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Papers by Mahmooda Sultana
Journal of Low Temperature Physics, Dec 29, 2015
For future X-ray observatories utilizing transition-edge sensor (TES) microcalorimeters, an anti-... more For future X-ray observatories utilizing transition-edge sensor (TES) microcalorimeters, an anti-coincidence detector (anti-co) is required to discriminate X-ray ($$\sim ∼0.1–10 keV) signals from non-X-ray background events, such as ionizing particles. We have developed a prototype anti-co that utilizes TESs, which will be compatible with the TES focal-plane arrays planned for future X-ray observatories. This anti-co is based upon the cryogenic dark matter search II detector design. It is a silicon wafer covered with superconducting collection fins and TES microcalorimeters. Minimum ionizing particles deposit energy while passing through the silicon. The athermal phonons produced by these events are absorbed in the superconducting fins, breaking Cooper pairs. The resulting quasiparticles diffuse along the superconducting fin, producing a signal when they reach the TES. By determining a correlation between detections in the anti-co and the X-ray detector one can identify and flag these background events. We have fabricated and tested a single-channel prototype anti-co device on a 1.5 \times × 1.9 cm$$^2$$2 chip. We have measured the signals in this device from photons of several energies between 1.5 and 60 keV, as well as laboratory background events, demonstrating a threshold \sim ∼100 times lower than is needed to detect minimum ionizing particles.
Crystal Growth & Design, Nov 19, 2012
Planetary and Space Science
Recently, we witnessed how the synergy of small satellite technology and solar sailing propulsion... more Recently, we witnessed how the synergy of small satellite technology and solar sailing propulsion enables new missions. Together, small satellites with lightweight instruments and solar sails offer affordable access to deep regions of the solar system, also making it possible to realize hard-to-reach trajectories that are not constrained to the ecliptic plane. Combining these two technologies can drastically reduce travel times within the solar system, while delivering robust science. With solar sailing propulsion capable of reaching the velocities of ∼5-10 AU/yr, missions using a rideshare launch may reach the Jovian system in two years, Saturn in three. The same technologies could allow reaching solar polar orbits in less than two years. Fast, cost-effective, and maneuverable sailcraft that may travel outside the ecliptic plane open new opportunities for affordable solar system exploration, with great promise for heliophysics, planetary science, and astrophysics. Such missions could be modularized to reach different destinations with different sets of instruments. Benefiting from this progress, we present the "Sundiver" concept, offering novel possibilities for the science community. We discuss some of the key technologies, the current design of the Sundiver sailcraft vehicle and innovative instruments, along with unique science opportunities that these technologies enable, especially as this exploration paradigm evolves. We formulate policy recommendations to allow national space agencies, industry, and other stakeholders to establish a strong scientific, programmatic, and commercial focus, enrich and deepen the space enterprise and broaden its advocacy base by including the Sundiver paradigm as a part of broader space exploration efforts.
arXiv (Cornell University), Mar 27, 2023
Recently, we witnessed how the synergy of small satellite technology and solar sailing propulsion... more Recently, we witnessed how the synergy of small satellite technology and solar sailing propulsion enables new missions. Together, small satellites with lightweight instruments and solar sails offer affordable access to deep regions of the solar system, also making it possible to realize hard-to-reach trajectories that are not constrained to the ecliptic plane. Combining these two technologies can drastically reduce travel times within the solar system, while delivering robust science. With solar sailing propulsion capable of reaching the velocities of ∼5-10 AU/yr, missions using a rideshare launch may reach the Jovian system in two years, Saturn in three. The same technologies could allow reaching solar polar orbits in less than two years. Fast, cost-effective, and maneuverable sailcraft that may travel outside the ecliptic plane open new opportunities for affordable solar system exploration, with great promise for heliophysics, planetary science, and astrophysics. Such missions could be modularized to reach different destinations with different sets of instruments. Benefiting from this progress, we present the "Sundiver" concept, offering novel possibilities for the science community. We discuss some of the key technologies, the current design of the Sundiver sailcraft vehicle and innovative instruments, along with unique science opportunities that these technologies enable, especially as this exploration paradigm evolves. We formulate policy recommendations to allow national space agencies, industry, and other stakeholders to establish a strong scientific, programmatic, and commercial focus, enrich and deepen the space enterprise and broaden its advocacy base by including the Sundiver paradigm as a part of broader space exploration efforts.
Langmuir, 2011
We describe fluoropolymer modification of silicon microreactors for control of wetting properties... more We describe fluoropolymer modification of silicon microreactors for control of wetting properties in chemical synthesis applications and characterize the impact of the coating on liquidÀliquid multiphase flows of solvents and water. Annular flow of nitrogen gas and a Teflon AF (DuPont) dispersion enable controlled evaporation of fluoropolymer solvent, which in turn brings about three-dimensional polymer deposition on microchannel walls. Consequently, the wetting behavior is switched from hydrophilic to hydrophobic. Analysis of microreactors reveals that the polymer layer thickness increases down the length of the reactor from ∼1 to ∼13 μm with an average thickness of ∼7 μm. Similarly, we show that microreactor surfaces can be modified with poly(tetrafluoroethylene) (PTFE). These PTFE-coated microreactors are further characterized by measuring residence time distributions in segmented liquidÀliquid multiphase flows, which display reduced axial dispersion for the coated microreactors. Applying particle image velocimetry, changes in segment shape and velocity fluctuations are observed resulting in reduced axial dispersion. Furthermore, the segment size distribution is narrowed for the hydrophobic microreactors, enabling further control of residence distributions for synthesis and screening applications.
Crystal Growth & Design, 2012
The use of supercritical fluids in the production of particles in microfluidic systems is general... more The use of supercritical fluids in the production of particles in microfluidic systems is generally described. Small particles with narrow particle size distributions are useful in a wide range of applications. Submicron and micron-sized organic particles may exhibit enhanced properties such as, for example, increased dissolution rates, enhanced pharmaceutical efficacy, and ease of suspension in a carrier medium. Small organic particles may be particularly useful in drug delivery, exhibiting enhanced performance as ...
MRS Proceedings, 2003
Metal-induced crystallization (MIC) of amorphous Si is gaining increased interest because of its ... more Metal-induced crystallization (MIC) of amorphous Si is gaining increased interest because of its potential use for low-temperature fabrication of integrated circuits. In this work, the MIC technique was used to make Si nanocrystals and the effects of stress on the crystallization were studied. Amorphous Si films were deposited onto the Si substrate with thermal oxides on top by low-pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD) and then patterned into nanoscale pillars by electron beam lithography and reactive ion etching. A conformal low-temperature oxide (LTO) layer was deposited to cover the pillars, followed by an anisotropic etch back to form a spacer, leaving only the top surface of the pillars exposed to the 5 nm Ni sputtering deposition afterwards. An HF dip was used to partially remove the LTO spacers on the pillars, leading to different LTO thicknesses on different samples. These samples were then annealed to crystallize the amorphous Si pillars, forming Si nanocrystals. Trans...
Journal of Low Temperature Physics, Dec 29, 2015
For future X-ray observatories utilizing transition-edge sensor (TES) microcalorimeters, an anti-... more For future X-ray observatories utilizing transition-edge sensor (TES) microcalorimeters, an anti-coincidence detector (anti-co) is required to discriminate X-ray ($$\sim ∼0.1–10 keV) signals from non-X-ray background events, such as ionizing particles. We have developed a prototype anti-co that utilizes TESs, which will be compatible with the TES focal-plane arrays planned for future X-ray observatories. This anti-co is based upon the cryogenic dark matter search II detector design. It is a silicon wafer covered with superconducting collection fins and TES microcalorimeters. Minimum ionizing particles deposit energy while passing through the silicon. The athermal phonons produced by these events are absorbed in the superconducting fins, breaking Cooper pairs. The resulting quasiparticles diffuse along the superconducting fin, producing a signal when they reach the TES. By determining a correlation between detections in the anti-co and the X-ray detector one can identify and flag these background events. We have fabricated and tested a single-channel prototype anti-co device on a 1.5 \times × 1.9 cm$$^2$$2 chip. We have measured the signals in this device from photons of several energies between 1.5 and 60 keV, as well as laboratory background events, demonstrating a threshold \sim ∼100 times lower than is needed to detect minimum ionizing particles.
Crystal Growth & Design, Nov 19, 2012
Planetary and Space Science
Recently, we witnessed how the synergy of small satellite technology and solar sailing propulsion... more Recently, we witnessed how the synergy of small satellite technology and solar sailing propulsion enables new missions. Together, small satellites with lightweight instruments and solar sails offer affordable access to deep regions of the solar system, also making it possible to realize hard-to-reach trajectories that are not constrained to the ecliptic plane. Combining these two technologies can drastically reduce travel times within the solar system, while delivering robust science. With solar sailing propulsion capable of reaching the velocities of ∼5-10 AU/yr, missions using a rideshare launch may reach the Jovian system in two years, Saturn in three. The same technologies could allow reaching solar polar orbits in less than two years. Fast, cost-effective, and maneuverable sailcraft that may travel outside the ecliptic plane open new opportunities for affordable solar system exploration, with great promise for heliophysics, planetary science, and astrophysics. Such missions could be modularized to reach different destinations with different sets of instruments. Benefiting from this progress, we present the "Sundiver" concept, offering novel possibilities for the science community. We discuss some of the key technologies, the current design of the Sundiver sailcraft vehicle and innovative instruments, along with unique science opportunities that these technologies enable, especially as this exploration paradigm evolves. We formulate policy recommendations to allow national space agencies, industry, and other stakeholders to establish a strong scientific, programmatic, and commercial focus, enrich and deepen the space enterprise and broaden its advocacy base by including the Sundiver paradigm as a part of broader space exploration efforts.
arXiv (Cornell University), Mar 27, 2023
Recently, we witnessed how the synergy of small satellite technology and solar sailing propulsion... more Recently, we witnessed how the synergy of small satellite technology and solar sailing propulsion enables new missions. Together, small satellites with lightweight instruments and solar sails offer affordable access to deep regions of the solar system, also making it possible to realize hard-to-reach trajectories that are not constrained to the ecliptic plane. Combining these two technologies can drastically reduce travel times within the solar system, while delivering robust science. With solar sailing propulsion capable of reaching the velocities of ∼5-10 AU/yr, missions using a rideshare launch may reach the Jovian system in two years, Saturn in three. The same technologies could allow reaching solar polar orbits in less than two years. Fast, cost-effective, and maneuverable sailcraft that may travel outside the ecliptic plane open new opportunities for affordable solar system exploration, with great promise for heliophysics, planetary science, and astrophysics. Such missions could be modularized to reach different destinations with different sets of instruments. Benefiting from this progress, we present the "Sundiver" concept, offering novel possibilities for the science community. We discuss some of the key technologies, the current design of the Sundiver sailcraft vehicle and innovative instruments, along with unique science opportunities that these technologies enable, especially as this exploration paradigm evolves. We formulate policy recommendations to allow national space agencies, industry, and other stakeholders to establish a strong scientific, programmatic, and commercial focus, enrich and deepen the space enterprise and broaden its advocacy base by including the Sundiver paradigm as a part of broader space exploration efforts.
Langmuir, 2011
We describe fluoropolymer modification of silicon microreactors for control of wetting properties... more We describe fluoropolymer modification of silicon microreactors for control of wetting properties in chemical synthesis applications and characterize the impact of the coating on liquidÀliquid multiphase flows of solvents and water. Annular flow of nitrogen gas and a Teflon AF (DuPont) dispersion enable controlled evaporation of fluoropolymer solvent, which in turn brings about three-dimensional polymer deposition on microchannel walls. Consequently, the wetting behavior is switched from hydrophilic to hydrophobic. Analysis of microreactors reveals that the polymer layer thickness increases down the length of the reactor from ∼1 to ∼13 μm with an average thickness of ∼7 μm. Similarly, we show that microreactor surfaces can be modified with poly(tetrafluoroethylene) (PTFE). These PTFE-coated microreactors are further characterized by measuring residence time distributions in segmented liquidÀliquid multiphase flows, which display reduced axial dispersion for the coated microreactors. Applying particle image velocimetry, changes in segment shape and velocity fluctuations are observed resulting in reduced axial dispersion. Furthermore, the segment size distribution is narrowed for the hydrophobic microreactors, enabling further control of residence distributions for synthesis and screening applications.
Crystal Growth & Design, 2012
The use of supercritical fluids in the production of particles in microfluidic systems is general... more The use of supercritical fluids in the production of particles in microfluidic systems is generally described. Small particles with narrow particle size distributions are useful in a wide range of applications. Submicron and micron-sized organic particles may exhibit enhanced properties such as, for example, increased dissolution rates, enhanced pharmaceutical efficacy, and ease of suspension in a carrier medium. Small organic particles may be particularly useful in drug delivery, exhibiting enhanced performance as ...
MRS Proceedings, 2003
Metal-induced crystallization (MIC) of amorphous Si is gaining increased interest because of its ... more Metal-induced crystallization (MIC) of amorphous Si is gaining increased interest because of its potential use for low-temperature fabrication of integrated circuits. In this work, the MIC technique was used to make Si nanocrystals and the effects of stress on the crystallization were studied. Amorphous Si films were deposited onto the Si substrate with thermal oxides on top by low-pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD) and then patterned into nanoscale pillars by electron beam lithography and reactive ion etching. A conformal low-temperature oxide (LTO) layer was deposited to cover the pillars, followed by an anisotropic etch back to form a spacer, leaving only the top surface of the pillars exposed to the 5 nm Ni sputtering deposition afterwards. An HF dip was used to partially remove the LTO spacers on the pillars, leading to different LTO thicknesses on different samples. These samples were then annealed to crystallize the amorphous Si pillars, forming Si nanocrystals. Trans...