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At least 451 records · Page 25

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NASA NTRS1975

Net field-aligned currents observed by Triad

From the Triad magnetometer observation of a step-like level shift in the east-west component of the magnetic field at 800 km altitude, the existence of a net current flowing into or away from the ionosphere in a current layer was inferred. The current direction is toward the ionosphere on the morning side and away from it on the afternoon side. The field aligned currents observed by Triad are considered as being an important element in the electro-dynamical coupling between the distant magnetosphere and the ionosphere. The current density integrated over the thickness of the layer increases with increasing magnetic activity, but the relation between the current density and Kp in individual cases is not a simple linear relation. An extrapolation of the statistical relation to Kp = 0 indicates existence of a sheet current of order 0.1 amp/m even at extremely quiet times. During periods of higher magnetic activity an integrated current of approximately 1 amp/m and average current density of order 0.000001 amp/sq m are observed. The location and the latitudinal width of the field aligned current layer carrying the net current very roughly agree with those of the region of high electron intensities in the trapping boundary.

Sugiura, M.↗

NASA NTRS1983

The origins of Birkeland currents

Fundamental observations and zero-order theories for Birkeland currents are employed, together with recent observational data, to formulate a first-order model for the currents. Five categories of Birkeland currents are detailed, including region 1 current sheets which follow the auroral oval, region 2 currents with opposite polarity forming on the equatorward side, cusp currents poleward of region 1, currents appearing after extended periods of the interplanetary magnetic field, and a three-layer overlap of current sheets in the Harang discontinuity. The region 1 currents near noon are found to be driven by the interplanetary electric field on open field lines, while away from noon the inner edge of the plasma sheet is the source. Charge separation drives the region 2 currents, and neutralization is effected in the ionosphere. The magnetopause is concluded to be an insignificant factor for the Birkeland currents. Convection reversal is predicted to occur in the region 1 interior. Finally, four lobed polar electric fields are considered to be generated by the boundary layer dynamo, and indicate a closed magnetospheric configuration.

Stern, D. P.↗

NASA NTRS1984

The magnetospheric currents - An introduction

It is pointed out that the scientific discipline concerned with magnetospheric currents has grown out from geomagnetism and, in particular, from geomagnetic storm studies. The International Geophysical Year (IGY) introduced a new area for this discipline by making 'man-made satellites' available for the exploration of space around the earth. In this investigation, a brief description is provided of the magnetospheric currents in terms of eight component current systems. Attention is given to the Sq current, the Chapman-Ferraro current, the ring current (the symmetric component), the current systems driven by the solar wind-magnetosphere dynamo (SMD), the cross-tail current system, the average ionospheric current pattern, an example of an instantaneous current pattern, field-aligned currents, and driving mechanisms and models.

Akasofu, S.-I.↗

NASA NTRS1989

Currents between tethered electrodes in a magnetized laboratory plasma

Laboratory experiments on important plasma physics issues of electrodynamic tethers were performed. These included current propagation, formation of wave wings, limits of current collection, nonlinear effects and instabilities, charging phenomena, and characteristics of transmission lines in plasmas. The experiments were conducted in a large afterglow plasma. The current system was established with a small electron-emitting hot cathode tethered to an electron-collecting anode, both movable across the magnetic field and energized by potential difference up to V approx.=100 T(sub e). The total current density in space and time was obtained from complete measurements of the perturbed magnetic field. The fast spacecraft motion was reproduced in the laboratory by moving the tethered electrodes in small increments, applying delayed current pulses, and reconstructing the net field by a linear superposition of locally emitted wavelets. With this technique, the small-amplitude dc current pattern is shown to form whistler wings at each electrode instead of the generally accepted Alfven wings. For the beam electrode, the whistler wing separates from the field-aligned beam which carries no net current. Large amplitude return currents to a stationary anode generate current-driven microinstabilities, parallel electric fields, ion depletions, current disruptions and time-varying electrode charging. At appropriately high potentials and neutral densities, excess neutrals are ionized near the anode. The anode sheath emits high-frequency electron transit-time oscillations at the sheath-plasma resonance. The beam generates Langmuir turbulence, ion sound turbulence, electron heating, space charge fields, and Hall currents. An insulated, perfectly conducting transmission line embedded in the plasma becomes lossy due to excitation of whistler waves and magnetic field diffusion effects. The implications of the laboratory observations on electrodynamic tethers in space are discussed.

Stenzel, R. L.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Correlation between some current parameters and optical radiation generated by 280 mm long laboratory sparks

Discussed here is the optical radiation generated by 280 mm long laboratory discharges and its relationship to the current flowing in the discharge channel. In an experiment, the optical radiation generated by the discharges was measured at wavelengths 777nm (bandwidth 10 nm) due to O I(1), and 500 nm (bandwidth 5 nm) due to N II(19), and the broadband optical radiation between the wavelengths 400 to 1100 nm. The shape of the current waveform, which had a rise time of 0.1 microsecond and a decay time of 5 microsecond, remained the same with increasing peak value. The experiment was conducted with peak current amplitudes in the range of 1-4 kA. In order to test the effect of current rise time on the optical radiation, researchers also conducted studies with a current waveform having a 5 microsecond rise time. It was observed that the peak amplitude of the optical radiation pulse at the wavelengths mentioned above is proportional to the peak amplitude of the current flowing through the discharge channel. The rise time of the optical radiation pulse at a given wavelength does not depend significantly on the peak amplitude of the current waveform. The rise time of the optical radiation pulse decreases with decreasing wavelength. A slight increase in the decay time of the optical pulse, at a given wavelength, is observed with increasing peak amplitude of the current waveform.The results show that the rise time of the optical radiation pulse increases with the increasing rise time of the current waveform. The relationship between peak current, peak optical power, and peak electrical power is studied. Also, the relationship between peak current, optical energy (400-1100 and 777 nm), and electrical energy is discussed.

Windmar, Dan↗

NASA NTRS1991

The 3-D description of vertical current sheets with application to solar flares

Following a brief review of the processes which have been suggested for explaining the occurrence of solar flares we suggest a new scenario which builds on the achievements of the previous suggestion that the current sheets, which develop naturally in 3-D cases with gravity from impacting independent magnetic structures (i.e., approaching current systems), do not consist of horizontal currents but are instead predominantly vertical current systems. This suggestion is based on the fact that as the subphotospheric sources of the magnetic field displace the upper photosphere and lower chromosphere regions, where plasma beta is near unity, will experience predominantly horizontal mass motions which will lead to a distorted 3-D configurations of the magnetic field having stored free energy. In our scenario, a vertically flowing current sheet separates the plasma regions associated with either of the subphotospheric sources. This reflects the balanced tension of the two stressed fields which twist around each other. This leads naturally to a metastable or unstable situation as the twisted field emerges into a low beta region where vertical motions are not inhibited by gravity. In our flare scenario the impulsive energy release occurs, initially, not by reconnection but mainly by the rapid change of the magnetic field which has become unstable. During the impulsive phase the field lines contort in such way as to realign the electric current sheet into a minimum energy horizontal flow. This contortion produces very large electric fields which will accelerate particles. As the current evolves to a horizontal configuration the magnetic field expands vertically, which can be accompanied by eruptions of material. The instability of a horizontal current is well known and causes the magnetic field to undergo a rapid outward expansion. In our scenario, fast reconnection is not necessary to trigger the flare, however, slow reconnection would occur continuously in the current layer at the locations of potential flaring. During the initial rearrangement of the field strong plasma turbulence develops. Following the impulsive phase, the final current sheet will experience faster reconnection which we believe responsible for the gradual phase of the flare. The reconnection will dissipate part of the current and will produce sustained and extended heating in the flare region and in the postflare loops.

Fontenla, Juan M.↗

NASA NTRS1993

Relationship between Birkeland current regions, particle precipitation, and electric fields

The relationship of the large-scale dayside Birkeland currents to large-scale particle precipitation patterns, currents, and convection is examined using DMSP and Sondrestrom radar observations. It is found that the local time of the mantle currents is not limited to the longitude of the cusp proper, but covers a larger local time extent. The mantle currents flow entirely on open field lines. About half of region 1 currents flow on open field lines, consistent with the assumption that the region 1 currents are generated by the solar wind dynamo and flow within the surface that separates open and closed field lines. More than 80 percent of the Birkeland current boundaries do not correspond to particle precipitation boundaries. Region 2 currents extend beyond the plasma sheet poleward boundary; region 1 currents flow in part on open field lines; mantle currents and mantle particles are not coincident. On most passes when a triple current sheet is observed, the convection reversal is located on closed field lines.

De La Beaujardiere, O.↗

NASA NTRS1991

High accuracy switched-current circuits using an improved dynamic mirror

The switched-current technique, a recently developed circuit approach to analog signal processing, has emerged as an alternative/compliment to the well established switched-capacitor circuit technique. High speed switched-current circuits offer potential cost and power savings over slower switched-capacitor circuits. Accuracy improvements are a primary concern at this stage in the development of the switched-current technique. Use of the dynamic current mirror has produced circuits that are insensitive to transistor matching errors. The dynamic current mirror has been limited by other sources of error including clock-feedthrough and voltage transient errors. In this paper we present an improved switched-current building block using the dynamic current mirror. Utilizing current feedback the errors due to current imbalance in the dynamic current mirror are reduced. Simulations indicate that this feedback can reduce total harmonic distortion by as much as 9 dB. Additionally, we have developed a clock-feedthrough reduction scheme for which simulations reveal a potential 10 dB total harmonic distortion improvement. The clock-feedthrough reduction scheme also significantly reduces offset errors and allows for cancellation with a constant current source. Experimental results confirm the simulated improvements.

Zweigle, G.↗

NASA NTRS2020

Ion-Scale Current Structures in Short Large-Amplitude Magnetic Structures

We investigate electric current structures in Short Large-Amplitude Magnetic Structures (SLAMS) in the terrestrial ion foreshock region observed by the Magnetospheric Multiscale mission. The structures with intense currents (|J|~1 𝜇𝐴/𝑚2) have scale lengths comparable to the local ion inertial length (di). One current structure type is a current sheet due to the magnetic field rotation of the SLAMS, and a subset of these current sheets can exhibit reconnection features including the electron outflow jet and X-line-type magnetic topology. The di-scale current sheet near the edge of a SLAMS propagates much more slowly than the overall SLAMS, suggesting that it may result from compression. The current structures also exist as magnetosonic whistler waves with fci < f < flh, where fci and flh are the ion cyclotron frequency and the lower- hybrid frequency, respectively.The field rotations in the current sheets and whistler waves generate comparable |J| and energy conversion rates. Electron heating is clearly observed in one whistler packet embedded in a larger-scale current sheet of the SLAMS, where the parallel electric field and the curvature drift opposite to the electric field energize electrons. The results give insight about the thin current structure generation and energy conversion at thin current structures in the shock transition region.

Shan Wang↗

DOE OSTI2023

Low Tidal Current Speed Electricity Generation for Power at an Aquaculture Farm

Aquaculture farms are often located where tidal currents speeds are strong enough to ensure the currents supply fresh nutrients but not so strong that they harm the farm infrastructure. Traditional tidal turbines have cut-in speeds of 1 m/s and cannot generate electricity at current speeds below that threshold. Current energy converters that rely on vortex induced vibration (VIV) for movement can generate electricity at current speeds below 1 m/s. Here we discuss a project where researchers from the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) collaborate with researchers from the University of Michigan to investigate the feasibility of using a VIV current energy converter to generate electricity at an aquaculture farm. The VIV current energy converter uses flow induced oscillations of tandem cylinders and adaptive damping to harness the maximum horizontal marine hydrokinetic (MHK) energy by mimicking fish undulations. The current energy converter will be field tested and its power output measured over a range of current speeds. In addition to working with the University of Michigan, the PNNL researchers are collaborating with the Hog Island Oyster Company to assess their electricity usage and quantify the current energy resources at their Humboldt Bay facility. The electricity usage and current resource assessment at the aquaculture farm will be compared to the power produced by VIVACE to determine the feasibility of using VIVACE for power production at the farm.

Branch, Ruth A.↗

DOE OSTI2025

Modeling resistive-inductive evolution of currents in Wendelstein 7-X

This research investigates the temporal evolution of the toroidal plasma current in the Wendelstein 7-X (W7-X) stellarator under different heating, fueling, and current drive scenarios. The THRIFT code has been modernized and its predictions of the evolution of the toroidal current have been compared against experimentally measured currents in W7-X. Good agreement is found with respect to the characteristic timescale between experimentally measured and simulated toroidal currents. The total bootstrap current is under-predicted owing to the applicability of the BOOTSJ model for the plasma collisionalities in question. Edge plasma resistivity is found to play an important role in the asymptotic behavior of the evolution of the current, indicating a possible limitation of the minimum plasma temperature when applying this model. Simulations of ECCD and heating power steps show THRIFT is capable of capturing the dynamical evolution of the current in response to changes in current sources. Future uses of THRIFT include validating and benchmarking other non-inductive current models.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

DOE OSTI2018

On Multiple Hall-Like Electron Currents and Tripolar Guide Magnetic Field Perturbations During Kelvin-Helmholtz Waves

Two magnetopause current sheet crossings with tripolar guide magnetic field signatures were reported by multiple Magnetosphere Multiscale (MMS) spacecraft during Kelvin-Helmholtz wave activity. The two out-of-plane magnetic field depressions of the tripolar guide magnetic field are largely supported by the observed in-plane electron currents, which are reminiscent of two clockwise Hall current loop systems. A comparison with a three-dimensional kinetic simulation of Kelvin-Helmholtz waves and vortex-induced reconnection indicates that MMS likely encountered the two Hall magnetic field depressions on either side of a magnetic reconnection X-line. Moreover, MMS observed an out-of-plane current reversal and a corresponding in-plane magnetic field rotation at the center of one of the current sheets, suggesting the presence of two adjacent flux ropes. The region inside one of the ion-scale flux ropes was characterized by an observed decrease of the total magnetic field, a strong axial current, and significant enhancements of electron density and parallel electron temperature. The flux rope boundary was characterized by currents opposite this axial current, strong in-plane and converging electric fields, parallel electric fields, and weak electron-frame Joule dissipation. These return current region observations may reflect a need to support the axial current rather than representing local reconnection signatures in the absence of any exhausts.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2018

A Kinetic Inductance Ammeter with Coplanar Waveguide Input Structure for Magnetic Flux Focusing

We propose a multiplexible kinetic inductance ammeter, which uses a high-quality-factor, superconducting, lumped-element, kinetic inductance resonator as a current sensor, a short, superconducting coplanar waveguide (CPW) for current input, and a CPW transmission line for the sensor readout. The resonator consists of an interdigitated capacitor and a superconducting loop that inductively couples to the input CPW. Current running through the central line of the input CPW generates magnetic fields which are focused into the gaps of the input CPW. These magnetic fields can be measured collectively as the magnetic flux through the superconducting loop. The kinetic inductance of the superconducting loop depends on the screening current for the magnetic flux, so the input current is converted to a change in the frequency of the resonator. We analyze the response and noise of a kinetic inductance ammeter with a high-resistivity NbN loop.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

DOE OSTI2014

Toroidal current asymmetry in tokamak disruptions

It was discovered on JET that disruptions were accompanied by toroidal asymmetry of the toroidal plasma current I{sub ϕ}. It was found that the toroidal current asymmetry was proportional to the vertical current moment asymmetry with positive sign for an upward vertical displacement event (VDE) and negative sign for a downward VDE. It was observed that greater displacement leads to greater measured I{sub ϕ} asymmetry. Here, it is shown that this is essentially a kinematic effect produced by a VDE interacting with three dimensional MHD perturbations. The relation of toroidal current asymmetry and vertical current moment is calculated analytically and is verified by numerical simulations. It is shown analytically that the toroidal variation of the toroidal plasma current is accompanied by an equal and opposite variation of the toroidal current flowing in a thin wall surrounding the plasma. These currents are connected by 3D halo current, which is π/2 radians out of phase with the n = 1 toroidal current variations.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

DOE OSTI2016

Dynamic phase-control of a rising sun magnetron using modulated and continuous current

Phase-control of a magnetron is studied via simulation using a combination of a continuous current source and a modulated current source. The addressable, modulated current source is turned ON and OFF at the magnetron operating frequency in order to control the electron injection and the spoke phase. Prior simulation work using a 2D model of a Rising Sun magnetron showed that the use of 100% modulated current controlled the magnetron phase and allowed for dynamic phase control. In this work, the minimum fraction of modulated current source needed to achieve a phase control is studied. The current fractions (modulated versus continuous) were varied from 10% modulated current to 100% modulated current to study the effects on phase control. Dynamic phase-control, stability, and start up time of the device were studied for all these cases showing that with 10% modulated current and 90% continuous current, a phase shift of 180° can be achieved demonstrating dynamic phase control.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

DOE OSTI2023

An Effective Current Balancing Method for Inverters With Paralleled Silicon Carbide Power Modules

Silicon carbide (SiC) MOSFET has many superior characteristics in high power applications. Paralleling the SiC devices is an effective approach to increase the current capacity of the system, which also leads to current sharing issues. In this article, both transient and steady-state current sharing issues are studied for the high-power grid-tied inverters with paralleled SiC modules with an effective current balancing strategy proposed to address both issues simultaneously. The steady-state imbalance current due to the parameter mismatch is suppressed by the self-inductance of power cables used for paralleling connection. With the elimination of steady-state imbalance current, the transient imbalance current sensing is much simplified and can be realized by using low-cost current sensors. With the sensed imbalance current, a closed-loop control approach is proposed to adjust the modulation reference signal for each module to mitigate the remaining transient imbalance current. Furthermore, the proposed method is straightforward to implement with enhanced compatibility and flexibility compared to existing methods. Experimental studies are performed using inverters with 2 and 4 power modules paralleled in each phase to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.

42 ENGINEERING↗

DOE OSTI2016

THE EVOLUTION OF THE ELECTRIC CURRENT DURING THE FORMATION AND ERUPTION OF ACTIVE-REGION FILAMENTS

We present a comprehensive study of the electric current related to the formation and eruption of active region filaments in NOAA AR 11884. The vertical current on the solar surface was investigated by using vector magnetograms (VMs) observed by HMI on board the Solar Dynamics Observatory. To obtain the electric current along the filament's axis, we reconstructed the magnetic fields above the photosphere by using nonlinear force-free field extrapolation based on photospheric VMs. Spatio-temporal evolutions of the vertical current on the photospheric surface and the horizontal current along the filament's axis were studied during the long-term evolution and eruption-related period, respectively. The results show that the vertical currents of the entire active region behaved with a decreasing trend and the magnetic fields also kept decreasing during the long-term evolution. For the eruption-related evolution, the mean transverse field strengths decreased before two eruptions and increased sharply after two eruptions in the vicinity of the polarity inversion lines underneath the filament. The related vertical current showed different behaviors in two of the eruptions. On the other hand, a very interesting feature was found: opposite horizontal currents with respect to the current of the filament's axis appeared and increased under the filament before the eruptions and disappeared after the eruptions. We suggest that these opposite currents were carried by the new flux emerging from the photosphere bottom and might be the trigger mechanism for these filament eruptions.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2026

Universal Relationship between Limiting Current and Electrochemical Transport Properties in Malonate-Based Polymer Electrolytes

There is considerable interest in developing high-performance electrolytes for rechargeable lithium batteries. For practical applications, the electrolyte must support large dc currents. However, the parameters most often reported in the literature, conductivity, κ, and current fraction, ρ + , reflect ion transport in the limit of infinitesimal currents. In this limit, the efficacy of an electrolyte is given by the product κρ + . The limiting current density, i lim , is the maximum current density that can be applied across an electrolyte; the cell voltage diverges if the applied current density exceeds ilim. This parameter reflects ion transport in the limit of large dc currents and is therefore of practical interest. It would therefore be convenient if i lim could be predicted from measurements of κρ + . In order to explore this possibility, we studied six malonate-based polymers and PEO at a fixed salt concentration (r = 0.08) and temperature (90°C) using symmetric cells with planar electrodes. Unfortunately, there is no correlation between ilim and κρ + . When the applied current density, i, is less than ilim, the cell voltage approaches a stable plateau, ϕ plateau . Here, we found a linear dependence between i and thickness-normalized plateau potential, ϕ plateau L –1 , irrespective of the magnitude of the applied current. In all seven polymer electrolytes, we found a linear correlation between ilim and the slopes of these lines, σ. In other words, measurements of σ can be used to predict the limiting current.

Jana, Rounak [Lawrence Berkeley National Laborator↗