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At least 379 records · Page 21

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NASA NTRS2021

An Encounter with the Ion and Electron Diffusion Regions at a Flapping and Twisted Tail Current Sheet

We analyze data returned by the Magnetospheric Multiscale mission (MMS) constellation during a rapid (~1.5 s) traversal of a flapping and reconnecting current sheet (CS) in the near-Earth magnetotail (X ~ -20 RE). The CS was highly tilted, with its normal pointing strongly duskward. Its extreme thinness was confirmed by a curvature analysis of the magnetic field lines. The event was associated with a guide field of 8% of the reconnecting components. From the pitch angle distributions of low-energy electrons we infer that the crossing occurred earthward of the X-line. Traveling practically normal to the CS, MMS encountered an ion diffusion region (IDR) in which was embedded an electron diffusion region (EDR). IDR signatures included breaking of the ion frozen-in condition in the presence of Hall B and E fields. EDR signatures included a strong out of-plane current associated with a super-Alfvenic electron jet, evidence of positive energy transfer, and a temperature anisotropy (TeII > Te1) which disappeared at the field reversal. Derived scale sizes normal to the CS are: ~6.9 de (EDR) and ~0.4 di (IDR) (40 and 100 km). We estimate the average dimensionless reconnection rate as 0.077 + 0.050. The observations and inferences are supported by PIC numerical simulations. We find very good agreement in the reconnection rates. We also discuss the effects of asymmetries in the density, temperature and magnetic field strength on the Hall fields and length of the outflow jets. The event is associated with a substorm onset which began 7 min after the MMS observations.

C J Farrugia↗

NASA NTRS1982

Charged particle motions in the distended magnetospheres of Jupiter and Saturn

Charged particle motion in the guiding center approximation is analyzed for models of the Jovian and Saturnian magnetospheric magnetic fields based on Voyager magnetometer observations. Field lines are traced and exhibit the distention which arises from azimuthally circulating magnetospheric currents. The spatial dependencies of the guiding center bounce period and azimuthal drift rate are investigated for the model fields. Non-dipolar effects in the gradient-curvature drift rate are most important at the equator and affect particles with all mirror latitudes. The effect is a factor of 10-15 for Jupiter with its strong magnetodisc current and 1-2 for Saturn with its more moderate ring current. Limits of adiabaticity, where particle gyroradii become comparable with magnetic scale lengths, are discussed and are shown to occur at quite modest kinetic energies for protons and heavier ions.

Birmingham, T. J.↗

DOE OSTI2016

INTERSTELLAR PICKUP ION ACCELERATION IN THE TURBULENT MAGNETIC FIELD AT THE SOLAR WIND TERMINATION SHOCK USING A FOCUSED TRANSPORT APPROACH

We study the physics of locally born interstellar pickup proton acceleration at the nearly perpendicular solar wind termination shock (SWTS) in the presence of a random magnetic field spiral angle using a focused transport model. Guided by Voyager 2 observations, the spiral angle is modeled with a q -Gaussian distribution. The spiral angle fluctuations, which are used to generate the perpendicular diffusion of pickup protons across the SWTS, play a key role in enabling efficient injection and rapid diffusive shock acceleration (DSA) when these particles follow field lines. Our simulations suggest that variation of both the shape ( q -value) and the standard deviation ( σ -value) of the q -Gaussian distribution significantly affect the injection speed, pitch-angle anisotropy, radial distribution, and the efficiency of the DSA of pickup protons at the SWTS. For example, increasing q and especially reducing σ enhances the DSA rate.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2023

Effective Resistivity in Relativistic Collisionless Reconnection

Magnetic reconnection can power spectacular high-energy astrophysical phenomena by producing nonthermal energy distributions in highly magnetized regions around compact objects. By means of two-dimensional fully kinetic particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations, we investigate relativistic collisionless plasmoid-mediated reconnection in magnetically dominated pair plasmas with and without a guide field. In X-points, where diverging flows result in a nondiagonal thermal pressure tensor, a finite residence time for particles gives rise to a localized collisionless effective resistivity. Here, for the first time for relativistic reconnection in a fully developed plasmoid chain, we identify the mechanisms driving the nonideal electric field using a full Ohm law by means of a statistical analysis based on our PIC simulations. We show that the nonideal electric field is predominantly driven by gradients of nongyrotropic thermal pressures. We propose a kinetic physics motivated nonuniform effective resistivity model that is negligible on global scales and becomes significant only locally in X-points. It captures the properties of collisionless reconnection with the aim of mimicking its essentials in nonideal magnetohydrodynamic descriptions. This effective resistivity model provides a viable opportunity to design physically grounded global models for reconnection-powered high-energy emission.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2011

Full-field drift Hamiltonian particle orbits in axisymmetric tokamak geometry

A Hamiltonian/Lagrangian theory to describe guiding center orbit drift motion that is canonical in Boozer magnetic coordinates is developed to include full electrostatic and electromagnetic perturbed fields in axisymmetric tokamak geometry. Furthermore, the radial component of the equilibrium magnetic field in the covariant representation is retained and the background equilibrium state extends to anisotropic plasma pressure conditions. A gauge transformation on the perturbed vector potential is imposed to guarantee canonical structure in the Boozer frame. Perturbed field nonlinear wave-wave interactions affect only the evolution of the guiding center particle parallel gyroradius. The evolution of the particle coordinate positions retains only linear wave-particle interactions. For particle motion in magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) instability structures, the electrostatic potential is linked mainly to the binormal component of the perturbed displacement vector when finite {delta}A{sub perpendicular} components are included.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

DOE OSTI2015

High power heating of magnetic reconnection in merging tokamak experiments

Significant ion/electron heating of magnetic reconnection up to 1.2 keV was documented in two spherical tokamak plasma merging experiment on MAST with the significantly large Reynolds number R∼10{sup 5}. Measured 1D/2D contours of ion and electron temperatures reveal clearly energy-conversion mechanisms of magnetic reconnection: huge outflow heating of ions in the downstream and localized heating of electrons at the X-point. Ions are accelerated up to the order of poloidal Alfven speed in the reconnection outflow region and are thermalized by fast shock-like density pileups formed in the downstreams, in agreement with recent solar satellite observations and PIC simulation results. The magnetic reconnection efficiently converts the reconnecting (poloidal) magnetic energy mostly into ion thermal energy through the outflow, causing the reconnection heating energy proportional to square of the reconnecting (poloidal) magnetic field B{sub rec}{sup 2} ∼ B{sub p}{sup 2}. The guide toroidal field B{sub t} does not affect the bulk heating of ions and electrons, probably because the reconnection/outflow speeds are determined mostly by the external driven inflow by the help of another fast reconnection mechanism: intermittent sheet ejection. The localized electron heating at the X-point increases sharply with the guide toroidal field B{sub t}, probably because the toroidal field increases electron confinement and acceleration length along the X-line. 2D measurements of magnetic field and temperatures in the TS-3 tokamak merging experiment also reveal the detailed reconnection heating mechanisms mentioned above. The high-power heating of tokamak merging is useful not only for laboratory study of reconnection but also for economical startup and heating of tokamak plasmas. The MAST/TS-3 tokamak merging with B{sub p} > 0.4 T will enables us to heat the plasma to the alpha heating regime: T{sub i} > 5 keV without using any additional heating facility.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

DOE OSTI2010

PARTICLE ACCELERATION IN FRAGMENTING PERIODIC RECONNECTING CURRENT SHEETS IN SOLAR FLARES

Proton and electron acceleration in a fragmenting periodic current sheet (CS) is investigated, based on the forced magnetic reconnection scenario. The aim is to understand the role of CS fragmentation in high-energy beam generation in solar flares. We combine magnetohydrodynamics and test-particle models to consider particle trajectories consistent with a time-dependent reconnection model. It is shown that accelerated particles in such a model form two distinct populations. Protons and electrons moving in open magnetic field have energy spectra that are a combination of the initial Maxwellian distribution and a power-law high-energy (E>20 keV) part. The second population contains particles moving in a closed magnetic field around O-points. These particles move predominantly along the guiding field and their energies fall within quite a narrow range between {approx}1 MeV and {approx}10 MeV. It is also found that particles moving in an open magnetic field have a considerably wider pitch-angle distribution.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2011

Active black holes: Relevant plasma structures, regimes and processes involving all phase space

The presented theory is motivated by the growing body of experimental information on the characteristics, connected with relevant spectral, time, and space resolutions, of the radiation emission from objects considered as rotating black holes. In the immediate surroundings of these objects, three plasma regions are identified: an innermost Buffer Region, an intermediate Three-regime Region, and a Structured Peripheral Region. In the last region, a Composite Disk Structure made of a sequence of plasma rings corresponding to the formation of closed magnetic surfaces is considered to be present and to allow intermittent accretion flows along the relevant separatrices. The nonlinear 'Master Equation' describing composite disk structures is derived and solved in appropriate asymptotic limits. A configuration, depending on the state of the plasma at the microscopic level: (i) can be excluded from forming given the strongly nonthermal nature of the electron distribution (in momentum space) within the Three-regime Region allowing the onset of a spiral structure; the observed High Frequency Quasi Periodic Oscillations are associated with these tridimensional structures; (ii) may be allowed to propagate to the outer edge of the Buffer Region where successive rings carrying currents in opposite directions are ejected vertically (in opposite directions) and originate the observed jets; or (iii) penetrates in the Three-regime Region and is dissipated before reaching the outer edge of the Buffer Region. The absence of a coherent composite disk structure guiding accretion in the presence of a significant magnetic field background is suggested to characterize quiescent black holes.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

DOE OSTI2020

Some mathematics for quasi-symmetry

Quasi-symmetry of a steady magnetic field means integrability of first-order guiding-center motion by a spatial symmetry. Here, we derive many restrictions on the possibilities for a quasi-symmetry. We also derive an analog of the Grad–Shafranov equation for the flux function in a quasi-symmetric magnetohydrostatic field.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

DOE OSTI2022

Whistler waves generated by nongyrotropic and gyrotropic electron beams during asymmetric guide field reconnection

Using a two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulation of asymmetric reconnection with a guide field whose strength is 0.3 times the reconnecting magnetic field, we study electron distribution functions and wave intensities in the diffusion region, focusing on the electron diffusion region (EDR). Wave activities with frequencies below the electron cyclotron frequency are observed, and these are whistler waves propagating almost anti-parallel to the magnetic field. The waves are concentrated near the magnetospheric separatrix away from the X line, but the wave activity also spreads through the EDR near the X line. The reconnection outflows are asymmetric in the outflow direction in the magnetospheric side, and the wave intensity is stronger in the side of the faster electron outflow. We study the whistler waves using the fast Fourier transform, analyses of electron velocity distribution functions, and the dispersion solver calculation. Along the magnetospheric separatrix in the stronger outflow side, highly anisotropic electron beams exist with super-Alfvénic drift speeds. The dispersion analysis shows that there are two modes: a temperature anisotropy mode and a beam mode. Outside the EDR, the whistler wave intensity is highest near the separatrix, but the wave intensity decreases if we move away from the separatrix toward the magnetic neutral line because of the increase in the electron population near zero parallel velocity. In the EDR, in the velocity plane perpendicular to the magnetic field, ring/crescent electron distribution functions are observed. Near the X-line, the wave power is enhanced where nongyrotropic electrons contribute to increase the perpendicular temperature anisotropy.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

DOE OSTI2016

TU-H-BRA-08: The Design and Characteristics of a Novel Compact Linac-Based MRI Guided Radiation Therapy (MR-IGRT) System

Purpose: To describe the design and characteristics of a novel linac-based MRI guided radiation therapy system that addresses RF and magnetic field interference and that can be housed in conventional radiotherapy vaults. Methods: The MR-IGRT system will provide simultaneous MR imaging combined with both simple (3D) and complex (IMRT, SBRT, SRS) techniques. The system is a combination of a) double-donut split solenoidal superconducting 0.345T MRI; and b) a 90 cm isocenter ring-gantry mounted 6MV, flattening filter-free linac coupled with a stacked doubly-focused multileaf collimator with 4 mm resolution. A novel RF shielding and absorption technology was developed to isolate the beam generating RF emissions from the MR, while a novel magnetic shielding sleeve system was developed to place the magnetic field-sensitive components in low-magnetic field regions. The system design produces high spatial resolution radiation beams with state-of-the art radiation dose characteristics and simultaneous MR imaging. Results: Prototype testing with a spectrum analyzer has demonstrated complete elimination of linac RF inside the treatment room. The magnetic field inside of the magnetic shielding was well below the specification, allowing the linear accelerator to operate normally. A novel on-gantry shimming system maintained < 25 ppm magnetic field homogeneity over a 45 cm spherical field of view for all gantry angles. Conclusion: The system design demonstrates the feasibility coupling a state-of-the art linac system with a 0.345T MRI, enabling highly conformal radiation therapy with simultaneous MR image guidance. S. Mutic’s employer (Washington University) has grant with ViewRay; D. Low is former ViewRay scientific advisory board member (ended October 2015); T. Chmielewski, G. Fought, M. Hernandez, I. Kawrakow, A. Sharma, S. Shvartsman, J. Dempsey are employees of ViewRay with stock options (Dempsey has leadership role and Dempsey/Kawrakow have stock).

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2023

On the Short-scale Spatial Variability of Electron Inflows in Electron-only Magnetic Reconnection in the Turbulent Magnetosheath Observed by MMS

We investigate the detailed properties of electron inflow in an electron-only reconnection event observed by the four Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) spacecraft in the Earth's turbulent magnetosheath downstream of the quasi-parallel bow shock. The lack of ion coupling was attributed to the small-scale sizes of the current sheets, and the observed bidirectional super-Alfvénic electron jets indicate that the MMS spacecraft crossed the reconnecting current sheet on both sides of an active X-line. Remarkably, the MMS spacecraft observed the presence of large asymmetries in the two electron inflows, with the inflows (normal to the current sheet) on the two sides of the reconnecting current layer differing by as much as a factor of four. Furthermore, even though the four MMS spacecraft were separated by less than seven electron skin depths, the degree of inflow asymmetry was significantly different at the different spacecraft. The asymmetry in the inflow speeds was larger with increasing distances downstream from the reconnection site, and the asymmetry was opposite on the two sides of the X-line. We compare the MMS observations with a 2D kinetic particle-in-cell (PIC) simulation and find that the asymmetry in the inflow speeds stems from in-plane currents generated via the combination of reconnection-mediated inflows and parallel flows along the magnetic separatrices in the presence of a large guide field.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

NASA NTRS1984

Nonlinear evolution of magnetopause tearing modes

Since the magnetosheath plasma is highly turbulent, reconnection at the dayside magnetopause is likely to be temporally unsteady. The tearing mode can be viewed as a model for the unsteady development of a reconnecting magnetic topology. Magnetopause tearing occurs in the guide-field limit and has a wave packet spatial structure in the east-west direction. This paper solves for the nonlinear evolution of a single wavelength guide-field tearing mode including the effects of finite transit time on the Landau resonant electrons. Short wavelength modes evolve algebraically in time with perturbation amplitudes proportional to t-squared. Long wavelength modes are fully nonlinear, and the amplitude grows linearly in time.

Coroniti, F. V.↗

NASA NTRS1997

Nonguiding Center Motion and Substorm Effects in the Magnetotail

Thick and thin models of the middle magnetotail were developed using a consistent orbit tracing technique. It was found that currents carried near the equator by groups of ions with anisotropic distribution functions are not well approximated by the guiding center expressions. The guiding center equations fail primarily because the calculated pressure tensor is not magnetic field aligned. The pressure tensor becomes field aligned as one moves away from the equator, but here there is a small region in which the guiding center equations remain inadequate because the two perpendicular components of the pressure tensor are unequal. The significance of nonguiding center motion to substorm processes then was examined. One mechanism that may disrupt a thin cross-tail current sheet involves field changes that cause ions to begin following chaotic orbits. The lowest-altitude chaotic region, characterized by an adiabaticity parameter kappa approx. equal to 0.8, is especially important. The average cross-tail particle drift is slow, and we were unable to generate a thin current sheet using such ions. Therefore, any process that tends to create a thin current sheet in a region with kappa approaching 0.8 may cause the cross-tail current to get so low that it becomes insufficient to support the lobes. A different limit may be important in resonant orbit regions of a thin current sheet because particles reach a maximum cross-tail drift velocity. If the number of ions per unit length decreases as the tail is stretched, this part of the plasma sheet also may become unable to carry the cross-tail current needed to support the lobes. Thin sheets are needed for both resonant and chaotic orbit mechanisms because the distribution function must be highly structured. A description of current continuity is included to show how field aligned currents can evolve during the transition from a two-dimensional (2-D) to a 3-D configuration.

Kaufmann, Richard L.↗

NASA NTRS2007

Design of an Integrated-System FARAD Thruster

Pulsed inductive plasma accelerators are spacecraft propulsion devices in which energy is stored in a capacitor and then discharged through an inductive coil. The device is electrodeless, inducing a current s heet in a plasma located near the face of the coil. The propellant is accelerated and expelled at a high exhaust velocity (order of 10 km/s) through the interaction of the plasma current and the induced magne tic field, The Faraday Accelerator with RF-Assisted Discharge (FARAD) thruster is a type of pulsed inductive plasma accelerator in which t he plasma is preionized by a mechanism separate from that used to for m the current sheet and accelerate the gas. Employing a separate preionization mechanism allows for the formation of an inductive current s heet at much lower discharge energies and voltages than those used in previous pulsed inductive accelerators like the Pulsed Inductive Thr uster (PIT). In this paper, we present the design of a benchtop FARAD thruster with all the subsystems (mass injection, preionization, and acceleration) integrated into a single unit. Design of the thruster follows the guidelines and similarity performance parameters presented elsewhere. The system is designed to use the ringing, RF-frequency s ignal produced by a discharging Vector Inversion Generator (VIG) to p reionize the gas. The acceleration stage operates on the order of 100 J/pulse and can be driven by several different pulsed powertrains. These include a simple capacitor coupled to the system, a Bernardes and Merryman configuration, and a pulsecompression circuit that takes a temporally broad, low current pulse and transforms it into a short, h igh current pulse. A set of applied magnetic field coils are integrated into the system to guide the preionized propellant as it spreads ov er the face of the inductive acceleration coil. The coils are operate d in a pulsed mode, and the thruster can be operated without using the coils to determine if there is a performance improvement gain realiz ed when an applied field is present.

Polzin, K.A.↗

NASA NTRS2022

Whistler Waves Generated by Nongyrotropic and Gyrotropic Electron Beams During Asymmetric Guide Field Reconnection

magnetic reconnection↗

DOE OSTI2011

MAGNETOHYDRODYNAMIC SIMULATIONS OF RECONNECTION AND PARTICLE ACCELERATION: THREE-DIMENSIONAL EFFECTS

Magnetic fields can change their topology through a process known as magnetic reconnection. This process in not only important for understanding the origin and evolution of the large-scale magnetic field, but is seen as a possibly efficient particle accelerator producing cosmic rays mainly through the first-order Fermi process. In this work we study the properties of particle acceleration inserted in reconnection zones and show that the velocity component parallel to the magnetic field of test particles inserted in magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) domains of reconnection without including kinetic effects, such as pressure anisotropy, the Hall term, or anomalous effects, increases exponentially. Also, the acceleration of the perpendicular component is always possible in such models. We find that within contracting magnetic islands or current sheets the particles accelerate predominantly through the first-order Fermi process, as previously described, while outside the current sheets and islands the particles experience mostly drift acceleration due to magnetic field gradients. Considering two-dimensional MHD models without a guide field, we find that the parallel acceleration stops at some level. This saturation effect is, however, removed in the presence of an out-of-plane guide field or in three-dimensional models. Therefore, we stress the importance of the guide field and fully three-dimensional studies for a complete understanding of the process of particle acceleration in astrophysical reconnection environments.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2017

Polarized Kink Waves in Magnetic Elements: Evidence for Chromospheric Helical Waves

In recent years, new high spatial resolution observations of the Sun's atmosphere have revealed the presence of a plethora of small-scale magnetic elements down to the resolution limit of the current cohort of solar telescopes (∼100–120 km on the solar photosphere). These small magnetic field concentrations, due to the granular buffeting, can support and guide several magnetohydrodynamic wave modes that would eventually contribute to the energy budget of the upper layers of the atmosphere. In this work, exploiting the high spatial and temporal resolution chromospheric data acquired with the Swedish 1 m Solar Telescope, and applying the empirical mode decomposition technique to the tracking of the solar magnetic features, we analyze the perturbations of the horizontal velocity vector of a set of chromospheric magnetic elements. We find observational evidence that suggests a phase relation between the two components of the velocity vector itself, resulting in its helical motion.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗