Other

Trw Limited

Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation

Larry R Eaton

Michael Jansen

Jane J Yang

Jaroslava Z Wilcox

Szutsun S Ou

Moshe Sergant

James C Fletcher

Andrew Donovan Smith

Ramon Coronel

Howard S Eller

Mark Winslow Johnson

John W Spargo

An on-chip current regulator for a superconducting logic circuit isolates the superconducting logic circuit from external noise, reduces the effects of process fluctuations on the performance of the logic circuit and significantly reduces total circuit power requirements. The on-chip current regulator in accordance with the present invention includes one or more hysteretic Josephson junctions each connected in parallel with a resistor forming a resistively shunted junction (RSJ) or includes a self-shunting junction. One RSJ may be coupled between an off-chip current regulator and the hysteretic Josephson junction that functions as a current limiting resistor and provides improved isolation from external noise. One or more RSJs may be coupled between the hysteretic Josephson junction and the superconducting logic circuit which functions as a biasing resistor but at the same time reducing the sensitivity of the superconducting logic circuit to any process fluctuations in the biasing resistor which improves manufacturing yield. In an alternate embodiment of the invention, one or more RSJs can be used in place of the RSJ and the biasing resistor. In another alternate embodiment of the invention, the current regulator is formed from an RSJ and a serially coupled damping impedance.

Superconducting constant current source

A spacecraft (10) having a cryogenic cooler (24) that maintains different temperatures in thermally insulated and nested enclosures (26, 28, 12). In the coldest enclosure (26), which is maintained, for example, approximately 10.degree. K, low-temperature superconducting (LTS) processors (32, 34) perform bus and payload processing functions at very high speed. The next-coldest enclosure (28) is maintained at approximately 77.degree. K and houses high-temperature superconducting (HTS) electronic modules, such as for power regulation and distribution (40) and a payload sensor processing module (38). The third of the enclosures (12) is maintained at approximately 300.degree. K and houses other modules operating at room temperature, including a transponder (44), power control (46), energy storage (48), a propulsion subsystem (22), a downlink data processing module (49) and the cryogenic cooler (24) itself. Thermal functions of the spacecraft are effectively centralized in the cryogenic cooler (24) and the bus and payload functions of the spacecraft are provided very efficiently in a small, compact an potentially low-cost configuration.

Spacecraft with all-cryogenic electronics

A two-dimensional integrated laser array having a plurality of surface-emitting laser arrays and a plurality of waveguides for optically coupling the individual laser arrays together. Each surface-emitting laser array includes a plurality of injection lasers which are evanescently coupled together in order to emit a single beam of light. The coupling provided by the waveguides causes the surface-emitting laser arrays to operate in phase and at the same wavelength as an external master oscillator. Therefore, the surface-emitting laser arrays generate coherent beams of light, which are combined and focused by a micro-lens. The output of the micro-lens is a single, coherent high-power optical beam which is emitted perpendicular to the two-dimensional integrated laser array.

Two-dimensional integrated laser array

A semiconductor diode structure including a light-absorbing substrate, an active region, and a pair of cladding layers surrounding the active region. Lasing is inhibited by means of an inclined end facet, which reflects light down into the substrate, where it is absorbed, to provide only one pass of the spontaneously emitted light through the active region. One disclosed embodiment has a conventional end facet for the out-coupling of edge-emitted light. Another embodiment includes a surface-emitting facet formed in an opening in the substrate adjacent to the inclined facet. Yet another embodiment has two inclined facets. One inclined facet may serve to reflect light into the absorbing substrate, or both may serve to reflect light through separate surface emitting facets.

Superluminescent diode

An improved heat transfer device particularly suited for use as an evaporator plate in a diffusion cloud chamber. The device is characterized by a pair of mutually spaced heat transfer plates, each being of a planar configuration, having a pair of opposed surfaces defining therebetween a heat pipe chamber. Within the heat pipe chamber, in contiguous relation with the pair of opposed surfaces, there is disposed a pair of heat pipe wicks supported in a mutually spaced relationship by a foraminous spacer of a planar configuration. A wick including a foraminous layer is contiguously related to the external surfaces of the heat transfer plates for uniformly wetting these surfaces.

Heat transfer device

Growing community of inventors

Huntington Beach, CA, United States of America

Larry R Eaton