Exotic Optical Fibers and Glasses: Innovative Material Processing Opportunities in Earth's Orbit
| Autor: | Ioana Cozmuta, Daniel J. Rasky |
|---|---|
| Jazyk: | angličtina |
| Rok vydání: | 2017 |
| Předmět: |
Space technology
Materials science Optical fiber photonics Energy Engineering and Power Technology Aerospace Engineering Mechanical engineering terrestrial applications Space manufacturing 02 engineering and technology space technology 01 natural sciences GeneralLiterature_MISCELLANEOUS law.invention law 0103 physical sciences killer app Business case Safety Risk Reliability and Quality 010302 applied physics Earth's orbit business.industry Bandwidth (signal processing) exotic optical fibers and glasses Astronomy and Astrophysics ZBLAN market analysis Original Articles 021001 nanoscience & nanotechnology Engineering physics microgravity orbital manufacturing innovation Tourism Leisure and Hospitality Management Paradigm shift space markets Photonics 0210 nano-technology business economic viability |
| Zdroj: | New Space |
| ISSN: | 2168-0264 2168-0256 |
| Popis: | Exotic optical fibers and glasses are the platform material for photonics applications, primarily due to their superior signal transmission (speed, low attenuation), with extending bandwidth deep into the infrared, exceeding that of silica fibers. Gravitational effects (convection sedimentation) have a direct impact on the phase diagram of these materials and influence melting properties, crystallization temperatures, and viscosity of the elemental mix during the manufacturing process. Such factors constitute limits to the yield, transmission quality, and strength and value of these fibers; they also constrain the range of applications. Manufacturing in a gravity-free environment such as the Earth's Orbit also helps with other aspects of the fabrication process (i.e., improved form factor of the manufacturing unit, sustainability). In this article, revolutionary developments in the field of photonics over the past decade merge with the paradigm shift in the privatization of government-owned capabilities supporting a more diverse infrastructure (parabolic, suborbital, orbital), reduced price, and increased frequency to access space and the microgravity environment. With the increased dependence on data (demand, bandwidth, efficiency), space and the microgravity environment provide opportunities for optimized performance of these exotic optical fibers and glasses underlying the development of enabling technologies to meet future data demand. Existing terrestrial markets (Internet, telecommunications, market transactions) and emerging space markets (on-orbit satellite servicing, space manufacturing, space resources, space communications, etc.) seem to converge, and this innovative material processing opportunity of exotic optical fibers and glasses might just be that “killer app”: technologically competitive, economically viable, and with the ability to close the business case. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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