Electron reflection in thermionic energy converters

Lim, Ian T.; Lambert, Scott A.; Vay, Jean-Luc; Schwede, Jared W.

doi:10.1063/1.5018067

Title: Electron reflection in thermionic energy converters

Journal Article · 15 February 2018 · Applied Physics Letters

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5018067 · OSTI ID:1421306

Lim, Ian T.; Lambert, Scott A.; Vay, Jean-Luc; Schwede, Jared W.

We investigate the impact of electron reflection on space charge in thermionic energy converters. Using the particle-in-cell code Warp3D, we simulate electron reflection and discover that specular and diffuse reflection produce fundamentally distinct behavior. Our simulations suggest that the effects of reflection may have been misidentified in experiments as anomalously large gap sizes. As a result, electron reflection may significantly alter the analysis and optimization of real-world converters.

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Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E)

Grant/Contract Number:: AR0000664

OSTI ID:: 1421306

Journal Information:: Applied Physics Letters, Journal Name: Applied Physics Letters Vol. 112 Journal Issue: 7; ISSN 0003-6951

Publisher:: American Institute of PhysicsCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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Cited by: 13 works

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References (20)

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