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At least 1,135 records · Page 63

A diffusion synthetic acceleration scheme for rectangular geometries based on bilinear discontinuous finite elements

A DSA technique to accelerate the iterative convergence of S{sub n} transport solves is derived for bilinear discontinuous (BLD) finite elements on rectangular grids. The diffusion synthetic acceleration equations are discretized using BLD elements by adapting the Modified Interior Penalty technique, introduced in [4] for triangular grids. The MIP-DSA equations are SPD and thus are solved using a preconditioned CG technique. Fourier analyses and implementation of the technique in a BLD S{sub n} transport code show that the technique is stable is effective. (authors)

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

SU-D-18A-07: Towards 6-Degree-Of-Freedom Real-Time Motion Management in Cancer Radiotherapy

Purpose: Lung tumor motion has been identified as a major issue that deteriorates treatment efficacy for radiotherapy, especially for SBRT. As tighter PTV margins are applied due to translational compensation, tumor rotation will become the dominant factor limiting tumor targeting accuracy. This is the world-first study quantifies lung tumor rotation by utilizing kV images with fiducial markers and a step towards 6-degree-of-freedom real-time cancer radiotherapy. Methods: Three or four gold coils were implanted as tumor surrogates in 3 lung cancer patients. 50 fractions of 8- minute, 10 Hz 4D CBCT projections were acquired for the patients immediately prior or after radiotherapy. The fiducial marker positions are segmented, reconstructed and used to determine tumour rotation by the iterative closest point algorithm. Different data acceptance and filtering methods were applied to accept data or smooth the marker trajectory. Results: The average rotation angles around the left/ right (LR), superior/inferior (SI), anterior/posterior (AP) rotations were found to be 0.8±4.2, -0.8±4.5 and 1.7±3.1 degrees respectively. For 28% of the treatment time, the lung tumors rotated more than 5° around the SI axis. Respiration-induced rotational motion was detected in 2 of the 3 lung patients. This can be explained by the patient developed atelectasis during the treatment period. Interestingly, no heart beating component of rotation was observed in the power spectrum. Different rotational types were observed within the patient cohort with large variations in the magnitude of the rotation between patients. Conclusions: For the first time, continuous tumor rotation has been measured for lung patients with gold fiducial markers. Tumors were found to undergo rotations of more than 5° for almost a third of the total treatment time. The study also demonstrated the feasibility of using continuously kV images for real-time lung tumour motion adaptive radiotherapy which can potentially reduce treatment margins and side effects. The authors acknowledge the financial support of an NHMRC Australia Fellowship.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

Design and Overview of 100 kV Bushing for the DNB Injector of ITER

The 100 kV bushing is one of the most important and technologically challenging Safety Important Class (SIC) components of the Diagnostic Neutral Beam (DNB) injector of ITER. It forms interface between gas insulated electrical transmission line and torus primary vacuum and acts as a vacuum feedthrough of ITER. Design optimization has been carried out to meet the electric and structural requirements based on its classification. Unlike HNB bushing, single stage bushing is designed to provide 100 kV isolation. Finite Element Analysis (FEA) based optimization has been carried out for electrostatic and structural analysis. Manufacturing assembly sequence is studied and presented in this paper. However validation of the same is foreseen from manufacturer.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

Evaluation of partial volume correction and analysis of longitudinal [ 18 F]GTP1 tau PET imaging in Alzheimer's disease using linear mixed-effects models

Purpose: We evaluated the impact of partial volume correction (PVC) methods on the quantification of longitudinal [ 18 F]GTP1 tau positron-emission tomography (PET) in Alzheimer's disease and the suitability of describing the tau pathology burden temporal trajectories using linear mixed-effects models (LMEM). Methods: We applied van Cittert iterative deconvolution (VC), 2-compartment, and 3-compartment, and the geometric transfer matrix plus region-based voxelwise methods to data acquired in an Alzheimer's disease natural history study over 18 months at a single imaging site. We determined the optimal PVC method by comparing the standardized uptake value ratio change (%ΔSUVR) between diagnostic and tau burden–level groups and the longitudinal repeatability derived from the LMEM. The performance of LMEM analysis for calculating %ΔSUVR was evaluated in a natural history study and in a multisite clinical trial of semorinemab in prodromal to mild Alzheimer's disease by comparing results to traditional per-visit estimates. Results: The VC, 2-compartment, and 3-compartment PVC methods had similar performance, whereas region-based voxelwise overcorrected regions with a higher tau burden. The lowest within-subject variability and acceptable group separation scores were observed without PVC. The LMEM-derived %ΔSUVR values were similar to the per-visit estimates with lower variability. Conclusion: The results indicate that the tested PVC methods do not offer a clear advantage or improvement over non-PVC images for the quantification of longitudinal [ 18 F]GTP1 PET data. LMEM offers a robust framework for the longitudinal tau PET quantification with low longitudinal test–retest variability. Clinical trial registration: NCT02640092 and NCT03289143.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

Application of nonlinear Krylov acceleration to radiative transfer problems

The iterative solution technique used for radiative transfer is normally nested, with outer thermal iterations and inner transport iterations. We implement a nonlinear Krylov acceleration (NKA) method in the PDT code for radiative transfer problems that breaks nesting, resulting in more thermal iterations but significantly fewer total inner transport iterations. Using the metric of total inner transport iterations, we investigate a crooked-pipe-like problem and a pseudo-shock-tube problem. Using only sweep preconditioning, we compare NKA against a typical inner / outer method employing GMRES / Newton and find NKA to be comparable or superior. Finally, we demonstrate the efficacy of applying diffusion-based preconditioning to grey problems in conjunction with NKA. (authors)

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

Predictive Maturity of Multi-Scale Simulation Models for Fuel Performance

The project proposed to provide a Predictive Maturity Framework with its companion metrics that (1) introduce a formalized, quantitative means to communicate information between interested parties, (2) provide scientifically dependable means to claim completion of Validation and Uncertainty Quantification (VU) activities, and (3) guide the decision makers in the allocation of Nuclear Energy’s resources for code development and physical experiments. The project team proposed to develop this framework based on two complimentary criteria: (1) the extent of experimental evidence available for the calibration of simulation models and (2) the sophistication of the physics incorporated in simulation models. The proposed framework is capable of quantifying the interaction between the required number of physical experiments and degree of physics sophistication. The project team has developed this framework and implemented it with a multi-scale model for simulating creep of a core reactor cladding. The multi-scale model is composed of the viscoplastic self-consistent (VPSC) code at the meso-scale, which represents the visco-plastic behavior and changing properties of a highly anisotropic material and a Finite Element (FE) code at the macro-scale to represent the elastic behavior and apply the loading. The framework developed takes advantage of the transparency provided by partitioned analysis, where independent constituent codes are coupled in an iterative manner. This transparency allows model developers to better understand and remedy the source of biases and uncertainties, whether they stem from the constituents or the coupling interface by exploiting separate-effect experiments conducted within the constituent domain and integral-effect experiments conducted within the full-system domain. The project team has implemented this procedure with the multi- scale VPSC-FE model and demonstrated its ability to improve the predictive capability of the model. Within this framework, the project team has focused on optimizing resource allocation for improving numerical models through further code development and experimentation. Related to further code development, we have developed a code prioritization index (CPI) for coupled numerical models. CPI is implemented to effectively improve the predictive capability of the coupled model by increasing the sophistication of constituent codes. In relation to designing new experiments, we investigated the information gained by the addition of each new experiment used for calibration and bias correction of a simulation model. Additionally, the variability of ‘information gain’ through the design domain has been investigated in order to identify the experiment settings where maximum information gain occurs and thus guide the experimenters in the selection of the experiment settings. This idea was extended to evaluate the information gain from each experiment can be improved by intelligently selecting the experiments, leading to the development of the Batch Sequential Design (BSD) technique. Additionally, we evaluated the importance of sufficiently exploring the domain of applicability in experiment-based validation of high-consequence modeling and simulation by developing a new metric to quantify coverage. This metric has also been incorporated into the design of new experiments. Finally, we have proposed a data-aware calibration approach for the calibration of numerical models. This new method considers the complexity of a numerical model (the number of parameters to be calibrated, parameter uncertainty, and form of the model) and seeks to identify the number of experiments necessary to calibrate the model based on the level of sophistication of the physics. The final component in the project team’s work to improve model calibration and validation methods is the incorporation of robustness to non-probabilistic uncertainty in the input parameters. This is an improvement to model validation and uncertainty quantification stemming beyond the originally proposed scope of the project. We have introduced a new metric for incorporating the concept of robustness into experiment-based validation of numerical models. This project has accounted for the graduation of two Ph.D. students (Kendra Van Buren and Josh Hegenderfer) and two M.S. students (Matthew Egeberg and Parker Shields). One of the doctoral students is now working in the nuclear engineering field and the other one is a post-doctoral fellow at the Los Alamos National Laboratory. Additionally, two more Ph.D. students (Garrison Stevens and Tunc Kulaksiz) who are working towards graduation have been supported by this project.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

Nonlinear diffusion acceleration for the multigroup transport equation discretized with S{sub N} and continuous FEM with rattlesnake

Nonlinear diffusion acceleration (NDA) can improve the performance of a neutron transport solver significantly especially for the multigroup eigenvalue problems. The high-order transport equation and the transport-corrected low-order diffusion equation form a nonlinear system in NDA, which can be solved via a Picard iteration. The consistency of the correction of the low-order equation is important to ensure the stabilization and effectiveness of the iteration. It also makes the low-order equation preserve the scalar flux of the high-order equation. In this paper, the consistent correction for a particular discretization scheme, self-adjoint angular flux (SAAF) formulation with discrete ordinates method (S{sub N}) and continuous finite element method (CFEM) is proposed for the multigroup neutron transport equation. Equations with the anisotropic scatterings and a void treatment are included. The Picard iteration with this scheme has been implemented and tested with RattleS{sub N}ake, a MOOSE-based application at INL. Convergence results are presented. (authors)

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

J-variational inequalities and zeroes of a family of maximal monotone operators by sunny generalized nonexpansive retraction

In this paper, using generalized resolvents and retractions onto shrinking closed subsets, we present new extragradient algorithms for finding the solution of a J-variational-like inequality, the zero points of a family of maximal monotone operators, and the solution set of mixed equilibrium problems for a J-α-inverse-strongly monotone-like operator in a 2-uniformly convex and 2-uniformly smooth Banach space. By introducing the new definitions, we prove strong convergence of generated iterates in the extragradient methods. Using FMINCON optimization toolbox in MATLAB, we give some numerical examples and compare them with several existence results in the literature to illustrate the usability of our results.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

Geometry of quantum Hall states: Gravitational anomaly and transport coefficients

We show that universal transport coefficients of the fractional quantum Hall effect (FQHE) can be understood as a response to variations of spatial geometry. Some transport properties are essentially governed by the gravitational anomaly. We develop a general method to compute correlation functions of FQH states in a curved space, where local transformation properties of these states are examined through local geometric variations. We introduce the notion of a generating functional and relate it to geometric invariant functionals recently studied in geometry. We develop two complementary methods to study the geometry of the FQHE. One method is based on iterating a Ward identity, while the other is based on a field theoretical formulation of the FQHE through a path integral formalism.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

A global stochastic programming approach for the optimal placement of gas detectors with nonuniform unavailabilities

Optimal design of a gas detection systems is challenging because of the numerous sources of uncertainty, including weather and environmental conditions, leak location and characteristics, and process conditions. Rigorous CFD simulations of dispersion scenarios combined with stochastic programming techniques have been successfully applied to the problem of optimal gas detector placement; however, rigorous treatment of sensor failure and nonuniform unavailability has received less attention. To improve reliability of the design, this paper proposes a problem formulation that explicitly considers nonuniform unavailabilities and all backup detection levels. The resulting sensor placement problem is a large-scale mixed-integer nonlinear programming (MINLP) problem that requires a tailored solution approach for efficient solution. We have developed a multitree method which depends on iteratively solving a sequence of upper-bounding master problems and lower-bounding subproblems. The tailored global solution strategy is tested on a real data problem and the encouraging numerical results indicate that our solution framework is promising in solving sensor placement problems. This study was selected for the special issue in JLPPI from the 2016 International Symposium of the MKO Process Safety Center.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗

Topological Hall effect in magnetic topological insulator films

Geometric Berry phase can be induced either by spin–orbit coupling, giving rise to the anomalous Hall effect in ferromagnetic materials, or by chiral spin texture, such as skyrmions, leading to the topological Hall effect. Recent experiments have revealed that both phenomena can occur in topological insulator films with magnetic doping, thus providing us with an intriguing platform to study the interplay between these two phenomena. In this work, we report on a numerical simulation of the anomalous Hall and topological Hall effects in a four-band model that can properly describe the quantum well states in the magnetic topological insulator films by combining Landauer–Büttiker formula and the iterative Green’s function method. Our numerical results suggest that spin–orbit coupling in this model plays a different role in the quantum transport in the clean and disordered limits. In the clean limit, spin–orbit coupling mainly influences the longitudinal transport but does not have much effect on topological Hall conductance. In the disordered limit, the longitudinal transport is determined by disorder scattering and spin–orbit coupling is found to affect strongly the topological Hall conductance. Here, this sharp contrast unveils a dramatic interplay between spin–orbit coupling and disorder effect in topological Hall effect in magnetic topological insulator systems.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Determining Atomistic SAXS Models of Tri-Ubiquitin Chains from Bayesian Analysis of Accelerated Molecular Dynamics Simulations

Small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) has become an increasingly popular technique for characterizing the solution ensemble of flexible biomolecules. However, data resulting from SAXS is typically low-dimensional and is therefore difficult to interpret without additional structural knowledge. In theory, molecular dynamics (MD) trajectories can provide this information, but conventional simulations rarely sample the complete ensemble. Here, we demonstrate that accelerated MD simulations can be used to produce higher quality models in shorter time scales than standard simulations, and we present an iterative Bayesian Monte Carlo method that is able to identify multistate ensembles without overfitting. This methodology is applied to several ubiquitin trimers to demonstrate the effect of linkage type on the solution states of the signaling protein. Here, we observe that the linkage site directly affects the solution flexibility of the trimer and theorize that this difference in plasticity contributes to their disparate roles in vivo.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Development of a coarse-grained molecular dynamics model for poly(dimethyl- co -diphenyl)siloxane

Polydimethylsiloxane is an important polymeric material with a wide range of applications. However, environmental effects like low temperature can induce crystallization in this material with resulting changes in its structural and dynamic properties. The incorporation of phenyl-siloxane components, e.g., as in a poly(dimethyl-co-diphenyl)siloxane random copolymer, is known to suppress such crystallization. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations can be a powerful tool to understand such effects in atomistic detail. Unfortunately, all-atomistic molecular dynamics (AAMD) is limited in both spatial dimensions and simulation times it can probe. Here, to overcome such constraints and to extend to more useful length- and time-scales, we systematically develop a coarse-grained molecular dynamics (CGMD) model for the poly(dimethyl-co-diphenyl)siloxane system with bonded and non-bonded interactions determined from all-atomistic simulations by the iterative Boltzmann inversion (IBI) method. Additionally, we propose a lever rule that can be useful to generate non-bonded potentials for such systems without reference to the all-atomistic ground truth. Our model captures the structural and dynamic properties of the copolymer material with quantitative accuracy and is useful to study long-time dynamics of highly-entangled systems, sequence-dependent properties, phase behaviour, etc.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

A course-grained model for polyethylene glycol polymer

A coarse-grained (CG) model of polyethylene glycol (PEG) was developed and implemented in CG molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of PEG chains with degree of polymerization (DP) 20 and 40. In the model, two repeat units of PEG are grouped as one CG bead. Atomistic MD simulation of PEG chains with DP = 20 was first conducted to obtain the bonded structural probability distribution functions (PDFs) and nonbonded pair correlation function (PCF) of the CG beads. The bonded CG potentials are obtained by simple inversion of the corresponding PDFs. The CG nonbonded potential is parameterized to the PCF using both an inversion procedure based on the Ornstein-Zernike equation with the Percus-Yevick approximation (OZPY{sup -1}) and a combination of OZPY{sup -1} with the iterative Boltzmann inversion (IBI) method (OZPY{sup -1}+IBI). As a simple one step method, the OZPY{sup -1} method possesses an advantage in computational efficiency. Using the potential from OZPY{sup -1} as an initial guess, the IBI method shows fast convergence. The coarse-grained molecular dynamics (CGMD) simulations of PEG chains with DP = 20 using potentials from both methods satisfactorily reproduce the structural properties from atomistic MD simulation of the same systems. The OZPY{sup -1}+IBI method yields better agreement than the OZPY{sup -1} method alone. The new CG model and CG potentials from OZPY{sup -1}+IBI method was further tested through CGMD simulation of PEG with DP = 40 system. No significant changes are observed in the comparison of PCFs from CGMD simulations of PEG with DP = 20 and 40 systems indicating that the potential is independent of chain length.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Tensor decomposition in post-Hartree–Fock methods. II. CCD implementation

In a previous publication, we have discussed the usage of tensor decomposition in the canonical polyadic (CP) tensor format for electronic structure methods. There, we focused on two-electron integrals and second order Møller-Plesset perturbation theory (MP2). In this work, we discuss the CP format for Coupled Cluster (CC) theory and present a pilot implementation for the Coupled Cluster Doubles method. We discuss the iterative solution of the CC amplitude equations using tensors in CP representation and present a tensor contraction scheme that minimizes the effort necessary for the rank reductions during the iterations. Furthermore, several details concerning the reduction of complexity of the algorithm, convergence of the CC iterations, truncation errors, and the choice of threshold for chemical accuracy are discussed.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Derivation of coarse-grained potentials via multistate iterative Boltzmann inversion

In this work, an extension is proposed to the standard iterative Boltzmann inversion (IBI) method used to derive coarse-grained potentials. It is shown that the inclusion of target data from multiple states yields a less state-dependent potential, and is thus better suited to simulate systems over a range of thermodynamic states than the standard IBI method. The inclusion of target data from multiple states forces the algorithm to sample regions of potential phase space that match the radial distribution function at multiple state points, thus producing a derived potential that is more representative of the underlying interactions. It is shown that the algorithm is able to converge to the true potential for a system where the underlying potential is known. It is also shown that potentials derived via the proposed method better predict the behavior of n-alkane chains than those derived via the standard IBI method. Additionally, through the examination of alkane monolayers, it is shown that the relative weight given to each state in the fitting procedure can impact bulk system properties, allowing the potentials to be further tuned in order to match the properties of reference atomistic and/or experimental systems.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Self-consistent iteration procedure in analyzing reflectivity and spectroscopic ellipsometry data of multilayered materials and their interfaces

For multilayered materials, reflectivity depends on the complex dielectric function of all the constituent layers, and a detailed analysis is required to separate them. Furthermore, for some cases, new quantum states can occur at the interface which may change the optical properties of the material. In this paper, we discuss various aspects of such analysis, and present a self-consistent iteration procedure, a versatile method to extract and separate the complex dielectric function of each individual layer of a multilayered system. As a case study, we apply this method to LaAlO{sub 3}/SrTiO{sub 3} heterostructure in which we are able to separate the effects of the interface from the LaAlO{sub 3} film and the SrTiO{sub 3} substrate. Our method can be applied to other complex multilayered systems with various numbers of layers.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

Super-resolution energy spectra from neutron direct-geometry spectrometers

Neutron direct-geometry time-of-flight chopper spectroscopy is instrumental in studying fundamental excitations of vibrational and/or magnetic origin. We report here that techniques in super-resolution optical imagery (which is in real-space) can be adapted to enhance resolution and reduce noise for a neutron spectroscopy (an instrument for mapping excitations in reciprocal space). The procedure to reconstruct super-resolution energy spectra of phonon density of states relies on a realization of multiframe registration, accurate determination of the energy-dependent point spread function, asymmetric nature of instrument resolution broadening, and iterative reconstructions. Applying these methods to phonon density of states data for a graphite sample demonstrates contrast enhancement, noise reduction, and ~5-fold improvement over nominal energy resolution. The data were collected at three different incident energies measured at the wide angular-range chopper spectrometer at the Spallation Neutron Source.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗