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Friedman, A.

Publications and source records attributed to Friedman, A..

At least 19 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2021

Reduced bandwidth Compton photons from a laser-plasma accelerator using tailored plasma channels

It has been demonstrated experimentally that laser plasma accelerators can produce multi-100 MeV electron bunches with a few percent energy spread, and from these electrons, multi-MeV quasi-monoenergetic photons have been demonstrated based on Compton up-scattering from a counter-propagating laser. This offers the potential of a high-quality, narrow-bandwidth, compact, photon source with broad application. The bandwidth of the resulting photons depends directly on the distribution of the electron bunch and is limited, in particular, by the bunch divergence (i.e., the spread in transverse velocity angle). At the same time, the ability to decelerate electrons after scattering is important to source deployment. We describe a series of plasma structures that expand and then collimate the electron bunch, reducing its divergence and thus reducing the bandwidth of the scattered photons while enabling both high performance scattering and deceleration. Furthermore, these plasma structures are demonstrated in simulations of the accelerator system, showing the potential to reach few-percent photon spread which is important for applications using nuclear resonance fluorescence.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2021

6 MeV novel hybrid (standing wave - traveling wave) photo-cathode electron gun for a THz superradiant FEL

A novel 6 MeV hybrid photo-injector has been designed and constructed, based on a smaller-scale prototype previously built in UCLA’s Particle Beam Physics Laboratory. It has been commissioned at Ariel University in Israel as an on-going collaboration between the two universities. This unique, new generation design provides a radically simpler approach to RF feeding of a gun/buncher system, leading to a much shorter beam via velocity bunching owed to an attached traveling wave section of the photo-injector. This design offers better performance in beam parameters, providing a high quality electron beam, with energy of 6 MeV. The hybrid photo-injector was designed to provide emittance of approximately 3 μm, and pulse duration of 150 fs at up to 1 nC per pulse. The hybrid gun is driven by a SLAC XK5 klystron as the high power RF source, and third harmonic of a ~35 fs IR Laser amplifier (266 nm) to extract electrons from the photo-cathode. The unique electron gun will produce a bunched electron pulse to drive a THz FEL, which will operate at the super-radiant regime, and therefore requires ambitious beam properties. This paper describes the gun and presents experimental results from the gun and its sub-systems, including energy and charge measurements, compared with the design simulations.

150fs↗
DOE OSTI2018

Extending Supernova Spectral Templates for Next-generation Space Telescope Observations

Empirical models of supernova (SN) spectral energy distributions (SEDs) are widely used for SN survey simulations and photometric classifications. The existing library of SED models has excellent optical templates, but limited, poorly constrained coverage of ultraviolet (UV) and infrared (IR) wavelengths. However, both regimes are critical for the design and operation of future SN surveys, particularly at IR wavelengths that will be accessible with the James Webb Space Telescope and the Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope. We create a public repository of improved empirical SED templates using a sampling of Type Ia and core-collapse (CC) photometric light curves to extend the Type Ia parameterized SALT2 model and a set of SN Ib, SN Ic, and SN II SED templates into the UV and near-IR. We apply this new repository of extrapolated SN SED models to examine how future surveys can discriminate between CC and Type Ia SNe at UV and IR wavelengths, and present an open-source software package written in Python, SNSEDextend, that enables users to generate their own extrapolated SEDs.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2018

Design and implementation of a Thomson parabola for fluence dependent energy-loss measurements at the Neutralized Drift Compression eXperiment

The interaction of ion beams with matter includes the investigation of the basic principles of ion stopping in heated materials. An unsolved question is the effect of different, especially higher, ion beam fluences on ion stopping in solid targets. This is relevant in applications such as in fusion sciences. To address this question, a Thomson parabola was built for the Neutralized Drift Compression eXperiment (NDCX-II) for ion energy-loss measurements at different ion beam fluences. The linear induction accelerator NDCX-II delivers 2 ns short, intense ion pulses, up to several tens of nC/pulse, or 1010-1011 ions, with a peak kinetic energy of ~1.1 MeV and a minimal spot size of 2 mm FWHM. For this particular accelerator, the energy determination with conventional beam diagnostics, for example, time of flight measurements, is imprecise due to the non-trivial longitudinal phase space of the beam. In contrast, a Thomson parabola is well suited to reliably determine the beam energy distribution. The Thomson parabola differentiates charged particles by energy and charge-to-mass ratio, through deflection of charged particles by electric and magnetic fields. During first proof-of-principle experiments, we achieved to reproduce the average initial helium beam energy as predicted by computer simulations with a deviation of only 1.4%25. Successful energy-loss measurements with 1 μm thick silicon nitride foils show the suitability of the accelerator for such experiments. The initial ion energy was determined during a primary measurement without a target, while a second measurement, incorporating the target, was used to determine the transmitted energy. The energy-loss was then determined as the difference between the two energies.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2017

Monte Carlo calculation of large and small-angle electron scattering in air

A Monte Carlo method for angle scattering of electrons in air that accommodates the small-angle multiple scattering and larger-angle single scattering limits is introduced. The algorithm is designed for use in a particle-in-cell simulation of electron transport and electromagnetic wave effects in air. The method is illustrated in example calculations.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2017

Efficient Coupling of Monte-Carlo Neutral and Fluid Plasma Models

The objective of this project was to develop an efficient scheme to couple kinetic Monte-Carlo (MC) neutral-species and fluid plasma-(charged-) species codes for the simulation of transport in the outer edge region of magnetic fusion energy (MFE) edge simulation. There was a need for improvement over existing plasma-neutral transport codes, which are either all-fluid, and insufficiently accurate in some important regimes, or very slow due to their use of simple explicit (operator-split) coupling.The resulting capability will be of great value in the interpretation and design of present-day and future MFE plasma devices (e.g., ITER). We developed and demonstrated several new algorithms that can greatly accelerate coupling between numerical code/model compon ents where the coupling introduces numerical “stiffness” and where there is a Monte-Carlo component.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2017

Irradiation of materials with short, intense ion pulses at NDCX-II

Here, we present an overview of the performance of the Neutralized Drift Compression Experiment-II (NDCX-II) accelerator at Berkeley Lab, and report on recent target experiments on beam-driven melting and transmission ion energy loss measurements with nanosecond and millimeter-scale ion beam pulses and thin tin foils. Bunches with around 10 11 ions, 1 mm radius, and 2–30 ns full width at half maximum duration have been created with corresponding fluences in the range of 0.1–0.7 J/cm 2 . To achieve these short pulse durations and mm-scale focal spot radii, the 1.1 MeV [megaelectronvolt (10 6 eV)] He + ion beam is neutralized in a drift compression section, which removes the space charge defocusing effect during final compression and focusing. The beam space charge and drift compression techniques resemble necessary beam conditions and manipulations in heavy ion inertial fusion accelerators. In conclusion, quantitative comparison of detailed particle-in-cell simulations with the experiment plays an important role in optimizing accelerator performance

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2017

3-D simulation codes for EMP E1 formation and propagation

LLNL is developing a suite of modern tools for simulating the generation and propagation of the prompt (E1) electromagnetic pulse (EMP). These include the 3-D EMPulse code, based on particle-in-cell methods and a Cartesian grid in the laboratory frame, and a fast-running companion 3-D code, SHEMP, which employs a vector spherical harmonic decomposition. EMPulse is a comprehensive, first-principles code with full generality and requiring significant computing resources. It tracks Compton electrons directly in the laboratory frame, and includes Ohmic and swarm models for the evolving local conductivity. SHEMP builds on the methods used in Longmire's fast-running CHAP code and in our own CHAP-lite; in those codes, 1-D spherical symmetry is assumed, and the calculation takes advantage of a separation of scales. In SHEMP we seek similar efficiencies in 3-D, incorporating non-spherically-symmetric physics via a pseudospectral approach. We describe these tools and other aspects of our project herein.

45 MILITARY TECHNOLOGY, WEAPONRY, AND NATIONAL DEF↗
DOE OSTI2016

EMPulse, a new 3-D simulation code for EMP formation and propagation

EMPulse is a comprehensive and modern 3-D simulation code for electro-magnetic pulse (EMP) formation and propagation studies, being developed at LLNL under a Laboratory Directed R&D (LDRD) initiative that was launched in the fall of 2014. Furthermore, EMPulse builds upon the open-source Warp particle-in-cell code framework which was developed by members of this team and collaborators at other institutions. Our goal of this endeavor is a new tool, using methods different from those in common use, and enabling the detailed and self-consistent study of multidimensional effects in geometries that have typically been treated only approximately. We describe the underlying Warp framework and its capabilities; the models that have been or are being newly developed and incorporated into EMPulse, tests of these models, and number of approaches to increased computational efficiency that we are studying.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2016

Short-pulse, compressed ion beams at the Neutralized Drift Compression Experiment

We have commenced experiments with intense short pulses of ion beams on the Neutralized Drift Compression Experiment (NDCX-II) at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, with 1-mm beam spot size within 2.5 ns full-width at half maximum. The ion kinetic energy is 1.2 MeV. To enable the short pulse duration and mm-scale focal spot radius, the beam is neutralized in a 1.5-meter-long drift compression section following the last accelerator cell. A short-focal-length solenoid focuses the beam in the presence of the volumetric plasma that is near the target. In the accelerator, the line-charge density increases due to the velocity ramp imparted on the beam bunch. The scientific topics to be explored are warm dense matter, the dynamics of radiation damage in materials, and intense beam and beam-plasma physics including select topics of relevance to the development of heavy-ion drivers for inertial fusion energy. Below the transition to melting, the short beam pulses offer an opportunity to study the multi-scale dynamics of radiation-induced damage in materials with pump-probe experiments, and to stabilize novel metastable phases of materials when short-pulse heating is followed by rapid quenching. First experiments used a lithium ion source; a new plasma-based helium ion source shows much greater charge delivered to the target.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2016

Development and testing of a pulsed helium ion source for probing materials and warm dense matter studies

The neutralized drift compression experiment was designed and commissioned as a pulsed, linear induction accelerator to drive thin targets to warm dense matter (WDM) states with peak temperatures of ∼1 eV using intense, short pulses (∼1 ns) of 1.2 MeV lithium ions. At that kinetic energy, heating a thin target foil near the Bragg peak energy using He{sup +} ions leads to more uniform energy deposition of the target material than Li{sup +} ions. Experiments show that a higher current density of helium ions can be delivered from a plasma source compared to Li{sup +} ions from a hot plate type ion source. He{sup +} beam pulses as high as 200 mA at the peak and 4 μs long were measured from a multi-aperture 7-cm-diameter emission area. Within ±5% variation, the uniform beam area is approximately 6 cm across. The accelerated and compressed pulsed ion beams can be used for materials studies and isochoric heating of target materials for high energy density physics experiments and WDM studies.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2015

Studies of EMP generation using a Lienard-Wiechert formulation, and progress toward a 3-D EMP code

Here, we describe studies of the generation of electro-magnetic pulse (EMP) fields under the idealized conditions of a delta-function gamma pulse, a spherical cap of Compton electrons located at a common radius from the burst, and the absence of the conduction current. Various processes (geomagnetic rotation, drag, and scattering) contribute to the time derivative of the Compton current density, which appears as the source term in the Lienard–Wiechert expression for the radiation field. These processes are considered separately and in combination, and their influences on the waveform of the EMP assessed. Using a separate computational approach, different numerical models of multiple scattering are tested, in an effort to assess the validity of existing codes and earlier results. We also describe plans for and progress toward a comprehensive 3-D EMP code, which is to employ recently developed numerical methods and is to offer a variety of models, including the Lienard–Wiechert formulation described here.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2015

Response to FESAC survey, non-fusion connections to Fusion Energy Sciences. Applications of the FES-supported beam and plasma simulation code, Warp

The Fusion Energy Sciences Advisory Committee’s subcommittee on non-fusion applications (FESAC NFA) is conducting a survey to obtain information from the fusion community about non-fusion work that has resulted from their DOE-funded fusion research. The subcommittee has requested that members of the community describe recent developments connected to the activities of the DOE Office of Fusion Energy Sciences. Two questions in particular were posed by the subcommittee. This document contains the authors’ responses to those questions.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2014

MULTI-COLOR OPTICAL AND NEAR-INFRARED LIGHT CURVES OF 64 STRIPPED-ENVELOPE CORE-COLLAPSE SUPERNOVAE

We present a densely sampled, homogeneous set of light curves of 64 low-redshift (z ≲ 0.05) stripped-envelope supernovae (SNe of Type IIb, Ib, Ic, and Ic-BL). These data were obtained between 2001 and 2009 at the Fred L. Whipple Observatory (FLWO) on Mount Hopkins in Arizona, with the optical FLWO 1.2 m and the near-infrared (NIR) Peters Automated Infrared 1.3 m telescopes. Our data set consists of 4543 optical photometric measurements on 61 SNe, including a combination of U BV RI, U BV r{sup ′}i{sup ′}, and u{sup ′} BV r{sup ′}i{sup ′}, and 1919 JHK{sub s} NIR measurements on 25 SNe. This sample constitutes the most extensive multi-color data set of stripped-envelope SNe to date. Our photometry is based on template-subtracted images to eliminate any potential host-galaxy light contamination. This work presents these photometric data, compares them with data in the literature, and estimates basic statistical quantities: date of maximum, color, and photometric properties. We identify promising color trends that may permit the identification of stripped-envelope SN subtypes from their photometry alone. Many of these SNe were observed spectroscopically by the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA) SN group, and the spectra are presented in a companion paper. A thorough exploration that combines the CfA photometry and spectroscopy of stripped-envelope core-collapse SNe will be presented in a follow-up paper.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2013

THE FAST AND FURIOUS DECAY OF THE PECULIAR TYPE Ic SUPERNOVA 2005ek

We present extensive multi-wavelength observations of the extremely rapidly declining Type Ic supernova (SN Ic), SN 2005ek. Reaching a peak magnitude of M{sub R} = -17.3 and decaying by {approx}3 mag in the first 15 days post-maximum, SN 2005ek is among the fastest Type I supernovae observed to date. The spectra of SN 2005ek closely resemble those of normal SN Ic, but with an accelerated evolution. There is evidence for the onset of nebular features at only nine days post-maximum. Spectroscopic modeling reveals an ejecta mass of {approx}0.3 M{sub Sun} that is dominated by oxygen ({approx}80%), while the pseudo-bolometric light curve is consistent with an explosion powered by {approx}0.03 M{sub Sun} of radioactive {sup 56}Ni. Although previous rapidly evolving events (e.g., SN 1885A, SN 1939B, SN 2002bj, SN 2010X) were hypothesized to be produced by the detonation of a helium shell on a white dwarf, oxygen-dominated ejecta are difficult to reconcile with this proposed mechanism. We find that the properties of SN 2005ek are consistent with either the edge-lit double detonation of a low-mass white dwarf or the iron-core collapse of a massive star, stripped by binary interaction. However, if we assume that the strong spectroscopic similarity of SN 2005ek to other SNe Ic is an indication of a similar progenitor channel, then a white-dwarf progenitor becomes very improbable. SN 2005ek may be one of the lowest mass stripped-envelope core-collapse explosions ever observed. We find that the rate of such rapidly declining Type I events is at least 1%-3% of the normal SN Ia rate.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗