Opposite side ERS-1 SAR stereo mapping over rolling topography

Opposite-side radar stereo images have been considered unsuitable for stereo viewing due to illumination differences which limit the ability to identify the same features in the image pair. In some contexts, like a rolling topography (slope less than 10°), the shadow, layover, and foreshortening effects, specific to radar images, will not be overwhelming with an opposite-side stereo pair. This paper reports on some issues of stereo viewing and plotting, as well as on quantitative results of mapping and features extraction from ascending and descending orbit ERS-1 SAR stereo images. Planimetric accuracy of 17 m and altimetric accuracy of 23.9 m have been achieved for lake shorelines and DEM extractions, respectively. Impacts of different parameters on the accuracy are also evaluated     

Theoretical and numerical investigation of flow stability in porous materials applied as volumetric solar receivers

This article reports results of a theoretical analysis as well as a numerical study investigating the occurrence of flow instabilities in porous materials applied as volumetric solar receivers. After a short introduction into the technology of volumetric solar receivers, which are aimed to supply heat for a steam turbine process to generate electricity, the general requirements of materials applied as solar volumetric receivers are reviewed. Finally, the main methods and results of the two studies are reported. In the theoretical analysis it is shown that heat conductivity as well as permeability properties of the porous materials have significant influence on the probability of the occurrence of flow instabilities. The numerical study has been performed to investigate the occurrence of unstable flow in heated ceramic foam materials. In the simulations a constant heat flow of radiation, that is absorbed in a defined volume, and constant permeability coefficients are assumed. Boundary conditions similar to those of the 10 MW Solucar Solar project have been chosen. In a three dimensional, heterogeneous two phase heat transfer model it was possible to simulate local overheating of the porous structure. The parameters heat conductivity, turbulent permeability coefficient and radial dispersion coefficient have been varied systematically. Consequently, for a heat flux density of 1 MW/m² a parameter chart could be generated, showing the possible occurrence of “unstable” or “stable” thermal and fluid mechanical behaviour. These numerical results are beneficial for the design of optimized materials for volumetric receivers.     

Interface engineering in chalcopyrite thin film solar devices

Successful interface engineering requires compositional and electronic material characterization as a prerequisite for understanding and intentionally generating interfaces in photovoltaic devices. The paper gives an overview with several examples, all referring to Cu(In,Ga)(S,Se)₂ (“CIGSSe”)-based solar cells, with an emphasis on characterization using highly specialized methods, such as elastic recoil detection analysis, X-ray emission spectroscopy and photoelectron spectroscopy using synchrotron and ultraviolet light for excitation, inverse photoemission spectroscopy and Kelvin probe force microscopy. First, the determination of the depth profile of the band gap energy E_g in the absorber layer is demonstrated. The modification of E_g towards both interfaces is discussed in terms of beneficial electronic effects. Next, the interface between absorber and buffer layers with alternative and promising non-toxic materials is considered. Between CIGSSe and a ZnSe buffer deposited by the metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) method a buried ZnS interface was found. For a Zn(O,OH) buffer processed with an ion layer gas reaction (ILGAR) the correlation of surface composition, valence band maximum and efficiency of the resulting solar cell is shown. In addition, another approach is considered where a ZnMgO window layer is sputtered directly on the absorber omitting any buffer layer. The determination of the potential distribution at the ZnMgO/CIGSSe interface supports the understanding of this new and simpler way to get good cell performances even without any buffer. Finally, monolithically integrated solar modules without encapsulation were investigated before and after accelerated aging tests and changes at the interconnects were identified.     

Algorithmen zur Pulsweitenmodulation für Wechselrichter mit in Echtzeit berechnetem Pulsmuster

Übersicht Mit Hinblick auf die zunehmend Verbreitung findende Pulsmusterberechnung in Echtzeit werden in dem Aufsatz Gesichtspunkte diskutiert, die sich aus den Eigenschaften des leistungselektronischen Stellgliedes, des Pulswechselrichters, ergeben. Die bei Abtastregelungen für die Dauer einer Abtastperiode konstante Stellgröße muß bei ihm durch Pulsweitenmodulation in ein Pulsmuster mit konstanter Amplitude und Pulsen variabler Breite umgesetzt werden. Durch ein neues Verfahren mit versetzter Abtastung haben dabei Rechentotzeiten bis zur Dauer einer halben Abtastperiode keinen Einfluß mehr auf das Pulsmuster.

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Algorithms for pulswidth modulation of inverters with online calculated pulse patterns

Contents Online calculation of pulse patterns will be employed more intensively in the future. Aspects concerning the powereleotronic circuit, the pulsewidth-modulated inverter, are to be discussed. The set value being constant for the duration of a sampling interval, has to be converted by a modulation algorithm into a pulse pattern with constant amplitude and pulses of variable width. Calculation dead-times up to half of sampling interval have no influence on the pulse pattern when using a new algorthm with shifted sampling instants.

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Herrn Prof. Dr.-Ing. Klemens Heumann zum 60. Geburtstag gewidmet     

Novel Engineered Ion Channel Provides Controllable Ion Permeability for Polyelectrolyte Microcapsules Coated with a Lipid Membrane

The development of nanostructured microcapsules based on a biomimetic lipid bilayer membrane (BLM) coating of poly(sodium styrenesulfonate) (PSS)/poly(allylamine hydrochloride) (PAH) polyelectrolyte hollow microcapsules is reported. A novel engineered ion channel, gramicidin (bis‐gA), incorporated into the lipid membrane coating provides a functional capability to control transport across the microcapsule wall. The microcapsules provide transport and permeation for drug‐analog neutral species, as well as positively and negatively charged ionic species. This controlled transport can be tuned for selective release biomimetically by controlling the gating of incorporated bis‐gA ion channels. This system provides a platform for the creation of “smart” biomimetic delivery vessels for the effective and selective therapeutic delivery and targeting of drugs.     

Dual-Color InAs/GaSb Superlattice Focal-Plane Array Technology

Within a very few years, InAs/GaSb superlattice technology has proven its suitability for high-performance infrared imaging detector arrays. At the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics (IAF) and AIM Infrarot-Module GmbH, efforts have been focused on developing mature fabrication technology for dual-color InAs/GaSb superlattice focal-plane arrays for simultaneous, colocated detection at 3 μm to 4 μm and 4 μm to 5 μm in the mid-wavelength infrared atmospheric transmission window. Integrated into a wide-field-of-view missile approach warning system for an airborne platform, a very low number of pixel outages and cluster defects is mandatory for bispectral detector arrays. Process refinements, intense root-cause analysis, and specific test methodologies employed at various stages during the process have proven to be the key for yield enhancements.     

Superradiant Emission from Coherent Excitons in van Der Waals Heterostructures

Recent advancements in isolation and stacking of layered van der Waals materials have created an unprecedented paradigm for demonstrating varieties of 2D quantum materials. Rationally designed van der Waals heterostructures composed of monolayer transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) and few-layer hBN show several unique optoelectronic features driven by correlations. However, entangled superradiant excitonic species in such systems have not been observed before. In this report, it is demonstrated that strong suppression of phonon population at low temperature results in a formation of a coherent excitonic-dipoles ensemble in the heterostructure, and the collective oscillation of those dipoles stimulates a robust phase synchronized ultra-narrow band superradiant emission even at extremely low pumping intensity. Such emitters are in high demand for a multitude of applications, including fundamental research on many-body correlations and other state-of-the-art technologies. This timely demonstration paves the way for further exploration of ultralow-threshold quantum-emitting devices with unmatched design freedom and spectral tunability.     

Dipole distance for minimum threshold current to stimulate unmyelinated axons with microelectrodes

Excitation thresholds for long nerve or muscle fibers with two point sources parallel to the fiber axis depend on the dipole length. The aim of this study was to find the optimal interelectrode distance for the minimum stimulation current. For a specific electrode-fiber distance (z_el) dipole length is constrained by the energy efficacy of the electrodes requiring small interelectrode distances, and by rather low stimulation currents requiring large dipole distances. Far-field values for optimal dipole distance (approximately 1.4 *z_el) can be explained by the superposition of the positive parts of the activating functions for the monopolar elements of the dipole. A current redistribution effect in a target fiber close to the electrodes shifts the dipole length for threshold stimulation from the theoretical optimal activating function approach value towards greater dipole distances. Spike initiations in straight fibers and retinal ganglion cell axons are investigated.     

Gallium gradients in Cu(In,Ga)Se2 thin‐film solar cells

The gallium gradient in Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ (CIGS) layers, which forms during the two industrially relevant deposition routes, the sequential and co‐evaporation processes, plays a key role in the device performance of CIGS thin‐film modules. In this contribution, we present a comprehensive study on the formation, nature, and consequences of gallium gradients in CIGS solar cells. The formation of gallium gradients is analyzed in real time during a rapid selenization process by in situ X‐ray measurements. In addition, the gallium grading of a CIGS layer grown with an in‐line co‐evaporation process is analyzed by means of depth profiling with mass spectrometry. This gallium gradient of a real solar cell served as input data for device simulations. Depth‐dependent occurrence of lateral inhomogeneities on the µm scale in CIGS deposited by the co‐evaporation process was investigated by highly spatially resolved luminescence measurements on etched CIGS samples, which revealed a dependence of the optical bandgap, the quasi‐Fermi level splitting, transition levels, and the vertical gallium gradient. Transmission electron microscopy analyses of CIGS cross‐sections point to a difference in gallium content in the near surface region of neighboring grains. Migration barriers for a copper‐vacancy‐mediated indium and gallium diffusion in CuInSe₂ and CuGaSe₂ were calculated using density functional theory. The migration barrier for the In_Cu antisite in CuGaSe₂ is significantly lower compared with the Ga_Cu antisite in CuInSe₂, which is in accordance with the experimentally observed Ga gradients in CIGS layers grown by co‐evaporation and selenization processes. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Active filter system implementation

Adjustable speed AC drives with low input current THD are becoming increasingly important in industry. This article has detailed the implementation of a parallel active filter, which is integrated within a 450 kW adjustable speed drive to provide an overall system which conforms to IEEE 519, and which provides significant benefits on a system level. The design of the active filter is seen to be driven by overall system specifications which include input current THD, efficiency, displacement power factor, a high level of integration with the load converter, and cost targets. Active filter operation and control has been analyzed at a detailed level, and fundamental issues relating to current regulator topology and operation, limits on compensation capability, DC bus control, switching frequency ripple suppression, etc., have all been addressed, and have all been shown to be very important in terms of helping the system meet its performance objectives. The overall drive system including the active filter, meets IEEE 519 by reducing the supply current THD from 26.8% without the active filter to 4.1% with the active filter operating. This is achieved in presence of supply voltage THD of 2.3% and filter terminal voltage V _f unbalance of 1.3% and, includes an ASD load induced subharmonic component at 33 Hz. Further, individual harmonic limits are met up to the 35th harmonic