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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1992

Heat flux dropouts in the solar wind and Coulomb scattering effects

Data on solar wind electrons at the ISEE 3 spacecraft located 0.01 AU upstream from the earth (McComas et al., 1989) showed periods of time when the flux of antisunward suprathermal electrons would decrease suddenly, leading to heat flux dropouts (HFDs). This paper examines data from ISEE 1 at the 1.5 x 10 exp 6 km downstream location to determine whether HFDs identified at ISEE 3 by McComas et al. can be detected at this location and whether the ISEE 1 observations can provide information to one or the other possible interpretations of HFDs: that HFDs are due to enhanced Coulomb scattering, or to disconnection from the sun of the magnetic flux tube. The results of the examination identified the presence of HFD events in the ISEE 1 data, and the findings indicate that Coulomb scattering plays a substantial role in at least some HFD events.

Fitzenreiter, R. J.↗
NASA NTRS2007

Coupling of Multiple Coulomb Scattering with Energy Loss and Straggling in HZETRN

The new version of the HZETRN deterministic transport code based on Green's function methods, and the incorporation of ground-based laboratory boundary conditions, has lead to the development of analytical and numerical procedures to include off-axis dispersion of primary ion beams due to small-angle multiple Coulomb scattering. In this paper we present the theoretical formulation and computational procedures to compute ion beam broadening and a methodology towards achieving a self-consistent approach to coupling multiple scattering interactions with ionization energy loss and straggling. Our initial benchmark case is a 60 MeV proton beam on muscle tissue, for which we can compare various attributes of beam broadening with Monte Carlo simulations reported in the open literature.

Mertens, Christopher J.↗
NASA NTRS1978

Measurement of the daytime photoelectron energy distribution from AE-E with improved energy resolution

A substantial improvement in energy resolution for photoelectron energy spectra in the 150-320 km altitude range is reported. The spectra were obtained with the AE-E satellite. The improvement is based on a data analysis technique which makes use of spectra obtained from the spinning spacecraft when the potential of the sensor varies slightly with respect to the ionospheric plasma as a consequence of the v x B induced voltage in the spacecraft body. The results permit determination of the line shape and area of the O and N2 304A solar radiation-produced photoelectron lines as a function of altitude. The photoelectron lines are found to be essentially unbroadened by coulomb scattering below 200 km, but substantial broadening occurs by 250 km. At 300 km, the characteristic line shape due to coulomb scattering with a degradation to low energy and a sharp high energy side can be observed readily.

Lee, J. S.↗
NASA NTRS2020

Nuclear Fusion Reactions in Deuterated Metals

Nuclear fusion reactions of D-D are examined in an environment comprised of high density cold fuel embedded in metal lattices in which a small fuel portion is activated by hot neutrons. Such an environment provides for enhanced screening of the Coulomb barrier due to conduction and shell electrons of the metal lattice, or by plasma induced by ionizing radiation (γ quanta). We show that neutrons are far more efficient than energetic charged particles, such as light particles (e−, e+) or heavy particles (p, d, α) in transferring kinetic energy to fuel nuclei (D) to initiate fusion processes. It is well-known that screening increases the probability of tunneling through the Coulomb barrier. Electron screening also significantly increases the probability of large- versus small-angle Coulomb scattering of the reacting nuclei to enable subsequent nuclear reactions via tunneling. This probability is incorporated into the astrophysical factor S(E). Aspects of screening effects to enable calculation of nuclear reaction rates are also evaluated, including Coulomb scattering and localized heating of the cold fuel, primary D-D reactions, and subsequent reactions with both the fuel and the lattice nuclei. The effect of screening for enhancement of the total nuclear reaction rate is a function of multiple parameters including fuel temperature and the relative scattering probability between the fuel and lattice metal nuclei. Screening also significantly increases the probability of interaction between hot fuel and lattice nuclei increasing the likelilhood of Oppenheimer-Phillips processes opening a potential route to reaction multiplication. We demonstrate that the screened Coulomb potential of the target ion is determined by the nonlinear Vlasov potential and not by the Debye potential. In general, the effect of screening becomes important at low kinetic energy of the projectile. We examine the range of applicability of both the analytical and asymptotic expressions for the well-known electron screening lattice potential energy Ue, which is valid only for E >> Ue (E is the energy in the center of mass reference frame). We demonstrate that for E ≤ Ue, a direct calculation of Gamow factor for screened Coulomb potential is required to avoid unreasonably high values of the enhancement factor f (E) by the analytical—and more so by the asymptotic—formulas.

Vladimir Pines↗
NASA NTRS1993

Excitation cross sections for the ns 2S yields np 2P resonance transitions in Mg(+) (n = 3) and Zn(+) (n = 4) using electron-energy-loss and merged-beams methods

Electron-excitation cross sections are reported for the 3s 2S yields 3p 2P(h, k) resonance transition in Mg(+) at energies from threshold (4.43 eV) to approximately 9 times threshold (40.0 eV). The electron-energy-loss merged-beams technique used in these measurements is described in detail. In addition, the method of separating contributions of the elastically scattered (Coulomb) and the inelastically scattered electrons in the present Mg(+) case and previously reported Zn(+) results is described. Comparisons in the experimental energy range are made for Mg(+) with the two five-state close-coupling theoretical calculations carried out herein, and with other published close-coupling, distorted-wave, and semiempirical calculations. The present Mg(+) cross sections and Zn(+) cross sections from earlier measurements are tabulated.

Smith, Steven J.↗
NASA NTRS1972

Momentum transfer interaction of a laser-produced plasma with a low-pressure background.

The expansion of a laser-produced metallic plasma into a photoionized hydrogen background has been experimentally studied. Langmuir probe and microwave diagnostics have detected an interaction front which decelerates with a dependence on background density and time consistent with a momentum coupling between the laser plasma and the ionized fraction of the background. An ion percursor has also been observed. Calculations of scattering cross sections indicate that multiple-encounter Coulomb scattering will dominate collisional momentum transfer. The leading edge of the laser plasma contains multiply charged ions of charge state z greater than or equal to 5, and collisional effects appear adequate to explain the principal features of the momentum coupling. The ion precursor may have a collisionless origin.

Koopman, D. W.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Kinetic theory of relativistic plasmas

The thermalization of particle kinetic motion by binary collisions is considered for a plasma with a Boltzmann constant-temperature product approximately equal to 10 to 100 times the product of the electron mass with the square of the speed of light. At this temperature, the principal mechanism for relaxation of electron motion is via radiationless electron-electron collisions (Moller scattering). Ions are nonrelativistic, but are energetic enough so that their Coulomb scattering can be treated in the Born approximation. Relaxation times are computed and Boltzmann-equation Fokker-Planck operators are derived for the various binary-collision processes. The expression for the rate of kinetic energy exchange between electron and ion gases is derived for the case where the gases are at different temperatures.

Gould, R. J.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Time-dependent models of magnetized pair plasmas

Attention is given to a numerical code developed to study the time evolution of electron-positron plasmas. The code solves in a self-consistent manner kinetic equations describing the effects of Compton scattering, two-photon pair production, pair annihilation, cooling of pairs via Coulomb scattering, e-e bremsstrahlung, and synchrotron radiation. The kinetic equations are derived under the approximation of homogeneous and isotropic particle distributions on the basis of a study by Coppi and Blandford (1993). Both stationary and time-varying output radiation spectra are computed. Good qualitative agreement with previous calculations is found, except where the differences are attributable to the improved treatment of the microphysics.

Coppi, Paolo S.↗
NASA NTRS1979

Multiple scattering and charged-particle - hydrogen-atom collisions

Glauber-approximation scattering amplitudes for charged-particle - hydrogen-atom elastic and inelastic collisions are derived directly in terms of the known particle-electron and particle-proton Coulomb scattering amplitudes and the known hydrogen-atom form factors. It is shown that the particle-hydrogen amplitude contains no single-scattering term. The double-scattering term is obtained as a two-dimensional integral in momentum space. It is demonstrated how the result can be used as the starting point for an alternative and relatively simple derivation, in closed form, of the Glauber particle-hydrogen scattering amplitude for transitions from the ground state to an arbitrary (nlm) state.

Franco, V.↗
NASA NTRS1972

Analysis of auroral particle fluxes

The physical processes which describe the interaction of auroral electrons with the atmosphere appear to be more complex than just the Coulomb scattering of the incident primary electrons with a subsequent loss of energy. The comparison of the measured backscattered electron spectra with spectra predicted using a theoretical scattering calculation has led to a discrepancy for energies below about 1 to 2 keV. It was found that the very high ratio (100%) of backscattered to incident fluxes for these energies could be most reasonably explained by a parallel downward-directed electric field which prevents these lower energy electrons from entering the atmospheric scattering region. This parallel field with potential drop of about 1 keV is thought to have its origin in waveparticle interactions in the turbulent auroral ionosphere.

Chappell, C. R.↗