Patents by Inventor Laurence A. Gea

Laurence A. Gea has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • VO.sub.2 precipitates for self-protected optical surfaces
    Patent number: 5885665
    Abstract: A method for forming crystallographically coherent precipitates of vanadium dioxide in the near-surface region of sapphire and the resulting product is disclosed. Ions of vanadium and oxygen are stoichiometrically implanted into a sapphire substrate (Al.sub.2 O.sub.3), and subsequently annealed to form vanadium dioxide precipitates in the substrate. The embedded VO.sub.2 precipitates, which are three-dimensionally oriented with respect to the crystal axes of the Al.sub.2 O.sub.3 host lattice, undergo a first-order monoclinic-to-tetragonal (and also semiconducting-to-metallic) phase transition at .about.77.degree. C. This transformation is accompanied by a significant variation in the optical transmission of the implanted region and results in the formation of an optically active, thermally "switchable" surface region on Al.sub.2 O.sub.3.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 9, 1997
    Date of Patent: March 23, 1999
    Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the United States Department of Energy
    Inventors: Laurence A. Gea, Lynn A. Boatner