Award Data

This proposal addresses the attainment of conversion efficiency exceeding 35% in a single-junction solar cell. Non-absorption of long wavelength photons and thermallization of short wavelength photons accounts for the loss of over half of the incident energy in a single junction cell; however, a large fraction of this energy could be captured if the spectrum is first modified by an efficient phot ...

The Air Force has expressed an interest in identification and evaluation of nanoscale device architectures capable of functional logical operation in a VLSI format. However, fundamental limits prevent straightforward extension of optical lithography to nanoscaled device fabrication. Non-conventional lithography techniques such as x-ray and particle based methods (e.g., electron beam lithography) p ...

This proposal is for the use of state-of-the-art computer wargames to be used in the research on the impact and optimal use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in realistic combat scenarios. High fidelity, historically calibrated wargames ranging from sub-tactical ground-centric game engines through operational, strategic, air campaign, and naval-centric game engines will be used to address the fu ...

Industrial Control Systems (ICS) are critical elements in electrical, water, oil/gas, and manufacturing services involving supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA), distributed control systems (DCS), and programmable logic controllers (PLCs). These systems allow operators to monitor sensor data and remotely control field devices. Initially, these devices were designed for closed-network or ...

Military shelters currently use electrically driven Environmental Control Units (ECUs) to provide cooling for the air inside the shelter. The ECU is vapor compression cycle powered by a diesel generator, operating on JP-8 fuel. Other than fueling jet engines, the largest drain on U.S. military fuel supplies in current operations comes from running generators at forward operating bases. In hot cli ...

Development of a novel logistic fuel reformer that has excellent tolerance to sulfur and is resistant to coke formation is proposed. The reformer will produce a hydrogen-rich product that contains less than 1 ppm sulfur and is suitable for use with solid oxide fuel cells. Significant improvements in power density, startup time, durability, and cost relative to state of the art logistic fuel refo ...

We propose to develop a combination Tip-Enhanced Raman Scattering and Shear-Force Microscopy (TERS-SFM) instrument to study the composition and morphology of nanoparticles, surfaces, and biofilms on any substrate material. The instrument developed during Phase I will rely upon Scanning Tunneling Microscopy combined with TERS (TERS-STM) to test the effects of various excitation wavelengths and tip ...

A stand-off mid-IR based system offers great promise for the detection of chemical, biological or explosive (CBE) agents. Such a system has yet to be realized due mostly to broad spectral features and interfering substances. In this proposal we will demonstrate the feasibility of a system that collects laser induced thermal emission (LITE) from a substance and identifies it as known CBE agent with ...

This Small Business Technology Transfer Phase I project will develop ultradense, low-power plasmonic integration components and devices for on-chip manipulation and processing of optical signals. Both passive and active components will be studied. Detailed performance predictions will be obtained through finite element modeling (FEM) of the harmonic Maxwell’s equations. The FEM provides detai ...

Microscale, Inc. in collaborating with New Jersey Institute of Technology proposes to develop an innovative silicon nanomembrane mirror (SiNM) technology for adaptive optics by using a novel low cost and hierarchically-dimensioned multilevel SiNMs integration design.This proposed Phase I effort continues to bridge the gap between the present state of development of SiNM mirror technology and the p ...