Variable energy, high flux, ground-state atomic oxygen source

US4649273A · kind A · utility

Assignee

• The United States of America as represented by the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration · US

Inventors

• Ara Chutjian · La Cañada Flintridge, US
• Otto J. Orient · Duarte, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Apr 10, 1986
• Grant date: Mar 10, 1987
• Expiry date: Apr 10, 2006

Classification

• Technology area (CPC H): Electricity
• CPC primary: H01S3/0007
• WIPO field: Chemical engineering
• WIPO sector: Chemistry

Abstract

A variable energy, high flux atomic oxygen source (10) comprising means (48) for producing a high density beam of molecules which will emit O.sup.- ions when bombarded with electrons; means (44) for producing a high current stream of electrons at a low energy level passing through the high density beam of molecules to produce a combined stream (54) of electrons and O.sup.- ions; means (32) for accelerating the combined stream to a desired energy level; means (12) for producing an intense magnetic field to confine the electrons and O.sup.- ions; means (56, 58) for directing a multiple pass laser beam (62) through the combined stream to strip off the excess electrons from a plurality of the O.sup.- ions to produce ground-state O atoms within the combined stream; electrostatic deflection means (68, 70) for deflecting the path of the O.sup.- ions and the electrons in the combined stream; and, means (78) for stopping the O.sup.- ions and the electrons and for allowing only the ground-state O atoms to continue as the source of the atoms of interest. The method and apparatus are also adaptable for producing other ground-state atoms and/or molecules.