Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Traveling-Wave Photomixer With Angle-Tuned Phase Matching
An experimental traveling-wave photomixing device generates narrow-band electromagnetic radiation at frequencies up to a few terahertz. The device is, potentially, a prototype of...
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
Holographic Circle-to-Point Converter
The figure schematically depicts the use of a special-purpose holographic plate to focus light from (1) circular interference fringes generated by a Fabry-Perot etalon to (2) a series of points, each...
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
Compact, Low-Power, Low-Voltage Laser Ignition System
A prototype laser ignition system has been developed for use in a hydrogen/oxygen-burning spacecraft thruster. The system could readily be adapted to terrestrial applications in which...
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
Mirror Structures Made of Pyrolytic Graphite
Experiments have demonstrated the feasibility of making mirror structures that comprise a thin face plate of chemical-vapor-deposited (CVD) pyrolytic graphite (PG) integrated with a thicker backing plate of CVD PG open-cell foam. The backing plate serves as a stiff structural support for the face...
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
Using Laser Rangefinders To Align Two Structures
An optoelectronic system provides information on the relative position and orientation of two structures that are required to be brought together slowly and gently in a prescribed alignment....
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
Designing for Optimum Response in a Pushbroom Spectrometer
A method of designing a compact pushbroom imaging spectrometer includes explicit consideration and minimization of nonuniformity of spatial and spectral response. It appears that...
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
Laser-Induced Rotation of a Levitated Sample in a Vacuum
A high-power laser beam can be used to apply a torque to a sample of material that is electromagnetically and/or electrostatically levitated in a vacuum. The torque can be used to...
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
Tailoring Cores of Optical Fibers by a Sol-Gel Method
A method of tailoring the cores of optical fibers to obtain optical properties needed for specific photonic applications exploits the sol-gel process. The method is expected to open new...
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
Optical Surfaces Based on Arrays of Microscopic Pillars
Surfaces would be textured with dense arrays of pillars characterized by micron and submicron dimensions, according to a proposal, in order to impart desired optical properties to the...
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
Nonvolatile Holographic Storage in Doubly Doped LiNbO₃
Recent research has demonstrated the feasibility of an all-optical method of recording and readout of holograms in photorefractive crystals, with capabilities for both nonvolatile...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
The KSC Simulation System
The Kennedy Space Center (KSC) Simulation System is a computing system capable of large-scale mathematical modeling for real-time simulation of the behavior of a complex system that could include many different...
Briefs: Information Technology
Digital Library of NACA Reports
The NACA Technical Report Server (NACATRS) is both a node in the NASA Technical Report Server and a stand-alone World Wide Web (WWW) site. The NACATRS is dedicated to the preservation and dissemination of...
Briefs: Information Technology
Finding Known Shapes in an Image by Pruning Parameter Space
An improved method of processing two- and three-dimensional image data to locate known shapes called "geometric primitives" involves (1) extraction of edges and other relevant image...
Briefs: Physical Sciences
Improved Infrared Imaging of Bulk Defects in CdZnTe Wafers
An improved method of infrared imaging of bulk defects in cadmium zinc telluride (CdZnTe) wafers has been developed. The method is intended primarily to be a means of identifying...
Briefs: Physical Sciences
Image Generators With Compact Optics
Compact image generators that contain illumination sources and electronically controlled spatial light modulators have been invented. Compactness is achieved by folding of the optical paths that link the...
Briefs: Physical Sciences
Hand-Held Instrument for Imaging Hydrogen Fires
A hand-held instrument that contains two silicon-based charge-coupled-device (CCD) video cameras (see figure) has been developed for imaging hydrogen fires. This or a similar instrument is...
Briefs: Physical Sciences
Improvements in Computed-Tomography Imaging Spectrometry
Two major improvements, described below, have been made in the construction and operation of a computed-tomography imaging spectrometer (CTIS). These plus future improvements can be...
Briefs: Information Technology
Program for Displaying Large, Coregistered Images
DataSlate is an easy-to-use Java-language computer program for displaying coregistered raster images representing large sets of data. The program includes a main viewing module that can display image data that have been converted into a special DataSlate format called "SimpleStruct" by use of an...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
GA Synthesis of Circuits Using a Linear Representation
A method of automated synthesis of electronic circuits involves the use of a linear (as defined below) genome representation of circuit elements and of connections among them, plus a...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Silicon Carbide npnp Thyristors
Thyristors (semiconductor controlled rectifiers) made from silicon carbide have been fabricated and tested as prototypes of power-switching devices capable of operating at temperatures up to 350 °C. The...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Small Lidar Altimeter Would Operate at Low Light Levels
A lidar apparatus called a microaltimeter has been proposed for use aboard a spacecraft in orbit around the Earth for mapping land and sea surfaces, including such features of special interest as ice, tree canopies, and flood plains. The microaltimeter is short for "microlaser altimeter"...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Improved Methods of Testing Cryogenic Insulation Materials
Two improved methods have been developed for testing continuously rolled blankets and blanketlike thermal-insulation materials typically used in cryogenic vacuum systems. Both...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Real-Time Optoelectronic Particle-Fallout Monitors
Optoelectronic instruments for real-time, in situ monitoring of particle fallout are undergoing development. Settings in which these instruments could prove useful include clean rooms for assembly of optical and electronic equipment, food-packaging facilities, and other industrial facilities in...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Program for Controlling Digital Instrumentation Recorders
A computer program enables the simultaneous monitoring and control of two commercial digital instrumentation recorders, each comprising a variable-rate buffer and a data tape recorder. The program can issue all standard tape-motion-related commands (fast forward, rewind, record, forward,...
Briefs: Software
Program Computes Tone Fan Noise From a Turbofan Engine
TFaNS is a computer program that predicts the tone noise that emanates from the fan stage of a turbofan engine. With the help of this program, engineers working to reduce fan tone noise can study the effects of proposed design changes and are thus more likely to be successful in their...
Briefs: Software
Software for Generating 100-by-100-km Images From SAR Data
SAR Processing System Precision Processor (SPS PP) is one of the computer programs used in the Alaska SAR Facility (ASF) [where "SAR" means "synthetic-aperture radar"] to generate image data products. SPS PP ingests data that have been received from the RADARSAT (a Canadian...
Briefs: Software
Sequencing and Job-Control Software for Processing SAR Data
The SAR Processing System Control Processor (SPS CP) computer program performs sequencing and job-control functions within the Alaska SAR Facility (ASF) [where "SAR" means "synthetic-aperture radar"]. SPS CP interacts with the Product-Distribution-and-Management (PDM) system of...
Briefs: Software
Software for Processing RADARSAT ScanSAR Data Into Images
SAR Processing System ScanSAR Processor (SPS SSP) is a computer program that is used in the Alaska SAR Facility (ASF) to processes scanSAR downlink data from the RADARSAT (a Canadian Earth-observation satellite) into a suite of image data products. ["SAR" means "synthetic-aperture...
Briefs: Software
Software for Wafer-Level Testing of Microfabricated Devices
Prober Assistant Measurement System (PAMS) is a computer program that automates the time-consuming process of testing microfabricated devices (integrated circuits and/or microelectromechanical systems) at the wafer level. PAMS was written specifically for use with the Karl Suss...
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