Experiment

FACET Experiment Performed Again

* All times are Japan Standard Time (JST)

Investigation on Mechanism of Faceted Cellular Array Growth (FACET)* was performed again on board Kibo.

*Principal Investigator (PI): Dr. Yuko Inatomi, Associate Professor of the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (ISAS)

FACET aims to clarify the mechanism of a facet-like crystallization (a crystal with flat surfaces) by closely observing the phenomena at the solid-liquid interfaces.
The experiment uses the Solution Crystallization Observation Facility (SCOF) in the Kibo module.

The experiment began at 11:50 a.m. on September 1, 2010 by commands from the Tsukuba Space Center (TKSC).

This time, the FACET team tries to obtain more accurate data. The previous FACET experiment was performed from April 9 through June 12, 2009.

In the experiment, experiment sample is placed in a thin glass container. Temperature difference is given to both ends of the container for the sample to form a facet.
Crystal growth will be monitored using a microscope, and change in the temperature and density will be measured by Mach-Zehnder (MZ) interference microscope.

By studying the mechanism of facet growth, productions of high quality oxidized superconductor and semiconductor, which would have a significant impact on the performance of the electronics components, can be realized. Use of clean energy will be increased through efficient production of multi-crystal silicon for solar cell panels, and improved property of the superconductor materials would lead to practical application of linear motor car. Infrastructure of communications networks, such as cell phone service and ground radio station, will also be reinforced.

Investigation on Mechanism of Faceted Cellular Array Growth (FACET)

*All times are Japan Standard Time (JST)