Abstract: A subminiature multi-pin/socket connector member (10) comprising an elongate housing and at least two rows of contactor units (11) mounted in the housing, each contactor unit including a contactor portion (12) extending from a front face of the housing and a termination (13) extending from a rear face of the housing, the contactor units and terminations being, each collectively, arranged in staggered formation, wherein the pitch of the terminations differs from the pitch of the contactor units.Also a contactor unit (11) e.g. for a subminiature multi-pin/socket connector, the unit being formed of e.g. metal strip material and comprising a contactor portion (2) e.g. of pin or socket form, a termination (13) and a torsionally flexible bridge portion (15) interconnecting the contacting portion and the termination.

Abstract: A process for constructing a strong, ultra lightweight support substrate for use in outer space applications for support and protection of items, such as solar cells, in both stored and deployed configurations. The process provides for forming a series of elongated, parallel ribs in polyimide films with the selective application of heat, pressure and vacuum to the films. The sheets are bonded back-to-back with the ribs oriented at right angles to produce the substrate.

Abstract: There are provided the aromatic diamines 2,2-bis-[(2-halo-4-aminophenoxy)-phenyl]hexafluoropropane, where the attached ortho halogen is preferably chlorine, and 4,4'-bis(4-aminophenoxy)biphenyl, as novel monomers for polyimide polymerizations. The former, when reacted with 2,2-bis(3,4-dicarboxyphenyl)hexafluoropropane dianhydride, provides a polyimide having exceptional high-temperature performance. The latter diamine is a low-cost monomer for polyimide production.

Abstract: Improved output power performance is obtained in a millimeter-wave integrated-circuit (MIC) voltage-controlled oscillator by forming an output circuit and a bias input circuit in a suspended stripline configuration, which is subject to relatively low losses compared with microstrip designs. A Gunn diode and a varactor diode are mounted in alignment and in close proximity to each other. The suspended microstrip configuration includes a suspended substrate with a Gunn diode output circuit and a bias input circuit on one side, and a varactor diode grounding pad on the other face of the substrate. A sliding short-circuit device aligned with the Gunn diode output circuit provides tuning of the oscillator over a relatively wide range, and avoids having to trim the Gunn diode circuit components for final adjustment of the frequency.

Abstract: A chemical laser including a laser pump which is relatively lightweight with no moving parts is provided. This produces a low pressure, regenerable, closed system for treating laser cavity exhaust gases to remove (i.e., pump) them from the system.The exhaust gases which emerge from the laser cavity of the chemical laser are pumped by a combination of condensation, cryogenic adsorption, and by reaction preferably with titanium, titanium-zirconium alloys, zirconium, tantalum, etc. These exhaust gases include hydrogen, deuterium and their halides, the halogens, oxygen, CO.sub.2, nitrogen and H.sub.2 O. This obviates the requirements for heavy equipment normally employed to produce a high vacuum in the laser cavity.

Abstract: A composite characterized by a controlled coefficient of thermal expansion and comprising a thermal coefficient control fabric embedded in a resin matrix and composed of yarns with positive and negative coefficients of thermal expansion. A composite circuit board constructed of the composite and having a coefficient of thermal expansion matched to a particular integrated chip carrier material, such as aluminum oxide.

Abstract: A technique for accurately and repeatably measuring the depths of junctions between adjacent layers in a semiconductor wafer, even when the depths are relatively shallow. A groove is formed in the surface of the wafer, with a cylindrical grooving tool that is inclined to the planar surface of the wafer, to form a groove that is tapered in width and depth. The wafer is then conventionally treated to enhance the contrast between the layers as they are exposed on the groove surface. Since each planar junction intersects the groove surface at an angle, the corresponding junction line appears as a part of an ellipse, and exhibits a well defined peak at the center of the groove. Direct measurement of the depth of the groove at this point, using a standard profilometer, provides the desired junction depth.

Abstract: A surface acoustic wave (SAW) device configured to operate as a spectrum analyzer, and having an array of input transducers disposed on a substrate in such positions as to produce a focused beam of acoustic energy at a focal arc, each position on the arc being representative of an input signal frequency. Output transducers produce electrical signals corresponding to the energy received at successive segments of the focal arc. The disclosed device includes various combinations of input transducer array improvements, some of which are to provide amplitude weighting of the input array, including aperture width weighting, capacitive weighting, resistive weighting, series-parallel weighting, and source withdrawal weighting. Another improvement in input array configuration eliminates close or overlapping electrodes of opposite polarities and thereby reduces parasitic capacitance and acoustic radiation between electrode elements.

Abstract: A local communication network for interconnecting data transmitting and receiving stations, such as computers. A number of stations are connected for transmission of data onto an outbound unidirectional bus and are connected to receive data from an inbound bus in series with the outbound one. A "locomotive" generator transmits locomotives onto the outbound bus, and each station, if ready to transmit, adds a packet of data to the next passing "train" led by a locomotive. The resulting efficiency is relatively high and the network delay is relatively low, these figures being even further improved by the use of multiple locomotive generators or a regular-interval locomotive generator. Other embodiments employ an open-ring configuration, and a star coupler to minimize inbound losses.

Abstract: There are provided the aromatic diamines 2,2-bis-[(2-halo-4-aminophenoxy)-phenyl]hexafluoropropane, where the attached ortho halogen is preferably chlorine, and 4,4'-bis(4-aminophenoxy)biphenyl, as novel monomers for polyimide polymerizations. The former, when reacted with 2,2-bis(3,4-dicarboxyphenyl)hexafluoropropane dianhydride, provides a polyimide having exceptional high-temperature performance. The latter diamine is a low-cost monomer for polyimide production.

Abstract: A system for remote measurement of structural forces includes a plurality of microbend transducers mounted along the length of the structure for microbending an optical fiber in response to structural forces, such as stress acting upon an oil or gas pipeline or the like. An optical time domain reflectometer (OTDR) has a light source for launching a pulsed optical signal for passage through the fiber and a photodetector for sensing as a function of time the intensity of backscattered light reflected back through the fiber, wherein this sensed time function is correlated directly with discrete longitudinal positions along the length of the fiber and the structure. When one or more of the microbend transducers is activated to induce a microbend in the fiber in response to localized forces acting upon the structure, a portion of the backscattered light is lost at the microbend. This attenuation in backscattered light intensity is sensed quantitatively and positionally identified by the photodetector.

Abstract: A spacecraft or transfer vehicle for transportation of a payload from a space shuttle parking orbit to a higher operation orbit, wherein the transfer vehicle utilizes housekeeping subsystems integrated into the payload, to avoid unnecessary duplication of these subsystems, for such functions as power supply, guidance, control, and communications. The transfer vehicle disclosed includes a propulsion system with at least one low-thrust bipropellant liquid rocket engine, to provide a "soft" or low-acceleration ascent, and employs two tanking stages, each having four propellant tanks, arranged symmetrically in a circular configuration. The first stage of four tanks is jettisoned during ascent, and the second stage, including the remaining four tanks, the rocket engine, and related supporting structure, is separated from the payload when the operational orbit is reached.

Abstract: Apparatus, and a related method, for fast carrier acquisition in a modem. The apparatus includes circuitry to speed carrier acquisition by the determination of which of two alternate phasors is being received during a baud synchronization period of a signal preamble before data transmission. Another aspect of the invention involves the use of a complex matched filter for the determination of the start of an equalizer training sequence in the signal preamble. The output of the matched filter exhibits a deep null at the start of the training sequence, since the beginning of the sequence bears an inverse relationship to the end of the preceeding baud synchronization period.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for providing a sequence of digitized samples to a modem in substantial synchronism with the incoming signal baud rate, but without using a variable sampling frequency. An incoming signal is sampled at a fixed rate, stored temporarily in a buffer memory, and then interpolated using a digital interpolation filter to provide a sequence of interpolated samples that are equivalent to those that would have been obtained if a variable-frequency sampling rate had been used. Any relative delay between the samples supplied to the modem and the baud rate is sensed and accumulated in an up/down counter. Then the accumulated delay stored in the counter is used to control the selection of coefficients for the interpolation filter.

Abstract: A scribing machine and method in which the fiber end projecting from a connector or other fiber holder is scribed and severed with a smooth, flat face having a mirror surface at a perpendicular angle to the fiber axis and at the precise length desired for the selected end use. The machine imparts a first preselected level of tension to the fiber during the scribing operation and a second preselected level of tension during the severing operation. The first level is below the tension needed to propagate a crack across the body of the fiber and the second level is above that level. The scribing operation is effected by a tool which is effective to score the surface of the fiber to generate a flaw during the scribing operation, and is withdrawn from engagement with the fiber during the severing operation so that the fiber is suspended without interference as the crack propagates from the flaw across its body.

Abstract: A fiber optic connector includes a housing having a mating end for intermating with an array containing optical fibers, for example a second fiber optic connector. A fiber clamp for holding an optical fiber is mounted in a mounting block with the combination movable toward and away from the mating end of the housing. A resilient member forces the combination of the mounting block and the fiber clamp toward the mating end while allowing movement away from the mating end in response to an overriding opposite force. A rigid fiber encompassing member extends from the fiber clamp to the mating end of the connector for receiving and transmitting the force which overrides the force of the resilient member.

Abstract: A process and related product in which ohmic contacts are formed in semiconductor devices employing compound substrates such as gallium arsenide. In the disclosed embodiment, a germanium layer (18) is deposited in those areas (14) in which ohmic contact is required and is subsequently diffused into a layer 20 of the substrate during a conventional annealing step required to relieve damage caused to the substrate during a prior conventional ion implantation step. As a result of the diffusion of the germanium, good ohmic contact can be made by deposition of a conductive metal 26, such as gold. Thus, a common metalization step can be employed to form both the ohmic contact regions and rectifying contact regions used as gates in field effect transistors.

Abstract: A method for removing ash, sulfur and inertinite from crushed coal includes float/sink treatment in aqueous solutions of monosaccharides, disaccharides, hydrogenated monosaccharides, hydrogenated disaccharides and mixtures thereof. Such solutions also improve the performance of such heavy media physical cleaning equipment as cyclones, heavy media baths, tables, spirals, hydroclones, flotation cells, jigs and solid-bowl centrifuges.

Abstract: a tri-mode coupler (80) for developing from a received signal including three waveguide propagation modes the three tracking signals (i.e. sum signal, elevation signal, and azimuth signal) used in a high-frequency monopulse tracking system and for transmitting a signal at a different frequency, the coupler comprises broadband means such as a two-arm turnstile junction (84) coupling a first circular waveguide section (82) to an E-plane folded hybrid junction (90) for separating out one waveguide mode of the received signal and receiving the signal to be transmitted, and a second circular waveguide section (86) of smaller diameter than the first waveguide section and coupling the latter section to an additional E-plane folded hybrid junction (88) for separating out the two additional waveguide modes of the received signal.

Abstract: A controlled scintillation rate decoy having microwave reflectors for reflecting incident radar energy in a manner to provide the decoy with a selected radar cross-section, and variable electrical impedance control means connected in electrical circuit with the reflectors for controlling the scintillation magnitude or scintillation rate of the decoy.