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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.

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At least 1,063 records · Page 59
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2015

Identification of new turbulence contributions to plasma transport and confinement in spherical tokamak regime

Highly distinct features of spherical tokamaks (ST), such as National Spherical Torus eXperiment (NSTX) and NSTX-U, result in a different fusion plasma regime with unique physics properties compared to conventional tokamaks. Nonlinear global gyrokinetic simulations critical for addressing turbulence and transport physics in the ST regime have led to new insights. The drift wave Kelvin-Helmholtz (KH) instability characterized by intrinsic mode asymmetry is identified in strongly rotating NSTX L-mode plasmas. While the strong E x B shear associated with the rotation leads to a reduction in KH/ion temperature gradient turbulence, the remaining fluctuations can produce a significant ion thermal transport that is comparable to the experimental level in the outer core region (with no "transport shortfall"). The other new, important turbulence source identified in NSTX is the dissipative trapped electron mode (DTEM), which is believed to play little role in conventional tokamak regime. Due to the high fraction of trapped electrons, long wavelength DTEMs peaking around k θρ s ~ 0.1 are destabilized in NSTX collisionality regime by electron density and temperature gradients achieved there. Surprisingly, the E x B shear stabilization effect on DTEM is remarkably weak, which makes it a major turbulence source in the ST regime dominant over collisionless TEM (CTEM). The latter, on the other hand, is subject to strong collisional and E x B shear suppression in NSTX. DTEM is shown to produce significant particle, energy and toroidal momentum transport, in agreement with experimental levels in NSTX H-modes. Furthermore, DTEM-driven transport in NSTX parametric regime is found to increase with electron collision frequency, providing one possible source for the scaling of confinement time observed in NSTX H-modes. Most interestingly, the existence of a turbulence-free regime in the collision-induced CTEM to DTEM transition, corresponding to a minimum plasma transport in advanced ST collisionality regime, is predicted.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2010

Plasma dynamics of a confined extreme ultraviolet light source

Laser plasmas were generated by ablation of aluminum targets via a Nd:YAG glass laser, of pulse energy 0.8 J, and duration 15 ns (full width at half maximum) at the fundamental wavelength (1.064 {mu}m). Emission lines in the wavelength range of 27-32 nm (45-37.8 eV) were mapped over a spatial range extending out 1.8 mm from the target surface and for a temporal range of 42 ns after the termination of the laser pulse. Two targets were utilized: a planar surface and a rectangular cavity. The latter was composed of a rectangular shaped cavity of depth 3 mm and height 1.2 mm, cut into an aluminum massive. An irradiance of I{sub p{approx}}10{sup 11} W/cm{sup 2} was delivered to both targets and the confining influence of the rectangular cavity upon plasma formation and expansion was studied. Diagnostics of the emitted spectra reveal the unique dynamics of restricted plasma plume expansion, which results in plasma-surface collisions and subsequent plasma rebound within the cavity. These effects give rise to strong enhancement of both continuum and line emission in the contained plasma plume. These enhancements are especially evident for the more highly charged ions. Superior emission from plasma-surface collisions are associated with ''forced recombination'' during early time scales, while enhanced emission at later stages are associated with plasma plume component rebound and collision.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2015

Non-resonant elastic scattering of low-energy photons by atomic sodium confined in quantum plasmas

The non-resonant elastic scattering of low-energy photons by the bound valence electron in the ground state 3s of atomic sodium confined in quantum plasmas is investigated theoretically. The incident photon energy is assumed to be much smaller than the 3s-3p excitation energy. The alkali atom sodium is first formulated as an effective one-electron problem in which the attractive interaction between the valence electron and the atomic ion core is simulated by a spherically symmetric model potential. The Shukla-Eliasson oscillatory exponential cosine screened-Coulomb potential model is then used to mimic the effective two-body (valence-core) interaction within quantum plasmas. Non-relativistic calculations performed within the electric dipole approximation indicate that the non-resonant elastic photon scattering cross-section undergoes a dramatic growth by several orders of magnitude as the quantum wave number increases. A qualitative explanation of this phenomenon is presented. In the absence of the oscillatory cosine screening term, a similar growth is observed at larger values of the quantum wave number. Our computed relevant atomic data are in very good agreement with the experimental as well as the previous theoretical data for the zero-screening (free atom) case, and with the very limited, accurate theoretical results available for the case of exponential screened-Coulomb two-body interaction, without the cosine screening term.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2013

Robustness of predator-prey models for confinement regime transitions in fusion plasmas

Energy transport and confinement in tokamak fusion plasmas is usually determined by the coupled nonlinear interactions of small-scale drift turbulence and larger scale coherent nonlinear structures, such as zonal flows, together with free energy sources such as temperature gradients. Zero-dimensional models, designed to embody plausible physical narratives for these interactions, can help to identify the origin of enhanced energy confinement and of transitions between confinement regimes. A prime zero-dimensional paradigm is predator-prey or Lotka-Volterra. Here, we extend a successful three-variable (temperature gradient; microturbulence level; one class of coherent structure) model in this genre [M. A. Malkov and P. H. Diamond, Phys. Plasmas 16, 012504 (2009)], by adding a fourth variable representing a second class of coherent structure. This requires a fourth coupled nonlinear ordinary differential equation. We investigate the degree of invariance of the phenomenology generated by the model of Malkov and Diamond, given this additional physics. We study and compare the long-time behaviour of the three-equation and four-equation systems, their evolution towards the final state, and their attractive fixed points and limit cycles. We explore the sensitivity of paths to attractors. It is found that, for example, an attractive fixed point of the three-equation system can become a limit cycle of the four-equation system. Addressing these questions which we together refer to as 'robustness' for convenience is particularly important for models which, as here, generate sharp transitions in the values of system variables which may replicate some key features of confinement transitions. Our results help to establish the robustness of the zero-dimensional model approach to capturing observed confinement phenomenology in tokamak fusion plasmas.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2024

Transport from electron-scale turbulence in toroidal magnetic confinement devices

Plasma transport driven by turbulence ultimately determines the energy confinement performance of controlled fusion devices regardless of their confinement schemes and configurations. A large variety of plasma instabilities have been proposed for driving turbulence responsible for anomalous plasma transport beyond classical/neoclassical transport due to collisions. Although ion-scale turbulence usually dominates due to its large eddy size and saturation level, electron-scale turbulence has been recognized to be important in regions where ion-scale turbulence is suppressed (e.g., in internal transport barrier and in spherical tokamak H-mode plasmas) or is close to marginality. Electron-scale turbulence has been shown to nonlinearly interact with ion-scale turbulence, which modifies the dynamics of both and affects the resulting plasma transport, particularly when ion-scale instability is weakly driven. In this review paper, we focus on electron-scale turbulence that is believed to operate in magnetically confinement fusion devices and aim to provide a review of theoretical, numerical, and experimental developments in understanding electron-scale turbulence and its role in driving anomalous plasma turbulence. In particular, we focus on the electrostatic electron temperature gradient (ETG) mode which is the most widely recognized plasma instability underlying electron-scale turbulence observed in magnetically confined plasmas. Finally, we note that there are other less studied instabilities that might be responsible for observed electron-scale turbulence, most notably ubiquitous mode, and short-wavelength ion temperature gradient (SWITG) mode, which will be briefly touched on in this review.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2020

Anomalous losses of energetic particles in the presence of an oscillating radial electric field in fusion plasmas

The confinement of energetic particles in nuclear fusion devices is studied in the presence of an oscillating radial electric field and an axisymmetric magnetic equilibrium. Here, it is shown that, despite the poloidal and toroidal symmetries, initially integrable orbits turn into chaotic regions that can potentially intercept the wall of the tokamak, leading to particle losses. It is observed that the losses exhibit algebraic time decay different from the expected exponential decay characteristic of radial diffusive transport. A dynamical explanation of this behaviour is presented, within the continuous time random walk theory. The central point of the analysis is based on the fact that, contrary to the radial displacement, the poloidal angle is not bounded and a proper statistical analysis can therefore be made, showing for the first time that energetic particle transport can be super-diffusive in the poloidal direction and characterised by asymmetric poloidal displacement. The connection between poloidal and radial positions ensured by the conservation of the toroidal canonical momentum, implies that energetic particles spend statistically more time in the inner region of the tokamak than in the outer one, which explains the observed algebraic decay. This indicates that energetic particles might be efficiently slowed down by the thermal population before leaving the system. Also, the asymmetric transport reveals a new possible mechanism of self-generation of momentum.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2011

Rotation Reversal Bifurcation and Energy Confinement Saturation in Tokamak Ohmic L-Mode Plasmas

Direction reversals of intrinsic toroidal rotation have been observed in diverted Alcator C-Mod Ohmic L-mode plasmas following electron density ramps. For low density discharges, the core rotation is directed cocurrent, and reverses to countercurrent following an increase in the density above a certain threshold. Such reversals occur together with a decrease in density fluctuations with 2 cm{sup -1}{<=}k{sub {theta}}{<=}11 cm{sup -1} and frequencies above 70 kHz. There is a strong correlation between the reversal density and the density at which the Ohmic L-mode energy confinement changes from the linear to the saturated regime.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2010

Confinement of electron plasma by levitating dipole magnet

A recent experiment on the Ring Trap 1 device has demonstrated long-term (exceeding 300 s) confinement of non-neutral (pure electron) plasma in a dipole magnetic field; particles diffuse inward, steepening the density gradient and self-organizing into a stable vortex structure [Z. Yoshida et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 104, 235004 (2010)]. In this study, the internal structures of the plasma are experimentally investigated, and it is shown that the observations are consistent with rigidly rotating charged particle clump. The radial profiles of electrostatic potential and electron density consistently show that the drift velocity has homogeneous angular frequency in the confinement region. The electrostatic fluctuations also rotate rigidly with a phase velocity that agrees with the drift velocity. The magnetospheric system should have a wide application in confining single-species and even multiple-species charged particles.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2023

Spectral-partitioned Kohn-Sham density functional theory

Here we introduce a general, variational scheme for systematic approximation of a given Kohn-Sham free-energy functional by partitioning the density matrix into distinct spectral domains, each of which may be spanned by an independent diagonal representation without requirement of mutual orthogonality. It is shown that by generalizing the entropic contribution to the free energy to allow for independent representations in each spectral domain, the free energy becomes an upper bound to the exact (unpartitioned) Kohn-Sham free energy, attaining this limit as the representations approach Kohn-Sham eigenfunctions. A numerical procedure is devised for calculation of the generalized entropy associated with spectral partitioning of the density matrix. The result is a powerful framework for Kohn-Sham calculations of systems whose occupied subspaces span multiple energy regimes. As a case in point, we apply the proposed framework to warm- and hot-dense matter described by finite-temperature density functional theory, where at high energies the density matrix is represented by that of the free-electron gas, while at low energies it is variationally optimized. We derive expressions for the spectral-partitioned Kohn-Sham Hamiltonian, atomic forces, and macroscopic stresses within the projector-augmented wave (PAW) and the norm-conserving pseudopotential methods. It is demonstrated that at high temperatures, spectral partitioning facilitates accurate calculations at dramatically reduced computational cost. Moreover, as temperature is increased, fewer exact Kohn-Sham states are required for a given accuracy, leading to further reductions in computational cost. Finally, it is shown that standard multiprojector expansions of electronic orbitals within atomic spheres in the PAW method lack sufficient completeness at high temperatures. Spectral partitioning provides a systematic solution for this fundamental problem.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2017

Confinement in Wendelstein 7-X Limiter Plasmas

Observations on confinement in the first experimental campaign on the optimized Stellarator Wendelstein 7-X are summarized. In this phase W7-X was equipped with five inboard limiters only and thus the discharge length restricted to avoid local overheating. Stationary plasmas are limited to low densities <2–3 centerdot 10 19 m -3 . With the available 4.3 MW ECR Heating core T e ~ 8 keV, T i ~ 1–2 keV are achieved routinely resulting in energy confinement time τ E between 80 ms to 150 ms. For these conditions the plasmas show characteristics of core electron root confinement with peaked T e -profiles and positive E r up to about half of the minor radius. Lastly, profiles and plasma currents respond to on- and off-axis heating and co- and counter ECCD respectively.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2011

Magnetic confinement of a high-density cylindrical plasma

The stationary structure of a weakly collisional plasma column, confined by an axial magnetic field and a cylindrical vessel, is studied for the high-density case, when the diamagnetic azimuthal current is large enough to demagnetize partially the plasma. The plasma response is characterized mainly by two dimensionless parameters: the ratios of the electron gyroradius and the electron skin-depth to the plasma radius, and each of them measures the independent influence of the applied magnetic field and the plasma density on the plasma response. The strong magnetic confinement regime, characterized by very small wall losses, is limited to the small gyroradius and large skin-depth ranges. In the high-density case, when the electron skin-depth is smaller than the electron gyroradius, the skin-depth turns out to be the magnetic screening length, so that the bulk of the plasma behaves as unmagnetized.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2015

Alpha heating and burning plasmas in inertial confinement fusion

Estimating the level of alpha heating and determining the onset of the burning plasma regime is essential to finding the path towards thermonuclear ignition. In a burning plasma, the alpha heating exceeds the external input energy to the plasma. Using a simple model of the implosion, it is shown that a general relation can be derived, connecting the burning plasma regime to the yield enhancement due to alpha heating and to experimentally measurable parameters such as the Lawson ignition parameter. A general alpha-heating curve is found, independent of the target and suitable to assess the performance of all laser fusion experiments whether direct or indirect drive. The onset of the burning plasma regime inside the hot spot of current implosions on the National Ignition Facility requires a fusion yield of about 50 kJ.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2021

Inertial-confinement fusion-plasma-based cross-calibration of the deuterium-tritium γ-to-neutron branching ratio

The deuterium-tritium (D-T) γ -to-neutron branching ratio [ H 3 ( d , γ ) He 5 / H 3 ( d , n ) He 4 ] has been determined previously under inertial-confinement fusion (ICF) conditions and in beam-target based experiments. In the former case, neutron-induced backgrounds are mitigated compared to the latter due to the short pulse nature of ICF implosions and the use of gas Cherenkov γ -ray detectors. Furthermore, an added benefit of ICF based measurements is the ability to achieve lower center-of-mass energies as compared to accelerators. Previous ICF based experiments however report a large uncertainty in the D-T γ -to-neutron branching ratio of ≈ 48 % , which arises from the necessity of an absolute detector calibration and/or a cross-calibration against the D- He 3 γ -to-proton branching ratio. A more precise value for the branching ratio based on data taken at the OMEGA laser facility is reported here, which relies on a cross-calibration against the better known C 12 neutron inelastic scattering cross section. A D-T branching ratio value of ( 4.6 ± 0.6 ) × 10 - 5 is determined by this method.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2025

A future of inertial confinement fusion without laser-plasma instabilities

From the beginning of inertial confinement fusion (ICF) research, laser-plasma instabilities excited by narrowband lasers have limited the hydrodynamic design space of all laser-based approaches to inertial fusion energy (IFE). With advances in broadband laser technologies, the next generation of ICF drivers will likely have large bandwidth that is engineered to mitigate laser-plasma instabilities, thereby expanding the hydrodynamic design space to include both robust high yields (>200−MJ) with large-energy laser systems (>4 MJ) and high gains (>10) with moderate-energy laser facilities (<2 MJ). State-of-the-art simulations indicate that laser bandwidths of a few percent are required to mitigate instabilities for IFE-relevant conditions. To test these models and demonstrate that high-bandwidth lasers mitigate laser-plasma instabilities, the Fourth-generation Laser for Ultrabroadband eXperiments will be used with the OMEGA Laser System. The goal is to provide the community with the confidence to invest in a multiple-beam high-bandwidth laser facility that will demonstrate the necessary ablation pressures for robust direct-drive ignition without detrimental levels of hot electrons that degrade the implosion performance. It is important to recognize that the highest performing ICF implosions will likely never be completely LPI free because of the significant advantages to maximizing the laser intensity.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2023

Annihilation-gamma-based diagnostic techniques for magnetically confined electron–positron pair plasma

Efforts are underway to magnetically confine electron–positron pair plasmas to study their unique behaviour, which is characterized by significant changes in plasma time and length scales, supported waves and unstable modes. However, use of conventional plasma diagnostics presents challenges with these low-density and annihilating matter–antimatter plasmas. To address this problem, we propose to develop techniques based on the distinct emission provided by annihilation. This emission exhibits two spatial correlations: the distance attenuation of isotropic sources and the back-to-back propagation of momentum-preserving 2 $\gamma$ annihilation. We present the results of our analysis of the $\gamma$ emission rate and the spatial profile of the annihilation in a magnetized pair plasma from direct pair collisions, from the formation and decay of positronium as well as from transport processes. In order to demonstrate the effectiveness of annihilation-based techniques, we tested them on annular $\gamma$ emission profiles produced by a $\beta ^+$ radioisotope on a rotating turntable. Direct and positronium-mediated annihilation result in overlapping volumetric $\gamma$ sources, and the 2 $\gamma$ emission from these volumetric sources can be tomographically reconstructed from coincident counts in multiple detectors. Transport processes result in localized annihilation where field lines intersect walls, limiters or internal magnets. These localized sources can be identified by the fractional $\gamma$ counts on spatially distributed detectors.

Physics↗
DOE OSTI2021

Ionization state and dielectric constant in cold rarefied hydrocarbon plasmas of inertial confinement fusion

A combined approach to study cold rarefied matter is introduced that includes a semianalytical method based on the free-energy minimization and ab initio calculations based on the finite-temperature density-functional theory. The approach is used to calculate the ionization state of hydrocarbon (CH) under the shock-release conditions in inertial confinement fusion. Furthermore, the dielectric constant of CH is calculated using the Kubo-Greenwood formulation and contribution from atomic polarizabilities is found to be as important as the free-electron contribution. Using the ionization state and dielectric constant, the electron density profile in the rarefaction wave of the shock-release plasma is obtained.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
NASA NTRS2004

Radio Frequency (RF) Trap for Confinement of Antimatter Plasmas Using Rotating Wall Electric Fields

Perturbations associated with a rotating wall electric field enable the confinement of ions for periods approaching weeks. This steady state confinement is a result of a radio frequency manipulation of the ions. Using state-of-the-art techniques it is shown that radio frequency energy can produce useable manipulation of the ion cloud (matter or antimatter) for use in containment experiments. The current research focuses on the improvement of confinement systems capable of containing and transporting antimatter.

Sims, William Herbert, III↗
DOE OSTI2021

Suppression of first-wall interaction in negative triangularity plasmas on TCV

Magnetically confined fusion plasmas with negative triangularity (δ) exhibit greater L-mode confinement than with positive δ. Recent experiments in the TCV and DIII-D tokamaks have correlated the confinement improvement to a reduction of fluctuations within the plasma core. We report on fluctuation measurements in the scrape-off layer (SOL) for -0.61 < δ < +0.64 in limited and diverted ohmic L-mode plasmas; these reveal a strong reduction in SOL fluctuation amplitudes at δ < -0.25, and, surprisingly, an almost full suppression of plasma interaction with the main-chamber first-wall, which could have important implications for the prospects of using negative δ plasmas as a reactor solution. An exploration of several physical mechanisms suggests that a reduced connection length—intrinsic to negative δ plasmas—plays a critical role in the origin of this phenomenon.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗