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At least 433 records · Page 24

Nondestructive testing techniques used in analysis of honeycomb structure bond strength

DOT /Driver-Displacement Oriented Transducer/, applicable to both lap shear type application and honeycomb sandwich structures, measures the displacement of the honeycomb composite face sheet. It incorporates an electromagnetic driver and a displacement measuring system into a single unit to provide noncontact bond strength measurements.

Erdman, D. C.↗

Revolutionizing Our Understanding of Particle Energization in Space Plasmas Using on-Board Wave-Particle Correlator Instrumentation

A leap forward in our understanding of particle energization in plasmas throughout the heliosphere is essential to answer longstanding questions in heliophysics, including the heating of the solar corona, acceleration of the solar wind, and energization of particles that lead to observable phenomena, such as the Earth’s aurora. The low densities and high temperatures of typical heliospheric environments lead to weakly collisional plasma conditions. Under these conditions, the energization of particles occurs primarily through collisionless interactions between the electromagnetic fields and the individual plasma particles with energies characteristic of a particular interaction. To understand how the plasma heating and particle acceleration impacts the macroscopic evolution of the heliosphere, impacting phenomena such as extreme space weather, it is critical to understand these collisionless wave-particle interactions on the characteristic ion and electron kinetic timescales. Such understanding requires high-cadence measurements of both the electromagnetic fields and the three-dimensional particle velocity distributions. Although existing instrument technology enables these measurements, a major challenge to maximize the scientific return from these measurements is the limited amount of data that can be transmitted to the ground due to telemetry constraints. A valuable, but underutilized, approach to overcome this limitation is to compute on-board correlations of the maximum-cadence field and particle measurements to improve the sampling time by several orders of magnitude. Here we review the fundamentals of the innovative field-particle correlation technique, present a formulation of the technique that can be implemented as an on-board wave-particle correlator, and estimate results that can be achieved with existing instrumental capabilities for particle velocity distribution measurements.

plasma heating↗

Engineered optical fibers and uses thereof

A system comprises an electromagnetic radiation source, a polarizing element, a mode converter, an optical fiber, and a measurement device. The polarizing element receives electromagnetic radiation produced by the electromagnetic radiation source and outputs linearly-polarized electromagnetic radiation having a linear polarization angle θ1. The mode converter converts the linearly-polarized electromagnetic radiation to an orbital angular momentum (OAM) mode of linearly-polarized electromagnetic radiation with topological charge Li. The OAM mode of linearly-polarized electromagnetic radiation is a superposition of first and second OAM modes with topological charges Li and opposite circular polarizations. The optical fiber supports propagation of the first and second OAM modes with an absolute effective index difference Δneff greater than or equal to 5×10−5, such that linearly-polarized electromagnetic radiation with linear polarization angle θ2 is emitted by the optical fiber. The measurement device is configured to determine a property of the electromagnetic radiation based on the polarization angle θ2.

Ramachandran, Siddharth↗

AAFE man-made noise experiment project. Volume 3: Appendices

Management and operational considerations involved in the project to measure man-made electromagnetic noise at earth orbital altitudes are discussed. The subjects considered are: (1) launch and orbit of the Scout D vehicles, (2) experiment management, (3) receiver scanning considerations, (4) data handling, and (5) threshold measurements. The storage requirements for a high resolution, complete data storage library are defined. Mathematical models of signal detection probability are developed.

Source record↗

Terahertz Mapping of Microstructure and Thickness Variations

A noncontact method has been devised for mapping or imaging spatial variations in the thickness and microstructure of a layer of a dielectric material. The method involves (1) placement of the dielectric material on a metal substrate, (2) through-the-thickness pulse-echo measurements by use of electromagnetic waves in the terahertz frequency range with a raster scan in a plane parallel to the substrate surface that do not require coupling of any kind, and (3) appropriate processing of the digitized measurement data.

Roth, Donald J.↗

A Demonstration of Light-Augmented Calorimetry For Low-Energy Electrons in Liquid Argon.

The ability to resolve electrons with energies as low as 5 MeV in liquid argon (LAr) is important for future studies of astrophysical neutrinos in liquid argon time projection chambers (LArTPCs). Existing methods for measuring the energy of electromagnetic showers in LArTPCs rely solely on charge-based reconstruction which requires correcting for assumed electron-ion recombination. However, LAr scintillation light has the potential to improve energy reconstruction over charge-based measurements alone. Here we present a demonstration of a light-augmented calorimetric technique for low-energy electrons in LAr that foregoes the need to correct for recombination. A sample of Michel electrons from stopping cosmic muons is collected in LArIAT (Liquid Argon In A Testbeam), a single-phase LArTPC at Fermilab’s Test Beam Facility. Michel electron energy spectra are reconstructed using both a traditional charge-based approach as well as a more holistic approach that incorporates both charge and light. A maximum-likelihood fitter, using LArIAT’s well-tuned simulation, is developed for combining these quantities to achieve optimal energy resolution. A sample of isolated electrons with Ee < 60 MeV is then simulated to better determine the energy resolution of this topology. Due to LArIAT’s low wire noise, the addition of light is not found to significantly improve upon the achieved charged-based resolution of σ/E ≃ 9%/√E ⊕ 1%. However, additional samples are generated with varying wire noise levels and light yields to gauge the impact of light-augmented calorimetry in large LArTPCs such as DUNE and SBND. At a charge-readout signal-to-noise of ≈10, the energy resolution for low-energy electrons is improved by ∼15%, ∼25%, and ∼45% over charge-only calorimetry for average light yields of 10, 20, and 100 pe/MeV, respectively.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

Progress in the Construction and Testing of the Tianlai Radio Interferometers

The Tianlai Pathfinder is designed to demonstrate the feasibility of using a wide field of view radio interferometers to map the density of neutral hydrogen in the Universe after the Epoch of Reionizaton. This approach, called 21~cm intensity-mapping, promises an inexpensive means for surveying the large-scale structure of the cosmos. The Tianlai Pathfinder presently consists of an array of three, 15~m $\times$ 40~m cylinder telescopes and an array of sixteen, 6~m diameter dish antennas located in a radio-quiet part of western China. The two types of arrays were chosen to determine the advantages and disadvantages of each approach. The primary goal of the Pathfinder is to make 3D maps by surveying neutral hydrogen over large areas of the sky %$20,000 {\rm deg}^2$ in two different redshift ranges: first at $1.03 > z > 0.78$ ($700 - 800$~MHz) and later at $0.21 > z > 0.12$ ($1170 - 1270$~MHz). The most significant challenge to $21$~cm intensity-mapping is the removal of strong foreground radiation that dwarfs the cosmological signal. It requires exquisite knowledge of the instrumental response, i.e. calibration. In this paper, we provide an overview of the status of the Pathfinder and discuss the details of some of the analysis that we have carried out to measure the beam function of both arrays. We compare electromagnetic simulations of the arrays to measurements, discuss measurements of the gain and phase stability of the instrument, and provide a brief overview of the data processing pipeline.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

Atmospheric corrections to satellite radiometric data over rugged terrain

Radiometric measurements from satellites in the solar portion of the electromagnetic spectrum can be converted to measurements of surface exitance. Over rugged terrain, the satellite image must be precisely registered to a terrain data set. For small areas a first-order polynomial interpolation scheme is generally satisfactory for the geometric rectification. If there are saturated pixels, a nearest-neighbor procedure is used for the interpolated satellite radiance numbers; otherwise a cubic-convolution algorithm is used. Path radiance and path transmittance are calculated with a simple spectral model, which requires an estimate of the water vapor and aerosol content of the atmosphere.

Dozier, J.↗

Development of an MCP-Based Timing Layer for the LHCb ECAL Upgrade-2

The increase in instantaneous luminosity during the high-luminosity phase of the LHC represents a significant challenge for future detectors. A strategy to cope with high-pileup conditions is to add a fourth dimension to the measurements of the hits, by exploiting the time separation of the various proton–proton primary collisions. According to LHCb simulation studies, resolutions of about 10–20 picoseconds, at least an order of magnitude shorter than the average time span between primary interactions, would be greatly beneficial for the physics reach of the experiment. Microchannel plate (MCP) photomultipliers are compact devices capable of measuring the arrival time of charged particles with the required resolution. The technology of large-area picosecond photodetectors (LAPPDs) is under investigation to implement a timing layer that can be placed within a sampling calorimeter module with the purpose of measuring the arrival time of electromagnetic showers. LAPPD performances, using a Gen-I tile with a delay-line anode and a Gen-II with a capacitively coupled anode, have been measured thoroughly both with laser (wavelength of 405 nm and pulse width of 27.5 ps FWHM) and high-energy electron (1–5.8 GeV) beams. Time resolutions of the order of 30 ps for single photoelectrons and 15 ps for electromagnetic showers initiated by 5-GeV electrons, as measured at the shower maximum, are obtained.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗

Reactor Power Level Estimation by Fusing Multi-Modal Sensor Measurements

Estimates of the power level of a nuclear reactor based on measurements from an independent monitoring sensor system can help in the compliance verification of its declared operations. We present a three-level fusion method to estimate the power level of a nuclear reactor using features derived from infrared, electromagnetic, and acoustic sensor measurements collected in proximity to the reactor. Based on a simplified analytical model of the secondary coolant system of the reactor, we identify partial regression functions of the power level in terms of the temperature difference between inlet and outlet of coolant pipes, and the activity levels of four fans and four pumps, which are estimated as features from the sensor measurements. The power level estimator employs a combination of aggregate and complementary fusion steps at three levels to incorporate the multi-modal features in a structure that reflects the secondary cooling system and its partial regression functions. Using the measurements from a test campaign at an operational reactor, we show that this estimator achieves 3.47% or lower root mean square error under 5-fold cross validation. More generally, these results illustrate a progressive reduction in estimation error as additional modalities are appropriately incorporated, and that the fuser outperforms single modality features and their sub-combinations.

Rao, Nageswara↗

Time domain-induced polarization geophysical data collected in the Rifle Floodplain, Colorado, USA

The IP data set was collected using a time domain-induced polarization (TDIP) method along 65 profiles of various lengths over the floodplain. Surface time domain?induced polarization (TDIP) data was collected to create the 3?D images of the complex electrical resistivity, in terms of magnitude and phase, which are associated with mineral precipitation and other lithological properties. The TDIP data was then used to estimate the spatial distribution of naturally reduced zones, which are known to be biogeochemical hotspots in floodplains having increased uranium and other redox-sensitive metal concentrations as well as high carbon contents. In the TDIP method, the transient decay of voltage is measured after current shut-off, typically in the form of an integral of decay curves over a predefined time window (so-called integral chargeability). TDIP measurements at the site were collected using the Syscal Iris Pro Switch equipment with a square-wave current injection, 50% duty cycle, and a pulse length of 2 s. The integral chargeability measurements were carried out using 20 windows during voltage decay between 240 and 1840 ms after current shut-off. Tomographic measurements were collected by deploying stainless steel electrodes with an electrode separation of 1.8 m and using a dipole-dipole ‘‘skip-2’’ and ‘‘skip-3’’ measuring protocol (i.e., for a dipoles length of 5.4 and 7.2 m, respectively). The sequence of dipole-dipole measurements was carefully arranged to (1) minimize unwanted electromagnetic coupling effects in the data, avoiding potential measurements with electrodes located inside the current dipole, (2) prevent voltage measurements using electrodes, which might be polarized due to previous current injection, and (3) increase the signal-to-noise ratio for an intended exploration depth of 8 m, i.e., the bottom of the aquifer. All measurements were collected as normal and reciprocal pairs for estimation of the data error. The IP measurements were collected with symmetric arrays (i.e., the measuring equipment placed at the center of the electrode array) with a maximum of 36 electrodes, considering that longer profiles revealed a significant increase in the normal-reciprocal misfit for the measurements of the decay curve, probably due to greater impact of electromagnetic coupling on the data. The TDIP data sets were inverted in a twodimensional domain along each transect using CRTomo, which is a smoothness-constraint inversion code based on a finite element algorithm. The resistivity and phase shift values at each pixel were then assigned at the corresponding point within the 3-D floodplain domain (the black rectangle Figure 1b) and used in the 3-D estimation. The TDIP inversion results provided the distribution of the complex resistivity, expressed in terms of its magnitude and phase-shift. The analysis of the normal-reciprocal misfit was used to estimate the relative error. We removed the measurement with smallest voltage difference (<2 mV), representing about 2% variations in the data. For the inversion of TDIP measurements, chargeability values were linearly converted to frequency domain phase values (at the fundamental frequency of 0.125 Hz), by assuming a constant-phase response. This approach has been demonstrated to provide consistent results in previous studies

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Calculations and experiments concerning lifting force and power in TEMPUS

A critical comparison is reported between the theoretically predicted and experimentally measured values for the electromagnetic lifting force and the heating rates which may be achieved, under simulated microgravity conditions, using the TEMPUS electromagnetic levitation device. The experiments involved the suspending of a metallic sample from one arm of a recording balance, such that it was carefully positioned between the heating and the positioning coils of the levitation device. The net force exerted by the sample was measured as a function of position, the coil currents, and the nature of the sample. Some calculations are also reported regarding the power absorption by the sample. The theoretical predictions, based on the numerical solution of Maxwell's equations using the volume integral technique, were found to be in excellent agreement with the measurements. For the idealized case of a spherical sample, analytical solutions describing the lifting force were also found to agree very well with the computed results.

Zong, J. H.↗

Accelerating the Deployment of Space-Based Quantum Sensors

Quantum sensors rely on quantum mechanical properties, such as wave-particle duality, atomic energy levels, or entanglement, to measure physical, optical, or electromagnetic information from a target. Examples include Rydberg sensors, nitrogen-vacancy magnetometers, HOM (Hong-Ou-Mandel) interferometers, and SQUIDs (Superconducting Quantum Interference Devices). In general, as quantum sensors rely on interrogation at the atomic and photonic level rather than on classical mechanical measurements, these technologies promise advantages over their traditional counterparts in sensitivity, accuracy, and SWaP (Size, Weight, and Power). Conceptually, the use of quantum sensors unlocks the new phenomenology of sensor entanglement. While an ultra-low TRL (Technology Readiness Level) prospect for most sensor types, multi-sensor entanglement is a high risk, high reward strategy with a potential for exquisite sensitivity and SWaP improvements entirely inaccessible to classical sensors.

Grace Caroline Wusk↗

Polarimetry-Interferometry Diagnostic for Magnetic Field and Magnetic Fluctuation Measurements in High-Performance and Long-Pulse Tokamaks (Final Report)

In this grant, we executed a multi-year plan to develop an advanced Faraday-effect polarimeter-interferometer system to address both fluctuation and equilibrium diagnostic needs by providing a measurement of the plasma internal magnetic field fluctuations (including non-axisymmetric 3-D perturbations) and plasma vertical position. This diagnostic included both fast time response and low phase noise so that both the temporal dynamics of equilibrium quantities as well as high-frequency electromagnetic fluctuations could be measured simultaneously, adding new and unique measurement capabilities for the core of high-temperature plasmas. The combined polarimeter-interferometer diagnostic development was applied primarily to the tokamak magnetic configuration, focusing on high-performance regimes including H-mode, reversed shear advanced tokamak scenarios, and non-inductive current drive.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Sea-ice thickness from field measurements in the northwestern Barents Sea: SEA-ICE THICKNESS, NW BARENTS SEA

The Barents Sea is one of the fastest changing regions of the Arctic, and has experienced the strongest decline in winter-time sea-ice area in the Arctic, at 22364% decade21. Sea-ice thickness in the Barents Sea is not well studied. We present two previously unpublished helicopter-borne electromagnetic(HEM) ice thickness measurements from the northwestern Barents Sea acquired in March 2003 and 2014.The HEM data are compared to ice thickness calculated from ice draft measured by ULS deployed between1994 and 1996. These data show that ice thickness varies greatly from year to year; influenced by the thermodynamic and dynamic processes that govern local formation vs long-range advection. In a year with a large inflow of sea-ice from the Arctic Basin, the Barents Sea ice cover is dominated by thick multiyear ice;as was the case in 2003 and 1995. In a year with an ice cover that was mainly grown in situ, the ice will be thin and mechanically unstable; as was the case in 2014. The HEM data allow us to explore the spatial and temporal variability in ice thickness. In 2003 the dominant ice class was more than 2 years old; and modal sea-ice thickness varied regionally from 0.6 to 1.4 m, with the thinner ice being either irst-year ice, or multiyear ice which had come into contact with warm Atlantic water. In 2014 the ice cover was predominantly locally grown ice less than 1 month old (regional modes of 0.5–0.8 m). These two situations represent two extremes of a range of possible ice thickness distributions that can present very different conditions for shipping traffic; or have a different impact on heat transport from ocean to atmosphere.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Liquid Level Sensing System

A liquid level sensing system includes waveguides disposed in a liquid and distributed along a path with a gap between adjacent waveguides. A source introduces electromagnetic energy into the waveguides at a first end of the path. A portion of the electromagnetic energy exits the waveguides at a second end of the path. A detector measures the portion of the electromagnetic energy exiting the second end of the path.

Korman, Valentin↗

Instrument for spatially resolved simultaneous measurements of forces and currents in particle beams

The article presents a device for spatially resolved and simultaneous measurements of forces and currents in particle beams, especially in beams composed of ions and neutral atoms. The forces are exerted by the impinging beam particles on a plane circular conductive target plate of 20 mm diameter mounted on a pendulum with electromagnetic force compensation. The force measurement in the micronewton range is achieved by electromagnetic compensation by means of static Helmholtz coils and permanent magnets attached to the pendulum. Exemplary measurements are performed in the 1.2 keV beam of a broad beam ion source. The simultaneous measurements of forces and currents onto the same target are compared with each other and with Faraday cup measurements.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

Advanced Electromagnetic Methods for Aerospace Vehicles

The imminent destructive threats of Lightning on helicopters and other airborne systems has always been a topic of great interest to this research grant. Previously, the lightning induced currents on the surface of the fuselage and its interior were predicted using the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method as well as the NEC code. The limitations of both methods, as applied to lightning, were identified and extensively discussed in the last meeting. After a thorough investigation of the capabilities of the FDTD, it was decided to incorporate into the numerical method a subcell model to accurately represent current diffusion through conducting materials of high conductivity and finite thickness. Because of the complexity of the model, its validity will be first tested for a one-dimensional FDTD problem. Although results are not available yet, the theory and formulation of the subcell model are presented and discussed here to a certain degree. Besides lightning induced currents in the interior of an aircraft, penetration of electromagnetic fields through apertures (e.g., windows and cracks) could also be devastating for the navigation equipment, electronics, and communications systems in general. The main focus of this study is understanding and quantifying field penetration through apertures. The simulation is done using the FDTD method and the predictions are compared with measurements and moment method solutions obtained from the NASA Langley Research Center. Cavity-backed slot (CBS) antennas or slot antennas in general have many applications in aircraft-satellite type of communications. These can be flushmounted on the surface of the fuselage and, therefore, they retain the aerodynamic shape of the aircraft. In the past, input impedance and radiation patterns of CBS antennas were computed using a hybrid FEM/MoM code. The analysis is now extended to coupling between two identical slot antennas mounted on the same structure. The predictions are performed using both the hybrid FEM/MoM and the FDTD NEWS code. The results are compared with each other as well as with measurements performed in the ElectroMagnetic Anechoic Chamber (EMAC) of ASU. In addition to self and mutual impedances versus frequency, the comparisons include mutual coupling S(sub 12) as a function of distance for various slot orientations.

Balanis, Constantine A.↗