LLNL researchers have developed a TDLAS-based, standalone, real-time gas analyzer in a small form-factor for continuous or single-point monitoring. The system can analyze multiple gases with ultra-high sensitivity (ppm detection levels) in harsh conditions when utilizing wavelength-modulation spectroscopy (WMS).
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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.
A thyristor will stay conducting until the current through the device is zero (“current zero”) or perhaps slightly negative. LLNL’s approach is to use the opticondistor (“OTV”) to force this current zero in order to force the device into an “off” state. By combining a light-activated thyristor with an OTV, a noise-immune, high efficiency, high-power switching device can be constructed. The…
The researchers’ approach leverages the concept that dopants have high diffusivities in Ga2O3; the key lies in the selection of the appropriate dopant. This LLNL invention describes two device types that employ this design:
Design and construction of a photoconductive switch requires a diamond photoconductor illuminated by light of a certain excitation wavelength.
Characteristics of the LLNL-developed switch are as follows:
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.
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…
This novel detector for characterizing IFE implosions is an alternative to the current RTNADs to measure neutron fluxes > 3x1011 neutrons/cm2 at high shot rates. The detector consists of a stack of small square metal wafers separated by thin insulating spacers. Every other wafer is held at high voltage while the remaining wafers are grounded. The stack acts as an…
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…
U.S. Patent No. 11,555,965 describes LLNL’s invention of “Illumination Frustums” for photoconductive switches to capture and “frustrate” the light from leaving the frustum. LLNL researcher’s latest novel invention, “Twister Oven”, achieves this by encouraging laser light absorption in a photo conductor material. Light enters the oven twisting and reflecting, making near normal incident multi…
Design and construction of a photoconductive switch requires a diamond photoconductor illuminated by light of a certain excitation wavelength. The diamond material is chosen to be doped with substitutional nitrogen to act as a source of electrons. The device architecture allows maximum light entering the aperture. The top and bottom electrodes are made of ultra-wide bandgap (UWBG)…
LLNL researchers faced this challenge by bridging the gap between VEDs and solid-state electronics (SSE). Their approach was to create a hybrid vacuum microelectronic device (VMD) architecture that combines the properties of vacuum as the electronic medium and the compact form factor and manufacturing scalability of semiconductor microelectronic chips.
Design and construction of a photoconductive switch requires a diamond photoconductor illuminated by light of a certain excitation wavelength. The diamond material is specifically doped with substitutional nitrogen, which act as a source of electrons. The device architecture allows maximum light entering the aperture. The top and bottom electrodes are made of ultra wide band gap (UWBG)…
The approach is to use a custom-designed frustrum and attach it to the optical fiber that connects to the PCSS. Light from the fiber enters the frustrum, spreads out, and enters the PCSS. Any unabsorbed light re-enters the frustrum and, because of its geometry, reflects back into the PCSS itself with only a negligible fraction escaping from the fiber. The shape of the novel frustrum is…
LLNL’s SAS technology embedded within a facility is developed to sense, detect, localize, alert, and communicate an active shooter(s) to first responders. It relies on three integrated compact sensors that detect sound, infrared light (from the muzzle blast) and vibrations emanating from a gunshot. Fusing the data from these detectors minimizes false alarms.
The key to time-reversal for an active shooter detection/tracking application is being able to estimate the space-time transfer function (Green’s function) between source-enclosure-receiver. This approach begins with the acoustic mapping of an indoor muzzle blast.
Commercial fiber optic cables are the current standard for carrying optical signals in industries like communications or medical devices. However, the fibers are made of glass, which do not have favorable characteristics for applications that require flexibility and re-routing, e.g. typically brittle, limited selection of materials, dimension constraints.
LLNL researchers have developed a high-volume, low-cost diagnostic test that is easy to use and provides results in under an hour. The testing platform will provide emergency responders and other medical professionals with the ability to screen individuals using oral and nasal samples, and obtain results in approximately 30 minutes. This point-of-care testing approach will enable rapid triage…
LLNL scientists have created a standalone pathogen identifier that can be placed in public settings, such as in stores or on street corners. Not unlike an ATM in physical size, this kiosk will accept biological samples from an individual for multiplexed analysis. The sample collection process will be sufficiently simple such that anyone could begin the diagnostic process after making the…
LNLL scientists have invented a method for multiplexed detection of PCR amplified products which can be completed in a single step. Highly validated species-specific primer sets are used to simultaneously amplify multiple diagnostic regions unique to each individual pathogen. Resolution of the mix of amplified products is achieved by PCR product hybridization to corresponding probe sequences,…
This LLNL-developed invention is multiplexed and utilizes the Luminex bead-based liquid array, which contains 100 different unique beads. Oligonucleotide probes with sequences complementary to the target sequences are covalently coupled to these unique beads. These capture beads are mixed with viral samples obtained from the patient via cheek swabbing or a throat wash and subjected to PCR in a…
LLNL scientists have developed a high-confidence, real-time multiplexed reverse transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR) rule-out assay for foot and mouth disease virus (FMDV). It utilizes RT-PCR to amplify both DNA and RNA viruses in a single assay to detect FMDV as well as rule out other viruses that cause symptoms in livestock indistinguishable from those caused by FMDV, such as Bovine Herpes Virus-1 (…
LLNL researchers have invented a system for identifying all known and unknown pathogenic or non-pathogenic organisms in a sample. This invention takes a complex sample and generates droplets from it. The droplets consist of sub-nanoliter volume reactors which contain the organism sized particles. A lysis device lyses the organisms and releases the nucleic acids. An amplifier then magnifies the…
LLNL researchers have developed a portable device which analyzes one or multiple types of body fluids or gases to test for one or more medical conditions. A bodily fluid (such as blood, perspiration, saliva, breath, or urine) is put into a condenser surface and is then separated into both a primarily gas fluid component and a second one that is primarily liquid. These two samples from the same…
LLNL researchers have developed a method to quickly and accurately identify the family of a virus infecting a vertebrate via PCR. Universal primer sets consisting of short nucleic acid strands of 7 to 30 base pairs in length were created to amplify target sequences of viral DNA or RNA. These primers can amplify certain identifying sequences of all viral genomes sequenced to date as well as…
LLNL scientists have developed a battery-powered device which is low-cost and multi-chambered for the extraction and amplification of nucleic acids from environmental, clinical, and laboratory samples via loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP). This platform identifies pathogenic bacteria and assists in determining the optimal treatment plan. A multi-chamber amplification cartridge in…
LLNL scientists have developed a method to ensure the accuracy of that tomographic image by applying adaptive optics (AO) to OCT in a single instrument (AO-OCT). AO stabilizes the image being captured by the OCT device by utilizing a Hartmann-Shack wavefront sensor and a deformable mirror, a type of mirror designed to compensate for detected waveform abnormalities (such as ones caused by a…
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-…
LLNL researchers have designed and tested performance characteristics for a multichannel pyrometer that works in the NIR from 1200 to 2000 nm. A single datapoint without averaging can be acquired in 14 microseconds (sampling rate of 70,000/s). In conjunction with a diamond anvil cell, the system still works down to about 830K.
LLNL’s Optically-based Interstory Drift Meter System provides a means to accurately measure the dynamic interstory drift of a vibrating building (or other structure) during earthquake shaking. This technology addresses many of the shortcomings associated with traditional strong motion accelerometer based building monitoring.
LLNL’s discrete diode position sensitive device is a newly…
Transparent ceramic fabrication allows the production of gadolinium- , lutetium-, and terbium-based garnets which are difficult to grow by melt techniques due to phase instabilities. Phase stabilization of the garnets is accomplished by the addition of the intersubstitutional ions, Gallium and/or Scandium.
Scientists have developed many versatile and scaleable fabrication methods.…
LLNL's high fidelity hydrocode is capable of predicting blast loads and directly coupling those loads to structures to predict a mechanical response. By combining this code and our expertise in modeling blast-structure interaction and damage, along with our access to experimental data and testing facilities, we can contribute to the design of protective equipment that can better mitigate the…
Using various excitation wavelengths, a hyperspectral microscope takes advantage of autofluorescence and polarized light scattering from cellular components to obtain composite images that highlight their presence. The light collection efficiency is maximized to achieve image acquisition times and rates suitable for in vivo applications.
LLNL researchers have grown and characterized scintillator crystals of Strontium Iodide (SrI2). Scintillator energy resolution and light yield proportionality surpass NaI and are similar to LaBr3. The SrI2 scintillators doped with europium (Eu) exhibit very high light yields (> 100,000 photons/MeV), extremely good energy resolution (<3% at 662 keV) and excellent light yield…
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…
The LLNL detector measures radiation over a large dynamic range, spanning both high hazardous levels and weak levels, including natural background radiation. In weak radiation fields, the detector also measures gamma-ray spectra. The cost of the detector is significantly less than the total cost of existing separate detectors that could perform the same measurements.
The invention relates to a measurement method and system for capturing both the amplitude and phase temporal profile of a transient waveform or a selected number of consecutive waveforms having bandwidths of up to about 10 THz in a single shot or in a high repetition rate mode. The invention consists of an optical preprocessor which can then output a time-scaled replica of the input signal to…
The patented intracranial hematoma detection technology uses Micropower Impulse Radar (MIR). MIR uses short, high frequency electromagnetic pulses to obtain information in a non-invasive manner. Unlike ultrasound and other electromagnetic techniques, MIR can operate well through the skull, which is of great importance for intracerebral as well as epidural and subdural hematomas. The MIR…
LLNL's X-ray spectrometers based on STJ have been developed for high-resolution soft X-ray spectroscopy. STJ consist of two superconducting thin film electrodes separated by a thin insulating tunnel barrier. They measure X-ray energies from the increase in tunneling current after X-ray absorption in one of the electrodes excites additional charge carriers above the superconducting energy gap.…
LLNL has developed a radiation detector that cools to operating temperatures in 1-2 hours using two separate cooling stages. The first cooling brings the instrument to operating temperature. The embedded second cooling system achieves portable detection that can be sustained for 8-12 hours.
In addition, an integrated, hermetically-sealed package has been developed complete with…
LLNL has identified solution-grown organic crystals having scintillation efficiency not only close to, but even exceeding that of stilbene.. LLNL's invention relates to a new class of neutron detectors based on scintillation response of organic single crystals. More specifically, the use of organic molecules grown from solution and to molecules including the basic benzene or phenyl structure…
LLNL scientists have developed an approach for full spectrum analysis during gamma ray spectrometry using a spectral library signature created from a large amount of spectral data. The signature can be compared to unknown spectral measurements for the identification of previously unknown nuclear material.
Scientists at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory have developed a plastic that can detect neutrons, something previously thought impossible.
Livermore scientists demonstrated a plastic scintillator that can discriminate between neutrons and gamma rays with a polyvinyltoluene (PVT) polymer matrix loaded with a scintillating dye, 2,5-diphenyloxazole (PPO). They have found that…
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)…
The invention utilizes the statistical nature of radiation transport as well as modern processing techniques to implement a physics-based, sequential statistical processor. By this we mean that instead of accumulating a pulse-height spectrum as is done in many other systems, each photon is processed individually upon arrival and then discarded. As each photon arrives, a decision is…
LLNL's neutron "Pillar Detector" fabrication technology uses semiconductor-based micro-structured elements as an electrical signal generation medium for the detection of neutrons. These materials in the form of semiconductor "pillars" embedded in matrix of high cross-section neutron converter materials (such as Boron) that emit charged particles upon interaction with neutrons. These charged…
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…