Publications

We describe the metal-organic chemical vapor deposition of InAsSb/InAsP strained-layer superlattice (SLS) active regions for use in mid-infrared emitters. These SLSs were grown at 500°C, and 200 torr in a horizontal quartz reactor using trimethylindium, triethylantimony, AsH3, and PH3. By changing the layer thickness and composition we have prepared structures with low temperature (les/20 K) photoluminescence wavelengths ranging from 3.2 to 5.0 μm. Excellent performance was observed for an SLS light emitting diode (LED) and both optically pumped and electrically injected SLS lasers. An InAsSb/InAsP SLS injection laser emitted at 3.3 μm at 80 K with peak power of 100 mW.

We present a numerical method for nonisothermal, multiphase subsurface transport in heterogeneous porous media. The mathematical model considers nonisothermal two-phase (liquid/gas) flow, including capillary pressure effects, binary diffusion in the gas phase, conductive, latent, and sensible heat transport. The Galerkin finite element method is used for spatial discretization, and temporal integration is accomplished via a predictor/corrector scheme. Message-passing and domain decomposition techniques are used for implementing a scalable algorithm for distributed memory parallel computers. An illustrative application is shown to demonstrate capabilities and performance.

The second silicon revolution will be based on intelligent, integrated microsystems where multiple technologies (such as analog, digital, memory, sensor, micro-electro-mechanical, and communication devices) are integrated onto a single chip or within a multichip module. A necessary element for such systems is cost-effective, high-performance packaging. This paper examines many of the issues associated with the packaging of integrated microsystems, with an emphasis on the areas of packaging design, manufacturability, and reliability. © 1997 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.

The Authenticated Tracking and Monitoring System (ATMS) answers the need for global monitoring of the status and location of sensitive items on a worldwide basis, 24 hours a day. The ATMS concept uses wireless sensor packs to monitor the status of the items and environmental conditions, to collect a variety of sensor event data, and to transmit the data through the INMARSAT satellite communication system, which then sends the data to appropriate ground stations for tracking and monitoring. Authentication and encryption algorithms are used throughout the system to secure the data during communication activities. A typical ATMS application would be to track and monitor the safety and security of a number of items in transit along a scheduled shipping route. The resulting tracking, timing, and status information could then be processed to ensure compliance with various agreements. Following discussions between the Australian Safeguards Office (ASO), the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) in early 1995, the parties mutually decided to conduct and evaluate a field trial prototype ATMS to track and monitor shipments of uranium ore concentrate (UOC) from a currently operating uranium mine in Australia to a final destination in Europe. This trial is in the process of being conducted on a worldwide basis with tracking and monitoring stations located at sites in both Australia and the U.S. This paper describes the trial.

We have investigated two types of extended defects commonly found in AlN, GaN and InN films using density-functional techniques. First, basal-plane stacking faults have been studied for all three compounds. Stacking-fault energies were found to be largest in AlN and smallest in GaN consistent with density-functional results for their wurtzite/zinc-blende energy differences. In addition, the 4H and 6H structures were found to have lower energies than zinc blende for all three compounds. Second, we have investigated the electronic structure and formation energy for an edge dislocation in AlN. The full-core dislocation structure was found to have a filled electronic level approximately 0.55 eV above the valence-band edge and an empty level 1.4 eV below the conduction-band edge. An open-core structure was found to have filled and empty electronic levels closer to the middle of the energy gap. Formation energies for these two geometries suggest that the full-core structure would be expected to form in p-type material whereas both are expected in n-type material.

Amorphous carbon is an elemental form of carbon with low hydrogen content, which may be deposited in thin films by the impact of high energy carbon atoms or ions. It is structurally distinct from the more well-known elemental forms of carbon, diamond and graphite. It is distinct in physical and chemical properties from the material known as diamond-like carbon, a form which is also amorphous but which has a higher hydrogen content, typically near 40 atomic percent. Amorphous carbon also has distinctive Raman spectra, whose patterns depend, through resonance enhancement effects, not only on deposition conditions but also on the wavelength selected for Raman excitation. This paper provides an overview of the Raman spectroscopy of amorphous carbon and describes how Raman spectral patterns correlate to film deposition conditions, physical properties and molecular level structure.

High-density plasma etching has been an effective patterning technique for the group-III nitrides due to ion fluxes which are 2 to 4 orders of magnitude higher than more conventional reactive ion etch (RIE) systems. GaN etch rates exceeding 0.68 μm/min have been reported in Cl2/H2/Ar inductively coupled plasmas (ICP) at -280 V dc-bias. Under these conditions, the etch mechanism is dominated by ion bombardment energies which can induce damage and minimize etch selectivity. High selectivity etch processes are often necessary for heterostructure devices which are becoming more prominent as growth techniques improve. In this study, we will report high-density ICP etch rates and selectivities for GaN, AlN, and InN as a function of cathode power, ICP-source power, and chamber pressure. GaN:AlN selectivities >8:1 were observed in a Cl2/Ar plasma at 10 m Torr pressure, 500 W ICP-source power, and 130 W cathode rf-power, while the GaN:InN selectivity was optimized at approximately 6.5:1 at 5 m Torr, 500 W ICP-source power, and 130 W cathode rf-power.

The mechanical properties of implanted layers and thin films on dissimilar substrates are difficult to determine accurately. Nanoindentation of the layer provides information, but detailed numerical modeling is required in order to separate the properties of the layer from those of the substrate. We describe here the procedures we have developed to accomplish this modeling with the commercially available finite-element code ABAQUS. Using these techniques, we are able to extract from nanoindentation testing the yield stress, Young's modulus, and hardness of the layer material, with an absolute accuracy of at least 20%. The procedure is applicable to layers as thin as 50 nm on essentially any substrate, hard or soft. We have used it for materials ranging from ion-implanted layers to thin films of metals and dielectrics formed using plasma-deposition methods. An example is given of O-implanted Al, a thin, hard layer on a soft substrate.

We have developed, prototyped, and demonstrated the feasibility of a novel robotic technique for rapid fabrication of composite structures. Its chief innovation is that, unlike all other available fabrication methods, it does not require a mold. Instead, the structure is built patch by patch, using a rapidly reconfigurable forming surface, and a robot to position the evolving part. Both of these components are programmable, so only the control software needs to be changed to produce a new shape. Hence it should be possible to automatically program the system to produce a shape directly from an electronic model of it. It is therefore likely that the method will enable faster and less expensive fabrication of composites.

Sandia National Laboratories is initiating development of a complete numerical simulation of parachute performance, beginning with parachute deployment and continuing through inflation and steady state descent. The purpose of the parachute performance code is to predict the performance of stockpile weapon parachutes as these parachutes continue to age well beyond their intended service life. A new massively parallel computer will provide unprecedented speed and memory for solving this complex problem, and new software will be written to treat the coupled fluid, structure and trajectory calculations as part of a single code. Verification and validation experiments have been proposed to provide the necessary confidence in the computations.

Fabrication of group-III nitride electronic and photonic devices relies heavily on the ability to pattern features with anisotropic profiles, smooth surface morphologies, etch rates often exceeding 0.5 μm/min, and a low degree of plasma-induced damage. Patterning these materials has been especially difficult due to their high bond energies and their relatively inert chemical nature as compared to other compound semiconductors. However, high-density plasma etching has been an effective patterning technique due to ion fluxes which are 2 to 4 orders of magnitude higher than conventional RIE systems. GaN etch rates as high as ≈1.3 μm/min have been reported in ECR generated ICl plasmas at-150V de-bias. In this study, we report high-density GaN etch results for ECR- and ICP-generated plasmas as a function of Cl2- and BCl3-based plasma chemistries.

Spurious behavior in underresolved grids and/or semiimplicit temporal discretizations for four computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations are studied. The numerical simulations consist of (a) a 1-D chemically relaxed nonequilibrium flow model, (b) the direct numerical simulation (DNS) of 2-D incompressible flow over a backward facing step, (c) a loosely-coupled approach for a 2-D fluid-structure interaction, and (d) a 3-D compressible unsteady flow simulation of vortex breakdown on delta wings. These examples were chosen based on their non-apparent spurious behaviors that were difficult to detect without extensive grid and/or temporal refinement studies and without some knowledge from dynamical systems theory. Studies revealed the various possible dangers of misinterpreting numerical simulation of realistic complex flows that are constrained by available computing power. In large scale computations underresolved grids, semi-implicit procedures, loosely-coupled implicit procedures, and insufficiently long time integration in DNS are most often unavoidable. Consequently, care must be taken in both computation and in interpretation of the numerical data. The results presented confirm the important role that dynamical systems theory can play in the understanding of the nonlinear behavior of numerical algorithms and in aiding the identification of the sources of numerical uncertainties in CFD.

Measurements of the threshold for secondary electron emission and shifts of the carbon Auger line position have been used to deduce the surface potential of several common phosphors during irradiation by electrons in the 0.5-5.0 keV range. All of the insulating phosphors display similar behavior: the surface potential is within ±1 V of zero at low electron energies. However, above 2-3 kV it becomes increasingly negative, reaching hundreds of volts within 1 keV of the turn-on energy. The electron energy at which this charging begins decreases dramatically after Coulomb aging at 17 μA/cm2 for 30-60 min. Measurements using coincident electron beams at low and high electron energies to control the surface potential were made to investigate the dependence of the cathodoluminescence (CL) process on charging. Initially, the CL from the two beams is identical to the sum of the separate beam responses, but after Coulomb aging large deviations from this additivity are observed. These results indicate that charging has important, detrimental effects on CL efficiency after prolonged e-beam irradiation. Measurements of the electron energy dependence of the CL efficiency before and after Coulomb aging will also be presented, and the implications of these data on the physics of the low-voltage CL process will be discussed.

A one-dimensional model is presented which describes the release-etch behavior of sacrificial oxides in aqueous HF. Starting from first principles and an empirical rate law, release etch kinetics are derived for primitive geometries. The behavior of complex three-dimensional structures is described by joining the solutions of constituent primitives and applying appropriate boundary conditions. The two fitting parameters, k1 and k2, are determined from the simplest structure and describe the more complex structures well. Experimental validation of the model is presented with data for all of the geometries and four types of sacrificial oxides.

Technology planning is becoming critical with the rapid development and obsolescence of technologies. Technology roadmapping provides a tool for selecting which technologies to pursue in what timeframes. This paper provides a framework for technology roadmaps, describes the roadmapping process, and reviews its application.

A method is described for generating electron cross sections that are compatible with standard discrete ordinates codes without modification. There are many advantages to using an established discrete ordinates solver, e.g., immediately available adjoint capability. Coupled electron-photon transport capability is needed for many applications, including the modeling of the response of electronics components to space and synthetic radiation environments. The cross sections have been successfully used in the DORT, TWODANT, and TORT discrete ordinates codes. The cross sections are shown to provide accurate and efficient solutions to certain multidimensional electron-photon transport problems. The key to the method is a simultaneous solution of the continuous-slowing-down and elastic-scattering portions of the scattering source by the Goudsmit-Saunderson theory. The resulting multigroup-Legendre cross sections are much smaller than the true scattering cross sections that they represent. Under certain conditions, the cross sections are guaranteed positive and converge with a low-order Legendre expansion.

This article attempts to review the progress achieved in the understanding of scaling and size effect in the failure of structures. Particular emphasis is placed on quasibrittle materials for which the size effect is complicated. Attention is focused on three main types of size effects, namely the statistical size effect due to randomness of strength, the energy release size effect, and the possible size effect due to fractality of fracture or microcracks. Definitive conclusions on the applicability of these theories are drawn. Subsequently, the article discusses the application of the known size effect law for the measurement of material fracture properties, and the modeling of the size effect by the cohesive crack model, nonlocal finite element models and discrete element models. Extensions to compression failure and to the rate-dependent material behavior are also outlined. The damage constitutive law needed for describing a microcracked material in the fracture process zone is discussed. Various applications to quasibrittle materials, including concrete, sea ice, fiber composites, rocks and ceramics are presented.

Two methods were examined for the fabrication of dielectric mirror masks. In the first method, a commercial laser mirror was patterned with photoresist and the dielectric film etched with ammonium bifluoride. The ammonium bifluoride etch showed strong kinetic anisotropy with the fastest etch rate in the vertical direction. However, horizontal etching still resulted in significant undercutting of the photomask. In the second method, a photoresist coated laser mirror was etched with an argon plasma. The argon plasma caused significant damage to the photoresist and underlying dielectric layer without adequate removal of the dielectric film in the open areas of the mask. Neither of the two methods examined were able to produce usable dielectric masks. During the course of this project, it was discovered that a foreign company, Balzers AG of Liechtenstein, had recently developed successful fabrication procedures for dielectric mirror masks. A mask purchased from Balzers for testing showed distinguishable pattern features down to 2 {mu}m in size. This mask was used in ablative projection etching experiments to form microstructures in Mylar polymer films. A thin film resistor pattern with 7.0 {mu}m wide lines was etched 5.4 {mu}m deep into a Mylar substrate. The etch pattern showed uniform linewidths but exhibited some thinning of the lines in areas where U-turns occurred. The ablative projection etching technique shows promise as a method for the rapid fabrication of contact masks in microstructuring applications.

A fatigue test of a wind turbine blade was conducted at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in the fall of 1994. Acoustic emission monitoring of the test was performed, starting with the second loading level. The acoustic emission data indicated that this load exceeded the strength of the blade. From the first cycle at the new load, an oil can type of deformation occurred in two areas of the upper skin of the blade. One of these was near the blade root and the other was about the middle of the tested portion of the blade. The emission monitoring indicated that no damage was taking place in the area near the root, but in the deforming area near the middle of the blade, damage occurred from the first cycles at the higher load. The test was stopped after approximately one day and the blade was declared destroyed, although no gross damage had occurred. Several weeks later the test was resumed, to be continued until gross damage occurred. The upper skin tore approximately one half hour after the cycling was restarted.

Quartz crystal microbalances (QCMs) are piezoelectric thickness-shear-mode resonators where the resonant frequency has long been known to vary linearly with the mass of rigid layers on the surface when the device is in contact with air. This reports summarizes the results from a Laboratory Directed Research and Development effort to use an array of QCMs to measure and identify volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in water solutions. A total of nine polymer-coated QCMs were tested with varying concentrations of twelve VOCs while frequency and damping voltage were measured. Results from these experiments were analyzed using a Sandia-developed pattern recognition technique called visually empirical region of influence (VERI) developed at Sandia. The VERI analyses of data with up to 16% and 50% sensitivity drifts were carried out on an array with six signals obtained from five sensors. The results indicate that better than 98% and 88% correct chemical recognition is maintained for the 16% and 50% drifts, respectively. These results indicate a good degree of robustness for these sensor films.

Understanding the mechanisms that impact the performance of Microelectromechanical Systems (MEMS) is essential to the development of optimized designs and fabrication processes, as well as the qualification of devices for commercial applications. Silicon micromachines include engines that consist of orthogonally oriented linear comb drive actuators mechanically connected to a rotating gear. These gears are as small as 50 {mu}m in diameter and can be driven at rotation rates exceeding 300,000 rpm. Optical techniques offer the potential for measuring long term statistical performance data and transient responses needed to optimize designs and manufacturing techniques. We describe the development of Micromachine Optical Probe (MOP) technology for the evaluation of micromachine performance. The MOP approach is based on the detection of optical signals scattered by the gear teeth or other physical structures. We present experimental results obtained with a prototype optical probe and micromachines developed at Sandia National Laboratories.

It is common practice in system analysis to develop mathematical models for system behavior. Frequently, the actual system being modeled is also available for testing and observation, and sometimes the test data are used to help identify the parameters of the mathematical model. However, no general-purpose technique exists for formally, statistically judging the quality of a model. This paper suggests a formal statistical procedure for the validation of mathematical models of systems when data taken during operation of the system are available. The statistical validation procedure is based on the bootstrap, and it seeks to build a framework where a statistical test of hypothesis can be run to determine whether or not a mathematical model is an acceptable model of a system with regard to user-specified measures of system behavior. The approach to model validation developed in this study uses experimental data to estimate the marginal and joint confidence intervals of statistics of interest of the system. These same measures of behavior are estimated for the mathematical model. The statistics of interest from the mathematical model are located relative to the confidence intervals for the statistics obtained from the experimental data. These relative locations are used to judge the accuracy of the mathematical model. An extension of the technique is also suggested, wherein randomness may be included in the mathematical model through the introduction of random variable and random process terms. These terms cause random system behavior that can be compared to the randomness in the bootstrap evaluation of experimental system behavior. In this framework, the stochastic mathematical model can be evaluated. A numerical example is presented to demonstrate the application of the technique.

A method for more efficiently utilizing the frequency bandwidth allocated for data transmission is presented. Current space and range communication systems use modulation and coding schemes that transmit 0.5 to 1.0 bits per second per Hertz of radio frequency bandwidth. The goal in this LDRD project is to increase the bandwidth utilization by employing advanced digital communications techniques. This is done with little or no increase in the transmit power which is usually very limited on airborne systems. Teaming with New Mexico State University, an implementation of trellis coded modulation (TCM), a coding and modulation scheme pioneered by Ungerboeck, was developed for this application and simulated on a computer. TCM provides a means for reliably transmitting data while simultaneously increasing bandwidth efficiency. The penalty is increased receiver complexity. In particular, the trellis decoder requires high-speed, application-specific digital signal processing (DSP) chips. A system solution based on the QualComm Viterbi decoder and the Graychip DSP receiver chips is presented.

Electrokinetic remediation of uranium-contaminated soil was studied in a series of laboratory-scale experiments in test cells with identical geometry using quartz sand at approximately 10 percent moisture content. Uranium, when present in the soil system as an anionic complex, could be migrated through unsaturated soil using electrokinetics. The distance that the uranium migrated in the test cell was dependent upon the initial molar ratio of citrate to uranium used. Over 50 percent of the uranium was recovered from the test cells using the citrate and carbonate complexing agents over of period of 15 days. Soil analyses showed that the uranium remaining in the test cells had been mobilized and ultimately would have been extracted. Uranium extraction exceeded 90 percent in an experiment that was operated for 37 days. Over 70 percent of the uranium was removed from a Hanford waste sample over a 55 day operating period. Citrate and carbonate ligand utilization ratios required for removing 50 percent of the uranium from the uranium-contaminated sand systems were approximately 230 moles ligand per mole uranium and 1320 moles ligand per mole uranium for the waste. Modifying the operating conditions to increasing the residence time of the complexants is expected to improved the utilization efficiency of the complexing agent.

Tera Computer and Sandia National Laboratories have completed a CRADA, which examined the Tera Multi-Threaded Architecture (MTA) for use with large codes of importance to industry and DOE. The MTA is an innovative architecture that uses parallelism to mask latency between memories and processors. The physical implementation is a parallel computer with high cross-section bandwidth and GaAs processors designed by Tera, which support many small computation threads and fast, lightweight context switches between them. When any thread blocks while waiting for memory accesses to complete, another thread immediately begins execution so that high CPU utilization is maintained. The Tera MTA parallel computer has a single, global address space, which is appealing when porting existing applications to a parallel computer. This ease of porting is further enabled by compiler technology that helps break computations into parallel threads. DOE and Sandia National Laboratories were interested in working with Tera to further develop this computing concept. While Tera Computer would continue the hardware development and compiler research, Sandia National Laboratories would work with Tera to ensure that their compilers worked well with important Sandia codes, most particularly CTH, a shock physics code used for weapon safety computations. In addition to that important code, Sandia National Laboratories would complete research on a robotic path planning code, SANDROS, which is important in manufacturing applications, and would evaluate the MTA performance on this code. Finally, Sandia would work directly with Tera to develop 3D visualization codes, which would be appropriate for use with the MTA. Each of these tasks has been completed to the extent possible, given that Tera has just completed the MTA hardware. All of the CRADA work had to be done on simulators.

Multichip modules (MCMs) containing power components need a substrate with excellent heat spreading capability to both avoid hot spots and to move dissipation heat toward the system heat sinks. Polycrystalline diamond is an excellent MCM heat spreading substrate but remains several orders of magnitude too expensive and somewhat more difficult to process than conventional mother-board materials. Today`s power MCMs concentrate on moderately priced silicon wafers and aluminum nitride ceramic with their improved thermal conductivity and good thermal expansion match to power semiconductor components in comparison to traditional alumina and printed wiring board materials. However, even silicon and AlN substrates are thermally challenged by designers needs. The authors report on the integral fabrication of micro-heat pipes embedded in silicon MCM substrates (5 x 5 cm) by the use of micromachined capillary wick structures and hermetic micro-cavities. This passive microstructure results in more than a 5 times improvement in heat spreading capability of the silicon MCM substrate over a large range of power densities and operating temperatures. Thus diamond-like cooling is possible at silicon prices.

Detecting object boundaries in the presence of cast shadows is a difficult task for machine vision systems. A new edge detector is presented which responds to shadow penumbras and abrupt object edges with distinguishable signals. The detector requires the use of spatially extended light sources and sufficient video resolution to resolve the shadow penumbras of interest. Detection of high frequency noise is suppressed without requiring image-dependent adjustment of signal thresholds. The ability of the edge operator to distinguish shadow penumbras from abrupt object boundaries while suppressing responses to high frequency noise and texture is illustrated with idealized shadow and object edge intensity profiles. Selective detection of object boundaries in a video scene with a cast shadow has also been demonstrated with this operator.

Modular fixturing kits are precisely machined sets of components used for flexible, short-turnaround construction of fixtures for a variety of manufacturing purposes. A modular vise is a parallel-jaw vise, where each jaw is a modular fixture plate with a regular grid of precisely positioned holes. A modular vise can be used to locate and hold parts for machining, assembly, and inspection tasks. To fixture a part, one places pins in some of the holes so that when the vise is closed, the part is reliably located and completely constrained. The modular vise concept can be adapted easily to the design of modular parallel-jaw grippers for robots. By attaching a grid plate to each jaw of a parallel-jaw gripper, the authors gain the ability to easily construct high-quality grasps for a wide variety of parts from a standard set of hardware. Wallack and Canny developed a previous algorithm for planning planar grasp configurations for the modular vise. In this paper, the authors expand this work to produce a 3-d fixture/gripper design tool. They describe several analyses added to the planar algorithm to improve its utility, including a three-dimensional grasp quality metric based on geometric and force information, three-dimensional geometric loading analysis, and inter-gripper interference analysis to determine the compatibility of multiple grasps for handing the part from one gripper to another. Finally, the authors describe two applications which combine the utility of modular vise-style grasping with inter-gripper interference: The first is the design of a flexible part-handling subsystem for a part cleaning workcell under development at Sandia National Laboratories; the second is the automatic design of grippers that support the assembly of multiple products on a single assembly line.

The goal of the Modular Weapon Control Unit (MWCU) program was to design and develop a reconfigurable weapon controller (programmer/sequencer) that can be adapted to different weapon systems based on the particular requirements for that system. Programmers from previous systems are conceptually the same and perform similar tasks. Because of this commonality and the amount of re-engineering necessary with the advent of every new design, the idea of a modular, adaptable system has emerged. Also, the controller can be used in more than one application for a specific weapon system. Functionality has been divided into a Processor Module (PM) and an Input/Output Module (IOM). The PM will handle all operations that require calculations, memory, and timing. The IOM will handle interfaces to the rest of the system, input level shifting, output drive capability, and detection of interrupt conditions. Configuration flexibility is achieved in two ways. First, the operation of the PM is determined by a surface mount Read-Only Memory (ROM). Other surface-mount components can be added or neglected as necessary for functionality. Second, IOMs consist of configurable input buffers, configurable output drivers, and configurable interrupt generation. Further, these modules can be added singly or in groups to a Processor Module to achieve the required I/O configuration. The culmination of this LDRD was the building of both Processor Module and Input/Output Module. The MWCU was chosen as a test system to evaluate Low-Temperature Co-fired Ceramic (LTCC) technology, desirable for high component density and good thermal characteristics.

A series of three 18.9 m diameter JP-4 pool fire experiments with a large (2.1 m X 4.6 m), flat plate calorimeter adjacent to the fuel pool were recently performed. The objectives of these experiments were to: (1) gain a better understanding of fire phenomenology, (2) provide empirical input parameter estimates for simplified, deterministic Risk Assessment Compatible Fire Models (RACFMs), (3) assist in continuing fire field model code validation and development, and (4) enhance the data base of fire temperature and heat flux to object distributions. Due to different wind conditions during each experiment, data were obtained for conditions where the plate was not engulfed, fully-engulfed and partially engulfed by the continuous flame zone. Results include the heat flux distribution to the plate and flame thermocouple temperatures in the vicinity of the plate and at two cross sections within the lower region of the continuous flame zone. The results emphasize the importance of radiative coupling (i.e. the cooling of the flames by a thermally massive object) and convective coupling (including object-induced turbulence and object/wind/flame interactions) in determining the heat flux from a fire to an object. The formation of a secondary flame zone on an object adjacent to a fire via convective coupling (which increases the heat flux by a factor of two) is shown to be possible when the object is located within a distance equal to the object width from the fire.

This study involved the evaluation and documentation of cases in which petroleum wellbores were enlarged beyond the nominal hole diameter as a consequence of erosion during exploratory drilling, particularly as a function of gas flow into the wellbore during blowout conditions. A primary objective was to identify analogs to potential wellbore enlargement at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) during inadvertent human intrusion. Secondary objectives were to identify drilling scenarios associated with enlargement, determine the physical extent of enlargement, and establish the physical properties of the formation in which the enlargement occurred. No analogs of sufficient quality to establish quantitative limits on wellbore enlargement at the WIPP disposal system were identified. However, some information was obtained regarding the frequency of petroleum well blowouts and the likelihood that such blowouts would bridge downhole, self-limiting the surface release of disposal-system material. Further work would be necessary, however, to determine the conditions under which bridging could occur and the extent to which the bridging might be applicable to WIPP. In addition, data on casing sizes of petroleum boreholes in the WIPP vicinity support the use of a 12-{1/4} inch borehole size in WIPP performance assessment calculations. Finally, although data are limited, there was no evidence of significant wellbore enlargement in any of three blowouts that occur-red in wellbores in the Delaware Basin (South Culebra Bluff Unit No. 1, Energy Research and Development Administration (ERDA) 6, and WIPP 12).

This report contains a condensed listing of Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) project surface boreholes drilled for the purpose of site selection and characterization through 31 December 1995. The US Department of Energy (DOE) sponsored the drilling activities, which were conducted primarily by Sandia National Laboratories. The listing provides physical attributes such as location (township, range, section, and state-plane coordinates), elevation, and total borehole depth, as well as the purpose for the borehole, drilling dates, and information about extracted cores. The report also presents the hole status (plugged, testing, monitoring, etc.) and includes salient findings and references. Maps with borehole locations and times-of-drilling charts are included.

Energetic materials, such as high explosives, propellants and ballotechnics, are widely used as energy sources in the design of numerous devices, components and processes. Although most energetic materials are selected for safe operation, their high energy densities have the potential for inadvertent initiation and subsequent powerful energy transformations. This potential for damage or injury places a heavy burden on careful analysis of safety issues as part of the design process. As a result, considerable effort has been devoted to empirical testing of initiation conditions, and development of scientific models of initiation processes that have been incorporated into computer models for numerical simulation of initiation of reaction. Nevertheless, in many cases, there is still only rudimentary understanding of the processes of initiation. Mechanochemical processes are perhaps the least understood of the various excitation mechanisms. In these energy transformation processes mechanical stimuli lead directly to initiation and substantial reaction under conditions not thought to be capable of reaction. There are no established scientific models of the initiation of mechanochemical reactions in energetic materials. Mechanochemical reactions can be initiated by enhanced solid state chemical reactivity, changes in reactant configuration, and localization of initiation energy. Such solid state reactions are difficult to understand, either empirically or scientifically, as they are inherently nonequilibrium processes; scientific models currently used assume equilibrium thermochemical conditions and materials behaviors. The present work was undertaken as a first step in developing a scientific basis for prediction of the initiation of mechanochemical processes in high energy density solids.

Networks at major computational organizations are becoming increasingly complex. The introduction of large massively parallel computers and supercomputers with gigabyte memories are requiring greater and greater bandwidth for network data transfers to widely dispersed clients. For networks to provide adequate data transfer services to high performance computers and remote users connected to them, the networking components must be optimized from a combination of internal and external performance criteria. This paper describes research done at Sandia National Laboratories to model network data services and to visualize the flow of data from source to sink when using the data services.

The Hierarchical High-Performance Storage System (HPSS) Testbed project at Sandia National Laboratories was part of a research collaboration between industry, national research centers, and national laboratories to develop mass storage system software that would scale to meet the capacity and performance required by supercomputer and massively parallel computational environments. This report describes the software that was developed within this collaboration as a result of a cooperative research and development agreement between Sandia National Laboratories and International Business Machines (IBM) Corporation, Government Systems.

We report results in three areas of research relevant to the fabrication of a wide range of optoelectronic devices: The development of a new x-ray diffraction technique that can be used to rapidly determine the optimal period of a strained layer superlattice to maximize the dislocation filtering; The optimal MBE growth parameters for the growth of CdTe on GaAs(211); The determination of the relative efficiency of dislocation filtering in the (211) and (100) orientations; and The surface quality of InSb grown by MOCVD on InSb substrates is affected by the misorientation of the substrate.

This report describes the information model that was jointly developed as part of two FY93 LDRDs: (1) Information Integration for Data Fusion, and (2) Interactive On-Site Inspection System: An Information System to Support Arms Control Inspections. This report describes the purpose and scope of the two LDRD projects and reviews the prototype development approach, including the use of a GIS. Section 2 describes the information modeling methodology. Section 3 provides a conceptual data dictionary for the OSIS (On-Site Information System) model, which can be used in conjunction with the detailed information model provided in the Appendix. Section 4 discussions the lessons learned from the modeling and the prototype. Section 5 identifies the next steps--two alternate paths for future development. The long-term purpose of the On-Site Inspection LDRD was to show the benefits of an information system to support a wide range of on-site inspection activities for both offensive and defensive inspections. The database structure and the information system would support inspection activities under nuclear, chemical, biological, and conventional arms control treaties. This would allow a common database to be shared for all types of inspections, providing much greater cross-treaty synergy.

An improved capability for subsurface structure detection is needed to support military and nonproliferation requirements for inspection and for surveillance of activities of threatening nations. As part of the DOE/NN-20 program to apply geophysical methods to detect and characterize underground facilities, Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) initiated an electromagnetic induction (EMI) project to evaluate low frequency electromagnetic (EM) techniques for subsurface structure detection. Low frequency, in this case, extended from kilohertz to hundreds of kilohertz. An EMI survey procedure had already been developed for borehole imaging of coal seams and had successfully been applied in a surface mode to detect a drug smuggling tunnel. The SNL project has focused on building upon the success of that procedure and applying it to surface and low altitude airborne platforms. Part of SNL`s work has focused on improving that technology through improved hardware and data processing. The improved hardware development has been performed utilizing Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) funding. In addition, SNL`s effort focused on: (1) improvements in modeling of the basic geophysics of the illuminating electromagnetic field and its coupling to the underground target (partially funded using LDRD funds) and (2) development of techniques for phase-based and multi-frequency processing and spatial processing to support subsurface target detection and characterization. The products of this project are: (1) an evaluation of an improved EM gradiometer, (2) an improved gradiometer concept for possible future development, (3) an improved modeling capability, (4) demonstration of an EM wave migration method for target recognition, and a demonstration that the technology is capable of detecting targets to depths exceeding 25 meters.

Data fusion has been identified by the Department of Defense as a critical technology for the U.S. defense industry. Data fusion requires combining expertise in two areas - sensors and information integration. Although data fusion is a rapidly growing area, there is little synergy and use of common, reusable, and/or tailorable objects and models, especially across different disciplines. The Laboratory-Directed Research and Development project had two purposes: to see if a natural language-based information modeling methodology could be used for data fusion problems, and if so, to determine whether this methodology would help identify commonalities across areas and achieve greater synergy. The project confirmed both of the initial hypotheses: that the natural language-based information modeling methodology could be used effectively in data fusion areas and that commonalities could be found that would allow synergy across various data fusion areas. The project found five common objects that are the basis for all of the data fusion areas examined: targets, behaviors, environments, signatures, and sensors. Many of the objects and the specific facts related to these objects were common across several areas and could easily be reused. In some cases, even the terminology remained the same. In other cases, different areas had their own terminology, but the concepts were the same. This commonality is important with the growing use of multisensor data fusion. Data fusion is much more difficult if each type of sensor uses its own objects and models rather than building on a common set. This report introduces data fusion, discusses how the synergy generated by this LDRD would have benefited an earlier successful project and contains a summary information model from that project, describes a preliminary management information model, and explains how information integration can facilitate cross-treaty synergy for various arms control treaties.

Rock cores from drillholes UE25-NRG-4, USW-NRG-6, USW-NRG-7, and USW-SD-9 containing natural fractures were obtained from the Sample Management Facility at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. All recoverable fractures were sheared at constant normal stresses from 2.5 to 15 MPa, in the as-received condition (air-dry). Detailed profilometer data were collected from each fracture surface before testing. The tests yielded the normal closure as a function of normal stress, and the shear stress and dilation as functions of shear offset. The constitutive properties obtained from these stress-displacement relations were: normal stiffness, shear stiffness, shear strength, and dilation angle at peak shear stress. Shear strength plotted against normal stress for four thermomechanical units shows that friction angle varies from 370 to 460 and cohesion varies from 0.02 to 1.71 MPa.

This report provides an overview of the work completed for a portion of the User Interface Testbed for Technology Packaging (UseIT) project. The authors present software methods for programming systems to record and view interactions with a graphical user interface. A brief description of the human factors design process is presented. The software methods exploit features available in the X Window System and the operating system for Windows{trademark} 95 and Windows{trademark} NT{reg_sign}.

Work on thermionic nuclear power systems has been performed in Russia within the framework of the TOPAZ reactor program since the early 1960s. In the TOPAZ in-core thermionic convertor reactor design, the fuel element`s cladding is also the thermionic convertor`s emitter. Deformation of the emitter can lead to short-circuiting and is the primary cause of premature TRC failure. Such deformation can be the result of fuel swelling, thermocycling, or increased unilateral pressure on the emitter due to the release of gaseous fission products. Much of the work on TRCs has concentrated on preventing or mitigating emitter deformation by improving the following materials and structures: nuclear fuel; emitter materials; electrical insulators; moderator and reflector materials; and gas-exhaust device. In addition, considerable effort has been directed toward the development of experimental techniques that accurately mimic operational conditions and toward the creation of analytical and numerical models that allow operational conditions and behavior to be predicted without the expense and time demands of in-pile tests. New and modified materials and structures for the cores of thermionic NPSs and new fabrication processes for the materials have ensured the possibility of creating thermionic NPSs for a wide range of powers, from tens to several hundreds of kilowatts, with life spans of 5 to 10 years.

This report summarizes the work performed under the Sandia Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) project ``Optical Diagnostics for Turbulent and Multiphase Flows.`` Advanced optical diagnostics have been investigated and developed for flow field measurements, including capabilities for measurement in turbulent, multiphase, and heated flows. Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) includes several techniques for measurement of instantaneous flow field velocities and associated turbulence quantities. Nonlinear photorefractive optical materials have been investigated for the possibility of measuring turbulence quantities (turbulent spectrum) more directly. The two-dimensional PIV techniques developed under this LDRD were shown to work well, and were compared with more traditional laser Doppler velocimetry (LDV). Three-dimensional PIV techniques were developed and tested, but due to several experimental difficulties were not as successful. The photorefractive techniques were tested, and both potential capabilities and possible problem areas were elucidated.

This Phase 1 report documents the results of one of the subtasks that was initiated under the joint Department of Energy (DOE)/Department of Defense (DoD) Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for Countermine Warfare. The development of a foam that can neutralize mines and barriers and allow the safe passage of amphibious landing craft and vehicles was the objective of this subtask of the Sea Mine Countermeasures Technology program. This phase of the program concentrated on laboratory characterization of foam properties and field experiments with prefabricated foam blocks to determine the capability of RPF to adequately carry military traffic. It also established the flammability characteristics of the material under simulated operational conditions, extended the understanding of explosive cavity formation in RPF to include surface explosions, established the tolerance to typical military fluids, and the response to bullet impact. Many of the basic analyses required to establish the operational concept are reported. The initial field experiments were conducted at the Energetic Materials Research and Testing Center (EMRTC) of the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, Socorro, NM in November 1995 through February 1996.

A tool using a continuous electromagnetic wave from a transverse magnetic-dipole source with a coaxial electric-dipole receiver is outlined for the detection of external sidewall cracks in boiler tubes. A numerical study of the distribution of the fields shows that the direct transmission from the source to the receiver is reduced from that in free space. Further, if the diameter of the receiver dipole is made sufficiently small, it should be possible to detect cracks with a scattering loss of up to 40dB in thin-walled boiler tubes.

Wireline core drilling, increasingly used for geothermal exploration, employs a core-tube to capture a rock core sample during drilling. Three types of core-tube data loggers (CTDL) have been built and tested to date by Sandia national Laboratories. They are: (1) temperature-only logger, (2) temperature/inclinometer logger and (3) heat-shielded temperature/inclinometer logger. All were tested during core drilling operations using standard wireline diamond core drilling equipment. While these tools are designed for core-tube deployment, the tool lends itself to be adapted to other drilling modes and equipment. Topics covered in this paper include: (1) description on how the CTDLs are implemented, (2) the components of the system, (3) the type of data one can expect from this type of tool, (4) lessons learned, (5) comparison to its counterpart and (6) future work.

The author presents a final report on a Laboratory-Directed Research and Development (LDRD) project, Innovative Computing for Diagnoses from Medical, Magnetic-Resonance Imaging, performed during fiscal years 1992 and 1993. The project defined a role for high-performance computing in surgery: the supercomputer can automatically summarize the three-dimensional extents of lesions and other clinically-relevant structures, and can deliver these summaries to workstation-based, augmented-reality environments at the clinical site. The author developed methods and software to make these summaries from the digital data already acquired using clinical, magnetic-resonance machines. In joint work with Albuquerque`s Department of Veterans Affairs Hospital, the author applied this work, and obtained a basis for planning, for rehearsal, and for guidance during surgery.

As part of the Advanced Technologies for International and Intermodal Ports of Entry (ATIPE) Project, a diverse group of stakeholders was engaged to help identify problems experienced at inland international border crossings, particularly those at the US-Mexican border. The fundamental issue at international ports of entry is reducing transit time through the required documentation and inspection processes. Examples of other issues or problems, typically manifested as time delays at border crossings, repeatedly mentioned by stakeholders include: (1) lack of document standardization; (2) failure to standardize inspection processes; (3) inadequate information and communications systems; (4) manual fee and tariff collection; (5) inconsistency of processes and procedures; and (6) suboptimal cooperation among governmental agencies. Most of these issues can be addressed to some extent by the development of advanced technologies with the objective of allowing ports of entry to become more efficient while being more effective. Three categories of technologies were unambiguously of high priority to port of entry stakeholders: (1) automated documentation; (2) systems integration; and (3) vehicle and cargo tracking. Together, these technologies represent many of the technical components necessary for pre-clearance of freight approaching international ports of entry. Integration of vehicle and cargo tracking systems with port of entry information and communications systems, as well as existing industry legacy systems, should further enable border crossings to be accomplished consistently with optimal processing times.

During July-November, 1995, Sandia National Laboratories, in cooperation with CE Exploration, drilled a 5,360 foot exploratory slimhole (3.85 inches diameter) in the Newberry Known Geothermal Resource Area (KGRA) near Bend, Oregon. This well was part of Sandia`s program to evaluate slimholes as a geothermal exploration tool. During and after drilling the authors performed numerous temperature logs, and at the completion of drilling attempted to perform injection tests. In addition to these measurements, the well`s data set includes: over 4,000 feet of continuous core (with detailed log); daily drilling reports from Sandia and from drilling contractor personnel; daily drilling fluid record; and comparative data from other wells drilled in the Newberry KGRA.

A high temperature spectral gamma tool has been designed and built for use in small-diameter geothermal exploration wells. Several engineering judgments are discussed regarding operating parameters, well model selection, and signal processing. An actual well log at elevated temperatures is given with spectral gamma reading showing repeatability.