SEARCH · Engineering Papers
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.
Dirac fermions and electromagnetic fields are considered as the source of gravitation in the framework of standard Friedmann-Lemaître-Robertson-Walker (FLRW) cosmology. It is shown that all solutions for the scale-factor a(t) are non-singular, provided the cosmological constant Λ is set to be less than the positive inverse of a quantum scale.
We obtain single-shot time-resolved shadowgraph images of the electromagnetic fields resulting from the interaction of a high intensity ultrashort laser pulse with a metal surface. Using a high brightness relativistic electron beam and a high streaking speed radiofrequency deflector, we report <35 fs temporal resolution enabling a direct visualization of the retarded-time dominated field evolution which follows the laser-induced charge emission. A model including the finite signal propagation speed well reproduces the data and yields measurements of fundamental parameters in short pulse laser-matter interaction such as the amount of emitted charge and the emission time scale.
In order to study chromospheric magnetosonic wave propagation including, for the first time, the effects of ion–neutral interactions in the partially ionized solar chromosphere, we have developed a new multi-fluid computational model accounting for ionization and recombination reactions in gravitationally stratified magnetized collisional media. The two-fluid model used in our 2D numerical simulations treats neutrals as a separate fluid and considers charged species (electrons and ions) within the resistive MHD approach with Coulomb collisions and anisotropic heat flux determined by Braginskiis transport coefficients. The electromagnetic fields are evolved according to the full Maxwell equations and the solenoidality of the magnetic field is enforced with a hyperbolic divergence-cleaning scheme. The initial density and temperature profiles are similar to VAL III chromospheric model in which dynamical, thermal, and chemical equilibrium are considered to ensure comparison to existing MHD models and avoid artificial numerical heating. In this initial setup we include simple homogeneous flux tube magnetic field configuration and an external photospheric velocity driver to simulate the propagation of MHD waves in the partially ionized reactive chromosphere. In particular, we investigate the loss of chemical equilibrium and the plasma heating related to the steepening of fast magnetosonic wave fronts in the gravitationally stratified medium.
We implement a quantum random number generator based on a balanced homodyne measurement of vacuum fluctuations of the electromagnetic field. The digitized signal is directly processed with a fast randomness extraction scheme based on a linear feedback shift register. The random bit stream is continuously read in a computer at a rate of about 480 Mbit/s and passes an extended test suite for random numbers.
We find that the end state of black hole evaporation could be represented by non-singular and without event horizon stable solitonic remnants with masses of the order the Planck scale and up to ∼ 16 units of charge. Though these objects are locally indistinguishable from spherically symmetric, massive electric (or magnetic) charges, they turn out to be sourceless geons containing a wormhole generated by the electromagnetic field. Our results are obtained by interpreting semiclassical corrections to Einstein's theory in the first-order (Palatini) formalism, which yields second-order equations and avoids the instabilities of the usual (metric) formulation of quadratic gravity. We also discuss the potential relevance of these solutions for primordial black holes and the dark matter problem.
We describe a new method for reconstructing the quantum state of the electromagnetic field from the results of mutually complementary optical quadrature measurements. This method is based on the root approach and displaces squeezed Fock states are used as the basis. Theoretical analysis and numerical experiments demonstrate the considerable advantage of the developed tools over those described in the literature.
Using a variation of the celebrated Volkov solution, the Klein-Gordon equation for a charged particle is reduced to a set of ordinary differential equations, exactly solvable in specific cases. The new quantum relativistic structures can reveal a localization in the radial direction perpendicular to the wave packet propagation, thanks to a non-vanishing scalar potential. The external electromagnetic field, the particle current density, and the charge density are determined. The stability analysis of the solutions is performed by means of numerical simulations. The results are useful for the description of a charged quantum test particle in the relativistic regime, provided spin effects are not decisive.
Magnetic Anomaly Detection (MAD) system uses the principle that ferromagnetic objects disturb the magnetic lines of force of the earth. These lines of force are able to pass through both water and air in similar manners. A MAD system, usually mounted on an aerial vehicle, is thus often employed to confirm the detection and accomplish localization of large ferromagnetic objects submerged in a sea-water environment. However, the total magnetic signal encountered by a MAD system includes contributions from a myriad of low to Extremely Low Frequency (ELF) sources. The goal of the MAD system is to detect small anomaly signals in the midst of these low-frequency interfering signals. Both the Range of Detection (R{sub d}) and the Probability of Detection (P{sub d}) are limited by the ratio of anomaly signal strength to the interfering magnetic noise. In this paper, we report a generic mathematical model to estimate the signal-to-noise ratio or SNR. Since time-variant electro-magnetic signals are affected by conduction losses due to sea-water conductivity and the presence of air-water interface, we employ the general formulation of dipole induced electromagnetic field propagation in stratified media [1]. As a first step we employ a volumetric distribution of isolated elementary magnetic dipoles, each having its own dipole strength and orientation, to estimate the magnetic noise observed by a MAD system. Numerical results are presented for a few realizations out of an ensemble of possible realizations of elementary dipole source distributions.
Global energy demand continues to grow and tidal and wave energy generation devices can provide a significant source of renewable energy. Technological developments in offshore engineering and the rising cost of traditional energy means that offshore energy resources will be economic in the next few years. While there is now a growing body of data on the ecological impacts of offshore wind farms, the scientific basis on which to make informed decisions about the environmental effects of other offshore energy developments is lacking. Tidal barrages have the potential to cause significant ecological impacts particularly on bird feeding areas when they are constructed at coastal estuaries or bays. Offshore tidal stream energy and wave energy collectors offer the scope for developments at varying scales. They also have the potential to alter habitats. A diversity of designs exist, including floating, mid-water column and seabed mounted devices, with a variety of moving-part configurations resulting in a unique complex of potential environmental effects for each device type, which are discussed to the extent possible. - Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer We review the environmental impacts of tidal barrages and fences, tidal stream farms and wave energy capture devices. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Impacts on habitats, species and the water column, and effects of noise and electromagnetic fields are considered. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Tidal barrages can cause significant impacts on bird feeding areas when constructed at coastal estuaries or bays. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Wave energy collectors can alter water column and sea bed habitats locally and over large distances.
The generation and control of high-quality proton bunches using focused intense laser pulse on an inverse cone target is investigated with a set of particle-in-cell simulations. The inverse cone is a high atomic number conical frustum with a thin solid top and open base, where the laser impinges onto the top surface directly, not down the open end of the cone. Results are compared with a simple planar target, where the proton angular distribution is very broad because of transverse divergence of the electromagnetic fields behind the target. For a conical target, hot electrons along the cone wall surface induce a transverse focusing sheath field. This field can effectively suppress the spatial spreading of the protons, resulting in a high-quality small-emittance, low-divergence proton beam. A slightly lower proton beam peak energy than that of a conventional planar target was also found.
The possible occurrence of equilibrium off-equatorial tori in the gravitational and electromagnetic fields of astrophysical compact objects has been recently proved based on non-ideal magnetohydrodynamic theory. These stationary structures can represent plausible candidates for the modeling of coronal plasmas expected to arise in association with accretion disks. However, accretion disk coronae are formed by a highly diluted environment, and so the fluid description may be inappropriate. The question is posed of whether similar off-equatorial solutions can also be determined in the case of collisionless plasmas for which treatment based on kinetic theory, rather than a fluid one, is demanded. In this paper the issue is addressed in the framework of the Vlasov-Maxwell description for non-relativistic, multi-species axisymmetric plasmas subject to an external dominant spherical gravitational and dipolar magnetic field. Equilibrium configurations are investigated and explicit solutions for the species kinetic distribution function are constructed, which are expressed in terms of generalized Maxwellian functions characterized by isotropic temperature and non-uniform fluid fields. The conditions for the existence of off-equatorial tori are investigated. It is proved that these levitating systems are admitted under general conditions when both gravitational and magnetic fields contribute to shaping the spatial profiles of equilibrium plasma fluid fields. Then, specifically, kinetic effects carried by the equilibrium solution are explicitly provided and identified here with diamagnetic energy-correction and electrostatic contributions. It is shown that these kinetic terms characterize the plasma equation of state by introducing non-vanishing deviations from the assumption of thermal pressure.
A numerical model of plasma transport and electromagnetic field in the J-PARC (Japan Proton Accelerator Research Complex) radio frequency ion source has been developed to understand the relation between antenna coil heat loadings and plasma production/transport processes. From the calculation, the local plasma density increase is observed in the region close to the antenna coil. Electrons are magnetized by the magnetic field line with absolute magnetic flux density 30–120 Gauss which leads to high local ionization rate. The results suggest that modification of magnetic configuration can be made to reduce plasma heat flux onto the antenna.
There is considerable interest in the development of marine and hydrokinetic energy projects in rivers, estuaries, and coastal ocean waters of the United States. Hydrokinetic (HK) technologies convert the energy of moving water in river or tidal currents into electricity, without the impacts of dams and impoundments associated with conventional hydropower or the extraction and combustion of fossil fuels. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) maintains a database that displays the geographical distribution of proposed HK projects in inland and tidal waters (FERC 2012). As of March 2012, 77 preliminary permits had been issued to private developers to study HK projects in inland waters, the development of which would total over 8,000 MW. Most of these projects are proposed for the lower Mississippi River. In addition, the issuance of another 27 preliminary permits for HK projects in inland waters, and 3 preliminary permits for HK tidal projects (totaling over 3,100 MW) were under consideration by FERC. Although numerous HK designs are under development (see DOE 2009 for a description of the technologies and their potential environmental effects), the most commonly proposed projects entail arrays of rotating devices, much like submerged wind turbines, that are positioned in the high-velocity (high energy) river channels. The many diverse HK designs imply a diversity of environmental impacts, but a potential impact common to most is the effect on aquatic organisms of electromagnetic fields (EMF) created by the projects. The submerged electrical generator will emit an EMF into the surrounding water, as will underwater cables used to transmit electricity from the generator to the shore, between individual units in an array (inter-turbine cables), and between the array and a submerged step-up transformer. The electric current moving through these cables will induce magnetic fields in the immediate vicinity, which may affect the behavior or viability of fish and benthic invertebrates (Gill et al. 2005, 2009). It is known that numerous marine and freshwater organisms are sensitive to electrical and magnetic fields, often depending on them for such diverse activities as prey location and navigation (DOE 2009; Normandeau et al. 2011). Despite the wide range of aquatic organisms that are sensitive to EMF and the increasing numbers of underwater electrical transmitting cables being installed in rivers and coastal waters, little information is available to assess whether animals will be attracted, repelled, or unaffected by these new sources of EMF. This knowledge gap is especially significant for freshwater systems, where electrosensitive organisms such as paddlefish and sturgeon may interact with electrical transmission cables. We carried out a series of laboratory experiments to test the sensitivity of freshwater fish and invertebrates to the levels of EMF that are expected to be produced by HK projects in rivers. In this context, EM fields are likely to be emitted primarily by generators in the water column and by transmission cables on or buried in the substrate. The HK units will be located in areas of high-velocity waters that are used as only temporary habitats for most riverine species, so long-term exposure of fish and benthic invertebrates to EMF is unlikely. Rather, most aquatic organisms will be briefly exposed to the fields as they drift downstream or migrate upstream. Because the exposure of most aquatic organisms to EMF in a river would be relatively brief and non-lethal, we focused our investigations on detecting behavioral effects. For example, attraction to the EM fields could result in prolonged exposures to the fields or the HK rotor. On the other hand, avoidance reactions might hinder upstream migrations of fish. The experiments reported here are a continuation of studies begun in FY 2010, which focused on the potential effects of static magnetic fields on snails, clams, and fathead minnows (Cada et al. 2011). Those experiments found little indication that the behaviors of these freshwater species were altered by the static magnetic fields that would be created by submerged, direct current (DC)-transmitting electrical cables expected to be used by the HK developers. Laboratory experiments in FY 2011 examined the responses of additional fish species (sunfish, striped bass, and channel catfish) to the static magnetic fields. In addition, the effects of variable magnetic fields (that would be created by the HK generators and AC-transmitting cables) on swimming behavior of two electrosensitive fish species (paddlefish and lake sturgeon) were studied.
Research Highlights: > The Casimir force has been obtained in the presence of some dielectrics. > The approach is based on a Lagrangian. > It can be generalized to include the rough surfaces. > Finite temperature correction can be easily obtained. - Abstract: By using the path-integral formalism, electromagnetic field in the presence of some linear, isotropic magnetodielectric slabs is quantized and related correlation functions are found. In the framework of path-integral techniques, Casimir force between two infinitely large, parallel and ideal conductors, with a different number of magnetodielectric slabs in between, is obtained by calculating the Green's function corresponding to each geometry.
When describing the dynamics of quantum systems interacting with a coherent external electromagnetic field, the instant at which the exciting (measuring) field begins to act is traditionally taken as zero time in the laboratory frame. Using the concept of coherence sudden death in an observed quantum system, we introduce the definition of local, completely incoherent subensembles of the quantum system in which it is found with a certain probability at each instant of time in the process of a continuous observation (measurement). For such subensembles an arbitrary instant of time in the laboratory frame is the initial time of the interaction with the external (measuring) field. As a result, the dynamics of an open quantum system is represented by a superposition of the dynamics of local subsystems with a continuous distribution of the times at which the interaction with the external field begins. We have derived an expression for the dynamical “multitime” contribution to the stationary solution of the Bloch equations, which clearly demonstrates the meaning of time relativity in the dynamics of two-level quantum systems in the semiclassical approximation. This dynamical multitime contribution is shown to explain the emergence of quantum beats at zero frequency (the Hanle effect, the level crossing) in EPR.
We derive the classical dynamics of massless charged particles in a rigorous way from first principles. Since due to ultraviolet divergences this dynamics does not follow from an action principle, we rely on (a) Maxwell’s equations, (b) Lorentz- and reparameterization-invariance, and (c) local conservation of energy and momentum. Despite the presence of pronounced singularities of the electromagnetic field along Dirac-like strings, we give a constructive proof of the existence of a unique distribution-valued energy-momentum tensor. Its conservation requires the particles to obey standard Lorentz equations and they experience, hence, no radiation reaction. Correspondingly, the dynamics of interacting classical massless charged particles can be consistently defined, although they do not emit bremsstrahlung end experience no self-interaction.
Enhancement and control of the index of refraction in a mixture of two three-level atomic species that form a pair of far-detuned {Lambda} schemes under two-photon resonance has been studied. We employ the density-matrix approach to properly take population relaxation into account and to describe the interaction of each {Lambda} system with the electromagnetic fields. Both {Lambda} systems are driven by a corresponding far-detuned coherent field at one atomic transition and are probed by the same weak field. In the dressed-state basis, it represents a superposition of effective two-level subsystems with the positions, widths, and amplitudes of the resonances controlled by the driving fields and allows for efficient control of the susceptibility of the total system; leading to refractive index (RI) enhancement with vanishing absorption in the absence of amplification. We analyze the experimental implementation of such a system in a cell of Rb atoms with a natural abundance of isotopes. An upper limit estimate of the RI enhancement is obtained.
Experiments and modeling of the plasma-microwave interaction have been performed in a coaxial microwave plasma source at a field frequency of 2.45 GHz generating argon plasmas at pressures of 20 and 40 millibars and a ratio of flow rate to pressure of 0.125 sccm/Pa. The incident microwave power between 100 W and 300 W is supplied in a regime of a pulse-width modulation with cycle duration of 110 ms and a power-on time of 23 ms. The experiments are based on heterodyne reflectometry and microwave interferometry at 45.75 GHz. They provide the temporal behaviour of the complex reflection coefficient, the microwave power in the plasma, as well as the electron density in the afterglow zone of the discharge. The self-consistent spatially two-dimensional and time-dependent modeling complements the analysis of the plasma-microwave interaction delivering the plasma and electromagnetic field parameters. The consolidating experimental observations and model predictions allow further characterizing the plasma source. The generated plasma has a core occupying the region close to the end of the inner electrode, where maximum electron densities above 10{sup 20} m{sup −3} and electron temperatures of about 1 eV are observed. Due to a longer outer electrode of the coaxial structure, the plasma region is extended and fills the volume comprised by the outer electrode. The electron density reaches values of the order of 10{sup 19} m{sup −3}. The heating of the gas occurs in its great part due to elastic collisions with the plasma electrons. However, the contribution of the convective heating is important especially in the extended plasma region, where the gas temperature reaches its maximum values up to approximately 1400 K. The temporally and spatially resolved modeling enables a thorough investigation of the plasma-microwave interaction which clearly shows that the power in-coupling occurs in the region of the highest electron density during the early stage of the discharge. In the steady state phase, however, the power in-coupling occurs close to the source walls where the electron density is significantly lower than on the discharge axis.