LLNL researchers have developed a method to enhance the performance of polyelectrolyte membranes by using a humidity-controlled crosslinking process which can be applied to precisely adjust the water channels of the membrane.
Keywords
- Show all (208)
- Instrumentation (39)
- Additive Manufacturing (37)
- Sensors (16)
- Synthesis and Processing (16)
- Diagnostics (13)
- Photoconductive Semiconductor Switches (PCSS) (9)
- Electric Grid (8)
- Imaging Systems (8)
- 3D Printing (7)
- Carbon Utilization (6)
- Compact Space Telescopes (5)
- Data Science (5)
- Laser Materials Processing (5)
- Therapeutics (5)
- Material Design (4)
- Optical Switches (4)
- (-) Materials for Energy Products (7)
- (-) Semiconductors (6)
- (-) Cybersecurity (4)
- (-) Diode Lasers (4)
![Adobe Stock image laser beam](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_exact_400x400_/public/2024-02/stockimage_laserbeam.png?itok=U06HtIhR)
This invention proposes to engineer the current density along the length of a laser diode to overcome the penalty associated with non-uniformity resulting from asymmetry in the gain, photon or carrier density despite having uniform contact. Optimizing the current density profile enables diode lasers to operate with greater power conversion efficiency or operate with equivalent power conversion…
![Schematic showing mismatched coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) coating](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_exact_400x400_/public/2024-02/IL-13312_Schematic.png?itok=5MN8Mf-U)
This invention proposes to engineer the temperature dependence of the emission wavelength of LEDs and laser diodes. The approach is to use a strain-inducing coating to counteract the intrinsic temperature coefficient of the emission wavelength of the LED or laser diode device thereby rendering it athermal. This invention avoids additional complexity, size, weight and power dissipation of…
![Photoconductive Semiconductor Laser Diodes and LEDs](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_exact_400x400_/public/2024-02/Photoconductive%20Semiconductor%20Laser%20Diodes%20and%20LEDs.png?itok=n50p3rOY)
This invention proposes a method to overcome the key limitation of electrically pumped lasers based on AlN, AlGaN, or AlInGaN, namely the lack of suitable shallow donor and acceptor dopants. As the band gap of these materials increases (and the emission wavelength decreases), both electrons and holes require greater thermal energies in order to ionize.
![Adobe Stock image laser beam](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_exact_400x400_/public/2024-02/stockimage_laserbeam.png?itok=U06HtIhR)
Laser diode lensing effect can be substantially reduced by creating a pattern interface such that the substrate is only attached at the diode mesa. This is achieved by either creating a pattern solder joint and/or pattern substrate.
![Custom PCB design of a PCSS Laser Diode Driver](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_exact_400x400_/public/2023-11/PCSS%20Laser%20Diode%20Driver.png?itok=WQ2FNHQF)
LLNL researchers have invented an ultrafast PCSS to drive a high-power laser diode with arbitrary pulse widths. These devices operate by supplying a high voltage (>10 kV) to one side of the switch. A short pulse of light illuminates the semiconductor, instantly turning it from highly resistive to highly conductive.
![JFET Device Structure](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_exact_400x400_/public/2023-10/JFET%20device%20structure.png?itok=NRzXbnhk)
LLNL’s novel approach is to use diamond substrates with the desired donor (nitrogen) and acceptor (boron) impurities. In order to optically activate these deep impurities, the invention requires at least one externally or internally integrated light source. The initial exposure to light can set up the desired conduction current, after which the light source could be turned off. Even with…
![Tunneling Diode between two DSRDs](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_exact_400x400_/public/2023-10/TunnelingDiode.png?itok=DfeB26vp)
Instead of producing individual DSRDs and bonding them, Tunnel DSRD's entire stack structure is grown epitaxially on a n- or p-type silicon wafer, resulting in a novel, “monolithic” stacked DSRD. A tunnel diode is essentially a diode with very highly doped p and n regions such that the reverse breakdown voltage is 200 meV or lower.
![Livermore researchers support efforts to limit the need for rare-earth elements in U.S. clean-energy technologies.](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_exact_400x400_/public/2023-07/Reducing%20Reliance%20on%20Critical%20Materials.png?itok=IuC6bH4r)
CMI—a DOE Energy Innovation Hub—is a public/private partnership led by the Ames Laboratory that brings together the best and brightest research minds from universities, national laboratories (including LLNL), and the private sector to find innovative technology solutions to make better use of materials critical to the success of clean energy technologies as well as develop resilient and secure…
![One embodiment of a solid-state lithium-air battery based on gyroid foams.](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_exact_400x400_/public/2023-06/Li-Air%20Battery%20Gyroid%20Foam.jpg?itok=gPAwVj0O)
LLNL researchers have developed a new 3D printable lithium-air battery that uses a novel thin solid state ceramic electrolyte. LLNL’s invention overcomes the combined challenges of low power density and low cycle life in previously designed lithium-air batteries by using solid state electrolytes to achieve stability and multiscale structuring of the electrolyte to achieve low interfacial…
![cyber](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_exact_400x400_/public/2023-07/cyber.png?itok=69VZRw3q)
CSP-POST provides the capability to inspect all incoming and outgoing emails while providing after-the-fact forensic capabilities. Using commercially available lightweight and serverless technologies, CSP-POST easily collects all email and parses it into easily searchable metadata, enriched and ready for analysis. The web-based application is deployed in a repeatable, testable, and auditable…
![thermoelectric cooler (TEC) embedded substrate for cooling of high power devices](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_exact_400x400_/public/2023-06/TEC%20embedded%20substrate.png?itok=vEz7ndQ8)
For cooling a high power device, the novel approach is to use a thermoelectric cooler (TEC)-based embedded substrate with proper selection of the TEC material as an active cooler. The packaging configuration of TEC allows cooling the entire die without the use of a fluid. The process is compatible with the thin film TEC material. Standard semiconductor processes can be used to manufacture…
![A system to cryptographically distinguish between human-generated text vs. AI-generated text](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_exact_400x400_/public/2023-06/certify%20data%20generated%20likely%20by%20human.png?itok=LbgHf3iX)
LLNL has invented a new system that uses public key cryptography to differentiate between human-generated text and AI-generated text. This invention can be used to validate that text is likely to be human generated for the purposes of sorting or gatekeeping on the internet, can detect cheating on essay assignments, and can be used as an automatic captcha that does away with the hassle of…
![SEM image of a prototype for a neural implant shuttle etched into a non-SOI wafer. The 7:1 (Si:Photoresist) etch selectivity used here allowed for a maximum structure height of 32 μm, with up to 75 steps of 0.4 μm height each. Scale bar 100 μm.](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_exact_400x400_/public/2023-05/SEM%20image%20prototype%20neural%20implant%20shuttle.png?itok=fpnfB5Yr)
For this method, a Silicon on Insulator (SOI) wafer is used to tailor etch rates and thickness in initial steps of the process. The simple three step process approach is comprised of grayscale lithography, deep reactive-ion etch (DRIE) and liftoff of the SOI wafer. The liftoff process is used to dissolve the insulating layer, thus separating sections of the wafer as individual silicon…
![Unique LLNL capabilities enable GaN superjunctions](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_exact_400x400_/public/2023-05/GaNSuperjunctions.png?itok=UtrYddDz)
The approach is to use Charge Balance Layers (CBLs) to create a superjunction device in wide bandgap materials. These CBLs enable the device to effectively spread the electric field over 2- or 3-dimensions within a semiconductor voltage sustaining layer instead of 1-dimension, thereby increasing the maximum voltage a device is capable of withstanding. The challenge of using CBLs is the…
![nanocomposite_aerogel.jpg nanocomposite_aerogel](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_exact_400x400_/public/2019-08/nanocomposite_aerogel.jpg?itok=PuNPrvkg)
Livermore researchers have developed two novel TiCl4 based non-alkoxide sol-gel approaches for the synthesis of SiO2/TiO2 nanocomposite aerogels. Composite SiO2-TiO2 aerogels were obtained by epoxide-assisted gelation (EAG route) of TiCl4/DMF solution in the presence SiO2 aerogel particles. Additionally, the same TiCl4/DMF solution was employed to prepare SiO2@TiO2 aerogels by a facile one-…
![Encrypting computer clusters](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_exact_400x400_/public/2022-06/hpcrypt.png?itok=VHVxx51a)
LLNL has developed a new method for securely processing protected data on HPC systems with minimal impact on the existing HPC operations and execution environment. It can be used with no alterations to traditional HPC operations and can be managed locally. It is fully compatible with traditional (unencrypted) processing and can run other jobs, unencrypted or not, on the cluster simultaneously…
![3D printed electrodes](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_exact_400x400_/public/2022-06/3D%20printed%20electrodes.jpg?itok=HPvcODM8)
Nanomaterials that are emerging out of cutting edge nanotechnology research are a key component for an energy revolution. Carbon-based nanomaterials are ushering in the "new carbon age" with carbon nanotubes, nanoporous carbons, and graphene nanosheets that will prove necessary to provide sustainable energy applications that lessen our dependence on fossil fuels.
Carbon aerogels (CAs)…
![Batteryless Sensor](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_exact_400x400_/public/2022-06/batteryless%20sensor.jpg?itok=OiEAlv22)
Chemical and biological sensors based on nanowire or nanotube technologies exhibit observable ultrasensitive detection limits due to their unusually large surface-to-volume architecture. This suggests that nanosensors can provide a distinct advantage over conventional designs. This advantage is further enhanced when the nanosensor can harvest its meager power requirements from the surrounding…
![Cell phone 2](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_exact_400x400_/public/2022-07/Cell%20phone%202.png?itok=k7L7xXwx)
LLNL's NeMS system enables network mapping operations by using two LLNL-developed software systems: LLNL's NeMS tool and the Everest visualization system. Each software system can be also used separately for their specific applications. When the two systems are used together as an iterative analysis platform, LLNL's NeMS system provides network security managers and information technology…
![3D printed electrodes](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_exact_400x400_/public/2022-06/3D%20printed%20electrodes.jpg?itok=HPvcODM8)
LLNL has developed novel nanoporous carbon materials for the surface-stress-induced actuator technology. The morphology of these materials has been designed to combine high surface area and mechanical strength. The process allows for the fabrication of large monolithic pieces with low densities and high structural integrity. One actuation technology relies on electrochemically- induced changes…