Abstract: A dielectric thin film material and method of preparation in which precursors are provided to form barium strontium titanate with lanthanum (La) added as a dopant. The precursors and La dopant are mixed with a solvent forming a solution which is deposited on a substrate to form a continuous film composition. In various embodiments, the dielectric thin film has a composition of (1-y)Ba0.6Sr0.4TiO3−(y)La, where y=0 to 10-mol. The thin film material has dielectric and insulating properties suitable for tunable microwave applications.

Abstract: A sensing device formed upon a substrate, including a method of forming the sensing device. A substrate can be provided, which is formed from a polymer. A sensor circuit can then be patterned and formed upon the substrate. One or more carbonized filaments can also be formed upon the substrate for use with the sensor circuit. The sensor circuit itself can comprise a capacitive type sensor circuit. A polymer can be coated over the sensor circuit and circuit components thereof to form an all polymer sensor for use in detecting chemical agents. Such a hygrosensitive polymer can comprise, for example, HMPTAC (2-hydroxy-3-methacryloxypropyl trimethylammonium chloride). The all polymer sensor formed thereof can also be utilized as a humidity sensor. The polymer can be laser carbonized by an argon ion laser to form the plurality of carbonized filaments.

Abstract: Systems and methods for probing the magnetic permeability of a material are disclosed. A sensor unit can be configured to comprise magnet layers thereof, including a soft ferromagnetic layer, a first hard ferromagnetic layer and a second hard ferromagnetic layer. An intermediate layer (e.g., conductor or insulator) can be disposed between the first hard ferromagnetic layer and the soft ferromagnetic layer within the sensor unit. Additionally, a spacer layer can be disposed between the soft ferromagnetic layer and the second hard ferromagnetic layer, wherein the sensor unit measures the magnetic properties of a material located a distance from the sensor unit through the magnetic interaction of the magnetic layers of the sensor unit. Conduction between the first hard ferromagnetic layer and the soft ferromagnetic layer generally occurs via tunneling.

Abstract: Based on the discovery that the melting point and solubility of onium salts are affected by the asymmetry of the substitution on cation, and that the branched substituents effectively shield onium cations from electrochemical reduction, new onium salts are synthesized and high performance electrolytes based on these salts for electrochemical capacitor are provided. The composition of the new electrolyte comprises an onium salt or mixture of such onium salts dissolved in aprotic, non-aqueous solvents or mixture of such solvents. The electrolyte is able to perform at high rate of charge/discharge, at low ambient temperatures, and within wide operating voltage, due to the high solubility, low melting temperature, and the improved reduction stability of the new onium cations, respectively.

Abstract: A structure and method for a voltage blocking device comprises a cathode region, a drift region positioned on the cathode region, a gate region positioned on the drift region, an anode region positioned on the gate region and a plurality of contacts positioned on each of the cathode region, the gate region, and the anode region, wherein the drift region comprises multiple epilayers having first doped type layers surrounding second doped type layers, wherein dopant concentrations of the first doped type layers are lower than dopant concentrations of the second doped type layers. The epilayers comprise at least one i-n-i layer and/or at least one i-p-i layer. Moreover, the multiple epilayers are operable to block voltages in the device.

Abstract: A spectrometric or photo-detector device accessory for illumination of a sample and highly efficient collection of light therefrom includes an ellipsoidal mirror having focal points f1 and f2; a first optical fiber leg having a terminus positioned at or near f1 and containing fibers for conveying light to f1 and collecting light emitted from a sample positioned at f1, a second optical fiber having a terminus positioned at or near f2, for collecting light reflected by the mirror and focussed at f2 and a rigid stand for holding the mirror and fiber optic cables in fixed alignment.

Abstract: A method of fabricating a colossal magneto-resistive detector using a thin film transfer method includes the use of a rock salt structure material as a substrate. In a second embodiment, the method includes the use of a perovskite oxide material as the substrate, and the rock salt structure material as a buffer layer, template layer, and release layer. Advantages associated with the method include not only the ability to produce a detector of the requisite film quality, but one which satisfies the temperature coefficient of resistance and fabrication temperature constraints. In addition, when employed as either the substrate or the buffer layer, template layer, and release layer, after bonding the rock salt structure material can be easily removed using water, and the excess rock salt structure material/water solution can then be removed with known techniques.

Abstract: A method for mixing an in-situ aluminum matrix composite with an aluminum-litium alloy via the spray deposition process to obtain an Al—Li composite.

Abstract: An optical method and apparatus for generating true time delay signals for a phased array antenna. An optical beam is directed along a series of N paths of equal length L having U-turns therebetween and optical sub-beams are extracted at ends of the N paths and converted to electrical signals to create the true time delays.

Abstract: A magnetic sensing transducer device that senses low frequency magnetic fields by using flux concentrators that modulate the observed low frequency signal, thereby shifting this observed signal to higher frequencies and minimizing 1/f-type noise. This is accomplished by the oscillatory motion of a microelectromechanical (MEMS)-type magnetic flux concentrator operated with a magnetic sensor, preferably made on a common substrate. Such a combined device can be used in a magnetometer. Such a device is small, low-cost and has low-power-consumption requirements. The magnetic sensor can be a Hall effect or other type of magnetic sensor. At least one MEMS-type fabricated flux concentrator is used with the magnetic sensor. The concentrator oscillates at a modulation frequency much greater than the observed magnetic field being sensed by the device.

Abstract: The invention features a modified catch tube component capable of performing the function of the conventional catch tube and the conventional MEM simultaneously. The catch tube will also feature a capability to accept modular units of mass for adjusting the available angular momentum (of the spinning catch tube) as well as to incrementally adjust inertial resistance for controlling post-impact translational motion. The safety and performance enhancements of the modified spinner are achieved by the above mentioned integration of the MEM with the catch tube. This invention will eliminate MEM free flight and prevent excessively soft, or excessively hard projectile impacts. Equipment such as rails and wheel sets are used to assure that the motion of the catch tube is constrained to translation and to rotation. The invention contrasts conventional spinners in that the motion of a conventional catch tube is limited to rotation only and the MEM to translation and rotation.

Abstract: Red-Green-Blue color-coding of overlaid registered stereo pair imagery from different spectral regions (for example, near-, mid-, and far-infrared) can be used to derive depth perception information. The human preattentive vision process uses coarse spatial structure in the scene to fuse the images for the detection of depth and motion cues. Optimization is accomplished by assigning green to the lowest spatial frequency content image, then red to the next lowest, and finally blue. If the fusion of one of the colored imagery layers produces depth perception information in one portion of the scene whereas the other two colored layers do not, the human mind can retain the information from this color and discard the inputs from the other two colors as noise. The same is true for the other two colors. Human color discrimination and depth perception are combined to greatly enhance preattentive object recognition in the fused stereo pair imagery.

Abstract: A semipermeable membrane that is capable of remaining flexible at a temperature of at least −60° C. is selective to liquid penetrants depending on the size and polarity of the penetrants, and more specifically, the membrane has sufficient selectivity so as to be capable of allowing water to diffuse therethrough at a higher rate than virtually all organic liquids having a molecular weight higher than that of methanol. The semipermeable membrane, which is produced from an unsulfonated block copolymer having polystyrene and polyisobutylene segments, includes a sulfonated block copolymer including poly (styrene-co-styrene sulfonic acid) segments and polyisobutylene segments. Prior to modification by sulfonation, the unsulfonated polystyrene and polyisobutylene block copolymer includes polystyrene monomer in an amount of from 5% to 90% by weight of the total unsulfonated block copolymer.

Abstract: An apparatus for detecting an underground abject includes a container in contact with the ground surface; a medium disposed in the container; at least one acoustic sensor disposed in the medium in the container; and an output device connected to the acoustic sensor. A portion of the container in contact with the ground is substantially acoustically transparent and conforms to contours of the ground. The acoustic impedance of the medium in the container is substantially the same as the acoustic impedance of the ground. A method of detecting an underground object includes receiveing reflected acoustic noise with at least one acoustic sensor immersed in a medium, the mediukm being desposed in a container in contact with a ground surface; converting the reflected acoustic noise to electrical signals; and, using an output device, converting teh eletrical signals to a form that can be sensed by a human to determine if the undergroung object has been detected.

Abstract: A multi-component material is represented by the general formula (I): Ba(1−y−y)PbyMxTiO3  (I) in which: M is Sr or Cd; x is the decimal fraction molar concentration of MTiO3, where x has a value equal to or greater than about 0.20 and less than or equal to about 0.75; and y is the decimal fraction molar concentration of PbTiO3, where y has a value greater than zero and less than or equal to about 0.40, and x+y is less than 1.0. In addition, a method of graphically estimating the composition of the multi-component material represented by the general formula (I) is disclosed herein. In a preferred embodiment, x has a value between about 0.28 and 0.66, and y has value greater than zero and less than or equal to about 0.34, while said material has a Curie point temperature of about 25° C. or room temperature. These room temperature Curie point materials are useful in uncooled thermal imaging applications.

Abstract: A method for fluorescence probing of particles flowing in a fluid includes defining a trigger volume in the fluid by intersecting a plurality of substantially orthogonally aimed trigger laser beams, each of a different wavelength, detecting light scattered from the vicinity of the trigger volume by a plurality of particle detectors each sensitive to a wavelength corresponding to the wavelength of a trigger laser beam, probing the particles with a pulsed laser triggered by the particle detectors, collecting fluorescence emitted from the particle in a detection volume and focusing it in a detection region, detecting the fluorescence focused in the detection region. The invention also includes devices for carrying out the foregoing method.

Abstract: A method of converting an analog signal to a digital signal includes (a) filtering the analog signal to the range 0≦fx≦fB; (b) sampling the filtered signal at a rate fS>>fN, where fS is the sampling frequency, fN=2fx is the Nyquist frequency of the sampled signal, and fB≦fS/2 is the constrained signal bandwidth; (c) converting the sampled signal to an optical sampled signal: (d) converting the optical sampled signal from a temporal signal to a spatial signal; (e) illuminating a smart pixel array with the spatial signal; (f) processing the spatial signal with an error diffusion neural network to produce a 2-D binary image; and (g) averaging rows and columns of the 2-D binary image using a digital low pass filter and a decimation circuit.

Abstract: A ferroelectric/pyroelectric infrared detector includes a lattice matched substrate material and a colossal magneto-resistive electrode material. In a second embodiment, the ferroelectric/pyroelectric detector includes a colossal magneto-resistive template material to accommodate the use of a non-lattice matched substrate material, and a colossal magneto-resistive electrode material. The embodiments of the present invention provide a semi-transparent electrode material of the requisite lattice constant value, crystal orientation, and chemical compatibility.