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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 343 records · Page 19
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1983

Effect of suction and blowing on boundary-layer transition

The effects of wall blowing and suction on boundary-layer stability and transition are studied on a flat plate. Titanium panels, in which 0.063 mm diameter holes were drilled on 0.635 mm centers, are inserted on the plate. Suction level and distribution are variable. Disturbances are introduced by means of a vibrating ribbon and measurements of both mean-flow and disturbance-flow velocities are made with a hot wire. Disturbance amplitudes are measured as a function of Reynolds number, frequency, and suction characteristics and compared with the previous Dynapore results of Reynolds and Saric. Transition measurements under natural and forced conditions are also made. The stabilizing effects of suction are documented. It is also shown that very high local flow rates through the suction holes (which approach a hole Reynolds number of 300) do not destabilize the flow. On the other hand, weak blowing lowers the transition Reynolds number but is found not to cause serious problems.

Saric, W. S.↗
NASA NTRS2000

Evidence of a Supermassive Black Hole in the Galaxy NGC 1023 From The Nuclear Stellar Dynamics

We analyze the nuclear stellar dynamics of the SBO galaxy NGC 1023, utilizing observational data both from the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph aboard the Hubble Space Telescope and from the ground. The stellar kinematics measured from these long-slit spectra show rapid rotation (V equals approx. 70 km/s at a distance of O.1 deg = 4.9 pc from the nucleus) and increasing velocity dispersion toward the nucleus (where sigma = 295 +/- 30 km/s). We model the observed stellar kinematics assuming an axisymmetric mass distribution with both two and three integrals of motion. Both modeling techniques point to the presence of a central dark compact mass (which presumably is a supermassive black hole) with confidence > 99%. The isotropic two-integral models yield a best-fitting black hole mass of (6.0 +/- 0.4) x 10(exp 7) solar masses and mass-to-light ratio (M/L(sub v)) of 5.38 +/- 0.08, and the goodness-of-fit (CHI(exp 2)) is insensitive to reasonable values for the galaxy's inclination. The three-integral models, which non-parametrically fit the observed line-of-sight velocity distribution as a function of position in the galaxy, suggest a black hole mass of (3.9 +/- 0.4) x 10(exp 7) solar masses and M/L(sub v) of 5.56 +/- 0.02 (internal errors), and the edge-on models are vastly superior fits over models at other inclinations. The internal dynamics in NGC 1023 as suggested by our best-fit three-integral model shows that the velocity distribution function at the nucleus is tangentially anisotropic, suggesting the presence of a nuclear stellar disk. The nuclear line of sight velocity distribution has enhanced wings at velocities >= 600 km/s from systemic, suggesting that perhaps we have detected a group of stars very close to the central dark mass.

Bower, G. A.↗
DOE OSTI2020

Moving mirror model for quasithermal radiation fields

We analyze the flow of energy and entropy emitted by a class of moving mirror trajectories which provide models for important aspects of the radiation fields produced by black hole evaporation. The mirror radiation fields provide natural, concrete examples of processes that follow thermal distributions for long periods, accompanied by transients which are brief and carry little net energy, yet ultimately represent pure quantum states. In conclusion, a burst of negative energy flux is a generic feature of these fields, but it need not be prominent.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2021

X-Ray Radiography and Phase-Contrast Imaging of the Engine Combustion Network Spray B Sprays and Injection

X-ray measurements of diesel sprays from two of the Engine Combustion Network (ECN) Spray B injectors are described. Measurements in these three-hole nozzles complement both visible light measurements of these sprays and previous x-ray measurements of the axial single-hole ECN Spray A injectors. Both axial and lateral motions of the injector needle valve were measured with x-ray phase contrast imaging. Additionally, the liquid mass distribution in room temperature sprays at elevated ambient pressure was determined with x-ray radiography. Measurements of both needle valve motion and spray distribution were performed at both the standard Spray A/B conditions and with selected variations of injection pressure, ambient density, and injection timing. The needle valve motion for the Spray B injectors is quite similar to that of the Spray A injectors, though little lateral motion is seen in either Spray B injector. Compared to the sprays from the Spray A injectors, the sprays from Spray B penetrate more slowly in the near-nozzle region, demonstrate a broader, more uniform distribution in the transverse direction, and are significantly more variable with respect to time. These differences demonstrate the importance of studies with multi-hole nozzles to provide insight into applied diesel combustion.

42 ENGINEERING↗
NASA NTRS1977

Bayesian estimation of crack initiation times from service data

Lockheed C-130 Hercules aircraft have during their service life been periodically inspected and growing cracks around rivet holes were recorded. This record has recently been used to determine the statistical distributions of crack initiation times and the distribution of initial crack sizes. When crack initiation times are calculated from such cracks, by backward extrapolation of the growth relation, the resulting distribution of crack initiation times will indicate a preponderance of short times to crack initiation. If however, such distributions are combined with the reliability of the inspection procedure, the statistical distribution of missed initiation times can be estimated. The method used is based on Bayes theorem which permits the calculation of the 'prior' distribution (initiation times before inspection) from a knowledge of the 'posterior' distribution (initiation times obtained from the inspection) and a 'likelihood function' (reliability of the inspection) procedure. The results indicate that during an early inspection a large percentage of initiation times will be missed and that the fraction of located initiation times increases during later inspections.

Heller, R. A.↗
NASA NTRS1991

A new technique to study transient conductivity under pulsed monochromatic light in Cr-doped GaAs using acoustoelectric voltage measurement

The transient conductivity of high-resistivity Bridgman-grown Cr-doped GaAs under pulsed monochromatic light is monitored using transverse acoustoelectric voltage (TAV) at 83 K. Keeping the photon flux constant, the height and transient time constant at the TAV are used to calculate the energy dependence of the trap density and its cross section, respectively. Two prominent trap profiles with peak trap densities of approximately 10 to the 17th/cu cm eV near the valence and the conduction bands are detected. These traps have very small capture cross sections in the range of 10 to the -23 to 10 to the -21st cm sq. A phenomenon similar to the persistent photoconductivity with transient time constants in excess of a few seconds in high-resistivity GaAs at T = 83 K is also detected using this technique. These long relaxation times are readily explained by the spatial separation of the photo-excited electron-hole pairs and the small capture cross section and large density of trap distribution near the conduction band.

Tabib-Azar, Massood↗
DOE OSTI2025

Simulating Alpha Particles Incident on MKID Chips for Quantum Sensitivity Analysis

Superconducting quantum devices, such as microwave kinetic inductance detectors (MKIDs), are highly sensitive instruments used in quantum computing and advanced sensing technologies. However, their extreme sensitivity also makes them vulnerable to background noise from natural sources like radiation. One significant contributor to this noise is alpha particles emitted by 210Po, a radon decay daughter that accumulates on surfaces near the detector. This project investigates how alpha particles emitted from 210Po interact with MKID chips. These particles can deposit energy on the detector surface, disrupting its operation and generating false signals. Understanding the energy and behavior of these particles is crucial for improving the design and reliability of quantum devices. To explore this, we first modeled the decay chain starting from 210Pb to 210Po using differential equations. This allowed us to predict how the activity of alpha-emitting isotopes changes over time, reaching a steady state after about two years. Next, we simulated alpha particle interactions with the MKID chip using the Geant4 software toolkit. We built a detailed computer model of the detector housing, including the copper lid where alpha particles originate, the silicon chip, and a thin aluminum sensor layer. Alpha particles were emitted isotropically from just beneath the copper lid’s surface, mimicking natural decay conditions. The simulation tracked how these particles deposit energy on the chip, generating electron-hole pairs and phonons. The results provide insight into the behavior of the resultant electron-hole pairs and phonons, giving us a clear understanding of the energy deposition distribution on the chip. This work supports efforts to mitigate background noise in superconducting sensors, advancing their use in quantum computing and sensitive physics experiments.

Hall, Matthew [Fermilab; UCLA]↗
DOE OSTI2023

The SOUX AGN sample: SDSS– XMM-Newton optical, ultraviolet, and X-ray selected active galactic nuclei spanning a wide range of parameter space – sample definition

Abstract We assemble a sample of 696 type 1 active galactic nuclei (AGN) up to a redshift of z = 2.5, all of which have an SDSS spectrum containing at least one broad emission line (H α, H β, or Mg ii) and an XMM-Newton X-ray spectrum containing at least 250 counts in addition to simultaneous optical/ultraviolet photometry from the XMM Optical Monitor. Our sample includes quasars and narrow-line Seyfert 1s: thus our AGN span a wide range in luminosity, black hole mass, and accretion rate. We determine single-epoch black hole mass relations for the three emission lines and find that they provide broadly consistent mass estimates whether the continuum or emission line luminosity is used as the proxy for the broad emission line region radius. We explore variations of the UV/X-ray energy index αox with the UV continuum luminosity and with black hole mass and accretion rate, and make comparisons to the physical quasar spectral energy distribution model qsosed. The majority of the AGN in our sample lie in a region of parameter space with 0.02 < L/LEdd < 2 as defined by this model, with narrow-line type 1 AGN offset to lower masses and higher accretion rates than typical broad-line quasars. We find differences in the dependence of αox on UV luminosity between both narrow/broad-line and radio-loud/quiet subsets of AGN: αox has a slightly weaker dependence on UV luminosity for broad-line AGN and radio-loud AGN have systematically harder αox.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1999

Microgravity Experiments to Evaluate Electrostatic Forces in Controlling Cohesion and Adhesion of Granular Materials

The bulk behavior of dispersed, fluidized, or undispersed stationary granular systems cannot be fully understood in terms of adhesive/cohesive properties without understanding the role of electrostatic forces acting at the level of the grains themselves. When grains adhere to a surface, or come in contact with one another in a stationary bulk mass, it is difficult to measure the forces acting on the grains, and the forces themselves that induced the cohesion and adhesion are changed. Even if a single grain were to be scrutinized in the laboratory, it might be difficult, perhaps impossible, to define the distribution and character of surface charging and the three-dimensional relationship that charges (electrons, holes) have to one another. The hypothesis that we propose to test in microgravity (for dielectric materials) is that adhesion and cohesion of granular matter are mediated primarily by dipole forces that do not require the presence of a net charge; in fact, nominally electrically neutral materials should express adhesive and cohesive behavior when the neutrality results from a balance of positive and negative charge carriers. Moreover, the use of net charge alone as a measure of the electrical nature of grain-to-grain relationships within a granular mass may be misleading. We believe that the dipole forces arise from the presence of randomly-distributed positive and negative fixed charge carriers on grains that give rise to a resultant dipole moment. These dipole forces have long-range attraction. Random charges are created whenever there is triboelectrical activity of a granular mass, that is, whenever the grains experience contact/separation sequences or friction.

Marshall, J.↗
DOE OSTI2020

Properties of La 0.7 Ca 0.3 MnO 3 under extreme tensile strain

The complex phase diagram of manganites with simultaneously active spin, charge, orbital, and lattice degrees of freedom continues providing surprises. In a recent groundbreaking experiment, membranes of the perovskite manganite La 0.7 Ca 0.3 MnO 3 (LCMO) deposited on a flexible polymer layer were strained up to 8% [S. S. Hong et al., Science 368, 71 (2020)], much more than achieved by regular strain induced by a rigid substrate. By increasing this strain, a metal-insulator transition was reported. Here we reproduce the results of the experiments using Monte Carlo simulations of the two-orbital double-exchange model including Jahn-Teller distortions at hole density x=1/3. The full phase diagram with varying temperature and Jahn-Teller coupling λ is presented. When the bandwidth W of mobile electrons is reduced, thus when the effective Jahn-Teller coupling λ/W is increased, a metal-insulator transition is found in our simulations, between a ferromagnetic metallic state with uniform charge distribution and an insulator with diagonal charge stripes that retains its ferromagnetic character. In between the hole-rich diagonals, staggered orbital order occurs. We also report resistivity and magnetization measurements alongside with spin correlations and charge structure factors. Our overall conclusions are in agreement with the recent experimental and density functional theory results by Hong et al., and we confirm much earlier ground state predictions of striped ferromagnetic order using energy optimization techniques by T. Hotta et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 86, 4922 (2001)]. The experimental observation of one of the states predicted by theory suggests that diagonal stripes could be achieved at other hole densities as well, such as x=1/4, if LCMO membranes with that hole doping were subject to similar strains.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
NASA NTRS1995

GRO: Black hole models for gamma-ray bursts

The Burst and Transient Source Experiment (BATSE) on board the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory (CGRO) has established that the distribution of gamma-ray bursts (GRB's) is isotropic but is bound radially. This finding suggests that the bursts are either cosmological or they originate from an extended Galactic halo. The implied luminosities and the observed variability of the GRB's on time scales as short as one millisecond suggest that they originate from compact objects. We are presently studying black hole models for GRB's. Any such model must produce a non-thermal photon spectrum to agree with the observed properties. For a wide range of burst parameters the assumed bursting source consists of a non-thermal electron-positron-photon plasma of very high density. It seems possible to produce such a plasma in accretion onto black holes. In our on-going work, we are developing the kinetic theory for a non-equilibrium pair plasma. The main new features of our work are as follows: (1) We do not assume the presence of a thermal electron bath. (2) Non-thermal, high-energy pairs are allowed to have an arbitrary concentration and energy distribution. (3) There is no soft photon source in our model; initially all the photons in the plasma are either energetic X-rays or gamma-rays. (4) The initial energy distribution of the pairs as well as photons is arbitrary. (5) We collect the analytical expressions for the kinetic kernels for all relevant processes. And (6) we present a different approach to finding the time-evolution of pair and photon spectra, which is a combination of the kinetic-theory and the non-linear Monte-Carlo schemes. We have developed many Monte-Carlo programs to model various process, to take into account the time evolution, and to incorporate various physical effects which are unique to non-thermal plasmas. The hydrodynamics of fireballs in GRB's was studied before. Applying results from kinetic theory will improve our understanding of these systems.

Ruderman, Malvin↗
DOE OSTI2022

Minimum feature size control in level set topology optimization via density fields

A level set topology optimization approach that uses an auxiliary density field to nucleate holes during the optimization process and achieves minimum feature size control in optimized designs is explored. The level set field determines the solid-void interface and the density field describes the distribution of a fictitious porous material using the solid isotropic material with penalization. These fields are governed by two sets of independent optimization variables which are initially coupled using a penalty for hole nucleation. The strength of the density field penalization and projection is gradually increased during the optimization process to promote a 0-1 density distribution. In addition, a second penalty regulates the evolution of the density field in the void phase. The treatment of the density field combined with the second penalty mitigate the appearance of small design features. The minimum feature size of optimized designs is controlled by the radius of the linear filter applied to the density optimization variables. The structural response is predicted by the extended finite element method, the sensitivities by the adjoint method, and the optimization variables are updated by a gradient-based optimization algorithm. Numerical examples investigate the robustness of this approach with respect to algorithmic parameters and mesh refinement. The results show the applicability of the combined density level set topology optimization approach for both optimal hole nucleation and for minimum feature size control in 2D and 3D. This comes, however, at the cost of a more complex problem formulation and additional computational cost due to an increased number of optimization variables.

42 ENGINEERING↗
NASA NTRS1992

An accreting black hole model for Sagittarius A

Several observations, notably of broad He I, Br-alpha, and Br-gamma emission lines from the vicinity of IRS 16, indicate the presence of a strong circumnuclear wind near the dynamical center of the Galaxy. Sgr A, a hypothesized supermassive object situated about 0.06 pc to the west of IRS 16, should be accreting from this wind if it is not itself a source of gaseous outflow, for which there is currently no observational evidence. Here, the spectrum and flux of radiation resulting from this process are calculated, and it is shown that they are consistent with the data over at least 12 decades of frequency. Together with the kinematic studies of the stellar and gas distributions in this region, the model argues strongly in favor of Sgr A being a black hole with mass over a million solar masses.

Melia, Fulvio↗
DOE OSTI2026

The DREAMS Project: Disentangling the Impact of Halo-to-Halo Variance and Baryonic Feedback on Milky Way Dark Matter Speed Distributions

Dark matter direct detection experiments require information about the local dark matter speed distribution to produce constraints on dark matter candidates, or infer their properties in the event of a discovery. In this paper, we analyze how the uncertainty in the dark matter speed distribution near the Sun is affected by baryonic feedback, halo-to-halo variance, and halo mass. To do so, we harness the statistical power of the new DREAMS cold dark matter simulation suite, which is comprised of 1024 zoom-in Milky Way–mass halos with varied initial conditions as well as cosmological and astrophysical parameters. Applying a normalizing flows emulator to these simulations, we find that the uncertainty in the local dark matter speed distribution is dominated by halo-to-halo variance and, to a lesser extent, uncertainty in host halo mass. Uncertainties in supernova and black hole feedback (from the IllustrisTNG model in this case) are negligible in comparison. Using the DREAMS suite, we present a state-of-the-art prediction for the dark matter speed distribution in the Milky Way. Although the standard halo model is contained within the uncertainty of this prediction, individual galaxies may have distributions that differ from it. Lastly, we apply our DREAMS results to the XENON1T experiment and demonstrate that the astrophysical uncertainties are comparable to the experimental ones, solidifying previous results in the literature obtained with a smaller sample of simulated Milky Way–mass halos.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Dynamical instability of collapsed dark matter halos

A self-interacting dark matter halo can experience gravothermal collapse, resulting in a central core with an ultrahigh density. It can further contract and collapse into a black hole, a mechanism proposed to explain the origin of supermassive black holes. We study dynamical instability of the core in general relativity. Here we use a truncated Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution to model the dark matter distribution and solve the Tolman-Oppenheimer-Volkoff equation. For given model parameters, we obtain a series of equilibrium configurations and examine their dynamical instability based on considerations of total energy, binding energy, fractional binding energy, and adiabatic index. Our numerical results indicate that the core can collapse into a black hole when the fractional binding energy reaches 0.035 with a central gravitational redshift of 0.5. We further show for the instability to occur in the classical regime, the boundary temperature of the core should be at least 10% of the mass of dark matter particles; for a 10 9 M ⊙ seed black hole, the particle mass needs to be larger than a few keV. These results can be used to constrain different collapse models, in particular, those with dissipative dark matter interactions.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS2012

Spectral Energy Distribution Models for Low-Luminosity Active Galactic Nuclei in LINERs

Low-luminosity active galactic nuclei (LLAGNs) represent the bulk of the AGN population in the present-day universe and they trace the low-level accreting supermassive black holes. In order to probe the accretion and jet physical properties in LLAGNs as a class, we model the broadband radio to X-rays spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of 21 LLAGNs in low-ionization nuclear emission-line regions (LINERs) with a coupled accretion-jet model. The accretion flow is modeled as an inner ADAF outside of which there is a truncated standard thin disk. We find that the radio emission is severely underpredicted by ADAF models and is explained by the relativistic jet. The origin of the X-ray radiation in most sources can be explained by three distinct scenarios: the X-rays can be dominated by emission from the ADAF, or the jet, or the X-rays can arise from a jet-ADAF combination in which both components contribute to the emission with similar importance. For 3 objects both the jet and ADAF fit equally well the X-ray spectrum and can be the dominant source of X-rays whereas for 11 LLAGNs a jet-dominated model accounts better than the ADAF-dominated model for the data. The individual and average SED models that we computed can be useful for different studies of the nuclear emission of LLAGNs. From the model fits, we estimate important parameters of the central engine powering LLAGNs in LINERs, such as the mass accretion rate and the mass-loss rate in the jet and the jet power - relevant for studies of the kinetic feedback from jets.

Nemmen, Rodrigo S.↗
DOE OSTI2020

Spin filtering and spin separation in 2D materials by topological spin Hall effect

The needs of high speed performance electronic devices for various applications require novel materials and new physical phenomena. For these purposes we propose to study new physical effects based on electron scattering on magnetic skyrmions and vortices distributed in a 2D ferromagnetic material. Herein, we show that the topological spin Hall effect can be efficiently employed for the filtering, switching, and separation of spin currents. For some values of the parameters (conduction electron concentrations, and skyrmion/vortex sizes) it is possible to separate Hall currents for different electron spin projections as it is like for different carrier charges (electrons and holes) in the normal Hall effect. The calculations are performed using the Boltzmann kinetic equation for the nonequilibrium distribution function and the Lippmann–Schwinger equation for the transition matrix in the whole range of the adiabaticity parameter. The spin filtering due to the skyrmion/vortex scattering can be several orders of magnitude more efficient in the narrow range of the electron concentrations than that of the ordinary ferromagnetic spin polarization in spintronics.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2022

Variable resolution Poisson-disk sampling for meshing discrete fracture networks

Here, we present the near-Maximal Algorithm for Poisson-disk Sampling (nMAPS) to generate point distributions for variable resolution Delaunay triangular and tetrahedral meshes in two and three-dimensions, respectively. nMAPS consists of two principal stages. In the first stage, an initial point distribution is produced using a cell-based rejection algorithm. In the second stage, holes in the sample are detected using an efficient background grid and filled in to obtain a near-maximal covering. Extensive testing shows that nMAPS generates a variable resolution mesh in linear run time with the number of accepted points. We demonstrate nMAPS capabilities by meshing three-dimensional discrete fracture networks (DFN) and the surrounding volume. The discretized boundaries of the fractures, which are represented as planar polygons, are used as the seed of 2D-nMAPS to produce a conforming Delaunay triangulation. The combined mesh of the DFN is used as the seed for 3D-nMAPS, which produces conforming Delaunay tetrahedra surrounding the network. Under a set of conditions that naturally arise in maximal Poisson-disk samples and are satisfied by nMAPS, the two-dimensional Delaunay triangulations are guaranteed to only have well-behaved triangular faces. While nMAPS does not provide triangulation quality bounds in more than two dimensions, we found that low-quality tetrahedra in 3D are infrequent, can be readily detected and removed, and a high-quality balanced mesh is produced.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗