SBIR Phase I: Ultrasensitive Methods for Tribology

9861558这个小企业创新研究第一阶段项目是开发方法和仪器，用于评估表面薄膜保护涂层的厚度和完整性。提出的技术基于该公司的多光子探测（MPD）技术，这是一种放射性分析方法，使用豁免量的放射性同位素，灵敏度比现有方法提高1000倍。通过选择性地在保护表面膜层中加入适当的放射性标签，并使用MPD成像仪对标签的表面分布进行成像，可以以前所未有的精度测量涂层的厚度和均匀性。使用这种技术可以测量到单层的表面厚度。如果成功，该项目下开发的技术将成为一种强大的新工具，用于测量表面涂层的初始特性及其在不同操作条件下的行为。该工具将广泛适用于生产和过程控制方法，以及大型机械系统中磨损和腐蚀影响的长期监测。

9861558 This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project is to develop methods and instrumentation which will permit evaluation of the thickness and integrity of thin film protective coatings on surfaces. The proposed techniques are based on the company's Multi Photon Detection (MPD) technology, a radioanalytic method which uses exempt amounts of radioisotope and provides 1,000 fold sensitivity improvements over current methods. By selectively incorporating appropriate radioactive tags in the protective surface film layer and imaging the surface distribution of the tags using the MPD Imager, the thickness and uniformity of the coating layers may be measured with unprecedented precision. Using this technique surface layer thickness can be measured down to monolayer levels. If successful, the techniques developed under this project could result in a powerful new tool for measuring the initial properties of surface coating layers and their behavior under diverse operating conditions. This tool will have widespread applicability in production and process control methods as well as the longer term monitoring of wear and corrosion effects in large mechanical systems.