Westinghouse Electric Corporation

Cheng-Lin Chen

Peter J Chantry

Juris A Asars

Eugene G Vaerewyck

A magneto-optical current sensor for measuring current flowing through a conductor, characterized by at least two components. One component is parallel to the direction of current flow and is proximate to a source of magnetic field. The other component is perpendicular to that direction and includes a surface in contact with said one component. One of the components having a reflective surface for reflecting a polarized light beam between components whereby a light signal is produced that is compensated for temperature, loop degradation, and linearity.

Faraday current sensor with fiber optic compensated by temperature,

Method and apparatus for separating isotopes in an isotopic mixture. Photo-excitation of selected isotopic species is utilized in conjunction with various processes including reaction of the excited species with positive ions of predetermined ionization energy, other excited species or free electrons. The products of the reactions include forms of the selected isotopic species which are different than their form prior to excitation, including different mass, charge or chemical make-up. The selected species is then separated from the balance of the reaction products. Ions and electrons are produced by an electrical discharge, and separation is achieved through radial ambipolar diffusion, electrostatic or magnetohydrodynamic techniques.

Isotopic separation

A method for separating isotopes in which a selected isotope of a given molecule is first excited to enhance preferential dissociative electron attachment, which facilitates the separation of the desired isotope from its natural mixture. Molecules incorporating the particular isotope of interest are selectively excited to the proper vibrational and/or electronic state by narrow line radiation to enhance preferential dissociative electron attachment. The excited molecules are then exposed to low energy electrons which dissociatively attach to the excited molecules forming stable negative ion fragments. The negative ion or neutral fragments containing the desired isotopes are then separated from the remaining mixture resulting in an enrichment of the desired isotope.

Isotope dissociation selective electron attachment and separation

The detection of electronegative gases through the use of a dissociative electron attachment process is enhanced by exciting the molecules of an electronegative gas of interest to an electronic or vibrational level to increase the cross section of the molecule for dissociative attachment of electrons to produce negative ions indicative of the gas molecules of interest.

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Pittsburgh, PA, United States of America

Cheng-Lin Chen