Award Data

Propagation Research Associates, Inc., (PRA) and Duke University propose to extend the recent developments of matched filtered chaos into a low-cost high range-resolution chaotic waveform radar. In the Phase I effort, PRA and Duke will design the radar system and build a prototype waveform generator that will exploit three essential properties of chaotic waveforms that can be applied to enhance r ...

The use of chaotic hybrid systems has been recently demonstrated in for potential noise-resilient matched-filter communications. A first demonstration at low (audio) frequencies using a combination of analog and digital components has been demonstrated. With this proposal, our objective is to devise a"chaos-on-a-chip"system that can exhibit similar features to those in while operating in the range ...

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Quantum Signal LLC propose to research and develop the TerrAdapt system for terrain classification and vehicle driving control. This work will result in fundamental research advances, but will be practical enough for application on today"s COTS vehicle platforms. The system will maximize vehicle mobility due to the following key features: 1) TerrAdap ...

ABSTRACT: The goal of this program is to develop an atom chip with a dual integrated and miniaturized optical and electromagnetic capability. We intend to develop a compact atom-chip-based system capable of producing and optically controlling and monitoring ultracold atoms with substantial reduction in complexity, size, weight and power consumption over the present state of the art. As part of ...

ABSTRACT: Propagation Research Associates, Inc., (PRA) and the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) are teamed to propose an innovative holographic receiver and processing technology for enhanced radar electronic protection. PRA/GTRI will investigate applying holographic processing to Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and Electronically Scanned Arrays (ESAs) in order to mitigate interference such ...

ABSTRACT: Electromagnetically-resonating infrared metamaterial elements may be used to control the phase of emitted radiation across a planar surface. Such a coated surface can be designed to produce a highly directional emitted wavefront from a large aperture high-angular-resolution array. Active angular control may be achieved using electronically-tunable metamaterial elements. Like all phased- ...

ABSTRACT: The Air Force is currently seeking improvements in capacity and responsiveness of Thermal Energy Storage (TES) systems. Current research and development with Phase Change Materials (PCM) in carbon foam and pelletization of metal (i.e. copper) encapsulated metal hydrides seek to overcome these limitations by increasing the thermal conductivity (i.e. copper, carbon) while also increasing ...

ABSTRACT: Fresnel-zone lens can meet many of the Air Force's requirements for conformal aperture technology including light-weight, large aperture size, and the ability to conform to a curved surface. However, aberrations limit the effective field-of-view of static Fresnel-zone lens, and the spectral performance is limited to a narrow band. A tunable Fresnel-zone lens with variable-zone-radi ...

ABSTRACT: This Phase I STTR effort will demonstrate an ultra-compact, lightweight spectrometer with no moving parts for the mid-infrared wavelength region. The planar integrated device will feature bound electromagnetic waves, known as surface plasmon polaritons, in the mid-IR spectral region. This range is ideal for chemical identification based on the vibrational spectra known for most molecu ...

Because of chemical behaviors of real DNA molecules, the nanotechnology envisioned by the Defense Department in this Solicitation will be possible only if design automation software creates nanostructures that exploit artificially expanded genetic information systems (AEGIS). AEGIS DNA molecules have more than the four nucleotides (GACT) found in natural DNA. Our software will accommodate nanoarc ...