Particle acceleration at shocks in the inner heliosphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parker, Linda Neergaard

This dissertation describes a study of particle acceleration at shocks via the diffusive shock acceleration mechanism. Results for particle acceleration at both quasi-parallel and quasi-perpendicular shocks are presented to address the question of whether there are sufficient particles in the solar wind thermal core, modeled as either a Maxwellian or kappa- distribution, to account for the observed accelerated spectrum. Results of accelerating the theoretical upstream distribution are compared to energetic observations at 1 AU. It is shown that the particle distribution in the solar wind thermal core is sufficient to explain the accelerated particle spectrum downstream of the shock, although the shape of the downstream distribution in some cases does not follow completely the theory of diffusive shock acceleration, indicating possible additional processes at work in the shock for these cases. Results show good to excellent agreement between the theoretical and observed spectral index for one third to one half of both quasi-parallel and quasi-perpendicular shocks studied herein. Coronal mass ejections occurring during periods of high solar activity surrounding solar maximum can produce shocks in excess of 3-8 shocks per day. During solar minimum, diffusive shock acceleration at shocks can generally be understood on the basis of single independent shocks and no other shock necessarily influences the diffusive shock acceleration mechanism. In this sense, diffusive shock acceleration during solar minimum may be regarded as Markovian. By contrast, diffusive shock acceleration of particles at periods of high solar activity (e.g. solar maximum) see frequent, closely spaced shocks that include the effects of particle acceleration at preceding and following shocks. Therefore, diffusive shock acceleration of particles at solar maximum cannot be modeled on the basis of diffusive shock acceleration as a single, independent shock and the process is essentially non-Markovian. A multiple shock model is developed based in part on the box model of (Protheroe and Stanev, 1998; Moraal and Axford, 1983; Ball and Kirk, 1992; Drury et al. 1999) that accelerates particles at multiple shocks and decompresses the particles between shocks via two methods. The first method of decompression is based on the that used by Melrose and Pope (1993), which adiabatically decompresses particles between shocks. The second method solves the cosmic ray transport equation and adiabatically decompresses between shocks and includes the loss of particles through convection and diffusion. The transport method allows for the inclusion of a temporal variability and thus allows for a more representative frequency distribution of shocks. The transport method of decompression and loss is used to accelerate particles at seventy-three shocks in a thirty day time period. Comparisons with observations taken at 1 AU during the same time period are encouraging as the model is able to reproduce the observed amplitude of the accelerated particles and in part the variability. This work provides the basis for developing more sophisticated models that can be applied to a suite of observations

Particle Acceleration at a Twin CME at 1 AU

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parker, L. N.; Li, G.

2017-12-01

We present results from both the Particle Acceleration and Transport in the Heliosphere (PATH) and Particle Acceleration at Multiple Shocks (PAMS) models for a twin CME scenario. The PATH model follows a CME using a numerical MHD module and solves the Parker transport equation at the shock yielding the accelerated particle spectrum, while PAMS solves the steady-state cosmic ray transport equation at an individual shock analytically to yield the diffusive shock acceleration (DSA) spectrum. We address the injection of an upstream particle distribution into the acceleration process for a two shock system at 1 AU. Only those particles that exceed a theoretically motivated prescribed injection energy, Einj, and up to a maximum injection energy (Emax) appropriate for quasi-parallel and quasi-perpendicular shocks (Zank et al., 2000, 2006; Dosch and Shalchi, 2010) are injected. Results from PAMS are then compared to observations at 1 AU from the Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE) spacecraft. In addition, we test the concept of electron acceleration at low injection energies for a single and multiple shock system using the same method as in Neergaard Parker and Zank, 2012 and Neergaard Parker et al., 2014.

The Role of Fluid Compression in Particle Energization during Magnetic Reconnection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, X.; Guo, F.; Li, H.; Li, S.

2017-12-01

Theories of particle transport and acceleration have shown that fluid compression is the leading mechanism for particle energization. However, the role of compression in particle energization during magnetic reconnection is unclear. We present a cluster of studies to clarify and show the effect of fluid compression in accelerating particles to high energies during magnetic reconnection. Using fully kinetic reconnection simulations, we show that fluid compression is the leading mechanism for high-energy particle energization. We find that the compressional energization is more important in a low-beta plasma or in a reconnection layer with a weak guide field (the magnetic field component perpendicular to the reconnecting magnetic field), which are relevant to solar flares. Our analysis on 3D kinetic simulations shows that the self-generated turbulence scatters particles and enhances the particle diffusion processes in the acceleration regions. Based on these results, we then study large-scale reconnection acceleration by solving the particle transport equation in a large-scale reconnection layer evolved with MHD simulations. Due to the compressional effect, particles are accelerated to high energies and develop power-law energy distributions. This study clarifies the nature of particle acceleration in reconnection layer and is important to understand particle energization during large-scale acceleration such as solar flares.

Modeling of Particle Acceleration at Multiple Shocks via Diffusive Shock Acceleration: Preliminary Results

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Parker, L. Neergaard; Zank, G. P.

2013-01-01

Successful forecasting of energetic particle events in space weather models require algorithms for correctly predicting the spectrum of ions accelerated from a background population of charged particles. We present preliminary results from a model that diffusively accelerates particles at multiple shocks. Our basic approach is related to box models in which a distribution of particles is diffusively accelerated inside the box while simultaneously experiencing decompression through adiabatic expansion and losses from the convection and diffusion of particles outside the box. We adiabatically decompress the accelerated particle distribution between each shock by either the method explored in Melrose and Pope (1993) and Pope and Melrose (1994) or by the approach set forth in Zank et al. (2000) where we solve the transport equation by a method analogous to operator splitting. The second method incorporates the additional loss terms of convection and diffusion and allows for the use of a variable time between shocks. We use a maximum injection energy (E(sub max)) appropriate for quasi-parallel and quasi-perpendicular shocks and provide a preliminary application of the diffusive acceleration of particles by multiple shocks with frequencies appropriate for solar maximum (i.e., a non-Markovian process).

Low-energy ion acceleration at quasi-perpendicular shocks: Transverse diffusion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Giacalone, J.; Jokipii, J. R.

1995-01-01

The problem of ion injection and acceleration at quasi perpendicular shocks has been the subject of some debate over the past two decades. It is widely known that these shocks efficiently accelerate particles that are well in the high-energy tail of the distribution. However, the issue of injection, or the acceleration of low-energy ions, has yet to reach a consensus. The fundamental issue is whether there is enough diffusion normal to the magnetic field for the particles to remain near the shock. Since transverse diffusion is a physical process that is not well understood in space plasmas, this is an important, and difficult issue to address. In this report, we will investigate the ion injection problem by performing test particle orbit integrations using synthesized turbulent fields. These fields are fully three-dimensional so that transverse diffusion is possible (cross-field diffusion is not possible in geometries where the electromagnetic fields are less than three dimensional). The synthesized fields are produced by superimposing a three-dimensional wave field on a background field. For completeness, we will compare the results from this model with the more well-established theories, such as the diffusive approximation and scatter-free shock drift acceleration. We will also compare these results with other numerical simulation techniques such as the well known hybrid simulation, and other test-particle calculations in which the shock fields are specified to have less than three dimensions. We will also discuss some recent relevant observations and how these compare with our results.

Electron Energization and Structure of the Diffusion Region During Asymmetric Reconnection

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chen, Li-Jen; Hesse, Michael; Wang, Shan; Bessho, Naoki; Daughton, William

2016-01-01

Results from particle-in-cell simulations of reconnection with asymmetric upstream conditions are reported to elucidate electron energization and structure of the electron diffusion region (EDR). Acceleration of unmagnetized electrons results in discrete structures in the distribution functions and supports the intense current and perpendicular heating in the EDR. The accelerated electrons are cyclotron turned by the reconnected magnetic field to produce the outflow jets, and as such, the acceleration by the reconnection electric field is limited, leading to resistivity without particle-particle or particle-wave collisions. A map of electron distributions is constructed, and its spatial evolution is compared with quantities previously proposed to be EDR identifiers to enable effective identifications of the EDR in terrestrial magnetopause reconnection.

Particle acceleration magnetic field generation, and emission in Relativistic pair jets

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nishikawa, K.-I.; Ramirez-Ruiz, E.; Hardee, P.; Hededal, C.; Kouveliotou, C.; Fishman, G. J.

2005-01-01

Plasma waves and their associated instabilities (e.g., the Buneman instability, two-streaming instability, and the Weibel instability) are responsible for particle acceleration in relativistic pair jets. Using a 3-D relativistic electromagnetic particle (REMP) code, we have investigated particle acceleration associated with a relativistic pair jet propagating through a pair plasma. Simulations show that the Weibel instability created in the collisionless shock accelerates particles perpendicular and parallel to the jet propagation direction. Simulation results show that this instability generates and amplifies highly nonuniform, small-scale magnetic fields, which contribute to the electron's transverse deflection behind the jet head. The "jitter' I radiation from deflected electrons can have different properties than synchrotron radiation which is calculated in a uniform magnetic field. This jitter radiation may be important to understanding the complex time evolution and/or spectral structure in gamma-ray bursts, relativistic jets, and supernova remnants. The growth rate of the Weibel instability and the resulting particle acceleration depend on the magnetic field strength and orientation, and on the initial particle distribution function. In this presentation we explore some of the dependencies of the Weibel instability and resulting particle acceleration on the magnetic field strength and orientation, and the particle distribution function.

Motion of Colloidal Particles near Plateau Border in Freely Suspended Soap Film

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pak, Hyuk Kyu; Sur, Jeanman

2000-03-01

We study the motion of colloidal particle near Plateau border in free-standing soap film which is placed perpendicularly to the gravitational direction. When the thickness of soap film is a micron order, two air/water interfacial surfaces of the film can be deformed by the presence of the colloidal particle. When the colloidal particles are in the central area of soap film, they move in random directions. But, as the particles approach near Plateau border, they are accelerated to the border of the film. The travelling distance, before the accelerated particle stops, depends on particle size. We propose a simple model to explain the motion of particle near Plateau border using a surface energy argument and compare the results with experimental measurements.

THE IMPLICIT CONTRIBUTION OF SLAB MODES TO THE PERPENDICULAR DIFFUSION COEFFICIENT OF PARTICLES INTERACTING WITH TWO-COMPONENT TURBULENCE

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Shalchi, A., E-mail: andreasm4@yahoo.com

2016-10-20

We explore the transport of energetic particles in two-component turbulence in which the stochastic magnetic field is assumed to be a superposition of slab and two-dimensional modes. It is known that in magnetostatic slab turbulence, the motion of particles across the mean magnetic field is subdiffusive. If a two-dimensional component is added, diffusion is recovered. It was also shown before that in two-component turbulence, the slab modes do not explicitly contribute to the perpendicular diffusion coefficient. In the current paper, the implicit contribution of slab modes is explored and it is shown that this contribution leads to a reduction ofmore » the perpendicular diffusion coefficient. This effect improves the agreement between simulations and analytical theory. Furthermore, the obtained results are relevant for investigations of diffusive shock acceleration.« less

Particle acceleration, magnetic field generation, and emission in relativistic pair jets

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nishikawa, K.-I.; Ramirez-Ruiz, E.; Hardee, P.; Hededal, C.; Kouveliotou, C.; Fishman, G. J.; Mizuno, Y.

2005-01-01

Shock acceleration is a ubiquitous phenomenon in astrophysical plasmas. Recent simulations show that the Weibel instability created by relativistic pair jets is responsible for particle (electron, positron, and ion) acceleration. Using a 3-D relativistic electromagnetic particle (REMP) code, we have investigated particle acceleration associated with a relativistic jet propagating through an ambient plasma with and without initial magnetic fields. The growth rates of the Weibel instability depends on the distribution of pair jets. The Weibel instability created in the collisionless shock accelerates particles perpendicular and parallel to the jet propagation direction. This instability is also responsible for generating and amplifying highly nonuniform, small-scale magnetic fields, which contribute to the electron s transverse deflection behind the jet head. The jitter radiation from deflected electrons has different properties than synchrotron radiation which is calculated in a uniform magnetic field. This jitter radiation may be important to understanding the complex time evolution and/or spectral structure in gamma-ray bursts, relativistic jets, and supernova remnants.

INJECTION TO RAPID DIFFUSIVE SHOCK ACCELERATION AT PERPENDICULAR SHOCKS IN PARTIALLY IONIZED PLASMAS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ohira, Yutaka, E-mail: ohira@phys.aoyama.ac.jp

2016-08-10

We present a three-dimensional hybrid simulation of a collisionless perpendicular shock in a partially ionized plasma for the first time. In this simulation, the shock velocity and upstream ionization fraction are v {sub sh} ≈ 1333 km s{sup −1} and f {sub i} ∼ 0.5, which are typical values for isolated young supernova remnants (SNRs) in the interstellar medium. We confirm previous two-dimensional simulation results showing that downstream hydrogen atoms leak into the upstream region and are accelerated by the pickup process in the upstream region, and large magnetic field fluctuations are generated both in the upstream and downstream regions.more » In addition, we find that the magnetic field fluctuations have three-dimensional structures and the leaking hydrogen atoms are injected into the diffusive shock acceleration (DSA) at the perpendicular shock after the pickup process. The observed DSA can be interpreted as shock drift acceleration with scattering. In this simulation, particles are accelerated to v ∼ 100 v {sub sh} ∼ 0.3 c within ∼100 gyroperiods. The acceleration timescale is faster than that of DSA in parallel shocks. Our simulation results suggest that SNRs can accelerate cosmic rays to 10{sup 15.5} eV (the knee) during the Sedov phase.« less

A theoretical perspective on particle acceleration by interplanetary shocks and the Solar Energetic Particle problem

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Verkhoglyadova, Olga P.; Zank, Gary P.; Li, Gang

2015-02-01

Understanding the physics of Solar Energetic Particle (SEP) events is of importance to the general question of particle energization throughout the cosmos as well as playing a role in the technologically critical impact of space weather on society. The largest, and often most damaging, events are the so-called gradual SEP events, generally associated with shock waves driven by coronal mass ejections (CMEs). We review the current state of knowledge about particle acceleration at evolving interplanetary shocks with application to SEP events that occur in the inner heliosphere. Starting with a brief outline of recent theoretical progress in the field, we focus on current observational evidence that challenges conventional models of SEP events, including complex particle energy spectra, the blurring of the distinction between gradual and impulsive events, and the difference inherent in particle acceleration at quasi-parallel and quasi-perpendicular shocks. We also review the important problem of the seed particle population and its injection into particle acceleration at a shock. We begin by discussing the properties and characteristics of non-relativistic interplanetary shocks, from their formation close to the Sun to subsequent evolution through the inner heliosphere. The association of gradual SEP events with shocks is discussed. Several approaches to the energization of particles have been proposed, including shock drift acceleration, diffusive shock acceleration (DSA), acceleration by large-scale compression regions, acceleration by random velocity fluctuations (sometimes known as the "pump mechanism"), and others. We review these various mechanisms briefly and focus on the DSA mechanism. Much of our emphasis will be on our current understanding of the parallel and perpendicular diffusion coefficients for energetic particles and models of plasma turbulence in the vicinity of the shock. Because of its importance both to the DSA mechanism itself and to the particle composition of SEP events, we address in some detail the injection problem. Although steady-state models can improve our understanding of the diffusive shock acceleration mechanism, SEP events are inherently time-dependent. We therefore review the time-dependent theory of DSA in some detail, including estimating possible maximum particle energies and particle escape from the shock complex. We also discuss generalizations of the diffusive transport approach to modeling particle acceleration by considering a more general description based on the focused transport equation. The escape of accelerated particles from the shock requires that their subsequent transport in the interplanetary medium be modeled and the consequence of interplanetary transport can lead to the complex spectra and compositional profiles that are observed frequently. The different approaches to particle transport in the inner heliosphere are reviewed. The various numerical models that have been developed to solve the gradual SEP problem are reviewed. Explicit comparisons of modeling results with observations of large SEP events are discussed. A summary of current progress and the outlook on the SEP problem and remaining open questions conclude the review.

Energetic electron acceleration observed by MMS in the vicinity of an X-line crossing

DOE PAGES

Jaynes, A. N.; Turner, D. L.; Wilder, F. D.; ...

2016-07-25

During the first months of observations, the Magnetospheric Multiscale Fly's Eye Energetic Particle Spectrometer instrument has observed several instances of electron acceleration up to >100 keV while in the vicinity of the dayside reconnection region. While particle acceleration associated with magnetic reconnection has been seen to occur up to these energies in the tail region, it had not yet been reported at the magnetopause. This study reports on observations of electron acceleration up to hundreds of keV that were recorded on 19 September 2015 around 1000 UT, in the midst of an X-line crossing. In the region surrounding the X-line,more » whistler-mode and broadband electrostatic waves were observed simultaneously with the appearance of highly energetic electrons which exhibited significant energization in the perpendicular direction. The mechanisms by which particles may be accelerated via reconnection-related processes are intrinsic to understanding particle dynamics among a wide range of spatial scales and plasma environments.« less

Energetic Electron Acceleration Observed by MMS in the Vicinity of an X-Line Crossing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jaynes, A. N.; Turner, D. L.; Wilder, F. D.; Osmane, A.; Baker, D. N.; Blake, J. B.; Fennell, J. F.; Cohen, I. J.; Mauk, B. H.; Reeves, G. D.;

Modeling of Particle Acceleration at Multiple Shocks Via Diffusive Shock Acceleration: Preliminary Results

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Parker, Linda Neergaard; Zank, Gary P.

2013-01-01

We present preliminary results from a model that diffusively accelerates particles at multiple shocks. Our basic approach is related to box models (Protheroe and Stanev, 1998; Moraal and Axford, 1983; Ball and Kirk, 1992; Drury et al., 1999) in which a distribution of particles is diffusively accelerated inside the box while simultaneously experiencing decompression through adiabatic expansion and losses from the convection and diffusion of particles outside the box (Melrose and Pope, 1993; Zank et al., 2000). We adiabatically decompress the accelerated particle distribution between each shock by either the method explored in Melrose and Pope (1993) and Pope and Melrose (1994) or by the approach set forth in Zank et al. (2000) where we solve the transport equation by a method analogous to operator splitting. The second method incorporates the additional loss terms of convection and diffusion and allows for the use of a variable time between shocks. We use a maximum injection energy (Emax) appropriate for quasi-parallel and quasi-perpendicular shocks (Zank et al., 2000, 2006; Dosch and Shalchi, 2010) and provide a preliminary application of the diffusive acceleration of particles by multiple shocks with frequencies appropriate for solar maximum (i.e., a non-Markovian process).

Ion velocity distributions in dipolarization events: Distributions in the central plasma sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Birn, J.; Runov, A.; Zhou, X.-Z.

2017-08-01

Using combined MHD/test particle simulations, we further explore characteristic ion velocity distributions in the central plasma sheet (CPS) in relation to dipolarization events. Distributions in the CPS within the dipolarized flux bundle (DFB) that follows the passage of a dipolarization front typically show two opposing low subthermal-energy beams with a ring-like component perpendicular to the magnetic field at about twice the thermal energy. The dominance of the perpendicular anisotropy and a field-aligned peak at lower energy agree qualitatively with ion distribution functions derived from "Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms" observations. At locations somewhat off the equatorial plane the field-aligned peaks are shifted by a field-aligned component of the bulk flow, such that one peak becomes centered near zero net velocity, which makes it less likely to be observed. The origins of the field-aligned peaks are low-energy lobe (or near plasma sheet boundary layer) regions, while the ring distribution originates mostly from thermal plasma sheet particles on extended field lines. The acceleration mechanisms are also quite different: the beam ions are accelerated first by the E × B drift motion of the DFB and then by a slingshot effect of the earthward convecting DFB (akin to first-order Fermi, type B, acceleration), which causes an increase in field-aligned speed. In contrast, the ring particles are accelerated by successive, betatron-like acceleration after entering the high electric field region of an earthward propagating DFB.

Particle Acceleration, Magnetic Field Generation, and Emission in Relativistic Pair Jets

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nishikawa, K.-I.; Ramirez-Ruiz, E.; Hardee, P.; Hededal, C.; Mizuno, Y.

2005-01-01

Shock acceleration is a ubiquitous phenomenon in astrophysical plasmas. Plasma waves and their associated instabilities (e.g., the Buneman instability, two-streaming instability, and the Weibel instability) created by relativistic pair jets are responsible for particle (electron, positron, and ion) acceleration. Using a 3-D relativistic electromagnetic particle (REMP) code, we have investigated particle acceleration associated with a relativistic jet propagating through an ambient plasma with and without initial magnetic fields. The growth rates of the Weibel instability depends on the distribution of pair jets. Simulations show that the Weibel instability created in the collisionless shock accelerates particles perpendicular and parallel to the jet propagation direction. The simulation results show that this instability is responsible for generating and amplifying highly nonuniform, small-scale magnetic fields, which contribute to the electron's transverse deflection behind the jet head. The "jitter" radiation from deflected electrons has different properties than synchrotron radiation which is calculated in a uniform magnetic field. This jitter radiation may be important to understanding the complex time evolution and/or spectral structure in gamma-ray bursts, relativistic jets, and supernova remnants.

Particle Acceleration, Magnetic Field Generation, and Emission in Relativistic Pair Jets

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nishikawa, K. I.; Hardee, P.; Hededal, C. B.; Richardson, G.; Sol, H.; Preece, R.; Fishman, G. J.

2004-01-01

Shock acceleration is a ubiquitous phenomenon in astrophysical plasmas. Plasma waves and their associated instabilities (e.g., Buneman, Weibel and other two-stream instabilities) created in collisionless shocks are responsible for particle (electron, positron, and ion) acceleration. Using a 3-D relativistic electromagnetic particle (REMP) code, we have investigated particle acceleration associated with a relativistic jet front propagating into an ambient plasma. We find that the growth times depend on the Lorenz factors of jets. The jets with larger Lorenz factors grow slower. Simulations show that the Weibel instability created in the collisionless shock front accelerates jet and ambient particles both perpendicular and parallel to the jet propagation direction. The small scale magnetic field structure generated by the Weibel instability is appropriate to the generation of "jitter" radiation from deflected electrons (positrons) as opposed to synchrotron radiation. The jitter radiation resulting from small scale magnetic field structures may be important for understanding the complex time structure and spectral evolution observed in gamma-ray bursts or other astrophysical sources containing relativistic jets and relativistic collisionless shocks.

Modeling of Particle Acceleration at Multiple Shocks Via Diffusive Shock Acceleration: Preliminary Results

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parker, L. N.; Zank, G. P.

2013-12-01

Successful forecasting of energetic particle events in space weather models require algorithms for correctly predicting the spectrum of ions accelerated from a background population of charged particles. We present preliminary results from a model that diffusively accelerates particles at multiple shocks. Our basic approach is related to box models (Protheroe and Stanev, 1998; Moraal and Axford, 1983; Ball and Kirk, 1992; Drury et al., 1999) in which a distribution of particles is diffusively accelerated inside the box while simultaneously experiencing decompression through adiabatic expansion and losses from the convection and diffusion of particles outside the box (Melrose and Pope, 1993; Zank et al., 2000). We adiabatically decompress the accelerated particle distribution between each shock by either the method explored in Melrose and Pope (1993) and Pope and Melrose (1994) or by the approach set forth in Zank et al. (2000) where we solve the transport equation by a method analogous to operator splitting. The second method incorporates the additional loss terms of convection and diffusion and allows for the use of a variable time between shocks. We use a maximum injection energy (Emax) appropriate for quasi-parallel and quasi-perpendicular shocks (Zank et al., 2000, 2006; Dosch and Shalchi, 2010) and provide a preliminary application of the diffusive acceleration of particles by multiple shocks with frequencies appropriate for solar maximum (i.e., a non-Markovian process).

Reversible electron heating vs. wave-particle interactions in quasi-perpendicular shocks

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Veltri, P.; Mangeney, A.; Scudder, J. D.

1992-01-01

The energy necessary to explain the electron heating in quasi-perpendicular collisionless shocks can be derived either from the electron acceleration in the d.c. cross shock electric potential, or by the interactions between the electrons and the waves existing in the shock. A Monte Carlo simulation has been performed to study the electron distribution function evolution through the shock structure, with and without particle diffusion on waves. This simulation has allowed us to clarify the relative importance of the two possible energy sources; in particular it has been shown that the electron parallel temperature is determined by the d.c. electromagnetic field and not by any wave-particle-induced heating. Wave particle interactions are effective in smoothing out the large gradients in phase space produced by the 'reversible' motion of the electrons, thus producing a 'cooling' of the electrons.

Large-scale particle acceleration by magnetic reconnection during solar flares

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, X.; Guo, F.; Li, H.; Li, G.; Li, S.

2017-12-01

Magnetic reconnection that triggers explosive magnetic energy release has been widely invoked to explain the large-scale particle acceleration during solar flares. While great efforts have been spent in studying the acceleration mechanism in small-scale kinetic simulations, there have been rare studies that make predictions to acceleration in the large scale comparable to the flare reconnection region. Here we present a new arrangement to study this problem. We solve the large-scale energetic-particle transport equation in the fluid velocity and magnetic fields from high-Lundquist-number MHD simulations of reconnection layers. This approach is based on examining the dominant acceleration mechanism and pitch-angle scattering in kinetic simulations. Due to the fluid compression in reconnection outflows and merging magnetic islands, particles are accelerated to high energies and develop power-law energy distributions. We find that the acceleration efficiency and power-law index depend critically on upstream plasma beta and the magnitude of guide field (the magnetic field component perpendicular to the reconnecting component) as they influence the compressibility of the reconnection layer. We also find that the accelerated high-energy particles are mostly concentrated in large magnetic islands, making the islands a source of energetic particles and high-energy emissions. These findings may provide explanations for acceleration process in large-scale magnetic reconnection during solar flares and the temporal and spatial emission properties observed in different flare events.

Particle Acceleration and Radiation associated with Magnetic Field Generation from Relativistic Collisionless Shocks

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nishikawa, K.; Hardee, P. E.; Richardson, G. A.; Preece, R. D.; Sol, H.; Fishman, G. J.

2003-01-01

Shock acceleration is an ubiquitous phenomenon in astrophysical plasmas. Plasma waves and their associated instabilities (e.g., the Buneman instability, two-streaming instability, and the Weibel instability) created in the shocks are responsible for particle (electron, positron, and ion) acceleration. Using a 3-D relativistic electromagnetic particle (REMP) code, we have investigated particle acceleration associated with a relativistic jet front propagating through an ambient plasma with and without initial magnetic fields. We find only small differences in the results between no ambient and weak ambient magnetic fields. Simulations show that the Weibel instability created in the collisionless shock front accelerates particles perpendicular and parallel to the jet propagation direction. While some Fermi acceleration may occur at the jet front, the majority of electron acceleration takes place behind the jet front and cannot be characterized as Fermi acceleration. The simulation results show that this instability is responsible for generating and amplifying highly nonuniform, small-scale magnetic fields, which contribute to the electron s transverse deflection behind the jet head. The "jitter" radiation from deflected electrons has different properties than synchrotron radiation which is calculated in a uniform magnetic field. This jitter radiation may be important to understanding the complex time evolution and/or spectral structure in gamma-ray bursts, relativistic jets, and supernova remnants.

Semi-transparent shock model for major solar energetic particle events

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kocharov, Leon

2014-05-01

Production of solar energetic particles in major events typically comprises two stages: (i) the initial stage associated with shocks and magnetic reconnection in solar corona and (ii) the main stage associated with the CME-bow shock in solar wind. The coronal emission of energetic particles from behind the interplanetary shock wave continues for about one hour , being not shielded by the CME shock in solar wind and having the prompt access to particle detectors at 1 AU. On occasion of two well-separated solar eruptions from the same active region, the newly accelerated solar particles may be emitted well behind the previous CME, and those solar particles may penetrate through the interplanetary shock of the previous CME to arrive at the Earth's orbit without significant delay, which is another evidence that high-energy particles from the solar corona can penetrate through travelling interplanetary shocks. Diffusive shock acceleration is fast only if the particle mean free path near the shock is small. The small mean free path (high turbulence level), however, implies that energetic particles from coronal sources could not penetrate through the interplanetary shock, and even the particles accelerated by the interplanetary shock itself could not escape to its far upstream region. If so, they could not be promptly observed at 1 AU. However, high-energy particles in major solar events are detected well before the shock arrival at 1 AU. The theoretical difficulty can be obviated in the framework of the proposed model of a "semitransparent" shock. As in situ plasma observations indicate, the turbulence energy levels in neighboring magnetic tubes of solar wind may differ from each other by more than one order of magnitude. Such an intermittence of coronal and solar wind plasmas can affect energetic particle acceleration in coronal and interplanetary shocks. The new modeling incorporates particle acceleration in the shock front and the particle transport both in parallel to the magnetic field and in perpendicular to the magnetic field directions. The modeling suggests that the perpendicular diffusion is always essential for the energetic particle production, because particles can be accelerated in tubes with a high turbulence level and then escape to far upstream of the shock via neighboring, less turbulent tubes. We have modeled both the transmission of high-energy (>50 MeV) protons from coronal sources through the interplanetary shock wave and the interplanetary shock acceleration of ~1-10 MeV protons with subsequent transport to far upstream of the shock. The modeling results imply that presence of the fast transport channels penetrating the shock and the cross-field transport of accelerated particles to those channels may play a key role in the high-energy particle emission from distant shocks and can explain the prompt onset of major solar energetic particle events observed near the Earth's orbit.

Perpendicular dynamics of runaway electrons in tokamak plasmas

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fernandez-Gomez, I.; Martin-Solis, J. R.; Sanchez, R.

2012-10-15

In this paper, it will be shown that the runaway phenomenon in tokamak plasmas cannot be reduced to a one-dimensional problem, based on the competence between electric field acceleration and collisional friction losses in the parallel direction. A Langevin approach, including collisional diffusion in velocity space, will be used to analyze the two-dimensional runaway electron dynamics. An investigation of the runaway probability in velocity space will yield a criterion for runaway, which will be shown to be consistent with the results provided by the more simple test particle description of the runaway dynamics [Fuchs et al., Phys. Fluids 29, 2931more » (1986)]. Electron perpendicular collisional scattering will be found to play an important role, relaxing the conditions for runaway. Moreover, electron pitch angle scattering perpendicularly broadens the runaway distribution function, increasing the electron population in the runaway plateau region in comparison with what it should be expected from electron acceleration in the parallel direction only. The perpendicular broadening of the runaway distribution function, its dependence on the plasma parameters, and the resulting enhancement of the runaway production rate will be discussed.« less

Modelling Solar Energetic Particle Events Using the iPATH Model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, G.; Hu, J.; Ao, X.; Zank, G. P.; Verkhoglyadova, O. P.

2016-12-01

Solar Energetic Particles (SEPs) is the No. 1 space weather hazard. Understanding how particles are energized and propagated in these events is of practical concerns to the manned space missions. In particular, both the radial evolution and the longitudinal extent of a gradual solarenergetic particle (SEP) event are central topics for space weather forecasting. In this talk, I discuss the improved Particle Acceleration and Transport in the Heliosphere (iPATH) model. The iPATH model consists of three parts: (1) an updated ZEUS3D V3.5 MHD module that models thebackground solar wind and the initiation of a CME in a 2D domain; (2) an updated shock acceleration module where we investigate particle acceleration at different longitudinal locations along the surface of a CME-driven shock. Accelerated particle spectrum are obtained at the shock under the diffusive shock acceleration mechanism. Shock parameters and particle distributions are recorded and used as inputs for the later part. (3) an updated transport module where we follow the transport of accelerated particles from the shock to any destinations (Earth and/or Mars, e.g.) using a Monte-Carlo method. Both pitch angle scattering due to MHD turbulence and perpendicular diffusion across magnetic field are included. Our iPATH model is therefore intrinsically 2D in nature. The model is capable of generating time intensity profiles and instantaneous particle spectra atvarious locations and can greatly improve our current space weather forecasting capability.

Acceleration in Perpendicular Relativistic Shocks for Plasmas Consisting of Leptons and Hadrons

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stockem, A.; Fiúza, F.; Fonseca, R. A.; Silva, L. O.

2012-08-01

We investigate the acceleration of light particles in perpendicular shocks for plasmas consisting of a mixture of leptonic and hadronic particles. Starting from the full set of conservation equations for the mixed plasma constituents, we generalize the magnetohydrodynamical jump conditions for a multi-component plasma, including information about the specific adiabatic constants for the different species. The impact of deviations from the standard model of an ideal gas is compared in theory and particle-in-cell simulations, showing that the standard MHD model is a good approximation. The simulations of shocks in electron-positron-ion plasmas are for the first time multi-dimensional, transverse effects are small in this configuration, and one-dimensional (1D) simulations are a good representation if the initial magnetization is chosen high. 1D runs with a mass ratio of 1836 are performed, which identify the Larmor frequency ω ci as the dominant frequency that determines the shock physics in mixed component plasmas. The maximum energy in the non-thermal tail of the particle spectra evolves in time according to a power law vpropt α with α in the range 1/3 < α < 1, depending on the initial parameters. A connection is made with transport theoretical models by Drury and Gargaté & Spitkovsky, which predict an acceleration time vpropγ and the theory for small wavelength scattering by Kirk & Reville, which predicts a behavior rather as vpropγ2. Furthermore, we compare different magnetic field orientations with B 0 inside and out of the plane, observing qualitatively different particle spectra than in pure electron-ion shocks.

Prolonged electron accelerations at a high-Mach-number, quasi-perpendicular shock

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Matsumoto, Y.; Amano, T.; Kato, T.; Hoshino, M.

2016-12-01

Elucidating acceleration mechanisms of charged particles have been of great interests in laboratory, space, and astrophysical plasmas. Among other mechanisms, a collision-less shock is thought as an efficient particle accelerator. The idea has been strengthened by radio, X-ray, and gamma-ray observations of astrophysical objects such as supernova remnant shocks, where it has been indicated that protons and electrons are efficiently accelerated to TeV energies at such very strong shock waves. Efficient electron accelerations at high-Mach-number shocks was also suggested recently by in-situ measurements at the Saturn's bow shock. Motivated by these circumstances, laboratory experiments using high-power laser facilities emerge to provide a new platform to tackle these problems.Numerical simulations have revealed that electrons can be efficiently heated and accelerated via so-called the shock surfing acceleration mechanism in which electron-scale Buneman instability played key roles. Recently, Matsumoto et al. [2015] proposed a stochastic acceleration mechanism by turbulent reconnection in the shock transition region through excitation of the ion Weibel instability. In order to deal with the two different acceleration mechanisms in a self-consistent system, we examined 3D PIC simulations of a quasi-perpendicular, high-Mach-number shock. We successfully followed a long term evolution in which two different acceleration mechanisms coexist in the 3D shock structure. The Buneman instability is strongly excited ahead of the shock front in the same manner as have been found in 2D simulations. The surfing acceleration is found to be very effective in the present 3D system. In the transition region, the ion-beam Weibel instability generated strong magnetic field turbulence in 3D space. Energetic electrons, which initially experienced the surfing acceleration, undergo pitch-angle diffusion by interacting with the turbulent fields and thus stay in the upstream regions. The ion Weibel turbulence is essentially the key to prolonged acceleration processes which can produce relativistic particles with energies more than 1000 times the initial kinetic energy. We present how such relativistic electrons are produced during traveling in the 3D shock structure.

Interstellar Pickup Ion Acceleration in the Turbulent Magnetic Field at the Solar Wind Termination Shock Using a Focused Transport Approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ye, Junye; le Roux, Jakobus A.; Arthur, Aaron D.

2016-08-01

We study the physics of locally born interstellar pickup proton acceleration at the nearly perpendicular solar wind termination shock (SWTS) in the presence of a random magnetic field spiral angle using a focused transport model. Guided by Voyager 2 observations, the spiral angle is modeled with a q-Gaussian distribution. The spiral angle fluctuations, which are used to generate the perpendicular diffusion of pickup protons across the SWTS, play a key role in enabling efficient injection and rapid diffusive shock acceleration (DSA) when these particles follow field lines. Our simulations suggest that variation of both the shape (q-value) and the standard deviation (σ-value) of the q-Gaussian distribution significantly affect the injection speed, pitch-angle anisotropy, radial distribution, and the efficiency of the DSA of pickup protons at the SWTS. For example, increasing q and especially reducing σ enhances the DSA rate.

Simultaneous Modeling of Gradual SEP Events at the Earth and the Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hu, J.; Li, G.

2017-12-01

Solar Energetic Particles (SEP) event is the number one space hazard for spacecraft instruments and astronauts' safety. Recent studies have shown that both longitudinal and radial extent of SEP events can be very significant. In this work, we use the improved Particle Acceleration and Transport in the Heliosphere (iPATH) model to simulate gradual SEP events that have impacts upon both the Earth and the Mars. We follow the propagation of a 2D CME-driven shock. Particles are accelerated at the shock via the diffusive shock acceleration (DSA) mechanism. Transport of the escaped particles to the Earth and the Mars is then followed using a backward stochastic differential equation method. Perpendicular diffusion is considered in both the DSA and the transport process. Model results such as time intensity profile and energetic particle spectrum at the two locations are compared to understand the spatial extent of an SEP event. Observational data at the Earth and the Mars are also studied to validate the model.

Generation and evolution of anisotropic turbulence and related energy transfer in a multi-species solar wind

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maneva, Yana; Poedts, Stefaan

2017-04-01

The electromagnetic fluctuations in the solar wind represent a zoo of plasma waves with different properties, whose wavelengths range from largest fluid scales to the smallest dissipation scales. By nature the power spectrum of the magnetic fluctuations is anisotropic with different spectral slopes in parallel and perpendicular directions with respect to the background magnetic field. Furthermore, the magnetic field power spectra steepen as one moves from the inertial to the dissipation range and we observe multiple spectral breaks with different slopes in parallel and perpendicular direction at the ion scales and beyond. The turbulent dissipation of magnetic field fluctuations at the sub-ion scales is believed to go into local ion heating and acceleration, so that the spectral breaks are typically associated with particle energization. The gained energy can be in the form of anisotropic heating, formation of non-thermal features in the particle velocity distributions functions, and redistribution of the differential acceleration between the different ion populations. To study the relation between the evolution of the anisotropic turbulent spectra and the particle heating at the ion and sub-ion scales we perform a series of 2.5D hybrid simulations in a collisionless drifting proton-alpha plasma. We neglect the fast electron dynamics and treat the electrons as an isothermal fluid electrons, whereas the protons and a minor population of alpha particles are evolved in a fully kinetic manner. We start with a given wave spectrum and study the evolution of the magnetic field spectral slopes as a function of the parallel and perpendicular wave¬numbers. Simultaneously, we track the particle response and the energy exchange between the parallel and perpendicular scales. We observe anisotropic behavior of the turbulent power spectra with steeper slopes along the dominant energy-containing direction. This means that for parallel and quasi-parallel waves we have steeper spectral slope in parallel direction, whereas for highly oblique waves the dissipation occurs predominantly in perpendicular direction and the spectral slopes are steeper across the background magnetic field. The value of the spectral slopes depends on the angle of propagation, the spectral range, as well as the plasma properties. In general the dissipation is stronger at small scales and the corresponding spectral slopes there are steeper. For parallel and quasi-parallel propagation the prevailing energy cascade remains along the magnetic field, whereas for initially isotropic oblique turbulence the cascade develops mainly in perpendicular direction.

Kinetic structures of quasi-perpendicular shocks in global particle-in-cell simulations

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Peng, Ivy Bo, E-mail: bopeng@kth.se; Markidis, Stefano; Laure, Erwin

2015-09-15

We carried out global Particle-in-Cell simulations of the interaction between the solar wind and a magnetosphere to study the kinetic collisionless physics in super-critical quasi-perpendicular shocks. After an initial simulation transient, a collisionless bow shock forms as a result of the interaction of the solar wind and a planet magnetic dipole. The shock ramp has a thickness of approximately one ion skin depth and is followed by a trailing wave train in the shock downstream. At the downstream edge of the bow shock, whistler waves propagate along the magnetic field lines and the presence of electron cyclotron waves has beenmore » identified. A small part of the solar wind ion population is specularly reflected by the shock while a larger part is deflected and heated by the shock. Solar wind ions and electrons are heated in the perpendicular directions. Ions are accelerated in the perpendicular direction in the trailing wave train region. This work is an initial effort to study the electron and ion kinetic effects developed near the bow shock in a realistic magnetic field configuration.« less

Acceleration and Transport of Solar Energetic Particles in 'Semi-transparent' Shocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kocharov, L. G.

2013-12-01

Production of solar energetic particles in major events typically comprises two stages: (i) an initial stage associated with shocks and magnetic reconnection in solar corona and (ii) the main stage associated with the CME-bow shock in solar wind (e.g., Figure 1 of Kocharov et al., 2012, ApJ, 753, 87). As far as the second stage production is ascribed to interplanetary shocks, the first stage production should be attributed to coronal sources. Coronal emission of energetic particles from behind the interplanetary shock wave continues for about one hour (Figures 4-6 of Kocharov et al, 2010, ApJ, 725, 2262). The coronal particles are not shielded by the CME-bow shock in solar wind and have a prompt access to particle detectors at 1 AU. On non-exceptional occasion of two successive solar eruptions from the same active region, the newly accelerated solar particles may be emitted well behind the previous CME, and those solar particles may penetrate through the interplanetary shock of the previous CME to arrive at the Earth's orbit without significant delay (Al-Sawad et al., 2009, Astron. & Astrophys., 497, L1), which is another evidence that high-energy particles from the solar corona can penetrate through travelling interplanetary shocks. Diffusive shock acceleration is fast only if the particle mean free path in the shock is small. A small mean free path (high turbulence level), however, implies that energetic particles from the solar corona could not penetrate through the interplanetary shock and could not escape to its far upstream region. If so, they could not produce a prompt event at 1 AU. However, solar high-energy particle events are observed very far from the shocks. The theoretical difficulty can be obviated in the framework of the new model of a "semi-transparent" shock. As in situ plasma observations indicate, the turbulence energy levels in neighboring magnetic tubes of solar wind may differ from each other by more than one order of magnitude. Such an intermittence of coronal and solar wind plasmas can affect energetic particle acceleration in coronal and interplanetary shocks. The new modeling incorporates particle acceleration in the shock front and the particle transport both in parallel to the magnetic field and in perpendicular to the magnetic field directions. The modeling suggests that the perpendicular diffusion is always essential for the energetic particle production, because particles can be accelerated in tubes with a high turbulence level and then escape to far upstream of the shock via neighboring, less turbulent tubes. Considered are both the penetration of the high-energy (>50 MeV) solar protons through the interplanetary shock and the interplanetary shock acceleration to lower energies (~1-10 MeV). The modeling results are compared with data of spaceborne particle instruments (SOHO. STEREO) and data of neutron monitors.

Subcritical and supercritical interplanetary shocks - Magnetic field and energetic particle observations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bavassano-Cattaneo, M. B.; Tsurutani, B. T.; Smith, E. J.; Lin, R. P.

1986-01-01

A study of 34 forward interplanetary shocks observed by ISEE 3 during 1978 and 1979 has been conducted. Magnetic field and high-energy particle data have been used, and for each shock the first critical Mach number has been determined. The first surprising result is that the majority of the observed shocks appear to be supercritical, and consistent with their supercritical character, many shocks have a foot and/or an overshoot in the magnetic field structure. Large-amplitude low-frequency waves (period of about 20 s in the spacecraft frame) are commonly observed upstream of all supercritical shocks (except for a few quasi-perpendicular shocks) and also upstream of the few subcritical shocks. Intense particle events are frequently observed at many shocks: spikes at quasi-perpendicular shocks and energetic storm particle events associated with quasi-parallel shocks can be comparably intense. The correlation of the high-energy particle peak flux with various shock parameters is in agreement with the acceleration mechanisms proposed by previous studies.

Dissipation Mechanisms and Particle Acceleration at the Earth's Bow Shock

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Desai, M. I.; Burch, J. L.; Broll, J. M.; Genestreti, K.; Torbert, R. B.; Ergun, R.; Wei, H.; Giles, B. L.; Russell, C. T.; Phan, T.; Chen, L. J.; Lai, H.; Wang, S.; Schwartz, S. J.; Allen, R. C.; Mauk, B.; Gingell, I.

2017-12-01

NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) mission has four spacecraft equipped with identical state-of-the-art instruments that acquire magnetic and electric field, plasma wave, and particle data at unprecedented temporal resolution to study the fundamental physics of magnetic reconnection in the Earth's magnetosphere. During Phase 1a, MMS also encountered and crossed the Earth's bow shock more than 300 times. We use burst data during 2 bow shock crossings to shed new light on key open questions regarding the formation, evolution, and dissipation mechanisms at collisionless shocks. Specifically, we focus on two events that exhibit clear differences in the ion and electron properties, the associated wave activity, and, therefore in the nature of the dissipation. In the case of a quasi-perpendicular, low beta shock crossing, we find that the dissipation processes are most likely associated with field-aligned electron beams that are coincident with high frequency electrostatic waves. On the other hand, the dissipation processes at an oblique, high beta shock crossing are largely governed by the quasi-static electric field and generation of magnetosonic whistler waves that result in perpendicular temperature anisotropy for the electrons. We also discuss the implications of these results for ion heating, reflection, and particle acceleration.

Multispacecraft study of shock-flux rope interaction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blanco-Cano, Xochitl; Burgess, David; Sundberg, Torbjorn; Kajdic, Primoz

2017-04-01

Interplanetary (IP) shocks can be driven in the solar wind by fast coronal mass ejections. These shocks can accelerate particles near the Sun and through the heliosphere, being associated to solar energetic particle (SEP) and energetic storm particle (ESP) events. IP shocks can interact with structures in the solar wind, and with planetary magnetospheres. In this study we show how the properties of an IP shock change when it interacts with a medium scale flux rope (FR) like structure. We use data measurements from CLUSTER, WIND and ACE. These three spacecraft observed the shock-FR interaction at different stages of its evolution. We find that the shock-FR interaction locally changes the shock geometry, affecting ion injection processes, and the upstream and downstream regions. While WIND and ACE observed a quasi-perpendicular shock, CLUSTER crossed a quasi-parallel shock and a foreshock with a variety of ion distributions. The complexity of the ion foreshock can be explained by the dynamics of the shock transitioning from quasi-perpendicular to quasi-parallel, and the geometry of the magnetic field around the flux rope. Interactions such as the one we discuss can occur often along the extended IP shock fronts, and hence their importance towards a better understanding of shock acceleration.

Electro-gravity via geometric chrononfield

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suchard, Eytan H.

2017-05-01

In De Sitter / Anti De Sitter space-time and in other geometries, reference sub-manifolds from which proper time is measured along integral curves, are described as events. We introduce here a foliation with the help of a scalar field. The scalar field need not be unique but from the gradient of the scalar field, an intrinsic Reeb vector of the foliations perpendicular to the gradient vector is calculated. The Reeb vector describes the acceleration of a physical particle that moves along the integral curves that are formed by the gradient of the scalar field. The Reeb vector appears as a component of an anti-symmetric matrix which is a part of a rank-2, 2-Form. The 2-form is extended into a non-degenerate 4-form and into rank-4 matrix of a 2-form, which when multiplied by a velocity of a particle, becomes the acceleration of the particle. The matrix has one U(1) degree of freedom and an additional SU(2) degrees of freedom in two vectors that span the plane perpendicular to the gradient of the scalar field and to the Reeb vector. In total, there are U(1) x SU(2) degrees of freedom. SU(3) degrees of freedom arise from three dimensional foliations but require an additional symmetry to exist in order to have a valid covariant meaning. Matter in the Einstein Grossmann equation is replaced by the action of the acceleration field, i.e. by a geometric action which is not anticipated by the metric alone. This idea leads to a new formalism that replaces the conventional stress-energy-momentum-tensor. The formalism will be mainly developed for classical physics but will also be discussed for quantized physics based on events instead of particles. The result is that a positive charge manifests small attracting gravity and a stronger but small repelling acceleration field that repels even uncharged particles that have a rest mass. Negative charge manifests a repelling anti-gravity but also a stronger acceleration field that attracts even uncharged particles that have rest mass. Preliminary version: http://sciencedomain.org/abstract/9858

Ion pre-acceleration in fully self-consistent particle-in-cell simulations of supercritical perpendicular reforming shocks in multiple ion species plasmas

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rekaa, V. L.; Chapman, S. C.; Dendy, R. O., E-mail: v.l.rekaa@fys.uio.no

2014-08-10

Supernova remnant and heliopause termination shock plasmas may contain significant populations of minority heavy ions, with relative number densities n{sub α}/n{sub i} up to 50%. Preliminary kinetic simulations of collisionless shocks in these environments showed that the reformation cycle and acceleration mechanisms at quasi-perpendicular shocks can depend on the value of n{sub α}/n{sub i} . Shock reformation unfolds on ion spatio-temporal scales, requiring fully kinetic simulations of particle dynamics, together with the self-consistent electric and magnetic fields. This paper presents the first set of particle-in-cell simulations for two ion species, protons (n{sub p} ) and α-particles (n{sub α}), with differingmore » mass and charge-to-mass ratios, that spans the entire range of n{sub α}/n{sub i} from 0% to 100%. The interplay between the differing gyro length scales and timescales of the ion species is crucial to the time-evolving phenomenology of the shocks, the downstream turbulence, and the particle acceleration at different n{sub α}/n{sub i} . We show how the overall energization changes with n{sub α}/n{sub i} , and relate this to the processes individual ions undergo in the shock region and in the downstream turbulence, and to the power spectra of magnetic field fluctuations. The crossover between shocks dominated by the respective ion species happens when n{sub α}/n{sub i} = 25%, and minority ion energization is strongest in this regime. Energization of the majority ion species scales with injection energy. The power spectrum of the downstream turbulence includes peaks at sequential ion cyclotron harmonics, suggestive of ion ring-beam collective instability.« less

Experimental signatures of direct-laser-acceleration-assisted laser wakefield acceleration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shaw, J. L.; Lemos, N.; Marsh, K. A.; Froula, D. H.; Joshi, C.

2018-04-01

The direct laser acceleration (DLA) of electrons in a laser wakefield accelerator (LWFA) operating in the forced or quasi-blowout regimes has been investigated through experiment and simulation. When there is a significant overlap between the trapped electrons and the drive laser in a LWFA cavity, the resulting electrons can gain energy from both the LWFA and the DLA mechanisms. Experimental work investigates the properties of the electron beams produced in a LWFA with ionization injection by dispersing those beams in the direction perpendicular to the laser polarization. These electron beams show certain spectral features that are characteristic of DLA. These characteristic features are reproduced using particle-in-cell simulations, where particle tracking was used to elucidate the roles of LWFA and DLA to the energy gain of the electrons in this experimental regime and to demonstrate that such spectral features are definitive signatures of the presence of DLA in LWFA.

Transmission and Emission of Solar Energetic Particles in Semi-transparent Shocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kocharov, Leon; Laitinen, Timo; Usoskin, Ilya; Vainio, Rami

2014-06-01

While major solar energetic particle (SEP) events are associated with coronal mass ejection (CME)-driven shocks in solar wind, accurate SEP measurements reveal that more than one component of energetic ions exist in the beginning of the events. Solar electromagnetic emissions, including nuclear gamma-rays, suggest that high-energy ions could also be accelerated by coronal shocks, and some of those particles could contribute to SEPs in interplanetary space. However, the CME-driven shock in solar wind is thought to shield any particle source beneath the shock because of the strong scattering required for the diffusive shock acceleration. In this Letter, we consider a shock model that allows energetic particles from the possible behind-shock source to appear in front of the shock simultaneously with SEPs accelerated by the shock itself. We model the energetic particle transport in directions parallel and perpendicular to the magnetic field in a spherical shock expanding through the highly turbulent magnetic sector with an embedded quiet magnetic tube, which makes the shock semi-transparent for energetic particles. The model energy spectra and time profiles of energetic ions escaping far upstream of the shock are similar to the profiles observed during the first hour of some gradual SEP events.

Effective Ion Heating in Guide Field Reconnection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guo, Xuehan; Horiuchi, Ritoku; Usami, Shunsuke; Ono, Yasushi

2017-10-01

The energy conversion mechanism for ion perpendicular thermal energy is investigated by means of two-dimensional, full particle simulations in an open system. It is shown that ions gain kinetic energy due to the plasma potential drop, which is caused by the charge separation in the one pair of separatrix arms. Based on the force balance in the inflow direction, the strength of the normalized charge density can be expressed by electron Alfvén velocity, which is measurable value in the laboratory experiment and/or satellite observation. Meanwhile, we found that the accelerated ions form a ring shape like distribution in f(v1 ,v2) , as a result, the ion perpendicular temperature Ti , perp increases from inflow region. Here, both v1 and v2 are perpendicular to the magnetic field and v2 is parallel to the in-plane. The mixing of particle populations is verified by means of tracing ions and it is shown three typical particle orbits and each orbit has different entry angle to the potential drop. This ring shape like distribution consists three different population due to the difference of the entry angles to the potential drop. This mixing process will thermalize ions and produce entropy without collisions.

Energy Conversion Mechanism for Electron Perpendicular Energy in High Guide-Field Reconnection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guo, Xuehan; Horiuchi, Ritoku; Kaminou, Yasuhiro; Cheng, Frank; Ono, Yasushi

2016-10-01

The energy conversion mechanism for electron perpendicular energy, both the thermal and the kinetic energy, is investigated by means of two-dimensional, full-particle simulations in an open system. It is shown that electron perpendicular heating is mainly due to the breaking of magnetic moment conservation in separatrix region because the charge separation generates intense variation of electric field within the electron Larmor radius. Meanwhile, electron perpendicular acceleration takes place manly due to the polarization drift term as well as the curvature drift term of E . u⊥ in the downstream near the X-point. The enhanced electric field due to the charge separation there results in a significant effect of the polarization drift term on the dissipation of magnetic energy within the ion inertia length in the downstream. Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Fellows 15J03758.

Energetic particle composition variations during the March 1991 events measured with the Ulysses EPAC instrument

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Krupp, N.; Keppler, E.; Fraenz, M.; Korth, A.; Witte, M.; Moussas, X.; Blake, J. B.; Naidu, K.; Quenby, J. J.; Woch, J.

1992-01-01

Energetic particle measurements are reported which were obtained with the EPAC instrument on board the Ulysses spacecraft during March 1991 when a series of important flares occurred at the sun. The time interval March 22 through March 29 is studied in three periods with different ion compositions. At a quasi-perpendicular shock on March 23, shock-drift acceleration of protons, helium and electrons was observed. Thirteen hours after this shock the energetic ion composition changed dramatically by almost two orders of magnitude, signaling the arrival of a coronal mass ejection or driver gas. This driver gas was still present at the spacecraft when a second quasi-perpendicular shock passed the spacecraft. The ratio Fe/O increased from 0.6 to 1.0 indicative of a connection to solar particles for about six hours after the second shock. The second shock did not accelerate ions as well and electrons not at all. Six hours after this shock the same oxygen and ion composition was observed as before, indicating that the second shock did not alter the energetic ion composition. A third ion composition was observed before the driver gas disappeared which was significantly different from those observed before the first and between the two shocks.

A critical shock mach number for particle acceleration in the absence of pre-existing cosmic rays: M=√5

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Vink, Jacco; Yamazaki, Ryo, E-mail: j.vink@uva.nl

2014-01-10

It is shown that, under some generic assumptions, shocks cannot accelerate particles unless the overall shock Mach number exceeds a critical value M>√5. The reason is that for M≤√5 the work done to compress the flow in a particle precursor requires more enthalpy flux than the system can sustain. This lower limit applies to situations without significant magnetic field pressure. In case that the magnetic field pressure dominates the pressure in the unshocked medium, i.e., for low plasma beta, the resistivity of the magnetic field makes it even more difficult to fulfill the energetic requirements for the formation of shockmore » with an accelerated particle precursor and associated compression of the upstream plasma. We illustrate the effects of magnetic fields for the extreme situation of a purely perpendicular magnetic field configuration with plasma beta β = 0, which gives a minimum Mach number of M = 5/2. The situation becomes more complex, if we incorporate the effects of pre-existing cosmic rays, indicating that the additional degree of freedom allows for less strict Mach number limits on acceleration. We discuss the implications of this result for low Mach number shock acceleration as found in solar system shocks, and shocks in clusters of galaxies.« less

MMS Observation of Inverse Energy Dispersion in Shock Drift Acceleration Ions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, S. H.; Sibeck, D. G.; Hwang, K. J.; Wang, Y.; Silveira, M. D.; Mauk, B.; Cohen, I. J.; Chu, C. S.; Mason, G. M.; Gold, R. E.; Burch, J. L.; Giles, B. L.; Torbert, R. B.; Russell, C. T.; Wei, H.

2016-12-01

The Energetic Particle Detector (EPD) on the Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) spacecraft observed bursts of energetic ions (50 keV-1000 keV) both in the foreshock and in the magnetosheath near the bow shock on December 6, 2015. Three species (protons, helium, and oxygen) exhibit inverse energy dispersions. Angular distributions for all three species indicate acceleration at the perpendicular bow shock. Acceleration that energizes the seed solar population by a factor of 2 and 4 is required for the protons and helium ions, respectively. The energy of the ions increases with θBn (the angle between the IMF and the local shock normal) since the induced electric field that energizes the charged particles increases as θBn increases towards 90°. We compare events upstream and downstream from the bow shock. We compare the MMS observations with those of the solar wind seed populations by the Ultra Low Energy Isotope Spectrometer (ULEIS) instrument on the Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE) mission and by the WIND 3-D Plamsa and Energetic Particle Experiment.

Stochastic particle acceleration at shocks in the presence of braided magnetic fields.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kirk, J. G.; Duffy, P.; Gallant, Y. A.

1996-10-01

The theory of diffusive acceleration of energetic particles at shock fronts assumes charged particles undergo spatial diffusion in a uniform magnetic field. If, however, the magnetic field is not uniform, but has a stochastic or braided structure, the transport of charged particles across the average direction of the field is more complicated. Assuming quasi-linear behaviour of the field lines, the particles undergo sub-diffusion on short time scales. We derive the propagator for such motion, which differs from the Gaussian form relevant for diffusion, and apply it to a configuration with a plane shock front whose normal is perpendicular to the average field direction. Expressions are given for the acceleration time as a function of the diffusion coefficient of the wandering magnetic field lines and the spatial diffusion coefficient of the charged particles parallel to the local field. In addition we calculate the spatial dependence of the particle density in both the upstream and downstream plasmas. In contrast to the diffusive case, the density of particles at the shock front is lower than it is far downstream. This is a consequence of the partial trapping of particles by structures in the magnetic field. As a result, the spectrum of accelerated particles is a power-law in momentum which is steeper than in the diffusive case. For a phase-space density f{prop.to}p^-s^, we find s=s_diff_[1+1/(2ρ_c_)], where ρ_c_ is the compression ratio of the shock front and s_diff_ is the standard result of diffusive acceleration: s_diff_=3ρ_c_/(ρ_c_-1). A strong shock in a monatomic ideal gas yields a spectrum of s=4.5. In the case of electrons, this corresponds to a radio synchrotron spectral index of α=0.75.

Multispacecraft observations of the east-west asymmetry of solar energetic storm particle events

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sarris, E. T.; Krimigis, S. M.

1985-01-01

Energetic proton observations have been obtained by instruments aboard the IMP-7 and -8 spacecraft and Voyager-1 and -2 deep space probes, in order to study the generation of solar flare Energetic Storm Particle Events (ESP) events at widely separated locations on the same shock front which are presumably characterized, on average, by different IMF shock front configurations for solar flare sites. Energetic proton observations indicate that substantial differences in the ESP proton intensity enhancements are detected at these energies for locations on the shock front with wide heliolongitude separations. The present results indicate that acceleration of ESP protons to more than 500 keV takes place at the quasi-perpendicular shock front domain, consistent with the 'shock drift' acceleration mechanism.

Role of Magnetosonic Solitons in Perpendicular Collisionless Shock Reformation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gueroult, Renaud; Ohsawa, Yukiharu; Fisch, Nathaniel J.

2017-03-01

The nature of the magnetic structure arising from ion specular reflection in shock compression studies is examined by means of 1D particle-in-cell simulations. Propagation speed, field profiles, and supporting currents for this magnetic structure are shown to be consistent with a magnetosonic soliton. Coincidentally, this structure and its evolution are typical of foot structures observed in perpendicular shock reformation. To reconcile these two observations, we propose, for the first time, that shock reformation can be explained as the result of the formation, growth, and subsequent transition to a supercritical shock of a magnetosonic soliton. This argument is further supported by the remarkable agreement found between the period of the soliton evolution cycle and classical reformation results. This new result suggests that the unique properties of solitons can be used to shed new light on the long-standing issue of shock nonstationarity and its role on particle acceleration.

Simple Analytical Forms of the Perpendicular Diffusion Coefficient for Two-component Turbulence. III. Damping Model of Dynamical Turbulence

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gammon, M.; Shalchi, A., E-mail: andreasm4@yahoo.com

2017-10-01

In several astrophysical applications one needs analytical forms of cosmic-ray diffusion parameters. Some examples are studies of diffusive shock acceleration and solar modulation. In the current article we explore perpendicular diffusion based on the unified nonlinear transport theory. While we focused on magnetostatic turbulence in Paper I, we included the effect of dynamical turbulence in Paper II of the series. In the latter paper we assumed that the temporal correlation time does not depend on the wavenumber. More realistic models have been proposed in the past, such as the so-called damping model of dynamical turbulence. In the present paper wemore » derive analytical forms for the perpendicular diffusion coefficient of energetic particles in two-component turbulence for this type of time-dependent turbulence. We present new formulas for the perpendicular diffusion coefficient and we derive a condition for which the magnetostatic result is recovered.« less

Dissipation Mechanisms and Particle Acceleration at the Earth's Bow Shock

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Desai, M. I.; Burch, J. L.; Fuselier, S. A.; Genestreti, K. J.; Torbert, R. B.; Ergun, R.; Russell, C.; Wei, H.; Phan, T.; Giles, B. L.; Chen, L. J.; Mauk, B.

2016-12-01

Collisionless shocks are a major producer of suprathermal and energetic particles throughout space and astrophysical plasma environments. Theoretical studies combined with in-situ observations during the space age have significantly advanced our understanding of how such shocks are formed, the manner in which they evolve and dissipate their energy, and the physical mechanisms by which they heat the local plasma and accelerate the energetic particles. Launched in March 2015, NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) mission has four spacecraft separated between 10-40 km and equipped with identical state-of-the-art instruments that acquire magnetic and electric field, plasma wave, and particle data at unprecedented temporal resolution to study the fundamental physics of magnetic reconnection in the Earth's magnetosphere. Serendipitously, during Phase 1a, the MMS mission also encountered and crossed the Earth's bow shock more than 300 times. In this paper, we combine and analyze the highest available time resolution MMS burst data during 140 bow shock crossings from October 2015 through December 31, 2015 to shed new light on key open questions regarding the formation, evolution, dissipation, and particle injection and energization at collisionless shocks. In particular, we compare and contrast the differences in shock dissipation and particle acceleration mechanisms at quasi-parallel and quasi-perpendicular shocks.

Langmuir waveforms at interplanetary shocks: STEREO statistical analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Briand, C.

2016-12-01

Wave-particle interactions and particle acceleration are the two main processes allowing energy dissipation at non collisional shocks. Ion acceleration has been deeply studied for many years, also for their central role in the shock front reformation. Electron dynamics is also important in the shock dynamics through the instabilities they can generate which may impact the ion dynamics.Particle measurements can be efficiently completed by wave measurements to determine the characteristics of the electron beams and study the turbulence of the medium. Electric waveforms obtained from the S/WAVES instrument of the STEREO mission between 2007 to 2014 are analyzed. Thus, clear signature of Langmuir waves are observed on 41 interplanetary shocks. These data enable a statistical analysis and to deduce some characteristics of the electron dynamics on different shocks sources (SIR or ICME) and types (quasi-perpendicular or quasi-parallel). The conversion process between electrostatic to electromagnetic waves has also been tested in several cases.

Heating and acceleration of escaping planetary ions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nilsson, Hans

2010-05-01

The magnetic field of the Earth acts like a shield against the solar wind, leading to a magnetopause position many planetary radii away from the planet, in contrast to the situation at non- or weakly magnetized planets such as Mars and Venus. Despite this there is significant ion outflow due to solar wind interaction from the cusp and polar cap regions of the Earth's ionosphere. Effective interaction regions form, in particular in the ionospheric projection of the cusp, where ionospheric plasma flows up along the field-lines in response to magnetospheric energy input. Strong wave-particle interaction at altitudes above the ionosphere further accelerates the particles so that gravity is overcome. For the particles to enter a direct escape path they must be accelerated along open magnetic field lines so that they cross the magnetopause or reach a distance beyond the region of return flow in the tail. This return flow may also be either lost to space or returned to the atmosphere. Throughout this transport chain the heating and acceleration experienced by the particles will have an influence on the final fate of the particles. We will present quantitative estimates of centrifugal acceleration and perpendicular heating along the escape path from the cusp, through the high altitude polar cap/mantle, based on Cluster spacecraft data. We will open up for a discussion on the benefits of a ponderomotive force description of the acceleration affecting the ion circulation and escape. Finally we will compare with the situation at the unmagnetized planets Mars and Venus and discuss to what extent a magnetic field protects an atmosphere from loss through solar wind interaction.

On the Acceleration and Anisotropy of Ions Within Magnetotail Dipolarizing Flux Bundles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Xu-Zhi; Runov, Andrei; Angelopoulos, Vassilis; Artemyev, Anton V.; Birn, Joachim

2018-01-01

Dipolarizing flux bundles (DFBs), earthward propagating structures with enhanced northward magnetic field Bz, are usually believed to carry a distinctly different plasma population from that in the ambient magnetotail plasma sheet. The ion distribution functions within the DFB, however, have been recently found to be largely controlled by the ion adiabaticity parameter κ in the ambient plasma sheet outside the DFB. According to these observations, the ambient κ values of 2-3 usually correspond to a strong perpendicular anisotropy of suprathermal ions within the DFB, whereas for lower κ values the DFB ions become more isotropic. Here we utilize a simple, test particle model to explore the nature of the anisotropy and its dependence on the ambient κ values. We find that the anisotropy originates from successive ion reflections and reentries to the DFB, during which the ions are consecutively accelerated in the perpendicular direction by the DFB-associated electric field. This consecutive acceleration may be interrupted, however, when magnetic field lines are highly curved in the ambient plasma sheet. In this case, the ion trajectories become stochastic outside the DFB, which makes the reflected ions less likely to return to the DFB for another cycle of acceleration; as a consequence, the perpendicular ion anisotropy does not appear. Given that the DFB ions are a free energy source for instabilities when they are injected toward Earth, our simple model (that reproduces most observational features on the anisotropic DFB ion distributions) may shed new lights on the coupling process between magnetotail and inner magnetosphere.

Particle acceleration at shocks with surface ripples

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Decker, R. B.

1990-01-01

The present treatment of superthermal-ion acceleration on the surface of a fast-mode hydromagnetic shock gives attention to (1) small-amplitude surface ripples characterized by width L and amplitude A that are large relative to the energetic-ion gyroradius, and (2) shocks which are on average quasi-perpendicular. An investigation is made of the effects of the confinement, evolving geometry, and finite shock curvature associated with the ripple, by integrating along the orbits of the proton test particles. As an upstream magnetic field line convects through the surface ripple, it intersects the shock at two points, thereby forming a temporary magnetic trap. Flux-line profiles and angular distributions in a given ripple differ substantially, depending on the path it takes through the ripple and its distance from the shock.

Multispacecraft study of shock-flux rope interaction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blanco-Cano, X.; Burgess, D.; Sundberg, T.; Kajdic, P.

2016-12-01

Interplanetary (IP) shocks can be driven in the solar wind by fast coronal mass ejections. These shocks play an active role in particle acceleration near the Sun and through the heliosphere, being associated to solar energetic particle (SEP) and energetic storm particle (ESP) events. IP shocks can interact with structures in the solar wind, and with planetary magnetospheres. In this work we study how the properties of an IP shock change when it interacts with a medium scale flux rope (FR). We use measurements from CLUSTER, WIND and ACE. These three spacecraft observed the shock-FR interaction at different stages of its evolution. We find that the shock-FR interaction locally changes the shock geometry, affecting ion injection processes, and the upstream and downstream regions. While WIND and ACE observed a quasi-perpendicular shock, CLUSTER crossed a quasi-parallel shock and a foreshock with a variety of ion distributions. The complexity of the ion foreshock can be explained by the dynamics of the shock transitioning from quasi-perpendicular to quasi-parallel, and the geometry of the magnetic field around the flux rope.

KINETIC ALFVEN WAVES EXCITED BY OBLIQUE MAGNETOHYDRODYNAMIC ALFVEN WAVES IN CORONAL HOLES

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zhao, J. S.; Wu, D. J.; Lu, J. Y., E-mail: js_zhao@pmo.ac.cn, E-mail: djwu@pmo.ac.cn, E-mail: lujy@cma.gov.cn

Kinetic Alfven waves (KAWs) are small-scale dispersive AWs that can play an important role in particle heating and acceleration of space and solar plasmas. An excitation mechanism for KAWs created by the coupling between large-scale oblique AWs and small-scale KAWs is presented in this paper. Taking into account both the collisional and Landau damping dissipations, the results show that the net growth rate of the excited KAWs increases with their perpendicular wavenumber k{sub perpendicular} and reaches maximum at {lambda}{sub e} k{sub perpendicular} {approx} 0.3, where {lambda}{sub e} is the electron inertial length. However, for KAWs with shorter perpendicular wavelengths, themore » net growth rate decreases rapidly due to dissipative effects. The evaluation of the threshold amplitude of the AW implies that for KAWs with {lambda}{sub e} k{sub perpendicular} < 0.3, the relative threshold amplitude is well below 10%, which is easy to satisfy. In particular, when applying this mechanism to the case of a solar coronal hole containing a dense plume structure, our results show that KAWs with {lambda}{sub e} k{sub perpendicular} < 0.3 can be not only efficiently excited in the interplume region but also strongly dissipated in the dense plume due to the Landau damping.« less

Nonrelativistic Perpendicular Shocks Modeling Young Supernova Remnants: Nonstationary Dynamics and Particle Acceleration at Forward and Reverse Shocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wieland, Volkmar; Pohl, Martin; Niemiec, Jacek; Rafighi, Iman; Nishikawa, Ken-Ichi

2016-03-01

For parameters that are applicable to the conditions at young supernova remnants, we present results of two-dimensional, three-vector (2D3V) particle-in-cell simulations of a non-relativistic plasma shock with a large-scale perpendicular magnetic field inclined at a 45^\\circ angle to the simulation plane to approximate three-dimensional (3D) physics. We developed an improved clean setup that uses the collision of two plasma slabs with different densities and velocities, leading to the development of two distinctive shocks and a contact discontinuity. The shock formation is mediated by Weibel-type filamentation instabilities that generate magnetic turbulence. Cyclic reformation is observed in both shocks with similar period, for which we note global variations due to shock rippling and local variations arising from turbulent current filaments. The shock rippling occurs on spatial and temporal scales produced by the gyro-motions of shock-reflected ions. The drift motion of electrons and ions is not a gradient drift, but is commensurate with {\\boldsymbol{E}}× {\\boldsymbol{B}} drift. We observe a stable supra-thermal tail in the ion spectra, but no electron acceleration because the amplitude of the Buneman modes in the shock foot is insufficient for trapping relativistic electrons. We see no evidence of turbulent reconnection. A comparison with other two-dimensional (2D) simulation results suggests that the plasma beta and the ion-to-electron mass ratio are not decisive for efficient electron acceleration, but the pre-acceleration efficacy might be reduced with respect to the 2D results once 3D effects are fully accounted for. Other microphysical factors may also play a part in limiting the amplitude of the Buneman waves or preventing the return of electrons to the foot region.

Radiation reaction on a classical charged particle: a modified form of the equation of motion.

PubMed

Alcaine, Guillermo García; Llanes-Estrada, Felipe J

2013-09-01

We present and numerically solve a modified form of the equation of motion for a charged particle under the influence of an external force, taking into account the radiation reaction. This covariant equation is integro-differential, as Dirac-Röhrlich's, but has several technical improvements. First, the equation has the form of Newton's second law, with acceleration isolated on the left hand side and the force depending only on positions and velocities: Thus, the equation is linear in the highest derivative. Second, the total four-force is by construction perpendicular to the four-velocity. Third, if the external force vanishes for all future times, the total force and the acceleration automatically vanish at the present time. We show the advantages of this equation by solving it numerically for several examples of external force.

Radiation reaction on a classical charged particle: A modified form of the equation of motion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alcaine, Guillermo García; Llanes-Estrada, Felipe J.

2013-09-01

We present and numerically solve a modified form of the equation of motion for a charged particle under the influence of an external force, taking into account the radiation reaction. This covariant equation is integro-differential, as Dirac-Röhrlich's, but has several technical improvements. First, the equation has the form of Newton's second law, with acceleration isolated on the left hand side and the force depending only on positions and velocities: Thus, the equation is linear in the highest derivative. Second, the total four-force is by construction perpendicular to the four-velocity. Third, if the external force vanishes for all future times, the total force and the acceleration automatically vanish at the present time. We show the advantages of this equation by solving it numerically for several examples of external force.

Electron bulk acceleration and thermalization at Earth's quasi-perpendicular bow shock

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, L.-J.; Wang, S.; Wilson, L. B., III; Schwartz, S. J.; Bessho, N.; Moore, T. E.; Gershman, D. J.; Giles, B. L.; Malaspina, D. M.; Wilder, F. D.; Ergun, R. E.; Hesse, M.; Lai, H.; Russell, C. T.; Strangeway, R. J.; Torbert, R. B.; Vinas, A. F.-; Burch, J. L.; Lee, S.; Pollock, C.; Dorelli, J.; Paterson, W. R.; Ahmadi, N.; Goodrich, K. A.; Lavraud, B.; Le Contel, O.; Khotyaintsev, Yu. V.; Lindqvist, P.-A.; Boardsen, S.; Wei, H.; Le, A.; Avanov, L. A.

2018-05-01

Electron heating at Earth's quasiperpendicular bow shock has been surmised to be due to the combined effects of a quasistatic electric potential and scattering through wave-particle interaction. Here we report the observation of electron distribution functions indicating a new electron heating process occurring at the leading edge of the shock front. Incident solar wind electrons are accelerated parallel to the magnetic field toward downstream, reaching an electron-ion relative drift speed exceeding the electron thermal speed. The bulk acceleration is associated with an electric field pulse embedded in a whistler-mode wave. The high electron-ion relative drift is relaxed primarily through a nonlinear current-driven instability. The relaxed distributions contain a beam traveling toward the shock as a remnant of the accelerated electrons. Similar distribution functions prevail throughout the shock transition layer, suggesting that the observed acceleration and thermalization is essential to the cross-shock electron heating.

Particle model of full-size ITER-relevant negative ion source.

PubMed

Taccogna, F; Minelli, P; Ippolito, N

2016-02-01

This work represents the first attempt to model the full-size ITER-relevant negative ion source including the expansion, extraction, and part of the acceleration regions keeping the mesh size fine enough to resolve every single aperture. The model consists of a 2.5D particle-in-cell Monte Carlo collision representation of the plane perpendicular to the filter field lines. Magnetic filter and electron deflection field have been included and a negative ion current density of j(H(-)) = 660 A/m(2) from the plasma grid (PG) is used as parameter for the neutral conversion. The driver is not yet included and a fixed ambipolar flux is emitted from the driver exit plane. Results show the strong asymmetry along the PG driven by the electron Hall (E × B and diamagnetic) drift perpendicular to the filter field. Such asymmetry creates an important dis-homogeneity in the electron current extracted from the different apertures. A steady state is not yet reached after 15 μs.

Cyclotron Acceleration of Relativistic Electrons through Landau Resonance with Obliquely Propagating Whistler Mode Chorus Emissions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Omura, Y.; Hsieh, Y. K.; Foster, J. C.; Erickson, P. J.; Kletzing, C.; Baker, D. N.

2017-12-01

A recent test particle simulation of obliquely propagating whistler mode wave-particle interaction [Hsieh and Omura, 2017] shows that the perpendicular wave electric field can play a significant role in trapping and accelerating relativistic electrons through Landau resonance. A further theoretical and numerical investigation verifies that there occurs nonlinear wave trapping of relativistic electrons by the nonlinear Lorentz force of the perpendicular wave magnetic field. An electron moving with a parallel velocity equal to the parallel phase velocity of an obliquely propagating wave basically see a stationary wave phase. Since the electron position is displaced from its gyrocenter by a distance ρ*sin(φ), where ρ is the gyroradius and φ is the gyrophase, the wave phase is modulated with the gyromotion, and the stationary wave fields as seen by the electron are expanded as series of Bessel functions Jn with phase variations n*φ. The J1 components of the wave electric and magnetic fields rotate in the right-hand direction with the gyrofrequency, and they can be in resonance with the electron undergoing the gyromotion, resulting in effective electron acceleration and pitch angle scattering. We have performed a subpacket analysis of chorus waveforms observed by the Van Allen Probes [Foster et al., 2017], and calculated the energy gain by the cyclotron acceleration through Landau resonance. We compare the efficiencies of accelerations by cyclotron and Landau resonances in typical events of rapid electron acceleration observed by the Van Allen Probes.References:[1] Hsieh, Y.-K., and Y. Omura (2017), Nonlinear dynamics of electrons interacting with oblique whistler mode chorus in the magnetosphere, J. Geophys. Res. Space Physics, 122, 675-694, doi:10.1002/2016JA023255.[2] Foster, J. C., P. J. Erickson, Y. Omura, D. N. Baker, C. A. Kletzing, and S. G. Claudepierre (2017), Van Allen Probes observations of prompt MeV radiation belt electron acceleration in nonlinear interactions with VLF chorus, J. Geophys. Res. Space Physics, 122, 324-339, doi:10.1002/2016JA023429.

Ion acceleration and heating by kinetic Alfvén waves associated with magnetic reconnection

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Liang, Ji; Lin, Yu; Johnson, Jay R.

In a previous study on the generation and signatures of kinetic Alfv en waves (KAWs) associated with magnetic reconnection in a current sheet revealed that KAWs are a common feature during reconnection [Liang et al. J. Geophys. Res.: Space Phys. 121, 6526 (2016)]. In this paper, ion acceleration and heating by the KAWs generated during magnetic reconnection are investigated with a three-dimensional (3-D) hybrid model. It is found that in the outflow region, a fraction of inflow ions are accelerated by the KAWs generated in the leading bulge region of reconnection, and their parallel velocities gradually increase up to slightly super-Alfv enic. As a result of waveparticle interactions, an accelerated ion beam forms in the direction of the anti-parallel magnetic field, in addition to the core ion population, leading to the development of non-Maxwellian velocity distributions, which include a trapped population with parallel velocities consistent with the wave speed. We then heat ions in both parallel and perpendicular directions. In the parallel direction, the heating results from nonlinear Landau resonance of trapped ions. In the perpendicular direction, however, evidence of stochastic heating by the KAWs is found during the acceleration stage, with an increase of magnetic moment μ. The coherence in the T more » $$\\perp$$ ion temperature and the perpendicular electric and magnetic fields of KAWs also provides evidence for perpendicular heating by KAWs. The parallel and perpendicular heating of the accelerated beam occur simultaneously, leading to the development of temperature anisotropy with the perpendicular temperature T $$\\perp$$>T $$\\parallel$$ temperature. The heating rate agrees with the damping rate of the KAWs, and the heating is dominated by the accelerated ion beam. In the later stage, with the increase of the fraction of the accelerated ions, interaction between the accelerated beam and the core population also contributes to the ion heating, ultimately leading to overlap of the beams and an overall anisotropy with T $$\\perp$$>T $$\\parallel$$.« less

Ion acceleration and heating by kinetic Alfvén waves associated with magnetic reconnection

DOE PAGES

Liang, Ji; Lin, Yu; Johnson, Jay R.; ...

2017-09-19

In a previous study on the generation and signatures of kinetic Alfv en waves (KAWs) associated with magnetic reconnection in a current sheet revealed that KAWs are a common feature during reconnection [Liang et al. J. Geophys. Res.: Space Phys. 121, 6526 (2016)]. In this paper, ion acceleration and heating by the KAWs generated during magnetic reconnection are investigated with a three-dimensional (3-D) hybrid model. It is found that in the outflow region, a fraction of inflow ions are accelerated by the KAWs generated in the leading bulge region of reconnection, and their parallel velocities gradually increase up to slightly super-Alfv enic. As a result of waveparticle interactions, an accelerated ion beam forms in the direction of the anti-parallel magnetic field, in addition to the core ion population, leading to the development of non-Maxwellian velocity distributions, which include a trapped population with parallel velocities consistent with the wave speed. We then heat ions in both parallel and perpendicular directions. In the parallel direction, the heating results from nonlinear Landau resonance of trapped ions. In the perpendicular direction, however, evidence of stochastic heating by the KAWs is found during the acceleration stage, with an increase of magnetic moment μ. The coherence in the T more » $$\\perp$$ ion temperature and the perpendicular electric and magnetic fields of KAWs also provides evidence for perpendicular heating by KAWs. The parallel and perpendicular heating of the accelerated beam occur simultaneously, leading to the development of temperature anisotropy with the perpendicular temperature T $$\\perp$$>T $$\\parallel$$ temperature. The heating rate agrees with the damping rate of the KAWs, and the heating is dominated by the accelerated ion beam. In the later stage, with the increase of the fraction of the accelerated ions, interaction between the accelerated beam and the core population also contributes to the ion heating, ultimately leading to overlap of the beams and an overall anisotropy with T $$\\perp$$>T $$\\parallel$$.« less

Heating heavy ions in the polar corona by collisionless shocks: A one-dimensional simulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nisticò, Giuseppe; Zimbardo, Gaetano

2012-01-01

Recently a new model for explaining the observations of preferential heating of heavy ions in the polar solar corona was proposed (Zimbardo, 2010, 2011). In that model the ion energization mechanism is the ion reflection off supercritical quasi-perpendicular collisionless shocks in the corona and the subsequent acceleration by the motional electric field E = -V × B/c. The mechanism of heavy ion reflection is based on ion gyration in the magnetic overshoot of the shock. The acceleration due to the motional electric field is perpendicular to the magnetic field, giving rise to large temperature anisotropy with T⊥ ≫ T∥, in agreement with SoHO observations. Such a model is tested here by means of a one dimensional test particle simulation where ions are launched toward electric and magnetic profiles representing the shock transition. We study the dynamics of O5+, as representative of coronal heavy ions for Alfvénic Mach numbers of 2-4, as appropriate to solar corona. It is found that O5+ ions are easily reflected and gain more than mass proportional energy with respect to protons.

Electron injection by whistler waves in non-relativistic shocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Riquelme, Mario A.; Spitkovsky, Anatoly

2012-04-01

Radio and X-ray observations of shocks in young supernova remnants (SNRs) reveal electron acceleration to non-thermal, ultra-relativistic energies (~ 10-100 TeV). This acceleration is usually assumed to happen via the diffusive shock acceleration (DSA) mechanism. However, the way in which electrons are initially energized or 'injected' into this acceleration process is an open question and the main focus of this work. We present our study of electron acceleration in nonrelativistic shocks using 2D and 3D particle-in-cell (PIC) plasma simulations. Our simulations show that significant non-thermal acceleration happens due to the growth of oblique whistler waves in the foot of quasi-perpendicular shocks. The obtained electron energy distributions show power law tails with spectral indices up to α ~ 3-4. Also, the maximum energies of the accelerated particles are consistent with the electron Larmor radii being comparable to that of the ions, indicating potential injection into the subsequent DSA process. This injection mechanism requires the shock waves to have fairly low Alfvénic Mach numbers, MA <20, which is consistent with the theoretical conditions for the growth of whistler waves in the shock foot (MA <(mi/me)1/2). Thus, if this mechanism is the only robust electron injection process at work in SNR shocks, then SNRs that display non-thermal emission must have significantly amplified upstream magnetic fields. Such field amplification is likely achieved by accelerated ions in these environments, so electron and ion acceleration in SNR shocks must be interconnected.

Acceleration of electrons and ions by strong lower-hybrid turbulence in solar flares

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spicer, D. S.; Bingham, R.; Su, J. J.; Shapiro, V. D.; Shevchenko, V.; Ma, S.; Dawson, J. M.; Mcclements, K. G.

1994-01-01

One of the outstanding problems in solar flare theory is how to explain the 10-20 keV and greater hard x-ray emissions by a thick target bremsstrahlung model. The model requires the acceleration mechanism to accelerate approximately 10(exp 35) electrons sec(exp -l) with comparable energies, without producing a large return current which persists for long time scales after the beam ceases to exist due to Lenz's law, thereby, producing a self-magnetic field of order a few mega-Gauss. In this paper, we investigate particle acceleration resulting from the relaxation of unstable ion ring distributions, producing strong wave activity at the lower hybrid frequency. It is shown that strong lower hybrid wave turbulence collapses in configuration space producing density cavities containing intense electrostatic lower hybrid wave activity. The collapse of these intense nonlinear wave packets saturate by particle acceleration producing energetic electron and ion tails. There are several mechanisms whereby unstable ion distributions could be formed in the solar atmosphere, including reflection at perpendicular shocks, tearing modes, and loss cone depletion. Numerical simulations of ion ring relaxation processes, obtained using a 2 1/2-D fully electromagnetic, relativistic particle in cell code are discussed. We apply the results to the problem of explaining energetic particle production in solar flares. The results show the simultaneous acceleration of both electrons and ions to very high energies: electrons are accelerated to energies in the range 10-500 keV, while ions are accelerated to energies of the order of MeVs, giving rise to x-ray emission and gamma-ray emission respectively. Our simulations also show wave generation at the electron cyclotron frequency. We suggest that these waves are the solar millisecond radio spikes. The strong turbulence collapse process leads to a highly filamented plasma producing many localized regions for particle acceleration and resulting in approximately 10(exp 17) electron 'beamlets' of width approximately equal to 10 lambda sub De which eliminates the production of large magnetic fields. In this paper, we demonstrate that the model produces an energetic electron spectrum with the right flux to account for the hard x-ray observations.

Dynamical Generation of Quasi-Stationary Alfvenic Double Layers and Charge Holes and Unified Theory of Quasi-Static and Alfvenic Auroral Arc Formation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, Y.; Lysak, R. L.

2015-12-01

Parallel E-fields play a crucial role for the acceleration of charged particles, creating discrete aurorae. However, once the parallel electric fields are produced, they will disappear right away, unless the electric fields can be continuously generated and sustained for a fairly long time. Thus, the crucial question in auroral physics is how to generate such a powerful and self-sustained parallel electric fields which can effectively accelerate charge particles to high energy during a fairly long time. We propose that nonlinear interaction of incident and reflected Alfven wave packets in inhomogeneous auroral acceleration region can produce quasi-stationary non-propagating electromagnetic plasma structures, such as Alfvenic double layers (DLs) and Charge Holes. Such Alfvenic quasi-static structures often constitute powerful high energy particle accelerators. The Alfvenic DL consists of localized self-sustained powerful electrostatic electric fields nested in a low density cavity and surrounded by enhanced magnetic and mechanical stresses. The enhanced magnetic and velocity fields carrying the free energy serve as a local dynamo, which continuously create the electrostatic parallel electric field for a fairly long time. The generated parallel electric fields will deepen the seed low density cavity, which then further quickly boosts the stronger parallel electric fields creating both Alfvenic and quasi-static discrete aurorae. The parallel electrostatic electric field can also cause ion outflow, perpendicular ion acceleration and heating, and may excite Auroral Kilometric Radiation.

Particle Acceleration and Magnetic Field Generation in Electron-Positron Relativistic Shocks

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nishikawa, K.-I.; Hardee, P.; Richardson, G.; Preece, R.; Sol, H.; Fishman, G. J.

2004-01-01

Shock acceleration is an ubiquitous phenomenon in astrophysical plasmas. Plasma waves and their associated instabilities (e.g., Buneman, Weibel and other two-stream instabilities) created in collisionless shocks are responsible for particle (electron, positron, and ion) acceleration. Using a 3-D relativistic electromagnetic particle (REMP) code, we have investigated particle acceleration associated with a relativistic electron-positron jet front propagating into an ambient electron-positron plasma with and without initial magnetic fields. We find small differences in the results for no ambient and modest ambient magnetic fields. Simulations show that the Weibel instability created in the collisionless shock front accelerates jet and ambient particles both perpendicular and parallel to the jet propagation direction. The non-linear fluctuation amplitudes of densities, currents, electric, and magnetic fields in the electron-positron shock are larger than those found in the electron-ion shock studied in a previous paper. This comes from the fact that both electrons and positrons contribute to generation of the Weibel instability. Additionally, we have performed simulations with different electron skin depths. We find that growth times scale inversely with the plasma frequency, and the sizes of structures created by the Weibel instability scale proportional to the electron skin depth. This is the expected result and indicates that the simulations have sufficient grid resolution. While some Fermi acceleration may occur at the jet front, the majority of electron and positron acceleration takes place behind the jet front and cannot be characterized as Fermi acceleration. The simulation results show that the Weibel instability is responsible for generating and amplifying nonuniform, small-scale magnetic fields which contribute to the electron's (positron's) transverse deflection behind the jet head. This small scale magnetic field structure is appropriate to the generation of "jitter" radiation from deflected electrons (positrons) as opposed to synchrotron radiation. The jitter radiation has different properties than synchrotron radiation calculated assuming a a uniform magnetic field. The jitter radiation resulting from small scale magnetic field structures may be important for understanding the complex time structure and spectral evolution observed in gamma-ray bursts or other astrophysical sources containing relativistic jets and relativistic collisionless shocks.

Particle Acceleration and Magnetic Field Generation in Electron-Positron Relativistic Shocks

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nishikawa, K.-L.; Hardee, P.; Richardson, G.; Preece, R.; Sol, H.; Fishman, G. J.

2004-01-01

Shock acceleration is an ubiquitous phenomenon in astrophysical plasmas. Plasma waves and their associated instabilities (e.g., Buneman, Weibel and other two-stream instabilities) created in collisionless shocks are responsible for particle (electron, positron, and ion) acceleration. Using a 3-D relativistic electromagnetic particle (REMP) code, we have investigated particle acceleration associated with a relativistic electron-positron jet front propagating into an ambient electron-positron plasma with and without initial magnetic fields. We find small differences in the results for no ambient and modest ambient magnetic fields. Simulations show that the Weibel instability created in the collisionless shock front accelerates jet and ambient particles both perpendicular and parallel to the jet propagation direction. The non-linear fluctuation amplitudes of densities, currents, electric, and magnetic fields in the electron-positron shock are larger than those found in the electron-ion shock studied in a previous paper at the comparable simulation time. This comes from the fact that both electrons and positrons contribute to generation of the Weibel instability. Additionally, we have performed simulations with different electron skin depths. We find that growth times scale inversely with the plasma frequency, and the sizes of structures created by the Weibel instability scale proportional to the electron skin depth. This is the expected result and indicates that the simulations have sufficient grid resolution. While some Fermi acceleration may occur at the jet front, the majority of electron and positron acceleration takes place behind the jet front and cannot be characterized as Fermi acceleration. The simulation results show that the Weibel instability is responsible for generating and amplifying nonuniform: small-scale magnetic fields which contribute to the electron's (positron's) transverse deflection behind the jet head. This small scale magnetic field structure is appropriate to the generation of jitter radiation from deflected electrons (positrons) as opposed to synchrotron radiation. The jitter radiation has different properties than synchrotron radiation calculated assuming a a uniform magnetic field. The jitter radiation resulting from small scale magnetic field structures may be important for understanding the complex time structure and spectral evolution observed in gamma-ray bursts or other astrophysical sources containing relativistic jets and relativistic collisionless shocks.

Particle Acceleration and Magnetic Field Generation in Electron-Positron Relativistic Shocks

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nishikawa, K.-I.; Hardee, P.; Richardson, G.; Preece, R.; Sol, H.; Fishman, G. J.

2005-01-01

Shock acceleration is a ubiquitous phenomenon in astrophysical plasmas. Plasma waves and their associated instabilities (e.g., Buneman, Weibel, and other two-stream instabilities) created in collisionless shocks are responsible for particle (electron, positron, and ion) acceleration. Using a three-dimensional relativistic electromagnetic particle (REMP) code, we have investigated particle acceleration associated with a relativistic electron-positron jet front propagating into an ambient electron-positron plasma with and without initial magnetic fields. We find small differences in the results for no ambient and modest ambient magnetic fields. New simulations show that the Weibel instability created in the collisionless shock front accelerates jet and ambient particles both perpendicular and parallel to the jet propagation direction. Furthermore, the nonlinear fluctuation amplitudes of densities, currents, and electric and magnetic fields in the electron-positron shock are larger than those found in the electron-ion shock studied in a previous paper at a comparable simulation time. This comes from the fact that both electrons and positrons contribute to generation of the Weibel instability. In addition, we have performed simulations with different electron skin depths. We find that growth times scale inversely with the plasma frequency, and the sizes of structures created by tine Weibel instability scale proportionally to the electron skin depth. This is the expected result and indicates that the simulations have sufficient grid resolution. While some Fermi acceleration may occur at the jet front, the majority of electron and positron acceleration takes place behind the jet front and cannot be characterized as Fermi acceleration. The simulation results show that the Weibel instability is responsible for generating and amplifying nonuniform, small-scale magnetic fields, which contribute to the electron s (positron s) transverse deflection behind the jet head. This small- scale magnetic field structure is appropriate to the generation of "jitter" radiation from deflected electrons (positrons) as opposed to synchrotron radiation. The jitter radiation has different properties than synchrotron radiation calculated assuming a uniform magnetic field. The jitter radiation resulting from small-scale magnetic field structures may be important for understanding the complex time structure and spectral evolution observed in gamma-ray bursts or other astrophysical sources containing relativistic jets and relativistic collisionless shocks.

Theoretical and Observational Analysis of Particle Acceleration Mechanisms at Astrophysical Shocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lever, Edward Lawrence

We analytically and numerically investigate the viability of Shock Surfing as a pre-injection mechanism for Diffusive Shock Acceleration, believed to be responsible for the production of Cosmic Rays. We demonstrate mathematically and from computer simulations that four critical conditions must be satisfied for Shock Surfing to function; the shock ramp must be narrow, the shock front must be smooth, the magnetic field angle must be very nearly perpendicular and, finally, these conditions must persist without interruption over substantial time periods and spatial scales. We quantify these necessary conditions, exhibit predictive functions for velocity maxima and accelerated ion fluxes based on observable shock parameters, and show unequivocally from current observational evidence that all of these necessary conditions are violated at shocks within the heliosphere, at the heliospheric Termination Shock, and also at Supernovae.

Neutral particle beam intensity controller

DOEpatents

Dagenhart, William K.

1986-01-01

A neutral beam intensity controller is provided for a neutral beam generator in which a neutral beam is established by accelerating ions from an ion source into a gas neutralizer. An amplitude modulated, rotating magnetic field is applied to the accelerated ion beam in the gas neutralizer to defocus the resultant neutral beam in a controlled manner to achieve intensity control of the neutral beam along the beam axis at constant beam energy. The rotating magnetic field alters the orbits of ions in the gas neutralizer before they are neutralized, thereby controlling the fraction of neutral particles transmitted out of the neutralizer along the central beam axis to a fusion device or the like. The altered path or defocused neutral particles are sprayed onto an actively cooled beam dump disposed perpendicular to the neutral beam axis and having a central open for passage of the focused beam at the central axis of the beamline. Virtually zero therough 100% intensity control is achieved by varying the magnetic field strength without altering the ion source beam intensity or its species yield.

MMS Multipoint Analysis of the Dynamics, Evolution, and Particle Acceleration Mechanisms Inside FTEs at Earth's Subsolar Magnetopause

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Akhavan-Tafti, M.; Slavin, J. A.; Eastwood, J. P.; Cassak, P.; Gershman, D. J.; Zhao, C.

2017-12-01

Flux Transfer Events (FTEs) are transient signatures of magnetic reconnection at the dayside magnetopause and play significant roles in determining the rate of reconnection and accelerating particles. This study investigates the magnetohydrodynamic forces inside and outside FTEs to infer the process through which these structures become force-free and uses electron dynamics to study the mechanisms for particle acceleration within the FTE. Akhavan-Tafti et al. [2017] demonstrated that ion-scale FTEs contain regions of elevated plasma density which greatly contribute to plasma pressure forces inside FTEs. It is shown that as FTEs evolve, the plasma is evacuated as the core magnetic field strengthens, hence becoming more force-free. The neighboring ion-scale FTEs formed at the subsolar magnetopause due to multiple X-line reconnection are forced to interact, and likely coalesce. Entropy is invoked to motivate the discussion on the essential role of coalescence in reconfiguring magnetic fields and current density distributions inside FTEs to allow for the adiabatic growth of these structures. Here, we present observational evidence which shows that, in the absence of coalescence, FTEs can become less force free. Local electron kinematics is studied to compare the contributions of parallel electric field, Fermi acceleration, and betatron acceleration mechanisms to particle heating. Acceleration due to parallel electric fields are shown to be dominant in the vicinity of the reconnection site while betatron acceleration controls perpendicular heating inside the FTE in the presence of magnetic pressure gradients. In the downstream of the reconnection site, the `freshly' reconnected field lines start to straighten due to the magnetic curvature force. Straightening field lines accelerate trapped electrons parallel to the local magnetic field (i.e., first-order Fermi acceleration). These acceleration mechanisms are shown to explain the observed anisotropic pitch angle distributions at the core and at the edges of FTEs. Finally, the forces inside non-flux rope-type FTEs (due to coalescence, expansion, contraction, or division) are shown to contribute to selective plasma heating, hence giving rise to anisotropic plasma temperatures and the subsequent wave activities (e.g. propagation of whistler waves).

40 CFR 1065.310 - Torque calibration.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... reference force is measured. The lever arm must be perpendicular to gravity (i.e., horizontal), and it must... known distance along a lever arm. Make sure the weights' lever arm is perpendicular to gravity (i.e... gravity (using this equation: force = mass · acceleration). The local acceleration of gravity, a g, at...

40 CFR 1065.310 - Torque calibration.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... reference force is measured. The lever arm must be perpendicular to gravity (i.e., horizontal), and it must... known distance along a lever arm. Make sure the weights' lever arm is perpendicular to gravity (i.e... gravity (using this equation: force = mass · acceleration). The local acceleration of gravity, a g, at...

Designing a Wien Filter Model with General Particle Tracer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mitchell, John; Hofler, Alicia

2017-09-01

The Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility injector employs a beamline component called a Wien filter which is typically used to select charged particles of a certain velocity. The Wien filter is also used to rotate the polarization of a beam for parity violation experiments. The Wien filter consists of perpendicular electric and magnetic fields. The electric field changes the spin orientation, but also imposes a transverse kick which is compensated for by the magnetic field. The focus of this project was to create a simulation of the Wien filter using General Particle Tracer. The results from these simulations were vetted against machine data to analyze the accuracy of the Wien model. Due to the close agreement between simulation and experiment, the data suggest that the Wien filter model is accurate. The model allows a user to input either the desired electric or magnetic field of the Wien filter along with the beam energy as parameters, and is able to calculate the perpendicular field strength required to keep the beam on axis. The updated model will aid in future diagnostic tests of any beamline component downstream of the Wien filter, and allow users to easily calculate the electric and magnetic fields needed for the filter to function properly. Funding support provided by DOE Office of Science's Student Undergraduate Laboratory Internship program.

Electromagnetic Whistler Precursors at Supercritical Interplanetary Shocks

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wilson, L. B., III

2012-01-01

We present observations of electromagnetic precursor waves, identified as whistler mode waves, at supercritical interplanetary shocks using the Wind search coil magnetometer. The precursors propagate obliquely with respect to the local magnetic field, shock normal vector, solar wind velocity, and they are not phase standing structures. All are right-hand polarized with respect to the magnetic field (spacecraft frame), and all but one are right-hand polarized with respect to the shock normal vector in the normal incidence frame. Particle distributions show signatures of specularly reflected gyrating ions, which may be a source of free energy for the observed modes. In one event, we simultaneously observe perpendicular ion heating and parallel electron acceleration, consistent with wave heating/acceleration due to these waves.

The electron foreshock

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fitzenreiter, R. J.

1995-01-01

An overview of the observations of backstreaming electrons in the foreshock and the mechanisms that have been proposed to explain their properties will be presented. A primary characteristic of observed foreshock electrons is that their velocity distributions are spatially structured in a systematic way depending on distance from the magnetic field line which is tangent to the shock. There are two interrelated aspects to explaining the structure of velocity distributions in the foreshock, one involving the acceleration mechanism and the other, propagation from the source to the observing point. First, the source distribution of electrons energized by the shock must be determined along the shock surface. Proposed acceleration mechanisms include magnetic mirroring of incoming solar wind particles and mechanisms involving transmission of particles through the shock. Secondly, the kinematics of observable electrons streaming away from a curved shock with an initial parallel velocity and a downstream perpendicular velocity component due to the motional electric field must be determined. This is the context in which the observations and their explanations will be reviewed.

The evolution of cosmic-ray-mediated magnetohydrodynamic shocks: A two-fluid approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jun, Byung-Il; Clarke, David A.; Norman, Michael L.

1994-07-01

We study the shock structure and acceleration efficiency of cosmic-ray mediated Magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) shocks both analytically and numerically by using a two-fluid model. Our model includes the dynamical effect of magnetic fields and cosmic rays on a background thermal fluid. The steady state solution is derived by following the technique of Drury & Voelk (1981) and compared to numerical results. We explore the time evolution of plane-perpendicular, piston-driven shocks. From the results of analytical and numerical studies, we conclude that the mean magnetic field plays an important role in the structure and acceleration efficiency of cosmic-ray mediated MHD shocks. The acceleration of cosmic-ray particles becomes less efficient in the presence of strong magnetic pressure since the field makes the shock less compressive. This feature is more prominent at low Mach numbers than at high Mach numbers.

The evolution of cosmic-ray-mediated magnetohydrodynamic shocks: A two-fluid approach

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jun, Byung-Il; Clarke, David A.; Norman, Michael L.

1994-01-01

We study the shock structure and acceleration efficiency of cosmic-ray mediated Magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) shocks both analytically and numerically by using a two-fluid model. Our model includes the dynamical effect of magnetic fields and cosmic rays on a background thermal fluid. The steady state solution is derived by following the technique of Drury & Voelk (1981) and compared to numerical results. We explore the time evolution of plane-perpendicular, piston-driven shocks. From the results of analytical and numerical studies, we conclude that the mean magnetic field plays an important role in the structure and acceleration efficiency of cosmic-ray mediated MHD shocks. The acceleration of cosmic-ray particles becomes less efficient in the presence of strong magnetic pressure since the field makes the shock less compressive. This feature is more prominent at low Mach numbers than at high Mach numbers.

Near-horizon Structure of Escape Zones of Electrically Charged Particles around Weakly Magnetized Rotating Black Hole

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kopáček, Ondřej; Karas, Vladimír

2018-01-01

An interplay of magnetic fields and gravitation drives accretion and outflows near black holes. However, a specific mechanism is still a matter of debate; it is very likely that different processes dominate under various conditions. In particular, for the acceleration of particles and their collimation in jets, an ordered component of the magnetic field seems to be essential. Here we discuss the role of large-scale magnetic fields in transporting the charged particles and dust grains from the bound orbits in the equatorial plane of a rotating (Kerr) black hole and the resulting acceleration along trajectories escaping the system in a direction parallel to the symmetry axis (perpendicular to the accretion disk). We consider a specific scenario of destabilization of circular geodesics of initially neutral matter by charging (e.g., due to photoionization). Some particles may be set on escaping trajectories and attain relativistic velocity. The case of charged particles differs from charged dust grains by their charge-to-mass ratio, but the acceleration mechanism operates in a similar manner. It appears that the chaotic dynamics controls the outflow and supports the formation of near-horizon escape zones. We employ the technique of recurrence plots to characterize the onset of chaos in the outflowing medium. We investigate the system numerically and construct the basin-boundary plots, which show the location and the extent of the escape zones. The effects of black hole spin and magnetic field strength on the formation and location of escape zones are discussed, and the maximal escape velocity is computed.

Transport in sheared stochastic magnetic fields

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Vanden Eijnden, E.; Balescu, R.

1997-02-01

The transport of test particles in a stochastic magnetic field with a sheared component is studied. Two stages in the particle dynamics are distinguished depending on whether the collisional effects perpendicular to the main field are negligible or not. Whenever the perpendicular collisions are unimportant, the particles show a subdiffusive behavior which is slower in the presence of shear. The particle dynamics is then inhomogeneous and non-Markovian and no diffusion coefficient may be properly defined. When the perpendicular collision frequency is small, this subdiffusive stage may be very long. In the truly asymptotic stage, however, the perpendicular collisions must bemore » accounted for and the particle motion eventually becomes diffusive. Here again, however, the shear is shown to reduce the anomalous diffusion coefficient of the system. {copyright} {ital 1997 American Institute of Physics.}« less

A gyrofluid description of Alfvenic turbulence and its parallel electric field

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bian, N. H.; Kontar, E. P.

2010-06-15

Anisotropic Alfvenic fluctuations with k{sub ||}/k{sub perpendicular}<<1 remain at frequencies much smaller than the ion cyclotron frequency in the presence of a strong background magnetic field. Based on the simplest truncation of the electromagnetic gyrofluid equations in a homogeneous plasma, a model for the energy cascade produced by Alfvenic turbulence is constructed, which smoothly connects the large magnetohydrodynamics scales and the small 'kinetic' scales. Scaling relations are obtained for the electromagnetic fluctuations, as a function of k{sub perpendicular} and k{sub ||}. Moreover, a particular attention is paid to the spectral structure of the parallel electric field which is produced bymore » Alfvenic turbulence. The reason is the potential implication of this parallel electric field in turbulent acceleration and transport of particles. For electromagnetic turbulence, this issue was raised some time ago in Hasegawa and Mima [J. Geophys. Res. 83, 1117 (1978)].« less

Compression of an Accelerated Taylor State in SSX

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shrock, J. E.; Suen-Lewis, E. M.; Barbano, L. J.; Kaur, M.; Schaffner, D. A.; Brown, M. R.

2017-10-01

In the Swarthmore Spheromak Experiment (SSX), compact toroidal plasmas are launched from a plasma gun and evolve into minimum energy twisted Taylor states. The plumes initially have a velocity 40 km/s, density 0.4 ×1016 cm-3 , and proton temperature 20 eV . After formation, the plumes are accelerated by pulsed pinch coils with rise times τ1 / 4 = (π / 2) √{ LC } less than 1 μ s and currents Ipeak =V0 / Z =V0 /√{ L / C } on the order of 104 A. The accelerated Taylor States are abruptly stagnated in a copper flux conserver, and over the course of t < 10 μ s, adiabatic compression is observed. The magnetothermodynamics of this compression do not appear to be dictated by the MHD equation of state d / dt (P /nγ) = 0 . Rather, the compression appears to evolve according to the Chew-Goldberger-Low (CGL) double adiabatic model. CGL theory presents two equations of state, one corresponding with particle motion perpendicular to magnetic field in a plasma, the other to particle motion parallel to the field. We observe Taylor state compression most in agreement with the parallel equation of state: d / dt (P∥B2 /n3) = 0 . DOE ARPA-E ALPHA Program.

Particle Energization throughout the Heliosphere: Opportunities with IMAP

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zank, Gary

2016-04-01

Understanding the radiation environment at the Earth and beyond is one of the critical elements in our developing Space Weather capabilities and strategy. Furthermore, the energization of charged particles in a collisionless plasma remains one of the compelling unsolved yet universal problems in space physics and astrophysics. The proposed instrumentation of IMAP enables two critical goals: 1) real-time monitoring of the radiation and plasma environment as part of a Space Weather capability, and 2) making coordinated simultaneous measurements of all the basic plasma parameters needed to develop a comprehensive and detailed understanding of fundamental particle energization processes. Since the session addresses the "Physics of particle acceleration", we will survey briefly the critical open problems associated with particle acceleration during quiet and active solar wind periods. At least three elements will be discussed. 1) Dissipative processes in the quiet solar wind and at shock waves. For the former, we discuss emerging ideas about the dissipation of turbulence via structures such as flux ropes and their role in possibly energizing charged particles during quiet times, especially in the vicinity of the heliospheric current sheet. In the latter, reflected ions play an essential role in dissipative processes at both quasi-perpendicular and quasi-parallel shocks. This in turn has consequences for the energization of particles, the generation of turbulence upstream and downstream of the shock, and the importance of a pre-existing suprathermal ion population. 2) What is the role of pre-existing energetic particles versus injection from a background thermal population of charged particles in the context of diffusive shock acceleration? Does the pre-existing suprathermal particle population play a fundamental role in the dissipation processes governing heliospheric shock, as suggested by the case of the heliospheric termination shock and pickup ions? 3) What is the primary acceleration mechanism for electrons in the solar wind during both quiet and active solar wind periods? Apparently stable energetic electron power law distributions are observed for quiet periods. Does the observed kappa distribution function for electrons and the electron heat flux play an important role in generating energetic particle distributions during quiet times? The observed characteristics of energetic electrons in the vicinity of interplanetary shocks are frequently quite different from those predicted from classical diffusive shock acceleration. Is another mechanism at work? IMAPs ability to simultaneously measure energetic particles from energies as low as ~2 keV, pickup ions, the interplanetary magnetic field, and thermal plasma distributions will provide important constraints on theory and modeling of particle energization throughout the heliosphere.

An in situ Comparison of Electron Acceleration at Collisionless Shocks under Differing Upstream Magnetic Field Orientations

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Masters, A.; Dougherty, M. K.; Sulaiman, A. H.

A leading explanation for the origin of Galactic cosmic rays is acceleration at high-Mach number shock waves in the collisionless plasma surrounding young supernova remnants. Evidence for this is provided by multi-wavelength non-thermal emission thought to be associated with ultrarelativistic electrons at these shocks. However, the dependence of the electron acceleration process on the orientation of the upstream magnetic field with respect to the local normal to the shock front (quasi-parallel/quasi-perpendicular) is debated. Cassini spacecraft observations at Saturn’s bow shock have revealed examples of electron acceleration under quasi-perpendicular conditions, and the first in situ evidence of electron acceleration at amore » quasi-parallel shock. Here we use Cassini data to make the first comparison between energy spectra of locally accelerated electrons under these differing upstream magnetic field regimes. We present data taken during a quasi-perpendicular shock crossing on 2008 March 8 and during a quasi-parallel shock crossing on 2007 February 3, highlighting that both were associated with electron acceleration to at least MeV energies. The magnetic signature of the quasi-perpendicular crossing has a relatively sharp upstream–downstream transition, and energetic electrons were detected close to the transition and immediately downstream. The magnetic transition at the quasi-parallel crossing is less clear, energetic electrons were encountered upstream and downstream, and the electron energy spectrum is harder above ∼100 keV. We discuss whether the acceleration is consistent with diffusive shock acceleration theory in each case, and suggest that the quasi-parallel spectral break is due to an energy-dependent interaction between the electrons and short, large-amplitude magnetic structures.« less

Ultra-intense laser interaction with specially-designed targets as a source of energetic protons

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Psikal, J.; Matys, M.

2017-05-01

In this contribution, we discuss the optimization of laser driven proton acceleration efficiency by nanostructured targets, interpret the experimental results showing the manipulation of proton beam profiles by nanosctructured rear surface of the targets and investigate the acceleration of protons from hydrogen solid ribbon by PW-class lasers, with the help of multidimensional particle-in-cell simulations. Microstructured hollow targets are proposed to enhance the absorption of the laser pulse energy while keeping the target thickness to minimum, which is both favorable for enhanced efficiency of the acceleration of protons. Thin targets with grating structures of various configurations on their rear sides stretch the proton beams in the perpendicular direction to the grating orientation due to transverse electric fields generated inside the target grooves and can reduce the proton beam divergence in the parallel direction to the grating due to a lower density of the stretched beam compared with flat foils. Finally, it is shown that when multiPW laser pulse interacts with hydrogen solid ribbon, hole boring radiation pressure acceleration (RPA) dominates over the target normal sheath acceleration (TNSA).

Ion dynamics during the parametric instabilities of a left-hand polarized Alfvén wave in a proton-electron-alpha plasma

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gao, Xinliang; Lu, Quanming; Hao, Yufei

2014-01-01

The parametric instabilities of an Alfvén wave in a proton-electron plasma system are found to have great influence on proton dynamics, where part of the protons can be accelerated through the Landau resonance with the excited ion acoustic waves, and a beam component along the background magnetic field is formed. In this paper, with a one-dimensional hybrid simulation model, we investigate the evolution of the parametric instabilities of a monochromatic left-hand polarized Alfvén wave in a proton-electron-alpha plasma with a low beta. When the drift velocity between the protons and alpha particles is sufficiently large, the wave numbers of themore » backward daughter Alfvén waves can be cascaded toward higher values due to the modulational instability during the nonlinear evolution of the parametric instabilities, and the alpha particles are resonantly heated in both the parallel and perpendicular direction by the backward waves. On the other hand, when the drift velocity of alpha particles is small, the alpha particles are heated in the linear growth stage of the parametric instabilities due to the Landau resonance with the excited ion acoustic waves. Therefore, the heating occurs only in the parallel direction, and there is no obvious heating in the perpendicular direction. The relevance of our results to the preferential heating of heavy ions observed in the solar wind within 0.3 AU is also discussed in this paper.« less

Perpendicular Diffusion Coefficient of Comic Rays: The Presence of Weak Adiabatic Focusing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, J. F.; Qin, G.; Ma, Q. M.; Song, T.; Yuan, S. B.

2017-08-01

The influence of adiabatic focusing on particle diffusion is an important topic in astrophysics and plasma physics. In the past, several authors have explored the influence of along-field adiabatic focusing on the parallel diffusion of charged energetic particles. In this paper, using the unified nonlinear transport theory developed by Shalchi and the method of He and Schlickeiser, we derive a new nonlinear perpendicular diffusion coefficient for a non-uniform background magnetic field. This formula demonstrates that the particle perpendicular diffusion coefficient is modified by along-field adiabatic focusing. For isotropic pitch-angle scattering and the weak adiabatic focusing limit, the derived perpendicular diffusion coefficient is independent of the sign of adiabatic focusing characteristic length. For the two-component model, we simplify the perpendicular diffusion coefficient up to the second order of the power series of the adiabatic focusing characteristic quantity. We find that the first-order modifying factor is equal to zero and that the sign of the second order is determined by the energy of the particles.

Magnetohydrodynamic Jump Conditions for Oblique Relativistic Shocks with Gyrotropic Pressure

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Double, Glen P.; Baring, Matthew G.; Jones, Frank C.; Ellison, Donald C.

2003-01-01

Shock jump conditions, i.e., the specification of the downstream parameters of the gas in terms of the upstream parameters, are obtained for steady-state, plane shocks with oblique magnetic fields and arbitrary flow speeds. This is done by combining the continuity of particle number flux and the electromagnetic boundary conditions at the shock with the magnetohydrodynamic conservation laws derived from the stress-energy tensor. For ultrarelativistic and nonrelativistic shocks, the jump conditions may be solved analytically. For mildly relativistic shocks, analytic solutions are obtained for isotropic pressure using an approximation for the adiabatic index that is valid in high sonic Mach number cases. Examples assuming isotropic pressure illustrate how the shock compression ratio depends on the shock speed and obliquity. In the more general case of gyrotropic pressure, the jump conditions cannot be solved analytically with- out additional assumptions, and the effects of gyrotropic pressure are investigated by parameterizing the distribution of pressure parallel and perpendicular to the magnetic field. Our numerical solutions reveal that relatively small departures from isotropy (e.g., approximately 20%) produce significant changes in the shock compression ratio, r , at all shock Lorentz factors, including ultrarelativistic ones, where an analytic solution with gyrotropic pressure is obtained. In particular, either dynamically important fields or significant pressure anisotropies can incur marked departures from the canonical gas dynamic value of r = 3 for a shocked ultrarelativistic flow and this may impact models of particle acceleration in gamma-ray bursts and other environments where relativistic shocks are inferred. The jump conditions presented apply directly to test-particle acceleration, and will facilitate future self-consistent numerical modeling of particle acceleration at oblique, relativistic shocks; such models include the modification of the fluid velocity profile due to the contribution of energetic particles to the momentum and energy fluxes.

Two-Fluid Description of Collisionless Perpendicular Shocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gomez, D. O.; Morales, L. F.; Dmitruk, P.; Bertucci, C.

2017-12-01

Collisionless shocks are ubiquitous in space physics and astrophysics, such as the bow shocks formed by the solar wind in front of planets, the termination shock at the heliospheric boundary or the supernova shock fronts expanding in the interstellar plasma. Although the one-fluid magnetohydrodynamic framework provides a reasonable description of the large scale structures of the upstream and downstream plasmas, it falls short of providing an adequate description of the internal structure of the shock. A more comprehensive description of the inner and outer features of collisionless shocks would require the use of kinetic theory. Nonetheless, in the present work we show that a complete two-fluid framework (considering the role of both ions and electrons in the dynamics) can properly capture some of the features observed in real shocks. For the specific case of perpendicular shocks, i.e. cases in which the magnetic field is perpendicular to the shock normal, we integrate the one-dimensional two-fluid MHD equations numerically, to describe the generation of shocks and their spatial structure along the shock normal. Starting from finite amplitude fast-magnetosonic waves, our simulations show the generation of a stationary fast-magnetosonic shock. More importantly, we show that the ramp thickness is of the order of a few electron inertial lengths. The parallel and perpendicular components of the self-consistent electric field are derived, and their role in accelerating particles is discussed.

On the maximum energy of non-thermal particles in the primary hotspot of Cygnus A

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Araudo, Anabella T.; Bell, Anthony R.; Blundell, Katherine M.; Matthews, James H.

2018-01-01

We study particle acceleration and magnetic field amplification in the primary hotspot in the north-west jet of radiogalaxy Cygnus A. By using the observed flux density at 43 GHz in a well-resolved region of this hotspot, we determine the minimum value of the jet density and constrain the magnitude of the magnetic field. We find that a jet with density greater than 5 × 10-5 cm-3 and hotspot magnetic field in the range 50-400 μG are required to explain the synchrotron emission at 43 GHz. The upper-energy cut-off in the hotspot synchrotron spectrum is at a frequency ≲5 × 1014 Hz, indicating that the maximum energy of non-thermal electrons accelerated at the jet reverse shock is Ee, max ∼ 0.8 TeV in a magnetic field of 100 μG. Based on the condition that the magnetic-turbulence scalelength has to be larger than the plasma skin depth, and that the energy density in non-thermal particles cannot violate the limit imposed by the jet kinetic luminosity, we show that Ee, max cannot be constrained by synchrotron losses as traditionally assumed. In addition to that, and assuming that the shock is quasi-perpendicular, we show that non-resonant hybrid instabilities generated by the streaming of cosmic rays with energy Ee, max can grow fast enough to amplify the jet magnetic field up to 50-400 μG and accelerate particles up to the maximum energy Ee, max observed in the Cygnus A primary hotspot.

On Weibull's Spectrum of Nonrelativistic Energetic Particles at IP Shocks: Observations and Theoretical Interpretation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Pallocchia, G.; Laurenza, M.; Consolini, G.

2017-03-10

Some interplanetary shocks are associated with short-term and sharp particle flux enhancements near the shock front. Such intensity enhancements, known as shock-spike events (SSEs), represent a class of relatively energetic phenomena as they may extend to energies of some tens of MeV or even beyond. Here we present an SSE case study in order to shed light on the nature of the particle acceleration involved in this kind of event. Our observations refer to an SSE registered on 2011 October 3 at 22:23 UT, by STEREO B instrumentation when, at a heliocentric distance of 1.08 au, the spacecraft was sweptmore » by a perpendicular shock moving away from the Sun. The main finding from the data analysis is that a Weibull distribution represents a good fitting function to the measured particle spectrum over the energy range from 0.1 to 30 MeV. To interpret such an observational result, we provide a theoretical derivation of the Weibull spectrum in the framework of the acceleration by “killed” stochastic processes exhibiting power-law growth in time of the velocity expectation, such as the classical Fermi process. We find an overall coherence between the experimental values of the Weibull spectrum parameters and their physical meaning within the above scenario. Hence, our approach based on the Weibull distribution proves to be useful for understanding SSEs. With regard to the present event, we also provide an alternative explanation of the Weibull spectrum in terms of shock-surfing acceleration.« less

Modelling of proton acceleration in application to a ground level enhancement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Afanasiev, A.; Vainio, R.; Rouillard, A. P.; Battarbee, M.; Aran, A.; Zucca, P.

2018-06-01

Context. The source of high-energy protons (above 500 MeV) responsible for ground level enhancements (GLEs) remains an open question in solar physics. One of the candidates is a shock wave driven by a coronal mass ejection, which is thought to accelerate particles via diffusive-shock acceleration. Aims: We perform physics-based simulations of proton acceleration using information on the shock and ambient plasma parameters derived from the observation of a real GLE event. We analyse the simulation results to find out which of the parameters are significant in controlling the acceleration efficiency and to get a better understanding of the conditions under which the shock can produce relativistic protons. Methods: We use the results of the recently developed technique to determine the shock and ambient plasma parameters, applied to the 17 May 2012 GLE event, and carry out proton acceleration simulations with the Coronal Shock Acceleration (CSA) model. Results: We performed proton acceleration simulations for nine individual magnetic field lines characterised by various plasma conditions. Analysis of the simulation results shows that the acceleration efficiency of the shock, i.e. its ability to accelerate particles to high energies, tends to be higher for those shock portions that are characterised by higher values of the scattering-centre compression ratio rc and/or the fast-mode Mach number MFM. At the same time, the acceleration efficiency can be strengthened by enhanced plasma density in the corresponding flux tube. The simulations show that protons can be accelerated to GLE energies in the shock portions characterised by the highest values of rc. Analysis of the delays between the flare onset and the production times of protons of 1 GV rigidity for different field lines in our simulations, and a subsequent comparison of those with the observed values indicate a possibility that quasi-perpendicular portions of the shock play the main role in producing relativistic protons.

The flares of August 1972

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zirin, H.; Tanaka, K.

1972-01-01

Analysis is made of observations of the August, 1972 flares at Big Bear and Tel Aviv, involving monochromatic movies, magnetograms, and spectra. In each flare the observations fit a model of particle acceleration in the chromosphere with emission produced by impart and by heating by the energetic electrons and protons. The region showed twisted flux and high gradients from birth, and flares appear due to strong magnetic shears and gradients across the neutral line produced by sunspot motions. Post flare loops show a strong change from sheared, force-free fields parallel to potential-field-like loops, perpendicular to the neutral line above the surface.

Runaway of energetic test ions in a toroidal plasma

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Eilerman, S., E-mail: eilerman@wisc.edu; Anderson, J. K.; Sarff, J. S.

2015-02-15

Ion runaway in the presence of a large-scale, reconnection-driven electric field has been conclusively measured in the Madison Symmetric Torus reversed-field pinch (RFP). Measurements of the acceleration of a beam of fast ions agree well with test particle and Fokker-Planck modeling of the runaway process. However, the runaway mechanism does not explain all measured ion heating in the RFP, particularly previous measurements of strong perpendicular heating. It is likely that multiple energization mechanisms occur simultaneously and with differing significance for magnetically coupled thermal ions and magnetically decoupled tail and beam ions.

Efficient energy absorption of intense ps-laser pulse into nanowire target

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Habara, H.; Honda, S.; Katayama, M.; Sakagami, H.; Nagai, K.; Tanaka, K. A.

2016-06-01

The interaction between ultra-intense laser light and vertically aligned carbon nanotubes is investigated to demonstrate efficient laser-energy absorption in the ps laser-pulse regime. Results indicate a clear enhancement of the energy conversion from laser to energetic electrons and a simultaneously small plasma expansion on the surface of the target. A two-dimensional plasma particle calculation exhibits a high absorption through laser propagation deep into the nanotube array, even for a dense array whose structure is much smaller than the laser wavelength. The propagation leads to the radial expansion of plasma perpendicular to the nanotubes rather than to the front side. These features may contribute to fast ignition in inertial confinement fusion and laser particle acceleration, both of which require high current and small surface plasma simultaneously.

Perpendicular Diffusion Coefficient of Comic Rays: The Presence of Weak Adiabatic Focusing

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wang, J. F.; Ma, Q. M.; Song, T.

The influence of adiabatic focusing on particle diffusion is an important topic in astrophysics and plasma physics. In the past, several authors have explored the influence of along-field adiabatic focusing on the parallel diffusion of charged energetic particles. In this paper, using the unified nonlinear transport theory developed by Shalchi and the method of He and Schlickeiser, we derive a new nonlinear perpendicular diffusion coefficient for a non-uniform background magnetic field. This formula demonstrates that the particle perpendicular diffusion coefficient is modified by along-field adiabatic focusing. For isotropic pitch-angle scattering and the weak adiabatic focusing limit, the derived perpendicular diffusionmore » coefficient is independent of the sign of adiabatic focusing characteristic length. For the two-component model, we simplify the perpendicular diffusion coefficient up to the second order of the power series of the adiabatic focusing characteristic quantity. We find that the first-order modifying factor is equal to zero and that the sign of the second order is determined by the energy of the particles.« less

Experimental evidence of nonthermal acceleration of relativistic electrons by an intensive laser pulse

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuramitsu, Y.; Nakanii, N.; Kondo, K.; Sakawa, Y.; Mori, Y.; Miura, E.; Tsuji, K.; Kimura, K.; Fukumochi, S.; Kashihara, M.; Tanimoto, T.; Nakamura, H.; Ishikura, T.; Takeda, K.; Tampo, M.; Kodama, R.; Kitagawa, Y.; Mima, K.; Tanaka, K. A.; Hoshino, M.; Takabe, H.

2011-02-01

Nonthermal acceleration of relativistic electrons is investigated with an intensive laser pulse. An energy distribution function of energetic particles in the universe or cosmic rays is well represented by a power-law spectrum, therefore, nonthermal acceleration is essential to understand the origin of cosmic rays. A possible candidate for the origin of cosmic rays is wakefield acceleration at relativistic astrophysical perpendicular shocks. The wakefield is considered to be excited by large-amplitude precursor light waves in the upstream of the shocks. Substituting an intensive laser pulse for the large amplitude light waves, we performed a model experiment of the shock environments in a laboratory plasma. An intensive laser pulse was propagated in a plasma tube created by imploding a hollow polystyrene cylinder, as the large amplitude light waves propagated in the upstream plasma at an astrophysical shock. Nonthermal electrons were generated, and the energy distribution functions of the electrons have a power-law component with an index of ~2. We described the detailed procedures to obtain the nonthermal components from data obtained by an electron spectrometer.

Solar Coronal UV Spectroscopy for Solar Wind and SEP Acceleration Investigations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moses, John Daniel; Ko, Yuan-Kuen; Laming, John Martin; Strachan, Leonard; Tun Beltran, Samuel

2015-04-01

Of all the new areas of solar physics opened by the landmark SOHO mission, the scientific discoveries of the Ultraviolet Coronagraph Spectrometer (UVCS) are unique in both the importance of the new questions raised by these observations and the lack of subsequent investigations to resolve these questions. For example, the first direct evidence of wave-particle coupling as an acceleration mechanism for the solar wind was obtained from UVCS spectro-coronagraphic observations, yet the real limits on the ratio of the parallel to perpendicular ion temperatures (with respect to the magnetic field) in coronal holes and streamers is still unresolved. Another unresolved issue is the role of suprathermal seed particles in rapid diffusive shock acceleration of SEPs. Although the theory has been placed on firmer theoretical ground by recent in situ investigations, observations of these suprathermal particles in the corona was never conclusively obtained with UVCS.Any follow-on UV Spectro-coronagraph must possess two improvements over UVCS in order to address the questions raised during the SOHO mission: 1) increased effective aperture and 2) improved spectrographic contrast (i.e. reduced scattered light). Technological developments in optics, optical design, UV detectors, composite structures, cleanliness control and electronics make it possible to achieve the requisite improvements in a next-generation UV spectro-coronagraph within the constraints of an affordable mission. We discuss specific instrument and mission approaches developed over the last 5 years and the feasibility of implementing them within the next 5 years.

Solar Coronal UV Spectroscopy for Solar Wind and Sep Acceleration Investigations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moses, J. D.; Laming, J. M.; Ko, Y. K.; Strachan, L.

2014-12-01

Of all the new areas of solar physics opened by the landmark SOHO mission, the scientific discoveries of the Ultraviolet Coronagraph Spectrometer (UVCS) are unique in both the importance of the new questions raised by these observations and the lack of subsequent investigations to resolve these questions. For example, the first direct evidence of wave-particle coupling as an acceleration mechanism for the solar wind was obtained from UVCS spectro-coronagraphic observations, yet the real limits on the ratio of the parallel to perpendicular ion temperatures (with respect to the magnetic field) in coronal holes and streamers is still unresolved. Another unresolved issue is the role of suprathermal seed particles in rapid diffusive shock acceleration of SEPs. Although the theory has been placed on firmer theoretical ground by recent in situinvestigations, observations of these suprathermal particles in the corona were never conclusively obtained with UVCS. Any follow-on UV Spectro-coronagraph must possess two improvements over UVCS in order to address the questions raised during the SOHO mission: 1) increased effective aperture and 2) improved spectrographic contrast (i.e. reduced scattered light). Technological developments in optics, optical design, UV detectors, composite structures, cleanliness control and electronics make it possible to achieve the requisite improvements in a next-generation UV spectro-coronagraph within the constraints of an affordable mission. We discuss specific instrument and mission approaches developed over the last 5 years and the feasibility of implementing them within the next 5 years.

Method of measuring a profile of the density of charged particles in a particle beam

DOEpatents

Hyman, L.G.; Jankowski, D.J.

1975-10-01

A profile of the relative density of charged particles in a beam is obtained by disposing a number of rods parallel to each other in a plane perpendicular to the beam and shadowing the beam. A second number of rods is disposed perpendicular to the first rods in a plane perpendicular to the beam and also shadowing the beam. Irradiation of the rods by the beam of charged particles creates radioactive isotopes in a quantity proportional to the number of charged particles incident upon the rods. Measurement of the radioactivity of each of the rods provides a measure of the quantity of radioactive material generated thereby and, together with the location of the rods, provides information sufficient to identify a profile of the density of charged particles in the beam.

Electron energization mechanisms in collisionless magnetic reconnection for different guide-field intensities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pucci, F.; Usami, S.; Guo, X.; Ji, H.; Horiuchi, R.; Okamura, S.

2017-12-01

Electron dynamics and energization are a key component of magnetic field dissipation in collisionless reconnection. Indeed, in 2D reconnection, the main mechanism that limits the current density and provides the resistivity most probably relies on the electron pressure tensor term which has been shown to break the frozen-in condition at the x-point (Ishizawa and Horiuchi 2005; Horiuchi et al. 2014). In addition the electron-meandering-orbit scale controls the width of the electron dissipation region around the x-point, where the electron temperature is observed to increase, so understanding the electron heating mechanism is fundamental for magnetic reconnection. It has been shown by Guo et al. 2017 that for a 2D high guide field configuration (Bz/B0 = 3) electron perpendicular heating is mainly due to the breaking of magnetic moment conservation in the separatrix region while electron perpendicular acceleration takes place mainly in the downstream near the X-point. Electron velocity distributions have been shown to exhibit highly structured features within a few electron skin depths from the X line (Bessho et al. 2014) as well as in the exhaust (Shuster et al. 2014). By means of two-dimensional, full-particle simulations in an open system (Pei et al. 2001; Ohtani and R. Horiuchi 2009), we investigate how the energization mechanism depends on the guide field intensity. We compare electron distribution functions as well as particles orbits, in the electron diffusion region and the exhaust, in order to clarify the preferential electron heating/acceleration in two-dimensional systems. We will then compare our results with observations using the present catalogue of MMS diffusion region crossings.

Pitch Angle Dependence of Drift Resonant Ions Observed by the Van Allen Probes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rankin, R.; Wang, C.; Wang, Y.; Zong, Q. G.; Zhou, X.

2017-12-01

Acceleration and modulation of ring current ions by poloidal mode ULF waves is investigated. A simplified MHD model of ULF waves in a dipole magnetic field is presented that includes phase mixing to perpendicular scales determined by the ionospheric Pedersen conductivity. The wave model is combined with a full Lorentz force test particle code to study drift and drift bounce resonance wave-particle interactions. Ion trajectories are traced backward-in-time to an assumed form of the distribution function, and Liouville's method is used to reconstruct the phase space density response (PSD) poloidal mode waves observed by the Van Allen Probes. In spite of its apparent simplicity, simulations using the wave and test particle models are able to explain the acceleration of ions and energy dispersion observed by the Van Allen Probes. The paper focuses on the pitch angle evolution of the initial PSD as it responds to the action of ULF waves. An interesting aspect of the study is the formation of butterfly ion distributions as ions make periodic radial oscillations across L. Ions become trapped in an effective potential well across a limited range of L and follow trajectories that cause them to surf along constant phase fronts. The impications of this new trapping mechanism for both ions and electrons is discussed.

Do Ions Injected with the Dipolarizing Flux Bundles Provide the Free Energy for Waves in the Inner Magnetosphere?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Runov, A.; Angelopoulos, V.; Artemyev, A.; Lu, S.; Birn, J.; Pritchett, P. L.

2017-12-01

Electron interactions with Electromagnetic Ion Cyclotron (EMIC) amd Magnetosnic (MS) waves are considered as a mechanism of electron acceleration up to relativistic energies in the inner magnetosphere. The free energy for these waves is provided by ion populations with unstable energy distributions. It is established that the perpendicular anisotropy (T_perp > T_par) of energetic ions may provide the free energy for EMIC waves. The ring-type ion distributions are considered as the free energy source for the MS waves. Where and how do these distributions formed? To answer this question, we examined ion distribution functions within earthward-contracting dipolarizing flux bundles (DFBs) observed in the near-Earth plasma sheet at R 10 - 12 RE. It was found that ion distributions are often characterized by the perpendicular anisotropy at supra-thermal energies (at velocities V_thermal ≤ v ≤ 2*V_thermal). The effect was found to be stronger at largerbackground Bz (i.e., closer to the dipole). Similar characteristics wereobserved in particle-in-cell and test-particle simulations. Moreover, the simulations showed the ring-type ion distribution formation. These results suggest that ions, injected towards the inner magnetosphere with DFBs may indeed provide free energy for the EMIC and MS wave excitations.

Characteristics of Ion Distribution Functions in Dipolarizing FluxBundles: THEMIS Event Studies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Runov, A.; Artemyev, A.; Birn, J.; Pritchett, P. L.; Zhou, X.

2016-12-01

Taking advantage of multi-point observations from repeating configuration of the Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms (THEMIS) fleet with probe separation of 1 to 2 Earth radii (RE) along X, Y, and Z in the geocentric solar magnetospheric system (GSM), we study ion distribution functions observed by the probes during three transient dipolarization events. Comparing observations by the multiple probes, we characterize changes in the ion distribution functions with respect to geocentric distance (X), cross-tail probe separation (Y), and levels of |Bx|, which characterize the distance from the neutral sheet. We examined 2-D and 1-D cuts of the 3-D velocity distribution functions by the {Vb,Vbxv} plane. The results indicate that the velocity distribution functions observed inside the dipolarizing flux bundles (DFB) close to the magnetic equator are often perpendicularly anisotropic for velocities Vth≤v≤2Vth, where Vth is the ion thermal velocity. Ions of higher energies (v>2Vth) are isotropic. Hence, interaction of DFBs and ambient ions may result in the perpendicular anisotropy of the injecting energetic ions, which is an important factor for plasma waves and instabilities excitation and further particle acceleration in the inner magnetosphere. We also compare the observations with the results of test-particles and PIC simulations.

Heating the polar corona by collisionless shocks: an example of cross-fertilization in space physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zimbardo, Gaetano; Nistico, Giuseppe

We propose a new model for explaining the observations of preferential heating of heavy ions in the polar solar corona. We consider that a large number of small scale shock waves can be present in the solar corona, as suggested by recent observations of polar coronal jets. The heavy ion energization mechanism is, essentially, the ion reflection off supercritical quasi-perpendicular collisionless shocks in the corona and the subsequent acceleration by the motional electric field E = -V × B. The mechanism of heavy ion reflection is based on ion gyration in the magnetic overshoot of the shock. The acceleration due to E is perpendicular to the magnetic field, giving rise to large temperature anisotropy with T⊥ T , in agreement with observations. Also, heating is more than mass proportional with respect to protons, because the heavy ion orbit is mostly upstream of the quasi-perpendicular shock foot. The observed temperature ratios between O5+ ions and protons in the polar corona, and between α particles and protons in the solar wind are easily recovered. Results of numerical simulations reproducing the heavy ion reflection will be presented. This work is an interesting example of cross-fertilization in space plasma physics: the non adiabatic heating of heavy ions comes from Speiser orbits in the magnetotail, observations of preferential heating of heavy ions at shocks comes from Ulysses data on corotating interaction regions shocks, heavy ion reflecton from a magnetic barrier is akin to the ion orbits in the Ferraro-Rosenbluth sheath considered for the magnetopause, the formation of shocks in the reconnection outflow regions comes from solar flare models, and evidence of reconnection and fast flows in the polar corona comes from Hinode and STEREO observations of coronal hole jets.

Efficient energy absorption of intense ps-laser pulse into nanowire target

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Habara, H.; Honda, S.; Katayama, M.

The interaction between ultra-intense laser light and vertically aligned carbon nanotubes is investigated to demonstrate efficient laser-energy absorption in the ps laser-pulse regime. Results indicate a clear enhancement of the energy conversion from laser to energetic electrons and a simultaneously small plasma expansion on the surface of the target. A two-dimensional plasma particle calculation exhibits a high absorption through laser propagation deep into the nanotube array, even for a dense array whose structure is much smaller than the laser wavelength. The propagation leads to the radial expansion of plasma perpendicular to the nanotubes rather than to the front side. Thesemore » features may contribute to fast ignition in inertial confinement fusion and laser particle acceleration, both of which require high current and small surface plasma simultaneously.« less

MMS observations and hybrid simulations of rippled and reforming quasi-parallel shocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gingell, I.; Schwartz, S. J.; Burgess, D.; Johlander, A.; Russell, C. T.; Burch, J. L.; Ergun, R.; Fuselier, S. A.; Gershman, D. J.; Giles, B. L.; Goodrich, K.; Khotyaintsev, Y. V.; Lavraud, B.; Lindqvist, P. A.; Strangeway, R. J.; Trattner, K. J.; Torbert, R. B.; Wilder, F. D.

2017-12-01

Surface ripples, i.e. deviations in the nominal local shock orientation, are expected to propagate in the ramp and overshoot of collisionless shocks. These ripples have typically been associated with observations and simulations of quasi-perpendicular shocks. We present observations of a crossing of Earth's marginally quasi-parallel (θBn ˜ 45°) bow shock by the MMS spacecraft on 2015-11-27 06:01:44 UTC, for which we identify signatures consistent with a propagating surface ripple. In order to demonstrate the differences between ripples at quasi-perpendicular and quasi-parallel shocks, we also present two-dimensional hybrid simulations over a range of shock normal angles θBn under the observed solar wind conditions. We show that in the quasi-parallel cases surface ripples are transient phenomena modulated by the cyclic reformation of the shock front. These ripples develop faster than an ion gyroperiod and only during the period of the reformation cycle when a newly developed shock ramp is unaffected by turbulence in the foot. We conclude that the change of properties of the surface ripple observed by MMS while crossing Earth's quasi-parallel bow shock are consistent with the influence of cyclic reformation on shock structure. Given that both surface ripples and cyclic reformation are expected to affect the acceleration of electrons within the shock, the interaction of these phenomena and any other sources of shock non-stationary are important for models of particle acceleration. We therefore discuss signatures of electron heating and acceleration in several rippled shocks observed by MMS.

Overview and recent progress of the Magnetized Shock Experiment (MSX)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weber, T. E.; Intrator, T. P.; Smith, R. J.; Hutchinson, T. M.; Boguski, J. C.; Sears, J. A.; Swan, H. O.; Gao, K. W.; Chapdelaine, L. J.; Winske, D.; Dunn, J. P.

2013-10-01

The Magnetized Shock Experiment (MSX) has been constructed to study the physics of super-Alfvènic, supercritical, magnetized shocks. Exhibiting transitional length and time scales much smaller than can be produced through collisional processes, these shocks are observed to create non-thermal distributions, amplify magnetic fields, and accelerate particles to relativistic velocities. Shocks are produced through the acceleration and subsequent stagnation of Field Reversed Configuration (FRC) plasmoids against a high-flux magnetic mirror with a conducting boundary or a plasma target with embedded field. Adjustable shock velocity, density, and magnetic geometry (B parallel, perpendicular, or oblique to k) provide unique access to a wide range of dimensionless parameters relevant to astrophysical shocks. Information regarding the experimental configuration, diagnostics suite, recent simulations, experimental results, and physics goals will be presented. This work is supported by DOE OFES and NNSA under LANS contract DE-AC52-06NA25369 Approved for Public Release: LA-UR-13-24859.

Interplanetary Circumstances of Quasi-Perpendicular Interplanetary Shocks in 1996-2005

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Richardson, I. G.; Cane, H. V.

2010-01-01

The angle (theta(sub Bn)) between the normal to an interplanetary shock front and the upstream magnetic field direction, though often thought of as a property "of the shock," is also determined by the configuration of the magnetic field immediately upstream of the shock. We investigate the interplanetary circumstances of 105 near-Earth quasi-perpendicular shocks during 1996-2005 identified by theta(sub Bn) greater than or equal to 80 degrees and/or by evidence of shock drift particle acceleration. Around 87% of these shocks were driven by interplanetary coronal mass ejections (ICMEs); the remainder were probably the forward shocks of corotating interaction regions. For around half of the shocks, the upstream field was approximately perpendicular to the radial direction, either east-west or west-east or highly inclined to the ecliptic. Such field directions will give quasi-perpendicular configurations for radially propagating shocks. Around 30% of the shocks were propagating through, or closely followed, ICMEs at the time of observation. Another quarter were propagating through the heliospheric plasma sheet (HPS), and a further quarter occurred in slow solar wind that did not have characteristics of the HPS. Around 11% were observed in high-speed streams, and 7% in the sheaths following other shocks. The fraction of shocks found in high-speed streams is around a third of that expected based on the fraction of the time when such streams were observed at Earth. Quasi-perpendicular shocks are found traveling through ICMEs around 2-3 times more frequently than expected. In addition, shocks propagating through ICMEs are more likely to have larger values of theta(sub Bn) than shocks outside ICMEs.

Energetic Electrons in Dipolarization Events: Spatial Properties and Anisotropy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Birn, J.; Runov, A.; Hesse, M.

2014-01-01

Using the electromagnetic fields of an MHD simulation of magnetotail reconnection, flow bursts, and dipolarization, we further investigate the acceleration of electrons to suprathermal energies. Particular emphasis is on spatial properties and anisotropies as functions of energy and time. The simulation results are compared with Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms observations. The test particle approach successfully reproduces several observed injection features and puts them into a context of spatial maps of the injection region(s): a dominance of perpendicular anisotropies farther down the tail and closer to the equatorial plane, an increasing importance of parallel anisotropy closer to Earth and at higher latitudes, a drop in energy fluxes at energies below approximately 10 keV, coinciding with the plasma density drop, together with increases at higher energy, a triple peak structure of flux increases near 0 deg, 90 deg, and 180 deg, and a tendency of flux increases to extend to higher energy closer to Earth and at lower latitudes. We identified the plasma sheet boundary layers and adjacent lobes as a main source region for both increased and decreased energetic electron fluxes, related to the different effects of adiabatic acceleration at high and low energies. The simulated anisotropies tend to exceed the observed ones, particularly for perpendicular fluxes at high energies. The most plausible reason is that the MHD simulation lacks the effects of anisotropy-driven microinstabilities and waves, which would reduce anisotropies.

The influence of non-Gaussian distribution functions on the time-dependent perpendicular transport of energetic particles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lasuik, J.; Shalchi, A.

2018-06-01

In the current paper we explore the influence of the assumed particle statistics on the transport of energetic particles across a mean magnetic field. In previous work the assumption of a Gaussian distribution function was standard, although there have been known cases for which the transport is non-Gaussian. In the present work we combine a kappa distribution with the ordinary differential equation provided by the so-called unified non-linear transport theory. We then compute running perpendicular diffusion coefficients for different values of κ and turbulence configurations. We show that changing the parameter κ slightly increases or decreases the perpendicular diffusion coefficient depending on the considered turbulence configuration. Since these changes are small, we conclude that the assumed statistics is less significant in particle transport theory. The results obtained in the current paper support to use a Gaussian distribution function as usually done in particle transport theory.

Preferential Heating and Acceleration of Heavy Ions in Impulsive Solar Flares

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kumar, Rahul; Gaspari, Massimo; Spitkovsky, Anatoly

2017-02-01

We simulate decaying turbulence in a homogeneous pair plasma using a three-dimensional electromagnetic particle-in-cell method. A uniform background magnetic field permeates the plasma such that the magnetic pressure is three times larger than the thermal pressure and the turbulence is generated by counter-propagating shear Alfvén waves. The energy predominately cascades transverse to the background magnetic field, rendering the turbulence anisotropic at smaller scales. We simultaneously move several ion species of varying charge to mass ratios in our simulation and show that the particles of smaller charge to mass ratios are heated and accelerated to non-thermal energies at a faster rate.more » This is in accordance with the enhancement of heavy ions and a non-thermal tail in their energy spectrum observed in the impulsive solar flares. We further show that the heavy ions are energized mostly in the direction perpendicular to the background magnetic field, with a rate consistent with our analytical estimate of the rate of heating due to cyclotron resonance with the Alfvén waves, of which a large fraction is due to obliquely propagating waves.« less

Transport, Acceleration and Spatial Access of Solar Energetic Particles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Borovikov, D.; Sokolov, I.; Effenberger, F.; Jin, M.; Gombosi, T. I.

2017-12-01

Solar Energetic Particles (SEPs) are a major branch of space weather. Often driven by Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs), SEPs have a very high destructive potential, which includes but is not limited to disrupting communication systems on Earth, inflicting harmful and potentially fatal radiation doses to crew members onboard spacecraft and, in extreme cases, to people aboard high altitude flights. However, currently the research community lacks efficient tools to predict such hazardous SEP events. Such a tool would serve as the first step towards improving humanity's preparedness for SEP events and ultimately its ability to mitigate their effects. The main goal of the presented research is to develop a computational tool that provides the said capabilities and meets the community's demand. Our model has the forecasting capability and can be the basis for operational system that will provide live information on the current potential threats posed by SEPs based on observations of the Sun. The tool comprises several numerical models, which are designed to simulate different physical aspects of SEPs. The background conditions in the interplanetary medium, in particular, the Coronal Mass Ejection driving the particle acceleration, play a defining role and are simulated with the state-of-the-art MHD solver, Block-Adaptive-Tree Solar-wind Roe-type Upwind Scheme (BATS-R-US). The newly developed particle code, Multiple-Field-Line-Advection Model for Particle Acceleration (M-FLAMPA), simulates the actual transport and acceleration of SEPs and is coupled to the MHD code. The special property of SEPs, the tendency to follow magnetic lines of force, is fully taken advantage of in the computational model, which substitutes a complicated 3-D model with a multitude of 1-D models. This approach significantly simplifies computations and improves the time performance of the overall model. Also, it plays an important role of mapping the affected region by connecting it with the origin of SEPs at the solar surface. Our model incorporates the effects of the near-Sun field line meandering that affects the perpendicular transport of SEPs and can explain the occurrence of large longitudinal spread observed even in the early phases of such events.

ANALYTIC FORMS OF THE PERPENDICULAR DIFFUSION COEFFICIENT IN NRMHD TURBULENCE

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Shalchi, A., E-mail: andreasm4@yahoo.com

2015-02-01

In the past different analytic limits for the perpendicular diffusion coefficient of energetic particles interacting with magnetic turbulence were discussed. These different limits or cases correspond to different transport modes describing how the particles are diffusing across the large-scale magnetic field. In the current paper we describe a new transport regime by considering the model of noisy reduced magnetohydrodynamic turbulence. We derive different analytic forms of the perpendicular diffusion coefficient, and while we do this, we focus on the aforementioned new transport mode. We show that for this turbulence model a small perpendicular diffusion coefficient can be obtained so thatmore » the latter diffusion coefficient is more than hundred times smaller than the parallel diffusion coefficient. This result is relevant to explain observations in the solar system where such small perpendicular diffusion coefficients have been reported.« less

Collisionless shock formation and the prompt acceleration of solar flare ions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cargill, P. J.; Goodrich, C. C.; Vlahos, L.

1988-01-01

The formation mechanisms of collisionless shocks in solar flare plasmas are investigated. The priamry flare energy release is assumed to arise in the coronal portion of a flare loop as many small regions or 'hot spots' where the plasma beta locally exceeds unity. One dimensional hybrid numerical simulations show that the expansion of these 'hot spots' in a direction either perpendicular or oblique to the ambient magnetic field gives rise to collisionless shocks in a few Omega(i), where Omega(i) is the local ion cyclotron frequency. For solar parameters, this is less than 1 second. The local shocks are then subsequently able to accelerate particles to 10 MeV in less than 1 second by a combined drift-diffusive process. The formation mechanism may also give rise to energetic ions of 100 keV in the shock vicinity. The presence of these energetic ions is due either to ion heating or ion beam instabilities and they may act as a seed population for further acceleration. The prompt acceleration of ions inferred from the Gamma Ray Spectrometer on the Solar Maximum Mission can thus be explained by this mechanism.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Loznikov, V. M., E-mail: loznikov@yandex.ru; Erokhin, N. S., E-mail: nerokhin@mx.iki.rssi.ru; Zol’nikova, N. N.

A three-component phenomenological model for the description of specific features of spectra of cosmic-ray protons and helium nuclei in the hardness range from 30 to 2 × 10{sup 5} GV is proposed. The first component corresponds to the constant background; the second component, to a variable “soft” (30–500 GV) heliospheric source; and the third component, to a variable “hard” (0.5–200 TV) galactic source inside a local bubble. The corresponding “surfatron accelerators” are responsible for the existence and variability of both sources. In order for such accelerators to operate, there should be an extended area with a nearly uniform and constantmore » (in both the magnitude and direction) magnetic field and electromagnetic waves propagating perpendicular (or obliquely) to it. The dimensions of each source determine the maximum energy to which cosmic rays can be accelerated. The soft source with a size of ∼100 au lies at the periphery of the heliosphere, beyond the terminal shock, while the hard source with a size of >0.1 pc is located near the boundary of a local interstellar cloud at a distance of ∼0.01 pc from the Sun. A kink in the hardness spectra of p and He (near the hardness of about 230 GV) is caused by the variability of physical conditions in the acceleration region and depends on the relation between the amplitudes and power-law indices of the background, the soft heliospheric source, and the nearby hard galactic source. Ultrarelativistic acceleration of p and He in space plasma by an electromagnetic wave propagating perpendicular to the external magnetic field is investigated using numerical calculations. The conditions for particle trapping by the wave, as well as the dynamics of the velocity and momentum components, are analyzed. The calculations show that, in contrast to electrons and positrons (e{sup +}), a trapped proton can escape from the effective potential well after a relatively short time, thereby terminating to accelerate. Such an effect gives rise to softer spectra of p and He sources as compared to those of e{sup +}. The possibility of deviation of the spectra of accelerated protons from standard power-law dependences due to the surfatron mechanism is discussed.« less

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Nakanotani, Masaru; Matsukiyo, Shuichi; Hada, Tohru

A shock–shock interaction is investigated by using a one-dimensional full particle-in-cell simulation. The simulation reproduces the collision of two symmetrical high Mach number quasi-perpendicular shocks. The basic structure of the shocks and ion dynamics is similar to that obtained by previous hybrid simulations. The new aspects obtained here are as follows. Electrons are already strongly accelerated before the two shocks collide through multiple reflection. The reflected electrons self-generate waves upstream between the two shocks before they collide. The waves far upstream are generated through the right-hand resonant instability with the anomalous Doppler effect. The waves generated near the shock aremore » due to firehose instability and have much larger amplitudes than those due to the resonant instability. The high-energy electrons are efficiently scattered by the waves so that some of them gain large pitch angles. Those electrons can be easily reflected at the shock of the other side. The accelerated electrons form a power-law energy spectrum. Due to the accelerated electrons, the pressure of upstream electrons increases with time. This appears to cause the deceleration of the approaching shock speed. The accelerated electrons having sufficiently large Larmor radii are further accelerated through the similar mechanism working for ions when the two shocks are colliding.« less

a Study of Ion Acceleration at Rocket Altitudes and Development and Calibration of Pitch Angle Imaging Charged Particle Detectors.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Garbe, Gregory Paul

1990-01-01

Data obtained from the January 1988 flight of the Topaz 2 sounding rocket will be presented. It has been found that four types of ion populations were observed during this flight. During the early portions of the upleg and late portions of the downleg numerical fits of the plasma will be compared with in-situ data to show the Maxwellian behavior and derived plasma parameters. Throughout the middle portion of the flight superthermal tails (ion conics) were observed and are modeled using a bi-Maxwellian distribution function from which T_{rm perp } and T_{rm par} can be derived. Two other ion populations were observed in the most intense auroral arcs. Transverse accelerated ions (TAI) were observed continuously in these arcs. The individual TAI events were found to have spatial/temporal scales on the order of the analyzer resolution ( ~1 sec). The characteristic perpendicular energy of the TAI reached as high as 7 eV compared to 1 eV during non-TAI times. High-energy tails have also been observed during TAI events and have perpendicular temperatures in the hundreds of eV. The second ion population found in the arcs of high energy electron precipitation is a cold downflowing population. The typical streaming velocity for this population is 2 km/s. A correlation between the high energy auroral electron precipitation, observed electrostatic oxygen cyclotron waves, cold down flowing ions and the TAI will be presented. Preparation and calibration of the instruments for NASA flight 35.020 will also be presented. As part of NASA flight 35.020, an upgrade of the calibration facility was performed. The calibration facility project included the designing and implementation of a photoelectric electron gun and an electron impact ion gun. The characteristics of these two particle sources will be discussed. A procedure for the coating of electrostatic charged particle analyzers with metal blacks were devised and will be presented. Finally, the results of the calibration tests of the instruments flown on flight 35.020 will be shown.

Snake states and their symmetries in graphene

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tiwari, Rakesh; Liu, Yang; Brada, Matej; Bruder, C.; Kusmartsev, F. V.; Mele, E. J.

Snake states are open trajectories for charged particles moving in two dimensions under the influence of a spatially varying perpendicular magnetic field. They can also occur in a constant perpendicular magnetic field when the particle density is made nonuniform as realized at a pn junction in a semiconductor, or in graphene. We examine the correspondence of such trajectories in monolayer graphene in the quantum limit for two families of domain walls: (a) a uniform doped carrier density in an antisymmetric perpendicular magnetic field and (b) antisymmetric carrier density distribution in a uniform perpendicular magnetic field. Although, these families support different internal symmetries, the pattern of the boundary and interface currents is the same in both cases. We demonstrate that these two physically different situations are gauge equivalent when rewritten in a Nambu doubled formulation of the two limiting problems. Using gauge transformations in particle-hole space to connect these two problems, we map the protected interfacial modes to the Bogoliubov quasiparticles of an interfacial one-dimensional p-wave paired state.

Direct Measurements of Energy Transfer between Hot Protons and He+ via EMIC Waves Observed by MMS in the Outer Magnetosphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kitamura, N.; Kitahara, M.; Shoji, M.; Miyoshi, Y.; Hasegawa, H.; Nakamura, S.; Katoh, Y.; Saito, Y.; Yokota, S.; Gershman, D. J.; Vinas, A. F.; Giles, B. L.; Moore, T. E.; Paterson, W.; Pollock, C. J.; Russell, C. T.; Strangeway, R. J.; Fuselier, S. A.; Burch, J. L.

2017-12-01

Wave-particle interactions have been suggested to play a crucial role in energy transfer in collisionless space plasmas in which the motion of charged particles is controlled by electromagnetic fields. Using an electromagnetic ion cyclotron (EMIC) wave event observed by MMS, we investigate energy transfer between ions and EMIC waves via cyclotron type interactions. To directly detect energy exchange between ions and EMIC waves, we apply the Wave-Particle Interaction Analyzer (WPIA) method that is to calculate the dot product between the wave electric field (Ewave) and ion current perpendicular to the background magnetic field (j). In the cases of resonance, this current is called the resonant current. Near the beginning of the wave event, 15-second averages of j • Ewave reached -0.3 pW/m3 for ions with energies of 14-30 keV and pitch angles of 33.25°-78.75°. The negative value in this pitch angle range indicates that the perpendicular energy of ions was being transferred to the EMIC waves propagating toward Southern higher latitudes at the MMS location by cyclotron resonance. Ion data show non-gyrotropic distributions around the resonance velocity, and that is consistent with the nonlinear trapping of protons by the wave and formation of an electromagnetic proton hole. Near the beginning of the same wave event, strongly phase bunched He+ up to 2 keV with pitch angles slightly larger than 90° were also detected. A positive j • Ewave for the phase bunched He+ indicates that the He+ was being accelerated by the electric field of the EMIC waves. The observed feature of He+ ions is consistent with non-resonant interaction with the wave but is inconsistent with cyclotron resonance. Significantly non-gyrotropic distributions observed in this event demonstrate that different particle populations can strongly couple through wave-particle interactions in the collisionless plasma.

Electron heating in quasi-perpendicular shocks - A Monte Carlo simulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Veltri, Pierluigi; Mangeney, Andre; Scudder, Jack D.

1990-01-01

To study the problem of electron heating in quasi-perpendicular shocks, under the combined effects of 'reversible' motion, in the shock electric potential and magnetic field, and wave-particle interactions a diffusion equation was derived, in the drift (adiabatic) approximation and it was solved by using a Monte Carlo method. The results show that most of the observations can be explained within this framework. The simulation has also definitively shown that the electron parallel temperature is determined by the dc electromagnetic field and not by any wave particle induced heating. Wave-particle interactions are effective in smoothing out the large gradients in phase space produced by the 'reversible' motion of the electrons, thus producing a 'cooling' of the electrons. Some constraints on the wave-particle interaction process may be obtained from a detailed comparison between the simulation and observations. In particular, it appears that the adiabatic approximation must be violated in order to explain the observed evolution of the perpendicular temperature.

Modeling of non-stationary local response on impurity penetration in plasma

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tokar, M. Z.; Koltunov, M.

2012-04-01

In fusion devices, strongly localized intensive sources of impurities may arise unexpectedly, e.g., if the wall is excessively demolished by hot plasma particles, or can be created deliberately through impurity seeding. The spreading of impurities from such sources both along and perpendicular to the magnetic field is affected by coulomb collisions with background particles, ionization, acceleration by electric field, etc. Simultaneously, the plasma itself can be significantly disturbed by these interactions. To describe self-consistently the impurity spreading process and the plasma response, three-dimensional fluid equations for the particle, parallel momentum, and energy balances of various plasma components are solved by reducing them to ordinary differential equations for the time evolution of several parameters characterizing the solutions in principal details: the maximum densities of impurity ions of different charges, the dimensions both along and across the magnetic field of the shells occupied by these particles, the characteristic temperatures of all plasma components, and the densities of the main ions and electrons in different shells. The results of modeling for penetration of lithium singly charged particles in tokamak edge plasma are presented. A new mechanism for the condensation phenomenon and formation of cold dense plasma structures, implying an outstanding role of coulomb collisions between main and impurity ions, is proposed.

Observations of electron vortex magnetic holes and related wave-particle interactions in the turbulent magnetosheath

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, S.; Sahraoui, F.; Yuan, Z.; He, J.; Zhao, J.; Du, J.; Le Contel, O.; Wang, X.; Deng, X.; Fu, H.; Zhou, M.; Shi, Q.; Breuillard, H.; Pang, Y.; Yu, X.; Wang, D.

2017-12-01

Magnetic hole is characterized by a magnetic depression, a density peak, a total electron temperature increase (with a parallel temperature decrease but a perpendicular temperature increase), and strong currents carried by the electrons. The current has a dip in the core region of the magnetic hole and a peak in the outer region of the magnetic hole. There is an enhancement in the perpendicular electron fluxes at 90° pitch angles inside the magnetic hole, implying that the electrons are trapped within it. The variations of the electron velocity components Vem and Ven suggest that an electron vortex is formed by trapping electrons inside the magnetic hole in the circular cross-section. These observations demonstrate the existence of a new type of coherent structures behaving as an electron vortex magnetic hole in turbulent space plasmas as predicted by recent kinetic simulations. We perform a statistically study using high time solution data from the MMS mission. The magnetic holes with short duration (i.e., < 0.5 s) have their cross section smaller than the ion gyro-radius. Superposed epoch analysis of all events reveals that an increase in the electron density and total temperature, significantly increase (resp. decrease) the electron perpendicular (resp. parallel) temperature, and an electron vortex inside the holes. Electron fluxes at 90° pitch angles with selective energies increase in the KSMHs, are trapped inside KSMHs and form the electron vortex due to their collective motion. All these features are consistent with the electron vortex magnetic holes obtained in 2D and 3D particle-in-cell simulations, indicating that the observed the magnetic holes seem to be best explained as electron vortex magnetic holes. It is furthermore shown that the magnetic holes are likely to heat and accelerate the electrons. We also investigate the coupling between whistler waves and electron vortex magnetic holes. These whistler waves can be locally generated inside electron vortex magnetic holes by electron temperature anisotropic instability.

Heating of Solar Wind Ions via Cyclotron Resonance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Navarro, R.; Moya, P. S.; Figueroa-Vinas, A.; Munoz, V.; Valdivia, J. A.

2017-12-01

Remote and in situ observations in the solar wind show that ion and electron velocity distributions persistently deviate from thermal equilibrium in the form of relative streaming between species components, temperature anisotropy, etc. These non-thermal features represent a source of free energy for the excitation of kinetic instabilities and fluctuations in the plasma. In this regard, it is believed that plasma particles can be heated, through a second order Fermi acceleration process, by multiple resonances with unstable counter-propagating field-aligned Ion-cyclotron waves. For multi-species plasmas, several collective wave modes participate in this process. In this work, we test this model by studying the percentage of ions that resonate with the waves modes described by the proper kinetic multi-species dispersion relation in a solar-wind-like plasma composed of electrons, protons, and alpha particles. Numerical results are compared with WIND spacecraft data to test its relevance for the existence of thresholds for the preferential perpendicular heating of He+2 ions as observed in the solar wind fast streams.

Observations of Solar Energetic Particles from 3He-rich Events over a Wide Range of Heliographic Longitude

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wiedenbeck, M. E.; Mason, G. M.; Cohen, C. M. S.; Nitta, N. V.; Gómez-Herrero, R.; Haggerty, D. K.

2013-01-01

A prevailing model for the origin of 3He-rich solar energetic particle (SEP) events attributes particle acceleration to processes associated with the reconnection between closed magnetic field lines in an active region and neighboring open field lines. The open field from the small reconnection volume then provides a path along which accelerated particles escape into a relatively narrow range of angles in the heliosphere. The narrow width (standard deviation <20°) of the distribution of X-ray flare longitudes found to be associated with 3He-rich SEP events detected at a single spacecraft at 1 AU supports this model. We report multispacecraft observations of individual 3He-rich SEP events that occurred during the solar minimum time period from 2007 January through 2011 January using instrumentation carried by the two Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory spacecraft and the Advanced Composition Explorer. We find that detections of 3He-rich events at pairs of spacecraft are not uncommon, even when their longitudinal separation is >60°. We present the observations of the 3He-rich event of 2010 February 7, which was detected at all three spacecraft when they spanned 136° in heliographic longitude. Measured fluences of 3He in this event were found to have a strong dependence on longitude which is well fit by a Gaussian with standard deviation ~48° centered at the longitude that is connected to the source region by a nominal Parker spiral magnetic field. We discuss several mechanisms for distributing flare-accelerated particles over a wide range of heliographic longitudes including interplanetary diffusion perpendicular to the magnetic field, spreading of a compact cluster of open field lines between the active region and the source surface where the field becomes radial and opens out into the heliosphere, and distortion of the interplanetary field by a preceding coronal mass ejection. Statistical studies of additional 3He-rich events detected at multiple spacecraft will be needed to establish the relative importance of the various mechanisms.

Ion acceleration by multiple reflections at Martian bow shock

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yamauchi, M.; Futaana, Y.; Fedorov, A.; Frahm, R. A.; Dubinin, E.; Lundin, R.; Sauvaud, J.-A.; Winningham, J. D.; Barabash, S.; Holmström, M.

2012-02-01

The ion mass analyzer (IMA) on board Mars Express revealed bundled structures of ions in the energy domain within a distance of a proton gyroradius from the Martian bow shock. Seven prominent traversals during 2005 were examined when the energy-bunched structure was observed together with pick-up ions of exospheric origin, the latter of which is used to determine the local magnetic field orientation from its circular trajectory in velocity space. These seven traversals include different bow shock configurations: (a) quasi-perpendicular shock with its specular direction of the solar wind more perpendicular to the magnetic field (QT), (b) quasi-perpendicular shock with its specular reflection direction of the solar wind more along the magnetic field (FS), and (c) quasi-parallel (QL) shock. In all seven cases, the velocity components of the energy-bunched structure are consistent with multiple specular reflections of the solar wind at the bow shock up to at least two reflections. The accelerated solar wind ions after two specular reflections have large parallel components with respect to the magnetic field for both QL cases whereas the field-aligned speed is much smaller than the perpendicular speed for all QT cases.

A Perpendicular Biased 2nd Harmonic Cavity for the Fermilab Booster

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tan, C. Y.; Dey, J.; Madrak, R. L.

2015-07-13

A perpendicular biased 2nd harmonic cavity is currently being designed for the Fermilab Booster. Its purpose cavity is to flatten the bucket at injection and thus change the longitudinal beam distribution so that space charge effects are decreased. It can also with transition crossing. The reason for the choice of perpendicular biasing over parallel biasing is that the Q of the cavity is much higher and thus allows the accelerating voltage to be a factor of two higher than a similar parallel biased cavity. This cavity will also provide a higher accelerating voltage per meter than the present folded transmissionmore » line cavity. However, this type of cavity presents technical challenges that need to be addressed. The two major issues are cooling of the garnet material from the effects of the RF and the cavity itself from eddy current heating because of the 15 Hz bias field ramp. This paper will address the technical challenge of preventing the garnet from overheating.« less

Radial evolution of ion distribution functions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Marsch, E.

1983-01-01

A survey of solar wind ion velocity distributions and derived parameters (temperature, ion differential speed, heat flux, adiabatic invariants) is presented with emphasis on the heliocentric distance range between 0.3 and 1 AU traversed by the Helios solar probe. The radial evolution of nonthermal features are discussed which are observed to be most pronounced at perihelion. Within the framework of quasilinear plasma theory, wave particle interactions that may shape the ion distributions are considered. Some results of a self consistent model calculation are presented accounting for ion acceleration and heating by resonant momentum and energy exchange with ion cyclotron and magnetosonic waves propagating away from the Sun along the interplanetary magnetic field. Another tentative explanation for the occurrence of large perpendicular proton temperatures is offered in terms of heating by Landau damping of lower hybrid waves.

Precipitation and Release of Solar Energetic Particles from the Solar Coronal Magnetic Field

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zhang, Ming; Zhao, Lulu, E-mail: mzhang@fit.edu

Most solar energetic particles (SEPs) are produced in the corona. They propagate through complex coronal magnetic fields subject to scattering and diffusion across the averaged field lines by turbulence. We examine the behaviors of particle transport using a stochastic 3D focused transport simulation in a potential field source surface model of coronal magnetic field. The model is applied to an SEP event on 2010 February 7. We study three scenarios of particle injection at (i) the compact solar flare site, (ii) the coronal mass ejection (CME) shock, and (iii) the EUV wave near the surface. The majority of particles injectedmore » on open field lines are able to escape the corona. We found that none of our models can explain the observations of wide longitudinal SEP spread without perpendicular diffusion. If the perpendicular diffusion is about 10% of what is derived from the random walk of field lines at the rate of supergranular diffusion, particles injected at the compact solar flare site can spread to a wide range of longitude and latitude, very similar to the behavior of particles injected at a large CME shock. Stronger pitch-angle scattering results in a little more lateral spread by holding the particles in the corona for longer periods of time. Some injected particles eventually end up precipitating onto the solar surface. Even with a very small perpendicular diffusion, the pattern of the particle precipitation can be quite complicated depending on the detailed small-scale coronal magnetic field structures, which could be seen with future sensitive gamma-ray telescopes.« less

Precipitation and Release of Solar Energetic Particles from the Solar Coronal Magnetic Field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Ming; Zhao, Lulu

2017-09-01

Most solar energetic particles (SEPs) are produced in the corona. They propagate through complex coronal magnetic fields subject to scattering and diffusion across the averaged field lines by turbulence. We examine the behaviors of particle transport using a stochastic 3D focused transport simulation in a potential field source surface model of coronal magnetic field. The model is applied to an SEP event on 2010 February 7. We study three scenarios of particle injection at (I) the compact solar flare site, (II) the coronal mass ejection (CME) shock, and (III) the EUV wave near the surface. The majority of particles injected on open field lines are able to escape the corona. We found that none of our models can explain the observations of wide longitudinal SEP spread without perpendicular diffusion. If the perpendicular diffusion is about 10% of what is derived from the random walk of field lines at the rate of supergranular diffusion, particles injected at the compact solar flare site can spread to a wide range of longitude and latitude, very similar to the behavior of particles injected at a large CME shock. Stronger pitch-angle scattering results in a little more lateral spread by holding the particles in the corona for longer periods of time. Some injected particles eventually end up precipitating onto the solar surface. Even with a very small perpendicular diffusion, the pattern of the particle precipitation can be quite complicated depending on the detailed small-scale coronal magnetic field structures, which could be seen with future sensitive gamma-ray telescopes.

MOLECULAR DESORPTION OF BAKED STAINLESS STEEL FROM IRRADIATION WITH 9 GeV/NUCLEON Au79+, 10 GeV/NUCLEON Cu29+, AND 23GeV p+ UNDER PERPENDICULAR IMPACT.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

FISCHER,W.; IRISO, U.; MUSTAFIN, E.

We report on molecular desorption of baked stainless steel from irradiation with high energy ions under perpendicular impact. Ion induced molecular desorption has affected the performance of a number of ion accelerators, in which the beam loss typically occurs under small angles. However, experimental parameters can be easier controlled in measurements with perpendicular impact. Desorption coefficients for small angle impact can be estimated from these measurements. The measurements were carried out at Brookhaven's Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider.

Jogging on a Carousel

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wilson, Alpha E.

2011-01-01

To jog around the periphery of a carousel at rest requires that the jogger experience a constant state of acceleration perpendicular to the direction of motion and directed toward the axis of rotation (centripetal). The jogger could achieve this centripetal acceleration by leaning inward, thereby using a horizontal weight component to provide the…

Injection of κ-like suprathermal particles into diffusive shock acceleration

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kang, Hyesung; Petrosian, Vahé; Ryu, Dongsu

2014-06-20

We consider a phenomenological model for the thermal leakage injection in the diffusive shock acceleration (DSA) process, in which suprathermal protons and electrons near the shock transition zone are assumed to have the so-called κ-distributions produced by interactions of background thermal particles with pre-existing and/or self-excited plasma/MHD waves or turbulence. The κ-distribution has a power-law tail, instead of an exponential cutoff, well above the thermal peak momentum. So there are a larger number of potential seed particles with momentum, above that required for participation in the DSA process. As a result, the injection fraction for the κ-distribution depends on themore » shock Mach number much less severely compared to that for the Maxwellian distribution. Thus, the existence of κ-like suprathermal tails at shocks would ease the problem of extremely low injection fractions, especially for electrons and especially at weak shocks such as those found in the intracluster medium. We suggest that the injection fraction for protons ranges 10{sup –4}-10{sup –3} for a κ-distribution with 10 ≲ κ {sub p} ≲ 30 at quasi-parallel shocks, while the injection fraction for electrons becomes 10{sup –6}-10{sup –5} for a κ-distribution with κ {sub e} ≲ 2 at quasi-perpendicular shocks. For such κ values the ratio of cosmic ray (CR) electrons to protons naturally becomes K {sub e/p} ∼ 10{sup –3}-10{sup –2}, which is required to explain the observed ratio for Galactic CRs.« less

Evolution of relative drifts and temperature anisotropies in expanding collisionless plasmas—1.5D vs. 2.5D hybrid simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maneva, Y. G.; Poedts, S.; Araneda, J. A.

2016-02-01

We compare the results from 1.5D and 2.5D hybrid simulations (with fluid electrons, and kinetic/particle-in-cell protons and α particles) to investigate the effect of the solar wind expansion on the evolution of ion relative drifts in collisionless fast wind streams. We initialize the system with initial relative drifts and follow its evolution in time within and without the expanding box model, which takes into account the gradual solar wind expansion in the interplanetary medium. The decay of the differential streaming follows similar pattern in the 1.5D and 2.5D non-expanding cases. For the 1.5D studies we find no difference in the evolution of the initial relative drift speed with and without expansion, whereas in the two-dimensional case the differential streaming is further suppressed once the solar wind expansion is taken into account. This implies that a stronger acceleration source is required to compensate for the effect of the expansion and produce the observed solar wind acceleration rate. The 1.5D case shows stronger oscillations in all plasma properties with higher temperature anisotropies for the minor ions in the first few hundred gyro-periods of the simulations. Yet the preferential perpendicular heating for the minor ions is stronger in the 2.5D case with higher temperature anisotropies at the final stage.

Particle-in-cell simulation study of a lower-hybrid shock

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dieckmann, M. E.; Ynnerman, A.; Sarri, G.

2016-06-15

The expansion of a magnetized high-pressure plasma into a low-pressure ambient medium is examined with particle-in-cell simulations. The magnetic field points perpendicular to the plasma's expansion direction and binary collisions between particles are absent. The expanding plasma steepens into a quasi-electrostatic shock that is sustained by the lower-hybrid (LH) wave. The ambipolar electric field points in the expansion direction and it induces together with the background magnetic field a fast E cross B drift of electrons. The drifting electrons modify the background magnetic field, resulting in its pile-up by the LH shock. The magnetic pressure gradient force accelerates the ambientmore » ions ahead of the LH shock, reducing the relative velocity between the ambient plasma and the LH shock to about the phase speed of the shocked LH wave, transforming the LH shock into a nonlinear LH wave. The oscillations of the electrostatic potential have a larger amplitude and wavelength in the magnetized plasma than in an unmagnetized one with otherwise identical conditions. The energy loss to the drifting electrons leads to a noticeable slowdown of the LH shock compared to that in an unmagnetized plasma.« less

ION ACCELERATION AT THE QUASI-PARALLEL BOW SHOCK: DECODING THE SIGNATURE OF INJECTION

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sundberg, Torbjörn; Haynes, Christopher T.; Burgess, D.

Collisionless shocks are efficient particle accelerators. At Earth, ions with energies exceeding 100 keV are seen upstream of the bow shock when the magnetic geometry is quasi-parallel, and large-scale supernova remnant shocks can accelerate ions into cosmic-ray energies. This energization is attributed to diffusive shock acceleration; however, for this process to become active, the ions must first be sufficiently energized. How and where this initial acceleration takes place has been one of the key unresolved issues in shock acceleration theory. Using Cluster spacecraft observations, we study the signatures of ion reflection events in the turbulent transition layer upstream of the terrestrial bowmore » shock, and with the support of a hybrid simulation of the shock, we show that these reflection signatures are characteristic of the first step in the ion injection process. These reflection events develop in particular in the region where the trailing edge of large-amplitude upstream waves intercept the local shock ramp and the upstream magnetic field changes from quasi-perpendicular to quasi-parallel. The dispersed ion velocity signature observed can be attributed to a rapid succession of ion reflections at this wave boundary. After the ions’ initial interaction with the shock, they flow upstream along the quasi-parallel magnetic field. Each subsequent wavefront in the upstream region will sweep the ions back toward the shock, where they gain energy with each transition between the upstream and the shock wave frames. Within three to five gyroperiods, some ions have gained enough parallel velocity to escape upstream, thus completing the injection process.« less

One DOF mechanism for the mechanical harvest of vines in an arbor structure and the validation of the acceleration of grape berry harvesting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Penisi, Osvaldo; Bocca, José; Aguilar, Horacio; Bocca, Pedro

2015-09-01

In the mechanized harvest of vines, grape berries are detached through the vibration to the structure supporting the clusters. According to the kind of guide selected, the clusters require one or two vibration directions in the structure. For guiding in parral structures, vibration is necessary in two directions or planes: One perpendicular to the other. The guide branches producing the clusters develop in these planes, and the guiding is called H-guiding. Mechanism theory indicates that a mechanism has as many degrees of freedom as its actuators, and an actuator is needed to achieve a certain vibration. Having the smallest number of possible actuators is beneficial in reducing moving parts and achieving more compact and easily controllable mechanisms. In this case, a single degree-of-freedom mechanism is proposed. It is capable of generating vibrations on two planes: One perpendicular to the other. This mechanism is the sum of two link mechanisms on perpendicular planes with a common outlet located at the output rod of the mechanism where the actuator is found. As the distance between the soil and the elements containing the clusters is not constant, a system has been designed to measure the accelerations at the bars and the rocker to validate the acceleration values that detach the grape berries in a prototype in a lab experiment, to ensure that the acceleration needed for pulling the grape berries are produced at any contact point of the bar.

Quantum parameter estimation in the Unruh–DeWitt detector model

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hao, Xiang, E-mail: xhao@phas.ubc.ca; Pacific Institute of Theoretical Physics, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of British Columbia, 6224 Agriculture Rd., Vancouver B.C., Canada V6T 1Z1; Wu, Yinzhong

2016-09-15

Relativistic effects on the precision of quantum metrology for particle detectors, such as two-level atoms are studied. The quantum Fisher information is used to estimate the phase sensitivity of atoms in non-inertial motions or in gravitational fields. The Unruh–DeWitt model is applicable to the investigation of the dynamics of a uniformly accelerated atom weakly coupled to a massless scalar vacuum field. When a measuring device is in the same relativistic motion as the atom, the dynamical behavior of quantum Fisher information as a function of Rindler proper time is obtained. It is found out that monotonic decrease in phase sensitivitymore » is characteristic of dynamics of relativistic quantum estimation. The origin of the decay of quantum Fisher information is the thermal bath that the accelerated detector finds itself in due to the Unruh effect. To improve relativistic quantum metrology, we reasonably take into account two reflecting plane boundaries perpendicular to each other. The presence of the reflecting boundary can shield the detector from the thermal bath in some sense.« less

Observations of Electromagnetic Whistler Precursors at Supercritical Interplanetary Shocks

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wilson, L. B., III; Koval, A.; Szabo, Adam; Breneman, A.; Cattell, C. A.; Goetz, K.; Kellogg, P. J.; Kersten, K.; Kasper, J. C.; Maruca, B. A.;

Tuner of a Second Harmonic Cavity of the Fermilab Booster

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Terechkine, I.; Duel, K.; Madrak, R.

2015-05-17

Introducing a second harmonic cavity in the accelerating system of the Fermilab Booster promises significant reduc-tion of the particle beam loss during the injection, transi-tion, and extraction stages. To follow the changing energy of the beam during acceleration cycles, the cavity is equipped with a tuner that employs perpendicularly biased AL800 garnet material as the frequency tuning media. The required tuning range of the cavity is from 75.73 MHz at injection to 105.64 MHz at extraction. This large range ne-cessitates the use of a relatively low bias magnetic field at injection, which could lead to high RF loss power densitymore » in the garnet, or a strong bias magnetic field at extraction, which could result in high power consumption in the tuner’s bias magnet. The required 15 Hz repetition rate of the device and high sensitivity of the local RF power loss to the level of the magnetic field added to the challenges of the bias system design. In this report, the main features of a proposed prototype of the second harmonic cavity tuner are presented.« less

Magnetized Collisionless Shock Studies Using High Velocity Plasmoids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weber, Thomas; Intrator, T.

2013-04-01

Magnetized collisionless shocks are ubiquitous throughout the cosmos and are observed to accelerate particles to relativistic velocities, amplify magnetic fields, transport energy, and create non-thermal distributions. They exhibit transitional scale lengths much shorter than the collisional mean free path and are mediated by collective interactions rather than Coulomb collisions. The Magnetized Shock Experiment (MSX) leverages advances in Field Reversed Configuration (FRC) plasmoid formation and acceleration to produce highly supersonic and super-Alfvénic supercritical shocks with pre-existing magnetic field at perpendicular, parallel or oblique angles to the direction of propagation. Adjustable shock speed, density, and magnetic field provide unique access to a range of parameter space relevant to a variety of naturally occurring shocks. This effort examines experimentally, analytically, and numerically the physics of collisionless shock formation, structure, and kinetic effects in a laboratory setting and draw comparisons between experimental data and astronomical observations. Supported by DOE Office of Fusion Energy Sciences and National Nuclear Security Administration under LANS contract DE-AC52-06NA25369 Approved for Public Release: LA-UR-12-22886

USPAS | U.S. Particle Accelerator School

Science.gov Websites

U.S. Particle Accelerator School U.S. Particle Accelerator School U.S. Particle Accelerator School U.S. Particle Accelerator School Education in Beam Physics and Accelerator Technology Home About About University Credits Joint International Accelerator School University-Style Programs Symposium-Style Programs

Application of magnetically insulated transmission lines for high current, high voltage electron beam accelerators

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shope, S. L.; Mazarakis, M. G.; Frost, C. A.; Poukey, J. W.; Turman, B. N.

Self Magnetically Insulated Transmission Lines (MITL) adders were used successfully in a number of Sandia accelerators such as HELIA, HERMES III, and SABRE. Most recently we used at MITL adder in the RADLAC/SMILE electron beam accelerator to produce high quality, small radius (r(sub rho) less than 2 cm), 11 - 15 MeV, 50 - 100-kA beams with a small transverse velocity v(perpendicular)/c = beta(perpendicular) less than or equal to 0.1. In RADLAC/SMILE, a coaxial MITL passed through the eight, 2 MV vacuum envelopes. The MITL summed the voltages of all eight feeds to a single foilless diode. The experimental results are in good agreement with code simulations. Our success with the MITL technology led us to investigate the application to higher energy accelerator designs. We have a conceptual design for a cavity-fed MITL that sums the voltages from 100 identical, inductively-isolated cavities. Each cavity is a toroidal structure that is driven simultaneously by four 8-ohm pulse-forming lines, providing a 1-MV voltage pulse to each of the 100 cavities. The point design accelerator is 100 MV, 500 kA, with a 30 - 50 ns FWHM output pulse.

First observations and simulations of specularly reflected He++ at Earth's quasi-perpendicular bow shock

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Broll, J. M.; Fuselier, S. A.; Trattner, K. J.; Giles, B. L.; Anderson, B. J.; Burch, J. L.

2017-12-01

Proton specular reflection at quasi-perpendicular shocks provides dissipation in cases where the upstream Mach number is too high for fluid dissipation mechanisms alone - as is almost always the case at Earth's bow shock. Some evidence of He++ specular reflection was found in reduced particle distributions measured by previous spacecraft at the bow shock. However, due to resolution constraints it was not possible to confirm that the bow shock was capable of reflecting solar wind He++. We present MMS observations of quasi-perpendicular bow shock crossing that are consistent with He++ specular reflection. These observations are supported by 1D particle-in- cell simulations demonstrating that a small amount of He++ can be turned back despite having twice the mass-per-charge of the protons.

Acceleration of polarized protons to 22 GeV/c and the measurement of spin-spin effects in p/sub up-arrow/+p/sub up-arrow/. -->. p+p

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Khiari, F.Z.; Cameron, P.R.; Court, G.R.

1989-01-01

Accelerating polarized protons to 22 GeV/c at the Brookhaven Alternating Gradient Synchro- tron required both extensive hardware modifications and a difficult commissioning process. We had to overcome 45 strong depolarizing resonances to maintain polarization up to 22 GeV/c in this strong-focusing synchrotron. At 18.5 GeV/c we measured the analyzing power A and the spin-spin correlation parameter A/sub n//sub n/ in large- P/sub perpendicular//sup 2/ proton-proton elastic scattering, using the polarized proton beam and a polarized proton target. We also obtained a high-precision measurement of A at P/sub perpendicular//sup 2/ = 0.3 (GeV/c)/sup 2/ at 13.3 GeV/c. At 18.5 GeV/c wemore » found that A/sub n//sub n/ = (-2 +- 16)% at P/sub perpendicular//sup 2/ = 4.7 (GeV/c)/sup 2/, where it was about 60% near 12 GeV at the Argonne Zero Gradient Synchrotron. This sharp change suggests that spin-spin forces may have a strong and unexpected energy dependence at high P/sub perpendicular//sup 2/.« less

Ion Acceleration by Multiple Reflections at Martian Bow Shock

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yamauchi, M.; Futaana, Y.; Fedorov, A.; Frahm, R. A.; Dubinin, E.; Lundin, R.; Sauvaud, J.-A.; Winningham, J. D.; Barabash, S.; Holmström, H.

2012-04-01

The ion mass analyzer (IMA) on board Mars Express revealed bundled structures of ions in the energy domain within a distance of a proton gyroradius from the Martian bow shock. Seven prominent traversals during 2005 were examined when the energy-bunched structure was observed together with pick-up ions of exospheric origin, the latter of which is used to determine the local magnetic field orientation from its circular trajectory in velocity space. These seven traversals include different bow shock configurations: (a) quasi-perpendicular shock with its specular direction of the solar wind more perpendicular to the magnetic field (QT), (b) quasi-perpendicular shock with its specular reflection direction of the solar wind more along the magnetic field (FS), and (c) quasi-parallel (QL) shock. In all seven cases, the velocity components of the energy-bunched structure are consistent with multiple specular reflections of the solar wind at the bow shock up to at least two reflections. The accelerated solar wind ions after two specular reflections have large parallel components with respect to the magnetic field for the QL shock whereas the field-aligned speed is much smaller than the perpendicular speed for the QT shock. The reflected ions escape into the solar wind when and only when the reflection is in the field-aligned direction.

Chaotic motion of a harmonically bound charged particle in a magnetic field, in the presence of a half-plane barrier

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Geurts, Bernard J.; Wiegel, Frederik W.; Creswick, Richard J.

1990-05-01

The motion in the plane of an harmonically bound charged particle interacting with a magnetic field and a half-plane barrier along the positive x-axis is studied. The magnetic field is perpendicular to the plane in which the particle moves. This motion is integrable in between collisions of the particle with the barrier. However, the overall motion of the particle is very complicated. Chaotic regions in phase space exist next to island structures associated with linearly stable periodic orbits. We study in detail periodic orbits of low period and in particular their bifurcation behavior. Independent sequences of period doubling bifurcations and resonant bifurcations are observed associated with independent fixed points in the Poincaré section. Due to the perpendicular magnetic field an orientation is induced on the plane and time-reversal symmetry is broken.

Precursor Wave Emission Enhanced by Weibel Instability in Relativistic Shocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Iwamoto, Masanori; Amano, Takanobu; Hoshino, Masahiro; Matsumoto, Yosuke

2018-05-01

We investigated the precursor wave emission efficiency in magnetized purely perpendicular relativistic shocks in pair plasmas. We extended our previous study to include the dependence of upstream magnetic field orientations. We performed two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations and focused on two magnetic field orientations: the magnetic field in the simulation plane (i.e., in-plane configuration) and that perpendicular to the simulation plane (i.e., out-of-plane configuration). Our simulations in the in-plane configuration demonstrated that not only extraordinary but also ordinary mode waves are excited. We quantified the emission efficiency as a function of the magnetization parameter σ e and found that the large-amplitude precursor waves are emitted for a wide range of σ e . We found that especially at low σ e , the magnetic field generated by Weibel instability amplifies the ordinary mode wave power. The amplitude is large enough to perturb the upstream plasma, and transverse density filaments are generated as in the case of the out-of-plane configuration investigated in the previous study. We confirmed that our previous conclusion holds regardless of upstream magnetic field orientations with respect to the two-dimensional simulation plane. We discuss the precursor wave emission in three dimensions and the feasibility of wakefield acceleration in relativistic shocks based on our results.

Simulation Studies of the Dielectric Grating as an Accelerating and Focusing Structure

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Soong, Ken; Peralta, E.A.; Byer, R.L.

A grating-based design is a promising candidate for a laser-driven dielectric accelerator. Through simulations, we show the merits of a readily fabricated grating structure as an accelerating component. Additionally, we show that with a small design perturbation, the accelerating component can be converted into a focusing structure. The understanding of these two components is critical in the successful development of any complete accelerator. The concept of accelerating electrons with the tremendous electric fields found in lasers has been proposed for decades. However, until recently the realization of such an accelerator was not technologically feasible. Recent advances in the semiconductor industry,more » as well as advances in laser technology, have now made laser-driven dielectric accelerators imminent. The grating-based accelerator is one proposed design for a dielectric laser-driven accelerator. This design, which was introduced by Plettner, consists of a pair of opposing transparent binary gratings, illustrated in Fig. 1. The teeth of the gratings serve as a phase mask, ensuring a phase synchronicity between the electromagnetic field and the moving particles. The current grating accelerator design has the drive laser incident perpendicular to the substrate, which poses a laser-structure alignment complication. The next iteration of grating structure fabrication seeks to monolithically create an array of grating structures by etching the grating's vacuum channel into a fused silica wafer. With this method it is possible to have the drive laser confined to the plane of the wafer, thus ensuring alignment of the laser-and-structure, the two grating halves, and subsequent accelerator components. There has been previous work using 2-dimensional finite difference time domain (2D-FDTD) calculations to evaluate the performance of the grating accelerator structure. However, this work approximates the grating as an infinite structure and does not accurately model a realizable structure. In this paper, we will present a 3-dimensional frequency-domain simulation of both the infinite and the finite grating accelerator structure. Additionally, we will present a new scheme for a focusing structure based on a perturbation of the accelerating structure. We will present simulations of this proposed focusing structure and quantify the quality of the focusing fields.« less

Velocity space instabilities of alpha particles in tokamak reactors

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sigmar, D.J.

1979-01-01

In this lecture on high frequency instability due to isotropic hollow alpha velocity distributions it was first shown that such distributions can actually arise under thermonuclear conditions in a tokamak reactor, particularly for the case of imperfect alpha particle confinement. The toroidal geometry (i.e., the poloidal variation of the alpha gyrofrequency) then leads to linear instability of the compressional Alfven wave ..omega.. = C/sub A/k/sub perpendicular/ with k/sub parallel/ congruent to O, k/sub perpendicular/ rho/sub ..cap alpha../ greater than or equal to 1, v/sub ..cap alpha../ > C/sub A/, at the low harmonics ..omega.. congruent to n ..omega../sub c..cap alpha../.more » Thus the free energy of the inverted alpha distribution is accessible and produces anomalously rapid diffusion of F/sub ..cap alpha../(v/sub perpendicular/). (MOW)« less

Amps particle accelerator definition study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sellen, J. M., Jr.

1975-01-01

The Particle Accelerator System of the AMPS (Atmospheric, Magnetospheric, and Plasmas in Space) payload is a series of charged particle accelerators to be flown with the Space Transportation System Shuttle on Spacelab missions. In the configuration presented, the total particle accelerator system consists of an energetic electron beam, an energetic ion accelerator, and both low voltage and high voltage plasma acceleration devices. The Orbiter is illustrated with such a particle accelerator system.

Results of the Quasi-Steady Acceleration Environment from the STS-62 Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Matisak, Brian; French, Larry; DeLombard, Richard; Wagar, William

1995-01-01

One of the clear benefits of conducting scientific research in space is to take advantage of the reduced acceleration environment. Many accelerometer packages have proven to accurately measure the acceleration environment at frequency levels above one Hz. However, for particular classes of experiments the quality of science returns is a direct function of the extremely low frequency (less than 0.01 Hz), quasi-steady acceleration environment. One class particularly interested in this acceleration regime is the group of crystal growth experimenters. These scientists are primarily interested in knowing the resultant quasi-steady acceleration vector at their respective crystal growth locations. The objective of many of these scientists is to minimize the amount of convective flow acting in a direction perpendicular to the growth axis of the crystal. Convective flow within the crystal can be induced by the direction and magnitude of the quasi-steady acceleration vector. Convective flows acting perpendicular to the growth axis of the crystal can cause nonuniformity within the crystal, thus reducing the quality of the results. The Orbital Acceleration Research Experiment (OARE), an accelerometer package hardmounted to the bottom of the payload bay of the orbiter Columbia (OV-102), has the capability of monitoring and recording the quasi-steady acceleration environment. This paper will describe the components that make up the on-orbit quasi-steady acceleration environment, detail how results from the OARE device were achieved, and compare modelled acceleration results with actual on-orbit OARE results from the STS-62 and STS-65 flights. A summary of the results will be provided along with possible recommendations of how to combine modelled and realtime quasi-steady accelerometer data for future Shuttle flights.

Accelerator system and method of accelerating particles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wirz, Richard E. (Inventor)

2010-01-01

An accelerator system and method that utilize dust as the primary mass flux for generating thrust are provided. The accelerator system can include an accelerator capable of operating in a self-neutralizing mode and having a discharge chamber and at least one ionizer capable of charging dust particles. The system can also include a dust particle feeder that is capable of introducing the dust particles into the accelerator. By applying a pulsed positive and negative charge voltage to the accelerator, the charged dust particles can be accelerated thereby generating thrust and neutralizing the accelerator system.

Hydrodynamic Boundary Effects on Thermophoresis of Confined Colloids.

PubMed

Würger, Alois

2016-04-01

We study hydrodynamic slowing down of a particle moving in a temperature gradient perpendicular to a wall. At distances much smaller than the particle radius, h≪a, the lubrication approximation leads to the reduced velocity u/u_{0}=3(h/a)[ln(a/h)-9/4], where u_{0} is the velocity in the bulk. With Brenner's result for confined diffusion, we find that the trapping efficiency, or effective Soret coefficient, increases logarithmically as the particle gets very close to the wall. Our results provide a quantitative explanation for the recently observed enhancement of thermophoretic trapping at short distances. Our discussion of parallel and perpendicular thermophoresis in a capillary reveals a good agreement with experiments on charged polystyrene particles, and sheds some light on a controversy concerning the size dependence and the nonequilibrium nature of the Soret effect.

Drift-Alfven wave mediated particle transport in an elongated density depression

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Vincena, Stephen; Gekelman, Walter

Cross-field particle transport due to drift-Alfven waves is measured in an elongated density depression within an otherwise uniform, magnetized helium plasma column. The depression is formed by drawing an electron current to a biased copper plate with cross-field dimensions of 28x0.24 ion sound-gyroradii {rho}{sub s}=c{sub s}/{omega}{sub ci}. The process of density depletion and replenishment via particle flux repeats in a quasiperiodic fashion for the duration of the current collection. The mode structure of the wave density fluctuations in the plane perpendicular to the background magnetic field is revealed using a two-probe correlation technique. The particle flux as a function ofmore » frequency is measured using a linear array of Langmuir probes and the only significant transport occurs for waves with frequencies between 15%-25% of the ion cyclotron frequency (measured in the laboratory frame) and with perpendicular wavelengths k{sub perpendicular}{rho}{sub s}{approx}0.7. The frequency-integrated particle flux is in rough agreement with observed increases in density in the center of the depletion as a function of time. The experiments are carried out in the Large Plasma Device (LAPD) [Gekelman et al., Rev. Sci. Instrum. 62, 2875 (1991)] at the Basic Plasma Science Facility located at the University of California, Los Angeles.« less

Micro environmental sensing device

DOEpatents

Polosky, Marc A.; Lukens, Laurance L.

2006-05-02

A microelectromechanical (MEM) acceleration switch is disclosed which includes a proof mass flexibly connected to a substrate, with the proof mass being moveable in a direction substantially perpendicular to the substrate in response to a sensed acceleration. An electrode on the proof mass contacts one or more electrodes located below the proof mass to provide a switch closure in response to the sensed acceleration. Electrical latching of the switch in the closed position is possible with an optional latching electrode. The MEM acceleration switch, which has applications for use as an environmental sensing device, can be fabricated using micromachining.

RADLAC 2 performance summary

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shope, S. L.; Mazarakis, M. G.; Frost, C. A.; Crist, C. E.; Poukey, J. W.; Prestwich, K. R.; Turman, B. N.; Struve, K.; Welch, D.

1991-09-01

A 12.5-m long Self Magnetically Insulated Transmission LinE (SMILE) that sums the voltages of eight, 2-MV pulse forming lines was installed in the RADLAC-2 linear introduction accelerator. The magnetic insulation criteria were calculated using parapotential flow theory and found to agree with MAGIC simulations. High quality annular beams with a transverse velocity beta (perpendicular) equals v(perpendicular)/c is less than or equal to 0.1 and a radius r(sub b) less than 2 cm were measured for currents of 50 to 100 kA extracted from a magnetic immersed foilless diode. These parameters were achieved with 11 to 15-MV accelerating voltages and 6 to 16-kG diode magnetic fields. The experimental results exceeded our design expectations and are in good agreement with code simulations.

Rim inertial measuring system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Groom, N. J.; Anderson, W. W.; Phillips, W. H. (Inventor)

1981-01-01

The invention includes an angular momentum control device (AMCD) having a rim and several magnetic bearing stations. The AMCD is in a strapped down position on a spacecraft. Each magnetic bearing station comprises means, including an axial position sensor, for controlling the position of the rim in the axial direction; and means, including a radial position sensor, for controlling the position of the rim in the radial direction. A first computer receives the signals from all the axial position sensors and computes the angular rates about first and second mutually perpendicular axes in the plane of the rim and computes the linear acceleration along a third axis perpendicular to the first and second axes. A second computer receives the signals from all the radial position sensors and computes the linear accelerations along the first and second axes.

The Dynamics of Very High Alfvén Mach Number Shocks in Space Plasmas

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sundberg, Torbjörn; Burgess, David; Scholer, Manfred

2017-02-10

Astrophysical shocks, such as planetary bow shocks or supernova remnant shocks, are often in the high or very-high Mach number regime, and the structure of such shocks is crucial for understanding particle acceleration and plasma heating, as well inherently interesting. Recent magnetic field observations at Saturn’s bow shock, for Alfvén Mach numbers greater than about 25, have provided evidence for periodic non-stationarity, although the details of the ion- and electron-scale processes remain unclear due to limited plasma data. High-resolution, multi-spacecraft data are available for the terrestrial bow shock, but here the very high Mach number regime is only attained onmore » extremely rare occasions. Here we present magnetic field and particle data from three such quasi-perpendicular shock crossings observed by the four-spacecraft Cluster mission. Although both ion reflection and the shock profile are modulated at the upstream ion gyroperiod timescale, the dominant wave growth in the foot takes place at sub-proton length scales and is consistent with being driven by the ion Weibel instability. The observed large-scale behavior depends strongly on cross-scale coupling between ion and electron processes, with ion reflection never fully suppressed, and this suggests a model of the shock dynamics that is in conflict with previous models of non-stationarity. Thus, the observations offer insight into the conditions prevalent in many inaccessible astrophysical environments, and provide important constraints for acceleration processes at such shocks.« less

The Dynamics of Very High Alfvén Mach Number Shocks in Space Plasmas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sundberg, Torbjörn; Burgess, David; Scholer, Manfred; Masters, Adam; Sulaiman, Ali H.

2017-02-01

Astrophysical shocks, such as planetary bow shocks or supernova remnant shocks, are often in the high or very-high Mach number regime, and the structure of such shocks is crucial for understanding particle acceleration and plasma heating, as well inherently interesting. Recent magnetic field observations at Saturn’s bow shock, for Alfvén Mach numbers greater than about 25, have provided evidence for periodic non-stationarity, although the details of the ion- and electron-scale processes remain unclear due to limited plasma data. High-resolution, multi-spacecraft data are available for the terrestrial bow shock, but here the very high Mach number regime is only attained on extremely rare occasions. Here we present magnetic field and particle data from three such quasi-perpendicular shock crossings observed by the four-spacecraft Cluster mission. Although both ion reflection and the shock profile are modulated at the upstream ion gyroperiod timescale, the dominant wave growth in the foot takes place at sub-proton length scales and is consistent with being driven by the ion Weibel instability. The observed large-scale behavior depends strongly on cross-scale coupling between ion and electron processes, with ion reflection never fully suppressed, and this suggests a model of the shock dynamics that is in conflict with previous models of non-stationarity. Thus, the observations offer insight into the conditions prevalent in many inaccessible astrophysical environments, and provide important constraints for acceleration processes at such shocks.

Alfven Waves Underlying Ionospheric Destabilization: Ground-Based Observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hirsch, Michael

During geomagnetic storms, terawatts of power in the million mile-per-hour solar wind pierce the Earth's magnetosphere. Geomagnetic storms and substorms create transverse magnetic waves known as Alfven waves. In the auroral acceleration region, Alfven waves accelerate electrons up to one-tenth the speed of light via wave-particle interactions. These inertial Alfven wave (IAW) accelerated electrons are imbued with sub-100 meter structure perpendicular to geomagnetic field B. The IAW electric field parallel to B accelerates electrons up to about 10 keV along B. The IAW dispersion relation quantifies the precipitating electron striation observed with high-speed cameras as spatiotemporally dynamic fine structured aurora. A network of tightly synchronized tomographic auroral observatories using model based iterative reconstruction (MBIR) techniques were developed in this dissertation. The TRANSCAR electron penetration model creates a basis set of monoenergetic electron beam eigenprofiles of auroral volume emission rate for the given location and ionospheric conditions. Each eigenprofile consists of nearly 200 broadband line spectra modulated by atmospheric attenuation, bandstop filter and imager quantum efficiency. The L-BFGS-B minimization routine combined with sub-pixel registered electron multiplying CCD video stream at order 10 ms cadence yields estimates of electron differential number flux at the top of the ionosphere. Our automatic data curation algorithm reduces one terabyte/camera/day into accurate MBIR-processed estimates of IAW-driven electron precipitation microstructure. This computer vision structured auroral discrimination algorithm was developed using a multiscale dual-camera system observing a 175 km and 14 km swath of sky simultaneously. This collective behavior algorithm exploits the "swarm" behavior of aurora, detectable even as video SNR approaches zero. A modified version of the algorithm is applied to topside ionospheric radar at Mars and broadcast FM passive radar. The fusion of data from coherent radar backscatter and optical data at order 10 ms cadence confirms and further quantifies the relation of strong Langmuir turbulence and streaming plasma upflows in the ionosphere with the finest spatiotemporal auroral dynamics associated with IAW acceleration. The software programs developed in this dissertation solve the century-old problem of automatically discriminating finely structured aurora from other forms and pushes the observational wave-particle science frontiers forward.

Generation of Alfvenic Double Layers, Formation of Auroral Arcs, and Their Impact on Energy and Momentum Transfer in M-I Coupling System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, Y.; Lysak, R. L.

2017-12-01

Parallel electrostatic electric fields provide a powerful mechanism to accelerate auroral particles to high energy in the auroral acceleration region (AAR), creating both quasi-static and Alfvenic discrete aurorae. The total field-aligned current can be written as J||total=J||+J||D, where the displacement current is denoted as J||D=(1/4π)(∂E||/∂t), which describes the E||-generation (Song and Lysak, 2006). The generation of the total field-aligned current is related to spatial gradients of the parallel vorticity caused by the axial torque acting on field-aligned flux tubes in M-I coupling system. It should be noticed that parallel electric fields are not produced by the field-aligned current. In fact, the E||-generation is caused by Alfvenic interaction in the M-I coupling system, and is favored by a low plasma density and the enhanced localized azimuthal magnetic flux. We suggest that the nonlinear interaction of incident and reflected Alfven wave packets in the AAR can create reactive stress concentration, and therefore can generate the parallel electrostatic electric fields together with a seed low density cavity. The generated electric fields will quickly deepen the seed low density cavity, which can effectively create even stronger electrostatic electric fields. The electrostatic electric fields nested in a low density cavity and surrounded by enhanced azimuthal magnetic flux constitute Alfvenic electromagnetic plasma structures, such as Alfvenic Double Layers (DLs). The Poynting flux carried by Alfven waves can continuously supply energy from the generator region to the auroral acceleration region, supporting and sustaining Alfvenic DLs with long-lasting electrostatic electric fields which accelerate auroral particles to high energy. The generation of parallel electric fields and the formation of auroral arcs can redistribute perpendicular mechanical and magnetic stresses in auroral flux tubes, decoupling the magnetosphere from ionosphere drag locally. This may enhance the magnetotail earthward shear flows and rapidly buildup stronger parallel electric fields in the auroral acceleration region, leading to a sudden and violent tail energy release, if there is accumulated free magnetic energy in the tail.

Spectral properties and associated plasma energization by magnetosonic waves in the Earth's magnetosphere: Particle-in-cell simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Jicheng; Gao, Xinliang; Lu, Quanming; Chen, Lunjin; Liu, Xu; Wang, Xueyi; Tao, Xin; Wang, Shui

2017-05-01

In this paper, we perform a 1-D particle-in-cell (PIC) simulation model consisting of three species, cold electrons, cold ions, and energetic ion ring, to investigate spectral structures of magnetosonic waves excited by ring distribution protons in the Earth's magnetosphere, and dynamics of charged particles during the excitation of magnetosonic waves. As the wave normal angle decreases, the spectral range of excited magnetosonic waves becomes broader with upper frequency limit extending beyond the lower hybrid resonant frequency, and the discrete spectra tends to merge into a continuous one. This dependence on wave normal angle is consistent with the linear theory. The effects of magnetosonic waves on the background cold plasma populations also vary with wave normal angle. For exactly perpendicular magnetosonic waves (parallel wave number k|| = 0), there is no energization in the parallel direction for both background cold protons and electrons due to the negligible fluctuating electric field component in the parallel direction. In contrast, the perpendicular energization of background plasmas is rather significant, where cold protons follow unmagnetized motion while cold electrons follow drift motion due to wave electric fields. For magnetosonic waves with a finite k||, there exists a nonnegligible parallel fluctuating electric field, leading to a significant and rapid energization in the parallel direction for cold electrons. These cold electrons can also be efficiently energized in the perpendicular direction due to the interaction with the magnetosonic wave fields in the perpendicular direction. However, cold protons can be only heated in the perpendicular direction, which is likely caused by the higher-order resonances with magnetosonic waves. The potential impacts of magnetosonic waves on the energization of the background cold plasmas in the Earth's inner magnetosphere are also discussed in this paper.

Loop heating by D.C. electric current and electromagnetic wave emissions simulated by 3-D EM particle zone

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sakai, J. I.; Zhao, J.; Nishikawa, K.-I.

1994-01-01

We have shown that a current-carrying plasma loop can be heated by magnetic pinch driven by the pressure imbalance between inside and outside the loop, using a 3-dimensional electromagnetic (EM) particle code. Both electrons and ions in the loop can be heated in the direction perpendicular to the ambient magnetic field, therefore the perpendicular temperature can be increased about 10 times compared with the parallel temperature. This temperature anisotropy produced by the magnetic pinch heating can induce a plasma instability, by which high-frequency electromagnetic waves can be excited. The plasma current which is enhanced by the magnetic pinch can also excite a kinetic kink instability, which can heat ions perpendicular to the magnetic field. The heating mechanism of ions as well as the electromagnetic emission could be important for an understanding of the coronal loop heating and the electromagnetic wave emissions from active coronal regions.

Perpendicular diffusion of a dilute beam of charged dust particles in a strongly coupled dusty plasma

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Bin; Goree, J.

2014-06-01

The diffusion of projectiles drifting through a target of strongly coupled dusty plasma is investigated in a simulation. A projectile's drift is driven by a constant force F. We characterize the random walk of the projectiles in the direction perpendicular to their drift. The perpendicular diffusion coefficient Dp⊥ is obtained from the simulation data. The force dependence of Dp⊥ is found to be a power law in a high force regime, but a constant at low forces. A mean kinetic energy Wp for perpendicular motion is also obtained. The diffusion coefficient is found to increase with Wp with a linear trend at higher energies, but an exponential trend at lower energies.

Reverse Electrorheological Effect:. a Suspension of Colloidal Motors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lemaire, E.; Lobry, L.

We present an experimental evidence of a "colloidal motor" behavior of a suspension. Previous attempts to observe such a phenomenon with ferrofluids under alternating magnetic fields have failed. Here, negative viscosity is obtained by making use of Quincke rotation: the spontaneous rotation of insulating particles suspended in a weakly conducting liquid when the system is submitted to a DC electric field. In such a case, particles rotate around any axis perpendicular to the applied field, nevertheless, when a velocity gradient (simple shear rate) is applied along the E field direction, the particles rotation axes will be favored in the vorticity direction (the direction perpendicular to the suspension velocity and the velocity gradient). The collective movement of particles drives the surrounding liquid and then leads to a reduction of the apparent viscosity of the suspension. The decrease in viscosity is sufficiently important for the liquid to flow while no submitted to any mechanical stress.

Current Fragmentation and Particle Acceleration in Solar Flares

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cargill, P. J.; Vlahos, L.; Baumann, G.; Drake, J. F.; Nordlund, Å.

2012-11-01

Particle acceleration in solar flares remains an outstanding problem in plasma physics and space science. While the observed particle energies and timescales can perhaps be understood in terms of acceleration at a simple current sheet or turbulence site, the vast number of accelerated particles, and the fraction of flare energy in them, defies any simple explanation. The nature of energy storage and dissipation in the global coronal magnetic field is essential for understanding flare acceleration. Scenarios where the coronal field is stressed by complex photospheric motions lead to the formation of multiple current sheets, rather than the single monolithic current sheet proposed by some. The currents sheets in turn can fragment into multiple, smaller dissipation sites. MHD, kinetic and cellular automata models are used to demonstrate this feature. Particle acceleration in this environment thus involves interaction with many distributed accelerators. A series of examples demonstrate how acceleration works in such an environment. As required, acceleration is fast, and relativistic energies are readily attained. It is also shown that accelerated particles do indeed interact with multiple acceleration sites. Test particle models also demonstrate that a large number of particles can be accelerated, with a significant fraction of the flare energy associated with them. However, in the absence of feedback, and with limited numerical resolution, these results need to be viewed with caution. Particle in cell models can incorporate feedback and in one scenario suggest that acceleration can be limited by the energetic particles reaching the condition for firehose marginal stability. Contemporary issues such as footpoint particle acceleration are also discussed. It is also noted that the idea of a "standard flare model" is ill-conceived when the entire distribution of flare energies is considered.

Particle acceleration in solar flares

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ramaty, R.; Forman, M. A.

1987-01-01

The most direct signatures of particle acceleration in flares are energetic particles detected in interplanetary space and in the Earth atmosphere, and gamma rays, neutrons, hard X-rays, and radio emissions produced by the energetic particles in the solar atmosphere. The stochastic and shock acceleration theories in flares are reviewed and the implications of observations on particle energy spectra, particle confinement and escape, multiple acceleration phases, particle anistropies, and solar atmospheric abundances are discussed.

Persistence of Precursor Waves in Two-dimensional Relativistic Shocks

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Iwamoto, Masanori; Amano, Takanobu; Hoshino, Masahiro

2017-05-01

We investigated the efficiency of coherent upstream large-amplitude electromagnetic wave emission via synchrotron maser instability in relativistic magnetized shocks using two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations. We considered a purely perpendicular shock in an electron–positron plasma. The coherent wave emission efficiency was measured as a function of the magnetization parameter σ , which is defined as the ratio of the Poynting flux to the kinetic energy flux. The wave amplitude was systematically smaller than that observed in one-dimensional simulations. However, it continued to persist, even at a considerably low magnetization rate, where the Weibel instability dominated the shock transition. The emitted electromagnetic wavesmore » were sufficiently strong to disturb the upstream medium, and transverse filamentary density structures of substantial amplitude were produced. Based on this result, we discuss the possibility of the wakefield acceleration model to produce nonthermal electrons in a relativistic magnetized ion–electron shock.« less

A Collimated Retarding Potential Analyzer for the Study of Magnetoplasma Rocket Plumes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Glover, T. W.; Chan, A. A.; Chang-Diaz, F. R.; Kittrell, C.

2003-01-01

A gridded retarding potential analyzer (RPA) has been developed to characterize the magnetized plasma exhaust of the 10 kW Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket (VX-10) experiment at NASA's Advanced Space Propulsion Laboratory. In this system, plasma is energized through coupling of radio frequency waves at the ion cyclotron resonance (ICR). The particles are subsequently accelerated in a magnetic nozzle to provide thrust. Downstream of the nozzle, the RPA's mounting assembly enables the detector to make complete axial and radial scans of the plasma. A multichannel collimator can be inserted into the RPA to remove ions with pitch angles greater than approximately 1 deg. A calculation of the general collimator transmission as a function over velocity space is presented, which shows the instrument's sensitivity in detecting changes in both the parallel and perpendicular components of the ion energy. Data from initial VX-10 ICRH experiments show evidence of ion heating.

Numerical Test of Analytical Theories for Perpendicular Diffusion in Small Kubo Number Turbulence

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Heusen, M.; Shalchi, A., E-mail: husseinm@myumanitoba.ca, E-mail: andreasm4@yahoo.com

In the literature, one can find various analytical theories for perpendicular diffusion of energetic particles interacting with magnetic turbulence. Besides quasi-linear theory, there are different versions of the nonlinear guiding center (NLGC) theory and the unified nonlinear transport (UNLT) theory. For turbulence with high Kubo numbers, such as two-dimensional turbulence or noisy reduced magnetohydrodynamic turbulence, the aforementioned nonlinear theories provide similar results. For slab and small Kubo number turbulence, however, this is not the case. In the current paper, we compare different linear and nonlinear theories with each other and test-particle simulations for a noisy slab model corresponding to smallmore » Kubo number turbulence. We show that UNLT theory agrees very well with all performed test-particle simulations. In the limit of long parallel mean free paths, the perpendicular mean free path approaches asymptotically the quasi-linear limit as predicted by the UNLT theory. For short parallel mean free paths we find a Rechester and Rosenbluth type of scaling as predicted by UNLT theory as well. The original NLGC theory disagrees with all performed simulations regardless what the parallel mean free path is. The random ballistic interpretation of the NLGC theory agrees much better with the simulations, but compared to UNLT theory the agreement is inferior. We conclude that for this type of small Kubo number turbulence, only the latter theory allows for an accurate description of perpendicular diffusion.« less

Cosmic-ray streaming perpendicular to the mean magnetic field. II - The gyrophase distribution function

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Forman, M. A.; Jokipii, J. R.

1978-01-01

The distribution function of cosmic rays streaming perpendicular to the mean magnetic field in a turbulent medium is reexamined. Urch's (1977) discovery that in quasi-linear theory, the flux is due to particles at 90 deg pitch angle is discussed and shown to be consistent with previous formulations of the theory. It is pointed out that this flux of particles at 90 deg cannot be arbitrarily set equal to zero, and hence the alternative theory which proceeds from this premise is dismissed. A further, basic inconsistency in Urch's transport equation is demonstrated, and the connection between quasi-linear theory and compound diffusion is discussed.

Protons and alpha particles in the expanding solar wind: Hybrid simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hellinger, Petr; Trávníček, Pavel M.

2013-09-01

We present results of a two‒dimensional hybrid expanding box simulation of a plasma system with three ion populations, beam and core protons, and alpha particles (and fluid electrons), drifting with respect to each other. The expansion with a strictly radial magnetic field leads to a decrease of the ion perpendicular to parallel temperature ratios as well as to an increase of the ratio between the ion relative velocities and the local Alfvén velocity creating a free energy for many different instabilities. The system is most of the time marginally stable with respect to kinetic instabilities mainly due to the ion relative velocities; these instabilities determine the system evolution counteracting some effects of the expansion. Nonlinear evolution of these instabilities leads to large modifications of the ion velocity distribution functions. The beam protons and alpha particles are decelerated with respect to the core protons and all the populations are cooled in the parallel direction and heated in the perpendicular one. On the macroscopic level, the kinetic instabilities cause large departures of the system evolution from the double adiabatic prediction and lead to perpendicular heating and parallel cooling rates which are comparable to the heating rates estimated from the Helios observations.

Dissipation and particle energization in moderate to low beta turbulent plasma via PIC simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Makwana, Kirit; Li, Hui; Guo, Fan; Li, Xiaocan

2017-05-01

We simulate decaying turbulence in electron-positron pair plasmas using a fully-kinetic particle-in-cell (PIC) code. We run two simulations with moderate-to-low plasma β (the ratio of thermal pressure to magnetic pressure). The energy decay rate is found to be similar in both cases. The perpendicular wave-number spectrum of magnetic energy shows a slope between {k}\\perp -1.3 and {k}\\perp -1.1, where the perpendicular (⊥) and parallel (∥) directions are defined with respect to the magnetic field. The particle kinetic energy distribution function shows the formation of a non-thermal feature in the case of lower plasma β, with a slope close to E-1. The correlation between thin turbulent current sheets and Ohmic heating by the dot product of electric field (E) and current density (J) is investigated. Heating by the parallel E∥ · J∥ term dominates the perpendicular E⊥ · J⊥ term. Regions of strong E∥ · J∥ are spatially well-correlated with regions of intense current sheets, which also appear correlated with regions of strong E∥ in the low β simulation, suggesting an important role of magnetic reconnection in the dissipation of low β plasma turbulence.

Ion and electron dynamics generating the Hall current in the exhaust far downstream of the reconnection x-line

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fujimoto, Keizo, E-mail: keizo.fujimoto@nao.ac.jp; Takamoto, Makoto

2016-01-15

We have investigated the ion and electron dynamics generating the Hall current in the reconnection exhaust far downstream of the x-line where the exhaust width is much larger than the ion gyro-radius. A large-scale particle-in-cell simulation shows that most ions are accelerated through the Speiser-type motion in the current sheet formed at the center of the exhaust. The transition layers formed at the exhaust boundary are not identified as slow mode shocks. (The layers satisfy mostly the Rankine-Hugoniot conditions for a slow mode shock, but the energy conversion hardly occurs there.) We find that the ion drift velocity is modifiedmore » around the layer due to a finite Larmor radius effect. As a result, the ions are accumulated in the downstream side of the layer, so that collimated ion jets are generated. The electrons experience two steps of acceleration in the exhaust. The first is a parallel acceleration due to the out-of-plane electric field E{sub y} which has a parallel component in most area of the exhaust. The second is a perpendicular acceleration due to E{sub y} at the center of the current sheet and the motion is converted to the parallel direction. Because of the second acceleration, the electron outflow velocity becomes almost uniform over the exhaust. The difference in the outflow profile between the ions and electrons results in the Hall current in large area of the exhaust. The present study demonstrates the importance of the kinetic treatments for collisionless magnetic reconnection even far downstream from the x-line.« less

Understanding of Particle Acceleration by Foreshock Transients (invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, T. Z.; Angelopoulos, V.; Hietala, H.; Lu, S.; Wilson, L. B., III

2017-12-01

Although plasma shocks are known to be a major particle accelerator at Earth's environment (e.g., the bow shock) and elsewhere in the universe, how particles are accelerated to very large energies compared to the shock potential is still not fully understood. Significant new information on such acceleration in the vicinity of Earth's bow shock has recently emerged due to the availability of multi-point observations, in particular from Cluster and THEMIS. These have revealed numerous types of foreshock transients, formed by shock-reflected ions, which could play a crucial role in particle pre-acceleration, i.e. before the particles reach the shock to be subjected again to even further acceleration. Foreshock bubbles (FBs) and hot flow anomalies (HFAs), are a subset of such foreshock transients that are especially important due to their large spatial scale (1-10 Earth radii), and their ability to have global effects at Earth.s geospace. These transients can accelerate particles that can become a particle source for the parent shock. Here we introduce our latest progress in understanding particle acceleration by foreshock transients including their statistical characteristics and acceleration mechanisms.

Understanding of Particle Acceleration by Foreshock Transients

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, T. Z.; Angelopoulos, V.; Hietala, H.; Lu, S.; Wilson, L. B., III

2017-12-01

Although plasma shocks are known to be a major particle accelerator at Earth's environment (e.g., the bow shock) and elsewhere in the universe, how particles are accelerated to very large energies compared to the shock potential is still not fully understood. Significant new information on such acceleration in the vicinity of Earth's bow shock has recently emerged due to the availability of multi-point observations, in particular from Cluster and THEMIS. These have revealed numerous types of foreshock transients, formed by shock-reflected ions, which could play a crucial role in particle pre-acceleration, i.e. before the particles reach the shock to be subjected again to even further acceleration. Foreshock bubbles (FBs) and hot flow anomalies (HFAs), are a subset of such foreshock transients that are especially important due to their large spatial scale (1-10 Earth radii), and their ability to have global effects at Earth's geospace. These transients can accelerate particles that can become a particle source for the parent shock. Here we introduce our latest progress in understanding particle acceleration by foreshock transients including their statistical characteristics and acceleration mechanisms.

Effects of the reconnection electric field on crescent electron distribution functions in asymmetric guide field reconnection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bessho, N.; Chen, L. J.; Hesse, M.; Wang, S.

2017-12-01

In asymmetric reconnection with a guide field in the Earth's magnetopause, electron motion in the electron diffusion region (EDR) is largely affected by the guide field, the Hall electric field, and the reconnection electric field. The electron motion in the EDR is neither simple gyration around the guide field nor simple meandering motion across the current sheet. The combined meandering motion and gyration has essential effects on particle acceleration by the in-plane Hall electric field (existing only in the magnetospheric side) and the out-of-plane reconnection electric field. We analyze electron motion and crescent-shaped electron distribution functions in the EDR in asymmetric guide field reconnection, and perform 2-D particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations to elucidate the effect of reconnection electric field on electron distribution functions. Recently, we have analytically expressed the acceleration effect due to the reconnection electric field on electron crescent distribution functions in asymmetric reconnection without a guide field (Bessho et al., Phys. Plasmas, 24, 072903, 2017). We extend the theory to asymmetric guide field reconnection, and predict the crescent bulge in distribution functions. Assuming 1D approximation of field variations in the EDR, we derive the time period of oscillatory electron motion (meandering + gyration) in the EDR. The time period is expressed as a hybrid of the meandering period and the gyro period. Due to the guide field, electrons not only oscillate along crescent-shaped trajectories in the velocity plane perpendicular to the antiparallel magnetic fields, but also move along parabolic trajectories in the velocity plane coplanar with magnetic field. The trajectory in the velocity space gradually shifts to the acceleration direction by the reconnection electric field as multiple bounces continue. Due to the guide field, electron distributions for meandering particles are bounded by two paraboloids (or hyperboloids) in the velocity space. We compare theory and PIC simulation results of the velocity shift of crescent distribution functions based on the derived time period of bounce motion in a guide field. Theoretical predictions are applied to electron distributions observed by MMS in magnetopause reconnection to estimate the reconnection electric field.

Probing electron acceleration and x-ray emission in laser-plasma accelerators

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Thaury, C.; Ta Phuoc, K.; Corde, S.

2013-06-15

While laser-plasma accelerators have demonstrated a strong potential in the acceleration of electrons up to giga-electronvolt energies, few experimental tools for studying the acceleration physics have been developed. In this paper, we demonstrate a method for probing the acceleration process. A second laser beam, propagating perpendicular to the main beam, is focused on the gas jet few nanosecond before the main beam creates the accelerating plasma wave. This second beam is intense enough to ionize the gas and form a density depletion, which will locally inhibit the acceleration. The position of the density depletion is scanned along the interaction lengthmore » to probe the electron injection and acceleration, and the betatron X-ray emission. To illustrate the potential of the method, the variation of the injection position with the plasma density is studied.« less

Laser-driven magnetic reconnection in the multi-plasmoid regime

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Totorica, Samuel; Abel, Tom; Fiuza, Frederico

2017-10-01

Magnetic reconnection is a promising candidate mechanism for accelerating the nonthermal particles associated with explosive astrophysical phenomena. Laboratory experiments are starting to probe multi-plasmoid regimes of relevance for particle acceleration. We have performed two- and three-dimensional particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations to explore particle acceleration for parameters relevant to laser-driven reconnection experiments. We have extended our previous work to explore particle acceleration in larger system sizes. Our results show the transition to plasmoid-dominated acceleration associated with the merging and contraction of plasmoids that further extend the maximum energy of the power-law tail of the particle distribution. Furthermore, we have modeled Coulomb collisions and will discuss the influence of collisionality on the plasmoid formation, dynamics, and particle acceleration.

Preliminary analysis of strong-motion recordings from the 28 September 2004 Parkfield, California earthquake

USGS Publications Warehouse

Shakal, A.; Graizer, V.; Huang, M.; Borcherdt, R.; Haddadi, H.; Lin, K.-W.; Stephens, C.; Roffers, P.

2005-01-01

The Parkfield 2004 earthquake yielded the most extensive set of strong-motion data in the near-source region of a magnitude 6 earthquake yet obtained. The recordings of acceleration and volumetric strain provide an unprecedented document of the near-source seismic radiation for a moderate earthquake. The spatial density of the measurements alon g the fault zone and in the linear arrays perpendicular to the fault is expected to provide an exceptional opportunity to develop improved models of the rupture process. The closely spaced measurements should help infer the temporal and spatial distribution of the rupture process at much higher resolution than previously possible. Preliminary analyses of the peak a cceleration data presented herein shows that the motions vary significantly along the rupture zone, from 0.13 g to more than 2.5 g, with a map of the values showing that the larger values are concentrated in three areas. Particle motions at the near-fault stations are consistent with bilateral rupture. Fault-normal pulses similar to those observed in recent strike-slip earthquakes are apparent at several of the stations. The attenuation of peak ground acceleration with distance is more rapid than that indicated by some standard relationships but adequately fits others. Evidence for directivity in the peak acceleration data is not strong. Several stations very near, or over, the rupturing fault recorded relatively low accelerations. These recordings may provide a quantitative basis to understand observations of low near-fault shaking damage that has been reported in other large strike-slip earthquak.

CLASHING BEAM PARTICLE ACCELERATOR

DOEpatents

Burleigh, R.J.

1961-04-11

A charged-particle accelerator of the proton synchrotron class having means for simultaneously accelerating two separate contra-rotating particle beams within a single annular magnet structure is reported. The magnet provides two concentric circular field regions of opposite magnetic polarity with one field region being of slightly less diameter than the other. The accelerator includes a deflector means straddling the two particle orbits and acting to collide the two particle beams after each has been accelerated to a desired energy. The deflector has the further property of returning particles which do not undergo collision to the regular orbits whereby the particles recirculate with the possibility of colliding upon subsequent passages through the deflector.

Energetic helium particles trapped in the magnetosphere

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chen, Jiasheng; Guzik, T. Gregory; Sang, Yeming; Wefel, John P.; Cooper, John F.

1994-01-01

High energy (approximately 40-100 MeV/nucleon) geomagnetically trapped helium nuclei have been measured, for the first time, by the ONR-604 instrument during the 1990/1991 Combined Release and Radiation Effects Satellite (CRRES) mission. The helium events observed at L less than 2.3 have a pitch angle distribution peaking perpendicular to the local magnetic field and are contained in peaks located at L = 1.2 and 1.9. The events in each peak can be characterized by power law energy spectra with indices of 10.0 +/- 0.7 for L = 1.9-2.3 and 6.8 +/- 1.0 for L = 1.15-1.3, before the large storm of 24 March 1991. CRRES was active during solar maximum when the anomalous component is excluded from the inner heliosphere, making it unlikely that the observed events derived from the anomalous component. The trapped helium counting rates decrease gradually with time indicating that these high energy ions were not injected by flares during the 1990/91 mission. Flare injection prior to mid-1990 may account for the highest energy particles, while solar wind injection during magnetic storms and subsequent acceleration could account for the helium at lower energies.

Turbulence-driven anisotropic electron tail generation during magnetic reconnection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

DuBois, A. M.; Scherer, A.; Almagri, A. F.; Anderson, J. K.; Pandya, M. D.; Sarff, J. S.

2018-05-01

Magnetic reconnection (MR) plays an important role in particle transport, energization, and acceleration in space, astrophysical, and laboratory plasmas. In the Madison Symmetric Torus reversed field pinch, discrete MR events release large amounts of energy from the equilibrium magnetic field, a fraction of which is transferred to electrons and ions. Previous experiments revealed an anisotropic electron tail that favors the perpendicular direction and is symmetric in the parallel. New profile measurements of x-ray emission show that the tail distribution is localized near the magnetic axis, consistent modeling of the bremsstrahlung emission. The tail appears first near the magnetic axis and then spreads radially, and the dynamics in the anisotropy and diffusion are discussed. The data presented imply that the electron tail formation likely results from a turbulent wave-particle interaction and provides evidence that high energy electrons are escaping the core-localized region through pitch angle scattering into the parallel direction, followed by stochastic parallel transport to the plasma edge. New measurements also show a strong correlation between high energy x-ray measurements and tearing mode dynamics, suggesting that the coupling between core and edge tearing modes is essential for energetic electron tail formation.

The acceleration of particles at propagating interplanetary shocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prinsloo, P. L.; Strauss, R. D. T.

2017-12-01

Enhancements of charged energetic particles are often observed at Earth following the eruption of coronal mass ejections (CMEs) on the Sun. These enhancements are thought to arise from the acceleration of those particles at interplanetary shocks forming ahead of CMEs, propagating into the heliosphere. In this study, we model the acceleration of these energetic particles by solving a set of stochastic differential equations formulated to describe their transport and including the effects of diffusive shock acceleration. The study focuses on how acceleration at halo-CME-driven shocks alter the energy spectra of non-thermal particles, while illustrating how this acceleration process depends on various shock and transport parameters. We finally attempt to establish the relative contributions of different seed populations of energetic particles in the inner heliosphere to observed intensities during selected acceleration events.

Dusty-Plasma Particle Accelerator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Foster, John E.

2005-01-01

A dusty-plasma apparatus is being investigated as means of accelerating nanometer- and micrometer-sized particles. Applications for the dusty-plasma particle accelerators fall into two classes: Simulation of a variety of rapidly moving dust particles and micrometeoroids in outer-space environments that include micrometeoroid streams, comet tails, planetary rings, and nebulae and Deposition or implantation of nanoparticles on substrates for diverse industrial purposes that could include hardening, increasing thermal insulation, altering optical properties, and/or increasing permittivities of substrate materials. Relative to prior apparatuses used for similar applications, dusty-plasma particle accelerators offer such potential advantages as smaller size, lower cost, less complexity, and increased particle flux densities. A dusty-plasma particle accelerator exploits the fact that an isolated particle immersed in plasma acquires a net electric charge that depends on the relative mobilities of electrons and ions. Typically, a particle that is immersed in a low-temperature, partially ionized gas, wherein the average kinetic energy of electrons exceeds that of ions, causes the particle to become negatively charged. The particle can then be accelerated by applying an appropriate electric field. A dusty-plasma particle accelerator (see figure) includes a plasma source such as a radio-frequency induction discharge apparatus containing (1) a shallow cup with a biasable electrode to hold the particles to be accelerated and (2) a holder for the substrate on which the particles are to impinge. Depending on the specific design, a pair of electrostatic-acceleration grids between the substrate and discharge plasma can be used to both collimate and further accelerate particles exiting the particle holder. Once exposed to the discharge plasma, the particles in the cup quickly acquire a negative charge. Application of a negative voltage pulse to the biasable electrode results in the initiation of a low-current, high-voltage cathode spot. Plasma pressure associated with the cathode spot as well as the large voltage drop at the cathode spot accelerates the charged particles toward the substrate. The ultimate kinetic energy attained by particles exiting the particle holder depends in part on the magnitude of the cathode spot sheath potential difference, which is proportional to the magnitude of the voltage pulse, and the on the electric charge on the dust. The magnitude of the voltage pulse can be controlled directly, whereas the particle s electric charge can be controlled indirectly by controlling the operating parameters of the plasma apparatus.

Wave-Particle Interactions Involving Correlated Electron Bursts and Whistler Chorus in Earth's Radiation Belts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Echterling, N.; Schriver, D.; Roeder, J. L.; Fennell, J. F.

2017-12-01

During the recovery phase of substorm plasma injections, the Van Allen Probes commonly observe events of quasi-periodic energetic electron bursts correlating with simultaneously detected upper-band, whistler-mode chorus emissions. These electron bursts exhibit narrow ranges of pitch angles (75-80° and 100-105°) and energies (20-40 keV). Electron cyclotron harmonic (ECH) emissions are also commonly detected, but typically do not display correlation with the electron bursts. To examine sources of free energy and the generation of these wave emissions, an observed electron velocity distribution on January 13, 2013 is used as the starting condition for a particle in cell (PIC) simulation. Effects of temperature anisotropy (perpendicular temperature greater than parallel temperature), the presence of a loss cone and a cold electron population on the generation of whistler and ECH waves are examined to understand wave generation and nonlinear interactions with the particle population. These nonlinear interactions produce energy diffusion along with strong pitch angle scattering into the loss cone on the order of milliseconds, which is faster than a typical bounce period of seconds. To examine the quasi-periodic nature of the electron bursts, a loss-cone recycling technique is implemented to model the effects of the periodic emptying of the loss cone and electron injection on the growth of whistler and ECH waves. The results of the simulations are compared to the Van Allen Probe observations to determine electron acceleration, heating and transport in Earth's radiation belts due to wave-particle interactions.

Prototype Design and Mission Analysis for a Small Satellite Exploiting Environmental Disturbances for Attitude Stabilization

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-03-01

acceleration of the shifting masses experiences a Coriolis Effect due to the angular velocity of the spacecraft. However, the perpendicular component of...angular velocity. If we neglect the Coriolis Effect in absolute acceleration, both terms become zero. Then, Equation 4.22 becomes ( )0 0 0 0 0...METHOD ......................................................83  C.  EXPLORATION OF THE ALTITUDE AND INCLINATION EFFECTS ON THE CONTROL

Diffusive shock acceleration at non-relativistic highly oblique shocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meli, Athina; Biermann, P. L.

2004-10-01

Our aim here is to evaluate the rate of the maximum energy and the acceleration rate that Cosmic Rays (CRs) acquire in the non-relativistic diffusive shock acceleration as it could apply during their lifetime in various astrophysical sites. We examine numerically (using Monte Carlo simulations) the effect of the diffusion coefficients on the energy gain and the acceleration rate, by testing the role between the obliquity of the magnetic field at the shock normal, and the significance of both perpendicular cross-field diffusion and parallel diffusion coefficients to the aceleration rate. We find (and justify previous analytical work -Jokipii 1987) that in highly oblique shocks the smaller the perpendicular diffusion gets compared to the parallel diffusion coefficient values, the greater the energy gain of the CRs to be obtained. An explanation of the Cosmic Ray Spectrum in High Energies, between 1015 and 1018eV is claimed, as we estimate the upper limit of energy that CRs could gain in plausible astrophysical regimes; interpreted by the scenario of CRs which are injected by three different kind of sources, (i) supernovae (SN) which explode into the interstellar medium (ISM), (ii) Red Supergiants (RSG), and (iii) Wolf-Rayet stars (WR), where the two latter explode into their pre-SN winds Biermann (2001); Sina (2001).

Numerical study into the morphology and formation mechanisms of three-dimensional particle structures in vibrated cylindrical cavities with various heating conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lappa, Marcello

2016-10-01

The present analysis extends the author's earlier work [Lappa, Phys. Fluids 26, 093301 (2014), 10.1063/1.4893078] on the properties of patterns formed by the spontaneous accumulation and ordering of solid particles in certain types of flow. It is shown that under certain conditions, when subjected to vibrations to induce natural flow, nonisothermal fluids with dispersed solid particles are characterized by intervals of solid-pattern-forming behavior due to particle rearrangements preceded by intervals in which no recognizable structures of solid matter can be detected. The dynamics of these systems are highly nonlinear in nature. Because this family of particle attractors is known to exhibit strong sensitivity to the symmetry properties of the considered vibrated system and related geometrical constraints, the present study attempts to clarify the related dynamics in a geometry with curved walls (cylindrical enclosure). In particular, by assuming vibrations always directed perpendicularly to the imposed temperature gradient, we show that the morphology, spatial extension (percentage of physical volume occupied), separation (spatial distance), and mechanisms responsible for the formation of the resulting particle structures change significantly according to whether the temperature gradient is parallel or perpendicular to the symmetry axis of the cylinder. This indicates that the physics is not invariant with respect to 90° rotations in space of the specific forcing considered (direction of the imposed temperature gradient and associated perpendicular vibrations). Additional insights into the problem are obtained by assessing separately the influence played by the time-averaged (mean) and oscillatory effects. According to the numerical results, the intriguing diversity of particle agglomerates results from the different role or importance played by (curved or straight) boundaries in constraining particles and from the different structure and topology of the resulting macroscopic (large-scale) thermovibrational flow oscillating in time at the same frequency of the imposed vibrations.

Adiabatic theory in regions of strong field gradients. [in magnetosphere

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Whipple, E. C.; Northrop, T. G.; Birmingham, T. J.

1986-01-01

The theory for the generalized first invariant for adiabatic motion of charged particles in regions where there are large gradients in magnetic or electric fields is developed. The general condition for an invariant to exist in such regions is that the potential well in which the particle oscillates change its shape slowly as the particle drifts. It is shown how the Kruskal (1962) procedure can be applied to obtain expressions for the invariant and for drift velocities that are asymptotic in a smallness parameter epsilon. The procedure is illustrated by obtaining the invariant and drift velocities for particles traversing a perpendicular shock, and the generalized invariant is compared with the magnetic moment, and the drift orbits with the actual orbits, for a particular case. In contrast to the magnetic moment, the generalized first invariant is better for large gyroradii (large kinetic energies) than for small gyroradii. Expressions for the invariant when an electrostatic potential jump is imposed across the perpendicular shock, and when the particle traverses a rotational shear layer with a small normal component of the magnetic field are given.

Alfvén Waves and the Aurora (Hannes Alfvén Medal Lecture)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lysak, Robert

2015-04-01

The most compelling visual evidence of plasma processes in the magnetosphere of Earth as well as the other magnetized planets is the aurora. Over 40 years of research have indicated that the aurora is a consequence of the acceleration of charged particles toward the neutral atmosphere, where the excitation of neutral atoms and their subsequent relaxation to the ground state produces the auroral light. Much of this acceleration can be described by acceleration in a quasi-static electric field parallel to the geomagnetic field, producing nearly monoenergetic beams of electrons. While a variety of quasi-static models to describe such parallel electric fields have been developed, the dynamics of how these fields evolve is still an open question. Satellite measurements have indicated that a primary source of energy to support these fields is the Poynting flux associated with shear Alfvén waves propagating along auroral field lines. These Alfvén waves are generated in the magnetosphere and reflect from the ionosphere. On closed field lines, Alfvén waves bouncing between conjugate ionospheres produce field line resonances that have be observed both in space and by ground magnetometers. However, some auroral emissions do not follow this scenario. In these cases, the accelerated electrons are observed to have a broad energy spectrum, rather than a monoenergetic peak. Such a spectrum is suggestive of a time-dependent acceleration process that operates on a time scale of a few seconds, comparable to the electron transit time across the acceleration region. While field line resonances have a time scale on the order of minutes, waves with periods of a few seconds can be produced by partial reflections in the Ionospheric Alfvén Resonator, a resonant cavity formed by the rapid decrease of the plasma density and increase of the Alfvén speed above the ionosphere. In order to develop a parallel electric field that can accelerate auroral particles, these Alfvén waves must develop small spatial scales, where MHD theory breaks down. In this regime, the waves are called kinetic Alfvén waves. These small scales can be produced most simply be phase mixing, although ionospheric feedback and nonlinear effects may also be important. Since kinetic Alfvén waves require perpendicular wavelengths the order of a few kilometers, this model also provides a natural explanation of the narrow scales of discrete auroral arcs. These interactions between magnetosphere and ionosphere and the development of parallel electric fields have been described by means of numerical simulations that serve to illustrate these complex processes.

High field gradient particle accelerator

DOEpatents

Nation, John A.; Greenwald, Shlomo

1989-01-01

A high electric field gradient electron accelerator utilizing short duration, microwave radiation, and capable of operating at high field gradients for high energy physics applications or at reduced electric field gradients for high average current intermediate energy accelerator applications. Particles are accelerated in a smooth bore, periodic undulating waveguide, wherein the period is so selected that the particles slip an integral number of cycles of the r.f. wave every period of the structure. This phase step of the particles produces substantially continuous acceleration in a traveling wave without transverse magnetic or other guide means for the particle.

Numerical studies of electron dynamics in oblique quasi-perpendicular collisionless shock waves

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Liewer, P. C.; Decyk, V. K.; Dawson, J. M.; Lembege, B.

1991-01-01

Linear and nonlinear electron damping of the whistler precursor wave train to low Mach number quasi-perpendicular oblique shocks is studied using a one-dimensional electromagnetic plasma simulation code with particle electrons and ions. In some parameter regimes, electrons are observed to trap along the magnetic field lines in the potential of the whistler precursor wave train. This trapping can lead to significant electron heating in front of the shock for low beta(e). Use of a 64-processor hypercube concurrent computer has enabled long runs using realistic mass ratios in the full particle in-cell code and thus simulate shock parameter regimes and phenomena not previously studied numerically.

Monte Carlo computer simulation of sedimentation of charged hard spherocylinders.

PubMed

Viveros-Méndez, P X; Gil-Villegas, Alejandro; Aranda-Espinoza, S

2014-07-28

In this article we present a NVT Monte Carlo computer simulation study of sedimentation of an electroneutral mixture of oppositely charged hard spherocylinders (CHSC) with aspect ratio L/σ = 5, where L and σ are the length and diameter of the cylinder and hemispherical caps, respectively, for each particle. This system is an extension of the restricted primitive model for spherical particles, where L/σ = 0, and it is assumed that the ions are immersed in an structureless solvent, i.e., a continuum with dielectric constant D. The system consisted of N = 2000 particles and the Wolf method was implemented to handle the coulombic interactions of the inhomogeneous system. Results are presented for different values of the strength ratio between the gravitational and electrostatic interactions, Γ = (mgσ)/(e(2)/Dσ), where m is the mass per particle, e is the electron's charge and g is the gravitational acceleration value. A semi-infinite simulation cell was used with dimensions Lx ≈ Ly and Lz = 5Lx, where Lx, Ly, and Lz are the box dimensions in Cartesian coordinates, and the gravitational force acts along the z-direction. Sedimentation effects were studied by looking at every layer formed by the CHSC along the gravitational field. By increasing Γ, particles tend to get more packed at each layer and to arrange in local domains with an orientational ordering along two perpendicular axis, a feature not observed in the uncharged system with the same hard-body geometry. This type of arrangement, known as tetratic phase, has been observed in two-dimensional systems of hard-rectangles and rounded hard-squares. In this way, the coupling of gravitational and electric interactions in the CHSC system induces the arrangement of particles in layers, with the formation of quasi-two dimensional tetratic phases near the surface.

Solar energetic particle transport and the possibility of wave generation by streaming electrons

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Strauss, R. D. T.; le Roux, J. A.

2017-12-01

After being accelerated close to the Sun, solar energetic particles (SEPs) are transported (mainly) along the turbulent interplanetary magnetic field. In this study, we simulate the propagation of 100 keV electrons as they are scattered in the interplanetary medium. A consequence of these wave-particle interactions is the possible modification (either growth or damping) of the background turbulence by anisotropic SEP electron beams. This process was thought to be negligible, and therefore neglected in past modeling approaches. However, recent observations and modeling by Agueda and Lario (2016) suggest that wave generation may be significant and is therefore included and evaluated in our present model. Our results suggest that wave amplification by streaming SEP electrons is indeed possible and may even significantly alter the background turbulent field. However, the simulations show that this process is much too weak to produce observable effects at Earth's orbit, but such effects may well be observed in future by spacecraft closer to the Sun, presenting an intriguing observational opportunity for either the Solar Orbiter or the Parker Solar Probe spacecraft. Lastly, we note that the level of perpendicular diffusion may also play an important role in determining the effectiveness of the wave growth process. Reference: Agueda, N. and Lario, D. Release History and Transport Parameters of Relativistic Solar Electrons Inferred From Near-the-Sun In Situ Observations, ApJ, 829, 131, 2016.

Field aligned flows driven by neutral puffing at MAST

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Waters, I.; Frerichs, H.; Silburn, S.; Feng, Y.; Harrison, J.; Kirk, A.; Schmitz, O.

2018-06-01

Neutral deuterium gas puffing at the high field side of the mega ampere spherical tokamak (MAST) is shown to drive carbon impurity flows that are aligned with the trajectory of the magnetic field lines in the plasma scrape-off-layer. These impurity flows were directly imaged with emissions from C2+ ions at MAST by coherence imaging spectroscopy and were qualitatively reproduced in deuterium plasmas by modeling with the EMC3-EIRENE plasma edge fluid and kinetic neutral transport code. A reduced one-dimensional momentum and particle balance shows that a localized increase in the static plasma pressure in front of the neutral gas puff yields an acceleration of the plasma due to local ionization. Perpendicular particle transport yields a decay from which a parallel length scale can be determined. Parameter scans in EMC3-EIRENE were carried out to determine the sensitivity of the deuterium plasma flow phenomena to local fueling and diffusion parameters and it is found that these flows robustly form across a wide variety of plasma conditions. Finally, efforts to couple this behavior in the background plasma directly to the impurity flows observed experimentally in MAST using a trace impurity model are discussed. These results provide insight into the fueling and exhaust features at this pivotal point of the radial and parallel particle flux balance, which is a major part of the plasma fueling and exhaust characteristics in a magnetically confined fusion device.

Improving particle beam acceleration in plasmas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

C. de Sousa, M.; L. Caldas, I.

2018-04-01

The dynamics of wave-particle interactions in magnetized plasmas restricts the wave amplitude to moderate values for particle beam acceleration from rest energy. We analyze how a perturbing invariant robust barrier modifies the phase space of the system and enlarges the wave amplitude interval for particle acceleration. For low values of the wave amplitude, the acceleration becomes effective for particles with initial energy close to the rest energy. For higher values of the wave amplitude, the robust barrier controls chaos in the system and restores the acceleration process. We also determine the best position for the perturbing barrier in phase space in order to increase the final energy of the particles.

Dynamics of colloidal particles in electrohydrodynamic convection of nematic liquid crystal.

PubMed

Takahashi, Kentaro; Kimura, Yasuyuki

2014-07-01

We have studied the dynamics of micrometer-sized colloidal particles in electrohydrodynamic convection of nematic liquid crystal. Above the onset voltage of electroconvection, the parallel array of convection rolls appears to be perpendicular to the nematic field at first. The particles are forced to rotate by convection flow and are trapped within a single roll in this voltage regime. A slow glide motion along the roll axis is also observed. The frequency of rotational motion and the glide velocity increase with the applied voltage. Under a much larger voltage where the roll axis temporally fluctuates, the particles occasionally hop to the neighbor rolls. In this voltage regime, the motion of the particles becomes two-dimensional. The motion perpendicular to the roll axis exhibits diffusion behavior at a long time period. The effective diffusion constant is 10(3)-10(4) times larger than the molecular one. The observed behavior is compared with the result obtained by a simple stochastic model for the transport of the particles in convection. The enhancement of diffusion can be quantitatively described well by the rotation frequency in a roll, the width of the roll, and the hopping probability to the neighbor rolls.

Detection of Accelerating Targets in Clutter Using a De-Chirping Technique

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-06-01

Academy, also in Canberra, working on the the- ory and simulation of spatial optical solitons and light-induced optical switching in nonlinear...signal gain in the receiver. UNCLASSIFIED 1 DSTO–RR–0399 UNCLASSIFIED target along the velocity vector , or equivalently by radar platform. The change of...the tracker uses range rate in its track initiation logic. (2) Lateral acceleration perpendicular to the velocity vector - the target is turning and

Dissipation and particle energization in moderate to low beta turbulent plasma via PIC simulations

DOE PAGES

Makwana, Kirit; Li, Hui; Guo, Fan; ...

2017-05-30

Here, we simulate decaying turbulence in electron-positron pair plasmas using a fully-kinetic particle-in-cell (PIC) code. We run two simulations with moderate-to-low plasma β (the ratio of thermal pressure to magnetic pressure). The energy decay rate is found to be similar in both cases. The perpendicular wave-number spectrum of magnetic energy shows a slope betweenmore » $${k}_{\\perp }^{-1.3}$$ and $${k}_{\\perp }^{-1.1}$$, where the perpendicular (⊥) and parallel (∥) directions are defined with respect to the magnetic field. The particle kinetic energy distribution function shows the formation of a non-thermal feature in the case of lower plasma β, with a slope close to E-1. The correlation between thin turbulent current sheets and Ohmic heating by the dot product of electric field (E) and current density (J) is investigated. By heating the parallel E∥ centerdot J∥ term dominates the perpendicular E⊥ centerdot J⊥ term. Regions of strong E∥ centerdot J∥ are spatially well-correlated with regions of intense current sheets, which also appear correlated with regions of strong E∥ in the low β simulation, suggesting an important role of magnetic reconnection in the dissipation of low β plasma turbulence.« less

Dissipation and particle energization in moderate to low beta turbulent plasma via PIC simulations

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Makwana, Kirit; Li, Hui; Guo, Fan

Here, we simulate decaying turbulence in electron-positron pair plasmas using a fully-kinetic particle-in-cell (PIC) code. We run two simulations with moderate-to-low plasma β (the ratio of thermal pressure to magnetic pressure). The energy decay rate is found to be similar in both cases. The perpendicular wave-number spectrum of magnetic energy shows a slope betweenmore » $${k}_{\\perp }^{-1.3}$$ and $${k}_{\\perp }^{-1.1}$$, where the perpendicular (⊥) and parallel (∥) directions are defined with respect to the magnetic field. The particle kinetic energy distribution function shows the formation of a non-thermal feature in the case of lower plasma β, with a slope close to E-1. The correlation between thin turbulent current sheets and Ohmic heating by the dot product of electric field (E) and current density (J) is investigated. By heating the parallel E∥ centerdot J∥ term dominates the perpendicular E⊥ centerdot J⊥ term. Regions of strong E∥ centerdot J∥ are spatially well-correlated with regions of intense current sheets, which also appear correlated with regions of strong E∥ in the low β simulation, suggesting an important role of magnetic reconnection in the dissipation of low β plasma turbulence.« less

Method and apparatus for varying accelerator beam output energy

DOEpatents

Young, Lloyd M.

1998-01-01

A coupled cavity accelerator (CCA) accelerates a charged particle beam with rf energy from a rf source. An input accelerating cavity receives the charged particle beam and an output accelerating cavity outputs the charged particle beam at an increased energy. Intermediate accelerating cavities connect the input and the output accelerating cavities to accelerate the charged particle beam. A plurality of tunable coupling cavities are arranged so that each one of the tunable coupling cavities respectively connect an adjacent pair of the input, output, and intermediate accelerating cavities to transfer the rf energy along the accelerating cavities. An output tunable coupling cavity can be detuned to variably change the phase of the rf energy reflected from the output coupling cavity so that regions of the accelerator can be selectively turned off when one of the intermediate tunable coupling cavities is also detuned.

Efficient particle acceleration in shocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heavens, A. F.

1984-10-01

A self-consistent non-linear theory of acceleration of particles by shock waves is developed, using an extension of the two-fluid hydrodynamical model by Drury and Völk. The transport of the accelerated particles is governed by a diffusion coefficient which is initially assumed to be independent of particle momentum, to obtain exact solutions for the spectrum. It is found that steady-state shock structures with high acceleration efficiency are only possible for shocks with Mach numbers less than about 12. A more realistic diffusion coefficient is then considered, and this maximum Mach number is reduced to about 6. The efficiency of the acceleration process determines the relative importance of the non-relativistic and relativistic particles in the distribution of accelerated particles, and this determines the effective specific heat ratio.

The role of fluid compression in energy conversion and particle energization during magnetic reconnection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, X.; Guo, F.; Li, G.; Li, H.

2016-12-01

Theories of particle transport and acceleration have shown that fluid compression is the leading mechanism for particle acceleration and plasma energization. However, the role of compression in particle acceleration during magnetic reconnection is unclear. We use two approaches to study this issue. First, using fully kinetic simulations, we quantitatively calculate the effect of compression in energy conversion and particle energization during magnetic reconnection for a range of plasma beta and guide field. We show that compression has an important contribution for the energy conversion between the bulk kinetic energy and the internal energy when the guide field is smaller than the reconnecting component. Based on this result, we then study the large-scale reconnection acceleration by solving the Parker's transport equation in a background reconnecting flow provided by MHD simulations. Due to the compression effect, the simulations suggest fast particle acceleration to high energies in the reconnection layer. This study clarifies the nature of particle acceleration in reconnection layer, and may be important to understand particle acceleration and plasma energization during solar flares.

Formation of electron energy spectra during magnetic reconnection in laser-produced plasma

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Kai; Lu, Quanming; Huang, Can; Dong, Quanli; Wang, Huanyu; Fan, Feibin; Sheng, Zhengming; Wang, Shui; Zhang, Jie

2017-10-01

Energetic electron spectra formed during magnetic reconnection between two laser-produced plasma bubbles are investigated by the use of two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations. It is found that the evolution of such an interaction between the two plasma bubbles can be separated into two distinct stages: squeezing and reconnection stages. In the squeezing stage, when the two plasma bubbles expand quickly and collide with each other, the magnetic field in the inflow region is greatly enhanced. In the second stage, a thin current sheet is formed between the two plasma bubbles, and then, magnetic reconnection occurs therein. During the squeezing stage, electrons are heated in the perpendicular direction by betatron acceleration due to the enhancement of the magnetic field around the plasma bubbles. Meanwhile, non-thermal electrons are generated by the Fermi mechanism when these electrons bounce between the two plasma bubbles approaching quickly and get accelerated mainly by the convective electric field associated with the plasma bubbles. During the reconnection stage, electrons get further accelerated mainly by the reconnection electric field in the vicinity of the X line. When the expanding speed of the plasma bubbles is sufficiently large, the formed electron energy spectra have a kappa distribution, where the lower energy part satisfies a Maxwellian function and the higher energy part is a power-law distribution. Moreover, the increase in the expanding speed will result in the hardening of formed power-law spectra in both the squeezing and reconnection stages.

Particle acceleration at a reconnecting magnetic separator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Threlfall, J.; Neukirch, T.; Parnell, C. E.; Eradat Oskoui, S.

2015-02-01

Context. While the exact acceleration mechanism of energetic particles during solar flares is (as yet) unknown, magnetic reconnection plays a key role both in the release of stored magnetic energy of the solar corona and the magnetic restructuring during a flare. Recent work has shown that special field lines, called separators, are common sites of reconnection in 3D numerical experiments. To date, 3D separator reconnection sites have received little attention as particle accelerators. Aims: We investigate the effectiveness of separator reconnection as a particle acceleration mechanism for electrons and protons. Methods: We study the particle acceleration using a relativistic guiding-centre particle code in a time-dependent kinematic model of magnetic reconnection at a separator. Results: The effect upon particle behaviour of initial position, pitch angle, and initial kinetic energy are examined in detail, both for specific (single) particle examples and for large distributions of initial conditions. The separator reconnection model contains several free parameters, and we study the effect of changing these parameters upon particle acceleration, in particular in view of the final particle energy ranges that agree with observed energy spectra.

High field gradient particle accelerator

DOEpatents

Nation, J.A.; Greenwald, S.

1989-05-30

A high electric field gradient electron accelerator utilizing short duration, microwave radiation, and capable of operating at high field gradients for high energy physics applications or at reduced electric field gradients for high average current intermediate energy accelerator applications is disclosed. Particles are accelerated in a smooth bore, periodic undulating waveguide, wherein the period is so selected that the particles slip an integral number of cycles of the r.f. wave every period of the structure. This phase step of the particles produces substantially continuous acceleration in a traveling wave without transverse magnetic or other guide means for the particle. 10 figs.

Heating and Acceleration of Charged Particles by Weakly Compressible Magnetohydrodynamic Turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lynn, Jacob William

We investigate the interaction between low-frequency magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence and a distribution of charged particles. Understanding this physics is central to understanding the heating of the solar wind, as well as the heating and acceleration of other collisionless plasmas. Our central method is to simulate weakly compressible MHD turbulence using the Athena code, along with a distribution of test particles which feel the electromagnetic fields of the turbulence. We also construct analytic models of transit-time damping (TTD), which results from the mirror force caused by compressible (fast or slow) MHD waves. Standard linear-theory models in the literature require an exact resonance between particle and wave velocities to accelerate particles. The models developed in this thesis go beyond standard linear theory to account for the fact that wave-particle interactions decorrelate over a short time, which allows particles with velocities off resonance to undergo acceleration and velocity diffusion. We use the test particle simulation results to calibrate and distinguish between different models for this velocity diffusion. Test particle heating is larger than the linear theory prediction, due to continued acceleration of particles with velocities off-resonance. We also include an artificial pitch-angle scattering to the test particle motion, representing the effect of high-frequency waves or velocity-space instabilities. For low scattering rates, we find that the scattering enforces isotropy and enhances heating by a modest factor. For much higher scattering rates, the acceleration is instead due to a non-resonant effect, as particles "frozen" into the fluid adiabatically gain and lose energy as eddies expand and contract. Lastly, we generalize our calculations to allow for relativistic test particles. Linear theory predicts that relativistic particles with velocities much higher than the speed of waves comprising the turbulence would undergo no acceleration; resonance-broadening modifies this conclusion and allows for a continued Fermi-like acceleration process. This may affect the observed spectra of black hole accretion disks by accelerating relativistic particles into a quasi-powerlaw tail.

Compact accelerator for medical therapy

DOEpatents

Caporaso, George J.; Chen, Yu-Jiuan; Hawkins, Steven A.; Sampayan, Stephen E.; Paul, Arthur C.

2010-05-04

A compact accelerator system having an integrated particle generator-linear accelerator with a compact, small-scale construction capable of producing an energetic (.about.70-250 MeV) proton beam or other nuclei and transporting the beam direction to a medical therapy patient without the need for bending magnets or other hardware often required for remote beam transport. The integrated particle generator-accelerator is actuable as a unitary body on a support structure to enable scanning of a particle beam by direction actuation of the particle generator-accelerator.

Compact particle accelerator

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Elizondo-Decanini, Juan M.

2017-08-29

A compact particle accelerator having an input portion configured to receive power to produce particles for acceleration, where the input portion includes a switch, is provided. In a general embodiment, a vacuum tube receives particles produced from the input portion at a first end, and a plurality of wafer stacks are positioned serially along the vacuum tube. Each of the plurality of wafer stacks include a dielectric and metal-oxide pair, wherein each of the plurality of wafer stacks further accelerate the particles in the vacuum tube. A beam shaper coupled to a second end of the vacuum tube shapes themore » particles accelerated by the plurality of wafer stacks into a beam and an output portion outputs the beam.« less

The Particle Adventure | What is fundamental? | Fundamental

Science.gov Websites

Quiz - What particles are made of The four interactions How does matter interact? The unseen effect structure Rutherford's result Rutherford's analysis How physicists experiment Deflected probe Detecting the Energy-mass conversion Accelerators How to obtain particles to accelerate Accelerating particles

Revisiting the Velocity Selector Problem with VPython

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Milbourne, Jeff; Lim, Halson

2015-01-01

The velocity selector is a classic first-year physics problem that demonstrates the influence of perpendicular electric and magnetic fields on a charged particle. Traditionally textbooks introduce this problem in the context of balanced forces, often asking for field strengths that would allow a charged particle, with a specific target velocity,…

Piezoelectric particle accelerator

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kemp, Mark A.; Jongewaard, Erik N.; Haase, Andrew A.

2017-08-29

A particle accelerator is provided that includes a piezoelectric accelerator element, where the piezoelectric accelerator element includes a hollow cylindrical shape, and an input transducer, where the input transducer is disposed to provide an input signal to the piezoelectric accelerator element, where the input signal induces a mechanical excitation of the piezoelectric accelerator element, where the mechanical excitation is capable of generating a piezoelectric electric field proximal to an axis of the cylindrical shape, where the piezoelectric accelerator is configured to accelerate a charged particle longitudinally along the axis of the cylindrical shape according to the piezoelectric electric field.

Solar Wind - Magnetosheath - Magnetopause Interactions in Global Hybrid-Vlasov Simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hoilijoki, S.; Pfau-Kempf, Y.; Ganse, U.; Hietala, H.; Cassak, P.; Walsh, B.; Juusola, L.; Jarvinen, R.; von Alfthan, S.; Palmroth, M.

2017-12-01

We present results of interactions of solar wind and Earth's magnetosphere in global hybrid-Vlasov simulations carried out using the Vlasiator model. Vlasiator propagates ions as velocity distribution functions by solving the Vlasov equation and electrons are treated as charge-neutralizing massless fluid. Vlasiator simulations show a strong coupling between the ion scale and global scale physics. Global scale phenomena affect the local physics and the local phenomena impact the global system. Our results have shown that mirror mode waves growing in the quasi-perpendicular magnetosheath have an impact on the local reconnection rates at the dayside magnetopause. Furthermore, multiple X-line reconnection at the dayside magnetopause leads to the formation of magnetic islands (2D flux transfer events), which launch bow waves upstream propagating through the magnetosheath. These steep bow waves have the ability to accelerate ions in the magnetosheath. When the bow waves reach the bow shock they are able to bulge the shock locally. The bulge in the shock decreases the angle between the interplanetary magnetic field and the shock normal and allows ions to be reflected back to the solar wind along the magnetic field lines. Consequently, Vlasiator simulations show that magnetosheath fluctuations affect magnetopause reconnection and reconnection may influence particle acceleration and reflection in the magnetosheath and solar wind.

Current structure and flow pattern on the electron separatrix in reconnection region

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guo, Ruilong; Pu, Zuyin; Wei, Yong

2017-12-01

Results from 2.5D Particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations of symmetric reconnection with negligible guide field reveal that the accessible boundary of the electrons accelerated in the magnetic reconnection region is displayed by enhanced electron nongyrotropy downstream from the X-line. The boundary, hereafter termed the electron separatrix, occurs at a few d e (electron inertial length) away from the exhaust side of the magnetic separatrix. On the inflow side of the electron separatrix, the current is mainly carried by parallel accelerated electrons, served as the inflow region patch of the Hall current. The out-of-plane current density enhances at the electron separatrix. The dominating current carriers are the electrons, nongyrotropic distribution functions of which contribute significantly to the perpendicular electron velocity by increasing the electron diamagnetic drift velocity. When crossing the separatrix region where the Hall electric field is enhanced, electron velocity orientation is changed dramatically, which could be a diagnostic indicator to detect the electron separatrix. In the exhaust region, ions are the main carriers for the out-of-plane current, while the parallel current is still mainly carried by electrons. The current density peak in the separatrix region implies that a thin current sheet is formed apart from the neutral line, which can evolve to the bifurcated current sheet.

Physics of the diffusion region in the Magnetospheric Multiscale era

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, L. J.; Hesse, M.; Wang, S.; Ergun, R.; Bessho, N.; Burch, J. L.; Giles, B. L.; Torbert, R. B.; Gershman, D. J.; Wilson, L. B., III; Dorelli, J.; Pollock, C. J.; Moore, T. E.; Lavraud, B.; Strangeway, R. J.; Russell, C. T.; Khotyaintsev, Y. V.; Le Contel, O.; Avanov, L. A.

2016-12-01

Encounters of reconnection diffusion regions by the Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) mission during its first magnetopause scan are studied in combination with theories and simulations. The goal is to understand by first-principles how stored magnetic energy is converted into plasma thermal and bulk flow energies via particle energization, mixing and interaction with waves. The magnetosheath population having much higher density than the magnetospheric plasma is an outstanding narrator for and participant in the magnetospheric part of the diffusion region. For reconnection with negligible guide fields, the accelerated magnetosheath population (for both electrons and ions) is cyclotron turned by the reconnected magnetic field to form outflow jets, and then gyrotropized downstream. Wave fluctuations are reduced in the central electron diffusion region (EDR) and do not dominate the energy conversion there. For an event with a significant guide field to magnetize the electrons, wave fluctuations at the lower hybrid frequency dominate the energy conversion in the EDR, and the fastest electron outflow is established dominantly by a strong perpendicular electric field via the ExB flow in one exhaust and by time-of-flight effects along with parallel electric field acceleration in the other. Whether the above features are common threads to magnetopause reconnection diffusion regions is a question to be further examined.

Accelerator Science: Circular vs. Linear

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lincoln, Don

Particle accelerator are scientific instruments that allow scientists to collide particles together at incredible energies to study the secrets of the universe. However, there are many manners in which particle accelerators can be constructed. In this video, Fermilab’s Dr. Don Lincoln explains the pros and cons of circular and linear accelerators.

Introduction to Particle Acceleration in the Cosmos

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gallagher, D. L.; Horwitz, J. L.; Perez, J.; Quenby, J.

2005-01-01

Accelerated charged particles have been used on Earth since 1930 to explore the very essence of matter, for industrial applications, and for medical treatments. Throughout the universe nature employs a dizzying array of acceleration processes to produce particles spanning twenty orders of magnitude in energy range, while shaping our cosmic environment. Here, we introduce and review the basic physical processes causing particle acceleration, in astrophysical plasmas from geospace to the outer reaches of the cosmos. These processes are chiefly divided into four categories: adiabatic and other forms of non-stochastic acceleration, magnetic energy storage and stochastic acceleration, shock acceleration, and plasma wave and turbulent acceleration. The purpose of this introduction is to set the stage and context for the individual papers comprising this monograph.

Acceleration technologies for charged particles: an introduction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carter, Richard G.

2011-01-01

Particle accelerators have many important uses in scientific experiments, in industry and in medicine. This paper reviews the variety of technologies which are used to accelerate charged particles to high energies. It aims to show how the capabilities and limitations of these technologies are related to underlying physical principles. The paper emphasises the way in which different technologies are used together to convey energy from the electrical supply to the accelerated particles.

Linear and Non-Linear Response of Liquid and Solid Particles to Energetic Radiation

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-03-11

for particle 2 located on the + x6 axis (perpendicular to the beam propagation axis) one diameter surface-to-surface from particle 1 (i 12 = 4.0, Obd2 ...axis direction. Off is the far field scattering angle relative to the beam propagation axis. Obd2 is the orientation angle of particle 2 relative to...Particle 2 in the Xb - Zb plane and positioned one diameter surface-to-surface from particle 1 (P12 = 4.0). a.) Obd2 = 00, b.) Obd2 = 30 ° , c.) ebd

Interaction of Energetic Particles with Discontinuities Upstream of Strong Shocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Malkov, Mikhail; Diamond, Patrick

2008-11-01

Acceleration of particles in strong astrophysical shocks is known to be accompanied and promoted by a number of instabilities which are driven by the particles themselves. One of them is an acoustic (also known as Drury's) instability driven by the pressure gradient of accelerated particles upstream. The generated sound waves naturally steepen into shocks thus forming a shocktrain. Similar magnetoacoustic or Alfven type structures may be driven by pick-up ions, for example. We consider the solutions of kinetic equation for accelerated particles within the shocktrain. The accelerated particles are assumed to be coupled to the flow by an intensive pitch-angle scattering on the self-generated Alfven waves. The implications for acceleration and confinement of cosmic rays in this shock environment will be discussed.

MULTI-SPACECRAFT OBSERVATIONS AND TRANSPORT MODELING OF ENERGETIC ELECTRONS FOR A SERIES OF SOLAR PARTICLE EVENTS IN AUGUST 2010

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dröge, W.; Kartavykh, Y. Y.; Dresing, N.

During 2010 August a series of solar particle events was observed by the two STEREO spacecraft as well as near-Earth spacecraft. The events, occurring on August 7, 14, and 18, originated from active regions 11093 and 11099. We combine in situ and remote-sensing observations with predictions from our model of three-dimensional anisotropic particle propagation in order to investigate the physical processes that caused the large angular spreads of energetic electrons during these events. In particular, we address the effects of the lateral transport of the electrons in the solar corona that is due to diffusion perpendicular to the average magneticmore » field in the interplanetary medium. We also study the influence of two coronal mass ejections and associated shock waves on the electron propagation, and a possible time variation of the transport conditions during the above period. For the August 18 event we also utilize electron observations from the MESSENGER spacecraft at a distance of 0.31 au from the Sun for an attempt to separate between radial and longitudinal dependencies in the transport process. Our modelings show that the parallel and perpendicular diffusion mean free paths of electrons can vary significantly not only as a function of the radial distance, but also of the heliospheric longitude. Normalized to a distance of 1 au, we derive values of λ {sub ∥} in the range of 0.15–0.6 au, and values of λ {sub ⊥} in the range of 0.005–0.01 au. We discuss how our results relate to various theoretical models for perpendicular diffusion, and whether there might be a functional relationship between the perpendicular and the parallel mean free path.« less

Multi-spacecraft Observations and Transport Modeling of Energetic Electrons for a Series of Solar Particle Events in August 2010

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dröge, W.; Kartavykh, Y. Y.; Dresing, N.; Klassen, A.

2016-08-01

During 2010 August a series of solar particle events was observed by the two STEREO spacecraft as well as near-Earth spacecraft. The events, occurring on August 7, 14, and 18, originated from active regions 11093 and 11099. We combine in situ and remote-sensing observations with predictions from our model of three-dimensional anisotropic particle propagation in order to investigate the physical processes that caused the large angular spreads of energetic electrons during these events. In particular, we address the effects of the lateral transport of the electrons in the solar corona that is due to diffusion perpendicular to the average magnetic field in the interplanetary medium. We also study the influence of two coronal mass ejections and associated shock waves on the electron propagation, and a possible time variation of the transport conditions during the above period. For the August 18 event we also utilize electron observations from the MESSENGER spacecraft at a distance of 0.31 au from the Sun for an attempt to separate between radial and longitudinal dependencies in the transport process. Our modelings show that the parallel and perpendicular diffusion mean free paths of electrons can vary significantly not only as a function of the radial distance, but also of the heliospheric longitude. Normalized to a distance of 1 au, we derive values of λ ∥ in the range of 0.15-0.6 au, and values of λ ⊥ in the range of 0.005-0.01 au. We discuss how our results relate to various theoretical models for perpendicular diffusion, and whether there might be a functional relationship between the perpendicular and the parallel mean free path.

Method of correcting eddy current magnetic fields in particle accelerator vacuum chambers

DOEpatents

Danby, G.T.; Jackson, J.W.

1990-03-19

A method for correcting magnetic field aberrations produced by eddy currents induced in a particle accelerator vacuum chamber housing is provided wherein correction windings are attached to selected positions on the housing and the windings are energized by transformer action from secondary coils, which coils are inductively coupled to the poles of electro-magnets that are powered to confine the charged particle beam within a desired orbit as the charged particles are accelerated through the vacuum chamber by a particle-driving rf field. The power inductively coupled to the secondary coils varies as a function of variations in the power supplied by the particle-accelerating rf field to a beam of particles accelerated through the vacuum chamber, so the current in the energized correction coils is effective to cancel eddy current flux fields that would otherwise be induced in the vacuum chamber by power variations (dB/dt) in the particle beam.

Method of correcting eddy current magnetic fields in particle accelerator vacuum chambers

DOEpatents

Danby, Gordon T.; Jackson, John W.

1991-01-01

A method for correcting magnetic field aberrations produced by eddy currents induced in a particle accelerator vacuum chamber housing is provided wherein correction windings are attached to selected positions on the housing and the windings are energized by transformer action from secondary coils, which coils are inductively coupled to the poles of electro-magnets that are powered to confine the charged particle beam within a desired orbit as the charged particles are accelerated through the vacuum chamber by a particle-driving rf field. The power inductively coupled to the secondary coils varies as a function of variations in the power supplied by the particle-accelerating rf field to a beam of particles accelerated through the vacuum chamber, so the current in the energized correction coils is effective to cancel eddy current flux fields that would otherwise be induced in the vacuum chamber by power variations in the particle beam.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kagan, Daniel; Nakar, Ehud; Piran, Tsvi, E-mail: daniel.kagan@mail.huji.ac.il

The maximum synchrotron burnoff limit of 160 MeV represents a fundamental limit to radiation resulting from electromagnetic particle acceleration in one-zone ideal plasmas. In magnetic reconnection, however, particle acceleration and radiation are decoupled because the electric field is larger than the magnetic field in the diffusion region. We carry out two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations to determine the extent to which magnetic reconnection can produce synchrotron radiation above the burnoff limit. We use the test particle comparison (TPC) method to isolate the effects of cooling by comparing the trajectories and acceleration efficiencies of test particles incident on such a reconnection region withmore » and without cooling them. We find that the cooled and uncooled particle trajectories are typically similar during acceleration in the reconnection region, and derive an effective limit on particle acceleration that is inversely proportional to the average magnetic field experienced by the particle during acceleration. Using the calculated distribution of this average magnetic field as a function of uncooled final particle energy, we find analytically that cooling does not affect power-law particle energy spectra except at energies far above the synchrotron burnoff limit. Finally, we compare fully cooled and uncooled simulations of reconnection, confirming that the synchrotron burnoff limit does not produce a cutoff in the particle energy spectrum. Our results indicate that the TPC method accurately predicts the effects of cooling on particle acceleration in relativistic reconnection, and that, even far above the burnoff limit, the synchrotron energy of radiation produced in reconnection is not limited by cooling.« less

On the Radio-emitting Particles of the Crab Nebula: Stochastic Acceleration Model

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tanaka, Shuta J.; Asano, Katsuaki, E-mail: sjtanaka@center.konan-u.ac.jp

The broadband emission of pulsar wind nebulae (PWNe) is well described by non-thermal emissions from accelerated electrons and positrons. However, the standard shock acceleration model of PWNe does not account for the hard spectrum in radio wavelengths. The origin of the radio-emitting particles is also important to determine the pair production efficiency in the pulsar magnetosphere. Here, we propose a possible resolution for the particle energy distribution in PWNe; the radio-emitting particles are not accelerated at the pulsar wind termination shock but are stochastically accelerated by turbulence inside PWNe. We upgrade our past one-zone spectral evolution model to include themore » energy diffusion, i.e., the stochastic acceleration, and apply the model to the Crab Nebula. A fairly simple form of the energy diffusion coefficient is assumed for this demonstrative study. For a particle injection to the stochastic acceleration process, we consider the continuous injection from the supernova ejecta or the impulsive injection associated with supernova explosion. The observed broadband spectrum and the decay of the radio flux are reproduced by tuning the amount of the particle injected to the stochastic acceleration process. The acceleration timescale and the duration of the acceleration are required to be a few decades and a few hundred years, respectively. Our results imply that some unveiled mechanisms, such as back reaction to the turbulence, are required to make the energies of stochastically and shock-accelerated particles comparable.« less

Accelerator Science: Circular vs. Linear

ScienceCinema

Lincoln, Don

2018-06-12

Particle accelerator are scientific instruments that allow scientists to collide particles together at incredible energies to study the secrets of the universe. However, there are many manners in which particle accelerators can be constructed. In this video, Fermilab’s Dr. Don Lincoln explains the pros and cons of circular and linear accelerators.

Astrophysical particle acceleration mechanisms in colliding magnetized laser-produced plasmas

DOE PAGES

Fox, W.; Park, J.; Deng, W.; ...

2017-08-11

Significant particle energization is observed to occur in numerous astrophysical environments, and in the standard models, this acceleration occurs alongside energy conversion processes including collisionless shocks or magnetic reconnection. Recent platforms for laboratory experiments using magnetized laser-produced plasmas have opened opportunities to study these particle acceleration processes in the laboratory. Through fully kinetic particle-in-cell simulations, we investigate acceleration mechanisms in experiments with colliding magnetized laser-produced plasmas, with geometry and parameters matched to recent high-Mach number reconnection experiments with externally controlled magnetic fields. 2-D simulations demonstrate significant particle acceleration with three phases of energization: first, a “direct” Fermi acceleration driven bymore » approaching magnetized plumes; second, x-line acceleration during magnetic reconnection of anti-parallel fields; and finally, an additional Fermi energization of particles trapped in contracting and relaxing magnetic islands produced by reconnection. Furthermore, the relative effectiveness of these mechanisms depends on plasma and magnetic field parameters of the experiments.« less

Generation and evolution of anisotropic turbulence and related energy transfer in drifting proton-alpha plasmas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maneva, Y. G.; Poedts, S.

2018-05-01

The power spectra of magnetic field fluctuations in the solar wind typically follow a power-law dependence with respect to the observed frequencies and wave-numbers. The background magnetic field often influences the plasma properties, setting a preferential direction for plasma heating and acceleration. At the same time the evolution of the solar-wind turbulence at the ion and electron scales is influenced by the plasma properties through local micro-instabilities and wave-particle interactions. The solar-wind-plasma temperature and the solar-wind turbulence at sub- and sup-ion scales simultaneously show anisotropic features, with different components and fluctuation power in parallel with and perpendicular to the orientation of the background magnetic field. The ratio between the power of the magnetic field fluctuations in parallel and perpendicular direction at the ion scales may vary with the heliospheric distance and depends on various parameters, including the local wave properties and nonthermal plasma features, such as temperature anisotropies and relative drift speeds. In this work we have performed two-and-a-half-dimensional hybrid simulations to study the generation and evolution of anisotropic turbulence in a drifting multi-ion species plasma. We investigate the evolution of the turbulent spectral slopes along and across the background magnetic field for the cases of initially isotropic and anisotropic turbulence. Finally, we show the effect of the various turbulent spectra for the local ion heating in the solar wind.

Artificial ion beam instabilities. I - Linear theory. II - Simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scales, W. A.; Kintner, P. M.

1990-07-01

Some of the important plasma instabilities that result when an artificial ion beam is injected into the ionospheric F region are studied using linear Vlasov theory. The variation in wave spectra at the receiver as the receiver and plasma gun separate perpendicularly to the magnetic field is consistent with a beam density decrease at or near the receiver. At separation distances that are large fractions of the beam gyrodiameter, usually narrow-band waves near the background lower hybrid and H+ gyroharmonic frequencies are measured. These observations are consistent with waves expected to be generated by beam densities on the order of or less than a few percent of the background density. At smaller separation distances, broadband waves are usually observed with frequencies from zero up to and above the lower hybrid frequency. Electrostatic particle simulation studies of the plasma instabilities indicate that the broadband fluidlike lower hybrid instability is the most important for background particle heating. Perpendicular H+ heating is more efficient than perpendicular O+ or parallel electron heating for the drift velocity regime most relevant to past experiments.

Origin of energetic ions observed in the terrestrial ion foreshock : 2D full-particle simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Savoini, Philippe; Lembege, bertrand

2016-04-01

Collisionless shocks are well-known structures in astrophysical environments which dissipate bulk flow kinetic energy and accelerate large fraction of particle. Spacecrafts have firmly established the existence of the so-called terrestrial foreshock region magnetically connected to the shock and filled by two distinct populations in the quasi-perpendicular shock region (i.e. for 45r{ } ≤ quad θ Bn quad ≤ 90r{ }, where θ Bn is the angle between the shock normal and the upstream magnetic field) : (i) the field-aligned ion beams or `` FAB '' characterized by a gyrotropic distributionsout{,} and (ii) the gyro-phase bunched ions or `` GPB '' characterized by a NON gyrotropic distribution. The present work is based on the use of two dimensional PIC simulation of a curved shock and associated foreshock region where full curvature effects, time of flight effects and both electrons and ions dynamics are fully described by a self consistent approach. Our previous analysis (Savoini et Lembège, 2015) has evidenced that these two types of backstreaming populations can originate from the shock front itself without invoking any local diffusion by ion beam instabilities. Present results are focussed on individual ion trajectories and evidence that "FAB" population is injected into the foreshock mainly along the shock front whereas the "GPB" population penetrates more deeply the shock front. Such differences explain why the "FAB" population loses their gyro-phase coherency and become gyrotropic which is not the case for the "GPB". The impact of these different injection features on the energy gain for each ion population will be presented in détails. Savoini, P. and B. Lembège (2015), `` Production of nongyrotropic and gyrotropic backstreaming ion distributions in the quasi-perpendicular ion foreshock région '', J. Geophys. Res., 120, pp 7154-7171, doi = 10.1002/2015JA021018.

SHORT ACCELERATION TIMES FROM SUPERDIFFUSIVE SHOCK ACCELERATION IN THE HELIOSPHERE

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Perri, S.; Zimbardo, G., E-mail: silvia.perri@fis.unical.it

2015-12-10

The analysis of time profiles of particles accelerated at interplanetary shocks allows particle transport properties to be inferred. The frequently observed power-law decay upstream, indeed, implies a superdiffusive particle transport when the level of magnetic field variance does not change as the time interval from the shock front increases. In this context, a superdiffusive shock acceleration (SSA) theory has been developed, allowing us to make predictions of the acceleration times. In this work we estimate for a number of interplanetary shocks, including the solar wind termination shock, the acceleration times for energetic protons in the framework of SSA and wemore » compare the results with the acceleration times predicted by standard diffusive shock acceleration. The acceleration times due to SSA are found to be much shorter than in the classical model, and also shorter than the interplanetary shock lifetimes. This decrease of the acceleration times is due to the scale-free nature of the particle displacements in the framework of superdiffusion. Indeed, very long displacements are possible, increasing the probability for particles far from the front of the shock to return, and short displacements have a high probability of occurrence, increasing the chances for particles close to the front to cross the shock many times.« less

A theory of bimodal acceleration of pick up ions by compression solar wind turbulence under pressure balance

DOE PAGES

Zhang, Ming; Schlickeiser, Reinhard

2012-08-22

Recently, it was demonstrated that stochastic acceleration of particles going through a series of compressive plasma waves can be efficient and fast. It could be too fast so that the pressure built up by the accelerated particles may in turn modify the amplitude of waves to prevent the particles from having an exploding pressure. We call this condition pressure balance. In this paper, we take into account the fact that active acceleration of particles only occupies a limited volume of space due to a possible intermittent nature of plasma waves or turbulence. We also develop a bimodal acceleration theory thatmore » treats the populations of particles in the active and inactive acceleration regions separately and allows the two populations to exchange particles efficiently. We show that the system automatically produces a solution of v -5 steady state distribution for the accelerated particles, under the requirement of the pressure balance condition. It is found that the v -5 distribution is more robust and easier to achieve with a small volume of intense particle acceleration. These properties explain why the v -5 distribution is commonly observed in space. We apply our model to pickup ion propagation and acceleration throughout the entire heliosphere. These results can reproduce various observations in some great detail. We also found that this mechanism could be responsible for producing anomalous cosmic rays deep in the heliosheath.« less

Cross-stream migration of active particles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Uspal, William; Katuri, Jaideep; Simmchen, Juliane; Miguel-Lopez, Albert; Sanchez, Samuel

For natural microswimmers, the interplay of swimming activity and external flow can promote robust directed motion, e.g. propulsion against (upstream rheotaxis) or perpendicular to the direction of flow. These effects are generally attributed to their complex body shapes and flagellar beat patterns. Here, using catalytic Janus particles as a model system, we report on a strong directional response that naturally emerges for spherical active particles in a channel flow. The particles align their propulsion axis to be perpendicular to both the direction of flow and the normal vector of a nearby bounding surface. We develop a deterministic theoretical model that captures this spontaneous transverse orientational order. We show how the directional response emerges from the interplay of external shear flow and swimmer/surface interactions (e.g., hydrodynamic interactions) that originate in swimming activity. Finally, adding the effect of thermal noise, we obtain probability distributions for the swimmer orientation that show good agreement with the experimental probability distributions. Our findings show that the qualitative response of microswimmers to flow is sensitive to the detailed interaction between individual microswimmers and bounding surfaces.

A Simplified Model for the Acceleration of Cosmic Ray Particles

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gron, Oyvind

2010-01-01

Two important questions concerning cosmic rays are: Why are electrons in the cosmic rays less efficiently accelerated than nuclei? How are particles accelerated to great energies in ultra-high energy cosmic rays? In order to answer these questions we construct a simple model of the acceleration of a charged particle in the cosmic ray. It is not…

Effect of polarization and focusing on laser pulse driven auto-resonant particle acceleration

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sagar, Vikram; Sengupta, Sudip; Kaw, Predhiman

2014-04-15

The effect of laser polarization and focusing is theoretically studied on the final energy gain of a particle in the Auto-resonant acceleration scheme using a finite duration laser pulse with Gaussian shaped temporal envelope. The exact expressions for dynamical variables viz. position, momentum, and energy are obtained by analytically solving the relativistic equation of motion describing particle dynamics in the combined field of an elliptically polarized finite duration pulse and homogeneous static axial magnetic field. From the solutions, it is shown that for a given set of laser parameters viz. intensity and pulse length along with static magnetic field, themore » energy gain by a positively charged particle is maximum for a right circularly polarized laser pulse. Further, a new scheme is proposed for particle acceleration by subjecting it to the combined field of a focused finite duration laser pulse and static axial magnetic field. In this scheme, the particle is initially accelerated by the focused laser field, which drives the non-resonant particle to second stage of acceleration by cyclotron Auto-resonance. The new scheme is found to be efficient over two individual schemes, i.e., auto-resonant acceleration and direct acceleration by focused laser field, as significant particle acceleration can be achieved at one order lesser values of static axial magnetic field and laser intensity.« less

The formation of quasi-parallel shocks. [in space, solar and astrophysical plasmas

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cargill, Peter J.

1991-01-01

In a collisionless plasma, the coupling between a piston and the plasma must take place through either laminar or turbulent electromagnetic fields. Of the three types of coupling (laminar, Larmor and turbulent), shock formation in the parallel regime is dominated by the latter and in the quasi-parallel regime by a combination of all three, depending on the piston. In the quasi-perpendicular regime, there is usually a good separation between piston and shock. This is not true in the quasi-parallel and parallel regime. Hybrid numerical simulations for hot plasma pistons indicate that when the electrons are hot, a shock forms, but does not cleanly decouple from the piston. For hot ion pistons, no shock forms in the parallel limit: in the quasi-parallel case, a shock forms, but there is severe contamination from hot piston ions. These results suggest that the properties of solar and astrophysical shocks, such as particle acceleration, cannot be readily separated from their driving mechanism.

On the role of the quasi-parallel bow shock in ion pickup - A lesson from Venus?

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Luhmann, J. G.; Russell, C. T.; Phillips, J. L.; Barnes, A.

1987-01-01

Previous observations at Venus show convincing evidence of planetary O(+) ion pickup by the largescale motional -V x B electric field in the magnetosheath when the interplanetary magnetic field is perpendicular to the solar wind flow. However, the presence of magnetic field fluctuations in the magnetosheath downstream from the quasi-parallel bow shock should allow pickup to occur even when the upstream magnetic field B and plasma velocity V are practically coaligned. Single-particle calculations are used to demonstrate the convecting magnetic field fluctuations similar to those observed in the Venus magnetosheath when the subsolar bow shock is quasi-parallel can efficiently accelerate cold planetary ions by means of the electric field associated with their transverse components. This ion pickup process, which is characterized by a spatial dependence determined by the bow shock shape and the orientation of the upstream magnetic field, is likely also to occur at Mars and may be effective at comets.

Analysis of secondary particle behavior in multiaperture, multigrid accelerator for the ITER neutral beam injector.

PubMed

Mizuno, T; Taniguchi, M; Kashiwagi, M; Umeda, N; Tobari, H; Watanabe, K; Dairaku, M; Sakamoto, K; Inoue, T

2010-02-01

Heat load on acceleration grids by secondary particles such as electrons, neutrals, and positive ions, is a key issue for long pulse acceleration of negative ion beams. Complicated behaviors of the secondary particles in multiaperture, multigrid (MAMuG) accelerator have been analyzed using electrostatic accelerator Monte Carlo code. The analytical result is compared to experimental one obtained in a long pulse operation of a MeV accelerator, of which second acceleration grid (A2G) was removed for simplification of structure. The analytical results show that relatively high heat load on the third acceleration grid (A3G) since stripped electrons were deposited mainly on A3G. This heat load on the A3G can be suppressed by installing the A2G. Thus, capability of MAMuG accelerator is demonstrated for suppression of heat load due to secondary particles by the intermediate grids.

Recent results of studies of acceleration of compact toroids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hammer, J. H.; Hartmen, C. W.; Eddleman, J.

1984-03-01

The observed gross stability and self-contained structure of compact toroids (CT's) give rise to the possibility, unique among magnetically confined plasmas, of translating CT's from their point of origin over distances many times their own length. This feature has led us to consider magnetic acceleration of CT's to directed kinetic energies much greater than their stored magnetic and thermal energies. A CT accelerator falls in the very broad gap between traditional particle accelerators at one extreme, which are limited in the number of particles per bunch by electrostatic repulsive forces, and mass accelerators such as rail guns at the other extreme, which accelerate many particles but are forced by the stress limitations of solids to far smaller accelerations. A typical CT has about a Coulomb of particles, weighs 10 micrograms and can be accelerated by magnetic forces of several tons, leading to an acceleration on the order of 10(11) gravities.

Influence of sample pool on interference pattern in defocused interferometric particle imaging.

PubMed

Zhang, Hongxia; Zhou, Ye; Liu, Jing; Jia, Dagong; Liu, Tiegen

2017-04-01

Particles widely exist in various fields. In practical experiments, sometimes it is necessary to dissolve particles in water in a sample pool. This article proposes two typical layouts of the sample pool in defocused interferometric particle imaging (IPI). Layout I is the sample pool surface perpendicular to the incident light and layout II is the sample pool surface perpendicular to the scattered light. For layout I, the scattered light of the particles does not keep symmetric at the meridional and sagittal planes after being refracted by the sample pool surface, and elliptical interference patterns are formed at the defocused IPI image plane. But for layout II, the scattered light keeps symmetric after being refracted, and circular interference patterns are formed. Aimed at the two sample pool layouts, the ray-tracing software ZEMAX was used to simulate the spot shape of particles at different defocus distances. Furthermore, its effect on the ellipticity of the interference pattern with the tilt angle of the sample pool is analyzed. The relative error of the axis ratio for layout I does not exceed 9.2% at different defocus distances. The experimental results have good agreement with the theoretical analyses, and it indicates that layout II is more reasonable for the IPI system.

Influence of sample pool on interference pattern in defocused interferometric particle imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Hongxia; Zhou, Ye; Liu, Jing; Jia, Dagong; Liu, Tiegen

2017-04-01

Particles widely exist in various fields. In practical experiments, sometimes it is necessary to dissolve particles in water in a sample pool. This article proposes two typical layouts of the sample pool in defocused interferometric particle imaging (IPI). Layout I is the sample pool surface perpendicular to the incident light and layout II is the sample pool surface perpendicular to the scattered light. For layout I, the scattered light of the particles does not keep symmetric at the meridional and sagittal planes after being refracted by the sample pool surface, and elliptical interference patterns are formed at the defocused IPI image plane. But for layout II, the scattered light keeps symmetric after being refracted, and circular interference patterns are formed. Aimed at the two sample pool layouts, the ray-tracing software ZEMAX was used to simulate the spot shape of particles at different defocus distances. Furthermore, its effect on the ellipticity of the interference pattern with the tilt angle of the sample pool is analyzed. The relative error of the axis ratio for layout I does not exceed 9.2% at different defocus distances. The experimental results have good agreement with the theoretical analyses, and it indicates that layout II is more reasonable for the IPI system.

Anisotropic Electron Tail Generation during Tearing Mode Magnetic Reconnection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dubois, Ami

2017-10-01

Magnetic reconnection (MR) plays an important role in particle transport, energization, and acceleration in space, astrophysical, and laboratory plasmas. In the MST RFP, discrete MR events release large amounts of energy from the equilibrium magnetic field, a large fraction of which is transferred to the ions in a non-collisional process. Key features are anisotropic heating, mass and charge dependence, and energetic ion tail formation. Unlike the ions, the thermal electron temperature decreases at MR events, which is consistent with enhanced electron heat transport due to increased magnetic stochasticity. However, new high-speed x-ray spectrum measurements reveal transient formation of a non-Maxwellian energetic electron tail during MR. The energetic tail is characterized by a power-law, E-γ, with the spectral index (γ) decreasing from 4.2 to 2.2 at MR, and then increasing rapidly to 6.8 due to increased stochastic transport. The x-ray emission peaks in a radial view and is symmetric in the toroidal direction, indicating an anisotropic electron tail is generated. The toroidal symmetry of the electron tail implies runaway acceleration is not a dominant process, consistent with the net emf, ηJll, being smaller than the Dreicer field. Modeling of bremsstrahlung emission shows that a power-law electron tail distribution that is localized near the magnetic axis will yield strong perpendicular anisotropy, consistent with x-ray measurements in the radial and toroidal views. A strong correlation between high energy x-ray flux and tearing mode dynamics suggests a turbulent mechanism is active. This implies that the electron tail formation most likely results from a turbulent wave-particle interaction. This work is supported by the US DOE and NSF.

Perpendicular Biased Ferrite Tuned Cavities for the Fermilab Booster

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Romanov, Gennady; Awida, Mohamed; Khabiboulline, Timergali

2014-07-01

The aging Fermilab Booster RF system needs an upgrade to support future experimental program. The important feature of the upgrade is substantial enhancement of the requirements for the accelerating cavities. The new requirements include enlargement of the cavity beam pipe aperture, increase of the cavity voltage and increase in the repetition rate. The modification of the present traditional parallel biased ferrite cavities is rather challenging. An alternative to rebuilding the present Fermilab Booster RF cavities is to design and construct new perpendicular biased RF cavities, which potentially offer a number of advantages. An evaluation and a preliminary design of themore » perpendicular biased ferrite tuned cavities for the Fermilab Booster upgrade is described in the paper. Also it is desirable for better Booster performance to improve the capture of beam in the Booster during injection and at the start of the ramp. One possible way to do that is to flatten the bucket by introducing second harmonic cavities into the Booster. This paper also looks into the option of using perpendicularly biased ferrite tuners for the second harmonic cavities.« less

The Role of Substorms in Storm-time Particle Acceleration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Daglis, Ioannis A.; Kamide, Yohsuke

The terrestrial magnetosphere has the capability to rapidly accelerate charged particles up to very high energies over relatively short times and distances. Acceleration of charged particles is an essential ingredient of both magnetospheric substorms and space storms. In the case of space storms, the ultimate result is a bulk flow of electric charge through the inner magnetosphere, commonly known as the ring current. Syun-Ichi Akasofu and Sydney Chapman, two of the early pioneers in space physics, postulated that the bulk acceleration of particles during storms is rather the additive result of partial acceleration during consecutive substorms. This paradigm has been heavily disputed during recent years. The new case is that substorm acceleration may be sufficient to produce individual high-energy particles that create auroras and possibly harm spacecraft, but it cannot produce the massive acceleration that constitutes a storm. This paper is a critical review of the long-standing issue of the storm-substorm relationship, or—in other words—the capability or necessity of substorms in facilitating or driving the build-up of the storm-time ring current. We mainly address the physical effect itself, i.e. the bulk acceleration of particles, and not the diagnostic of the process, i.e. the Dst index, which is rather often the case. Within the framework of particle acceleration, substorms retain their storm-importance due to the potential of substorm-induced impulsive electric fields in obtaining the massive ion acceleration needed for the storm-time ring current buildup.

Injection Efficiency of Low-energy Particles at Oblique Shocks with a Focused Transport Model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zuo, P.; Zhang, M.; Rassoul, H.

2013-12-01

There is strong evidence that a small portion of thermal and suprathermal particles from hot coronal material or remnants of previous solar energetic particle (SEP) events serve as the source of large SEP events (Desai et al. 2006). To build more powerful SEP models, it is necessary to model the detailed particle injection and acceleration process for source particles especially at lower energies. We present a test particle simulation on the injection and acceleration of low-energy suprathermal particles by Laminar nonrelativistic oblique shocks in the framework of the focused transport theory, which is proved to contain all necessary physics of shock acceleration, but avoid the limitation of diffusive shock acceleration (DSA). The injection efficiency as a function of Mach number, obliquity, injection speed, shock strength, cross-shock potential and the degree of turbulence is calculated. This test particle simulation proves that the focused transport theory is an extension of DSA theory with the capability of predicting the efficiency of particle injection. The results can be applied to modeling the SEP acceleration from source particles.

Laboratory laser acceleration and high energy astrophysics: {gamma}-ray bursts and cosmic rays

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tajima, T.; Takahashi, Y.

1998-08-20

Recent experimental progress in laser acceleration of charged particles (electrons) and its associated processes has shown that intense electromagnetic pulses can promptly accelerate charged particles to high energies and that their energy spectrum is quite hard. On the other hand some of the high energy astrophysical phenomena such as extremely high energy cosmic rays and energetic components of {gamma}-ray bursts cry for new physical mechanisms for promptly accelerating particles to high energies. The authors suggest that the basic physics involved in laser acceleration experiments sheds light on some of the underlying mechanisms and their energy spectral characteristics of the promptlymore » accelerated particles in these high energy astrophysical phenomena.« less

Electron and Ion Acceleration Associated with Magnetotail Reconnection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liang, Haoming

This dissertation is dedicated to understanding electron and ion acceleration associated with magnetotail reconnection during substorms by using numerical simulations. Electron dynamics were investigated by using the UCLA global magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) model and large scale kinetic (LSK) simulations. The neutral line configurations and magnetotail flows modify the amounts of the adiabatic and non-adiabatic acceleration that electrons undergo. This causes marked differences in the temperature anisotropy for different substorms. In particular, one substorm event analyzed shows T⊥ > T∥ (T⊥ / T ∥ ≈ 2.3)at -10RE while another shows T ∥ > T⊥ (T ⊥ / T∥ ≈ 0.8), where T⊥ and T∥ (second order moments of the distribution functions) are defined with respect to the magnetic field. These differences determine the subsequent acceleration of the energetic electrons in the inner magnetosphere. Whether the acceleration is mostly parallel or perpendicular is determined by the location of dayside reconnection. A 2.5D implicit Particle-in-Cell simulation was used to study the effects produced by oxygen ions on magnetotail reconnection, and the associated acceleration of protons and oxygen ions. The inertia of oxygen ions reduces the reconnection rate and slows down the earthward propagation of dipolarization fronts (DFs). An ambipolar electric field in the oxygen diffusion region contributes to the smaller reconnection rate. This change in the reconnection rate affects the ion acceleration. In particular 67% of protons and 58% of oxygen ions were accelerated in the exhaust (between the X-point and the DF) in a simulation corresponding to a magnetic storm in which there was a 50% concentration of oxygen ions. In addition, 42% of lobe oxygen-ions are accelerated locally by the Hall electric field, far away from the X-point without entering the exhaust. Protons at the same locations experience Ex B drift. This finding extends previous knowledge that oxygen and proton acceleration associated with reconnection mainly occurs in the exhaust and is consistent with Cluster observations. Oxygen ions and protons in the pre-existing current sheet are reflected by the DFs. The reflected oxygen beam forms a hook-shaped signature in phase space. In principle, this signature can be applied to deduce the DF speed history, and thus lead to remote-sensing of the reconnection dynamics.

The magnetic connectivity of coronal shocks from behind-the-limb flares to the visible solar surface during γ-ray events

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Plotnikov, I.; Rouillard, A. P.; Share, G. H.

2017-12-01

Context. The observation of >100 MeV γ-rays in the minutes to hours following solar flares suggests that high-energy particles interacting in the solar atmosphere can be stored and/or accelerated for long time periods. The occasions when γ-rays are detected even when the solar eruptions occurred beyond the solar limb as viewed from Earth provide favorable viewing conditions for studying the role of coronal shocks driven by coronal mass ejections (CMEs) in the acceleration of these particles. Aims: In this paper, we investigate the spatial and temporal evolution of the coronal shocks inferred from stereoscopic observations of behind-the-limb flares to determine if they could be the source of the particles producing the γ-rays. Methods: We analyzed the CMEs and early formation of coronal shocks associated with γ-ray events measured by the Fermi-Large Area Telescope (LAT) from three eruptions behind the solar limb as viewed from Earth on 2013 Oct. 11, 2014 Jan. 06 and Sep. 01. We used a 3D triangulation technique, based on remote-sensing observations to model the expansion of the CME shocks from above the solar surface to the upper corona. Coupling the expansion model to various models of the coronal magnetic field allowed us to derive the time-dependent distribution of shock Mach numbers and the magnetic connection of particles produced by the shock to the solar surface visible from Earth. Results: The reconstructed shock fronts for the three events became magnetically connected to the visible solar surface after the start of the flare and just before the onset of the >100 MeV γ-ray emission. The shock surface at these connections also exhibited supercritical Mach numbers required for significant particle energization. The strongest γ-ray emissions occurred when the flanks of the shocks were connected in a quasi-perpendicular geometry to the field lines reaching the visible surface. Multipoint, in situ, measurements of solar energetic particles (SEPs) were consistent with the production of these SEPs by the same shock processes responsible for the γ-rays. The fluxes of protons in space and at the Sun were highest for the 2014 Sep. 01, which had the fastest moving shock. Conclusions: This study provides further evidence that high-energy protons producing time-extended high-energy γ-ray emission likely have the same CME-shock origin as solar energetic particles measured in interplanetary space.

Open Boundary Particle-in-Cell Simulation of Dipolarization Front Propagation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Klimas, Alex; Hwang, Kyoung-Joo; Vinas, Adolfo F.; Goldstein, Melvyn L.

2014-01-01

First results are presented from an ongoing open boundary 2-1/2D particle-in-cell simulation study of dipolarization front (DF) propagation in Earth's magnetotail. At this stage, this study is focused on the compression, or pileup, region preceding the DF current sheet. We find that the earthward acceleration of the plasma in this region is in general agreement with a recent DF force balance model. A gyrophase bunched reflected ion population at the leading edge of the pileup region is reflected by a normal electric field in the pileup region itself, rather than through an interaction with the current sheet. We discuss plasma wave activity at the leading edge of the pileup region that may be driven by gradients, or by reflected ions, or both; the mode has not been identified. The waves oscillate near but above the ion cyclotron frequency with wavelength several ion inertial lengths. We show that the waves oscillate primarily in the perpendicular magnetic field components, do not propagate along the background magnetic field, are right handed elliptically (close to circularly) polarized, exist in a region of high electron and ion beta, and are stationary in the plasma frame moving earthward. We discuss the possibility that the waves are present in plasma sheet data, but have not, thus far, been discovered.

A Theory for Self-consistent Acceleration of Energetic Charged Particles by Dynamic Small-scale Flux Ropes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

le Roux, J. A.; Zank, G. P.; Khabarova, O.; Webb, G. M.

2016-12-01

Simulations of charged particle acceleration in turbulent plasma regions with numerous small-scale contracting and merging (reconnecting) magnetic islands/flux ropes emphasize the key role of temporary particle trapping in these structures for efficient acceleration that can result in power-law spectra. In response, a comprehensive kinetic transport theory framework was developed by Zank et al. and le Roux et al. to capture the essential physics of energetic particle acceleration in solar wind regions containing numerous dynamic small-scale flux ropes. Examples of test particle solutions exhibiting hard power-law spectra for energetic particles were presented in recent publications by both Zank et al. and le Roux et al.. However, the considerable pressure in the accelerated particles suggests the need for expanding the kinetic transport theory to enable a self-consistent description of energy exchange between energetic particles and small-scale flux ropes. We plan to present the equations of an expanded kinetic transport theory framework that will enable such a self-consistent description.

Beamlets from stochastic acceleration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perri, Silvia; Carbone, Vincenzo

2008-09-01

We investigate the dynamics of a realization of the stochastic Fermi acceleration mechanism. The model consists of test particles moving between two oscillating magnetic clouds and differs from the usual Fermi-Ulam model in two ways. (i) Particles can penetrate inside clouds before being reflected. (ii) Particles can radiate a fraction of their energy during the process. Since the Fermi mechanism is at work, particles are stochastically accelerated, even in the presence of the radiated energy. Furthermore, due to a kind of resonance between particles and oscillating clouds, the probability density function of particles is strongly modified, thus generating beams of accelerated particles rather than a translation of the whole distribution function to higher energy. This simple mechanism could account for the presence of beamlets in some space plasma physics situations.

Self focusing in a spatially modulated electrostatic field particle accelerator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Russman, F.; Marini, S.; Peter, E.; de Oliveira, G. I.; Rizzato, F. B.

2018-02-01

In the present analysis, we study the action of a three-dimensional (3D) modulated electrostatic wave over a charged particle. Meanwhile, the particle's velocity is smaller than the phase-velocity of the carrier, and the particle could be reflected by the potential or could pass through the potential with no significant change in the longitudinal velocity—and its dynamics could be described by a ponderomotive approximation. Otherwise, the particle is trapped by the potential and it is accelerated towards the speed of light, independently of the initial particle's phase—in this case, the ponderomotive approximation is no longer valid. During the acceleration process, numerical simulations show the particle is focused, simultaneously. These results suggest the accelerator proposed here is promising.

On magnetic field amplification and particle acceleration near non-relativistic astrophysical shocks: particles in MHD cells simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van Marle, Allard Jan; Casse, Fabien; Marcowith, Alexandre

2018-01-01

We present simulations of magnetized astrophysical shocks taking into account the interplay between the thermal plasma of the shock and suprathermal particles. Such interaction is depicted by combining a grid-based magnetohydrodynamics description of the thermal fluid with particle in cell techniques devoted to the dynamics of suprathermal particles. This approach, which incorporates the use of adaptive mesh refinement features, is potentially a key to simulate astrophysical systems on spatial scales that are beyond the reach of pure particle-in-cell simulations. We consider in this study non-relativistic shocks with various Alfvénic Mach numbers and magnetic field obliquity. We recover all the features of both magnetic field amplification and particle acceleration from previous studies when the magnetic field is parallel to the normal to the shock. In contrast with previous particle-in-cell-hybrid simulations, we find that particle acceleration and magnetic field amplification also occur when the magnetic field is oblique to the normal to the shock but on larger time-scales than in the parallel case. We show that in our simulations, the suprathermal particles are experiencing acceleration thanks to a pre-heating process of the particle similar to a shock drift acceleration leading to the corrugation of the shock front. Such oscillations of the shock front and the magnetic field locally help the particles to enter the upstream region and to initiate a non-resonant streaming instability and finally to induce diffuse particle acceleration.

Consequences of the Breakout Model for Particle Acceleration in CMEs and Flares

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Antiochos, S. K.; Karpen, J. T.; DeVore, C. R.

2011-01-01

The largest and most efficient particle accelerators in the solar system are the giant events consisting of a fast coronal mass ejection (CME) and an intense X-class solar flare. Both flares and CMEs can produce l0(exp 32) ergs or more in nonthermal particles. Two general processes are believed to be responsible: particle acceleration at the strong shock ahead of the CME, and reconnection-driven acceleration in the flare current sheet. Although shock acceleration is relatively well understood, the mechanism by which flare reconnection produces nonthermal particles is still an issue of great debate. We address the question of CME/flare particle acceleration in the context of the breakout model using 2.5D MHD simulations with adaptive mesh refinement (AMR). The AMR capability allows us to achieve ultra-high numerical resolution and, thereby, determine the detailed structure and dynamics of the flare reconnection region. Furthermore, we employ newly developed numerical analysis tools for identifying and characterizing magnetic nulls, so that we can quantify accurately the number and location of magnetic islands during reconnection. Our calculations show that flare reconnection is dominated by the formation of magnetic islands. In agreement with many other studies, we find that the number of islands scales with the effective Lundquist number. This result supports the recent work by Drake and co-workers that postulates particle acceleration by magnetic islands. On the other hand, our calculations also show that the flare reconnection region is populated by numerous shocks and other indicators of strong turbulence, which can also accelerate particles. We discuss the implications of our calculations for the flare particle acceleration mechanism and for observational tests of the models.

Modeling magnetic field amplification in nonlinear diffusive shock acceleration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vladimirov, Andrey

2009-02-01

This research was motivated by the recent observations indicating very strong magnetic fields at some supernova remnant shocks, which suggests in-situ generation of magnetic turbulence. The dissertation presents a numerical model of collisionless shocks with strong amplification of stochastic magnetic fields, self-consistently coupled to efficient shock acceleration of charged particles. Based on a Monte Carlo simulation of particle transport and acceleration in nonlinear shocks, the model describes magnetic field amplification using the state-of-the-art analytic models of instabilities in magnetized plasmas in the presence of non-thermal particle streaming. The results help one understand the complex nonlinear connections between the thermal plasma, the accelerated particles and the stochastic magnetic fields in strong collisionless shocks. Also, predictions regarding the efficiency of particle acceleration and magnetic field amplification, the impact of magnetic field amplification on the maximum energy of accelerated particles, and the compression and heating of the thermal plasma by the shocks are presented. Particle distribution functions and turbulence spectra derived with this model can be used to calculate the emission of observable nonthermal radiation.

The Los Alamos Laser Acceleration of Particles Workshop and beginning of the advanced accelerator concepts field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Joshi, C.

2012-12-01

The first Advanced Acceleration of Particles-AAC-Workshop (actually named Laser Acceleration of Particles Workshop) was held at Los Alamos in January 1982. The workshop lasted a week and divided all the acceleration techniques into four categories: near field, far field, media, and vacuum. Basic theorems of particle acceleration were postulated (later proven) and specific experiments based on the four categories were formulated. This landmark workshop led to the formation of the advanced accelerator R&D program in the HEP office of the DOE that supports advanced accelerator research to this day. Two major new user facilities at Argonne and Brookhaven and several more directed experimental efforts were built to explore the advanced particle acceleration schemes. It is not an exaggeration to say that the intellectual breadth and excitement provided by the many groups who entered this new field provided the needed vitality to then recently formed APS Division of Beams and the new online journal Physical Review Special Topics-Accelerators and Beams. On this 30th anniversary of the AAC Workshops, it is worthwhile to look back at the legacy of the first Workshop at Los Alamos and the fine groundwork it laid for the field of advanced accelerator concepts that continues to flourish to this day.

Switching probability of all-perpendicular spin valve nanopillars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tzoufras, M.

2018-05-01

In all-perpendicular spin valve nanopillars the probability density of the free-layer magnetization is independent of the azimuthal angle and its evolution equation simplifies considerably compared to the general, nonaxisymmetric geometry. Expansion of the time-dependent probability density to Legendre polynomials enables analytical integration of the evolution equation and yields a compact expression for the practically relevant switching probability. This approach is valid when the free layer behaves as a single-domain magnetic particle and it can be readily applied to fitting experimental data.

Resonant ion acceleration by plasma jets: Effects of jet breaking and the magnetic-field curvature.

PubMed

Artemyev, A V; Vasiliev, A A

2015-05-01

In this paper we consider resonant ion acceleration by a plasma jet originating from the magnetic reconnection region. Such jets propagate in the background magnetic field with significantly curved magnetic-field lines. Decoupling of ion and electron motions at the leading edge of the jet results in generation of strong electrostatic fields. Ions can be trapped by this field and get accelerated along the jet front. This mechanism of resonant acceleration resembles surfing acceleration of charged particles at a shock wave. To describe resonant acceleration of ions, we use adiabatic theory of resonant phenomena. We show that particle motion along the curved field lines significantly influences the acceleration rate. The maximum gain of energy is determined by the particle's escape from the system due to this motion. Applications of the proposed mechanism to charged-particle acceleration in the planetary magnetospheres and the solar corona are discussed.

Photo ion spectrometer

DOEpatents

Gruen, Dieter M.; Young, Charles E.; Pellin, Michael J.

1989-01-01

A method and apparatus for extracting for quantitative analysis ions of selected atomic components of a sample. A lens system is configured to provide a slowly diminishing field region for a volume containing the selected atomic components, enabling accurate energy analysis of ions generated in the slowly diminishing field region. The lens system also enables focusing on a sample of a charged particle beam, such as an ion beam, along a path length perpendicular to the sample and extraction of the charged particles along a path length also perpendicular to the sample. Improvement of signal to noise ratio is achieved by laser excitation of ions to selected autoionization states before carrying out quantitative analysis. Accurate energy analysis of energetic charged particles is assured by using a preselected resistive thick film configuration disposed on an insulator substrate for generating predetermined electric field boundary conditions to achieve for analysis the required electric field potential. The spectrometer also is applicable in the fields of SIMS, ISS and electron spectroscopy.

Photo ion spectrometer

DOEpatents

Gruen, D.M.; Young, C.E.; Pellin, M.J.

1989-08-08

A method and apparatus are described for extracting for quantitative analysis ions of selected atomic components of a sample. A lens system is configured to provide a slowly diminishing field region for a volume containing the selected atomic components, enabling accurate energy analysis of ions generated in the slowly diminishing field region. The lens system also enables focusing on a sample of a charged particle beam, such as an ion beam, along a path length perpendicular to the sample and extraction of the charged particles along a path length also perpendicular to the sample. Improvement of signal to noise ratio is achieved by laser excitation of ions to selected auto-ionization states before carrying out quantitative analysis. Accurate energy analysis of energetic charged particles is assured by using a preselected resistive thick film configuration disposed on an insulator substrate for generating predetermined electric field boundary conditions to achieve for analysis the required electric field potential. The spectrometer also is applicable in the fields of SIMS, ISS and electron spectroscopy. 8 figs.

The energetic ion signature of an O-type neutral line in the geomagnetic tail

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Martin, R. F., Jr.; Johnson, D. F.; Speiser, T. W.

1991-01-01

An energetic ion signature is presented which has the potential for remote sensing of an O-type neutral line embedded in a current sheet. A source plasma with a tailward flowing Kappa distribution yields a strongly non-Kappa distribution after interacting with the neutral line: sharp jumps, or ridges, occur in the velocity space distribution function f(nu-perpendicular, nu-parallel) associated with both increases and decreases in f. The jumps occur when orbits are reversed in the x-direction: a reversal causing initially earthward particles (low probability in the source distribution) to be observed results in a decrease in f, while a reversal causing initially tailward particles to be observed produces an increase in f. The reversals, and hence the jumps, occur at approximately constant values of perpendicular velocity in both the positive nu parallel and negative nu parallel half planes. The results were obtained using single particle simulations in a fixed magnetic field model.

Particle acceleration in laser-driven magnetic reconnection

DOE PAGES

Totorica, S. R.; Abel, T.; Fiuza, F.

2017-04-03

Particle acceleration induced by magnetic reconnection is thought to be a promising candidate for producing the nonthermal emissions associated with explosive phenomena such as solar flares, pulsar wind nebulae, and jets from active galactic nuclei. Laboratory experiments can play an important role in the study of the detailed microphysics of magnetic reconnection and the dominant particle acceleration mechanisms. We have used two- and three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations to study particle acceleration in high Lundquist number reconnection regimes associated with laser-driven plasma experiments. For current experimental conditions, we show that nonthermal electrons can be accelerated to energies more than an order ofmore » magnitude larger than the initial thermal energy. The nonthermal electrons gain their energy mainly from the reconnection electric field near the X points, and particle injection into the reconnection layer and escape from the finite system establish a distribution of energies that resembles a power-law spectrum. Energetic electrons can also become trapped inside the plasmoids that form in the current layer and gain additional energy from the electric field arising from the motion of the plasmoid. We compare simulations for finite and infinite periodic systems to demonstrate the importance of particle escape on the shape of the spectrum. Based on our findings, we provide an analytical estimate of the maximum electron energy and threshold condition for observing suprathermal electron acceleration in terms of experimentally tunable parameters. We also discuss experimental signatures, including the angular distribution of the accelerated particles, and construct synthetic detector spectra. Finally, these results open the way for novel experimental studies of particle acceleration induced by reconnection.« less

Accelerators for America's Future

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bai, Mei

2016-03-01

Particle accelerator, a powerful tool to energize beams of charged particles to a desired speed and energy, has been the working horse for investigating the fundamental structure of matter and fundermental laws of nature. Most known examples are the 2-mile long Stanford Linear Accelerator at SLAC, the high energy proton and anti-proton collider Tevatron at FermiLab, and Large Hadron Collider that is currently under operation at CERN. During the less than a century development of accelerator science and technology that led to a dazzling list of discoveries, particle accelerators have also found various applications beyond particle and nuclear physics research, and become an indispensible part of the economy. Today, one can find a particle accelerator at almost every corner of our lives, ranging from the x-ray machine at the airport security to radiation diagnostic and therapy in hospitals. This presentation will give a brief introduction of the applications of this powerful tool in fundermental research as well as in industry. Challenges in accelerator science and technology will also be briefly presented

Energetic particles in solar flares. Chapter 4 in the proceedings of the 2nd Skylab Workshop on Solar Flares

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ramaty, R.; Colgate, S. A.; Dulk, G. A.; Hoyng, P.; Knight, J. W., III; Lin, R. P.; Melrose, D. B.; Paizis, C.; Orrall, F.; Shapiro, P. R.

1978-01-01

The recent direct observational evidence for the acceleration of particles in solar flares, i.e. radio emission, bremsstrahlung X-ray emission, gamma-ray line and continuum emission, as well as direct observations of energetic electrons and ions, are discussed and intercorrelated. At least two distinct phases of acceleration of solar particles exist that can be distinguished in terms of temporal behavior, type and energy of particles accelerated and the acceleration mechanism. Bulk energization seems the likely acceleration mechanism for the first phase while Fermi mechanism is a viable candidate for the second one.

Charged particle accelerator grating

DOEpatents

Palmer, Robert B.

1986-01-01

A readily disposable and replaceable accelerator grating for a relativistic particle accelerator. The grating is formed for a plurality of liquid droplets that are directed in precisely positioned jet streams to periodically dispose rows of droplets along the borders of a predetermined particle beam path. A plurality of lasers are used to direct laser beams into the droplets, at predetermined angles, thereby to excite the droplets to support electromagnetic accelerating resonances on their surfaces. Those resonances operate to accelerate and focus particles moving along the beam path. As the droplets are distorted or destroyed by the incoming radiation, they are replaced at a predetermined frequency by other droplets supplied through the jet streams.

Charged particle accelerator grating

DOEpatents

Palmer, R.B.

1985-09-09

A readily disposable and replaceable accelerator grating for a relativistic particle accelerator is described. The grating is formed for a plurality of liquid droplets that are directed in precisely positioned jet streams to periodically dispose rows of droplets along the borders of a predetermined particle beam path. A plurality of lasers are used to direct laser beams onto the droplets, at predetermined angles, thereby to excite the droplets to support electromagnetic accelerating resonances on their surfaces. Those resonances operate to accelerate and focus particles moving along the beam path. As the droplets are distorted or destroyed by the incoming radiation, they are replaced at a predetermined frequency by other droplets supplied through the jet streams.

Charged particle accelerator grating

DOEpatents

Palmer, Robert B.

1986-09-02

A readily disposable and replaceable accelerator grating for a relativistic particle accelerator. The grating is formed for a plurality of liquid droplets that are directed in precisely positioned jet streams to periodically dispose rows of droplets along the borders of a predetermined particle beam path. A plurality of lasers are used to direct laser beams into the droplets, at predetermined angles, thereby to excite the droplets to support electromagnetic accelerating resonances on their surfaces. Those resonances operate to accelerate and focus particles moving along the beam path. As the droplets are distorted or destroyed by the incoming radiation, they are replaced at a predetermined frequency by other droplets supplied through the jet streams.

PARTICLE ACCELERATOR

DOEpatents

Teng, L.C.

1960-01-19

ABS>A combination of two accelerators, a cyclotron and a ring-shaped accelerator which has a portion disposed tangentially to the cyclotron, is described. Means are provided to transfer particles from the cyclotron to the ring accelerator including a magnetic deflector within the cyclotron, a magnetic shield between the ring accelerator and the cyclotron, and a magnetic inflector within the ring accelerator.

PARTICLE ACCELERATOR AND METHOD OF CONTROLLING THE TEMPERATURE THEREOF

DOEpatents

Neal, R.B.; Gallagher, W.J.

1960-10-11

A method and means for controlling the temperature of a particle accelerator and more particularly to the maintenance of a constant and uniform temperature throughout a particle accelerator is offered. The novel feature of the invention resides in the provision of two individual heating applications to the accelerator structure. The first heating application provided is substantially a duplication of the accelerator heat created from energization, this first application being employed only when the accelerator is de-energized thereby maintaining the accelerator temperature constant with regard to time whether the accelerator is energized or not. The second heating application provided is designed to add to either the first application or energization heat in a manner to create the same uniform temperature throughout all portions of the accelerator.

Field of a helical Siberian Snake

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Luccio, A.

1995-02-01

To preserve the spin polarization of a beam of high energy protons in a circular accelerator, magnets with periodic magnetic field, called Siberian Snakes are being used. Recently, it was proposed to build Siberian Snakes with superconducting helical dipoles. In a helical, or twisted dipole, the magnetic field is perpendicular to the axis of the helix and rotates around it as one proceeds along the magnet. In an engineering study of a 4 Tesla helical snake, the coil geometry is derived, by twisting, from the geometry of a cosine superconducting dipole. While waiting for magnetic measurement data on such amore » prototype, an analytical expression for the field of the helice is important, to calculate the particle trajectories and the spin precession in the helix. This model will also allow to determine the optical characteristics of the snake, as an insertion in the lattice of the accelerator. In particular, one can calculate the integrated multipoles through the magnet and the equivalent transfer matrix. An expression for the field in the helix body, i.e., excluding the fringe field was given in a classical paper. An alternate expression can be found by elaborating on the treatment of the field of a transverse wiggler obtained under the rather general conditions that the variables are separable. This expression exactly satisfies Maxwell`s div and curl equations for a stationary field, {del} {center_dot} B = 0, {del} x B = 0. This approach is useful in that it will allow one to use much of the work already done on the problem of inserting wigglers and undulators in the lattice of a circular accelerator.« less

Particle acceleration and turbulence in cosmic Ray shocks: possible pathways beyond the Bohm limit

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Malkov, M. A.; Diamond, P. H.

2007-08-01

Diffusive shock acceleration is discussed in terms of its potential to accelerate cosmic rays (CR) to 1018 eV (beyond the ``knee,'' as observations suggest) and in terms of the related observational signatures (spectral features). One idea to reach this energy is to resonantly generate a turbulent magnetic field via accelerated particles much in excess of the background field. We identify difficulties with this scenario and suggest two separate mechanisms that can work in concert with one another leading to a significant acceleration enhancement. The first mechanism is based on a nonlinear modification of the flow ahead of the shock supported by particles already accelerated to some specific (knee) momentum. The particles gain energy by bouncing off converging magnetic irregularities frozen into the flow in the shock precursor and not so much by re-crossing the shock itself. The acceleration rate is determined by the gradient of the flow velocity and turns out to be formally independent of the particle mean free path. The velocity gradient is set by the knee-particles. The acceleration rate of particles above the knee does not decrease with energy, unlike in the linear acceleration regime. The knee (spectrum steepening) forms because particles above it are effectively confined to the shock only if they are within limited domains in the momentum space, while other particles fall into ``loss-islands'', similar to the ``loss-cone'' of magnetic traps. This also maintains the steep velocity gradient and high acceleration rate. The second mechanism is based on the generation of Alfven waves at the gyroradius scale at the background field level, with a subsequent transfer to longer scales via interaction with strong acoustic turbulence in the shock precursor. The acoustic turbulence in turn, may be generated by Drury instability or by parametric instability of the Alfven (A) waves.

Particle acceleration in pulsar magnetospheres

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Baker, K. B.

1978-01-01

The structure of pulsar magnetospheres and the acceleration mechanism for charged particles in the magnetosphere was studied using a pulsar model which required large acceleration of the particles near the surface of the star. A theorem was developed which showed that particle acceleration cannot be expected when the angle between the magnetic field lines and the rotation axis is constant (e.g. radial field lines). If this angle is not constant, however, acceleration must occur. The more realistic model of an axisymmetric neutron star with a strong dipole magnetic field aligned with the rotation axis was investigated. In this case, acceleration occurred at large distances from the surface of the star. The magnitude of the current can be determined using the model presented. In the case of nonaxisymmetric systems, the acceleration is expected to occur nearer to the surface of the star.

Hawking radiation of scalar particles from accelerating and rotating black holes

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gillani, Usman A.; Rehman, Mudassar; Saifullah, K., E-mail: mani_precious2001@yahoo.com, E-mail: mudassar051@yahoo.com, E-mail: saifullah@qau.edu.pk

2011-06-01

Hawking radiation of uncharged and charged scalar particles from accelerating and rotating black holes is studied. We calculate the tunneling probabilities of these particles from the rotation and acceleration horizons of these black holes. Using this method we recover the correct Hawking temperature as well.

Acceleration and propagation of energetic charged particles in the inner heliosphere.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kallenrode, M. B.

1995-02-01

Both particle propagation and acceleration are intimately related to the strength of scattering. The author reviews some developments in our understanding of interplanetary propagation, in particular the dawn of a solution of the well-known discrepancy problem between mean free paths derived from quasi-linear theory and from fits to observational data. With this much improved understanding of particle scattering one can re-evaluate the understanding of particle acceleration at interplanetary shocks. Special attention is paid to the model of coupled hydrodynamic wave excitation and ion acceleration at shocks.

Superconducting Magnets for Particle Accelerators

DOE PAGES

Bottura, Luca; Gourlay, Stephen A.; Yamamoto, Akira; ...

2015-11-10

In this study, we summarize the evolution and contributions of superconducting magnets to particle accelerators as chronicled over the last 50 years of Particle Accelerator Conferences (PAC, NA-PAC and IPAC). We begin with an historical overview based primarily on PAC Proceedings augmented with references to key milestones in the development of superconducting magnets for particle accelerators. We then provide some illustrative examples of applications that have occurred over the past 50 years, focusing on those that have either been realized in practice or provided technical development for other projects, with discussion of possible future applications.

Superconducting Magnets for Particle Accelerators

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bottura, Luca; Gourlay, Stephen A.; Yamamoto, Akira; Zlobin, Alexander V.

2016-04-01

In this paper we summarize the evolution and contributions of superconducting magnets to particle accelerators as chronicled over the last 50 years of Particle Accelerator Conferences (PAC, NA-PAC and IPAC). We begin with an historical overview based primarily on PAC Proceedings augmented with references to key milestones in the development of superconducting magnets for particle accelerators. We then provide some illustrative examples of applications that have occurred over the past 50 years, focusing on those that have either been realized in practice or provided technical development for other projects, with discussion of possible future applications.

Recent Advances in Understanding Particle Acceleration Processes in Solar Flares

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zharkova, V. V.; Arzner, K.; Benz, A. O.; Browning, P.; Dauphin, C.; Emslie, A. G.; Fletcher, L.; Kontar, E. P.; Mann, G.; Onofri, M.; Petrosian, V.; Turkmani, R.; Vilmer, N.; Vlahos, L.

2011-09-01

We review basic theoretical concepts in particle acceleration, with particular emphasis on processes likely to occur in regions of magnetic reconnection. Several new developments are discussed, including detailed studies of reconnection in three-dimensional magnetic field configurations (e.g., current sheets, collapsing traps, separatrix regions) and stochastic acceleration in a turbulent environment. Fluid, test-particle, and particle-in-cell approaches are used and results compared. While these studies show considerable promise in accounting for the various observational manifestations of solar flares, they are limited by a number of factors, mostly relating to available computational power. Not the least of these issues is the need to explicitly incorporate the electrodynamic feedback of the accelerated particles themselves on the environment in which they are accelerated. A brief prognosis for future advancement is offered.

Nonlinear theory of diffusive acceleration of particles by shock waves

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Malkov, M. A.; Drury, L. O'C.

2001-04-01

Among the various acceleration mechanisms which have been suggested as responsible for the nonthermal particle spectra and associated radiation observed in many astrophysical and space physics environments, diffusive shock acceleration appears to be the most successful. We review the current theoretical understanding of this process, from the basic ideas of how a shock energizes a few reactionless particles to the advanced nonlinear approaches treating the shock and accelerated particles as a symbiotic self-organizing system. By means of direct solution of the nonlinear problem we set the limit to the test-particle approximation and demonstrate the fundamental role of nonlinearity in shocks of astrophysical size and lifetime. We study the bifurcation of this system, proceeding from the hydrodynamic to kinetic description under a realistic condition of Bohm diffusivity. We emphasize the importance of collective plasma phenomena for the global flow structure and acceleration efficiency by considering the injection process, an initial stage of acceleration and, the related aspects of the physics of collisionless shocks. We calculate the injection rate for different shock parameters and different species. This, together with differential acceleration resulting from nonlinear large-scale modification, determines the chemical composition of accelerated particles. The review concentrates on theoretical and analytical aspects but our strategic goal is to link the fundamental theoretical ideas with the rapidly growing wealth of observational data.

Dust and nutrient enrichment by wind erosion from Danish soils in dependence of tillage direction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mohammadian Behbahani, Ali; Fister, Wolfgang; Heckrath, Goswin; Kuhn, Nikolaus J.

2016-04-01

Wind erosion is a selective process, which promotes erosion of fine particles. Therefore, it can be assumed that increasing erosion rates are generally associated with increasing loss of dust sized particles and nutrients. However, this selective process is strongly affected by the orientation and respective trapping efficiency of tillage ridges and furrows. Since tillage ridges are often the only protection measure available on poorly aggregated soils in absence of a protective vegetation cover, it is very important to know which orientation respective to the dominant wind direction provides best protection. This knowledge could be very helpful for planning erosion protection measures on fields with high wind erosion susceptibility. The main objective of this study, therefore, was to determine the effect of tillage direction on dust and nutrient mobilization by wind, using wind tunnel simulations. In order to assess the relationship between the enrichment ratio of specific particle sizes and the amount of eroded nutrients, three soils with loamy sand texture, but varying amounts of sand-sized particles, were selected. In addition, a soil with slightly less sand, but much higher organic matter content was chosen. The soils were tested with three different soil surface scenarios - flat surface, parallel tillage, perpendicular tillage. The parallel tillage operation experienced the greatest erosion rates, independent of soil type. Particles with D50 between 100-155 μm showed the greatest risk of erosion. However, due to a greater loss of dust sized particles from perpendicularly tilled surfaces, this wind-surface arrangement showed a significant increase in nutrient enrichment ratio compared to parallel tillage and flat surfaces. The main reason for this phenomenon is most probably the trapping of larger particles in the perpendicular furrows. This indicates that the highest rate of soil protection does not necessarily coincide with lowest soil nutrient losses and dust emissions. For the evaluation of protection measures on these soil types in Denmark it is, therefore, important to differentiate between their effectivity to reduce total soil erosion amount, dust emission, and nutrient loss.

Neural Networks for Modeling and Control of Particle Accelerators

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Edelen, A. L.; Biedron, S. G.; Chase, B. E.

Myriad nonlinear and complex physical phenomena are host to particle accelerators. They often involve a multitude of interacting systems, are subject to tight performance demands, and should be able to run for extended periods of time with minimal interruptions. Often times, traditional control techniques cannot fully meet these requirements. One promising avenue is to introduce machine learning and sophisticated control techniques inspired by artificial intelligence, particularly in light of recent theoretical and practical advances in these fields. Within machine learning and artificial intelligence, neural networks are particularly well-suited to modeling, control, and diagnostic analysis of complex, nonlinear, and time-varying systems,more » as well as systems with large parameter spaces. Consequently, the use of neural network-based modeling and control techniques could be of significant benefit to particle accelerators. For the same reasons, particle accelerators are also ideal test-beds for these techniques. Moreover, many early attempts to apply neural networks to particle accelerators yielded mixed results due to the relative immaturity of the technology for such tasks. For the purpose of this paper is to re-introduce neural networks to the particle accelerator community and report on some work in neural network control that is being conducted as part of a dedicated collaboration between Fermilab and Colorado State University (CSU). We also describe some of the challenges of particle accelerator control, highlight recent advances in neural network techniques, discuss some promising avenues for incorporating neural networks into particle accelerator control systems, and describe a neural network-based control system that is being developed for resonance control of an RF electron gun at the Fermilab Accelerator Science and Technology (FAST) facility, including initial experimental results from a benchmark controller.« less

Neural Networks for Modeling and Control of Particle Accelerators

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Edelen, A. L.; Biedron, S. G.; Chase, B. E.; Edstrom, D.; Milton, S. V.; Stabile, P.

2016-04-01

Particle accelerators are host to myriad nonlinear and complex physical phenomena. They often involve a multitude of interacting systems, are subject to tight performance demands, and should be able to run for extended periods of time with minimal interruptions. Often times, traditional control techniques cannot fully meet these requirements. One promising avenue is to introduce machine learning and sophisticated control techniques inspired by artificial intelligence, particularly in light of recent theoretical and practical advances in these fields. Within machine learning and artificial intelligence, neural networks are particularly well-suited to modeling, control, and diagnostic analysis of complex, nonlinear, and time-varying systems, as well as systems with large parameter spaces. Consequently, the use of neural network-based modeling and control techniques could be of significant benefit to particle accelerators. For the same reasons, particle accelerators are also ideal test-beds for these techniques. Many early attempts to apply neural networks to particle accelerators yielded mixed results due to the relative immaturity of the technology for such tasks. The purpose of this paper is to re-introduce neural networks to the particle accelerator community and report on some work in neural network control that is being conducted as part of a dedicated collaboration between Fermilab and Colorado State University (CSU). We describe some of the challenges of particle accelerator control, highlight recent advances in neural network techniques, discuss some promising avenues for incorporating neural networks into particle accelerator control systems, and describe a neural network-based control system that is being developed for resonance control of an RF electron gun at the Fermilab Accelerator Science and Technology (FAST) facility, including initial experimental results from a benchmark controller.

Neural Networks for Modeling and Control of Particle Accelerators

DOE PAGES

Edelen, A. L.; Biedron, S. G.; Chase, B. E.; ...

2016-04-01

Myriad nonlinear and complex physical phenomena are host to particle accelerators. They often involve a multitude of interacting systems, are subject to tight performance demands, and should be able to run for extended periods of time with minimal interruptions. Often times, traditional control techniques cannot fully meet these requirements. One promising avenue is to introduce machine learning and sophisticated control techniques inspired by artificial intelligence, particularly in light of recent theoretical and practical advances in these fields. Within machine learning and artificial intelligence, neural networks are particularly well-suited to modeling, control, and diagnostic analysis of complex, nonlinear, and time-varying systems,more » as well as systems with large parameter spaces. Consequently, the use of neural network-based modeling and control techniques could be of significant benefit to particle accelerators. For the same reasons, particle accelerators are also ideal test-beds for these techniques. Moreover, many early attempts to apply neural networks to particle accelerators yielded mixed results due to the relative immaturity of the technology for such tasks. For the purpose of this paper is to re-introduce neural networks to the particle accelerator community and report on some work in neural network control that is being conducted as part of a dedicated collaboration between Fermilab and Colorado State University (CSU). We also describe some of the challenges of particle accelerator control, highlight recent advances in neural network techniques, discuss some promising avenues for incorporating neural networks into particle accelerator control systems, and describe a neural network-based control system that is being developed for resonance control of an RF electron gun at the Fermilab Accelerator Science and Technology (FAST) facility, including initial experimental results from a benchmark controller.« less

DIFFUSIVE PARTICLE ACCELERATION IN SHOCKED, VISCOUS ACCRETION DISKS: GREEN'S FUNCTION ENERGY DISTRIBUTION

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Becker, Peter A.; Das, Santabrata; Le, Truong, E-mail: pbecker@gmu.edu, E-mail: sbdas@iitg.ernet.in, E-mail: truong.le@nhrec.org

2011-12-10

The acceleration of relativistic particles in a viscous accretion disk containing a standing shock is investigated as a possible explanation for the energetic outflows observed around radio-loud black holes. The energy/space distribution of the accelerated particles is computed by solving a transport equation that includes the effects of first-order Fermi acceleration, bulk advection, spatial diffusion, and particle escape. The velocity profile of the accreting gas is described using a model for shocked viscous disks recently developed by the authors, and the corresponding Green's function distribution for the accelerated particles in the disk and the outflow is obtained using a classicalmore » method based on eigenfunction analysis. The accretion-driven, diffusive shock acceleration scenario explored here is conceptually similar to the standard model for the acceleration of cosmic rays at supernova-driven shocks. However, in the disk application, the distribution of the accelerated particles is much harder than would be expected for a plane-parallel shock with the same compression ratio. Hence the disk environment plays a key role in enhancing the efficiency of the shock acceleration process. The presence of the shock helps to stabilize the disk by reducing the Bernoulli parameter, while channeling the excess binding energy into the escaping relativistic particles. In applications to M87 and Sgr A*, we find that the kinetic power in the jet is {approx}0.01 M-dot c{sup 2}, and the outflowing relativistic particles have a mean energy {approx}300 times larger than that of the thermal gas in the disk at the shock radius. Our results suggest that a standing shock may be an essential ingredient in accretion onto underfed black holes, helping to resolve the long-standing problem of the stability of advection-dominated accretion disks.« less

CoPtB(O) alloy films as new perpendicular recording media

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hayashi, K.; Hayakawa, M.; Ohmori, H.

In search of new hard magnetic materials with high saturation magnetization and large coercivity, a comprehensive study was made on numerous Co- and CoPt-base crystalline alloys by means of sputtering techniques. It revealed that a newly found CoPtB(O) alloy system possessed excellent hard magnetic properties with remarkably large perpendicular coercivity and high saturation magnetization. This new alloy film, deposited onto room temperature substrates, shows the magnetic properties of 4{pi}{ital M}{sub {ital s}}=12 kG, {ital H}{sup {perpendicular}}{sub {ital c}}=4000 Oe, and perpendicular anisotropy field {ital H}{sub {ital k}}=22 kOe. These values are superior to those of prevailing materials such as CoCrmore » perpendicular and CoPt or CoNi longitudinal recording media. The typical composition is Co{sub 69}Pt{sub 20}B{sub 6}O{sub 5} (at. %), and oxygen plays a momentous role on the coercivity in this alloy film. As a magnetic recording medium, a write/read experiment of this film shows that the readout signal has a +9 dB peak-to-peak amplitude compared with that of metal particle tape at 1 {mu}m wavelength and has +10 dB compared with that of a CoCr perpendicular medium at 0.5 {mu}m wavelength.« less

Accelerator Science: Collider vs. Fixed Target

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lincoln, Don

Particle physics experiments employ high energy particle accelerators to make their measurements. However there are many kinds of particle accelerators with many interesting techniques. One important dichotomy is whether one takes a particle beam and have it hit a stationary target of atoms, or whether one takes two counter rotating beams of particles and smashes them together head on. In this video, Fermilab’s Dr. Don Lincoln explains the pros and cons of these two powerful methods of exploring the rules of the universe.

Accelerator Science: Collider vs. Fixed Target

ScienceCinema

Lincoln, Don

2018-01-16

Particle physics experiments employ high energy particle accelerators to make their measurements. However there are many kinds of particle accelerators with many interesting techniques. One important dichotomy is whether one takes a particle beam and have it hit a stationary target of atoms, or whether one takes two counter rotating beams of particles and smashes them together head on. In this video, Fermilab’s Dr. Don Lincoln explains the pros and cons of these two powerful methods of exploring the rules of the universe.

The effect of underlayers on the reversal of perpendicularly magnetized multilayer thin films for magnetic micro- and nanoparticles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vemulkar, T.; Mansell, R.; Petit, D. C. M. C.; Cowburn, R. P.; Lesniak, M. S.

2017-01-01

Perpendicularly magnetized microparticles offer the ability to locally apply high torques on soft matter under an applied magnetic field. These particles are engineered to have a zero remanence magnetic configuration via synthetic antiferromagnetic coupling using a Ru coupling interlayer. The flexibility offered by the top down thin film fabrication process in a CoFeB/Pt perpendicular thin film is demonstrated by using the Pt interlayer thicknesses in a Pt/Ru/Pt antiferromagnetic coupling multilayer to tune the applied magnetic field value of the easy axis spin-flip transition to saturation and hence the field value at which the magnetic particles are magnetically activated via a distinct transition to saturation. The importance of a Ta buffer layer on the magnetic behavior of the stack is shown. While Au capping layers are desirable for biotechnology applications, we demonstrate that they can drastically change the nucleation and propagation of domains in the film, thereby altering the reversal behavior of the thin film. The effect of Au underlayers on a multilayer thin film composed of repeated motifs of a synthetic antiferromagnetic building block is also investigated.

Analytic Solution of the Electromagnetic Eigenvalues Problem in a Cylindrical Resonator

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Checchin, Mattia; Martinello, Martina

Resonant accelerating cavities are key components in modern particles accelerating facilities. These take advantage of electromagnetic fields resonating at microwave frequencies to accelerate charged particles. Particles gain finite energy at each passage through a cavity if in phase with the resonating field, reaching energies even of the order of $TeV$ when a cascade of accelerating resonators are present. In order to understand how a resonant accelerating cavity transfers energy to charged particles, it is important to determine how the electromagnetic modes are exited into such resonators. In this paper we present a complete analytical calculation of the resonating fields formore » a simple cylindrical-shaped cavity.« less

Particle Acceleration, Magnetic Field Generation and Emission from Relativistic Jets and Supernova Remnants

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nishikawa, K.-I.; Hartmann, D. H.; Hardee, P.; Hededal, C.; Mizunno, Y.; Fishman, G. J.

2006-01-01

We performed numerical simulations of particle acceleration, magnetic field generation, and emission from shocks in order to understand the observed emission from relativistic jets and supernova remnants. The investigation involves the study of collisionless shocks, where the Weibel instability is responsible for particle acceleration as well as magnetic field generation. A 3-D relativistic particle-in-cell (RPIC) code has been used to investigate the shock processes in electron-positron plasmas. The evolution of theWeibe1 instability and its associated magnetic field generation and particle acceleration are studied with two different jet velocities (0 = 2,5 - slow, fast) corresponding to either outflows in supernova remnants or relativistic jets, such as those found in AGNs and microquasars. Slow jets have intrinsically different structures in both the generated magnetic fields and the accelerated particle spectrum. In particular, the jet head has a very weak magnetic field and the ambient electrons are strongly accelerated and dragged by the jet particles. The simulation results exhibit jitter radiation from inhomogeneous magnetic fields, generated by the Weibel instability, which has different spectral properties than standard synchrotron emission in a homogeneous magnetic field.

Diffusive Shock Acceleration and Turbulent Reconnection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Garrel, Christian; Vlahos, Loukas; Isliker, Heinz; Pisokas, Theophilos

2018-05-01

Diffusive Shock Acceleration (DSA) cannot efficiently accelerate particles without the presence of self-consistently generated or pre-existing strong turbulence (δB/B ˜ 1) in the vicinity of the shock. The problem we address in this article is: if large amplitude magnetic disturbances are present upstream and downstream of a shock then Turbulent Reconnection (TR) will set in and will participate not only in the elastic scattering of particles but also in their heating and acceleration. We demonstrate that large amplitude magnetic disturbances and Unstable Current Sheets (UCS), spontaneously formed in the strong turbulence in the vicinity of a shock, can accelerate particles as efficiently as DSA in large scale systems and on long time scales. We start our analysis with "elastic" scatterers upstream and downstream and estimate the energy distribution of particles escaping from the shock, recovering the well known results from the DSA theory. Next we analyze the additional interaction of the particles with active scatterers (magnetic disturbances and UCS) upstream and downstream of the shock. We show that the asymptotic energy distribution of the particles accelerated by DSA/TR has very similar characteristics with the one due to DSA alone, but the synergy of DSA with TR is much more efficient: The acceleration time is an order of magnitude shorter and the maximum energy reached two orders of magnitude higher. We claim that DSA is the dominant acceleration mechanism in a short period before TR is established, and then strong turbulence will dominate the heating and acceleration of the particles. In other words, the shock serves as the mechanism to set up a strongly turbulent environment, in which the acceleration mechanism will ultimately be the synergy of DSA and TR.

High-energy particle acceleration in the shell of a supernova remnant.

PubMed

Aharonian, F A; Akhperjanian, A G; Aye, K-M; Bazer-Bachi, A R; Beilicke, M; Benbow, W; Berge, D; Berghaus, P; Bernlöhr, K; Bolz, O; Boisson, C; Borgmeier, C; Breitling, F; Brown, A M; Gordo, J Bussons; Chadwick, P M; Chitnis, V R; Chounet, L-M; Cornils, R; Costamante, L; Degrange, B; Djannati-Ataï, A; Drury, L O'C; Ergin, T; Espigat, P; Feinstein, F; Fleury, P; Fontaine, G; Funk, S; Gallant, Y A; Giebels, B; Gillessen, S; Goret, P; Guy, J; Hadjichristidis, C; Hauser, M; Heinzelmann, G; Henri, G; Hermann, G; Hinton, J A; Hofmann, W; Holleran, M; Horns, D; De Jager, O C; Jung, I; Khélifi, B; Komin, Nu; Konopelko, A; Latham, I J; Le Gallou, R; Lemoine, M; Lemière, A; Leroy, N; Lohse, T; Marcowith, A; Masterson, C; McComb, T J L; De Naurois, M; Nolan, S J; Noutsos, A; Orford, K J; Osborne, J L; Ouchrif, M; Panter, M; Pelletier, G; Pita, S; Pohl, M; Pühlhofer, G; Punch, M; Raubenheimer, B C; Raue, M; Raux, J; Rayner, S M; Redondo, I; Reimer, A; Reimer, O; Ripken, J; Rivoal, M; Rob, L; Rolland, L; Rowell, G; Sahakian, V; Saugé, L; Schlenker, S; Schlickeiser, R; Schuster, C; Schwanke, U; Siewert, M; Sol, H; Steenkamp, R; Stegmann, C; Tavernet, J-P; Théoret, C G; Tluczykont, M; Van Der Walt, D J; Vasileiadis, G; Vincent, P; Visser, B; Völk, H J; Wagner, S J

2004-11-04

A significant fraction of the energy density of the interstellar medium is in the form of high-energy charged particles (cosmic rays). The origin of these particles remains uncertain. Although it is generally accepted that the only sources capable of supplying the energy required to accelerate the bulk of Galactic cosmic rays are supernova explosions, and even though the mechanism of particle acceleration in expanding supernova remnant (SNR) shocks is thought to be well understood theoretically, unequivocal evidence for the production of high-energy particles in supernova shells has proven remarkably hard to find. Here we report on observations of the SNR RX J1713.7 - 3946 (G347.3 - 0.5), which was discovered by ROSAT in the X-ray spectrum and later claimed as a source of high-energy gamma-rays of TeV energies (1 TeV = 10(12) eV). We present a TeV gamma-ray image of the SNR: the spatially resolved remnant has a shell morphology similar to that seen in X-rays, which demonstrates that very-high-energy particles are accelerated there. The energy spectrum indicates efficient acceleration of charged particles to energies beyond 100 TeV, consistent with current ideas of particle acceleration in young SNR shocks.

Energetic Particles: From Sun to Heliosphere - and vice versa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wimmer-Schweingruber, R. F.; Rodriguez-Pacheco, J.; Boden, S.; Boettcher, S. I.; Cernuda, I.; Dresing, N.; Drews, C.; Droege, W.; Elftmann, R.; Espinosa Lara, F.; Gomez-Herrero, R.; Heber, B.; Ho, G. C.; Klassen, A.; Kulkarni, S. R.; Mann, G. J.; Martin-Garcia, C.; Mason, G. M.; Panitzsch, L.; Prieto, M.; Sanchez, S.; Steinhagen, J.; Tammen, J.; Terasa, C.; Yu, J.

2016-12-01

Energetic particles in the heliosphere can be measured at their elevated energetic status after three processes: injection, acceleration, and transport. Suprathermal seed particles have speeds well above the fast magnetosonic speed in the solar wind frame of reference and can vary from location to location and within the solar activity cycle. Acceleration sites include reconnecting current sheets in solar flares or magnetspheric boundaries, shocks in the solar corona, heliosphere and a planetary obstacles, as well as planetary magnetospheres. Once accelerated, particles are transported from the acceleration site into and through the heliosphere. Thus, by investigating properties of energetic particles such as their composition, energy spectra, pitch-angle distribution, etc. one can attempt to distinguish their origin or injection and acceleration site. This in turn allows us to better understand transport effects whose underlying microphysics is also a key ingredient in the acceleration of particles. In this presentation we will present some clear examples which link energetic particles from their observing site to their source locations. These include Jupiter electrons, singly-charged He ions from CIRs, and 3He from solar flares. We will compare these examples with the measurement capabilities of the Energetic Particle Detector (EPD) on Solar Orbiter and consider implications for the key science goal of Solar Orbiter and Solar Proble Plus - How the Sun creates and controls the heliosphere.

Energetic Particles: From Sun to Heliosphere - and vice versa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wimmer-Schweingruber, R. F.; Rodriguez-Pacheco, J.; Boden, S.; Boettcher, S. I.; Cernuda, I.; Dresing, N.; Drews, C.; Droege, W.; Espinosa Lara, F.; Gomez-Herrero, R.; Heber, B.; Ho, G. C.; Klassen, A.; Kulkarni, S. R.; Mann, G. J.; Martin-Garcia, C.; Mason, G. M.; Panitzsch, L.; Prieto, M.; Sanchez, S.; Terasa, C.; Eldrum, S.

2017-12-01

Energetic particles in the heliosphere can be measured at their elevated energetic status after three processes: injection, acceleration, and transport. Suprathermal seed particles have speeds well above the fast magnetosonic speed in the solar wind frame of reference and can vary from location to location and within the solar activity cycle. Acceleration sites include reconnecting current sheets in solar flares or magnetspheric boundaries, shocks in the solar corona, heliosphere and a planetary obstacles, as well as planetary magnetospheres. Once accelerated, particles are transported from the acceleration site into and through the heliosphere. Thus, by investigating properties of energetic particles such as their composition, energy spectra, pitch-angle distribution, etc. one can attempt to distinguish their origin or injection and acceleration site. This in turn allows us to better understand transport effects whose underlying microphysics is also a key ingredient in the acceleration of particles. In this presentation we will present some clear examples which link energetic particles from their observing site to their source locations. These include Jupiter electrons, singly-charged He ions from CIRs, and 3He from solar flares. We will compare these examples with the measurement capabilities of the Energetic Particle Detector (EPD) on Solar Orbiter and consider implications for the key science goal of Solar Orbiter and Solar Proble Plus - How the Sun creates and controls the heliosphere.

Pulse - Accelerator Science in Medicine

Science.gov Websites

discoveries in particle accelerator science may lead to unexpected applications for medical diagnosis, healing perhaps to new tools for medical science. National laboratories build particle accelerators for physicists

Variation in Angular Velocity and Angular Acceleration of a Particle in Rectilinear Motion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mashood, K. K.; Singh, V. A.

2012-01-01

We discuss the angular velocity ([image omitted]) and angular acceleration ([image omitted]) associated with a particle in rectilinear motion with constant acceleration. The discussion was motivated by an observation that students and even teachers have difficulty in ascribing rotational motion concepts to a particle when the trajectory is a…

Preferential acceleration and magnetic field enhancement in plasmas with e{sup +}/e{sup −} beam injection

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Huynh, Cong Tuan; Ryu, Chang-Mo, E-mail: ryu201@postech.ac.kr

A theoretical model of current filaments predicting preferential acceleration/deceleration and magnetic field enhancement in a plasma with e{sup +}/e{sup −} beam injection is presented. When the e{sup +}/e{sup −} beams are injected into a plasma, current filaments are formed. The beam particles are accelerated or decelerated depending on the types of current filaments in which they are trapped. It is found that in the electron/ion ambient plasma, the e{sup +} beam particles are preferentially accelerated, while the e{sup −} beam particles are preferentially decelerated. The preferential particle acceleration/deceleration is absent when the ambient plasma is the e{sup +}/e{sup −} plasma.more » We also find that the particle momentum decrease can explain the magnetic field increase during the development of Weibel/filamentation instability. Supporting simulation results of particle acceleration/deceleration and magnetic field enhancement are presented. Our findings can be applied to a wide range of astrophysical plasmas with the e{sup +}/e{sup −} beam injection.« less

Physics of the saturation of particle acceleration in relativistic magnetic reconnection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kagan, Daniel; Nakar, Ehud; Piran, Tsvi

2018-05-01

We investigate the saturation of particle acceleration in relativistic reconnection using two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations at various magnetizations σ. We find that the particle energy spectrum produced in reconnection quickly saturates as a hard power law that cuts off at γ ≈ 4σ, confirming previous work. Using particle tracing, we find that particle acceleration by the reconnection electric field in X-points determines the shape of the particle energy spectrum. By analysing the current sheet structure, we show that physical cause of saturation is the spontaneous formation of secondary magnetic islands that can disrupt particle acceleration. By comparing the size of acceleration regions to the typical distance between disruptive islands, we show that the maximum Lorentz factor produced in reconnection is γ ≈ 5σ, which is very close to what we find in our particle energy spectra. We also show that the dynamic range in Lorentz factor of the power-law spectrum in reconnection is ≤40. The hardness of the power law combined with its narrow dynamic range implies that relativistic reconnection is capable of producing the hard narrow-band flares observed in the Crab nebula but has difficulty producing the softer broad-band prompt gamma-ray burst emission.

PERPENDICULAR ION HEATING BY LOW-FREQUENCY ALFVEN-WAVE TURBULENCE IN THE SOLAR WIND

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chandran, Benjamin D. G.; Germaschewski, Kai; Li Bo

We consider ion heating by turbulent Alfven waves (AWs) and kinetic Alfven waves (KAWs) with wavelengths (measured perpendicular to the magnetic field) that are comparable to the ion gyroradius and frequencies {omega} smaller than the ion cyclotron frequency {Omega}. We focus on plasmas in which {beta} {approx}< 1, where {beta} is the ratio of plasma pressure to magnetic pressure. As in previous studies, we find that when the turbulence amplitude exceeds a certain threshold, an ion's orbit becomes chaotic. The ion then interacts stochastically with the time-varying electrostatic potential, and the ion's energy undergoes a random walk. Using phenomenological arguments,more » we derive an analytic expression for the rates at which different ion species are heated, which we test by simulating test particles interacting with a spectrum of randomly phased AWs and KAWs. We find that the stochastic heating rate depends sensitively on the quantity {epsilon} = {delta}v {sub {rho}/}v{sub perpendicular}, where v{sub perpendicular} (v {sub ||}) is the component of the ion velocity perpendicular (parallel) to the background magnetic field B {sub 0}, and {delta}v {sub {rho}} ({delta}B {sub {rho}}) is the rms amplitude of the velocity (magnetic-field) fluctuations at the gyroradius scale. In the case of thermal protons, when {epsilon} << {epsilon}{sub crit}, where {epsilon}{sub crit} is a constant, a proton's magnetic moment is nearly conserved and stochastic heating is extremely weak. However, when {epsilon}>{epsilon}{sub crit}, the proton heating rate exceeds half the cascade power that would be present in strong balanced KAW turbulence with the same value of {delta}v {sub {rho}}, and magnetic-moment conservation is violated even when {omega} << {Omega}. For the random-phase waves in our test-particle simulations, {epsilon}{sub crit} = 0.19. For protons in low-{beta} plasmas, {epsilon} {approx_equal} {beta}{sup -1/2{delta}}B{sub {rho}/}B {sub 0}, and {epsilon} can exceed {epsilon}{sub crit} even when {delta}B{sub {rho}/}B {sub 0} << {epsilon}{sub crit}. The heating is anisotropic, increasing v {sup 2}{sub perpendicular} much more than v {sup 2}{sub ||} when {beta} << 1. (In contrast, at {beta} {approx}> 1 Landau damping and transit-time damping of KAWs lead to strong parallel heating of protons.) At comparable temperatures, alpha particles and minor ions have larger values of {epsilon} than protons and are heated more efficiently as a result. We discuss the implications of our results for ion heating in coronal holes and the solar wind.« less

Dust in magnetised plasmas - Basic theory and some applications. [to planetary rings

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Northrop, T. G.; Morfill, G. E.

1984-01-01

In this paper the theory of charged test particle motion in magnetic fields is reviewed. This theory is then extended to charged dust particles, for which gravity and charge fluctuations play an important role. It is shown that systematic drifts perpendicular to the magnetic field and stochastic transport effects may then have to be considered none of which occur in the case of atomic particles (with the exception of charge exchange reactions). Some applications of charged dust particle transport theory to planetary rings are then briefly discussed.

Method and apparatus for measuring the momentum, energy, power, and power density profile of intense particle beams

DOEpatents

Gammel, George M.; Kugel, Henry W.

1992-10-06

A method and apparatus for determining the power, momentum, energy, and power density profile of high momentum mass flow. Small probe projectiles of appropriate size, shape and composition are propelled through an intense particle beam at equal intervals along an axis perpendicular to the beam direction. Probe projectiles are deflected by collisions with beam particles. The net beam-induced deflection of each projectile is measured after it passes through the intense particle beam into an array of suitable detectors.

Fermilab | Tritium at Fermilab | Frequently asked questions

Science.gov Websites

computing Quantum initiatives Research and development Key discoveries Benefits of particle physics Particle Accelerators Leading accelerator technology Accelerator complex Illinois Accelerator Research Center Fermilab questions about tritium Tritium in surface water Indian Creek Kress Creek Ferry Creek Tritium in sanitary

The Strongest Acceleration of >40 keV Electrons by ICME-driven Shocks at 1 au

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Liu; Wang, Linghua; Li, Gang; Wimmer-Schweingruber, Robert F.; He, Jiansen; Tu, Chuanyi; Tian, Hui; Bale, Stuart D.

2018-01-01

We present two case studies of the in-situ electron acceleration during the 2000 February 11 shock and the 2004 July 22 shock, with the strongest electron flux enhancement at 40 keV across the shock, among all the quasi-perpendicular and quasi-parallel ICME-driven shocks observed by the WIND 3DP instrument from 1995 through 2014 at 1 au. We find that for this quasi-perpendicular (quasi-parallel) shock on 2000 February 11 (2004 July 22), the shocked electron differential fluxes at ∼0.4–50 keV in the downstream generally fit well to a double-power-law spectrum, J ∼ E ‑β , with an index of β ∼ 3.15 (4.0) at energies below a break at ∼3 keV (∼1 keV) and β ∼ 2.65 (2.6) at energies above. For both shock events, the downstream electron spectral indices appear to be similar for all pitch angles, which are significantly larger than the index prediction by diffusive shock acceleration. In addition, the downstream electron pitch-angle distributions show the anisotropic beams in the anti-sunward-traveling direction, while the ratio of the downstream over ambient fluxes appears to peak near 90° pitch angles, at all energies of ∼0.4–50 keV. These results suggest that in both shocks, shock drift acceleration likely plays an important role in accelerating electrons in situ at 1 au. Such ICME-driven shocks could contribute to the formation of solar wind halo electrons at energies ≲2 keV, as well as the production of solar wind superhalo electrons at energies ≳2 keV in interplanetary space.

Introduction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Assmann, R. W.; Ferrario, M.

2016-09-01

Particle accelerators are a field of continuing and growing success. Today about 30,000 accelerators are operated with various types of particles, including electrons, positrons, protons, neutrinos and various kinds of ions. These particles are used for the investigation of fundamental particles and forces in our universe. In parallel a fast growing field of accelerator-based photon science has developed since the 1970"s. Modern particle beams produce unique photon pulses that are used in ground-breaking studies on fast processes in chemistry and biology, on structures of viruses and bacteria, on the phenomenon of multi-resistivity to medication, on the functioning of photo-synthesis at the electronic level and on other important challenges for human mankind. Last not least, numerous particle accelerators are being used every day for industrial and medical applications, including the irradiation of tumors in human patients.

Nonlinear Monte Carlo model of superdiffusive shock acceleration with magnetic field amplification

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bykov, Andrei M.; Ellison, Donald C.; Osipov, Sergei M.

2017-03-01

Fast collisionless shocks in cosmic plasmas convert their kinetic energy flow into the hot downstream thermal plasma with a substantial fraction of energy going into a broad spectrum of superthermal charged particles and magnetic fluctuations. The superthermal particles can penetrate into the shock upstream region producing an extended shock precursor. The cold upstream plasma flow is decelerated by the force provided by the superthermal particle pressure gradient. In high Mach number collisionless shocks, efficient particle acceleration is likely coupled with turbulent magnetic field amplification (MFA) generated by the anisotropic distribution of accelerated particles. This anisotropy is determined by fast particle transport, making the problem strongly nonlinear and multiscale. Here, we present a nonlinear Monte Carlo model of collisionless shock structure with superdiffusive propagation of high-energy Fermi accelerated particles coupled to particle acceleration and MFA, which affords a consistent description of strong shocks. A distinctive feature of the Monte Carlo technique is that it includes the full angular anisotropy of the particle distribution at all precursor positions. The model reveals that the superdiffusive transport of energetic particles (i.e., Lévy-walk propagation) generates a strong quadruple anisotropy in the precursor particle distribution. The resultant pressure anisotropy of the high-energy particles produces a nonresonant mirror-type instability that amplifies compressible wave modes with wavelengths longer than the gyroradii of the highest-energy protons produced by the shock.

Accelerating Particles with Plasma

ScienceCinema

Litos, Michael; Hogan, Mark

2018-05-18

Researchers at SLAC explain how they use plasma wakefields to accelerate bunches of electrons to very high energies over only a short distance. Their experiments offer a possible path for the future of particle accelerators.

Formation of Accelerated Backstreaming Particles within the Quasi-perpendicular Ion Terrestrial Foreshock: 2D Full-Particle and Test-particles simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Savoini, P.; Lembege, B.

2016-12-01

Backstreaming ion populations are observed upstream of the Terrestrial bow shock and form the ion foreshock. Two distinct populations have been firmly identified by spacecrafts within the quasi-perpendicular shock region (i.e. for 45° ≤ ΘBn ≤ 90°, where ΘBn is the angle between the shock normal and the upstream magnetostatic field): so called (i) field-aligned ion beams (« FAB ») characterized by a gyrotropic distribution, and (ii) gyro-phase bunched ions («GPB »), characterized by a NON gyrotropic distribution.The origin of these backstreaming ions is still an important unresolved question which can be partially analyzed with the help of 2D PIC simulation of a curved shock, where full curvature effects, time of flight effects and both electrons and ions dynamics are fully included by a self consistent approach. Our previous analysis (Savoini et Lembege, 2015) has evidenced that these two populations can be generated directly by the macroscopic fields at the shock front itself. Present results based on ion trajectories analysis confirm: (i) the importance of the interaction time ΔTinter spent by ions within the shock front. "GPB" population is characterized by a very short interaction time (ΔTinter = 1 to 2 tci) in comparison to the "FAB" population (ΔTinter = 2 tci to 10 tci), where tci is the upstream ion gyroperiod. (ii) the key role of the injection angle (i.e. defined between the normal of the shock front and the gyration velocity at the time incoming ions hit the shock front) which strongly differs between FAB and GPB ions. (iii) that "FAB" ions drift along the shock front and « scan » a large ΘBn range (up to 20°) which explains the loss of their initial gyro-phase, before being re-injected into the upstream region. Moreover, our test-particule simulations evidence the importance of the shock wave profile for both the « FAB » and « GPB » populations. Such results show that the reflection process is not continuous in time and in space, but strongly depends of the local shock front profile met by incoming ions at their hitting time. The same simulations also emphasize the slight decrease of backstreaming ions density when the electric field space charge effect present within the shock front is artificially canceled. A comparison between self-consistent and test-particles results will be presented in more details.

Generalized power-spectrum Larmor formula for an extended charged particle embedded in a harmonic oscillator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marengo, Edwin A.; Khodja, Mohamed R.

2006-09-01

The nonrelativistic Larmor radiation formula, giving the power radiated by an accelerated charged point particle, is generalized for a spatially extended particle in the context of the classical charged harmonic oscillator. The particle is modeled as a spherically symmetric rigid charge distribution that possesses both translational and spinning degrees of freedom. The power spectrum obtained exhibits a structure that depends on the form factor of the particle, but reduces, in the limit of an infinitesimally small particle and for the charge distributions considered, to Larmor’s familiar result. It is found that for finite-duration small-enough accelerations as well as perpetual uniform accelerations the power spectrum of the spatially extended particle reduces to that of a point particle. It is also found that when the acceleration is violent or the size parameter of the particle is very large compared to the wavelength of the emitted radiation the power spectrum is highly suppressed. Possible applications are discussed.

SMALL-SCALE MAGNETIC ISLANDS IN THE SOLAR WIND AND THEIR ROLE IN PARTICLE ACCELERATION. II. PARTICLE ENERGIZATION INSIDE MAGNETICALLY CONFINED CAVITIES

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Khabarova, Olga V.; Zank, Gary P.; Li, Gang

2016-08-20

We explore the role of heliospheric magnetic field configurations and conditions that favor the generation and confinement of small-scale magnetic islands associated with atypical energetic particle events (AEPEs) in the solar wind. Some AEPEs do not align with standard particle acceleration mechanisms, such as flare-related or simple diffusive shock acceleration processes related to interplanetary coronal mass ejections (ICMEs) and corotating interaction regions (CIRs). As we have shown recently, energetic particle flux enhancements may well originate locally and can be explained by particle acceleration in regions filled with small-scale magnetic islands with a typical width of ∼0.01 au or less, whichmore » is often observed near the heliospheric current sheet (HCS). The particle energization is a consequence of magnetic reconnection-related processes in islands experiencing either merging or contraction, observed, for example, in HCS ripples. Here we provide more observations that support the idea and the theory of particle energization produced by small-scale-flux-rope dynamics (Zank et al. and Le Roux et al.). If the particles are pre-accelerated to keV energies via classical mechanisms, they may be additionally accelerated up to 1–1.5 MeV inside magnetically confined cavities of various origins. The magnetic cavities, formed by current sheets, may occur at the interface of different streams such as CIRs and ICMEs or ICMEs and coronal hole flows. They may also form during the HCS interaction with interplanetary shocks (ISs) or CIRs/ICMEs. Particle acceleration inside magnetic cavities may explain puzzling AEPEs occurring far beyond ISs, within ICMEs, before approaching CIRs as well as between CIRs.« less

The role of three-dimensional transport in driving enhanced electron acceleration during magnetic reconnection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dahlin, J. T.; Drake, J. F.; Swisdak, M.

2017-09-01

Magnetic reconnection is an important driver of energetic particles in many astrophysical phenomena. Using kinetic particle-in-cell simulations, we explore the impact of three-dimensional reconnection dynamics on the efficiency of particle acceleration. In two-dimensional systems, Alfvénic outflows expel energetic electrons into flux ropes where they become trapped and disconnected from acceleration regions. However, in three-dimensional systems these flux ropes develop an axial structure that enables particles to leak out and return to acceleration regions. This requires a finite guide field so that particles may move quickly along the flux rope axis. We show that greatest energetic electron production occurs when the guide field is of the same order as the reconnecting component: large enough to facilitate strong transport, but not so large as to throttle the dominant Fermi mechanism responsible for efficient electron acceleration. This suggests a natural explanation for the envelope of electron acceleration during the impulsive phase of eruptive flares.

Fast-ion D(alpha) measurements and simulations in DIII-D

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Luo, Yadong

The fast-ion Dalpha diagnostic measures the Doppler-shifted Dalpha light emitted by neutralized fast ions. For a favorable viewing geometry, the bright interferences from beam neutrals, halo neutrals, and edge neutrals span over a small wavelength range around the Dalpha rest wavelength and are blocked by a vertical bar at the exit focal plane of the spectrometer. Background subtraction and fitting techniques eliminate various contaminants in the spectrum. Fast-ion data are acquired with a time evolution of ˜1 ms, spatial resolution of ˜5 cm, and energy resolution of ˜10 keV. A weighted Monte Carlo simulation code models the fast-ion Dalpha spectra based on the fast-ion distribution function from other sources. In quiet plasmas, the spectral shape is in excellent agreement and absolute magnitude also has reasonable agreement. The fast-ion D alpha signal has the expected dependencies on plasma and neutral beam parameters. The neutral particle diagnostic and neutron diagnostic corroborate the fast-ion Dalpha measurements. The relative spatial profile is in agreement with the simulated profile based on the fast-ion distribution function from the TRANSP analysis code. During ion cyclotron heating, fast ions with high perpendicular energy are accelerated, while those with low perpendicular energy are barely affected. The spatial profile is compared with the simulated profiles based on the fast-ion distribution functions from the CQL Fokker-Planck code. In discharges with Alfven instabilities, both the spatial profile and spectral shape suggests that fast ions are redistributed. The flattened fast-ion Dalpha profile is in agreement with the fast-ion pressure profile.

Radiation Field Forming for Industrial Electron Accelerators Using Rare-Earth Magnetic Materials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ermakov, A. N.; Khankin, V. V.; Shvedunov, N. V.; Shvedunov, V. I.; Yurov, D. S.

2016-09-01

The article describes the radiation field forming system for industrial electron accelerators, which would have uniform distribution of linear charge density at the surface of an item being irradiated perpendicular to the direction of its motion. Its main element is non-linear quadrupole lens made with the use of rare-earth magnetic materials. The proposed system has a number of advantages over traditional beam scanning systems that use electromagnets, including easier product irradiation planning, lower instantaneous local dose rate, smaller size, lower cost. Provided are the calculation results for a 10 MeV industrial electron accelerator, as well as measurement results for current distribution in the prototype build based on calculations.

Turbulence, Magnetic Reconnection in Turbulent Fluids and Energetic Particle Acceleration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lazarian, A.; Vlahos, L.; Kowal, G.; Yan, H.; Beresnyak, A.; de Gouveia Dal Pino, E. M.

2012-11-01

Turbulence is ubiquitous in astrophysics. It radically changes many astrophysical phenomena, in particular, the propagation and acceleration of cosmic rays. We present the modern understanding of compressible magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence, in particular its decomposition into Alfvén, slow and fast modes, discuss the density structure of turbulent subsonic and supersonic media, as well as other relevant regimes of astrophysical turbulence. All this information is essential for understanding the energetic particle acceleration that we discuss further in the review. For instance, we show how fast and slow modes accelerate energetic particles through the second order Fermi acceleration, while density fluctuations generate magnetic fields in pre-shock regions enabling the first order Fermi acceleration of high energy cosmic rays. Very importantly, however, the first order Fermi cosmic ray acceleration is also possible in sites of magnetic reconnection. In the presence of turbulence this reconnection gets fast and we present numerical evidence supporting the predictions of the Lazarian and Vishniac (Astrophys. J. 517:700-718, 1999) model of fast reconnection. The efficiency of this process suggests that magnetic reconnection can release substantial amounts of energy in short periods of time. As the particle tracing numerical simulations show that the particles can be efficiently accelerated during the reconnection, we argue that the process of magnetic reconnection may be much more important for particle acceleration than it is currently accepted. In particular, we discuss the acceleration arising from reconnection as a possible origin of the anomalous cosmic rays measured by Voyagers as well as the origin cosmic ray excess in the direction of Heliotail.

Electrostatic quadrupole focused particle accelerating assembly with laminar flow beam

DOEpatents

Maschke, A.W.

1984-04-16

A charged particle accelerating assembly provided with a predetermined ratio of parametric structural characteristics and with related operating voltages applied to each of its linearly spaced focusing and accelerating quadrupoles, thereby to maintain a particle beam traversing the electrostatic fields of the quadrupoles in the assembly in an essentially laminar flow through the assembly.

Electrostatic quadrupole focused particle accelerating assembly with laminar flow beam

DOEpatents

Maschke, Alfred W.

1985-01-01

A charged particle accelerating assembly provided with a predetermined ratio of parametric structural characteristics and with related operating voltages applied to each of its linearly spaced focusing and accelerating quadrupoles, thereby to maintain a particle beam traversing the electrostatic fields of the quadrupoles in the assembly in an essentially laminar flow throughout the assembly.

REVIEWS OF TOPICAL PROBLEMS: Acceleration of cosmic rays by shock waves

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Berezhko, E. G.; Krymskiĭ, G. F.

1988-01-01

Theoretical work on various processes by which shock waves accelerate cosmic rays is reviewed. The most efficient of these processes, Fermi acceleration, is singled out for special attention. A linear theory for this process is presented. The results found on the basis of nonlinear models of Fermi acceleration, which incorporate the modification of the structure caused by the accelerated particles, are reported. There is a discussion of various possibilities for explaining the generation of high-energy particles observed in interplanetary and interstellar space on the basis of a Fermi acceleration mechanism. The acceleration by shock waves from supernova explosions is discussed as a possible source of galactic cosmic rays. The most important unresolved questions in the theory of acceleration of charged particles by shock waves are pointed out.

Extracting spatial information from large aperture exposures of diffuse sources

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Clarke, J. T.; Moos, H. W.

1981-01-01

The spatial properties of large aperture exposures of diffuse emission can be used both to investigate spatial variations in the emission and to filter out camera noise in exposures of weak emission sources. Spatial imaging can be accomplished both parallel and perpendicular to dispersion with a resolution of 5-6 arc sec, and a narrow median filter running perpendicular to dispersion across a diffuse image selectively filters out point source features, such as reseaux marks and fast particle hits. Spatial information derived from observations of solar system objects is presented.

Collisionless dissipation in quasi-perpendicular shocks. [in terresrial bow waves

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Forslund, D. W.; Quest, K. B.; Brackbill, J. U.; Lee, K.

1984-01-01

Microscopic dissipation processes in quasi-perpendicular shocks are studied by two-dimensional plasma simulations in which electrons and ions are treated as particles moving in self-consistent electric and magnetic fields. Cross-field currents induce substantial turbulence at the shock front reducing the reflected ion fraction, increasing the bulk ion temperature behind the shock, doubling the average magnetic ramp thickness, and enhancing the upstream field aligned electron heat flow. The short scale length magnetic fluctuations observed in the bow shock are probably associated with this turbulence.

The role of three-dimensional transport in driving enhanced electron acceleration during magnetic reconnection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Swisdak, M.; Dahlin, J. T.; Drake, J. F.

2017-12-01

Magnetic reconnection is an important driver of energetic particles in many space and astrophysical phenomena. Using kinetic particle-in-cell simulations, we explore the effects that the dynamics in three-dimensions has on reconnection and the efficiency of particle acceleration. In two-dimensional systems, Alfvenic outflows expel energetic electrons into flux ropes where they become trapped and disconnected from acceleration regions. However, in three-dimensional systems these flux ropes develop axial structure that enables particles to leak out and return to acceleration regions. This requires a finite guide field so that particles may move quickly along the flux rope axis. The greatest energetic electron production occurs when the guide field is of the same order as the reconnecting component: large enough to facilitate strong transport, but not so large as to throttle the dominant Fermi mechanism responsible for efficient electron acceleration.

A Kinetic-MHD Theory for the Self-Consistent Energy Exchange Between Energetic Particles and Active Small-scale Flux Ropes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

le Roux, J. A.

2017-12-01

We developed previously a focused transport kinetic theory formalism with Fokker-plank coefficients (and its Parker transport limit) to model large-scale energetic particle transport and acceleration in solar wind regions with multiple contracting and merging small-scale flux ropes on MHD (inertial) scales (Zank et al. 2014; le Roux et al. 2015). The theory unifies the main acceleration mechanisms identified in particle simulations for particles temporarily trapped in such active flux rope structures, such as acceleration by the parallel electric field in reconnection regions between merging flux ropes, curvature drift acceleration in incompressible/compressible contracting and merging flux ropes, and betatron acceleration (e.g., Dahlin et al 2016). Initial analytical solutions of the Parker transport equation in the test particle limit showed that the energetic particle pressure from efficient flux-rope energization can potentially be high in turbulent solar wind regions containing active flux-rope structures. This requires taking into account the back reaction of energetic particles on flux ropes to more accurately determine the efficiency of energetic particles acceleration by small-scale flux ropes. To accomplish this goal we developed recently an extension of the kinetic theory to a kinetic-MHD level. We will present the extended theory showing the focused transport equation to be coupled to a solar wind MHD transport equation for small-scale flux-rope energy density extracted from a recently published nearly incompressible theory for solar wind MHD turbulence with a plasma beta of 1 (Zank et al. 2017). In the flux-rope transport equation appears new expressions for the damping/growth rates of flux-rope energy derived from assuming energy conservation in the interaction between energetic particles and small-scale flux ropes for all the main flux-rope acceleration mechanisms, whereas previous expressions for average particle acceleration rates have been explored in more detail. Future applications will involve exploring the relative role of diffusive shock and flux-ropes acceleration in the vicinity of traveling shocks in the supersonic solar wind near Earth where many flux-rope structures were detected recently (Hu et al 2017, this session).

Acceleration of low-energy ions at parallel shocks with a focused transport model

DOE PAGES

Zuo, Pingbing; Zhang, Ming; Rassoul, Hamid K.

2013-04-10

Here, we present a test particle simulation on the injection and acceleration of low-energy suprathermal particles by parallel shocks with a focused transport model. The focused transport equation contains all necessary physics of shock acceleration, but avoids the limitation of diffusive shock acceleration (DSA) that requires a small pitch angle anisotropy. This simulation verifies that the particles with speeds of a fraction of to a few times the shock speed can indeed be directly injected and accelerated into the DSA regime by parallel shocks. At higher energies starting from a few times the shock speed, the energy spectrum of acceleratedmore » particles is a power law with the same spectral index as the solution of standard DSA theory, although the particles are highly anisotropic in the upstream region. The intensity, however, is different from that predicted by DSA theory, indicating a different level of injection efficiency. It is found that the shock strength, the injection speed, and the intensity of an electric cross-shock potential (CSP) jump can affect the injection efficiency of the low-energy particles. A stronger shock has a higher injection efficiency. In addition, if the speed of injected particles is above a few times the shock speed, the produced power-law spectrum is consistent with the prediction of standard DSA theory in both its intensity and spectrum index with an injection efficiency of 1. CSP can increase the injection efficiency through direct particle reflection back upstream, but it has little effect on the energetic particle acceleration once the speed of injected particles is beyond a few times the shock speed. This test particle simulation proves that the focused transport theory is an extension of DSA theory with the capability of predicting the efficiency of particle injection.« less

Particle accelerator employing transient space charge potentials

DOEpatents

Post, Richard F.

1990-01-01

The invention provides an accelerator for ions and charged particles. The plasma is generated and confined in a magnetic mirror field. The electrons of the plasma are heated to high temperatures. A series of local coils are placed along the axis of the magnetic mirror field. As an ion or particle beam is directed along the axis in sequence the coils are rapidly pulsed creating a space charge to accelerate and focus the beam of ions or charged particles.

Onion-shell model of cosmic ray acceleration in supernova remnants

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bogdan, T. J.; Volk, H. J.

1983-01-01

A method is devised to approximate the spatially averaged momentum distribution function for the accelerated particles at the end of the active lifetime of a supernova remnant. The analysis is confined to the test particle approximation and adiabatic losses are oversimplified, but unsteady shock motion, evolving shock strength, and non-uniform gas flow effects on the accelerated particle spectrum are included. Monoenergetic protons are injected at the shock front. It is found that the dominant effect on the resultant accelerated particle spectrum is a changing spectral index with shock strength. High energy particles are produced in early phases, and the resultant distribution function is a slowly varying power law over several orders of magnitude, independent of the specific details of the supernova remnant.

Proceedings of the 1995 Particle Accelerator Conference and international Conference on High-Energy Accelerators

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

None

1996-01-01

Papers from the sixteenth biennial Particle Accelerator Conference, an international forum on accelerator science and technology held May 1–5, 1995, in Dallas, Texas, organized by Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) and Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC), jointly sponsored by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society (NPSS), the American Physical Society (APS) Division of Particles and Beams (DPB), and the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP), and conducted with support from the US Department of Energy, the National Science Foundation, and the Office of Naval Research.

Collisionless Shocks and Particle Acceleration.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Malkov, M.

2016-12-01

Collisionless shocks emerged in the 50s and 60s of the last century as an important branch of plasma physics and have remained ever since. New applications pose new challenges to our understanding of collisionless shock mechanisms. Particle acceleration in astrophysical settings, primarily studied concerning the putative origin of cosmic rays (CR) in supernova remnant (SNR) shocks, stands out with the collisionless shock mechanism being the key. Among recent laboratory applications, a laser-based tabletop proton accelerator is an affordable compact alternative to big synchrotron accelerators. The much-anticipated proof of cosmic ray (CR) acceleration in supernova remnants is hindered by our limited understanding of collisionless shock mechanisms. Over the last decade, dramatically improved observations were puzzling the theorists with unexpected discoveries. The difference between the helium/carbon and proton CR rigidity (momentum to charge ratio) spectra, seemingly inconsistent with the acceleration and propagation theories, and the perplexing positron excess in the 10-300 GeV range are just two recent examples. The latter is now also actively discussed in the particle physics and CR communities as a possible signature of decay or annihilation of hypothetical dark matter particles. By considering an initial (injection) phase of a diffusive shock acceleration mechanism, including particle reflection off the shock front - where an elemental similarity of particle dynamics does not apply - I will discuss recent suggestions of how to address the new data from the collisionless shock perspective. The backreaction of accelerated particles on the shock structure, its environment, and visibility across the electromagnetic spectrum from radio to gamma rays is another key aspect of collisionless shock that will be discussed.

History and Technology Developments of Radio Frequency (RF) Systems for Particle Accelerators

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nassiri, A.; Chase, B.; Craievich, P.; Fabris, A.; Frischholz, H.; Jacob, J.; Jensen, E.; Jensen, M.; Kustom, R.; Pasquinelli, R.

2016-04-01

This article attempts to give a historical account and review of technological developments and innovations in radio frequency (RF) systems for particle accelerators. The evolution from electrostatic field to the use of RF voltage suggested by R. Wideröe made it possible to overcome the shortcomings of electrostatic accelerators, which limited the maximum achievable electric field due to voltage breakdown. After an introduction, we will provide reviews of technological developments of RF systems for particle accelerators.

Molded Magnetic Article

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bryant, Robert G. (Inventor); Namkung, Min (Inventor); Wincheski, Russell A. (Inventor); Fulton, James P. (Inventor); Fox, Robert L. (Inventor)

2000-01-01

A molded magnetic article and fabrication method are provided. Particles of ferromagnetic material embedded in a polymer binder are molded under heat and pressure into a geometric shape. Each particle is an oblate spheroid having a radius-to-thickness aspect ratio approximately in the range of 15-30. Each oblate spheroid has flattened poles that are substantially in perpendicular alignment to a direction of the molding pressure throughout the geometric shape.

Nutrient and dust enrichment in Danish wind erosion sediments for different tillage directions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mohammadian Behbahani, Ali; Fister, Wolfgang; Heckrath, Goswin; Kuhn, Nikolaus J.

2015-04-01

More than 80% of the soil types in Denmark have a sandy texture. Denmark is also subject to strong offshore and onshore winds, therefore, Danish soils are considered especially vulnerable to wind erosion. Where conventional tillage operations are applied on poorly aggregated soils, tillage ridges are more or less the only roughness element that can be used to protect soils against wind erosion until crop plants are large enough to provide sufficient breaks. Since wind erosion is a selective process, it can be assumed that increasing erosion rates are associated with increasing loss of dust sized particles and nutrients. However, selective erosion is strongly affected by the orientation and respective trapping efficiency of tillage ridges and furrows. The main objective of this study, therefore, was to determine the effect of tillage direction on nutrient mobilization by wind erosion from agricultural land in Denmark. In order to assess the relationship between the enrichment ratio of specific particle sizes and the amount of eroded nutrients, three soils with loamy sand texture, but varying amounts of sand-sized particles, were selected. In addition, a soil with slightly less sand, but much higher organic matter content was chosen. The soils were tested with three different soil surface scenarios (flat surface, parallel tillage, perpendicular tillage) in a wind tunnel simulation. The parallel tillage operation experienced the greatest erosion rates, independent of soil type. Particles with D50 between 100-155 µm showed the greatest risk of erosion. However, due to a greater loss of dust sized particles from perpendicularly tilled surfaces, this wind-surface arrangement showed a significant increase in nutrient enrichment ratio compared to parallel tillage and flat surfaces. The main reason for this phenomenon is most probably the trapping of larger particles in the perpendicular furrows. This indicates that the highest rate of soil protection does not necessarily coincide with lowest soil nutrient losses and dust emissions. For the evaluation of protection measures on these soil types in Denmark it is, therefore, important to differentiate between their effectivity to reduce total soil erosion amount, dust emission, and nutrient loss.

3-D RPIC simulations of relativistic jets: Particle acceleration, magnetic field generation, and emission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nishikawa, K.-I.

2006-01-01

Nonthermal radiation observed from astrophysical systems containing (relativistic) jets and shocks, e.g., supernova remnants, active galactic nuclei (AGNs), gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), and Galactic microquasar systems usually have power-law emission spectra. Fermi acceleration is the mechanism usually assumed for the acceleration of particles in astrophysical environments. Recent PIC simulations using injected relativistic electron-ion (electro-positron) jets show that acceleration occurs within the downstream jet, rather than by the scattering of particles back and forth across the shock as in Fermi acceleration. Shock acceleration is a ubiquitous phenomenon in astrophysical plasmas. Plasma waves and their associated instabilities (e.g., the Buneman instability, other two-streaming instability, and the Weibel instability) created in the .shocks are responsible for particle (electron, positron, and ion) acceleration. The simulation results show that the Weibel instability is responsible for generating and amplifying highly nonuniform, small-scale magnetic fields. These magnetic fields contribute to the electron's transverse deflection behind the jet head. The "jitter" radiation from deflected electrons has different properties than synchrotron radiation which is calculated in a uniform magnetic field. This jitter radiation may be important to understanding the complex time evolution and/or spectral structure in gamma-ray bursts, relativistic jets, and supernova remnants. We will review recent PIC simulations which show particle acceleration in jets.

THE EFFECT OF INTERMITTENT GYRO-SCALE SLAB TURBULENCE ON PARALLEL AND PERPENDICULAR COSMIC-RAY TRANSPORT

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Le Roux, J. A.

Earlier work based on nonlinear guiding center (NLGC) theory suggested that perpendicular cosmic-ray transport is diffusive when cosmic rays encounter random three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic turbulence dominated by uniform two-dimensional (2D) turbulence with a minor uniform slab turbulence component. In this approach large-scale perpendicular cosmic-ray transport is due to cosmic rays microscopically diffusing along the meandering magnetic field dominated by 2D turbulence because of gyroresonant interactions with slab turbulence. However, turbulence in the solar wind is intermittent and it has been suggested that intermittent turbulence might be responsible for the observation of 'dropout' events in solar energetic particle fluxes on small scales.more » In a previous paper le Roux et al. suggested, using NLGC theory as a basis, that if gyro-scale slab turbulence is intermittent, large-scale perpendicular cosmic-ray transport in weak uniform 2D turbulence will be superdiffusive or subdiffusive depending on the statistical characteristics of the intermittent slab turbulence. In this paper we expand and refine our previous work further by investigating how both parallel and perpendicular transport are affected by intermittent slab turbulence for weak as well as strong uniform 2D turbulence. The main new finding is that both parallel and perpendicular transport are the net effect of an interplay between diffusive and nondiffusive (superdiffusive or subdiffusive) transport effects as a consequence of this intermittency.« less

Particle Acceleration at the Sun and in the Heliosphere

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Reames, Donald V.

1999-01-01

Energetic particles are accelerated in rich profusion at sites throughout the heliosphere. They come from solar flares in the low corona, from shock waves driven outward by coronal mass ejections (CMEs), from planetary magnetospheres and bow shocks. They come from corotating interaction regions (CIRs) produced by high-speed streams in the solar wind, and from the heliospheric termination shock at the outer edge of the heliospheric cavity. We sample all these populations near Earth, but can distinguish them readily by their element and isotope abundances, ionization states, energy spectra, angular distributions and time behavior. Remote spacecraft have probed the spatial distributions of the particles and examined new sources in situ. Most acceleration sources can be "seen" only by direct observation of the particles; few photons are produced at these sites. Wave-particle interactions are an essential feature in acceleration sources and, for shock acceleration, new evidence of energetic-proton-generated waves has come from abundance variations and from local cross-field scattering. Element abundances often tell us the physics the source plasma itself, prior to acceleration. By comparing different populations, we learn more about the sources, and about the physics of acceleration and transport, than we can possibly learn from one source alone.

ION ACCELERATOR

DOEpatents

Bell, J.S.

1959-09-15

An arrangement for the drift tubes in a linear accelerator is described whereby each drift tube acts to shield the particles from the influence of the accelerating field and focuses the particles passing through the tube. In one embodiment the drift tube is splii longitudinally into quadrants supported along the axis of the accelerator by webs from a yoke, the quadrants. webs, and yoke being of magnetic material. A magnetic focusing action is produced by energizing a winding on each web to set up a magnetic field between adjacent quadrants. In the other embodiment the quadrants are electrically insulated from each other and have opposite polarity voltages on adjacent quadrants to provide an electric focusing fleld for the particles, with the quadrants spaced sufficienily close enough to shield the particles within the tube from the accelerating electric field.

The converter mechanism of particle acceleration and the maximum energy of cosmic rays

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kocharovsky, Vl. V.; Aharonian, F. A.; Derishev, E. V.; Kocharovsky, V. V.

We consider the fundamental limits on the energy of particles accelerated by electromagnetic forces in various astrophysical objects [1]. We show that accelerator's parameters are strongly limited not only by the particle confinement in large-scale magnetic field or by the difference in electric potentials (generalized Hillas criterion) but also by the curvature and other types of radiative losses of accelerated particles. Optimization of these requirements in terms of accelerator's size and the magnetic field strength results in the ultimate lower limit on the overall source energy budget, which scales as the fifth power of attainable particle energy. It is demonstrated that the curvature gamma-rays accompanying the acceleration gives further restrictions for potential acceleration sites. We compare different acceleration mechanisms and show, that the converter mechanism, which we suggested earlier [2], is the least sensitive to the geometry of the magnetic field in accelerators and allows to reach cosmic-ray energies close to the fundamental limit. The converter mechanism works most efficiently in relativistic shocks or shear flows. It utilizes multiple conversions of charged particles into neutral ones (protons to neutrons and electrons/positrons to photons) and back by means of photon-induced reactions or inelastic nucleon- nucleon collisions. We discuss the properties of gamma-ray radiation, which accompanies acceleration of cosmic rays via the converter mechanism and can provide an evidence for the latter. 1. F.A. Aharonian, A.A. Belyanin, E.V. Derishev, V.V. Kocharovsky, and Vl.V. Kocharovsky, Phys. Rev. D 66, 023005 (2002). 2. E.V. Derishev, F.A. Aharonian, V.V. Kocharovsky, and Vl.V. Kocharovsky, Phys. Rev. D 68, 043003 (2003).

Particle Acceleration in Mildly Relativistic Shearing Flows: The Interplay of Systematic and Stochastic Effects, and the Origin of the Extended High-energy Emission in AGN Jets

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Liu, Ruo-Yu; Rieger, F. M.; Aharonian, F. A., E-mail: ruoyu@mpi-hd.mpg.de, E-mail: frank.rieger@mpi-hd.mpg.de, E-mail: aharon@mpi-hd.mpg.de

The origin of the extended X-ray emission in the large-scale jets of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) poses challenges to conventional models of acceleration and emission. Although electron synchrotron radiation is considered the most feasible radiation mechanism, the formation of the continuous large-scale X-ray structure remains an open issue. As astrophysical jets are expected to exhibit some turbulence and shearing motion, we here investigate the potential of shearing flows to facilitate an extended acceleration of particles and evaluate its impact on the resultant particle distribution. Our treatment incorporates systematic shear and stochastic second-order Fermi effects. We show that for typical parametersmore » applicable to large-scale AGN jets, stochastic second-order Fermi acceleration, which always accompanies shear particle acceleration, can play an important role in facilitating the whole process of particle energization. We study the time-dependent evolution of the resultant particle distribution in the presence of second-order Fermi acceleration, shear acceleration, and synchrotron losses using a simple Fokker–Planck approach and provide illustrations for the possible emergence of a complex (multicomponent) particle energy distribution with different spectral branches. We present examples for typical parameters applicable to large-scale AGN jets, indicating the relevance of the underlying processes for understanding the extended X-ray emission and the origin of ultrahigh-energy cosmic rays.« less

The International Committee for Future Accelerators (ICFA): 1976 to the present

DOE PAGES

Rubinstein, Roy

2016-12-14

The International Committee for Future Accelerators (ICFA) has been in existence now for four decades. It plays an important role in allowing discussions by the world particle physics community on the status and future of very large particle accelerators and the particle physics and related fields associated with them. Here, this paper gives some indication of what ICFA is and does, and also describes its involvement in some of the more important developments in the particle physics field since its founding.

A particle accelerator employing transient space charge potentials

DOEpatents

Post, R.F.

1988-02-25

The invention provides an accelerator for ions and charged particles. The plasma is generated and confined in a magnetic mirror field. The electrons of the plasma are heated to high temperatures. A series of local coils are placed along the axis of the magnetic mirror field. As an ion or particle beam is directed along the axis in sequence the coils are rapidly pulsed creating a space charge to accelerate and focus the beam of ions or charged particles. 3 figs.

OpenFOAM Modeling of Particle Heating and Acceleration in Cold Spraying

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leitz, K.-H.; O'Sullivan, M.; Plankensteiner, A.; Kestler, H.; Sigl, L. S.

2018-01-01

In cold spraying, a powder material is accelerated and heated in the gas flow of a supersonic nozzle to velocities and temperatures that are sufficient to obtain cohesion of the particles to a substrate. The deposition efficiency of the particles is significantly determined by their velocity and temperature. Particle velocity correlates with the amount of kinetic energy that is converted to plastic deformation and thermal heating. The initial particle temperature significantly influences the mechanical properties of the particle. Velocity and temperature of the particles have nonlinear dependence on the pressure and temperature of the gas at the nozzle entrance. In this contribution, a simulation model based on the reactingParcelFoam solver of OpenFOAM is presented and applied for an analysis of particle velocity and temperature in the cold spray nozzle. The model combines a compressible description of the gas flow in the nozzle with a Lagrangian particle tracking. The predictions of the simulation model are verified based on an analytical description of the gas flow, the particle acceleration and heating in the nozzle. Based on experimental data, the drag model according to Plessis and Masliyah is identified to be best suited for OpenFOAM modeling particle heating and acceleration in cold spraying.

Accelerator Science: Why RF?

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lincoln, Don

Particle accelerators can fire beams of subatomic particles at near the speed of light. The accelerating force is generated using radio frequency technology and a whole lot of interesting features. In this video, Fermilab’s Dr. Don Lincoln explains how it all works.

High Performance Computing Modeling Advances Accelerator Science for High-Energy Physics

DOE PAGES

Amundson, James; Macridin, Alexandru; Spentzouris, Panagiotis

2014-07-28

The development and optimization of particle accelerators are essential for advancing our understanding of the properties of matter, energy, space, and time. Particle accelerators are complex devices whose behavior involves many physical effects on multiple scales. Therefore, advanced computational tools utilizing high-performance computing are essential for accurately modeling them. In the past decade, the US Department of Energy's SciDAC program has produced accelerator-modeling tools that have been employed to tackle some of the most difficult accelerator science problems. The authors discuss the Synergia framework and its applications to high-intensity particle accelerator physics. Synergia is an accelerator simulation package capable ofmore » handling the entire spectrum of beam dynamics simulations. Our authors present Synergia's design principles and its performance on HPC platforms.« less

Swinging motion of active deformable particles in Poiseuille flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tarama, Mitsusuke

2017-08-01

Dynamics of active deformable particles in an external Poiseuille flow is investigated. To make the analysis general, we employ time-evolution equations derived from symmetry considerations that take into account an elliptical shape deformation. First, we clarify the relation of our model to that of rigid active particles. Then, we study the dynamical modes that active deformable particles exhibit by changing the strength of the external flow. We emphasize the difference between the active particles that tend to self-propel parallel to the elliptical shape deformation and those self-propelling perpendicularly. In particular, a swinging motion around the centerline far from the channel walls is discussed in detail.

Numerical verification of bounce-harmonic resonances in neoclassical toroidal viscosity for tokamaks.

PubMed

Kim, Kimin; Park, Jong-Kyu; Boozer, Allen H

2013-05-03

This Letter presents the first numerical verification for the bounce-harmonic (BH) resonance phenomena of the neoclassical transport in a tokamak perturbed by nonaxisymmetric magnetic fields. The BH resonances were predicted by analytic theories of neoclassical toroidal viscosity (NTV), as the parallel and perpendicular drift motions can be resonant and result in a great enhancement of the radial momentum transport. A new drift-kinetic δf guiding-center particle code, POCA, clearly verified that the perpendicular drift motions can reduce the transport by phase-mixing, but in the BH resonances the motions can form closed orbits and particles radially drift out fast. The POCA calculations on resulting NTV torque are largely consistent with analytic calculations, and show that the BH resonances can easily dominate the NTV torque when a plasma rotates in the perturbed tokamak and therefore, is a critical physics for predicting the rotation and stability in the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor.

Comparison of thermal and microwave paleointensity estimates in specimens that violate Thellier's laws

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grappone, J. M., Jr.; Biggin, A. J.; Barrett, T. J.; Hill, M. J.

2017-12-01

Deep in the Earth, thermodynamic behavior drives the geodynamo and creates the Earth's magnetic field. Determining how the strength of the field, its paleointensity (PI), varies with time, is vital to our understanding of Earth's evolution. Thellier-style paleointensity experiments assume the presence of non-interacting, single domain (SD) magnetic particles, which follow Thellier's laws. Most natural rocks however, contain larger, multi-domain (MD) or interacting single domain (ISD) particles that often violate these laws and cause experiments to fail. Even for samples that pass reliability criteria designed to minimize the impact of MD or ISD grains, different PI techniques can give systematically different estimates, implying violation of Thellier's laws. Our goal is to identify any disparities in PI results that may be explainable by protocol-specific MD and ISD behavior and determine optimum methods to maximize accuracy. Volcanic samples from the Hawai'ian SOH1 borehole previously produced method-dependent PI estimates. Previous studies showed consistently lower PI values when using a microwave (MW) system and the perpendicular method than using the original thermal Thellier-Thellier (OT) technique. However, the data were ambiguous regarding the cause of the discrepancy. The diverging estimates appeared to be either the result of using OT instead of the perpendicular method or the result of using MW protocols instead of thermal protocols. Comparison experiments were conducted using the thermal perpendicular method and microwave OT technique to bridge the gap. Preliminary data generally show that the perpendicular method gives lower estimates than OT for comparable Hlab values. MW estimates are also generally lower than thermal estimates using the same protocol.

Relativistic Electrons in Ground-Level Enhanced (GLE) Solar Particle Events

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tylka, Allan J.; Dietrich, William; Novikova, Elena I.

Ground-level enhanced (GLE) solar particle events are one of the most spectacular manifesta-tions of solar activity, with protons accelerated to multi-GeV energies in minutes. Although GLEs have been observed for more than sixty years, the processes by which the particle ac-celeration takes place remain controversial. Relativistic electrons provide another means of investigating the nature of the particle accelerator, since some processes that can efficiently ac-celerate protons and ions are less attractive candidates for electron acceleration. We report on observations of relativistic electrons, at ˜0.5 -5 MeV, during GLEs of 1976-2005, using data from the University of Chicago's Cosmic Ray Nuclei Experiment (CRNE) on IMP-8, whose electron response has recently been calibrated using GEANT-4 simulations (Novikova et al. 2010). In particular, we examine onset times, temporal structure, fluences, and spectra of elec-trons in GLEs and compare them with comparable quantities for relativistic protons derived from neutron monitors. We discuss the implications of these comparisons for the nature of the particle acceleration process.

Electron heating in the exhaust of magnetic reconnection with negligible guide field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Shan; Chen, Li-Jen; Bessho, Naoki; Kistler, Lynn M.; Shuster, Jason R.; Guo, Ruilong

2016-03-01

Electron heating in the magnetic reconnection exhaust is investigated with particle-in-cell simulations, space observations, and theoretical analysis. Spatial variations of the electron temperature (Te) and associated velocity distribution functions (VDFs) are examined and understood in terms of particle energization and randomization processes that vary with exhaust locations. Inside the electron diffusion region (EDR), the electron temperature parallel to the magnetic field (Te∥) exhibits a local minimum and the perpendicular temperature (Te⊥) shows a maximum at the current sheet midplane. In the intermediate exhaust downstream from the EDR and far from the magnetic field pileup region, Te⊥/Te∥ is close to unity and Te is approximately uniform, but the VDFs are structured: close to the midplane, VDFs are quasi-isotropic, whereas farther away from the midplane, VDFs exhibit field-aligned beams directed toward the midplane. In the far exhaust, Te generally increases toward the midplane and the pileup region, and the corresponding VDFs show counter-streaming beams. A distinct population with low v∥ and high v⊥ is prominent in the VDFs around the midplane. Test particle results show that the magnetic curvature near the midplane produces pitch angle scattering to generate quasi-isotropic distributions in the intermediate exhaust. In the far exhaust, electrons with initial high v∥ (v⊥) are accelerated mainly through curvature (gradient-B) drift opposite to the electric field, without significant pitch angle scattering. The VDF structures predicted by simulations are observed in magnetotail reconnection measurements, indicating that the energization mechanisms captured in the reported simulations are applicable to magnetotail reconnection with negligible guide field.

Dynamics of particles accelerated by head-on collisions of two magnetized plasma shocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Takeuchi, Satoshi

2018-02-01

A kinetic model of the head-on collision of two magnetized plasma shocks is analyzed theoretically and in numerical calculations. When two plasmas with anti-parallel magnetic fields collide, they generate magnetic reconnection and form a motional electric field at the front of the collision region. This field accelerates the particles sandwiched between both shock fronts to extremely high energy. As they accelerate, the particles are bent by the transverse magnetic field crossing the magnetic neutral sheet, and their energy gains are reduced. In the numerical calculations, the dynamics of many test particles were modeled through the relativistic equations of motion. The attainable energy gain was obtained by multiplying three parameters: the propagation speed of the shock, the magnitude of the magnetic field, and the acceleration time of the test particle. This mechanism for generating high-energy particles is applicable over a wide range of spatial scales, from laboratory to interstellar plasmas.

Particle Accelerator Applications: Ion and Electron Irradiation in Materials Science, Biology and Medicine

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rodriguez-Fernandez, Luis

2010-09-10

Although the developments of particle accelerators are devoted to basic study of matter constituents, since the beginning these machines have been applied with different purposes in many areas also. Today particle accelerators are essential instruments for science and technology. This work presents an overview of the main application for direct particle irradiation with accelerator in material science, biology and medicine. They are used for material synthesis by ion implantation and charged particle irradiation; to make coatings and micromachining; to characterize broad kind of samples by ion beam analysis techniques; as mass spectrometers for atomic isotopes determination. In biomedicine the acceleratorsmore » are applied for the study of effects by charged particles on cells. In medicine the radiotherapy by electron irradiation is widely used, while hadrontherapy is still under development. Also, they are necessary for short life radioisotopes production required in radiodiagnostic.« less

Higher-order geodesic deviation for charged particles and resonance induced by gravitational waves

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heydari-Fard, M.; Hasani, S. N.

We generalize the higher-order geodesic deviation for the structure-less test particles to the higher-order geodesic deviation equations of the charged particles [R. Kerner, J. W. van Holten and R. Colistete Jr., Class. Quantum Grav. 18 (2001) 4725]. By solving these equations for charged particles moving in a constant magnetic field in the spacetime of a gravitational wave, we show for both cases when the gravitational wave is parallel and perpendicular to the constant magnetic field, a magnetic resonance appears at wg = Ω. This feature might be useful to detect the gravitational wave with high frequencies.

Particle Acceleration and Fractional Transport in Turbulent Reconnection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Isliker, Heinz; Pisokas, Theophilos; Vlahos, Loukas; Anastasiadis, Anastasios

2017-11-01

We consider a large-scale environment of turbulent reconnection that is fragmented into a number of randomly distributed unstable current sheets (UCSs), and we statistically analyze the acceleration of particles within this environment. We address two important cases of acceleration mechanisms when particles interact with the UCS: (a) electric field acceleration and (b) acceleration by reflection at contracting islands. Electrons and ions are accelerated very efficiently, attaining an energy distribution of power-law shape with an index 1-2, depending on the acceleration mechanism. The transport coefficients in energy space are estimated from test-particle simulation data, and we show that the classical Fokker-Planck (FP) equation fails to reproduce the simulation results when the transport coefficients are inserted into it and it is solved numerically. The cause for this failure is that the particles perform Levy flights in energy space, while the distributions of the energy increments exhibit power-law tails. We then use the fractional transport equation (FTE) derived by Isliker et al., whose parameters and the order of the fractional derivatives are inferred from the simulation data, and solving the FTE numerically, we show that the FTE successfully reproduces the kinetic energy distribution of the test particles. We discuss in detail the analysis of the simulation data and the criteria that allow one to judge the appropriateness of either an FTE or a classical FP equation as a transport model.

Particle Acceleration and Fractional Transport in Turbulent Reconnection

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Isliker, Heinz; Pisokas, Theophilos; Vlahos, Loukas

We consider a large-scale environment of turbulent reconnection that is fragmented into a number of randomly distributed unstable current sheets (UCSs), and we statistically analyze the acceleration of particles within this environment. We address two important cases of acceleration mechanisms when particles interact with the UCS: (a) electric field acceleration and (b) acceleration by reflection at contracting islands. Electrons and ions are accelerated very efficiently, attaining an energy distribution of power-law shape with an index 1–2, depending on the acceleration mechanism. The transport coefficients in energy space are estimated from test-particle simulation data, and we show that the classical Fokker–Planckmore » (FP) equation fails to reproduce the simulation results when the transport coefficients are inserted into it and it is solved numerically. The cause for this failure is that the particles perform Levy flights in energy space, while the distributions of the energy increments exhibit power-law tails. We then use the fractional transport equation (FTE) derived by Isliker et al., whose parameters and the order of the fractional derivatives are inferred from the simulation data, and solving the FTE numerically, we show that the FTE successfully reproduces the kinetic energy distribution of the test particles. We discuss in detail the analysis of the simulation data and the criteria that allow one to judge the appropriateness of either an FTE or a classical FP equation as a transport model.« less

Investigation of ion-beam machining methods for replicated x-ray optics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Drueding, Thomas W.

1996-01-01

The final figuring step in the fabrication of an optical component involves imparting a specified contour onto the surface. This can be expensive and time consuming step. The recent development of ion beam figuring provides a method for performing the figuring process with advantages over standard mechanical methods. Ion figuring has proven effective in figuring large optical components. The process of ion beam figuring removes material by transferring kinetic energy from impinging neutral particles. The process utilizes a Kaufman type ion source, where a plasma is generated in a discharge chamber by controlled electric potentials. Charged grids extract and accelerate ions from the chamber. The accelerated ions form a directional beam. A neutralizer outside the accelerator grids supplies electrons to the positive ion beam. It is necessary to neutralize the beam to prevent charging workpieces and to avoid bending the beam with extraneous electro-magnetic fields. When the directed beam strikes the workpiece, material sputters in a predicable manner. The amount and distribution of material sputtered is a function of the energy of the beam, material of the component, distance from the workpiece, and angle of incidence of the beam. The figuring method described here assumes a constant beam removal, so that the process can be represented by a convolution operation. A fixed beam energy maintains a constant sputtering rate. This temporally and spatially stable beam is held perpendicular to the workpiece at a fixed distance. For non-constant removal, corrections would be required to model the process as a convolution operation. Specific figures (contours) are achieved by rastering the beam over the workpiece at varying velocities. A unique deconvolution is performed, using series-derivative solution developed for the system, to determine these velocities.

Radio observations of the double-relic galaxy cluster Abell 1240

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hoang, D. N.; Shimwell, T. W.; van Weeren, R. J.; Intema, H. T.; Röttgering, H. J. A.; Andrade-Santos, F.; Akamatsu, H.; Bonafede, A.; Brunetti, G.; Dawson, W. A.; Golovich, N.; Best, P. N.; Botteon, A.; Brüggen, M.; Cassano, R.; de Gasperin, F.; Hoeft, M.; Stroe, A.; White, G. J.

2018-05-01

We present LOFAR 120 - 168 MHz images of the merging galaxy cluster Abell 1240 that hosts double radio relics. In combination with the GMRT 595 - 629 MHz and VLA 2 - 4 GHz data, we characterised the spectral and polarimetric properties of the radio emission. The spectral indices for the relics steepen from their outer edges towards the cluster centre and the electric field vectors are approximately perpendicular to the major axes of the relics. The results are consistent with the picture that these relics trace large-scale shocks propagating outwards during the merger. Assuming diffusive shock acceleration (DSA), we obtain shock Mach numbers of M=2.4 and 2.3 for the northern and southern shocks, respectively. For M≲ 3 shocks, a pre-existing population of mildly relativistic electrons is required to explain the brightness of the relics due to the high (>10 per cent) particle acceleration efficiency required. However, for M≳ 4 shocks the required efficiency is ≳ 1% and ≳ 0.5%, respectively, which is low enough for shock acceleration directly from the thermal pool. We used the fractional polarization to constrain the viewing angle to ≥53 ± 3° and ≥39 ± 5° for the northern and southern shocks, respectively. We found no evidence for diffuse emission in the cluster central region. If the halo spans the entire region between the relics (˜1.8 Mpc) our upper limit on the power is P1.4GHz = (1.4 ± 0.6) × 1023 W Hz-1 which is approximately equal to the anticipated flux from a cluster of this mass. However, if the halo is smaller than this, our constraints on the power imply that the halo is underluminous.

FORTRAN programs for calculating nonlinear seismic ground response in two dimensions

USGS Publications Warehouse

Joyner, W.B.

1978-01-01

The programs described here were designed for calculating the nonlinear seismic response of a two-dimensional configuration of soil underlain by a semi-infinite elastic medium representing bedrock. There are two programs. One is for plane strain motions, that is, motions in the plane perpendicular to the long axis of the structure, and the other is for antiplane strain motions, that is motions parallel to the axis. The seismic input is provided by specifying what the motion of the rock-soil boundary would be if the soil were absent and the boundary were a free surface. This may be done by supplying a magnetic tape containing the values of particle velocity for every boundary point at every instant of time. Alternatively, a punch card deck may be supplied giving acceleration values at every instant of time. In the plane strain program it is assumed that the acceleration values apply simultaneously to every point on the boundary; in the antiplane strain program it is assumed that the acceleration values characterize a plane shear wave propagating upward in the underlying elastic medium at a specified angle with the vertical. The nonlinear hysteretic behavior of the soil is represented by a three-dimensional rheological model. A boundary condition is used which takes account of finite rigidity in the elastic substratum. The computations are performed by an explicit finite-difference scheme that proceeds step by step in space and time. Computations are done in terms of stress departures from an unspecified initial state. Source listings are provided here along with instructions for preparing the input. A more detailed discussion of the method is presented elsewhere.

The Solar Flare: A Strongly Turbulent Particle Accelerator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vlahos, L.; Krucker, S.; Cargill, P.

The topics of explosive magnetic energy release on a large scale (a solar flare) and particle acceleration during such an event are rarely discussed together in the same article. Many discussions of magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) mod- eling of solar flares and/or CMEs have appeared (see [143] and references therein) and usually address large-scale destabilization of the coronal mag- netic field. Particle acceleration in solar flares has also been discussed exten- sively [74, 164, 116, 166, 87, 168, 95, 122, 35] with the main emphasis being on the actual mechanisms for acceleration (e.g., shocks, turbulence, DC electric fields) rather than the global magnetic context in which the acceleration takes place.

Wave and particle evolution downstream of quasi-perpendicular shocks

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mckean, M. E.; Omidi, N.; Krauss-Varban, D.; Karimabadi, H.

1995-01-01

Distributions of ions heated in quasi-perpendicular bow shocks have large perpendicular temperature anisotropies that provide free energy for the growth of Alfven ion cyclotron (AIC) and mirror waves. These modes are often obsreved in the Earth's magnetosheath. Using two-dimensional hybrid simulations, we show that these waves are produced near the shock front and convected downstream rather than being produced locally downstream. The wave activity reduces the proton anisotropy to magnetosheath levels within a few tens of gyroradii of the shock but takes significantly longer to reduce the anisotropy of He(++) ions. The waves are primarily driven by proton anisotropy and the dynamics of the helium ions is controlled by the proton waves. Downstream of high Mach number shocks, mirror waves compete effectively with AIC waves. Downstream of low Mach number shocks, AIC waves dominate.

The Radiation Belt Storm Probes (RBSP) Energetic Particle, Composition, and Thermal plasma (ECT) Suite: Upcoming Opportunties for Testing Radiation Belt Acceleration Mechanisms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Spence, Harlan; Reeves, Geoffrey

2012-07-01

The Radiation Belt Storm Probes (RBSP) mission will launch in late summer 2012 and begin its exploration of acceleration and dynamics of energetic particles in the inner magnetosphere. In this presentation, we discuss opportunities afforded by the RBSP Energetic Particle, Composition, and Thermal plasma (ECT) instrument suite to advance our understanding of acceleration processes in the radiation belts. The RBSP-ECT instrument suite comprehensively measures the electron and major ion populations of the inner magnetosphere, from the lowest thermal plasmas of the plasmasphere, to the hot plasma of the ring current, to the relativistic populations of the radiation belts. Collectively, the ECT measurements will reveal the complex cross-energy coupling of these colocated particle populations, which along with concurrent RBSP wave measurements, will permit various wave-particle acceleration mechanisms to be tested. We review the measurement capabilities of the RBSP-ECT instrument suite, and demonstrate several examples of how these measurements will be used to explore candidate acceleration mechanisms and dynamics of radiation belt particles.

Particle acceleration in the dynamic magnetotail: Orbits in self-consistent three-dimensional MHD fields

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Birn, Joachim; Hesse, Michael

1994-01-01

The acceleration of protons in a dynamically evolving magnetotail is investigated by tracing particles in the fields obtained from a three-dimensional resistive magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulation. The MHD simulation, representing plasmoid formation and ejection through a near-Earth reconnection process, leads to cross-tail electric fields of up to approximately 4 mV/m with integrated voltages across the tail of up to approximately 200 kV. Energization of particles takes place over a wide range along the tail, due to the large spatial extent of the increased electric field together with the finite cross-tail extent of the electric field region. Such accelerated particles appear earthward of the neutral line over a significant portion of the closed field line region inside of the separatrix, not just in the vicinity of the separatrix. Two different acceleration processes are identified: a 'quasi-potential' acceleration, due to particle motion in the direction of the cross-tail electric field, and a 'quasi-betatron' effect, which consists of multiple energy gains from repeated crossings of the acceleration region, mostly on Speiser-type orbits, in the spatially varying induced electric field. The major source region for accelerated particles in the hundreds of keV range is the central plasma sheet at the dawn flank outside the reconnection site. Since this source plasma is already hot and dense, its moderate energization by a factor of approximately 2 may be sufficient to explain the observed increases in the energetic particle fluxes. Particles from the tail are the source of beams at the plasma sheet/lobe boundary. The temporal increase in the energetic particle fluxes, estimated from the increase in energy gain, occurs on a fast timescale of a few minutes, coincident with a strong increase in B(sub z), despite the fact that the inner boundary ('injection boundary') of the distribution of energized particles is fairly smooth.

Anomalous center of mass shift: gravitational dipole moment.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jeong, Eue Jin

1997-02-01

The anomalous, energy dependent shift of the center of mass of an idealized, perfectly rigid, uniformly rotating hemispherical shell which is caused by the relativistic mass increase effect is investigated in detail. It is shown that a classical object on impact which has the harmonic binding force between the adjacent constituent particles has the similar effect of the energy dependent, anomalous shift of the center of mass. From these observations, the general mode of the linear acceleration is suggested to be caused by the anomalous center of mass shift whether it's due to classical or relativistic origin. The effect of the energy dependent center of mass shift perpendicular to the plane of rotation of a rotating hemisphere appears as the non zero gravitational dipole moment in general relativity. Controlled experiment for the measurement of the gravitational dipole field and its possible links to the cylindrical type line formation of a worm hole in the extreme case are suggested. The jets from the black hole accretion disc and the observed anomalous red shift from far away galaxies are considered to be the consequences of the two different aspects of the dipole gravity.

Analysis of Static Spacecraft Floating Potential at Low Earth Orbit (LEO)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Herr, Joel L.; Hwang, K. S.; Wu, S. T.

1995-01-01

Spacecraft floating potential is the charge on the external surfaces of orbiting spacecraft relative to the space. Charging is caused by unequal negative and positive currents to spacecraft surfaces. The charging process continues until the accelerated particles can be collected rapidly enough to balance the currents at which point the spacecraft has reached its equilibrium or floating potential. In low inclination. Low Earth Orbit (LEO), the collection of positive ion and negative electrons. in a particular direction. are typically not equal. The level of charging required for equilibrium to be established is influenced by the characteristics of the ambient plasma environment. by the spacecraft motion, and by the geometry of the spacecraft. Using the kinetic theory, a statistical approach for studying the interaction is developed. The approach used to study the spacecraft floating potential depends on which phenomena are being applied. and on the properties of the plasma. especially the density and temperature. The results from kinetic theory derivation are applied to determine the charging level and the electric potential distribution at an infinite flat plate perpendicular to a streaming plasma using finite-difference scheme.

Electron Cooling and Isotropization during Magnetotail Current Sheet Thinning: Implications for Parallel Electric Fields

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lu, San; Artemyev, A. V.; Angelopoulos, V.

2017-11-01

Magnetotail current sheet thinning is a distinctive feature of substorm growth phase, during which magnetic energy is stored in the magnetospheric lobes. Investigation of charged particle dynamics in such thinning current sheets is believed to be important for understanding the substorm energy storage and the current sheet destabilization responsible for substorm expansion phase onset. We use Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms (THEMIS) B and C observations in 2008 and 2009 at 18 - 25 RE to show that during magnetotail current sheet thinning, the electron temperature decreases (cooling), and the parallel temperature decreases faster than the perpendicular temperature, leading to a decrease of the initially strong electron temperature anisotropy (isotropization). This isotropization cannot be explained by pure adiabatic cooling or by pitch angle scattering. We use test particle simulations to explore the mechanism responsible for the cooling and isotropization. We find that during the thinning, a fast decrease of a parallel electric field (directed toward the Earth) can speed up the electron parallel cooling, causing it to exceed the rate of perpendicular cooling, and thus lead to isotropization, consistent with observation. If the parallel electric field is too small or does not change fast enough, the electron parallel cooling is slower than the perpendicular cooling, so the parallel electron anisotropy grows, contrary to observation. The same isotropization can also be accomplished by an increasing parallel electric field directed toward the equatorial plane. Our study reveals the existence of a large-scale parallel electric field, which plays an important role in magnetotail particle dynamics during the current sheet thinning process.

Current-free double layers: A review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Singh, Nagendra

2011-12-01

During the last decade, there has been an upsurge in the research on current-free DLs (CFDLs). Research includes theory, laboratory measurements, and various applications of CFDLs ranging from plasma thrusters to acceleration of charged particles in space and astrophysical plasmas. The purpose of this review is to present a unified understanding of the basic plasma processes, which lead to the formation of CFDLs. The review starts with the discussion on early research on electric fields and double layers (DLs) and ion acceleration in planar plasma expansion. The review continues with the formation of DLs and rarefaction shocks (RFS) in expanding plasma with two electron populations with different temperatures. The basic theory mitigating the formation of a CFDL by two-electron temperature population is reviewed; we refer to such CFDLs as double layers structures formation by two-temperature electron populations (TET-CFDLs). Application of TET-CFDLS to ion acceleration in laboratory and space plasmas was discussed including the formation of stationary steady-state DLs. A quite different type of CFDLs forms in a helicon plasma device (HPD), in which plasma abruptly expands from a narrow plasma source tube into a wide diffusion tube with abruptly diverging magnetic fields. The formation mechanism of the CFDL in HPD, referred here as current free double layer structure in helicon plasma device (HPD-CFDL), and its applications are reviewed. The formation of a TET-CFDL is due to the self-consistent separation of the two electron populations parallel to the ambient magnetic field. In contrast, a HPD-CFDL forms due to self-consistent separation of electrons and ion perpendicular to the abruptly diverging magnetic field in conjunction with the conducting wall of the expansion chamber in the HPD. One-dimensional theoretical models of CFDLs based on steady-state solution of Vlasov-Poisson system of equations are briefly discussed. Applications of CFDLs ranging from helicon double-layer thrusters (HDLTs) to the accelerations of ions in space and astrophysical plasmas are summarized.

Diffusive Shock Acceleration and Reconnection Acceleration Processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zank, G. P.; Hunana, P.; Mostafavi, P.; Le Roux, J. A.; Li, Gang; Webb, G. M.; Khabarova, O.; Cummings, A.; Stone, E.; Decker, R.

2015-12-01

Shock waves, as shown by simulations and observations, can generate high levels of downstream vortical turbulence, including magnetic islands. We consider a combination of diffusive shock acceleration (DSA) and downstream magnetic-island-reconnection-related processes as an energization mechanism for charged particles. Observations of electron and ion distributions downstream of interplanetary shocks and the heliospheric termination shock (HTS) are frequently inconsistent with the predictions of classical DSA. We utilize a recently developed transport theory for charged particles propagating diffusively in a turbulent region filled with contracting and reconnecting plasmoids and small-scale current sheets. Particle energization associated with the anti-reconnection electric field, a consequence of magnetic island merging, and magnetic island contraction, are considered. For the former only, we find that (i) the spectrum is a hard power law in particle speed, and (ii) the downstream solution is constant. For downstream plasmoid contraction only, (i) the accelerated spectrum is a hard power law in particle speed; (ii) the particle intensity for a given energy peaks downstream of the shock, and the distance to the peak location increases with increasing particle energy, and (iii) the particle intensity amplification for a particular particle energy, f(x,c/{c}0)/f(0,c/{c}0), is not 1, as predicted by DSA, but increases with increasing particle energy. The general solution combines both the reconnection-induced electric field and plasmoid contraction. The observed energetic particle intensity profile observed by Voyager 2 downstream of the HTS appears to support a particle acceleration mechanism that combines both DSA and magnetic-island-reconnection-related processes.

Fermilab | Science | Particle Accelerators | Advanced Superconducting Test

Science.gov Websites

Accelerators for science and society Particle Physics 101 Science of matter, energy, space and time How Technology (FAST) Facility is America's only test bed for cutting-edge, record high-intensity particle beams in the United States as a particle beam research facility based on superconducting radio-frequency

Peak impact accelerations during track and treadmill running.

PubMed

Bigelow, Erin M R; Elvin, Niell G; Elvin, Alex A; Arnoczky, Steven P

2013-10-01

To determine whether peak vertical and horizontal impact accelerations were different while running on a track or on a treadmill, 12 healthy subjects (average age 32.8 ± 9.8 y), were fitted with a novel, wireless accelerometer capable of recording triaxial acceleration over time. The accelerometer was attached to a custom-made acrylic plate and secured at the level of the L5 vertebra via a tight fitting triathlon belt. Each subject ran 4 miles on a synthetic, indoor track at a self-selected pace and accelerations were recorded on three perpendicular axes. Seven days later, the subjects ran 4 miles on a treadmill set at the individual runner's average pace on the track and the peak vertical and horizontal impact magnitudes between the track and treadmill were compared. There was no difference (P = .52) in the average peak vertical impact accelerations between the track and treadmill over the 4 mile run. However, peak horizontal impact accelerations were greater (P = .0012) on the track when compared with the treadmill. This study demonstrated the feasibility for long-term impact accelerations monitoring using a novel wireless accelerometer.

Basic Properties of Plasma-Neutral Coupling in the Solar Atmosphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goodman, Michael

2015-04-01

Plasma-neutral coupling (PNC) in the solar atmosphere concerns the effects of collisions between charged and neutral species’. It is most important in the chromosphere, which is the weakly ionized, strongly magnetized region between the weakly ionized, weakly magnetized photosphere and the strongly ionized, strongly magnetized corona. The charged species’ are mainly electrons, protons, and singly charged heavy ions. The neutral species’ are mainly hydrogen and helium. The resistivity due to PNC can be several orders of magnitude larger than the Spitzer resistivity. This enhanced resistivity is confined to the chromosphere, and provides a highly efficient dissipation mechanism unique to the chromosphere. PNC may play an important role in many processes such as heating and acceleration of plasma; wave generation, propagation, and dissipation; magnetic reconnection; maintaining the near force-free state of the corona; and limiting mass flux into the corona. It might play a major role in chromospheric heating, and be responsible for the existence of the chromosphere as a relatively thin layer of plasma that emits a net radiative flux 10-100 times greater than that of the overlying corona. The required heating rate might be generated by Pedersen current dissipation triggered by the rapid increase of magnetization with height in the lower chromosphere, where most of the net radiative flux is emitted. Relatively cool regions of the chromosphere might be regions of minimal Pedersen current dissipation due to smaller magnetic field strength or perpendicular current density. This talk will discuss PNC from an MHD point of view, and focus on the basic parameters that determine its effectiveness. These parameters are ionization fraction, magnetization, and the electric field that drives current perpendicular to the magnetic field. By influencing this current and the electric field that drives it, PNC directly influences the rate at which energy is exchanged between the electromagnetic field and particles. In this way, PNC can have a strong influence on the energetics of a process that involves the conversion of magnetic energy into particle energy, which subsequently appears as radiation, waves, bulk flow, and heating.

Demonstration of the hollow channel plasma wakefield accelerator

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gessner, Spencer J.

2016-09-17

A plasma wakefield accelerator is a device that converts the energy of a relativistic particle beam into a large-amplitude wave in a plasma. The plasma wave, or wakefield, supports an enormous electricfield that is used to accelerate a trailing particle beam. The plasma wakefield accelerator can therefore be used as a transformer, transferring energy from a high-charge, low-energy particle beam into a high-energy, low-charge particle beam. This technique may lead to a new generation of ultra-compact, high-energy particle accelerators. The past decade has seen enormous progress in the field of plasma wakefield acceleration with experimental demonstrations of the acceleration ofmore » electron beams by several gigaelectron-volts. The acceleration of positron beams in plasma is more challenging, but also necessary for the creation of a high-energy electron-positron collider. Part of the challenge is that the plasma responds asymmetrically to electrons and positrons, leading to increased disruption of the positron beam. One solution to this problem, first proposed over twenty years ago, is to use a hollow channel plasma which symmetrizes the response of the plasma to beams of positive and negative charge, making it possible to accelerate positrons in plasma without disruption. In this thesis, we describe the theory relevant to our experiment and derive new results when needed. We discuss the development and implementation of special optical devices used to create long plasma channels. We demonstrate for the first time the generation of meter-scale plasma channels and the acceleration of positron beams therein.« less

Detecting chaos in particle accelerators through the frequency map analysis method.

PubMed

Papaphilippou, Yannis

2014-06-01

The motion of beams in particle accelerators is dominated by a plethora of non-linear effects, which can enhance chaotic motion and limit their performance. The application of advanced non-linear dynamics methods for detecting and correcting these effects and thereby increasing the region of beam stability plays an essential role during the accelerator design phase but also their operation. After describing the nature of non-linear effects and their impact on performance parameters of different particle accelerator categories, the theory of non-linear particle motion is outlined. The recent developments on the methods employed for the analysis of chaotic beam motion are detailed. In particular, the ability of the frequency map analysis method to detect chaotic motion and guide the correction of non-linear effects is demonstrated in particle tracking simulations but also experimental data.

Long-Range Self-Assembly via the Mutual Lorentz Force of Plasmon Radiation.

PubMed

Ji, Haojie; Trevino, Jacob; Tu, Raymond; Knapp, Ellen; McQuade, James; Yurkiv, Vitaliy; Mashayek, Farzad; Vuong, Luat T

2018-04-11

Long-range interactions often proceed as a sequence of hopping through intermediate, statistically favored events. Here, we demonstrate predictable mechanical dynamics of particles that arise from the Lorentz force between plasmons. Even if the radiation is weak, the nonconservative Lorentz force produces stable locations perpendicular to the plasmon oscillation; over time, distinct patterns emerge. Experimentally, linearly polarized light illumination leads to the formation of 80 nm diameter Au nanoparticle chains, perpendicularly aligned, with lengths that are orders of magnitude greater than their plasmon near-field interaction. There is a critical intensity threshold and optimal concentration for observing self-assembly.

Ion Cyclotron Resonant Heating (ICRH) system used on the Tandem Mirror Experiment-Upgrade (TMX-U)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ferguson, S.W.; Maxwell, T.M.; Antelman, D.R.

1985-11-11

Ion Cyclotron Resonant Heating (ICRH) is part of the plasma heating system used on the TMX-U experiment. Radio frequency (RF) energy is injected into the TMX-U plasma at a frequency near the fundamental ion resonance (2 to 5 MHz). The RF fields impart high velocities to the ions in a direction perpendicular to the TMX-U magnetic field. Particle collision then converts this perpendicular heating to uniform plasma heating. This paper describes the various aspects of the ICRH system: antennas, power supplies, computer control, and data acquisition. 4 refs., 10 figs.

DISSIPATION OF PARALLEL AND OBLIQUE ALFVÉN-CYCLOTRON WAVES—IMPLICATIONS FOR HEATING OF ALPHA PARTICLES IN THE SOLAR WIND

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Maneva, Y. G.; Poedts, Stefaan; Viñas, Adolfo F.

2015-11-20

We perform 2.5D hybrid simulations with massless fluid electrons and kinetic particle-in-cell ions to study the temporal evolution of ion temperatures, temperature anisotropies, and velocity distribution functions in relation to the dissipation and turbulent evolution of a broadband spectrum of parallel and obliquely propagating Alfvén-cyclotron waves. The purpose of this paper is to study the relative role of parallel versus oblique Alfvén-cyclotron waves in the observed heating and acceleration of alpha particles in the fast solar wind. We consider collisionless homogeneous multi-species plasma, consisting of isothermal electrons, isotropic protons, and a minor component of drifting α particles in a finite-βmore » fast stream near the Earth. The kinetic ions are modeled by initially isotropic Maxwellian velocity distribution functions, which develop nonthermal features and temperature anisotropies when a broadband spectrum of low-frequency nonresonant, ω ≤ 0.34 Ω{sub p}, Alfvén-cyclotron waves is imposed at the beginning of the simulations. The initial plasma parameter values, such as ion density, temperatures, and relative drift speeds, are supplied by fast solar wind observations made by the Wind spacecraft at 1 AU. The imposed broadband wave spectra are left-hand polarized and resemble Wind measurements of Alfvénic turbulence in the solar wind. The imposed magnetic field fluctuations for all cases are within the inertial range of the solar wind turbulence and have a Kraichnan-type spectral slope α = −3/2. We vary the propagation angle from θ = 0° to θ = 30° and θ = 60°, and find that the heating of alpha particles is most efficient for the highly oblique waves propagating at 60°, whereas the protons exhibit perpendicular cooling at all propagation angles.« less

Semiconductor acceleration sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ueyanagi, Katsumichi; Kobayashi, Mitsuo; Goto, Tomoaki

1996-09-01

This paper reports a practical semiconductor acceleration sensor especially suited for automotive air bag systems. The acceleration sensor includes four beams arranged in a swastika structure. Two piezoresistors are formed on each beam. These eight piezoresistors constitute a Wheatstone bridge. The swastika structure of the sensing elements, an upper glass plate and a lower glass plate exhibit the squeeze film effect which enhances air dumping, by which the constituent silicon is prevented from breakdown. The present acceleration sensor has the following features. The acceleration force component perpendicular to the sensing direction can be cancelled. The cross-axis sensitivity is less than 3 percent. And, the erroneous offset caused by the differences between the thermal expansion coefficients of the constituent materials can be canceled. The high aspect ratio configuration realized by plasma etching facilitates reducing the dimensions and improving the sensitivity of the acceleration sensor. The present acceleration sensor is 3.9 mm by 3.9 mm in area and 1.2 mm in thickness. The present acceleration sensor can measure from -50 to +50 G with sensitivity of 0.275 mV/G and with non-linearity of less than 1 percent. The acceleration sensor withstands shock of 3000 G.

Shock and statistical acceleration of energetic particles in the interplanetary medium

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Valdes-Galicia, J. F.; Moussas, X.; Quenby, J. J.; Neubauer, F. M.; Schwenn, R.

1985-01-01

Definite evidence for particle acceleration in the solar wind came around a decade ago. Two likely sources are known to exist: particles may be accelerated by the turbulence resulting from the superposition of Alfven and Magnetosonic waves (Statistical Acceleration) or they may be accelerated directly at shock fronts formed by the interaction of fast and slow solar wind (CIR's) or by traveling shocks due to sporadic coronal mass ejections. Naurally both mechanisms may be operative. In this work the acceleration problem was tackled numerically using Helios 1 and 2 data to create a realistic representation of the Heliospheric plasma. Two 24 hour samples were used: one where there are only wave like fluctuations of the field (Day 90 Helios 1) and another with a shock present in it (Day 92 of Helios 2) both in 1976 during the STIP 2 interval. Transport coefficients in energy space have been calculated for particles injected in each sample and the effect of the shock studied in detail.

Autonomic regulation of mucociliary transport rate in the oesophagus of the frog, Rana temporaria.

PubMed Central

Morley, J; Sanjar, S

1984-01-01

Transport of lead particles along the mucosal surface of the frog oesophagus has been measured by direct observation with the aid of video recording. Electrical stimulation of the vagus nerve increased the rate of particle transport. This acceleration was suppressed by atropine or by hexamethonium. Acetylcholine and other parasympathomimetic agents accelerated particle transport rate. Such acceleration was abolished by atropine. Nicotine increased the rate of particle transport and this effect was suppressed by hexamethonium or by atropine. Atropine did not significantly alter basal particle transport rate. Neither basal particle transport rate nor the response to vagal nerve stimulation were affected by eserine. Adrenaline, noradrenaline or isoprenaline did not affect basal particle transport rate. Adrenaline or noradrenaline were without effect on the increased particle transport rate due to electrical stimulation of the vagus. PMID:6332901

Kinetic Simulations of Particle Acceleration at Shocks

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Caprioli, Damiano; Guo, Fan

2015-07-16

Collisionless shocks are mediated by collective electromagnetic interactions and are sources of non-thermal particles and emission. The full particle-in-cell approach and a hybrid approach are sketched, simulations of collisionless shocks are shown using a multicolor presentation. Results for SN 1006, a case involving ion acceleration and B field amplification where the shock is parallel, are shown. Electron acceleration takes place in planetary bow shocks and galaxy clusters. It is concluded that acceleration at shocks can be efficient: >15%; CRs amplify B field via streaming instability; ion DSA is efficient at parallel, strong shocks; ions are injected via reflection and shockmore » drift acceleration; and electron DSA is efficient at oblique shocks.« less

The theory of transient radiation of a charged particle in a waveguide with an anisotropic magnetodielectric filling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gevorkyan, E. A.

2015-08-01

We have considered transient radiation of a charged particle that moves at a constant velocity perpendicularly to the axis of a regular waveguide filled with an anisotropic magnetodielectric medium. Wave equations and analytical expressions for transverse electric (TE) and transverse magnetic (TM) fields in the waveguide have been found. Energies of transient radiation of the particle moving in a rectangular waveguide have been determined. We have obtained conditions of occurrence, the frequency, and the energy of Vavilov-Cherenkov radiation.

EFFECTS OF LASER RADIATION ON MATTER. LASER PLASMA: Radiation emitted by a beam of particles crossing an inhomogeneous electromagnetic wave

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kol'tsov, A. V.; Serov, Alexander V.

1995-03-01

A theoretical investigation is made of the time dependence of the spatial distribution of particles injected perpendicular to the direction of propagation of a linearly polarised inhomogeneous electromagnetic wave and reflected by this wave. It is shown that such reflection modulates the particle density in a beam which is homogeneous at injection. Stimulated emission of radiation from a ribbon electron beam reflected by a wave is considered. The spectral—angular and polarisation characteristics of such radiation are investigated.

Dense plasma focus (DPF) accelerated non radio isotopic radiological source

DOEpatents

Rusnak, Brian; Tang, Vincent

2017-01-31

A non-radio-isotopic radiological source using a dense plasma focus (DPF) to produce an intense z-pinch plasma from a gas, such as helium, and which accelerates charged particles, such as generated from the gas or injected from an external source, into a target positioned along an acceleration axis and of a type known to emit ionizing radiation when impinged by the type of accelerated charged particles. In a preferred embodiment, helium gas is used to produce a DPF-accelerated He2+ ion beam to a beryllium target, to produce neutron emission having a similar energy spectrum as a radio-isotopic AmBe neutron source. Furthermore, multiple DPFs may be stacked to provide staged acceleration of charged particles for enhancing energy, tunability, and control of the source.

Exploring the role of turbulent acceleration and heating in fractal current sheet of solar flares­ from hybrid particle in cell and lattice Boltzmann virtual test

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhu, B.; Lin, J.; Yuan, X.; Li, Y.; Shen, C.

2016-12-01

The role of turbulent acceleration and heating in the fractal magnetic reconnection of solar flares is still not clear, especially at the X-point in the diffusion region. At virtual test aspect, it is hardly to quantitatively analyze the vortex generation, turbulence evolution, particle acceleration and heating in the magnetic islands coalesce in fractal manner, formatting into largest plasmid and ejection process in diffusion region through classical magnetohydrodynamics numerical method. With the development of physical particle numerical method (particle in cell method [PIC], Lattice Boltzmann method [LBM]) and high performance computing technology in recently two decades. Kinetic simulation has developed into an effectively manner to exploring the role of magnetic field and electric field turbulence in charged particles acceleration and heating process, since all the physical aspects relating to turbulent reconnection are taken into account. In this paper, the LBM based lattice DxQy grid and extended distribution are added into charged-particles-to-grid-interpolation of PIC based finite difference time domain scheme and Yee Grid, the hybrid PIC-LBM simulation tool is developed to investigating turbulence acceleration on TIANHE-2. The actual solar coronal condition (L≈105Km,B≈50-500G,T≈5×106K, n≈108-109, mi/me≈500-1836) is applied to study the turbulent acceleration and heating in solar flare fractal current sheet. At stage I, magnetic islands shrink due to magnetic tension forces, the process of island shrinking halts when the kinetic energy of the accelerated particles is sufficient to halt the further collapse due to magnetic tension forces, the particle energy gain is naturally a large fraction of the released magnetic energy. At stage II and III, the particles from the energized group come in to the center of the diffusion region and stay longer in the area. In contract, the particles from non energized group only skim the outer part of the diffusion regions. At stage IV, the magnetic reconnection type nanoplasmid (200km) stop expanding and carrying enough energy to eject particles as constant velocity. Last, the role of magnetic field turbulence and electric field turbulence in electron and ion acceleration at the diffusion regions in solar flare fractural current sheet is given.

Rapid acceleration of protons upstream of earthward propagating dipolarization fronts

PubMed Central

Ukhorskiy, AY; Sitnov, MI; Merkin, VG; Artemyev, AV

2013-01-01

[1] Transport and acceleration of ions in the magnetotail largely occurs in the form of discrete impulsive events associated with a steep increase of the tail magnetic field normal to the neutral plane (Bz), which are referred to as dipolarization fronts. The goal of this paper is to investigate how protons initially located upstream of earthward moving fronts are accelerated at their encounter. According to our analytical analysis and simplified two-dimensional test-particle simulations of equatorially mirroring particles, there are two regimes of proton acceleration: trapping and quasi-trapping, which are realized depending on whether the front is preceded by a negative depletion in Bz. We then use three-dimensional test-particle simulations to investigate how these acceleration processes operate in a realistic magnetotail geometry. For this purpose we construct an analytical model of the front which is superimposed onto the ambient field of the magnetotail. According to our numerical simulations, both trapping and quasi-trapping can produce rapid acceleration of protons by more than an order of magnitude. In the case of trapping, the acceleration levels depend on the amount of time particles stay in phase with the front which is controlled by the magnetic field curvature ahead of the front and the front width. Quasi-trapping does not cause particle scattering out of the equatorial plane. Energization levels in this case are limited by the number of encounters particles have with the front before they get magnetized behind it. PMID:26167430

Electrical Engineering in Los Alamos Neutron Science Center Accelerator

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Silva, Michael James

The field of electrical engineering plays a significant role in particle accelerator design and operations. Los Alamos National Laboratories LANSCE facility utilizes the electrical energy concepts of power distribution, plasma generation, radio frequency energy, electrostatic acceleration, signals and diagnostics. The culmination of these fields produces a machine of incredible potential with uses such as isotope production, neutron spallation, neutron imaging and particle analysis. The key isotope produced in LANSCE isotope production facility is Strontium-82 which is utilized for medical uses such as cancer treatment and positron emission tomography also known as PET scans. Neutron spallation is one of the verymore » few methods used to produce neutrons for scientific research the other methods are natural decay of transuranic elements from nuclear reactors. Accelerator produce neutrons by accelerating charged particles into neutron dense elements such as tungsten imparting a neutral particle with kinetic energy, this has the benefit of producing a large number of neutrons as well as minimizing the waste generated. Utilizing the accelerator scientist can gain an understanding of how various particles behave and interact with matter to better understand the natural laws of physics and the universe around us.« less

PREFACE: 14th Annual International Astrophysics Conference: Linear and Nonlinear Particle Energization throughout the Heliosphere and Beyond

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zank, G. P.

2015-09-01

The 14th Annual International Astrophysics Conference was held at the Sheraton Tampa Riverwalk Hotel, Tampa, Florida, USA, during the week of 19-24 April 2015. The meeting drew some 75 participants from all over the world, representing a wide range of interests and expertise in the energization of particles from the perspectives of theory, modelling and simulations, and observations. The theme of the meeting was "Linear and Nonlinear Particle Energization throughout the Heliosphere and Beyond." Energetic particles are ubiquitous to plasma environments, whether collisionless such as the supersonic solar wind, the magnetospheres of planets, the exospheres of nonmagnetized planets and comets, the heliospheric-local interstellar boundary regions, interstellar space and supernova remnant shocks, and stellar wind boundaries. Energetic particles are found too in more collisional regions such as in the solar corona, dense regions of the interstellar medium, accretion flows around stellar objects, to name a few. Particle acceleration occurs wherever plasma boundaries, magnetic and electric fields, and turbulence are present. The meeting addressed the linear and nonlinear physical processes underlying the variety of particle acceleration mechanisms, the role of particle acceleration in shaping different environments, and acceleration processes common to different regions. Both theory and observations were addressed with a view to encouraging crossdisciplinary fertilization of ideas, concepts, and techniques. The meeting addressed all aspects of particle acceleration in regions ranging from the Sun to the interplanetary medium to magnetospheres, exospheres, and comets, the boundaries of the heliosphere, and beyond to supernova remnant shocks, galactic jets, stellar winds, accretion flows, and more. The format of the meeting included 25-minute presentations punctuated by two 40-minute talks, one by Len Fisk that provided an historical overview of particle acceleration in the heliosphere (see the paper by Fisk, L., 50 Years of Research on Particle Acceleration in the Heliosphere, in this volume), and another by Len Burlaga, who presented a summary of the exciting new interstellar medium magnetic field observations being returned by Voyager 1 (see the paper by Burlaga, L., Voyager Observations of the Magnetic Field in the Heliosheath and the LISM, in this volume).

Quasars in miniature: new insights into particle acceleration from X-ray binaries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Markoff, Sera

2013-04-01

A variety of astronomical objects routinely accelerate particles to high energy, with the maximum possible energy per particle typically limited by the size of the system and magnetic field strength. For that reason, much attention has focused on the massive jets of relativistic plasma ejected from supermassive black holes in Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN), which are at least theoretically capable of producing particles (cosmic rays) up to a whopping 10{20 }eV. However neither how these jets are formed or function, nor how exactly they accelerate particles, is well understood. While we do not expect the mechanisms for particle acceleration in stellar remnant black holes within X-ray binaries (XRBs) to be particularly different than in other sources, XRBs do offer some unique insights. Primarily, jets very similar to those in AGN come and go on timescales of weeks to months, while often monitored simultaneously across the entire electromagnetic spectrum. Through such observations we have been able to probe the processes by which jets not only build up dynamically, but also at what point the jets begin to accelerate particles, providing hints about the necessary conditions and efficiencies. Because the physics of accretion-driven processes such as jets seems to scale predictably with black hole mass, we can also potentially apply what we are learning in these smaller systems to the same phenomena AGN, giving us a new handle on several longstanding questions. I will review our current understanding of particle acceleration in XRBs, as well as the increasing body of evidence suggesting that XRBs indeed seem to represent scaled-down (and thus handily faster evolving) versions of the much more powerful AGN. I will also touch on how accelerated particles from XRBs may contribute significantly to the low-energy Galactic cosmic ray distribution, with local impact on gas chemistry and star formation.

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

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Khabarova, O.; Zank, G. P.; Li, G.

2015-08-01

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 themore » 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.« less

1985 Particle Accelerator Conference: Accelerator Engineering and Technology, 11th, Vancouver, Canada, May 13-16, 1985, Proceedings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Strathdee, A.

1985-10-01

The topics discussed are related to high-energy accelerators and colliders, particle sources and electrostatic accelerators, controls, instrumentation and feedback, beam dynamics, low- and intermediate-energy circular accelerators and rings, RF and other acceleration systems, beam injection, extraction and transport, operations and safety, linear accelerators, applications of accelerators, radiation sources, superconducting supercolliders, new acceleration techniques, superconducting components, cryogenics, and vacuum. Accelerator and storage ring control systems are considered along with linear and nonlinear orbit theory, transverse and longitudinal instabilities and cures, beam cooling, injection and extraction orbit theory, high current dynamics, general beam dynamics, and medical and radioisotope applications. Attention is given to superconducting RF structures, magnet technology, superconducting magnets, and physics opportunities with relativistic heavy ion accelerators.

Particle Acceleration and Heating Processes at the Dayside Magnetopause

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Berchem, J.; Lapenta, G.; Richard, R. L.; El-Alaoui, M.; Walker, R. J.; Schriver, D.

2017-12-01

It is well established that electrons and ions are accelerated and heated during magnetic reconnection at the dayside magnetopause. However, a detailed description of the actual physical mechanisms driving these processes and where they are operating is still incomplete. Many basic mechanisms are known to accelerate particles, including resonant wave-particle interactions as well as stochastic, Fermi, and betatron acceleration. In addition, acceleration and heating processes can occur over different scales. We have carried out kinetic simulations to investigate the mechanisms by which electrons and ions are accelerated and heated at the dayside magnetopause. The simulation model uses the results of global magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations to set the initial state and the evolving boundary conditions of fully kinetic implicit particle-in-cell (iPic3D) simulations for different solar wind and interplanetary magnetic field conditions. This approach allows us to include large domains both in space and energy. In particular, some of these regional simulations include both the magnetopause and bow shock in the kinetic domain, encompassing range of particle energies from a few eV in the solar wind to keV in the magnetospheric boundary layer. We analyze the results of the iPic3D simulations by discussing wave spectra and particle velocity distribution functions observed in the different regions of the simulation domain, as well as using large-scale kinetic (LSK) computations to follow particles' time histories. We discuss the relevance of our results by comparing them with local observations by the MMS spacecraft.

Dual-mass vibratory rate gyroscope with suppressed translational acceleration response and quadrature-error correction capability

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Clark, William A. (Inventor); Juneau, Thor N. (Inventor); Lemkin, Mark A. (Inventor); Roessig, Allen W. (Inventor)

2001-01-01

A microfabricated vibratory rate gyroscope to measure rotation includes two proof-masses mounted in a suspension system anchored to a substrate. The suspension has two principal modes of compliance, one of which is driven into oscillation. The driven oscillation combined with rotation of the substrate about an axis perpendicular to the substrate results in Coriolis acceleration along the other mode of compliance, the sense-mode. The sense-mode is designed to respond to Coriolis accelerationwhile suppressing the response to translational acceleration. This is accomplished using one or more rigid levers connecting the two proof-masses. The lever allows the proof-masses to move in opposite directions in response to Coriolis acceleration. The invention includes a means for canceling errors, termed quadrature error, due to imperfections in implementation of the sensor. Quadrature-error cancellation utilizes electrostatic forces to cancel out undesired sense-axis motion in phase with drive-mode position.

Comparison of test particle acceleration in torsional spine and fan reconnection regimes

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hosseinpour, M., E-mail: hosseinpour@tabrizu.ac.ir; Mehdizade, M.; Mohammadi, M. A.

2014-10-15

Magnetic reconnection is a common phenomenon taking place in astrophysical and space plasmas, especially in solar flares which are rich sources of highly energetic particles. Torsional spine and fan reconnections are important mechanisms proposed for steady-state three-dimensional null-point reconnection. By using the magnetic and electric fields for these regimes, we numerically investigate the features of test particle acceleration in both regimes with input parameters for the solar corona. By comparison, torsional spine reconnection is found to be more efficient than torsional fan reconnection in an acceleration of a proton to a high kinetic energy. A proton can gain as highmore » as 100 MeV of relativistic kinetic energy within only a few milliseconds. Moreover, in torsional spine reconnection, an accelerated particle can escape either along the spine axis or on the fan plane depending on its injection position. However, in torsional fan reconnection, the particle is only allowed to accelerate along the spine axis. In addition, in both regimes, the particle's trajectory and final kinetic energy depend on the injection position but adopting either spatially uniform or non-uniform localized plasma resistivity does not much influence the features of trajectory.« less

A Unified Computational Model for Solar and Stellar Flares

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Allred, Joel C.; Kowalski, Adam F.; Carlsson, Mats

2015-01-01

We present a unified computational framework that can be used to describe impulsive flares on the Sun and on dMe stars. The models assume that the flare impulsive phase is caused by a beam of charged particles that is accelerated in the corona and propagates downward depositing energy and momentum along the way. This rapidly heats the lower stellar atmosphere causing it to explosively expand and dramatically brighten. Our models consist of flux tubes that extend from the sub-photosphere into the corona. We simulate how flare-accelerated charged particles propagate down one-dimensional flux tubes and heat the stellar atmosphere using the Fokker-Planck kinetic theory. Detailed radiative transfer is included so that model predictions can be directly compared with observations. The flux of flare-accelerated particles drives return currents which additionally heat the stellar atmosphere. These effects are also included in our models. We examine the impact of the flare-accelerated particle beams on model solar and dMe stellar atmospheres and perform parameter studies varying the injected particle energy spectra. We find the atmospheric response is strongly dependent on the accelerated particle cutoff energy and spectral index.

Acceleration of Particles Near Earth's Bow Shock

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sandroos, A.

2012-12-01

Collisionless shock waves, for example, near planetary bodies or driven by coronal mass ejections, are a key source of energetic particles in the heliosphere. When the solar wind hits Earth's bow shock, some of the incident particles get reflected back towards the Sun and are accelerated in the process. Reflected ions are responsible for the creation of a turbulent foreshock in quasi-parallel regions of Earth's bow shock. We present first results of foreshock macroscopic structure and of particle distributions upstream of Earth's bow shock, obtained with a new 2.5-dimensional self-consistent diffusive shock acceleration model. In the model particles' pitch angle scattering rates are calculated from Alfvén wave power spectra using quasilinear theory. Wave power spectra in turn are modified by particles' energy changes due to the scatterings. The new model has been implemented on massively parallel simulation platform Corsair. We have used an earlier version of the model to study ion acceleration in a shock-shock interaction event (Hietala, Sandroos, and Vainio, 2012).

Micro-bubbles and Micro-particles are Not Faithful Tracers of Turbulent Acceleration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Chao; Mathai, Varghese; Calzavarini, Enrico; Brons, Jon; Lohse, Detlef

2016-11-01

We report on the Lagrangian statistics of acceleration of small (sub-Kolmogorov) bubbles and tracer particles with Stokes number St <<1 in turbulent flow. At decreasing Reynolds number, the bubble accelerations show deviations from that of tracer particles, i.e. they deviate from the Heisenberg-Yaglom prediction and show a quicker decorrelation despite their small size and minute St. Using direct numerical simulations, we show that these effects arise due the drift of these particles through the turbulent flow. We theoretically predict this gravity-driven effect for developed isotropic turbulence, with the ratio of Stokes to Froude number or equivalently the particle drift-velocity governing the enhancement of acceleration variance and the reductions in correlation time and intermittency. Our predictions are in good agreement with experimental and numerical results. The present findings are relevant to a range of scenarios encompassing tiny bubbles and droplets that drift through the turbulent oceans and the atmosphere.

Injection of thermal and suprathermal seed particles into coronal shocks of varying obliquity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Battarbee, M.; Vainio, R.; Laitinen, T.; Hietala, H.

2013-10-01

Context. Diffusive shock acceleration in the solar corona can accelerate solar energetic particles to very high energies. Acceleration efficiency is increased by entrapment through self-generated waves, which is highly dependent on the amount of accelerated particles. This, in turn, is determined by the efficiency of particle injection into the acceleration process. Aims: We present an analysis of the injection efficiency at coronal shocks of varying obliquity. We assessed injection through reflection and downstream scattering, including the effect of a cross-shock potential. Both quasi-thermal and suprathermal seed populations were analysed. We present results on the effect of cross-field diffusion downstream of the shock on the injection efficiency. Methods: Using analytical methods, we present applicable injection speed thresholds that were compared with both semi-analytical flux integration and Monte Carlo simulations, which do not resort to binary thresholds. Shock-normal angle θBn and shock-normal velocity Vs were varied to assess the injection efficiency with respect to these parameters. Results: We present evidence of a significant bias of thermal seed particle injection at small shock-normal angles. We show that downstream isotropisation methods affect the θBn-dependence of this result. We show a non-negligible effect caused by the cross-shock potential, and that the effect of downstream cross-field diffusion is highly dependent on boundary definitions. Conclusions: Our results show that for Monte Carlo simulations of coronal shock acceleration a full distribution function assessment with downstream isotropisation through scatterings is necessary to realistically model particle injection. Based on our results, seed particle injection at quasi-parallel coronal shocks can result in significant acceleration efficiency, especially when combined with varying field-line geometry. Appendices are available in electronic form at http://www.aanda.org

CORSAIR Solar Energetic Particle Model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sandroos, A.

2013-05-01

Acceleration of particles in coronal mass ejection (CME) driven shock waves is the most commonly accepted and best developed theory of the genesis of gradual solar energetic particle (SEP) events. The underlying acceleration mechanism is the diffusive shock acceleration (DSA). According to DSA, particles scatter from fluctuations present in the ambient magnetic field, which causes some particles to encounter the shock front repeatedly and to gain energy during each crossing. Currently STEREO and near-Earth spacecraft are providing valuable multi-point information on how SEP properties, such as composition and energy spectra, vary in longitude. Initial results have shown that longitude distributions of large CME-associated SEP events are much wider than reported in earlier studies. These findings have important consequences on SEP modeling. It is important to extend the present models into two or three spatial coordinates to properly take into account the effects of coronal and interplanetary (IP) magnetic geometry, and evolution of the CME and the associated shock, on the acceleration and transport of SEPs. We give a status update on CORSAIR project, which is an effort to develop a new self-consistent (total energy conserving) DSA acceleration model that is capable of modeling energetic particle acceleration and transport in IP space in two or three spatial dimensions. In the new model particles are propagated using guiding center approximation. Waves are modeled as (Lagrangian) wave packets propagating (anti)parallel to ambient magnetic field. Diffusion coefficients related to scattering from the waves are calculated using quasilinear theory. State of ambient plasma is obtained from an MHD simulation or by using idealized analytic models. CORSAIR is an extension to our earlier efforts to model the effects of magnetic geometry on SEP acceleration (Sandroos & Vainio, 2007,2009).

Multi-gigaelectronvolt acceleration of positrons in a self-loaded plasma wakefield.

PubMed

Corde, S; Adli, E; Allen, J M; An, W; Clarke, C I; Clayton, C E; Delahaye, J P; Frederico, J; Gessner, S; Green, S Z; Hogan, M J; Joshi, C; Lipkowitz, N; Litos, M; Lu, W; Marsh, K A; Mori, W B; Schmeltz, M; Vafaei-Najafabadi, N; Walz, D; Yakimenko, V; Yocky, G

2015-08-27

Electrical breakdown sets a limit on the kinetic energy that particles in a conventional radio-frequency accelerator can reach. New accelerator concepts must be developed to achieve higher energies and to make future particle colliders more compact and affordable. The plasma wakefield accelerator (PWFA) embodies one such concept, in which the electric field of a plasma wake excited by a bunch of charged particles (such as electrons) is used to accelerate a trailing bunch of particles. To apply plasma acceleration to electron-positron colliders, it is imperative that both the electrons and their antimatter counterpart, the positrons, are efficiently accelerated at high fields using plasmas. Although substantial progress has recently been reported on high-field, high-efficiency acceleration of electrons in a PWFA powered by an electron bunch, such an electron-driven wake is unsuitable for the acceleration and focusing of a positron bunch. Here we demonstrate a new regime of PWFAs where particles in the front of a single positron bunch transfer their energy to a substantial number of those in the rear of the same bunch by exciting a wakefield in the plasma. In the process, the accelerating field is altered--'self-loaded'--so that about a billion positrons gain five gigaelectronvolts of energy with a narrow energy spread over a distance of just 1.3 metres. They extract about 30 per cent of the wake's energy and form a spectrally distinct bunch with a root-mean-square energy spread as low as 1.8 per cent. This ability to transfer energy efficiently from the front to the rear within a single positron bunch makes the PWFA scheme very attractive as an energy booster to an electron-positron collider.

Output factor determination for dose measurements in axial and perpendicular planes using a silicon strip detector

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abou-Haïdar, Z.; Bocci, A.; Alvarez, M. A. G.; Espino, J. M.; Gallardo, M. I.; Cortés-Giraldo, M. A.; Ovejero, M. C.; Quesada, J. M.; Arráns, R.; Prieto, M. Ruiz; Vega-Leal, A. Pérez; Nieto, F. J. Pérez

2012-04-01

In this work we present the output factor measurements of a clinical linear accelerator using a silicon strip detector coupled to a new system for complex radiation therapy treatment verification. The objective of these measurements is to validate the system we built for treatment verification. The measurements were performed at the Virgin Macarena University Hospital in Seville. Irradiations were carried out with a Siemens ONCOR™ linac used to deliver radiotherapy treatment for cancer patients. The linac was operating in 6 MV photon mode; the different sizes of the fields were defined with the collimation system provided within the accelerator head. The output factor was measured with the silicon strip detector in two different layouts using two phantoms. In the first, the active area of the detector was placed perpendicular to the beam axis. In the second, the innovation consisted of a cylindrical phantom where the detector was placed in an axial plane with respect to the beam. The measured data were compared with data given by a commercial treatment planning system. Results were shown to be in a very good agreement between the compared set of data.

ON THE PARALLEL AND PERPENDICULAR PROPAGATING MOTIONS VISIBLE IN POLAR PLUMES: AN INCUBATOR FOR (FAST) SOLAR WIND ACCELERATION?

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Liu, Jiajia; Wang, Yuming; McIntosh, Scott W.

We combine observations of the Coronal Multi-channel Polarimeter and the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly on board the Solar Dynamics Observatory to study the characteristic properties of (propagating) Alfvénic motions and quasi-periodic intensity disturbances in polar plumes. This unique combination of instruments highlights the physical richness of the processes taking place at the base of the (fast) solar wind. The (parallel) intensity perturbations with intensity enhancements around 1% have an apparent speed of 120 km s{sup −1} (in both the 171 and 193 Å passbands) and a periodicity of 15 minutes, while the (perpendicular) Alfvénic wave motions have a velocity amplitude ofmore » 0.5 km s{sup −1}, a phase speed of 830 km s{sup −1}, and a shorter period of 5 minutes on the same structures. These observations illustrate a scenario where the excited Alfvénic motions are propagating along an inhomogeneously loaded magnetic field structure such that the combination could be a potential progenitor of the magnetohydrodynamic turbulence required to accelerate the fast solar wind.« less

Wave-Particle Interactions and Particle Acceleration in Turbulent Plasmas: Hybrid Simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kucharek, Harald; Pogorelov, Nikolai; Mueller, Hans; Gamayunov, Konstantin; Farrugia, Charles

2015-04-01

Wave-particle interactions and acceleration processes are present in all key regions inside and outside of the heliosphere. Spacecraft observations measure ion distributions and accelerated ion populations, which are the result of one or several processes. For instance STEREO measures energetic particles associated with interplanetary discontinuities and in the solar wind. Voyager and IBEX provide unique data of energetic particles from the termination shock and the inner and outer heliopause. The range of plasma conditions covered by observations is enormous. However, the physical processes causing particle acceleration and wave-particle interaction and determining the particle distributions are still unknown. Currently two mechanisms, the so-called pumping mechanism (Fisk and Gloeckler, 2010) and merging/contracting island (Fermo, Drake & Swisdak, 2010) are discussed as promising models. In order to determine these individual processes, numerical models or theoretical considerations are needed. Hybrid simulations, which include all kinetic processes self-consistently on the ion level, are a very proven, powerful tool to investigate wave-particle interaction, turbulence, and phase-space evolution of pickup and solar wind ions. In the framework of this study we performed 3D multi-species hybrid simulations for an ion/ion beam instability to study the temporal evolution of ion distributions, their stability, and the influence of self-generated waves. We investigated the energization of ions downstream of interplanetary discontinuities and shocks and downstream of the termination shock, the turbulence, and growth rate of instabilities and compared the results with theoretical predictions. The simulations show that ions can be accelerated downstream of collisionless shocks by trapping of charged particles in coherent wave fronts.

Rapid cycling medical synchrotron and beam delivery system

DOEpatents

Peggs, Stephen G [Port Jefferson, NY; Brennan, J Michael [East Northport, NY; Tuozzolo, Joseph E [Sayville, NY; Zaltsman, Alexander [Commack, NY

2008-10-07

A medical synchrotron which cycles rapidly in order to accelerate particles for delivery in a beam therapy system. The synchrotron generally includes a radiofrequency (RF) cavity for accelerating the particles as a beam and a plurality of combined function magnets arranged in a ring. Each of the combined function magnets performs two functions. The first function of the combined function magnet is to bend the particle beam along an orbital path around the ring. The second function of the combined function magnet is to focus or defocus the particle beam as it travels around the path. The radiofrequency (RF) cavity is a ferrite loaded cavity adapted for high speed frequency swings for rapid cycling acceleration of the particles.

Combining Diffusive Shock Acceleration with Acceleration by Contracting and Reconnecting Small-scale Flux Ropes at Heliospheric Shocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

le Roux, J. A.; Zank, G. P.; Webb, G. M.; Khabarova, O. V.

2016-08-01

Computational and observational evidence is accruing that heliospheric shocks, as emitters of vorticity, can produce downstream magnetic flux ropes and filaments. This led Zank et al. to investigate a new paradigm whereby energetic particle acceleration near shocks is a combination of diffusive shock acceleration (DSA) with downstream acceleration by many small-scale contracting and reconnecting (merging) flux ropes. Using a model where flux-rope acceleration involves a first-order Fermi mechanism due to the mean compression of numerous contracting flux ropes, Zank et al. provide theoretical support for observations that power-law spectra of energetic particles downstream of heliospheric shocks can be harder than predicted by DSA theory and that energetic particle intensities should peak behind shocks instead of at shocks as predicted by DSA theory. In this paper, a more extended formalism of kinetic transport theory developed by le Roux et al. is used to further explore this paradigm. We describe how second-order Fermi acceleration, related to the variance in the electromagnetic fields produced by downstream small-scale flux-rope dynamics, modifies the standard DSA model. The results show that (I) this approach can qualitatively reproduce observations of particle intensities peaking behind the shock, thus providing further support for the new paradigm, and (II) stochastic acceleration by compressible flux ropes tends to be more efficient than incompressible flux ropes behind shocks in modifying the DSA spectrum of energetic particles.

COMBINING DIFFUSIVE SHOCK ACCELERATION WITH ACCELERATION BY CONTRACTING AND RECONNECTING SMALL-SCALE FLUX ROPES AT HELIOSPHERIC SHOCKS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Le Roux, J. A.; Zank, G. P.; Webb, G. M.

2016-08-10

Computational and observational evidence is accruing that heliospheric shocks, as emitters of vorticity, can produce downstream magnetic flux ropes and filaments. This led Zank et al. to investigate a new paradigm whereby energetic particle acceleration near shocks is a combination of diffusive shock acceleration (DSA) with downstream acceleration by many small-scale contracting and reconnecting (merging) flux ropes. Using a model where flux-rope acceleration involves a first-order Fermi mechanism due to the mean compression of numerous contracting flux ropes, Zank et al. provide theoretical support for observations that power-law spectra of energetic particles downstream of heliospheric shocks can be harder thanmore » predicted by DSA theory and that energetic particle intensities should peak behind shocks instead of at shocks as predicted by DSA theory. In this paper, a more extended formalism of kinetic transport theory developed by le Roux et al. is used to further explore this paradigm. We describe how second-order Fermi acceleration, related to the variance in the electromagnetic fields produced by downstream small-scale flux-rope dynamics, modifies the standard DSA model. The results show that (i) this approach can qualitatively reproduce observations of particle intensities peaking behind the shock, thus providing further support for the new paradigm, and (ii) stochastic acceleration by compressible flux ropes tends to be more efficient than incompressible flux ropes behind shocks in modifying the DSA spectrum of energetic particles.« less

Elementary particle physics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Perkins, D. H.

1986-01-01

Elementary particle physics is discussed. Status of the Standard Model of electroweak and strong interactions; phenomena beyond the Standard Model; new accelerator projects; and possible contributions from non-accelerator experiments are examined.

Fermilab | Science | Particle Accelerators

Science.gov Websites

2,300 physicists from all over the world come to Fermilab to conduct experiments using particle particle physics to the next level, collaborating with scientists and laboratories around the world to help world leader in accelerator research, development and industrialization. Learn more about IARC. Fermilab

Accelerator based epithermal neutron source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Taskaev, S. Yu.

2015-11-01

We review the current status of the development of accelerator sources of epithermal neutrons for boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT), a promising method of malignant tumor treatment. Particular attention is given to the source of epithermal neutrons on the basis of a new type of charged particle accelerator: tandem accelerator with vacuum insulation and lithium neutron-producing target. It is also shown that the accelerator with specialized targets makes it possible to generate fast and monoenergetic neutrons, resonance and monoenergetic gamma-rays, alpha-particles, and positrons.

SLAC All Access: FACET

ScienceCinema

Hogan, Mark

2018-02-13

SLAC's Facility for Advanced Accelerator Experimental Tests, or FACET, is a test-bed where researchers are developing the technologies required for particle accelerators of the future. Scientists from all over the world come to explore ways of improving the power and efficiency of the particle accelerators used in basic research, medicine, industry and other areas important to society. In this video, Mark Hogan, head of SLAC's Advanced Accelerator Research Department, offers a glimpse into FACET, which uses part of SLAC's historic two-mile-long linear accelerator.

Unsteady forces on a spherical particle accelerating or decelerating in an initially stagnant fluid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Keshav, Yashas Mudlapur Phaneesh

Flows with particles play an important role in a number of engineering applications. These include trajectories of droplets in sprays in fuel-injected-reciprocating-piston and gas-turbine engines, erosion of materials due to particle impact on a surface, and deposition of materials on surfaces by impinging droplets or particles that could solidify or bond on impact. For these applications, it is important to understand the forces that act on the particles so that their trajectories could be predicted. Considerable work has been done on understanding the forces acting on spherical particles, where the Reynolds numbers (Rep) based on the particle diameter and the relative speed between the particle and the fluid is less than unity. When Rep is larger than unity and when the particle is accelerating or decelerating, the added-mass effect and the Basset forces are not well understood. In this study, time-accurate numerical simulations were performed to study laminar incompressible flow induced by a single non-rotating rigid spherical particle that is accelerated or decelerated at a constant rate in an initially stagnant fluid, where the unsteady flow about the spherical particle is resolved. The Rep studied range from 0.01 to 100, and the acceleration number (Ac), where A c is the square of the relative velocity between the particle and the fluid divided by the acceleration times the particle diameter studied was in the range 2.13x-7 < |Ac |< 21337. Results obtained show the added mass effect for Rep up to 100 has the same functional form as those based on potential theory where the Rep is infinite and creeping flow where Rep is less than unity. The Basset force, however, differs considerably from those under creeping flow conditions and depends on Rep and the acceleration number (Ac). A model was developed to provide the magnitude of the added-mass effect and the Basset force in the range of Rep and Ac studied. Results obtained also show the effect of unsteadiness to become negligible when Ac reaches 80.

A New Paradigm for Flare Particle Acceleration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guidoni, Silvina E.; Karpen, Judith T.; DeVore, C. Richard

2017-08-01

The mechanism that accelerates particles to the energies required to produce the observed high-energy impulsive emission and its spectra in solar flares is not well understood. Here, we propose a first-principle-based model of particle acceleration that produces energy spectra that closely resemble those derived from hard X-ray observations. Our mechanism uses contracting magnetic islands formed during fast reconnection in solar flares to accelerate electrons, as first proposed by Drake et al. (2006) for kinetic-scale plasmoids. We apply these ideas to MHD-scale islands formed during fast reconnection in a simulated eruptive flare. A simple analytic model based on the particles’ adiabatic invariants is used to calculate the energy gain of particles orbiting field lines in our ultrahigh-resolution, 2.5D, MHD numerical simulation of a solar eruption (flare + coronal mass ejection). Then, we analytically model electrons visiting multiple contracting islands to account for the observed high-energy flare emission. Our acceleration mechanism inherently produces sporadic emission because island formation is intermittent. Moreover, a large number of particles could be accelerated in each macroscopic island, which may explain the inferred rates of energetic-electron production in flares. We conclude that island contraction in the flare current sheet is a promising candidate for electron acceleration in solar eruptions. This work was supported in part by the NASA LWS and H-SR programs..

Particle Acceleration, Magnetic Field Generation and Emission from Relativistic Jets

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nishikawa, K.-I.; Hardee, P.; Hededal, C.; Mizuno, Yosuke; Fishman, G. Jerry; Hartmann, D. H.

2006-01-01

Nonthermal radiation observed from astrophysical systems containing relativistic jets and shocks, e.g., active galactic nuclei (AGNs), gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), supernova remnants, and Galactic microquasar systems usually have power-law emission spectra. Fermi acceleration is the mechanism usually assumed for the acceleration of particles in astrophysical environments. Recent PIC simulations using injected relativistic electron-ion (electro-positron) jets show that particle acceleration occurs within the downstream jet, rather than by the scattering of particles back and forth across the shock as in Fermi acceleration. Shock acceleration' is a ubiquitous phenomenon in astrophysical plasmas. Plasma waves and their associated instabilities (e.g., the Buneman instability, other two-streaming instability, and the Weibel instability) created in the shocks are responsible for particle (electron, positron, and ion) acceleration. The simulation results show that the Weibel instability is responsible for generating and amplifying highly nonuniform, small-scale magnetic fields. These magnetic fields contribute to the electron's transverse deflection behind the jet head. The "jitter" radiation from deflected electrons has different spectral properties than synchrotron radiation which is calculated in a uniform magnetic field. This jitter radiation may be important to understanding the complex time evolution and/or spectral structure in gamma-ray bursts, relativistic jets, and supernova remnants. We will review recent PIC simulations of relativistic jets and try to make a connection with observations.

Hydrodynamic mobility of a sphere moving on the centerline of an elastic tube

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Daddi-Moussa-Ider, Abdallah; Lisicki, Maciej; Gekle, Stephan

2017-11-01

Elastic channels are an important component of many soft matter systems, in which hydrodynamic interactions with confining membranes determine the behavior of particles in flow. In this work, we derive analytical expressions for Green's functions associated with a point-force (Stokeslet) directed parallel or perpendicular to the axis of an elastic cylindrical channel exhibiting resistance against shear and bending. We then compute the leading order self- and pair mobility functions of particles on the cylinder axis, finding that the mobilities are primarily determined by membrane shear and that bending does not play a significant role. In the quasi-steady limit of vanishing frequency, the particle self- and pair mobilities near a no-slip hard cylinder are recovered only if the membrane possesses a non-vanishing shear rigidity. We further compute the membrane deformation, finding that deformation is generally more pronounced in the axial (radial) directions, for the motion along (perpendicular to) the cylinder centerline, respectively. Our analytical calculations for Green's functions in an elastic cylinder can serve as a fundamental building block for future studies and are verified by fully resolved boundary integral simulations where very good agreement is obtained.

First-order particle acceleration in magnetically driven flows

DOE PAGES

Beresnyak, Andrey; Li, Hui

2016-03-02

In this study, we demonstrate that particles are regularly accelerated while experiencing curvature drift in flows driven by magnetic tension. Some examples of such flows include spontaneous turbulent reconnection and decaying magnetohydrodynamic turbulence, where a magnetic field relaxes to a lower-energy configuration and transfers part of its energy to kinetic motions of the fluid. We show that this energy transfer, which normally causes turbulent cascade and heating of the fluid, also results in a first-order acceleration of non-thermal particles. Since it is generic, this acceleration mechanism is likely to play a role in the production of non-thermal particle distribution inmore » magnetically dominant environments such as the solar chromosphere, pulsar magnetospheres, jets from supermassive black holes, and γ-ray bursts.« less

Solid-particle jet formation under shock-wave acceleration.

PubMed

Rodriguez, V; Saurel, R; Jourdan, G; Houas, L

2013-12-01

When solid particles are impulsively dispersed by a shock wave, they develop a spatial distribution which takes the form of particle jets whose selection mechanism is still unidentified. The aim of the present experimental work is to study particle dispersal with fingering effects in an original quasi-two-dimensional experiment facility in order to accurately extract information. Shock and blast waves are generated in the carrier gas at the center of a granular medium ring initially confined inside a Hele-Shaw cell and impulsively accelerated. With the present experimental setup, the particle jet formation is clearly observed. From fast flow visualizations, we notice, in all instances, that the jets are initially generated inside the particle ring and thereafter expelled outward. This point has not been observed in three-dimensional experiments. We highlight that the number of jets is unsteady and decreases with time. For a fixed configuration, considering the very early times following the initial acceleration, the jet size selection is independent of the particle diameter. Moreover, the influence of the initial overpressure and the material density on the particle jet formation have been studied. It is shown that the wave number of particle jets increases with the overpressure and with the decrease of the material density. The normalized number of jets as a function of the initial ring acceleration shows a power law valid for all studied configurations involving various initial pressure ratios, particle sizes, and particle materials.

Chromospheric-coronal coupling during solar flares: Current systems and particle acceleration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Winglee, Robert M.; Mckean, M. E.; Dulk, G. A.

1989-01-01

Two-dimensional (three velocity) electrostatic particle simulations are used to investigate the particle heating and acceleration associated with the impulsive phase of a solar flare. A crossfield current in the high corona (which is presumably driven by reconnection processes) is used to initiate the flare. Due to the differential motion of the electrons and ions, currents, and associated quasi-static electric fields are generated with the primary current and balancing return current being on adjacent field lines. These currents extend from the corona down into the chromosphere. Electrons can be accelerated to energies exceeding 100 keV on short time scales via the quasi-static fields and wave-particle interactions. The spectra of these electrons has a broken power-law distribution which hardens in time. The spatially separate primary and return currents are closed by the cross-field acceleration of the ambient ions into the primary current regions. These ions are then accelerated upwards into the corona by the same quasi-static electric field accelerating the electrons downwards. This acceleration can account for the broadened stationary and weak blue shifted component seen in soft x ray line emissions and enhancements in heavy ion abundances seen in the solar wind in associations with solar flares.

External front instabilities induced by a shocked particle ring.

PubMed

Rodriguez, V; Saurel, R; Jourdan, G; Houas, L

2014-10-01

The dispersion of a cylindrical particle ring by a blast or shock wave induces the formation of coherent structures which take the form of particle jets. A blast wave, issuing from the discharge of a planar shock wave at the exit of a conventional shock tube, is generated in the center of a granular medium ring initially confined inside a Hele-Shaw cell. With the present experimental setup, under impulsive acceleration, a solid particle-jet formation is observed in a quasi-two-dimensional configuration. The aim of the present investigation is to observe in detail the formation of very thin perturbations created around the external surface of the dispersed particle layer. By means of fast flow visualization with an appropriate recording window, we focus solely on the first instants during which the external particle ring becomes unstable. We find that the critical area of the destabilization of the external ring surface is constant regardless of the acceleration of the initial layer. Moreover, we observe in detail the external front perturbation wavelength, rendered dimensionless by the initial ring perimeter, and follow its evolution with the initial particle layer acceleration. We report this quantity to be constant regardless of the evolution of the initial particle layer acceleration. Finally, we can reasonably assert that external front perturbations depend solely on the material of the particles.

Alternating phase focused linacs

DOEpatents

Swenson, Donald A.

1980-01-01

A heavy particle linear accelerator employing rf fields for transverse and ongitudinal focusing as well as acceleration. Drift tube length and gap positions in a standing wave drift tube loaded structure are arranged so that particles are subject to acceleration and succession of focusing and defocusing forces which contain the beam without additional magnetic or electric focusing fields.

Dynamics of High Temperature Plasmas.

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-10-01

25 VI. > LASER BEAT WAVE PARTICLE ACCELERATION-.. ..... .. 27 ,, VII. ORBITRON MASER DESIGN .. ..... ............. 30 0 VIIM> ELECTRON BEAM STABILITY...IN THE MODIFIED BETATRON .... ............ 32 IX. * RELATIVISTIC ELECTRON BEAM DIODE DESIGN . . . . 35 X. FREE ELECTRON LASER APPLICATION TO XUV...Accelerators (B), VI. Laser Beat Wave Particle Acceleration, VII. Orbitron Maser Design , VIII. Electron Beam Stability in the Modified Betatron, IX

Signatures of particle acceleration at SN 1987A

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gaisser, T. K.; Stanev, Todor; Harding, Alice K.

1989-01-01

At least eight experiments are currently monitoring SN 1987A for photons or neutrinos with energies in the TeV range or higher. Observation of such signals would indicate that the supernova is the site of acceleration of charged particles to even higher energies. The way that the acceleration might occur is discussed, and the prospects for detection of such signals in light of current limits on power in the supernova from sources other than the nickel-cobalt-iron decay chain are evaluated. It is pointed out that signals of particle acceleration may show up in continuum MeV gamma rays as well as in the 100 MeV range.

Fluctuation-dissipation relation in accelerated frames

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Adhikari, Ananya; Bhattacharya, Krishnakanta; Chowdhury, Chandramouli; Majhi, Bibhas Ranjan

2018-02-01

A uniformly accelerated (Rindler) observer will detect particles in the Minkowski vacuum, known as the Unruh effect. The spectrum is thermal and the temperature is given by that of the Killing horizon, which is proportional to the acceleration. Considering that these particles are kept in a thermal bath with this temperature, we find that the correlation function of the random force due to radiation acting on the particles, as measured by the accelerated frame, shows the fluctuation-dissipation relation. It is observed that the correlations, in both (1 +1 ) spacetime and (1 +3 ) dimensional spacetimes, are of the Brownian type. We discuss the implications of this new observation.

Amplitude-dependent orbital period in alternating gradient accelerators

DOE PAGES

Machida, S.; Kelliher, D. J.; Edmonds, C. S.; ...

2016-03-16

Orbital period in a ring accelerator and time of flight in a linear accelerator depend on the amplitude of betatron oscillations. The variation is negligible in ordinary particle accelerators with relatively small beam emittance. In an accelerator for large emittance beams like muons and unstable nuclei, however, this effect cannot be ignored. In this study, we measured orbital period in a linear non-scaling fixed-field alternating-gradient accelerator, which is a candidate for muon acceleration, and compared it with the theoretical prediction. The good agreement between them gives important ground for the design of particle accelerators for a new generation of particlemore » and nuclear physics experiments.« less

Magnetic ramp scale at supercritical perpendicular collisionless shocks: Full particle electromagnetic simulations

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Yang, Zhongwei; SOA Key Laboratory for Polar Science, Polar Research Institute of China, Shanghai, 200136; Lu, Quanming

2013-09-15

Supercritical perpendicular collisionless shocks are known to exhibit foot, ramp, and overshoot structures. The shock ramp structure is in a smaller scale in contrast to other microstructures (foot and overshoot) within the shock front. One-dimensional full particle simulations of strictly perpendicular shocks over wide ranges of ion beta β{sub i}, Alfvén Mach number M{sub A}, and ion-to-electron mass ratio m{sub i}/m{sub e} are presented to investigate the impact of plasma parameters on the shock ramp scale. Main results are (1) the ramp scale can be as small as several electron inertial length. (2) The simulations suggest that in a regimemore » below the critical ion beta value, the shock front undergoes a periodic self-reformation and the shock ramp scale is time-varying. At higher ion beta values, the shock front self-reformation is smeared. At still higher ion beta value, the motion of reflected ions is quite diffuse so that they can lead to a quasi-steady shock ramp. Throughout the above three conditions, the shock ramp thickness increases with β{sub i}. (3) The increase (decrease) in Mach number and the decrease (increase) in the beta value have almost equivalent impact on the state (i.e., stationary or nonstationary) of the shock ramp. Both of front and ramp thicknesses are increased with M{sub A}.« less

Kinetic Modeling of Radiative Turbulence in Relativistic Astrophysical Plasmas: Particle Acceleration and High-Energy Flares

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Uzdensky, Dmitri

Relativistic astrophysical plasma environments routinely produce intense high-energy emission, which is often observed to be nonthermal and rapidly flaring. The recently discovered gamma-ray (> 100 MeV) flares in Crab Pulsar Wind Nebula (PWN) provide a quintessential illustration of this, but other notable examples include relativistic active galactic nuclei (AGN) jets, including blazars, and Gamma-ray Bursts (GRBs). Understanding the processes responsible for the very efficient and rapid relativistic particle acceleration and subsequent emission that occurs in these sources poses a strong challenge to modern high-energy astrophysics, especially in light of the necessity to overcome radiation reaction during the acceleration process. Magnetic reconnection and collisionless shocks have been invoked as possible mechanisms. However, the inferred extreme particle acceleration requires the presence of coherent electric-field structures. How such large-scale accelerating structures (such as reconnecting current sheets) can spontaneously arise in turbulent astrophysical environments still remains a mystery. The proposed project will conduct a first-principles computational and theoretical study of kinetic turbulence in relativistic collisionless plasmas with a special focus on nonthermal particle acceleration and radiation emission. The main computational tool employed in this study will be the relativistic radiative particle-in-cell (PIC) code Zeltron, developed by the team members at the Univ. of Colorado. This code has a unique capability to self-consistently include the synchrotron and inverse-Compton radiation reaction force on the relativistic particles, while simultaneously computing the resulting observable radiative signatures. This proposal envisions performing massively parallel, large-scale three-dimensional simulations of driven and decaying kinetic turbulence in physical regimes relevant to real astrophysical systems (such as the Crab PWN), including the radiation reaction effects. In addition to measuring the general fluid-level statistical properties of kinetic turbulence (e.g., the turbulent spectrum in the inertial and sub-inertial range), as well as the overall energy dissipation and particle acceleration, the proposed study will also investigate their intermittency and time variability, resulting in direction- and time-resolved emitted photon spectra and direction- and energy-resolved light curves, which can then be compared with observations. To gain deeper physical insight into the intermittent particle acceleration processes in turbulent astrophysical environments, the project will also identify and analyze statistically the current sheets, shocks, and other relevant localized particle-acceleration structures found in the simulations. In particular, it will assess whether relativistic kinetic turbulence in PWN can self-consistently generate such structures that are long and strong enough to accelerate large numbers of particles to the PeV energies required to explain the Crab gamma-ray flares, and where and under what conditions such acceleration can occur. The results of this research will also advance our understanding the origin of ultra-rapid TeV flares in blazar jets and will have important implications for GRB prompt emission, as well as AGN radio-lobes and radiatively-inefficient accretion flows, such as the flow onto the supermassive black hole at our Galactic Center.

Radio Telescope Reveals Secrets of Massive Black Hole

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2008-04-01

At the cores of many galaxies, supermassive black holes expel powerful jets of particles at nearly the speed of light. Just how they perform this feat has long been one of the mysteries of astrophysics. The leading theory says the particles are accelerated by tightly-twisted magnetic fields close to the black hole, but confirming that idea required an elusive close-up view of the jet's inner throat. Now, using the unrivaled resolution of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory's Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA), astronomers have watched material winding a corkscrew outward path and behaving exactly as predicted by the theory. Galactic core and jet Artist's conception of region near supermassive black hole where twisted magnetic fields propel and shape jet of particles (Credit: Marscher et al., Wolfgang Steffen, Cosmovision, NRAO/AUI/NSF). Click on image for high-resolution file. Watch Video of Black-Hole-Powered Jet (Credit: Cosmovision, Wolfgang Steffen) Download: NTSC Format (90MB) | PAL Format (90MB) "We have gotten the clearest look yet at the innermost portion of the jet, where the particles actually are accelerated, and everything we see supports the idea that twisted, coiled magnetic fields are propelling the material outward," said Alan Marscher, of Boston University, leader of an international research team. "This is a major advance in our understanding of a remarkable process that occurs throughout the Universe," he added. Marscher's team studied a galaxy called BL Lacertae (BL Lac), some 950 million light-years from Earth. BL Lac is a blazar, the most energetic type of black-hole-powered galactic core. A black hole is a concentration of mass so dense that not even light can escape its gravitational pull. Supermassive black holes in galaxies' cores power jets of particles and intense radiation in similar objects including quasars and Seyfert galaxies. Material pulled inward toward the black hole forms a flattened, rotating disk, called an accretion disk. As the material moves from the outer edge of the disk inward, magnetic field lines perpendicular to the disk are twisted, forming a tightly-coiled bundle that, astronomers believe, propels and confines the ejected particles. Closer to the black hole, space itself, including the magnetic fields, is twisted by the strong gravitational pull and rotation of the black hole. Theorists predicted that material moving outward in this close-in acceleration region would follow a corkscrew-shaped path inside the bundle of twisted magnetic fields. They also predicted that light and other radiation emitted by the moving material would brighten when its rotating path was aimed most directly toward Earth. Marscher and his colleagues predicted there would also be a flare later when the material hits a stationary shock wave called the "core" some time after it has emerged from the acceleration region. "That behavior is exactly what we saw," Marscher said, when his team followed an outburst from BL Lac. In late 2005 and early 2006, the astronomers watched BL Lac with an international collection of telescopes as a knot of material was ejected outward through the jet. As the material sped out from the neighborhood of the black hole, the VLBA could pinpoint its location, while other telescopes measured the properties of the radiation emitted from the knot. Bright bursts of light, X-rays, and gamma rays came when the knot was precisely at locations where the theories said such bursts would be seen. In addition, the alignment of the radio and light waves -- a property called polarization -- rotated as the knot wound its corkscrew path inside the tight throat of twisted magnetic fields. "We got an unprecedented view of the inner portion of one of these jets and gained information that's very important to understanding how these tremendous particle accelerators work," Marscher said. In addition to the continent-wide VLBA, an array of 10 radio telescopes spread from Hawaii to the Virgin Islands, the team used telescopes at the Steward Observatory, the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory, Lowell Observatory, Perugia University Astronomical Observatory, Abastumani Astrophysical Observatory, NASA's Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer, the University of Michigan Radio Astronomy Observatory, and the Metsahovi Radio Observatory. The astronomers reported their findings in the April 24 issue of the journal Nature. The National Radio Astronomy Observatory is a facility of the National Science Foundation, operated under cooperative agreement by Associated Universities, Inc.

Lagrangian equations of motion of particles and photons in a Schwarzschild field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ritus, V. I.

2015-11-01

The equations of motion of a particle in the gravitational field of a black hole are considered in a formulation that uses generalized coordinates, velocities, and accelerations and is convenient for finding the integrals of motion. The equations are rewritten in terms of the physical velocities and accelerations measured in the Schwarzschild frame by a stationary observer using proper local length and time standards. The attractive force due to the field and the centripetal acceleration of a particle is proportional to the particle kinetic energy m/\\sqrt{1 - v^2}, consistently with the fact that the particle kinetic energy and the photon energy \\hbarω in the field increase by the same factor compared with their values without a field. The attraction exerted on particles and photons by a gravitational field source is proportional to their kinetic energies. The particle trajectory in the ultrarelativistic limit v \\to 1 coincides with the photon trajectory.

Energy distribution functions of kilovolt ions in a modified Penning discharge

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Roth, J. R.

1972-01-01

The distribution function of ion energy parallel to the magnetic field of a Penning discharge was measured with a retarding potential energy analyzer. Simultaneous measurements of the ion energy distribution function perpendicular to the magnetic field were made with a charge-exchange neutral detector. The ion energy distribution functions are approximately Maxwellian, and their kinetic temperatures are equal within experimental error. This suggests that turbulent processes previously observed Maxwellianize the velocity distribution along a radius in velocity space, and result in an isotropic energy distribution. The kinetic temperatures are on the order of kilovolts, and the tails of the ion energy distribution functions are Maxwellian up to a factor of 7 e-folds in energy. When the distributions depart from Maxwellian, they are enhanced above the Maxwellian tail. Above densities of about 10 to the 10th power particles/cc, this enhancement appears to be the result of a second, higher temperature Maxwellian distribution. At these high particle energies, only the ions perpendicular to the magnetic field lines were investigated.

Using ion flows parallel and perpendicular to gravity to modify dust acoustic waves

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thomas, E.; Fisher, R.

2008-11-01

Recent studies of dust acoustic waves have shown that the dust kinetic temperature can play an important role in determining the resulting dispersion relation [M. Rosenberg, et al., Phys. Plasmas, 15, 073701 (2008)]. In these studies, it is believed that ion flows play a dominant role in determining both the kinetic temperature of the charged microparticles as well as providing the source of energy for triggering the waves. In this presentation, results will be presented on the effects of ion flow on spatial structure and velocity distribution of dust acoustic waves. Here, the waves will be formed in dusty plasmas consisting of 3 ± 1 micron diameter silica microspheres. Two separate electrodes will be used to modify the ion flow in the plasma -- one parallel to the direction of gravity and one perpendicular to the direction of gravity. Particle image velocimetry (PIV) techniques will be used to observe the particles and to measure their velocity distributions.

Effect of conductivity and concentration on the sample stream in the transverse axis of a continuous flow electrophoresis chamber

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Miller, Teresa Y.; Williams, George O.; Snyder, Robert S.

1985-01-01

The resolution of continuous flow electrophoresis systems is generally measured by the spread of the sample bands in the direction of the electrophoretic migration. This paper evaluates the cross section of the sample bands in the plane perpendicular to the flow and shows that the spread in the direction perpendicular to the migration increased significantly with the applied electric field. Concentrated samples of monodisperse latex particles and vinyltoluene T-butylstyrene particles in sample buffers of different electrical conductivities were used to map the shape of the sample bands relative to the zero electric field case. As the electric field was applied, the sample band spread from an initial diameter of only one-third the chamber thickness until it approached the chamber walls where electroosmosis significantly reduced the resolution of separation. It can be shown, however, that it is possible to minimize these distortions by careful sample preparation and experiment design.

Ion-acoustic shocks with reflected ions: modelling and particle-in-cell simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liseykina, T. V.; Dudnikova, G. I.; Vshivkov, V. A.; Malkov, M. A.

2015-10-01

> Non-relativistic collisionless shock waves are widespread in space and astrophysical plasmas and are known as efficient particle accelerators. However, our understanding of collisionless shocks, including their structure and the mechanisms whereby they accelerate particles, remains incomplete. We present here the results of numerical modelling of an ion-acoustic collisionless shock based on the one-dimensional kinetic approximation for both electrons and ions with a real mass ratio. Special emphasis is paid to the shock-reflected ions as the main driver of shock dissipation. The reflection efficiency, the velocity distribution of reflected particles and the shock electrostatic structure are studied in terms of the shock parameters. Applications to particle acceleration in geophysical and astrophysical shocks are discussed.

Future Circular Colliders

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lincoln, Don

While the LHC is currently the highest energy particle accelerator ever built, nothing is forever. In this video, Fermilab’s Dr. Don Lincoln discusses a new particle accelerator currently under discussion. This accelerator will dwarf the LHC, fully 60 miles around and will accelerate protons to seven times higher energy. The project is merely in the discussion stages and it is a staggering endeavor, but it is the next natural step in our millennium long journey to understand the universe.

Demonstration of a positron beam-driven hollow channel plasma wakefield accelerator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gessner, Spencer; Adli, Erik; Allen, James M.; An, Weiming; Clarke, Christine I.; Clayton, Chris E.; Corde, Sebastien; Delahaye, J. P.; Frederico, Joel; Green, Selina Z.; Hast, Carsten; Hogan, Mark J.; Joshi, Chan; Lindstrøm, Carl A.; Lipkowitz, Nate; Litos, Michael; Lu, Wei; Marsh, Kenneth A.; Mori, Warren B.; O'Shea, Brendan; Vafaei-Najafabadi, Navid; Walz, Dieter; Yakimenko, Vitaly; Yocky, Gerald

2016-06-01

Plasma wakefield accelerators have been used to accelerate electron and positron particle beams with gradients that are orders of magnitude larger than those achieved in conventional accelerators. In addition to being accelerated by the plasma wakefield, the beam particles also experience strong transverse forces that may disrupt the beam quality. Hollow plasma channels have been proposed as a technique for generating accelerating fields without transverse forces. Here we demonstrate a method for creating an extended hollow plasma channel and measure the wakefields created by an ultrarelativistic positron beam as it propagates through the channel. The plasma channel is created by directing a high-intensity laser pulse with a spatially modulated profile into lithium vapour, which results in an annular region of ionization. A peak decelerating field of 230 MeV m-1 is inferred from changes in the beam energy spectrum, in good agreement with theory and particle-in-cell simulations.

Demonstration of a positron beam-driven hollow channel plasma wakefield accelerator

PubMed Central

Gessner, Spencer; Adli, Erik; Allen, James M.; An, Weiming; Clarke, Christine I.; Clayton, Chris E.; Corde, Sebastien; Delahaye, J. P.; Frederico, Joel; Green, Selina Z.; Hast, Carsten; Hogan, Mark J.; Joshi, Chan; Lindstrøm, Carl A.; Lipkowitz, Nate; Litos, Michael; Lu, Wei; Marsh, Kenneth A.; Mori, Warren B.; O'Shea, Brendan; Vafaei-Najafabadi, Navid; Walz, Dieter; Yakimenko, Vitaly; Yocky, Gerald

2016-01-01

Plasma wakefield accelerators have been used to accelerate electron and positron particle beams with gradients that are orders of magnitude larger than those achieved in conventional accelerators. In addition to being accelerated by the plasma wakefield, the beam particles also experience strong transverse forces that may disrupt the beam quality. Hollow plasma channels have been proposed as a technique for generating accelerating fields without transverse forces. Here we demonstrate a method for creating an extended hollow plasma channel and measure the wakefields created by an ultrarelativistic positron beam as it propagates through the channel. The plasma channel is created by directing a high-intensity laser pulse with a spatially modulated profile into lithium vapour, which results in an annular region of ionization. A peak decelerating field of 230 MeV m−1 is inferred from changes in the beam energy spectrum, in good agreement with theory and particle-in-cell simulations. PMID:27250570

SHEAR ACCELERATION IN EXPANDING FLOWS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rieger, F. M.; Duffy, P., E-mail: frank.rieger@mpi-hd.mpg.de, E-mail: peter.duffy@ucd.ie

Shear flows are naturally expected to occur in astrophysical environments and potential sites of continuous non-thermal Fermi-type particle acceleration. Here we investigate the efficiency of expanding relativistic outflows to facilitate the acceleration of energetic charged particles to higher energies. To this end, the gradual shear acceleration coefficient is derived based on an analytical treatment. The results are applied to the context of the relativistic jets from active galactic nuclei. The inferred acceleration timescale is investigated for a variety of conical flow profiles (i.e., power law, Gaussian, Fermi–Dirac) and compared to the relevant radiative and non-radiative loss timescales. The results exemplifymore » that relativistic shear flows are capable of boosting cosmic-rays to extreme energies. Efficient electron acceleration, on the other hand, requires weak magnetic fields and may thus be accompanied by a delayed onset of particle energization and affect the overall jet appearance (e.g., core, ridge line, and limb-brightening).« less

Future HEP Accelerators: The US Perspective

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bhat, Pushpalatha; Shiltsev, Vladimir

2015-11-02

Accelerator technology has advanced tremendously since the introduction of accelerators in the 1930s, and particle accelerators have become indispensable instruments in high energy physics (HEP) research to probe Nature at smaller and smaller distances. At present, accelerator facilities can be classified into Energy Frontier colliders that enable direct discoveries and studies of high mass scale particles and Intensity Frontier accelerators for exploration of extremely rare processes, usually at relatively low energies. The near term strategies of the global energy frontier particle physics community are centered on fully exploiting the physics potential of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN throughmore » its high-luminosity upgrade (HL-LHC), while the intensity frontier HEP research is focused on studies of neutrinos at the MW-scale beam power accelerator facilities, such as Fermilab Main Injector with the planned PIP-II SRF linac project. A number of next generation accelerator facilities have been proposed and are currently under consideration for the medium- and long-term future programs of accelerator-based HEP research. In this paper, we briefly review the post-LHC energy frontier options, both for lepton and hadron colliders in various regions of the world, as well as possible future intensity frontier accelerator facilities.« less

Electron heating and acceleration during magnetic reconnection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dahlin, Joel

2017-10-01

Magnetic reconnection is thought to be an important driver of energetic particles in a variety of astrophysical phenomena such as solar flares and magnetospheric storms. However, the observed fraction of energy imparted to a nonthermal component can vary widely in different regimes. We use kinetic particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations to demonstrate the important role of the non-reversing (guide) field in controlling the efficiency of electron acceleration in collisionless reconnection. In reconnection where the guide field is smaller than the reconnecting component, the dominant electron accelerator is a Fermi-type mechanism that preferentially energizes the most energetic particles. In strong guide field reconnection, the field-line contraction that drives the Fermi mechanism becomes weak. Instead, parallel electric fields are primarily responsible for driving electron heating but are ineffective in driving the energetic component of the spectrum. Three-dimensional simulations reveal that the stochastic magnetic field that develops during 3D guide field reconnection plays a vital role in particle acceleration and transport. The reconnection outflows that drive Fermi acceleration also expel accelerating particles from energization regions. In 2D reconnection, electrons are trapped in island cores and acceleration ceases, whereas in 3D the stochastic magnetic field enables energetic electrons to leak out of islands and freely sample regions of energy release. A finite guide field is required to break initial 2D symmetry and facilitate escape from island structures. We show that reconnection with a guide field comparable to the reconnecting field generates the greatest number of energetic electrons, a regime where both (a) the Fermi mechanism is an efficient driver and (b) energetic electrons may freely access acceleration sites. These results have important implications for electron acceleration in solar flares and reconnection-driven dissipation in turbulence.

Two-fluid description of wave-particle interactions in strong Buneman turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Che, H.

2014-06-01

To understand the nature of anomalous resistivity in magnetic reconnection, we investigate turbulence-induced momentum transport and energy dissipation while a plasma is unstable to the Buneman instability in force-free current sheets. Using 3D particle-in-cell simulations, we find that the macroscopic effects generated by wave-particle interactions in Buneman instability can be approximately described by a set of electron fluid equations. We show that both energy dissipation and momentum transport along electric current in the current layer are locally quasi-static, but globally dynamic and irreversible. Turbulent drag dissipates both the streaming energy of the current sheet and the associated magnetic energy. The net loss of streaming energy is converted into the electron component heat conduction parallel to the magnetic field and increases the electron Boltzmann entropy. The growth of self-sustained Buneman waves satisfies a Bernoulli-like equation that relates the turbulence-induced convective momentum transport and thermal momentum transport. Electron trapping and de-trapping drive local momentum transports, while phase mixing converts convective momentum into thermal momentum. The drag acts like a micro-macro link in the anomalous heating processes. The decrease of magnetic field maintains an inductive electric field that re-accelerates electrons, but most of the magnetic energy is dissipated and converted into the component heat of electrons perpendicular to the magnetic field. This heating process is decoupled from the heating of Buneman instability in the current sheets. Ion heating is weak but ions play an important role in assisting energy exchanges between waves and electrons. Cold ion fluid equations together with our electron fluid equations form a complete set of equations that describes the occurrence, growth, saturation and decay of the Buneman instability.

Transport of cosmic-ray protons in intermittent heliospheric turbulence: Model and simulations

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Alouani-Bibi, Fathallah; Le Roux, Jakobus A., E-mail: fb0006@uah.edu

The transport of charged energetic particles in the presence of strong intermittent heliospheric turbulence is computationally analyzed based on known properties of the interplanetary magnetic field and solar wind plasma at 1 astronomical unit. The turbulence is assumed to be static, composite, and quasi-three-dimensional with a varying energy distribution between a one-dimensional Alfvénic (slab) and a structured two-dimensional component. The spatial fluctuations of the turbulent magnetic field are modeled either as homogeneous with a Gaussian probability distribution function (PDF), or as intermittent on large and small scales with a q-Gaussian PDF. Simulations showed that energetic particle diffusion coefficients both parallelmore » and perpendicular to the background magnetic field are significantly affected by intermittency in the turbulence. This effect is especially strong for parallel transport where for large-scale intermittency results show an extended phase of subdiffusive parallel transport during which cross-field transport diffusion dominates. The effects of intermittency are found to depend on particle rigidity and the fraction of slab energy in the turbulence, yielding a perpendicular to parallel mean free path ratio close to 1 for large-scale intermittency. Investigation of higher order transport moments (kurtosis) indicates that non-Gaussian statistical properties of the intermittent turbulent magnetic field are present in the parallel transport, especially for low rigidity particles at all times.« less

Means and method for the focusing and acceleration of parallel beams of charged particles

DOEpatents

Maschke, Alfred W.

1983-07-05

A novel apparatus and method for focussing beams of charged particles comprising planar arrays of electrostatic quadrupoles. The quadrupole arrays may comprise electrodes which are shared by two or more quadrupoles. Such quadrupole arrays are particularly adapted to providing strong focussing forces for high current, high brightness, beams of charged particles, said beams further comprising a plurality of parallel beams, or beamlets, each such beamlet being focussed by one quadrupole of the array. Such arrays may be incorporated in various devices wherein beams of charged particles are accelerated or transported, such as linear accelerators, klystron tubes, beam transport lines, etc.

History of the Bevatron

ScienceCinema

LBNL

2017-12-09

This 1993 documentary chronicles the Bevatron at Berkeley Lab. During its operation from 1954 until 1993, the Bevatron was among the world's leading particle accelerators, and during the 1950s and ... This 1993 documentary chronicles the Bevatron at Berkeley Lab. During its operation from 1954 until 1993, the Bevatron was among the world's leading particle accelerators, and during the 1950s and 1960s, four Nobel Prizes were awarded for work conducted in whole or in part there. The accelerator made major contributions in four distinct areas of research: high-energy particle physics, nuclear heavy-ion physics, medical research and therapy, and space-related studies of radiation damage and heavy particles in space.

Particle acceleration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vlahos, L.; Machado, M. E.; Ramaty, R.; Murphy, R. J.; Alissandrakis, C.; Bai, T.; Batchelor, D.; Benz, A. O.; Chupp, E.; Ellison, D.

1986-01-01

Data is compiled from Solar Maximum Mission and Hinothori satellites, particle detectors in several satellites, ground based instruments, and balloon flights in order to answer fundamental questions relating to: (1) the requirements for the coronal magnetic field structure in the vicinity of the energization source; (2) the height (above the photosphere) of the energization source; (3) the time of energization; (4) transistion between coronal heating and flares; (5) evidence for purely thermal, purely nonthermal and hybrid type flares; (6) the time characteristics of the energization source; (7) whether every flare accelerates protons; (8) the location of the interaction site of the ions and relativistic electrons; (9) the energy spectra for ions and relativistic electrons; (10) the relationship between particles at the Sun and interplanetary space; (11) evidence for more than one acceleration mechanism; (12) whether there is single mechanism that will accelerate particles to all energies and also heat the plasma; and (13) how fast the existing mechanisms accelerate electrons up to several MeV and ions to 1 GeV.

A charged particle in a homogeneous magnetic field accelerated by a time-periodic Aharonov-Bohm flux

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kalvoda, T.; Stovicek, P., E-mail: stovicek@kmlinux.fjfi.cvut.cz

2011-10-15

We consider a nonrelativistic quantum charged particle moving on a plane under the influence of a uniform magnetic field and driven by a periodically time-dependent Aharonov-Bohm flux. We observe an acceleration effect in the case when the Aharonov-Bohm flux depends on time as a sinusoidal function whose frequency is in resonance with the cyclotron frequency. In particular, the energy of the particle increases linearly for large times. An explicit formula for the acceleration rate is derived with the aid of the quantum averaging method, and then it is checked against a numerical solution and a very good agreement is found.more » - Highlights: > A nonrelativistic quantum charged particle on a plane. > A homogeneous magnetic field and a periodically time-dependent Aharonov-Bohm flux. > The quantum averaging method applied to a time-dependent system. > A resonance of the AB flux with the cyclotron frequency. > An acceleration with linearly increasing energy; a formula for the acceleration rate.« less

Plasma Accelerators Race to 10 GeV and Beyond

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Katsouleas, Tom

2005-10-01

This paper reviews the concepts, recent progress and current challenges for realizing the tremendous electric fields in relativistic plasma waves for applications ranging from tabletop particle accelerators to high-energy physics. Experiments in the 90's on laser-driven plasma wakefield accelerators at several laboratories around the world demonstrated the potential for plasma wakefields to accelerate intense bunches of self-trapped particles at rates as high as 100 GeV/m in mm-scale gas jets. These early experiments offered impressive gradients but large energy spread (100%) and short interaction lengths. Major breakthroughs have recently occurred on both fronts. Three groups (LBL-US, LOA-France and RAL-UK) have now entered a new regime of laser wakefield acceleration resulting in 100 MeV mono-energetic beams with up to nanoCoulombs of charge and very small angular spread. Simulations suggest that current lasers are just entering this new regime, and the scaling to higher energies appears attractive. In parallel with the progress in laser-driven wakefields, particle-beam driven wakefield accelerators are making large strides. A series of experiments using the 30 GeV beam of the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC) has demonstrated high-gradient acceleration of electrons and positrons in meter-scale plasmas. The UCLA/USC/SLAC collaboration has accelerated electrons beyond 1 GeV and is aiming at 10 GeV in 30 cm as the next step toward a ``plasma afterburner,'' a concept for doubling the energy of a high-energy collider in a few tens of meters of plasma. In addition to wakefield acceleration, these and other experiments have demonstrated the rich physics bounty to be reaped from relativistic beam-plasma interactions. This includes plasma lenses capable of focusing particle beams to the highest density ever produced, collective radiation mechanisms capable of generating high-brightness x-ray beams, collective refraction of particles at a plasma interface, and acceleration of intense proton beams from laser-irradiated foils.

Poster - Thur Eve - 02: Regulatory oversight of the robotic radiosurgery facilities.

PubMed

Broda, K

2012-07-01

Following a recent review of the Class II Nuclear Facilities and Prescribed Equipment Regulations and regulatory oversight of particle accelerators, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) has changed its policy concerning the regulation of particle accelerators. In November 2011, the CNSC began to exercise its regulatory authority with respect to all particle accelerators operating at a beam energy of 1 (one) MeV or greater. The CNSC already licences and inspects particle accelerators capable of operating at or above 10 MeV. The decision to now include low energy particle accelerators (i.e., those operating at or above 1 MeV) ensures adequate, uniform and consistent regulatory oversight for all Class II accelerators. The CNSC expects these facilities to comply with CNSC requirements by December 2013. Besides conventional linear accelerators of lower energy (6 MeV or below) typically found in cancer clinics, two types of equipment now fall under the CNSC's regulatory oversight as a result of the above change: robotic radiosurgery and tomotherapy equipment and facilities. A number of clinics in Canada already operates these types of equipment and facilities. The safety aspects of radiosurgery equipment differ slightly from those for conventional linear accelerators. This poster aims to present an approach taken by the CNSC to regulate robotic radiosurgery equipment and facilities. The presentation will explain how to meet regulatory requirements of the Class II Nuclear Facilities and Prescribed Equipment Regulations by licensees operating or planning to acquire these types of equipment and facilities. © 2012 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.

Co-evolution of upstream waves and accelerated ions at parallel shocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fujimoto, M.; Sugiyama, T.

2016-12-01

Shock waves in space plasmas have been considered as the agents for various particle acceleration phenomena. The basic idea behind shock acceleration is that particles are accelerated as they move back-and-forth across a shock front. Detailed studies of ion acceleration at the terrestrial bow shock have been performed, however, the restricted maximum energies attained prevent a straight-forward application of obtained knowledge to more energetic astrophysical situations. Here we show by a large-scale self-consistent particle simulation that the co-evolution of magnetic turbulence and accelerated ion population is the foundation for continuous operation of shock acceleration to ever higher energies. Magnetic turbulence is created by ions reflected back upstream of a parallel shock front. The co-evolution arises because more energetic ions excite waves of longer wavelengths, and because longer wavelength modes are capable of scattering (in the upstream) and reflecting (at the shock front) more energetic ions. Via carefully designed numerical experiments, we show very clearly that this picture is true.

Acceleration modules in linear induction accelerators

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Shao-Heng; Deng, Jian-Jun

2014-05-01

The Linear Induction Accelerator (LIA) is a unique type of accelerator that is capable of accelerating kilo-Ampere charged particle current to tens of MeV energy. The present development of LIA in MHz bursting mode and the successful application into a synchrotron have broadened LIA's usage scope. Although the transformer model is widely used to explain the acceleration mechanism of LIAs, it is not appropriate to consider the induction electric field as the field which accelerates charged particles for many modern LIAs. We have examined the transition of the magnetic cores' functions during the LIA acceleration modules' evolution, distinguished transformer type and transmission line type LIA acceleration modules, and re-considered several related issues based on transmission line type LIA acceleration module. This clarified understanding should help in the further development and design of LIA acceleration modules.

Electron Beam Transport in the Ionosphere - Energy Deposition and Optical Emissions Based upon the Combined Effects of Plasma Turbulence and Particle-Particle Interactions.

DTIC Science & Technology

1982-02-01

function of both E, and an auto- correlation time :. We choose to replace E, by an expression containing v, the velocity spread of the beam...f’K or eEL ArGC - ’ (5) where E,_ is now the perpendicular component of the turbulent E field and , is the time int-erval for a coherent interaction...the auto-correlation time ). Equation (5) is the basis for our random walk model for wave particle interactions. It can also be derived using the tX

Gamma-ray emission from the shell of supernova remnant W44 revealed by the Fermi LAT.

PubMed

Abdo, A A; Ackermann, M; Ajello, M; Baldini, L; Ballet, J; Barbiellini, G; Baring, M G; Bastieri, D; Baughman, B M; Bechtol, K; Bellazzini, R; Berenji, B; Blandford, R D; Bloom, E D; Bonamente, E; Borgland, A W; Bregeon, J; Brez, A; Brigida, M; Bruel, P; Burnett, T H; Buson, S; Caliandro, G A; Cameron, R A; Caraveo, P A; Casandjian, J M; Cecchi, C; Celik, O; Chekhtman, A; Cheung, C C; Chiang, J; Ciprini, S; Claus, R; Cognard, I; Cohen-Tanugi, J; Cominsky, L R; Conrad, J; Cutini, S; Dermer, C D; de Angelis, A; de Palma, F; Digel, S W; do Couto e Silva, E; Drell, P S; Dubois, R; Dumora, D; Espinoza, C; Farnier, C; Favuzzi, C; Fegan, S J; Focke, W B; Fortin, P; Frailis, M; Fukazawa, Y; Funk, S; Fusco, P; Gargano, F; Gasparrini, D; Gehrels, N; Germani, S; Giavitto, G; Giebels, B; Giglietto, N; Giordano, F; Glanzman, T; Godfrey, G; Grenier, I A; Grondin, M-H; Grove, J E; Guillemot, L; Guiriec, S; Hanabata, Y; Harding, A K; Hayashida, M; Hays, E; Hughes, R E; Jackson, M S; Jóhannesson, G; Johnson, A S; Johnson, T J; Johnson, W N; Kamae, T; Katagiri, H; Kataoka, J; Katsuta, J; Kawai, N; Kerr, M; Knödlseder, J; Kocian, M L; Kramer, M; Kuss, M; Lande, J; Latronico, L; Lemoine-Goumard, M; Longo, F; Loparco, F; Lott, B; Lovellette, M N; Lubrano, P; Lyne, A G; Madejski, G M; Makeev, A; Mazziotta, M N; McEnery, J E; Meurer, C; Michelson, P F; Mitthumsiri, W; Mizuno, T; Monte, C; Monzani, M E; Morselli, A; Moskalenko, I V; Murgia, S; Nakamori, T; Nolan, P L; Norris, J P; Noutsos, A; Nuss, E; Ohsugi, T; Omodei, N; Orlando, E; Ormes, J F; Paneque, D; Parent, D; Pelassa, V; Pepe, M; Pesce-Rollins, M; Piron, F; Porter, T A; Rainò, S; Rando, R; Razzano, M; Reimer, A; Reimer, O; Reposeur, T; Rochester, L S; Rodriguez, A Y; Romani, R W; Roth, M; Ryde, F; Sadrozinski, H F-W; Sanchez, D; Sander, A; Saz Parkinson, P M; Scargle, J D; Sgrò, C; Siskind, E J; Smith, D A; Smith, P D; Spandre, G; Spinelli, P; Stappers, B W; Stecker, F W; Strickman, M S; Suson, D J; Tajima, H; Takahashi, H; Takahashi, T; Tanaka, T; Thayer, J B; Thayer, J G; Theureau, G; Thompson, D J; Tibaldo, L; Tibolla, O; Torres, D F; Tosti, G; Tramacere, A; Uchiyama, Y; Usher, T L; Vasileiou, V; Venter, C; Vilchez, N; Vitale, V; Waite, A P; Wang, P; Winer, B L; Wood, K S; Yamazaki, R; Ylinen, T; Ziegler, M

2010-02-26

Recent observations of supernova remnants (SNRs) hint that they accelerate cosmic rays to energies close to ~10(15) electron volts. However, the nature of the particles that produce the emission remains ambiguous. We report observations of SNR W44 with the Fermi Large Area Telescope at energies between 2 x 10(8) electron volts and 3 x10(11) electron volts. The detection of a source with a morphology corresponding to the SNR shell implies that the emission is produced by particles accelerated there. The gamma-ray spectrum is well modeled with emission from protons and nuclei. Its steepening above approximately 10(9) electron volts provides a probe with which to study how particle acceleration responds to environmental effects such as shock propagation in dense clouds and how accelerated particles are released into interstellar space.

Time-dependent shock acceleration of particles. Effect of the time-dependent injection, with application to supernova remnants

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Petruk, O.; Kopytko, B.

2016-11-01

Three approaches are considered to solve the equation which describes the time-dependent diffusive shock acceleration of test particles at the non-relativistic shocks. At first, the solution of Drury for the particle distribution function at the shock is generalized to any relation between the acceleration time-scales upstream and downstream and for the time-dependent injection efficiency. Three alternative solutions for the spatial dependence of the distribution function are derived. Then, the two other approaches to solve the time-dependent equation are presented, one of which does not require the Laplace transform. At the end, our more general solution is discussed, with a particular attention to the time-dependent injection in supernova remnants. It is shown that, comparing to the case with the dominant upstream acceleration time-scale, the maximum momentum of accelerated particles shifts towards the smaller momenta with increase of the downstream acceleration time-scale. The time-dependent injection affects the shape of the particle spectrum. In particular, (I) the power-law index is not solely determined by the shock compression, in contrast to the stationary solution; (II) the larger the injection efficiency during the first decades after the supernova explosion, the harder the particle spectrum around the high-energy cutoff at the later times. This is important, in particular, for interpretation of the radio and gamma-ray observations of supernova remnants, as demonstrated on a number of examples.

Use of incomplete energy recovery for the energy compression of large energy spread charged particle beams

DOEpatents

Douglas, David R [Newport News, VA; Benson, Stephen V [Yorktown, VA

2007-01-23

A method of energy recovery for RF-base linear charged particle accelerators that allows energy recovery without large relative momentum spread of the particle beam involving first accelerating a waveform particle beam having a crest and a centroid with an injection energy E.sub.o with the centroid of the particle beam at a phase offset f.sub.o from the crest of the accelerating waveform to an energy E.sub.full and then recovering the beam energy centroid a phase f.sub.o+Df relative to the crest of the waveform particle beam such that (E.sub.full-E.sub.o)(1+cos(f.sub.o+Df))>dE/2 wherein dE=the full energy spread, dE/2=the full energy half spread and Df=the wave form phase distance.

Particle acceleration at shocks in the presence of a braided magnetic field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kirk, J. G.; Duffy, P.; Gallant, Y. A.

1997-05-01

The theory of first order Fermi acceleration at shock fronts assumes charged particles undergo spatial diffusion in a uniform magnetic field. If, however, the magnetic field is not uniform, but has a stochastic or braided structure, the transport of charged particles across the average direction of the field is more complicated. Assuming quasi-linear behaviour of the field lines, the particles undergo sub-diffusion ( ~ t^1/2) on short time scales. We investigate this process analytically, using a propagator approach, and numerically, with a Monte-Carlo simulation. It is found that, in contrast to the diffusive case, the density of particles at the shock front is lower than it is far downstream which is a consequence of the partial trapping of particles by structures in the magnetic field. As a result, the spectrum of accelerated particles is a power-law in momentum which is steeper than in the diffusive case. For a phase-space density f ~ p^-s, we find s =s_diff [1 + 1/(2rho_c)], where rho_c is the compression ratio of the shock front and s_diff is the standard result of diffusive acceleration:s_diff = 3rho_c/(rho_c - 1).

Dust particle injector for hypervelocity accelerators provides high charge-to-mass ratio

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Berg, O. E.

1966-01-01

Injector imparts a high charge-to-mass ratio to microparticles and injects them into an electrostatic accelerator so that the particles are accelerated to meteoric speeds. It employs relatively large masses in the anode and cathode structures with a relatively wide separation, thus permitting a large increase in the allowable injection voltages.

Pulling a Door Open by Pushing on It

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

van den Berg, Willem H.

2007-01-01

Ordinarily, opening a door by pulling on the knob or handle causes a net torque on the door, and hence an angular acceleration, about a "vertical" axis. However, it may be that the top or bottom of the door sticks to the door frame; this horizontal force perpendicular to the plane of the door causes a torque on the door about a "horizontal" axis.…

Particle acceleration and transport at a 2D CME-driven shock using the HAFv3 and PATH Code

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, G.; Ao, X.; Fry, C. D.; Verkhoglyadova, O. P.; Zank, G. P.

2012-12-01

We study particle acceleration at a 2D CME-driven shock and the subsequent transport in the inner heliosphere (up to 2 AU) by coupling the kinematic Hakamada-Akasofu-Fry version 3 (HAFv3) solar wind model (Hakamada and Akasofu, 1982, Fry et al. 2003) with the Particle Acceleration and Transport in the Heliosphere (PATH) model (Zank et al., 2000, Li et al., 2003, 2005, Verkhoglyadova et al. 2009). The HAFv3 provides the evolution of a two-dimensional shock geometry and other plasma parameters, which are fed into the PATH model to investigate the effect of a varying shock geometry on particle acceleration and transport. The transport module of the PATH model is parallelized and utilizes the state-of-the-art GPU computation technique to achieve a rapid physics-based numerical description of the interplanetary energetic particles. Together with a fast execution of the HAFv3 model, the coupled code gives us a possibility to nowcast/forecast the interplanetary radiation environment.

High-energy particle production in solar flares (SEP, gamma-ray and neutron emissions). [solar energetic particles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chupp, E. L.

1987-01-01

Electrons and ions, over a wide range of energies, are produced in association with solar flares. Solar energetic particles (SEPs), observed in space and near earth, consist of electrons and ions that range in energy from 10 keV to about 100 MeV and from 1 MeV to 20 GeV, respectively. SEPs are directly recorded by charged particle detectors, while X-ray, gamma-ray, and neutron detectors indicate the properties of the accelerated particles (electrons and ions) which have interacted in the solar atmosphere. A major problem of solar physics is to understand the relationship between these two groups of charged particles; in particular whether they are accelerated by the same mechanism. The paper reviews the physics of gamma-rays and neutron production in the solar atmosphere and the method by which properties of the primary charged particles produced in the solar flare can be deduced. Recent observations of energetic photons and neutrons in space and at the earth are used to present a current picture of the properties of impulsively flare accelerated electrons and ions. Some important properties discussed are time scale of production, composition, energy spectra, accelerator geometry. Particular attention is given to energetic particle production in the large flare on June 3, 1982.

Observations of kinetic scale magnetic holes in terrestrial space

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shutao, Y.; Shi, Q.; Wang, X.; Zong, Q.; Tian, A.; Yao, Z.; Hamrin, M.; Pitkänen, T.; Pu, Z.; Xiao, C.; Fu, S.; Zhang, H.; Giles, B. L.; Russell, C. T.; Guo, R.; Sun, W. J.; Li, W.; Zhou, X.; De Spiegeleer, A.

2017-12-01

Plasma is a macroscopically neutral system. It contains a mass of interacting ionized particles. Because of the much higher mass ratio between ions and electrons, plasma is a complicated multiple characteristic scales system with complicated properties. Thus it is necessary to carefully choose different models corresponding to the relevant scale when analyzing magnetic holes (MHs). Although there are many studies for the magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) scale MHs, few of them are for kinetic scale MHs (KSMHs). In this study, several multi-point spacecraft techniques are used to determine the propagating velocity of plasma sheet KSMHs. Based on the electronmagnetohydrodynamics (EMHD) theory, the width, depth and propagating velocity of electron solitary wave are calculated and compared to the observations. Furthermore, we report a series of the KSMHs in the magnetosheath whereby we use measurements from the Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) mission. The KSMHs have been observed with a scale of 10-20 ρe (electron gyroradii) and lasted 0.1-0.3 s. Distinctive electron dynamics features are observed. We find that at the 90° pitch angle, the flux of electrons with energy 34-66 eV decreased, while for electrons of energy 109-1024 eV increased inside the KSMHs. We also find the electron flow vortex perpendicular to the magnetic field, a feature self-consistent with the magnetic depression. The calculated current density is mainly contributed by the electron diamagnetic drift. Test particle is used to simulate the electron acceleration of the KSMHs.

First results from the Magnetospheric Multiscale mission

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lavraud, B.

2017-12-01

Since its launch in March 2015, NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale mission (MMS) provides a wealth of unprecedented high resolution measurements of space plasma properties and dynamics in the near-Earth environment. MMS was designed in the first place to study the fundamental process of collision-less magnetic reconnection. The two first results reviewed here pertain to this topic and highlight how the extremely high resolution MMS data (electrons, in particular, with full three dimensional measurements at 30 ms in burst mode) have permitted to tackle electron dynamics in unprecedented details. The first result demonstrates how electrons become demagnetized and scattered near the magnetic reconnection X line as a result of increased magnetic field curvature, together with a decrease in its magnitude. The second result demonstrates that electrons form crescent-shaped, agyrotropic distribution functions very near the X line, suggestive of the existence of a perpendicular current aligned with the local electric field and consistent with the energy conversion expected in magnetic reconnection (such that J\\cdot E > 0). Aside from magnetic reconnection, we show how MMS contributes to topics such as wave properties and their interaction with particles. Thanks again to extremely high resolution measurements, the lossless and periodical energy exchange between wave electromagnetic fields and particles, as expected in the case of kinetic Alfvén waves, was confirmed. Although not discussed, MMS has the potential to solve many other outstanding issues in collision-less plasma physics, for example regarding shock or turbulence acceleration, with obvious broader impacts in astrophysics in general.

Accelerated transport and growth with symmetrized dynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Merikoski, Juha

2013-12-01

In this paper we consider a model of accelerated dynamics with the rules modified from those of the recently proposed [Dong et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 109, 130602 (2012), 10.1103/PhysRevLett.109.130602] accelerated exclusion process (AEP) such that particle-vacancy symmetry is restored to facilitate a mapping to a solid-on-solid growth model in 1+1 dimensions. In addition to kicking a particle ahead of the moving particle, as in the AEP, in our model another particle from behind is drawn, provided it is within the "distance of interaction" denoted by ℓmax. We call our model the doubly accelerated exclusion process (DAEP). We observe accelerated transport and interface growth and widening of the cluster size distribution for cluster sizes above ℓmax, when compared with the ordinary totally asymmetric exclusion process (TASEP). We also characterize the difference between the TASEP, AEP, and DAEP by computing a "staggered" order parameter, which reveals the local order in the steady state. This order in part explains the behavior of the particle current as a function of density. The differences of the steady states are also reflected by the behavior of the temporal and spatial correlation functions in the interface picture.

Does fluid infiltration affect the motion of sediment grains? - A 3-D numerical modelling approach using SPH

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bartzke, Gerhard; Rogers, Benedict D.; Fourtakas, Georgios; Mokos, Athanasios; Canelas, Ricardo B.; Huhn, Katrin

2017-04-01

With experimental techniques it is difficult to measure flow characteristics, e.g. the velocity of pore water flow in sediments, at a sufficient resolution and in a non-intrusive way. As a result, the effect of fluid flow at the surface and in the interior of a sediment bed on particle motion is not yet fully understood. Numerical models may help to overcome these problems. In this study Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) was chosen since it is ideally suited to simulate flows in sediment beds, at a high temporal and spatial resolution. The solver chosen is DualSPHysics 4.0 (www.dual.sphysics.org), since this is validated for a range of flow conditions. For the present investigation a 3D numerical flow channel was generated with a length of 15.0 cm, a width of 0.5 cm and a height of 4.0 cm. The entire domain was flooded with 8 million fluid particles, while 400 mobile sediment particles were deposited under applied gravity (grain diameter D50=10 mm) to generate randomly packed beds. Periodic boundaries were applied to the sidewalls to mimic an endless flow. To drive the flow, an acceleration perpendicular to the bed was applied to the fluid, reaching a target value of 0.3 cm/s, simulating 12 seconds of real time. Comparison of the model results to the law of the wall showed that flow speeds decreased logarithmically from the top of the domain towards the surface of the beds, indicating a fully developed boundary layer. Analysis of the fluid surrounding the sediment particles revealed critical threshold velocities, subsequently resulting in the initiation of motion due to drag. Sediment flux measurements indicated that with increasing simulation time a larger quantity of sediment particles was transported at the direct vicinity of the bed, whereas the amount of transported particles along with flow speed values, within the pore spaces, decreased with depth. Moreover, sediment - sediment particle collisions at the sediment surface lead to the opening of new pore spaces. As a result, higher quantities of fluid particles infiltrated through the larger interstices between the sediment particles, which successively increased the potential for the initiation of motion of sediment particles located in the deeper horizons. This effect has been underestimated in prior studies and highlights the importance of sediment - sediment particle collision and fluid infiltration as an important characteristic that can eventually help to better understand the development of the shear layer but also various sediment morphological features.

Optical Diagnostics for Plasma-based Particle Accelerators

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Muggli, Patric

2009-05-01

One of the challenges for plasma-based particle accelerators is to measure the spatio-temporal characteristics of the accelerated particle bunch. ``Optical'' diagnostics are particularly interesting and useful because of the large number of techniques that exits to determine the properties of photon pulses. The accelerated bunch can produce photons pulses that carry information about its characteristics for example through synchrotron radiation in a magnet, Cherenkov radiation in a gas, and transition radiation (TR) at the boundary between two media with different dielectric constants. Depending on the wavelength of the emission when compared to the particle bunch length, the radiation can be incoherent or coherent. Incoherent TR in the optical range (or OTR) is useful to measure the transverse spatial characteristics of the beam, such as charge distribution and size. Coherent TR (or CTR) carries information about the bunch length that can in principle be retrieved by standard auto-correlation or interferometric techniques, as well as by spectral measurements. A measurement of the total CTR energy emitted by bunches with constant charge can also be used as a shot-to-shot measurement for the relative bunch length as the CTR energy is proportional to the square of the bunch population and inversely proportional to its length (for a fixed distribution). Spectral interferometry can also yield the spacing between bunches in the case where multiple bunches are trapped in subsequent buckets of the plasma wave. Cherenkov radiation can be used as an energy threshold diagnostic for low energy particles. Cherenkov, synchrotron and transition radiation can be used in a dispersive section of the beam line to measure the bunch energy spectrum. The application of these diagnostics to plasma-based particle accelerators, with emphasis on the beam-driven, plasma wakefield accelerator (PWFA) at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory will be discussed.

Modeling of ion acceleration through drift and diffusion at interplanetary shocks

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Decker, R. B.; Vlahos, L.

1986-01-01

A test particle simulation designed to model ion acceleration through drift and diffusion at interplanetary shocks is described. The technique consists of integrating along exact particle orbits in a system where the angle between the shock normal and mean upstream magnetic field, the level of magnetic fluctuations, and the energy of injected particles can assume a range of values. The technique makes it possible to study time-dependent shock acceleration under conditions not amenable to analytical techniques. To illustrate the capability of the numerical model, proton acceleration was considered under conditions appropriate for interplanetary shocks at 1 AU, including large-amplitude transverse magnetic fluctuations derived from power spectra of both ambient and shock-associated MHD waves.

Evaluation of parameters for particles acceleration by the zero-point field of quantum electrodynamics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rueda, A.

1985-01-01

That particles may be accelerated by vacuum effects in quantum field theory has been repeatedly proposed in the last few years. A natural upshot of this is a mechanism for cosmic rays (CR) primaries acceleration. A mechanism for acceleration by the zero-point field (ZPE) when the ZPE is taken in a realistic sense (in opposition to a virtual field) was considered. Originally the idea was developed within a semiclassical context. The classical Einstein-Hopf model (EHM) was used to show that free isolated electromagnrtically interacting particles performed a random walk in phase space and more importantly in momentum space when submitted to the perennial action of the so called classical electromagnrtic ZPE.

Two-Dimensional Turbulence in Magnetized Plasmas

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kendl, A.

2008-01-01

In an inhomogeneous magnetized plasma the transport of energy and particles perpendicular to the magnetic field is in general mainly caused by quasi two-dimensional turbulent fluid mixing. The physics of turbulence and structure formation is of ubiquitous importance to every magnetically confined laboratory plasma for experimental or industrial…

The Particle Adventure | Accelerators and Particle Detectors

Science.gov Websites

? The modern atom model The scale of the atom What are we looking for? The standard model The standard Major accelerators The event Detectors Detector shapes Modern detectors Typical detector components

Magnetic particle inspection

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sastri, Sankar

1990-01-01

The purpose of this experiment is to familiarize the student with magnetic particle inspection and relate it to classification of various defects. Magnetic particle inspection is a method of detecting the presence of cracks, laps, tears, inclusions, and similar discontinuities in ferromagnetic materials such as iron and steel. This method will most clearly show defects that are perpendicular to the magnetic field. The Magnaglo method uses a liquid which is sprayed on the workpiece to be inspected, and the part is magnetized at the same time. The workpiece is then viewed under a black light, and the presence of discontinuity is shown by the formation of a bright indication formed by the magnetic particles over the discontinuity. The equipment and experimental procedures are described.

Correlated diffusion of colloidal particles near a liquid-liquid interface.

PubMed

Zhang, Wei; Chen, Song; Li, Na; Zhang, Jia Zheng; Chen, Wei

2014-01-01

Optical microscopy and multi-particle tracking are used to investigate the cross-correlated diffusion of quasi two-dimensional colloidal particles near an oil-water interface. The behaviors of the correlated diffusion along longitudinal and transverse direction are asymmetric. It is shown that the characteristic length for longitudinal and transverse correlated diffusion are particle diameter d and the distance z from particle center to the interface, respectively, for large particle separation z. The longitudinal and transverse correlated diffusion coefficient D||(r) and D[perpendicular](r) are independent of the colloidal area fraction n when n < 0.3, which indicates that the hydrodynamic interactions(HIs) among the particles are dominated by HIs through the surrounding fluid for small n. For high area fraction n > 0.4 the power law exponent for the spatial decay of [Formula: see text] begins to decrease, which suggests the HIs are more contributed from the 2D particle monolayer self for large n.

Particle Acceleration in Active Galactic Nuclei

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Miller, James A.

1997-01-01

The high efficiency of energy generation inferred from radio observations of quasars and X-ray observations of Seyfert active galactic nuclei (AGNs) is apparently achieved only by the gravitational conversion of the rest mass energy of accreting matter onto supermassive black holes. Evidence for the acceleration of particles to high energies by a central engine is also inferred from observations of apparent superluminal motion in flat spectrum, core-dominated radio sources. This phenomenon is widely attributed to the ejection of relativistic bulk plasma from the nuclei of active galaxies, and accounts for the existence of large scale radio jets and lobes at large distances from the central regions of radio galaxies. Reports of radio jets and superluminal motion from galactic black hole candidate X-ray sources indicate that similar processes are operating in these sources. Observations of luminous, rapidly variable high-energy radiation from active galactic nuclei (AGNs) with the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory show directly that particles are accelerated to high energies in a compact environment. The mechanisms which transform the gravitational potential energy of the infalling matter into nonthermal particle energy in galactic black hole candidates and AGNs are not conclusively identified, although several have been proposed. These include direct acceleration by static electric fields (resulting from, for example, magnetic reconnection), shock acceleration, and energy extraction from the rotational energy of Kerr black holes. The dominant acceleration mechanism(s) operating in the black hole environment can only be determined, of course, by a comparison of model predictions with observations. The purpose of the work proposed for this grant was to investigate stochastic particle acceleration through resonant interactions with plasma waves that populate the magnetosphere surrounding an accreting black hole. Stochastic acceleration has been successfully applied to the problem of ion and electron energization in solar flares, and is capable of accounting for a wide range of both neutral and charged particle emissions. It is also a component in diffusive shock acceleration, since pitch-angle scattering (which is necessary for multiple shock crossings) is accompanied by diffusion in momentum space, which in turn yields a net systematic energy gain; however, stochastic energization will dominate the first-order shock process only in certain parameter regimes. Although stochastic acceleration has been applied to particle energization in the lobes of radio galaxies, its application to the central regions of AGNs has only recently been considered, but not in detail. We proposed to systematically investigate the plasma processes responsible for stochastic particle acceleration in black hole magnetospheres along with the energy-loss processes which impede particle energization. To this end we calculated acceleration rates and escape time scales for protons and electrons resonating with Alfven waves, and for electrons resonating with whistlers. Assuming either a Kolmogorov or Kraichnan wave spectrum, accretion at the Eddington limit, magnetic field strengths near equipartition, and turbulence energy densities approx. 10% of the total magnetic field energy density, we find that Alfven waves accelerate protons to Lorentz factors approx, equals 10(exp 4) - 10(exp 6) before they escape from the system. Acceleration of electrons by fast mode and whistler waves can produce a nonthermal population of relativistic electrons whose maximum energy is determined by a competition with radiation losses.

GYROSURFING ACCELERATION OF IONS IN FRONT OF EARTH's QUASI-PARALLEL BOW SHOCK

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kis, Arpad; Lemperger, Istvan; Wesztergom, Viktor

2013-07-01

It is well known that shocks in space plasmas can accelerate particles to high energies. However, many details of the shock acceleration mechanism are still unknown. A critical element of shock acceleration is the injection problem; i.e., the presence of the so called seed particle population that is needed for the acceleration to work efficiently. In our case study, we present for the first time observational evidence of gyroresonant surfing acceleration in front of Earth's quasi-parallel bow shock resulting in the appearance of the long-suspected seed particle population. For our analysis, we use simultaneous multi-spacecraft measurements provided by the Clustermore » spacecraft ion (CIS), magnetic (FGM), and electric field and wave instrument (EFW) during a time period of large inter-spacecraft separation distance. The spacecraft were moving toward the bow shock and were situated in the foreshock region. The results show that the gyroresonance surfing acceleration takes place as a consequence of interaction between circularly polarized monochromatic (or quasi-monochromatic) transversal electromagnetic plasma waves and short large amplitude magnetic structures (SLAMSs). The magnetic mirror force of the SLAMS provides the resonant conditions for the ions trapped by the waves and results in the acceleration of ions. Since wave packets with circular polarization and different kinds of magnetic structures are very commonly observed in front of Earth's quasi-parallel bow shock, the gyroresonant surfing acceleration proves to be an important particle injection mechanism. We also show that seed ions are accelerated directly from the solar wind ion population.« less

Dense colloidal mixtures in an external sinusoidal potential

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Capellmann, R. F.; Khisameeva, A.; Platten, F.; Egelhaaf, S. U.

2018-03-01

Concentrated binary colloidal mixtures containing particles with a size ratio 1:2.4 were exposed to a periodic potential that was realized using a light field, namely, two crossed laser beams creating a fringe pattern. The arrangement of the particles was recorded using optical microscopy and characterized in terms of the pair distribution function along the minima, the occupation probability perpendicular to the minima, the angular bond distribution, and the average potential energy per particle. The particle arrangement was investigated in dependence of the importance of particle-potential and particle-particle interactions by changing the potential amplitude and particle concentration, respectively. An increase in the potential amplitude leads to a stronger localization, especially of the large particles, but also results in an increasing fraction of small particles being located closer to the potential maxima, which also occurs upon increasing the particle density. Furthermore, increasing the potential amplitude induces a local demixing of the two particle species, whereas an increase in the total packing fraction favors a more homogeneous arrangement.

Studying astrophysical particle acceleration with laser-driven plasmas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fiuza, Frederico

2016-10-01

The acceleration of non-thermal particles in plasmas is critical for our understanding of explosive astrophysical phenomena, from solar flares to gamma ray bursts. Particle acceleration is thought to be mediated by collisionless shocks and magnetic reconnection. The microphysics underlying these processes and their ability to efficiently convert flow and magnetic energy into non-thermal particles, however, is not yet fully understood. By performing for the first time ab initio 3D particle-in-cell simulations of the interaction of both magnetized and unmagnetized laser-driven plasmas, it is now possible to identify the optimal parameters for the study of particle acceleration in the laboratory relevant to astrophysical scenarios. It is predicted for the Omega and NIF laser conditions that significant non-thermal acceleration can occur during magnetic reconnection of laser-driven magnetized plasmas. Electrons are accelerated by the electric field near the X-points and trapped in contracting magnetic islands. This leads to a power-law tail extending to nearly a hundred times the thermal energy of the plasma and that contains a large fraction of the magnetic energy. The study of unmagnetized interpenetrating plasmas also reveals the possibility of forming collisionless shocks mediated by the Weibel instability on NIF. Under such conditions, both electrons and ions can be energized by scattering out of the Weibel-mediated turbulence. This also leads to power-law spectra that can be detected experimentally. The resulting experimental requirements to probe the microphysics of plasma particle acceleration will be discussed, paving the way for the first experiments of these important processes in the laboratory. As a result of these simulations and theoretical analysis, there are new experiments being planned on the Omega, NIF, and LCLS laser facilities to test these theoretical predictions. This work was supported by the SLAC LDRD program and DOE Office of Science, Fusion Energy Science (FWP 100182).

Towards a Self-Consistent Simulation Capability of Catastrophic Solar Energetic Particle Events

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sokolov, I.; Gombosi, T. I.; Bindi, V.; Borovikov, D.; Kota, J.; Giacalone, J.

2016-12-01

Space weather refers to variations in the space environment that can affect technologies or endanger human life and health. Solar energetic particle (SEP) events can affect communications and airline safety. Satellites are affected by radiation damage to electronics and to components that produce power and provide images. Sun and star sensors are blinded during large SEP events. Protons of ≳30 MeV penetrate spacesuits and spacecraft walls. Events, like that of August 4, 1972, would have been fatal to moon-walking astronauts. Catastrophic events typically are characterized by hard particle energy spectra potentially containing large fluxes of hundreds of MeV-GeV type particles. These super-energetic particles can penetrate even into the "safest" areas of spacecraft and produce induced radioactivity. We describe several technologies which are to be combined into a physics-based, self consistent model to understand and forecast the origin and evolution of SEP events: The Alfvén Wave Solar-wind Model (AWSoM) simulates the chromosphere-to-Earth system using separate electron and ion temperatures and separate parallel and perpendicular temperatures. It solves the energy equations including thermal conduction and coronal heating by Alfvén wave turbulence. It uses adaptive mesh refinement (AMR), which allows us to cover a broad range of spacial scales. The Eruptive Event Generator using the Gibson-Low flux-rope model (EEGGL) allows the user to select an active region on the sun, select the polarity inversion line where the eruption is observed, and insert a Gibson-Low flux-rope to produce eruption. The Multiple-Field-Lines-Advection Model for Particle Acceleration (M-FLAMPA) solves the particle transport equation along a multitude of interplanetary magnetic field lines originating from the Sun, using time-dependent parameters for the shock and magnetic field obtained from the MHD simulation. It includes a self-consistent coupling of Alfvén wave turbulence to the SEPs. M-FLAMPA takes into account the full dependence of the distribution function on the pitch-angle, as well as particle scattering by Alfvén wave turbulence. The M-FLAMPA model will be validated and constrained at high energies (125 MeV to many GeV) using the new Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer onboard the ISS.

Pulsar Wind Nebulae inside Supernova Remnants as Cosmic-Ray PeVatrons

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ohira, Yutaka; Kisaka, Shota; Yamazaki, Ryo

2018-07-01

We propose that cosmic ray PeVatrons are pulsar wind nebulae (PWNe) inside supernova remnants (SNRs). The PWN initially expands into the freely expanding stellar ejecta. Then, the PWN catches up with the shocked region of the SNR, where particles can be slightly accelerated by the back and forth motion between the PWN and the SNR, and some particles diffuse into the PWN. Afterwards the PWN is compressed by the SNR, where the particles in the PWN are accelerated by the adiabatic compression. Using a Monte Carlo simulation, we show that particles accelerated by the SNR to 0.1 PeV can be reaccelerated to 1 PeV until the end of the PWN compression.

Pulsar Wind Nebulae inside Supernova Remnants as Cosmic-Ray PeVatrons

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ohira, Yutaka; Kisaka, Shota; Yamazaki, Ryo

2018-05-01

We propose that cosmic-ray PeVatrons are pulsar wind nebulae (PWNe) inside supernova remnants (SNRs). The PWN initially expands into the freely expanding stellar ejecta. Then, the PWN catches up with the shocked region of the SNR, where particles can be slightly accelerated by the back and forth motion between the PWN and the SNR, and some particles diffuse into the PWN. Afterwards the PWN is compressed by the SNR, where the particles in the PWN are accelerated by the adiabatic compression. Using a Monte Carlo simulation, we show that particles accelerated by the SNR to 0.1 PeV can be reaccelerated to 1 PeV until the end of the PWN compression.

Acceleration mechanisms for energetic particles in the earth's magnetosphere

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schiferl, S.; Fan, C. Y.; Hsieh, K. C.; Erickson, K. N.; Gloeckler, G.

1982-01-01

By analyzing data on energetic particle fluxes measured simultaneously with detector systems on several earth satellites, signatures of different acceleration mechanisms for these particles were searched for. One of the samples is an event observed on ATS-6 and IMP-7. IMP-7 was in the dusk quarter at 38 earth radii while ATS-6 was located at local midnight at a distance of 6.6 earth radii. Although the flux variations as observed on the two spacecraft both showed 1.5 min periodicity, there was a 40-second time lag with IMP-7 behind. The results indicate that the particles are accelerated by magnetic field line annihilation, with the x-point located at about 10 earth radii.

Scientific program and abstracts

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gerich, C.

1983-01-01

The Fifth International Conference on High-Power Particle Beams is organized jointly by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Physics International Company. As in the previous conferences in this series, the program includes the following topics: high-power, electron- and ion-beam acceleration and transport; diode physics; high-power particle beam interaction with plasmas and dense targets; particle beam fusion (inertial confinement); collective ion acceleration; particle beam heating of magnetically confined plasmas; and generation of microwave/free-electron lasers.

Beams of protons and alpha particles greater than approximately 30 keV/charge from the earth's bow shock

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Scholer, M.; Ipavich, F. M.; Gloeckler, G.

1981-01-01

Two beamlike particle events (30 keV/charge to 160 keV/charge) upstream of the earth's bow shock have been investigated with the Max-Planck-Institut/University of Maryland ultralow energy and charge analyzer on ISEE 1. These beams consist of protons as well as of alpha particles, and the spectra are generally steep and are decreasing with increasing energy. During one event the spectra of both protons and alpha particles have a maximum at approximately 65 keV/charge. During these events, the interplanetary magnetic field through the satellite position was almost tangent to the bow shock, and application of the theory of acceleration predicts acceleration of a solar wind particle up to 60 keV/nucleon in a single reflection. The observation of reflected protons as well as alpha particles has implications for the physical reflection process usually not discussed in acceleration theories.

Effects of plasma flows on particle diffusion in stochastic magnetic fields

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Vlad, M.; Spineanu, F.; Misguich, J.H.

1996-07-01

The study of collisional test particle diffusion in stochastic magnetic fields is extended to include the effects of the macroscopic flows of the plasma (drifts). We show that a substantial amplification of the diffusion coefficient can be obtained. This effect is produced by the combined action of the parallel collisional velocity and of the average drifts. The perpendicular collisional velocity influences the effective diffusion only in the limit of small average drifts. {copyright} {ital 1996 The American Physical Society.}

New grafted ferrite particles/liquid crystal composite under magnetic field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manaila Maximean, D.

2018-04-01

A new colloidal composite formed by specially synthesized dimethylphenyl ferrite particles and a nematic liquid crystal (LC) is presented. By applying a small magnetic field during polarizing optical microscopy observations, it was found that the magnetic moment of the synthesized ferrite is perpendicular to the director of the LC. The optical transmission of laser light across the ferronematic was investigated under magnetic field. The critical magnetic field corresponding to the Freedericksz transition was obtained and discussed according to the Burylov and Raikher theory.

Vacuum chamber for containing particle beams

DOEpatents

Harvey, A.

1985-11-26

A vacuum chamber for containing a charged particle beam in a rapidly changing magnetic environment comprises a ceramic pipe with conducting strips oriented along the longitudinal axis of the pipe and with circumferential conducting bands oriented perpendicular to the longitudinal axis but joined with a single longitudinal electrical connection. When both strips and bands are on the outside of the ceramic pipe, insulated from each other, a high-resistance conductive layer such as nickel can be coated on the inside of the pipe.

Method and apparatus for measuring birefringent particles

DOEpatents

Bishop, James K.; Guay, Christopher K.

2006-04-18

A method and apparatus for measuring birefringent particles is provided comprising a source lamp, a grating, a first polarizer having a first transmission axis, a sample cell and a second polarizer having a second polarization axis. The second polarizer has a second polarization axis that is set to be perpendicular to the first polarization axis, and thereby blocks linearly polarized light with the orientation of the beam of light passing through the first polarizer. The beam of light passing through the second polarizer is measured using a detector.

Berry phase for spin-1/2 particles moving in a space-time with torsion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alimohammadi, M.; Shariati, A.

Berry phase for a spin-1/2 particle moving in a flat space-time with torsion is investigated in the context of the Einstein-Cartan-Dirac model. It is shown that if the torsion is due to a dense polarized background, then there is a Berry phase only if the fermion is massless and its momentum is perpendicular to the direction of the background polarization. The order of magnitude of this Berry phase is discussed in other theoretical frameworks.

High throughput analysis of samples in flowing liquid

DOEpatents

Ambrose, W. Patrick; Grace, W. Kevin; Goodwin, Peter M.; Jett, James H.; Orden, Alan Van; Keller, Richard A.

2001-01-01

Apparatus and method enable imaging multiple fluorescent sample particles in a single flow channel. A flow channel defines a flow direction for samples in a flow stream and has a viewing plane perpendicular to the flow direction. A laser beam is formed as a ribbon having a width effective to cover the viewing plane. Imaging optics are arranged to view the viewing plane to form an image of the fluorescent sample particles in the flow stream, and a camera records the image formed by the imaging optics.

Automated detection and analysis of particle beams in laser-plasma accelerator simulations

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ushizima, Daniela Mayumi; Geddes, C.G.; Cormier-Michel, E.

Numerical simulations of laser-plasma wakefield (particle) accelerators model the acceleration of electrons trapped in plasma oscillations (wakes) left behind when an intense laser pulse propagates through the plasma. The goal of these simulations is to better understand the process involved in plasma wake generation and how electrons are trapped and accelerated by the wake. Understanding of such accelerators, and their development, offer high accelerating gradients, potentially reducing size and cost of new accelerators. One operating regime of interest is where a trapped subset of electrons loads the wake and forms an isolated group of accelerated particles with low spread inmore » momentum and position, desirable characteristics for many applications. The electrons trapped in the wake may be accelerated to high energies, the plasma gradient in the wake reaching up to a gigaelectronvolt per centimeter. High-energy electron accelerators power intense X-ray radiation to terahertz sources, and are used in many applications including medical radiotherapy and imaging. To extract information from the simulation about the quality of the beam, a typical approach is to examine plots of the entire dataset, visually determining the adequate parameters necessary to select a subset of particles, which is then further analyzed. This procedure requires laborious examination of massive data sets over many time steps using several plots, a routine that is unfeasible for large data collections. Demand for automated analysis is growing along with the volume and size of simulations. Current 2D LWFA simulation datasets are typically between 1GB and 100GB in size, but simulations in 3D are of the order of TBs. The increase in the number of datasets and dataset sizes leads to a need for automatic routines to recognize particle patterns as particle bunches (beam of electrons) for subsequent analysis. Because of the growth in dataset size, the application of machine learning techniques for scientific data mining is increasingly considered. In plasma simulations, Bagherjeiran et al. presented a comprehensive report on applying graph-based techniques for orbit classification. They used the KAM classifier to label points and components in single and multiple orbits. Love et al. conducted an image space analysis of coherent structures in plasma simulations. They used a number of segmentation and region-growing techniques to isolate regions of interest in orbit plots. Both approaches analyzed particle accelerator data, targeting the system dynamics in terms of particle orbits. However, they did not address particle dynamics as a function of time or inspected the behavior of bunches of particles. Ruebel et al. addressed the visual analysis of massive laser wakefield acceleration (LWFA) simulation data using interactive procedures to query the data. Sophisticated visualization tools were provided to inspect the data manually. Ruebel et al. have integrated these tools to the visualization and analysis system VisIt, in addition to utilizing efficient data management based on HDF5, H5Part, and the index/query tool FastBit. In Ruebel et al. proposed automatic beam path analysis using a suite of methods to classify particles in simulation data and to analyze their temporal evolution. To enable researchers to accurately define particle beams, the method computes a set of measures based on the path of particles relative to the distance of the particles to a beam. To achieve good performance, this framework uses an analysis pipeline designed to quickly reduce the amount of data that needs to be considered in the actual path distance computation. As part of this process, region-growing methods are utilized to detect particle bunches at single time steps. Efficient data reduction is essential to enable automated analysis of large data sets as described in the next section, where data reduction methods are steered to the particular requirements of our clustering analysis. Previously, we have described the application of a set of algorithms to automate the data analysis and classification of particle beams in the LWFA simulation data, identifying locations with high density of high energy particles. These algorithms detected high density locations (nodes) in each time step, i.e. maximum points on the particle distribution for only one spatial variable. Each node was correlated to a node in previous or later time steps by linking these nodes according to a pruned minimum spanning tree (PMST). We call the PMST representation 'a lifetime diagram', which is a graphical tool to show temporal information of high dense groups of particles in the longitudinal direction for the time series. Electron bunch compactness was described by another step of the processing, designed to partition each time step, using fuzzy clustering, into a fixed number of clusters.« less