-01-01

This project investigated the influence of IR-laser irradiation (λ = 1064 nm, P = 240 mW) on composite ceramics SiC-chromium silicides (CrSi 2 , CrSi, Cr 5 Si 3 ) by methods of X-ray diffraction, electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and X-ray microanalysis. Samples were irradiated in air. It was established that a surface temperature of 1990 K was required to melt chromium silicides, evaporate silicon from SiC, oxidize chromium silicides, and enrich superficial layer by carbon and chromium oxide

Capacitance-voltage characterization of fully silicided gated MOS capacitor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Baomin; Ru Guoping; Jiang Yulong; Qu Xinping; Li Bingzong; Liu Ran

2009-01-01

This paper investigates the capacitance-voltage (C-V) measurement on fully silicided (FUSI) gated metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) capacitors and the applicability of MOS capacitor models. When the oxide leakage current of an MOS capacitor is large, two-element parallel or series model cannot be used to obtain its real C-V characteristic. A three-element model simultaneously consisting of parallel conductance and series resistance or a four-element model with further consideration of a series inductance should be used. We employed the three-element and the four-element models with the help of two-frequency technique to measure the Ni FUSI gated MOS capacitors. The results indicate that the capacitance of the MOS capacitors extracted by the three-element model still shows some frequency dispersion, while that extracted by the four-element model is close to the real capacitance, showing little frequency dispersion. The obtained capacitance can be used to calculate the dielectric thickness with quantum effect correction by NCSU C-V program. We also investigated the influence of MOS capacitor's area on the measurement accuracy. The results indicate that the decrease of capacitor area can reduce the dissipation factor and improve the measurement accuracy. As a result, the frequency dispersion of the measured capacitance is significantly reduced, and real C-V characteristic can be obtained directly by the series model. In addition, this paper investigates the quasi-static C-V measurement and the photonic high-frequency C-V measurement on Ni FUSI metal gated MOS capacitor with a thin leaky oxide. The results indicate that the large tunneling current through the gate oxide significantly perturbs the accurate measurement of the displacement current, which is essential for the quasi-static C-V measurement. On the other hand, the photonic high-frequency C-V measurement can bypass the leakage problem, and get reliable low-frequency C-V characteristic, which can be used to

Prediction of barrier inhomogeneities and carrier transport in Ni-silicided Schottky diode

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saha, A.R.; Dimitriu, C.B.; Horsfall, A.B.; Chattopadhyay, S.; Wright, N.G.; O'Neill, A.G.; Maiti, C.K.

2006-01-01

Based on Quantum Mechanical (QM) carrier transport and the effects of interface states, a theoretical model has been developed to predict the anomalous current-voltage (I-V) characteristics of a non-ideal Ni-silicided Schottky diode at low temperatures. Physical parameters such as barrier height, ideality factor, series resistance and effective Richardson constant of a silicided Schottky diode were extracted from forward I-V characteristics and are subsequently used for the simulation of both forward and reverse I-V characteristics using a QM transport model in which the effects of interface state and bias dependent barrier reduction are incorporated. The present analysis indicates that the effects of barrier inhomogeneity caused by incomplete silicide formation at the junction and the interface states may change the conventional current transport process, leading to anomalous forward and reverse I-V characteristics for the Ni-silicided Schottky diode

Development of molecular dynamics potential for uranium silicide fuels

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yu, Jianguo; Zhang, Yongfeng; Hales, Jason D.

2016-09-01

Use of uranium–silicide (U-Si) in place of uranium dioxide (UO2) is one of the promising concepts being proposed to increase the accident tolerance of nuclear fuels. This is due to a higher thermal conductivity than UO2 that results in lower centerline temperatures. U-Si also has a higher fissile density, which may enable some new cladding concepts that would otherwise require increased enrichment limits to compensate for their neutronic penalty. However, many critical material properties for U-Si have not been determined experimentally. For example, silicide compounds (U3Si2 and U3Si) are known to become amorphous under irradiation. There was clear independent experimental evidence to support a crystalline to amorphous transformation in those compounds. However, it is still not well understood how the amorphous transformation will affect on fuel behavior. It is anticipated that modeling and simulation may deliver guidance on the importance of various properties and help prioritize experimental work. In order to develop knowledge-based models for use at the engineering scale with a minimum of empirical parameters and increase the predictive capabilities of the developed model, inputs from atomistic simulations are essential. First-principles based density functional theory (DFT) calculations will provide the most reliable information. However, it is probably not possible to obtain kinetic information such as amorphization under irradiation directly from DFT simulations due to size and time limitations. Thus, a more feasible way may be to employ molecular dynamics (MD) simulation. Unfortunately, so far no MD potential is available for U-Si to discover the underlying mechanisms. Here, we will present our recent progress in developing a U-Si potential from ab initio data. This work is supported by the Nuclear Energy Advanced Modeling and Simulation (NEAMS) program funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Nuclear Energy.

Far-infrared spectroscopy of thermally annealed tungsten silicide films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Amiotti, M.; Borghesi, A.; Guizzetti, G.; Nava, F.; Santoro, G.

1991-01-01

The far-infrared transmittance spectrum of tungsten silicide has been observed for the first time. WSi 2 polycrystalline films were prepared by coevaporation and chemical-vapour deposition on silicon wafers, and subsequently thermally annealed at different temperatures. The observed structures are interpreted, on the basis of the symmetry properties of the crystal, such as infrared-active vibrational modes. Moreover, the marked lineshape dependence on annealing temperature enables this technique to analyse the formation of the solid silicide phases

Texture in thin film silicides and germanides: A review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

De Schutter, B.; De Keyser, K.; Detavernier, C.; Lavoie, C.

2016-01-01

Silicides and germanides are compounds consisting of a metal and silicon or germanium. In the microelectronics industry, silicides are the material of choice for contacting silicon based devices (over the years, CoSi_2, C54-TiSi_2, and NiSi have been adopted), while germanides are considered as a top candidate for contacting future germanium based electronics. Since also strain engineering through the use of Si_1_−_xGe_x in the source/drain/gate regions of MOSFET devices is an important technique for improving device characteristics in modern Si-based microelectronics industry, a profound understanding of the formation of silicide/germanide contacts to silicon and germanium is of utmost importance. The crystallographic texture of these films, which is defined as the statistical distribution of the orientation of the grains in the film, has been the subject of scientific studies since the 1970s. Different types of texture like epitaxy, axiotaxy, fiber, or combinations thereof have been observed in such films. In recent years, it has become increasingly clear that film texture can have a profound influence on the formation and stability of silicide/germanide contacts, as it controls the type and orientation of grain boundaries (affecting diffusion and agglomeration) and the interface energy (affecting nucleation during the solid-state reaction). Furthermore, the texture also has an impact on the electrical characteristics of the contact, as the orientation and size of individual grains influences functional properties such as contact resistance and sheet resistance and will induce local variations in strain and Schottky barrier height. This review aims to give a comprehensive overview of the scientific work that has been published in the field of texture studies on thin film silicide/germanide contacts.

Texture in thin film silicides and germanides: A review

Science.gov (United States)

De Schutter, B.; De Keyser, K.; Lavoie, C.; Detavernier, C.

2016-09-01

Silicides and germanides are compounds consisting of a metal and silicon or germanium. In the microelectronics industry, silicides are the material of choice for contacting silicon based devices (over the years, CoSi2, C54-TiSi2, and NiSi have been adopted), while germanides are considered as a top candidate for contacting future germanium based electronics. Since also strain engineering through the use of Si1-xGex in the source/drain/gate regions of MOSFET devices is an important technique for improving device characteristics in modern Si-based microelectronics industry, a profound understanding of the formation of silicide/germanide contacts to silicon and germanium is of utmost importance. The crystallographic texture of these films, which is defined as the statistical distribution of the orientation of the grains in the film, has been the subject of scientific studies since the 1970s. Different types of texture like epitaxy, axiotaxy, fiber, or combinations thereof have been observed in such films. In recent years, it has become increasingly clear that film texture can have a profound influence on the formation and stability of silicide/germanide contacts, as it controls the type and orientation of grain boundaries (affecting diffusion and agglomeration) and the interface energy (affecting nucleation during the solid-state reaction). Furthermore, the texture also has an impact on the electrical characteristics of the contact, as the orientation and size of individual grains influences functional properties such as contact resistance and sheet resistance and will induce local variations in strain and Schottky barrier height. This review aims to give a comprehensive overview of the scientific work that has been published in the field of texture studies on thin film silicide/germanide contacts.

Texture in thin film silicides and germanides: A review

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

De Schutter, B., E-mail: bob.deschutter@ugent.be; De Keyser, K.; Detavernier, C. [Department of Solid State Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent (Belgium); Lavoie, C. [IBM Research Division, T.J. Watson Research Center, P.O. Box 218, Yorktown Heights, New York 10598 (United States)

2016-09-15

Silicides and germanides are compounds consisting of a metal and silicon or germanium. In the microelectronics industry, silicides are the material of choice for contacting silicon based devices (over the years, CoSi{sub 2}, C54-TiSi{sub 2}, and NiSi have been adopted), while germanides are considered as a top candidate for contacting future germanium based electronics. Since also strain engineering through the use of Si{sub 1−x}Ge{sub x} in the source/drain/gate regions of MOSFET devices is an important technique for improving device characteristics in modern Si-based microelectronics industry, a profound understanding of the formation of silicide/germanide contacts to silicon and germanium is of utmost importance. The crystallographic texture of these films, which is defined as the statistical distribution of the orientation of the grains in the film, has been the subject of scientific studies since the 1970s. Different types of texture like epitaxy, axiotaxy, fiber, or combinations thereof have been observed in such films. In recent years, it has become increasingly clear that film texture can have a profound influence on the formation and stability of silicide/germanide contacts, as it controls the type and orientation of grain boundaries (affecting diffusion and agglomeration) and the interface energy (affecting nucleation during the solid-state reaction). Furthermore, the texture also has an impact on the electrical characteristics of the contact, as the orientation and size of individual grains influences functional properties such as contact resistance and sheet resistance and will induce local variations in strain and Schottky barrier height. This review aims to give a comprehensive overview of the scientific work that has been published in the field of texture studies on thin film silicide/germanide contacts.

Formation of (Nd,Y)-silicides by sequential channeled implantation of Y and Nd ions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jin, S.; Bender, H.; Wu, M.F.; Vantomme, A.; Langouche, G.

2000-01-01

A buried hexagonal Nd 0.32 Y 0.68 Si 1.7 layer is formed by a sequential implantation of Y and Nd ions into (1 1 1)-oriented silicon wafers. The orientation relationship between the epitaxial Nd 0.32 Y 0.68 Si 1.7 and the silicon is (0 0 0 1) Nd 0.32 Y 0.68 Si 1.7 //(1 1 1) Si with Nd 0.32 Y 0.68 Si 1.7 // Si . High temperature annealing (1000 deg. C) results in a gradual transition into an orthorhombic ternary (Nd,Y)-silicide. Between the orthorhombic (Nd,Y)-silicide and the Si a preferential orientation relationship exists: (1 1 0) orth //(1 1(bar) 0) Si with orth // Si . However, as not all orthorhombic silicide grains follow this epitaxial relationship, the minimum yield in the Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS) spectrum increases compared to the results after a low temperature annealing

Formation of (Nd,Y)-silicides by sequential channeled implantation of Y and Nd ions

Science.gov (United States)

Jin, S.; Bender, H.; Wu, M. F.; Vantomme, A.; Langouche, G.

2000-03-01

A buried hexagonal Nd0.32Y0.68Si1.7 layer is formed by a sequential implantation of Y and Nd ions into (1 1 1)-oriented silicon wafers. The orientation relationship between the epitaxial Nd0.32Y0.68Si1.7 and the silicon is (0 0 0 1)Nd0.32Y0.68Si1.7//(1 1 1)Si with Nd0.32Y0.68Si1.7//Si. High temperature annealing (1000°C) results in a gradual transition into an orthorhombic ternary (Nd,Y)-silicide. Between the orthorhombic (Nd,Y)-silicide and the Si a preferential orientation relationship exists: (1 1 0)orth//(1 1¯ 0)Si with orth//Si. However, as not all orthorhombic silicide grains follow this epitaxial relationship, the minimum yield in the Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS) spectrum increases compared to the results after a low temperature annealing.

Rate Theory Modeling and Simulations of Silicide Fuel at LWR Conditions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Miao, Yinbin [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Ye, Bei [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Mei, Zhigang [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Hofman, Gerard [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Yacout, Abdellatif [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)

2015-12-10

Uranium silicide (U₃Si₂) fuel has higher thermal conductivity and higher uranium density, making it a promising candidate for the accident-tolerant fuel (ATF) used in light water reactors (LWRs). However, previous studies on the fuel performance of U₃Si₂, including both experimental and computational approaches, have been focusing on the irradiation conditions in research reactors, which usually involve low operation temperatures and high fuel burnups. Thus, it is important to examine the fuel performance of U₃Si₂ at typical LWR conditions so as to evaluate the feasibility of replacing conventional uranium dioxide fuel with this silicide fuel material. As in-reactor irradiation experiments involve significant time and financial cost, it is appropriate to utilize modeling tools to estimate the behavior of U₃Si₂ in LWRs based on all those available research reactor experimental references and state-of-the-art density functional theory (DFT) calculation capabilities at the early development stage. Hence, in this report, a comprehensive investigation of the fission gas swelling behavior of U₃Si₂ at LWR conditions is introduced. The modeling efforts mentioned in this report was based on the rate theory (RT) model of fission gas bubble evolution that has been successfully applied for a variety of fuel materials at devious reactor conditions. Both existing experimental data and DFT-calculated results were used for the optimization of the parameters adopted by the RT model. Meanwhile, the fuel-cladding interaction was captured by the coupling of the RT model with simplified mechanical correlations. Therefore, the swelling behavior of U₃Si₂ fuel and its consequent interaction with cladding in LWRs was predicted by the rate theory modeling, providing valuable information for the development of U₃Si₂ fuel as an accident

Analysis Influence of Mixing Gd2O3 in the Silicide Fuel Element to Core Excess Reactivity of RSG-GAS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Susilo, Jati

2004-01-01

Gadolinium (Gd 2 O 3 ) is a burnable poison material mixed in the pin fuel element of the LWR core used to decrease core excess reactivity. In this research, analysis influence of mixing Gd 2 O 3 in the silicide fuel element to excess reactivity of the RSG-GAS core had been done. Equivalent cell of the equilibrium core developed by L.E.Strawbridge from Westing House Co. burn-up calculation has been done using SRAC-PIJ computer code achieve infinite multiplication factor (k x ). Value of Gd 2 O 3 concentration in the fuel element (pcm) showed by mass ratio of Gd 2 O 3 (gram) to that U 3 Si 2 (gram) times 10 5 , that is 0 pcm ∼ 100 pcm. From the calculation results analysis showed that Gd 2 O 3 concentration added should be considered. because a large number of Gd 2 O 3 will result in not achieving criticality at the Beginning Of Cycle. The maximum concentration of Gd 2 O 3 for RSG-GAS equilibrium fueled silicide 2.96 grU/cc is 80 pcm or 52.02 mgram/fuel plate. Maximum reduction of core excess reactivity due to mixing of Gd 2 O 3 in the RSG-GAS silicide fuels was around 1.502 %Δk/k, and hence not achieving the standard nominal excess reactivity for RSG-GAS core using high density of U 3 Si 2 -Al fuel. (author)

Bimetallic low thermal-expansion panels of Co-base and silicide-coated Nb-base alloys for high-temperature structural applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rhein, R.K.; Novak, M.D.; Levi, C.G.; Pollock, T.M.

2011-01-01

Research highlights: → Low net thermal expansion bimetallic structural lattice constructed. → Temperatures on the order of 1000 deg. C reached. → Improved silicide coating for niobium alloy developed. - Abstract: The fabrication and high temperature performance of low thermal expansion bimetallic lattices composed of Co-base and Nb-base alloys have been investigated. A 2D sheet lattice with a coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) lower than the constituent materials of construction was designed for thermal cycling to 1000 deg. C with the use of elastic-plastic finite element analyses. The low CTE lattice consisted of a continuous network of the Nb-base alloy C-103 with inserts of high CTE Co-base alloy Haynes 188. A new coating approach wherein submicron alumina particles were incorporated into (Nb, Cr, Fe) silicide coatings was employed for oxidation protection of the Nb-base alloy. Thermal gravimetric analysis results indicate that the addition of submicron alumina particles reduced the oxidative mass gain by a factor of four during thermal cycling, increasing lifetime. Bimetallic cells with net expansion of 6 x 10 -6 /deg. C and 1 x 10 -6 /deg. C at 1000 deg. C were demonstrated and their measured thermal expansion characteristics were consistent with analytical models and finite element analysis predictions.

Babcock and Wilcox plate fabrication experience with uranium silicide spherical fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Todd, Lawrence E.; Pace, Brett W.

1996-01-01

This report is written to present the fuel fabrication experience of Babcock and Wilcox using atomized spherical uranium silicide powder. The intent is to demonstrate the ability to fabricate fuel plates using spherical powder and to provide useful information proceeding into the next phase of work using this type of fuel. The limited quantity of resources- spherical powder and time, did not allow for much process optimizing in this work scope. However, the information contained within provides optimism for the future of spherical uranium silicide fuel plate fabrication at Babcock and Wilcox.The success of assembling fuel elements with spherical powder will enable Babcock and Wilcox to reduce overall costs to its customers while still maintaining our reputation for providing high quality research and test reactor products. (author)

High-Temperature Compatible Nickel Silicide Thermometer And Heater For Catalytic Chemical Microreactors

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Søren; Quaade, U.J.; Hansen, Ole

2005-01-01

Integration of heaters and thermometers is important for agile and accurate control and measurement of the thermal reaction conditions in microfabricated chemical reactors (microreactors). This paper describes development and operation of nickel silicide heaters and temperature sensors...... for temperatures exceeding 700 °C. The heaters and thermometers are integrated with chemical microreactors for heterogeneous catalytic conversion of gasses, and thermally activated catalytic conversion of CO to CO2 in the reactors is demonstrated. The heaters and thermometers are shown to be compatible...

Microstructure and mechanical properties of metal/oxide and metal/silicide interfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shaw, L.; Miracle, D.; Abbaschian, R.

1995-01-01

Fracture energies of Al 2 O 3 /Nb interfaces and MoSi 2 /Nb interfaces with and without Al 2 O 3 coating were measured using sandwich-type chevron-notched specimens. The relations between the mechanical properties, microstructures, types of bonds at the interface and processing routes were explored. The fracture energy of the Al 2 O 3 /Nb interface was determined to be 9 J/m 2 and changed to 16 J/m 2 when Nb was pre-oxidized before the formation of the Al 2 O 3 /Nb interface. The fracture energy of the MoSi 2 /Nb interface could not be determined directly because of the formation of the interfacial compounds. However, the fracture energy at the MoSi 2 /Nb interfacial region was found to depend on the interfacial bond strength, roughness of interfaces and microstructure of interfacial compounds. The interfacial fracture energies of Al 2 O 3 with silicides, MoSi 2 , Nb 5 Si 3 , or (Nb, Mo)Si 2 were estimated to be about 16 J/m 2 , while the interfacial fracture energies between two silicides or between Nb and a silicide were larger than 34 J/m 2 . The measured fracture energies between two silicides or between Nb and a silicide were larger than 34 J/m 2 . The measured fracture energies of the various interfaces are discussed in terms of the interfacial microstructures and types of bonds at the interfaces

The formation of magnetic silicide Fe3Si clusters during ion implantation

Science.gov (United States)

Balakirev, N.; Zhikharev, V.; Gumarov, G.

2014-05-01

A simple two-dimensional model of the formation of magnetic silicide Fe3Si clusters during high-dose Fe ion implantation into silicon has been proposed and the cluster growth process has been computer simulated. The model takes into account the interaction between the cluster magnetization and magnetic moments of Fe atoms random walking in the implanted layer. If the clusters are formed in the presence of the external magnetic field parallel to the implanted layer, the model predicts the elongation of the growing cluster in the field direction. It has been proposed that the cluster elongation results in the uniaxial magnetic anisotropy in the plane of the implanted layer, which is observed in iron silicide films ion-beam synthesized in the external magnetic field.

The formation of magnetic silicide Fe3Si clusters during ion implantation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Balakirev, N.; Zhikharev, V.; Gumarov, G.

2014-01-01

A simple two-dimensional model of the formation of magnetic silicide Fe 3 Si clusters during high-dose Fe ion implantation into silicon has been proposed and the cluster growth process has been computer simulated. The model takes into account the interaction between the cluster magnetization and magnetic moments of Fe atoms random walking in the implanted layer. If the clusters are formed in the presence of the external magnetic field parallel to the implanted layer, the model predicts the elongation of the growing cluster in the field direction. It has been proposed that the cluster elongation results in the uniaxial magnetic anisotropy in the plane of the implanted layer, which is observed in iron silicide films ion-beam synthesized in the external magnetic field

Thermal stability of Ni-Pt-Ta alloy silicides on epi-Si{sub 1-x}C{sub x}

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yoo, Jung-Ho; Chang, Hyun-Jin [Department of Ceramic Engineering, Yonsei University, Seoul 120-749 (Korea, Republic of); Min, Byoung-Gi [Department of Ceramic Engineering, Yonsei University, Seoul 120-749 (Korea, Republic of); Jusung Engineering Co., Ltd., 49, Neungpyeong-ri, Opo-eup, Gwangju-Si, Kyunggi-do 464-892 (Korea, Republic of); Ko, Dae-Hong [Department of Ceramic Engineering, Yonsei University, Seoul 120-749 (Korea, Republic of)], E-mail: dhko@yonsei.ac.kr; Cho, Mann-Ho [Institute of Physics and Applied Physics, Yonsei University, Seoul 120-749 (Korea, Republic of); Sohn, Hyunchul [Department of Ceramic Engineering, Yonsei University, Seoul 120-749 (Korea, Republic of); Lee, Tae-Wan [Jusung Engineering Co., Ltd., 49, Neungpyeong-ri, Opo-eup, Gwangju-Si, Kyunggi-do 464-892 (Korea, Republic of)

2008-12-05

We investigated the silicide formation in Ni/epi-Si{sub 1-x}C{sub x} systems. Ni-Pt and Ni-Pt-Ta films were deposited on epi-Si{sub 1-x}C{sub x}/Si substrates by DC magnetron sputtering and processed at various temperatures. The sheet resistance of the silicide from the Ni alloy/epi-Si{sub 1-x}C{sub x} systems was maintained at low values compared to that from Ni/Si systems. By TEM and EDS analyses, we confirmed the presence of a Pt alloy layer at the top of the Ni-silicide layer. The stability of the silicide layer in the Ni alloy/epi-Si{sub 1-x}C{sub x} system is explained by not only the Pt rich layer on the top of the Ni-silicide layer, but also by the presence of a small amount of Pt in the Ni-silicide layer or at the grain boundaries. And both the thermal stability and the morphology of silicide were greatly improved by the addition of Ta in Ni-Pt films.

Behavior of silicon in nitric media. Application to uranium silicides fuels reprocessing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cheroux, L.

2001-01-01

Uranium silicides are used in some research reactors. Reprocessing them is a solution for their cycle end. A list of reprocessing scenarios has been set the most realistic being a nitric dissolution close to the classic spent fuel reprocessing. This uranium silicide fuel contains a lot of silicon and few things are known about polymerization of silicic acid in concentrated nitric acid. The study of this polymerization allows to point out the main parameters: acidity, temperature, silicon concentration. The presence of aluminum seems to speed up heavily the polymerization. It has been impossible to find an analytical technique smart and fast enough to characterize the first steps of silicic acid polymerization. However the action of silicic species on emulsions stabilization formed by mixing them with an organic phase containing TBP has been studied, Silicon slows down the phase separation by means of oligomeric species forming complex with TBP. The existence of these intermediate species is short and heating can avoid any stabilization. When non irradiated uranium silicide fuel is attacked by a nitric solution, aluminum and uranium are quickly dissolved whereas silicon mainly stands in solid state. That builds a gangue of hydrated silica around the uranium silicide particulates without preventing uranium dissolution. A small part of silicon passes into the solution and polymerize towards the highly poly-condensed forms, just 2% of initial silicon is still in molecular form at the end of the dissolution. A thermal treatment of the fuel element, by forming inter-metallic phases U-Al-Si, allows the whole silicon to pass into the solution and next to precipitate. The behavior of silicon in spent fuels should be between these two situations. (author)

Tungsten silicide contacts to polycrystalline silicon and silicon-germanium alloys

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Srinivasan, G.; Bain, M.F.; Bhattacharyya, S.; Baine, P.; Armstrong, B.M.; Gamble, H.S.; McNeill, D.W.

2004-01-01

Silicon-germanium alloy layers will be employed in the source-drain engineering of future MOS transistors. The use of this technology offers advantages in reducing series resistance and decreasing junction depth resulting in reduction in punch-through and SCE problems. The contact resistance of metal or metal silicides to the raised source-drain material is a serious issue at sub-micron dimensions and must be minimised. In this work, tungsten silicide produced by chemical vapour deposition has been investigated as a contact metallization scheme to both boron and phosphorus doped polycrystalline Si 1- x Ge x , with 0 ≤x ≤ 0.3. Cross bridge Kelvin resistor (CKBR) structures were fabricated incorporating CVD WSi 2 and polycrystalline SiGe. Tungsten silicide contacts to control polysilicon CKBR structures have been shown to be of high quality with specific contact resistance ρ c values 3 x 10 -7 ohm cm 2 and 6 x 10 -7 ohm cm 2 obtained to boron and phosphorus implanted samples respectively. The SiGe CKBR structures show that the inclusion of Ge yields a reduction in ρ c for both dopant types. The boron doped SiGe exhibits a reduction in ρ c from 3 x 10 -7 to 5 x 10 -8 ohm cm 2 as Ge fraction is increased from 0 to 0.3. The reduction in ρ c has been shown to be due to (i) the lowering of the tungsten silicide Schottky barrier height to p-type SiGe resulting from the energy band gap reduction, and (ii) increased activation of the implanted boron with increased Ge fraction. The phosphorus implanted samples show less sensitivity of ρ c to Ge fraction with a lowest value in this work of 3 x 10 -7 ohm cm 2 for a Ge fraction of 0.3. The reduction in specific contact resistance to the phosphorus implanted samples has been shown to be due to increased dopant activation alone

Improvement of Silicide Coating Method as Diffusion Barrier for U-Mo Dispersion Fuel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nam, Ji Min; Kim, Sunghwan; Lee, Kyu Hong; Park, Jong Man [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2014-10-15

The excessive interaction between the U-Mo alloys and their surrounding Al matrix lead to excessive local swelling called 'pillowing'. For this reason, KAERI suggested several remedies such as alloying U-Mo with Ti, or Al matrix with Si. In addition, silicide or nitride coatings on the surface of U-Mo particles have also been proposed to hinder the growth of the interaction layer. In this study, centrifugally atomized U-Mo-Ti alloy powders were coated with silicide layers. The coating process was improved when compared to the previous coating in terms of the ball milling and heat treatment conditions. Subsequently, silicide coated U-Mo-Ti powders and pure aluminum powders were mixed and made into a compact for the annealing test. The compacts were annealed at 550 .deg. C for 2hr, and characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS). 1. Uniform, homogeneous, thickness controllable silicide layers were successfully coated on the surface of U-7wt%Mo-1wt%Ti powders. 2. U{sub 3}Si, U{sub 3}Si{sub 2} silicide layers formed on the surface of U-7wt%Mo-1wt%Ti powders, and were identified by XRD and EDS analyses.

System for uranium superficial density measurement in U3Si2 MTR fuel plates using radiography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hey, Martin A.; Gomez Marlasca, Fernando

2003-01-01

The paper describes a method for measuring uranium superficial density in high density uranium silicide (U 3 Si 2 ) MTR fuel plates, through the use of industrial radiography, a set of patterns built for this purpose, a transmission optical densitometer, and a quantitative model of analysis and measurement. Our choice for this particular method responds to its high accuracy, low cost and easy implementation according to the standing quality control systems. (author)

Influence of Al addition on phase transformation and thermal stability of nickel silicides on Si(0 0 1)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huang, Shih-Hsien; Twan, Sheng-Chen; Cheng, Shao-Liang; Lee, Tu; Hu, Jung-Chih; Chen, Lien-Tai; Lee, Sheng-Wei

2014-01-01

Highlights: ► The presence of Al slows down the Ni 2 Si–NiSi phase transformation but significantly promotes the NiSi 2−x Al x formation. ► The behavior of phase transformation strongly depends on the Al concentration of the initial Ni 1−x Al x alloys. ► The Ni 0.91 Al 0.09 /Si system exhibits remarkably improved thermal stability, even after high temperature annealing for 1000 s. ► The relationship between microstructures, electrical property, and thermal stability of Ni(Al) silicides is discussed. -- Abstract: The influence of Al addition on the phase transformation and thermal stability of Ni silicides on (0 0 1)Si has been systematically investigated. The presence of Al atoms is found to slow down the Ni 2 Si–NiSi phase transformation but significantly promote the NiSi 2−x Al x formation during annealing. The behavior of phase transformation strongly depends on the Al concentration of the initial Ni 1−x Al x alloys. Compared to the Ni 0.95 Pt 0.05 /Si and Ni 0.95 Al 0.05 /Si system, the Ni 0.91 Al 0.09 /Si sample exhibits remarkably enhanced thermal stability, even after high temperature annealing for 1000 s. The relationship between microstructures, electrical property, and thermal stability of Ni silicides is discussed to elucidate the role of Al during the Ni 1−x Al x alloy silicidation. This work demonstrated that thermally stable Ni 1−x Al x alloy silicides would be a promising candidate as source/drain (S/D) contacts in advanced complementary metal–oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) devices

First-principles investigations of the physical properties of binary uranium silicide alloys

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang, Jin; Long, Jianping; Yang, Lijun; Li, Dongmei

2013-01-01

Graphical abstract: Total density of states for USi 2 . Display Omitted -- Abstract: The structural, elastic properties and the Debye temperature of binary Uranium Silicide (U-Si) alloys are investigated by using the first-principles plane-wave pseudopotential density function theory within the generalized gradient approximation (GGA). The ground states properties are found to agree with the available experimental data. The mechanical properties like shear modulus, Young’s modulus, Poisson’s ratio σ and ratio B/G are also calculated. Finally, The averaged sound velocity (v m ), the longitudinal sound velocity (v l ), transverse sound velocity (v t ) and the Debye temperature (θ D ) are obtained. However, the theoretical values are slightly different from few existed experiment data because the latter was obtained at room temperature while the former one at 0 K

Formation of silicides in a cavity applicator microwave system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thompson, D.C.; Kim, H.C.; Alford, T.L.; Mayer, J.W.

2003-01-01

Metal silicides of nickel and cobalt are formed in a cavity applicator microwave system with a magnetron power of 1200 W and a frequency of 2.45 GHz. X-ray diffraction, Rutherford backscattering spectrometry, and four-point-probe measurements are used to identify the silicide phase present and layer thicknesses. Additional processing confirmed that the products attained from heating by microwaves do not differ appreciably from those attained in heating by thermal processes. Materials properties are used to explain microwave power absorption and demonstrate how to tailor a robust process in which thin film reactions can be attained and specific products isolated

The formation of magnetic silicide Fe{sub 3}Si clusters during ion implantation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Balakirev, N. [Kazan National Research Technological University, K.Marx st. 68, Kazan 420015 (Russian Federation); Zhikharev, V., E-mail: valzhik@mail.ru [Kazan National Research Technological University, K.Marx st. 68, Kazan 420015 (Russian Federation); Gumarov, G. [Zavoiskii Physico-Technical Institute of Russian Academy of Sciences, 10/7 Sibirskii trakt st., Kazan 420029 (Russian Federation)

2014-05-01

A simple two-dimensional model of the formation of magnetic silicide Fe{sub 3}Si clusters during high-dose Fe ion implantation into silicon has been proposed and the cluster growth process has been computer simulated. The model takes into account the interaction between the cluster magnetization and magnetic moments of Fe atoms random walking in the implanted layer. If the clusters are formed in the presence of the external magnetic field parallel to the implanted layer, the model predicts the elongation of the growing cluster in the field direction. It has been proposed that the cluster elongation results in the uniaxial magnetic anisotropy in the plane of the implanted layer, which is observed in iron silicide films ion-beam synthesized in the external magnetic field.

Program for in-pile qualification of high density silicide dispersion fuel at IPEN/CNEN-SP

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Silva, Jose E.R. da; Silva, Antonio T. e; Terremoto, Luis A.A.; Durazzo, Michelangelo

2009-01-01

The development of high density nuclear fuel (U 3 Si 2 -Al) with 4,8 gU/cm 3 is on going at IPEN, at this time. This fuel has been considered to be utilized at the new Brazilian Multipurpose Reactor (RMB), planned to be constructed up to 2014. As Brazil does not have hot-cell facilities available for post-irradiation analysis, an alternative qualifying program for this fuel is proposed based on the same procedures used at IPEN since 1988 for qualifying its own U 3 O 8 -Al (1,9 and 2,3 gU/cm 3 ) and U 3 Si 2 -Al (3,0 gU/cm 3 ) dispersion fuels. The fuel miniplates and full-size fuel elements irradiations should be tested at IEA-R1 core. The fuel characterization along the irradiation time should be made by means of non-destructive methods, including periodical visual inspections with an underwater video camera system, sipping tests for fuel elements suspected of leakage, and underwater dimensional measurements for swelling evaluation, performed inside the reactor pool. This work presents the program description for the qualification of the high density nuclear fuel (U 3 Si 2 -Al) with 4,8 gU/cm 3 , and describes the IPEN fuel fabrication infrastructure and some basic features of the available systems for non-destructive tests at IEA-R1 research reactor. (author)

Effects of Silicide Coating on the Interdiffusion between U-7Mo and Al

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nam, Ji Min; Kim, Ji Hyun; Kim, Sunghwan; Lee, Kyu Hong; Park, Jong Man; Jeong, Yong Jin; Kim, Ki Nam [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2015-05-15

The excessive interaction between the U-Mo alloys and their surrounding Al matrix lead to and excessive local swelling called 'pillowing'. For this reason, KAERI suggested several remedies such as alloying U-Mo with Ti, or Al matrix with Si. In addition, silicide, or nitride coatings on the surface of U-Mo particles have also been proposed to hinder the growth of interaction layer. In this study, centrifugally atomized U-7Mo alloy powders were coated with silicide layers at varying T (T = 900 and 1000 .deg. C) for 30 min, respectively. U-Mo alloy powder was blended with Si powders and subsequently heat-treated to form uranium-silicide coating layers on the surface of U-Mo alloy particles. For an annealing test, silicide-coated U-Mo alloy powders were made into a compact, and Al powders were used as a matrix. From EDS results, transformed uranium aluminide intermetallic compounds were mainly U(Al,Si)3. U(Al,Si)3 phase left the silicide coating layer behind, and formed inside of U-7Mo particles, as shown in Fig. 3(a) and (b). In the case of sample B, Al could not penetrate the silicide coating layer and the coating layers were remained constant, as shown in Fig. 3(c) and (d). From the results, we made a comparison between the compacts of sample A and B, and it was shown that Al can easily diffuse into unreacted Si and U{sub 3}Si{sub 5} mixed layer while U{sub 3}Si{sub 2} acted as a good diffusion barrier at 550 .deg. C though those layers had the same thickness.

Effects of Silicide Coating on the Interdiffusion between U-7Mo and Al

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nam, Ji Min; Kim, Ji Hyun; Kim, Sunghwan; Lee, Kyu Hong; Park, Jong Man; Jeong, Yong Jin; Kim, Ki Nam

2015-01-01

The excessive interaction between the U-Mo alloys and their surrounding Al matrix lead to and excessive local swelling called 'pillowing'. For this reason, KAERI suggested several remedies such as alloying U-Mo with Ti, or Al matrix with Si. In addition, silicide, or nitride coatings on the surface of U-Mo particles have also been proposed to hinder the growth of interaction layer. In this study, centrifugally atomized U-7Mo alloy powders were coated with silicide layers at varying T (T = 900 and 1000 .deg. C) for 30 min, respectively. U-Mo alloy powder was blended with Si powders and subsequently heat-treated to form uranium-silicide coating layers on the surface of U-Mo alloy particles. For an annealing test, silicide-coated U-Mo alloy powders were made into a compact, and Al powders were used as a matrix. From EDS results, transformed uranium aluminide intermetallic compounds were mainly U(Al,Si)3. U(Al,Si)3 phase left the silicide coating layer behind, and formed inside of U-7Mo particles, as shown in Fig. 3(a) and (b). In the case of sample B, Al could not penetrate the silicide coating layer and the coating layers were remained constant, as shown in Fig. 3(c) and (d). From the results, we made a comparison between the compacts of sample A and B, and it was shown that Al can easily diffuse into unreacted Si and U 3 Si 5 mixed layer while U 3 Si 2 acted as a good diffusion barrier at 550 .deg. C though those layers had the same thickness

X-ray photoemission spectromicroscopy of titanium silicide formation in patterned microstructures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Singh, S.; Solak, H.; Cerrina, F. [Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison, Stoughton, WI (United States)] [and others

1997-04-01

Titanium silicide has the lowest resistivity of all the refractory metal silicides and has good thermal stability as well as excellent compatibility with Al metallization. It is used as an intermediate buffer layer between W vias and the Si substrate to provide good electrical contact in ULSI technology, whose submicron patterned features form the basis of the integrated circuits of today and tomorrow, in the self aligned silicide (salicide) formation process. TiSi{sub 2} exists in two phases: a metastable C49 base-centered orthorhombic phase with specific resistivity of 60-90 {mu}{Omega}-cm that is formed at a lower temperature (formation anneal) and the stable 12-15 {mu}{Omega}-cm resistivity face-centered orthorhombic C54 phase into which C49 is transformed with a higher temperature (conversion anneal) step. C54 is clearly the target for low resistivity VLSI interconnects. However, it has been observed that when dimensions shrink below 1/mic (or when the Ti thickness drops below several hundred angstroms), the transformation of C49 into C54 is inhibited and agglomeration often occurs in fine lines at high temperatures. This results in a rise in resistivity due to incomplete transformation to C54 and because of discontinuities in the interconnect line resulting from agglomeration. Spectromicroscopy is an appropriate tool to study the evolution of the TiSi2 formation process because of its high resolution chemical imaging ability which can detect bonding changes even in the absence of changes in the relative amounts of species and because of the capability of studying thick {open_quotes}as is{close_quotes} industrial samples.

X-ray photoemission spectromicroscopy of titanium silicide formation in patterned microstructures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Singh, S.; Solak, H.; Cerrina, F.

1997-01-01

Titanium silicide has the lowest resistivity of all the refractory metal silicides and has good thermal stability as well as excellent compatibility with Al metallization. It is used as an intermediate buffer layer between W vias and the Si substrate to provide good electrical contact in ULSI technology, whose submicron patterned features form the basis of the integrated circuits of today and tomorrow, in the self aligned silicide (salicide) formation process. TiSi 2 exists in two phases: a metastable C49 base-centered orthorhombic phase with specific resistivity of 60-90 μΩ-cm that is formed at a lower temperature (formation anneal) and the stable 12-15 μΩ-cm resistivity face-centered orthorhombic C54 phase into which C49 is transformed with a higher temperature (conversion anneal) step. C54 is clearly the target for low resistivity VLSI interconnects. However, it has been observed that when dimensions shrink below 1/mic (or when the Ti thickness drops below several hundred angstroms), the transformation of C49 into C54 is inhibited and agglomeration often occurs in fine lines at high temperatures. This results in a rise in resistivity due to incomplete transformation to C54 and because of discontinuities in the interconnect line resulting from agglomeration. Spectromicroscopy is an appropriate tool to study the evolution of the TiSi2 formation process because of its high resolution chemical imaging ability which can detect bonding changes even in the absence of changes in the relative amounts of species and because of the capability of studying thick open-quotes as isclose quotes industrial samples

Analysis of impurity effect on Silicide fuels of the RSG-GAS core

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tukiran-Surbakti

2003-01-01

Simulation of impurity effect on silicide fuel of the RSG-GAS core has been done. The aim of this research is to know impurity effect of the U-234 and U-236 isotopes in the silicide fuels on the core criticality. The silicide fuels of 250 g U loading and 19.75 of enrichment is used in this simulation. Cross section constant of fuels and non-structure material of core are generated by WIMSD/4 computer code, meanwhile impurity concentration was arranged from 0.01% to 2%. From the result of analysis can be concluded that the isotopes impurity in the fuels could make trouble in the core and the core can not be operated at critical after a half of its cycle length (350 MW D)

The influence of alloying on the phase formation sequence of ultra-thin nickel silicide films and on the inheritance of texture

Science.gov (United States)

Geenen, F. A.; Solano, E.; Jordan-Sweet, J.; Lavoie, C.; Mocuta, C.; Detavernier, C.

2018-05-01

The controlled formation of silicide materials is an ongoing challenge to facilitate the electrical contact of Si-based transistors. Due to the ongoing miniaturisation of the transistor, the silicide is trending to ever-thinner thickness's. The corresponding increase in surface-to-volume ratio emphasises the importance of low-energetic interfaces. Intriguingly, the thickness reduction of nickel silicides results in an abrupt change in phase sequence. This paper investigates the sequence of the silicides phases and their preferential orientation with respect to the Si(001) substrate, for both "thin" (i.e., 9 nm) and "ultra-thin" (i.e., 3 nm) Ni films. Furthermore, as the addition of ternary elements is often considered in order to tailor the silicides' properties, additives of Al, Co, and Pt are also included in this study. Our results show that the first silicide formed is epitaxial θ-Ni2Si, regardless of initial thickness or alloyed composition. The transformations towards subsequent silicides are changed through the additive elements, which can be understood through solubility arguments and classical nucleation theory. The crystalline alignment of the formed silicides with the substrate significantly differs through alloying. The observed textures of sequential silicides could be linked through texture inheritance. Our study illustrates the nucleation of a new phase drive to reduce the interfacial energy at the silicide-substrate interface as well as at the interface with the silicide which is being consumed for these sub-10 nm thin films.

Nanoscale investigation of the interface situation of plated nickel and thermally formed nickel silicide for silicon solar cell metallization

Science.gov (United States)

Mondon, A.; Wang, D.; Zuschlag, A.; Bartsch, J.; Glatthaar, M.; Glunz, S. W.

2014-12-01

In the context of nickel silicide formation from plated nickel layers for solar cell metallization, there are several open questions regarding contact adhesion and electrical properties. Nanoscale characterization by transmission electron microscopy has been employed to support these investigations. Interfacial oxides and silicide phases were investigated on differently prepared samples by different analytical methods associated with transmission electron microscopy analysis. Processing variations included the pre-treatment of samples before nickel plating, the used plating solution and the thermal budget for the nickel-silicon solid-state reaction. It was shown that interface oxides of only few nm thickness on both silicon and nickel silicide are present on the samples, depending on the chosen process sequence, which have been shown to play an important role in adhesion of nickel on silicide in an earlier publication. From sample pretreatment variations, conclusions about the role of an interfacial oxide in silicide formation and its influence on phase formation were drawn. Such an oxide layer hinders silicide formation except for pinhole sites. This reduces the availability of Ni and causes a silicide with low Ni content to form. Without an interfacial oxide a continuous nickel silicide of greater depth, polycrystalline modification and expected phase according to thermal budget is formed. Information about the nature of silicide growth on typical solar cell surfaces could be obtained from silicide phase and geometric observations, which were supported by FIB tomography. The theory of isotropic NiSi growth and orientation dependent NiSi2 growth was derived. By this, a very well performing low-cost metallization for silicon solar cells has been brought an important step closer to industrial introduction.

A Study on Silicide Coatings as Diffusion barrier for U-7Mo Dispersion Fuel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Won, Ju Jin; Kim, Sung Hwan; Lee, Kyu Hong; Jeong, Yong Jin; Kim, Ki Nam; Park, Jong Man; Lee, Chong Tak [KAERI, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2016-05-15

Gamma phase U-Mo alloys are regarded as one of the promising candidates for advanced research reactor fuel when it comes to the irradiation performance. However, it has been reported that interaction layer formation between the UMo alloys and Al matrix degrades the irradiation performance of U-Mo dispersion fuel. The excessive interaction between the U-Mo alloys and their surrounding Al matrix lead to excessive local swelling called 'pillowing'. For this reason, KAERI suggested several remedies such as alloying U-Mo with Al matrix with Si. In addition, silicide or nitride coatings on the surface of U-Mo particles have also been proposed to hinder the growth of the interaction layer. In this study, centrifugally atomized U-7Mo alloy powders were coated with silicide layers at 900 .deg. C for 1hr. U-Mo alloy powder was mixed with MoSi{sub 2}, Si and ZrSi{sub 2} powders and subsequently heat-treated to form uranium-silicide coating layers on the surface of U-Mo alloy particles. Silicide coated U-Mo powders and characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and X-ray diffractometer (XRD). The ZrSi{sub 2} coating layers has a thickness of about 1∼ 2μm. The surface of a silicide coated particle was very rough and silicide powder attached to the surface of the coating layer. 3. The XRD analysis of the coating layers showed that, they consisted of compounds such as U3Si{sub 2}, USi{sub 2}.

Development of low enrichment technologies for high density fuels and for isotope production targets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Taboada, Horacio; Gonzalez, Alfredo G.

2005-01-01

Since more than twenty years ago, CNEA has carried out RERTR activities. Main goals are to convert the RA 6 reactor core from HEU to LEU, to get a comprehensive understanding of U-Mo/Al compounds phase formation in dispersed and monolithic fuels, to develop possible solutions to VHD dispersed and monolithic fuels technical problems, and to optimize techniques to recover U from silicide scrap samples. The future plans include: 1) Completion the RA 6 reactor conversion to LEU; 2) Qualification by irradiation of the promising solutions found for the high density fuels; 3) Irradiation of mini plates and full scale fuel assemblies at the RA 3 reactor and at higher flux and temperature reactors; 4) Optimization of LEU target and radiochemical techniques for radioisotope production. (author) [es

Making of fission 99Mo from LEU silicide(s): A radiochemists' view

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kolar, Z.I.; Wolterbeek, H.Th.

2005-01-01

The present-day industrial scale production of 99 Mo is fission based and involves thermal-neutron irradiation in research reactors of highly enriched uranium (HEU, > 20 % 235 U) containing targets, followed by radiochemical processing of the irradiated targets resulting in the final product: a 99 Mo containing chemical compound of molybdenum. In 1978 a program (RERTR) was started to develop a substitute for HEU reactor fuel i.e. a low enriched uranium (LEU, 235 U) one. In the wake of that program studies were undertaken to convert HEU into LEU based 99 Mo production. Both new targets and radiochemical treatments leading to 99 Mo compounds were proposed. One of these targets is based on LEU silicide, U 3 Si 2 . Present paper aims at comparing LEU U 3 Si 2 and LEU U 3 Si with another LEU target i.e. target material and arriving at some preferences pertaining to 99 Mo production. (author)

Immobilization of Uranium Silicide in Sintered Iron-Phosphate Glass

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mateos, Patricia; Russo, Diego; Rodriguez, Diego; Heredia, A; Sanfilippo, M.; Sterba, Mario

2003-01-01

This work is a continuation of a previous one performed in vitrification of uranium silicide in borosilicate and iron-silicate glasses, by sintering.We present the results obtained with an iron-phosphate glass developed at our laboratory and we compare this results with those obtained with the above mentioned glasses. The main objective was to develop a method as simple as possible, so as to get a monolithic glass block with the appropriate properties to be disposed in a deep geological repository.The thermal transformation of the uranium silicide was characterized by DTA/TG analysis and X-ray diffraction.We determined the evolution of the crystalline phases and the change in weight.Calcined uranium silicide was mixed with natural U 3 O 8 , the amount of U 3 O 8 was calculated to simulate an isotopic dilution of 4%.This material was mixed with powdered iron-phosphate glass (in wt.%: 64,9 P 2 O 5 ; 22,7 Fe 2 O 3 ; 8,1 Al 2 O 3 ; 4,3 Na 2 O) in different proportions (in wt%): 7%, 10% y 15%.The powders were pressed and sintered at temperatures between 585 y 670 °C. Samples of the sintered pellet were prepared for the lixiviation tests (MCC-1P: monolithic samples; deionised water; 90° C; 7, 14 and 28 days).The samples showed a quite good durability (0,6 g.m -2 .day -1 ), similar to borosilicate glasses.The microstructure of the glass samples showed that the uranium particles are much better integrated to the glass matrix in the iron-phosphate glasses than in the borosilicate or iron-silicate glasses.We can conclude that the sintered product obtained could be a good alternative for the immobilization of nuclear wastes with high content of uranium, as the ones arising from the conditioning of research reactors spent fuels

Evaluation of anomalies during nickel and titanium silicide formation using the effective heat of formation mode

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Pretorius, R

1993-11-01

Full Text Available , as well as the observed sequence of growth of different silicide phases, are not in agree- ment with thermodynamic considerations [26]. In the case of the nickel silicides Ni,Si is nearly always found to be the first... to determine how the oxygen content in the silicon affects phase formation. We also show how the anomalous behaviour of titanium and nickel silicide formation can be explained thermodynamically by using the ?effective heat...

Evaluation of powder metallurgical processing routes for multi-component niobium silicide-based high-temperature alloys

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Seemueller, Hans Christoph Maximilian

2016-03-22

Niobium silicide-based composites are potential candidates to replace nickel-base superalloys for turbine applications. The goal of this work was to evaluate the feasibility and differences in ensuing properties of various powder metallurgical processing techniques that are capable of manufacturing net-shape turbine components. Two routes for powder production, mechanical alloying and gas atomization were combined with compaction via hot isostatic pressing and powder injection molding.

Phase analyses of silicide or nitride coated U–Mo and U–Mo–Ti particle dispersion fuel after out-of-pile annealing

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Woo Jeong [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, 989-111 Daedeok-daero, Yuseong, Daejeon 305-353 (Korea, Republic of); Palancher, Hervé [CEA, DEN, DEC, F-13108 Saint Paul Lez Durance Cedex (France); Ryu, Ho Jin, E-mail: hojinryu@kaist.ac.kr [Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, 291 Daehak-ro, Yuseong, Daejeon 305-701 (Korea, Republic of); Park, Jong Man; Nam, Ji Min [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, 989-111 Daedeok-daero, Yuseong, Daejeon 305-353 (Korea, Republic of); Bonnin, Anne [CEA, DEN, DEC, F-13108 Saint Paul Lez Durance Cedex (France); ESRF, 6, rue J. Horowitz, F-38000 Grenoble Cedex (France); Honkimäki, Veijo [ESRF, 6, rue J. Horowitz, F-38000 Grenoble Cedex (France); Charollais, François [CEA, DEN, DEC, F-13108 Saint Paul Lez Durance Cedex (France); Lemoine, Patrick [CEA, DEN, DISN, 91191 Gif sur Yvette (France)

2014-03-15

Highlights: • Silicide or nitride layers were coated on atomized U–Mo or U–Mo–Ti powder. • The constituent phases after annealing were identified through high-energy XRD. • U{sub 3}Si{sub 5} and U{sub 4}Mo(Mo{sub x}Si{sub 1−x})Si{sub 2} were identified in the silicide coating layers. • UN was identified for U–Mo particles and UN and U{sub 4}N{sub 7} formed on U–Mo–Ti particles. -- Abstract: The coating of silicide or nitride layers on U–7 wt%Mo or U–7 wt%Mo–1 wt%Ti particles has been proposed for the minimization of the interaction phase growth in U–Mo/Al dispersion fuel during irradiation. Out-of-pile annealing tests show reduced inter-diffusion by forming silicide or nitride protective layers on U–Mo and U–Mo–Ti particles. To characterize the constituent phases of the coated layers on U–Mo and U–Mo–Ti particles and the interaction phases of coated U–Mo and U–Mo–Ti particle dispersed Al matrix fuel, synchrotron X-ray diffraction experiments have been performed. It was identified that silicide coating layers consisted mainly of U{sub 3}Si{sub 5} and U{sub 4}Mo(Mo{sub x}Si{sub 1−x})Si{sub 2}, and nitride coating layers were composed of mainly UN and U{sub 4}N{sub 7}. The interaction phases obtained after annealing of coated U–Mo and U–Mo–Ti particle dispersion samples were identical to those found in U–Mo/Al–Si and U–Mo/Al systems. Nitride-coated particles showed less interaction formation than silicide-coated particles after annealing at 580 °C for 1 h owing to the higher susceptibility to breakage of the silicide coating layers during hot extrusion.

Mixing of Al into uranium silicides reactor fuels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ding, F.R.; Birtcher, R.C.; Kestel, B.J.; Baldo, P.M.

1996-11-01

SEM observations have shown that irradiation induced interaction of the aluminum cladding with uranium silicide reactor fuels strongly affects both fission gas and fuel swelling behaviors during fuel burn-up. The authors have used ion beam mixing, by 1.5 MeV Kr, to study this phenomena. RBS and the 27 Al(p, γ) 28 Si resonance nuclear reaction were used to measure radiation induced mixing of Al into U 3 Si and U 3 Si 2 after irradiation at 300 C. Initially U mixes into the Al layer and Al mixes into the U 3 Si. At a low dose, the Al layer is converted into UAl 4 type compound while near the interface the phase U(Al .93 Si .07 ) 3 grows. Under irradiation, Al diffuses out of the UAl 4 surface layer, and the lower density ternary, which is stable under irradiation, is the final product. Al mixing into U 3 Si 2 is slower than in U 3 Si, but after high dose irradiation the Al concentration extends much farther into the bulk. In both systems Al mixing and diffusion is controlled by phase formation and growth. The Al mixing rates into the two alloys are similar to that of Al into pure uranium where similar aluminide phases are formed

Ferromagnetic properties of manganese doped iron silicide

Science.gov (United States)

Ruiz-Reyes, Angel; Fonseca, Luis F.; Sabirianov, Renat

We report the synthesis of high quality Iron silicide (FeSi) nanowires via Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD). The materials exhibits excellent magnetic response at room temperature, especially when doped with manganese showing values of 2.0 X 10-04 emu for the FexMnySi nanowires. SEM and TEM characterization indicates that the synthesized nanowires have a diameter of approximately 80nm. MFM measurements present a clear description of the magnetic domains when the nanowires are doped with manganese. Electron Diffraction and XRD measurements confirms that the nanowires are single crystal forming a simple cubic structure with space group P213. First-principle calculations were performed on (111) FeSi surface using the Vienna ab initio simulation package (VASP). The exchange correlations were treated under the Ceperley-Alder (CA) local density approximation (LDA). The Brillouin Zone was sampled with 8x8x1 k-point grid. A total magnetic moment of about 10 μB was obtained for three different surface configuration in which the Iron atom nearest to the surface present the higher magnetization. To study the effect of Mn doping, Fe atom was replaced for a Mn. Stronger magnetization is presented when the Mn atom is close to the surface. The exchange coupling constant have been evaluated calculating the energy difference between the ferromagnetic and anti-ferromagnetic configurations.

Pt silicide/poly-Si Schottky diodes as temperature sensors for bolometers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yuryev, V. A., E-mail: vyuryev@kapella.gpi.ru; Chizh, K. V.; Chapnin, V. A.; Mironov, S. A.; Dubkov, V. P.; Uvarov, O. V.; Kalinushkin, V. P. [A. M. Prokhorov General Physics Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 38 Vavilov Street, Moscow 119991 (Russian Federation); Senkov, V. M. [P. N. Lebedev Physical Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 53 Leninskiy Avenue, Moscow 119991 (Russian Federation); Nalivaiko, O. Y. [JSC “Integral” – “Integral” Holding Management Company, 121A, Kazintsa I. P. Street, Minsk 220108 (Belarus); Novikau, A. G.; Gaiduk, P. I. [Belarusian State University, 4 Nezavisimosti Avenue, 220030 Minsk (Belarus)

2015-05-28

Platinum silicide Schottky diodes formed on films of polycrystalline Si doped by phosphorus are demonstrated to be efficient and manufacturable CMOS-compatible temperature sensors for microbolometer detectors of radiation. Thin-film platinum silicide/poly-Si diodes have been produced by a CMOS-compatible process on artificial Si{sub 3}N{sub 4}/SiO{sub 2}/Si(001) substrates simulating the bolometer cells. Layer structure and phase composition of the original Pt/poly-Si films and the Pt silicide/poly-Si films synthesized by a low-temperature process have been studied by means of the scanning transmission electron microscopy; they have also been explored by means of the two-wavelength X-ray structural phase analysis and the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Temperature coefficient of voltage for the forward current of a single diode is shown to reach the value of about −2%/ °C in the temperature interval from 25 to 50 °C.

Electrical and optical properties of sub-10 nm nickel silicide films for silicon solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brahmi, Hatem; Ravipati, Srikanth; Yarali, Milad; Wang, Weijie; Ryou, Jae-Hyun; Mavrokefalos, Anastassios; Shervin, Shahab

2017-01-01

Highly conductive and transparent films of ultra-thin p-type nickel silicide films have been prepared by RF magnetron sputtering of nickel on silicon substrates followed by rapid thermal annealing in an inert environment in the temperature range 400–600 °C. The films are uniform throughout the wafer with thicknesses in the range of 3–6 nm. The electrical and optical properties are presented for nickel silicide films with varying thickness. The Drude–Lorentz model and Fresnel equations were used to calculate the dielectric properties, sheet resistance, absorption and transmission of the films. These ultrathin nickel silicide films have excellent optoelectronic properties for p-type contacts with optical transparencies up to 80% and sheet resistance as low as ∼0.15 µΩ cm. Furthermore, it was shown that the use of a simple anti-reflection (AR) coating can recover most of the reflected light approaching the values of a standard Si solar cell with the same AR coating. Overall, the combination of ultra-low thickness, high transmittance, low sheet resistance and ability to recover the reflected light by utilizing standard AR coating makes them ideal for utilization in silicon based photovoltaic technologies as a p-type transparent conductor. (paper)

Electrical and optical properties of sub-10 nm nickel silicide films for silicon solar cells

Science.gov (United States)

Brahmi, Hatem; Ravipati, Srikanth; Yarali, Milad; Shervin, Shahab; Wang, Weijie; Ryou, Jae-Hyun; Mavrokefalos, Anastassios

2017-01-01

Highly conductive and transparent films of ultra-thin p-type nickel silicide films have been prepared by RF magnetron sputtering of nickel on silicon substrates followed by rapid thermal annealing in an inert environment in the temperature range 400-600 °C. The films are uniform throughout the wafer with thicknesses in the range of 3-6 nm. The electrical and optical properties are presented for nickel silicide films with varying thickness. The Drude-Lorentz model and Fresnel equations were used to calculate the dielectric properties, sheet resistance, absorption and transmission of the films. These ultrathin nickel silicide films have excellent optoelectronic properties for p-type contacts with optical transparencies up to 80% and sheet resistance as low as ~0.15 µΩ cm. Furthermore, it was shown that the use of a simple anti-reflection (AR) coating can recover most of the reflected light approaching the values of a standard Si solar cell with the same AR coating. Overall, the combination of ultra-low thickness, high transmittance, low sheet resistance and ability to recover the reflected light by utilizing standard AR coating makes them ideal for utilization in silicon based photovoltaic technologies as a p-type transparent conductor.

RA-3 core with uranium silicide fuel elements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abbate, Maximo J.; Sbaffoni, Maria M.

2000-01-01

Following on with studies on uranium silicide fuel elements, this paper reports some comparisons between the use of standard ECN [U 3 O 8 ] fuel elements and type P-06 [from U 3 Si 2 ] fuel elements in the RA-3 core.The first results showed that the calculated overall mean burn up is in agreement with that reported for the facility, which gives more confidence to the successive ones. Comparing the mentioned cores, the silicide one presents several advantages such as: -) a mean burn up increase of 18 %; -) an extraction burn up increase of 20 %; -) 37.4 % increase in full power days, for mean burn up. All this is meritorious for this fuel. Moreover, grouped and homogenized libraries were prepared for CITVAP code that will be used for planning experiments and other bidimensional studies. Preliminary calculations were also performed. (author)

Near surface silicide formation after off-normal Fe-implantation of Si(001) surfaces

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Khanbabaee, B., E-mail: khanbabaee@physik.uni-siegen.de; Pietsch, U. [Solid State Physics, University of Siegen, D-57068 Siegen (Germany); Lützenkirchen-Hecht, D. [Fachbereich C - Physik, Bergische Universität Wuppertal, D-42097 Wuppertal (Germany); Hübner, R.; Grenzer, J.; Facsko, S. [Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf, 01314 Dresden (Germany)

2014-07-14

We report on formation of non-crystalline Fe-silicides of various stoichiometries below the amorphized surface of crystalline Si(001) after irradiation with 5 keV Fe{sup +} ions under off-normal incidence. We examined samples prepared with ion fluences of 0.1 × 10{sup 17} and 5 × 10{sup 17} ions cm{sup −2} exhibiting a flat and patterned surface morphology, respectively. Whereas the iron silicides are found across the whole surface of the flat sample, they are concentrated at the top of ridges at the rippled surface. A depth resolved analysis of the chemical states of Si and Fe atoms in the near surface region was performed by combining X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) using synchrotron radiation. The chemical shift and the line shape of the Si 2p core levels and valence bands were measured and associated with the formation of silicide bonds of different stoichiometric composition changing from an Fe-rich silicides (Fe{sub 3}Si) close to the surface into a Si-rich silicide (FeSi{sub 2}) towards the inner interface to the Si(001) substrate. This finding is supported by XAS analysis at the Fe K-edge which shows changes of the chemical environment and the near order atomic coordination of the Fe atoms in the region close to surface. Because a similar Fe depth profile has been found for samples co-sputtered with Fe during Kr{sup +} ion irradiation, our results suggest the importance of chemically bonded Fe in the surface region for the process of ripple formation.

Controlling the formation and stability of ultra-thin nickel silicides - An alloying strategy for preventing agglomeration

Science.gov (United States)

Geenen, F. A.; van Stiphout, K.; Nanakoudis, A.; Bals, S.; Vantomme, A.; Jordan-Sweet, J.; Lavoie, C.; Detavernier, C.

2018-02-01

The electrical contact of the source and drain regions in state-of-the-art CMOS transistors is nowadays facilitated through NiSi, which is often alloyed with Pt in order to avoid morphological agglomeration of the silicide film. However, the solid-state reaction between as-deposited Ni and the Si substrate exhibits a peculiar change for as-deposited Ni films thinner than a critical thickness of tc = 5 nm. Whereas thicker films form polycrystalline NiSi upon annealing above 450 ° C , thinner films form epitaxial NiSi2 films that exhibit a high resistance toward agglomeration. For industrial applications, it is therefore of utmost importance to assess the critical thickness with high certainty and find novel methodologies to either increase or decrease its value, depending on the aimed silicide formation. This paper investigates Ni films between 0 and 15 nm initial thickness by use of "thickness gradients," which provide semi-continuous information on silicide formation and stability as a function of as-deposited layer thickness. The alloying of these Ni layers with 10% Al, Co, Ge, Pd, or Pt renders a significant change in the phase sequence as a function of thickness and dependent on the alloying element. The addition of these ternary impurities therefore changes the critical thickness tc. The results are discussed in the framework of classical nucleation theory.

Nickel silicide thin films as masking and structural layers for silicon bulk micro-machining by potassium hydroxide wet etching

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bhaskaran, M; Sriram, S; Sim, L W

2008-01-01

This paper studies the feasibility of using titanium and nickel silicide thin films as mask materials for silicon bulk micro-machining. Thin films of nickel silicide were found to be more resistant to wet etching in potassium hydroxide. The use of nickel silicide as a structural material, by fabricating micro-beams of varying dimensions, is demonstrated. The micro-structures were realized using these thin films with wet etching using potassium hydroxide solution on (1 0 0) and (1 1 0) silicon substrates. These results show that nickel silicide is a suitable alternative to silicon nitride for silicon bulk micro-machining

Surface effect on the electronic and the magnetic properties of rock-salt alkaline-earth metal silicides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bialek, Beata; Lee, Jaeil

2011-01-01

An all electron ab-initio method was employed to study the electronic and the magnetic properties of the (001) surface of alkaline-earth metal silicides, CaSi, SrSi, and BaSi, in the rock-salt structure. The three compounds retain their ferromagnetic metallic properties at the surface. Due to the surface effects, the magnetism of the topmost layer is changed as compared with the bulk. This is a short-range effect. In CaSi, the magnetism of the surface layer is noticeably reduced, as compared with the bulk: magnetic moments (MMs) on both Ca and Si atoms are reduced. In SrSi (001), the polarization of electrons in the surface atoms is similar to that in the bulk atoms, and the values of MMs on the component atoms in the topmost layer do not change as much as in CaSi. In BaSi (001), the magnetic properties of Si surface atoms are enhanced slightly, and the magnetism of Ba atoms is not affected considerably by the surface effect. The calculated densities of states confirm the short-range effect of the surface on the electronic properties of the metal silicides.

Self-organized patterns along sidewalls of iron silicide nanowires on Si(110) and their origin

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Das, Debolina; Mahato, J. C.; Bisi, Bhaskar; Dev, B. N., E-mail: msbnd@iacs.res.in [Department of Materials Science, Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, Kolkata 700032 (India); Satpati, B. [Surface Physics and Material Science Division, Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics, 1/AF Bidhannagar, Kolkata 700064 (India)

2014-11-10

Iron silicide (cubic FeSi{sub 2}) nanowires have been grown on Si(110) by reactive deposition epitaxy and investigated by scanning tunneling microscopy and scanning/transmission electron microscopy. On an otherwise uniform nanowire, a semi-periodic pattern along the edges of FeSi{sub 2} nanowires has been discovered. The origin of such growth patterns has been traced to initial growth of silicide nanodots with a pyramidal Si base at the chevron-like atomic arrangement of a clean reconstructed Si(110) surface. The pyramidal base evolves into a comb-like structure along the edges of the nanowires. This causes the semi-periodic structure of the iron silicide nanowires along their edges.

Core conversion study from silicide to molybdenum fuel in the Indonesian 30 MW multipurpose reactor G.A. Siwabessy (RSG-GAS)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sembiring, T.M.; Kuntoro, I.

2005-01-01

This paper describes the core conversion from silicide to molybdenum core through a series of silicide (2.96 gU cm -3 ) - molybdenum (3.55 gUcm -3 ) mixed transition cores for the Indonesian 30 MW-Multipurpose G.A. Siwabessy (RSGGAS) reactor. The core calculations are carried out using the two-dimensional multigroup neutron diffusion method code of Batan-EQUIL-2D. The calculated results showed that the proposed silicide-molybdenum mixed transition cores, using the same refueling/reshuffling scheme, meet the safety criteria and it can be used in safely converting from an all-silicide core to an all-molybdenum core. (author)

Multi-layered silicides coating for vanadium alloys for generation IV reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mathieu, S.; Chaia, N.; Vilasi, M.; Le Flem, M.

2012-01-01

The halide-activated pack-cementation technique was employed to fabricate a diffusion coating that is resistant both to isothermal and to cyclic oxidation in air at 650 degrees C on the surface of the V-4Cr-4Ti vanadium alloy that is a potential core component of future nuclear systems. A thermodynamic assessment determined the deposit conditions in terms of master alloy, activator, filler and temperature. The partial pressures of the main gaseous species (SiCl 4 , SiCl 2 and VCl 2 ) in the pack were calculated with the master alloy Si and the mixture VSi 2 + Si. The VSi 2 + Si master alloy was used to limit vanadium loss from the surface. The obtained coating consisted of multi-layered V x Si y silicides with an outer layer of VSi 2 . This silicide developed a protective layer of silica at 650 degrees C in air and was not susceptible to the pest phenomenon, unlike other refractory silicides (MoSi 2 , NbSi 2 ). We suggest that VSi 2 exhibits no risk of rapid degradation in the gas fast reactor (GFR) conditions. (authors)

The Leakage Current Improvement of a Ni-Silicided SiGe/Si Junction Using a Si Cap Layer and the PAI Technique

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chang Jian-Guang; Wu Chun-Bo; Ji Xiao-Li; Ma Hao-Wen; Yan Feng; Shi Yi; Zhang Rong

2012-01-01

We investigate the leakage current of ultra-shallow Ni-silicided SiGe/Si junctions for 45 nm CMOS technology using a Si cap layer and the pre-amorphization implantation (PAI) process. It is found that with the conventional Ni silicide method, the leakage current of a p + (SiGe)—n(Si) junction is large and attributed to band-to-band tunneling and the generation-recombination process. The two leakage contributors can be suppressed quite effectively when a Si cap layer is added in the Ni silicide method. The leakage reduction is about one order of magnitude and could be associated with the suppression of the agglomeration of the Ni germano-silicide film. In addition, the PAI process after the application of a Si cap layer has little effect on improving the junction leakage but reduces the sheet resistance of the silicide film. As a result, the novel Ni silicide method using a Si cap combined with PAI is a promising choice for SiGe junctions in advanced technology. (cross-disciplinary physics and related areas of science and technology)

Postirradiation analysis of experimental uranium-silicide dispersion fuel plates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hofman, G.L.; Neimark, L.A.

1985-01-01

Low-enriched uranium silicide dispersion fuel plates were irradiated to maximum burnups of 96% of 235 U. Fuel plates containing 33 v/o U 3 Si and U 3 Si 2 behaved very well up to this burnup. Plates containing 33 v/o U 3 Si-Al pillowed between 90 and 96% burnup of the fissile atoms. More highly loaded U 3 Si-Al plates, up to 50 v/o were found to pillow at lower burnups. Plates containing 40 v/o U 3 Si showed an increase swelling rate around 85% burnup. 5 refs., 10 figs

The fabrication and performance of Canadian silicide dispersion fuel for test reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sears, D.F.; Wood, J.C.; Berthiaume, L.C.; Herbert, L.N.; Schaefer, J.D.

1985-01-01

Fuel fabrication effort is now concentrated on the commissioning of large-scale process equipment, defining product specifications, developing a quality assurance plan, and setting up a mini-computer material accountancy system. In the irradiation testing program, full-size NRU assemblies containing 20% enriched silicide dispersion fuel have been Irradiated successfully to burnups in the range 65-80 atomic percent. Irradiations have also been conducted on mini-elements having 1.2 mm diameter holes In their mid-sections, some drilled before irradiation and others after irradiation to 22-83 atomic percent burnup. Uranium was lost to the coolant in direct proportion to the surface area of exposed core material. Pre-irradiation in the intact condition appeared to reduce in-reactor corrosion. Fuel cores developed for the NRU reactor are dimensionally very stable, swelling by only 6-8% at the very high burnup of 93 atomic percent. Two important factors contributing to this good performance are cylindrical clad restraint and coarse silicide particles. Thermal ramping tests were conducted on irradiated silicide aspersion fuels. Small segments of fuel cores released 85 Kr starting at about 520 deg. C and peaking at about 680 deg C. After a holding period of 1 hour at 720 deg. C a secondary 85 Kr peak occurred during cooling (at about 330 deg. C) probably due to thermal contraction cracking. Whole mini-elements irradiated to 93 atomic percent burnup were also ramped thermally, with encouraging results. After about 0.25 h at 530 deg. C the aluminum cladding developed very localized small blisters, some with penetrating pin-hole cracks preventing gross pillowing or ballooning. (author)

The fabrication and performance of Canadian silicide dispersion fuel for test reactors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sears, D F; Wood, J C; Berthiaume, L C; Herbert, L N; Schaefer, J D

1985-07-01

Fuel fabrication effort is now concentrated on the commissioning of large-scale process equipment, defining product specifications, developing a quality assurance plan, and setting up a mini-computer material accountancy system. In the irradiation testing program, full-size NRU assemblies containing 20% enriched silicide dispersion fuel have been Irradiated successfully to burnups in the range 65-80 atomic percent. Irradiations have also been conducted on mini-elements having 1.2 mm diameter holes In their mid-sections, some drilled before irradiation and others after irradiation to 22-83 atomic percent burnup. Uranium was lost to the coolant in direct proportion to the surface area of exposed core material. Pre-irradiation in the intact condition appeared to reduce in-reactor corrosion. Fuel cores developed for the NRU reactor are dimensionally very stable, swelling by only 6-8% at the very high burnup of 93 atomic percent. Two important factors contributing to this good performance are cylindrical clad restraint and coarse silicide particles. Thermal ramping tests were conducted on irradiated silicide aspersion fuels. Small segments of fuel cores released {sup 85}Kr starting at about 520 deg. C and peaking at about 680 deg C. After a holding period of 1 hour at 720 deg. C a secondary {sup 85}Kr peak occurred during cooling (at about 330 deg. C) probably due to thermal contraction cracking. Whole mini-elements irradiated to 93 atomic percent burnup were also ramped thermally, with encouraging results. After about 0.25 h at 530 deg. C the aluminum cladding developed very localized small blisters, some with penetrating pin-hole cracks preventing gross pillowing or ballooning. (author)

Milling uranium silicide powder for dispersion nuclear fuels

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vieira, E.; Silva, D.G.; Souza, J.A.B.; Durazzo, M. [Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares (IPEN/CNEN-SP), Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil); Riella, H.G. [Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC), Florianopolis, SC (Brazil)

2009-07-01

Full text: Uranium silicide (U3Si2) is presently considered the best fuel qualified so far in terms of uranium loading and performance. Stability of the U3Si2 fuel with uranium density of 4.8 g/cm3 was confirmed by burnup stability tests performed during the Reduced Enrichment for Research and Test Reactors (RERTR) program. This fuel was chosen to compose the first core of the new Brazilian Multipurpose Research Reactor (RMB), planned to be constructed in the next years. This new reactor will consume bigger quantities of U3Si2 powder, when compared with the small consumption of the IEA-R1 research reactor of IPEN-CNEN/SP, the unique MTR type research reactor operating in the country. At the present time, the milling operation of U3Si2 ingots is made manually. In order to increase the powder production capacity, the manual milling must be replaced by an automated procedure. This paper describes a new milling machine and procedure developed to produce U3Si2 powder with higher efficiency. (author)

Neutronic Analysis of the RSG-GAS Compact Core without CIP Silicide 3.55 g U/cc and 4.8 g U/cc

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jati S; Lily S; Tukiran S

2004-01-01

Fuel conversion from U 3 O 8 -Al to U 3 Si 2 -Al 2.96 g U/cc density in the RSG-GAS core had done successfully step by step since 36 th core until 44 th core. So that, since the 45 th core until now (48 th core) had been using full of silicide 2.96 g U/cc. Even though utilization program of silicide fuel with high density (3.55 g U/cc and 4.8 g U/cc) and optimize operation of RSG-GAS core under research. Optimalitation of core with increasing operation cycle have been analyzing about compact core. The mean of compact core is the RSG-GAS core with decrease number of IP or CIP position irradiation. In this research, the neutronic calculation to cover RSG-GAS core and RSG-GAS core without CIP that are using U 3 Si 2 -Al 2.96 g U/cc, 3.55 g U/cc and 4.8 g U/cc had done. Two core calculation done at 15 MW power using SRAC-ASMBURN code. The calculation result show that fuel conversion from 2.96 g U/cc density to 3.55 g U/cc and 4.8 g U/cc will increasing cycle length for both RSG-GAS core and RSG-GAS compact core without CIP. However, increasing of excess reactivity exceeded from nominal value of first design that 9.2%. Change of power peaking factor is not show significant value and still less than 1.4. Core fuelled with U 3 Si 2 -Al 4.8 g U/cc density have maximum discharge burn-up which exceeded from licensing value (70%). RSG-GAS compact core without CIP fuelled U 3 Si 2 -Al 2.96 g U/cc have longer cycle operation then RSG-GAS core and fulfil limitation neutronic parameter at the first design value. (author)

Kinetics of low pressure chemical vapor deposition of tungsten silicide from dichlorocilane reduction of tungsten hexafluoride

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Srinivas, D.; Raupp, G.B.; Hillman, J.

1990-01-01

The authors report on experiments to determine the intrinsic surface reaction rate dependences and film properties' dependence on local reactant partial pressures and wafer temperature in low pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD) of tungsten silicide from dichlorosilane reduction of tungsten hexafluoride. Films were deposited in a commercial-scale Spectrum CVD cold wall single wafer reactor under near differential, gradientless conditions. Over the range of process conditions investigated, deposition rate was found to be first order in dichlorosillane and negative second order in tungsten hexafluoride partial pressure. The apparent activation energy in the surface reaction limited regime was found to be 70-120 kcal/mol. The silicon to tungsten ratio of as deposited silicide films ranged from 1.1 to 2.4, and increased with increasing temperature and dichlorosillane partial pressure, and decreased with increasing tungsten hexafluoride pressure. These results suggest that the apparent silicide deposition rate and composition are controlled by the relative rates of at least two competing reactions which deposit stoichiometric tungsten silicides and/or silicon

Progress in doping of ruthenium silicide (Ru2Si3)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vining, C.B.; Allevato, C.E.

1992-01-01

This paper reports that ruthenium silicide (Ru 2 Si 3 ) is currently under development as a promising thermoelectric material suitable for space power applications. Key to realizing the potentially high figure of merit values of this material is the development of appropriate doping techniques. In this study, manganese and iridium have been identified as useful p- and n-type dopants, respectively. Resistivity values have been reduced by more than 3 orders of magnitude. Anomalous Hall effect results, however, complicate interpretation of some of the results and further effort is required to achieve optimum doping levels

The whole-core LEU silicide fuel demonstration in the JMTR

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Aso, Tomokazu; Akashi, Kazutomo; Nagao, Yoshiharu [Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute, Ibaraki-ken (Japan)] [and others

1997-08-01

The JMTR was fully converted to LEU silicide (U{sub 3}Si{sub 2}) fuel with cadmium wires as burnable absorber in January, 1994. The reduced enrichment program for the JMTR was initiated in 1979, and the conversion to MEU (enrichment ; 45%) aluminide fuel was carried out in 1986 as the first step of the program. The final goal of the program was terminated by the present LEU conversion. This paper describes the results of core physics measurement through the conversion phase from MEU fuel core to LEU fuel core. Measured excess reactivities of the LEU fuel cores are mostly in good agreement with predicted values. Reactivity effect and burnup of cadmium wires, therefore, were proved to be well predicted. Control rod worth in the LEU fuel core is mostly less than that in the MEU fuel core. Shutdown margin was verified to be within the safety limit. There is no significant difference in temperature coefficient of reactivity between the MEU and LEU fuel cores. These results verified that the JMTR was successfully and safely converted to LEU fuel. Extension of the operating cycle period was achieved and reduction of spend fuel elements is expected by using the fuel with high uranium density.

Local solid phase growth of few-layer graphene on silicon carbide from nickel silicide supersaturated with carbon

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Escobedo-Cousin, Enrique; Vassilevski, Konstantin; Hopf, Toby; Wright, Nick; O'Neill, Anthony; Horsfall, Alton; Goss, Jonathan; Cumpson, Peter

2013-01-01

Patterned few-layer graphene (FLG) films were obtained by local solid phase growth from nickel silicide supersaturated with carbon, following a fabrication scheme, which allows the formation of self-aligned ohmic contacts on FLG and is compatible with conventional SiC device processing methods. The process was realised by the deposition and patterning of thin Ni films on semi-insulating 6H-SiC wafers followed by annealing and the selective removal of the resulting nickel silicide by wet chemistry. Raman spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were used to confirm both the formation and subsequent removal of nickel silicide. The impact of process parameters such as the thickness of the initial Ni layer, annealing temperature, and cooling rates on the FLG films was assessed by Raman spectroscopy, XPS, and atomic force microscopy. The thickness of the final FLG film estimated from the Raman spectra varied from 1 to 4 monolayers for initial Ni layers between 3 and 20 nm thick. Self-aligned contacts were formed on these patterned films by contact photolithography and wet etching of nickel silicide, which enabled the fabrication of test structures to measure the carrier concentration and mobility in the FLG films. A simple model of diffusion-driven solid phase chemical reaction was used to explain formation of the FLG film at the interface between nickel silicide and silicon carbide.

Information for irradiation and post-irradiation of the silicide fuel element prototype P-07

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abbate, Maximo J.; Sbaffoni, Maria M.

2003-01-01

Included in the 'Silicides' Project, developed by the Nuclear Fuels Department of the National Atomic Energy Commission (CNEA), it is foreseen the qualification of this type of fuel for research reactors in order to be used in the Argentine RA-3 reactor and to confirm the CNEA as an international supplier. The paper presents basic information on several parameters corresponding to the new silicide prototype, called P-07, to be taken into account for its irradiation, postirradiation and qualification. (author)

Fracture of niobium-base silicide coated alloy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Davydova, A.D.; Zotov, Yu.P.; Ivashchenko, O.V.; Kushnareva, N.P.; Yarosh, I.P.

1990-01-01

Mechanical properties and character of fracture of Nb-W-Mo-Zr-C alloy composition with complex by composition and structure silicide coating under different states of stage-by-stage coating are studied. Structural features, character of fracture from ductile to quasibrittle transcrystalline one and, respectively, the composition plasticity level are defined by interrelation of fracture processes in coating, matrix plastic flow and possibility and way of stress relaxation on their boundary

Prospect of Uranium Silicide fuel element with hypostoichiometric (Si ≤3.7%)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suripto, A.; Sardjono; Martoyo

1996-01-01

An attempt to obtain high uranium-loading in silicide dispersion fuel element using the fabrication technology applicable nowadays can reach Uranium-loading slightly above 5 gU/cm 3 . It is difficult to achieve a higher uranium-loading than that because of fabricability constraints. To overcome those difficulties, the use of uranium silicide U 3 Si based is considered. The excess of U is obtained by synthesising U 3 Si 2 in Si-hypostoichiometric stage, without applying heat treatment to the ingot as it can generate undesired U 3 Si. The U U will react with the matrix to form U al x compound, that its pressure is tolerable. This experiment is to consider possibilities of employing the U 3 Si 2 as nuclear fuel element which have been performed by synthesising U 3 Si 2 -U with the composition of 3.7 % weigh and 3 % weigh U. The ingot was obtained and converted into powder form which then was fabricated into experimental plate nuclear fuel element. The interaction between free U and Al-matrix during heat-treatment is the rolling phase of the fuel element was observed. The study of the next phase will be conducted later

Solvent extraction studies of RERTR silicide fuels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gouge, Anthony P.

1983-01-01

Uranium silicide fuels, which are candidate RERTR fuel compositions, may require special considerations in solvent extraction reprocessing. Since Savannah River Plant may be reprocessing RERTR fuels as early as 1985, studies have been conducted at Savannah River Laboratory to demonstrate the solvent extraction behavior of this fuel. Results of solvent extraction studies with both unirradiated and irradiated fuel are presented along with the preliminary RERTR solvent extraction reprocessing flow sheet for Savannah River Plant. (author)

Phase transformations in Higher Manganese Silicides

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Allam, A. [MADIREL, UMR 7246 CNRS - Universite Aix-Marseille, av Normandie-Niemen, 13397 Marseille Cedex 20 (France); IM2NP, UMR 7334 CNRS - Universite Aix-Marseille, av Normandie-Niemen, Case 142, 13397 Marseille Cedex 20 (France); Boulet, P. [MADIREL, UMR 7246 CNRS - Universite Aix-Marseille, av Normandie-Niemen, 13397 Marseille Cedex 20 (France); Nunes, C.A. [Departamento de Engenharia de Materiais (DEMAR), Escola de Engenharia de Lorena (EEL), Universidade de Sao Paulo - USP, Caixa Postal 116, 12600-970 Lorena, Sao Paulo (Brazil); Sopousek, J.; Broz, P. [Masaryk University, Faculty of Science, Department of Chemistry, Kolarska 2, 611 37 Brno (Czech Republic); Masaryk University, Central European Institute of Technology, CEITEC, Kamenice 753/5, 625 00 Brno (Czech Republic); Record, M.-C., E-mail: m-c.record@univ-cezanne.fr [IM2NP, UMR 7334 CNRS - Universite Aix-Marseille, av Normandie-Niemen, Case 142, 13397 Marseille Cedex 20 (France)

2013-02-25

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The phase transitions of the Higher Manganese Silicides were investigated. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The samples were characterised by XRD, DTA and DSC. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Mn{sub 27}Si{sub 47} is the stable phase at room temperature and under atmospheric pressure. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer At around 800 Degree-Sign C, Mn{sub 27}Si{sub 47} is transformed into Mn{sub 15}Si{sub 26}. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The phase transition is of a second order. - Abstract: This work is an investigation of the phase transformations of the Higher Manganese Silicides in the temperature range [100-1200 Degree-Sign C]. Several complementary experimental techniques were used, namely in situ X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Differential Thermal Analysis (DTA) and Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC). The evolution of both the lattice parameters and the thermal expansion coefficients was determined from in situ XRD measurements. The stability of the samples was investigated by thermal analysis (DTA) and Cp measurements (DSC). This study shows that Mn{sub 27}Si{sub 47} which is the stable phase at room temperature and under atmospheric pressure undergoes a phase transformation at around 800 Degree-Sign C. Mn{sub 27}Si{sub 47} is transformed into Mn{sub 15}Si{sub 26}. This phase transformation seems to be of a second order one. Indeed it was not evidenced by DTA and by contrast it appears on the Cp curve.

The electronic structure of 4d and 5d silicides

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Speier, W.; Kumar, L.; Sarma, D.D.; Groot, R.A. de; Fuggle, J.C.

1989-01-01

A systematic experimental and theoretical study of the electronic structure of stoichiometric silicides with Nb, Mo, Ta and W is presented. We have employed x-ray photoemission and bremsstrahlung isochromat spectroscopy as experimental techniques and interpreted the measured data by calculation of

Silicon-germanium and platinum silicide nanostructures for silicon based photonics

Science.gov (United States)

Storozhevykh, M. S.; Dubkov, V. P.; Arapkina, L. V.; Chizh, K. V.; Mironov, S. A.; Chapnin, V. A.; Yuryev, V. A.

2017-05-01

This paper reports a study of two types of silicon based nanostructures prospective for applications in photonics. The first ones are Ge/Si(001) structures forming at room temperature and reconstructing after annealing at 600°C. Germanium, being deposited from a molecular beam at room temperature on the Si(001) surface, forms a thin granular film composed of Ge particles with sizes of a few nanometers. A characteristic feature of these films is that they demonstrate signs of the 2 x 1 structure in their RHEED patterns. After short-term annealing at 600°C under the closed system conditions, the granular films reconstruct to heterostructures consisting of a Ge wetting layer and oval clusters of Ge. A mixed type c(4x2) + p(2x2) reconstruction typical to the low-temperature MBE (Tgr Ge. The other type of the studied nanostructures is based on Pt silicides. This class of materials is one of the friendliest to silicon technology. But as silicide film thickness reaches a few nanometers, low resistivity becomes of primary importance. Pt3Si has the lowest sheet resistance among the Pt silicides. However, the development of a process of thin Pt3Si films formation is a challenging task. This paper describes formation of a thin Pt3Si/Pt2Si structures at room temperature on poly-Si films. Special attention is paid upon formation of poly-Si and amorphous Si films on Si3N4 substrates at low temperatures.

Steady-state thermal hydraulic analysis and flow channel blockage accident analysis of JRR-3 silicide core

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaminaga, Masanori

1997-03-01

JRR-3 is a light water moderated and cooled, beryllium and heavy water reflected pool type research reactor using low enriched uranium (LEU) plate-type fuels. Its thermal power is 20 MW. The core conversion program from uranium-aluminum (UAl x -Al) dispersion type fuel (aluminide fuel) to uranium-silicon-aluminum (U 3 Si 2 -Al) dispersion type fuel (silicide fuel) is currently conducted at the JRR-3. This report describes about the steady-state thermal hydraulic analysis results and the flow channel blockage accident analysis result. In JRR-3, there are two operation mode. One is high power operation mode up to 20 MW, under forced convection cooling using the primary and the secondary cooling systems. The other is low power operation mode up to 200 kW, under natural circulation cooling between the reactor core and the reactor pool without the primary and the secondary cooling systems. For the analysis of the flow channel blockage accident, COOLOD code was used. On the other hand, steady-state thermal hydraulic analysis for both of the high power operation mode under forced convection cooling and low power operation under natural convection cooling, COOLOD-N2 code was used. From steady-state thermal hydraulic analysis results of both forced and natural convection cooling, fuel temperature, minimum DNBR etc. meet the design criteria and JRR-3 LEU silicide core has enough safety margin under normal operation conditions. Furthermore, flow channel blockage accident analysis results show that one channel flow blockage accident meet the safety criteria for accident conditions which have been established for JRR-3 LEU silicide core. (author)

Towards the improvement of the oxidation resistance of Nb-silicides in situ composites: A solid state diffusion approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mathieu, S.; Knittel, S.; François, M.; Portebois, L.; Mathieu, S.; Vilasi, M.

2014-01-01

Highlights: •Local equilibrium is attained during oxidation at phase boundaries (steady state conditions). •A solid state diffusion model explains the oxidation mechanism of Nb-silicides composites. •The Nb ss fraction is not the only parameters governing the oxidation rate of Nb-silicides. •Aluminium increases the thermodynamic activity of Si in the Nb-silicides composites. •The results indicate the need to develop a Nb–Ti–Hf–Al–Cr–Si thermodynamic database. -- Abstract: The present study focuses on the oxidation mechanism of Nb-silicide composites and on the effect of the composition on the oxidation rate at 1100 °C. A theoretical approach is proposed based on experimental results and used to optimise the oxidation resistance. The growth model based on multiphase diffusion was experimentally tested and confirmed by manufacturing seven composites with different compositions. It was also found that the effect of the composition has to be evaluated at 1100 °C within a short time duration (50 h), where the oxide scale and the internal oxidation zone both grow according to parabolic kinetics

Quantitative EPMA of Nano-Phase Iron-Silicides in Apollo 16 Lunar Regolith

Science.gov (United States)

Gopon, P.; Fournelle, J.; Valley, J. W.; Pinard, P. T.; Sobol, P.; Horn, W.; Spicuzza, M.; Llovet, X.; Richter, S.

2013-12-01

Until recently, quantitative EPMA of phases under a few microns in size has been extremely difficult. In order to achieve analytical volumes to analyze sub-micron features, accelerating voltages between 5 and 8 keV need to be used. At these voltages the normally used K X-ray transitions (of higher Z elements) are no longer excited, and we must rely of outer shell transitions (L and M). These outer shell transitions are difficult to use for quantitative EPMA because they are strongly affected by different bonding environments, the error associated with their mass attenuation coefficients (MAC), and their proximity to absorption edges. These problems are especially prevalent for the transition metals, because of the unfilled M5 electron shell where the Lα transition originates. Previous studies have tried to overcome these limitations by using standards that almost exactly matched their unknowns. This, however, is cumbersome and requires accurate knowledge of the composition of your sample beforehand, as well as an exorbitant number of well characterized standards. Using a 5 keV electron beam and utilizing non-standard X-ray transitions (Ll) for the transition metals, we are able to conduct accurate quantitative analyses of phases down to ~300nm. The Ll transition in the transition metals behaves more like a core-state transition, and unlike the Lα/β lines, is unaffected by bonding effects and does not lie near an absorption edge. This allows for quantitative analysis using standards do not have to exactly match the unknown. In our case pure metal standards were used for all elements except phosphorus. We present here data on iron-silicides in two Apollo 16 regolith grains. These plagioclase grains (A6-7 and A6-8) were collected between North and South Ray Craters, in the lunar highlands, and thus are associated with one or more large impact events. We report the presence of carbon, nickel, and phosphorus (in order of abundance) in these iron-silicide phases

Moissanite (SiC) with metal-silicide and silicon inclusions from tuff of Israel: Raman spectroscopy and electron microscope studies

Science.gov (United States)

Dobrzhinetskaya, Larissa; Mukhin, Pavel; Wang, Qin; Wirth, Richard; O'Bannon, Earl; Zhao, Wenxia; Eppelbaum, Lev; Sokhonchuk, Tatiana

2018-06-01

Here, we present studies of natural SiC that occurs in situ in tuff related to the Miocene alkaline basalt formation deposited in northern part of Israel. Raman spectroscopy, SEM and FIB-assisted TEM studies revealed that SiC is primarily hexagonal polytypes 4H-SiC and 6H-SiC, and that the 4H-SiC polytype is the predominant phase. Both SiC polytypes contain crystalline inclusions of silicon (Sio) and inclusions of metal-silicide with varying compositions (e.g. Si58V25Ti12Cr3Fe2, Si41Fe24Ti20Ni7V5Zr3, and Si43Fe40Ni17). The silicides crystal structure parameters match Si2TiV5 (Pm-3m space group, cubic), FeSi2Ti (Pbam space group, orthorhombic), and FeSi2 (Cmca space group, orthorhombic) respectively. We hypothesize that SiC was formed in a local ultra-reduced environment at respectively shallow depths (60-100 km), through a reaction of SiO2 with highly reducing fluids (H2O-CH4-H2-C2H6) arisen from the mantle "hot spot" and passing through alkaline basalt magma reservoir. SiO2 interacting with the fluids may originate from the walls of the crustal rocks surrounding this magmatic reservoir. This process led to the formation of SiC and accompanied by the reducing of metal-oxides to native metals, alloys, and silicides. The latter were trapped by SiC during its growth. Hence, interplate "hot spot" alkali basalt volcanism can now be included as a geological environment where SiC, silicon, and silicides can be found.

Magnesium and Manganese Silicides For Efficient And Low Cost Thermo-Electric Power Generation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Trivedi, Sudhir B. [Brimrose Technology Corporation; Kutcher, Susan W. [Brimrose Technology Corporation; Rosemeier, Cory A. [Brimrose Technology Corporation; Mayers, David [Brimrose Technology Corporation; Singh, Jogender [Pennsylvania State University

2013-12-02

Thermoelectric Power Generation (TEPG) is the most efficient and commercially deployable power generation technology for harvesting wasted heat from such things as automobile exhausts, industrial furnaces, and incinerators, and converting it into usable electrical power. We investigated the materials magnesium silicide (Mg2Si) and manganese silicide (MnSi) for TEG. MgSi2 and MnSi are environmentally friendly, have constituent elements that are abundant in the earth's crust, non-toxic, lighter and cheaper. In Phase I, we successfully produced Mg2Si and MnSi material with good TE properties. We developed a novel technique to synthesize Mg2Si with good crystalline quality, which is normally very difficult due to high Mg vapor pressure and its corrosive nature. We produced n-type Mg2Si and p-type MnSi nanocomposite pellets using FAST. Measurements of resistivity and voltage under a temperature gradient indicated a Seebeck coefficient of roughly 120 V/K on average per leg, which is quite respectable. Results indicated however, that issues related to bonding resulted in high resistivity contacts. Determining a bonding process and bonding material that can provide ohmic contact from room temperature to the operating temperature is an essential part of successful device fabrication. Work continues in the development of a process for reproducibly obtaining low resistance electrical contacts.

CEMS Investigations of Fe-Silicide Phases Formed by the Method of Concentration Controlled Phase Selection

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Moodley, M. K.; Bharuth-Ram, K. [University of Durban-Westville, Physics Department (South Africa); Waal, H. de; Pretorius, R. [University of Stellenbosch, Physics Department (South Africa)

2002-03-15

Conversion electron Moessbauer spectroscopy (CEMS) measurements have been made on Fe-silicide samples formed using the method of concentration controlled phase selection. To prepare the samples a 10 nm layer of Fe{sub 30}M{sub 70} (M=Cr, Ni) was evaporated onto Si(100) surfaces, followed by evaporation of a 60 nm Fe layer. Diffusion of the Fe into the Si substrate and the formation of different Fe-Si phases was achieved by subjecting the evaporated samples to a series of heating stages, which consisted of (a) a 10 min anneal at 800 deg. C plus etch of the residual surface layer, (b) a further 3 hr anneal at 800 deg. C, (c) a 60 mJ excimer laser anneal to an energy density of 0.8 J/cm{sup 2}, and (d) a final 3 hr anneal at 800 deg. C. CEMS measurements were used to track the Fe-silicide phases formed. The CEMS spectra consisted of doublets which, based on established hyperfine parameters, could be assigned to {alpha}- or {beta}-FeSi{sub 2} or cubic FeSi. The spectra showed that {beta}-FeSi{sub 2} had formed already at the first annealing stage. Excimer laser annealing resulted in the formation of a phase with hyperfine parameters consistent with those of {alpha}-FeSi{sub 2}. A further 3 hr anneal at 800 deg. C resulted in complete reversal to the semiconducting {beta}-FeSi{sub 2} phase.

On the interdiffusion in multilayered silicide coatings for the vanadium-based alloy V-4Cr-4Ti

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chaia, N., E-mail: nabil.chaia@usp.br [Escola de Engenharia de Lorena, Universidade de São Paulo, Pólo Urbo-Industrial Gleba AI-6, 12602-810 Lorena, SP (Brazil); Portebois, L., E-mail: leo.portebois@univ-lorraine.fr [Université de Lorraine, Institut Jean Lamour, UMR7198, Boulevard des Aiguillettes, BP70239, 54506 Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, Cedex (France); Mathieu, S., E-mail: stephane.mathieu@univ-lorraine.fr [Université de Lorraine, Institut Jean Lamour, UMR7198, Boulevard des Aiguillettes, BP70239, 54506 Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, Cedex (France); David, N., E-mail: nicolas.david@univ-lorraine.fr [Université de Lorraine, Institut Jean Lamour, UMR7198, Boulevard des Aiguillettes, BP70239, 54506 Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, Cedex (France); Vilasi, M., E-mail: michel.vilasi@univ-lorraine.fr [Université de Lorraine, Institut Jean Lamour, UMR7198, Boulevard des Aiguillettes, BP70239, 54506 Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, Cedex (France)

2017-02-15

To provide protection against corrosion at high temperatures, silicide diffusion coatings were developed for the V-4Cr-4Ti alloy, which can be used as the fuel cladding in next-generation sodium-cooled fast breeder reactors. The multilayered coatings were prepared by halide-activated pack cementation using MgF{sub 2} as the transport agent and pure silicon (high activity) as the master alloy. Coated pure vanadium and coated V-4Cr-4Ti alloy were studied and compared as substrates. In both cases, the growth of the silicide layers (V{sub 3}Si, V{sub 5}Si{sub 3}, V{sub 6}Si{sub 5} and VSi{sub 2}) was controlled exclusively by solid-state diffusion, and the growth kinetics followed a parabolic law. Wagner's analysis was adopted to calculate the integrated diffusion coefficients for all silicides. The estimated values of the integrated diffusion coefficients range from approximately 10{sup −9} to 10{sup −13} cm{sup 2} s{sup −1}. Then, a diffusion-based numerical approach was used to evaluate the growth and consumption of the layers when the coated substrates were exposed at critical temperatures. The estimated lifetimes of the upper VSi{sub 2} layer were 400 h and 280 h for pure vanadium and the V-4Cr-4Ti alloy, respectively. The result from the numeric simulation was in good agreement with the layer thicknesses measured after aging the coated samples at 1150 °C under vacuum. - Highlights: • The pack cementation technique is implemented to study interdiffusion in V/Si and V-4Cr-4Ti/Si couples. • Interdiffusion coefficients of vanadium silicides were experimentally determined within the range 1100–1250 °C. • For either V/Si or V-4Cr-4Ti/Si couples, the VSi{sub 2} layer has the highest growth rate. • The Cr and Ti alloying elements mainly modified the V{sub 5}Si{sub 3} and V{sub 6}Si{sub 5} growth rate. • Numerical simulation allows for a confident assessment of the VSi{sub 2} coating lifetime on V-4Cr-4Ti.

Influence of layout parameters on snapback characteristic for a gate-grounded NMOS device in 0.13-μm silicide CMOS technology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jiang Yuxi; Li Jiao; Ran Feng; Cao Jialin; Yang Dianxiong

2009-01-01

Gate-grounded NMOS (GGNMOS) devices with different device dimensions and layout floorplans have been designed and fabricated in 0.13-μm silicide CMOS technology. The snapback characteristics of these GGNMOS devices are measured using the transmission line pulsing (TLP) measurement technique. The relationships between snapback parameters and layout parameters are shown and analyzed. A TCAD device simulator is used to explain these relationships. From these results, the circuit designer can predict the behavior of the GGNMOS devices under high ESD current stress, and design area-efficient ESD protection circuits to sustain the required ESD level. Optimized layout rules for ESD protection in 0.13-μm silicide CMOS technology are also presented. (semiconductor devices)

Optical anisotropy of quasi-1D rare-earth silicide nanostructures on Si(001)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chandola, S., E-mail: sandhya.chandola@isas.de [Leibniz-Institut für Analytische Wissenschaften – ISAS – e.V., Schwarzschildstraße 8, 12489 Berlin (Germany); Speiser, E.; Esser, N. [Leibniz-Institut für Analytische Wissenschaften – ISAS – e.V., Schwarzschildstraße 8, 12489 Berlin (Germany); Appelfeller, S.; Franz, M.; Dähne, M. [Institut für Festkörperphysik, Technische Universität Berlin, Hardenbergstraße 36, 10623 Berlin (Germany)

2017-03-31

Highlights: • Reflectance anisotropy spectroscopy (RAS) is capable of distinguishing optically between the semiconducting wetting layer and the metallic nanowires of rare earth (Tb and Dy) silicide nanostructures grown on vicinal Si(001). • The spectra of the wetting layer show a distinctive line shape with a large peak appearing at 3.8 eV, which is assigned to the formation of 2 × 3 and 2 × 4-like subunits of the 2 × 7 reconstruction. The spectra of the metallic nanowires show peaks at the E{sub 1} and E{sub 2} transitions of bulk Si which is assigned to strong substrate strain induced by the nanowires. • The optical anisotropy of the Tb nanowires is larger than for the Dy nanowires, which is related to the preferential formation of more strained bundles as well as larger areas of clean Si surfaces in the case of Tb. • RAS is shown to be a powerful addition to surface science techniques for studying the formation of rare-earth silicide nanostructures. Its surface sensitivity and rapidity of response make it an ideal complement to the slower but higher resolution of scanning probes of STM and AFM. - Abstract: Rare earth metals are known to interact strongly with Si(001) surfaces to form different types of silicide nanostructures. Using STM to structurally characterize Dy and Tb silicide nanostructures on vicinal Si(001), it will be shown that reflectance anisotropy spectroscopy (RAS) can be used as an optical fingerprint technique to clearly distinguish between the formation of a semiconducting two-dimensional wetting layer and the metallic one-dimensional nanowires. Moreover, the distinctive spectral features can be related to structural units of the nanostructures. RAS spectra of Tb and Dy nanostructures are found to show similar features.

Cross-Bridge Kelvin Resistor (CBKR) structures for silicide-semiconductor junctions characterization

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Stavitski, N.; van Dal, M.J.H.; Klootwijk, J.H.; Wolters, Robertus A.M.; Kovalgin, Alexeij Y.; Schmitz, Jurriaan

2006-01-01

Analyzing the contact geometry factors for the conventional CBKR structures, it appeared that the contact geometries conventionally used for the metal-to-silicide contact resistance measurements were not always satisfactory to reveal the specific contact resistance values. To investigate these

Synthesis of molybdenum borides and molybdenum silicides in molten salts and their oxidation behavior in an air-water mixture

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kuznetsov, S.A.; Kuznetsova, S.V.; Rebrov, E.V.; Mies, M.J.M.; Croon, de M.H.J.M.; Schouten, J.C.

2005-01-01

The formation of various coatings in molybdenum-boron and molybdenum-silicon systems was investigated. Boronizing and siliciding treatments were conducted in molten salts under inert gas atm. in the 850-1050 DegC temp. range for 7 h. The presence of boride (e.g. Mo2B, MoB, Mo2B5) and silicide

Influence of impurities on silicide contact formation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kazdaev, Kh.R.; Meermanov, G.B.; Kazdaev, R.Kh.

2002-01-01

Research objectives of this work are to investigate the influence of light impurities implantation on peculiarities of the silicides formation in molybdenum monocrystal implanted by silicon, and in molybdenum films sputtered on silicon substrate at subsequent annealing. Implantation of the molybdenum samples was performed with silicon ions (90 keV, 5x10 17 cm -2 ). Phase identification was performed by X ray analysis with photographic method of registration. Analysis of the results has shown the formation of the molybdenum silicide Mo 3 Si at 900 deg. C. To find out the influence of impurities present in the atmosphere (C,N,O) on investigated processes we have applied combined implantation. At first, molybdenum was implanted with ions of the basic component (silicon) and then -- with impurities ions. Acceleration energies (40keV for C, 45 keV for N and 50 keV for O) were chosen to obtain the same distribution profiles for basic and impurities ions. Ion doses were 5x10 17 cm -2 for Si-ions and 5x10 16 cm -2 - for impurities. The most important results are reported here. The first, for all three kinds of impurities the decreased formation temperatures of the phase Mo 3 Si were observed; in the case of C and N it was ∼100 deg. and in the case of nitrogen - ∼200 deg. Further, simultaneously with the Mo 3 Si phase, the appearance of the rich-metal phase Mo 5 Si 3 was registered (not observed in the samples without additional implantation). In case of Mo/Si-structure, the implantation of the impurities (N,O) was performed to create the peak concentration (∼4at/%) located in the middle of the molybdenum film (∼ 150nm) deposited on silicon substrate. Investigation carried out on unimplanted samples showed the formation of the silicide molybdenum MoSi 2 , observed after annealing at temperatures 900/1000 deg. C, higher than values 500-600 deg. C reported in other works. It is discovered that electrical conductivity of Mo 5 Si 3 -films synthesized after impurities

Characterization of tungsten silicides formed by rapid thermal annealing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Siegal, M.; Santiago, J.J.; VanDerSpiegel, J.

1986-01-01

Tungsten silicide samples were formed by sputter depositing 80 nm W metal onto (100) oriented, 5 ohm-cm Si wafers. After deposition, the samples were fast radiatively processed in an RTA system using quartz-halogen tungsten lamps as radiation sources for time intervals ranging from 20 to 60s under high vacuum. Films processed at 22-25 W/cm 2 radiation with the film side of the samples oriented away from the lamps result in films which are metallic or cloudy in color, and have mixed composition as evidenced by x-ray diffraction (W, W 5 Si 3 and WSi 2 ). Films processed with the film side oriented toward the lamps show the occurrence of a phase transformation clearly nucleated at the film edge

Detailed analysis of uranium silicide dispersion fuel swelling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hofmann, G.L.; Ryu, Woo-Seog

1991-01-01

Swelling of U 3 Si and U 3 Si 2 is analyzed. The growth of fission gas bubbles appears to be affected by fission rate, fuel loading, and micro structural change taking place in the fuel compounds during irradiation. Several mechanisms are explored to explain the observations. The present work is aimed at a better understanding of the basic swelling phenomenon in order to accurately model irradiation behavior of uranium silicide dispersion fuel. (orig.)

Impact of Nickel silicide Rear Metallization on Series Resistance of Crystalline Silicon Solar Cells

KAUST Repository

Bahabry, Rabab R

2018-01-11

The Silicon-based solar cell is one of the most important enablers toward high efficiency and low-cost clean energy resource. Metallization of silicon-based solar cells typically utilizes screen printed silver-Aluminium (Ag-Al) which affects the optimal electrical performance. To date, metal silicide-based ohmic contacts are occasionally used as an alternative candidate only to the front contact grid lines in crystalline silicon (c-Si) based solar cells. In this paper, we investigate the electrical characteristics of nickel mono-silicide (NiSi)/Cu-Al ohmic contact on the rear side of c-Si solar cells. We observe a significant enhancement in the fill factor of around 6.5% for NiSi/Cu-Al rear contacts leading to increasing the efficiency by 1.2% compared to Ag-Al. This is attributed to the improvement of the parasitic resistance in which the series resistance decreased by 0.737 Ω.cm². Further, we complement experimental observation with a simulation of different contact resistance values, which manifests NiSi/Cu-Al rear contact as a promising low-cost metallization for c-Si solar cells with enhanced efficiency.

Microstructure and mechanical properties of molybdenum silicides with Al additions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rosales, I.; Bahena, D.; Colin, J.

2007-01-01

Several molybdenum silicides alloys with different aluminum additions were produced by the arc-cast method. Microstructure observed in the alloys presented a variation of the precipitated second phase respect to the aluminum content. Evaluation of the compressive behavior at high temperature of the alloys shows an important improvement in its ductility, approximately of 20%. Fracture toughness was increased proportionally with Al content. In addition at room temperature the alloys show a better mechanical behavior in comparison with the sample unalloyed. In general, Al additions result to be a good alternative to improve the resistance of these intermetallic alloys. The results are interpreted on the base of the analysis of second phase strengthening

Technical report: technical development on the silicide plate-type fuel experiment at nuclear safety research reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yanagisawa, Kazuaki; Soyama, Kazuhiko; Ichikawa, Hiroki

1991-08-01

According to a reduction of fuel enrichment from 45 w/o 235 U to 20 w/o, an aluminide plate-type fuel used currently in the domestic research and material testing reactors will be replaced by a silicide plate-type one. One of the major concern arisen from this alternation is to understand the fuel behavior under simulated reactivity initiated accident (RIA) conditions, this is strongly necessary from the safety and licensing point of view. The in-core RIA experiments are, therefore, carried out at Nuclear Safety Research Reactor (NSRR) in Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI). The silicide plate-type fuel consisted of the ternary alloy of U-Al-Si as a meat with uranium density up to 4.8 g/cm 3 having thickness by 0.51 mm and the binary alloy of Al-3%Mg as a cladding by thickness of 0.38 mm. Comparison of the physical properties of this metallic plate fuel with the UO 2 -zircaloy fuel rod used conventionally in commercial light water reactors shows that the heat conductivity of the former is of the order of about 13 times greater than the latter, however the melting temperature is only one-half (1570degC). Prior to in-core RIA experiments, there were some difficulties lay in our technical path. This report summarized the technical achievements obtained through our four years work. (J.P.N.)

Aluminium alloyed iron-silicide/silicon solar cells: A simple approach for low cost environmental-friendly photovoltaic technology.

Science.gov (United States)

Kumar Dalapati, Goutam; Masudy-Panah, Saeid; Kumar, Avishek; Cheh Tan, Cheng; Ru Tan, Hui; Chi, Dongzhi

2015-12-03

This work demonstrates the fabrication of silicide/silicon based solar cell towards the development of low cost and environmental friendly photovoltaic technology. A heterostructure solar cells using metallic alpha phase (α-phase) aluminum alloyed iron silicide (FeSi(Al)) on n-type silicon is fabricated with an efficiency of 0.8%. The fabricated device has an open circuit voltage and fill-factor of 240 mV and 60%, respectively. Performance of the device was improved by about 7 fold to 5.1% through the interface engineering. The α-phase FeSi(Al)/silicon solar cell devices have promising photovoltaic characteristic with an open circuit voltage, short-circuit current and a fill factor (FF) of 425 mV, 18.5 mA/cm(2), and 64%, respectively. The significant improvement of α-phase FeSi(Al)/n-Si solar cells is due to the formation p(+-)n homojunction through the formation of re-grown crystalline silicon layer (~5-10 nm) at the silicide/silicon interface. Thickness of the regrown silicon layer is crucial for the silicide/silicon based photovoltaic devices. Performance of the α-FeSi(Al)/n-Si solar cells significantly depends on the thickness of α-FeSi(Al) layer and process temperature during the device fabrication. This study will open up new opportunities for the Si based photovoltaic technology using a simple, sustainable, and los cost method.

Intermetallic nickel silicide nanocatalyst-A non-noble metal-based general hydrogenation catalyst.

Science.gov (United States)

Ryabchuk, Pavel; Agostini, Giovanni; Pohl, Marga-Martina; Lund, Henrik; Agapova, Anastasiya; Junge, Henrik; Junge, Kathrin; Beller, Matthias

2018-06-01

Hydrogenation reactions are essential processes in the chemical industry, giving access to a variety of valuable compounds including fine chemicals, agrochemicals, and pharmachemicals. On an industrial scale, hydrogenations are typically performed with precious metal catalysts or with base metal catalysts, such as Raney nickel, which requires special handling due to its pyrophoric nature. We report a stable and highly active intermetallic nickel silicide catalyst that can be used for hydrogenations of a wide range of unsaturated compounds. The catalyst is prepared via a straightforward procedure using SiO 2 as the silicon atom source. The process involves thermal reduction of Si-O bonds in the presence of Ni nanoparticles at temperatures below 1000°C. The presence of silicon as a secondary component in the nickel metal lattice plays the key role in its properties and is of crucial importance for improved catalytic activity. This novel catalyst allows for efficient reduction of nitroarenes, carbonyls, nitriles, N-containing heterocycles, and unsaturated carbon-carbon bonds. Moreover, the reported catalyst can be used for oxidation reactions in the presence of molecular oxygen and is capable of promoting acceptorless dehydrogenation of unsaturated N-containing heterocycles, opening avenues for H 2 storage in organic compounds. The generality of the nickel silicide catalyst is demonstrated in the hydrogenation of over a hundred of structurally diverse unsaturated compounds. The wide application scope and high catalytic activity of this novel catalyst make it a nice alternative to known general hydrogenation catalysts, such as Raney nickel and noble metal-based catalysts.

Detailed analysis of uranium silicide dispersion fuel swelling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hofman, G.L.; Ryu, Woo-Seog.

1989-01-01

Swelling of U 3 Si and U 3 Si 2 is analyzed. The growth of fission gas bubbles appears to be affected by fission rate, fuel loading, and microstructural change taking place in the fuel compounds during irradiation. Several mechanisms are explored to explain the observations. The present work is aimed at a better understanding of the basic swelling phenomenon in order to accurately model irradiation behavior of uranium silicide disperson fuel. 5 refs., 10 figs

Reclamation and reuse of LEU silicide fuel from manufacturing scrap

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gale, G.R.; Pace, B.W.; Evans, R.S.

2004-01-01

In order to provide an understanding of the organization which is the sole supplier of United States plate type research and test reactor fuel and LEU core conversions, a brief description of the structure and history is presented. Babcock and Wilcox (B and W) is a part of McDermott International, Inc. which is a large diversified corporation employing over 20,000 people primarily in engineering and construction for the off-shore oil and power generation industries throughout the world. B and W provides many energy related products requiring precision machining and high quality systems. This is accomplished by using state-of-the-art equipment, technology and highly skilled people. The RTRFE group within B and W has the ability to produce various complexly shaped fuel elements with a wide variety of fuels and enrichments. B and W RTRFE has fabricated over 200,000 plates since 1981 and gained the diversified experience necessary to satisfy many customer requirements. This accomplishment was possible with the support of McDermott International and all of its resources. B and W has always had a commitment to high quality and integrity. This is apparent by the success and longevity (125 years) of the company. A lower cost to convert cores to LEU provides direct support to RERTR and demonstrates Babcock and Wilcox's commitment to the program. As a supporter of RERTR reactor conversion from HEU to LEU, B and W has contributed a significant amount of R and D money to improve the silicide fuel process which ultimately lowers the LEU core costs. In the most recent R and D project, B and W is constructing a LEU silicide reclamation facility to re-use the unirradiated fuel scrap generated from the production process. Remanufacturing use of this fuel completes the fuel cycle and provides a contribution to LEU cores by reducing scrap inventory and handling costs, lowering initial purchase of fuel due to increasing the process yields, and lowering the replacement costs. This

Reactivity management and burn-up management on JRR-3 silicide-fuel-core

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kato, Tomoaki; Araki, Masaaki; Izumo, Hironobu; Kinase, Masami; Torii, Yoshiya; Murayama, Yoji

2007-08-01

On the conversion from uranium-aluminum-dispersion-type fuel (aluminide fuel) to uranium-silicon-aluminum-dispersion-type fuel (silicide fuel), uranium density was increased from 2.2 to 4.8 g/cm 3 with keeping uranium-235 enrichment of 20%. So, burnable absorbers (cadmium wire) were introduced for decreasing excess reactivity caused by the increasing of uranium density. The burnable absorbers influence reactivity during reactor operation. So, the burning of the burnable absorbers was studied and the influence on reactor operation was made cleared. Furthermore, necessary excess reactivity on beginning of operation cycle and the time limit for restart after unplanned reactor shutdown was calculated. On the conversion, limit of fuel burn-up was increased from 50% to 60%. And the fuel exchange procedure was changed from the six-batch dispersion procedure to the fuel burn-up management procedure. The previous estimation of fuel burn-up was required for the planning of fuel exchange, so that the estimation was carried out by means of past operation data. Finally, a new fuel exchange procedure was proposed for effective use of fuel elements. On the procedure, burn-up of spent fuel was defined for each loading position. The average length of fuel's staying in the core can be increased by two percent on the procedure. (author)

Fuel element burnup measurements for the equilibrium LEU silicide RSG GAS (MPR-30) core under a new fuel management strategy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pinem, Surian; Liem, Peng Hong; Sembiring, Tagor Malem; Surbakti, Tukiran

2016-01-01

Highlights: • Burnup measurement of fuel elements comprising the new equilibrium LEU silicide core of RSG GAS. • The burnup measurement method is based on a linear relationship between reactivity and burnup. • Burnup verification was conducted using an in-house, in-core fuel management code BATAN-FUEL. • A good agreement between the measured and calculated burnup was confirmed. • The new fuel management strategy was confirmed and validated. - Abstract: After the equilibrium LEU silicide core of RSG GAS was achieved, there was a strong need to validate the new fuel management strategy by measuring burnup of fuel elements comprising the core. Since the regulatory body had a great concern on the safety limit of the silicide fuel element burnup, amongst the 35 burnt fuel elements we selected 22 fuel elements with high burnup classes i.e. from 20 to 53% loss of U-235 (declared values) for the present measurements. The burnup measurement method was based on a linear relationship between reactivity and burnup where the measurements were conducted under subcritical conditions using two fission counters of the reactor startup channel. The measurement results were compared with the declared burnup evaluated by an in-house in-core fuel management code, BATAN-FUEL. A good agreement between the measured burnup values and the calculated ones was found within 8% uncertainties. Possible major sources of differences were identified, i.e. large statistical errors (i.e. low fission counters’ count rates), variation of initial U-235 loading per fuel element and accuracy of control rod indicators. The measured burnup of the 22 fuel elements provided the confirmation of the core burnup distribution planned for the equilibrium LEU silicide core under the new fuel management strategy.

Rare earth silicide nanowires on silicon surfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wanke, Martina

2008-01-01

The growth, structure and electronic properties of rare earth silicide nanowires are investigated on planar and vicinal Si(001) und Si(111) surfaces with scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), low energy electron diffraction (LEED) and angle-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy (ARPES). On all surfaces investigated within this work hexagonal disilicides are grown epitaxially with a lattice mismatch of -2.55% up to +0.83% along the hexagonal a-axis. Along the hexagonal c-axis the lattice mismatch is essentially larger with 6.5%. On the Si(001)2 x 1 surface two types of nanowires are grown epitaxially. The socalled broad wires show a one-dimensional metallic valence band structure with states crossing the Fermi level. Along the nanowires two strongly dispersing states at the anti J point and a strongly dispersing state at the anti Γ point can be observed. Along the thin nanowires dispersing states could not be observed. Merely in the direction perpendicular to the wires an intensity variation could be observed, which corresponds to the observed spacial structure of the thin nanowires. The electronic properties of the broad erbium silicide nanowires are very similar to the broad dysprosium silicide nanowires. The electronic properties of the DySi 2 -monolayer and the Dy 3 Si 5 -multilayer on the Si(111) surface are investigated in comparison to the known ErSi 2 /Si(111) and Er 3 Si 5 /Si(111) system. The positions and the energetic locations of the observed band in the surface Brillouin zone will be confirmed for dysprosium. The shape of the electron pockets in the vector k parallel space is elliptical at the anti M points, while the hole pocket at the anti Γ point is showing a hexagonal symmetry. On the Si(557) surface the structural and electronic properties depend strongly on the different preparation conditions likewise, in particular on the rare earth coverage. At submonolayer coverage the thin nanowires grow in wide areas of the sample surface, which are oriented

Submicron Features in Higher Manganese Silicide

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yatir Sadia

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The world energy crisis had increased the demand for alternative energy sources and as such is one of the topics at the forefront of research. One way for reducing energy consumption is by thermoelectricity. Thermoelectric effects enable direct conversion of thermal into electrical energy. Higher manganese silicide (HMS, MnSi1.75 is one of the promising materials for applications in the field of thermoelectricity. The abundance and low cost of the elements, combined with good thermoelectric properties and high mechanical and chemical stability at high temperatures, make it very attractive for thermoelectric applications. Recent studies have shown that Si-rich HMS has improved thermoelectric properties. The most interesting of which is the unusual reduction in thermal conductivity. In the current research, transmission (TEM and scanning (SEM electron microscopy as well as X-ray diffraction methods were applied for investigation of the govern mechanisms resulting in very low thermal conductivity values of an Si-rich HMS composition, following arc melting and hot-pressing procedures. In this paper, it is shown that there is a presence of sub-micron dislocations walls, stacking faults, and silicon and HMS precipitates inside each other apparent in the matrix, following a high temperature (0.9 Tm hot pressing for an hour. These are not just responsible for the low thermal conductivity values observed but also indicate the ability to create complicate nano-structures that will last during the production process and possibly during the application.

Oxidation-resistant Ge-doped silicide coating on Cr-Cr2Nb alloys by pack cementation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

He Yirong

1997-01-01

The halide-activated pack cementation process was modified to produce a Ge-doped silicide diffusion coating on Cr-Cr 2 Nb alloys in a single processing step. The morphology and composition of the coating depended both on the pack composition and processing schedule and also on the composition and microstructure of the substrate. Higher Ge content in the pack suppressed the formation of CrSi 2 and reduced the growth kinetics of the coating. Ge was not homogeneously distributed in the coatings. Under cyclic and isothermal oxidation conditions, the Ge-doped silicide coating protected the Cr-Nb alloys from significant oxidation and from pesting by the formation of a Ge-doped silica film. (orig.)

Development of new ORIGEN2 data library sets for research reactors with light water cooled oxide and silicide LEU (20 w/o) fuels based on JENDL-3.3 nuclear data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liem, Peng Hong; Sembiring, Tagor Malem

2013-01-01

Highlights: • We developed new ORIGEN2 data library sets for research reactors based on JENDL-3.3. • The sets cover oxide and silicide LEU fuels with meat density up to 4.74 g U/cm 3 . • Two kinds of data library sets are available: fuel region and non-fuel regions. • We verified the new data library sets with other codes. • We validated the new data library against a non-destructive test. -- Abstract: New sets of ORIGEN2 data library dedicated to research/testing reactors with light water cooled oxide and silicide LEU fuel plates based on JENDL-3.3 nuclear data were developed, verified and validated. The new sets are considered to be an extension of the most recent release of ORIGEN2.2UPJ code, i.e. the ORLIBJ33 library sets. The newly generated ORIGEN2 data library sets cover both oxide and silicide LEU fuels with fuel meat density range from 2.96 to 4.74 g U/cm 3 used in the present and future operation of the Indonesian 30 MWth RSG GAS research reactor. The new sets are expected applicable also for other research/testing reactors which utilize similar fuels or have similar neutron spectral indices. In addition to the traditional ORIGEN2 library sets for fuel depletion analyses in fuel regions, in the new data library sets, new ORIGEN2 library sets for irradiation/activation analyses were also prepared which cover all representative non-fuel regions of RSG GAS such as reflector elements, irradiation facilities, etc. whose neutron spectra are significantly softer than fuel regions. Verification with other codes as well as validation with a non-destructive test result showed promising results where a good agreement was confirmed

RA-3 reactor core with uranium silicide fuel elements P-07 type

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abbate, Maximo J.; Sbaffoni, Maria M.

2003-01-01

Following the studies on the utilization of fuel elements (FE) containing uranium silicide, core of the RA-3 was analyzed with several calculation models. At first, the present situation, i.e. the core charged with normal FE (U 3 O 8 ), has been analyzed to validate the simulation methodology comparing with experimental results and to establish reference data to 5 and 10 MW able to be compared with future new situations. Also, CITVAP's nuclear data libraries to be used in irradiation experiment planning were completed. The results were satisfactory and were applied to the study of the core containing P-07 FE [U 3 Si 2 ], in face of a future core change. Comparing with the performance of the U 3 O 8 FE, the silicides ones show the following advantages: - average burnup: 45 % greater; -extraction burnup increase 12 %; and, -the residence time [in full power days] could be a 117 % greater. (author)

A comparison of the metallurgical behaviour of dispersion fuels with uranium silicides and U6Fe as dispersants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nazare, S.

1984-01-01

In the past few years metallurgical studies have been carried out to develop fuel dispersions with U-densities up to 7.0 Mg U m -3 . Uranium silicides have been considered to be the prime candidates as dispersants; U 6 Fe being a potential alternative on account of its higher U-density. The objective of this paper is to compare the metallurgical behaviour of these two material combinations with regard to the following aspects: (1) preparation of the compounds U 3 Si, U 3 Si 2 and U 6 Fe; (2) powder metallurgical processing to miniature fuel element plates; (3) reaction behaviour under equilibrium conditions in the relevant portions of the ternary U-Si-Al and U-Fe-Al systems; (4) dimensional stability of the fuel plates after prolonged thermal treatment; (5) thermochemical behaviour of fuel plates at temperatures near the melting point of the cladding. Based on this data, the possible advantages of each fuel combination are discussed. (author)

Development of Self-Healing Zirconium-Silicide Coatings for Improved Performance Zirconium-Alloy Fuel Cladding

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sridharan, Kumar [University of Wisconsin-Madison; Mariani, Robert [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States); Bai, Xianming [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States); Xu, Peng [Westinghouse Electric Company; Lahoda, Ed [Westinghouse Electric Company

2018-03-31

Given the long-term goal of developing such coatings for use with nuclear reactor fuel cladding, this work describes results of oxidation and corrosion behavior of bulk zirconium-silicide and fabrication of zirconium-silicide coatings on zirconium-alloy test flats, tube configurations, and SiC test flats. In addition, boiling heat transfer of these modified surfaces (including ZrSi2 coating) during clad quenching experiments is discussed in detail. Oxidation of bulk ZrSi2 was found to be negligible compared to Zircaloy-4 (a common Zr-alloy cladding material) and mechanical integrity of ZrSi2 was superior to that of bulk Zr2Si at high temperatures in ambient air. Very interesting and unique multi-nanolayered composite of ZrO2 and SiO2 were observed. Physical model for the oxidation has been proposed wherein Zr–Si–O mixture undergoes a spinodal phase decomposition into ZrO2 and SiO2, which is manifested as a nanoscale assembly of alternating layer of the two oxides. Steam corrosion at high pressure (10.3 MPa) led to weight loss of ZrSi2 and produced oxide scale with depletion of silicon, possibly attributed to volatile silicon hydroxide, gaseous silicon monoxide, and a solubility of silicon dioxide in water. Only Zircon phase (ZrSiO4) formed during oxidation of ZrSi2 at 1400°C in air, and allowed for immobilization silicon species in oxide scale in the aqueous environments. Zirconium-silicide coatings (on zirconium-alloy substrates) investigated in this study were deposited primarily using magnetron sputter deposition method and slurry method, although powder spray deposition processes cold spray and thermal spray methods were also investigated. The optimized ZrSi2 sputtered coating exhibited a highly protective nature at elevated temperatures in ambient air by mitigating oxygen permeation to the underlying zirconium alloy substrate. The high oxidation resistance of the coating has been shown to be due to nanocrystalline SiO2 and ZrSiO4 phases in the amorphous

Interaction of copper metallization with rare-earth metals and silicides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Molnar, G. L.; Peto, G.; Zsoldos, E.; Horvath, Z. E.

2001-01-01

Solid-phase reactions of copper films with underlying gadolinium, erbium, and erbium - silicide layers on Si(100) substrates were investigated. For the phase analysis, x-ray diffraction and cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy were used. In the case of Cu/Gd/Si(100), an orthorhombic GdSi 2 formed, and, at higher temperatures, copper aggregated into islands. Annealed Cu/Er/Si(100) samples resulted in a hexagonal Er 5 Si 3 phase. In the Cu/ErSi 2-x /Si system, the copper catalyzes the transformation of the highly oriented hexagonal ErSi 2-x phase into hexagonal Er 5 Si 3 . Diverse phase developments of the samples with Gd and Er are based on reactivity differences of the two rare-earth metals. [copyright] 2001 American Institute of Physics

Prompt Neutron Decay Constant Determination Of Silicide Transition Core Using Noise Method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jujuratisbela, Uju; Yulianto, Yusi Eko; Cahyana

2001-01-01

Chairman of BATAN had decided to replace the Oxide fuel element type of RSG-GAS into silicide element type step by step. The replacement will create core transitions. Kinetic characteristic of the transition cores have to be monitored in order to know the deviation of core behavior. For that reason, the kinetic parameters have to be measured. Prompt neutron decay constant (alpha) is one of the kinetic parameters that has to be monitored continuously in the transition cores. In order not to disturb the normal operation of reactor, alpha parameter should be measured by using noise analysis method. The voltage of neutron flux at power of 15 MW is connected to preamplifier and filter then to the Dynamic Signal Analyzer Version-2 and then the auto power spectral density (APSD) was determined by using Fast Fourier transform. From the APSD curve of each channel of JKT03, the cut off frequency of each channel can be determined by using linear regression technique such that the prompt neutron decay constant can be estimated

Rare earth silicide nanowires on silicon surfaces

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wanke, Martina

2008-11-10

The growth, structure and electronic properties of rare earth silicide nanowires are investigated on planar and vicinal Si(001) und Si(111) surfaces with scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), low energy electron diffraction (LEED) and angle-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy (ARPES). On all surfaces investigated within this work hexagonal disilicides are grown epitaxially with a lattice mismatch of -2.55% up to +0.83% along the hexagonal a-axis. Along the hexagonal c-axis the lattice mismatch is essentially larger with 6.5%. On the Si(001)2 x 1 surface two types of nanowires are grown epitaxially. The socalled broad wires show a one-dimensional metallic valence band structure with states crossing the Fermi level. Along the nanowires two strongly dispersing states at the anti J point and a strongly dispersing state at the anti {gamma} point can be observed. Along the thin nanowires dispersing states could not be observed. Merely in the direction perpendicular to the wires an intensity variation could be observed, which corresponds to the observed spacial structure of the thin nanowires. The electronic properties of the broad erbium silicide nanowires are very similar to the broad dysprosium silicide nanowires. The electronic properties of the DySi{sub 2}-monolayer and the Dy{sub 3}Si{sub 5}-multilayer on the Si(111) surface are investigated in comparison to the known ErSi{sub 2}/Si(111) and Er{sub 3}Si{sub 5}/Si(111) system. The positions and the energetic locations of the observed band in the surface Brillouin zone will be confirmed for dysprosium. The shape of the electron pockets in the (vector)k {sub parallel} space is elliptical at the anti M points, while the hole pocket at the anti {gamma} point is showing a hexagonal symmetry. On the Si(557) surface the structural and electronic properties depend strongly on the different preparation conditions likewise, in particular on the rare earth coverage. At submonolayer coverage the thin nanowires grow in wide areas

Preliminary investigations on the use of uranium silicide targets for fission Mo-99 production

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cols, H.; Cristini, P.; Marques, R.

1997-08-01

The National Atomic Energy Commission (CNEA) of Argentine Republic owns and operates an installation for production of molybdenum-99 from fission products since 1985, and, since 1991, covers the whole national demand of this nuclide, carrying out a program of weekly productions, achieving an average activity of 13 terabecquerel per week. At present they are finishing an enlargement of the production plant that will allow an increase in the volume of production to about one hundred of terabecquerel. Irradiation targets are uranium/aluminium alloy with 90% enriched uranium with aluminium cladding. In view of international trends held at present for replacing high enrichment uranium (HEU) for enrichment values lower than 20 % (LEU), since 1990 the authors are in contact with the RERTR program, beginning with tests to adapt their separation process to new irradiation target conditions. Uranium silicide (U{sub 3}Si{sub 2}) was chosen as the testing material, because it has an uranium mass per volume unit, so that it allows to reduce enrichment to a value of 20%. CNEA has the technology for manufacturing miniplates of uranium silicide for their purposes. In this way, equivalent amounts of Molybdenum-99 could be obtained with no substantial changes in target parameters and irradiation conditions established for the current process with Al/U alloy. This paper shows results achieved on the use of this new target.

Reactivity And Neutron Flux At Silicide Fuel Element In The Core Of RSG-GAS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hamzah, Amir

2000-01-01

In order to 4.8 and 5.2 gr U/cm exp 3 loading of U 3 Si 2 --Al fuel plates characterization, he core reactivity change and neutron flux depression had been done. Control rod calibration method was used to reactivity change measurement and neutron flux distribution was measured using foil activation method. Measurement of insertion of A-type of testing fuel element with U-loading above cannot be done due to technical reason, so the measurement using full type silicide fuel element of 2.96 gr U/cm exp 3 loading. The reactivity change measurement result of insertion in A-9 and C-3 is + 2.67 cent. The flux depression at silicide fuel in A-9 is 1.69 times bigger than oxide and in C-3 is 0.68 times lower than oxide

A long-term ultrahigh temperature application of layered silicide coated Nb alloy in air

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Jia; Fu, Qian-Gang; Li, Tao; Wang, Chen; Huo, Cai-Xia; Zhou, Hong; Yang, Guan-Jun; Sun, Le

2018-05-01

Nb-based alloy possessed limited application service life at ultrahigh temperature (>1400 °C) in air even taking the effective protective coating strategy into consideration for last decades. In this work a long duration of above 128 h at 1500 °C in air was successfully achieved on Nb-based alloy thanked to multi-layered silicide coating. Through optimizing interfaces, the MoSi2/NbSi2 silicide coating with Al2O3-adsorbed-particles layer exhibited three-times higher of oxidation resistance capacity than the one without it. In MoSi2-Al2O3-NbSi2 multilayer coating, the Al2O3-adsorbed-particles layer playing as an element-diffusion barrier role, as well as the formed porous Nb5Si3 layer as a stress transition zone, contributed to the significant improvement.

The heat capacity and entropy of the lithium silicides Li17Si4 and Li16.42Si4 in the temperature range from (2 to 873) K

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thomas, Daniel; Zeilinger, Michael; Gruner, Daniel; Hüttl, Regina; Seidel, Jürgen; Wolter, Anja U.B.; Fässler, Thomas F.; Mertens, Florian

2015-01-01

Highlights: • High quality experimental heat capacities of the new lithium rich silicides Li 17 Si 4 and Li 16.42 Si 4 are reported. • Two different calorimeters have been used to cover the broad temperature range from (2 to 873) K. • Samples were prepared and characterized (XRD) by the original authors who firstly described these new silicide phases in 2013. • Supply of polynomial heat capacity functions for four temperature intervals. • Calculation of standard entropies and entropies of formation of the lithium silicides. - Abstract: This work presents the heat capacities and standard entropies of the recently described lithium rich silicide phases Li 17 Si 4 and Li 16.42 Si 4 as a function of temperature in the range from (2 to 873) K. The measurements were carried out using two different calorimeters. The heat capacities were determined in the range from T = (2 to 300) K by a relaxation technique using a Physical Properties Measurement System (PPMS) from Quantum Design, and in the range from T = (283 to 873) K by means of a Sensys DSC from Setaram applying the C p -by-step method. The experimental data are given with an accuracy of (1 to 2)% above T = 20 K and the error increases up to 7% below T = 20 K. The results of the measurements at low temperatures permit the calculation of additional thermodynamic parameters such as the standard entropy as well as the temperature coefficients of electronic and lattice contributions to the heat capacity. Additionally, differential scanning calorimetric (DSC) measurements were carried out to verify the phase transition temperatures of the studied lithium silicide phases. The results represent a significant contribution to the data basis for thermodynamic calculations (e.g. CALPHAD) and to the understanding of the phase equilibria in the (Li + Si) system, especially in the lithium rich region

High-Power-Density, High-Energy-Density Fluorinated Graphene for Primary Lithium Batteries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Guiming Zhong

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Li/CFx is one of the highest-energy-density primary batteries; however, poor rate capability hinders its practical applications in high-power devices. Here we report a preparation of fluorinated graphene (GFx with superior performance through a direct gas fluorination method. We find that the so-called “semi-ionic” C-F bond content in all C-F bonds presents a more critical impact on rate performance of the GFx in comparison with sp2 C content in the GFx, morphology, structure, and specific surface area of the materials. The rate capability remains excellent before the semi-ionic C-F bond proportion in the GFx decreases. Thus, by optimizing semi-ionic C-F content in our GFx, we obtain the optimal x of 0.8, with which the GF0.8 exhibits a very high energy density of 1,073 Wh kg−1 and an excellent power density of 21,460 W kg−1 at a high current density of 10 A g−1. More importantly, our approach opens a new avenue to obtain fluorinated carbon with high energy densities without compromising high power densities.

Progress on LEU very high density fuel and target development in Argentina

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Balart, S.; Cabot, P.; Calzetta, O.; Duran, A.; Garces, J.; Hermida, J.D.; Manzini, A.; Pasqualini, E.; Taboada, H.

2006-01-01

Since last RRFM meeting, CNEA has continued on new LEU fuel and target development activities. Main goals are the plan to convert our RA-6 reactor from HEU to a new LEU core, to get a comprehensive understanding of U-Mo/Al compounds phase formation in dispersed and monolithic fuels, to develop possible solutions to VHD dispersed and monolithic fuels technical problems, to optimize techniques to recover U from silicide scrap samples as cold test for radiowaste separation for final conditioning of silicide spent fuels. and to improve the diffusion of LEU target and radiochemical technology for radioisotope production. Future plans include: - Completion of the RA-6 reactor conversion to LEU; - Improvement on fuel development and production facilities to implement new technologies, including NDT techniques to assess bonding quality; - Irradiation of miniplates and full scale fuel assembly at RA-3 and plans to perform irradiation on higher power and temperature regime reactors; - Optimization of LEU target and radiochemical techniques for radioisotope production. (author)

Purification in the interaction between yttria mould and Nb-silicide-based alloy during directional solidification: A novel effect of yttrium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ma, Limin; Tang, Xiaoxia; Wang, Bin; Jia, Lina; Yuan, Sainan; Zhang, Hu

2012-01-01

Nb-silicide-based alloys were directionally solidified in yttria moulds. As a result of thermal dissociation of yttria, the alloys were slightly contaminated with oxygen, which caused a competitive oxidation between yttrium and hafnium. The addition of 0.15 at.% yttrium reduced the oxygen increment by 42%, because the buoyant inclusions concentrated around the top surface. The yttrium addition caused a significant purification of the interaction between the yttria mould and the Nb-silicide-based alloys during the directional solidification.

A Study on Characterization of Light-Induced Electroless Plated Ni Seed Layer and Silicide Formation for Solar Cell Application

Science.gov (United States)

Takaloo, Ashkan Vakilipour; Joo, Seung Ki; Es, Firat; Turan, Rasit; Lee, Doo Won

2018-03-01

Light-induced electroless plating (LIEP) is an easy and inexpensive method that has been widely used for seed layer deposition of Nickel/Copper (Ni/Cu)-based metallization in the solar cell. In this study, material characterization aspects of the Ni seed layer and Ni silicide formation at different bath conditions and annealing temperatures on the n-side of a silicon diode structure have been examined to achieve the optimum cell contacts. The effects of morphology and chemical composition of Ni film on its electrical conductivity were evaluated and described by a quantum mechanical model. It has been found that correlation exists between the theoretical and experimental conductivity of Ni film. Residual stress and phase transformation of Ni silicide as a function of annealing temperature were evaluated using Raman and XRD techniques. Finally, transmission line measurement (TLM) technique was employed to determine the contact resistance of Ni/Si stack after thermal treatment and to understand its correlation with the chemical-structural properties. Results indicated that low electrical resistive mono-silicide (NiSi) phase as low as 5 mΩ.cm2 was obtained.

Study of optical and luminescence properties of silicon — semiconducting silicide — silicon multilayer nanostructures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Galkin, N.G.; Galkin, K.N.; Dotsenko, S.A.; Goroshko, D.L.; Shevlyagin, A.V.; Chusovitin, E.A.; Chernev, I.M.

2017-01-01

By method of in situ differential spectroscopy it was established that at the formation of monolayer Fe, Cr, Ca, Mg silicide and Mg stannide islands on the atomically clean silicon surface an appearance of loss peaks characteristic for these materials in the energy range of 1.1-2.6 eV is observed. An optimization of growth processes permit to grow monolithic double nanoheterostructures (DNHS) with embedded Fe, Cr and Ca nanocrystals, and also polycrystalline DNHS with NC of Mg silicide and Mg stannide and Ca disilicide. By methods of optical spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy it was shown that embedded NC form intensive peaks in the reflectance spectra at energies up to 2.5 eV and Raman peaks. In DNS with β-FeSi2 NC a photoluminescence and electroluminescence at room temperature were firstly observed.

Temperature and thickness dependence of the grain boundary scattering in the Ni–Si silicide films formed on silicon substrate at 500 °C by RTA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Utlu, G.; Artunç, N.; Selvi, S.

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► It is a systematic study of various thicknesses (18–290 nm) of Ni–Si silicide films. ► The temperature-dependent resistivity measurements of the films are studied. ► Resistivity variation of the films with temperature exhibits an unusual behavior. ► Parallel-resistor formula is reduced to Matthiessen's rule in this study. ► Reflection coefficients have been found in a wide temperature and thickness range. - Abstract: The temperature-dependent resistivity measurements of Ni–Si silicide films with 18–290 nm thicknesses are studied as a function of temperature and film thickness over the temperature range of 100–900 K. The most striking behavior is that the variation of the resistivity of the films with temperature exhibits an unusual behavior. The total resistivity of the Ni–Si silicide films in this work increases linearly with temperature up to a T m temperature, thereafter decreases rapidly and finally reaches zero. Our analyses have shown that in the temperature range of 100 to T m (K), parallel-resistor formula reduces to Matthiessen's rule and θ D Debye temperature becomes independent of the temperature for the given thickness range, whereas at high temperatures (above T m ) it increases slightly with thickness. θ D Debye temperature have been found to be about 400–430 K for the films. We have also shown that for temperature range of 100 to T m (K), linear variation of the resistivity of the silicide films with temperature has been caused from both grain-boundary scattering and electron–phonon scattering. That is why, resistivity data could have been analyzed in terms of the Mayadas–Schatzkes (M–S) model successfully. Theoretical and experimental values of reflection coefficients have been calculated by analyzing resistivity data using M–S model. According to our analysis, R increases with decreasing film thickness for a given temperature, while it is almost constant for the thickness range of 200–67 nm and 47�

Role of Ti 3 Al/silicides on tensile properties of Timetal 834 at ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Extremely fine coherent precipitates of ordered Ti3Al and relatively coarse incoherent precipitates of 2 silicide exist together in the near -titanium alloy, Timetal 834, in the dual phase matrix of primary and transformed . In order to assess the role of these precipitates, three heat treatments viz. WQ, WQ–A and WQ–OA, ...

Techno-economic study on conversion of SAFARI-1 to LEU silicide fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ball, G.; Malherbe, F.J.

2004-01-01

This paper marks the conclusion of the techno-economic study into the conversion of SAFARI-1 reactor in South Africa to LEU silicide fuel. Several different fuel types were studied and their characteristics compared to the current HEU fuel. The technical feasibility of operating SAFARI-1 with the different fuels as well as the overall economic impact of the fuels is discussed and conclusions drawn.(author)

Neutronic calculations of PARR-1 cores using LEU silicide fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arshad, M.; Bakhtyar, S.; Hayat, T.; Salahuddin, A.

1991-08-01

Detailed neutronic calculations have been carried out for different PARR-1 cores utilizing low enriched uranium (LEU) silicide fuel and operating at an upgraded power of 9 MW. The calculations include the search for critical loadings in open and stall ends of the pool, neutronic analysis of the first full equilibrium core and calculations cores. The burnup study of inventory have also been carried out. Further, the reactivity coefficients of the first full power operation core are evaluated for use in the accident analysis. 14 figs. (author)

Behavior of silicon in nitric media. Application to uranium silicides fuels reprocessing; Comportement du silicium en milieu nitrique. Application au retraitement des combustibles siliciures d'uranium

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cheroux, L

2001-07-01

Uranium silicides are used in some research reactors. Reprocessing them is a solution for their cycle end. A list of reprocessing scenarios has been set the most realistic being a nitric dissolution close to the classic spent fuel reprocessing. This uranium silicide fuel contains a lot of silicon and few things are known about polymerization of silicic acid in concentrated nitric acid. The study of this polymerization allows to point out the main parameters: acidity, temperature, silicon concentration. The presence of aluminum seems to speed up heavily the polymerization. It has been impossible to find an analytical technique smart and fast enough to characterize the first steps of silicic acid polymerization. However the action of silicic species on emulsions stabilization formed by mixing them with an organic phase containing TBP has been studied, Silicon slows down the phase separation by means of oligomeric species forming complex with TBP. The existence of these intermediate species is short and heating can avoid any stabilization. When non irradiated uranium silicide fuel is attacked by a nitric solution, aluminum and uranium are quickly dissolved whereas silicon mainly stands in solid state. That builds a gangue of hydrated silica around the uranium silicide particulates without preventing uranium dissolution. A small part of silicon passes into the solution and polymerize towards the highly poly-condensed forms, just 2% of initial silicon is still in molecular form at the end of the dissolution. A thermal treatment of the fuel element, by forming inter-metallic phases U-Al-Si, allows the whole silicon to pass into the solution and next to precipitate. The behavior of silicon in spent fuels should be between these two situations. (author)

Impact of Nickel silicide Rear Metallization on Series Resistance of Crystalline Silicon Solar Cells

KAUST Repository

Bahabry, Rabab R; Hanna, Amir N; Kutbee, Arwa T; Gumus, Abdurrahman; Hussain, Muhammad Mustafa

2018-01-01

the electrical characteristics of nickel mono-silicide (NiSi)/Cu-Al ohmic contact on the rear side of c-Si solar cells. We observe a significant enhancement in the fill factor of around 6.5% for NiSi/Cu-Al rear contacts leading to increasing the efficiency by 1.2

Nickel silicide formation in silicon implanted nickel

Science.gov (United States)

Rao, Z.; Williams, J. S.; Pogany, A. P.; Sood, D. K.; Collins, G. A.

1995-04-01

Nickel silicide formation during the annealing of very high dose (≥4.5×1017 ions/cm2) Si implanted Ni has been investigated, using ion beam analytical techniques, electron microscopy, and x-ray diffraction analysis. An initial amorphous Si-Ni alloy, formed as a result of high dose ion implantation, first crystallized to Ni2Si upon annealing in the temperature region of 200-300 °C. This was followed by the formation of Ni5Si2 in the temperature region of 300-400 °C and then by Ni3Si at 400-600 °C. The Ni3Si layer was found to have an epitaxial relationship with the substrate Ni, which was determined as Ni3Si∥Ni and Ni3Si∥Ni for Ni(100) samples. The minimum channeling yield in the 2 MeV He Rutherford backscattering and channeling spectra of this epitaxial layer improved with higher annealing temperatures up to 600 °C, and reached a best value measured at about 8%. However, the epitaxial Ni3Si dissolved after long time annealing at 600 °C or annealing at higher temperatures to liberate soluble Si into the Ni substrate. The epitaxy is attributed to the excellent lattice match between the Ni3Si and the Ni. The annealing behavior follows the predictions of the Ni-Si phase diagram for this nickel-rich binary system.

Waste Photovoltaic Panels for Ultrapure Silicon and Hydrogen through the Low-Temperature Magnesium Silicide.

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Dytrych, Pavel; Bumba, Jakub; Kaštánek, František; Fajgar, Radek; Koštejn, Martin; Šolcová, Olga

Roč. 56, č. 45 ( 2017 ), s. 12863-12869 ISSN 0888-5885 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA15-14228S Institutional support: RVO:67985858 Keywords : magnesium silicide * waste photovoltaic panels * ultrapure silicon Subject RIV: CI - Industrial Chemistry, Chemical Engineering OBOR OECD: Chemical process engineering Impact factor: 2.843, year: 2016

Optical metrology of Ni and NiSi thin films used in the self-aligned silicidation process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kamineni, V. K.; Bersch, E. J.; Diebold, A. C.; Raymond, M.; Doris, B. B.

2010-01-01

The thickness-dependent optical properties of nickel metal and nickel monosilicide (NiSi) thin films, used for self-aligned silicidation process, were characterized using spectroscopic ellipsometry. The thickness-dependent complex dielectric function of nickel metal films is shown to be correlated with the change in Drude free electron relaxation time. The change in relaxation time can be traced to the change in grain boundary (GB) reflection coefficient and grain size. A resistivity based model was used as the complementary method to the thickness-dependent optical model to trace the change in GB reflection coefficient and grain size. After silicidation, the complex dielectric function of NiSi films exhibit non-Drude behavior due to superimposition of interband absorptions arising at lower frequencies. The Optical models of the complete film stack were refined using x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Rutherford backscattered spectroscopy, and x-ray reflectivity (XRR).

Neutronic analysis of the JMTR with LEU fuel and burnable poison

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nagaoka, Yoshiharu; Oyamada, Rokuro [Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute, Oarai-machi Ibaraki-ken (Japan); Matos, J E; Woodruff, W L [Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL (United States)

1985-07-01

The results of neutronics calculations are presented for the JMTR equilibrium core with LEU silicide fuel, boron and cadmium burnable poisons in the sideplates, and a cycle length of 24 days instead of 11 days with the current HEU fuel. The data indicate that several options are feasible provided that silicide fuels with high uranium densities are successfully demonstrated and licensed (author)

Neutronic analysis of the JMTR with LEU fuel and burnable poison

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nagaoka, Yoshiharu; Oyamada, Rokuro; Matos, J.E.; Woodruff, W.L.

1985-01-01

The results of neutronics calculations are presented for the JMTR equilibrium core with LEU silicide fuel, boron and cadmium burnable poisons in the sideplates, and a cycle length of 24 days instead of 11 days with the current HEU fuel. The data indicate that several options are feasible provided that silicide fuels with high uranium densities are successfully demonstrated and licensed (author)

Significant enhancement in thermoelectric performance of nanostructured higher manganese silicides synthesized employing a melt spinning technique.

Science.gov (United States)

Muthiah, Saravanan; Singh, R C; Pathak, B D; Avasthi, Piyush Kumar; Kumar, Rishikesh; Kumar, Anil; Srivastava, A K; Dhar, Ajay

2018-01-25

The limited thermoelectric performance of p-type Higher Manganese Silicides (HMS) in terms of their low figure-of-merit (ZT), which is far below unity, is the main bottle-neck for realising an efficient HMS based thermoelectric generator, which has been recognized as the most promising material for harnessing waste-heat in the mid-temperature range, owing to its thermal stability, earth-abundant and environmentally friendly nature of its constituent elements. We report a significant enhancement in the thermoelectric performance of nanostructured HMS synthesized using rapid solidification by optimizing the cooling rates during melt-spinning followed by spark plasma sintering of the resulting melt-spun ribbons. By employing this experimental strategy, an unprecedented ZT ∼ 0.82 at 800 K was realized in spark plasma sintered 5 at% Al-doped MnSi 1.73 HMS, melt spun at an optimized high cooling rate of ∼2 × 10 7 K s -1 . This enhancement in ZT represents a ∼25% increase over the best reported values thus far for HMS and primarily originates from a nano-crystalline microstructure consisting of a HMS matrix (20-40 nm) with excess Si (3-9 nm) uniformly distributed in it. This nanostructure, resulting from the high cooling rates employed during the melt-spinning of HMS, introduces a high density of nano-crystallite boundaries in a wide spectrum of nano-scale dimensions, which scatter the low-to-mid-wavelength heat-carrying phonons. This abundant phonon scattering results in a significantly reduced thermal conductivity of ∼1.5 W m -1 K -1 at 800 K, which primarily contributes to the enhancement in ZT.

Multiple charge-density waves in R.sub.5./sub.Ir.sub.4 ./sub.Si.sub.10./sub. (R=Ho, Er, Tm, and Lu)

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

van Smaalen, S.; Shaz, M.; Palatinus, Lukáš; Daniels, P.; Galli, F.; Nieuwenhuys, G.J.; Mydosh, J.A.

2004-01-01

Roč. 69, č. 1 (2004), 014103/1-014103/11 ISSN 0163-1829 Grant - others:DFG a FCI(DE) XX Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z1010914 Keywords : charge-density wave * rare-earth silicide * incommensurate phase Subject RIV: BM - Solid Matter Physics ; Magnetism Impact factor: 3.075, year: 2004

In situ atomic-level observation of the formation of platinum silicide at platinum-silicon oxide interfaces under electron irradiation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Takeshi Nagase

2018-05-01

Full Text Available In situ atomic-level observation of the formation of Pt2Si at Pt/SiOx interface by electronic excitation under electron irradiation was performed by using scanning transmission electron microscopy. Scanning of an electron-beam probe stimulates silicide formation at the Pt/SiOx interface; the change in the Pt column corresponding to Pt2Si formation with a crystallographic orientation of (001Pt//(001Pt2Si and [110]Pt//[110]Pt2Si was observed in high-angle annular dark-field images.

Pilot plant production at Riso of LEU silicide fuel for the Danish reactor DR3

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Toft, P.; Borring, J.; Adolph, E.

1988-01-01

A pilot plant for fabricating LEU silicide fuel elements has been established at Riso National Laboratory. Three test elements for the Danish reactor DR3 have been fabricated, based on 19.88% enriched U 3 Si 2 powder that has been purchased elsewhere. The pilot plant has been set up and 3 test elements fabricated without any major difficulties

Fabrication and microstructural analysis of UN-U{sub 3}Si{sub 2} composites for accident tolerant fuel applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Johnson, Kyle D., E-mail: kylej@kth.se; Raftery, Alicia M.; Lopes, Denise Adorno; Wallenius, Janne

2016-08-15

In this study, U{sub 3}Si{sub 2} was synthesized via the use of arc-melting and mixed with UN powders, which together were sintered using the SPS method. The study revealed a number of interesting conclusions regarding the stability of the system – namely the formation of a probable but as yet unidentified ternary phase coupled with the reduction of the stoichiometry in the nitride phase – as well as some insights into the mechanics of the sintering process itself. By milling the silicide powders and reducing its particle size ratio compared to UN, it was possible to form a high density UN-U{sub 3}Si{sub 2} composite, with desirable microstructural characteristics for accident tolerant fuel applications. - Highlights: • U{sub 3}Si{sub 2} fabricated from elemental uranium and silicon through arc melting. • Homogeneity of the silicides assessed through densitometry, XRD, SEM and EDS, chemical etching and optical microscopy. • UN powder fabricated using hydriding-nitriding method. • No phase transformations detected when sintering using silicide particle sizes less than UN particle size. • High density composite (98%TD) fabricated with silicide grain coating using spark plasma sintering at 1450 °C.

Fabrication and microstructural analysis of UN-U_3Si_2 composites for accident tolerant fuel applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Johnson, Kyle D.; Raftery, Alicia M.; Lopes, Denise Adorno; Wallenius, Janne

2016-01-01

In this study, U_3Si_2 was synthesized via the use of arc-melting and mixed with UN powders, which together were sintered using the SPS method. The study revealed a number of interesting conclusions regarding the stability of the system – namely the formation of a probable but as yet unidentified ternary phase coupled with the reduction of the stoichiometry in the nitride phase – as well as some insights into the mechanics of the sintering process itself. By milling the silicide powders and reducing its particle size ratio compared to UN, it was possible to form a high density UN-U_3Si_2 composite, with desirable microstructural characteristics for accident tolerant fuel applications. - Highlights: • U_3Si_2 fabricated from elemental uranium and silicon through arc melting. • Homogeneity of the silicides assessed through densitometry, XRD, SEM and EDS, chemical etching and optical microscopy. • UN powder fabricated using hydriding-nitriding method. • No phase transformations detected when sintering using silicide particle sizes less than UN particle size. • High density composite (98%TD) fabricated with silicide grain coating using spark plasma sintering at 1450 °C.

Importing low-density ideas to high-density revitalisation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Arnholtz, Jens; Ibsen, Christian Lyhne; Ibsen, Flemming

2016-01-01

Why did union officials from a high-union-density country like Denmark choose to import an organising strategy from low-density countries such as the US and the UK? Drawing on in-depth interviews with key union officials and internal documents, the authors of this article argue two key points. Fi...

Neutronic analysis of the JMTR with LEU fuel and burnable poison

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nagaoka, Yoshiharu; Oyamada, Rokuro; Matos, J.E.; Woodruff, W.L.

1984-01-01

The results of neutronics calculations are presented for the JMTR equilibrium core with LEU silicide fuel, boron and cadmium burnable poisons in the sideplates, and a cycle length of 24 days instead of 11 days with the current HEU fuel. The data indicate that several options are feasible provided that silicide fuels with high uranium densities are successfully demonstrated and licensed. 2 refs., 10 figs., 5 tabs

High Energy Density Laboratory Astrophysics

CERN Document Server

Lebedev, Sergey V

2007-01-01

During the past decade, research teams around the world have developed astrophysics-relevant research utilizing high energy-density facilities such as intense lasers and z-pinches. Every two years, at the International conference on High Energy Density Laboratory Astrophysics, scientists interested in this emerging field discuss the progress in topics covering: - Stellar evolution, stellar envelopes, opacities, radiation transport - Planetary Interiors, high-pressure EOS, dense plasma atomic physics - Supernovae, gamma-ray bursts, exploding systems, strong shocks, turbulent mixing - Supernova remnants, shock processing, radiative shocks - Astrophysical jets, high-Mach-number flows, magnetized radiative jets, magnetic reconnection - Compact object accretion disks, x-ray photoionized plasmas - Ultrastrong fields, particle acceleration, collisionless shocks. These proceedings cover many of the invited and contributed papers presented at the 6th International Conference on High Energy Density Laboratory Astrophys...

Fuel development at CERCA. Status of development - September 1984

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fanjas, Y.; Dewez, Ph.; Savornin, B.

1985-01-01

Since 1978, CERCA has developed high density aluminide (UAl x ), oxide (U 3 O 8 ) and silicides (U 3 Si 2 , U 3 Si) fuels allowing the use of 19.75 enriched uranium in research and test reactors. An extensive irradiation program has been carried out to test the full size fuel plates and fuel elements fabricated by CERCA. So far, all the irradiation tests have given satisfactory results whatever the uranium density, the burn-up level and the type of fuel. In particular, silicides which cover the whole density range from 1 to 7 g U/cm 3 appear more and more as the standard fuels for the future. (author)

High-density multicore fibers

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Takenaga, K.; Matsuo, S.; Saitoh, K.

2016-01-01

High-density single-mode multicore fibers were designed and fabricated. A heterogeneous 30-core fiber realized a low crosstalk of −55 dB. A quasi-single-mode homogeneous 31-core fiber attained the highest core count as a single-mode multicore fiber.......High-density single-mode multicore fibers were designed and fabricated. A heterogeneous 30-core fiber realized a low crosstalk of −55 dB. A quasi-single-mode homogeneous 31-core fiber attained the highest core count as a single-mode multicore fiber....

High-field, high-density tokamak power reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cohn, D.R.; Cook, D.L.; Hay, R.D.; Kaplan, D.; Kreischer, K.; Lidskii, L.M.; Stephany, W.; Williams, J.E.C.; Jassby, D.L.; Okabayashi, M.

1977-11-01

A conceptual design of a compact (R 0 = 6.0 m) high power density (average P/sub f/ = 7.7 MW/m 3 ) tokamak demonstration power reactor has been developed. High magnetic field (B/sub t/ = 7.4 T) and moderate elongation (b/a = 1.6) permit operation at the high density (n(0) approximately 5 x 10 14 cm -3 ) needed for ignition in a relatively small plasma, with a spatially-averaged toroidal beta of only 4%. A unique design for the Nb 3 Sn toroidal-field magnet system reduces the stress in the high-field trunk region, and allows modularization for simpler disassembly. The modest value of toroidal beta permits a simple, modularized plasma-shaping coil system, located inside the TF coil trunk. Heating of the dense central plasma is attained by the use of ripple-assisted injection of 120-keV D 0 beams. The ripple-coil system also affords dynamic control of the plasma temperature during the burn period. A FLIBE-lithium blanket is designed especially for high-power-density operation in a high-field environment, and gives an overall tritium breeding ratio of 1.05 in the slowly pumped lithium

In-pile test results of U-silicide or U-nitride coated U-7Mo particle dispersion fuel in Al

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Yeon Soo; Park, J. M.; Lee, K. H.; Yoo, B. O.; Ryu, H. J.; Ye, B.

2014-11-01

U-silicide or U-nitride coated U-Mo particle dispersion fuel in Al (U-Mo/Al) was in-pile tested to examine the effectiveness of the coating as a diffusion barrier between the U-7Mo fuel kernels and Al matrix. This paper reports the PIE data and analyses focusing on the effectiveness of the coating in terms of interaction layer (IL) growth and general fuel performance. The U-silicide coating showed considerable success, but it also provided evidence for additional improvement for coating process. The U-nitride coated specimen showed largely inefficient results in reducing IL growth. From the test, important observations were also made that can be utilized to improve U-Mo/Al fuel performance. The heating process for coating turned out to be beneficial to suppress fuel swelling. The use of larger fuel particles confirmed favorable effects on fuel performance.

In-pile test results of U-silicide or U-nitride coated U-7Mo particle dispersion fuel in Al

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Yeon Soo, E-mail: yskim@anl.gov [Argonne National Laboratory, 9700 South Cass Avenue, Argonne, IL 60439 (United States); Park, J.M.; Lee, K.H.; Yoo, B.O. [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, 989-111 Daedeokdaero, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 305-353 (Korea, Republic of); Ryu, H.J. [Dept. of Nuclear and Quantum Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, 291 Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 305-701 (Korea, Republic of); Ye, B. [Argonne National Laboratory, 9700 South Cass Avenue, Argonne, IL 60439 (United States)

2014-11-15

U-silicide or U-nitride coated U-Mo particle dispersion fuel in Al (U-Mo/Al) was in-pile tested to examine the effectiveness of the coating as a diffusion barrier between the U-7Mo fuel kernels and Al matrix. This paper reports the PIE data and analyses focusing on the effectiveness of the coating in terms of interaction layer (IL) growth and general fuel performance. The U-silicide coating showed considerable success, but it also provided evidence for additional improvement for coating process. The U-nitride coated specimen showed largely inefficient results in reducing IL growth. From the test, important observations were also made that can be utilized to improve U-Mo/Al fuel performance. The heating process for coating turned out to be beneficial to suppress fuel swelling. The use of larger fuel particles confirmed favorable effects on fuel performance.

High density harp for SSCL linac

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fritsche, C.T.; Krogh, M.L.; Crist, C.E.

1993-01-01

AlliedSignal Inc., Kansas City Division, and the Superconducting Super Collider Laboratory (SSCL) are collaboratively developing a high density harp for the SSCL linac. This harp is designed using hybrid microcircuit (HMC) technology to obtain a higher wire density than previously available. The developed harp contains one hundred twenty-eight 33-micron-diameter carbon wires on 0.38-mm centers. The harp features an onboard broken wire detection circuit. Carbon wire preparation and attachment processes were developed. High density surface mount connectors were located. The status of high density harp development will be presented along with planned future activities

High density harp for SSCL linac

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fritsche, C.T.; Krogh, M.L.

1993-05-01

AlliedSignal Inc., Kansas City Division, and the Superconducting Super Collider Laboratory (SSCL) are collaboratively developing a high density harp for the SSCL linac. This harp is designed using hybrid microcircuit (HMC) technology to obtain a higher wire density than previously available. The developed harp contains one hundred twenty-eight 33-micron-diameter carbon wires on 0.38-mm centers. The harp features an onboard broken wire detection circuit. Carbon wire preparation and attachment processes were developed. High density surface mount connectors were located. The status of high density harp development will be presented along with planned future activities

Mössbauer spectroscopy study of surfactant sputtering induced Fe silicide formation on a Si surface

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Beckmann, C.; Zhang, K. [2nd Institute of Physics, University of Göttingen, Friedrich-Hund-Platz 1, 37077 Göttingen (Germany); Hofsäss, H., E-mail: hans.hofsaess@phys.uni-goettingen.de [2nd Institute of Physics, University of Göttingen, Friedrich-Hund-Platz 1, 37077 Göttingen (Germany); Brüsewitz, C.; Vetter, U. [2nd Institute of Physics, University of Göttingen, Friedrich-Hund-Platz 1, 37077 Göttingen (Germany); Bharuth-Ram, K. [Physics Department, Durban University of Technology, Durban 4001 (South Africa)

2015-12-01

Highlights: • We study the formation of self-organized nanoscale dot and ripple patterns on Si. • Patterns are created by keV noble gas ion irradiation and simultaneous {sup 57}Fe co-deposition. • Ion-induced phase separation and the formation of a-FeSi{sub 2} is identified as relevant process. - Abstract: The formation of Fe silicides in surface ripple patterns, generated by erosion of a Si surface with keV Ar and Xe ions and simultaneous co-deposition of Fe, was investigated with conversion electron Mössbauer spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy and Rutherford backscattering spectrometry. For the dot and ripple patterns studied, we find an average Fe concentration in the irradiated layer between 6 and 25 at.%. The Mössbauer spectra clearly show evidence of the formation of Fe disilicides with Fe content close to 33 at.%, but very little evidence of the formation of metallic Fe particles. The results support the process of ion-induced phase separation toward an amorphous Fe disilicide phase as pattern generation mechanism. The observed amorphous phase is in agreement with thermodynamic calculations of amorphous Fe silicides.

High density dispersion fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hofman, G.L.

1996-01-01

A fuel development campaign that results in an aluminum plate-type fuel of unlimited LEU burnup capability with an uranium loading of 9 grams per cm 3 of meat should be considered an unqualified success. The current worldwide approved and accepted highest loading is 4.8 g cm -3 with U 3 Si 2 as fuel. High-density uranium compounds offer no real density advantage over U 3 Si 2 and have less desirable fabrication and performance characteristics as well. Of the higher-density compounds, U 3 Si has approximately a 30% higher uranium density but the density of the U 6 X compounds would yield the factor 1.5 needed to achieve 9 g cm -3 uranium loading. Unfortunately, irradiation tests proved these peritectic compounds have poor swelling behavior. It is for this reason that the authors are turning to uranium alloys. The reason pure uranium was not seriously considered as a dispersion fuel is mainly due to its high rate of growth and swelling at low temperatures. This problem was solved at least for relatively low burnup application in non-dispersion fuel elements with small additions of Si, Fe, and Al. This so called adjusted uranium has nearly the same density as pure α-uranium and it seems prudent to reconsider this alloy as a dispersant. Further modifications of uranium metal to achieve higher burnup swelling stability involve stabilization of the cubic γ phase at low temperatures where normally α phase exists. Several low neutron capture cross section elements such as Zr, Nb, Ti and Mo accomplish this in various degrees. The challenge is to produce a suitable form of fuel powder and develop a plate fabrication procedure, as well as obtain high burnup capability through irradiation testing

Electron spectroscopy in the X-ray range for occupied and free levels and the application to transition metal silicides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Speier, W.

1988-03-01

Intermetallic compounds of transition metals are investigated by means of XPS, Bremsstrahlung Isochromate Spectroscopy and XAS. Occupied and free levels are characterized and moreover a systematic overview over the electronic structure of the transition element silicides is given. (BHO)

High regression rate, high density hybrid fuels, Phase I

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — This SBIR program will investigate high energy density novel nanofuels combined with high density binders for use with an N2O oxidizer. Terves has developed...

Development of High-Temperature, High-Power, High-Efficiency, High-Voltage Converters Using Silicon Carbide (SiC) Delivery Order 0003: SiC High Voltage Converters, N-Type Ohmic Contract Development for SiC Power Devices

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Cheng, Lin; Mazzola, Michael S

2006-01-01

... ? SiC interfaces and silicide top surfaces is important for producing uniformly low contact resistances to achieve device operation at high-current levels without hot spot formation and contact degradation...

FY 1997 report on the improvement of toughness of silicide system intermetallic compounds by complex texture; 1997 nendo chosa hokokusho (fukugo soshikika ni yoru silicide kei kinzokukan kagobutsu no kyojinsei kaizen)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1998-03-01

In order to develop new materials superior in both room- temperature ductility and high-temperature strength, the basic data on MoSi2 intermetallic compounds with complex texture were stored. Intermetallic compound is one of the promising candidates of new super heat-resistant materials superior to conventional super heat-resistant alloys, however, it is extremely poor in ductility at room temperature. Based on available information on isothermal sectional phase diagrams of ternary system (Mo-Si-X system) composed of Mo silicide and the third element (X), some alloy systems were selected in consideration of use of carbide and nitride stably existing as dispersed phase of deposits at high temperature. A knowledge on phase diagrams of ternary system specimens with various compositions was obtained through arc melting, X-ray diffraction and texture observation, and heat treatment conditions for obtaining target complex textures were also determined. Storage of the basic data suggested that improvement of the ductility is possible by forming fine texture through addition of the third element and teat treatment. 21 refs., 58 figs., 15 tabs.

Hot wire chemical vapor deposition: limits and opportunities of protecting the tungsten catalyzer from silicide with a cavity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Frigeri, P.A.; Nos, O.; Bengoechea, S.; Frevert, C.; Asensi, J.M.; Bertomeu, J.

2009-01-01

Hot Wire Chemical Vapor Deposition (HW-CVD) is one of the most promising techniques for depositing the intrinsic microcrystalline silicon layer for the production of micro-morph solar cells. However, the silicide formation at the colder ends of the tungsten wire drastically reduces the lifetime of the catalyzer, thus limiting its industrial exploitation. A simple but interesting strategy to decrease the silicide formation is to hide the electrical contacts of the catalyzer in a long narrow cavity which reduces the probability of the silane molecules to reach the colder ends of the wire. In this paper, the working mechanism of the cavity is elucidated. Measurements of the thickness profile of the silicon deposited in the internal walls of the cavity have been compared with those predicted using a simple diffusion model based on the assumption of Knudsen flow. A lifetime study of the protected and unprotected wires has been carried out. The different mechanisms which determine the deterioration of the catalyzer have been identified and discussed.

Simulated Fission Gas Behavior in Silicide Fuel at LWR Conditions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Miao, Yinbin [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Mo, Kun [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Yacout, Abdellatif [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Harp, Jason [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)

2016-09-15

As a promising candidate for the accident tolerant fuel (ATF) used in light water reactors (LWRs), the fuel performance of uranium silicide (U₃Si₂) at LWR conditions needs to be well-understood. However, existing experimental post-irradiation examination (PIE) data are limited to the research reactor conditions, which involve lower fuel temperature compared to LWR conditions. This lack of appropriate experimental data significantly affects the development of fuel performance codes that can precisely predict the microstructure evolution and property degradation at LWR conditions, and therefore evaluate the qualification of U₃Si₂ as an AFT for LWRs. Considering the high cost, long timescale, and restrictive access of the in-pile irradiation experiments, this study aims to utilize ion irradiation to simulate the inpile behavior of the U₃Si₂ fuel. Both in situ TEM ion irradiation and ex situ high-energy ATLAS ion irradiation experiments were employed to simulate different types of microstructure modifications in U₃Si₂. Multiple PIE techniques were used or will be used to quantitatively analyze the microstructure evolution induced by ion irradiation so as to provide valuable reference for the development of fuel performance code prior to the availability of the in-pile irradiation data.

Estimations on uranium silicide fuel prototypes for their irradiation and postirradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sbaffoni, Maria M.

2000-01-01

The 'Silicide' project includes the qualification of this type of research reactor fuel to be used i.e. in the Argentine RA-3 and to confirm CNEA's role as an international supplier. The present paper shows complementary basic information for P-04 prototype post-irradiation, which is already under way, and some parameter values related to the new P-06 prototype to be taken into account for planning its irradiation and post-irradiation. The reliability of these values has been evaluated through comparison with experimental results. The reported results contribute, also, to a parallel study on the nuclear data libraries used in calculations for this type of reactor. (author)

Magnetization of High Density Hadronic Fluid

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bohr, Henrik; Providencia, Constanca; da Providencia, João

2012-01-01

In the present paper the magnetization of a high density relativistic fluid of elementary particles is studied. At very high densities, such as may be found in the interior of a neutron star, when the external magnetic field is gradually increased, the energy of the normal phase of the fluid...... in the particle fluid. For nuclear densities above 2 to 3 rho(0), where rho(0) is the equilibrium nuclear density, the resulting magnetic field turns out to be rather huge, of the order of 10(17) Gauss....

Rate Theory Modeling and Simulation of Silicide Fuel at LWR Conditions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Miao, Yinbin [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States). Nuclear Engineering Division; Ye, Bei [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States). Nuclear Engineering Division; Hofman, Gerard [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States). Nuclear Engineering Division; Yacout, Abdellatif [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States). Nuclear Engineering Division; Gamble, Kyle [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States). Fuel Modeling and Simulation; Mei, Zhi-Gang [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States). Nuclear Engineering Division

2016-08-29

As a promising candidate for the accident tolerant fuel (ATF) used in light water reactors (LWRs), the fuel performance of uranium silicide (U₃Si₂) at LWR conditions needs to be well understood. In this report, rate theory model was developed based on existing experimental data and density functional theory (DFT) calculations so as to predict the fission gas behavior in U₃Si₂ at LWR conditions. The fission gas behavior of U₃Si₂ can be divided into three temperature regimes. During steady-state operation, the majority of the fission gas stays in intragranular bubbles, whereas the dominance of intergranular bubbles and fission gas release only occurs beyond 1000 K. The steady-state rate theory model was also used as reference to establish a gaseous swelling correlation of U₃Si₂ for the BISON code. Meanwhile, the overpressurized bubble model was also developed so that the fission gas behavior at LOCA can be simulated. LOCA simulation showed that intragranular bubbles are still dominant after a 70 second LOCA, resulting in a controllable gaseous swelling. The fission gas behavior of U₃Si₂ at LWR conditions is benign according to the rate theory prediction at both steady-state and LOCA conditions, which provides important references to the qualification of U₃Si₂ as a LWR fuel material with excellent fuel performance and enhanced accident tolerance.

Attempt to produce silicide fuel elements in Indonesia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Soentono, S.; Suripto, A.

1991-01-01

After the successful experiment to produce U 3 Si 2 powder and U 3 Si 2 -Al fuel plates using depleted U and Si of semiconductor quality, silicide fuel was synthesized using x -Al available at the Fuel Element Production Installation (FEPI) at Serpong, Indonesia. Two full-size U 3 Si 2 -Al fuel elements, having similar specifications to the ones of U 3 O 8 -Al for the RSG-GAS (formerly known as MPR-30), have been produced at the FEPI. All quality controls required have been imposed to the feeds, intermediate, as well as final products throughout the production processes of the two fuel elements. The current results show that these fuel elements are qualified from fabrication point of view, therefore it is expected that they will be permitted to be tested in the RSG-GAS, sometime by the end of 1989, for normal (∝50%) and above normal burn-up. (orig.)

Current enhancement in crystalline silicon photovoltaic by low-cost nickel silicide back contact

KAUST Repository

Bahabry, R. R.; Gumus, A.; Kutbee, A. T.; Wehbe, N.; Ahmed, S. M.; Ghoneim, M. T.; Lee, K. -T.; Rogers, J. A.; Hussain, M. M.

2016-01-01

We report short circuit current (Jsc) enhancement in crystalline silicon (C-Si) photovoltaic (PV) using low-cost Ohmic contact engineering by integration of Nickel mono-silicide (NiSi) for back contact metallization as an alternative to the status quo of using expensive screen printed silver (Ag). We show 2.6 mA/cm2 enhancement in the short circuit current (Jsc) and 1.2 % increment in the efficiency by improving the current collection due to the low specific contact resistance of the NiSi on the heavily Boron (B) doped Silicon (Si) interface.

Current enhancement in crystalline silicon photovoltaic by low-cost nickel silicide back contact

KAUST Repository

Bahabry, R. R.

2016-11-30

We report short circuit current (Jsc) enhancement in crystalline silicon (C-Si) photovoltaic (PV) using low-cost Ohmic contact engineering by integration of Nickel mono-silicide (NiSi) for back contact metallization as an alternative to the status quo of using expensive screen printed silver (Ag). We show 2.6 mA/cm2 enhancement in the short circuit current (Jsc) and 1.2 % increment in the efficiency by improving the current collection due to the low specific contact resistance of the NiSi on the heavily Boron (B) doped Silicon (Si) interface.

Construction of a four tip scanning tunneling microscope/scanning electron microscope combination and conductivity measurements of silicide nanowires

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zubkov, Evgeniy

2013-01-01

In this work the combination of a four-tip scanning tunneling microscope with a scanning electron microscope is presented. By means of this apparatus it is possible to perform the conductivity measurements on the in-situ prepared nanostructures in ultra-high vacuum. With the aid of a scanning electron microscope (SEM), it becomes possible to position the tunneling tips of the four-tip scanning tunneling microscope (STM), so that an arrangement for a four-point probe measurement on nanostructures can be obtained. The STM head was built according to the novel coaxial Beetle concept. This concept allows on the one hand, a very compact arrangement of the components of the STM and on the other hand, the new-built STM head has a good mechanical stability, in order to achieve atomic resolution with all four STM units. The atomic resolution of the STM units was confirmed by scanning a Si(111)-7 x 7 surface. The thermal drift during the STM operation, as well as the resonant frequencies of the mechanical structure of the STM head, were determined. The scanning electron microscope allows the precise and safe navigation of the tunneling tips on the sample surface. Multi tip spectroscopy with up to four STM units can be performed synchronously. To demonstrate the capabilities of the new-built apparatus the conductivity measurements were carried out on metallic yttrium silicide nanowires. The nanowires were prepared by the in-situ deposition of yttrium on a heated Si(110) sample surface. Current-voltage curves were recorded on the nanowires and on the wetting layer in-between. The curves indicate an existence of the Schottky barrier between the yttrium silicide nanowires and the silicon bulk. By means of the two-tip measurements with a gate, the insulating property of the Schottky barrier has been confirmed. Using this Schottky barrier, it is possible to limit the current to the nanowire and to prevent it from flowing through the silicon bulk. A four-tip resistance measurement

The fabrication of metal silicide nanodot arrays using localized ion implantation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Han, Jin; Kim, Tae-Gon; Min, Byung-Kwon; Lee, Sang Jo

2010-01-01

We propose a process for fabricating nanodot arrays with a pitch size of less than 25 nm. The process consists of localized ion implantation in a metal thin film on a Si wafer using a focused ion beam (FIB), followed by chemical etching. This process utilizes the etching resistivity changes of the ion beam irradiated region that result from metal silicide formation by ion implantation. To control the nanodot diameter, a threshold ion dose model is proposed using the Gaussian distribution of the ion beam intensities. The process is verified by fabricating nanodots with various diameters. The mechanism of etching resistivity is investigated via x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Auger electron spectroscopy (AES).

Influence of iron and beryllium additions on heat resistance of silicide coatings on TsMB-30 molybdenum alloy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zajtseva, A.L.; Fedorchuk, N.M.; Lazarev, Eh.M.; Korotkov, N.A.

1985-01-01

Alloying of titanium modified silicide coatings on TsMB-30 molybdenum alloy with iron or beryllium is stated to improve their protective properties. Coatings with low content of alloying elements have the best protective properties. Service life of coatings is determined by the formed oxide film and phase transformations taking place in the coating

Neutron irradiated uranium silicides studied by neutron diffraction and Rietveld analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Birtcher, R.C.; Mueller, M.H.; Richardson, J.W. Jr.; Faber, J. Jr.

1989-11-01

Uranium silicides have been considered for use as reactor fuels in both high power and low enrichment applications. However, U 3 Si was found to become amorphous under irradiation and to become mechanically unstable to rapid growth by plastic flow. U 2 Si 2 appears to be stable against amorphization at low displacement rates, but the extent of this stability is uncertain. Although the mechanisms responsible for plastic flow in U 3 Si and other amorphous systems are unknown, as is the importance of crystal structure for amorphization, it may not be surprising that these materials amorphize, in light of the fact that many radioactive nuclide - containing minerals are known to metaminctize (lose crystallinity) under irradiation. The present experiment follows the detailed changes in the crystal structures of U 3 Si and U 3 Si 2 introduced by neutron bombardment and subsequent uranium fission at room temperature. U-Si seems the ideal system for a neutron diffraction investigation since the crystallographic and amorphous forms can be studied simultaneously by combining conventional Rietveld refinement of the crystallographic phases with Fourier-filtering of the non-crystalline scattering component

Status of the atomized uranium silicide fuel development at KAERI

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, C.K.; Kim, K.H.; Park, H.D.; Kuk, I.H. [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Taejon (Korea, Republic of)

1997-08-01

While developing KMRR fuel fabrication technology an atomizing technique has been applied in order to eliminate the difficulties relating to the tough property of U{sub 3}Si and to take advantage of the rapid solidification effect of atomization. The comparison between the conventionally comminuted powder dispersion fuel and the atomized powder dispersion fuel has been made. As the result, the processes, uranium silicide powdering and heat treatment for U{sub 3}Si transformation, become simplified. The workability, the thermal conductivity and the thermal compatibility of fuel meat have been investigated and found to be improved due to the spherical shape of atomized powder. In this presentation the overall developments of atomized U{sub 3}Si dispersion fuel and the planned activities for applying the atomizing technique to the real fuel fabrication are described.

Density measurements of small amounts of high-density solids by a floatation method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Akabori, Mitsuo; Shiba, Koreyuki

1984-09-01

A floatation method for determining the density of small amounts of high-density solids is described. The use of a float combined with an appropriate floatation liquid allows us to measure the density of high-density substances in small amounts. Using the sample of 0.1 g in weight, the floatation liquid of 3.0 g cm -3 in density and the float of 1.5 g cm -3 in apparent density, the sample densities of 5, 10 and 20 g cm -3 are determined to an accuracy better than +-0.002, +-0.01 and +-0.05 g cm -3 , respectively that correspond to about +-1 x 10 -5 cm 3 in volume. By means of appropriate degassing treatments, the densities of (Th,U)O 2 pellets of --0.1 g in weight and --9.55 g cm -3 in density were determined with an accuracy better than +-0.05 %. (author)

Research on high energy density plasmas and applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1999-01-01

Recently, technologies on lasers, accelerators, and pulse power machines have been significantly advanced and input power density covers the intensity range from 10 10 W/cm 2 to higher than 10 20 W/cm 2 . As the results, high pressure gas and solid targets can be heated up to very high temperature to create hot dense plasmas which have never appeared on the earth. The high energy density plasmas opened up new research fields such as inertial confinement fusion, high brightness X-ray radiation sources, interiors of galactic nucleus,supernova, stars and planets, ultra high pressure condensed matter physics, plasma particle accelerator, X-ray laser, and so on. Furthermore, since these fields are intimately connected with various industrial sciences and technologies, the high energy density plasma is now studied in industries, government institutions, and so on. This special issue of the Journal of Plasma Physics and Nuclear Fusion Research reviews the high energy density plasma science for the comprehensive understanding of such new fields. In May, 1998, the review committee for investigating the present status and the future prospects of high energy density plasma science was established in the Japan Society of Plasma Science and Nuclear Fusion Research. We held three committee meetings to discuss present status and critical issues of research items related to high energy density plasmas. This special issue summarizes the understandings of the committee. This special issue consists of four chapters: They are Chapter 1: Physics important in the high energy density plasmas, Chapter 2: Technologies related to the plasma generation; drivers such as lasers, pulse power machines, particle beams and fabrication of various targets, Chapter 3: Plasma diagnostics important in high energy density plasma experiments, Chapter 4: A variety of applications of high energy density plasmas; X-ray radiation, particle acceleration, inertial confinement fusion, laboratory astrophysics

Trace metal assay of uranium silicide fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kulkarni, M.J.; Argekar, A.A.; Thulasidas, S.K.; Dhawale, B.A.; Rajeswari, B.; Adya, V.C.; Purohit, P.J.; Neelam, G.; Bangia, T.R.; Page, A.G.; Sastry, M.D.; Iyer, R.H.

1994-01-01

A comprehensive trace metal assay of uranium silicide, a fuel for nuclear research reactors that employs low-enrichment uranium, is carried out by atomic spectrometry. Of the list of specification elements, 21 metallic elements are determined by a direct current (dc) arc carrier distillation technique; the rare earths yttrium and zirconium are chemically separated from the major matrix followed by a dc arc/inductively coupled argon plasma (ICP) excitation technique in atomic emission spectrometry (AES); silver is determined by electrothermal atomization-atomic absorption spectrometry (ETA-AAS) without prior chemical separation of the major matrix. Gamma radioactive tracers are used to check the recovery of rare earths during the chemical separation procedure. The detection limits for trace metallics vary in the 0.1- to 40-ppm range. The precision of the determinations as evaluated from the analysis of the synthetic sample with intermediate range analyte concentration is better than 25% relative standard deviation (RSD) for most of the elements employing dc arc-AES, while that for silver determination by ETS-AAS is 10% RSD. The precision of the determinations for four crucially important rare earths by ICP-AES is better than 3% RSD

Toward Low-Cost, High-Energy Density, and High-Power Density Lithium-Ion Batteries

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Jianlin; Du, Zhijia; Ruther, Rose E.; AN, Seong Jin; David, Lamuel Abraham; Hays, Kevin; Wood, Marissa; Phillip, Nathan D.; Sheng, Yangping; Mao, Chengyu; Kalnaus, Sergiy; Daniel, Claus; Wood, David L.

2017-09-01

Reducing cost and increasing energy density are two barriers for widespread application of lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles. Although the cost of electric vehicle batteries has been reduced by 70% from 2008 to 2015, the current battery pack cost (268/kWh in 2015) is still >2 times what the USABC targets (125/kWh). Even though many advancements in cell chemistry have been realized since the lithium-ion battery was first commercialized in 1991, few major breakthroughs have occurred in the past decade. Therefore, future cost reduction will rely on cell manufacturing and broader market acceptance. This article discusses three major aspects for cost reduction: (1) quality control to minimize scrap rate in cell manufacturing; (2) novel electrode processing and engineering to reduce processing cost and increase energy density and throughputs; and (3) material development and optimization for lithium-ion batteries with high-energy density. Insights on increasing energy and power densities of lithium-ion batteries are also addressed.

Properties of matter at ultra-high densities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Banerjee, B.; Chitre, S.M.

1975-01-01

The recent discovery of pulsars and their subsequent identification with neutron stars has given a great impetus to the study of the behaviour of matter at ultra high densities. The object of these studies is to calculate the equation of state as a function of density. In this paper, the properties of electrically neutral, cold (T=0) matter at unusually high densities has been reviewed. The physics of the equation of state of such matter divides quite naturally in four density ranges. (i) At the very lowest densities the state of minimum energy is a lattice of 56 Fe atoms. This state persists upto 10 7 g/cm 3 . (ii) In the next density region the nuclei at the lattice sites become neutron rich because the high electron Fermi energy makes inverse beta decay possible. (iii) At a density 4.3 x 10 11 the nuclei become so neutron rich that the neutrons start 'dripping' out of the nuclei and form a gas. This density range is characterised by large, neutron-rich nuclei immersed in a neutron gas. (iv) At a density 2.4 x 10 14 g/cm 3 , the nuclei disappear and a fluid of uniform neutron matter with a small percentage of protons and electrons results. The above four density ranges have been discussed in detail as the equation of state is now well established upto the nuclear density 3 x 10 14 g/cm 3 . The problems of extending the equation of state beyond this density are also touched upon. (author)

Development of U6Fe-Al dispersions for the use of LEU in research and test reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nazare, S.

1983-01-01

For some time now, efforts are being made to develop fuel dispersions that would permit the use of low (approx. 20% 235-U) enriched uranium (LEU) instead of the currently used highly (approx. 93% 235-U) enriched uranium (HEU) in research and test reactors. Since penalties in the performance of the reactor have to be avoided, the 235-U content in the dispersion has at least to be retained at current levels. On account of their high U-densities, the major development effort has been focussed on the uranium silicides (U 3 Si, U 3 Si(Al), and U 3 Si 2 -based dispersions). With silicides as dispersants, it is possible to fabricate fuel element plates with U-densities in the dispersion of about 6.0 gU/cm 3 . In comparison to the silicides, the U 6 Fe-phase offers several advantages namely: higher U-density (approx. 17.0 gU/cm 3 ); relative ease of formation compared to U 3 Si; possible advantages with regard to reprocessing of the spent fuel due to the absence of silicon. The studies outlined here were performed with a view to investigating the preparation, reaction behavior and dimensional stability after heat treatment of U 6 Fe-Al dispersions

Development of U6Fe-Al dispersions for the use of LEU in research and test reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nazare, S.

1983-01-01

For some time now, efforts are being made to develop fuel dispersions that would permit the use of low (∼ 20% 235-U) enriched uranium (LEU) instead of the currently used highly (∼ 93% 235-U) enriched uranium (HEU) in research and test reactors. Since penalties in the performance of the reactor have to be avoided, the 235-U content in the dispersion has at least to be retained at current levels. On account of their high U-densities, the major development effort has been focussed on the uranium silicides [U 3 Si, U 3 Si(Al), and U 3 Si 2 - based dispersions. With silicides as dispersants, it is possible to fabricate fuel element plates with U-densities in the dispersion of about 6.0 g U/cm 3 . In comparison to the silicides, the U 6 Fe-phase offers several advantages namely: - higher U-density (∼ 17.0 g U/cm 3 ); - relative ease of formation compared to U 3 Si; - possible advantages with regard to reprocessing of the spent fuel due to the absence of silicon. The studies outlined here were therefore performed with a view to investigating the preparation, reaction behaviour and dimensional stability after heat treatment of U 6 Fe-Al dispersions

The series production in a standardized fabrication line for silicide fuels and commercial aspects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wehner, E.L.; Hassel, H.W.

1987-01-01

NUKEM has been responsible for the development and fabrication of LEU fuel elements for MTR reactors under the frame of the German AF program since 1979. The AF program is part of the international RERTR efforts, which were initiated by the INFCE Group in 1978. This paper describes the actual status of development and the transition from the prototype to the series production in a standardized manufacturing line for silicide fuels at NUKEM. Technical provisions and a customer oriented standardized product range aim at an economized manufacturing. (Author)

High-density carbon ablator ignition path with low-density gas-filled rugby hohlraum

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Amendt, Peter; Ho, Darwin D.; Jones, Ogden S.

2015-01-01

A recent low gas-fill density (0.6 mg/cc 4 He) cylindrical hohlraum experiment on the National Ignition Facility has shown high laser-coupling efficiency (>96%), reduced phenomenological laser drive corrections, and improved high-density carbon capsule implosion symmetry [Jones et al., Bull. Am. Phys. Soc. 59(15), 66 (2014)]. In this Letter, an ignition design using a large rugby-shaped hohlraum [Amendt et al., Phys. Plasmas 21, 112703 (2014)] for high energetics efficiency and symmetry control with the same low gas-fill density (0.6 mg/cc 4 He) is developed as a potentially robust platform for demonstrating thermonuclear burn. The companion high-density carbon capsule for this hohlraum design is driven by an adiabat-shaped [Betti et al., Phys. Plasmas 9, 2277 (2002)] 4-shock drive profile for robust high gain (>10) 1-D ignition performance and large margin to 2-D perturbation growth

High-density carbon ablator ignition path with low-density gas-filled rugby hohlraum

Science.gov (United States)

Amendt, Peter; Ho, Darwin D.; Jones, Ogden S.

2015-04-01

A recent low gas-fill density (0.6 mg/cc 4He) cylindrical hohlraum experiment on the National Ignition Facility has shown high laser-coupling efficiency (>96%), reduced phenomenological laser drive corrections, and improved high-density carbon capsule implosion symmetry [Jones et al., Bull. Am. Phys. Soc. 59(15), 66 (2014)]. In this Letter, an ignition design using a large rugby-shaped hohlraum [Amendt et al., Phys. Plasmas 21, 112703 (2014)] for high energetics efficiency and symmetry control with the same low gas-fill density (0.6 mg/cc 4He) is developed as a potentially robust platform for demonstrating thermonuclear burn. The companion high-density carbon capsule for this hohlraum design is driven by an adiabat-shaped [Betti et al., Phys. Plasmas 9, 2277 (2002)] 4-shock drive profile for robust high gain (>10) 1-D ignition performance and large margin to 2-D perturbation growth.

High-density carbon ablator ignition path with low-density gas-filled rugby hohlraum

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Amendt, Peter; Ho, Darwin D.; Jones, Ogden S. [Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, California 94551 (United States)

2015-04-15

A recent low gas-fill density (0.6 mg/cc {sup 4}He) cylindrical hohlraum experiment on the National Ignition Facility has shown high laser-coupling efficiency (>96%), reduced phenomenological laser drive corrections, and improved high-density carbon capsule implosion symmetry [Jones et al., Bull. Am. Phys. Soc. 59(15), 66 (2014)]. In this Letter, an ignition design using a large rugby-shaped hohlraum [Amendt et al., Phys. Plasmas 21, 112703 (2014)] for high energetics efficiency and symmetry control with the same low gas-fill density (0.6 mg/cc {sup 4}He) is developed as a potentially robust platform for demonstrating thermonuclear burn. The companion high-density carbon capsule for this hohlraum design is driven by an adiabat-shaped [Betti et al., Phys. Plasmas 9, 2277 (2002)] 4-shock drive profile for robust high gain (>10) 1-D ignition performance and large margin to 2-D perturbation growth.

Photoionization and High Density Gas

Science.gov (United States)

Kallman, T.; Bautista, M.; White, Nicholas E. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

We present results of calculations using the XSTAR version 2 computer code. This code is loosely based on the XSTAR v.1 code which has been available for public use for some time. However it represents an improvement and update in several major respects, including atomic data, code structure, user interface, and improved physical description of ionization/excitation. In particular, it now is applicable to high density situations in which significant excited atomic level populations are likely to occur. We describe the computational techniques and assumptions, and present sample runs with particular emphasis on high density situations.

Simultaneous aluminizing and chromizing of steels to form (Fe,Cr){sub 3}Al coatings and Ge-doped silicide coatings of Cr-Zr base alloys

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zheng, M.; He, Y.R.; Rapp, R.A. [Ohio State Univ., Columbus, OH (United States). Dept. of Materials Science and Engineering

1997-12-01

A halide-activated cementation pack involving elemental Al and Cr powders has been used to achieve surface compositions of approximately Fe{sub 3}Al plus several percent Cr for low alloy steels (T11, T2 and T22) and medium carbon steel (1045 steel). A two-step treatment at 925 C and 1150 C yields the codeposition and diffusion of aluminum and chromium to form dense and uniform ferrite coatings of about 400 {micro}m thickness, while preventing the formation of a blocking chromium carbide at the substrate surfaces. Upon cyclic oxidation in air at 700 C, the coated steel exhibits a negligible 0.085 mg/cm{sup 2} weight gain for 1900 one-hour cycles. Virtually no attack was observed on coated steels tested at ABB in simulated boiler atmospheres at 500 C for 500 hours. But coatings with a surface composition of only 8 wt% Al and 6 wt% Cr suffered some sulfidation attack in simulated boiler atmospheres at temperatures higher than 500 C for 1000 hours. Two developmental Cr-Zr based Laves phase alloys (CN129-2 and CN117(Z)) were silicide/germanide coated. The cross-sections of the Ge-doped silicide coatings closely mimicked the microstructure of the substrate alloys. Cyclic oxidation in air at 1100 C showed that the Ge-doped silicide coating greatly improved the oxidation resistance of the Cr-Zr based alloys.

Oxidation behavior of niobium aluminide intermetallics protected by aluminide and silicide diffusion coatings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Y.; Soboyejo, W.; Rapp, R.A.

1999-01-01

The isothermal and cyclic oxidation behavior of a new class of damage-tolerant niobium aluminide (Nb 3 Al-xTi-yCr) intermetallics is studied between 650 C and 850 C. Protective diffusion coatings were deposited by pack cementation to achieve the siliciding or aluminizing of substrates with or without intervening Mo or Ni layers, respectively. The compositions and microstructures of the resulting coatings and oxidized surfaces were characterized. The isothermal and cyclic oxidation kinetics indicate that uncoated Nb-40Ti-15Al-based intermetallics may be used up to ∼750 C. Alloying with Cr improves the isothermal oxidation resistance between 650 C and 850 C. The most significant improvement in oxidation resistance is achieved by the aluminization of electroplated Ni interlayers. The results suggest that the high-temperature limit of niobium aluminide-based alloys may be increased to 800 C to 850 C by aluminide-based diffusion coatings on ductile Ni interlayers. Indentation fracture experiments also indicate that the ductile nickel interlayers are resistant to crack propagation in multilayered aluminide-based coatings

Electronic DC transformer with high power density

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Pavlovský, M.

2006-01-01

This thesis is concerned with the possibilities of increasing the power density of high-power dc-dc converters with galvanic isolation. Three cornerstones for reaching high power densities are identified as: size reduction of passive components, reduction of losses particularly in active components

Spontaneous magnetization in high-density quark matter

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tsue, Yasuhiko; da Providência, João; Providência, Constanca

2015-01-01

It is shown that spontaneous magnetization occurs due to the anomalous magnetic moments of quarks in high-density quark matter under the tensor-type four-point interaction. The spin polarized condensate for each flavor of quark appears at high baryon density, which leads to the spontaneous magnet...

High Energy Density Sciences with High Power Lasers at SACLA

Science.gov (United States)

Kodama, Ryosuke

2013-10-01

One of the interesting topics on high energy density sciences with high power lasers is creation of extremely high pressures in material. The pressures of more than 0.1 TPa are the energy density corresponding to the chemical bonding energy, resulting in expectation of dramatic changes in the chemical reactions. At pressures of more than TPa, most of material would be melted on the shock Hugoniot curve. However, if the temperature is less than 1eV or lower than a melting point at pressures of more than TPa, novel solid states of matter must be created through a pressured phase transition. One of the interesting materials must be carbon. At pressures of more than TPa, the diamond structure changes to BC and cubic at more than 3TPa. To create such novel states of matter, several kinds of isentropic-like compression techniques are being developed with high power lasers. To explore the ``Tera-Pascal Science,'' now we have a new tool which is an x-ray free electron laser as well as high power lasers. The XFEL will clear the details of the HED states and also efficiently create hot dense matter. We have started a new project on high energy density sciences using an XFEL (SACLA) in Japan, which is a HERMES (High Energy density Revolution of Matter in Extreme States) project.

The high density and high βpol disruption mechanism on TFTR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fredrickson, E.D.; Manickam, J.; McGuire, K.M.; Monticello, D.; Nagayama, Y.; Park, W.; Taylor, G.

1992-01-01

Studies of disruptions on TFTR have been extended to include high density disruptions as well as the high β pol disruptions. The data strongly suggests that the (m,n)=(1,1) mode plays an important role in both types of disruptions. Further, for the first time, it is unambiguously shown, using a fast electron cyclotron emission (ECE) instrument for the electron temperature profile measurements, that the (m,n)=(1,1) precursor to the high density disruptions has a 'cold bubble' structure. The precursor to the major disruption at high density resembles the 'vacuum bubble' model of disruptions first proposed by Kadomtsev and Pogutse. (author) 2 refs., 2 figs

Electrode/Dielectric Strip For High-Energy-Density Capacitor

Science.gov (United States)

Yen, Shiao-Ping S.

1994-01-01

Improved unitary electrode/dielectric strip serves as winding in high-energy-density capacitor in pulsed power supply. Offers combination of qualities essential for high energy density: high permittivity of dielectric layers, thinness, and high resistance to breakdown of dielectric at high electric fields. Capacitors with strip material not impregnated with liquid.

Laser fusion and high energy density science

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kodama, Ryosuke

2005-01-01

High-power laser technology is now opening a variety of new fields of science and technology using laser-produced plasmas. The laser plasma is now recognized as one of the important tools for the investigation and application of matter under extreme conditions, which is called high energy density science. This chapter shows a variety of applications of laser-produced plasmas as high energy density science. One of the more attractive industrial and science applications is the generation of intense pulse-radiation sources, such as the generation of electro-magnetic waves in the ranges of EUV (Extreme Ultra Violet) to gamma rays and laser acceleration of charged particles. The laser plasma is used as an energy converter in this regime. The fundamental science applications of high energy density physics are shown by introducing laboratory astrophysics, the equation of state of high pressure matter, including warm dense matter and nuclear science. Other applications are also presented, such as femto-second laser propulsion and light guiding. Finally, a new systematization is proposed to explore the possibility of the high energy density plasma application, which is called high energy plasma photonics''. This is also exploration of the boundary regions between laser technology and beam optics based on plasma physics. (author)

Operation and control of high density tokamak reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Attenberger, S.E.; McAlees, D.G.

1976-01-01

The incentive for high density operation of a tokamak reactor was discussed. It is found that high density permits ignition in a relatively small, moderately elongated plasma with a moderate magnetic field strength. Under these conditions, neutron wall loadings approximately 4 MW/m 2 must be tolerated. The sensitivity analysis with respect to impurity effects shows that impurity control will most likely be necessary to achieve the desired plasma conditions. The charge exchange sputtered impurities are found to have an important effect so that maintaining a low neutral density in the plasma is critical. If it is assumed that neutral beams will be used to heat the plasma to ignition, high energy injection is required (approximately 250 keV) when heating is accompished at full density. A scenario is outlined where the ignition temperature is established at low density and then the fueling rate is increased to attain ignition. This approach may permit beams with energies being developed for use in TFTR to be successfully used to heat a high density device of the type described here to ignition

High density high-TC ceramic superconductors by hot pressing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mak, S.; Chaklader, A.C.D.

1989-01-01

High density and high T C superconductor specimens, YBa 2 Cu 3 O x , have been produced by hot-pressing. The factors studied are the effect of hot pressing on the density, the oxygen stoichiometry, the crystal structure, and the critical temperature. Hot pressing followed by heat treatment increased the density of the specimen to 93%. The hot pressing itself did not significantly affect the oxygen content in the specimen, and although the crystal structure appeared to be orthorhombic, the specimens were not superconducting above liquid nitrogen temperature. The superconductivity was restored after head treatment in oxygen. The highest critical temperature (T C ) of the hot pressed pellets was 82K, which was slightly lower than the T C that could be obtained with the cold pressed/sintered pellets. (6 refs., 5 figs., tab.)

Feedback controlled, reactor relevant, high-density, high-confinement scenarios at ASDEX Upgrade

Science.gov (United States)

Lang, P. T.; Blanken, T. C.; Dunne, M.; McDermott, R. M.; Wolfrum, E.; Bobkov, V.; Felici, F.; Fischer, R.; Janky, F.; Kallenbach, A.; Kardaun, O.; Kudlacek, O.; Mertens, V.; Mlynek, A.; Ploeckl, B.; Stober, J. K.; Treutterer, W.; Zohm, H.; ASDEX Upgrade Team

2018-03-01

One main programme topic at the ASDEX Upgrade all-metal-wall tokamak is development of a high-density regime with central densities at reactor grade level while retaining high-confinement properties. This required development of appropriate control techniques capable of coping with the pellet tool, a powerful means of fuelling but one which presented challenges to the control system for handling of related perturbations. Real-time density profile control was demonstrated, raising the core density well above the Greenwald density while retaining the edge density in order to avoid confinement losses. Recently, a new model-based approach was implemented that allows direct control of the central density. Investigations focussed first on the N-seeding scenario owing to its proven potential to yield confinement enhancements. Combining pellets and N seeding was found to improve the divertor buffering further and enhance the operational range accessible. For core densities up to about the Greenwald density, a clear improvement with respect to the non-seeding reference was achieved; however, at higher densities this benefit is reduced. This behaviour is attributed to recurrence of an outward shift of the edge density profile, resulting in a reduced peeling-ballooning stability. This is similar to the shift seen during strong gas puffing, which is required to prevent impurity influx in ASDEX Upgrade. First tests indicate that highly-shaped plasma configurations like the ITER base-line scenario, respond very well to pellet injection, showing efficient fuelling with no measurable impact on the edge density profile.

High Density Digital Data Storage System

Science.gov (United States)

Wright, Kenneth D., II; Gray, David L.; Rowland, Wayne D.

1991-01-01

The High Density Digital Data Storage System was designed to provide a cost effective means for storing real-time data from the field-deployable digital acoustic measurement system. However, the high density data storage system is a standalone system that could provide a storage solution for many other real time data acquisition applications. The storage system has inputs for up to 20 channels of 16-bit digital data. The high density tape recorders presently being used in the storage system are capable of storing over 5 gigabytes of data at overall transfer rates of 500 kilobytes per second. However, through the use of data compression techniques the system storage capacity and transfer rate can be doubled. Two tape recorders have been incorporated into the storage system to produce a backup tape of data in real-time. An analog output is provided for each data channel as a means of monitoring the data as it is being recorded.

Synthesis, Characterization, and Mechanism of Formation of Janus-Like Nanoparticles of Tantalum Silicide-Silicon (TaSi2/Si

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrey V. Nomoev

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Metal-semiconductor Janus-like nanoparticles with the composition tantalum silicide-silicon (TaSi2/Si were synthesized for the first time by means of an evaporation method utilizing a high-power electron beam. The composition of the synthesized particles were characterized using high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM, X-ray diffraction (XRD, selective area electron diffraction (SAED, and energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDX analysis. The system is compared to previously synthesized core-shell type particles in order to show possible differences responsible for the Janus-like structure forming instead of a core-shell architecture. It is proposed that the production of Janus-like as opposed to core-shell or monophase particles occurs due to the ability of Ta and Si to form compounds and the relative content of Ta and Si atoms in the produced vapour. Based on the results, a potential mechanism of formation for the TaSi2/Si nanoparticles is discussed.

Safety analysis of RSG-GAS Silicide core using one line cooling system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Endiah-Puji-Hastuti

2003-01-01

In the frame of minimizing the operation-cost, operation mode using one line cooling system is being evaluated. Maximum reactor has been determined and to continuing this program, steady state and transient analysis were done. The analysis was done by means of a core thermal hydraulic code, COOLOD-N, and PARET. The codes solves core thermal hydraulic equation at steady state conditions and transient, respectively. By using silicide core data and coast down flow rate as the input, thermal hydraulics parameters such as fuel cladding and fuel meat temperatures as well as safety margin against flow instability were calculated. Imposing the safety criteria to the results of steady state and transient analysis, maximum permissible power for this operation was obtained as much as 17.1 MW

X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) studies of cobalt silicide thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Naftel, S.J.; Coulthard, I.; Hu, Y.; Sham, T.K.; Zinke-Allmang, M.

1998-01-01

Cobalt silicide thin films, prepared on Si(100) wafers, have been studied by X-ray absorption near edge structures (XANES) at the Si K-, L 2,3 - and Co K-edges utilizing both total electron (TEY) and fluorescence yield (FLY) detection as well as extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) at the Co K-edge. Samples made using DC sputter deposition on clean Si surfaces and MBE were studied along with a bulk CoSi 2 sample. XANES and EXAFS provide information about the electronic structure and morphology of the films. It was found that the films studied have essentially the same structure as bulk CoSi 2 . Both the spectroscopy and materials characterization aspects of XAFS (X-ray absorption fine structures) are discussed

High-density-plasma diagnostics in magnetic-confinement fusion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jahoda, F.C.

1982-01-01

The lectures will begin by defining high density in the context of magnetic confinement fusion research and listing some alternative reactor concepts, ranging from n/sub e/ approx. 2 x 10 14 cm -3 to several orders of magnitude greater, that offer potential advantages over the main-line, n/sub e/ approx. 1 x 10 14 cm -3 , Tokamak reactor designs. The high density scalings of several major diagnostic techniques, some favorable and some disadvantageous, will be discussed. Special emphasis will be given to interferometric methods, both electronic and photographic, for which integral n/sub e/dl measurements and associated techniques are accessible with low wavelength lasers. Reactor relevant experience from higher density, smaller dimension devices exists. High density implies high β, which implies economies of scale. The specialized features of high β diagnostics will be discussed

Testing of research reactor fuel in the high flux reactor (Petten)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guidez, J.; Markgraf, J.W.; Sordon, G.; Wijtsma, F.J.; Thijssen, P.J.M.; Hendriks, J.A.

1999-01-01

The two types of fuel most frequently used by the main research reactors are metallic: highly enriched uranium (>90%) and silicide low enriched uranium ( 3 . However, a need exists for research on new reactor fuel. This would permit some plants to convert without losses in flux or in cycle length and would allow new reactor projects to achieve higher possibilities especially in fluxes. In these cases research is made either on silicide with higher density, or on other types of fuel (UMo, etc.). In all cases when new fuel is proposed, there is a need, for safety reasons, to test it, especially regarding the mechanical evolution due to burn-up (swelling, etc.). Initially, such tests are often made with separate plates, but lately, using entire elements. Destructive examinations are often necessary. For this type of test, the High Flux Reactor, located in Petten (The Netherlands) has many specific advantages: a large core, providing a variety of interesting positions with high fluence rate; a downward coolant flow simplifies the engineering of the device; there exists easy access with all handling possibilities to the hot-cells; the high number of operating days (>280 days/year), together with the high flux, gives a possibility to reach quickly the high burn-up needs; an experienced engineering department capable of translating specific requirements to tailor-made experimental devices; a well equipped hot-cell laboratory on site to perform all necessary measurements (swelling, γ-scanning, profilometry) and all destructive examinations. In conclusion, the HFR reactor readily permits experimental research on specific fuels used for research reactors with all the necessary facilities on the Petten site. (author)

Probing topological relations between high-density and low-density regions of 2MASS with hexagon cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wu, Yongfeng [American Physical Society, San Diego, CA (United States); Xiao, Weike, E-mail: yongfeng.wu@maine.edu [Department of Astronautics Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, P.O. Box 345, Heilongjiang Province 150001 (China)

2014-02-01

We introduced a new two-dimensional (2D) hexagon technique for probing the topological structure of the universe in which we mapped regions of the sky with high and low galaxy densities onto a 2D lattice of hexagonal unit cells. We defined filled cells as corresponding to high-density regions and empty cells as corresponding to low-density regions. The numbers of filled cells and empty cells were kept the same by controlling the size of the cells. By analyzing the six sides of each hexagon, we could obtain and compare the statistical topological properties of high-density and low-density regions of the universe in order to have a better understanding of the evolution of the universe. We applied this hexagonal method to Two Micron All Sky Survey data and discovered significant topological differences between the high-density and low-density regions. Both regions had significant (>5σ) topological shifts from both the binomial distribution and the random distribution.

Towards high-density matter with relativistic heavy-ion collisions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nagamiya, Shoji.

1990-04-01

Recent progress in nucleus-nucleus collisions at BNL and CERN suggests a hint that the formation of high-density nuclear matter could be possible with relativistic heavy-ion beams. What is the maximum density that can be achieved by heavy-ion collisions? Are there data which show evidence or hints on the formation of high density matter? Why is the research of high-density interesting? How about the future possibilities on this subject? These points are discussed. (author)

New aspects of high energy density plasma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hotta, Eiki

2005-10-01

The papers presented at the symposium on 'New aspects of high energy density plasma' held at National Institute for Fusion Science are collected in this proceedings. The papers reflect the present status and recent progress in the experiments and theoretical works on high energy density plasma produced by pulsed power technology. The 13 of the presented papers are indexed individually. (J.P.N.)

Study of surface segregation of Si on palladium silicide using Auger electron spectroscopy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abhaya, S; Amarendra, G; Gopalan, Padma; Reddy, G L N; Saroja, S

2004-01-01

The transformation of Pd/Si to Pd 2 Si/Si is studied using Auger electron spectroscopy over a wide temperature range of 370-1020 K. The Pd film gets totally converted to Pd 2 Si upon annealing at 520 K, and beyond 570 K, Si starts segregating on the surface of silicide. It is found that the presence of surface oxygen influences the segregation of Si. The time evolution study of Si segregation reveals that segregation kinetics is very fast and the segregated Si concentration increases as the temperature is increased. Scanning electron microscopy measurements show that Pd 2 Si is formed in the form of islands, which grow as the annealing temperature is increased

Program description for the qualification of CNEA - Argentina as a supplier of LEU silicide fuel and post-irradiation examinations plan for the first prototype irradiated in Argentina

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rugirello, Gabriel; Adelfang, Pablo; Denis, Alicia; Zawerucha, Andres; Marco, Agustin di; Guillaume, Eduardo; Sbaffoni, Monica; Lacoste, Pablo

1998-01-01

In this report we present a description of the ongoing and future stages of the program for the qualification of CNEA, Argentina, as a supplier of low enriched uranium silicide fuel elements for research reactor. Particularly we will focus on the characteristics of the future irradiation experiment on a new detachable prototype, the post-irradiation examinations (PIE) plan for the already irradiated prototype PO4 and an overview of the recently implemented PIE facilities and equipment. The program is divided in several steps, some of which have been already completed. It concludes: development of the uranium silicide fissile material, irradiation and PIE of several full-scale prototypes. Important investments have been already carried out in the facilities for the FE production and PIE. (author)

High current density ion source

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

King, H.J.

1977-01-01

A high-current-density ion source with high total current is achieved by individually directing the beamlets from an electron bombardment ion source through screen and accelerator electrodes. The openings in these screen and accelerator electrodes are oriented and positioned to direct the individual beamlets substantially toward a focus point. 3 figures, 1 table

Silicide formation by Ar/sup +/ ion bombardment of Pd/Si

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, R Y; Whang, C N; Kim, H K; Smith, R J

1988-08-01

Palladium films, 45 nm thick, evaporated on to Si(111) were irradiated to various doses with 78 keV Ar/sup +/ ions to promote silicide formation. Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy (RBS) shows that intermixing has occurred across the Pd/Si interface at room temperature. The mixing behaviour is increased with dose which coincides well with the theoretical model of cascade mixing. The absence of deep RBS tails for palladium and the small area of this for silicon spectra indicate that short-range mixing occurs. From the calculated damage profiles computed with TRIM code, the dominant diffusion species is found to be silicon atoms in the Pd/Si system. It is also found that the initial compound formed by Ar/sup +/ irradiation is Pd/sub 2/Si which increases with dose. At a dose of 1 x 10/sup 16/ Ar/sup +/ cm/sup -2/, a 48 nm thickness of Pd/sub 2/Si was formed by ion-beam mixing at room temperature.

Plasma Photonic Devices for High Energy Density Science

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kodama, R.

2005-01-01

High power laser technologies are opening a variety of attractive fields of science and technology using high energy density plasmas such as plasma physics, laboratory astrophysics, material science, nuclear science including medical applications and laser fusion. The critical issues in the applications are attributed to the control of intense light and enormous density of charged particles including efficient generation of the particles such as MeV electrons and protons with a current density of TA/cm2. Now these application possibilities are limited only by the laser technology. These applications have been limited in the control of the high power laser technologies and their optics. However, if we have another device consisted of the 4th material, i.e. plasma, we will obtain a higher energy density condition and explore the application possibilities, which could be called high energy plasma device. One of the most attractive devices has been demonstrated in the fast ignition scheme of the laser fusion, which is cone-guiding of ultra-intense laser light in to high density regions1. This is one of the applications of the plasma device to control the ultra-intense laser light. The other role of the devices consisted of transient plasmas is control of enormous energy-density particles in a fashion analogous to light control with a conventional optical device. A plasma fibre (5?m/1mm), as one example of the devices, has guided and deflected the high-density MeV electrons generated by ultra-intense laser light 2. The electrons have been well collimated with either a lens-like plasma device or a fibre-like plasma, resulting in isochoric heating and creation of ultra-high pressures such as Giga bar with an order of 100J. Plasmas would be uniquely a device to easily control the higher energy density particles like a conventional optical device as well as the ultra-intense laser light, which could be called plasma photonic device. (Author)

Development of silicide coating over molybdenum based refractory alloy and its characterization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chakraborty, S.P.; Banerjee, S.; Sharma, I.G.; Suri, A.K.

2010-01-01

Molybdenum based refractory alloys are potential candidate materials for structural applications in high temperature compact nuclear reactors and fusion reactors. However, these alloys being highly susceptible to oxidation in air or oxygen at elevated temperature, undergoes severe losses from highly volatile molybdenum trioxide species. Present investigation, therefore, examines the feasibility of development of silicide type of coating over molybdenum base TZM alloy shape (Mo > 99 wt.%) using pack cementation coating technique. TZM alloy was synthesized in this laboratory from oxide intermediates of MoO 2 , TiO 2 and ZrO 2 in presence of requisite amount of carbon, by alumino-thermic reduction smelting technique. The arc melted and homogenized samples of TZM alloy substrate was then embedded in the chosen and intimately mixed pack composition consisting of inert matrix (Al 2 O 3 ), coating powder (Si) and activator (NH 4 Cl) taken in the judicious proportion. The sealed charge packs contained in an alumina crucible were heated at temperatures of 1000 o C for 8-16 h heating cycle to develop the coating. The coating phase was confirmed to be of made of MoSi 2 by XRD analysis. The morphology of the coating was studied by SEM characterization. It had revealed that the coating was diffusion bonded where Si from coating diffused inward and Mo from TZM substrate diffused outward to form the coating. The coating was found to be resistant to oxidation when tested in air up to 1200 o C. A maximum 100 μm of coating thickness was achieved on each side of the substrate.

The ability of silicide coating to delay the catastrophic oxidation of vanadium under severe conditions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chaia, N., E-mail: nabil.chaia@univ-lorraine.fr [Université de Lorraine, Institut Jean Lamour – UMR7198, Boulevard des Aiguillettes, BP70239, 54506 Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy Cedex (France); Mathieu, S., E-mail: stephane.mathieu@univ-lorraine.fr [Université de Lorraine, Institut Jean Lamour – UMR7198, Boulevard des Aiguillettes, BP70239, 54506 Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy Cedex (France); Rouillard, F., E-mail: fabien.rouillard@cea.fr [CEA, DEN, DPC, SCCME, Laboratoire d’Etude de la Corrosion Non Aqueuse, F-91191 Gif-sur-Yvette (France); Vilasi, M., E-mail: michel.vilasi@univ-lorraine.fr [Université de Lorraine, Institut Jean Lamour – UMR7198, Boulevard des Aiguillettes, BP70239, 54506 Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy Cedex (France)

2015-02-15

Highlights: • Oxidation protection is due to the formation of a pure silica layer. • V–4Cr–4Ti with V{sub x}Si{sub y} silicide coating withstands 400 1-h cycles (1100 °C-T{sub amb}) in air. • Three-point flexure testing at 950 °C and 75 MPa does not induce coating breakdown. • No delamination between coating and substrate is observed in any test. - Abstract: V–4Cr–4Ti vanadium alloy is a potential cladding material for sodium-cooled fast-neutron reactors (SFRs). However, its affinity for oxygen and the subsequent embrittlement that oxygen induces causes a need for an oxygen diffusion barrier, which can be obtained by manufacturing a multi-layered silicide coating. The present work aims to evaluate the effects of thermal cycling (using a cyclic oxidation device) and tensile and compressive stresses (using the three-point flexure test) on the coated alloy system. Tests were performed in air up to 1100 °C, which is 200 °C higher than the accidental temperature for SFR applications. The results showed that the VSi{sub 2} coating was able to protect the vanadium substrate from oxidation for more than 400 1-h cycles between 1100 °C and room temperature. The severe bending applied to the coated alloy at 950 °C using a load of 75 MPa did not lead to specimen breakage. It can be suggested that the VSi{sub 2} coating has mechanical properties compatible with the V–4Cr–4Ti alloy for SFR applications.

Models for Experimental High Density Housing

Science.gov (United States)

Bradecki, Tomasz; Swoboda, Julia; Nowak, Katarzyna; Dziechciarz, Klaudia

2017-10-01

The article presents the effects of research on models of high density housing. The authors present urban projects for experimental high density housing estates. The design was based on research performed on 38 examples of similar housing in Poland that have been built after 2003. Some of the case studies show extreme density and that inspired the researchers to test individual virtual solutions that would answer the question: How far can we push the limits? The experimental housing projects show strengths and weaknesses of design driven only by such indexes as FAR (floor attenuation ratio - housing density) and DPH (dwellings per hectare). Although such projects are implemented, the authors believe that there are reasons for limits since high index values may be in contradiction to the optimum character of housing environment. Virtual models on virtual plots presented by the authors were oriented toward maximising the DPH index and DAI (dwellings area index) which is very often the main driver for developers. The authors also raise the question of sustainability of such solutions. The research was carried out in the URBAN model research group (Gliwice, Poland) that consists of academic researchers and architecture students. The models reflect architectural and urban regulations that are valid in Poland. Conclusions might be helpful for urban planners, urban designers, developers, architects and architecture students.

High density operation in pulsator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Klueber, O.; Cannici, B.; Engelhardt, W.; Gernhardt, J.; Glock, E.; Karger, F.; Lisitano, G.; Mayer, H.M.; Meisel, D.; Morandi, P.

1976-03-01

This report summarizes the results of experiments at high electron densities (>10 14 cm -3 ) which have been achieved by pulsed gas inflow during the discharge. At these densities a regime is established which is characterized by βsub(p) > 1, nsub(i) approximately nsub(e), Tsub(i) approximately Tsub(e) and tausub(E) proportional to nsub(e). Thus the toroidal magnetic field contributes considerably to the plasma confinement and the ions constitute almost half of the plasma pressure. Furthermore, the confinement is appreciably improved and the plasma becomes impermeable to hot neutrals. (orig.) [de

Flexible asymmetric supercapacitors with high energy and high power density in aqueous electrolytes

Science.gov (United States)

Cheng, Yingwen; Zhang, Hongbo; Lu, Songtao; Varanasi, Chakrapani V.; Liu, Jie

2013-01-01

Supercapacitors with both high energy and high power densities are critical for many practical applications. In this paper, we discuss the design and demonstrate the fabrication of flexible asymmetric supercapacitors based on nanocomposite electrodes of MnO2, activated carbon, carbon nanotubes and graphene. The combined unique properties of each of these components enable highly flexible and mechanically strong films that can serve as electrodes directly without using any current collectors or binders. Using these flexible electrodes and a roll-up approach, asymmetric supercapacitors with 2 V working voltage were successfully fabricated. The fabricated device showed excellent rate capability, with 78% of the original capacitance retained when the scan rate was increased from 2 mV s-1 to 500 mV s-1. Owing to the unique composite structure, these supercapacitors were able to deliver high energy density (24 W h kg-1) under high power density (7.8 kW kg-1) conditions. These features could enable supercapacitor based energy storage systems to be very attractive for a variety of critical applications, such as the power sources in hybrid electric vehicles and the back-up powers for wind and solar energy, where both high energy density and high power density are required.Supercapacitors with both high energy and high power densities are critical for many practical applications. In this paper, we discuss the design and demonstrate the fabrication of flexible asymmetric supercapacitors based on nanocomposite electrodes of MnO2, activated carbon, carbon nanotubes and graphene. The combined unique properties of each of these components enable highly flexible and mechanically strong films that can serve as electrodes directly without using any current collectors or binders. Using these flexible electrodes and a roll-up approach, asymmetric supercapacitors with 2 V working voltage were successfully fabricated. The fabricated device showed excellent rate capability, with 78% of

Some recent efforts toward high density implosions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McClellan, G.E.

1980-01-01

Some recent Livermore efforts towards achieving high-density implosions are presented. The implosion dynamics necessary to compress DT fuel to 10 to 100 times liquid density are discussed. Methods of diagnosing the maximum DT density for a specific design are presented along with results to date. The dynamics of the double-shelled target with an exploding outer shell are described, and some preliminary experimental results are presented

Radiation Re-solution Calculation in Uranium-Silicide Fuels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matthews, Christopher; Andersson, Anders David Ragnar; Unal, Cetin

2017-01-01

The release of fission gas from nuclear fuels is of primary concern for safe operation of nuclear power plants. Although the production of fission gas atoms can be easily calculated from the fission rate in the fuel and the average yield of fission gas, the actual diffusion, behavior, and ultimate escape of fission gas from nuclear fuel depends on many other variables. As fission gas diffuses through the fuel grain, it tends to collect into intra-granular bubbles, as portrayed in Figure 1.1. These bubbles continue to grow due to absorption of single gas atoms. Simultaneously, passing fission fragments can cause collisions in the bubble that result in gas atoms being knocked back into the grain. This so called ''re-solution'' event results in a transient equilibrium of single gas atoms within the grain. As single gas atoms progress through the grain, they will eventually collect along grain boundaries, creating inter-granular bubbles. As the inter-granular bubbles grow over time, they will interconnect with other grain-face bubbles until a pathway is created to the outside of the fuel surface, at which point the highly pressurized inter-granular bubbles will expel their contents into the fuel plenum. This last process is the primary cause of fission gas release. From the simple description above, it is clear there are several parameters that ultimately affect fission gas release, including the diffusivity of single gas atoms, the absorption and knockout rate of single gas atoms in intra-granular bubbles, and the growth and interlinkage of intergranular bubbles. Of these, the knockout, or re-solution rate has an particularly important role in determining the transient concentration of single gas atoms in the grain. The re-solution rate will be explored in the following sections with regards to uranium-silicide fuels in order to support future models of fission gas bubble behavior.

Improved GAMMA 10 tandem mirror confinement in high density plasma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yatsu, K.; Cho, T.; Higaki, H.; Hirata, M.; Hojo, H.; Ichimura, M.; Ishii, K.; Ishimoto, Y.; Itakura, A.; Katanuma, I.; Kohagura, J.; Minami, R.; Nakashima, Y.; Numakura, T.; Saito, T.; Saosaki, S.; Takemura, Y.; Tatematsu, Y.; Yoshida, M.; Yoshikawa, M.

2003-01-01

GAMMA 10 experiments have advanced in high density experiments after the last IAEA fusion energy conference in 2000 where we reported the production of the high density plasma through use of ion cyclotron range of frequency heating at a high harmonic frequency and neutral beam injection in the anchor cells. However, the diamagnetic signal of the plasma decreased when electron cyclotron resonance heating was applied for the potential formation. Recently a high density plasma has been obtained without degradation of the diamagnetic signal and with much improved reproducibility than before. The high density plasma was attained through adjustment of the spacing of the conducting plates installed in the anchor transition regions. The potential confinement of the plasma has been extensively studied. Dependences of the ion confinement time, ion-energy confinement time and plasma confining potential on plasma density were obtained for the first time in the high density region up to a density of 4x10 18 m -3 . (author)

High-density limit of quantum chromodynamics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alvarez, E.

1983-01-01

By means of a formal expansion of the partition function presumably valid at large baryon densities, the propagator of the quarks is expressed in terms of the gluon propagator. This result is interpreted as implying that correlations between quarks and gluons are unimportant at high enough density, so that a kind of mean-field approximation gives a very accurate description of the physical system

Metallization of ion beam synthesized Si/3C-SiC/Si layer systems by high-dose implantation of transition metal ions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lindner, J.K.N.; Wenzel, S.; Stritzker, B.

2001-01-01

The formation of metal silicide layers contacting an ion beam synthesized buried 3C-SiC layer in silicon by means of high-dose titanium and molybdenum implantations is reported. Two different strategies to form such contact layers are explored. The titanium implantation aims to convert the Si top layer of an epitaxial Si/SiC/Si layer sequence into TiSi 2 , while Mo implantations were performed directly into the SiC layer after selectively etching off all capping layers. Textured and high-temperature stable C54-TiSi 2 layers with small additions of more metal-rich silicides are obtained in the case of the Ti implantations. Mo implantations result in the formation of the high-temperature phase β-MoSi 2 , which also grows textured on the substrate. The formation of cavities in the silicon substrate at the lower SiC/Si interface due to the Si consumption by the growing silicide phase is observed in both cases. It probably constitutes a problem, occurring whenever thin SiC films on silicon have to be contacted by silicide forming metals independent of the deposition technique used. It is shown that this problem can be solved with ion beam synthesized contact layers by proper adjustment of the metal ion dose

Fueling with edge recycling to high-density in DIII-D

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Leonard, A.W., E-mail: leonard@fusion.gat.com [General Atomics, P.O. Box 85608, San Diego, CA 92186-5608 (United States); Elder, J.D. [University of Toronto Institute of Aerospace Studies, Toronto, Canada M3H 5T6 (Canada); Canik, J.M. [Oak Ridge National Laboratory, P.O. Box 2008, Oak Ridge, TN 37831 (United States); Groebner, R.J.; Osborne, T.H. [General Atomics, P.O. Box 85608, San Diego, CA 92186-5608 (United States)

2013-07-15

Pedestal fueling through edge recycling is examined with the interpretive OEDGE code for high-density discharges in DIII-D. A high current, high-density discharge is found to have a similar radial ion flux profile through the pedestal to a lower current, lower density discharge. The higher density discharge, however, has a greater density gradient indicating a pedestal particle diffusion coefficient that scales near linear with 1/I{sub p}. The time dependence of density profile is taken into account in the analysis of a discharge with low frequency ELMs. The time-dependent analysis indicates that the inferred neutral ionization source is inadequate to account for the increase in the density profile between ELMs, implying an inward density convection, or density pinch, near the top of the pedestal.

Hydrogen generation systems utilizing sodium silicide and sodium silica gel materials

Science.gov (United States)

Wallace, Andrew P.; Melack, John M.; Lefenfeld, Michael

2015-07-14

Systems, devices, and methods combine reactant materials and aqueous solutions to generate hydrogen. The reactant materials can sodium silicide or sodium silica gel. The hydrogen generation devices are used in fuels cells and other industrial applications. One system combines cooling, pumping, water storage, and other devices to sense and control reactions between reactant materials and aqueous solutions to generate hydrogen. Multiple inlets of varied placement geometries deliver aqueous solution to the reaction. The reactant materials and aqueous solution are churned to control the state of the reaction. The aqueous solution can be recycled and returned to the reaction. One system operates over a range of temperatures and pressures and includes a hydrogen separator, a heat removal mechanism, and state of reaction control devices. The systems, devices, and methods of generating hydrogen provide thermally stable solids, near-instant reaction with the aqueous solutions, and a non-toxic liquid by-product.

Low density, variation in sintered density and high nitrogen in uranium dioxide

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Balakrishna, Palanki; Murty, B.N.; Anuradha, M.; Nageshwara Rao, P.; Jayaraj, R.N.; Ganguly, C.

2000-01-01

Low sintered density and density variation in sintered UO 2 were found to have been caused by non uniformity in the granule feed characteristics to the compacting press. The nitrogen impurity content of sintered UO 2 was found to be sintering furnace related and associated with low sintered density pellets. The problems of low density, variation in sintered density and high nitrogen could be solved by the replacement of the prevailing four punch precompaction by a single punch process; by the introduction of a vibro-sieve for the separation of fine particles from the press feed granules; by innovation in the powder feed shoe design for simultaneous and uniform dispensing of powder in all the die holes; by increasing the final compaction pressure and by modifying the gas flows and preheat temperature in the sintering furnace. (author)

High throughput nonparametric probability density estimation.

Science.gov (United States)

Farmer, Jenny; Jacobs, Donald

2018-01-01

In high throughput applications, such as those found in bioinformatics and finance, it is important to determine accurate probability distribution functions despite only minimal information about data characteristics, and without using human subjectivity. Such an automated process for univariate data is implemented to achieve this goal by merging the maximum entropy method with single order statistics and maximum likelihood. The only required properties of the random variables are that they are continuous and that they are, or can be approximated as, independent and identically distributed. A quasi-log-likelihood function based on single order statistics for sampled uniform random data is used to empirically construct a sample size invariant universal scoring function. Then a probability density estimate is determined by iteratively improving trial cumulative distribution functions, where better estimates are quantified by the scoring function that identifies atypical fluctuations. This criterion resists under and over fitting data as an alternative to employing the Bayesian or Akaike information criterion. Multiple estimates for the probability density reflect uncertainties due to statistical fluctuations in random samples. Scaled quantile residual plots are also introduced as an effective diagnostic to visualize the quality of the estimated probability densities. Benchmark tests show that estimates for the probability density function (PDF) converge to the true PDF as sample size increases on particularly difficult test probability densities that include cases with discontinuities, multi-resolution scales, heavy tails, and singularities. These results indicate the method has general applicability for high throughput statistical inference.

Superconductivity in ternary rare earth transition metal silicides and germanides with the Sc5Co4Si10-type structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Berg, L.S.

1986-01-01

A systematic study of the superconducting and normal state properties of some ternary rare earth transition metal silicides and germanides of the Sc 5 Co 4 Si 10 0-type is reported. Low temperature heat capacity measurements indicate the presence of a complicated phonon density of states in these structurally complex compounds. A better description of the phonon spectrum of the high T/sub c/ materials Sc 5 Rh 4 Si 10 , Sc 5 Ir 4 Si 10 , and Y 5 Os 4 Ge 10 , given by a model proposed by Junod et al., is presented and discussed. The large values of ΔC/γ/sub n/T/sub c/ and the electron-phonon coupling constant for these high T/sub c/ compounds indicate that they are strong-coupled superconductors. Relative to other ternary superconductors, many of these materials have large Debye temperatures. DC electrical resistivity measurements on these compounds show resistivity behavior deviating from those exhibited by simple metals. The rho(T) data for Y 5 Ir 4 Si 10 , Lu 5 Ir 4 Si 10 , and Y 5 Os 4 Ge 10 , indicate the presence of anomalies. Static molar magnetic susceptibility measurements performed on these compounds indicate (1) a small effective magnetic moment of 0.26μ/sub B/ on the Co atom and (2) anomalous behaviors in the Lu 5 Rh 4 Si 10 , Lu 5 Ir 4 Si 10 , Y 5 Ir 4 Si 10 , Lu 5 Ir 4 Ge 10 , and Y 5 Rh 4 Ge 10 data. Lastly, upper critical magnetic field measurements were performed on Sc 5 Co 4 Si 10 , Sc 5 Rh 4 Si 10 , Sc 5 Ir 4 Si 10 , Lu 5 Rh 4 Si 10 , Lu 5 Ir 4 Si 10 , and Y 5 Os 4 Ge 10

Highly efficient red electrophosphorescent devices at high current densities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wu Youzhi; Zhu Wenqing; Zheng Xinyou; Sun, Runguang; Jiang Xueyin; Zhang Zhilin; Xu Shaohong

2007-01-01

Efficiency decrease at high current densities in red electrophosphorescent devices is drastically restrained compared with that from conventional electrophosphorescent devices by using bis(2-methyl-8-quinolinato)4-phenylphenolate aluminum (BAlq) as a hole and exciton blocker. Ir complex, bis(2-(2'-benzo[4,5-α]thienyl) pyridinato-N,C 3' ) iridium (acetyl-acetonate) is used as an emitter, maximum external quantum efficiency (QE) of 7.0% and luminance of 10000cd/m 2 are obtained. The QE is still as high as 4.1% at higher current density J=100mA/cm 2 . CIE-1931 co-ordinates are 0.672, 0.321. A carrier trapping mechanism is revealed to dominate in the process of electroluminescence

High temperature chlorosilane corrosion of iron and AISI 316L stainless steel

Science.gov (United States)

Aller, Joshua Loren

Chlorosilane gas streams are used at high temperatures (>500°C) throughout the semiconductor, polycrystalline silicon, and fumed silica industries, primarily as a way to refine, deposit, and produce silicon and silicon containing materials. The presence of both chlorine and silicon in chlorosilane species creates unique corrosion environments due to the ability of many metals to form both metal-chlorides and metal-silicides, and it is further complicated by the fact that many metal-chlorides are volatile at high-temperatures while metal-silicides are generally stable. To withstand the uniquely corrosive environments, expensive alloys are often utilized, which increases the cost of final products. This work focuses on the corrosion behavior of iron, the primary component of low-cost alloys, and AISI 316L, a common low-cost stainless steel, in environments representative of industrial processes. The experiments were conducted using a customized high temperature chlorosilane corrosion system that exposed samples to an atmospheric pressure, high temperature, chlorosilane environment with variable input amounts of hydrogen, silicon tetrachloride, and hydrogen chloride plus the option of embedding samples in silicon during the exposure. Pre and post exposure sample analysis including scanning electron microscopy, x-ray diffraction, energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy, and gravimetric analysis showed the surface corrosion products varied depending on the time, temperature, and environment that the samples were exposed to. Most commonly, a volatile chloride product formed first, followed by a stratified metal silicide layer. The chlorine and silicon activities in the corrosion environment were changed independently and were found to significantly alter the corrosion behavior; a phenomenon supported by computational thermodynamic equilibrium simulations. It was found that in comparable environments, the stainless steel corroded significantly less than the pure iron. This

Fundamental properties of high-quality carbon nanofoam: from low to high density

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Natalie Frese

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Highly uniform samples of carbon nanofoam from hydrothermal sucrose carbonization were studied by helium ion microscopy (HIM, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS, and Raman spectroscopy. Foams with different densities were produced by changing the process temperature in the autoclave reactor. This work illustrates how the geometrical structure, electron core levels, and the vibrational signatures change when the density of the foams is varied. We find that the low-density foams have very uniform structure consisting of micropearls with ≈2–3 μm average diameter. Higher density foams contain larger-sized micropearls (≈6–9 μm diameter which often coalesced to form nonspherical μm-sized units. Both, low- and high-density foams are comprised of predominantly sp2-type carbon. The higher density foams, however, show an advanced graphitization degree and a stronger sp3-type electronic contribution, related to the inclusion of sp3 connections in their surface network.

Sputtered thin films for high density tape recording

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nguyen, L.T.

This thesis describes the investigation of sputtered thin film media for high density tape recording. As discussed in Chapter 1, to meet the tremendous demand of data storage, the density of recording tape has to be increased continuously. For further increasing the bit density the key factors are:

High-density housing that works for all

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hasan, Arif

2010-03-15

In an urbanising world, the way people fit into cities is vastly important - socially, economically, environmentally, even psychologically. So density, or the number of people living in a given area, is central to urban design and planning. Both governments and markets tend to get density wrong, leading to overcrowding, urban sprawl or often both. A case in point are the high-rise buildings springing up throughtout urban Asia - perceived as key features of that widely touted concept, the 'world-class city'. While some may offer a viable solution to land pressures and density requirements, many built to house evicted or resettled 'slum' dwellers are a social and economic nightmare - inconveniently sited, overcrowded and costly. New evidence from Karachi, Pakistan, reveals a real alternative. Poor people can create liveable high-density settlements as long as community control, the right technical assistance and flexible designs are in place. A city is surely 'world-class' only when it is cosmopolitan – built to serve all, including the poorest.

High density high performance plasma with internal diffusion barrier in Large Helical Device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sakamoto, R.; Kobayashi, M.; Miyazawa, J.

2008-10-01

A attractive high density plasma operational regime, namely an internal diffusion barrier (IDB), has been discovered in the intrinsic helical divertor configuration on the Large Helical Device (LHD). The IDB which enables core plasma to access a high density/high pressure regime has been developed. It is revealed that the IDB is reproducibly formed by pellet fueling in the magnetic configurations shifted outward in major radius. Attainable central plasma density exceeds 1x10 21 m -3 . Central pressure reaches 1.5 times atmospheric pressure and the central β value becomes fairly high even at high magnetic field, i.e. β(0)=5.5% at B t =2.57 T. (author)

High density data recording for SSCL linac

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

VanDeusen, A.L.; Crist, C.

1993-01-01

The Superconducting Super Collider Laboratory and AlliedSignal Aerospace have collaboratively developed a high density data monitoring system for beam diagnostic activities. The 128 channel data system is based on a custom multi-channel high speed digitizer card for the VXI bus. The card is referred to as a Modular Input VXI (MIX) digitizer. Multiple MIX cards are used in the complete system to achieve the necessary high channel density requirements. Each MIX digitizer card also contains programmable signal conditioning, and enough local memory to complete an entire beam scan without assistance from the host processor

Characterization of the high density plasma etching process of CCTO thin films for the fabrication of very high density capacitors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Altamore, C; Tringali, C; Sparta', N; Marco, S Di; Grasso, A; Ravesi, S

2010-01-01

In this work the feasibility of CCTO (Calcium Copper Titanate) patterning by etching process is demonstrated and fully characterized in a hard to etch materials etcher. CCTO sintered in powder shows a giant relative dielectric constant (10 5 ) measured at 1 MHz at room temperature. This feature is furthermore coupled with stability from 10 1 Hz to 10 6 Hz in a wide temperature range (100K - 600K). In principle, this property can allow to fabricate very high capacitance density condenser. Due to its perovskite multi-component structure, CCTO can be considered a hard to etch material. For high density capacitor fabrication, CCTO anisotropic etching is requested by using high density plasma. The behavior of etched CCTO was studied in a HRe- (High Density Reflected electron) plasma etcher using Cl 2 /Ar chemistry. The relationship between the etch rate and the Cl 2 /Ar ratio was also studied. The effects of RF MHz, KHz Power and pressure variation, the impact of HBr addiction to the Cl 2 /Ar chemistry on the CCTO etch rate and on its selectivity to Pt and photo resist was investigated.

Characterization of the high density plasma etching process of CCTO thin films for the fabrication of very high density capacitors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Altamore, C; Tringali, C; Sparta' , N; Marco, S Di; Grasso, A; Ravesi, S [STMicroelectronics, Industial and Multi-segment Sector R and D, Catania (Italy)

2010-02-15

In this work the feasibility of CCTO (Calcium Copper Titanate) patterning by etching process is demonstrated and fully characterized in a hard to etch materials etcher. CCTO sintered in powder shows a giant relative dielectric constant (10{sup 5}) measured at 1 MHz at room temperature. This feature is furthermore coupled with stability from 10{sup 1} Hz to 10{sup 6} Hz in a wide temperature range (100K - 600K). In principle, this property can allow to fabricate very high capacitance density condenser. Due to its perovskite multi-component structure, CCTO can be considered a hard to etch material. For high density capacitor fabrication, CCTO anisotropic etching is requested by using high density plasma. The behavior of etched CCTO was studied in a HRe- (High Density Reflected electron) plasma etcher using Cl{sub 2}/Ar chemistry. The relationship between the etch rate and the Cl{sub 2}/Ar ratio was also studied. The effects of RF MHz, KHz Power and pressure variation, the impact of HBr addiction to the Cl{sub 2}/Ar chemistry on the CCTO etch rate and on its selectivity to Pt and photo resist was investigated.

Compensated readout for high-density MOS-gated memristor crossbar array

KAUST Repository

Zidan, Mohammed A.

2015-01-01

Leakage current is one of the main challenges facing high-density MOS-gated memristor arrays. In this study, we show that leakage current ruins the memory readout process for high-density arrays, and analyze the tradeoff between the array density and its power consumption. We propose a novel readout technique and its underlying circuitry, which is able to compensate for the transistor leakage-current effect in the high-density gated memristor array.

Numerical analysis of energy density and particle density in high energy heavy-ion collisions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fu Yuanyong; Lu Zhongdao

2004-01-01

Energy density and particle density in high energy heavy-ion collisions are calculated with infinite series expansion method and Gauss-Laguerre formulas in numerical integration separately, and the results of these two methods are compared, the higher terms and linear terms in series expansion are also compared. The results show that Gauss-Laguerre formulas is a good method in calculations of high energy heavy-ion collisions. (author)

High density regimes and beta limits in JET

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smeulders, P.

1990-01-01

Results are first presented on the density limit in JET discharges with graphite (C), Be gettered graphite and Be limiters. There is a clear improvement in the case of Be limiters. The Be gettered phase showed no increase in the gas fueled density limit, except with Ion Cyclotron Resonance Heating (ICRH), but, the limit changed character. During MARFE-formation, any further increase in density was prevented, leading to a soft density limit. The soft density limit was a function of input power and impurity content with a week dependence on q. Helium and pellet fuelled discharges exceeded the gas-fuelled global density limits, but essentially had the same edge limit. In the second part, results are presented of high β operation in low-B Double-Null (DN) X-point configurations with Be-gettered carbon target plates. The Troyon limit was reached during H-mode discharges and toroidal β values of 5.5% were obtained. At high beta, the sawteeth were modified and characterised by very rapid heat-waves and fishbone-like pre- and post-cursors with strongly ballooning character. 17 refs., 5 figs

Irradiation of an uranium silicide prototype in RA-3 reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Calabrese, R.; Estrik, G.; Notari, C.

1996-01-01

The factibility of irradiation of an uranium silicide (U 3 Si 2 ) prototype in the RA-3 reactor was studied. The standard RA-3 fuel element uses U 3 O 8 as fissible material. The enrichment of both standard and prototype is the same: 20% U 235 and also the frame geometry and number of plates is identical. The differences are in the plate dimensions and the fissile content which is higher in the prototype. The cooling conditions of the core allow the insertion of the prototype in any core position, even near the water trap, if the overall power is kept below 5Mw. Nevertheless, the recommendation was to begin irradiation near the periphery and later on move the prototype towards more central positions in order to increase the burnup rate. The prototype was effectively introduced in a peripheral position and the thermal fluxes were measured between plates with the foil activation technique. These were also evaluated with the fuel management codes and a reasonable agreement was found. (author). 5 refs., 3 figs., 3 tabs

The use of low density high accuracy (LDHA) data for correction of high density low accuracy (HDLA) point cloud

Science.gov (United States)

Rak, Michal Bartosz; Wozniak, Adam; Mayer, J. R. R.

2016-06-01

Coordinate measuring techniques rely on computer processing of coordinate values of points gathered from physical surfaces using contact or non-contact methods. Contact measurements are characterized by low density and high accuracy. On the other hand optical methods gather high density data of the whole object in a short time but with accuracy at least one order of magnitude lower than for contact measurements. Thus the drawback of contact methods is low density of data, while for non-contact methods it is low accuracy. In this paper a method for fusion of data from two measurements of fundamentally different nature: high density low accuracy (HDLA) and low density high accuracy (LDHA) is presented to overcome the limitations of both measuring methods. In the proposed method the concept of virtual markers is used to find a representation of pairs of corresponding characteristic points in both sets of data. In each pair the coordinates of the point from contact measurements is treated as a reference for the corresponding point from non-contact measurement. Transformation enabling displacement of characteristic points from optical measurement to their match from contact measurements is determined and applied to the whole point cloud. The efficiency of the proposed algorithm was evaluated by comparison with data from a coordinate measuring machine (CMM). Three surfaces were used for this evaluation: plane, turbine blade and engine cover. For the planar surface the achieved improvement was of around 200 μm. Similar results were obtained for the turbine blade but for the engine cover the improvement was smaller. For both freeform surfaces the improvement was higher for raw data than for data after creation of mesh of triangles.

High energy density capacitors fabricated by thin film technology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barbee, T W; Johnson, G W; Wagner, A V.

1999-01-01

Low energy density in conventional capacitors severely limits efforts to miniaturize power electronics and imposes design limitations on electronics in general. We have successfully applied physical vapor deposition technology to greatly increase capacitor energy density. The high dielectric breakdown strength we have achieved in alumina thin films allows high energy density to be achieved with this moderately low dielectric constant material. The small temperature dependence of the dielectric constant, and the high reliability, high resistivity, and low dielectric loss of Al 2 O 3 , make it even more appealing. We have constructed single dielectric layer thin film capacitors and shown that they can be stacked to form multilayered structures with no loss in yield for a given capacitance. Control of film growth morphology is critical for achieving the smooth, high quality interfaces between metal and dielectric necessary for device operation at high electric fields. Most importantly, high rate deposition with extremely low particle generation is essential for achieving high energy storage at a reasonable cost. This has been achieved by reactive magnetron sputtering in which the reaction to form the dielectric oxide has been confined to the deposition surface. By this technique we have achieved a yield of over 50% for 1 cm 2 devices with an energy density of 14 J per cubic centimeter of Al 2 O 3 dielectric material in 1.2 kV, 4 nF devices. By further reducing defect density and increasing the dielectric constant of the material, we will be able to increase capacitance and construct high energy density devices to meet the requirements of applications in power electronics

HIGH DENSITY QCD WITH HEAVY-IONS

CERN Multimedia

The Addendum 1 to Volume 2 of the CMS Physics TDR has been published The Heavy-Ion analysis group completed the writing of a TDR summarizing the CMS plans in using heavy ion collisions to study high density QCD. The document was submitted to the LHCC in March and presented in the Open Session of the LHCC on May 9th. The study of heavy-ion physics at the LHC is promising to be very exciting. LHC will open a new energy frontier in ultra-relativistic heavy-ion physics. The collision energy of heavy nuclei at sNN = 5.5 TeV will be thirty times larger than what is presently available at RHIC. We will certainly probe quark and gluon matter at unprecedented values of energy density. The prime goal of this research programme is to study the fundamental theory of the strong interaction - Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) - in extreme conditions of temperature, density and parton momentum fraction (low-x). Such studies, with impressive experimental and theoretical advances in recent years thanks to the wealth of high-qua...

An x-ray backlit Talbot-Lau deflectometer for high-energy-density electron density diagnostics

Science.gov (United States)

Valdivia, M. P.; Stutman, D.; Stoeckl, C.; Theobald, W.; Mileham, C.; Begishev, I. A.; Bromage, J.; Regan, S. P.

2016-02-01

X-ray phase-contrast techniques can measure electron density gradients in high-energy-density plasmas through refraction induced phase shifts. An 8 keV Talbot-Lau interferometer consisting of free standing ultrathin gratings was deployed at an ultra-short, high-intensity laser system using K-shell emission from a 1-30 J, 8 ps laser pulse focused on thin Cu foil targets. Grating survival was demonstrated for 30 J, 8 ps laser pulses. The first x-ray deflectometry images obtained under laser backlighting showed up to 25% image contrast and thus enabled detection of electron areal density gradients with a maximum value of 8.1 ± 0.5 × 1023 cm-3 in a low-Z millimeter sized sample. An electron density profile was obtained from refraction measurements with an error of x-ray source-size, similar to conventional radiography.

Chapter 7: High-Density H-Mode Operation in ASDEX Upgrade

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stober, Joerg Karl; Lang, Peter Thomas; Mertens, Vitus

2003-01-01

Recent results are reported on the maximum achievable H-mode density and the behavior of pedestal density and central density peaking as this limit is approached. The maximum achievable H-mode density roughly scales as the Greenwald density, though a dependence on B t is clearly observed. In contrast to the stiff temperature profiles, the density profiles seem to allow more shape variation and especially with high-field-side pellet-injection, strongly peaked profiles with good confinement have been achieved. Also, spontaneous density peaking at high densities is observed in ASDEX Upgrade, which is related to the generally observed large time constants for the density profile equilibration. The equilibrated density profile shapes depend strongly on the heat-flux profile in the sense that central heating leads to significantly flatter profiles

Experimental study of high density foods for the Space Operations Center

Science.gov (United States)

Ahmed, S. M.

1981-01-01

The experimental study of high density foods for the Space Operations Center is described. A sensory evaluation of the high density foods was conducted first to test the acceptability of the products. A shelf-life study of the high density foods was also conducted for three different time lengths at three different temperatures. The nutritional analysis of the high density foods is at present incomplete.

M₅Si₃(M=Ti, Nb, Mo) Based Transition-Metal Silicides for High Temperature Applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tang, Zhihong [Iowa State Univ., Ames, IA (United States)

2007-01-01

Transition metal silicides are being considered for future engine turbine components at temperatures up to 1600 C. Although significant improvement in high temperature strength, room temperature fracture toughness has been realized in the past decade, further improvement in oxidation resistance is needed. Oxidation mechanism of Ti₅Si₃-based alloys was investigated. Oxidation behavior of Ti₅Si₃-based alloy strongly depends on the atmosphere. Presence of Nitrogen alters the oxidation behavior of Ti₅Si₃ by nucleation and growth of nitride subscale. Ti₅Si_3.2and Ti₅Si₃C_0.5 alloys exhibited an excellent oxidation resistance in nitrogen bearing atmosphere due to limited dissolution of nitrogen and increased Si/Ti activity ratio. MoSi₂ coating developed by pack cementation to protect Mo-based Mo-Si-B composites was found to be effective up to 1500 C. Shifting coating composition to T1+T2+Mo₃Si region showed the possibility to extend the coating lifetime above 1500 C by more than ten times via formation of slow growing Mo₃Si or T2 interlayer without sacrificing the oxidation resistance of the coating. The phase equilibria in the Nb-rich portion of Nb-B system has been evaluated experimentally using metallographic analysis and differential thermal analyzer (DTA). It was shown that Nb_ss (solid solution) and NbB are the only two primary phases in the 0-40 at.% B composition range, and the eutectic reaction L {leftrightarrow} Nb_SS + NbB was determined to occur at 2104 ± 5 C by DTA.

Fluorescent Fe K Emission from High Density Accretion Disks

Science.gov (United States)

Bautista, Manuel; Mendoza, Claudio; Garcia, Javier; Kallman, Timothy R.; Palmeri, Patrick; Deprince, Jerome; Quinet, Pascal

2018-06-01

Iron K-shell lines emitted by gas closely orbiting black holes are observed to be grossly broadened and skewed by Doppler effects and gravitational redshift. Accordingly, models for line profiles are widely used to measure the spin (i.e., the angular momentum) of astrophysical black holes. The accuracy of these spin estimates is called into question because fitting the data requires very high iron abundances, several times the solar value. Meanwhile, no plausible physical explanation has been proffered for why these black hole systems should be so iron rich. The most likely explanation for the super-solar iron abundances is a deficiency in the models, and the leading candidate cause is that current models are inapplicable at densities above 1018 cm-3. We study the effects of high densities on the atomic parameters and on the spectral models for iron ions. At high densities, Debye plasma can affect the effective atomic potential of the ions, leading to observable changes in energy levels and atomic rates with respect to the low density case. High densities also have the effec of lowering energy the atomic continuum and reducing the recombination rate coefficients. On the spectral modeling side, high densities drive level populations toward a Boltzman distribution and very large numbers of excited atomic levels, typically accounted for in theoretical spectral models, may contribute to the K-shell spectrum.

Phenomenology of high density disruptions in the TFTR tokamak

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fredrickson, E.D.; McGuire, K.M.; Bell, M.G.

1993-01-01

Studies of high density disruptions on TFTR, including a comparison of minor and major disruptions at high density, provide important new information regarding the nature of the disruption mechanism. Further, for the first time, an (m,n)=(1,1) 'cold bubble' precursor to high density disruptions has been experimentally observed in the electron temperature profile. The precursor to major disruptions resembles the 'vacuum bubble' model of disruptions first proposed by B.B. Kadomtsev and O.P. Pogutse (Sov. Phys. - JETP 38 (1974) 283). (author). Letter-to-the-editor. 25 refs, 3 figs

High Energy Density Polymer Film Capacitors

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Boufelfel, Ali

2006-01-01

High-energy-density capacitors that are compact and light-weight are extremely valuable in a number of critical DoD systems that include portable field equipment, pulsed lasers, detection equipment...

High density matter at RHIC

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

QCD predicts a phase transition between hadronic matter and a quark-gluon plasma at high energy density. The relativistic heavy ion collider (RHIC) at Brookhaven National Laboratory is a new facility dedicated to the experimental study of matter under extreme conditions. Already the first round of experimental results at ...

High-Pressure Spark Plasma Sintering (HP SPS): A Promising and Reliable Method for Preparing Ti-Al-Si Alloys.

Science.gov (United States)

Knaislová, Anna; Novák, Pavel; Cygan, Sławomir; Jaworska, Lucyna; Cabibbo, Marcello

2017-04-27

Ti-Al-Si alloys are prospective material for high-temperature applications. Due to low density, good mechanical properties, and oxidation resistance, these intermetallic alloys can be used in the aerospace and automobile industries. Ti-Al-Si alloys were prepared by powder metallurgy using reactive sintering, milling, and spark plasma sintering. One of the novel SPS techniques is high-pressure spark plasma sintering (HP SPS), which was tested in this work and applied to a Ti-10Al-20Si intermetallic alloy using a pressure of 6 GPa and temperatures ranging from 1318 K (1045 °C) to 1597 K (1324 °C). The low-porosity consolidated samples consist of Ti₅Si₃ silicides in an aluminide (TiAl) matrix. The hardness varied between 720 and 892 HV 5.

Evaluation Of Radioactivity Concentration In The Primary Cooling Water System Of The RSG-GAS During Operation With 30% Silicide Fuels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hartoyo, Unggul; Udiyani, P.M.; Setiawanto, Anto

2001-01-01

The evaluating radioactivity concentration in the primary cooling water of the RSG-GAS during operation with 30% silicide fuels has been performed. The method of the research is sampling of primary cooling water during operation of the reactor and calculation of its radioactivity concentration. Based on the data obtained from calculation, the identified nuclides in the water are, Mn-56, Sb-124, Sb-122 and Na-24, under the limit of safety value

Edge operational space for high density/high confinement ELMY H-modes in JET

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sartori, R.; Saibene, G.; Loarte, A.

2002-01-01

This paper discusses how the proximity to the L-H threshold affects the confinement of ELMy H-modes at high density. The largest reduction in confinement at high density is observed at the transition from the Type I to the Type III ELMy regime. At medium plasma triangularity, δ≅0.3 (where δ is the average triangularity at the separatrix), JET experiments show that by increasing the margin above the L-H threshold power and maintaining the edge temperature above the critical temperature for the transition to Type III ELMs, it is possible to avoid the degradation of the pedestal pressure with density, normally observed at lower power. As a result, the range of achievable densities (both in the core and in the pedestal) is increased. At high power above the L-H threshold power the core density was equal to the Greenwald limit with H97≅0.9. There is evidence that a mixed regime of Type I and Type II ELMs has been obtained at this intermediate triangularity, possibly as a result of this increase in density. At higher triangularity, δ≅0.5, the power required to achieve similar results is lower. (author)

Process-oriented microstructure evolution of V{sub ss}-V{sub 3}Si-V{sub 5}SiB{sub 2}; Prozessabhaengige Mikrostrukturausbildung von V{sub ss}-V{sub 3}Si-V{sub 5}SiB{sub 2}-Werkstoffen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Krueger, Manja; Koeppe-Grabow, Birte [Magdeburg Univ. (Germany)

2017-05-15

Vanadium silicide alloys are potentially interesting high temperature materials, since they combine high mechanical strength at temperatures of up to 1 000 C with a low density. In this study, the microstructures of innovative V-Si-B high temperature materials are examined using different analytical methods. The selected V-9Si-13B model alloy was manufactured using a powder metallurgical process route as well as an ingot metallurgical process. The alloys show a vanadium solid solution phase as well as the high-strength silicide phases V{sub 3}Si and V{sub 5}SiB{sub 2}. Especially for the powder metallurgically fabricated alloy, showing finely dispersed phases, the quantification of microstructural constituents is difficult. The phases, however, can be separated from one another via computer tomography.

Synthesis and characterization of β-phase iron silicide nano-particles by chemical reduction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sen, Sabyasachi; Gogurla, Narendar; Banerji, Pallab; Guha, Prasanta K.; Pramanik, Panchanan

2015-01-01

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • β-FeSi 2 nano-particle was synthesized by reducing with Mg and by diluting with MgO. • XRD profile shows the iron di-silicide phase to be semiconducting β-FeSi 2 . • HRTEM and FESEM images indicate the β-FeSi 2 average particle size to be 60–70 nm. • Absorption, reflectance and PL spectroscopy show band gap to be direct 0.87 eV. • Nano-β-FeSi 2 is p-type with hole density of 4.38 × 10 18 cm −3 and mobility 8.9 cm 2 /V s. - Abstract: Nano-particles of β-FeSi 2 have been synthesized by chemical reduction of a glassy phase of [Fe 2 O 3 , 4SiO 2 ] by Mg-metal where MgO is used as diluent to prevent the agglomeration of nano crystallites into micro-particles and also act as a negative catalyst for the formation of other phases. The sample is characterized by XRD, FESEM, HRTEM, EDX, ultra-violet-visible-infrared and PL spectroscopy and electronic properties have been investigated by Hall measurement. XRD profile shows that the synthesized powder consists of purely β-FeSi 2 semiconducting phase. The average crystallite size of β-FeSi 2 is determined to be around 65.4 nm from XRD peaks as well as from FESEM also. The optical absorption and PL spectroscopy shows that synthesized β-FeSi 2 phase is a direct band gap semiconductor with a value of 0.87 eV. Hall measurements show that β-FeSi 2 nano-particles is p-type with hole concentration of 4.38 × 10 18 cm −3 and average hole mobility of 8.9 cm 2 /V s at 300 K

A study of strain in thin epitaxial films of yttrium silicide on Si(111)

Science.gov (United States)

Siegal, Michelle F.; Martínez-Miranda, L. J.; Santiago-Avilés, J. J.; Graham, W. R.; Siegal, M. P.

1994-02-01

We present the results of an x-ray diffraction analysis of epitaxial yttrium silicide films grown on Si(111), with thicknesses ranging from 14 to 100 Å. The macroscopic strain along the out-of-plane direction for films containing pits or pinholes follows the trend observed previously in films of thicknesses up to 510 Å. The out-of-plane lattice parameter decreases linearly with film thickness. We show preliminary evidence that pinhole-free films do not follow the above trend, and that strain in these films has the opposite sign than in films with pinholes. Finally, our results also indicate that the mode of growth, coupled to the interfacial thermal properties of the films, affects the observed value for the strain in the films.

A study of strain in thin epitaxial films of yttrium silicide on Si(111)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Siegal, M.F.; Martinez-Miranda, L.J.; Santiago-Aviles, J.J.; Graham, W.R.; Siegal, M.P.

1994-01-01

We present the results of an x-ray diffraction analysis of epitaxial yttrium silicide films grown on Si(111), with thicknesses ranging from 14 to 100 A. The macroscopic strain along the out-of-plane direction for films containing pits or pinholes follows the trend observed previously in films of thicknesses up to 510 A. The out-of-plane lattice parameter decreases linearly with film thickness. We show preliminary evidence that pinhole-free films do not follow the above trend, and that strain in these films has the opposite sign than in films with pinholes. Finally, our results also indicate that the mode of growth, coupled to the interfacial thermal properties of the films, affects the observed value for the strain in the films

MTR fuel inspection at CERCA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fanjas, Y.

1992-01-01

The stringent specifications for MTR fuel plates and fuel elements require various sophisticated inspection techniques. In particular, the development of low enriched silicide fuels made it necessary to adapt these techniques to high density plates. This paper presents the status of inspection technology at CERCA. (author)

Growth limitation of Lemna minor due to high plant density

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Driever, S.M.; Nes, van E.H.; Roijackers, R.M.M.

2005-01-01

The effect of high population densities on the growth rate of Lemna minor (L.) was studied under laboratory conditions at 23°C in a medium with sufficient nutrients. At high population densities, we found a non-linear decreasing growth rate with increasing L. minor density. Above a L. minor biomass

Density-dependent phonoriton states in highly excited semiconductors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nguyen Hong Quang; Nguyen Minh Khue; Nguyen Que Huong

1995-09-01

The dynamical aspects of the phonoriton state in highly-photoexcited semiconductors is studied theoretically. The effect of the exciton-exciton interaction and nonbosonic character of high-density excitons are taken into account. Using Green's function method and within the Random Phase Approximation it is shown that the phonoriton dispersion and damping are very sensitive to the exciton density, characterizing the excitation degree of semiconductors. (author). 18 refs, 3 figs

Multiplexed, high density electrophysiology with nanofabricated neural probes.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jiangang Du

Full Text Available Extracellular electrode arrays can reveal the neuronal network correlates of behavior with single-cell, single-spike, and sub-millisecond resolution. However, implantable electrodes are inherently invasive, and efforts to scale up the number and density of recording sites must compromise on device size in order to connect the electrodes. Here, we report on silicon-based neural probes employing nanofabricated, high-density electrical leads. Furthermore, we address the challenge of reading out multichannel data with an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC performing signal amplification, band-pass filtering, and multiplexing functions. We demonstrate high spatial resolution extracellular measurements with a fully integrated, low noise 64-channel system weighing just 330 mg. The on-chip multiplexers make possible recordings with substantially fewer external wires than the number of input channels. By combining nanofabricated probes with ASICs we have implemented a system for performing large-scale, high-density electrophysiology in small, freely behaving animals that is both minimally invasive and highly scalable.

Double trouble at high density:

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gergs, André; Palmqvist, Annemette; Preuss, Thomas G

2014-01-01

Population size is often regulated by negative feedback between population density and individual fitness. At high population densities, animals run into double trouble: they might concurrently suffer from overexploitation of resources and also from negative interference among individuals...... regardless of resource availability, referred to as crowding. Animals are able to adapt to resource shortages by exhibiting a repertoire of life history and physiological plasticities. In addition to resource-related plasticity, crowding might lead to reduced fitness, with consequences for individual life...... history. We explored how different mechanisms behind resource-related plasticity and crowding-related fitness act independently or together, using the water flea Daphnia magna as a case study. For testing hypotheses related to mechanisms of plasticity and crowding stress across different biological levels...

High density data storage principle, technology, and materials

CERN Document Server

Zhu, Daoben

2009-01-01

The explosive increase in information and the miniaturization of electronic devices demand new recording technologies and materials that combine high density, fast response, long retention time and rewriting capability. As predicted, the current silicon-based computer circuits are reaching their physical limits. Further miniaturization of the electronic components and increase in data storage density are vital for the next generation of IT equipment such as ultra high-speed mobile computing, communication devices and sophisticated sensors. This original book presents a comprehensive introduction to the significant research achievements on high-density data storage from the aspects of recording mechanisms, materials and fabrication technologies, which are promising for overcoming the physical limits of current data storage systems. The book serves as an useful guide for the development of optimized materials, technologies and device structures for future information storage, and will lead readers to the fascin...

Fifth International Conference on High Energy Density Physics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Beg, Farhat

2017-07-05

The Fifth International Conference on High Energy Density Physics (ICHED 2015) was held in the Catamaran Hotel in San Diego from August 23-27, 2015. This meeting was the fifth in a series which began in 2008 in conjunction with the April meeting of the American Physical Society (APS). The main goal of this conference has been to bring together researchers from all fields of High Energy Density Science (HEDS) into one, unified meeting.

High performance H-mode plasmas at densities above the Greenwald limit

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mahdavi, M.A.; Osborne, T.H.; Leonard, A.W.

2001-01-01

Densities up to 40 percent above the Greenwald limit are reproducibly achieved in high confinement (H ITER89p =2) ELMing H-mode discharges. Simultaneous gas fueling and divertor pumping were used to obtain these results. Confinement of these discharges, similar to moderate density H-mode, is characterized by a stiff temperature profile, and therefore sensitive to the density profile. A particle transport model is presented that explains the roles of divertor pumping and geometry for access to high densities. Energy loss per ELM at high density is a factor of five lower than predictions of an earlier scaling, based on data from lower density discharges. (author)

Novel nanostructured materials for high energy density supercapacitors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yuan, C.Z.; Zhang, X.G. [Nanjing Univ. of Aeronautics and Astronautics (China). College of Material Science and Engineering

2010-07-01

Researchers are currently examining methods of improving energy density while not sacrificing the high power density of supercapacitors. In this study, nanostructured materials assembled from nanometer-sized building blocks with mesoporosity were synthesized in order investigate diffusion time, kinetics, and capacitances. Petal-like cobalt hydroxide Co(OH){sub 2} mesocrystals, urchin-like Co(OH){sub 2} and dicobalt tetroxide (Co{sub 2}O{sub 4}) ordered arrays as well as N{sub i}O microspheres were assembled from 0-D nanoparticles, 1-D mesoporous nanowires and nanobelts, and 2-D mesoporous nanopetals. The study showed that all the synthesized nanostructured materials delivered larger energy densities while showing electrochemical stability at high rates.

ON THE ORIGIN OF THE HIGH COLUMN DENSITY TURNOVER IN THE H I COLUMN DENSITY DISTRIBUTION

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Erkal, Denis; Gnedin, Nickolay Y.; Kravtsov, Andrey V.

2012-01-01

We study the high column density regime of the H I column density distribution function and argue that there are two distinct features: a turnover at N H I ≈ 10 21 cm –2 , which is present at both z = 0 and z ≈ 3, and a lack of systems above N H I ≈ 10 22 cm –2 at z = 0. Using observations of the column density distribution, we argue that the H I-H 2 transition does not cause the turnover at N H I ≈ 10 21 cm –2 but can plausibly explain the turnover at N H I ∼> 10 22 cm –2 . We compute the H I column density distribution of individual galaxies in the THINGS sample and show that the turnover column density depends only weakly on metallicity. Furthermore, we show that the column density distribution of galaxies, corrected for inclination, is insensitive to the resolution of the H I map or to averaging in radial shells. Our results indicate that the similarity of H I column density distributions at z = 3 and 0 is due to the similarity of the maximum H I surface densities of high-z and low-z disks, set presumably by universal processes that shape properties of the gaseous disks of galaxies. Using fully cosmological simulations, we explore other candidate physical mechanisms that could produce a turnover in the column density distribution. We show that while turbulence within giant molecular clouds cannot affect the damped Lyα column density distribution, stellar feedback can affect it significantly if the feedback is sufficiently effective in removing gas from the central 2-3 kpc of high-redshift galaxies. Finally, we argue that it is meaningful to compare column densities averaged over ∼ kpc scales with those estimated from quasar spectra that probe sub-pc scales due to the steep power spectrum of H I column density fluctuations observed in nearby galaxies.

Effect of mix proportion of high density concrete on compressive strength, density and radiation absorption

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Noor Azreen Masenwat; Mohamad Pauzi Ismail; Suhairy Sani; Ismail Mustapha; Nasharuddin Isa; Mohamad Haniza Mahmud; Mohammad Shahrizan Samsu

2014-01-01

To prevent radiation leaks at nuclear reactors, high-density concrete is used as an absorbent material for radiation from spreading into the environment. High-density concrete is a mixture of cement, sand, aggregate (usually high-density minerals) and water. In this research, hematite stone is used because of its mineral density higher than the granite used in conventional concrete mixing. Mix concrete in this study were divided into part 1 and part 2. In part 1, the concrete mixture is designed with the same ratio of 1: 2: 4 but differentiated in terms of water-cement ratio (0.60, 0.65, 0.70, 0.75, 0.80 ). Whereas, in part 2, the concrete mixture is designed to vary the ratio of 1: 1: 2, 1: 1.5: 3, 1: 2: 3, 1: 3: 6, 1: 2: 6 with water-cement ratio (0.7, 0.8, 0.85, 0.9). In each section, the division has also performed in a mixture of sand and fine sand hematite. Then, the physical characteristics of the density and the compressive strength of the mixture of part 1 and part 2 is measured. Comparisons were also made in terms of absorption of radiation by Cs-137 and Co-60 source for each mix. This paper describes and discusses the relationship between the concrete mixture ratio, the relationship with the water-cement ratio, compressive strength, density, different mixture of sand and fine sand hematite. (author)

Fracture toughness of stainless steel welds

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mills, W.J.

1985-11-01

The effects of temperature, composition and weld-process variations on the fracture toughness behavior for Types 308 and 16-8-2 stainless steel (SS) welds were examined using the multiple-specimen J/sub R/-curve procedure. Fracture characteristics were found to be dependent on temperature and weld process but not on filler material. Gas-tungsten-arc (GTA) welds exhibited the highest fracture toughness, a shielded metal-arc (SMA) weld exhibited an intermediate toughness and submerged-arc (SA) welds yielded the lowest toughness. Minimum-expected fracture properties were defined from lower-bound J/sub c/ and tearing modulus values generated here and in previous studies. Fractographic examination revealed that microvoid coalescence was the operative fracture mechanism for all welds. Second phase particles of manganese silicide were found to be detrimental to the ductile fracture behavior because they separated from the matrix during the initial stages of plastic straining. In SA welds, the high density of inclusions resulting from silicon pickup from the flux promoted premature dimple rupture. The weld produced by the SMA process contained substantially less manganese silicide, while GTA welds contained no silicide inclusions. Delta ferrite particles present in all welds were substantially more resistant to local failure than the silicide phase. In welds containing little or no manganese silicide, delta ferrite particles initiated microvoid coalescence but only after extensive plastic straining

High density fuel storage rack

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zezza, L.J.

1980-01-01

High storage density for spent nuclear fuel assemblies in a pool achieved by positioning fuel storage cells of high thermal neutron absorption materials in an upright configuration in a rack. The rack holds the cells at required pitch. Each cell carries an internal fuel assembly support, and most cells are vertically movable in the rack so that they rest on the pool bottom. Pool water circulation through the cells and around the fuel assemblies is permitted by circulation openings at the top and bottom of the cells above and below the fuel assemblies

C.E.R.C.A. contribution to the RERTR program. Status of development, November 1982

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Savornin, B.; Fanjas, Y.R.

1983-01-01

For more than 20 years, CERCA has been manufacturing MTR fuel plates and fuel elements. 200.000 fuel plates have thus been produced and irradiated in reactors of 15 countries through the world, including the U.S.A. and Japan. On the way to the use of LEU in research reactors, we have adapted our fuel plate fabrication technology and developed new fuels in order to achieve high uranium densities in the meat. These technological developments have been performed on our own funds. Aluminide (U Al x ), Oxide (U 3 O 8 ) and Silicide (U 3 Si, U 3 Si 2 , U 3 Si Al) fuels have been successfully developed. Upon completion of the aluminide and oxide developments, we have intensified our effort on silicide fuels. After a brief review of the technological results obtained with U Al x and U 3 O 8 materials, silicide fuels results are examined in more detail. The irradiation status of these various fuels is discussed. It has been shown that CERCA is in position to provide on industrial scale UAl x , U 3 O 8 and U 3 Si 2 fuels with uranium densities up to 5 g/cm 3 . New equipment has been installed in MTR workshop in ROMANS for this purpose. For densities between and 74 g U/cm 3 , pilot technology is available. Development is carried out towards industrialization of U 3 Si fuel production. The commercial availability of these fuels depends on their qualification by post irradiation examination. It can be seen that aluminide fuel will be commercially available in 1983, oxide fuel in 1984. As far as silicide fuels are concerned, their availability will depend on the number of tests to be performed and the burn-up levels required by the Safety Commissions to consider the fuel qualified. These requirements may be different from one reactor to the other. This is why the corresponding dates stretch from 1985 to 1988. The goal of technological development has been reached. Densities above 7 g U/cm 3 have been achieved. Assuming silicide fuels reprocessing does not present major

High Density GEOSAT/GM Altimeter Data

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The high density Geosat/GM altimeter data south of 30 S have finally arrived. In addition, ERS-1 has completed more than 6 cycles of its 35-day repeat track. These...

High-Current-Density Vertical-Tunneling Transistors from Graphene/Highly Doped Silicon Heterostructures.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Yuan; Sheng, Jiming; Wu, Hao; He, Qiyuan; Cheng, Hung-Chieh; Shakir, Muhammad Imran; Huang, Yu; Duan, Xiangfeng

2016-06-01

Scalable fabrication of vertical-tunneling transistors is presented based on heterostructures formed between graphene, highly doped silicon, and its native oxide. Benefiting from the large density of states of highly doped silicon, the tunneling transistors can deliver a current density over 20 A cm(-2) . This study demonstrates that the interfacial native oxide plays a crucial role in governing the carrier transport in graphene-silicon heterostructures. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

The creation of high energy densities with antimatter beams

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gibbs, W.R.; Kruk, J.W.; Rice Univ., Houston, TX

1989-01-01

The use of antiprotons (and antideuterons) for the study of the behavior of nuclear matter at high energy density is considered. It is shown that high temperatures and high energy densities can be achieved for small volumes. Also investigated is the strangeness production in antimatter annihilation. It is found that the high rate of Lambda production seen in a recent experiment is easily understood. The Lambda and K-short rapidity distributions are also reproduced by the model considered. 11 refs., 6 figs

High baryon density from relativistic heavy ion collisions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pang, Y.; Kahana, S.H. [Brookhaven National Lab., Upton, NY (United States); Schlagel, T.J. [Brookhaven National Lab., Upton, NY (United States)]|[State Univ. of New York, Stony Brook, NY (United States)

1993-10-01

A quantitative model, based on hadronic physics, is developed and applied to heavy ion collisions at BNL-AGS energies. This model is in excellent agreement with observed particle spectra in heavy ion collisions using Si beams, where baryon densities of three and four times the normal nuclear matter density ({rho}{sub 0}) are reached. For Au on Au collisions, the authors predict the formation of matter at very high densities (up to 10 {rho}{sub 0}).

Serum osteoprotegerin levels and mammographic density among high-risk women.

Science.gov (United States)

Moran, Olivia; Zaman, Tasnim; Eisen, Andrea; Demsky, Rochelle; Blackmore, Kristina; Knight, Julia A; Elser, Christine; Ginsburg, Ophira; Zbuk, Kevin; Yaffe, Martin; Narod, Steven A; Salmena, Leonardo; Kotsopoulos, Joanne

2018-06-01

Mammographic density is a risk factor for breast cancer but the mechanism behind this association is unclear. The receptor activator of nuclear factor κB (RANK)/RANK ligand (RANKL) pathway has been implicated in the development of breast cancer. Given the role of RANK signaling in mammary epithelial cell proliferation, we hypothesized this pathway may also be associated with mammographic density. Osteoprotegerin (OPG), a decoy receptor for RANKL, is known to inhibit RANK signaling. Thus, it is of interest to evaluate whether OPG levels modify breast cancer risk through mammographic density. We quantified serum OPG levels in 57 premenopausal and 43 postmenopausal women using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Cumulus was used to measure percent density, dense area, and non-dense area for each mammographic image. Subjects were classified into high versus low OPG levels based on the median serum OPG level in the entire cohort (115.1 pg/mL). Multivariate models were used to assess the relationship between serum OPG levels and the measures of mammographic density. Serum OPG levels were not associated with mammographic density among premenopausal women (P ≥ 0.42). Among postmenopausal women, those with low serum OPG levels had higher mean percent mammographic density (20.9% vs. 13.7%; P = 0.04) and mean dense area (23.4 cm 2 vs. 15.2 cm 2 ; P = 0.02) compared to those with high serum OPG levels after covariate adjustment. These findings suggest that low OPG levels may be associated with high mammographic density, particularly in postmenopausal women. Targeting RANK signaling may represent a plausible, non-surgical prevention option for high-risk women with high mammographic density, especially those with low circulating OPG levels.

Contributions to the preparation of 241americium metal and a few 241americium silicides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wittmann, F.D.

1980-01-01

In order to take a closer look at the americium-silicon system, three further silicides of americium: Am 5 Si 3 , Am 2 Si 3 and AmSi 2 were prepared in addition to the already known americium monosilicide and starting from the knowledge gained from the latters preparation. Radiographic investigations were carried out into the temperature region of 900 0 C. They showed no change of structure in the three compounds. It was possible to prepare residue-free americium metal by reducing AmF 3 with Si, whereby the SiF 4 formed can be easily separated off as volatile compound, and the Am metal is brought into a very pure form by sublimation suitable for spectrochemical investigations. Attempts to prepare binary germanides and gallides of 241 americium were unsuccessful. (RB) [de

Burn-up analysis of uranium silicide fuels 20% 235U, in the LFR facility

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Amor, Ricardo A.; Bouza, Edgardo; Cabrejas, Julian L.; Devida, Claudio A.; Gil, Daniel A.; Stankevicius, Alejandro; Gautier, Eduardo; Garavaglia, Ricardo N.; Lobo, Alfredo

2003-01-01

The LFR Facility is a laboratory designed and constructed with a Hot-Cells line, a Globe-Box and a Fume-Hood, all of them suited to work with radioactive materials such as samples of irradiated silicide MTR fuel elements. A series of dissolutions of this material was performed. From the resulting solutions, two fractions were separated by HPLC. One contained U + Pu, and other the fission product Nd. The concentrations of these elements were obtained by isotopic dilution and mass spectrometry (IDMS). It is concluded that this technique is very powerful and accurate when properly applied, and makes the validation of burn-up calculation codes possible. It is worth remarking the Lfr capacity to carry on different Research and Development (R + D) tasks in the Nuclear Fuel Cycle field. (author)

Density Functional Methods for Shock Physics and High Energy Density Science

Science.gov (United States)

Desjarlais, Michael

2017-06-01

Molecular dynamics with density functional theory has emerged over the last two decades as a powerful and accurate framework for calculating thermodynamic and transport properties with broad application to dynamic compression, high energy density science, and warm dense matter. These calculations have been extensively validated against shock and ramp wave experiments, are a principal component of high-fidelity equation of state generation, and are having wide-ranging impacts on inertial confinement fusion, planetary science, and shock physics research. In addition to thermodynamic properties, phase boundaries, and the equation of state, one also has access to electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and lower energy optical properties. Importantly, all these properties are obtained within the same theoretical framework and are manifestly consistent. In this talk I will give a brief history and overview of molecular dynamics with density functional theory and its use in calculating a wide variety of thermodynamic and transport properties for materials ranging from ambient to extreme conditions and with comparisons to experimental data. I will also discuss some of the limitations and difficulties, as well as active research areas. Sandia is a multi-program laboratory managed and operated by Sandia Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Lockheed Martin Corporation, for the U.S. Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration under contract DE-AC04-94AL85000.

Characterization of titanium silicide thin films by X-ray diffraction techniques

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morimoto, N.J.

1987-01-01

This thesis deals with characterization techniques of thin films by means of X-ray diffraction. This includes phase identification and residual stress, microstress and crystallite size calculations. The techniques developed were applied on the study of the titanium silicide formation obtained by means of Rapidy Thermal Processing (RTP) pf Ti films deposited on silicon substratum. The different phases were studied in relation with processing temperature and time in one and two anneling steps. The low resistivity TiSi 2 phase was observed for temperature of 700 0 C and higher. The experimental results indicate that the residual stress of TiSi 2 films doesn't vary significantly with the annealing conditions. On the other hand, the microstress is reduced with annealing time at 800 0 C, while the crystallite size is almost not affected. For the microstress and the crystallite size determination technique, two methods were implemented and compared. The Riella's method appeared to be very efficient, while the Gangulle's method seemed to be inadequate, because the results oscillate too much [pt

Morphodynamics of supercritical high-density turbidity currents

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Cartigny, M.

2012-01-01

Seafloor and outcrop observations combined with numerical and physical experiments show that turbidity currents are likely 1) to be in a supercritical flow state and 2) to carry high sediment concentrations (being of high-density). The thesis starts with an experimental study of bedforms

Foldable, High Energy Density Lithium Ion Batteries

Science.gov (United States)

Suresh, Shravan

Lithium Ion Batteries (LIBs) have become ubiquitous owing to its low cost, high energy density and, power density. Due to these advantages, LIBs have garnered a lot of attention as the primary energy storage devices in consumer electronics and electric vehicles. Recent advances in the consumer electronics research and, the drive to reduce greenhouse gases have created a demand for a shape conformable, high energy density batteries. This thesis focuses on the aforementioned two aspects of LIBs: (a) shape conformability (b) energy density and provides potential solutions to enhance them. This thesis is divided into two parts viz. (i) achieving foldability in batteries and, (ii) improving its energy density. Conventional LIBs are not shape conformable due to two limitations viz. inelasticity of metallic foils, and delamination of the active materials while bending. In the first part of the thesis (in Chapter 3), this problem is solved by replacing metallic current collector with Carbon Nanotube Macrofilms (CNMs). CNMs are superelastic films comprising of porous interconnected nanotube network. Using Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulation, we found that in the presence of an interconnected nanotube network CNMs can be fully folded. This is because the resultant stress due to bending and, the effective bending angle at the interface is reduced due to the network of nanotubes. Hence, unlike an isolated nanotube (which ruptures beyond 120 degrees of bending), a network of nanotubes can be completely folded. Thus, by replacing metallic current collector foils with CNMs, the flexibility limitation of a conventional LIB can be transcended. The second part of this thesis focusses on enhancing the energy density of LIBs. Two strategies adopted to achieve this goal are (a) removing the dead weight of the batteries, and (b) incorporating high energy density electrode materials. By incorporating CNMs, the weight of the batteries was reduced by 5-10 times due to low mass loading of

Biopolymer-nanocarbon composite electrodes for use as high-energy high-power density electrodes

Science.gov (United States)

Karakaya, Mehmet; Roberts, Mark; Arcilla-Velez, Margarita; Zhu, Jingyi; Podila, Ramakrishna; Rao, Apparao

2014-03-01

Supercapacitors (SCs) address our current energy storage and delivery needs by combining the high power, rapid switching, and exceptional cycle life of a capacitor with the high energy density of a battery. Although activated carbon is extensively used as a supercapacitor electrode due to its inexpensive nature, its low specific capacitance (100-120 F/g) fundamentally limits the energy density of SCs. We demonstrate that a nano-carbon based mechanically robust, electrically conducting, free-standing buckypaper electrode modified with an inexpensive biorenewable polymer, viz., lignin increases the electrode's specific capacitance (~ 600-700 F/g) while maintaining rapid discharge rates. In these systems, the carbon nanomaterials provide the high surface area, electrical conductivity and porosity, while the redox polymers provide a mechanism for charge storage through Faradaic charge transfer. The design of redox polymers and their incorporation into nanomaterial electrodes will be discussed with a focus on enabling high power and high energy density electrodes. Research supported by US NSF CMMI Grant 1246800.

Breast density estimation from high spectral and spatial resolution MRI

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Hui; Weiss, William A.; Medved, Milica; Abe, Hiroyuki; Newstead, Gillian M.; Karczmar, Gregory S.; Giger, Maryellen L.

2016-01-01

Abstract. A three-dimensional breast density estimation method is presented for high spectral and spatial resolution (HiSS) MR imaging. Twenty-two patients were recruited (under an Institutional Review Board--approved Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act-compliant protocol) for high-risk breast cancer screening. Each patient received standard-of-care clinical digital x-ray mammograms and MR scans, as well as HiSS scans. The algorithm for breast density estimation includes breast mask generating, breast skin removal, and breast percentage density calculation. The inter- and intra-user variabilities of the HiSS-based density estimation were determined using correlation analysis and limits of agreement. Correlation analysis was also performed between the HiSS-based density estimation and radiologists’ breast imaging-reporting and data system (BI-RADS) density ratings. A correlation coefficient of 0.91 (pdensity estimations. An interclass correlation coefficient of 0.99 (pdensity estimations. A moderate correlation coefficient of 0.55 (p=0.0076) was observed between HiSS-based breast density estimations and radiologists’ BI-RADS. In summary, an objective density estimation method using HiSS spectral data from breast MRI was developed. The high reproducibility with low inter- and low intra-user variabilities shown in this preliminary study suggest that such a HiSS-based density metric may be potentially beneficial in programs requiring breast density such as in breast cancer risk assessment and monitoring effects of therapy. PMID:28042590

High dislocation density of tin induced by electric current

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liao, Yi-Han; Liang, Chien-Lung; Lin, Kwang-Lung; Wu, Albert T.

2015-01-01

A dislocation density of as high as 10 17 /m 2 in a tin strip, as revealed by high resolution transmission electron microscope, was induced by current stressing at 6.5 x 10 3 A/ cm 2 . The dislocations exist in terms of dislocation line, dislocation loop, and dislocation aggregates. Electron Backscattered Diffraction images reflect that the high dislocation density induced the formation of low deflection angle subgrains, high deflection angle Widmanstätten grains, and recrystallization. The recrystallization gave rise to grain refining

Preparation and characterization of high-Tc superconducting thin films with high critical current densities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vase, P.

1991-08-01

The project was carried out in relation to possible cable and electronics applications of high-T c materials. Laser ablation was used as the deposition technique because of its stoichiometry conservation. Films were made in the YBa 2 Cu 3 O 7 compound due to its relatively simple stoichiometry compared to other High-T c compounds. Much attention was paid to the critical current density. A very high critical current density was reached. By using texture analysis by X-ray diffraction, it was found that films with high critical current densities were epitaxial, while films with low critical current densities contained several crystalline orientations. Four techniques for patterning the films were used - photo lithography and wet etch, laser ablation lithography, laser writing and electron beam lithography and ion milling. Sub-micron patterning has been demonstrated without degradation of the superconducting properties. The achieved patterning resolution is sufficient for preparation of many superconducting components. (AB)

Changing perceptions of hunger on a high nutrient density diet

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Glaser Dale

2010-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background People overeat because their hunger directs them to consume more calories than they require. The purpose of this study was to analyze the changes in experience and perception of hunger before and after participants shifted from their previous usual diet to a high nutrient density diet. Methods This was a descriptive study conducted with 768 participants primarily living in the United States who had changed their dietary habits from a low micronutrient to a high micronutrient diet. Participants completed a survey rating various dimensions of hunger (physical symptoms, emotional symptoms, and location when on their previous usual diet versus the high micronutrient density diet. Statistical analysis was conducted using non-parametric tests. Results Highly significant differences were found between the two diets in relation to all physical and emotional symptoms as well as the location of hunger. Hunger was not an unpleasant experience while on the high nutrient density diet, was well tolerated and occurred with less frequency even when meals were skipped. Nearly 80% of respondents reported that their experience of hunger had changed since starting the high nutrient density diet, with 51% reporting a dramatic or complete change in their experience of hunger. Conclusions A high micronutrient density diet mitigates the unpleasant aspects of the experience of hunger even though it is lower in calories. Hunger is one of the major impediments to successful weight loss. Our findings suggest that it is not simply the caloric content, but more importantly, the micronutrient density of a diet that influences the experience of hunger. It appears that a high nutrient density diet, after an initial phase of adjustment during which a person experiences "toxic hunger" due to withdrawal from pro-inflammatory foods, can result in a sustainable eating pattern that leads to weight loss and improved health. A high nutrient density diet provides

High power density yeast catalyzed microbial fuel cells

Science.gov (United States)

Ganguli, Rahul

Microbial fuel cells leverage whole cell biocatalysis to convert the energy stored in energy-rich renewable biomolecules such as sugar, directly to electrical energy at high efficiencies. Advantages of the process include ambient temperature operation, operation in natural streams such as wastewater without the need to clean electrodes, minimal balance-of-plant requirements compared to conventional fuel cells, and environmentally friendly operation. These make the technology very attractive as portable power sources and waste-to-energy converters. The principal problem facing the technology is the low power densities compared to other conventional portable power sources such as batteries and traditional fuel cells. In this work we examined the yeast catalyzed microbial fuel cell and developed methods to increase the power density from such fuel cells. A combination of cyclic voltammetry and optical absorption measurements were used to establish significant adsorption of electron mediators by the microbes. Mediator adsorption was demonstrated to be an important limitation in achieving high power densities in yeast-catalyzed microbial fuel cells. Specifically, the power densities are low for the length of time mediator adsorption continues to occur. Once the mediator adsorption stops, the power densities increase. Rotating disk chronoamperometry was used to extract reaction rate information, and a simple kinetic expression was developed for the current observed in the anodic half-cell. Since the rate expression showed that the current was directly related to microbe concentration close to the electrode, methods to increase cell mass attached to the anode was investigated. Electrically biased electrodes were demonstrated to develop biofilm-like layers of the Baker's yeast with a high concentration of cells directly connected to the electrode. The increased cell mass did increase the power density 2 times compared to a non biofilm fuel cell, but the power density

The Influence of Decreased Levels of High Density Lipoprotein ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

very low density lipoprotein cholesterol, and triglyceride were assayed. ... Abiodun and Gwarzo: Association of high density lipoprotein cholesterol with haemolysis in sickle cell disease ... analyses were carried out to determine the correlation.

High Power Density Power Electronic Converters for Large Wind Turbines

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Senturk, Osman Selcuk

. For these VSCs, high power density is required due to limited turbine nacelle space. Also, high reliability is required since maintenance cost of these remotely located wind turbines is quite high and these turbines operate under harsh operating conditions. In order to select a high power density and reliability......In large wind turbines (in MW and multi-MW ranges), which are extensively utilized in wind power plants, full-scale medium voltage (MV) multi-level (ML) voltage source converters (VSCs) are being more preferably employed nowadays for interfacing these wind turbines with electricity grids...... VSC solution for wind turbines, first, the VSC topology and the switch technology to be employed should be specified such that the highest possible power density and reliability are to be attained. Then, this qualitative approach should be complemented with the power density and reliability...

High density implosion experiments at Nova

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cable, M.D.; Hatchett, S.P.; Nelson, M.B.; Lerche, R.A.; Murphy, T.J.; Ress, D.B.

1994-01-01

Deuterium filled glass microballoons are used as indirectly driven targets for implosion experiments at the Nova Laser Fusion Facility. High levels of laser precision were required to achieve fuel densities and convergences to an ignition scale hot spot. (AIP) copyright 1994 American Institute of Physics

Hydrogen generation systems and methods utilizing sodium silicide and sodium silica gel materials

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wallace, Andrew P.; Melack, John M.; Lefenfeld, Michael

2017-12-19

Systems, devices, and methods combine thermally stable reactant materials and aqueous solutions to generate hydrogen and a non-toxic liquid by-product. The reactant materials can sodium silicide or sodium silica gel. The hydrogen generation devices are used in fuels cells and other industrial applications. One system combines cooling, pumping, water storage, and other devices to sense and control reactions between reactant materials and aqueous solutions to generate hydrogen. Springs and other pressurization mechanisms pressurize and deliver an aqueous solution to the reaction. A check valve and other pressure regulation mechanisms regulate the pressure of the aqueous solution delivered to the reactant fuel material in the reactor based upon characteristics of the pressurization mechanisms and can regulate the pressure of the delivered aqueous solution as a steady decay associated with the pressurization force. The pressure regulation mechanism can also prevent hydrogen gas from deflecting the pressure regulation mechanism.

High-energy density physics at Los Alamos

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Byrnes, P.; Younger, S.M.

1993-03-01

This brochure describes the facilities of the Above Ground Experiments II (AGEX II) and the Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF) programs at Los Alamo. Combined, these programs represent, an unparalleled capability to address important issues in high-energy density physics that are critical to the future defense, energy, and research needs of th e United States. The mission of the AGEX II program at Los Alamos is to provide additional experimental opportunities for the nuclear weapons program. For this purpose we have assembled at Los Alamos the broadest array of high-energy density physics facilities of any laboratory in the world. Inertial confinement fusion seeks to achieve thermonuclear burn on a laboratory scale through the implosion of a small quantity of deuterium and tritium fuel to very high Pressure and temperature.The Los Alamos ICF program is focused on target physics. With the largest scientific computing center in the world, We can perform calculations of unprecedented sophistication and precision. We field experiments at facilities worldwide-including our own Trident and Mercury lasers-to confirm our understanding and to provide the necessary data base to proceed toward the historic goal of controlled fusion in the laboratory. In addition to direct programmatic high-energy density physics is a nc scientific endeavor in itself. The ultrahigh magnetic fields produced in our high explosive pulsed-power generators can be used in awide variety of solid state physics and temperature superconductor studies. The structure and dynamics of planetary atmospheres can be simulated through the compression of gas mixtures

Workshop on High Power ICH Antenna Designs for High Density Tokamaks

Science.gov (United States)

Aamodt, R. E.

1990-02-01

A workshop in high power ICH antenna designs for high density tokamaks was held to: (1) review the data base relevant to the high power heating of high density tokamaks; (2) identify the important issues which need to be addressed in order to ensure the success of the ICRF programs on CIT and Alcator C-MOD; and (3) recommend approaches for resolving the issues in a timely realistic manner. Some specific performance goals for the antenna system define a successful design effort. Simply stated these goals are: couple the specified power per antenna into the desired ion species; produce no more than an acceptable level of RF auxiliary power induced impurities; and have a mechanical structure which safely survives the thermal, mechanical and radiation stresses in the relevant environment. These goals are intimately coupled and difficult tradeoffs between scientific and engineering constraints have to be made.

Plasma Diagnostics in High Density Reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Daltrini, A. M.; Moshkalyov, S.; Monteiro, M. J. R.; Machida, M.; Kostryukov, A.; Besseler, E.; Biasotto, C.; Diniz, J. A.

2006-01-01

Langmuir electric probes and optical emission spectroscopy diagnostics were developed for applications in high density plasmas. These diagnostics were employed in two plasma sources: an electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) plasma and an RF driven inductively coupled plasma (ICP) plasma. Langmuir probes were tested using a number of probing dimensions, probe tip materials, circuits for probe bias and filters. Then, the results were compared with the optical spectroscopy measurements. With these diagnostics, analyses of various plasma processes were performed in both reactors. For example, it has been shown that species like NH radicals generated in gas phase can have critical impact on films deposited by ECR plasmas. In the ICP source, plasmas in atomic and molecular gases were shown to have different spatial distributions, likely due to nonlocal electron heating. The low-to-high density transitions in the ICP plasma were also studied. The role of metastables is shown to be significant in Ar plasmas, in contrast to plasmas with additions of molecular gases

Possible new form of matter at high density

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, T.D.

1974-01-01

As a preliminary to discussion of the possibility of new forms of matter at high density, questions relating to the vacuum and vacuum excitation are considered. A quasi-classical approach to the development of abnormal nuclear states is undertaken using a Fermi gas of nucleons of uniform density. Discontinuous transitions are considered in the sigma model (tree approximation) followed by brief consideration of higher order loop diagrams. Production and detection of abnormal nuclear states are discussed in the context of high energy heavy ion collisions. Remarks are made on motivation for such research. 8 figures

The high density effects in the Drell-Yan process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Betemps, M.A.; Gay Ducati, M.B.; Ayala Filho, A.L.

2003-01-01

The high density effects in the Drell-Yan process (q q-bar → γ * →l + l - ) are investigated for pA collisions at RHIC and LHC energies. In particular, we use a set of nuclear parton distributions that describes the present nuclear eA and pA data in the DGLAP approach including the high density effects introduced in the perturbative Glauber-Mueller approach. (author)

BCS Theory of Hadronic Matter at High Densities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bohr, Henrik; Panda, Prafulla K.; Providencia, Constanca

2012-01-01

The equilibrium between the so-called 2SC and CFL phases of strange quark matter at high densities is investigated in the framework of a simple schematic model of the NJL type. Equal densities are assumed for quarks u, d and s. The 2SC phase is here described by a color-flavor symmetric state, in...

Sr-doped Lanthanum Nickelate Nanofibers for High Energy Density Supercapacitors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cao, Yi; Lin, Baoping; Sun, Ying; Yang, Hong; Zhang, Xueqin

2015-01-01

Highlights: • The electrode made by LNF-0.7 possessed excellent performance (719 F g −1 ) at Na 2 SO 4 electrolyte • LNF-0.7//LNF-0.7 symmetric supercapacitor device were firstly prepared • The maximum energy density of 81.4 Wh·kg −1 are achieved at a power density of 500W·kg −1 • This symmetric supercapacitor also shows an excellent cycling life - Abstract: The series La x Sr 1−x NiO 3−δ (0.3≤x≤1) nanofibers (LNF-x) samples are prepared by using electrospun method. We investigate the structure and the electrochemical properties of LNF-x in detail. As a result, LNF-x nanofibers present a perovskite structure, and the LNF-0.7 sample with high specific surface area display remarkable performance as an electrode material for supercapacitors. The maximum specific capacitance value of 719 F·g −1 at a current density of 2 A·g −1 , which retains 505 F·g −1 at a high current density of 20 A·g −1 , is obtained for LNF-0.7 electrode in 1 M Na 2 SO 4 aqueous electrolyte. Moreover, the LNF-0.7//LNF-0.7 symmetric supercapacitor device using 1 M Na 2 SO 4 aqueous solution is successfully demonstrated. The capacitor device can operate at a cell voltage as high as 2 V, and it exhibits an energy density of 30.5 Wh·kg −1 at a high power density of 10 kW·kg −1 and a high energy density of 81.4 Wh·kg −1 at a low power density of 500 W·kg −1 . More importantly, this symmetric supercapacitor also shows an excellent cycling performance with 90% specific capacitance retention after 2000 charging and discharging cycles. Those results offer a suitable design of electrode materials for high-performance supercapacitors

High-Stacking-Density, Superior-Roughness LDH Bridged with Vertically Aligned Graphene for High-Performance Asymmetric Supercapacitors.

Science.gov (United States)

Guo, Wei; Yu, Chang; Li, Shaofeng; Yang, Juan; Liu, Zhibin; Zhao, Changtai; Huang, Huawei; Zhang, Mengdi; Han, Xiaotong; Niu, Yingying; Qiu, Jieshan

2017-10-01

The high-performance electrode materials with tuned surface and interface structure and functionalities are highly demanded for advanced supercapacitors. A novel strategy is presented to conFigure high-stacking-density, superior-roughness nickel manganese layered double hydroxide (LDH) bridged by vertically aligned graphene (VG) with nickel foam (NF) as the conductive collector, yielding the LDH-NF@VG hybrids for asymmetric supercapacitors. The VG nanosheets provide numerous electron transfer channels for quick redox reactions, and well-developed open structure for fast mass transport. Moreover, the high-stacking-density LDH grown and assembled on VG nanosheets result in a superior hydrophilicity derived from the tuned nano/microstructures, especially microroughness. Such a high stacking density with abundant active sites and superior wettability can be easily accessed by aqueous electrolytes. Benefitting from the above features, the LDH-NF@VG can deliver a high capacitance of 2920 F g -1 at a current density of 2 A g -1 , and the asymmetric supercapacitor with the LDH-NF@VG as positive electrode and activated carbon as negative electrode can deliver a high energy density of 56.8 Wh kg -1 at a power density of 260 W kg -1 , with a high specific capacitance retention rate of 87% even after 10 000 cycles. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Enabling electrolyte compositions for columnar silicon anodes in high energy secondary batteries

Science.gov (United States)

Piwko, Markus; Thieme, Sören; Weller, Christine; Althues, Holger; Kaskel, Stefan

2017-09-01

Columnar silicon structures are proven as high performance anodes for high energy batteries paired with low (sulfur) or high (nickel-cobalt-aluminum oxide, NCA) voltage cathodes. The introduction of a fluorinated ether/sulfolane solvent mixture drastically improves the capacity retention for both battery types due to an improved solid electrolyte interface (SEI) on the surface of the silicon electrode which reduces irreversible reactions normally causing lithium loss and rapid capacity fading. For the lithium silicide/sulfur battery cycling stability is significantly improved as compared to a frequently used reference electrolyte (DME/DOL) reaching a constant coulombic efficiency (CE) as high as 98%. For the silicon/NCA battery with higher voltage, the addition of only small amounts of fluoroethylene carbonate (FEC) to the novel electrolyte leads to a stable capacity over at least 50 cycles and a CE as high as 99.9%. A high volumetric energy density close to 1000 Wh l-1 was achieved with the new electrolyte taking all inactive components of the stack into account for the estimation.

Edge density profiles in high-performance JET plasmas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Summers, D.D.R.; Viaccoz, B.; Vince, J.

1997-01-01

Detailed electron density profiles of the scrape-off layer in high-performance JET plasmas (plasma current, I p nbi ∝17 MW) have been measured by means of a lithium beam diagnostic system featuring high spatial resolution [Kadota (1978)[. Measurements were taken over a period of several seconds, allowing examination of the evolution of the edge profile at a location upstream from the divertor target. The data clearly show the effects of the H-mode transition - an increase in density near the plasma separatrix and a reduction in density scrape-off length. The profiles obtained under various plasma conditions are compared firstly with data from other diagnostics, located elsewhere in the vessel, and also with the predictions of an 'onion-skin' model (DIVIMP), which used, as initial parameters, data from an array of probes located in the divertor target. (orig.)

High Density Lipoprotein and it's Dysfunction.

Science.gov (United States)

Eren, Esin; Yilmaz, Necat; Aydin, Ozgur

2012-01-01

Plasma high-density lipoprotein cholesterol(HDL-C) levels do not predict functionality and composition of high-density lipoprotein(HDL). Traditionally, keeping levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-C) down and HDL-C up have been the goal of patients to prevent atherosclerosis that can lead to coronary vascular disease(CVD). People think about the HDL present in their cholesterol test, but not about its functional capability. Up to 65% of cardiovascular death cannot be prevented by putative LDL-C lowering agents. It well explains the strong interest in HDL increasing strategies. However, recent studies have questioned the good in using drugs to increase level of HDL. While raising HDL is a theoretically attractive target, the optimal approach remains uncertain. The attention has turned to the quality, rather than the quantity, of HDL-C. An alternative to elevations in HDL involves strategies to enhance HDL functionality. The situation poses an opportunity for clinical chemists to take the lead in the development and validation of such biomarkers. The best known function of HDL is the capacity to promote cellular cholesterol efflux from peripheral cells and deliver cholesterol to the liver for excretion, thereby playing a key role in reverse cholesterol transport (RCT). The functions of HDL that have recently attracted attention include anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant activities. High antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities of HDL are associated with protection from CVD.This review addresses the current state of knowledge regarding assays of HDL functions and their relationship to CVD. HDL as a therapeutic target is the new frontier with huge potential for positive public health implications.

Workshop on high power ICH antenna designs for high density tokamaks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aamodt, R.E.

1990-01-01

A workshop in high power ICH antenna designs for high density tokamaks was held in Boulder, Colorado on January 31 through February 2, 1990. The purposes of the workshop were to: (1) review the data base relevant to the high power heating of high density tokamaks; (2) identify the important issues which need to be addressed in order to ensure the success of the ICRF programs on CIT and Alcator C-MOD; and (3) recommend approaches for resolving the issues in a timely realistic manner. Some specific performance goals for the antenna system define a successful design effort. Simply stated these goals are: couple the specified power per antenna into the desired ion species; produce no more than an acceptable level of rf auxiliary power induced impurities; and have a mechanical structure which safely survives the thermal, mechanical and radiation stresses in the relevant environment. These goals are intimately coupled and difficult tradeoffs between scientific and engineering constraints have to be made

Relativistic many-body theory of high density matter

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chin, S.A.

1977-01-01

A fully relativistic quantum many-body theory is applied to the study of high-density matter. The latter is identified with the zero-temperature ground state of a system of interacting baryons. In accordance with the observed short-range repulsive and long-range attractive character of the nucleon--nucleon force, baryons are described as interacting with each other via a massive scalar and a massive vector meson exchange. In the Hartree approximation, the theory yields the same result as the mean-field theory, but with additional vacuum fluctuation corrections. The resultant equation of state for neutron matter is used to determine properties of neutron stars. The relativistic exchange energy, its corresponding single-particle excitation spectrum, and its effect on the neutron matter equation of state, are calculated. The correlation energy from summing the set of ring diagrams is derived directly from the energy-momentum tensor, with renormalization carried out by adding counterterms to the original Lagrangian and subtracting purely vacuum expectation values. Terms of order g 4 lng 2 are explicitly given. Effects of scalar-vector mixing are discussed. Collective modes corresponding to macroscopic density fluctuation are investigated. Two basic modes are found, a plasma-like mode and zero sound, with the latter dominant at high density. The stability and damping of these modes are studied. Last, the effect of vacuum polarization in high-density matter is examined

Variable kernel density estimation in high-dimensional feature spaces

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Van der Walt, Christiaan M

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Estimating the joint probability density function of a dataset is a central task in many machine learning applications. In this work we address the fundamental problem of kernel bandwidth estimation for variable kernel density estimation in high...

The influence of carrier density and doping type on lithium insertion and extraction processes at silicon surfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McSweeney, W.; Lotty, O.; Glynn, C.; Geaney, H.; Holmes, J.D.; O’Dwyer, C.

2014-01-01

The Li + insertion and extraction characteristics at n-type and p-type Si(100) electrodes with different carrier density and doping type are investigated by cyclic voltammetry and constant current measurements. The insertion and extraction potentials are demonstrated to vary with cycling and the occurrence of an activation effect is shown in n-type electrodes where the charge capacity and voltammetric currents are found to be much higher than p-type electrodes. A rate-dependent redox process influenced by the surface region electronic density, which influences the magnitude of cyclic voltammetry current is found at Si(100) surface regions during Li insertion and extraction. At p-type Si(100) surface regions, a thin, uniform film forms at lower currents, while also showing a consistently high (>70%) Coulombic efficiency for Li extraction. The p-type Si(100) surface region does not undergo crack formation after deintercalation and the amorphization was demonstrated using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Raman scattering demonstrate that highly doped n-type Si(100) retains Li as a silicide and converts to an amorphous phase as a two-step phase conversion process. The findings show the succinct dependence of Li insertion and extraction processes for uniformly doped Si(100) single crystals and how the doping type and its effect on the semiconductor-solution interface dominate Li insertion and extraction, composition, crystallinity changes and charge capacity

Highly Compressed Ion Beams for High Energy Density Science

CERN Document Server

Friedman, Alex; Briggs, Richard J; Callahan, Debra; Caporaso, George; Celata, C M; Davidson, Ronald C; Faltens, Andy; Grant-Logan, B; Grisham, Larry; Grote, D P; Henestroza, Enrique; Kaganovich, Igor D; Lee, Edward; Lee, Richard; Leitner, Matthaeus; Nelson, Scott D; Olson, Craig; Penn, Gregory; Reginato, Lou; Renk, Tim; Rose, David; Sessler, Andrew M; Staples, John W; Tabak, Max; Thoma, Carsten H; Waldron, William; Welch, Dale; Wurtele, Jonathan; Yu, Simon

2005-01-01

The Heavy Ion Fusion Virtual National Laboratory (HIF-VNL) is developing the intense ion beams needed to drive matter to the High Energy Density (HED) regimes required for Inertial Fusion Energy (IFE) and other applications. An interim goal is a facility for Warm Dense Matter (WDM) studies, wherein a target is heated volumetrically without being shocked, so that well-defined states of matter at 1 to 10 eV are generated within a diagnosable region. In the approach we are pursuing, low to medium mass ions with energies just above the Bragg peak are directed onto thin target "foils," which may in fact be foams or "steel wool" with mean densities 1% to 100% of solid. This approach complements that being pursued at GSI, wherein high-energy ion beams deposit a small fraction of their energy in a cylindrical target. We present the requirements for warm dense matter experiments, and describe suitable accelerator concepts, including novel broadband traveling wave pulse-line, drift-tube linac, RF, and single-gap approa...

A high energy density relaxor antiferroelectric pulsed capacitor dielectric

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jo, Hwan Ryul; Lynch, Christopher S. [Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, California 90095 (United States)

2016-01-14

Pulsed capacitors require high energy density and low loss, properties that can be realized through selection of composition. Ceramic (Pb{sub 0.88}La{sub 0.08})(Zr{sub 0.91}Ti{sub 0.09})O{sub 3} was found to be an ideal candidate. La{sup 3+} doping and excess PbO were used to produce relaxor antiferroelectric behavior with slim and slanted hysteresis loops to reduce the dielectric hysteresis loss, to increase the dielectric strength, and to increase the discharge energy density. The discharge energy density of this composition was found to be 3.04 J/cm{sup 3} with applied electric field of 170 kV/cm, and the energy efficiency, defined as the ratio of the discharge energy density to the charging energy density, was 0.920. This high efficiency reduces the heat generated under cyclic loading and improves the reliability. The properties were observed to degrade some with temperature increase above 80 °C. Repeated electric field cycles up to 10 000 cycles were applied to the specimen with no observed performance degradation.

High density UO2 powder preparation for HWR fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hwang, S. T.; Chang, I. S.; Choi, Y. D.; Cho, B. R.; Kwon, S. W.; Kim, B. H.; Moon, B. H.; Kim, S. D.; Phyu, K. M.; Lee, K. A.

1992-01-01

The objective of this project is to study on the preparation of method high density UO 2 powder for HWR Fuel. Accordingly, it is necessary to character ize the AUC processed UO 2 powder and to search method for the preparation of high density UO 2 powder for HWR Fuel. Therefore, it is expected that the results of this study can effect the producing of AUC processed UO 2 powder having sinterability. (Author)

Electrical and mechanical properties of highly elongated high density polyethylene as cryogenic insulation materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yoshino, Katsumi; Park, Dae-Hee; Miyata, Kiyomi; Yamaoka, Hitoshi; Itoh, Minoru; Ichihara, Syouji.

1989-01-01

Electrical and mechanical properties of highly elongated high density polyethylene were investigated in the temperature range between 4.2 K and 400 K from a viewpoint of electrical insulation at low temperature and the following properties have been clarified. (1) The electrical conductivity of samples decreases with increasing draw ratio, and also decreases at cryogenic temperature. (2) Breakdown strength of highly elongated sample is similar to that of non-elongated sample. It is nearby temperature independent below 300 K but at higher temperature it falls steeply. (3) Mechanical breakdown stress and elastic modulus of high density polyethylene increase with increasing draw ratio. Their values at liquid nitrogen temperature are much higher than that at room temperature. On the other hand, strains decreases at liquid nitrogen temperature. (4) Break of the sample develops in the direction of 45deg from the direction of stress both at room temperature and at cryogenic temperature. (5) The characteristic of mechanical breakdown at liquid nitrogen temperature can be explained by a brittleness fracture process. (6) Toughness of high density polyethylene increases with increasing draw ratio until draw ratio of 5, and it decreased, and increase at higher draw ratio. However at extremely high draw ratio of 10 it again increases. These findings clearly indicate that highly elongated high density polyethylene has good electrical and mechanical properties at cryogenic temperature and can be used as the insulating materials at cryogenic temperature. (author)

Extreme states of matter high energy density physics

CERN Document Server

Fortov, Vladimir E

2016-01-01

With its many beautiful colour pictures, this book gives fascinating insights into the unusual forms and behaviour of matter under extremely high pressures and temperatures. These extreme states are generated, among other things, by strong shock, detonation and electric explosion waves, dense laser beams,electron and ion beams, hypersonic entry of spacecraft into dense atmospheres of planets, and in many other situations characterized by extremely high pressures and temperatures.Written by one of the world's foremost experts on the topic, this book will inform and fascinate all scientists dealing with materials properties and physics, and also serve as an excellent introduction to plasma-, shock-wave and high-energy-density physics for students and newcomers seeking an overview. This second edition is thoroughly revised and expanded, in particular with new material on high energy-density physics, nuclear explosions and other nuclear transformation processes.

Supernovae and high density nuclear matter

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kahana, S.

1986-01-01

The role of the nuclear equation of state (EOS) in producing prompt supernova explosions is examined. Results of calculations of Baron, Cooperstein, and Kahana incorporating general relativity and a new high density EOS are presented, and the relevance of these calculations to laboratory experiments with heavy ions considered. 31 refs., 6 figs., 2 tabs.

Supernovae and high density nuclear matter

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kahana, S.

1986-01-01

The role of the nuclear equation of state (EOS) in producing prompt supernova explosions is examined. Results of calculations of Baron, Cooperstein, and Kahana incorporating general relativity and a new high density EOS are presented, and the relevance of these calculations to laboratory experiments with heavy ions considered. 31 refs., 6 figs., 2 tabs

ADX: a high field, high power density, Advanced Divertor test eXperiment

Science.gov (United States)

Vieira, R.; Labombard, B.; Marmar, E.; Irby, J.; Shiraiwa, S.; Terry, J.; Wallace, G.; Whyte, D. G.; Wolfe, S.; Wukitch, S.; ADX Team

2014-10-01

The MIT PSFC and collaborators are proposing an advanced divertor experiment (ADX) - a tokamak specifically designed to address critical gaps in the world fusion research program on the pathway to FNSF/DEMO. This high field (6.5 tesla, 1.5 MA), high power density (P/S ~ 1.5 MW/m2) facility would utilize Alcator magnet technology to test innovative divertor concepts for next-step DT fusion devices (FNSF, DEMO) at reactor-level boundary plasma pressures and parallel heat flux densities while producing high performance core plasma conditions. The experimental platform would also test advanced lower hybrid current drive (LHCD) and ion-cyclotron range of frequency (ICRF) actuators and wave physics at the plasma densities and magnetic field strengths of a DEMO, with the unique ability to deploy launcher structures both on the low-magnetic-field side and the high-field side - a location where energetic plasma-material interactions can be controlled and wave physics is most favorable for efficient current drive, heating and flow drive. This innovative experiment would perform plasma science and technology R&D necessary to inform the conceptual development and accelerate the readiness-for-deployment of FNSF/DEMO - in a timely manner, on a cost-effective research platform. Supported by DE-FC02-99ER54512.

Combined analyses of ion beam synthesized layers in porous silicon

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ramos, A.R.; Silva, M.F. da; Silva, M.R. da; Soares, J.C.; Paszti, F.; Horvath, Z.E.; Vazsonyi, E.; Conde, O.

2001-01-01

High dose ion implantation was used to form polycrystalline silicide films on porous silicon with different native concentrations of light impurities (C and O). Porous silicon layers several μm thick were implanted with 170 KeV Cr + ions to fluences of 3x10'1 7 ions/cm 2 both at room temperature and 450 o C. Similar samples were implanted with 100 keV Co + ions to fluences of 2x10 17 ions/cm 2 at room temperature and 350 o C and 450 o C. The formed silicide compounds were studied by Rutherford backscattering spectrometry, elastic recoil detection, glancing incidence X-ray diffraction, and four point-probe sheet resistance measurements. Selected Co implanted samples were analysed by cross-section transmission electron microscopy. Results show that the light impurities were partially expelled from the forming silicide layer. Combining cross-section transmission electron microscopy with ion beam methods it was possible to show that, in the implanted region, the porous structure collapses and densities during implantation, but the underlying porous silicon remains intact. The layer structure as well as the quality and type of the formed silicide, were found to depend on the original impurity level, implantation temperature, and annealing. (author)

Irradiation behavior of uranium-silicide dispersion fuels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hofman, G.L.; Neimark, L.A.

1984-01-01

This paper describes and analyzes the irradiation behavior of experimental fuel plates containing U 3 Si, U 3 Si-1.5 w/o Al, and U 3 Si 2 particulate fuel dispersed and clad in aluminum. The fuel is nominally 19.9%-enriched 235 U and the fuel volume fraction in the central ''meat'' section of the plates is approximately 33%. Sets of fuel plates were removed from the Oak Ridge Research reactor at burnup levels of 35, 83, and 94% 235 U depletion and examined at the Alpha-Gamma Hot-Cell Facility at Argonne National Laboratory. The results of the examination may be summarized as follows. The dimensional stability of the U 3 Si 2 and pure U 3 Si fuel was excellent throughout the entire burnup range, with uniform plate thickness increases up to a maximum of 4 mils at the highest burnup level (94% 235 U depletion). This corresponds to a meat volume increase of 11%. The swelling was partially due to solid fission products but to a larger extent to fission gas bubbles. The fission gas bubbles in U 3 Si 2 were small (submicrometer size) and very uniformly distributed, indicating great stability. To a large extent this was also the case for U 3 Si; however, larger bubbles ( 3 Si-1.5 w/o Al fuel became unstable at the higher burnup levels. Fission gas bubbles were larger than in the other two fuels and were present throughout the fuel particles. At 94% 235 U depletion, the formation of fission gas bubbles with diameters up to 20 mils caused the plates to pillow. It is proposed that aluminum in U 3 Si destabilizes fission gas bubble formation to the point of severe breakaway swelling in the prealloyed silicide fuel. (author)

High density plasmas formation in Inertial Confinement Fusion and Astrophysics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martinez-Val, J. M.; Minguez, E.; Velarde, P.; Perlado, J. M.; Velarde, G.; Bravo, E.; Eliezer, S.; Florido, R.; Garcia Rubiano, J.; Garcia-Senz, D.; Gil de la Fe, J. M.; Leon, P. T.; Martel, P.; Ogando, F.; Piera, M.; Relano, A.; Rodriguez, R.; Garcia, C.; Gonzalez, E.; Lachaise, M.; Oliva, E.

2005-01-01

In inertially confined fusion (ICF), high densities are required to obtain high gains. In Fast Ignition, a high density, low temperature plasma can be obtained during the compression. If the final temperature reached is low enough, the electrons of the plasma can be degenerate. In degenerate plasmas. Bremsstrahlung emission is strongly suppressed an ignition temperature becomes lower than in classical plasmas, which offers a new design window for ICF. The main difficulty of degenerate plasmas in the compression energy needed for high densities. Besides that, the low specific heat of degenerate electrons (as compared to classical values) is also a problem because of the rapid heating of the plasma. Fluid dynamic evolution of supernovae remnants is a very interesting problem in order to predict the thermodynamical conditions achieved in their collision regions. Those conditions have a strong influence in the emission of light and therefore the detection of such events. A laboratory scale system has been designed reproducing the fluid dynamic field in high energy experiments. The evolution of the laboratory system has been calculated with ARWEN code, 2D Radiation CFD that works with Adaptive Mesh Refinement. Results are compared with simulations on the original system obtained with a 3D SPH astrophysical code. New phenomena at the collision plane and scaling of the laboratory magnitudes will be described. Atomic physics for high density plasmas has been studied with participation in experiments to obtain laser produced high density plasmas under NLTE conditions, carried out at LULI. A code, ATOM3R, has been developed which solves rate equations for optically thin plasmas as well as for homogeneous optically thick plasmas making use of escape factors. New improvements in ATOM3R are been done to calculate level populations and opacities for non homogeneous thick plasmas in NLTE, with emphasis in He and H lines for high density plasma diagnosis. Analytical expression

High-density hybrid interconnect methodologies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

John, J.; Zimmermann, L.; Moor, P.De; Hoof, C.Van

2003-01-01

Full text: The presentation gives an overview of the state-of-the-art of hybrid integration and in particular the IMEC technological approaches that will be able to address future hybrid detector needs. The dense hybrid flip-chip integration of an array of detectors and its dedicated readout electronics can be achieved with a variety of solderbump techniques such as pure Indium or Indium alloys, Ph-In, Ni/PbSn, but also conducting polymers... Particularly for cooled applications or ultra-high density applications, Indium solderbump technology (electroplated or evaporated) is the method of choice. The state-of-the-art of solderbump technologies that are to a high degree independent of the underlying detector material will be presented and examples of interconnect densities between 5x1E4cm-2 and 1x1E6 cm-2 will be demonstrated. For several classes of detectors, flip-chip integration is not allowed since the detectors have to be illuminated from the top. This applies to image sensors for EUV applications such as GaN/AlGaN based detectors and to MEMS-based sensors. In such cases, the only viable interconnection method has to be through the (thinned) detector wafer followed by a solderbump-based integration. The approaches for dense and ultra-dense through-the-wafer interconnect 'vias' will be presented and wafer thinning approaches will be shown

Anti-Ferroelectric Ceramics for High Energy Density Capacitors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aditya Chauhan

2015-11-01

Full Text Available With an ever increasing dependence on electrical energy for powering modern equipment and electronics, research is focused on the development of efficient methods for the generation, storage and distribution of electrical power. In this regard, the development of suitable dielectric based solid-state capacitors will play a key role in revolutionizing modern day electronic and electrical devices. Among the popular dielectric materials, anti-ferroelectrics (AFE display evidence of being a strong contender for future ceramic capacitors. AFE materials possess low dielectric loss, low coercive field, low remnant polarization, high energy density, high material efficiency, and fast discharge rates; all of these characteristics makes AFE materials a lucrative research direction. However, despite the evident advantages, there have only been limited attempts to develop this area. This article attempts to provide a focus to this area by presenting a timely review on the topic, on the relevant scientific advancements that have been made with respect to utilization and development of anti-ferroelectric materials for electric energy storage applications. The article begins with a general introduction discussing the need for high energy density capacitors, the present solutions being used to address this problem, and a brief discussion of various advantages of anti-ferroelectric materials for high energy storage applications. This is followed by a general description of anti-ferroelectricity and important anti-ferroelectric materials. The remainder of the paper is divided into two subsections, the first of which presents various physical routes for enhancing the energy storage density while the latter section describes chemical routes for enhanced storage density. This is followed by conclusions and future prospects and challenges which need to be addressed in this particular field.

Exploring high-density baryonic matter: Maximum freeze-out density

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Randrup, Joergen [Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Nuclear Science Division, Berkeley, CA (United States); Cleymans, Jean [University of Cape Town, UCT-CERN Research Centre and Department of Physics, Rondebosch (South Africa)

2016-08-15

The hadronic freeze-out line is calculated in terms of the net baryon density and the energy density instead of the usual T and μ{sub B}. This analysis makes it apparent that the freeze-out density exhibits a maximum as the collision energy is varied. This maximum freeze-out density has μ{sub B} = 400 - 500 MeV, which is above the critical value, and it is reached for a fixed-target bombarding energy of 20-30 GeV/N well within the parameters of the proposed NICA collider facility. (orig.)

Low-enriched uranium high-density target project. Compendium report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vandegrift, George; Brown, M. Alex; Jerden, James L.; Gelis, Artem V.; Stepinski, Dominique C.; Wiedmeyer, Stanley; Youker, Amanda; Hebden, Andrew; Solbrekken, G; Allen, C; Robertson., D; El-Gizawy, Sherif; Govindarajan, Srisharan; Hoyer, Annemarie; Makarewicz, Philip; Harris, Jacob; Graybill, Brian; Gunn, Andy; Berlin, James; Bryan, Chris; Sherman, Steven; Hobbs, Randy; Griffin, F. P.; Chandler, David; Hurt, C. J.; Williams, Paul; Creasy, John; Tjader, Barak; McFall, Danielle; Longmire, Hollie

2016-09-01

At present, most ⁹⁹Mo is produced in research, test, or isotope production reactors by irradiation of highly enriched uranium targets. To achieve the denser form of uranium needed for switching from high to low enriched uranium (LEU), targets in the form of a metal foil (~125-150 µm thick) are being developed. The LEU High Density Target Project successfully demonstrated several iterations of an LEU-fission-based Mo-99 technology that has the potential to provide the world’s supply of Mo-99, should major producers choose to utilize the technology. Over 50 annular high density targets have been successfully tested, and the assembly and disassembly of targets have been improved and optimized. Two target front-end processes (acidic and electrochemical) have been scaled up and demonstrated to allow for the high-density target technology to mate up to the existing producer technology for target processing. In the event that a new target processing line is started, the chemical processing of the targets is greatly simplified. Extensive modeling and safety analysis has been conducted, and the target has been qualified to be inserted into the High Flux Isotope Reactor, which is considered above and beyond the requirements for the typical use of this target due to high fluence and irradiation duration.

High Channel Count, High Density Microphone Arrays for Wind Tunnel Environments, Phase I

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The Interdisciplinary Consulting Corporation (IC2) proposes the development of high channel count, high density, reduced cost per channel, directional microphone...

High current density magnets for INTOR and TIBER

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Miller, J.R.; Henning, C.D.; Kerns, J.A.; Slack, D.S.; Summers, L.T.; Zbasnik, J.P.

1986-12-01

The adoption of high current density, high field, superconducting magnets for INTOR and TIBER would prove beneficial. When combined with improved radiation tolerance of the magnets to minimize the inner leg shielding, a substantial reduction in machine dimensions and capital costs can be achieved. Fortunately, cable-in-conduit conductors (CICC) which are capable of the desired enhancements are being developed. Because conductor stability in a CICC depends more on the trapped helium enthalpy, rather than the copper resistivity, higher current densities of the order of 40 A/mm 2 at 12 T are possible. Radiation damage to the copper stabilizer is less important because the growth in resistance is a second-order effect on stability. Such CICC conductors lend themselves naturally to niobium-tin utilization, with the benefits of the high current-sharing temperature of this material being taken to advantage in absorbing radiation heating. When the helium coolant is injected at near the critical pressure, Joule-Thompson expansion in the flow path tends to stabilize the fluid temperature at under 6 K. Thus, higher fields, as well as higher current densities, can be considered for INTOR or TIBER

High volumetric power density, non-enzymatic, glucose fuel cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Oncescu, Vlad; Erickson, David

2013-01-01

The development of new implantable medical devices has been limited in the past by slow advances in lithium battery technology. Non-enzymatic glucose fuel cells are promising replacement candidates for lithium batteries because of good long-term stability and adequate power density. The devices developed to date however use an "oxygen depletion design" whereby the electrodes are stacked on top of each other leading to low volumetric power density and complicated fabrication protocols. Here we have developed a novel single-layer fuel cell with good performance (2 μW cm⁻²) and stability that can be integrated directly as a coating layer on large implantable devices, or stacked to obtain a high volumetric power density (over 16 μW cm⁻³). This represents the first demonstration of a low volume non-enzymatic fuel cell stack with high power density, greatly increasing the range of applications for non-enzymatic glucose fuel cells.

Anomalous evolution of Ar metastable density with electron density in high density Ar discharge

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Min; Chang, Hong-Young; You, Shin-Jae; Kim, Jung-Hyung; Shin, Yong-Hyeon

2011-01-01

Recently, an anomalous evolution of argon metastable density with plasma discharge power (electron density) was reported [A. M. Daltrini, S. A. Moshkalev, T. J. Morgan, R. B. Piejak, and W. G. Graham, Appl. Phys. Lett. 92, 061504 (2008)]. Although the importance of the metastable atom and its density has been reported in a lot of literature, however, a basic physics behind the anomalous evolution of metastable density has not been clearly understood yet. In this study, we investigated a simple global model to elucidate the underlying physics of the anomalous evolution of argon metastable density with the electron density. On the basis of the proposed simple model, we reproduced the anomalous evolution of the metastable density and disclosed the detailed physics for the anomalous result. Drastic changes of dominant mechanisms for the population and depopulation processes of Ar metastable atoms with electron density, which take place even in relatively low electron density regime, is the clue to understand the result.

High-current discharge channel contraction in high density gas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rutberg, Ph. G.; Bogomaz, A. A.; Pinchuk, M. E.; Budin, A. V.; Leks, A. G.; Pozubenkov, A. A.

2011-01-01

Research results for discharges at current amplitudes of 0.5-1.6 MA and current rise rate of ∼10 10 A/s are presented. The discharge is performed in the hydrogen environment at the initial pressure of 5-35 MPa. Initiation is implemented by a wire explosion. The time length of the first half-period of the discharge current is 70-150 μs. Under such conditions, discharge channel contraction is observed; the contraction is followed by soft x-ray radiation. The phenomena are discussed, which are determined by high density of the gas surrounding the discharge channel. These phenomena are increase of the current critical value, where the channel contraction begins and growth of temperature in the axis region of the channel, where the initial density of the gas increases.

Still rethinking the value of high wood density.

Science.gov (United States)

Larjavaara, Markku; Muller-Landau, Helene C

2012-01-01

In a previous paper, we questioned the traditional interpretation of the advantages and disadvantages of high wood density (Functional Ecology 24: 701-705). Niklas and Spatz (American Journal of Botany 97: 1587-1594) challenged the biomechanical relevance of studying properties of dry wood, including dry wood density, and stated that we erred in our claims regarding scaling. We first present the full derivation of our previous claims regarding scaling. We then examine how the fresh modulus of rupture and the elastic modulus scale with dry wood density and compare these scaling relationships with those for dry mechanical properties, using almost exactly the same data set analyzed by Niklas and Spatz. The derivation shows that given our assumptions that the modulus of rupture and elastic modulus are both proportional to wood density, the resistance to bending is inversely proportional to wood density and strength is inversely proportional with the square root of wood density, exactly as we previously claimed. The analyses show that the elastic modulus of fresh wood scales proportionally with wood density (exponent 1.05, 95% CI 0.90-1.11) but that the modulus of rupture of fresh wood does not, scaling instead with the 1.25 power of wood density (CI 1.18-1.31). The deviation from proportional scaling for modulus of rupture is so small that our central conclusion remains correct: for a given construction cost, trees with lower wood density have higher strength and higher resistance to bending.

High-frequency emissions during the propagation of an electron beam in a high-density plasma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lalita and Tripathi, V.K.

1988-01-01

A relativistic annular electron beam passing through a high-density plasma excites Langmuir waves via Cerenkov interaction. The Langmuir waves are backscattered off ions via nonlinear ion Landau damping. At moderately high amplitudes these waves are parametrically up-converted by the beam into high-frequency electromagnetic radiation, as observed in some recent experiments. A nonlocal theory of this process is developed in a cylindrical geometry. It is seen that the growth rate of the Langmuir wave scales as one-third power of beam density. The growth rate of parametric instability scales as one-fourth power of beam density and the square root of beam thickness

Analyses of Interaction Phases of U Mo Dispersion Fuel by Synchrotron X ray Diffraction

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Woo Jeong; Nam, Ji Min; Ryu, Ho Jin; Park, Jong Man [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Herve, Palancher; Charollais, Francois [Saint Paul Lez Durance Cedex, Rhone (France); Bonnin, Anne; Honkimaeki, Veijo [Grenoble Cedex, Grenoble (France); Patrick Lemoined [Gif sur Yvette, Paris (France)

2012-10-15

Gamma phase U Mo alloys are one of the promising candidates to be used as advanced high uranium density fuel for high power research reactors due to their excellent irradiation performance. However, formation of interaction layers between the U Mo particles and Al matrix degrades the irradiation performance of U Mo dispersion fuel. One of the remedies to the interaction problem is a Si addition to the Al matrix. Recent irradiation tests have shown that the use of Al (2{approx}5wt%)Si matrices retarded the growth of interaction layers effectively during irradiation. Recently, KAERI has proposed silicide or nitride coated U Mo fuel for the minimization of the interaction layer growth. The silicide or nitride coatings are expected to act as interdiffusion barriers and their out of pile tests showed the improved diffusion barrier performances of the silicide and nitride layers. In order to characterize constituent phases in the coated layers on U Mo particles and the interaction layers of coated U Mo particle dispersed fuel, synchrotron X ray diffraction experiments have been performed at the ESRF (European Synchrotron Radiation Facility), France as a KAERI CEA cooperation program.

High Energy Density Physics and Exotic Acceleration Schemes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cowan, T.; Colby, E.

2005-01-01

The High Energy Density and Exotic Acceleration working group took as our goal to reach beyond the community of plasma accelerator research with its applications to high energy physics, to promote exchange with other disciplines which are challenged by related and demanding beam physics issues. The scope of the group was to cover particle acceleration and beam transport that, unlike other groups at AAC, are not mediated by plasmas or by electromagnetic structures. At this Workshop, we saw an impressive advancement from years past in the area of Vacuum Acceleration, for example with the LEAP experiment at Stanford. And we saw an influx of exciting new beam physics topics involving particle propagation inside of solid-density plasmas or at extremely high charge density, particularly in the areas of laser acceleration of ions, and extreme beams for fusion energy research, including Heavy-ion Inertial Fusion beam physics. One example of the importance and extreme nature of beam physics in HED research is the requirement in the Fast Ignitor scheme of inertial fusion to heat a compressed DT fusion pellet to keV temperatures by injection of laser-driven electron or ion beams of giga-Amp current. Even in modest experiments presently being performed on the laser-acceleration of ions from solids, mega-amp currents of MeV electrons must be transported through solid foils, requiring almost complete return current neutralization, and giving rise to a wide variety of beam-plasma instabilities. As keynote talks our group promoted Ion Acceleration (plenary talk by A. MacKinnon), which historically has grown out of inertial fusion research, and HIF Accelerator Research (invited talk by A. Friedman), which will require impressive advancements in space-charge-limited ion beam physics and in understanding the generation and transport of neutralized ion beams. A unifying aspect of High Energy Density applications was the physics of particle beams inside of solids, which is proving to

Interplay of charge density wave and spin density wave in high-Tc superconductors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pradhan, B.; Raj, B.K.; Rout, G.C.

2008-01-01

We present a mean-field theory theoretical model study for the coexistence of the two strongly interacting charge density wave (CDW) and spin density wave (SDW) for high-T c cuprates in the underdoped region before the onset of the superconductivity in the system. The analytic expressions for the temperature dependence of the CDW and SDW order parameters are derived and solved self-consistently. Their interplay is studied by varying their respective coupling constants. It is observed that in the interplay region both the gap parameters exhibit very strong dependence of their gap values for the coupling constants. Further, the electronic density of states (DOS) for the conduction electrons, which represents the scanning tunneling data, show two gap parameters in the interplay region from these experimental data. Our model can help to determine separately the CDW and SDW parameters

Evaluating Approaches to Rendering Braille Text on a High-Density Pin Display.

Science.gov (United States)

Morash, Valerie S; Russomanno, Alexander; Gillespie, R Brent; OModhrain, Sile

2017-10-13

Refreshable displays for tactile graphics are typically composed of pins that have smaller diameters and spacing than standard braille dots. We investigated configurations of high-density pins to form braille text on such displays using non-refreshable stimuli produced with a 3D printer. Normal dot braille (diameter 1.5 mm) was compared to high-density dot braille (diameter 0.75 mm) wherein each normal dot was rendered by high-density simulated pins alone or in a cluster of pins configured in a diamond, X, or square; and to "blobs" that could result from covering normal braille and high-density multi-pin configurations with a thin membrane. Twelve blind participants read MNREAD sentences displayed in these conditions. For high-density simulated pins, single pins were as quickly and easily read as normal braille, but diamond, X, and square multi-pin configurations were slower and/or harder to read than normal braille. We therefore conclude that as long as center-to-center dot spacing and dot placement is maintained, the dot diameter may be open to variability for rendering braille on a high density tactile display.

Quench protection and design of large high-current-density superconducting magnets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Green, M.A.

1981-03-01

Although most large superconducting magnets have been designed using the concept of cryostability, there is increased need for large magnets which operate at current densities above the cryostable limit (greater than 10 8 Am -2 ). Large high current density superconducting magnets are chosen for the following reasons: reduced mass, reduced coil thickness or size, and reduced cost. The design of large high current density, adiabatically stable, superconducting magnets requires a very different set of design rules than either large cryostable superconducting magnets or small self-protected high current density magnets. The problems associated with large high current density superconducting magnets fall into three categories; (a) quench protection, (b) stress and training, and (c) cryogenic design. The three categories must be considered simultaneously. The paper discusses quench protection and its implication for magnets of large stored energies (this includes strings of smaller magnets). Training and its relationship to quench protection and magnetic strain are discussed. Examples of magnets, built at the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory and elsewhere using the design guidelines given in this report, are presented

High-density and high-ρR fuel assembly for fast-ignition inertial confinement fusion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Betti, R.; Zhou, C.

2005-01-01

Scaling relations to optimize implosion parameters for fast-ignition inertial confinement fusion are derived and used to design high-gain fast-ignition targets. A method to assemble thermonuclear fuel at high densities, high ρR, and with a small-size hot spot is presented. Massive cryogenic shells can be imploded with a low implosion velocity V I on a low adiabat α using the relaxation-pulse technique. While the low V I yields a small hot spot, the low α leads to large peak values of the density and areal density. It is shown that a 750 kJ laser can assemble fuel with V I ≅1.7x10 7 cm/s, α≅0.7, ρ≅400 g/cc, ρR≅3 g/cm 2 , and a hot-spot volume of less than 10% of the compressed core. If fully ignited, this fuel assembly can produce high gains of interest to inertial fusion energy applications

Numerical simulation of SU(2)c high density state

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Muroya, Shin; Nakamura, Atsushi; Nonaka, Chiho

2003-01-01

We report a study of the high baryon number density system with use of the two-color lattice QCD with Wilson fermions[1]. First we investigate thermodynamical quantities such as the Polyakov line, gluon energy density, and baryon number density in the (κ, μ) plane, where κ and μ are the hopping parameter and chemical potential, respectively. Then we calculate propagators of meson (q-barΓq) and baryon (qΓq) states in addition to the potential between quark lines. (author)

High follicle density does not decrease sweat gland density in Huacaya alpacas.

Science.gov (United States)

Moore, K E; Maloney, S K; Blache, D

2015-01-01

When exposed to high ambient temperatures, mammals lose heat evaporatively by either sweating from glands in the skin or by respiratory panting. Like other camelids, alpacas are thought to evaporate more water by sweating than panting, despite a thick fleece, unlike sheep which mostly pant in response to heat stress. Alpacas were brought to Australia to develop an alternative fibre industry to sheep wool. In Australia, alpacas can be exposed to ambient temperatures higher than in their native South America. As a young industry there is a great deal of variation in the quality and quantity of the fleece produced in the national flock. There is selection pressure towards animals with finer and denser fleeces. Because the fibre from secondary follicles is finer than that from primary follicles, selecting for finer fibres might alter the ratio of primary and secondary follicles. In turn the selection might alter sweat gland density because the sweat glands are associated with the primary follicle. Skin biopsy and fibre samples were obtained from the mid-section of 33 Huacaya alpacas and the skin sections were processed into horizontal sections at the sebaceous gland level. Total, primary, and secondary follicles and the number of sweat gland ducts were quantified. Fibre samples from each alpaca were further analysed for mean fibre diameter. The finer-fibred animals had a higher total follicle density (Palpacas with high follicle density should not be limited for potential sweating ability. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A study on improving the performance of a research reactor's equilibrium core

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Muhammad Atta

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Utilizing low enriched uranium silicide fuel (U3Si2-Al of existing uranium density (3.285 g/cm3, different core configurations have been studied in search of an equilibrium core with an improved performance for the Pakistan Research Reactor-1. Furthermore, we have extended our analysis to the performance of higher density silicide fuels with a uranium density of 4.0 and 4.8 U g/cm3. The criterion used in selecting the best performing core was that of “unit flux time cycle length per 235U mass per cycle”. In order to analyze core performance by improving neutron moderation, utilizing higher-density fuel, the effect of the coolant channel width was also studied by reducing the number of plates in the standard/control fuel element. Calculations employing computer codes WIMSD/4 and CITATION were performed. A ten energy group structure for fission neutrons was used for the generation of microscopic cross-sections through WIMSD/4. To search the equilibrium core, two-dimensional core modelling was performed in CITATION. Performance indicators have shown that the higher-density uranium silicide-fuelled core (U density 4.8 g/cm3 without any changes in standard/control fuel elements, comprising of 15 standard and 4 control fuel elements, is the best performing of all analyzed cores.

Potential formation and confinement in high density plasma on the GAMMA 10 tandem mirror

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yatsu, K.

2002-01-01

After the attainment of doubling of the density due to the potential confinement, GAMMA 10 experiments have been directed to realization of a high density plasma and also to study dependence of the confining potential and confinement time on the plasma density. These problems are important to understand the physics of potential formation in tandem mirrors and also for the development of a tandem mirror reactor. We reported high density plasma production by using an ion cyclotron range of frequency heating at a high harmonic frequency in the last IAEA Conference. However, the diamagnetic signal of the high density plasma decreased when electron cyclotron resonance heating (ECRH) was applied due to some instabilities. Recently, the high density plasma production was much improved by adjusting the spacing of the conducting plates installed in the anchor transition regions, which enabled us to produce a high density plasma without degradation of the diamagnetic signal with ECRH and also to study the density dependence. In this paper we report production of a high density plasma and dependence of the confining potential and the confinement time on the density. (author)

High Energy Density Dielectrics for Pulsed Power Applications

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Wu, Richard L; Bray, Kevin R

2008-01-01

This report was developed under a SBIR contract. Aluminum oxynitride (AlON) capacitors exhibit several promising characteristics for high energy density capacitor applications in extreme environments...

Pair-density waves, charge-density waves, and vortices in high-Tc cuprates

Science.gov (United States)

Dai, Zhehao; Zhang, Ya-Hui; Senthil, T.; Lee, Patrick A.

2018-05-01

A recent scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) experiment reports the observation of a charge-density wave (CDW) with a period of approximately 8a in the halo region surrounding the vortex core, in striking contrast to the approximately 4a period CDWs that are commonly observed in the cuprates. Inspired by this work, we study a model where a bidirectional pair-density wave (PDW) with period 8 is at play. This further divides into two classes: (1) where the PDW is a competing state of the d -wave superconductor and can exist only near the vortex core where the d -wave order is suppressed and (2) where the PDW is the primary order, the so-called "mother state" that persists with strong phase fluctuations to high temperature and high magnetic field and lies behind the pseudogap phenomenology. We study the charge-density wave structures near the vortex core in these models. We emphasize the importance of the phase winding of the d -wave order parameter. The PDW can be pinned by the vortex core due to this winding and become static. Furthermore, the period-8 CDW inherits the properties of this winding, which gives rise to a special feature of the Fourier transform peak, namely, it is split in certain directions. There is also a line of zeros in the inverse Fourier transform of filtered data. We propose that these are key experimental signatures that can distinguish between the PDW-driven scenario from the more mundane option that the period-8 CDW is primary. We discuss the pro's and con's of the options considered above. Finally, we attempt to place the STM experiment in the broader context of pseudogap physics of underdoped cuprates and relate this observation to the unusual properties of x-ray scattering data on CDW carried out to very high magnetic field.

Lithium-Based High Energy Density Flow Batteries

Science.gov (United States)

Bugga, Ratnakumar V. (Inventor); West, William C. (Inventor); Kindler, Andrew (Inventor); Smart, Marshall C. (Inventor)

2014-01-01

Systems and methods in accordance with embodiments of the invention implement a lithium-based high energy density flow battery. In one embodiment, a lithium-based high energy density flow battery includes a first anodic conductive solution that includes a lithium polyaromatic hydrocarbon complex dissolved in a solvent, a second cathodic conductive solution that includes a cathodic complex dissolved in a solvent, a solid lithium ion conductor disposed so as to separate the first solution from the second solution, such that the first conductive solution, the second conductive solution, and the solid lithium ionic conductor define a circuit, where when the circuit is closed, lithium from the lithium polyaromatic hydrocarbon complex in the first conductive solution dissociates from the lithium polyaromatic hydrocarbon complex, migrates through the solid lithium ionic conductor, and associates with the cathodic complex of the second conductive solution, and a current is generated.

Analysis of burnable poison in Ford Nuclear Reactor fuel to extend fuel lifetime. Final report, August 1, 1994--September 29, 1996

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Burn, R.R.; Lee, J.C.

1996-12-01

The objective of the project was to establish the feasibility of extending the lifetime of fuel elements for the Ford Nuclear Reactor (FNR) by replacing current aluminide fuel with silicide fuel comprising a heavier uranium loading but with the same fissile enrichment of 19.5 wt% {sup 235}U. The project has focused on fuel designs where burnable absorbers, in the form of B{sub 4}C, are admixed with uranium silicide in fuel plates so that increases in the control reactivity requirements and peak power density, due to the heavier fuel loading, may be minimized. The authors have developed equilibrium cycle models simulating current full-size aluminide core configurations with 43 {approximately} 45 fuel elements. Adequacy of the overall equilibrium cycle approach has been verified through comparison with recent FNR experience in spent fuel discharge rates and simulation of reactor physics characteristics for two representative cycles. Fuel cycle studies have been performed to compare equilibrium cycle characteristics of silicide fuel designs, including burnable absorbers, with current aluminide fuel. These equilibrium cycle studies have established the feasibility of doubling the fuel element lifetime, with minimal perturbations to the control reactivity requirements and peak power density, by judicious additions of burnable absorbers to silicide fuel. Further study will be required to investigate a more practical silicide fuel design, which incorporates burnable absorbers in side plates of each fuel element rather than uniformly mixes them in fuel plates.

Apparatus and method for generating high density pulses of electrons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, C.; Oettinger, P.E.

1981-01-01

An apparatus and method are described for the production of high density pulses of electrons using a laser energized emitter. Caesium atoms from a low pressure vapour atmosphere are absorbed on and migrate from a metallic target rapidly heated by a laser to a high temperature. Due to this heating time being short compared with the residence time of the caesium atoms adsorbed on the target surface, copious electrons are emitted which form a high current density pulse. (U.K.)

Compatibility of advanced tokamak plasma with high density and high radiation loss operation in JT-60U

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takenaga, H.; Asakura, N.; Kubo, H.; Higashijima, S.; Konoshima, S.; Nakano, T.; Oyama, N.; Ide, S.; Fujita, T.; Takizuka, T.; Kamada, Y.; Miura, Y.; Porter, G.D.; Rognlien, T.D.; Rensink, M.E.

2005-01-01

Compatibility of advanced tokamak plasmas with high density and high radiation loss has been investigated in both reversed shear (RS) plasmas and high β p H-mode plasmas with a weak positive shear on JT-60U. In the RS plasmas, the operation regime is extended to high density above the Greenwald density (n GW ) with high confinement (HH y2 >1) and high radiation loss fraction (f rad >0.9) by tailoring the internal transport barriers (ITBs). High confinement of HH y2 =1.2 is sustained even with 80% radiation from the main plasma enhanced by accumulated metal impurity. The divertor radiation is enhanced by Ne seeding and the ratio of the divertor radiation to the total radiation is increased from 20% without seeding to 40% with Ne seeding. In the high β p H-mode plasmas, high confinement (HH y2 =0.96) is maintained at high density (n-bar e /n GW =0.92) with high radiation loss fraction (f rad ∼1) by utilizing high-field-side pellets and Ar injections. The high n-bar e /n GW is obtained due to a formation of clear density ITB. Strong core-edge parameter linkage is observed, as well as without Ar injection. In this linkage, the pedestal β p , defined as β p ped =p ped /(B p 2 /2μ 0 ) where p ped is the plasma pressure at the pedestal top, is enhanced with the total β p . The radiation profile in the main plasma is peaked due to Ar accumulation inside the ITB and the measured central radiation is ascribed to Ar. The impurity transport analyses indicate that Ar accumulation by a factor of 2 more than the electron, as observed in the high β p H-mode plasma, is acceptable even with peaked density profile in a fusion reactor for impurity seeding. (author)

Comparison of low density and high density pedicle screw instrumentation in Lenke 1 adolescent idiopathic scoliosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Shen, Mingkui; Jiang, Honghui; Luo, Ming; Wang, Wengang; Li, Ning; Wang, Lulu; Xia, Lei

2017-08-02

The correlation between implant density and deformity correction has not yet led to a precise conclusion in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS). The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of low density (LD) and high density (HD) pedicle screw instrumentation in terms of the clinical, radiological and Scoliosis Research Society (SRS)-22 outcomes in Lenke 1 AIS. We retrospectively reviewed 62 consecutive Lenke 1 AIS patients who underwent posterior spinal arthrodesis using all-pedicle screw instrumentation with a minimum follow-up of 24 months. The implant density was defined as the number of screws per spinal level fused. Patients were then divided into two groups according to the average implant density for the entire study. The LD group (n = 28) had fewer than 1.61 screws per level, while the HD group (n = 34) had more than 1.61 screws per level. The radiographs were analysed preoperatively, postoperatively and at final follow-up. The perioperative and SRS-22 outcomes were also assessed. Independent sample t tests were used between the two groups. Comparisons between the two groups showed no significant differences in the correction of the main thoracic curve and thoracic kyphosis, blood transfusion, hospital stay, and SRS-22 scores. Compared with the HD group, there was a decreased operating time (278.4 vs. 331.0 min, p = 0.004) and decreased blood loss (823.6 vs. 1010.9 ml, p = 0.048), pedicle screws needed (15.1 vs. 19.6, p density and high density pedicle screw instrumentation achieved satisfactory deformity correction in Lenke 1 AIS patients. However, the operating time and blood loss were reduced, and the implant costs were decreased with the use of low screw density constructs.

High density operation on the HT-7 superconducting tokamak

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xiang Gao

2000-01-01

The structure of the operation region has been studied in the HT-7 superconducting tokamak, and progress on the extension of the HT-7 ohmic discharge operation region is reported. A density corresponding to 1.2 times the Greenwald limit was achieved by RF boronization. The density limit appears to be connected to the impurity content and the edge parameters, so the best results are obtained with very clean plasmas and peaked electron density profiles. The peaking factors of electron density profiles for different current and line averaged densities were observed. The density behaviour and the fuelling efficiency for gas puffing (20-30%), pellet injection (70-80%) and molecular beam injection (40-50%) were studied. The core crash sawteeth and MHD behaviour, which were induced by an injected pellet, were observed and the events correlated with the change of current profile and reversed magnetic shear. The MARFE phenomena on HT-7 are summarized. The best correlation has been found between the total input ohmic power and the product of the edge line averaged density and Z eff . HT-7 could be easily operated in the high density region MARFE-free using RF boronization. (author)

Triglycerides, total cholesterol, high density lipoprotein cholesterol and low density lipoprotein cholesterol in rats exposed to premium motor spirit fumes.

Science.gov (United States)

Aberare, Ogbevire L; Okuonghae, Patrick; Mukoro, Nathaniel; Dirisu, John O; Osazuwa, Favour; Odigie, Elvis; Omoregie, Richard

2011-06-01

Deliberate and regular exposure to premium motor spirit fumes is common and could be a risk factor for liver disease in those who are occupationally exposed. A possible association between premium motor spirit fumes and plasma levels of triglyceride, total cholesterol, high density lipoprotein cholesterol and low density lipoprotein cholesterol using a rodent model could provide new insights in the pathology of diseases where cellular dysfunction is an established risk factor. The aim of this study was to evaluate the possible effect of premium motor spirit fumes on lipids and lipoproteins in workers occupationally exposed to premium motor spirit fumes using rodent model. Twenty-five Wister albino rats (of both sexes) were used for this study between the 4(th) of August and 7(th) of September, 2010. The rats were divided into five groups of five rats each. Group 1 rats were not exposed to premium motor spirit fumes (control group), group 2 rats were exposed for 1 hour daily, group 3 for 3 hours daily, group 4 for 5 hours daily and group 5 for 7 hours daily. The experiment lasted for a period of 4 weeks. Blood samples obtained from all the groups after 4 weeks of exposure were used for the estimation of plasma levels of triglyceride, total cholesterol, high density lipoprotein- cholesterol and low density lipoprotein- cholesterol. Results showed significant increase in means of plasma total cholesterol and low density lipoprotein levels (P<0.05). The mean triglyceride and total body weight were significantly lower (P<0.05) in the exposed group when compared with the unexposed. The plasma level of high density lipoprotein, the ratio of low density lipoprotein to high density lipoprotein and the ratio of total cholesterol to high density lipoprotein did not differ significantly in exposed subjects when compared with the control group. These results showed that frequent exposure to petrol fumes may be highly deleterious to the liver cells.

High-density amorphous ice: nucleation of nanosized low-density amorphous ice

Science.gov (United States)

Tonauer, Christina M.; Seidl-Nigsch, Markus; Loerting, Thomas

2018-01-01

The pressure dependence of the crystallization temperature of different forms of expanded high-density amorphous ice (eHDA) was scrutinized. Crystallization at pressures 0.05-0.30 GPa was followed using volumetry and powder x-ray diffraction. eHDA samples were prepared via isothermal decompression of very high-density amorphous ice at 140 K to different end pressures between 0.07-0.30 GPa (eHDA0.07-0.3). At 0.05-0.17 GPa the crystallization line T x (p) of all eHDA variants is the same. At pressures  >0.17 GPa, all eHDA samples decompressed to pressures  <0.20 GPa exhibit significantly lower T x values than eHDA0.2 and eHDA0.3. We rationalize our findings with the presence of nanoscaled low-density amorphous ice (LDA) seeds that nucleate in eHDA when it is decompressed to pressures  <0.20 GPa at 140 K. Below ~0.17 GPa, these nanosized LDA domains are latent within the HDA matrix, exhibiting no effect on T x of eHDA<0.2. Upon heating at pressures  ⩾0.17 GPa, these nanosized LDA nuclei transform to ice IX nuclei. They are favored sites for crystallization and, hence, lower T x . By comparing crystallization experiments of bulk LDA with the ones involving nanosized LDA we are able to estimate the Laplace pressure and radius of ~0.3-0.8 nm for the nanodomains of LDA. The nucleation of LDA in eHDA revealed here is evidence for the first-order-like nature of the HDA  →  LDA transition, supporting water’s liquid-liquid transition scenarios.

Electronic properties of new superconductors based on Ca(Al sub x Si sub 1 sub - sub x) sub 2 and Sr(Ga sub x Si sub 1 sub - sub x) sub 2 in crystal and nanotubular states

CERN Document Server

Shein, I R; Medvedeva, N I; Ivanovskij, A L

2002-01-01

The zone structures of the new Ca(Al sub x Si sub 1 sub - sub x) sub 2 and Sr(Ga sub x Si sub 1 sub - sub x) sub 2 layered superconductors (AlB sub 2 -type) are studied through the LMTO first-principle full-potential method. It is shown that the superconducting properties of the ternary silicides is conditioned by high density of the (Ca, Sr)d-states near the Fermi level, whereas the T sub C growth by the Sr(Ga sub x Si sub 1 sub - sub x) sub 2 -> Ca(Al sub x Si sub 1 sub - sub x) sub 2 transition is related to the increase in the photon frequencies due to the atoms mass decrease. Modeling the electron properties of the hypothetical (11, 11) and (20, 0) CaAlSi and SrGaSi nanotubes is accomplished. The silicide systems by transition from the crystalline to nanotubular state retain the metal-like properties. The template and film convolution methods may become the methods for obtaining the silicide nanotubes

Properties of high-density matter in the electroweak symmetric phase

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chandra, D.; Goyal, A.

1992-01-01

We examine the bulk properties of matter at high densities and finite temperatures in the phase where electroweak symmetry is exact and fermions are massless, by taking the strong interactions into account perturbatively to lowest order in the quark-gluon chromodynamic coupling constant α c . We also discuss the possibility of a phase transition of strange quark matter into this high-density matter in the electroweak symmetric phase at densities likely to be present in the core of dense neutron stars or collapsing stars. Finally, we study the properties of finite-size chunks of this matter by taking surface effects into account and give an estimate of the surface tension

High-energy-density physics foundation of inertial fusion and experimental astrophysics

CERN Document Server

Drake, R Paul

2018-01-01

The raw numbers of high-energy-density physics are amazing: shock waves at hundreds of km/s (approaching a million km per hour), temperatures of millions of degrees, and pressures that exceed 100 million atmospheres. This title surveys the production of high-energy-density conditions, the fundamental plasma and hydrodynamic models that can describe them and the problem of scaling from the laboratory to the cosmos. Connections to astrophysics are discussed throughout. The book is intended to support coursework in high-energy-density physics, to meet the needs of new researchers in this field, and also to serve as a useful reference on the fundamentals. Specifically the book has been designed to enable academics in physics, astrophysics, applied physics and engineering departments to provide in a single-course, an introduction to fluid mechanics and radiative transfer, with dramatic applications in the field of high-energy-density systems. This second edition includes pedagogic improvements to the presentation ...

High-density polymorphisms analysis of 23 candidate genes for association with bone mineral density.

Science.gov (United States)

Giroux, Sylvie; Elfassihi, Latifa; Clément, Valérie; Bussières, Johanne; Bureau, Alexandre; Cole, David E C; Rousseau, François

2010-11-01

Osteoporosis is a bone disease characterized by low bone mineral density (BMD), a highly heritable and polygenic trait. Women are more prone than men to develop osteoporosis due to a lower peak bone mass and accelerated bone loss at menopause. Peak bone mass has been convincingly shown to be due to genetic factors with heritability up to 80%. Menopausal bone loss has been shown to have around 38% to 49% heritability depending on the site studied. To have more statistical power to detect small genetic effects we focused on premenopausal women. We studied 23 candidate genes, some involved in calcium and vitamin-D regulation and others because estrogens strongly induced their gene expression in mice where it was correlated with humerus trabecular bone density. High-density polymorphisms were selected to cover the entire gene variability and 231 polymorphisms were genotyped in a first sample of 709 premenopausal women. Positive associations were retested in a second, independent, sample of 673 premenopausal women. Ten polymorphisms remained associated with BMD in the combined samples and one was further associated in a large sample of postmenopausal women (1401 women). This associated polymorphism was located in the gene CSF3R (granulocyte colony stimulating factor receptor) that had never been associated with BMD before. The results reported in this study suggest a role for CSF3R in the determination of bone density in women. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Newly synthesized MgAl2Ge2: A first-principles comparison with its silicide and carbide counterparts

Science.gov (United States)

Tanveer Karim, A. M. M.; Hadi, M. A.; Alam, M. A.; Parvin, F.; Naqib, S. H.; Islam, A. K. M. A.

2018-06-01

Using plane-wave pseudopotential density functional theory (DFT), the first-principle calculations are performed to investigate the structural aspects, mechanical behaviors and electronic features of the newly synthesized CaAl2Si2-prototype intermetallic compound, MgAl2Ge2 for the first time and the results are compared with those calculated for its silicide and carbide counterparts MgAl2Si2 and MgAl2C2. The calculated lattice constants agree fairly well with their corresponding experimental values. The estimated elastic tensors satisfy the mechanical stability conditions for MgAl2Ge2 along with MgAl2Si2 and MgAl2C2. The level of elastic anisotropy increases following the sequence of X-elements Ge → Si → C. MgAl2Ge2 and MgAl2Si2 are expected to be ductile and damage tolerant, while MgAl2C2 is a brittle one. MgAl2Ge2 and MgAl2Si2 should exhibit better thermal shock resistance and low thermal conductivity and accordingly these can be used as thermal barrier coating (TBC) materials. The Debye temperature of MgAl2Ge2 is lowest among three intermetallic compounds. MgAl2Ge2 and MgAl2Si2 should exhibit metallic conductivity; while the dual characters of weak-metals and semiconductors are expected for MgAl2C2. The values of theoretical Vickers hardness for MgAl2Ge2, MgAl2Si2, and MgAl2C2 are 3.3, 2.7, and 7.7 GPa, respectively, indicating that these three intermetallics are soft and easily machinable.

Kinetics of the high- to low-density amorphous water transition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koza, M M; Schober, H; Fischer, H E; Hansen, T; Fujara, F

2003-01-01

In situ neutron diffraction experiments have been carried out to study the kinetics of the transformation of high-density amorphous (HDA) water into its low-density amorphous state at temperatures 87 K ≤ T ≤ 110 K. It is found that three different stages are comprised in this transformation, namely an annealing process of the high-density matrix followed by a first-order-like transition into a low-density state, which can be further annealed at higher temperatures T ≤ 127 K. The annealing kinetics of the HDA state follows the logarithm of time as found in other systems showing polyamorphism. According to the theory of transformation by nucleation and growth the apparent first-order transition follows an Avrami-Kolmogorov behaviour. An energy barrier ΔE ∼ 33 k Jmol -1 is estimated from the temperature dependence of this transition

Noise reduction in muon tomography for detecting high density objects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Benettoni, M; Checchia, P; Cossutta, L; Furlan, M; Gonella, F; Pegoraro, M; Garola, A Rigoni; Ronchese, P; Vanini, S; Viesti, G; Bettella, G; Bonomi, G; Donzella, A; Subieta, M; Zenoni, A; Calvagno, G; Cortelazzo, G; Zanuttigh, P; Calvini, P; Squarcia, S

2013-01-01

The muon tomography technique, based on multiple Coulomb scattering of cosmic ray muons, has been proposed as a tool to detect the presence of high density objects inside closed volumes. In this paper a new and innovative method is presented to handle the density fluctuations (noise) of reconstructed images, a well known problem of this technique. The effectiveness of our method is evaluated using experimental data obtained with a muon tomography prototype located at the Legnaro National Laboratories (LNL) of the Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (INFN). The results reported in this paper, obtained with real cosmic ray data, show that with appropriate image filtering and muon momentum classification, the muon tomography technique can detect high density materials, such as lead, albeit surrounded by light or medium density material, in short times. A comparison with algorithms published in literature is also presented

Low-frequency oscillations at high density in JFT-2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maeno, Masaki; Katagiri, Masaki; Suzuki, Norio; Fujisawa, Noboru

1977-12-01

Low-frequency oscillations in a plasma were measured with magnetic probes and Si surface-barrier detectors, and behaviour of the high density plasmas was studied. The plasma current profile in the phase of decreasing density after the interruption of gas input is more peaked than during gas input. The introduction of hydrogen during a discharge results in a reduction of the impurities flux. The increase of density by fast gas input is limited with a negative voltage spike. Immediately before a negative voltage spike, oscillations of m=1,2 grow, leading to the spike. (auth.)

Volume generation of negative ions in high density hydrogen discharges

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hiskes, J.R.; Karo, A.M.

1983-01-01

A parametric survey is made of a high-density tandem two-chamber hydrogen negative ion system. The optimum extracted negative ion current densities are sensitive to the atom concentration in the discharge and to the system scale length. For scale lengths ranging from 10 cm to 0.1 cm optimum current densities range from of order 1 to 100 mA cm -2 , respectively

Achieving High-Energy-High-Power Density in a Flexible Quasi-Solid-State Sodium Ion Capacitor.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Hongsen; Peng, Lele; Zhu, Yue; Zhang, Xiaogang; Yu, Guihua

2016-09-14

Simultaneous integration of high-energy output with high-power delivery is a major challenge for electrochemical energy storage systems, limiting dual fine attributes on a device. We introduce a quasi-solid-state sodium ion capacitor (NIC) based on a battery type urchin-like Na2Ti3O7 anode and a capacitor type peanut shell derived carbon cathode, using a sodium ion conducting gel polymer as electrolyte, achieving high-energy-high-power characteristics in solid state. Energy densities can reach 111.2 Wh kg(-1) at power density of 800 W kg(-1), and 33.2 Wh kg(-1) at power density of 11200 W kg(-1), which are among the best reported state-of-the-art NICs. The designed device also exhibits long-term cycling stability over 3000 cycles with capacity retention ∼86%. Furthermore, we demonstrate the assembly of a highly flexible quasi-solid-state NIC and it shows no obvious capacity loss under different bending conditions.

Transport analysis of high radiation and high density plasmas in the ASDEX Upgrade tokamak

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Casali L.

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Future fusion reactors, foreseen in the “European road map” such as DEMO, will operate under more demanding conditions compared to present devices. They will require high divertor and core radiation by impurity seeding to reduce heat loads on divertor target plates. In addition, DEMO will have to work at high core densities to reach adequate fusion performance. The performance of fusion reactors depends on three essential parameters: temperature, density and energy confinement time. The latter characterizes the loss rate due to both radiation and transport processes. The DEMO foreseen scenarios described above were not investigated so far, but are now addressed at the ASDEX Upgrade tokamak. In this work we present the transport analysis of such scenarios. Plasma with high radiation by impurity seeding: transport analysis taking into account the radiation distribution shows no change in transport during impurity seeding. The observed confinement improvement is an effect of higher pedestal temperatures which extend to the core via stiffness. A non coronal radiation model was developed and compared to the bolometric measurements in order to provide a reliable radiation profile for transport calculations. High density plasmas with pellets: the analysis of kinetic profiles reveals a transient phase at the start of the pellet fuelling due to a slower density build up compared to the temperature decrease. The low particle diffusion can explain the confinement behaviour.

Metal hydrides based high energy density thermal battery

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fang, Zhigang Zak; Zhou, Chengshang; Fan, Peng; Udell, Kent S.; Bowman, Robert C.; Vajo, John J.; Purewal, Justin J.; Kekelia, Bidzina

2015-01-01

Highlights: • The principle of the thermal battery using advanced metal hydrides was demonstrated. • The thermal battery used MgH 2 and TiMnV as a working pair. • High energy density can be achieved by the use of MgH 2 to store thermal energy. - Abstract: A concept of thermal battery based on advanced metal hydrides was studied for heating and cooling of cabins in electric vehicles. The system utilized a pair of thermodynamically matched metal hydrides as energy storage media. The pair of hydrides that was identified and developed was: (1) catalyzed MgH 2 as the high temperature hydride material, due to its high energy density and enhanced kinetics; and (2) TiV 0.62 Mn 1.5 alloy as the matching low temperature hydride. Further, a proof-of-concept prototype was built and tested, demonstrating the potential of the system as HVAC for transportation vehicles

Hydrate-melt electrolytes for high-energy-density aqueous batteries

Science.gov (United States)

Yamada, Yuki; Usui, Kenji; Sodeyama, Keitaro; Ko, Seongjae; Tateyama, Yoshitaka; Yamada, Atsuo

2016-10-01

Aqueous Li-ion batteries are attracting increasing attention because they are potentially low in cost, safe and environmentally friendly. However, their low energy density (water and the limited selection of suitable negative electrodes, is problematic for their future widespread application. Here, we explore optimized eutectic systems of several organic Li salts and show that a room-temperature hydrate melt of Li salts can be used as a stable aqueous electrolyte in which all water molecules participate in Li+ hydration shells while retaining fluidity. This hydrate-melt electrolyte enables a reversible reaction at a commercial Li4Ti5O12 negative electrode with a low reaction potential (1.55 V versus Li+/Li) and a high capacity (175 mAh g-1). The resultant aqueous Li-ion batteries with high energy density (>130 Wh kg-1) and high voltage (˜2.3-3.1 V) represent significant progress towards performance comparable to that of commercial non-aqueous batteries (with energy densities of ˜150-400 Wh kg-1 and voltages of ˜2.4-3.8 V).

Construction of a four tip scanning tunneling microscope/scanning electron microscope combination and conductivity measurements of silicide nanowires; Aufbau einer Vierspitzen-Rastertunnelmikroskop/Rasterelektronenmikroskop-Kombination und Leitfaehigkeitsmessungen an Silizid Nanodraehten

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zubkov, Evgeniy

2013-09-01

In this work the combination of a four-tip scanning tunneling microscope with a scanning electron microscope is presented. By means of this apparatus it is possible to perform the conductivity measurements on the in-situ prepared nanostructures in ultra-high vacuum. With the aid of a scanning electron microscope (SEM), it becomes possible to position the tunneling tips of the four-tip scanning tunneling microscope (STM), so that an arrangement for a four-point probe measurement on nanostructures can be obtained. The STM head was built according to the novel coaxial Beetle concept. This concept allows on the one hand, a very compact arrangement of the components of the STM and on the other hand, the new-built STM head has a good mechanical stability, in order to achieve atomic resolution with all four STM units. The atomic resolution of the STM units was confirmed by scanning a Si(111)-7 x 7 surface. The thermal drift during the STM operation, as well as the resonant frequencies of the mechanical structure of the STM head, were determined. The scanning electron microscope allows the precise and safe navigation of the tunneling tips on the sample surface. Multi tip spectroscopy with up to four STM units can be performed synchronously. To demonstrate the capabilities of the new-built apparatus the conductivity measurements were carried out on metallic yttrium silicide nanowires. The nanowires were prepared by the in-situ deposition of yttrium on a heated Si(110) sample surface. Current-voltage curves were recorded on the nanowires and on the wetting layer in-between. The curves indicate an existence of the Schottky barrier between the yttrium silicide nanowires and the silicon bulk. By means of the two-tip measurements with a gate, the insulating property of the Schottky barrier has been confirmed. Using this Schottky barrier, it is possible to limit the current to the nanowire and to prevent it from flowing through the silicon bulk. A four-tip resistance measurement

Evaporation of carbon using electrons of a high density plasma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Muhl, S.; Camps, E.; Escobar A, L.; Garcia E, J.L.; Olea, O.

1999-01-01

The high density plasmas are used frequently in the preparation of thin films or surface modification, for example to nitridation. In these processes, are used mainly the ions and the neutrals which compose the plasma. However, the electrons present in the plasma are not used, except in the case of chemical reactions induced by collisions, although the electron bombardment usually get hot the work piece. Through the adequate polarization of a conductor material, it is possible to extract electrons from a high density plasma at low pressure, that could be gotten the evaporation of this material. As result of the interaction between the plasma and the electron flux with the vapor produced, this last will be ionized. In this work, it is reported the use of this novelty arrangement to prepare carbon thin films using a high density argon plasma and a high purity graphite bar as material to evaporate. It has been used substrates outside plasma and immersed in the plasma. Also it has been reported the plasma characteristics (temperature and electron density, energy and ions flux), parameters of the deposit process (deposit rate and ion/neutral rate) as well as the properties of the films obtained (IR absorption spectra and UV/Vis, elemental analysis, hardness and refractive index. (Author)

Lower hybrid current drive at ITER-relevant high plasma densities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cesario, R.; Amicucci, L.; Cardinali, A.; Castaldo, C.; Marinucci, M.; Panaccione, L.; Pericoli-Ridolfini, V.; Tuccillo, A. A.; Tudisco, O.; Calabro, G.

2009-01-01

Recent experiments indicated that a further non-inductive current, besides bootstrap, should be necessary for developing advanced scenario for ITER. The lower hybrid current drive (LHCD) should provide such tool, but its effectiveness was still not proved in operations with ITER-relevant density of the plasma column periphery. Progress of the LH deposition modelling is presented, performed considering the wave physics of the edge, and different ITER-relevant edge parameters. Operations with relatively high edge electron temperatures are expected to reduce the LH || spectral broadening and, consequently, enabling the LH power to propagate also in high density plasmas ( || is the wavenumber component aligned to the confinement magnetic field). New results of FTU experiments are presented, performed by following the aforementioned modeling: they indicate that, for the first time, the LHCD conditions are established by operating at ITER-relevant high edge densities.

An overview of the oxidation performance of silicide diffusion coatings for vanadium-based alloys for generation IV reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chaia, N.; Mathieu, S.; Cozzika, T.; Rouillard, F.; Desgranges, C.; Courouau, J.L.; Petitjean, C.; David, N.; Vilasi, M.

2013-01-01

Highlights: ► Diffusion barrier to oxygen were manufactured by pack cementation diffusion process. ► The use of CrSi 2 + Si and TiSi 2 + Si as masteralloys increased the quality of the coating. ► Thermodynamic stability (coatings/vanadium) was obtained at the operating temperature. ► MSi 2 coatings developed low growing oxide scale in air and at low oxygen pressure. ► Coatings presented high compatibility with liquid sodium ( 2 ) for 360 h. - Abstract: This study focuses on the development of new protective coatings for the vanadium-based alloy V-4Cr-4Ti. Halide-activated pack-cementation (HAPC) technique was used to develop V x Si y multilayered diffusive silicide coatings. The outer layers (coatings) were formed of VSi 2 doped with 27 at.% Cr or TiSi 2 . These compounds exhibited a very low oxidation rate at 650 °C, both in air and at a low oxygen pressure (He, 5 ppm O 2 ). The coatings formed mainly of MSi 2 were found to be insensitive to pesting and largely unreactive to liquid sodium ( 2 ) during a 360 h compatibility test at 550 °C.

Workshop on extremely high energy density plasmas and their diagnostics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ishii, Shozo (ed.)

2001-09-01

Compiled are the papers presented at the workshop on 'Extremely High Energy Density Plasmas and Their Diagnostics' held at National Institute for Fusion Science. The papers cover physics and applications of extremely high-energy density plasmas such as dense z-pinch, plasma focus, and intense pulsed charged beams. Separate abstracts were presented for 7 of the papers in this report. The remaining 25 were considered outside the subject scope of INIS. (author)

Workshop on extremely high energy density plasmas and their diagnostics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ishii, Shozo

2001-09-01

Compiled are the papers presented at the workshop on 'Extremely High Energy Density Plasmas and Their Diagnostics' held at National Institute for Fusion Science. The papers cover physics and applications of extremely high-energy density plasmas such as dense z-pinch, plasma focus, and intense pulsed charged beams. Separate abstracts were presented for 7 of the papers in this report. The remaining 25 were considered outside the subject scope of INIS. (author)

Status of core conversion with LEU silicide fuel in JRR-4

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nakajima, Teruo; Ohnishi, Nobuaki; Shirai, Eiji [Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute, Ibaraki-ken (Japan)

1997-08-01

Japan Research Reactor No.4 (JRR-4) is a light water moderated and cooled, 93% enriched uranium ETR-type fuel used and swimming pool type reactor with thermal output of 3.5MW. Since the first criticality was achieved on January 28, 1965, JRR-4 has been used for shielding experiments, radioisotope production, neutron activation analyses, training for reactor engineers and so on for about 30 years. Within the framework of the RERTR Program, the works for conversion to LEU fuel are now under way, and neutronic and thermal-hydraulic calculations emphasizing on safety and performance aspects are being carried out. The design and evaluation for the core conversion are based on the Guides for Safety Design and Evaluation of research and testing reactor facilities in Japan. These results show that the JRR-4 will be able to convert to use LEU fuel without any major design change of core and size of fuel element. LEU silicide fuel (19.75%) will be used and maximum neutron flux in irradiation hole would be slightly decreased from present neutron flux value of 7x10{sup 13}(n/cm{sup 2}/s). The conversion works are scheduled to complete in 1998, including with upgrade of the reactor building and utilization facilities.

Status of core conversion with LEU silicide fuel in JRR-4

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nakajima, Teruo; Ohnishi, Nobuaki; Shirai, Eiji

1997-01-01

Japan Research Reactor No.4 (JRR-4) is a light water moderated and cooled, 93% enriched uranium ETR-type fuel used and swimming pool type reactor with thermal output of 3.5MW. Since the first criticality was achieved on January 28, 1965, JRR-4 has been used for shielding experiments, radioisotope production, neutron activation analyses, training for reactor engineers and so on for about 30 years. Within the framework of the RERTR Program, the works for conversion to LEU fuel are now under way, and neutronic and thermal-hydraulic calculations emphasizing on safety and performance aspects are being carried out. The design and evaluation for the core conversion are based on the Guides for Safety Design and Evaluation of research and testing reactor facilities in Japan. These results show that the JRR-4 will be able to convert to use LEU fuel without any major design change of core and size of fuel element. LEU silicide fuel (19.75%) will be used and maximum neutron flux in irradiation hole would be slightly decreased from present neutron flux value of 7x10 13 (n/cm 2 /s). The conversion works are scheduled to complete in 1998, including with upgrade of the reactor building and utilization facilities

Fueling requirements of super-high-density plasmas towards innovative ignition regime

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sakamoto, Ryuichi; Yamada, Hiroshi

2014-01-01

Highlights: • Self-burning scenario with internal diffusion barrier is investigated. • Peaked density profiles allow to sustain self-burning plasma at lower temperature. • Core fueling beyond internal diffusion barrier is essential to sustain peaked density. • Acceptable pellet size becomes small to prevent fusion out perturbation. • Very high velocity pellet injection beyond 10 km/s is inevitable for this scenario. - Abstract: Super-high-density plasma with an internal diffusion barrier which is observed in the Large Helical Device has been extrapolated to a fusion reactor grade plasma to explore an innovative ignition regime and to clarify essential requirements for pellet fueling. The peaked density profiles due to the internal diffusion barrier formation allow reduction in the required minimum temperature to sustain a self-burning plasma down to 10 keV. Direct core fueling beyond the internal diffusion barrier is essential to sustain the peaked density profile. Furthermore, the acceptable pellet size becomes small in terms of fusion output perturbation because the effective volume of the burning plasma becomes small with the peaked density profile. In order to sustain a self-burning plasma with an internal diffusion barrier, therefore, extremely high velocity pellet injection beyond 10 km/s is inevitable unless another solution to the core fueling is found

StreamMap: Smooth Dynamic Visualization of High-Density Streaming Points.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Chenhui; Baciu, George; Han, Yu

2018-03-01

Interactive visualization of streaming points for real-time scatterplots and linear blending of correlation patterns is increasingly becoming the dominant mode of visual analytics for both big data and streaming data from active sensors and broadcasting media. To better visualize and interact with inter-stream patterns, it is generally necessary to smooth out gaps or distortions in the streaming data. Previous approaches either animate the points directly or present a sampled static heat-map. We propose a new approach, called StreamMap, to smoothly blend high-density streaming points and create a visual flow that emphasizes the density pattern distributions. In essence, we present three new contributions for the visualization of high-density streaming points. The first contribution is a density-based method called super kernel density estimation that aggregates streaming points using an adaptive kernel to solve the overlapping problem. The second contribution is a robust density morphing algorithm that generates several smooth intermediate frames for a given pair of frames. The third contribution is a trend representation design that can help convey the flow directions of the streaming points. The experimental results on three datasets demonstrate the effectiveness of StreamMap when dynamic visualization and visual analysis of trend patterns on streaming points are required.

High-Density Lipoproteins and the Immune System

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hidesuke Kaji

2013-01-01

Full Text Available High-density lipoprotein (HDL plays a major role in vasodilation and in the reduction of low-density lipoprotein (LDL oxidation, inflammation, apoptosis, thrombosis, and infection; however, HDL is now less functional in these roles under certain conditions. This paper focuses on HDL, its anti-inflammation behavior, and the mechanisms by which HDL interacts with components of the innate and adaptive immune systems. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS and proteomic studies have elucidated important molecules involved in the interaction between HDL and the immune system. An understanding of these mechanisms is expected to be useful for the prevention and treatment of chronic inflammation due to metabolic syndrome, atherosclerosis, or various autoimmune diseases.

TEMPO-based catholyte for high-energy density nonaqueous redox flow batteries.

Science.gov (United States)

Wei, Xiaoliang; Xu, Wu; Vijayakumar, Murugesan; Cosimbescu, Lelia; Liu, Tianbiao; Sprenkle, Vincent; Wang, Wei

2014-12-03

A TEMPO-based non-aqueous electrolyte with the TEMPO concentration as high as 2.0 m is demonstrated as a high-energy-density catholyte for redox flow battery applications. With a hybrid anode, Li|TEMPO flow cells using this electrolyte deliver an energy efficiency of ca. 70% and an impressively high energy density of 126 W h L(-1) . © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Kaon Condensation in Neutron Stars and High Density Behaviour of Nuclear Symmetry Energy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kubis, S.; Kutschera, M.

1999-01-01

We study the influence of a high density behaviour of the nuclear symmetry energy on a kaon condensation in neutron stars. We find that the symmetry energy typical for several realistic nuclear potentials, which decreases at high densities, inhibits kaon condensation for weaker kaon-nucleon couplings at any density. There exists a threshold coupling above which the kaon condensate forms at densities exceeding some critical value. This is in contrast to the case of rising symmetry energy, as e.g. for relativistic mean field models, when the kaon condensate can form for any coupling at a sufficiently high density. Properties of the condensate are also different in both cases. (author)

Kaon Condensation in Neutron Stars and High Density Behaviour of Nuclear Symmetry Energy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kubis, S.; Kutschera, M.

1999-04-01

We study the influence of a high density behaviour of the nuclear symmetry energy on a kaon condensation in neutron stars. We find that the symmetry energy typical for several realistic nuclear potentials, which decreases at high densities, inhibits kaon condensation for weaker kaon-nucleon couplings at any density. There exists a threshold coupling above which the kaon condensate forms at densities exceeding some critical value. This is in contrast to the case of rising symmetry energy, as e.g. for relativistic mean field models, when the kaon condensate can form for any coupling at a sufficiently high density. Properties of the condensate are also different in both cases

Metal hydrides based high energy density thermal battery

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fang, Zhigang Zak, E-mail: zak.fang@utah.edu [Department of Metallurgical Engineering, The University of Utah, 135 South 1460 East, Room 412, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-0114 (United States); Zhou, Chengshang; Fan, Peng [Department of Metallurgical Engineering, The University of Utah, 135 South 1460 East, Room 412, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-0114 (United States); Udell, Kent S. [Department of Metallurgical Engineering, The University of Utah, 50 S. Central Campus Dr., Room 2110, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-0114 (United States); Bowman, Robert C. [Department of Metallurgical Engineering, The University of Utah, 135 South 1460 East, Room 412, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-0114 (United States); Vajo, John J.; Purewal, Justin J. [HRL Laboratories, LLC, 3011 Malibu Canyon Road, Malibu, CA 90265 (United States); Kekelia, Bidzina [Department of Metallurgical Engineering, The University of Utah, 50 S. Central Campus Dr., Room 2110, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-0114 (United States)

2015-10-05

Highlights: • The principle of the thermal battery using advanced metal hydrides was demonstrated. • The thermal battery used MgH{sub 2} and TiMnV as a working pair. • High energy density can be achieved by the use of MgH{sub 2} to store thermal energy. - Abstract: A concept of thermal battery based on advanced metal hydrides was studied for heating and cooling of cabins in electric vehicles. The system utilized a pair of thermodynamically matched metal hydrides as energy storage media. The pair of hydrides that was identified and developed was: (1) catalyzed MgH{sub 2} as the high temperature hydride material, due to its high energy density and enhanced kinetics; and (2) TiV{sub 0.62}Mn{sub 1.5} alloy as the matching low temperature hydride. Further, a proof-of-concept prototype was built and tested, demonstrating the potential of the system as HVAC for transportation vehicles.

High energy-density science on the National Ignition Facility

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Campbell, E.M.; Cauble, R.; Remington, B.A.

1997-08-01

The National Ignition Facility, as well as its French counterpart Le Laser Megajoule, have been designed to confront one of the most difficult and compelling problem in shock physics - the creation of a hot, compassed DT plasma surrounded and confined by cold, nearly degenerate DT fuel. At the same time, these laser facilities will present the shock physics community with unique tools for the study of high energy density matter at states unreachable by any other laboratory technique. Here we describe how these lasers can contribute to investigations of high energy density in the area of material properties and equations of state, extend present laboratory shock techniques such as high-speed jets to new regimes, and allow study of extreme conditions found in astrophysical phenomena.

Frontiers for Discovery in High Energy Density Physics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Davidson, R. C.; Katsouleas, T.; Arons, J.; Baring, M.; Deeney, C.; Di Mauro, L.; Ditmire, T.; Falcone, R.; Hammer, D.; Hill, W.; Jacak, B.; Joshi, C.; Lamb, F.; Lee, R.; Logan, B. G.; Melissinos, A.; Meyerhofer, D.; Mori, W.; Murnane, M.; Remington, B.; Rosner, R.; Schneider, D.; Silvera, I.; Stone, J.; Wilde, B.; Zajc. W.

2004-07-20

The report is intended to identify the compelling research opportunities of high intellectual value in high energy density physics. The opportunities for discovery include the broad scope of this highly interdisciplinary field that spans a wide range of physics areas including plasma physics, laser and particle beam physics, nuclear physics, astrophysics, atomic and molecular physics, materials science and condensed matter physics, intense radiation-matter interaction physics, fluid dynamics, and magnetohydrodynamics

High energy density Z-pinch plasmas using flow stabilization

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shumlak, U., E-mail: shumlak@uw.edu; Golingo, R. P., E-mail: shumlak@uw.edu; Nelson, B. A., E-mail: shumlak@uw.edu; Bowers, C. A., E-mail: shumlak@uw.edu; Doty, S. A., E-mail: shumlak@uw.edu; Forbes, E. G., E-mail: shumlak@uw.edu; Hughes, M. C., E-mail: shumlak@uw.edu; Kim, B., E-mail: shumlak@uw.edu; Knecht, S. D., E-mail: shumlak@uw.edu; Lambert, K. K., E-mail: shumlak@uw.edu; Lowrie, W., E-mail: shumlak@uw.edu; Ross, M. P., E-mail: shumlak@uw.edu; Weed, J. R., E-mail: shumlak@uw.edu [Aerospace and Energetics Research Program, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, 98195-2250 (United States)

2014-12-15

The ZaP Flow Z-Pinch research project[1] at the University of Washington investigates the effect of sheared flows on MHD instabilities. Axially flowing Z-pinch plasmas are produced that are 100 cm long with a 1 cm radius. The plasma remains quiescent for many radial Alfvén times and axial flow times. The quiescent periods are characterized by low magnetic mode activity measured at several locations along the plasma column and by stationary visible plasma emission. Plasma evolution is modeled with high-resolution simulation codes – Mach2, WARPX, NIMROD, and HiFi. Plasma flow profiles are experimentally measured with a multi-chord ion Doppler spectrometer. A sheared flow profile is observed to be coincident with the quiescent period, and is consistent with classical plasma viscosity. Equilibrium is determined by diagnostic measurements: interferometry for density; spectroscopy for ion temperature, plasma flow, and density[2]; Thomson scattering for electron temperature; Zeeman splitting for internal magnetic field measurements[3]; and fast framing photography for global structure. Wall stabilization has been investigated computationally and experimentally by removing 70% of the surrounding conducting wall to demonstrate no change in stability behavior.[4] Experimental evidence suggests that the plasma lifetime is only limited by plasma supply and current waveform. The flow Z-pinch concept provides an approach to achieve high energy density plasmas,[5] which are large, easy to diagnose, and persist for extended durations. A new experiment, ZaP-HD, has been built to investigate this approach by separating the flow Z-pinch formation from the radial compression using a triaxial-electrode configuration. This innovation allows more detailed investigations of the sheared flow stabilizing effect, and it allows compression to much higher densities than previously achieved on ZaP by reducing the linear density and increasing the pinch current. Experimental results and

High density aseismic spent fuel storage racks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Louvat, J.P.

1985-05-01

After the reasons of the development of high density aseismic spent fuel racks by FRAMATOME and LEMER, a description is presented, as also the codes, standards and regulations used to design this FRAMATOME storage rack. Tests have been carried out concerning criticality, irradiation of Cadminox, corrosion of the cell, and the seismic behaviour

High-density cervical ureaplasma urealyticum colonization in pregnant women

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ranđelović Gordana

2006-01-01

Full Text Available Background/aim: Ureaplasma urealyticum, a common commensal of the female lower genital tract, has been observed as an important opportunistic pathogen during pregnancy. The aims of this study were to determine the degree of cervical colonization with U. urealyticum in pregnant women with risk pregnancy and in pregnant women with normal term delivery and to evaluate the correlation between high-density cervical U. urealyticum colonization and premature rupture of membranes (PROM as well. Methods. This research was conducted on the samples comprising 130 hospitalized pregnant women with threatening preterm delivery and premature rupture of membranes. The control group consisted of 39 pregnant women with term delivery without PROM. In addition to standard bacteriological examination and performing direct immunofluorescence test to detect Chlamydia trachomatis, cervical swabs were also examined for the presence of U. urealyticum and Mycoplasma hominis by commercially available Mycofast Evolution 2 test (International Microbio, France. Results. The number of findings with isolated high-density U. urealyticum in the target group was 69 (53.08%, while in the control group was 14 (35.90%. Premature rupture of membranes (PROM occurred in 43 (33.08% examinees: 29 were pPROM, and 14 were PROM. The finding of U.urealyticum ≥104 was determined in 25 (58.14% pregnant women with rupture, 17 were pPROM, and 8 were PROM. There was statistically significant difference in the finding of high-density U. urealyticum between the pregnant women with PROM and the control group (χ² = 4.06, p < 0.05. U. urealyticum was predominant bacterial species found in 62.79% of isolates in the PROM cases, while in 32.56% it was isolated alone. Among the 49 pregnant women with preterm delivery, pPROM occurred in 29 (59.18% examinees, and in 70.83% of pregnant women with findings of high-density U. urealyticum pPROM was observed. Conclusion. Cervical colonization with U

Bremsstrahlung spectra for Al, Cs, and Au atoms in high-temperature, high-density plasmas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, L.; Pratt, R.H.; Tseng, H.K.

1985-01-01

Results are presented from a numerical calculation for the bremsstrahlung spectrum and Gaunt factors of Al, Cs, and Au atoms in high-temperature (-T), high-density (-rho) plasmas. Plasma temperatures kT = 0.1 and 1.0 keV and plasma densities rho = rho 0 (the normal solid density) and rho = 100rho 0 are considered. This allows us to determine the generality and identify the origins of features which we had previously identified in calculations for Cs. We also now present results for the total energy loss of an electron in such a plasma. We use a relativistic multipole code which treats the bremsstrahlung process as a single-electron transition in a static screened central potential. We take for the static potential corresponding to an atom in a hot dense plasma the finite-temperature, finite-density Thomas-Fermi model. This approach corresponds to an average atom in local thermodynamic equilibrium. In comparison to isolated-neutral-atom results we observe general suppression of cross sections and a particular suppression in the tip region of the spectrum. Within this model, both superscreening and shape resonances are found in the circumstances of extreme density. At more normal densities and except for the soft-photon end, the spectrum at these energies for an atom in a hot plasma (characterized by an average degree of ionization) can be well represented by the spectrum of the corresponding isolated ion, which has a similar potential shape at the distances which characterize the process

Positron camera with high-density avalanche chambers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Manfrass, D.; Enghardt, W.; Fromm, W.D.; Wohlfarth, D.; Hennig, K.

1988-01-01

The results of an extensive investigation of the properties of high-density avalanche chambers (HIDAC) are presented. This study has been performed in order to optimize the layout of HIDAC detectors, since they are intended to be applied as position sensitive detectors for annihilation radiation in a positron emission tomograph being under construction. (author)

ELS-LEED-study of low-dimensional plasmons in DySi2 layers and nanowires

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rugeramigabo, Eddy Patrick

2007-01-01

Low-dimensional dysprosium silicide metal systems grown on Si have been characterized by means of energy loss spectroscopy of low energy electron diffraction. The several silicide phases depending on the growth conditions have been observed. Moreover collective charge excitations were clearly detected and identified as low-dimensional plasmons which have a different dispersion compared to the well known bulk and surface plasmons. Dy-silicide has been grown on Si(111) by means of molecular beam epitaxy. Due to its small lattice mismatch (-0.3%) to Si(111), Dy-silicide grows in epitaxial high quality crystalline layers. In the submonolayer regime, many silicide phases coexist until the silicide coverage approaches 1ML, and shows the characteristic 1 x 1 diffraction pattern with the stoichiometry DySi 2 . With further increasing of the coverage, the silicide turns to the multilayer phase. The collective electronic excitations in the monolayer structure have been found to have a 2D-character. Accordingly the plasmon dispersion reaches zero in the long-wavelength limit (at vanishing wave number q) and shows a √(q) behaviour until it entered the domain of strong damping. When grown on Si (001) the Dy-silicide formed an array of parallel nanowires, in the direction normal to the dimer row direction and their length was limited by the crossing of another nanowire. A structure dependent energy loss was observed: the energy loss were only sufficiently intense when the 7 x 2 reconstruction has formed. An possibility of creating vast area with only parallel nanowires in one direction was performed on vicinal Si(001) with four degree miscut. At the same coverage where the 7 x 2 reconstruction occurs on flat Si(001), it was surprising that, besides the 7 x 2 periodicity, the diffraction pattern revealed a mixture of phases, with periodicities ranging from the 10 x 2 to that of the 7 x 2, which was observed as the limit of shifting reflex positions. We were able to confirm the

Effect of high density lipoproteins on permeability of rabbit aorta to low density lipoproteins

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Klimov, A.N.; Popov, V.A.; Nagornev, V.A.; Pleskov, V.M.

1985-01-01

A study was made on the effect of high density lipoproteins (HDL) on the permeability of rabbit aorta to low density lipoproteins (LDL) after intravenous administration of human HDL and human ( 125 I)LDL to normal and hypercholesterolemic rabbits. Evaluation of radioactivity in plasma and aorta has shown that the administration of a large dose of HDL decreased the aorta permeability rate for ( 125 I)LDL on an average by 19% in normal rabbits, and by 45% in rabbits with moderate hypercholesterolemia. A historadiographic study showed that HDL also decreased the vessel wall permeability to ( 125 I)LDL in normal and particularly in hypercholesterolemic animals. The suggestion was made that HDL at very high molar concentration can hamper LDL transportation through the intact endothelial layer into the intima due to the ability of HDL to compete with LDL in sites of low affinity on the surface of endothelial cells. (author)

Slow crack growth in post-consumer recycled high-density polyethylene

OpenAIRE

Sciammarella, Cesar A.; Yang, Y.

2015-01-01

An experimental study of slow crack growth behavior of post-consumer recycled high-density polyethylene blended with virgin high-density polyethylene copolymer has been done. The study has been performed under constant load and in baths of distilled water at 40, 60, 80°C. The specimen used is notched with side grooves. The test results of crack growth have been analyzed using linear fracture mechanics and the rate process theory. The results show that the resistance to crack growth increases ...

Series asymmetric supercapacitors based on free-standing inner-connection electrodes for high energy density and high output voltage

Science.gov (United States)

Tao, Jiayou; Liu, Nishuang; Rao, Jiangyu; Ding, Longwei; Al Bahrani, Majid Raissan; Li, Luying; Su, Jun; Gao, Yihua

2014-11-01

Asymmetric supercapacitors (ASCs) based on free-standing membranes with high energy density and high output voltage are reported. MnO2 nanowire/carbon nanotube (CNT) composites and MoO3 nanobelt/CNT composites are selected as the anode and the cathode materials of the devices, respectively. The ASC has a high volumetric capacitance of 50.2 F cm-3 at a scan rate of 2 mV s-1 and a high operation voltage window of 2.0 V. Especially, after a middle layer with an inner-connection structure was inserted between the anode and the cathode, the output voltage of the whole device can achieve 4.0 V. The full cell of series ASCs (SASC) with an inner-connection middle layer has a high energy density of 28.6 mW h cm-3 at a power density of 261.4 mW cm-3, and exhibits excellent cycling performance of 99.6% capacitance retention over 10 000 cycles. This strategy of designing the hybridized structure for SASCs provides a promising route for next-generation SCs with high energy density and high output voltage.Asymmetric supercapacitors (ASCs) based on free-standing membranes with high energy density and high output voltage are reported. MnO2 nanowire/carbon nanotube (CNT) composites and MoO3 nanobelt/CNT composites are selected as the anode and the cathode materials of the devices, respectively. The ASC has a high volumetric capacitance of 50.2 F cm-3 at a scan rate of 2 mV s-1 and a high operation voltage window of 2.0 V. Especially, after a middle layer with an inner-connection structure was inserted between the anode and the cathode, the output voltage of the whole device can achieve 4.0 V. The full cell of series ASCs (SASC) with an inner-connection middle layer has a high energy density of 28.6 mW h cm-3 at a power density of 261.4 mW cm-3, and exhibits excellent cycling performance of 99.6% capacitance retention over 10 000 cycles. This strategy of designing the hybridized structure for SASCs provides a promising route for next-generation SCs with high energy density and high