Abstract: A method comprises the steps of: providing aqueous enzymes, wherein the enzymes are one of BamH1, EcoR1, EcoR2, and EcoRV; titrating the aqueous enzymes with a mixture of small molecule anions to form an enzyme/anion pair solution. Small molecule anions may comprise one or more of D- and L-amino acid esters, small D- and L-peptide pairs, and DL lactate solution. The titrating step is performed until the enzyme/anion pair solution becomes negative by zeta potential measurement. The at least one enzyme/anion pair may be dialyzed to remove excess anionic polymer using a dialysis membrane. The enzyme/anion pair solution is lyophilized to remove all of the water, forming a lyophilized solid of ultra-stable enzymes. Before titration, the positive electrostatic charge of the aqueous enzymes may be confirmed by measuring a positive zeta potential value.

Abstract: A method comprising: providing aqueous insulin; titrating the aqueous insulin with a mixture of small molecule anions, e.g. D- and L-amino acid esters, small D- and L-peptide pairs, and DL lactate solution, to form an insulin/anion pair solution. Titrating may be performed until the insulin/anion pair solution becomes negative by zeta potential measurement. The insulin/anion pair solution may be dialyzed to remove excess anionic polymer using a membrane sufficient to separate the insulin/anion pairs from excess small molecule anions. The insulin/anion pair solution may be dialyzed or lyophilized to remove all of the water, forming a solid of ultra-stable insulin. The positive electrostatic charge of the aqueous insulin may be confirmed by measuring a positive zeta potential value.

Abstract: A method for creating an antibody ionic liquid, comprising: providing aqueous anti-A, anti-B, or anti-Rh antibodies; cationizing the aqueous antibodies by the addition of stoichiometric amounts of an excess of a positively-charged crosslinker in the presence of a coupling reagent; titrating the cationized antibodies with a counter anionic polymer to create at least one antibody cation/anion pair in aqueous solution until the antibody cation/anion pair solution becomes negative by zeta potential measurement. The method may further comprise lyophilizing the antibody cation/anion pair solution to remove all of the water, forming a lyophilized solid; and heating the lyophilized solid to generate a protein ionic liquid. Cationized antibodies may be purified of excess coupling reagents by dialysis in water by a membrane, and the antibody cation/anion solution may be dialyzed to remove excess anionic polymer with a similar membrane.

Abstract: A computing device includes an array of addressable elements. Each addressable element is a hardware element that generates a substantially consistent response when interrogated. The device includes a processor coupled to the array of addressable elements and configured to communicate using a communication network. The processor receives a public key, and processes the public key to produce at least a set of addresses. Each address in the set of addresses identifies one or more hardware elements in the array of addressable elements. The processor generates a set of responses by interrogating the one or more hardware elements in the array of addressable elements identified by the set of addresses according to a set of reading instructions, appends the responses in the set of responses to generate a private key, receives an encrypted message and decrypts the encrypted message using the private key to generate an unencrypted message.

Abstract: A printed circuit board (PCB) comprises two or more PCB layers comprising of a dielectric core and conductive cladding on adjoining surfaces; one or more DC lines embedded in one or more layers of the two or more PCB layers; one or more RF signal lines embedded in one or more layers of the two or more PCB layers; wherein the one or more DC lines crosses over/under at least one of the RF signal lines to form at least one crossover, wherein the at least one crossover is no thicker than the PCB layer in which it is situated. The printed circuit board of claim 1, further comprising two or more generally parallel DC lines which converge to form a stack of superposed parallel DC lines where the two or more DC lines cross over the one or more RF signal lines.

Abstract: A method for purifying a boron nitride nanotube feedstock is disclosed, including an initial step of mixing a boron nitride nanotube (BNNT) feedstock with a solvent to form an initial mixture. This BNNT feedstock is made up of hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) particles and less than about 50 weight percent BNNTs on a dry basis. This initial mixture is then sonicated within a treatment vessel using an ultrasonic probe. At least a portion of the initial mixture is filtered out of the treatment vessel and across a nanoporous membrane at the same as the sonication. In this manner, the method provides a filtrate which is enriched in h-BN particles relative to the initial mixture and a retentate which is enriched in BNNTs relative to the initial mixture.

Abstract: A technique for exfoliating a transition metal dichalcogenide material to produce separated nano-scale platelets includes combining the transition metal dichalcogenide material with a liquid to form a slurry, wherein the transition metal dichalcogenide material includes layers of nano-scale platelets and has a general chemical formula MX2, and wherein M is a transition metal and X is sulfur, selenium, or tellurium. The slurry of the transition metal dichalcogenide material is treated with an oxidant to form peroxo-metalate intermediates on an edge region of the layers of nano-scale platelets of the transition metal dichalcogenide material. The peroxo-metalate intermediates is treated with a reducing agent to form negatively charged poly-oxo-metalates to induce separation of the transition metal dichalcogenide material into the separated nano-scale platelets of the transition metal dichalcogenide material.

Abstract: Identifying effects of geometric variations of physical parts may include measuring one or more surfaces of a physical part in three-dimensions, analyzing measurements of the physical part to determine a geometric variation from a baseline model, modifying an existing computational fluid dynamics (CFD) mesh for the baseline model based on the geometric variation using a mesh metamorphosis algorithm to create a target mesh for the physical part, and analyzing the target mesh using a CFD analysis to determine an effect (e.g., an effect on unsteadiness) in a system caused by the geometric variation.

Abstract: A system for defeating a threat unmanned aerial vehicle. The system includes a friendly unmanned aerial vehicle, a capturing device configured to be suspended from the friendly unmanned aerial vehicle for arresting a threat unmanned aerial vehicle, and one or more load-limited release mechanisms for removably suspending a releasable portion of the capturing device from the friendly unmanned aerial vehicle. In certain embodiments, the load-limited release mechanisms are configured to release the entirety of the capturing device from the friendly unmanned aerial vehicle upon capture of the threat unmanned aerial vehicle. In other embodiments, the load limited release mechanisms are configured to release only a peripheral portion of the capturing device to reposition a captured unmanned aerial vehicle to a central portion of the capturing device for carrying the captured vehicle to a remote location.

Abstract: A method and system for measuring strain in a 3D printed part is disclosed herein. The printed part can be formed with internal features that can be analyzed with a digital image correlation system to determine strain levels in internal regions of the part. The features are visually identifiable due to a different color, shape, design or other visually distinguishable characteristics relative to that of the base structural material. The features can be the formed from the same material or a different material from that of the base structure material.

Abstract: Shape-programmable liquid crystal elastomers. The shape-programmable liquid crystal elastomers being synthesized by filling an alignment cell with liquid crystal monomers. The liquid crystal monomers align to a surface of the alignment cell and then are polymerized with a dithiol chain transfer agent. The alignment cell is configured to impose a director orientation on a portion of the shape-programmable liquid crystal elastomer. For some embodiments, liquid crystal elastomer laminates are prepared by arranging a plurality of liquid crystal elastomers such that a director orientation of each liquid crystal elastomer of the plurality is in registered alignment with an adjacent liquid crystal elastomer of the plurality. The arrangement is secured and the plurality of liquid crystal elastomers cured.

Abstract: A method for reducing the variability, as measured by relative standard deviation (RSD), of an analytical testing technique is provided. This improvement in RSD improves the confidence in the values obtained during field testing. The method includes incorporating a focusing agent into the sampling media, which permits providing sampling media such as thermal desorption tubes preloaded with the focusing agent.

Abstract: A passive microscopic Fabry-Pérot Interferometer (FPI) sensor includes an optical fiber a three-dimensional microscopic optical structure formed on a cleaved tip of an optical fighter that reflects a light signal back through the optical fiber. The reflected light is altered by refractive index changes in the three-dimensional structure that is subject to at least one of: (i) thermal radiation; and (ii) volatile organic compounds.

Abstract: The present invention relates to processes for selective reshaping of nanoparticles in three dimensional articles, three dimensional articles produced by such processes, and methods of using such three dimensional articles. As a result of the aforementioned process, such three dimensional articles can have selective tuning that arises, at least in part, from the reshaped nanoparticles found in such articles. Such tuning provides the aforementioned articles with superior performance that can be advantageous in the areas including such as optical filters, multi-functional composites and sensing elements.

Abstract: An electric propulsion module coupled to a spacecraft capable of providing thrust at a level required for multi-burn orbit transfer is disclosed herein. The electric propulsion system includes an electric propulsion thruster, a propellant tank and an energy storage device. In one form the energy storage device is a battery operable to provide sufficient power to maneuver the spacecraft quickly to avoid space debris and/or move to a different orbit through a multi-burn thrust procedure.

Abstract: The present invention relates to Nb-based refractory alloys that are less expensive and less dense than some of the current Nb-based refractory alloys, have similar or better ductility, strength specific yield strength and oxidation resistance when compared to current Nb-based refractory alloys. Such Nb-based refractory alloys typically continue to be compatible with current coating systems for Nb-based refractory alloys. Such Nb-based refractory alloys are disclosed herein.

Abstract: A method and apparatus that measure M coupled channels of radar polarization data ({tilde over (y)}), that is a subset, which is less than the full set of received coupled channels. Sparse recovery operations are performed on the measured M coupled channels of radar polarization data ({tilde over (y)}) and a representation of a set of more than M channels of radar polarization data is generated from the sparse recovery performed on the subset of coupled channels.

Abstract: A tandem solar cell comprises a front subcell; a back subcell; and an interconnecting layer of Cr/MoO3 between the front subcell and the back subcell and connecting the two subcells in series. The back subcell may be an isoindigo-based polymer. The front subcell may comprise a carbazole-thienyl-benzothiadiazole based polymer. The front subcell may comprise an isoindigo-based polymer. The isoindigo-based polymer is a repeating 2-thiophene-terminated polymer. A tandem solar cell comprises a substrate layer; a layer of PCDTBT:PC71BM applied on the substrate layer; a bilayer of chromium and MoO3 applied to the PCDTBT:PC71BM layer; a layer of P(T3-il)-2:PC71BM applied on the bilayer of chromium and MoO3; and Ca and Al electrode layer on the top.

Abstract: A countersink go/no-go gauge is configured to aid a determination of whether a countersink aperture for a rivet is formed to a desired depth. The countersink go/no-go gauge includes a head having a depth defined between a top surface and a bottom surface and a shaft extending from the top surface of the head. The depth of the head is substantially equal to a desired depth of a countersink aperture. In some embodiments the go/no-go gauge includes tolerance features to provide a range for an acceptable countersink depth.

Abstract: A low-repetition-rate (10-Hz), picosecond (ps) optical parametric generator (OPG) system produces higher energy output levels in a more robust and reliable system than previously available. A picosecond OPG stage is seeded at an idler wavelength with a high-power diode laser and its output at ˜566 nm is amplified in a pulsed dye amplifier (PDA) stage having two dye cells, resulting in signal enhancement by more than three orders of magnitude. The nearly transform-limited beam at ˜566 nm has a pulse width of ˜170 ps with an overall output of ˜2.3 mJ/pulse. A spatial filter between the OPG and PDA stages and a pinhole between the two dye cells improve high output beam quality and enhances coarse and fine wavelength tuning capability.