Award Data

The design of future hypersonic vehicles requires detailed understanding of flow regimes ranging from rarefied to continuum. Hypervelocity flows are characterized by high temperatures, real gas effects, nonequilibrium chemistry, and ionization. The goal of this project is to develop unified kinetic/continuum solution methods with automatic domain decomposition for a wide range of Air Force applic ...

Higher efficiency solar cells are needed to reduce solar array mass, volume, and cost for Air Force space missions. Intermediate-band quantum-dot (QD) solar cells can yield dramatically higher efficiencies than current multi-junction (MJ) technologies. However, several issues must be addressed to demonstrate manufacturable, high efficiency devices. CFDRC aims to develop: 1) High-efficiency, ligh ...

Recent advances in THz-source stability, power and practicality have opened the door for active THz imaging in both commercial and military settings. AEgis is teaming with U Buffalo to develop a THz detection device that utilizes classical rectification effects in semiconductor point contacts (SPCs) to achieve response in the 1 to 10 THz range and is capable of operating at temperatures over 150 K ...

Proposed herein are novel design methodologies to create sensors for chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and/or explosive (CBRNE) detection aboard a Small Unmanned Aerial System (SUAS), as well as intelligent Bayesian-based plume analysis and source detection algorithms that offer capabilities for the Air Force above and beyond the state of the art. The assembled technical team of experts ...

Quantum computer technology is so critical and strategic that the Air Force Research Laboratory is itself working on a quantum bit focused on the trapped ytterbium (Yb+) ion. The current technology based on entangling electrons, photons, or ions are challenging to put together in multiple qubits. To make a qubit stable, it is essential to protect it from outside interferences that can disrupt the ...

hazardous chemicals such as JP8, chromium, and byproducts of led-free frangible ammunition and to hazardous environments. Of the many dangers Airmen face, the hypoxia-like unexplained physiological events pilots face are some of the most dangerous and elusive. Current wearable sensors cannot decouple complex, interdependent in vivo response. We propose to develop (design, fabricate, test, and demo ...

As both the response speed and sensitivity of thermal imagers have improved significantly over recent years, new IRSP systems are needed to provide greater dynamic range and faster response speeds. Addressing these issues, as well as producing a cost effective and modular IRSP system will be critical for providing quality scene projection for the next generation of infrared imagers. To address the ...

Truventic proposes to design, build and characterize a 5x5 array of fully functional MEMS-based plasmonic infrared scene projector pixels which operate at multiple wavelengths to support hardware-in-the-loop testing of missile seekers, forward looking IR cameras (FLIR), counter measure simulation and tracking systems. The approach avoids known limitations of resistive arrays and provides high dyna ...

The overall objective of this effort is to demonstrate that UTSI’s Nanoneedle array technology can be used to develop a material for application to spacecraft to produce passive electron emission in a space plasma environment. It is envisioned that this spacecraft material will be used as a coating placed upon the spacecraft surface, similar to MLI. UTSI has demonstrated that the Nanoneedle ...

Earths outer radiation belt, which consists of electrons with hundreds of keV to MeV energies, is a highly dynamic and driven environment.The large variations in electron flux, if unaccounted for, can cause satellites that travel through this complex region to experience anomalous behavior ranging from temporary satellite outages due to electrostatic discharge events in system electronics to poten ...