Abstract: Efficient impedance-matched gas laser excitation circuits integrally employ prepulse power generators. Magnetic switches are employed to both generate the prepulse and switch the prepulse onto the laser electrodes.

Abstract: In one embodiment of the invention, a tree branch corset comprises a generally rectangular piece of fabric or other material, slightly gathered along the bottom edge thereof, and having a plurality of sets of mating fasteners attached along opposite side edges thereof. In use, the tree branch corset is generally positioned around the base of a growing tree, and the bottom several sets of mating fasteners are buckled around the trunk of the tree. The tree branch corset is then lifted into a somewhat funnel-shaped position around the tree while each subsequently higher set of the mating fasteners is in turn buckled, thereby progressively compressing the tree branches upward until the tree branch corset is completely in place, substantially covering and protectively embracing the branches of the growing tree in preparation for its being harvested.

Abstract: An improved video recorder/transmitter with expanded functionality including a capability for editing and/or copying from one video tape to another using only a single tape deck. The increased functionality is realized through the use of analog to digital conversion, signal compression and intermediate storage in an integrated circuit, random access memory. The recorder/transmitter has capabilities to transmit and receive program information in either a compressed or decompressed format over fiber optic lines.

Abstract: Apparatus for depositing and tailoring anisotropic properties of ceramic oxide-superconductor films onto the outer surface of fibers, wires, rods, and bars and onto the inner surface of tubes, as well as onto the surface of disc-shaped substrates, employs first and second vacuum chambers, a cylindrical magnetron structure positioned within the first vacuum chamber, a disc-shaped cold cathode positioned within the first vacuum chamber for providing a beam of energetic electrons for injection into a plasma region of the cylindrical magnetron structure, and a ring-shaped cold cathode positioned within the second vacuum chamber for providing a disc-shaped beam of electrons impinging upon the deposited film for annealing it. The magnetron cathodes comprise either single metal elements or mixtures thereof.

Abstract: A variable rack for rising bread dough can be quickly and easily configured to cradle one or more bread doughs of the same or different sizes during rising and the risen bread doughs can be simultaneously removed from the variable rack to a baking sheet, in the preferred position of soft dough side up, for direct transfer into the oven. The variable rack supports a series of adjustable canvas loops that cradle rising yeast bread doughs to produce European style loaves of bread that stand free on a baking sheet in the oven, as opposed to being confined in a baking pan.

Abstract: In-situ generation of dangerous polyatomic gases is achieved by providing a solid elemental or compound source, one or more gaseous feedstock sources, a plasma generated in a partial vacuum, and beam impingement on the target to rapidly evolve the elemental species of interest. The toxic, corrosive, and explosive gas so generated in-situ can be better handled safely with lower operating cost.

Abstract: A fishing line weight comprising a mixture of baking powder and a thick, liquid sweetener such as honey or corn syrup, for example, together with a trace amount of a stabilizing agent such as silicon dioxide and/or gylcerin, provides the weight necessary to cast a baited fishing line a desired distance, but dissolves in the water following the cast, thereby eliminating the disadvantages of conventional lead weights.

Abstract: A disc-shaped plasma, generated by a ring-shaped cold cathode is used both as an in-situ large area (10-20 cm in diameter) VUV lamp and as a source of ground state and excited atoms. The atoms created in the disc-shaped plasma may be used for initiating sensitized atom-molecule reactions in the volume that dissociate the molecules as well as for providing external energy to heterogenous surface reactions. Multiple grid electrodes are used to extract ions or electrons from the plasma during the deposition process. The disc-shaped plasma is of narrow width which is optically thin for resonance photons emitted in a direction perpendicular to the disc to minimize undesired resonance trapping and associated line reversal. This VUV lamp operates without the need for optical windows; hence, ground state and excited atoms, created in the disc-shaped plasma, can diffuse from the disc-shaped plasma toward the substrate.

Abstract: A golfer swings an elongated implement which emits light from each end thereof. An upstanding frame provides a support for sensor/alarm units which are responsive to the light emitted from each end of the implement. The golf swing training apparatus serves to train a golfer's muscles to repeatedly perform the precise motion that has been proven over the years to be the technically correct swing motion required to excel at the sport of golf. The present invention permits the user to practice the golf swing motion slowly, stopping and holding the motion at each of several discrete, sequential positions of club alignment, thus imparting memory of the complete swing motion to the muscles involved in performing the swing motion.

Abstract: A process for large area hardening of photoresists or polymer films placed on substrates is disclosed. The process requires the use of a short duration (<1 us.) pulsed electron beam produced in soft vacuum by an abnormal glow discharge. The pulsed electron beam interacts with the patterned photoresist/polymer resist so as to harden or stabilize the patterns thereon by electron induced cross-linking. The use of a soft vacuum environment allows for both thermal as well as chemically induced hardening.

Abstract: Apparatus for coating optical fibers with thin hermetic films based on cylindrical magnetron reactive sputtering and charged particle assisted deposition is disclosed. The thin film coated on the fiber is composed of material sputtered from a cylindrical cathode as well as material from reactive feedstock gases. The cylindrical cathode insures uniform deposited film thickness on a cylindrical fiber at high deposition rates. A cylindrical inner extraction grid acts to create ion or electron bombardment of the outer surface of the fiber as it is coated. As a consequence of the enclosed cylindrical geometry, the high magnetron sputtering rate, and the in-situ charged particle bombardment, hermetic coatings of high quality may be placed on fibers pulled through the deposition apparatus at rates of 1-20 meters/second. An external laser beam directed along the longitudinal axis of the cylindrical magnetron may be employed to improve the coating process.

Abstract: A method for depositing and tailoring anisotropic properties of ceramic oxide superconductive films onto the outer surface of fibers, wires, rods, bars and onto the inner surface of tubes, as well as onto the surface of disc-shaped substrates, employs either tandem magnetron discharges alone or both an abnormal glow cold cathode electron gun together with tandem magnetron discharges. This deposition method provides uniform thin films having high growth rates, controllable stoichiometry and desired anisotropic microstructure. The magnetron cathodes are made from either mixtures or single elements of the metals. The oxygen component is achieved either from the cathode material itself or by reactive sputtering in an oxygen ambient or a post-deposition thermal or plasma oxidation. An external electron beam may also be used for in-situ annealing of the deposited films while placed under an external applied magnetic field to better align crystals in the films for the desired anisotropic superconducting properties.

Abstract: A cold cathode glow discharge electron gun operating in the abnormal glow region produces a wide area collimated electron beam employed for flood exposure of thin film materials through electron beam transmission masks, resulting in spatially localized exposure and patterning of the thin film materials.

Abstract: A cold cathode for generating an abnormal glow discharge electron beam within a vacuum chamber is mounted to a wall of the vacuum chamber such that only the emitting front face of the cold cathode, itself electrically insulated from the vacuum chamber wall by a narrow gap therebetween, is located inside the vacuum chamber, while the remainder of the cold cathode is located outside the vacuum chamber.

Abstract: An open wide area vacuum ultraviolet lamp for use in microelectronics processing applications employes a ring-shaped cold cathode to produce a trapped electron beam discharge of generally disc-shaped cross section in a low pressure molecular gas environment and without the use of VUV windows.

Abstract: Apparatus for generating multiply charged ions from a source of wide area for use in ion implantation is based upon electron beam plasma interactions which more efficiently create a large density of multiply ionized species than conventional plasma sources over a wide area (1-20 cm in diameter). The beam electrons are generated from a glow discharge electron gun operating in the abnormal glow discharge state. More multiply ionized species are created because of the larger number of electrons at high energy present in a beam created discharge as compared to conventional hollow cathode or thermionic cathode ion sources. By using a ring-shaped cold cathode beam electron generator it is possible to realize a wide area source 2-20 cm in diameter. This multiple ion source permits the realization of a fixed ion implantation energy using a lower electrostatic potential because multiply ionized species are accelerated rather than singly ionized species.

Abstract: A gas ion laser employs a direct current electron beam to create a rare gas ion density and a cylindrical magnetron to sputter a partial pressure of metal vapor density and to also create a rare gas ion density. Thermal energy charge transfer selectively pumps the upper metal ion laser transitions on a continuous wave basis.

Abstract: Compensation for the effect of parasitic and stray impedance which is present at the inverting input of known current feedback wideband amplifiers is described. The compensation permits these amplifiers to operate at higher frequencies without degrading the gain flatness of the amplifier and also simplifies the circuitry required to maintain correct biasing.

Abstract: An improved optical scatterometer includes a multiple detector array that enables the measurement of sample microstructure over an increased range of spatial frequency. One array of optical detectors is positioned in a plane perpendicular to the plane containing an incident laser beam and a specularly reflected beam to detect indications of back-scattered and forward-scattered light in that perpendicular plane. Two laser beams having different wavelengths may be employed to determine the optical characteristics of a film and an underlying substrate.

Abstract: An audio power amplifier employs highly linear power MOSFET gain circuitry that uses distortion cancellation rather than negative feedback to maintain high linearity and to greatly reduce transient intermodulation distortion.