Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “Accelerated”

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.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 793 records · Page 44
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2015

SMALL-SCALE MAGNETIC ISLANDS IN THE SOLAR WIND AND THEIR ROLE IN PARTICLE ACCELERATION. I. DYNAMICS OF MAGNETIC ISLANDS NEAR THE HELIOSPHERIC CURRENT SHEET

Increases of ion fluxes in the keV–MeV range are sometimes observed near the heliospheric current sheet (HCS) during periods when other sources are absent. These resemble solar energetic particle events, but the events are weaker and apparently local. Conventional explanations based on either shock acceleration of charged particles or particle acceleration due to magnetic reconnection at interplanetary current sheets (CSs) are not persuasive. We suggest instead that recurrent magnetic reconnection occurs at the HCS and smaller CSs in the solar wind, a consequence of which is particle energization by the dynamically evolving secondary CSs and magnetic islands. The effectiveness of the trapping and acceleration process associated with magnetic islands depends in part on the topology of the HCS. We show that the HCS possesses ripples superimposed on the large-scale flat or wavy structure. We conjecture that the ripples can efficiently confine plasma and provide tokamak-like conditions that are favorable for the appearance of small-scale magnetic islands that merge and/or contract. Particles trapped in the vicinity of merging islands and experiencing multiple small-scale reconnection events are accelerated by the induced electric field and experience first-order Fermi acceleration in contracting magnetic islands according to the transport theory of Zank et al. We present multi-spacecraft observations of magnetic island merging and particle energization in the absence of other sources, providing support for theory and simulations that show particle energization by reconnection related processes of magnetic island merging and contraction.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

TIME-DEPENDENT STOCHASTIC ACCELERATION MODEL FOR FERMI BUBBLES

We study stochastic acceleration models for the Fermi bubbles. Turbulence is excited just behind the shock front via Kelvin–Helmholtz, Rayleigh–Taylor, or Richtmyer–Meshkov instabilities, and plasma particles are continuously accelerated by the interaction with the turbulence. The turbulence gradually decays as it goes away from the shock fronts. Adopting a phenomenological model for the stochastic acceleration, we explicitly solve the temporal evolution of the particle energy distribution in the turbulence. Our results show that the spatial distribution of high-energy particles is different from those for a steady solution. We also show that the contribution of electrons that escaped from the acceleration regions significantly softens the photon spectrum. The photon spectrum and surface brightness profile are reproduced by our models. If the escape efficiency is very high, the radio flux from the escaped low-energy electrons can be comparable to that of the WMAP haze. We also demonstrate hadronic models with the stochastic acceleration, but they are unlikely in the viewpoint of the energy budget.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2018

Modeling of thermalization phenomena in coaxial plasma accelerators

Coaxial plasma accelerators are electromagnetic acceleration devices that employ a self-induced Lorentz force to produce collimated plasma jets with velocities ~50 km s -1 . The accelerator operation is characterized by the formation of an ionization/thermalization zone near gas inlet of the device that continually processes the incoming neutral gas into a highly ionized thermal plasma. In this paper, we present a 1D non-equilibrium plasma model to resolve the plasma formation and the electron-heavy species thermalization phenomena that take place in the thermalization zone. The non-equilibrium model is based on a self-consistent multi-species continuum description of the plasma with finite-rate chemistry. The thermalization zone is modelled by tracking a 1D gas-bit as it convects down the device with an initial gas pressure of 1 atm. The thermalization process occurs in two stages. The first is a plasma production stage, associated with a rapid increase in the charged species number densities facilitated by cathode surface electron emission and volumetric production processes. The production stage results in the formation of a two-temperature plasma with electron energies of ~2.5 eV in a low temperature background gas of ~300 K. The second, a temperature equilibration stage, is characterized by the energy transfer between the electrons and heavy species. In conclusion, the characteristic length scale for thermalization is found to be comparable to axial length of the accelerator thus putting into question the equilibrium magnetohydrodynamics assumption used in modeling coaxial accelerators.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2020

First demonstration of a cryocooler conduction cooled superconducting radiofrequency cavity operating at practical cw accelerating gradients

Abstract We demonstrate practical accelerating gradients on a superconducting radiofrequency (SRF) accelerator cavity with cryocooler conduction cooling, a cooling technique that does not involve the complexities of the conventional liquid helium bath. A design is first presented that enables conduction cooling an elliptical-cell SRF cavity. Implementing this design, a single cell 650 MHz Nb 3 Sn cavity coupled using high purity aluminum thermal links to a 4 K pulse tube cryocooler generated accelerating gradients up to 6.6 MV m −1 at 100% duty cycle. The experiments were carried out with the cavity-cryocooler assembly in a simple vacuum vessel, completely free of circulating liquid cryogens. We anticipate that this cryocooling technique will make the SRF technology accessible to interested accelerator researchers who lack access to full-stack helium cryogenic systems. Furthermore, the technique can lead to SRF based compact sources of high average power electron beams for environmental protection and industrial applications. A concept of such an SRF compact accelerator is presented.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2015

On ultra-high energy cosmic ray acceleration at the termination shock of young pulsar winds

Pulsar wind nebulae (PWNe) are outstanding accelerators in Nature, in the sense that they accelerate electrons up to the radiation reaction limit. Motivated by this observation, this paper examines the possibility that young pulsar wind nebulae can accelerate ions to ultra-high energies at the termination shock of the pulsar wind. We consider here powerful PWNe, fed by pulsars born with ∼ millisecond periods. Assuming that such pulsars exist, at least during a few years after the birth of the neutron star, and that they inject ions into the wind, we find that protons could be accelerated up to energies of the order of the Greisen-Zatsepin-Kuzmin cut-off, for a fiducial rotation period P ∼ 1 msec and a pulsar magnetic field B{sub *} ∼ 10{sup 13} G, implying a fiducial wind luminosity L{sub p} ∼ 10{sup 45} erg/s and a spin-down time t{sub sd} ∼ 3× 10{sup 7} s. The main limiting factor is set by synchrotron losses in the nebula and by the size of the termination shock; ions with Z≥ 1 may therefore be accelerated to even higher energies. We derive an associated neutrino flux produced by interactions in the source region. For a proton-dominated composition, our maximum flux lies slightly below the 5-year sensitivity of IceCube-86 and above the 3-year sensitivity of the projected Askaryan Radio Array. It might thus become detectable in the next decade, depending on the exact level of contribution of these millisecond pulsar wind nebulae to the ultra-high energy cosmic ray flux.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Multi-beam operation of LANSCE accelerator facility

The Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) accelerator facility has been in operation for 50 years performing important scientific support for national security. The unique feature of the LANSCE accelerator facility is multi-beam operation, delivering beams to five experimental areas. The near-term plans are to replace obsolete and almost end-of-life systems of the LANSCE linear accelerator with a modern 100-MeV Front End with significant improvement in beam quality. This paper summarizes experimental results obtained during the operation of the LANSCE accelerator facility and considers plans to expand the performance of the accelerator for near- and long-term operations.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2024

Multipoint-BAX: a new approach for efficiently tuning particle accelerator emittance via virtual objectives

Abstract Although beam emittance is critical for the performance of high-brightness accelerators, optimization is often time limited as emittance calculations, commonly done via quadrupole scans, are typically slow. Such calculations are a type of multipoint query , i.e. each query requires multiple secondary measurements. Traditional black-box optimizers such as Bayesian optimization are slow and inefficient when dealing with such objectives as they must acquire the full series of measurements, but return only the emittance, with each query. We propose a new information-theoretic algorithm, Multipoint-BAX , for black-box optimization on multipoint queries, which queries and models individual beam-size measurements using techniques from Bayesian Algorithm Execution (BAX). Our method avoids the slow multipoint query on the accelerator by acquiring points through a virtual objective , i.e. calculating the emittance objective from a fast learned model rather than directly from the accelerator. We use Multipoint-BAX to minimize emittance at the Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS) and the Facility for Advanced Accelerator Experimental Tests II (FACET-II). In simulation, our method is 20× faster and more robust to noise compared to existing methods. In live tests, it matched the hand-tuned emittance at FACET-II and achieved a 24% lower emittance than hand-tuning at LCLS. Our method represents a conceptual shift for optimizing multipoint queries, and we anticipate that it can be readily adapted to similar problems in particle accelerators and other scientific instruments.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Uncertainty quantification for deep learning in particle accelerator applications

With the advent of increased computational resources and improved algorithms, machine learning-based models are being increasingly applied to complex problems in particle accelerators. However, such data-driven models may provide overly confident predictions with unknown errors and uncertainties. For reliable deployment of machine learning models in high-regret and safety-critical systems such as particle accelerators, estimates of prediction uncertainty are needed along with accurate point predictions. In this investigation, we evaluate Bayesian neural networks (BNN) as an approach that can provide accurate predictions along with reliably quantified uncertainties for particle accelerator problems, and compare their performance with bootstrapped ensembles of neural networks. We select three accelerator setups for this evaluation: a storage ring, a photoinjector, and a linac. The problems span different data volumes and dimensionalities (e.g., scalar predictions as well as image outputs). It is found that BNN provide accurate predictions of the mean along with reliable estimates of predictive uncertainty across the test cases. In this vein, BNN may offer an attractive alternative to deterministic deep learning tools to generate accurate predictions with quantified uncertainties in particle accelerator applications.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2018

On-Chip Laser-Power Delivery System for Dielectric Laser Accelerators

We propose an on-chip optical-power delivery system for dielectric laser accelerators based on a fractal “tree-network” dielectric waveguide geometry. Here, this system replaces experimentally demanding free-space manipulations of the driving laser beam with chip-integrated techniques based on precise nanofabrication, enabling access to orders-of-magnitude increases in the interaction length and total energy gain for these miniature accelerators. Based on computational modeling, in the relativistic regime, our laser delivery system is estimated to provide 21 keV of energy gain over an acceleration length of 192 μm with a single laser input, corresponding to a 108-MV/m acceleration gradient. The system may achieve 1 MeV of energy gain over a distance of less than 1 cm by sequentially illuminating 49 identical structures. These findings are verified by detailed numerical simulation and modeling of the subcomponents, and we provide a discussion of the main constraints, challenges, and relevant parameters with regard to on-chip laser coupling for dielectric laser accelerators.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Velocity-space compression from Fermi acceleration with Lorentz scattering

The Fermi acceleration model describes how cosmic ray particles accelerate to great speeds by interacting with moving magnetic fields. In this work, we identify a variation of the model where light ions interact with a moving wall while undergoing pitch angle scattering through Coulomb collisions due to the presence of a heavier ionic species. The collisions introduce a stochastic component which adds complexity to the particle acceleration profile and sets it apart from collisionless Fermi acceleration models. The unusual effect captured by this simplified variation of Fermi acceleration is the nonconservation of phase space, with the possibility for a distribution of particles initially monotonically decreasing in energy to exhibit an energy peak upon compression. A peaked energy distribution might have interesting applications, such as to optimize fusion reactivity or to characterize astrophysical phenomena that exhibit nonthermal features.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2014

Dielectric laser accelerators

The use of infrared lasers to power optical-scale lithographically fabricated particle accelerators is a developing area of research that has garnered increasing interest in recent years. In this work, the physics and technology of this approach is reviewed, which is referred to as dielectric laser acceleration (DLA). In the DLA scheme operating at typical laser pulse lengths of 0.1 to 1 ps, the laser damage fluences for robust dielectric materials correspond to peak surface electric fields in the GV/m regime. The corresponding accelerating field enhancement represents a potential reduction in active length of the accelerator between 1 and 2 orders of magnitude. Power sources for DLA-based accelerators (lasers) are less costly than microwave sources (klystrons) for equivalent average power levels due to wider availability and private sector investment. Because of the high laser-to-particle coupling efficiency, required pulse energies are consistent with tabletop microJoule class lasers. Combined with the very high (MHz) repetition rates these lasers can provide, the DLA approach appears promising for a variety of applications, including future high-energy physics colliders, compact light sources, and portable medical scanners and radiative therapy machines.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2015

SU-E-T-136: Assessment of Seasonal Linear Accelerator Output Variations and Associated Impacts

Purpose: Application of process control theory in quality assurance programs promises to allow earlier identification of problems and potentially better quality in delivery than traditional paradigms based primarily on tolerances and action levels. The purpose of this project was to characterize underlying seasonal variations in linear accelerator output that can be used to improve performance or trigger preemptive maintenance. Methods: Review of runtime plots of daily (6 MV) output data acquired using in house ion chamber based devices over three years and for fifteen linear accelerators of varying make and model were evaluated. Shifts in output due to known interventions with the machines were subtracted from the data to model an uncorrected scenario for each linear accelerator. Observable linear trends were also removed from the data prior to evaluation of periodic variations. Results: Runtime plots of output revealed sinusoidal, seasonal variations that were consistent across all units, irrespective of manufacturer, model or age of machine. The average amplitude of the variation was on the order of 1%. Peak and minimum variations were found to correspond to early April and September, respectively. Approximately 48% of output adjustments made over the period examined were potentially avoidable if baseline levels had corresponded to the mean output, rather than to points near a peak or valley. Linear trends were observed for three of the fifteen units, with annual increases in output ranging from 2–3%. Conclusion: Characterization of cyclical seasonal trends allows for better separation of potentially innate accelerator behaviour from other behaviours (e.g. linear trends) that may be better described as true out of control states (i.e. non-stochastic deviations from otherwise expected behavior) and could indicate service requirements. Results also pointed to an optimal setpoint for accelerators such that output of machines is maintained within set tolerances and interventions are required less frequently.

07 ISOTOPE AND RADIATION SOURCES↗
DOE OSTI2016

TU-FG-201-09: Predicting Accelerator Dysfunction

Purpose: To develop an integrated statistical process control (SPC) framework using digital performance and component data accumulated within the accelerator system that can detect dysfunction prior to unscheduled downtime. Methods: Seven digital accelerators were monitored for twelve to 18 months. The accelerators were operated in a ‘run to failure mode’ with the individual institutions determining when service would be initiated. Institutions were required to submit detailed service reports. Trajectory and text log files resulting from a robust daily VMAT QA delivery were decoded and evaluated using Individual and Moving Range (I/MR) control charts. The SPC evaluation was presented in a customized dashboard interface that allows the user to review 525 monitored parameters (480 MLC parameters). Chart limits were calculated using a hybrid technique that includes the standard SPC 3σ limits and an empirical factor based on the parameter/system specification. The individual (I) grand mean values and control limit ranges of the I/MR charts of all accelerators were compared using statistical (ranked analysis of variance (ANOVA)) and graphical analyses to determine consistency of operating parameters. Results: When an alarm or warning was directly connected to field service, process control charts predicted dysfunction consistently on beam generation related parameters (BGP)– RF Driver Voltage, Gun Grid Voltage, and Forward Power (W); beam uniformity parameters – angle and position steering coil currents; and Gantry position accuracy parameter: cross correlation max-value. Control charts for individual MLC – cross correlation max-value/position detected 50% to 60% of MLCs serviced prior to dysfunction or failure. In general, non-random changes were detected 5 to 80 days prior to a service intervention. The ANOVA comparison of BGP determined that each accelerator parameter operated at a distinct value. Conclusion: The SPC framework shows promise. Long term monitoring coordinated with service will be required to definitively determine the effectiveness of the model. Varian Medical System, Inc. provided funding in support of the research presented.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2016

TU-H-BRA-02: The Physics of Magnetic Field Isolation in a Novel Compact Linear Accelerator Based MRI-Guided Radiation Therapy System

Purpose: To develop a method for isolating the MRI magnetic field from field-sensitive linear accelerator components at distances close to isocenter. Methods: A MRI-guided radiation therapy system has been designed that integrates a linear accelerator with simultaneous MR imaging. In order to accomplish this, the magnetron, port circulator, radiofrequency waveguide, gun driver, and linear accelerator needed to be placed in locations with low magnetic fields. The system was also required to be compact, so moving these components far from the main magnetic field and isocenter was not an option. The magnetic field sensitive components (exclusive of the waveguide) were placed in coaxial steel sleeves that were electrically and mechanically isolated and whose thickness and placement were optimized using E&M modeling software. Six sets of sleeves were placed 60° apart, 85 cm from isocenter. The Faraday effect occurs when the direction of propagation is parallel to the magnetic RF field component, rotating the RF polarization, subsequently diminishing RF power. The Faraday effect was avoided by orienting the waveguides such that the magnetic field RF component was parallel to the magnetic field. Results: The magnetic field within the shields was measured to be less than 40 Gauss, significantly below the amount needed for the magnetron and port circulator. Additional mu-metal was employed to reduce the magnetic field at the linear accelerator to less than 1 Gauss. The orientation of the RF waveguides allowed the RT transport with minimal loss and reflection. Conclusion: One of the major challenges in designing a compact linear accelerator based MRI-guided radiation therapy system, that of creating low magnetic field environments for the magnetic-field sensitive components, has been solved. The measured magnetic fields are sufficiently small to enable system integration. This work supported by ViewRay, Inc.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

Accelerator commissioning and rare isotope identification at the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams

In 2008, Michigan State University was selected to establish the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams (FRIB). Construction of the FRIB accelerator was completed in January 2022. Phased accelerator commissioning with heavy ion beams started in 2017 with the normal-conducting ion source and radio-frequency quadrupole. In April 2021, the full FRIB driver linear accelerator (linac) was commissioned, with heavy ion beams accelerated to energies above 200 MeV/nucleon by 324 superconducting radiofrequency (SRF) resonators operating at 2 K and 4 K with liquid-helium cooling. Further, in preparation for high-power operation, a liquid lithium charge stripper was commissioned with heavy ion beams up to uranium-238, followed by the simultaneous acceleration of multiple-charge-state heavy ion beams to energies above 200 MeV/nucleon. In December 2021, selenium-84 was produced with the FRIB target using a krypton-86 primary beam, demonstrating FRIB’s capability for scientific discovery.

07 ISOTOPE AND RADIATION SOURCES↗
DOE OSTI2015

Laser acceleration and deflection of 963 keV electrons with a silicon dielectric structure

Radio frequency particle accelerators are ubiquitous in ultrasmall and ultrafast science, but their size and cost have prompted exploration of compact and scalable alternatives such as the dielectric laser accelerator. We present the first demonstration, to the best of our knowledge, of high gradient laser acceleration and deflection of electrons with a silicon structure. Driven by a 5 nJ, 130 fs mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser at 907 nm wavelength, our devices achieve accelerating gradients in excess of 200 MeV/m and suboptical cycle streaking of 96.30 keV electrons. Lastly, these results pave the way for high gradient silicon dielectric laser accelerators using commercial lasers and subfemtosecond electron beam experiments.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2025

Extending JuTrack’s capabilities to the FRIB accelerator to enhance online modeling

JuTrack is a Julia-based accelerator modeling and tracking package that utilizes compiler-level automatic differentiation (AD) to enable fast and accurate derivative calculations. While JuTrack provides a solid foundation for beam dynamics simulations, its capabilities must be extended to support the Facility for Rare Isotopes (FRIB) linac. This includes modeling heavy-ion linac accelerator components such as the liquid-lithium charge stripper, which facilitates efficient acceleration by remove electrons from heavy isotopes, and incorporating multi-charge state acceleration tracking, which allows for charge-dependent beam dynamics. These extensions address challenges such as the beam matching and optimization of multi charge state through various accelerating structures and beam-material interaction modeling while maintaining the auto differentiation capability. This work focuses on adapting JuTrack to incorporate these elements, enhancing its online modeling abilities. We present modifications to JuTrack’s framework and demonstrate their performance in FRIB simulations.

Accelerator Physics↗
DOE OSTI2015

First Beam and High-Gradient Cryomodule Commissioning Results of the Advanced Superconducting Test Accelerator at Fermilab

The advanced superconducting test accelerator at Fermilab has accelerated electrons to 20 MeV and, separately, the International Linear Collider (ILC) style 8-cavity cryomodule has achieved the ILC performance milestone of 31.5 MV/m per cavity. When fully completed, the accelerator will consist of a photoinjector, one ILC-type cryomodule, multiple accelerator R&D beamlines, and a downstream beamline to inject 300 MeV electrons into the Integrable Optics Test Accelerator (IOTA). We report on the results of first beam, the achievement of our cryomodule to ILC gradient specifications, and near-term future plans for the facility.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗